~Only Disney could make sorting trash fun~ UPDATED 12/23

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

After our mission was done it was time to turn in our Kimmuncator to the return bin outside Mexico and move on to Norway.

We looked around a bit and then grabbed a bench overlooking World Showcase Lagoon.

I left and went to wait in line at Kringla Bakery for a Kringla Sweet Almond pretzel.

*Cute story* While I was waiting in line a boy from a school group, and I'm assuming his teacher, were ahead of me. The teacher was asking the boy what he wanted to get for lunch. The bakery mainly sells sweets, but they do have a few deli selections. None that I would call kid-friendly though. The teacher asked the boy if he'd like to get the ham and apple sandwich. The look on his face was priceless. He was shocked! "Ham and apple?!" he said. Then looked at the Norwegian cast member and said "Are you serious? There's apple on the ham sandwich?" "Yep," the CM said. He ended up getting the sandwich. I hope he liked it.

I made my way to where they were seated and we split up the pretzel amongst ourselves.

It was a good pretzel and you can’t go wrong with icing on bread, but I thought it was pretty dry. I’m not sure how fresh it was, but thinking back, if it would have been warm I think it would have been so much better. I’m not sure I’ll be getting it again.

We all were set to ride Maelstrom next, but as soon as my mom and sister saw the Warning sign that said it goes backwards and has a drop, they were out of line in a flash. My dad and I went on ahead without them.

It was my first time riding it and I really liked it. I don’t think the drop is that bad at all, although I go on pretty much anything. I want to go on it again though to catch things I’m sure I missed. One thing I have to say about Norway is they sure have some beautiful people living there. Or maybe the Norwegian Disney recruiter had a specific type they wanted. Blonde and beautiful.

I had to leave you with this picture because I love it. It looks like she’s saying “Hey! I’m walking here!” in a thick New York accent.

Up Next…China!

 

[ChildAtHeart82]

Great update! We tried the pretzel last time we were in Norway too and I thought the same thing about it being dry. Next time we're going to try the school bread because I've read so many good things about it on the DIS! I agree that the drop in Maelstrom isn't that bad. The warnings make it sound way worse than it is.

 

[DisMomAmy]

I don't think I've mentioned this before, but Jace looks sooo much like a little boy at my boys' school! Almost identical!

I'm glad you enjoyed the KP mission - I think they are so fun & yes - very nicely done!

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

Great update! We tried the pretzel last time we were in Norway too and I thought the same thing about it being dry. Next time we're going to try the school bread because I've read so many good things about it on the DIS! I agree that the drop in Maelstrom isn't that bad. The warnings make it sound way worse than it is.

Thanks! The next time I get a free chunk of time I plan on getting caught up on your pre TR. If you get the school bread in Dec. Id love to hear what you thought of it. I've seen pictures and it does look yummy!
I agree about Maelstrom. My mom rode Big Thunder Mountain, and there's no way the drop is worse in Maelstrom.

I don't think I've mentioned this before, but Jace looks sooo much like a little boy at my boys' school! Almost identical!

I'm glad you enjoyed the KP mission - I think they are so fun & yes - very nicely done!

Wow, really? I'll have to tell him he has a twin up north!
Agreed. I can't wait to experience all the missions they have!

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

After leaving Norway, China was next.

We had spent quite a long time in the China pavilion on our previous trip so we didn’t stay long this time, but we did stop to get some egg rolls from Lotus Blossom Café. They were really good! We eat Chinese food a lot and these were on par with some of my favorite Chinese restaurants.

Mulan was out and about. The line was long so we didn’t wait for an autograph, but I enjoyed getting to see her.

My sister hadn’t eaten any of the pretzel or egg rolls (picky eaters – what are ya gonna do? ) so she was getting hungry for Americanized food. The African Outpost was next and they served hot dogs and hamburgers, so she got in line.

The rest of us moseyed around the outdoor shop and then grabbed a table to watch this guy carving some pretty amazing things.

We ended up waiting a good 20-25 minutes before my sister came back and said she had given up. I don’t understand why it was taking so long, there weren’t but 3 or 4 people ahead of her when she got in line, but apparently they were really slow and she decided to wait to find something else.

