Terra Nova Guy and the Raiders of the Lost Park - an August 2018 TR *COMPLETE* 4/28

So here is Brianna’s Elsa drawing we got in Disney Springs

Very nice!

And this is Katie’s Lilo & Stitch drawing we picked up at Epcot.

I like this one better too.

We sat in the shade of a tree near Town Square Theater. We thought we might move out closer to the street later, but it was so hot, we just stayed back and let the crowd fill in around us. The view was still OK and we enjoyed the parade.

Never underestimate shade for a parade.

Since we were already next to Town Square Theater, we figured it was a good time for the girls to meet Tinkerbell. The wait was only about 10 minutes, which surprised me since the parade had just finished up.

Lucky brake on the wait for Tinkerbell.

But to be honest, I don’t ever remember seeing Casey’s without a crowd.

Me either.

After waiting a long time for the food, only to have it wrong, I have to admit I was a little irritated and made that known to the server.

Sorry about this. I'm feeling your frustration.

Anyway, we go on. The Fantasy Faire show was happening at the Castle. We watched the Tangled and Frozen part, but it was just too hot to stand in the Hub for the whole show. More heat means no pictures apparently. Sorry, this update is getting text heavy.

I've never seen this parade. When we went in May 2017 I found myself taking less and less pictures due to the heat. Sometimes I would snap a picture with my phone just to document where we went.

Official Princess Countdown: Merida – 11 of 11 ✔

Congrats! I've never met Merida but would love too.

It’s just something the girls like doing, and I am happy to go along with it. I know one day the girls won’t be travelling with me and the trips will be very different then. I was proud we were able to accomplish it this time though because it’s the first time we’ve done it without having a Princess meal booked (like CRT or Akershus).

I think this is a great tradition. You'll be able to look back over the years to see the girls with the Princesses.
 
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Those turned out nicely. I bit more basic that I'd pictured, but well done!

We arrived just before parade start time (at 2:00) and were already melting.

This bodes well not.

but it was so hot, we just stayed back and let the crowd fill in around us

"Hey Mom, are those Canadians sitting over there?"

But to be honest, I don’t ever remember seeing Casey’s without a crowd.

Me neither.

The service was very slow (yes, it was busy, but even once I had ordered it took longer to get our food than previous guests)

The service IS slow. I think it's inherent to the chaos of the set up.

The corn dog nuggets were soggy and cold.

Too bad. I know that Liesa swears by those things.

Yes, I do!

Aw, man. That really sucks, Jeff. I'm so sorry. I love them and they've always been piping hot and crisp for me.

I also tried their mint julep lemonade slushie. I didn’t really care for it. The mint and lemonade just didn’t work for me.

Sounds like a good combo to me, but different. I'd try that.

She’s my favourite because I actually lived in Scotland for a year so I feel a sort of connection to her.

I didn't know that! Nice. I"m 1/4 Scotch and have been once. Loved it!

She’s also the only princess I ever get a picture with by myself

Which is almost a proposal. Right PK?

Official Disney Princess Meet Challenge Complete!

Woot!!!!

I was proud we were able to accomplish it this time though because it’s the first time we’ve done it without having a Princess meal booked (like CRT or Akershus).

And that a win for your wallet. Which is now cleared for more spending on other Disney crap.

1. What is the last ride we do on this trip?

2. I get a frozen treat this night. What is it? (Hint: I have not had this treat yet on the trip. It is not a Dole Whip).

1. BTMRR

2. Mickey bar or PP float
 
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I'm a fan of rum and Crown Royal (not mixed together).
You and I could probably be drinking buddies than :p

Didn't see that one coming.
Anything princess related the girls will be into it. *sigh*

yeah -- the cost multiplied by 4 is why I haven't done any parties or dessert parties either. Can't stomach dropping $400 for a party when I already have APs...and the dessert parties, no way my daughters can eat or drink anything close to $10 each -- so spending $40+ for each of them aint happening.
Ditto. I'm happy to have done the Halloween party, but won't do it with a family again. Cost is not worth the risk of a bad/crowded night.

I've NEVER seen this thing.
It's just a bit off the main trail. On your right if you're walking from Africa to Asia. They usually have a photographer stationed there.

