2 Girls + 10 Days = Too Much Fun (6/12-6/22) Day 10 now up
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Tigger's Mom · 07-02-2003, 11:11 PM

Day 5 – Part 1

A busy day at AK, CS, Epcot, and PI. And, is Kris too old to be a groupie?

This day was probably my favorite day of the entire vacation! I am excited to finally be able to write about it…

We all woke up early – no wake up calls needed for this bunch!! We were headed to Animal Kingdom today!! All three of us are animal lovers, but Mom is probably the biggest one of the three of us. She was like a little girl – she was so excited to go! (My mom is NOT a morning person, so I could tell she was really excited!) Lucy and I got ready quickly and she and I headed out for a brisk walk up to the Pepper Market to get coffee, iced tea, and OJ, leaving Mom to get ready. It was a nice walk – and a long one! CS is an ENORMOUS resort and a lovely place to exercise outdoors!!

Morning drinks in hand, we returned to our room. Mom was ready and raring to go!! (MGM had the EE this am, but we voted on AK instead since we are not ToT or RnR fans!) Off we went to the bus stop!

Lots of people at the bus stop this am, but most went to MK and MGM, so there were just a few of us headed to AK. Or so we thought… We arrived about 15 minutes before opening and the lines were LONG!!! Mom needed to stop at an ATM machine, so we wandered around and found one next to the kennel. Wow, the lines were even longer now!! We could see and hear bits of the “awakening” going on, but weren’t close enough to get a decent view.

Finally, the gates opened up and we herded with the rest of the cattle through the turnstiles. We passed on the characters and were working our way back to Africa to grab FP for KS. Mom was trying to take everything in on the way, and I told her we needed to hurry back to KS, we could check everything out afterwards at a more leisurely pace. She’s such a good sport! KS was virtually a walk on when we got there, so there was no need for FPs. Excellent – we could ride this, then move on and not have to watch our time!

I had ridden this before, and wasn’t very impressed with it then. I live in a city with a terrific zoo, and I live within walking distance of Grant’s Farm (animal park owned by Anheuser-Busch), so for the most part these were all animals I had seen many, many times before, but it was a first for Mom and Lucy! They got the biggest kick out of it, as did I! We saw all kinds of animals – including the male lion! On my last visit he was just laying under the tree sleeping – not this time! He was pacing back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. He seemed ready to lunge at our vehicle at any moment – it was kind of thrilling!! Of course, L’il Red turned out to be ok, so we completed our adventure and began our next quest – cinnamon rolls at Tusker House!

Neither Lucy nor I are big breakfast eaters, but Mom definitely is, and the sweeter the better as far as she’s concerned! After reading Bob and Larry’s TR so close to our departure, I just knew the perfect place for breakfast! I must admit, all those dining reviews had me wanting to try several restaurants, but since we were working hard to watch our $s, I figured the cinnamon rolls at Tusker House weren’t beyond our reach.

We found Tusker House without any problem and went in to order. Mom ordered a ham, egg, and cheese croissant, (came with hash browns), and a coffee. Lucy and I thought this sounded pretty good, so we ordered one also – to share. We also ordered 1 cinnamon roll – to share between the three of us! Now, let me say, the only ham, egg, and cheese croissant I’ve ever had in my life prior was at Burger King. I always thought they were pretty darned good. Whoa, Nellie!!! This thing was terrific! A huge, fresh, pretty croissant with a real slice of ham (no pressed meat!), and real eggs! Holy cow this was good!! The hash browns were pretty terrific also. We scarfed this down and moved onto the cinnamon roll! This was, as promised, DELICIOUS!! [img]graemlins/yuma.gif[/img] I think we scraped the plate clean! So much cinnamon, and so much frosting!! A good, sweet treat to get our blood sugar up for the day!! (Good-bye again, Dr. Atkins!)

After raising our blood sugar to about 10,000, we headed back outside into the heat. Lucy and I were ready for a smoke, and I knew there was a smoking area behind the Dawa Bar, so the three of us headed over there. Man, was it hot and sunny! Mom decided she would wait for us over in Mombasa Marketplace – in the a/c. As Lucy and I were taking a break, a family with two small children showed up. If you aren’t aware, this smoking area is just past the end of the bridge into Africa and overlooks the Discovery River. Of course, the two small children just had to climb up the wall and hang over to look at the water, and the “campsite” below. The poor parents were trying to take a short break, but had to spend the whole time pulling their kids off the wall. We chatted with the parents and kids, and then headed off to meet Mom.