I hadn’t included the African Outpost in my original goal of eating around the world, so I was still feeling good about how we were doing.

Next was Germany, and I don’t know whether it’s because it was featured in an episode of Full House or not, but it’s my favorite themed country. It’s just beautiful in every direction you look!

We went back and forth on whether we should get a Bratwurst or the Black Forest Cake Roulade. Decisions… Decisions… Well it wasn’t a tough one for me. The chocolate cake of course! My dad got in line at Sommerfest while the rest of us checked out the stores. I loved these clocks!

When we were done looking around I went back to check and see if my dad was still waiting in line, but he wasn’t. There were so many people the seating area was filled. I didn’t see him sitting anywhere. I walked around the country twice before I spotted him on a bench closer to the lagoon. This is what I found…

Yep… he couldn’t wait until we found him and had already eaten half the cake! (FYI: up until this point I had always quickly snapped a picture as soon as we got food. To my dad’s dismay I would always make him let me take a picture of his food before he could start eating. This time… I guess I just wasn’t quick enough.) I took my few bites of the cake and it was delicious. Really rich though so I was even more glad to be sharing.

Up Next...Italy

 

[mickeystoontown]

I love the "I'm walking here" picture! So cute!

Too bad the pretzel was dry and not quite what you were expecting. For some reason, we've never tried any of the goodies from the Norway sweet shop.

Germany was featured on Full Hosue? I didn't remember that. I remember them shooting at the Grand Floridian. Lacey used to watch every episode of Full House.

 

[Cory's Gal]

Awww...last day in the parks is always so bittersweet...LOVE the pics Alicia of Jace and your dad holding up Spaceship Earth! I love trying to get pictures like that!! Rylan is so adorable playing on the playgrounds, we never did get around to doing that! My kiddos loved doing the Waste Management activity too. I think it was one of Gabe's favorite things, he LOVES garbage trucks!! So much fun in World Showcase too, I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE all the food pics!!! YUMMY!!! The nachos, the margarita, the pretzel, the cake...I am so hungry just thinking about it all!! We were going to eat at Lotus Blossom too on our last night but Cory decided on a brat and I went for fish n' chips, but those egg rolls look super yummy! I will have to try them the next time!! Looking forward to hearing about the rest of the "world"!!

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

I love the "I'm walking here" picture! So cute!

Too bad the pretzel was dry and not quite what you were expecting. For some reason, we've never tried any of the goodies from the Norway sweet shop.

Germany was featured on Full Hosue? I didn't remember that. I remember them shooting at the Grand Floridian. Lacey used to watch every episode of Full House.

Full House was greatness! It was the episode that Danny proposed to Vicky. I think it was the same episode that Uncle Jesse and Joey did a radio show from inside the aquarium at Coral Reef and Michelle became princess for the day.
I have all the Full House books too. I was a nerdy child.

Awww...last day in the parks is always so bittersweet...LOVE the pics Alicia of Jace and your dad holding up Spaceship Earth! I love trying to get pictures like that!! Rylan is so adorable playing on the playgrounds, we never did get around to doing that! My kiddos loved doing the Waste Management activity too. I think it was one of Gabe's favorite things, he LOVES garbage trucks!! So much fun in World Showcase too, I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE all the food pics!!! YUMMY!!! The nachos, the margarita, the pretzel, the cake...I am so hungry just thinking about it all!! We were going to eat at Lotus Blossom too on our last night but Cory decided on a brat and I went for fish n' chips, but those egg rolls look super yummy! I will have to try them the next time!! Looking forward to hearing about the rest of the "world"!!

Thanks Beth!
I'm actually afraid Jace will be disappointed if Waste Managment is gone by the time we get back.
Thanks. I'm loving looking back on the food pics!

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

We left Germany and continued to make our way around World Showcase.

Italy was next!

Italy is the country I would most like to visit in real life, but it’s also the most disappointing Pavilion to me. Its beautiful yes, but the few little shops are rather boring and they don’t even have a quick service. I’m really happy with Via Napoli opening up, and would love to try it on an upcoming trip, but would it kill them to have a quick service pizza place there?

