Another August Adventure: Fun, Family, Friends and Firsts - COMPLETED 11/2 with Final Thoughts! - Page 19 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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That was my first thought when I saw your photos - Jasmine is smiling!! And of course, Angel is still a mini-Tink.
Love your morning, but can't wait to see what happens at BBB!!!
Cathy - I will have to admit I was on pins and needles throughout the trip wondering if those smiles would last but they did...I never had to even ask for a smile .
We headed over to the WOD. We were about 20 minutes early for our appointment but I figured I would check us in anyway. They were only half full so they checked us in and told us to have a seat. Now originally I had three appointments but with cancelling the older girls Angel's appointment was no longer tied to any other appointments which I think led to the magic as if they were all getting their hair done they probably would have sat them all together (as there were four open chairs when we got there).
A fairy godmother came over to Angel and asked if she was celebrating her birthday. She told them she was and they asked if she would like to be princess of the day . I don't think she truly knew what they were talking about until they started to explain to her that she would have her hair and makeup done in the window of the store. She also explained to her that she had a job to do, she had to smile and wave at her subjects as they passed by the window.
They had a photographer with us through the whole experience from when they announced her and marched her through the store with her cape and crown and she took so many pictures throughout her session. They are all on the photopass CD which I am trying to finish editing so I will post those pictures when I get them but here are a few that I took.
Angel's fairy godmother was amazing. She was so talkative, even though we ended up talking to her more because Angel was playing "shy". I never understand this as when she meets mommy's PP firends I cannot shut her up, when a nice CM stops her she gets all quiet and shy and just smiles as she turns all red...LOL.
She told us about college, about how they teach them the hairstyles, and how she enjoys her job. She was great with Angel and even got her to talk a bit which can be pretty hard when Angel is playing shy.
I really thought Angel would be out of the princess stage but I am not going to lie when I say that I am kind of glad that she still loves getting all dressed up. I know I do not have much longer with her in this phase even though she has already proclaimed that next year she is going to dress up like Tinkerbell.
When we finished up I went to take care of the bill and the girls wandered the store for a bit. We then went to take some pictures of the little princess outside.
We stopped in a few more stores before heading back towards the boat. I will admit that the majority of this time was in Trend-D as I contemplated purchasing the Dooney and Burke that I have been fantasizing over. I will also say that I was a good girl and walked out empty handed but it is definitely on my Christmas List .
We had just missed the boat but decided to wait until the next one and it came quickly maybe about 10 minutes later. We had a very enthusiastic skipper who had everyone laughing as he gave us a commentary about the birds, some more birds as well as some information about the Treehouses which of course we had already heard but enjoyed anyway because he was just such a happy person who you could tell truly loved his job. he handed us over to a new skipper at POFQ who he told us had just gotten his "drivers license" but that he trusted would get us to our destination.
We made it back to POR and made our way to our room. While the girls started their showers, Juana and I went to get some refreshments in our refillable mugs. Now I had wanted to get out a bit earlier but everyone was primping as we were eating in the castle....had to look good to eat with royality.
Angel decided to be Belle again, and each time I see her in her dress I am so happy that I purchased it online instead of doing the whole package at the BBB. I got so many compliments on how beautiful her dress was, and when I think that the dress and all the extras and her hair and makeup was still less money then the castle package (and a nicer dress IMO) it makes me so happy with my decision.
We made it to the bus around 6:30, we had an ADR at 8:10 so I knew we were ok with time but hoped that we would have at least enough time to do one ride as well as take the ample time to just take it all in. It had been a whole year since we had been on Main Street and I was longing to see it in all its splendor.
We finally made it through the gates and while there were patches of crowds you could definitely see that the crowds were lighter there tonight. We took our time walking in and then stopped for our first PP group shot of the trip....right on Main Street. I think we stopped at another one closer to the castle as well.
Then I needed to stop and take in the beautiful site.
There were people already getting into position for the parade I guess becuase the castle area was already filling up with visitors.
The color of the sky in this shot should have been a hint of what was to come but at that moment I was so happy to be there that I guess I totally ignored it.
The parade was set for 9, Wishes at 10 and then there were EMH hours until 1 which we had planned to utilize. We were also planning to meet up with Brent & Liz, and Mindy after we had gotten out of CRT as they were planning to enjoy EMH's as well.
We had a little time so we headed into our first ride of the trip....and the girls choice. Philamagic as Isamar loved this so much from last year. There were no complaints from the choice as my girls adore this as well. We had maybe a 10 minute wait before we were led in to the main theater and it was a great way to start off our first evening in the parks.
We made our way out to light raindrops....cue that I should have noticed the ominous clouds but again still in perfect spirits we headed over to the castle as it was 7:40 and we did not want to take a chance of heading into another ride and then be late for dinner.
We could not check in yet so we browsed a few stores and then I headed over to check-in. Now it was 15 minutes before our ADR time but they said we had to wait. Ok I waited 5 minutes and then went back where the same girl proceeded to ask me the same questions again...is you whole party here. Yes they are here, can I check in?