The drummer fellow was set up in front of the store and a large crowd had gathered to watch him. He had several audience members participating with various instruments – we watched for a bit – very cool. We found Mom inside looking at jewelry. No purchases here!

Next up was the train ride and Rafiki’s Planet Watch. Nothing too exciting to report about this part. There did seem to be quite a bottle neck of people on the pathways to and from the Conservation Station building. We hopped back on the train for our return trip.

We passed on Kali River Rapids for now, and did the Maharajah Jungle Trek. The bats were “icky” as usual, and the tigers were sleeping, as they were the last time I was here. They are beautiful though, even in their sleep.

One of the things we wanted to be sure to do at AK was see the Tarzan Rocks! Show (I’d wanted to see it ever since reading Tikibird’s appraisal of Tarzan!) We checked our Times Guide and there was a show starting relatively soon, so we hotfooted it over to DinoLand USA. We really enjoyed this show – we didn’t have very good seats, but the performers cover a lot of territory, so there wasn’t much we missed. Tikibird – you weren’t kidding! Tarzan rocks!! [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] (If only he’d get rid of the wig!!) I’ll have to make sure the next time I’m back with the family that we see this show – my boys are big skateboard/rollerblade fans and would really like that part of the show!!

After Tarzan we were debating whether to leave or grab some lunch somewhere at AK. We decided we’d go back to the hotel for lunch and a swim – it was REALLY hot and sunny!! On the way out, we of course passed the Tree of Life and Mom suggested we try to catch ITTBAB! The posted wait time was 15 minutes and we figured we could handle that. We got in line in the hot sun and 35 minutes later we still had a ways to go. Mom was getting really hot, and starting to feel rather claustrophobic “trapped” in the line with no end in sight, so we ditched. Back to CS to cool off in the pool, grab some lunch, and see what marvelous concoction Max the bartender would be serving us today!

Back at the hotel, we changed into our swimsuits and headed for Siesta’s. We found 3 seats at the bar and ordered nachos. We chose rum runners for our drink today. I’d never had one before, and I must say – I will definitely have them again –as a matter of fact, I did, but that comes later in the report!

We munched on nachos, swam a bit, and enjoyed our rum-runners. As a matter of fact, we enjoyed several rum-runners! Boy, are they good! And, of course, Max made them just perfectly – a little extra rum down the straw!! We enjoyed a good “girls” chat – meaning we talked about anything and everything! Mom was really enjoying herself – much more than she thought she would! She told me, under the influence of alcohol, that she didn’t think she’d really enjoy this trip too much and even considered just coming with us the first day (to make sure we could get the Florida resident discount) and then having my dad pick her up. She was very happily surprised to find herself having the time of her life! Ha – she’s becoming a Disney freak, just like her daughter!! Disney magic can work on anyone!!

As the afternoon progressed (meaning sometime after our 3rd rum-runner) Max set up a “shot” for each of us. They looked like Baileys or something similar. “To the girls’ vacation!” he said. “Here, here!” Down the hatch – Holy Cow!! [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] What were those things?!?! They tasted like a very strong chocolate mint. They were good, but they were very strong. Max told us they were “jaegermints.” All I knew was that meant there was jaegermeister (sp?) in them!! Yikes – I’d had a bad experience with that stuff years ago and hadn’t touched it since! Lucy didn’t like hers much, so Mom and I split what was left of hers while Max made her something else. Thanks Max!!

We finally settled our bill, and stumbled (not really, I don’t think) back to the room to get ready to head to Epcot for the rest of the afternoon and evening. Mom, with the help of a nice little buzz, was game!!

We caught the bus, and apparently this driver was “lead-foot Lucy!” She drove fast and braked hard. We got the biggest fit of giggles about this!! The few other people on the bus probably thought we were nuts – but at the time it was hysterical!!

