Graduation, Good Health & Giggles Galore - Page 9 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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With a happy heart I waved goodbye to Dinoland. I am a big fan of ticky tacky tourist spots, which started when my grandfather took me to a duck shaped building on Long Island. My DS and I just drove from NY to Purdue University and I kept making him take photos of some roadside attractions along the way, such as the giant Uncle Sam outside a fireworks store.
We meandered over to Africa, again on a route I was unfamiliar with. We ended up on the back side of the tree while the sun was setting behind it. It was a lovely sight, so we went down a short pathway to where we thought a photo pass photographer was set up. No photographer, which was fine, so we took our own photos. The kids were laughing t me when I kept telling them to shuffle left a bit. There was a door on the back of the tree that I didn't want in the picture!
We made it to Tusker house about 10 minutes before our reservation. There were many people sitting outside, so we figured we would have a long wait. Several of us went to the restroom for a quick handwashing when we were getting texts to hurry up our table was ready. We were sat in a back alcove with two other tables. One had four adults and five kids around 6-10 in age. The other was a family of five with three kids about 12-16.
Our waiter arrived and took our drink order and told us to go help ourselves. The characters wouldn't be around for awhile he said. I said i would stay at the table while everyone else got their food. I was facing the table with the younger kids and there seemed to be trouble in paradise. The children were arguing with their parents over beverage choices. No soda, no juice, milk ok says Dad. Two kids were getting cranky as they wanted juice. No,no,no says father. Littlest child gets up from table, yelling in a language I didn't understand. The father yells at the mom who yells at the child. The child is pacing back and forth muttering. The father yells at the waiter to bring 2 beers, 2 wines and 5 waters. The mothers gather the kids and head for the buffet.
The man at the table behind me tells his family he should be buying drinks for all the tables he is disturbing. I smiled to myself in agreement.
My group returned to the table with their plates PILED high with food. They looked at each others plates and began laughing hysterically. DN wiped tears from her eyes as she proclaimed "At least we'll get our monies worth." When I returned with my food, they were heading back for seconds.
The table with the young kids wasn't fairing so well. Not only were the children not interested in eating, they had no interest in the characters. My table was getting autographs and photos, the girls all danced with Mickey Mouse and Daisy Duck timed her arrival with cupcakes and birthday wishes. Donald made two visits to our table and pulled a chair over to sit down. I think the excitement and fun loving behavior of our group was a welcome to him after getting the cold shoulder from the table next to us. DN called dibs on her birthday being the next day and DBB asked to get in on the birthday action.
We left there in a very upbeat mood. DGC excused herself from our group so she could meetup with her boyfriend for a bit. She thanked me profusely for a magical day. We asked her to text us when she safely met up with him and she did.
Just outside Tusker House on our way to use our fp for the safari, we saw a group of African dancers unroll a large grass mat on the ground. Music was playing and we couldn't help but to stay and watch. The all male group were dressed colorfully in what appeared to be a traditional costume. Let me say they were incredible and the highlight of our day because it was so unexpected. They danced, tumbled, lifted each other , shaked, shimmied, made impressive gymnastic moves and other unbelievable feats. We loved it. To be in such an amazing atmosphere, dancing with one another, clapping to the beat and applauding for this troupe was so special. We felt like we were in an African village. It made me think of LaurieP and her real African adventure. I felt bad pulling the crew away but we had just minutes to make our fp time. The fp line reached out to the entranceway. Obviously lots of guests were interested in seeing the safari. It took at least 30 minutes to get in our truck. The driver pointed out a few things early on which were hard to see. We enjiyed the silhouette of a giraffe and the cattle with the huge horns. The pink flamingos had tucked themselves in for the night.
I am falling asleep, so part 2 will continue tomorrow.
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Wow, it does sound like your party made the best of the food at Tusker House! What a shame for that other family that the kids weren't interested in the characters.
Child meltdowns & thereby parental meltdowns unfortunately do occur in the real world so there is great likelihood they would occur in the bubble too. This is said with a heavy heart bc I personally had a meltdown yesterday with my toddler that ended up with an argument with my mother. I am so sorry that the family was disturbing to seemingly the entire alcove - that is what I find unacceptable. Glad you & your crew got your "money's worth" at Tusker House in both food & once again wonderful character interaction. Impromptu performances are truly the best and a wonderful illustration of all things Disney - and a good reason why all this pre-planning of our trips is just wrong...so easy to miss these Disney gems as we race from point A to point B. So glad you were able to take the performance art in; priceless memories.
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 feel that oftentimes people just rush through AK, but you seem to be taking it all in and savoring it! Just LOVE it! I also love the cheezy factor at Dinoland, it's so cute over there!
Great meal at Tusker House! We really enjoy the character interaction we've had at that meal. Sounds like you all had a lot of fun watching the African dance troupe.
Wow, it does sound like your party made the best of the food at Tusker House! What a shame for that other family that the kids weren't interested in the characters.
I thought with all the heat, they wouldn't eat much. They sure fooled me. We all were taking advantage of the fresh cut fruit, salads and veggies. Yum!
