A Magical voyage across the pond TRIP REPORT UPDATED 12/31 - Page 53 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
How great that you were able to get so many people into your picture for the E-Files Magazine! I actually submitted a picture of myself last month from our balcony at Bay Lake Towers! The presentation sounded absolutely fascinating and one that I would actually pay money for!
I love Mickey's ten commandments (or at least the first six so far!)! Although from the reviews I've read so far of Toy Story Land, it seems like they've forgotten about their lesson learned with queues in the hot sun in Florida!
Good info here - and I love how the first two points are about the people. People first, then the rest falls into place.
You are so right about that!
Quote:
I feel like I remember that bit about WL, but never got a chance to go and see for myself. There's always a next time, isn't there?!
Indeed there is... and I always find myself thinking "I must remember to check/look at that the next time I'm in Disney"... then of course I rarely do!
Oh my goodness I loved that movie!!!! I hope you two get to be famous!! I can see you!!
It would be very cool if the photo does get in. I can't wait for the next edition to find out, although it may be a bit too early maybe? Depends on their publishing deadlines.
How great that you were able to get so many people into your picture for the E-Files Magazine! I actually submitted a picture of myself last month from our balcony at Bay Lake Towers!
I hope they use yours as well.
Quote:
The presentation sounded absolutely fascinating and one that I would actually pay money for!
I'd definitely pay money for it and I don't doubt that a lot of people would.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
I love Mickey's ten commandments (or at least the first six so far!)! Although from the reviews I've read so far of Toy Story Land, it seems like they've forgotten about their lesson learned with queues in the hot sun in Florida!
Very interesting with the talk and the ten commandments. A lot of great information provided and I'm sure you got a lot out of it.
__________________
October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Thursday 13 September – part five: lunch with a familiar face!
Number seven was about telling one story at a time and here Gary emphasised how all the previous commandments should lead into this, although he did admit there were times where they are telling more than one story.
The eighth was about avoiding contradictions and maintaining identity and to illustrate this, he used this image:
At first, I was fixated on the smile of the Cast Member, but then I saw the point he was making – modern tech in a costume from the past…
The ninth commandment was an ounce of treatment and tons of treat and here he showed the stocks in Liberty Square as an example.
The final is keep it up – maintain it and here Gary talked about the fact that they waited 10 years to refurbish Big Thunder Mountain and the colour that it looked by the end of that time was unbelievable, compared to how it should look. Look at this…
With that, sadly the presentation was over, although there was a pop quiz session, where you could win exclusive Imagineer pins. We gave up quite early on, as there was just so many hands, but one woman kept putting her hand up and eventually they got to her, but sadly she couldn’t think of the answer. I guess she just panicked…
There were some really interesting questions in the question and answer session. One was about whether the Yeti would make a return to Expedition Everest. No answer, as Gary couldn’t tell us anything that hadn’t already been answered. One woman asked about Big Thunder Mountain and why it was so much better in Disneyland Paris (answer: because it was what we really wanted to do with it, put it on an island) and there were some great questions he really struggled to answer – what was his favourite project (Big Thunder and Epcot were in there, but it was like naming a favourite child ) and what was the project he always wanted to do, but never managed to do.
We were told there’d be another one of these and we’ll be back.
We made our way out and headed down to Lumiere’s for lunch. I couldn’t resist getting some photos of the beautiful view outside and some shots inside as well…
When we got there, we were greeted by Andrae who was on his head server duties and very flash he looked too!
I went for the roasted red pepper arancici with arribiata sauce, parmigiana-reggiano and fried Italian parsley for appetiser and this was lovely.
For entrée, I had the white wine poached lemon sole with broccoli florets, leeks, spinach, peas and carrots served in an orange-cilantro champagne vinegar dressing. Oh my goodness, this was heavenly!
Mark went for steak “frites”, sirloin steak with French fries, grilled tomato and herb butter…
For dessert, I had the warm pina colada bread pudding with coconut Florentine shards and coconut ice cream. I was hoping this would be as good as a similar dish I’d had on the Wonder in January, but while it was good, it wasn’t that good frankly.
Mark went for the traditional baklava, layers of phyllo pastry and mixed nuts soaked in a lemon honey syrup.
The meal took a while. It was over an hour, but the food was excellent quality and well worth the wait.
Towards the end of the meal, we got talking to a Canadian couple who were dining next to us. It turns out they’re close to all three of our Canadian ports of call. We had a fascinating conversation with them about how fluent they are in both languages (we heard them switch effortlessly between French and English a number of times), their country and their politicians. It was really interesting talking to them. Oh and by the way, they know Baie-Comeau and they have no idea why we’re docking there either…
So enjoyed hearing about the lecture! The sun gleaming on the water in your pictures is truly spectacular. Your lunch looked amazing and that sole is definitely something I would have ordered for sure. It's so fun talking with people from other countries and learning about their cultures.
I loved hearing about the 10 commandments! Our guide on the Destinations tour mentioned the weenie concept as well. Very cool.
I can’t believe the change in color on Big Thunder Mountain! Something you just don’t see until they put it up against the original.
About This Page: 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
PassPorter Guide Author
Linear Mode
