Living the dream and remembering the Bagman LIVE UPDATE 10/2 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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I saw DCL is announcing a new show based on.....I'm sure you can guess........Frozen. I liked the movie enough, but just don't understand why it seems to have taken over the world. Literally. Walt Disney World.
I lost my taste for Frozen when Disney announced that they were changing the Norway pavilion to a fictitious country.
I'm going to be interested to see what it's like, but I think that was a real shame, as I loved the fact that all of World Showcase represented real countries.
I saw DCL is announcing a new show based on.....I'm sure you can guess........Frozen. I liked the movie enough, but just don't understand why it seems to have taken over the world. Literally. Walt Disney World.
I saw that - and is it bad that I thought "oh thank goodness it's the Wonder and we have no plans to sail on her for a while"?
Disney's park hours seem to be coming out slower than I once thought they did. I know things are still up in the air about Rivers of Light, but I had hoped that October hours at AK would be later than 7:30, which is what is still listed.
I'm catching up on your plans and signing in for all the planning you have going on.
I had to stop reading though and post a quick response.....we are checking out on Sep 21st from BWI.....if your plans have you in Epcot on the 20th, please let us know as we will be hanging around WS that night. Would love to meet up with you and Mark.
Disney's park hours seem to be coming out slower than I once thought they did. I know things are still up in the air about Rivers of Light, but I had hoped that October hours at AK would be later than 7:30, which is what is still listed.
Well, as of the last time I checked, I think the Jungle Book is still only showing until something like 4 September, so we still have no clue what's going to happen in the evening there. I'm still hoping for Rivers of Light, but I'm not holding my breath. The Star Wars fireworks are showing until 24 September, and guess what night we're going to the Studios? You got it - 25 September.
I'm catching up on your plans and signing in for all the planning you have going on.
I had to stop reading though and post a quick response.....we are checking out on Sep 21st from BWI.....if your plans have you in Epcot on the 20th, please let us know as we will be hanging around WS that night. Would love to meet up with you and Mark.
We will be! The plan is to check into Animal Kingdom Lodge and head to Epcot for lunch at the Food and Wine Festival booths, then it's back to the resort for dinner at Boma at 6:15pm. After that, we're going back to Epcot to see IllumiNations and then enjoy Extra Magic Hours. We'll have to exchange cell phone numbers, but I need to get a new one first... that story will be coming up in due course so maybe message me and let me have yours and hopefully we can meet up.
Pre-trip report – part nine: Southwest don’t have that flight anymore
Thursday 18 February
Well today was the day that Southwest were due to open up flights through to early November, so guess what I did as soon as I got up? Yep, checked out the website. And guess what? No flights posted yet. I personally wasn’t surprised, as I didn’t expect them to be out in the early hours of the morning EST, although others had said they’re posted at midnight, well not today they weren’t. Oh well, I’ll just have to check the site out again when I get home from work.
When I got home, the first thing I did was check the Southwest website. I couldn’t believe my eyes. There were only two direct flights a day, either first thing in the morning or late afternoon, neither of which I really wanted. Previously they’d had a direct flight leaving in the late morning, and that’s the one I wanted, but now it connects and takes six hours! I don’t think so. In the end, I opted for the morning flight. It leaves at 8:05am, which isn’t too terrible, and it’s better than the 4:30pm flight that gets in at 7:00pm into Orlando. I figured I’d rather have an extra day at Disney, so then we can squeeze in a couple more meals, given I’m struggling to work out how to fit in all the places I want to eat at…
As soon as I booked the flights, I immediately got to work, seeing what options there were for staying the night at Buffalo Airport, as there was no way we’d now be spending that night at Niagara. Although it’s only about half an hour’s drive from the airport, there’s the small matter of crossing the Canadian/US Border, and I don’t want to risk being late for a flight. It’s a shame, as I had been looking forward to spending the night at the falls, but then again, I may have to go back to our plans and see whether we can spend the night before there, and just have the one night in Toronto. Decisions, decisions…
Something else happened today, which is another reason I was keen to get down to Disney. The dates for the Food and Wine Festival were announced, but they weren’t what I was expecting. I thought it would literally be starting around the weekend we were there, but Disney have lengthened the festival this year, and it actually starts on 14 September, which means we can now visit it when we first get to Orlando on the Tuesday, the day we fly in from Buffalo, and sample some of the offerings from the booths on a weekday, rather than a crowded weekend. We’ve done weekends before at the Food and Wine Festival, and it’s not a pleasant experience. Not only is it packed, but the whole atmosphere changes, and not for the better. We’ve seen a fair few drunk people, and it doesn’t really make it feel like a Disney park when you’re witnessing that.
Ok, I think I have the plans set for our first day in Disney now. We’re due to land at 10:10am, so bearing in mind we won’t have to clear customs or immigration, that should speed things up. With any luck, at the worst, we should be at Animal Kingdom Lodge, where we’re staying for 11:30am – midday. If our room’s ready, fantastic, then we can leave our stuff in it. If it’s not, which is what I suspect will happen, then we can grab a bus and head over to Epcot, or drive over there (it depends if Mark wants to sample any beverages from the booths ) and then we’ll have lunch there at the booths, and perhaps get some Fastpasses. We’ll see nearer the time.
We can then head back to the resort for a break late afternoon, and by then our room should definitely be ready. We both love Boma, so I figure an early dinner there (maybe 5:30pm – 6:00pm?) should work, then that gives us time to get back to Epcot to see IllumiNations, then we can enjoy evening Extra Magic Hours there. Wow, that sounds like a plan!
