The Mommy, Patch & Miles Megatrip
or
How the Mouse Finally Broke My Commando Spirit
Who:
Amanda, (me), 34, aka Mommy -- sixth trip
Miles, 2 -- third trip (second one this year)
"Patch", 60-something, aka my Dad -- third trip
When:
Sunday, September 23 - Sunday, September 30, 2001
Where:
Boardwalk Villas -- Sunday to Thursday
All-Star Music -- Friday & Saturday
Because I can't remember properly any other way, I'll come at this trip report in a chronological fashion. I've got TONS to say, as it was an extremely eventful trip.
I'll include a separate summary of tips and opinions on the whole trip, at the end.
Hope you have as much fun reading as we did experiencing our adventure. That you can learn a bit from our trials and tribulations, and smile at our triumphs.
Saturday, Sept. 22
ANTICIPATION
We booked a 6:45 a.m. flight out tomorrow. Sounded like a good idea when I got the tickets, but now that it was time to think about getting to the airport that early, I wished I'd taken a later flight. We live about an hour's drive away, so I decided to try and spend the night a bit closer and skip the pre-dawn drive. A phone call to the Hilton Honors point redemption folks revealed that no, I couldn't redeem any points for a stay at the Airport Hilton, but I would be able to score a free room about fifteen minutes away at a new Hilton "Garden Inn", with free airport shuttle service in the morning.
Packing went pretty painlessly, and I congratulated myself on how little I was bringing. As usual, I underpacked and ended up having to buy stuff on vacation -- mostly t-shirts and different over-the-counter medications. Some people need an extra suitcase to bring home souvenirs at the end of their trip. I need one to haul back all the drugs I buy when one of us gets sick. The last two trips I made, someone got sick -- hey, "third time's a charm". Read on for colorful descriptions of food poisoning!
My husband was staying home to work, as the poor man only gets two weeks of vacation a year and is saving them for Christmas and our upcoming Disney Magic cruise in January. But he came and spent the night with us at the Hilton, to see us off in the morning. We had a meal out at a local Roadhouse Grill, a nice swim as the sun was setting, and then went to visit some of my husband's family who live in the area. Miles had a wonderful time running around with his cousins. He was thrilled to see them, and it passed the rest of the evening away painlessly. Back to the hotel, and then we were all asleep by 10:00 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 23
UP IN THE AIR
Good lord we got up early. I decided to push my luck, and take the 5:45 a.m. shuttle to the airport, instead of the 5:15. My husband was sad to see us go, I could tell. But I think he was more tired. He told me later that he drove home, and proceeded to sleep until 1 p.m. that afternoon! He said all he did while we were gone was sleep and go to work. He does seem REALLY well-rested these days. But what a surprise, all the junk stacked up in my laundry room never got sorted out like he had promised. Oh well, give the poor working man a break. :-)
The 5:45 a.m. shuttle loaded us up. There were three depressed-looking men in the shuttle with us, two of them pilots and the other a businessman. The Sept. 11 attacks were very much on our minds. Miles added a bittersweet touch by being outgoing and excited about the upcoming plane ride. He introduced himself to everyone -- "Hi! I'm Miles. What's your name?" And gave a spirited narration for our shuttle ride -- "We're going fast! We're going much faster now! Look out!" We stopped at another hotel and picked up three ladies who seemed to be traveling together on business. One of them began crying, from fear I think, when we got alongside the air field and started seeing planes. Miles of course was like, "Planes! Planes! Look, Mommy, planes! Hey man, do you see the planes? Up up in the air!" etc.
One thing I know how to do is throw a few bucks around to make my life easier. My husband will tell you that I'm very good at spending money. So the first thing I did when my feet hit the pavement was call out, "Skycap!" The first of a series of very polite and helpful, friendly gentleman on this trip ran right out and carted our bags and carseat in for us. Miles rode in his stroller on all these schleps. I've seen kids scream and fight about getting in their strollers, but Miles is always happy to climb on in when I need him to. Maybe it's because I've never insisted he stay there if he wants to walk, and it's safe to do so. I'm used to taking our time getting from place to place and exploring everything along the way. He might get more fussy about it as he gets older, though.
