From no trip to celebrating 20 years together… planning it all in less than 100 days! UPDATED 6/30 - Page 92 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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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A nice start to your meal at the Cali with some good drinks (at least yours) and great sushi! Nice photos of Illuminations, while everyone else was watching Wishes! Too funny with the other couple rushing through a great meal like this!
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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!
I thought nit was amazing, too. My problems that when I recorded it, it cut off the last few minutes. Luckily I also recorded the show after it and It was the beginning of that or I would have really been upset. I hope next week's is as good.
Liz
Thank goodness you were able to get the ending or without that, you'd have missed the best bits!
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.
That was one crazy boat ride to the Contemporary! Perfect time for you to capture a deserted California GRill. So neat that you got to see and photograph Illuminations from there.
Saturday 4 March – part eleven: talk about celebrating in style!
When I got back to the table after watching IllumiNations, it wasn’t long before our entrees came out. Mark stayed at the table the whole time, and said it was fascinating to watch the kitchen. He said they literally got to one point in the music, and the kitchen sprang back into life. I bet that was neat to see that!
For entrée, I went for the San Francisco style cioppino, with Maine lobster tail, wild gulf shrimp, Alaskan king crab, cedar creek clams, P.E.I mussels, fregola, tomato fennel broth, lucid abstinthe, blood orange oil, crisp vegetables, and sourdough crostini. I was a bit concerned about the abstinthe, as I knew that could be a liquorice taste, but Jenny reassured me it was more like lemongrass and she was right. She was very concerned about how I was finding the taste of it, and came back to check on that. It was lovely, and I really could not believe how much seafood was in this. That’s probably why it came with the hefty price tag of $63 – the most expensive item on the menu. I’ve never seen seafood more expensive than meat in here. My only slight criticism was that it did have a little heat in it after a while, and there was just way too much. I managed to eat all of the seafood, but there was still so much left.
Jenny told us that the grilled pork with goat cheese polenta (which Mark subbed out for mashed potatoes as he doesn’t like polenta), royal trumpet mushrooms, roasted belly, apple-raisin mostarda, with Snake River Farms 10oz Kurobuta pork rib chop, had been on the menu for 22 years, and was consistently one of their best sellers. Bearing in mind we’ve been coming here since our honeymoon 17 years ago, Mark’s never had the pork, so I kind of insisted that if it was a house speciality, he really needed to try it, and he did.
By that point, he was starting to feel decidedly unwell. I don’t think it was the food, I think it was the cocktail he’d had earlier, but he declared himself out from dessert, which was fair enough. It is a lot of food. However, I’d eaten less for lunch and less for dinner, as I hadn’t finished my entrée.
I wanted to try out the chef’s selection cheese board, which was made up of the following:
Taleggio Fondutta – a buttery, delicate, semi-soft, and subtlety sweet cheese from Italy made from pasteurised cow’s milk
Point Reyea Toma – an all-natural, pasteurised, semi-hard table cheese with a natural rind
Wyngaard Chevre Affine – goat’s cheese, slightly sweet, walnut and crčme fraiche, awarded best goat cheese at the World Championship Cheese Contest in Wisconsin in 2016
Moliterno – pasteurised Italian sheep’s milk cheese, named after the town it originates from
Smokey blue – a sweet creamy cheese cold-smoked over shells from Oregon hazelnuts to give it nutty, savoury flavours
I also figured I’d try the lemon basil sorbet, but to be honest, it was awful. I don’t like sharp tastes, and this was exceptionally sharp, but Mark does – he can eat a lemon raw… seriously! However, he took one mouthful, and he couldn’t stand it either, which tells you something about just how sharp it was.. However, I’m glad we were on the Dining Plan, and could try it, and frankly it really didn’t matter if we liked it or not.
Now remember I’d mentioned we’d been together 20 years when we arrived? Well, they obviously wanted us to celebrate in style, because first the butterscotch crčme brulee turned up first. By now, neither of us could stomach anything else, although Mark gamely took a bite, but he couldn’t manage any more than that. He saw that there were rows of them lined up, and he reckoned they were getting rid of one of their less popular desserts… it’s possible.
Ok, so we thought that was the end of it, but next these turned up..
