The West's are heading South...again! - Page 10 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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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.
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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.
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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Yay The trip has started!!! Have an awesome time! So jealous, we don't go until November. This is my longest dry spell since we bought DVC! But two weeks overlapping F&W and Christmas parties….worth it!
Ooh, that is the perfect time to go
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Originally Posted by Tara O'Hara
How exciting!! You guys are on your way!!
Tara
YAY!
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Originally Posted by chezp
Yay - you're almost there!
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Originally Posted by DawnK
Safe travels the rest of way!!! Have a great time!!
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Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
I hope you don't have any traffic issues today!
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Originally Posted by Cam22
You are on your way! Safe travels today!
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Originally Posted by OhToodles!
I'm sure you're there by now! Hope you scored at the outlets!
I'm sitting here waiting to go put a load of laundry in. There are only two washers at the pool house and they were both being used. We discovered on Sunday that Disney has closed all of their outlet stores (at least that is what the lady at the mall said), so sadly, no shopping happiness. We arrived at Old Key West about 2:30 on Sunday, with our text saying the room was ready when we were about 10 minutes out. Perfect!
We came directly to our room, #5210. It is in the back, but close to the bus stop and we like it. Ground floor, nice and quiet. Only problem is it is very humid in the room. Our towels don't ever seem to dry. I did call and they came and changed the filter, but the jury is still out on whether or not that fixes the problem.
Anyway, after we got all unpacked, DH settled in to finish his final paper. The kids and I headed over to DTD to eat at EoS. We hitched a ride on the bus up to the hospitality house and then waited about 10 minutes for the boat. It was a pleasant ride and we were soon disembarking. EoS was crowded as usual, but the kids found a table while I waited. They both had the Cannonball sandwich with chips and drinks. I got the Avocado BLT and broccoli cheese soup. I also picked up a Chipotle Chicken sandwich and chips to take back to DH. After we ate, we decided to take the bus back, because it was closer. We took DH his sandwich, then headed over to MK where we had FP+ starting at 7.
We got to the park around 6:00. We decided to go ride PotC while we waited. The line said it was a 30 minute wait, but it felt shorter. The line was entertaining as we were behind a group of high school students whose very breathing seemed to annoy my DD (she is 17 and annoyed by EVERYTHING). When we hit the podium and the CM asked how many in our group, we begged him with our eyes and body language to please separate us from those kids so we didn't end up in the same boat. He was totally feeling our vibe, and sent us the other way with a wink and a nod of understanding. Our ride was enjoyable and when it was over it was time to
use our first FP+ on BTMR. True to it's name, we enjoyed the wildest ride in the wilderness.
Our next stop was HM. Again, the posted wait time was 30 minutes, and again, it seemed faster. Our next FP+ was for 7DMT, but when we got there, the ride was down. Did I mention it was FREEZING on Sunday night? Well, it was. DS decided he was a little hungry, so we went to Pinocchio's Place. I ordered a pepperoni flat bread and an order of fries. We all sat down and shared the food and enjoyed the heated indoors. DH had finally finished his paper and was on his way to meet us, so we walked over to our last FP+, SM. We hung out in the gift shop until he found us, then we rode it together. I checked the app and it said 7DMT was up again, so we headed over to that. It actually worked out well as DH had missed the time to ride it. It was a fun ride although not as pleasant with the colder temperatures.
After the ride, DH said he wouldn't mind having a funnel cake, so we checked out Sleepy Hollow. The line was pretty long and DH is pretty short on patience, so we opted for Starbucks on Main St instead. DD and I got waters, while DS and DH got hot chocolate. DH ordered an egg sandwich of some kind (just like a funnel cake, right? lol), I had a walnut brownie, and DD got a salted caramel toffee square thingy. We then found our bus stop and were soon ready for bed.
It was a great first day. We got to ride our favorites at MK, enjoyed some tasty treats, and DH finally finished his class! Yay!! all around
Tomorrow: Epcot!
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Yay - you've made it and it sounds like you're enjoying yourself, with the exception of the cold and the lack of the Disney outlet. If that's true about Disney closing all of them, it's a very recent thing, as the one at the Orlando Premium Outlets was open just over a month ago, as we were there....
Yay - you've made it and it sounds like you're enjoying yourself, with the exception of the cold and the lack of the Disney outlet. If that's true about Disney closing all of them, it's a very recent thing, as the one at the Orlando Premium Outlets was open just over a month ago, as we were there....
Ooh, maybe that's what she meant. DH said the woman told him that you can only get the stuff in Orlando, but I thought she meant at the parks. I guess we'll be making a quick stop on our way out. Thanks!!