Four people at $20 a piece is likely more than you end up spending at Via Napoli. ouch!
Exactly. Which is why I wanted to make sure I mentioned that to anyone thinking of paying OOP. I was happy to use my QS credits for it (better value than a $10 chicken nugget meal) but would have been upset paying that much OOP, especially because we left so much food on the table.
 


Sitting through the parade in the middle of summer takes some real effort. It's hard to smile and wave at the characters when you feel like you're melting....
Sorry to hear Casey's was a hassle. You would think since it's pretty basic fare it wouldn't take so long, but I've never seen that restaurant empty.

Merida is pretty awesome, glad you were able to meet her and finish the princess challenge! I think when my daughter gets a little older we'll have to take on that challenge ourselves.
And now I'm very jealous you got to live in Scotland for a year! It's on my bucket list of places to visit.
 
And yet I like this one better.
Me too. Definitely a cuter drawing.

I'm not a parade guy... but even I think this parade is worth seeing at least once.
I enjoy the parades. Of course this is the only one left now and I couldn't say I had been to Disney and not seen a parade. I just wish it wasn't in the hottest part of the day.

Please tell me you asked at least one CM what time the 3pm parade was!
:laughing: I did not, but have thought of doing it just to see their reaction.

Laziness? Procrastination? Poor planning?
Melting.

Like the shots with the Halloween decorations in the foreground. :thumbsup2
Thanks. I was trying something different. It kind of worked. I have lots of shots with just the floats from previous trips. And I'm not usually far enough back to get any decoration in the foreground.

Unless you beat the crowd in? :confused3
Quite possible. I think we had talked about it beforehand and pretty much made a beeline for it as soon as we saw the Mickey/Minnie balloon. Perhaps others didn't realize that float was the end right away.

So... how was that?
I've had hot dogs at Casey's and... well... I found it disappointing. Was intrigued by the mac n cheese but... thought it wouldn't work. So?
It was OK. Better than a plain hot dog. But nothing earth shattering. I would still get one again if that was an option and I was in the mood for a hot dog. But I wouldn't go out of my way for it.

And yet... I typically don't get angry if an order is wrong. It's what it done about it that matters. BUT! If you're already annoyed... then yeah, that's going to make it worse.
Yeah, it wasn't my finest moment. I wouldn't think of myself as irate, but definitely irritated. To their credit, they did fix it fairly quickly.

Actually .... redhead = hot
It's a rule.
::yes::
 
I enjoy the parades. Of course this is the only one left now and I couldn't say I had been to Disney and not seen a parade. I just wish it wasn't in the hottest part of the day.

I've seen others. This one is much better IMHO.

:laughing: I did not, but have thought of doing it just to see their reaction.

::yes:: I'm considering it too.




Thanks. I was trying something different. It kind of worked. I have lots of shots with just the floats from previous trips. And I'm not usually far enough back to get any decoration in the foreground.

It worked. :)

It was OK. Better than a plain hot dog. But nothing earth shattering. I would still get one again if that was an option and I was in the mood for a hot dog. But I wouldn't go out of my way for it.

Thanks. I think I'll pass unless we happen to be right there.

Yeah, it wasn't my finest moment. I wouldn't think of myself as irate, but definitely irritated. To their credit, they did fix it fairly quickly.

Disney. It'll do that to you. That and the heat. Maybe more the heat.
 


I like this one better too.
Me too. It's a cuter drawing.

Lucky brake on the wait for Tinkerbell.
We may have beat the crowds in since we had already talked about it and went straight there right when the parade when ending.

Congrats! I've never met Merida but would love too.
Thanks! Merida is actually a fun meet. She's always been very talkative and funny.

I think this is a great tradition. You'll be able to look back over the years to see the girls with the Princesses.
Yes. it certainly takes a lot of time to meet them all, but I think it's worth it.
I keep thinking of doing some sort of collage for each trip but I'm not that talented.
 
Glad you accomplished the princess mission! And nice parade photos :)

1. What is the last ride we do on this trip? BTMRR

2. I get a frozen treat this night. What is it? (Hint: I have not had this treat yet on the trip. It is not a Dole Whip). Mickey Bar
 
"Hey Mom, are those Canadians sitting over there?"
:laughing: Yeah, not hard to play a game of spot the Canadians. They're the ones hiding in the shade. And swimming in December when the locals are wearing jackets.

