Robinrs
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 7, 1999
Cast of Characters: Me, Robinrs aka Cheapskate, 45yo kid in Disguise
Michael, 8yo Adult in Disguise
---------------------------------------------------------------
The May DIS Moderator Trip to Orlando, May 24-31 Part 3
Leaving the Hard Rock Hotel
and checking into The Dolphin 
Cast of Characters:
Me, Robinrs, 45yo kid in Disguise
Michael, 8yo Adult in Disguise
May 26th
REWIND a bit to Friday Night....
May 25th was E-Night at Disney. Of course I was onsite but at Universal, not Disney so I was unfortunately ineligible....
Something that some fellow mods of mine just HAD to RUB IT IN MY FACE...
As I was burping up my kids meal from room service at the Hard Rock, I get a cellphone call from my fellow mod on the Community Board, RhondaS, letting me know that a whole BUNCH of them was having a ball on Boardwalk at DISer Cleo's DIS meet and from there were going to the Magic Kingdom for E-Night!
GRRRRRRRRRR......
I did get to speak to Cleo, the sweetest person ever, and to JayPD, whose New York accent just caterpulted me back to my Homeland... :sigh:.... while they partied HARDY while I was in my pajamas.
NEXT DAY... Saturday, May 26th, my LAST day at HRH...
I am going to MISS FOTL!! Ugh!
That morning was a quiet one, I planned on no parks this day because this was the day for Pete Werner's big Moderator Party and I was psyched. I played with the wake up calls this morning, having Spiderman call.. :sigh:... Dennis the Menace and some rock star whose name slips my memory. I was cooling out when I get a call from the Lobby. It's that darn RhondaS, taunting me because she was checking into the Hard Rock that day. She was downstairs with her family and wanted to see us before they hit the park. Well, I couldn't miss that so we ran down to see them.
Boy the Hard Rock was rocking that day. It was a holiday weekend, after all, and the hotel was sold out, but it was really bustling with people this day. Rhonda snuck up on Michael and I with her daughters, Erin and Mallarie. We had met them back in September and I don't think I missed one week without speaking to my new "big sister" since then! It was so good to see them again! It was like seeing family! DISers are very special people.
I finally got a chance to meet her "crazy" DH Scotty, who became the bane of my son's existence later on in the trip. I'll explain later...
It was check out day for us so we bid adieu to the Scotts and went upstairs to pack. We stopped off at the Sunset Grill for breakfast only to find that the wait was about 15 mins. Instead I got some pastries and a juice, only $4, which was okay for Cheapskate and went back to the room. Check out was painless, I just signed the check out voucher that was slid under my door, dropped it off at the front desk and we were out.
Off to the Dolphin!!
I had the bellhop roll our weeks worth of luggage outside while I went to get the car. In minutes we were on I-4 and on our way to exit 26B, EPCOT...
I really appreciate the signs leading to the resorts in the WDW area. I am real bad at directions and these are very clear. I followed the signs to the Epcot area resorts, then to the signs leading to the Swan and Dolphin. Michael hooped and hollered when he saw the sculptured hotels in the distance. On our trip in January he would tell everyone in the Holiday Inn shuttle THAT was where we were staying in May. Yeah, they REALLY wanted to hear that ...
I followed the signs to the Dolphin and had to pinch myself, I was actually THERE. This hotel was immense and gorgeous. The valet sauntered over and told us that the valet service was FREE until midnight. FREE is Cheapskate's favorite word!!
Note to self: GET CAR BEFORE MIDNIGHT.. Cinderella Cheapskate
Snoopy, the moderator from the Inspiration Board, had set up a babysitter for our kids during Pete's party so I had to check in as early as possible. The bellhop rolls me in while pointing out the highlights of this humongous and incredible lobby. All I could say was WOW!!
They looked up my reservation and told me that two of my rooms were ready but the other was being worked on.
WHAT?????
He wanted to know if that was OKAY... Duuuuuuuhhhhhhh...
