Snafus, Stupidities and So Many Firsts TR Dec 11- 19th - COMPLETED 1/25 - Page 7 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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Today is Alex’s actual homecoming day from Guatemala so I wanted to throw in some special surprises.
Today would be the only day we would be woken up by an alarm clock! In the past we’ve done several breakfast ADRs but this trip we only had one and I have to tell you, I liked it! Given the mad, crazy rush getting the kids out the door to school every morning it was nice to have a slower pace for vacation.
This morning we had a 9:05 ADR at the Poly for the Lilo and Stitch breakfast (Ohana’s). This was a first for us. I planned for us to be at the bus stop at 8 thinking that would give us plenty of time since MK opened at 9 buses would surely be running, right? WRONG! Yes, another snafu! We waited, and waited and waited and waited. I mean buses were coming in droves for all the other parks. Finally it was like 8:40 and we hopped a bus to Epcot. There were several buses behind the Epcot bus and we thought surely one of them HAD to be an MK bus, right? WRONG! But it was too late. We had already hopped off at another bus stop. Ken called the front desk and there was no real reason given as to why the MK hadn’t shown. Then another resort guest said their friends waited an hour the other morning for a MK bus. Time was ticking. The bus finally came at 9. I am not kidding. Now enter stupidity. There was a huge group of people who were also waiting for the MK bus. One nice gentleman who was quite brave as well raised his voice to say something like look, there’s a lot of people waiting to get on and some people have been waiting longer than others. How about we let the people who have been waiting for an hour get on this bus. Sounds great, right? WRONG! Enter the pushing and shoving with one lady jabbing me to get on the bus. I put my arm out and said if anyone should get on the bus it should be him who tried to quell the chaos! She said my family is on the bus and I am not separated from them. I said, “No kidding! Think you’re the only one?!” I am not a confrontational person. Really, I’m not. But I had had it with people showing poor manners on this vacation! The man who tried to be the voice of reason thanked me and we discussed how ridiculous people can be.
Shake it off, Brown! Shake it off! We arrive at the Poly 30 minutes late. I am NEVER late. This had me very upset. I explained our situation and the woman at the counter taking reservations was none too sympathetic and said they would squeeze us in when they could. Great. Thankfully it took maybe 10 minutes and we were seated. My first impression was it was beautiful. It’s the Poly after all! My second impression was holy cow is it cold in here! Like uncomfortably cold! I know there are a lot of Ohana fans out there so please don’t hate me. We did not care for the breakfast. As I mentioned Ken hates family style and while the bread and juice were better than good, the rest of the food was just average. Characters were quick and it just didn’t do it for us.
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We left the artic for the heat wave outside. Now, heat and my hair do not go hand-in-hand. Especially when the humidity is high and it was high the entire week. I liken my hair, if left down, to this, only, a lot scragglier.
So, that’s a brief explanation as to why in most all my pictures my hair is up or as you’ll see in the days ahead, only a hat will do, especially if you add a little sprinkle of rain to the mix!
I digress… before hitting the rides we hit Uptown Jewelers. Remember the special souvenir I mentioned? It caught my eye at another store in Epcot but it was out of stock. So the manager told me to try UJ at MK and there it was. Or should I say, here it is.
It’s from the “It’s a Small World” collection. This ride holds a dear place in my heart. It was the first ride when we first took our kids to Disney 3 years ago that really caught their eyes. They giggled and pointed everywhere and even waved at all the children. Abby even asked if the children got breaks if they had to use the bathroom or were hungry. Fast forward to this trip when the kids are 4 and 7 and it still brings out something special in my kids. They comment about the countries and the children and just seem to connect to it. So, I wanted something that would always make me think of the sheer joy and innocence that ride brought and still brings to my kids.
continued in next post...
__________________
Deb
Last edited by debrabrown; 01-09-2010 at 10:50 PM..
continued...
Then we went to Toontown for our first fairy meet! ` The wait was only 30 minutes but for the princesses it was 0. And it stayed 0 for a long time. Interesting….. once inside Pixie Hollow Rosetta was the first to greet us. She was ok.
Tink was hysterical. She was right in character – very cute and very talkative. We didn’t feel rushed at all!
Then it was Terrence and he was just as amusing and entertaining. He challenged Alex to a race (which was beyond funny!) and just let my kids talk and talk to him.
I give the fairies a thumbs up and can’t wait for Pixie Hollow’s improvements. Abby didn’t buy that we were shrunk…especially when she saw the pictures.
We wandered to Minnie’s house and after watching Abby and Ken ride Goofy’s Barnstormer Alex wanted to give it a try. His first rollercoaster! They went one more time! Way to go baby boy!
We hopped the train to Frontierland. Ah… such a relaxing way to get around. First up was some Dole whips – our first on the trip!
The kids wanted to check out the Swiss Family tree house so we did – another first. They thought it was cool.
To the Pirate tutorial next where Alex was given an official pirate oath. POC was next followed by SM. It was the perfect day for it – hot! I had threatened before coming to MK that I was going to make Abby ride in front. She decided she wanted to but I was like, no, let’s not. Well wouldn’t you know as fate would have it we were next for row 1 so off we went! Yes, we got soaked. But once wasn’t enough so we did it again – in the front row!
Pants dripping and underwear clinging (I hate that wet feeling!) we went to HM so Abby could ride with dad.
