My first solo adventure - Disney style!! - Page 3 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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.
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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 am loving your TR!! I also love reading solo TR's because I don't know if I would ever do one, so I love seeing what all you get accomplished!!! My 3 kids (or DH) would NEVER let me leave without them to WDW!!! Can't wait to hear more!!
I'm coming back to this before you update because I've just got to say that you're brave! I don't know if I will ever be able to convince myself to take a solo trip anywhere....the most I've done solo is go to dinner by myself and go to a movie by myself! (I mean, of course I've ridden planes and driven cross-state or whatever by myself as well, but I was always meeting someone somewhere.) Kudos!
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Day Two, Sunday November 1, part two – Hollywood studios and a PP meet?
After my refreshing swim, I headed over to DHS for my early dinner at Sci-Fi.I had never been in here before but heard rave reviews about it and its burger. I couldn’t even really remember exactly where it was so I headed over in the general direction of American Idol and got stopped by the parade. Another first for me, I stopped and watched it a little bit, but it’s kind of boring without kids along to get excited about. I don’t know why? So I scooted around and found a crossing around the corner and made it to Sci-Fi with about 5 minutes to spare till my ADR time! Whew! I was seated shortly thereafter and secretly happy that they put me in the last row of a car, way in the back. I realize now I didn’t need to worry about dining alone, but was a little apprehensive at the time. That place is so cute!! I don’t think the movie clips are scary at all and now can’t wait to take my kids there sometime.
I ordered a chocolate milkshake and the Angus chuck burger – Oh. My. God. That was one of the tastiest creations I have ever eaten!
Now, I love me a Beaches and Cream burger too, but this one is completely different, they’re not in the same category – so don’t force me to choose!!! Heaven. And that milkshake was so very thick and just dreamy. Yum! My server offered to take my photo in the car which was really nice of her.
That done, I needed to walk off my delicious meal!
It was time to check some DHS things off my list. TSM would have to wait as the standby was 60+ minutes and FP were gone. I thought I’d try it again during EMH later that night. MuppetVision, hadn’t done it since maybe 1990? Check. One Man’s Dream, finally. (I didn’t want to bore the kids before, but now my oldest loves this one). Check. Saw Mater and Lightning McQueen!! Check. And finally saw the snowman outside the Christmas shop. I’ve always wondered where that was! Check. And now I know where the Toy Story Pizza Planet is as well for future reference. I don’t think I’d wandered to that side of the park for YEARS! I did some more shopping and found a little choo-choo with Mickey inside for my DS. I also found this awesome black jacket – it comes in white too - with a Mickey silhouette on the outside and on the inside pattern as well. This could be a contender for my gift card!!
The sun was setting and it was EMH that night so it actually was starting to get a little crowded. No worries though, I was soaking it up and enjoying the atmosphere!
I went down Sunset Blvd and enjoyed the single rider line for Rock N Roller Coaster. I made sure to stick out my tongue and make RnR signs for the photo, just incase the person next to me decided to purchase it!!! I had planned on ToT, but my bursitis in my shoulder (just had that diagnosed in April; at the time, I didn’t know what it was. I thought rotator cuff) was really acting up after that RnRR. Those restraints are not kind to a bad shoulder! So I figured ToT would have to wait since I was in a bit of pain. I took it easy and headed to the GMR. I got the Gangster scene which is awesome cuz I haven’t had that in years! I was in the very front row though, something I would try to avoid in the future.
I called up our good friend Janice (janicelovesmickey) and left a VM since we planned on meeting up that night. But as you all know, Janice has issues with electronics. If you’ve read her TR’s, you’ll know that her beloved phone had a misfortunate accident that day (or the day before, I forget). Seeing as how she hadn’t returned my call, I remembered she and her friends were dining at House of Blues that night. I had yet to browse at DTD (due to the Halloween crowds), so I decided I was done enough at DHS and headed to DTD for some browsing around. And maybe even run into her… um… and the other 5,000 people there that night, you never know!
So I left DHS and drove over to DTD. After browsing around WoD I found that same black jacket and a few other contenders for the fun card and some other things too. I bought my DS a shirt that says “I watch ESPN with my mommy,” and finally got to look around at Tren-D. Cool store! My feet were getting tired, so I called it a night and headed back to CBR. Alas, I didn’t get to meet up with Janice. There’s always another trip on the horizon, so hopefully some other time!
Coming up: And they’re off!
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Tanya
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