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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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We'll be in Chicago again this summer and thought we might drive up to Milwaukee for a day. Any recommendations on things to do, places to eat. We're not Harley folks but that's probably something we should see??? Thanks!
I am a resident When in summer are you coming -- if it is late June Early July I HIGHLY recommend Summerfest -- largest music festival in the world I believe. Other points of interest would be the Milwaukee Art Museum, Zoo, Botanical Gardens, Public Museum, War Memorial. There are many ethnic festivals throughout the summer as well.
For places to dine - will you give a little more info on your taste?
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~ Jenn **Disney is REAL LIFE Magic, so much more than optical illusions **
Last edited by TinkerbellJenn99; 12-27-2013 at 05:32 PM..
Reason: missing info
Yes, dates please! There's festivals just about every weekend during the summer with Summerfest being the largest one of all.
And any other certain interests? Kids coming along? Lots of ways to tailor a day trip!
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Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
I loved the Domes (Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory)! There are three of them, and each hosts a different climate. Definitely worth a visit, IMO.
Taste of Chicago is after our Summerfest. And then the festival grounds take a week off before the rest of the festivals start up again. Summerfest ends on July 6 and the next one is Festa Italiana, but it's not till July 18. So no major festival during the time you may be here.
But that's OK, there's other things to do. The art museum and Mitchell Park Domes are cool, as already mentioned. Not far from the art museum is Discovery World. Kind of a hands on museum.
Bastille Days will be going on July 10-13. That's another free festival downtown Milwaukee at Cathedral Square. Think small scale Taste of Chicago with a French flair. It's music and food from local restaurants for 4 days. There's a 5K on the first night, at 9pm, as the runners "storm the bastille."
The main area for downtown shopping and eating (I think) is the historic third ward. Shopping - Dining - Arts & Culture | Welcome to Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward Lots of places to check out there. The main restaurant/drinking scene used to be Water street - just on the other side of the highway from the 3rd ward. But it's pretty even kilter now and the 3rd ward is just that much more "hip." Also the Milwaukee Public Market is right there too, just off the highway at the start of the 3rd ward. Lots of stuff to try and sample there as well. I always try to go to a city's public market - it's just fun.
There's a couple popular sushi places: Izumi's and Umami Moto. I don't eat it, but our neighbors love it and go to both places often. If you like pizza (and who doesn't?) really good pizza on the east side would be from the Pizza Man. Their original building burned down a few years ago, but they moved and reopened and apparently the pizza is just as tasty. I haven't been back to verify yet. Another excellent pizza place is Balistreri's. It's just west of Miller Park, a straight shot west on I-94, exit at 68th street. Mmmmmm, so good.
Speaking of Miller Park, there's another thing. If you come on a game day, tickets are (almost) always available. If you come on an off day, TGI fridays is inside, so you can eat there and look out at the ball park. (Or maybe I just like that cuz I love baseball.) Again, if you come on an off day when the Brewers are not here for a stretch of time, you can take a tour of the park! It's just $10. But it looks like we have a long home stretch from July 7-13.
Hope that helps!
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Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
Great items mentioned above. I have to go with Ian's Pizza for best pizza place though So good, and lots of unique choices, along with the standard fair as well. Ian's is also located downtown.
I have heard great things about this Sushi place as well Menu » Kanpai located in our historic 3rd ward
I've been to Bastille Days as a "non runner" - it's not what it use to be. Very crowded, though it is something free to do, and you can enjoy the outside. This is just my opinion thought. I'd recommend the Domes, Zoo, or just seeing the sites of the 3rd Ward or Walker's Point over Bastille Days. They have great little bistros and unique shops.
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~ Jenn **Disney is REAL LIFE Magic, so much more than optical illusions **