Four Days Off . . . TR Completed 12/2 - Page 5 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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 know its only a little after 8pm here in Orlando, but I think this is the end of my day. I'm just beat. I've had too many days of working hard and burning the candle at both ends--so I'm going to ditch out on the late night fireworks tonight. I just don't think its a good idea to push to hard considering that I do have an early morning tomorrow!
I slept in a little this morning--a Disney sleep in. I didn't get up until 8:30. I showered and got myself together and was headed out at about 9am. I will admit it to you guys. I'm not a huge fan of the bus service from the Contemporary. I feel the same way about the bus service at the Epcot resorts. Pop Century has its own bus service, so do CBR and CSR (as well as SSR and OKW) When you figure the cost of the rooms into the equation it just doesn't make sense. Pop (sometimes available as low as $59) has its own bus but people staying Concierge at the Grand Floridian at over $1000 a night have to share with two other hotels. It makes travel obnoxiously time consuming.
I took a taxi to Animal Kingdom. It was worth every penny of not having to stand and wait for the bus and then make two more stops. Patience is a virtue, but I don't have it.
Before leaving I sat down at my net book and scored an 11:50 lunch reservation at Tusker House -- go me!
After clearing customs I headed towards Africa to get a Safari FP. I headed into the Forest Walk next. The animals were very lively. A hippo was just about going crazy in the tank and the baby gorilla was wrestling with mama!
I was just entering the outside gorilla area when I saw a familiar smile! It was Melissa and Andy Loflin! I said, "Melissa?" kind of loudly and Andy turned around a looked at me funny . . . I introduced myself to both of them and had a quick chat. I moved on in a speedy fashion because I didn't want to interrupt their trip and I didn't want to miss the first run of Flights of Wonder.
I walked from Africa to Asia snapping photos of DeVine along the way. I stood and watched her for a moment and you really cannot tell she's there until she starts moving-its amazing!
I really enjoyed Flights of Wonder, which I had never seen before. Parts of it are a little bit hokey, but the birds themselves are amazing. I highly recommend it if you haven't been yet. I managed a seat in the back of the lower area, but right in the middle--birds were flying right over my head--SO Cool!!
After Flights my FP was ready to use and so I headed back and hopped on my two week safari--that had to be cut very short (I want my money back!) Lots of animals were out and about--some of them came very close to the vehicle. I sort of wonder if they have become desensitized to traffic. Managed to see two cheetahs today which is kind of rare to be able to actually spot one, much less two! All in all it was a great ride. Its fun to watch the babies get bigger too! Right now there are baby elephant, white rhino, giraffe, and warthogs on the safari!
Aww how cute: baby warthogs . . . ummm
I walked to Tusker House just a few minutes before my reservation and was seated almost immediately. The chef came out to walk me through the buffet and there were very few items I couldn't eat. The food was okay. Some of it, like the pork tenderloin and spicy african bbq sauce, was really good. Some of it was only so, so. The salad and soup offerings here are really bland/boring especially if you've dined at Boma.
I'm going to have to finish part two and three in the morning or later tonight. I'm litterally nodding off at the keyboard. Night night!
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Sounds like another great day. How cool that you bumped into Melissa and Andy there! I don't blame you having an early night, it sounds like you need the sleep. Looking forward to reading more when you're up to it!
Glad you're getting the sleep you need, Heather. Great day at AK--can't wait to see the photos of DeVine. Flights of Wonder is one of my favorite live shows. The patter does get stale (like the Safari script), but the birds are so beautiful.
I agree about the bus service from the deluxe resorts. I know the decisions are made based on the numbers of guests at each resort, but the amount of time to get from hotel to park can get ridiculous. If I remember (I probably won't!), it would be interesting to keep track of the hours spent on a bus when staying at BW.
Sounds like you had a good day at AK. How cool you ran into Melissa and Andy! Glad you scored lunch at Tusker House. Sorry to hear the soups there aren't great because I love the soups at Boma. Hope you're well rested for today.
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Mickey's so happy to see me back, he can barely contain himself!
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Sounds like a good time so far! Very cool that you got a chance to meet up with Melissa & Andy! I love the way you're not pushing yourself--remember, it IS vacation.
Hope you're having a blast today Heather! Your one picture on Facebook of the WL tree was almost enough to make me want to jump on a plane right away. But then I remembered that I'm not sure I want to deal with airport security right now and it would take like 48 hours to drive there. Then I'd have to turn right around and drive 48 hours back. Have a great rest of day and an AMAZING thanksgiving at the World. Wish I could have been with you and a FAB at the Osborne Lights!
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Karen, aka Zack's Mom - Lover of all Things Disney and the San Francisco Giants!
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How cool that you bumped into Melissa and Andy there! 
Liz 
Have a great rest of day and an AMAZING thanksgiving at the World. Wish I could have been with you and a FAB at the Osborne Lights!
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