As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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I can't believe a policeman wanted money for taking pictures of you! Wow...I wouldn't feel comfortable being there by myself either. Note to self: if you ever go to Egypt, go with a group of people...safety in numbers.
That actually happened to my parents & grandparents in St. Thomas. The guy wouldn't give them their camera back until they forked over some cash. After the transaction took place my Poppy proceeded to chase the man away by swinging his umbrella at him.
Your pictures are awesome! It love the silly ones of both of you but I'm sorry that the police man wanted money for taking them . I love the ones that have the camels and what seems to be locals it makes it seem so realistic. I don't know that I would have felt safe on my own either. Glad you went back to the van.
I find it very interesting that the tops of the Pyramids look smooth, but closer to the bottom they look rough. It sounds like this was an amazing experience for both of you! I have Egypt on my bucket list. I'm going to wait until things are a little more stable, but I'd like to be able to contribute to a rebuilding economy, as so many people contributed to ours!
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Sunday 23 January – part four: I’m really glad we visited this place!
Now, I really wasn’t sure whether I wanted to see the Solar Boat Museum or not, but I’m so glad we did, as it was a fascinating place to visit. The museum is an odd place, especially right next to the Great Pyramid, built thousands of years earlier. The Egyptian boat in size is beautiful, but perhaps the most amazing thing is how they put it all back together again in the 1950s, using only ancient Egyptian material of wooden pegs and grass rope. Marks on the wood suggest that it had been sailed and our guide told us that it was possible it was used to take the pharaohs on their final journey to Giza across the River Nile.
On the lower floor, they explain about the background to the boat and how they uncovered it and reconstructed it.
This is the trench that the boat was found in. They had to find the keystone and remove that, before they could unlock the boat
The discovery of the boat
In the Solar Boat Museum, you have some wonderful views of the great pyramid outside.
Then, on the upper floor, you get to see the boat itself.
Then there’s a final level that gives you a higher view of the boat:
And from here, yet more great shots of the great pyramid:
Even here, you’re not free from the hustlers. Unbelievably, we saw one of the staff, asking an American woman if she wanted her photo taken with the boat (we’d been asked, but politely declined) and she said Of course when the guy was done, he was busy asking her for money. The whole practise is just very unpalatable.
When we came out, we quickly found our guide and wandered back to the van, getting some photos on the way.
That boat is unbelievable...just amazing! I have never heard of a place where money talks so much! After a while, it would really start to get a bit aggravating.
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The boat museum is amazing! The things that the anceint Egyptians did, without "technology" is amazing! I just have to say it again, thank you so much for sharing this adventure with us!!!
Wow how amazing! How long did it take them to put it back together? It is great that they were able to recover it and put it back together. Did that woman pay the person that took his picture? I think it's awful that they can do that.
More great updates Cheryl. What are these colorful things off to the side? Please do not tell me someone was hocking some t-shirts?
I loved seeing the camels. What a culture shock. Asking for money all the time is just so, well, “foreign” to me. I guess it is similar to people who stand in line all smacked up against you - they think nothing of it, it's just their way of life. Also they may be thinking "you are rich enough to travel, have a fancy camera, you could afford a few dollars/pounds".
However, isn't that some of the reason why we travel? To see how others live and that makes us all the more appreciative of what we have. I must admit though, all those hucksterers would have gotten on my nerves too.
The boat museum looks really cool, one of those places you read about and thing – eeh. But then you go and it is really nice and you are so glad you went. Thanks for bringing us along with you.