An Island Frame of Mind (A Cam and Luke Trip Report) COMPLETED 8/6 - Page 8 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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I had to giggle to myself when you said eating Taco Bell might be an easy "eat and ride" food. I somehow always find myself in a pinch and grab TB for a quick meal in the car, and EVERY TIME I kick myself because , well it never is. Tasty though!!!
I can't wait to see and hear more from this trip.
We did laugh at ourselves as the first drops hit the clothes almost simultaneously. So much for eating and driving without a mess.
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Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
Glad you made it to your stop! Your room looks great!
This is a rest stop we will use again, so clean and nice.
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Originally Posted by Luvsun
Welcome to the boards, Pam!
First of all, Taco Bell and driving?? We don't eat at Taco Bell anymore. But, even if we did, I don't know how I would be able to drive and eat anything from there! You guys are brave!
Secondly, Valdosta Georgia has a very special place in my heart! It is where we picked up our sweet little Miss Daisy 4 1/2 years ago on our way to our new Florida home! We met the breeder at the McDonald's right off of the highway!
I'm not sure if we were brave or just so road weary we weren't thinking. How neat that Miss Daisy came from Valdosta! I had just assumed you had gotten once you got to Florida.
Just got back on the boards this morning and found your TR. I have only just gotten the last of the pix downloaded into my computer and have not even started to think about a report. You are already 7 pages into yours. WOW. Looking forward to following along with your report. Glad you are such a great hunter and were able to rid the car of the pest. Your choice of the hotel was indeed nice.
I've uploaded all my photos to the computer, but I'm still on Monday as far as editing goes. In fact, I was working earlier today on some and realized you had made it into three of them before we actually met up. Pretty cool!
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Originally Posted by dj1028
I remember once trying to eat a taco salad from Taco Bell while driving...big mistake! Can't wait to read about your arrival at WDW!
I'm pretty sure Taco Bell will never be on our list of eating while driving stops ever again.
great beginning Cam, welcome to the boards Pam. I can feel the excitement building.
The excitement really ramps up in the next update.
[QUOTE=mfirst;4452455]I had the same thought
Welcome Pam!!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
Way Point After Way Point
At 9:30 we arrived at Way Point #6 our hotel for the night, the Hampton Inn in Valdosta, Georgia. The room was spacious and well appointed, making two tired travelers very happy. Luke got all our electronics and phones hooked up to the battery charging station on his nightstand while I unpacked clothes for tomorrow. I also tried on my new swimsuit and spot cleaned both our shirts. The stains came out of my top easily, but I had to work on Luke’s monorail t-shirt again when we got to Disney. Room Review – large bathroom in contrast to the teeny bathroom we had in Macon back in December where some of you may remember that Luke had to step over the toilet to get in the shower/tub. Our room and the hotel itself were very clean with a nice décor. The mattress was quite comfortable. I got ready for bed and even set up the shower for tomorrow. Then I climbed in bed to quickly check e-mails, phone texts, and FB messages for Mother’s Day. At 10:40 my head hit the pillow and I was out. Only I was awakened a while later, maybe an hour, by something running outside. Then around 3:00 AM I simply woke up and only napped off and often afterwards. Disney excitement was really kicking in. [/COLOR][/B]
I'm so excited to see the room in this hotel - we'll be stopping there on our way down in July and it looks like the rooms were recently refurbished
I thought the rooms looked fairly new. We really enjoyed the stay here.
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Originally Posted by lonereb
looks like a good start (except for the car accident) to another great WDW trip by Cam and Luke. Looking forward to reading more.
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Another partial night of sleep. Disney excitement is a bear on the circadian rhythms. At 6:00 AM my Orbit fitness band buzzed, and then Luke’s phone alarm rang out. I find it easy to get up quickly when I know I’ll be in WDW soon. We were both ready except for brushing our teeth by 7:05.
Breakfast was off the lobby in a nicely decorated area complete with a variety of seating options and stained glass.
The selection was not extensive, but still covered a number of options, including make your own waffles; several different breads, muffins, and bagel; five or six cereals; oatmeal, scrambled eggs, sausage, and fried potatoes. There was a juice dispenser with four or five different juices. Luke said the coffee area had decaf, normal, and robust coffees plus hot water and several different teas. Luke made his selections while I wandered the area taking photos, but I realize now I never got the food areas in my photos. This is probably due to the fact that I was eager to eat and be off, so as soon as Luke returned to the counter with bar chairs that we’d selected, I left the camera with him and went after my own breakfast. We both choice eggs and potatoes, and I got a slice of nut bread. Luke had orange juice like me, but also had a cup of coffee. I actually had two cups of orange as I grabbed a second before we left.