I didn't know that! Nice. I"m 1/4 Scotch and have been once. Loved it!
Yes, it was when I first started working, I was sent over to work on a contract in the North Sea. I lived in Aberdeen. My only regret is that only being 24 and not having the confidence to travel on my own yet, I didn't get to see nearly as much of Europe as I should have. I did see some of Scotland and England, and a trip to Paris. I would love to get back.

Those turned out nicely. I bit more basic that I'd pictured, but well done!
Basic is about all $40 gets you at Disney :laughing:

The service IS slow. I think it's inherent to the chaos of the set up.
Yes, it must be one of the busiest places in WDW, given its location.
One thing I didn't try was mobile order. Although that had a long line too, I wonder if it would have been faster. I never did try that option anywhere.

I think when my daughter gets a little older we'll have to take on that challenge ourselves.
If you have enough days and she likes princesses, it can be fun.

And now I'm very jealous you got to live in Scotland for a year! It's on my bucket list of places to visit.
I spent a year in Aberdeen, and did a little travelling. It was a great experience and I would love to get back one day.
 
Those hot summer days at MK can be brutal, I quickly forget about them with our cold winter!

It was nice and warm this past trip except no humidity yay!

Trying to watch the parade at that time of day with the heat is hard, we only watch it on our winter trips.

I think you rode Splash as your last ride and tried the Citrus Swirl.
 

This looks like the stuff nightmares are made of.

Now, had I ordered incorrectly, or even if the person taking my order had misunderstood, I can forgive a mix-up. But I had the slip and all meals were correct on the slip. After waiting a long time for the food, only to have it wrong, I have to admit I was a little irritated and made that known to the server.

Well, that's irritating. I can see why you'd be annoyed.

Official Princess Countdown: Merida – 11 of 11 ✔

Hey, congratulations! Come pick up your Official No-Prize® at the window.

I know one day the girls won’t be travelling with me and the trips will be very different then.

And you're SO looking forward to that day. Admit it.

If you want a couple tips on doing this

No, thanks, I'm good. :thumbsup2 :rotfl2:

1. What is the last ride we do on this trip?

Hopefully BTMRR at night, and not something lame like IASW.

2. I get a frozen treat this night. What is it? (Hint: I have not had this treat yet on the trip. It is not a Dole Whip).

Mickey bar?
 
August 19th – Day 2, Part 2 - CONTINUED...

Upon exiting the ride, it was a different story. Light rain had turned heavier – our first real Florida summer rain storm (I may be a little weird, but I actually like the big thunderous storms, we just don’t get them with such intensity up north). We stood for a few minutes with the masses under cover. Not wanting to venture very far, we realized we hadn’t met a Princess at all today, so we donned our ponchos and took the short walk to see Ariel. There was virtually no wait to see her and the meet was fine. If you’re following along with our Princess meet quest:

Official Princess Countdown: Ariel – 4 of 11 ✔


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Brianna had an interesting observation (complaint?). In The Little Mermaid, Ariel certainly has spirit and a big personality. In every meet we’ve done with Ariel, she’s been a bit dull. This really upsets Brianna. I should remind you (if you go back to my Introduction) that Brianna at home is a “friend” of princesses, occasionally Ariel, who she plays as very spirited and energetic. Our meet this night was similarly dull. I know others (I’m looking at you @pkondz) have had interesting meets with Ariel, so maybe it’s just been some bad luck for us.

The rain was getting even more intense by now. What to do next? You may remember during our resort break, I had made a FP for a ride. I had chosen…wisely. It was time for Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin…an indoor ride. Had I made a FP for BTMRR or 7DMT like I considered, it would likely have been shut down for weather. Having ponchos and sandals, we all didn’t mind walking down to Buzz too much. Unfortunately, by the time we got down there, the queue had descended into chaos. Just about everybody had the same idea I guess, to get indoors. You could no longer tell where the FP and SB queues were supposed to be. We stood there for a few minutes outside with the rain coming down in sheets now. Eventually in the sea of humanity a general flow towards the FP queue could be made out. Gradually we made it indoors and the FP queue moved fairly quickly. We were seated in the ride vehicle, made it a few inches along the track, and then, stopped. After a few minutes the music even stopped and I was witnessing my first significant ride break down. But, I still considered us lucky. We were indoors, out of the rain, and even sitting down quite comfortably. We could have been stuck in the queue outdoors still, with the rain pouring down. I have no idea what the issue was, but the CM at the podium called supervisors, who got on the phone, who stared at the podium, presumably flipping switches or pressing buttons, hoping something would make it all OK.