I don't know if most airlines are lying, or if their flights really are empty, but let me assure you that Southwest Airlines is NOT hurting for customers. Ay yai yai, the lines!! One of the great things about using a skycap is that they'll drop your bags for you up at the front of the line, so you don't have to keep moving your stuff along with you while you shuffle through. I'm not sure if that's something they are technically supposed to do. I mean, my bags were out of my control, and out of my sight, but they were right in front of the ticket agents. They could see them the whole time, even if I couldn't, so maybe it's not considered against the security rules. My bags were the only ones up there -- no one else tried to do it, so maybe it's a skycap thing. Traveling alone with a small child, things like this can make a huge difference in your stress level. (Incidentally, when the skycaps pulled our bags out of baggage claim areas, the guards didn't bother looking at the claim checks.)
I was getting nervous about making our flight, but the line moved quickly. Southwest had every station at the counter manned, which they certainly needed. I can't see anyone losing their jobs there. Down at the jetway, the bag x-ray folks looked vaguely interested in their work. That's a turnaround from their norm. The security at the New Orleans airport has always been a big private party. Nobody gets hired unless they know someone, and you would swear they were all sneaking swigs of something behind the x-ray machines. They were dead serious today.
We had missed pre-boarding, but I don't think we held the plane up as I got Miles' car seat buckled down and him in it. We left on time, with the plane about 4/5 full.
Here's a hint for parents purchasing new and exciting toys to while away travel time -- you can't hear most electronic games over the sound of an airplane's engines. Poor Miles was so excited at first about his new Mr. Potato Head game, but he couldn't make heads or tails out of it. That diversion lasted about ten minutes tops. Oh well. We managed to fill up the time with playing "mine and yours" with the SkyMall catalogue. Everything on the right hand page he gets, and everything on the left I get. So he gets a puppy, and I get a male model in a bathrobe, he gets a toy car and I get a male model wearing an expensive watch -- you get the idea.
During the flight, the only hint of the Sept. 11 events was a 6'2" guy huddled up under a blanket, crying at take-off. He was trying to hide it, but he didn't have his seat in a fully upright and locked position, and had to interact with one of the stewards. Poor baby.
I enjoyed the flight tremendously. I used to be afraid of flying, to the point where two years ago I announced I was never flying again. Then I did research on flying phobias, and other types of phobias too, and discovered that the more you entertain fearful thoughts, the worse they get. The only way to get better is to not allow yourself to have the thoughts. Find ways to distract yourself, and refuse to think about anything negative. I've done that through three round-trip flights now, and I'm starting to really enjoy flying again. And I know this is going to sound strange, but the horrible hijackings seem to have completely removed what was left of my phobia. What happened to those people was far worse than anything I had ever imagined. The truth is, when we die, it will most likely be a surprise, and it will be its own moment. I think I'll just let that moment happens whenever it happens, and not live an imaginary version of it in my mind, while I have the chance to be alive right now.
The most hilarious steward ever helped, too. I swear this guy has a future as a comic. Sample comment: "Ladies and gentlemen, if you have with you today a cell phone or other electronic communication device, please know that we the crew are VERY impressed, but could you please keep it turned off for the duration of our flight." And how about: "Mmm mmm, we'll be coming by with some oh so delicious... peanuts! That's right, ladies and gentleman, we have a fine selection of peanuts for your snacking pleasure." Also: "For those of you who would like to start drinking at 7:00 in the morning, cocktails are available for $4.50." I think he was making some of the manly men on the plane a little uncomfortable because he was really gay-guy-over-the-top, but I appreciated it tremendously.
DOWN ON THE GROUND
Gate-checked the stroller, and Miles happily hopped on in. We stopped at a coffee shop in the terminal because Miles thought he saw donuts in their bakery case, but it was only bagels. No donuts. That kind of ticked him off. I had a bunch of snacks in my purse, so he made do with those while we walked down to baggage claim. Can you say "Skycap!"?
