Feelin’ Groovy: A Cam and Luke TR Completed 7/31 - Page 24 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 hope to make it to Disney for the F&GF at some point. I love all of your photos showcasing the beauty that is Epcot in the spring. Great interaction with Belle and Charlotte!
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I hope to make it to Disney for the F&GF at some point. I love all of your photos showcasing the beauty that is Epcot in the spring. Great interaction with Belle and Charlotte!
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Luke thought I was a little crazy getting excited before our first F&GF, but once he saw it for himself, he was excited to return the next year.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Linnynad
I love those alone moments with your nieces or nephews .........the pics of Charlotte with Belle are priceless .
Charlotte and Belle is one of my favorite memories of this trip. I got to watch a 28 year old transform into a little girl again.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
All caught up again from the updates over the last couple of weeks. I loved the photos of the macaws - that was so neat!
The macaws flight over my head, I think, will be one of my all time favorite Animal Kingdom moments.
Having met Belle, I was ready for something sweet, so we were off to The Smokehouse: Barbecue and Brews for the Warm Chocolate Cake with Bourbon-Salted Caramel Sauce and Spiced Pecans. Totally satisfied my sweet tooth. The cake was light, yet moist, and the sauce and nuts added interest.
When I finished up my Warm Chocolate Cake from The Smokehouse, I checked the times guide on my MDE app, discovering that the show would begin in 2 minutes. We gathered up and headed inside, hearing the very last measures of the last song by the Voices of Liberty. Then we were joining the masses in heading upstairs. Air conditioning and comfortable seats always help on a very warm Florida day. Pam loved the show, but did admit to nodding off for just a moment. I assured her I had done that before as well.
Next, I wished over the very nice giraffe carvings at the Outpost. We wandered the shops of Germany as Pam’s husband is of German descent, and picked up some drinks and pretzels for snacks. I managed one photo here as my favorite topiaries on in Germany: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I will have my camera a few days later and get all of them, so never fear.
Of course, the trip would not be complete if I didn’t wander the Puffin Roost in Norway. I usually check out Sierra Trading Post and 6PM.com for the Dale of Norway sweaters and Helly Hansen items when I get home. We’ve found some very good deals on these when I could never afford them at Epcot. In Mexico when wandered the inside of the pavilion and rode Grand Fiesta Tour, which had difficulties. At about halfway through our boats slowed to a snail’s pace, but did get going again toward the end of the ride. We ran into Regina and her DH Terry while shopping in the silver shop. More hugs and tears, and reassurance that it gets better even though it will also be different. Thankfully, Pam remembered that I wanted some photos with Regina and took these with her camera. , Pam!
Our reservation for dinner was at La Hacienda for 8:00 PM. It was now just a little before 6:00 PM, but when Pam and Charlotte left, Luke requested that we try to get in earlier as he was nearly ready to head back to AKL. We checked at the podium as it was too late to modify using the app. They were very pleasant about accommodating us for an earlier table, and we were led immediately to a two top booth. Score! Luke was very hungry and chose the Taquiza entrée. A taco sampler featuring grilled chicken with green tomatillo sauce, grilled steak with roasted Chipotle sauce and rajas poblanos, pork Chilorio served with queso fresco, and battered fish served with a Mayo-Chipotle sauce topped with cabbage. I asked him when he’d finished which of the tacos he had liked the best. He shrugged his shoulders, saying he had really liked them all.
I was still a little full since I’d had the onion tart and the chocolate cake, so I selected one an appetizer for my entrée. I chose the Pork Empanadas which are described as corn dough empanadas stuffed with pork and black beans topped with mole sauce. These were so delicious and exactly the size meal I needed.
This still looks so delicious that I wouldn't mind eating there right now.
Summary/Conclusion: We managed to see all but three topiaries today. We should have seen at least two of the three, but I missed Pooh because I was looking ahead to see if Mary Poppins was out because she is not only one of my favorites, but also one of Charlotte’s faves. By the way, she was not out. We do have another day at Epcot so we’ll catch those three topiaries then. The two new topiaries (Donald, Daisy, Huey, Dewey and Louie; Ranger Mickey & Friends) had PhotoPass photographers so we managed to add these to our Magic Bands.
Backside of Spaceship Earth
Front Entrance with Daisy
By afternoon today it was very warm and humid, resulting in our being a bit sweaty, but as soon as the sun set it was very pleasant and slightly breezy. A good day was had by all four of us. Pam shared a couple of photos that she and Charlotte took while waiting for us at the front entrance, so I'll share those, too.
Luke and I returned to AKL after the last two PhotoPass shots shown above. Back at the resort, we used some gift cards and our Disney Visa Rewards cards to paid down the room charges before returning to the room. Luke climbed in bed and checked e-mails on his tablet before falling asleep around 9:30. I typed the day’s notes, and then it was time for me to sleep, too.
PS: Sorry there is no mystery photo for this day, but it slipped my mind, probably because I was using my iPhone. I took less and less photos throughout the day. But the DSLR will make it to the parks the rest of the trip, so the mystery photo will return.
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An awesome finish to the day! Your meal at La Hacienda looked yummy! And I loved the little photo shoot at the front of the park, especially the picture with you and Luke facing each other, with your arms around each other. Don't think I've ever seen that pose!
An awesome finish to the day! Your meal at La Hacienda looked yummy! And I loved the little photo shoot at the front of the park, especially the picture with you and Luke facing each other, with your arms around each other. Don't think I've ever seen that pose!
It was really a great time to stop for photos at the front entrance as the photographer was just idling. He really took quite a bit of time with us which was fun.
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What a nice day you had at Epcot with your Charlotte and Pam! The American Adventure is my favorite country to stop into at the World Showcase, not only for the VOL but I always enjoy the show upstairs too (and it is a good place to cool off and close your eyes if you need too). Your dinner at La Hacienda looked delicious! Love the PP pics that you had taken in the entrance.
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I loved the photos of the macaws - that was so neat! 
The macaws flight over my head, I think, will be one of my all time favorite Animal Kingdom moments. 
We do have another day at Epcot so we’ll catch those three topiaries then. The two new topiaries (Donald, Daisy, Huey, Dewey and Louie; Ranger Mickey & Friends) had PhotoPass photographers so we managed to add these to our Magic Bands. 
). Your dinner at La Hacienda looked delicious! Love the PP pics that you had taken in the entrance.
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