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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Who: Cindy (56 going on 57) plus at various times Sheri (younger), Brent (still younger), and Liz (even younger) -- you'll find them on the Passporter boards under skateycat, Disdadnmi, and smilechaser respectively.
When: Feb. 4-9
Where: WDW, staying solo a couple nights at AKL and then sharing a room at the BC with Sheri
Why: Do you even have to ask? Why NOT?
When I was at the Happy Place in mid-December with some of my Disney pals, they urged me to trade in my 6-day Parkhopper for an Annual Pass.
And so it’s been burning a hole in my pocket ever since.
I started bugging dear Sheri to find a few days away from her work at the hospital so she could drive up to Orlando to meet me, and we settled on February 6-9. But of course I wasn’t going to wait until MONDAY to fly to Orlando. No Sirree, I got me a Southwest flight on Saturday the 4th for a couple nights solo at AKL. I’ve been hankering to stay there since the two nights I got to spend there in 2005 with Rick and our friends Paul & Robbie. So glad I finally did that again, because I absolutely the AKL.
Plus Jiko has gotten to be a habit with me, and if I’m staying right there, why not dine there again?
In the meantime, Sheri pointed out a pre-TR by a couple of Passporters named Brent and Liz from Michigan. I thought she’d known them for quite awhile, but it turns out they’d only shared 3 minutes together a year or so ago. So I dutifully read the pre-TR and thought “these sound like my kind of Disney nuts.” (You can read their TR here: http://www.passporterboards.com/foru...isney-ptr.html)
So the four of us decided to spend lunch together at my favorite park, DHS, and I made a ressie for 50’s Prime Time for the Wednesday of my stay.
Got it? OK, now you’re gonna have to spend a couple of solo days with me – so don’t interrupt to ask about Sheri or Brent or Liz because they aren’t in my story just yet.
But first, for you newcomers, let me say a few words about how Sheri and I became friends. It’s all thanks to Passporter’s Decade of Dreams celebration at WDW in May 2009. That was my first “Disney meet” experience, and prior to going I had posted a lot of invites to lunch at Crystal Palace etc. to try to make some pre-trip friends, and Sheri took pity on me and sent me a couple of Private Messages to say she was traveling solo too and would be staying at the All Stars just like I was, and would I like to visit Epcot with her etc. etc. We met face-to-face at the Crystal Palace lunch and became fast friends. We shared a room at the Boardwalk in Feb. 2010, at the Polynesian in Oct. 2010, and this would be our third “roommate” experience.
OK, that’s enough exposition already! Time for the story!
Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess named Cindybelle. Although her body was nearly 57 years old, her spirit was closer to 5 – especially whenever she visited the place that Walt Disney built just for her. Yes, dear readers, I’m talking about Walt Disney World. (What? You did not know that Walt built WDW just for me? See how much you learn by reading the Passporter boards? )
Saturday, Feb. 4: Dear Rick (who builds me furniture for my Disney room but is not himself a Disney fan) kindly drove me to the airport for my 12:45 p.m. flight, and of course I grabbed a middle seat near the front of the plane and made friends with two Floridians who actually enjoy WDW although they haven’t been there in years. (Sound familiar? )
We arrived in Orlando around 4:00 p.m. and then Disney’s Magical Express (DME) whisked me to the Animal Kingdom Lodge’s Jambo House. My room was ready, and when the reservationist explained that I would need to descend two levels to get to my “digs,” I figured oh well, guess I won’t see any animals , but I’d only reserved a basic room and knew I could walk to plenty viewing spots.
So when I got to my room, imagine my delight upon stepping out onto my balcony to see this little fellow:
And then I quickly explored my room and took these just for you. I love all the details that Disney showers upon guests, don’t you?
I seriously adore this shower curtain:
Since it was nearly 6:00 p.m. by this time and my dinner reservation at Jiko was imminent, I dashed down the hall to start my adventure!
.
Jiko: Naturally, the hostess asked if I would like to sit at the chef’s table since I was dining solo, and of course I said yes. My server recommended a nice white wine called Honey Pot (which sounded decidedly Pooh-ish, so of course I had two glasses). I chatted with the chefs and watched them work as I enjoyed my beautiful surroundings. Jiko is definitely on my list of favorite WDW restaurants. Here's the dinner menu: http://allears.net/menu/menu_jiko.htm
Jiko: The food. Ah, you thought I would fail to share food photos with you? Fear not, dear Disney pals.
Appetizer: Inguday Tibs in Brik – mushrooms, spinach & cheese in crispy Tunisian Filo with curry vinaigrette and apples. Oh. My. Goodness. Those of you who have dined with me know that I NEVER finish my plate. Well, I came close to licking the darn thing. I simply couldn’t leave a crumb.
Jiko Salad: Forelle pear “carpaccio” with golden raisins in a wine vinaigrette with pistachios and pecorino cheese. Oh. My. Goodness. Didn’t leave a crumb on this plate either.
Entrée: OK, I was definitely slowing down at this point and couldn’t come close to finishing this, but I finally tried Jiko’s Oak-grilled Filet Mignon with winter vegetables, couscous “risotto” and wild mushrooms. Oh. My. Goodness.
Dessert? You’ve got to be kidding. I couldn’t possibly eat another bite. No, thank you.
But how could I forget? Jiko knew I was celebrating my March birthday, and it would have been rude to leave this untouched:
And after my way through those goodies, I gazed blearily upwards to beg the closest, largest bird I could find to haul my tubby self outta there.
yea! I've been following this of course on facebook, You are one of my fave Disney nuts, and I will meet you one day my friend afterall I loooooove St. Louis! Sounds wonderful and I can't wait to read more!
the jiko food looks divine...if only i could have gotten away from my appointed duties sooner...glad you got this thing going, but i must warn everyone in advance...fasten your seatbelts, it's gonna be a bumpy, full of fun ride...
wheeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I've decided after reading your several dining experiences at Jiko that we are definitely eating here for our June 2013 trip when we return to our villa at AKL. The Honey Pot wine sounds good, too! Can't wait for more adventures!
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Wish I could get my family to Jiko (Hubby and I did it over 10 years ago and he didn't love it).
Can you tell me a bit about the Honey Pot wine? (I'm guessing you liked it because you had too glasses). I'm assuming it's fruity (which is my kind of wine!). Any details you'd care to share?
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Wish I could get my family to Jiko (Hubby and I did it over 10 years ago and he didn't love it).
Can you tell me a bit about the Honey Pot wine? (I'm guessing you liked it because you had too glasses). I'm assuming it's fruity (which is my kind of wine!). Any details you'd care to share?
Well, I told my server that as a good German girl I'm partial to Riesling but have lately gone just slightly drier than that. He brought me a taste of the Honey Pot and I really liked it -- so I'd say yes, it's a bit fruity with some sweetness to it.
They'll let you have a taste of something and if you don't like it, they'll bring you something else. That was true at Artist's Point in December -- they brought me something too sweet at first, but I liked their second suggestion.
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No Sirree, I got me a Southwest flight on Saturday the 4th for a couple nights solo at AKL. I’ve been hankering to stay there since the two nights I got to spend there in 2005 with Rick and our friends Paul & Robbie. So glad I finally did that again, because I absolutely 
the AKL. 
Although her body was nearly 57 years old, her spirit was closer to 5 – especially whenever she visited the place that Walt Disney built just for her. Yes, dear readers, I’m talking about Walt Disney World. (What? You did not know that Walt built WDW just for me? See how much you learn by reading the Passporter boards? 
)
, but I’d only reserved a basic room and knew I could walk to plenty viewing spots. 
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