Jace saw something he wanted though. Gelato!

I think it was his first time having gelato and he said it was really really good! He’s somewhat of an ice cream aficionado because he eats it so much , so I took his word for it. After just having rich chocolate cake, I passed on sampling it, but was happy someone in our party had gotten something so we were still on task with our mission.

We were halfway around the world now and to the American Pavilion.

My sister knew they’d have food she ate there! She got a hamburger and fries, and Rylan got a hot dog.

We were all soaking up the nice air conditioning in Liberty Inn when my dad went outside to check out what was going on. He called me on my cell and told me I should come check out the The Voices of Liberty. I had forgotten all about them! I hadn’t made a big deal about trying to make the shows or performers in each country because I knew we wanted to make our way around at our own pace, but I knew I’d like The Voices of Liberty. Just like the Kim Possible mission floored me with how great it was, this did too! Wow! Those guys are amazing. I videotaped a few songs and enjoy watching them back. It was a highlight of that day for sure. I’m glad I caught them and will make it a point to see the show from the beginning next time.

I also caught Fife and Drum as Jace waited in line at Kid Cot.

Up Next...Japan and Morocco

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

Next was Japan.

(I don't know any of these people although they look like they're posing )

We got to sit and hear these guys for a few minutes before moving on to the shops.

I'm excited to do Pick-a-Pearl in the future.

I headed to the Kaki Gori stand while the others listened to a Japanese storyteller.

I remember waiting in line a long time. If I wasn’t trying to get something in every country I would have moved on, but I was on a mission so I hung in there and tried to take in the sights and do some people watching. When I got back everyone sampled the cherry Kaki gori and thought it was really good. I ate most of it because it was great to cool down with after standing in line for so long.

We moved on to Morocco next. I had never really went around to explore Morocco before since we always seemed to pass over it. I really loved getting to look around.

I really wanted to buy a genie lamp that I saw in one of the stores. I’m pretty sure it was for incense, but I’m just gonna call it a genie lamp. It’s on the top of my purchase list for next time!

By this time, my mom, dad and I were wanting some real food, and I had heard great things about the Tangierine Café, so I was happy to try something there.

My dad was pushing for lamb, but the falafel wrap sounded more appetizing to me. It came with a side of cous cous and lentil salad.

I thought the cous cous and lentil salad were pretty blah. No taste. On the other hand I loved the falafel wrap! It was so yummy with the ranch type of dressing on it. However, my dad and mom thought it was pretty gross. My dad was hungry so he ate most of it, and when my mom went to get coffee she came back with this!

Yes, it was just like it looked, beyond delicious!! I was a bit perturbed because I knew France was next and the Boulangerie Patisserie was calling my name. We had gotten two things in Morocco and were filling up pretty quickly.

 

[ChildAtHeart82]

Great update! I've decided from reading all of your updates that we really need to spend some more time exploring World Showcase. I've taken time in each country before, but it's been a while and we didn't really walk around much in each country on DW's first trip.

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

Some beautiful topiaries outside France.

We got there just as the Serveur Amusant acrobats were finishing up their act.

The crowd quickly dispersed and left France pretty vacant. This was another country I had never gotten a chance to explore and was really impressed with all the details.

This is where we started to rush though. We had been in the park for a long time and everyone was a bit tired. I was still determined to finish what I had started, so even with a full belly, I got in the long line that made its way out the door of the Boulangerie Patisserie.

What brilliantly sumptuous dessert did I get you ask…..

Yep.

A diet coke. My family had abandoned me on my quest to eat around the world and I couldn’t finish anything on my own.

We met Aurora on our way out.

continued in next post...

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

We made our way to the United Kingdom next.

We hit the Kid Cot station first.

There were these really rude kids trying to cut the line. My sister politely told them there was a line, but they just stared at her dumbfounded. We were getting closer and they hadn’t moved so she told them again. They just kinda walked off towards people that I'm assuming were their parents. I was just watching it all happen, but freaking out because I didn't want to be in the middle of a scuffle with these parents! But all was well and we walked around a bit. The Beatles tribute band was performing. I would have loved to stay a while and listen, but again we were tired.