Back at Epcot, we got Mom on SE! She really enjoyed this ride as well, so we went back and did it again. This time, however, it stopped about 4 times while we were on it. We didn’t mind the stopping when we were relatively level, but when you are coming back down in the steep parts backwards, it is an odd sensation. We were ready to get off this time!

Next up was HISTA – fun show! This made us laugh quite a bit – I’m sure the rum-runners added the extra humor!!

Then it was onto the WS! We stopped in a gift shop near the Showcase Plaza and the character bus pulled up just outside. We watched for quite a while as the characters interacted with kids and grownups alike. Chip and Dale were wreaking all kinds of havoc – they were fun to watch.

Ok, on to Canada! (This was my favorite part!!) We took Mom through the shops in Canada, and as we exited Off-Kilter was just taking the stage!!! Now, if you remember, I mentioned a certain fondness for men in kilts earlier in the report. Plus, after reading Cheryl’s (chezp) report and review of this group, I couldn’t wait to see them!! OMG - I LOVE THEM!!!! [img]graemlins/love.gif[/img] Not only did they all look great in kilts (especially the lead singer/bagpiper – great smile as well), but their music was great (I also love bagpipes!) and they seemed to be having so much fun performing!!! I just wanted to sit there for the entire rest of the trip and watch them over and over!! I didn’t know any of their songs (now I do because I bought a CD – Celtic Armadillo – and it’s all I listen to anymore!), but I was dancing in my seat the entire time! Apparently I was fairly obvious in my enjoyment of the music, because as soon as they began to play “Goodbye Muirsin Durkin” (quite a dancing song), a very animated fellow in the audience, who’d been dancing the entire time, grabbed my hand and pulled me out to dance with him!! It was great fun! I probably looked like a fool – more rhythmic stumbling than dancing, but my partner and I had a blast!! I thanked him after the song and returned to my seat! This show was over with much too quickly!! [img]graemlins/cry2.gif[/img] At the end of the show, the band introduces each of its members, and when they introduced the lead singer/bagpiper as Jamie I almost fell off my chair! (Jamie is the name of the character I mentioned in my last post – my favorite romantic hero – he wears a kilt too!) It was my own private little magical moment – but Mom understood because she’d read the books I am referring to as well. I told her I was going to become a groupie!! “You’re too old!” she said. “Am not!! Just watch me!” Unfortunately, good sense got the better of me, and I realized that was just a “pipe” dream!! All too soon, we left the Canada pavilion and moved on to UK.

Next up – The rest of our long day at Epcot and PI… And How Much Did Mom Pay for Sauerkraut?

[ 07-05-2003, 01:39 PM: Message edited by: Tigger's Mom ]

kimdisneynut · 07-03-2003, 03:59 AM

Great Report.

Thanks

Mel & Richard · 07-03-2003, 04:47 AM

Two more great installments. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Mel

PS - I LUV WDW · 07-03-2003, 06:29 AM

Once again you have me sitting at the pool and bar with you from your descriptions [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] And I must also agree that CS is a beautiful place to walk around especially early in the morning.

Can't wait to hear about the rest of the day.

Pam

luvnwdwgal · 07-03-2003, 10:16 PM

You guys are having such a blast!! Can't wait to read more!! Hurry!! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

tikibird · 07-03-2003, 10:19 PM

I'm glad you enjoyed Tarzan! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Another couple of great installments, and my favorite part was you surprising your mom with that shirt - I'm all teary-eyed now!

Next, please... [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

**MrsM** · 07-04-2003, 09:41 PM

I just caught up on your report and am loving it! I would have needed a nice little nap after those margaritas! Looking forward to hearing about the rest of your trip.......

Tigger's Mom · 07-05-2003, 01:35 PM

Day 5 – Part 2

The rest of our long day at Epcot and PI….And how just how much did Mom pay for sauerkraut?

Alas, my time in Canada was over [img]graemlins/pout.gif[/img] (for now), and it was time to move on. Mom was really looking forward to visiting the UK area, so off we went.

We browsed through the shops and admired all the goodies and then headed back outside. We heard a bunch of carrying on just outside the doors and when we walked out we realized the street performer/comedy troupe was in the middle of a show. We stayed to watch – Mom and I are both big fans of British humor (Python fans all the way, plus Mom is addicted to Keeping Up Appearances and a couple of other British comedies). This show is terrific – we (all three of us) highly recommed catching it if you have the opportunity. There is quite a bit of audience participation and if they choose the right folks, as they did for this performance, it’s hysterical. This particular show was about King Arthur, Lancelot, etc. Very, very funny!