Another cheerful friendly fellow carted us up to National's Emerald Aisle lot, which is just part of the airport's parking garage. I picked out a maroon medium sized something or other with nice leg-room, installed Miles car seat and Miles, and we were off. Oh, I forgot -- first I changed Miles diaper on the back seat. Guess where there are no trash cans anywhere in sight? But Mommy is prepared! Mommy travels armed with... ziplocks!
Remember the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy? They recommend that all travelers carry a towel. Well, you can chalk me up as voting for ziplocks over towels any day. They can be an airlock for odoriferous emanations from your little loved one, a rain hat, a barrier between your bottom and a wet bench, a dirty clothes hamper, and a great way to smuggle out a couple of cookies from the Crystal Palace buffet to savor later. I recommend traveling with both the gallon and quart sizes.
We sailed on down the road, and Miles fell asleep until we pulled up at the Boardwalk Villas.
Bad Judgement Moment #1: I woke him up, after only a 20 minute nap.
Alternate Route: Let the child sleep, and enjoy a leisurely drive around the resort.
My Punishment: Cranky, disoriented child.
Check in was a snap. Miles just loved the chandelier in the Boardwalk, with the huge flying horses, and the enormous toy carousel under glass. Later on in the week, he became convinced the horses were a "ride" and told me repeatedly that he wanted to "ride that one." One of my major trip regrets is not taking the time to get him a balloon from the bell services stand, and hang out for the top of the hour when the carousel goes into motion and plays music.
They told us our room was ready. At 11 a.m.! Guess they are having a bit of a light turnout at the resorts. Did we go to the room? Even though it was a very short walk away? No!
Bad Judgement Moment #2: Against all my best intentions, I go commando and race off immediately to the parks, not to actually return to our room until 9:30 p.m.
Alternate Route: Stop and enjoy life, or at least unpack.
My Punishment: Terribly sore back and legs.
We had an 11:30 priority seating at the Garden Grill to catch, so on we forged! The walk into Epcot is a fairly short stroll. I wouldn't do it from the Dolphin or Swan, too far for my taste. The Beach Club would be the shortest walk to Epcot's International Gateway, I think. (By the way, I REALLY want to go stay at the Beach Club someday. Looked awesome, with the pool and the proximity to Epcot. Very attractive resort.)
Fabulous Moment #1: Coming around the corner from World Showcase towards Future World, on the rose garden path, suddenly Spaceship Earth comes into view. Miles hollers, "Look Mommy! You found it!"
IN THE LAP OF THE MOUSE
On we proceeded to the Land, for our lunch date. The Garden Grill restaurant was about half full, I think, and we had only two people in front of us waiting for their table. We were seated within three minutes of checking into the podium.
I had expected a big restaurant, and for the view to be of growing hydroponic fruits and vegetables, and guests on the Land's boat ride below. I was kind of taken aback by the actual set-up which is frankly a bit claustrophobia-inducing. Miles wasn't too thrilled that our first view was of a threatening night time thunder and lightning storm, either. But he soon spotted the animatronic buffalo and chickens, and perked up a bit. Never could get him to go near the railing, though. That would have been too close for comfort.
It took a little time for our server to get to us, but he was great. Miles and I both pigged out. The food is very good here, and a great value I think. It's sort of the best cafeteria food you could imagine, like if your elementary school actually could turn out great macaroni and cheese, pot roast, mashed potatoes and gravy, etc. Miles enjoyed the heck out of the chicken nuggets. And dessert? Ahh, dessert. Best dessert I had all week. I think it was a berry cobbler with ice cream. Miles totally adored his dessert, too, though he just picked some of the candies off of it -- it was a decorate-your-own cookie set-up, complete with gummy worms, M & M's, frosting in different colors, sprinkles. He loved having it in front of him, and protested when the server came to take it away, even though it was clear he wasn't going to eat it.
The character interaction was a little sparser than what I'd expected from other people's trip reports, but everyone came around once. I was surprised to find Miles all excited about Chip and Dale. I had no idea he dug them so much, but for this whole trip they were his hands-down favorite. He does love animals. And I never even bought him any Chip and Dale-related merchandise. Maybe that's because every time I tried to enter a store on this trip, Miles would start yelling "No store! No store!"
