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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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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
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Moving on with the current of the years.
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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.
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Perhaps the sculptures hint at a long ago resident fond of safaris? Wasn’t big game hunting by the nobility popular during the Victorian Era especially?
What a lovely hotel! Sounds like a sumptuous stay.
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“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
Perhaps the sculptures hint at a long ago resident fond of safaris? Wasn’t big game hunting by the nobility popular during the Victorian Era especially?
You're right - it was, very much so. In Balmoral, they had a display of the animals that the Royal family had shot in years gone past, which was quite uncomfortable to see today, especially given a number of them are now patrons for various animal welfare charities. How things change...
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What a lovely hotel! Sounds like a sumptuous stay.
Oh my goodness, it was! It was so good, we've booked to go back in November.
Excellent welcome to the hotel! Looks amazing. Should be a good start to a great weekend!
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Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
The grounds are so beautiful and just so well done with all the stone work! The inside is just as beautiful. Your room is quite nice but it's the bath that's amazing! Hoping the downside to your room isn't too bad.
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
The grounds are so beautiful and just so well done with all the stone work! The inside is just as beautiful. Your room is quite nice but it's the bath that's amazing!
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Friday 15 June – part three: “I’d love a Belle dress”
We made our way over to the main house of the hotel…
The bar was quite something…
I headed outside to get some shots of the golf course and the exterior of the building…
Now as we ordered our drinks, there was a Welsh woman who we started to half chat to at that point and she seemed to be lovely. We ended up sitting opposite them and at one point, I heard her say “I’d love a Belle dress”. My ears pricked up and yes, they were talking Disney, so I couldn’t help but interrupt. We both showed them all our Disney stuff – my handbag, scarf, ring, bracelet etc. and Mark’s Grumpy sweatshirt he was wearing. From that point on, we must have chatted away for the next hour.
It turned out they have two kids (how I do not know, neither looked old enough ) and were here for a weekend away at the Bath racecourse just down the road. Their daughter is four and really into Belle, and their son is two and loves Toy Story. They’re thinking of taking them to Disney World next year, so we were telling them all sorts of things, like the new Toy Story Land in the Studios (a friend of mine had just had a ride on the Slinky Dog Dash and I’d seen the details on Facebook, and Be Our Guest. We got on so well with them and it was a great shame they were eating in the restaurant and had to leave, as the last serving was 9:00pm.
While we were chatting to them, we managed to eat our food. I got a mozzarella, tomato, basil pesto and olive salad, although Mark got all the olives, as I can’t stand them. The rest was very nice, although a bit lacking in tomato.
Mark had the pan fried flat iron steak with roasted tomato, flat mushroom and chips, after being told the burger he wanted was off.
Once our Welsh friends had gone to dinner, we had our desserts. Mark got a massive lump of sticky toffee pudding – look at the size of it!
I went for the chocolate brownie with forest fruits and vanilla ice cream, and very nice it was, although I did feel a bit short changed, when I saw the size of Mark’s dessert.
We settled up and headed outside to walk back to our room. It was a nice evening, but a bit crisp and cold outside, which was interesting, given it’s now mid-June. This seems to be happening a lot at the moment and you’d expect it to stay a bit warmer a bit later into the evening, but apparently not.
We headed back to the room and Mark wanted to go for a walk around the grounds when the light started to fade, as there were lights everywhere, but so much for that. Even with the World Cup on in the background, he fell asleep within a few minutes, barely waking up when I turned out all the lights. I guess the drive down had taken it out of him.
The weather today was warm and sunny with temperatures in the low 70s when we left home and cooler and cloudy with temperatures in the low 60s when we arrived. Today we walked 3.76 miles. The best thing today was our amazing hotel! The worst thing today was the traffic we ran into on the way down… The funniest thing today was meeting up with the couple from Wales and talking Disney! Today we tried staying at Tracy Park And the result was it’s a beautiful place, but it does need a spa. The most magical moment today was seeing our amazing room.
How neat to run into some other Disney lovers, I am sure you provided them with a lot of usefully information. Your dinner looked delicious and Mark’s sticky pudding was quite the serving.
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Gorgeous! Wow, that place is just beautiful, everywhere!
Finding new Disney friends is always a treat! I'm sure you provided lots of useful information.
Dinner looked pretty tasty, especially dessert! Your brownie looked nice and thick and fudgy. Yum!
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Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
I absolutely love the animal sculptures, especially the elephant. Was there a story behind them and their placement there?
The grounds are stunning. Always nice to run into Disney lovers. I just ran into one at the National Aviary and we had an unexpected but wonderful Disney chat. Those unexpected moments always brighten my days.
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Last edited by cattailmarsh; 07-10-2018 at 10:40 AM..
The hotel is just stunning. Add a spa and it would be perfect! Did it have any kind of pool?
Dinner looked good, but I’m with you on the olives. Funny enough, I do enjoy a good black olive tapenade, but no other shape or form.
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It was so good, we've booked to go back in November. 
The inside is just as beautiful. Your room is quite nice but it's the bath that's amazing! Hoping the downside to your room isn't too bad.
) and were here for a weekend away at the Bath racecourse just down the road. Their daughter is four and really into Belle, and their son is two and loves Toy Story. They’re thinking of taking them to Disney World next year, so we were telling them all sorts of things, like the new Toy Story Land in the Studios (a friend of mine had just had a ride on the Slinky Dog Dash and I’d seen the details on Facebook, and Be Our Guest. We got on so well with them and it was a great shame they were eating in the restaurant and had to leave, as the last serving was 9:00pm. 
Your brownie looked nice and thick and fudgy. Yum!
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