We strolled through France, skipping the Boulangerie, as Mom was saving herself for Germany, and Lucy and I weren’t at all hungry at this point. We walked past Morocco, Japan, and even USA, before stopping in Italy to watch the statue steal a young boy’s baseball cap and only agree to return it for a kiss on the cheek. The boy was so embarrassed, especially when the crowd was really cheering him on, but he was NOT about to kiss the lovely statue – even if it meant he never saw his hat again [img]images/icons/blush.gif[/img] !! Several other males in the crowd offered to kiss her, however!

By now it was getting into evening, Mom was hungry, and Lucy was eager to try Test Track. I was game to try Test Track (liquid courage, you know!), so we left Mom to get her dinner in Germany – she was just going to snack a bit and have a beer – and Lucy and I headed off to catch TT. The plan was to meet back up in Germany after we rode and we would all watch Illuminations together.

Lucy and I cruised over to TT – I couldn’t believe I was actually going to have the nerve to ride this!! (I am such a chicken! [img]images/icons/rolleyes.gif[/img] ) Oh, no! The stand by wait was 55 minutes and all the FP’s were gone!! If we waited in line, we’d miss Illuminations, and I so wanted to share that with Mom. So back we went to Germany to hook up with Mom. We get there and NO MOM!! Where has she gone? [img]images/icons/confused.gif[/img] We looked around the general area and she was nowhere to be found. We finally located her after about ½ an hour. When asked where she’d been, she just laughed. Seems she was sitting in the biergarten area and got a whiff of sauerkraut, and found out there was a regular restaurant in there. And, she found out it was a buffet!! Mom is a huge fan of German food, so figuring that Lucy and I would be a while, she went in to eat at the buffet. She got the shock of her life however when it came time to pay - $29.00 for her buffet dinner! [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] (She was expecting it to be around $15!) She almost keeled over right then and there!

Ok, by now it was time for Illuminations. The three of us walked up to the railing to watch. It was just as wonderful the second night as the first! There was a little girl with her parents standing next to us, but the little girl was trying to see the Earth over a wall of some sort in the lagoon. We stepped back and signaled her parents to step in front of us so she could get a better view. She had this big grin on her face as she watched and we asked her if she was enjoying the show. She didn’t answer us at all, but just kept on watching. We figured she might have a hearing deficiency and that was why she didn't respond at all. Her mom leaned over to us and told us the little girl was wearing ear plugs!!! It was just adorable!! She hated the sound, but loved the lights!! Great thinking on the part of the parents!!

After Illuminations we took a slow, leisurely pace back out of the park, letting most of the guests get ahead of us. We browsed in MouseGears, but bought nothing! Mom of course was broke after her expensive dinner!!

We caught the bus back to CS, and Mom, although she’d had a great day and been quite the trooper, was exhausted. We settled Mom in, and Lucy and I changed into our swim suits and headed for the pool for a quick swim.

The pool was practically deserted – of course, it was about 11:00 at night!! We enjoyed and refreshed ourselves, then headed back to our room to change and head over to PI!!

Lucy and I caught the bus to PI and arrived about 11:30. We flashed our ID’s, got our bracelets and headed in. Our first stop was 8Traxx – very crowded! We each ordered a beer – in plastic bottles, no less – and hung out and enjoyed some music from our formative teen years. After we finished our beers, we headed up to the outdoor stage to hear the band. I don’t remember the name, but they were pretty good. We danced here for quite a while, and were there for the “New Year’s Eve” countdown.

I had hoped we’d get a chance to get to the Adventurer’s Club or the Comedy Club since I’d read so many good things about them on this board (I really wanted to try the “kungaloosh!”), but we simply ran out of time. I did stop for a potty break in the Adventurer’s Club, but that was about all I saw of it!! Oh well, we’ll add it to the list of things to see next time.

By about 1 am we were beat!! We found our way back to the bus stops, caught our bus, and gleefully dropped into bead upon our return to CS!! It had been a long day!! A really fun day, but a really long one!!

