A 40th celebration to end the world! COMPLETED 4/23 - Page 40 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Oh dear! I don't think I would have braved a walking tour with rain coming down that hard. I understand money already being spent, but I agree with Laurie, I'm a whimp too!
I probably would have bailed on the tour too and just stayed in my cabin. Could you have gotten a refund if you had chosen to do that because of inclement weather?
Finally caught up on this fabulous trip report! Thanks so much for all the photos and reviews. We are thinking about a Fantasy cruise in August to celebrate my in-laws 60th anniversary. Great to get this insider look at the ship and activities.
I got a wee bit behind, but it was fun catching up. The interaction between Pirate Daisy and Donald sounds precious. All the pirate touches at Animators' Palate were neat. And your meals -- very delicious looking. My favorite photo of the night is the one as pirates at the restaurant. Too cute! I cannot believe that rain on your walking tour day.
I probably would have bailed on the tour too and just stayed in my cabin. Could you have gotten a refund if you had chosen to do that because of inclement weather?
I honestly have no idea. I was assuming because the tour went ahead that they wouldn't give a refund, but that's just me assuming that.
Finally caught up on this fabulous trip report! Thanks so much for all the photos and reviews. We are thinking about a Fantasy cruise in August to celebrate my in-laws 60th anniversary. Great to get this insider look at the ship and activities.
I got a wee bit behind, but it was fun catching up. The interaction between Pirate Daisy and Donald sounds precious. All the pirate touches at Animators' Palate were neat. And your meals -- very delicious looking. My favorite photo of the night is the one as pirates at the restaurant. Too cute!
Wednesday 19 December – part two: I can’t think why no-one else wanted to help the British
We stood in the courtyard outside the fort to learn a bit about the place. There were costumed characters as part of the historic walking tour, and they did really add to the story. We were told that they needed all the citizens of San Juan (i.e. all of us) to step forward as soldiers to help defend the island from British attack. At this point, Mark and I were all in favour of helping the British, but oddly no-one else seemed to want to… I can’t think why.
Look what I can see!
The then-governor of Puerto Rico read a decree, calling everyone to arms…
… and then thankfully we entered the fort, and headed undercover. I have never been so relieved to get out of rain before.
We learnt more about the history of this part of the world, which was ruled by the Spanish for many years. The whole island was first named San Juan by Christopher Columbus when he discovered the place. There were many attempts at invasion by the British, three if I’m remembering right, each of which was thwarted with the help of the Castillo. Here, our guide explained the importance of it being a Castillo, rather than a fort, as a fort is only home to weapons, while a Castillo is also home to soldiers, as well as weapons.
We headed inside to see some of the exhibits, and here our guide brought them to life. The first showed the position of Puerto Rico as the key to the Caribbean, being at the Eastern end, and one of the closest places to Spain. I was fascinated to learn that it was something like 90 minutes by plane to Venezuela, whereas I think Miami was at least that long, if not longer. I had no idea we were that close to South America.
Next we headed into a room to learn more about how the women used to communicate with the soldiers who were stationed here, using fans. If it was extended, and facing outwards, then it signalled interest. If it was facing the other way, there was no interest from her, and if there was frantic use of the fan to fan herself, then it meant that her father or husband was coming. It was really fascinating stuff.
We got some good shots out of the window from here as well…
The next room we moved into was a showcase of flags, and it was interesting to see the American flag with different numbers of stars on it. Our guide explained how America had acquired Puerto Rico, Cuba and somewhere else in the wars of the 19th century, I think. However, within a couple of years, the other countries had gained independence, and Puerto Rico was the only one that chose to remain American.
She explained that everyone here is an American citizen, as it’s a Commonwealth, something I found quite odd, as Britain has its own Commonwealth, including places like Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and India, and trust me, membership of our Commonwealth does not mean you’re a British citizen. However, there are some exceptions, the main one being that they don’t voice for the President, which I found a bit weird. So you’re part of America, and you’re ruled by a guy that you don’t elect.
We went outside, fortunately still out of the rain, and learnt more about these things that can be seen in the courtyard…
They’re to catch rain – and they were certainly being put to good use today!
From there, we walked across the courtyard, and into another room, which is where the soldiers would’ve been based. We learnt how the different colours they wore signified different things, like their nationality, and the fact that they had to have two uniforms, one for everyday wear, and one that had to stay in pristine condition in their quarters for special occasions. Here, again, they were using the uniformed characters to good effect.
The next room showed the extent of the Castillo, and explained a bit more about its history…
I had fallen behind but I'm caught up now. Daisy and Donald were adorable. What a fun time. It sounds like you are making the best of it, despite the rain.
I had fallen behind but I'm caught up now. Daisy and Donald were adorable. What a fun time. It sounds like you are making the best of it, despite the rain.
That's exactly what we did. After all, when you're on vacation, you don't get that time back again, so you may as well make the best of it.
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All the pirate touches at Animators' Palate were neat. And your meals -- very delicious looking. My favorite photo of the night is the one as pirates at the restaurant. Too cute! I cannot believe that rain on your walking tour day. 
I was assuming because the tour went ahead that they wouldn't give a refund, but that's just me assuming that.
However, there are some exceptions, the main one being that they don’t voice for the President, which I found a bit weird. 
So you’re part of America, and you’re ruled by a guy that you don’t elect. 
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