SSR Monkey Live @ SSR through 5/7/11

[SSRmonkey]

Hello everybody! I'm back at SSR for the week with my "parents" and am so excited to be here. The weather is beautiful--about 86 degrees right now. Only about 30 degrees warmer than home. :

Saturday night we stayed in Daytona Beach. We got up early on Sunday and didn't think our room would be ready so we stopped at one of the outlets. Then we went to our favorite pretzel place--Wetzel's Pretzels for lunch. We headed to SSR and found that our room was ready. We are in the Paddock, right next to Congress Park. The room is great, no complaints at all--especially after the place we stayed in Daytona--we have to find somewhere else to stay the next time!

We unpacked and then headed to Epcot to see some of the flowers. We got FP for Test Track and then went to Captain Eo. Mom was really excited to see it, but it wasn't as cool as she remembered it being--it was just about 20 years ago that she saw it last. It was just about as cheesy as the mac and cheese in France. My travelling companion Koala reminds me of Hooter though. And the sporadic singing and dancing kinda reminded me of Glee--who just randomly bursts into song? Anyway, after that we walked right on to Figment and then went to TT.

We headed back to SSR by way of Earl of Sandwich. It was delicious! Then we went to the pool for a bit and got ready to go to MK--they were open till 3am!!

Even though we had our car we thought we would try taking the bus to MK since the transportation and ticket center and monorail/boat could be avoided. It took a bit to get there but that was only because we waited about 15 minutes for the bus to show up. It was smooth sailing after that. As we got to the park, Wishes had just started. We worked our way over to Pirates which was a very short wait. Then we watched the Main Street Electrical Parade and enjoyed a rice krispie treat (with sprinkles!!). After that we went to Buzz Lightyear and Mom got her best score ever--she broke 100,000!! I think that was from one lucky hit though. Then we went to Pooh! The new queue line is awesome. It was tough for Mom and Dad to pull me away from the pumpkin patch and the bee hives. And Koala started licking the wall of honey. Finally he realized that it wasn't real--it only took about 5 minutes. We had our own hunny pot to ride in and the heffalump blew a smoke ring right in my face. I don't appreciate second hand smoke.

We headed over to Thunder Mountain Railroad, got in the line and then they told us it was closed. No big deal--we will go back probably tomorrow.

We got in after 1am and slept in this morning. We got some lunch and will probably head to Epcot this afternoon. I will post pictures later!

 

[Harlemgirl720]

Monkey hope you are having a great time with your parents. Looking forward for your daily updates.

 

[dvc at last !]

I am in for your daily TR - love TR's !

Have a great vacation and keep us informed !

 

[helenk]

I can not wait for yet another humerous report from SSR Monkey. I hope you enjoy your trip.

 

[mouseaider]

I love trip reports.

And seeing we are new members at SSR, it makes it more interesting.

I'm gonna sit back and relax waiting for more.

 

[Tinks "SS"]

yahoo!! A new TR from SSR monkey!! Me and my youngest are so excited to have another one!

 

[SSRmonkey]

After some relaxing at the pool this afternoon we headed to Big River Grill on the Boardwalk for dinner. Dad had a burger, Mom had her second caesar salad for the day and I had grilled cheese. I was going to have an adult beverage, but I got carded...I left my ID at home thinking my wrinkles and receding hairline speak for themselves, but apparently not. The waitress said she's always had a problem determining the age of monkeys. Not to fear--when she wasn't looking Dad shared his beverage with me.

I decided it was time to work off some of that grilled cheese, so I started working on my high kicks.

We walked over to Epcot. Mom and Dad wanted to check out the flowers so we headed toward France. I was trying to dance and sing like Lumiere until Sleeping Beauty told me I was disturbing her character greeting. I think she was just jealous because I was getting more attention than her.

Koala thought the perfume store smelled really bad--he apparently doesn't know what he smells like.

I needed some new shoes so I tried these ones in Morocco. Cute, I know, but not very comfortable. And because they are made of glass I'm not sure how practical they are.

In Japan, Koala and I ran into "The Slayer of Vanity". We definitely needed his help, so after a short therapy session he posed for a picture. He looks a little scary, but he gave us some really good advice.

We thought it was time for dessert and I couldn't decide between chocolate covered marshmallows drizzled with caramel or a chocolate peanut butter cookie with caramel. Lucky for me I was able to get both. I shared them with the squirrel that was running around the bench. Hopefully chocolate doesn't have the same effect on squirrels that it does on cats and dogs or I might need a lawyer.

