A 40th celebration to end the world! COMPLETED 6/24 - Page 63 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Wednesday 26 December – part eight: a superb evening with good friends
We got ready to go out for dinner, and headed out just after 6:00pm, walking through Downtown Disney.
We were soon at the Disneyland Hotel, and found Mari and Raleigh waiting for us.
We were already checked in, so we confirmed that we were all there, and were taken through to the dining room, which reminded me of the Carthay Circle. It certainly took you back in time to a bygone era.
Surprise, surprise, we were in the corner – what is it about groups and being in the corner? Interestingly, they did put a couple next to us, but as Mari said the food barely touched their sides, as they turned up, I think after we’d had appetisers (and we took forever with our order, as we were so busy catching up and chatting), and left before we had desserts. I promise, we weren’t too loud…. Well, I don’t think we were anyway!
Eventually, when we stopped talking long enough to look at the menu, we finally made some choices. I went for the lump crab cakes with remoulade, which our server Martin had highly recommended, and they were very good.
Mark ordered the seared scallops with citrus wasabi soy glaze, and scallion cream, but when the appetisers arrived at the table, he was down as having the soup, so they had to create the scallops for him, which meant he was eating his just as we finished ours (he insisted we went ahead). I tried a bit of his, and while the scallops were beautiful, the glaze was not my sort of taste at all.
For entrée, I went for the sustainable fish for the evening, which was the Mahi Mahi with beurre blanc sauce, and mashed potatoes. It was good, although I found the fish a bit tough to cut, and the flavouring was a bit spicy for me. I really should’ve gone with the broiled salmon, which Mari got, as I tried a bite of hers, and that was amazing, some of the best salmon I’ve ever had. It literally just fell apart when you cut it, and was beautifully seasoned.
Mark went for the free-range double breast of chicken, which he commented looked like it had been “run over” when it arrived. I have to say the presentation wasn’t that great.
We both opted for desserts, with me getting the vanilla bean crème brulee, with chocolate, orange lace, and almond cookies to accompany it. This was superb, but it was just way too much for me to manage, although I did my best with it.
Mark got the berries with the mascarpone sorbet, and Brittany cookie.
Steakhouse 55:
Appetiser 9 9½
Entrée 8 9
Dessert 9 9
Service 8 8
Atmosphere 9½ 9
Value for money 9 9
Average score: 8.83
By the time we left, it was 10:00pm. I have no idea where the evening went, considering we were seated at 6:20pm. It had been a very pleasant, very leisurely meal, with some wonderful company. We always have an absolute ball whenever we see Mari and Raleigh, and tonight was no exception.
We got some photos on the way out:
We wandered back through the Disneyland Hotel with them…
… and said our goodbyes at Downtown Disney, as they went off to get their car.
We headed back through more of Downtown Disney…
… and we were lucky enough to see the monorail come through the Grand Californian as we walked back.
The weather today was dry, but cool, with temperatures in the high 50s. The best thing today was dinner at Steakhouse 55. The worst thing today was Mark being ill. The funniest thing today was Rafiki’s blue backside with Belle at Goofy’s Kitchen Today we tried Steakhouse 55 And the result was it was a great meal, with wonderful company. The most magical moment today was seeing my donkey.
Next: I don’t think Warner Bros is a good idea today…
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I just sprayed my keyboard with coffee - Mark's chicken does indeed look like it had been run over, and the chargrilling looks like tyre marks on it!! What do we think - Disney bus?
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Silvercat
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I love the interior of the Steakhouse also and am glad you had such a nice time there. For me, it was the worst meal of my ABD trip-- just shows how fickle restaurant experiences can be. There was not one veggie entre on the menu and when I asked what they could do for me I was told I could have some asparagus! Oh, well, like you, I had great company that night so still had a great time. Mark's chicken.... yep, either run over or it's a hidden Mickey with deflated ears!
The food looks great! There is something about Disney and Salmon. Almost every time I've gotten salmon at Disney (about four or five times now) it's amazing. Top two definitely were Hoop De Doo Revue and Blue Bayou.
I just sprayed my keyboard with coffee - Mark's chicken does indeed look like it had been run over, and the chargrilling looks like tyre marks on it!! What do we think - Disney bus?
Sorry about your keyboard! Maybe it was a Disney bus...
I love the interior of the Steakhouse also and am glad you had such a nice time there. For me, it was the worst meal of my ABD trip-- just shows how fickle restaurant experiences can be. There was not one veggie entre on the menu and when I asked what they could do for me I was told I could have some asparagus! Oh, well, like you, I had great company that night so still had a great time. Mark's chicken.... yep, either run over or it's a hidden Mickey with deflated ears!
I remember that and I must admit I was concerned about how it would be for us, but I think it just goes to show that just because one person has a bad meal somewhere, still go ahead and give it a go. I personally always say, after a bad experience somewhere, we'll give it another go and if it's still bad, then it's off the list after that...
The Place is totally different at night. The food a Steakhouse 55 looked really great. It is wonderful you all were able to meet and have time together!!
Dinner must have been fun if the time flew by like that! Although, I agree too, Mark's chicken meal looks quite unappetizing!
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Tanya
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Interestingly, they did put a couple next to us, but as Mari said the food barely touched their sides, as they turned up, I think after we’d had appetisers (and we took forever with our order, as we were so busy catching up and chatting), and left before we had desserts. 
I promise, we weren’t too loud…. Well, I don’t think we were anyway! 
I have to say the presentation wasn’t that great. 
It had been a very pleasant, very leisurely meal, with some wonderful company. 
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Thank
Pixie Dust
Oh, well, like you, I had great company that night so still had a great time. Mark's chicken.... yep, either run over or it's a hidden Mickey with deflated ears!
Love the pictures! 
Maybe it was a Disney bus... 
Deb
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