We traipsed downstairs (escalators were turned off, by the way) and walked into the Food Rocks lobby. Totally deserted. I asked the CM when the next show started, and she said about ten minutes. Then she offered to let us in the back entrance, as that show had just begun . I thought that was really nice of her. Ten minutes' wait with an over-tired toddler would have busted that activity right off our list, I think.
Food Rocks is clever, and fun. Much of the music is totally my oldies age group, the 80's, so I think that added to my enjoyment of it. Miles' eyes just about bugged right out of his head. By the end, his little feet and legs were beating out time in the air.
From there, we headed for Spaceship Earth. I thought Miles would be bored by this ride, so it wasn't on our list of things to do, but he was asking to "Go inside that one, Mommy, go in it."
Fabulous Moment #2: On the way through the Innoventions breezeway, Miles looked up at me with wonder in his eyes and said, "Mommy! We're at Disneyland!" (yes, I know it's Disney World, but hey, he's two.)
Spaceship Earth was a walk-on. I mean, there were people in front of us, but we were all walking straight onto it. About 1 p.m. at this point. I don't know what Miles got out of this ride, but he still talks about seeing "all the mens". He was a bit startled by the backwards descent "to Earth" at the end. This ride system needs a major overhaul. It's so jerky it's uncomfortable.
We headed out of Epcot from here, and got on the monorail to the Magic Kingdom.
In my trip plan, this leg read as "Nap opportunity for Miles on the monorail". You see, in the good old days of his infancy, he would have nodded right out in his stroller at this point. It was around 1:40 p.m., which is 12:40 p.m. central time, right at the tail end of his normal napping window. The monorail was cool and quiet. The motion was soothing. No way, man, I mean no way was this child going to nap. He was out of the stroller. He was in my lap. He was back in the stroller. He was standing in the stroller. He was told to sit back down in the stroller. He was out of the stroller. He was standing on my lap (ouch). We sailed out at the TTC stop and back onto the resort monorail loop. Coming out of the Contemporary, standing again in the stroller (Miles, sit down NOW or come sit in my lap, please) he saw the castle. "Mommy, you found it! We did it! We found the castle!"
Ahh, Main St., USA. The Dapper Dans and the Mayor seem lost. Where's the town they used to know and love? Why are people in turn-of-the-century attire strolling around in front of the latest snow globes and 100 Years of Magic t-shirts? What has a flivver got to do with Mickey logo golf shirts? Not that anyone new to the Magic Kingdom would notice. You'd just think, "Gee, Disney sure has a great big souvenir store!" And, "Look at that guy in a suit, wonder what he's here for?" In case you didn't notice, I think they have destroyed the theming in this section of the park.
Now I dive to my notes, to give you a list of our accomplishments, because I honestly can't remember anymore.... hey, here we go: Legend of the Lion King (hellish standing pre-show, Miles was really stoked about going in to see this otherwise it wasn't on my list), Small World, Tom Sawyer Island (Aunt Polly's was CLOSED at 3 p.m., leaving us with no source on the island for a much-anticipated cold drink -- BOO #1 on Disney), the Teacups, and a much-anticipated Winnie the Pooh (thank you Fastpass).
At this point, Miles' eyes were red, watery, and at half-mast. We sped into Starlight Rays to catch some dinner and a show. I got us in line and ordered a cold Asian noodle salad with tofu and veggies for me (delicious! I was amazed) and some juice for him. I asked the cashier "They have a chicken stand on the other side, right?" Cashier, "Yeah, they have chicken over there." Me, "Do they have a kids meal with chicken nuggets?" Cashier, "No, all of our kids meals are just corn dog nuggets or peanut butter and jelly. But they do have a chicken sandwich..." Me, "Yeah, then I could just take the patty out of the bun and cut it up, I'll do that. Thanks." I get my food, and walk us gingerly over (balancing tray, pushing stroller) to the other side of the restaurant, and when I round the corner, what do I see, but the entire chicken stand is CLOSED. BOO #2 on Disney. Back to the first stand. Now there's a line, go figure. After about five minutes, I have a corn dog nugget kids meal which Miles will want nothing to do with. He ends up eating more of the snacks I brought along from home, and then falls fast asleep in front of Sonny Eclipse.