Mickey and Minnie were hanging out in America.

I also ran into Donald--if you look carefully in the second picture you'll see me falling off the sign--perhaps I had too much of Dad's adult beverage.

My salute to America (sans fireworks--the security guard confiscated them at the gate).

We decided it was time to head to TT again and we got FP for about an hour later. So we headed to Soarin. It was too busy so we went to Nemo instead. Anyone know why they don't have fast passes for Nemo? I think it would be a great idea. They could just call them sushi passes.

While in the FP line for TT we saw the 1970's crash test video. The guy in the film looks a lot like Steve Carrell. I wonder if he will go back to making demo videos now that he's done with The Office.

We ran in to Hooter--do you see the resemblance with Koala?

Tomorrow we are planning on heading to DHS first thing to get in our first TSM ride! I can't wait!!

 

[Cee]

Yay! SSRMonkey! We love your trip reports. The "high kick" was impressive. Don't blow a hammy!

 

[LIFERBABE]

 

[SSRmonkey]

Thanks for the advice, Cee. I always stretch before working on my kicks. In fact, my evil cat Chloe and I have been working out at home together. I think she still has some work to do...

This morning we headed to DHS after sleeping through the alarm. Oops! We still made it just after rope drop and went to TSM to get FP. We got them for 11:10 so then we walked through One Man's Dream. I like the upgrades!

Dad convinced us to go on Tower of Terror for the first time. Let's just say it's a good thing Koala had used the restroom before the ride. And he was a little disappointed that there weren't vampires--he thought the Twilight Zone had something to do with the Twilight trilogy.

We wandered around for a bit and then went to use our FP at TSM. We pretty much walked right through and were in and out within 10 minutes! Awesome!! I got my best score ever--I've been practicing with the Wii at home. It's not quite as realistic, but better than nothing!

We hit Subway for lunch and are planning to head to a couple of the outlets while it's really hot this afternoon. We need to do some laundry, so I think there's some pool time in our future too!

We got another TSM FP before we left the park so we will head back there later to catch TSM and Fantasmic--it will be our first time at Fantasmic, I'm excited!! I'm going to ask Dad to get me some big earmuffs, I don't really like the sound of fireworks, but enjoy the sights!

More later with pictures!

 

[franandaj]

Love SSRMonkey TRs! Just in time too! It will get me all excited for my trip next week!

 

[Disney Princess]

SSRMonkey we love your trip reports! It sounds like it has been a fun trip so far. You better lay off those adult beverages so you don't have another fall! I can't wait to read/see more.

 

[nolanboys]

SSR Monkey - glad for another trip report. Can't wait to show my boys the pictures when they get home. Keep them coming!

 

[Chellymouse]

Hello SSRMonkey! Lovin' your TR so far! We are just going to miss you this year! DH and I are heading to our Disney home on Friday 12+1 next week! DH is a bit freaked about the day we are flying.... Can't wait to read more!

 

[SSRmonkey]

Boy am I glad we didn't go to a park this afternoon. It was really hot today. After lunch we did some shopping at some of the golf stores in the area. I found some really awesome plaid shorts, but Mom said no. That's ok, I'll just get them from the internet when we get home. (I love eBay!)

We came back and loaded up laundry and went to the pool. I couldn't believe it, but all the washers and dryers were empty! Koala went swimming and then came in to check on the laundry. It was so cold in the laundry room that he decided to go for a spin in the dryer. I wouldn't recommend that to anyone at home, but he sure did warm up quickly and he's much softer and fluffier now.

Once all the laundry was dry we went to get some dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings. Then it was back to DHS for TSM. We literally walked right on. A quick tip--if you are travelling in a group that totals an even number (2, 4, 6, etc) you can skip the rest of the line by telling the CM who collects your FP that you are a group of two. So Koala and I rode together and Mom and Dad rode together. We were in our car and shooting targets within less than 3 minutes. It was awesome! And we got our highest score ever by figuring out some of the tricks.

After that we headed to see some of my favorites from TV.

I had a lot of explainin to do.

Ok, this is supposed to be Michael Landon, but I think it looks like David Hasselhoff. All he needs is a buoy, red shorts, and a slow motion camera.

I love Betty White--she let me give her a smooch (I just needed a little boost from mom).

I asked Bill Cosby where he was hiding the Jello pudding--from his lack of response I guess he doesn't want to share. I'm going to Wal Mart to get some of my own.

Koala really wanted to audition for American Idol, but they said they only take humans. I'm going to try to get a hold of Simon Cowell and see if I can convince him to start an animal based American Idol. Or maybe Koala will have to go on America's Got Talent. Bonus--he might get to see "The Hoff" in person.