Friday 19 February
Wow, where on earth do I start? Well, we should hopefully have the park of the day and the attraction of the day by the end of the weekend, according to the Facebook group. I am so thrilled, as I honestly thought we’d have a few more weeks to wait for this, and right now, my plans are pretty much non-existent for the Friday, Saturday and Sunday, as I know that’s when most people will be there.
Some of you may be wondering what the attraction of the day is. Well, it’s a lovely idea that Sandy and Dyan came up with – something Bill would have liked. In their words, it’s “definitely not a thrill ride, and probably something that offers a photo op or two”. I love the idea, as it means everyone can enjoy it together, and I know that’s something Bill would definitely have approved of.
They’re also looking at doing buttons and have got permission to use Bill’s official OCSO photo. I think that’s such a lovely touch. As if that wasn’t enough, they’re working on T-shirts and everyone will be able to order them from Zazzle. I couldn’t get on to the site (it kept crashing ) but I’m told the international shipping is pretty expensive, so I may need to see if I can get someone to order what we need, then we’ll PayPal them the money, and pick them up when we get to Disney. It will be such a moving tribute to see everyone gathered together and wearing them. What a wonderful way to remember a great man.
I just want to say here that I really appreciate all the work Sandy and Dyan are putting into this and I am so grateful for Sandy, who came up with the original idea for this whole get together. so much to both of you.
We’re also rapidly approaching the seven month mark for DVC bookings, meaning you can swap your reservations from your home resorts to non-home resorts, and a number of us are planning on doing that. During that discussion, I learnt a lot… sadly Steve (Sue’s husband) won’t be able to join us, which is such a shame, given we haven’t seen him since the Alaskan cruise in 2011 but it can’t be helped. Sue thinks she’ll be flying in on the Wednesday, so hopefully we can spend some time with her.
I also noticed Barb said something about her and Bob coming in on the Sunday before Bagman Days. Well, that opens up some possibilities, now we know we’ll be arriving on Tuesday morning. I messaged her with details of our plans so far, and they’re going to join us to see La Nouba on Wednesday night, and then dinner afterwards. I am so happy, as again, it was the Alaskan cruise in 2011 when we last saw them. Gosh, where does the time go?
But wait, there’s more! I found a link on Facebook to a video of giant panda cubs. Now for those who don’t know, as much as I adore my cows and donkeys, to me, there is nothing cuter in the baby animal world than a baby panda. Now this wasn’t any old video. It was a video from Toronto Zoo. I stared at it and was like Toronto Zoo has baby pandas? How could I not know that?
I immediately did a bit of research and discovered it’s actually about 20 minutes outside the city centre and on the way from Ottawa, it would be closer, so maybe we could drive there, stay the night, lessening the drive from Ottawa, and then go to the zoo the next morning. I’ll need to check back, as at present the baby pandas aren’t on public display, but heck I’m sure they will be in seven months’ time. Hmmm….
I love the way that Disney are really spicing up the night-time offerings at the various parks. The Magic Kingdom and Epcot always had a lot, but now look at what the Studios are getting, and with Animal Kingdom acquiring Rivers of Light, every park will have something pretty spectacular for evening hours. Good going Disney!
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Toronto Zoo is highly rated, I went when I was in grade school, so many moons ago. Another neat attraction is the Africain Lion Safari, you actually stay in your car and drive through the animals, it would be on your drive from Toronto to Niagara Falls.
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The Star Wars fireworks are showing until 24 September, and guess what night we're going to the Studios? You got it - 25 September. 
The plan is to check into Animal Kingdom Lodge and head to Epcot for lunch at the Food and Wine Festival booths, then it's back to the resort for dinner at Boma at 6:15pm. After that, we're going back to Epcot to see IllumiNations and then enjoy Extra Magic Hours. We'll have to exchange cell phone numbers, but I need to get a new one first... that story will be coming up in due course 
There were only two direct flights a day, either first thing in the morning or late afternoon, neither of which I really wanted. Previously they’d had a direct flight leaving in the late morning, and that’s the one I wanted, but now it connects and takes six hours! I don’t think so. 
In the end, I opted for the morning flight. It leaves at 8:05am, which isn’t too terrible, and it’s better than the 4:30pm flight that gets in at 7:00pm into Orlando. I figured I’d rather have an extra day at Disney, so then we can squeeze in a couple more meals, given I’m struggling to work out how to fit in all the places I want to eat at… 
) and then we’ll have lunch there at the booths, and perhaps get some Fastpasses. We’ll see nearer the time. 
Well, we should hopefully have the park of the day and the attraction of the day by the end of the weekend, according to the Facebook group. I am so thrilled, as I honestly thought we’d have a few more weeks to wait for this, and right now, my plans are pretty much non-existent for the Friday, Saturday and Sunday, as I know that’s when most people will be there. 
As if that wasn’t enough, they’re working on T-shirts and everyone will be able to order them from Zazzle. I couldn’t get on to the site (it kept crashing 
so much to both of you. 
I am so happy, as again, it was the Alaskan cruise in 2011 when we last saw them. Gosh, where does the time go? 
I found a link on Facebook to a video of giant panda cubs. Now for those who don’t know, as much as I adore my cows and donkeys, to me, there is nothing cuter in the baby animal world than a baby panda. 
Now this wasn’t any old video. It was a video from Toronto Zoo. I stared at it and was like 
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