I spent a very nice hour at this point out on the balcony of Starlight Ray's, making notes in my Passporter, reading my Passporter, and watching folks run around in a thunderstorm that was now dumping major quantities of water on everything. Extremely peaceful. I think I'll come back to that patio in the future, as it has a nice view of the castle, it's covered, and it's close to some decent bathrooms inside Starlight Ray's. Good place to regroup, and I'd recommend it as a meeting spot for parties getting together in the Magic Kingdom. It's not a large area, so you couldn't miss each other, and it's a fun place to sit and wait.
Miles woke up just as the rain stopped, and we stopped for a diaper change then headed off to Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. Miles is too little for this, still. He gets all excited about seeing Buzz, and then there's no Buzz in the ride, just Zurg and a great deal of loud noise. He wasn't scared, he just wasn't interested. He didn't want to hold the gun or pull the trigger. Nobody at home plays video games that he's ever seen, and we don't have any gun-type toys around, so I just don't think he understood the concept. Maybe next year.
He really got into shopping at the merchandise stand outside the attraction, though! He finally scored a Buzz and Woody in a race car, from the first Toy Story movie, off me.
Miles still hadn't had a decent dinner at this point, so I figured we'd spend the last hour the park was open getting a meal for him. We trekked on over to Columbia Harbor House. Guy came out of the door and shook his head, "They just threw us out, they're CLOSING." BOO #3 for Disney. So I cut through the hub and headed for the Palace Restaurant. I had carefully planned this trip, and part of that planning was identifying everywhere in the parks Miles could get something to eat. He eats grilled cheese sandwiches, and the Palace was the only eatery that had it on the menu. We got to its doors -- CLOSED. BOO #4 for Disney. I decided the Magic Kingdom was giving us a hint, so we headed back to Epcot via the monorails, and hungry Miles finished the last of the snacks from my bag.
We went directly to the Mexico pavilion, and were able to get a nice table at the San Angel Inn with only a ten minute wait. While we were waiting, we rode the boat ride. People complain endlessly about this, but it's one of my favorite attractions! It's really relaxing, and I totally dig the abstract Aztec space people, and all the clever uses of projection screens in general. I think it's very well-done, and Miles loves it, too. Back at San Angel, I ordered the nuggets for Miles, and got two appetizers for myself, the ceviche and a bowl of sopa. Plus a virgin lime margarita with lots of salt on the rim.
Miles chowed out on the tortilla chips, and ate a couple of nuggets. I really liked the ceviche, but thought the sopa was too bland, and needed some more of the ingredients you usually get with this dish like rice, avocado and fresh cilantro. Great service, great atmosphere at San Angel. It's still on the top of my list for good restaurants in Epcot, but don't go if you're looking for Tex-Mex stuff, like ground-meat tacos, because that isn't the cuisine here.
We walked out just as it was getting dark, and enjoyed a stroll back towards the International Gateway. I stopped in America to use their bathroom and change Miles. Coming out, we tried to get Tollhouse cookies, which were heavily advertised in the food court, but they were out of them. So with Miles all worked up now about a cookie, I headed us to France and managed to score a Mickey Mouse cookie and a drink to share about eight minutes before Illuminations.
We were able to get a fine viewing spot below the bridge between France and England, along the railing just minutes before the show. Miles spent half the show huddling in my chest to hide from the big noises, and the other half excitedly saying "Fireworks! Fireworks! Boom boom! That's a big noise, Mommy!" He loved it. But we were surprised when a shell fired directly from under our feet out into the lagoon. Man, was THAT loud!! I guess if Miles didn't get truly upset by that, he was going to be o.k. with just about anything on the trip.
Barely able to walk after my mondo-commando day, we caught the boat back to the Boardwalk and got into our room for the first time.
The room was very nice, and I especially enjoyed having the large living room area for Miles to play in. Bathroom is a bit small, but there's a nice big double sink space outside.