Next up…A slow moving morning at MGM and Will we have to build an ark to get back home?

luvnwdwgal · 07-05-2003, 02:34 PM

Great installment Kris!! I'm really enjoying this trip report! Hurry with more! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Tigger's Mom · 07-05-2003, 10:37 PM

Day 6

A slow moving morning at MGM and Will we have to build an ark to get back home?

Lucy and I awoke to wet cement churning around in our heads and stomachs…too many rumrunners will do that to you [img]graemlins/dizzy.gif[/img] ! Mom was feeling much better than the two of us since she’d gone to bed at a decent hour. We (Lucy and I) got up very slowly and carefully. We each took a shower – very slowly and carefully, and then got ready –again very slowly and carefully.

While Mom was getting ready, Lucy and I took a walk to the Pepper Market (yeah, you know – very slowly and carefully) to get some OJ for Mom, and some sort of sugary, carbonated drinks for ourselves. Coffee was completely out of the question for me, I needed a Coke, badly!!

Mom was ready by the time we got back to the room, so we packed up our belongings and called Bell Services to pick up our luggage. Today was our last day [img]graemlins/cry2.gif[/img] ! However, since Mom’s house is only an hour away, we intended to stay as late as possible in the parks and make a visit to DD before we headed home.

The Bell Services chap (aka “another crazy golf-cart driver”) showed up in less than 15 minutes, loaded our luggage in his cart, and scurried off with us to El Centro for checkout. I hate checkout – it makes me very sad! We had to wait a bit in line, not too long, but longer than when we arrived. The family in front of us was just checking in – for a week!! We were so envious!!! Next, it was our turn. We had declined room-charge privileges at check-in, as we each planned to pay our own expenses, so there were no additional charges to our bill.

We checked our luggage and headed to the bus stop – where did all these people come from?!? There were loads of people at the bus stop this morning!! We secretly hoped they weren’t all headed to MGM – our chosen destination this morning!! Lucy and I looked for a shady spot in which to sit and wait for the bus, but there were none. We were doomed to stand in the sun with our horrendous hangovers!! Not that we let these nasty hangovers spoil our last day – by golly, we would see all that we could see today!! Or die trying…

After what seemed like an eternity and 20,000 buses later (actually it was about 10 minutes and 4 buses), the MGM bus finally arrived. Thankfully, there were seats available. We arrived at MGM shortly after opening. Man, was it hot today!! The sun was shining and the temperature was rising quickly! Hot, hot, hot!!

We headed up Hollywood Boulevard and around Echo Lake, just taking in the sights and soaking up the heat. We had absolutely no touring plan for this park today, and since none of us are big “thrill” seekers, we had no urgency to get to ToT and RnR. I knew Mom would like the Great Movie Ride (and it was indoors, out of the heat) so we headed back in that direction. As we walked under the big Sorcerer Hat, we saw several characters on the other side – one of them being my favorite, Eyeore!! I was really tempted to get in line to say hello, but I hadn’t worn my Eyeore shirt today (I wore that on Monday), and I had nothing with me for autographs or photos – so I just waved as we walked past toward the GMR.

We had virtually no wait for this ride, other than a few minutes inside the theater. (I made a point of telling Mom and Lucy that our line experiences on this trip were quite out of the ordinary – we had very few waits throughout the entire trip!) Mom adored this ride!! We had the gangster version – and our gangster was quite good!! I know this ride has just reopened after refurbishment, but I really didn’t notice a great amount of difference other than in the “Alien” area. It was, as I said, quite good. Also, it was cool and dark in there which Lucy and I enjoyed quite a bit.

Next, we wandered over to Sounds Dangerous. We stood in line for a few minutes, but Mom decided she’d rather not do this, so we left the line and headed for some shade and a smoke break. (Not that we’d done a lot to need a “break”, but we did need a shady sit-down spot for a bit.)