Back in the room we took our medicines and vitamins and then brushed our teeth. We checked over the room to be sure we had all our stuff. Then since I was raised as a pack mule, we took all three cases to the car. We returned to retrieve our cokes and the camera before heading out on the road at 7:35.
Our first stop was a gas station around the corner because the low fuel light had come on last night right before we reached the hotel. Luke drove this far, but after the car was filled up, I took over the morning drive on I-75. I drove for 1 ½ hours to Micanopy where we stopped for a bio break and to switch drivers. Luke finished I-75 and at just past 10:00 he moved onto the Florida Turnpike.
We passed the brand new Orlando Eye which opened later this week.
Then we began to see these happy signs!
Finally, we were entering the bubble.
Shortly, we arrived at the Polynesian Village Resort.
At the gate we were given a form to place on the dashboard, but I let Luke deal with that as I was trying to get a photo of the monorail passing over.
We drove under the canopy out front to unload all our luggage as Luke had already received a text that our room was not ready. Guest services piled all the cases, shopping bags, and loads of soft drinks on to a cart, and we headed off to park the Edge. We found a prime spot very near the crosswalk. Once out of the car, I immediately began taking photos of everything, beginning with the flowers along the walkway back to the resort.
Then I took a few outdoor shots as we made our way to the front entrance.
We didn’t need to check in as we would be receiving a text when our room was ready. That allowed me plenty of opportunities to photograph the new lobby, which by the way, I really loved. I prefer the open, spacious lobbies, so I was pleased to see the Poly convert to that. Now it resembles my two favorite DVC resorts, Animal Kingdom Lodge and Wilderness Lodge. Seeing right out to the view is a great addition, too.
Once I was done in the lobby, we both needed a bio break. Afterwards, we checked out Captain Cook’s and Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto. We also went out to the outdoor terrace and marina.
Within moments of our reaching Trader Sam's, Luke’s phone dinged that he had a text. Our room was ready in Moorea (Mo-Oh-Rey-A) on the third floor in room 3017. No one had to light a fire under us, we were off in a flash in the direction of Moorea.
Hidden Mickey light fixtures are in the front lobbies of each floor.
We oohed and aahed over the décor, but we were focused on checking out our view. Boy, did we score a view! We could see both the castle and Space Mountain plus the tops of both Splash and Big Thunder mountains. The bungalows were just below us.
Now I must have been so excited to return to this view later in the evening that my notes for this day end here. But my memories are still fairly fresh and I took loads of pictures. I will piece the rest of the day back together. This failure to take notes didn’t happen any other night, thank goodness.
NEXT: I know I’m leaving you hanging, but I just have so many photos this day that I want to share, so I’ll need to divide this day up several times over. The photos of the deluxe studio interior will be in the very next update.
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You guys got to WDW so quickly and your arrival photos are so pretty! I felt like I was right there too. What a great view you have from your room! Did you have to go to the front desk at all?
I have to share that I had a similar spider moment as you yesterday. I was driving home from a field trip and a pretty creepy looking spider came down from the roof of my car and landed on my center console. I hate spiders too and almost screamed, but then I remembered my car was full of 2nd grade girls and I had to somehow remain calm. I tried my best to kill it with my water bottle. Of course, he escaped, and I spent the remainder of the car ride in fear that he was crawling on me or would somehow get in the back with those girls who were already really silly and loud. He never reappeared which means he is still in there....just waiting for me....
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looks like a good start (except for the car accident) to another great WDW trip by Cam and Luke. Looking forward to reading more.
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Pixie Dust
Great Start!!! Can't wait to hear about the most recent adventure!!! 
. Tasty though!!!
We don't eat at Taco Bell anymore. But, even if we did, I don't know how I would be able to drive and eat anything from there! You guys are brave!
How neat that Miss Daisy came from Valdosta! I had just assumed you had gotten once you got to Florida. 
At 6:00 AM my Orbit fitness band buzzed, and then Luke’s phone alarm rang out. I find it easy to get up quickly when I know I’ll be in WDW soon. We were both ready except for brushing our teeth by 7:05.
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You know how much I want to see photos of the studios at the Poly! 
Wow! The Poly looks gorgeous and did you guys ever score a view!! 
I can't wait to see rest of your studio!!
Can't wait for more of your trip report! Oh and Welcome Pam! 
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