So I was left with Yorkshire County Fish Shop to get something to eat. Looking back I think I should have checked the shops for a candy or something, but I didn’t think of it at the time. I had gotten the shortbread cookies there on my last trip and they were pretty plain and gross. That was the only option I figured I had, since I was definitely too full for the fish, and I didn’t want to waste the calories on something I knew I didn’t like. So it was here in the United Kingdom that our attempt at eating around the world really ended. (If you don't count a diet coke in France as failing of course ) I almost got the darn cookies too, but then I remembered that Canada didn’t have a quick service either so I would have eaten the cookies just to be disappointed when I missed out on getting something in the very last country.

Loved this Mickey Mouse hopscotch!

Sleepy smile

Canada was beautiful as always.

We took plenty of pictures of these gorgeous flowers and Jace and Rylan were able to finish up their masks at the last Kid Cot.

My dad was kind of M.I.A. for awhile and then when he reappeared we found out he had bought these.

MAPLE CREAM COOKIES!!! I tasted one and it was to die for! Soooo delicious! A must-get next time we go.

But look at that. Our party of 7 ended up tasting food/drink from all around World Showcase EXCEPT for the United Kingdom. Grrrr. I could kick myself for not getting those stupid plain Wafer cookies. But oh well. I’m over it… kinda, sorta I got to try so much more food than I normally would have, and I know what to get, and what not to get, on our next trip.

Our tour around World Showcase was complete!

We caught the bus back to CBR and rested up a bit.

But there was no way we weren’t going to Downtown Disney on our last night.

 

[DisMomAmy]

Wow... Lots of updates!! Sounds like a fun mission to have tried, even if you didn't accomplish eating in every country!

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

Wow... Lots of updates!! Sounds like a fun mission to have tried, even if you didn't accomplish eating in every country!

It was a lot of fun! I think my family enjoyed it to!

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

I had been telling Jace for months leading up to the trip that he should save all his money to be able to make a remote control car at RideMakerz. He’d been asking about it every day of the vacation and I had been promising we’d make it there eventually. So when we got to Downtown Disney we went straight for the shop.

He loved it!! This made his trip. He was on cloud 9! I think it may have even surpassed The Waste Management attraction he loved. It was a really cool shop, and although it was quite expensive, I know it was worth it to Jace.

They even had a kiddie area with already done cars and coloring sheets for little ones. Rylan enjoyed that.

Hidden Mickey

The finished product and one very happy boy!

We walked around a bit afterwards.

This looks like fun. I wonder how long it will be around.

I’ve heard stories and seen videos of the Adventurers Club and it sounds like something I would have loved. I’m sad it’s gone. I wonder why Disney would close it down if they didn’t have any plans for the space. It’s just a sad reminder now.

Then we were ready to make our way to where we would be eating that night. I know… I know… how could these people be hungry after the day they had eating around World Showcase?! Well…we were. The kids passed McDonalds and wouldn’t have it any other way. That’s what they wanted. So we split up and my sister took the kids there. My mind was set on Wolfgang Puck Express. I was so excited to try the BBQ chicken pizza! And let me say it did not disappoint!! My mom, dad and I split that and the Caesar salad (which was also good), and a chocolate chip brownie, which was phenomenal!!

Everything at Wolfgang Puck’s Express was so fresh and delicious. I’m so going there again! Did I mention our waiter looked like an Abercrombie and Fitch model? Because he did!! Bonus points for Wolfgang Pucks.

We took a look around the Art of Disney store and then met up with my sister and the kids at the Team Mickey Athletic Club store.

We headed back to our resort and then to Port Royale where we got some last minute souvenirs and refilled our mugs. The kids got snacks and then we headed back to our rooms for our last night in Disney.

 

[littlelovebug]

Hi Alicia! I can't believe you've made it all the way to the last day of your trip report! I have to admit I gave up on mine because it was too sad to think about the trip when we don't know if/when we'll go back! Now I'm fantasizing about going the week before Thanksgiving next year. I doubt it will happen for several reasons...but mostly because we are trying to buy a house (a foreclosure that will need some work) and I doubt I could get off work. A girl can dream, right? Maybe thinking about another trip will inspire me to finish my TR! I'll have to get caught up on yours now too!