We wandered past Star Tours (there was NO WAY we could handle that one today!) and headed over to Muppet Vision 3D. I missed this the last time I was here and it was a definite “must do” this time. (I grew up watching the Muppet Show – I am a huge fan of the Swedish Chef, Beaker, and Animal!) What a great show!! We all enjoyed it – laughed so hard we cried!! We really liked the pre-show – especially Rizzo the Rat as Mickey Mouse!! What a scream!! (BTW – if you are a Muppet fan, I highly recommend the movie “Muppet Treasure Island” – I think I like it better than my boys do. Rizzo and Gonzo make the movie, as does Tim Curry!! You can rent it dirt-cheap at Blockbuster these days!!)

After visiting the Muppets, we wandered around New York Street for a bit. All of the sudden, I was starving!! We discussed food options – but nothing sounded good to me. We decided to head over to the ABC Commissary to see what they had. Ok, I’ll get something here. In we go. Everyone peruses the menu and comes up with their choice – except me. Nothing floats my boat. “I don’t want to eat here, can we go somewhere else?” This comes out in a whiny, 4-year old voice [img]images/icons/rolleyes.gif[/img] ! Mom razzes me that I was the one that was so hungry; I was the one that suggested this place, yada, yada, yada!! So, we left. I didn’t know what I wanted to eat! This happens to me occasionally – I am really, really hungry but nothing sounds good!!

We decided to sit down in the shade and look over our map so I could decide where we should eat. As we sat (on a wall opposite the Commissary) who should come walking by but Cruella and Maleficent!! I said hello, friendly as you please, and they both turned and just glared at us!! It was great!! They were so “in character!” Plus, in my cranky state this morning, I just loved their attitudes!! (Lucy seemed to be recovering fro our long day/late night more quickly than I. [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] )

By now, about 20+ minutes had passed and I finally knew what I wanted to eat. Comfort food!! A huge bowl of mashed potatoes and gravy!! With a Coke!! (Eww – that sounds so gross now, but at the time it was exactly what I wanted.) And, I knew just where to get it – if we could get in without a PS.

Lucy and Mom were so relieved that I had finally made up my mind, they were happy to go anywhere. We headed back toward the front to the 50’s Prime Time Café.

Have I mentioned it was hot today? The sun was just baking us!! It was reflecting off of all the concrete and just roasting our legs, backs, and shoulders. The walk to the Café seemed to take forever!! Anyway, we finally arrived, at about 5 minutes before 11. They open at 11, but the hostess was kind enough to take our name and let us sit in the nice, cool waiting area. I knew Mom would get a kick out of all these living rooms, and she did. She wanted to eat on the couch!! After about 10 minutes, they called our name and took us to our seats – all the way in the back of the restaurant. I know I mentioned it was hot outside, and the a/c felt wonderful, BUT in this back area they must have set the a/c at about 50 degrees! It was freezing!!!! (Apparently there was no making me happy this day. [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] ) It really was cold, even Mom and Lucy agreed with me!

Our "cousin" came and took our order: Mom and I both had the Pot Roast (I had to have my mashed potatoes), and Lucy had the chicken potpie. We perused the “family photo albums” while waiting for our food. We got hollered at for having our elbows on the table, and Lucy was not quick enough about setting the table! It was great fun. Our food arrived quickly and we all chowed!! The pot roast was tender and tasty, and the mashed potatoes were delicious!! Lucy, who normally eats very small portions, went to town on her potpie; but apparently she didn’t eat enough of her peas because our “cousin” came back and loaded up a forkful and made her eat them. A little girl at the next table thought it was about the funniest thing she’d ever seen. We didn’t tell her that her turn was sure to come!!

After we stuffed ourselves silly we went back out into the heat. Lucy and I were on the lookout for a smoking section and located one on the map. We walked over to where we thought it should be, according to the map, but couldn’t find it. We looked around a bit more before walking into the gift shop next to Indiana Jones and asking the CM. She gave us directions and we headed the way we thought she told us to, but apparently we didn’t get it. Bless her heart, she walked out of her shop, came up to us, and literally showed us where we could find it. (Where else beside Disney would that happen?) Anyway, having found the smoking area, we sat in some shade and discussed what we wanted to do next. There wasn’t really anything else here that was a “must do” for us (unfortunately, in my hazy state of mind, I forgot that we should see One Man’s Dream), so we decided we really wanted to go back to Epcot for a little while before hitting DTD for shopping. Ok, I really wanted to go back to Epcot – I wanted to hear Off Kilter again before we left [img]graemlins/love.gif[/img] !!

