Friends and Flowers April 2011 Complete Updated 5/4 - Page 3 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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All caught up! Heather!
So happy for you that you were able to score Club level for the whole time you are at WDW! I am on a waitlist for one day of my trip in June! Of course, I am not expecting that to happen!
Love the introduction! And your kitties are so cute!
I am looking forward to reading about your ADRs!
Umm...by the way, I may need to PM you about New Orleans and the area.
(it is possible that Allen will be working up there for a couple of months - I will touch base with you when we know!)
All caught up! Heather!
So happy for you that you were able to score Club level for the whole time you are at WDW! I am on a waitlist for one day of my trip in June! Of course, I am not expecting that to happen!
Love the introduction! And your kitties are so cute!
I am looking forward to reading about your ADRs!
Umm...by the way, I may need to PM you about New Orleans and the area.
(it is possible that Allen will be working up there for a couple of months - I will touch base with you when we know!)
No problem Ann! Just let me know what you need! I'd be more than happy to act as planner/tour guide!
Thanks for reading everyone . . . coming up Breaking News and Food!
There will not be a Margarita Meet this trip Instead we will be having Grand Marnier Monday in France at 8pmish on Monday April 11. Find us next to the Frozen beverage Cart in France--near where the umbrella stand is for cocktails. If you are running late you may find us on the bridge between France and the UK to watch the show!
FOOD, glorious food!
The nice people at IPO at the AKL were nice enough to book all of our dinners for us at 180 days. About a month ago, yes only a month ago, I sat down to plan our lunches. Its relatively easy to get sit down lunch reservations as long as you are flexible. I was taking a little disny planning break so I just waited until I felt inspired. Some meals are old favorites and some are new--either to both of us, one of us, or just for specific meals!
Just a bit about how we usually eat . . . because I know this sounds like a lot of food. Several of these meals are family style or buffet so this doesn't apply. We tend to order just off of the appetizer menu and share! I've found that it allows us to try a greater variety of food and really get a better feel for the restaurant. It also saves us money, as three or four appetizers always cost much less than two entrees. An example? On a recent trip 3 of us had dinner at Citricos. Three entrees at Citricos, based on what I would guess my family would have ordered, would have been $120. Instead we had: Duck, crab, tuna, and arancini, as well as a salad. Dinner was $64. We were full and the food was great! Plus we got to try a bunch of different things!
Saturday is arrival day for us! We arrive in Orlando at 10:30am--so it means a pretty early start for us. We'll figure out what to do about lunch once we figure out what time we'll be arriving at AKL. I'm guessing about 12noon. It could be snacks from the lounge--but more likely The Mara or Casey's at the Magic Kingdom.
Dinner is with a big group at Chef Mickey's. I've never been there for dinner and Brandon has never been there at all! This will be our only character meal of the trip! Can't wait to see Mickey!
Sunday lunch is a Tutto Italia. This is another first for us. We tried Via Napoli in October and thought it was OK. We thought we'd try something different this time. I see soup and an antipasti plate in our near future!
Dinner on Sunday is at 'Ohana! We've both been to breakfast here, but somehow we've missed out on dinner. I think it's been because dining times have been difficult for a long time on this one and any time it has been on the list the available times didn't work for me! I'm looking forward to dumplings and grilled shrimp!
Monday lunch is one of my favorites, and the only restaurant at the Studios that I love . . . I have a hard time leaving it off of any trip plans--we're headed back to the Hollywood Brown Derby for some yummy cobb salad, and maybe I'll finally have room to try the grapefruit cake.
Dinner on Monday is back at the AKL, we're giving Boma another try! Both of us liked this meal in the past, but have been choosing Jiko or Sanna instead lately.
Tuesday lunch is AT Sanna! We can't get enough of this one. It's the one place Brandon requests every single trip--even when he won't be going along. So I tend to hit this one, even on solo trips, because its just so good!
On Tuesday night we'll be checking out the new signature menu at Le Cellier. I'll let you know how we feel about the changes. We're looking forward to trying the Black and Blue Tartar on the appetizer menu!
Finally, we have a pretty late flight out of MCO--it doesn't leave until 7pm--so I'm guessing we have about a 4pm DME ride. We'll be spending the last part of our trip at Epcot with lunch at Beirgarten! I've now done this one several times, but it will be Brandon's first trip to the wonderland of sausage!
We'll be taking advantage of the lounge for breakfast and afternoon wine and snacks! We tend to do early morning touring--to miss out on the crowds, have lunch, catch one more ride and take a long break in the afternoon.
What parks and When coming up next . . . Thanks for reading along! I love getting your feedback!
I'm glad I found this before I got too far behind. So far everything sounds fantastic - wish I was going along!
We have our 3rd club level AKL stay coming up and sometimes I feel guilty about it, but then I think 'hey I got up and called at exactly 9am, 11 months in advance. why should I feel guilty for using my points to the fullest?'
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I'm glad I found this before I got too far behind. So far everything sounds fantastic - wish I was going along!
We have our 3rd club level AKL stay coming up and sometimes I feel guilty about it, but then I think 'hey I got up and called at exactly 9am, 11 months in advance. why should I feel guilty for using my points to the fullest?'
Don't feel guilty! Scoring the best possible room is awesome! I never feel badly about being up early and getting on the phone! I feel awesome about this one because I didn't get up at 9am 11 months before--I did it much later--maybe at 10 months!
Don't feel guilty! Scoring the best possible room is awesome! I never feel badly about being up early and getting on the phone! I feel awesome about this one because I didn't get up at 9am 11 months before--I did it much later--maybe at 10 months!
Thanks for making me feel better Heather! This trip we have a 2 bedroom - so we're really taking up some space.
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Your dining choices sound wonderful!
The way you guys order makes a lot of sense!
We often share an appetizer and then one entree. It is always plenty of food!
What are your dates again?
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There will not be a Margarita Meet this trip 
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