[QUOTE=cattailmarsh;4556599]Child meltdowns & thereby parental meltdowns unfortunately do occur in the real world so there is great likelihood they would occur in the bubble too. This is said with a heavy heart bc I personally had a meltdown yesterday with my toddler that ended up with an argument with my mother. I am so sorry that the family was disturbing to seemingly the entire alcove - that is what I find unacceptable. Glad you & your crew got your "money's worth" at Tusker House in both food & once again wonderful character interaction. Impromptu performances are truly the best and a wonderful illustration of all things Disney - and a good reason why all this pre-planning of our trips is just wrong...so easy to miss these Disney gems as we race from point A to point B. So glad you were able to take the performance art in; priceless memories.[/QUOTE
My kids still make fun of me for a meltdown I had at Hollywood Studios. I made them sit across the street from me on a bench, while I gave myself a timeout. It was so much better than losing my cool.
We were enjoying ourselves too much to let the family get to us. I was sad when they waved away the characters. The littlest boy told DGA that the characters aren't real.
I'm a planner, but still enjoying stoppkng to smell the roses.
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You guys sure are continuing to have a great time, I wonder if the other groups had as much fun.
My group was just ecstatic that they took my suggestion to go with a plan, especially dining. Some of their fiends were invited but didn't want to be tied to a schedule. I paid for their meals as my graduation gift to them and they were so appreciative.
Most of the kids were making their own kind of fun. I know my kids were texting others because they were being asked how to get a fastpass or dining reservation.
Great meal at Tusker House! We really enjoy the character interaction we've had at that meal. Sounds like you all had a lot of fun watching the African dance troupe.
I can't even explain the fun they has with this troupe. The dancers were so interactive with the young children and made fantastic eye contact with the adults. I hope they are a staple in Animal Kingdom like the performers in Epcot.
Tusker House sounded like it was both delicious and fun! I'm really wishing we had timed it for the African party now. That sounds magical!
You will have to see if they will be performing in the fall! I'm not sure if the dance party in Dino Land was new with the evening hours. We didn't expect either, so it was even more magical.
Seems like all of you made the most out of a great time and meal at Tusker House! Too bad that other family didn't take after your table!
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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!
As we continued on our safari, we saw the beautiful sunset that was added to the savanah. I was surprised when later on the kids were talking about it and they said they didn't like it. They expressed that it looked like a giant Christmas light display and they thought Disney could do better. It was interesting to hear their take. Overall, I wish I had an earlier fp around dusk. It was just too dark to enjoy all of the animals. I am certainly happy to have experienced the night safari, especially since it was a new feature.
Next, we were excited to be heading to Kali River Rapids. Oneof the kids had read it was great fun at night. We hoofed it over there only to learn the ride was down, as it was experiencing a problem. We were disappointed, as we all agreed that getting soaked now would be ok. It was still hot and humid. The cm then told us Expedition Everest was now closed and we should head to the park exit, so we did. Along the way, cm's were closing all the kiosks. We were able to hear the Jungle Book music, but stopped for a bio break rather than head to the show. We also stopped and had an amazing photo taken in front of the tree. It's probably one of our favorites because of the way the tree is lit up. We did a quick look through the shops, and I decided to hold off on a scarf purchase until the next day. I wish I bought it then, because I forgot to grab one. My thought was wait til you have enough to buy the gift with purchase.
We kind of danced happily towards the exit, as the kids were trying to replicate the dance moves from earlier. Our overall thoughts were we needed way more time in this park to see everything. I loved the night visit and would certainly go again, just for the Tree of Life lit up and the African dancers!
Back to Pop, the kids arrived just at curfew. 12:45 am. They were up 22 hours at this point.
The disappointing thing was that the suitcases had not been delivered to the rooms, as promised. DS went to bellhop to get his bag and DGA. The bellhop searched for 10 minutes and couldn't find the bags. DS was able to get his bag butnot his friends. He had her ticket, but was told she needed to get her own, since they were not related and in different rooms. He texted her the news, so DBB walked her to the front entrance as he had to grab his, too. DS waited for them so she would have her ticket. While waiting, the last group from oir school arrived by bus, so the kids told them to grab their luggage now, i stead of going to the room and back. They texted the chaperones to let them know what was going on.
Meanwhile, I was headed with my niece to her hotel. The name escapes me other than it was a Hilton property that had the word palace in its name. I remember this because my DS thought we were staying in Cinderella's castle! Oh, how I wish.
After a shower and plugging in my phone and camera charger, I passed out.
Summary
Best part of the day: African dancers
Worst part of the day: The heat
Walked over 23,000 steps
First: Animal Kingdom at night
The result was: Loved it
Favorite meal: Princess Storybook Luncheon at Askerhus in Norway
Favorite character interaction: Meeting Pluto in Epcot
Favorite ride: Test Track
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What a shame for that other family that the kids weren't interested in the characters. 
I'm really wishing we had timed it for the African party now. That sounds magical! 
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