Back to the buses, and soon we were off to Epcot!!

Upon arriving at Epcot, we grabbed a time guide to see when “my boys” would be playing today. We had a little time to kill, so we walked the long way over to Canada – starting in Mexico. We stopped in China to watch the acrobats – wow, are they impressive!! We went back through the shops in the UK and while there we saw a family with 4 teenage boys (the boys appeared to be high-school age), all dressed in kilts. It was really cool. I have seen lots of men wearing kilts – but that has always been for a special occasion. I have never seen such young men wearing them as “everyday” clothes.

Finally, it was time for the show to start. Mom decided she’d stick around the UK and shop, so it was just Lucy and I in Canada. As we took our seats, we noticed that the “kilt family” was here as well. Interesting. Anyhow – the show was terrific – and again, much too short!! I really, really like them – it wasn’t just the alcohol ! During the show I noticed that one of the boys in the “kilt family” had a pair of drumsticks with him that he played around with throughout the performance. Interesting. After the show, several people went up to the stage for autographs (I didn’t realize you could do this, or I would have brought my CD with me to have them autograph the cover!), including the “kilt family.” The boys even went up on stage and had their photos taken with the band! Very, very cool!! I’m guessing they were probably big fans, and trying to emulate them. The band was so friendly with them – what a magical moment for these young boys!!

During the show, Lucy noticed some really dark clouds moving in (I didn’t notice anything except the band), and suggested we head over to DTD to get on with our shopping. We met up with Mom and headed to the bus stop. Just in time!! We no sooner got under that bus stop when the rains came down!!! Not just your average rain – I am talking buckets and buckets of rain!! We turned to look behind us, toward the park, and saw mobs of people RUNNING toward the bus stops!! It was too late for them – they were drenched!!

We caught the bus back to CS (to pick up our luggage and car – we planned to drive to DTD and head home from there), and because it was still pouring rain, we headed into the Pepper Market for a cappuccino.

Next up – Shopping at DTD and …Will we have to build an ark to get home [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] ?

luvnwdwgal · 07-05-2003, 11:10 PM

I'm writing this very slowly and carefully......another great installment!!Looking forward to reading about your adventures at DTD! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Mel & Richard · 07-06-2003, 07:30 AM

Great installment. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] I can't believe that you saw boys wearing kilts either. I have never seen Off Kilter, but we are going to catch them if they are playing when we are there.

Mel

tikibird · 07-06-2003, 08:13 AM

Loved your latest installments - and hope your mom enjoyed that $29 sauerkraut! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Looking forward to more (and hoping you were able to make it home in a car, not an ark! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] )!

LLaffinPlace · 07-06-2003, 01:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tigger's Mom:

Neither Lucy nor I are big breakfast eaters, but Mom definitely is, and the sweeter the better as far as she’s concerned! After reading Bob and Larry’s TR so close to our departure, I just knew the perfect place for breakfast! I must admit, all those dining reviews had me wanting to try several restaurants, but since we were working hard to watch our $s, I figured the cinnamon rolls at Tusker House weren’t beyond our reach.

<font size="2" face="Comic Sans MS, Arial">Hi, Kris!
So happy to be of service and I am so glad you liked the famous Tusker House Cinnamon Rolls! I am loving your trip report. In fact, I can feel myself getting a bit light-headed reading it! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] Thanks for sharing your trip with us.

Tigger's Mom · 07-08-2003, 08:14 AM

Shopping at DTD and …Will we have to build an ark to get home?

After our tasty cappucinnos, we loaded our luggage into the car and headed to DTD. It was still raining!! [img]images/icons/rolleyes.gif[/img] I figured DTD would be packed, but we were able to park very close at the Marketplace – surprise, surprise!!

None of us had been to the Marketplace before so this was a new experience for each of us. We started with Team Mickey – cool store! Mom found a nice ball cap for my dad, and I found a couple of shirts for my boys. (Lucy never bought any souvenirs at Disney because she never told her DH she was going!)

We strolled through Summer Sands and then dashed through the rain over to Pooh Corner, where I thought I was going to spend a lot of money. Wrong – I was not all that impressed with their selection. Most of it was stuff I’d seen in other stores. Oh, well, that meant I had more money left for the Wonderful World of Memories store!!