Made a couple of phone calls, one home and one to RADP friend Gretchen re. our plans to get together tomorrow. Miles was wound up, and wouldn't sleep until I put out the light and lay down next to him. He went out around 10:15 p.m., and I followed him after watching a Star Trek Next Generation rerun. STNG it turns out is on every weeknight on Disney's cable line-up, from 10 to 11 p.m.
Monday, Sept. 24
MS. POMRANKA, I PRESUME?
Miles beat the Mickey wake-up call and was out of bed and raring to go at 7 a.m. Lord help us, he slept for less than 9 hours!! "Where we going? Where we going Mommy? Go out this door now!" All this while he's climbing, still in his pajamas, into his stroller.
I took a quick shower and got us dressed and out to the bus stop, and then on to Animal Kingdom! We had a 9:00 a.m. ps at Donald's Breakfastosaurus in Dinoland, and were supposed to be meeting Gretchen and her son, Zane a few minutes prior, outside the restaurant.
Bad Judgement Moment #1: Gretchen and I didn't know what the other one looked like, didn't have cell phones with us, and had no back-up plan.
Alternate Route: Have a back-up plan.
Punishment: Breakfastosaurus never happened, never saw Donald, and never got to eat the much-anticipated biscuits and gravy and scrambled eggs (all mixed together, his favorite food), leaving my son in a foul mood for (I swear) three days.
Poor Gretchen ran into major delays trying to buy her annual pass at customer relations at the front gate, and didn't make it back to Restaurantosaurus until around 9:30 a.m. About three minutes earlier, I had taken a distraught Miles in search of quick food, any food. This was not one of my finer moments, folks. Perhaps some day you will hear about it from Miles himself, when he spills his heart out to you on the Oprah show after years of therapy.
Donald's Breakfastosaurus may be really great, I don't know, but if you don't like standing around and waiting for a table in a crowd so thick you can't move, for up to half an hour past your p.s. time, you better get there before 9 a.m. In fact, I'd say try and get there for 8 a.m.
Part of what was so terrible about this breakfast fiasco was that I had arrived at 8:30 so Miles could have time to play in the Dinoland dig area, playground thingy, whatever it's called. Well, guess what? CLOSED Didn't open until 9 a.m. BOO #1 for Disney today. So we walked to the "Cretaceous Trail" which was pointless except for one big Aladar statue at the front, and then at 9 a.m. checked in, and it slowly became clear by 9:25 a.m. that we weren't going to be seated for who knew how much longer. BOO #2 on Disney. I asked the cm greeter, who by the way, hadn't known when the playground was opening, or even that it was closed, and couldn't tell me if there was another restaurant open in the AK for breakfast, to tell Gretchen when she arrived looking for me that we had to bail in search of some food.
Miles was losing it. Why he was so hungry, I don't know. He usually could care less about eating breakfast until 9'ish central time. He'd had half of a Cheerios milk & cereal bar in the room before we left, and a big ol' thing of apple juice. Maybe he was anxious about seeing Donald. Maybe he was exhausted. Maybe he was bored. Maybe he freaks out in crowds as much as I do. Maybe I'm driving him nuts. Maybe he was practicing for his upcoming Oprah appearance. Anyways, I just had to get us out of there. I remembered Tusker House had big cinnamon rolls the year before, so on a wing and a prayer I headed over there.
We let the magic of the Tree of Life wash over us, and picked out animals, playing "I Spy" as we wended our way to Africa. Scored a cinnamon roll and some fresh fruit, some coffee and juice, and fastpass for the Kilimanjaro safaris. After all the freaking out, Miles ate two bites out of the roll, then said "P.U. Mommy. Yucky, put it away." Whatever.
We were looking at misting fans ($18 or heat stroke, I chose to spend the $18 -- did I mention it was hideously HOT??) when a blonde-haired lady with a toddler in a stroller came up to me and said, "Excuse me, are you Amanda?" Wow!! What were the odds! I still can't believe Gretchen and I found each other under the circumstances.
Not only did the intrepid Ms. Pomranka find me, great minds think alike and we both were holding fastpasses for Kilimanjaro Safaris that would be good for awhile at the same time. The meet was on!