Monday morning, we drove to Epcot and arrived about 10:45, just in time for our FP+ for Soarin'. When we got in line, I was surprised at how far back we were and the standby line was posted at 185 minutes already. After waiting for 10 minutes and not moving, we finally asked a couple walking back down the ramp what was up. They said they were up in front and hadn't moved in an hour. We promptly got out of line and left, after verifying that the ride was indeed down and that our FP+ would be honored later. I was in contact with my student's mom, and they were just coming out of Turtle Talk, so we met up with them for our first picture together in our first park. She looked so cute with her hair all done up from BBB the night before
After our photo opportunity, we decided to split up. DD and I headed to France for our ADR at Chefs de France, while the boys went and used our FP+ for SE.
We checked in and were seated right away at a table for two in the front window. Peyton ordered her escargot and a tomato and goat cheese flatbread. I went for the lobster bisque and the fried herb goat cheese salad. Everything was delicious, and Peyton's snails were huge. I have a picture I will post later. The angle makes it look bigger than it really was, but they were pretty big.
I heard from the boys who were just finishing up lunch at the American Pavilion. We met back up with them and took the Friendship boat over to Canada. From there we walked to FW for our FP+ at MS. DS and DH opted for orange and DD and I did the green side.
Our next stop was the SRL for TT. It said the wait was 20 minutes and that was about right. Standby was 155. We rode with strangers and my car won
From there, we hit up Club Cool and tricked DH into trying the Beverley. Surprisingly, he didn't like it. Odd from someone who actually loves alka seltzer
We thought he would really like it.
Onward to Soarin'. It was up and running, so we scanned our bands and were soon checking out California. I do like this ride, but it is such dire need of an update. It was DHs first time on it, and he was like "it's not even it HD?". With technology being what it is, it is time. I would love to see a more global version. Maybe one that shows sites from all the countries in WS. California is great for DCA, but we need something different for Epcot. My opinion anyway
DH and DD were ready for a rest, but I was determined to see all the things in Epcot that the rest of my travel party never want to do. Surprisingly, DS opted to stay with me, so we parted ways at the front and he and I headed to Mexico. Along the way, we saw something odd. A little sister (maybe 8yo) had just yanked her older sister (maybe 14yo) down to the ground by her backpack. The older sister was laying on her back, right in the middle of an "intersection", and she was refusing to get up. I think she was trying to make sure her parents saw what the younger one had done to her, but meanwhile, all of these people are having to figure out a way to get around her. As we finally cleared the mess, we heard the guy behind us tell his wife that the father of the girls had just reached down and pulled the older girl up...by the hair! Oh my goodness. You really do see it all. Sibling issues happen everywhere and there are many parents who just don't know how to handle it.
Anyway, back to business. We chased Donald all over Mexico and it was fun Our next stop was China, where DS bought some rice crackers to try. Um, gross! We waited a few minutes and then watched to 360' China film. It was beautiful
We bought a small bag of caramel corn in Germany and then found a table in the shade in Italy to polish off the bag. Our travels then took us to the F&GF stand in America, where we just had to try a piggylicious cupcake. Maple frosting on a bacon cupcake. It was pretty darn good. From there we walked through the shops in the other countries, stopping for a chocolate crepe in France. I know it sounds like we ate a lot, but there was a lot of strolling around in between. We also got stopped earlier before the outpost to let the floats for Illuminations go through. That was kind of cool
Our next film was in France. We enjoyed it as well. From there we walke over to the "back entrance" and left the park to use the restroom...lol. When we came back in, we walked over to Canada and finished our tour of the world with Martin Short. It was now almost time for our ADR at R&C. We met DH and DD in England, checked in and were soon seated at a perfect table on the patio. DH ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala, DS tried the Bangers and Mash (pretty adventurous for him), DD had the Fish and Chips, and I had the Shepherds Pie. We were all quite pleased with our choices. When we were done, we were trying to kill a little more time and DS was still kind of hungry, so we ordered a plate of chips. They were so delicious. Probably the best "fries" I've had in a long time. We also ordered dessert, one of each-Sticky Toffee Pudding, Jaffa Cakes, Banoffee, and Chocolate Bread Pudding. They were all delicious, but my favorites were the Banoffee and the Sticky Toffee Pudding. Yum We enjoyed our desserts while watching Illuminations, which is the best way to do it in my opinion.
By the time we settled our bill (about $125 after TiW discount), we made our way out to the car and back home to bed
Tomorrow: Animal Kingdom!
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Have an awesome time! So jealous, we don't go until November. This is my longest dry spell since we bought DVC! But two weeks overlapping F&W and Christmas parties….worth it! 
. I did call and they came and changed the filter, but the jury is still out on whether or not that fixes the problem.
. Our ride was enjoyable and when it was over it was time to 
PassPorter Guide Author
. After waiting for 10 minutes and not moving, we finally asked a couple walking back down the ramp what was up. They said they were up in front and hadn't moved in an hour. We promptly got out of line and left, after verifying that the ride was indeed down and that our FP+ would be honored later. I was in contact with my student's mom, and they were just coming out of Turtle Talk, so we met up with them for our first picture together in our first park. She looked so cute with her hair all done up from BBB the night before
.
Glad you got to ride Soarin' in the end.
Disney Magic - Oct 2015
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