Once upon a time, I was a Creative Memories consultant. I loved teaching people to preserve their precious memories – plus the discount helped me feed my own habit. Unfortunately, I had to give it up and go back to a regular job full-time for the insurance bennies; however, I am still crazy about scrapbooking and especially supplies. All my dreams came true in the Disney Memories store!! [img]graemlins/love.gif[/img] I spent forever in there so Mom and Lucy moved on to the Christmas store. Several zillions of dollars later, I caught up with them there.

By now we were getting hungry, so we decided to grab a quick bite to nourish ourselves before taking on the World of Disney store. Of course, we didn’t know what we wanted, and it was still pouring rain, so we decided to wait on the food and hit WoD now.

I LOVE THIS STORE!! I found all kinds of goodies here!! Bring out the fresh credit card!! I bought a couple of t-shirts, ponytail scrunchies (very cute) and several other goodies. I headed into the jewelry area to see if they had any gold Disney charms to add to my charm bracelet; so far I have a set of Mickey ears – like a hat. I found an outline of the ears that was just too cute, however the price was just too much - $65!! [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] This was a tiny, hollow, outline of the ears – not much gold at all. I just couldn’t pay it!!

When we came out of WoD, it was still pouring, so we decided we’d just head home. On the way we passed a cart that was selling keychains you could make yourself, and the less expensive metal charm bracelets and charms ($5/bracelet, $3/charm) of Disney characters, and various Disney items, i.e. a Mickey bar w/ one ear bitten off, Cinderella’s slipper, the Castle, etc. I’d bought one of these bracelets and several charms in Tinkerbell’s Treasures at MK on Monday, and had lost one charm already (it must have broken off and I didn’t notice it until much later). I stopped at this cart to see if they had an Eyeore to replace the one I’d lost. Not only did they have one, but when I explained to the CM why I was purchasing it, she gave it to me. Awesome!! I love Disney service! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

We swam back to the car (in the rain), loaded our purchases, and headed out. I was so sad. [img]graemlins/cry2.gif[/img] The crummy rain reflected my mood perfectly. I just hate to leave Disney and go back into the real world. Actually, I think we were all a bit down about leaving. We’d had so much fun and it was all over with so quickly!! Our three days just flew by! I was thrilled that Mom and Lucy enjoyed it so much because now I’d have people to come back with!!!

We found our way back to the 417 and ultimately to the Bee Line. It was still raining!! Would it ever stop? The drive back to Melbourne was tense. So much rain! It was nerve-wracking.

All too soon however, we were pulling off at our exit. I don’t think any of us were ready to go back home yet, we were all kind of bummed about leaving, so Mom suggested we stop and get something to eat. Oh, no – another decision to be made! We tossed around several ideas, but ultimately decided on Cracker Barrel, as there is one just up the road from Mom and Dad’s.

We pulled into Cracker Barrel’s parking lot at about 8:30 pm. Of course, it was STILL raining, so we ran for the entrance. Oh, no – another freezing cold restaurant!! We browsed through the store section – they always seem to have interesting things at Cracker Barrel Country Stores. Lucy found a shirt for her mom, and Mom and I just browsed. We were seated quickly, and perused the menus. I have come to the conclusion that they keep the restaurant freezing cold so you’re more inclined to order their hot, comfort food even though it’s 90 degrees outside. Well, that’s just what we did! Two meals of comfort food in one day – we did have some pretty severe hangovers!!

Mom and Lucy ordered the chicken-n-dumplings, and I chose the roast beef dinner. More mashed potatoes and gravy for me!! (BTW – even with all this heaving eating today, I managed, without even trying, to lose 3.5 lbs on this vacation!) We passed the time before our food came playing the little golf-tees/triangle mind-boggler game. Is anyone good at that? Not us – we all stunk! Dinner was served quickly and enjoyed by all. We paid our bill, sloshed back to our car in the rain, and headed back to Mom’s.

Once home, we unloaded the car and went inside to find Dad had already gone to bed. We said hello to the puppy dogs and shortly thereafter, found our way to bed.

Up next… Some Disney highlights…And, just how many rum-runners does it take to get Kris and Lucy into trouble? [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img]