Go your own way - Decade of Dreams - UPDATED 6/24 - COMPLETE!! - Page 72 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 love the pictures Cheryl!! I ate more Mickey Bars with you this trip than I ever have before..........of course my very first mickey bar was this trip!!
Now here I am sitting here in my villa at OKW and sad because our trip report is almost over!
I'm glad you were able to see some things you hadn't seen before and I did absolutely love how we only had the $226 bill!!
I can't wait until December!
Are you saying I'm a bad influence on you?
By the way, I love your new signature pic - stunning photo.
Oh so funny.... Your last photo of Wilderness Lodge has my room in it!!! There is a room about two rows above the roof of the kids club area with a light on - that's us getting ready to meet you!!
Tuesday 5 May part six: you cant be ill on the last night
We headed into the main building and, almost immediately, I found Sue, Sara and Angie in the Mercantile. Sue was very disappointed by the lack of DVC Villas at Wilderness Lodge merchandise, although I was just disappointed by the price of anything that said DVC on it. Its as if anything with a DVC logo on it gets a zero added on the end of it.
We came out of there and found Amy and her mum Angeles and then it was a case of waiting for Sabine and Manuel to show up. We knew they were due, but we were wondering if they would make it, after everything Manuel had been through in recent days, but a few minutes later, they turned up and Manual looked surprisingly good, considering what he had been through.
Wendy already had our buzzer, but we must have waited about 30 minutes for it to go off and, by then, I was certainly getting hungry. Wendy had also got hold of a menu when she checked us in and we were already pretty much decided on what we all wanted, so at least we could speed the process along when we sat down.
The menu was pretty limited here, especially for me, with only two choices. I went for the Whiskey maple-glazed trout and changed the side out for some vegetables, as arugula just doesnt agree with me. : Wendy went for the meatloaf.
Our server
Elsewhere on the table, Sabine got the chicken wings and passed them around, but I know she did have a few of them herself and my goodness, she knew about that, they were apparently quite hot!
We had a heck of a wait for our main courses. We worked out it took about 40 to 45 minutes to bring these out to us, which was pretty painful. I dont think it was our servers fault and she did try desperately hard to keep us entertained and she was a lot of fun, but the wait times were a joke here. My trout was pretty good, considering this restaurant is known for meat, but Wendy wasnt so lucky. She only managed a couple of bites of the meatloaf and really wasnt happy with the rest of it. She ended up feeling sick and excusing herself from dinner, which was such a shame, as it meant that she didnt get a chance to say goodbye to everyone.
The rest of the meal was a bit more sombre as a result and, to be honest, I think we got more and more frustrated, as the evening wore on, because the bill arrived before Sabine and Manuel got their dessert. Then they took forever to pick up our Tables in Wonderland card and apply the discount. In the end, we got out of there at about 9.50 and we were seated at about 8.10. It wasnt a great meal to finish off the vacation and obviously not for Wendy. I certainly wont be rushing back here in a hurry. :
Whispering Canyon Café:
Main course 8
Service 6―
Atmosphere 7―
Value for money 8
Average score: 7.50
We headed out just in time to take a final look at the Mercantile and then we said our goodbyes to Sabine, Manuel, Amy and Angela, before heading to the Territory Lounge for some FABs. We all found it quite funny, but also a bit worrying, that Sue seemed to know the bar staff in here by name. The drink she wanted wasnt on the menu, but she managed to get it from Artist Point instead, with bartender Kyle bringing her the recipe for it. That will make Steves day.
After it being Sues idea to come here, wouldnt you know it, my Mai Tai was the only drink to get finished off that night. Angie didnt even have one and both Sue and Sara ended up leaving some of theirs. Lightweights!
Just as we were finishing off here, we heard the sound of water and thought that maybe they were cleaning the roof of the Wilderness Lodge, but when I went outside to check, I discovered that no, it was tipping with rain outside. I was very glad that Sue was driving me back to the Contemporary and that she had valet parked. We said goodbye to Sara and headed out to get their car. My goodness, nice upgrade!
The rain was really coming down, as we drove back. It was the first rain we had seen the whole time here, but it always seems to happen that on our last day or night the weather takes a turn for the worst. Its almost as if its saying that its time to go home and I guess it was.
When we got back to the Contemporary, hugs were exchanged between us and on Wendys behalf as well. Then I had to leave Sue and Angie. Its much easier, knowing that well be seeing each other in December.
I got back to the room and Wendy was either awake or woke up when I walked in. She told me that she was feeling better and was glad that shed left when she had. Poor thing.
Today we walked 7.84 miles The weather today was hot and sunny with temperatures in the high 80s. The best thing today was the Tusker House lunch. The worst thing today was the heat and Wendy feeling sick at dinner. The funniest thing today was Anns screams in Its Tough To Be A Bug. Today we tried Tusker House for lunch And the result was its superb with a great choice of food. The most magical moment today was the guide safari and the dinosaur walk.
Love the pictures of the WL. Sorry to hear about your experience at WC though. I've never eaten in that restaurant at the WL because the menu just doesn't appeal to me but that wait time was awful long. Poor Wendy not feeling well. Glad you were able to finish off the night in the lounge with some AB's though.
Dinner was fun although I was sorry to see Wendy leave not feeling well. The wait was ridiculous but I didn't mind so much thanks to the company! My pasta was really disappointing but the after dinner drink was What was it called again? A frozen wasteland??
Great photos. I need to spend some more time over at WL in December as it's been a few years since I've been there. WL is just my style. Thanks for posting.
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Cheryl, thank you for this entire TR. I've enjoyed reading all your stories and descriptions, and your photos are terrific. I've now got a l-o-n-g list of "must do's" for next time (or the time after that -- or the time after THAT). It's somehow comforting to know I will never be able to "do" all of WDW. There's always more to see, more to discover, more to experience.
Glad you had such a magical time there in May -- I certainly did! It was so great to finally meet you!
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All caught up on your last day. Sorry your wait time at WCC was so long and that Wendy wasn't feeling so well. At least it rained on your last night, I think its much easier to leave that way!
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Thanks for teaching me that, Karen! 
: Wendy went for the meatloaf. 
Great pictures!! 
Dreams, Wishes, Hopes... these are the parts of childhood we should never lose.
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