Wow, the California Grill really wanted us to celebrate! My goodness, I was quite touched by all of these things. I thought they did a huge amount, and it’s just a shame that Mark wasn’t feeling better to enjoy it.
Our meal came to over $200 without the drinks or tip, but my goodness, it was worth it, and already the Deluxe Dining Plan had more than paid for itself, meaning tomorrow’s breakfast would essentially be free.
Eventually we left about 10:15pm – talk about a wonderfully leisurely meal, much better than the couple next door who’d just raced through theirs just to see Wishes.
California Grill
Appetiser 9 9
Entrée 9 9
Dessert 9˝ N/A
Service 10 9
Atmosphere 10 9
Value for money 9 9
Average score: 9.23
We made our way back to the boat dock, and wouldn’t you know it, there were boats at both docks. We thought we knew which one to catch back, but we double checked, and captain Clueless was there from earlier. Thankfully he was going to Fort Wilderness, so we were safe from his clutches! There were four other adults on our boat, and we told them about what had happened on the way over, and they were laughing so much.
Our captain was amazing. As it was a cooler night, he told us we wouldn’t feel the cold if we had a bit of trivia to get our brains going, so he asked us which two dwarves were voiced by the same actor. Apparently it was Grumpy and Sleepy. Well, you really do learn something every day! He was such fun, and the type of Cast Member you want to encounter all the time.
The weather today was warm and sunny, but windy, with temperatures in the mid 70s. The best thing today was dinner at the California Grill. The worst thing today was Mark not feeling well towards the end of dinner. The funniest thing today was Mark with the birds… Today we tried going to Discovery Cove without a dolphin swim And the result was we didn’t miss it at all. The most magical moment today was our wonderful anniversary celebrations at the California Grill.
Your dinner looked amazing and how wonderful that the CG went out of their way in the fashion that they did to make your 20th Anniversary so special. I'm sorry was not feeling well by the end of the dinner though to truly enjoy all the free desserts. I love when the Cast Members tell stories or trivia to pass the time on the transportation. They do that on the buses sometimes also!
Dinner looked amazing! I do think that may be the only bargain on the DDP options - the deluxe. The others don't seem to pay for themselves as easily anymore. We'll see what it looks like price wise when they add the alcohol option next year.
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.
Dinner looked amazing! I do think that may be the only bargain on the DDP options - the deluxe. The others don't seem to pay for themselves as easily anymore.
I agree. We've only ever thought the Deluxe Plan was worth having.
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We'll see what it looks like price wise when they add the alcohol option next year.
I'm wondering what those prices will look like. It'll be interesting to see.
You food looks good. I think I'd rather have the seafood instead of the pork. That was a lot of food, though. I'm not sure about the desserts, though.
I rewatched Dr. Who again. I don't know why it took me so long to figure out who was the Master. Even with the makeup, it looks like him. I think I was just too involved with the story the first time.
Liz
Wow!! What a wonderful and romantic meal with lots of special touches!! I am so sorry that Mark was feeling poorly towards the end of it. . Thank goodness your boat ride was infinitely better for the ride back!!
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What a great meal and time at the Cali! Your cioppino looks amazing and funny in all my times there, I have never seen that on the menu! I'd be all over that. The pork dish is basically their signature one at the restaurant and had it before and was very good! Too bad Mark wasn't feeling well at the end so the two of you could enjoy the extras more!
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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!
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Nice photos of Illuminations, while everyone else was watching Wishes! 
Too funny with the other couple rushing through a great meal like this! 
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Pixie Dust
PassPorter Guide Author
So neat that you got to see and photograph Illuminations from there. 
My only slight criticism was that it did have a little heat in it after a while, and there was just way too much. I managed to eat all of the seafood, but there was still so much left. 
I don’t like sharp tastes, and this was exceptionally sharp, but Mark does – he can eat a lemon raw… seriously! 
However, he took one mouthful, and he couldn’t stand it either, which tells you something about just how sharp it was.. 
However, I’m glad we were on the Dining Plan, and could try it, and frankly it really didn’t matter if we liked it or not. 
I am so sorry that Mark was feeling poorly towards the end of it. 
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