I put on my "Lady of the Manor" Voice
for the first time that moment... "Why, of course, as long as our room would be prepared AFTER my very important meeting..".... 
Wooooohoooooo!
I am given the keys to TWO of my rooms and whisked towards the East Elevators. This is to be very important directions on how to not get lost later on! We go to the 6th floor and our room is right across from elevators, which I really liked. We are let in and my jaw DROPS to the floor.
This room is large as a HOUSE!
The bellhop rolls us in and points out the highlights of this incredible place. It is called the Executive Suite. The main room was a living room which has a king sized Murphy Bed which can be in the wall or down for sleep. When it's in the wall the room is cavernous. We kept it down because I really liked this bed. Across from the Murphy bed is a comfy sofa, two big comfy easy chairs and an entertainment center with the TV set (essential). This room also had a wetbar and it's own bathroom.
The bellhop opens the door to the main bedroom to the left of the room. It is an entire hotel room to itself. It had two double beds, a desk and chair, an entertainment center with TV (essential) and it's own bathroom.
Bedroom number three, which was still being cleaned out, was off limits. I'm thinking What in the heck do I need with all this ROOM??? I have to admit, this was opulent!
For links to pictures of the suite... CLICK HERE
Well, as much as I HATED to leave, it was time to go to Pete's Party! I had been looking forward to this day for MONTHS and it was finally there! It's always great to meet people from the boards but to meet the actual Webmaster and my fellow moderators was more than I could stand! Gotta call snoopy!
I call Dan Murphy, another fellow mod from the CB and the sweetest man God made, first, knowing he was staying at the Swan. He answered with this cheerful funny voice as usual. He gave me the directions which I left at home...grrrrr... to Pete's house. I then ring up Ms.Snoopy who INSISTS on coming over to see The Manor...
She shows up minutes later with her adorable little boys, Luke, 6, and Drew, 2. Note, I have NEVER met Snoopy (Judi) before but I felt like I've known her all my life. She turns up looking adorable in a pair of cut off denim shorts and a t-shirt looking like a teenager! She also happens to be almost 6 feet tall and blonde! Remember, I haven't even gotten to FIVE feet! I felt like I fell in a hole!
She checks out the manor while Michael and the boys get to know each other. I'm glad they like each other because they would be STUCK with each other with a babysitter for a few hours! Snoopy and I split the cost of a Kindercare babysitter who would come to her room and watch the boys. She told me she was studying to be an elementary school teacher... I suspected that she may change her vocation after today...
Snoopy leaves and goes back to her room to get ready. I check out the rest of the manor. They have snacks that are VERY attractive to kids in the mini bar, so if you want to save your budget DON'T EVEN OPEN IT! My son got a gander of them and I threatened his life. Besides, Cheapskate brought many snacks in a bag for our trip, I always bring WAY more than we need, but it beats the price of these goodies.
We get dressed and ready for the party. Michael just loves the fact that we have our own bathrooms, and so do I. This is usually a bone of contention, along with the TV, so this room will be a dream for us!
I change my outfit THREE times and end up in something I feel comfortable in, though not what I planned.... doesn't that ALWAYS happen? I brought along a pair of high heeled sandals so I won't feel like a Munchkin, dab on some make-up for the first time since I hit Orlando and I'm off to the Swan.
Down the East Elevators, across the lobby, pass the piano to the escalator, down the escalator to the glass doors that leads to the walkway to the Swan.
The Swan is as large as the Dolphin on the outside but once you enter the lobby there is a definite difference. I remembered the remark I read in the Unofficial Guide to WDW that stated that the Swans lobby appeared to be an afterthought It certainly wasnt the one at the Dolphin!
As usual I got lost and had to call Snoopys room to find out how to get to her. Somehow I managed to make it up there.