We headed to Cosmic Ray’s for dinner (skipped lunch due to the late breakfast!), rode the TS and got a spot just in time for the castle lighting. It is such a cool little show! I love how the castle lights up in its own Disney way.
Even though the parade for the MVMCP wasn’t until 8 people staked their spots right after the show. Crazy! We did as well – in the castle hub as always. We passed the time eating cookies and drinking some hot chocolate (not the night for it!) and listening to classic Christmas songs Disney was blasting. Way cool. We were entertained by the castle Christmas show which was cute
and then the parade. My oh my. I am not a parade geek but this was just beyond spectacular. I don’t want to give it all away for those who haven’t seen it but it was just very, very special. The toy soldiers are way cool. I could have watched them all day.
Fireworks were next and they were just as special.
We left after the fireworks because it was late and the kids, especially Alex was beat (note the no nap!) Leaving was a breeze. I was shocked! I wish we could have stayed later but there was no way the kids or us had the energy. By the time we got back to CSR Alex was asleep on me and it was 11:30.
A very, very special day at MK indeed!
Up next: AK day 2 – some old favorites and new adventures
Great updates!
Sorry about the long wait for the bus and then not being thrilled with O'hanas (We had a fabulous time there last trip).
Glad the day got better- sounds like a great time at MK!
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 can't see the picture of your iasw souvenir. But it sounds beautiful and your day at MK sounds wonderful, too. Stefanie was so excited to see Kanga and Roo in the MNSSHP Boo To You parade as they are two of her favorites that we just don't see. Glad to see they are in the MVMCP parade, too.
Great updates!
Sorry about the long wait for the bus and then not being thrilled with O'hanas (We had a fabulous time there last trip).
Glad the day got better- sounds like a great time at MK!
I think as far as Ohana's goes the bus situation and being late then being freezing cold just added up to a not so great experience. Maybe on another day we would have been in a different frame of mind, ya know?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
Stefanie was so excited to see Kanga and Roo in the MNSSHP Boo To You parade as they are two of her favorites that we just don't see. Glad to see they are in the MVMCP parade, too.
Yes, Rabbit was on a separate parade float as well so the kids were just jumping for joy to have seen all the friends from 100 acre wood!
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
What a nightmare with the buses - some people are just unbelievable. Thank goodness your day got better from there on....
Yes. The buses have me spooked to try an early morning breakfast for our next trip. It was just the weirdest thing.
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Great update.....sorry about the buses & being disappointed with the O'hana breakfast. You sound like me, when one thing after another doesn't go as planned, I have a job going with the flow & get very frustrated. We put so much time into trying to make special moments for our family, it can be disappointing when others don't hold up their end!!!
I the dress & the IASW keepsake!!! Can't wait to read more.....oh & about your hair, although I'm sureyou don't think it is a bit funny!! My hair, on the other hand, is super straight!!! I guess I'll finally post pictures of myself when I do my TR!
Great update.....sorry about the buses & being disappointed with the O'hana breakfast. You sound like me, when one thing after another doesn't go as planned, I have a job going with the flow & get very frustrated. We put so much time into trying to make special moments for our family, it can be disappointing when others don't hold up their end!!!
I the dress & the IASW keepsake!!! Can't wait to read more.....oh & about your hair, although I'm sureyou don't think it is a bit funny!! My hair, on the other hand, is super straight!!! I guess I'll finally post pictures of myself when I do my TR!
Yes, please post pictures of yourself! I have my grandmother to thank for my hair. It gets wirey when humidity hits and try as I might it is very difficult to keep straight on very humid days.
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Given the mad, crazy rush getting the kids out the door to school every morning it was nice to have a slower pace for vacation.
We waited, and waited and waited and waited. I mean buses were coming in droves for all the other parks. Finally it was like 8:40 and we hopped a bus to Epcot. There were several buses behind the Epcot bus and we thought surely one of them HAD to be an MK bus, right? WRONG! But it was too late. We had already hopped off at another bus stop. Ken called the front desk and there was no real reason given as to why the MK hadn’t shown. Then another resort guest said their friends waited an hour the other morning for a MK bus. Time was ticking. The bus finally came at 9. 
I am not kidding. 
Now enter stupidity. There was a huge group of people who were also waiting for the MK bus. One nice gentleman who was quite brave as well raised his voice to say something like look, there’s a lot of people waiting to get on and some people have been waiting longer than others. How about we let the people who have been waiting for an hour get on this bus. Sounds great, right? WRONG! Enter the pushing and shoving with one lady jabbing me to get on the bus. I put my arm out 
and said if anyone should get on the bus it should be him who tried to quell the chaos! She said my family is on the bus and I am not separated from them. I said, “No kidding! Think you’re the only one?!” I am not a confrontational person. Really, I’m not. But I had had it with people showing poor manners on this vacation! 
We did not care for the breakfast. As I mentioned Ken hates family style and while the bread and juice were better than good, the rest of the food was just average. Characters were quick and it just didn’t do it for us.
Deb
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But it sounds beautiful and your day at MK sounds wonderful, too. Stefanie was so excited to see Kanga and Roo in the MNSSHP Boo To You parade as they are two of her favorites that we just don't see. Glad to see they are in the MVMCP parade, too.
PassPorter Guide Author
the dress & the IASW keepsake!!! Can't wait to read more.....oh & 
about your hair, although I'm sureyou don't think it is a bit funny!! My hair, on the other hand, is super straight!!! I guess I'll finally post pictures of myself when I do my TR!
Susan
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