View attachment 359641

I didn’t time the wait, but it was probably around 20 minutes before we got going to battle Zurg. I had meant to read up on the tips to be a Galactic Hero, but of course forgot. I did remember a couple “good” targets, and ended up with my highest score ever of 308,600. Still not a Galactic hero, but I was happy enough.

Buzz is one of our favorite rides!!! Could be because we are so competitive :)

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I'm not sure what's going on here, but whatever it is, I don't think they're doing it right.

The rain had slacked off a bit, but it was still wet. Wanting to stay nearby, we decided to head into Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor. We had never done this before, so it was nice to cross off something on our “to do” list. The show was fun. I wouldn’t wait hours for it, but Katie loved it for some reason. I think she found the “dancing guy” funny.

It was close on fireworks o’clock, but it seemed very doubtful they would go ahead. We weren’t sure if we should wait around or not. I had a feeling they would do the fireworks eventually, and that was confirmed by a CM who told me “even if it’s at 3 o’clock in the morning, they will shoot them off”. I’m curious why though. Is this done for safety reasons, or some kind of legal issue having live explosives around in the day time? I always wondered why they wouldn’t just cancel them after a certain time and save a few bucks.

We decided to stick around for a while to see what happened, and braved the line at the crowded Ice Cream Parlour. It moved fairly fast, and I enjoyed an All-American sundae while taking shelter by Tomorrowland Terrace.

View attachment 359645

If you’re wondering why I have four cherries, the girls don’t like cherries and I love them, so they always give them to me. Score!

CONTINUED NEXT POST...
 
August 20th – Day 3, Part 1 – 3 minutes should be enough extra magic for anyone

This morning would bring another attempt at actually being inside a park for extra magic hour, this time from 7am-8am. At least that was my demand hint the night before.

We again tried a light breakfast of muffins in the room and were off in our rental car towards Hollywood Studios. It was after 7:00am but there was still potentially time to get some EMH. It might have worked, if not for the insane trek through Constructionland that was required to enter DHS (that’s after you’ve successfully driven your car through Parking Wars: Traffic Cone’s Edge). (credit to Kari @kastoney whose TR title I totally ripped that little joke off from).

After the usual security shenanigans which included a trip through the metal detector to add to the delay, we arrived at the tapstiles at 7:57am. We had a whole 3 minutes to enjoy Extra Magic Hour. If you do it right, 3 minutes should be enough for anyone.

View attachment 362946

We of course headed to Toy Story Land with the rest of the masses. I think at this point, there really was no EMH and anybody was spilling into the park. We were all excited to try Slinky Dog Dash and didn’t want to wait until our FP later in the week. The stand by wait was 45 minutes, which we felt was reasonable. Although it was only after 8:00am, the sun was already brutally hot and there’s not much shade in that queue.

View attachment 362947

Katie was a little nervous doing a new roller coaster, but in the end we all loved it. I think the coaster itself is more enjoyable than 7DMT (but not as immersive in theming obviously) and it comes a very close 2nd to my favourite ride, BTMRR.

View attachment 362948

A note on the Slinky Dog ride pictures – they are annoying. You seem to get just about everyone in your train multiple times, often other than yourselves. Only mine and Katie’s pic showed up this particular time. The picture itself is a bit out of focus. Hopefully it will improve over time.

Katie loved it so much that she really wanted one of those Slinky headbands. I think it definitely became her favourite ride.

View attachment 362949

Our light breakfast from earlier was wearing off and I wanted to try the offerings at Woody’s Lunch Box. I suspected the girls would enjoy the S’more French Toast and I wanted to try the Breakfast Bowl (potato barrels, scrambled egg, sausage gravy).