Gretchen and I hung out waiting for our fp time, gossiping about RADP of course ;-), sharing our life stories and our theories of the universe, etc., while the kids snacked and goofed around. Miles hadn't wanted any of his breakfast, but was extremely interested in all the goodies Gretchen had in Zane's snack bag. Gretchen brought extra for Miles, anticipating what would happen. With kids this age, it always does. Gretchen is rearing six kids, so she knows!
We had a nice safari. Couldn't understand more than a third of what our guide had to say, but since it's always basically the same thing, I didn't mind. People have a bad habit on this ride of yelling and talking over the guide the whole trip, anyway. All the animals were out, with some elephant being particularly close to the track.
Next we headed for Conservation Station or Rafiki's Planet Watch or whatever they're calling it now. The train ride was silly -- extremely short and they could have done a lot more to give you something to look at. Rafiki's Planet Watch was excellent. While I wouldn't count on seeing a veterinary procedure, there is a window into the "hospital" they have for the smaller animals, and I watched a bit of a biopsy on the stomach of their male cheetah. There was a cm there to explain every couple of minutes what was happening, and why. Really interesting.
Lots more to see and do here. There's a live animal presentation, a short puppet show, a couple of live frog and snake displays, sound booths to listen to and identify nature sounds, a great interactive video display on endangered animals, character greetings, and windows on the animal baby nursery and a research office. The current research is on elephant vocalizations, and I got so interested I ended up buying a book back at the African gift shop, later in trip, by the scientist who first started recording and documenting elephant calls. Turns out they are communicating constantly, we just couldn't hear it because 80% of their vocalizations are below the range of human hearing! Too cool.
The petting zoo area outside was set up nicely, though it was clear the animals were not too keen on any more human contact in this lifetime or the next. Disney has mercifully set it up so they can escape beyond arms reach at will. And they had all done so.
Can you believe my son threw his first "I want it" shopping tantrum of his life here? There was some Winnie the Pooh thing at the gift shop and he was determined we were getting it. I'm going to have to come up with a policy for buying things real soon, because I've seen families get into nasty habits with the "I wants" and I don't want to go there if I don't have to. I talked to Gretchen about what she does, and for the rest of the trip I settled for now on a "one-a-day" policy. So I got to pick out one souvenir each day, and so did Miles. Of course, he was always happy to shop for his, but I wasn't allowed to look for myself very often. I don't think I've ever come home with as few purchases.
BARFOSAUR!
Next we headed to Restaurantosaurus to get the vital chicken nuggets -- this is the only source I know of in this park. This eatery is run by McDonald's, or has McDonald's or something, but there is McD's advertising all over Dinoland, and they have nuggets. Gretchen was looking forward to a good topping bar a la Starlight Ray's in the Magic Kingdom, but there was nothing here but the basics. The lines were insane (and yes, Flame Tree BBQ right up the street was closed because it's so "slow" right now, what a load of ****), and we stood waiting to order for at least ten minutes. Got our food pretty quickly after that.
I treated myself to Restaurantosaurus' finest contaminated Turkey Wrap. Almost ten bucks, but the bacteria load was substantial and hey quality ingredients like poisonous spirochetes don't come cheap! The sad thing was, it tasted fine. No warning. (I do have to say that there is a REMOTE chance that it was some limp, greasy and tasteless hash browns at Tusker House that morning that did me in, or even the fresh fruit, but I don't think so. Most food poisoning cases seem to have a five to six hour incubation period, and that puts the blame square on the turkey wrap.)
Unaware of the Festival of Fluids that was preparing to happen in my body in just a few hours, we blithely skipped along to catch Festival of the Lion King. We didn't want to enter the theater until the last possible moment, but maybe we waited a bit too long because we got stuck way up at the top of the Giraffe section, and I think they weren't the greatest seats in the house. But really there are no terrible seats for this, as it's a performance in the round. Someday I want to go over and sit in the Lion section by the back wall.
This was good as ever, and the boys loved it. Miles was a bit restless on the benches, as he had to be up on my knee to see well, but he likes sitting by himself. Halfway through the show I realized every time he had moved, he was kicking the lady in front of us in the back. Yikes! She was a teenager, and seemed not to really notice or care.