She said she had good news and bad news...the good news she could check me in and we could go and meet Cinderella, the bad news, they were really backed up so we should be prepared for at least a 30 minute wait. No that was not what I wanted to hear when the last thing we ate were empanadas at noon and it was almost 8 pm but I smiled took my card, gathered my troops and headed in. The girls were starving, the front hall was a mad house and people were complaining how they had been waiting for 45 minutes.
They started to call names and give out "thank you for your patience" FP's but no one was smiling. The crowd grew deeper and there was literally no where to stand. I have to say that our wait was not as bad as she had warned. I think waited only 15 - 20 minutes so no FP for us but all we cared about at that moment was getting some food into some very hungry children.
We were led to a table by the window and there were a lot of empty tables when we got upstairs so I am not sure what the hold up was but by the time we left it was packed so whatever it was must have been resolved. Our server was very nice, noted our allergies and told us a chef would be with us soon. She took our drink orders and headed off.
The chef appeared within minutes and he was just wonderful. We discussed my allergies and then Angel's and he told her to look at the menu and tell him anything that looked good. He ended up creating her own meal with her from different things on the menu. he really took such great time with her it definitely was a great start to our dining this trip.
Now another first....I remembered to take photos of almost every meal, a big surprise as I ususally only remember one or two but the girls were great about reminding me to pass the camera around so there will definitely be food porn in this TR. We also rated each restaurant on a scale of 1 - 5 so I will give you our final average of each meal.
I think we all started off with the Castle Salad except for Isamar who went for the Salmon-Crab Cakes. Now there are no pictures of the appitizers (not sure why as I know I took them). The salad was good and Isamar said the Salmon-Crab Cakes were really good especially the Fennel Salad that came with it.
For our entrees we all tried something different. Now the menu that appears on Disney.com and All Ears is different then the one they were offering so I will do my best to describe what we all had.
I had a grilled pork chop with butternut squash and a raisin and apple ragout.
The sides were amazing, I really enjoyed how they prepared the butternut squash. The pork was ok and I found that it was not cooked as well as I would have liked once you got towards the center so I ate around it.
Jasmine ordered the hen with mac and cheese and broccolini. She found that it was ok, she said the hen was cooked well but not very falovorful but she said the mac and cheese was outstanding.
Isamar ordered a lamb chops, not sure what this came with but she finished her plate. She said that she really enjoyed her meal. Juana had the copia which was the fish being offered. It came over a bed of angel-hair pasta. She gave the CRT the highest rating of our group, she really enjoyed her meal.
Angel told the chef she liked angel-hair pasta. He asked if she would like some chicken with that and she agreed. The he asked if she would like some marinara sauce which put a smile on her face. So this was Angel's "Princess Meal" as the chef called it.
Now again my pictures from dessert are missing so I am not sure what happened. I also am not sure of what of what we ate. I know Juana has a sorbet I think, someone had a chocolate moose pyramid and Angel had some vanilla rice dream with berries.
Now I think being it was our first night in the park I was very unprepared because I forgot Angel's canvas bag which she was using for autographs this trip . But that did not stop her from some great visits with the princesses.
We had some really great interaction with the princesses, especially Belle who of course had to spend time with Angel asking her when she had a chance to sneak into her house and borrow a dress from her closet.
Our rating of CRT - 3.5
We all agreed that the atmosphere is worth it. Everyone needs to eat in the castle at least once. The food was good but nothing that stands out but then again you really are not paying for the food when you eat here. Not to say that it was not enjoyable food because besides my not so perfectly cooked pork everyone else cleared their plate. Jasmine also mentioned that she enjoyed the lunch menu more than the dinner menu and I have to agree as our last lunch there was really good, but then again it might have been just the menu offerings not the meal itself. I think the crowds during the wait did set everyone off a bit, I still do not understand how they are not better organized here. The chef was great though, he came back at least twice to check on Angel and to see if she enjoyed her meal and what she would like for dessert.
During dinner we looked out the window and the light sprinkle had turned into a monsoon. I had been texting with Brent and Liz and Mindy and they were all soaked waiting for the parade. At some point during our dinner they were all giving up and going to drier territory namely their resorts. We made it out of the CRT close to 9:45.
I figured we would be heading out as well....it would be a washed out EMH but when we got out while the rain was still coming down something led me to lead my troops toward the HM instead of the exit. Again I was not prepared today because we had no ponchos only two umbrellas and Jasmine and I had hoods but we made our way to the non-existent line at the HM. Now I did not notice how wet we were until the AC hit us be we were on our dunebuggies within minutes and visiting with the happy haunts.
By the time we got out the rain had started to let up, it was still raining but now we were all pumped to continue on. We caught some of Wishes (which went off anyway despite the rain) which I am sure made all those loyal souls that were still standing in front of the castle happy.
We stopped in the restroom neart PPF so Angel could change out of her dress and into the shorts and tank top I brought with us and with her much more comfortable we headed off for a flight over London, again a non-existent wait. Next up was Pooh, who could resist hopping along with Tigger and it was somewhere dry right???