She was in a Jr. Suite, very nice and a great size for her and her two little boys. She has something my Manor was missing, a dining room table! Go figure! I guess an Executive Suite did not feel the need to dine
In snoopys room I get to meet another great moderator, Nikole, snoopys co-mod on the Inspiration Board. Shes also a very TALL beautiful woman! Sheesh, Im a shrimp, again!
Our Kindercare lady shows up, we give her the low down and the diaper bag, say goodbye to our little men, Drew has a second of separation anxiety but the babysitter eases him off of his Mommy awwwwwwww and were off. We make ONE more stop, this time to pick up Lisa aka Baloo on the DIS boards. She is there with her family on the same floor. She volunteers to drive, YAHOO, so we are on our way!
Of course, we get lost NEVER go anywhere with ME!
We stop at a gas station, get pointed in the right direction, and in a matter of minutes we are at Petes house. I cant believe we FINALLY made it.
To make a VERY long story VERY short, we arrive and meet are you ready?
Pete, THE MAN, Webmaster of the site
Webmasters Alex, Cathy Canada, John and Michelle
Webmaster Nathan and Melanie of the V-bulletin boards
BethE, CarolAnnK, Mac-key Mouse, nativetxn, snuggles and SueEllen from the Theme Parks Board
Mean Laureen and Obi-Wan Pinobi from the Resorts and Collectors Boards
Eeyorestail and SimonV from the Orlando Hotels Board
BethR, Dagny and Kaa from the Budget Board
Debi from the Tips Board
Beth C and Wendy from the Transportation Board
JayPD from the Debate Board
TNRobin from the DVC and DCL boards
Barry Hom from the Universal Boards
DVCReg from the Collectors Board
Bet Snyder, Dan Murphy, RhondaS, and of course, ME from the Community Board
Judy from Boise and of course, snoopy from the Inspiration Board
Lrodk from the Disney Rumor and News Board
And Zarr aka Joe of the Cast Members Board.
I HOPE I DIDNT MISS ANYBODY I can be assassinated by anyone I forget..
Petes home was BEAUTIFUL and full of Disney paraphernalia! A non-Disney fave of mine was a signed tshirt of Elton Johns. WOW!
Needless to say Pete was the ultimate host and the party was catered and done with panache and style. The DIS, I am so proud to say, employs some of the most incredible people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. They are kind, GENUINE people, and very good looking, too, I might add!! I used to think back in the days BEFORE I surfed the net that people on the web were on there because they were probably socially inept and unattractive BOY was I wrong!
It was WONDERFUL to finally meet my Partner In Crime, Barry, who by the way is the world's tallest Man along with Dan Murphy! He turned out to be as sweet and quiet as I always heard he was, which was the perfect antithesis of short, loud me! I also finally met another partner on the board, Bet Snyder, who turned out to be the sweetest, prettiest thing, I was so thrilled to finally meet the people I'm so proud to call my co-moderators!
The food, the atmosphere, it was an amazing party. Pete had an enclosed pool out back, where a few people who will remain NAMELESS, took involuntary dunks, but it was all in good fun!!
Pete was also gracious enough to have PCs set up for our perusal. DIS people are rarely too far from the boards!
It was there when I found out that little Colin, Mark Ps son from the Community Board, had been born! We celebrated like it was a member of the family! Thats a great perk of this community!
We ate and were very merry for a few hours then I had to go. The babysitter was an ungodly $14 an hour, and you all know Cheapskate!!
Baloo also had a young son waiting for her at the Magic Kingdom so we said our adieus and went back to the S/D! Pete, the party was AWESOME, and you are the Host with the Most!!
I retrieved my son, who really didnt want to leave the babysitter and his two new friends, and we were off to the MANOR. On the way we picked up dinner from what would become our favorite eating place for dinner and snacks, the Dolphin Lounge. They had a meal called the Beach Boy Burgers which featured 4 little burgers like the ones made at White Castle or Krystals. Michael and I loved them!