View attachment 362953

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You’ll have to excuse the fog on the camera in those pictures. What can I say? Florida. August.
The girls did enjoy the S’mores. I didn’t try it, but despite my sweet tooth, I suspect it would have been a little too much sugar for me that early in the morning. My Breakfast Bowl was OK. A little too salty and onion-y for my liking, but OK.
Side note: had I paid for a dining plan, this would have been a terrible use of a meal credit since they are only $7.99 and $8.49; reason #27 why the dining plan doesn’t work for us.

We decided not to stick around TSL anymore that morning. I had no FP booked in DHS today, so we had no specific plan. Coming out of TSL, we were walking towards Launch Bay and the thought crossed my mind to go there since I am a Star Wars fan. Problem is the girls are not, at all, zero interest. I’m just going to spill the beans now. I didn’t go to Launch Bay. Ever. Not once during the entire trip. I didn’t feel like dragging the girls there. I would have liked to see some of the movie props, but I didn’t have any strong desire to meet any Star Wars characters. I don’t know why. I’m a little disappointed, but I got over it. Anyway, that’s the long way to tell you we didn’t go to Launch Bay.

The other thing we passed by was the Little Mermaid show. Brianna of course wanted to see it, so we did. It was fine. Ariel sang. There were florescent fish. There was a giant Ursula. I don’t have much else to say about it.

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One thing we wanted to do today was meet Olaf. Brianna was doing a bit of Disney bounding today and had worn a blueish shirt and a single braid, so an Olaf meet was definitely on the menu. So we headed that way and only had about a 15 minute wait.

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Since we were on that side of the park, and having no real plan, I floated the idea of the Indiana Jones show. I hadn’t seen it in 10 years, Brianna really didn’t remember it, and Katie had never seen it. So we went in for it. I even thought it might be fun to get in the show. I put my hand up when they called, but didn’t get picked. Considering how hot it was today, that’s probably a good thing. I wanted to be taking off clothing, not throwing on a long robe and running around fake Cairo chasing bad guys.

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The show was, well, it was a show. There were some stunts. There was gunfire. There were explosions. So that was something. But I realized then how dated this show is. The whole “we’re making a movie” shtick is tired and it just does not fit with what this park has become. It also feels much longer than I remember (of course it is actually about 45 minutes). I do believe my wife took a nap during the show. So it’s probably something I wouldn't bother with again, at least in its present form. I love Indiana Jones and hope that IP stays in WDW. Maybe it’s time to bring Indy to Animal Kingdom, do the overlay of the Dinosaur ride and bulldoze Dinoland for an Indiana Jones land that might actually make sense in AK.

Anyway, I think everyone was feeling a bit blah by this point. The girls wanted to do some shopping on Hollywood Boulevard, and I had been messaging another DISDad, Tim, about a possible meet up. I’m happy to say that I had my first DISDad meet up with Tim (he used to be on the boards but I think he’s rarely here anymore).
While the ladies were shopping, I also caught a bit of the Star Wars stage show (A Galaxy Far, Far Away), although I did it from the relative comfort of the store doorway with the AC. I like Star Wars. I don’t like it enough to stand in the middle of Hollywood Studios in the blazing midday sun and slowly melt like the dude from Indiana Jones when they opened the Arc.

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We headed back to ASMu then before the temperature reached the self-combustion point. We had a light lunch of a shared chicken nugget platter and ice cream. We had a special supper planned that evening so we didn’t want to spoil our appetites.


Answers to last questions:

1. We’re off to EMH at Hollywood Studios. Do we ride Slinky Dog Dash this morning? Yes
2. Where do we eat breakfast in the park? Woody’s Lunch Box
3. We see two shows at DHS this morning. Which shows? Voyage of the Little Mermaid and Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular


Next Update Questions for Fun:

1. We change parks again after our afternoon break. Which park? (hint: let’s see how closely you’ve been paying attention. There’s one park we haven’t been to yet. I’m lobbing slow balls at you folks.)

2. You’ve hopefully figured out which park. We have an ADR – a special ADR for Katie’s birthday supper – which restaurant?

3. We have three FP this evening. What are the FP and how many of the three do we use?

4. I go on the hunt for a snack this evening. What is that snack?
 
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Yes, please.

:)
First off. :welcome: to the DIS.

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@Tina Sayers first, welcome to the DIS and my trip report!
I can't say it much better than @pkondz in his reply above, but if you are having trouble with anything in particular like quoting, just write a new post and I will try to help you out.
 

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