It was about 8:05 and we headed to Fantasmic. By the time we got there it was standing room only. So we decided not to see it tonight. My paws were tired from walking all day and Koala was whining because he was really wanted a Snickers after seeing Betty White.

I got into a bit of a pickle...I thought this fire alarm was fake. Little did I know, it sets off the fire hydrants all along the Streets of America...oops! We got out of there really fast--no one wants to smell a wet monkey!

On the way out, we stopped at the Banana Co--I think this would be the perfect place for me to work at DHS!

We're going to go over to DTD for a bit and then it's off to bed. I can't wait for my adventures tomorrow!

 

[dgaston]

Here's another one for Nemo -- passes for the halibut!

 

[SSRmonkey]

I like the way you think dgaston!

We got up on time today and headed to MK. First things first we hopped on TMR. Not only was it a walk on, we rode it three times in a row and didn't even have to get off between our second and third trips! And we got a FP to use later!

Koala was a little upset because the baby possums that usually swing from one of the trees weren't there. The momma possum was there--the kids must have been in school.

Then we went to HM. The changes in the queue line were awesome! It was pretty much a walk on too so I'll have to go back and do some investigating of the queue.

It's been a while since we did It's a Small World, so we checked that out. For as much time as they put into convincing you that it's a small world, I think they could fast forward the ride a little. It's really long! But I got to see my favorite part. I love the hula girls. I got the one on the end's phone number. I'm going to try to get her to come to my birthday party.

The Koalas made Koala thirsty for some Fosters! And that guy in the background...not on the guest list to my party.

We walked over to Buzz Lightyear. Dad did some research and found out where to shoot to get really high scores. Mom got another record (for her) and Dad broke 200,000. We rode that twice in a row too!

Then we headed to the Laugh Floor. It was really good today. I tried another joke, but didn't make it in the show. Here goes: Where does Mike Wazowski like to go to breakfast? Eye Hop of course! Well, I thought it was funny.

On our way back across the park we saw the celebration parade.

Woody was waving at me!

Once I saw Chip and Dale I thought it was time to get out of there! Some of you may remember my past experiences with Chip and Dale. We do NOT get along.

Koala and I got out of the sun for a bit outside the Hall of Presidents. I think Disney bought these chairs from Cracker Barrell.

We went on TMR again and then took the boat over to Tom Sawyer Island. I found some gunpower. Perfect for making the fireworks for my Salute to America. That may be happening later this evening at SSR if I stay home this afternoon--it takes a lot of planning believe it or not.

Koala was just as excited to find some whiskey. Not quite a replacement for Fosters, but he said it would tide him over for now.

I think Mom and Dad are going to head to the pool for a bit. It seems hotter today than it did yesterday, but supposedly it's cooler. I'm going to stay here and work on my Salute to America. Anyone have Sam Eagle's phone number? I think I could use his help.

I think it's a Wetzel's Pretzel night for dinner and then we might go to play mini golf over by the Boardwalk. And there might be some time for ice cream at Beaches and Cream too! So much to do, so little time!

 

[SSRmonkey]

I forgot to mention my lunch experience. We went to the Olive Garden (or "The Big OG" as Koala says). Please keep in mind while you are discussing things with your lunch companions, you may be overheard by others in the restaurant. Case in point--there was a guy talking about how he was calling around to local vetrinarians asking if they would put his dog down if he wasn't sick. Then he proceeded to talk about how he couldn't imagine taking his dog to the ASPCA and having him spend his last days locked up in a cage. Really?!?!? This is NOT what I want to hear at lunch. Koala started singing that Sarah Mclachlan song, "Angel" that's on the ASPCA commercials. I was so sad I couldn't even eat my mint at the end of the meal. It was enough to take the happy of the happiest place on earth. I wasn't eavesdropping, but if you're going to talk about putting your dog to sleep, please use an "inside voice".

Koala told me there was a Buddy Valastro (Cake Boss) look alike at the pool this afternoon. He asked him if he could make him a cake, but he said he was on vacation too. Understandable. I just hope he's available for my birthday party. Him and DJ Paulie D.

Off to DTD! Stay tuned for information regarding my Salute to America. I made good progress this afternoon.

 

[Chellymouse]

Looks like you and Koala are having tons of fun! If you manage to get your fireworks off, please take some pics!!

 

[DiznyDi]

Great report SSR Monkey. We're headed to the World tomorrow. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for you.