The third room of the MANOR was ready so the Lady
and her little Lord
were ready to retire for the evening
What an incredible day. Hmmmmmmmm, WHICH bed to sleep in?????
Part 4: Epcot and the Garden Grill!
Michael, 8yo Adult in Disguise
---------------------------------------------------------------
The May DIS Moderator Trip to Orlando, May 24-31 Part 3
Leaving the Hard Rock Hotel
and checking into The Dolphin Cast of Characters:
Me, Robinrs, 45yo kid in Disguise
Michael, 8yo Adult in Disguise
May 26th
REWIND a bit to Friday Night....
May 25th was E-Night at Disney. Of course I was onsite but at Universal, not Disney so I was unfortunately ineligible....
Something that some fellow mods of mine just HAD to RUB IT IN MY FACE...
As I was burping up my kids meal from room service at the Hard Rock, I get a cellphone call from my fellow mod on the Community Board, RhondaS, letting me know that a whole BUNCH of them was having a ball on Boardwalk at DISer Cleo's DIS meet and from there were going to the Magic Kingdom for E-Night!
GRRRRRRRRRR......
I did get to speak to Cleo, the sweetest person ever, and to JayPD, whose New York accent just caterpulted me back to my Homeland... :sigh:.... while they partied HARDY while I was in my pajamas.
NEXT DAY... Saturday, May 26th, my LAST day at HRH...
I am going to MISS FOTL!! Ugh!
That morning was a quiet one, I planned on no parks this day because this was the day for Pete Werner's big Moderator Party and I was psyched. I played with the wake up calls this morning, having Spiderman call.. :sigh:... Dennis the Menace and some rock star whose name slips my memory. I was cooling out when I get a call from the Lobby. It's that darn RhondaS, taunting me because she was checking into the Hard Rock that day. She was downstairs with her family and wanted to see us before they hit the park. Well, I couldn't miss that so we ran down to see them.
Boy the Hard Rock was rocking that day. It was a holiday weekend, after all, and the hotel was sold out, but it was really bustling with people this day. Rhonda snuck up on Michael and I with her daughters, Erin and Mallarie. We had met them back in September and I don't think I missed one week without speaking to my new "big sister" since then! It was so good to see them again! It was like seeing family! DISers are very special people.
I finally got a chance to meet her "crazy" DH Scotty, who became the bane of my son's existence later on in the trip. I'll explain later...
It was check out day for us so we bid adieu to the Scotts and went upstairs to pack. We stopped off at the Sunset Grill for breakfast only to find that the wait was about 15 mins. Instead I got some pastries and a juice, only $4, which was okay for Cheapskate and went back to the room. Check out was painless, I just signed the check out voucher that was slid under my door, dropped it off at the front desk and we were out.
Off to the Dolphin!!
I had the bellhop roll our weeks worth of luggage outside while I went to get the car. In minutes we were on I-4 and on our way to exit 26B, EPCOT...
I really appreciate the signs leading to the resorts in the WDW area. I am real bad at directions and these are very clear. I followed the signs to the Epcot area resorts, then to the signs leading to the Swan and Dolphin. Michael hooped and hollered when he saw the sculptured hotels in the distance. On our trip in January he would tell everyone in the Holiday Inn shuttle THAT was where we were staying in May. Yeah, they REALLY wanted to hear that ...
I followed the signs to the Dolphin and had to pinch myself, I was actually THERE. This hotel was immense and gorgeous. The valet sauntered over and told us that the valet service was FREE until midnight. FREE is Cheapskate's favorite word!!
Note to self: GET CAR BEFORE MIDNIGHT.. Cinderella Cheapskate
Snoopy, the moderator from the Inspiration Board, had set up a babysitter for our kids during Pete's party so I had to check in as early as possible. The bellhop rolls me in while pointing out the highlights of this humongous and incredible lobby. All I could say was WOW!!
They looked up my reservation and told me that two of my rooms were ready but the other was being worked on.
WHAT????? He wanted to know if that was OKAY... Duuuuuuuhhhhhhh...