Jen

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

Hi Alicia! I can't believe you've made it all the way to the last day of your trip report! I have to admit I gave up on mine because it was too sad to think about the trip when we don't know if/when we'll go back! Now I'm fantasizing about going the week before Thanksgiving next year. I doubt it will happen for several reasons...but mostly because we are trying to buy a house (a foreclosure that will need some work) and I doubt I could get off work. A girl can dream, right? Maybe thinking about another trip will inspire me to finish my TR! I'll have to get caught up on yours now too!

Jen

Hey Jen!

I’m sorry to hear that you won’t be finishing your TR. You take such amazing photos! But I understand what you mean about it being a reminder that the trip is over. I’m not sure when we’ll be back either, although I’m hoping for a late 2010, early 2013 trip.

A new house sounds exciting! I hope everything works out and you get to go back to Disney soon!!

I plan on finishing my report right after posting this. It’s time. I’ve been procrastinating and I’m sure I’ve lost all my readers. But it’ll be cathartic to finish it before 2010 is over!

Alicia

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

Today was our last day in Disney. I woke up at 7:30 and finished packing away some last minute items. My mom and I got dressed and headed to Old Port Royale to fill our mugs. When we got back we had cereal and breakfast bars in the room.

My sister and the kids went to the beach area in front of our room and played on the play area and in the sand.

I told them what Pete says at the end of every DIS Unplugged podcast, “Stay out of the damn lakes!” Did they listen….




















Nooooooooo…….

If you haven’t heard, there have been cases of amoebas killing kids in Orlando lakes.

They were warned!

After the kids were finished playing, they came back and changed. We packed up the van and were out of the room at 11 a.m.

We drove over to Old Port Royale for one last Disney lunch.

My dad got a Turkey B.L.T.

My mom got the Breakfast Platter.

And I got the Chicken Nugget Basket.

My sister got a cheese pizza and one of these yummy treats for the road.

We left Disney property and were on our way home from a fantastic vacation!

Of course there was one more stop we wanted to make...

... as if we didn't eat enough in Disney.

The End!

 

[Peter Pan Fan 22]

Here are the souvenirs I bought.

My scrapbook…. which I’m only half-way done.
A Mickey figurine
A Caribbean Beach pin
A Hollywood Studios slate
Caramel Popcorn for a co-worker
A Figment plush

Final thoughts:

- Jace did plenty of pennies in the penny press machine. This turned out to be one of his favorite things to do on the trip. He’s done these in the past, but really got into it this time. I think 10 is probably the perfect age for it.

- We'll definitely be trying out the Akershus breakfast in Epcot on our next trip. Time is so important in Disney, and waiting as long as you have to wait to see the princesses takes up valuable park time. It would totally be worth it to spend the money on the breakfast and get to see the princesses.

- The buses were a pain. We had a pretty similar experience with them at the Fort Wilderness cabins, so I don't know if it's the norm to wait so long for them or if we've just had bad luck. Hopefully the bus service gets better.

- I really wish they wouldn't have gotten rid of resort specific merchandise. I would have liked a Caribbean Beach t-shirt, but all the Clearance rack had was a few XX-Large.

- April is a great time to go to the parks!! The lines were never really long and Flower and Garden was spectacular!

- Get the photopass cd!! I'm so silly. I wish I had done more research. I thought $99 (or whatever it was) sounded like a lot of money considering we'd be taking plenty of pictures on our own. But when we began to look online at the photopass pics we wanted to purchase, we ended up spending $67 for the 4 photos we bought. All the others are lost forever, and there were some really good ones we would have liked to have. Dufus me didn't think that my sister, mom and I could have each paid $33 and gotten the cd.

- If you want a good spot for the fireworks, grab it early!! I underestimated the time needed for scouting out a good spot.

-The tea at the Grand Floridian was worth every penny! We enjoyed ourselves immensely!!