We then made our way towards Tomorrowland where we stopped for a ride on the Teacups, as usual Angel has a teacup to herself because while we all enjoy spinning, riding with Angel is a whole different story
We stopped off in a store to wander for a few before heading over to SM. It was still toting a 40 minute wait so since Angel was still not keen on riding this again and Jasmine was definitely not riding we decided to hold this off for our next visit to the MK. Instead we headed over to Stitch. Now I love Stitch, I truly do but I do not enjoy this attraction. Neither did anyone else in our party except for Angel so we gave in figuring we could get the one mandatory ride per trip out of the way.
The CM stuck us in the front row which I detest even more than the attraction and I was very happy when we finally made our way off the ride. We then took a tour of Tomorrowland on the TTA or the PeopleMover as it is now called again.
We were still very wet so we decided to do one more ride and then hit the road. Our last ride of the evening....Buzz Lightyear. I still do not know how to aim this thing and I got my usual 30,000. We stopped to take the traditional "I am locked up" shot.
On the way out I stopped to take a few shots of the castle all lit up.
We said goodbye to Main Street for the night and headed to a still very crowded bus stop. It was about 11:30 and we were all glad we decided to stick it out even with the rain. We got some great rides done with no waits and it turned about to be a wonderful evening.
We made it back to the resort around midnight and after getting into some dry clothes we all were ready to hit the sack. We had an early morning at Epcot the next day and we all wanted to be there early to catch an early ride over "California".
What a great day! That's so awesome that she was the Princess of the Day.
Thanks for posting the pics of the food at CRT I love butternut squash, so that would've been one of my favorite parts of the meal. Sorry the pork wasn't cooked properly though.
I know what you mean about not realizing how wet you are until you're in the A/C. Since it's still hot when it rains, it's not as uncomfortable as a cold rain - but as soon as you're someplace chilly (especially HM which is chillier to begin with), you REALLY feel it!!
I'm glad that you said you're not crazy about Stitch's Great Escape. I'm not either, but DBF likes it so we'll probably end up doing it
Glad that you stuck out the EMH - those wait times were amazing!
Can't wait to read the next update. Soarin' is my favorite.
Sounds like a wonderful start to your first day! I hope the trend continues and I can't wait to hear about BBB!
BTW your sig pic is fantastic!
The trend definitely continued Heather Thanks for the sig pic compliment, I was really happy with how it came out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by disneydani
Glad the chefcould make Angel a delish breakfast. Jasmine's pics are beautiful, the resort looks so serene.
Fun morning at DTD and DQ....waiting to hear all about the magic coming up!
danielle
We really love POR and have always had amazing service from the chefs there. We really had great chefs everywhere we went. Even the non-Disney restaurants while they might not have as many options as we get at the Disney owned restaurants they are just so wonderful and accommodating.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
Angel looks truly beautiful! How special to be picked as princess of the day!
It was definitetly one of those moments of the trip that stuck out for both of us. She talked about it for the whole trip and for me...well I am just happy that my "baby" still enjoys all the princess stuff, I am so not ready for her to grow up
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wolfy6688
What a great day! That's so awesome that she was the Princess of the Day.
Thanks for posting the pics of the food at CRT I love butternut squash, so that would've been one of my favorite parts of the meal. Sorry the pork wasn't cooked properly though.
I know what you mean about not realizing how wet you are until you're in the A/C. Since it's still hot when it rains, it's not as uncomfortable as a cold rain - but as soon as you're someplace chilly (especially HM which is chillier to begin with), you REALLY feel it!!
I'm glad that you said you're not crazy about Stitch's Great Escape. I'm not either, but DBF likes it so we'll probably end up doing it
Glad that you stuck out the EMH - those wait times were amazing!
Can't wait to read the next update. Soarin' is my favorite.
Stitch is one of those rides I could really do without, what is sad is that they could probably do so much more with it if they wanted.
I was really glad we stuck it out, this was one of the only EMH we had really planned for and I would have been so dissappointed if we had to give up on it. In the end we got so much done and it really ended up being a great evening despite the rain.
Meg, great updates. How magical Angel got to be Princess of the Day. She lookeed beautiful. So sorry to eear about the horrndous wait at CRT, and the food wasn't all that great, especially your pork chop being under cooked. Gla to hear the experience, the Princesses, & Chef made up for it. So sorry to hear you all ot soaked, but at least waits were non-existent for you. Love all o the pictures. Don't worry about not loving SGE. My mom didn't care for the ride either(expecially the scents), so I'll take er word for it and we won't ride it(although I love Stitch himself). More please Meg!
Ahh- what a great honor for Angel at BBB! And she looks so (I know you don't want to hear it) grown up!!! She's just beautiful. Do you have a photo of her from outside looking in?
Sorry about the long wait at CRT. I'm still contemplating whether we want to eat there on one of our trips. I like your rating system and food commentary.
Sorry you didn't get to meet up with Liz, Brent and Mindy...but don't you love it when 'following a feeling' turns out to be a good idea?
I think Angel would have ride partners for the Teacups with Kelley and Cory. They love to spin.
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And of course, Angel is still a mini-Tink. 
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. But that did not stop her from some great visits with the princesses.
I love butternut squash, so that would've been one of my favorite parts of the meal. Sorry the pork wasn't cooked properly though.
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