I put on my "Lady of the Manor" Voice
Wooooohoooooo!
I am given the keys to TWO of my rooms and whisked towards the East Elevators. This is to be very important directions on how to not get lost later on! We go to the 6th floor and our room is right across from elevators, which I really liked. We are let in and my jaw DROPS to the floor.
This room is large as a HOUSE!
The bellhop rolls us in and points out the highlights of this incredible place. It is called the Executive Suite. The main room was a living room which has a king sized Murphy Bed which can be in the wall or down for sleep. When it's in the wall the room is cavernous. We kept it down because I really liked this bed. Across from the Murphy bed is a comfy sofa, two big comfy easy chairs and an entertainment center with the TV set (essential). This room also had a wetbar and it's own bathroom.
The bellhop opens the door to the main bedroom to the left of the room. It is an entire hotel room to itself. It had two double beds, a desk and chair, an entertainment center with TV (essential) and it's own bathroom.
Bedroom number three, which was still being cleaned out, was off limits. I'm thinking What in the heck do I need with all this ROOM??? I have to admit, this was opulent!
For links to pictures of the suite... CLICK HERE
Well, as much as I HATED to leave, it was time to go to Pete's Party! I had been looking forward to this day for MONTHS and it was finally there! It's always great to meet people from the boards but to meet the actual Webmaster and my fellow moderators was more than I could stand! Gotta call snoopy!
I call Dan Murphy, another fellow mod from the CB and the sweetest man God made, first, knowing he was staying at the Swan. He answered with this cheerful funny voice as usual. He gave me the directions which I left at home...grrrrr... to Pete's house. I then ring up Ms.Snoopy who INSISTS on coming over to see The Manor...
She shows up minutes later with her adorable little boys, Luke, 6, and Drew, 2. Note, I have NEVER met Snoopy (Judi) before but I felt like I've known her all my life. She turns up looking adorable in a pair of cut off denim shorts and a t-shirt looking like a teenager! She also happens to be almost 6 feet tall and blonde! Remember, I haven't even gotten to FIVE feet! I felt like I fell in a hole!
She checks out the manor while Michael and the boys get to know each other. I'm glad they like each other because they would be STUCK with each other with a babysitter for a few hours! Snoopy and I split the cost of a Kindercare babysitter who would come to her room and watch the boys. She told me she was studying to be an elementary school teacher... I suspected that she may change her vocation after today...
Snoopy leaves and goes back to her room to get ready. I check out the rest of the manor. They have snacks that are VERY attractive to kids in the mini bar, so if you want to save your budget DON'T EVEN OPEN IT! My son got a gander of them and I threatened his life. Besides, Cheapskate brought many snacks in a bag for our trip, I always bring WAY more than we need, but it beats the price of these goodies.
We get dressed and ready for the party. Michael just loves the fact that we have our own bathrooms, and so do I. This is usually a bone of contention, along with the TV, so this room will be a dream for us!
I change my outfit THREE times and end up in something I feel comfortable in, though not what I planned.... doesn't that ALWAYS happen? I brought along a pair of high heeled sandals so I won't feel like a Munchkin, dab on some make-up for the first time since I hit Orlando and I'm off to the Swan.
Down the East Elevators, across the lobby, pass the piano to the escalator, down the escalator to the glass doors that leads to the walkway to the Swan.
The Swan is as large as the Dolphin on the outside but once you enter the lobby there is a definite difference. I remembered the remark I read in the Unofficial Guide to WDW that stated that the Swans lobby appeared to be an afterthought It certainly wasnt the one at the Dolphin!
As usual I got lost and had to call Snoopys room to find out how to get to her. Somehow I managed to make it up there.
She was in a Jr. Suite, very nice and a great size for her and her two little boys. She has something my Manor was missing, a dining room table! Go figure! I guess an Executive Suite did not feel the need to dine
In snoopys room I get to meet another great moderator, Nikole, snoopys co-mod on the Inspiration Board. Shes also a very TALL beautiful woman! Sheesh, Im a shrimp, again!
Our Kindercare lady shows up, we give her the low down and the diaper bag, say goodbye to our little men, Drew has a second of separation anxiety but the babysitter eases him off of his Mommy awwwwwwww and were off. We make ONE more stop, this time to pick up Lisa aka Baloo on the DIS boards. She is there with her family on the same floor. She volunteers to drive, YAHOO, so we are on our way!
Of course, we get lost
NEVER go anywhere with ME!We stop at a gas station, get pointed in the right direction, and in a matter of minutes we are at Petes house. I cant believe we FINALLY made it.
To make a VERY long story VERY short, we arrive and meet are you ready?
Pete, THE MAN, Webmaster of the site
Webmasters Alex, Cathy Canada, John and Michelle
Webmaster Nathan and Melanie of the V-bulletin boards
BethE, CarolAnnK, Mac-key Mouse, nativetxn, snuggles and SueEllen from the Theme Parks Board
Mean Laureen and Obi-Wan Pinobi from the Resorts and Collectors Boards
Eeyorestail and SimonV from the Orlando Hotels Board
BethR, Dagny and Kaa from the Budget Board
Debi from the Tips Board
Beth C and Wendy from the Transportation Board
JayPD from the Debate Board
TNRobin from the DVC and DCL boards
Barry Hom from the Universal Boards
DVCReg from the Collectors Board
Bet Snyder, Dan Murphy, RhondaS, and of course, ME from the Community Board
Judy from Boise and of course, snoopy from the Inspiration Board
Lrodk from the Disney Rumor and News Board
And Zarr aka Joe of the Cast Members Board.
I HOPE I DIDNT MISS ANYBODY I can be assassinated by anyone I forget..
Petes home was BEAUTIFUL and full of Disney paraphernalia! A non-Disney fave of mine was a signed tshirt of Elton Johns. WOW!
Needless to say Pete was the ultimate host and the party was catered and done with panache and style. The DIS, I am so proud to say, employs some of the most incredible people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. They are kind, GENUINE people, and very good looking, too, I might add!! I used to think back in the days BEFORE I surfed the net that people on the web were on there because they were probably socially inept and unattractive
BOY was I wrong!It was WONDERFUL to finally meet my Partner In Crime, Barry, who by the way is the world's tallest Man along with Dan Murphy! He turned out to be as sweet and quiet as I always heard he was, which was the perfect antithesis of short, loud me! I also finally met another partner on the board, Bet Snyder, who turned out to be the sweetest, prettiest thing, I was so thrilled to finally meet the people I'm so proud to call my co-moderators!
The food, the atmosphere, it was an amazing party. Pete had an enclosed pool out back, where a few people who will remain NAMELESS, took involuntary dunks,
but it was all in good fun!!Pete was also gracious enough to have PCs set up for our perusal. DIS people are rarely too far from the boards!
It was there when I found out that little Colin, Mark Ps son from the Community Board, had been born! We celebrated like it was a member of the family! Thats a great perk of this community!
We ate and were very merry for a few hours then I had to go. The babysitter was an ungodly $14 an hour, and you all know Cheapskate!!
Baloo also had a young son waiting for her at the Magic Kingdom so we said our adieus and went back to the S/D! Pete, the party was AWESOME, and you are the Host with the Most!!
I retrieved my son, who really didnt want to leave the babysitter and his two new friends, and we were off to the MANOR. On the way we picked up dinner from what would become our favorite eating place for dinner and snacks, the Dolphin Lounge. They had a meal called the Beach Boy Burgers which featured 4 little burgers like the ones made at White Castle or Krystals. Michael and I loved them!
The third room of the MANOR was ready so the Lady
What an incredible day. Hmmmmmmmm, WHICH bed to sleep in?????
Part 4: Epcot and the Garden Grill!