Gretchen's son Zane fell fast asleep during the finale. Ah, I remember those days. I was sincerely hoping Miles was ready to nap now, too! We bid our farewells and went our separate ways, after Gretchen walked us up to our bus stop. A Boardwalk bus was waiting for us, and I cuddled Miles up on my lap and encouraged him to put his head down and rest.
He did finally fall asleep, once I lay down next to him in our bed back at the room, and put on some cartoons. While he slept, I watched some CNN and did an hour's worth of yoga poses to try and work out some of the serious kinks I was developing from all the walking and standing. I felt so listless, I should have known something was up with my health.
When Miles woke up, I didn't feel like doing much, but I knew I had to find him some dinner somewhere. He insisted he wasn't hungry. Sometimes he skips evening meals and just wants popcorn or another light snack, so I didn't push it. We took the boat over to Epcot, and went to visit Living Seas with a bag full of healthy snacks and juice boxes in case he was hungry later.
The Living Seas pavilion is well-done, though it could use a few more exhibits. There's never anyone in the two rooms downstairs with the deep-water diving suit and the environmental film, and I think they'd do better to have more animal exhibits instead. The manatees were sleeping, and so were the dolphins, but there were plenty of fish on the move. Miles thought they were hilarious. "That fishy's looking at ME, mommy! He's looking at Miles."
Leaving the pavilion, I felt so wiped out and not well in some indefinable, subtle way, that I put Miles in the stroller and headed back for Boardwalk. It wasn't even dark yet, Miles wasn't tired, but I just knew I suddenly had to go lie down and rest. By the time we were in line for the boat, I had developed an overwhelming urge to vomit. My abdomen became engulfed in pain so bad I started sweating. I eyed the bathroom over by the entrance gates, but figured I'd just tough it out and get back to the room. We did make it, but barely.
Between then and 11 p.m., I was in bed or in the bathroom. Poor Miles was really good -- I managed to take care of his basic needs like diaper changes, brushing his teeth, bedtime snacks, putting him to bed. Plus he had a lot of new toys to play with in the room, and there was, thankfully, some cartoon movie he liked on the Disney channel. I was really, really out of it. I had the chills -- my teeth were chattering, and I could just stay warm with the blanket and comforter on the bed. I kind of just passed out in between trips to the bathroom. Around 10:45 I woke up and felt so much better, like I was coming out of a fog. I sat up a little and put a Seinfeld re-run on, drank some Gatorade. The rest of the night was emesis-free, but my body hurt everywhere. I woke up every half hour and looked at the clock, just wanting it to be morning so I could get up and do something but lie there and hurt.
By the way, I came up with all sorts of clever ideas that night. Like rename DVC the "Disney Vomit Club", or we could send cases of Restaurantosaurus turkey wraps to the Taliban. Wish I could say that when it was over, it was over, but the next day was pretty miserable for me, too, with body aches, lack of sleep, and a queasy stomach that wouldn't really clear up until 48 hours later.
For those of you who want to know how I was compensated, I'm sorry to say I've still never told anyone at Disney. I could barely function while I was sick, and by the time I felt well enough to make a phone call, I figured they already knew the food from the day before had been bad. If I got sick, I'm betting dozens of other people did, too, and some of them are probably suing right now. I have thought about writing a letter, just generally complaining about the food service in the parks. Between restaurants being closed, open places being jammed, and poisoning me, I think they need to tighten up the ship over there. I'm not looking for compensation, just someone who'll care. I didn't think picking up the phone at the resort would get me anyone who would care AND could actually do something about it, but a letter might.
I'll continue to eat at the better restaurants, and take my chances on Epcot's counter service eateries in World Showcase, but I'm DONE eating counter service meals in the parks. We're staying somewhere with a kitchen from now on.
Tuesday, Sept. 26
DAWN OF THE DEAD
Previously on the Megatrip: I got horrid food poisoning. I never really went to sleep for more than half an hour a time all night, and my body was wracked with pain.
Now our program continues: Dawn finally came, and Miles was up and asking me "Where are we going?" I had considered calling a babysitter to come take Miles out for the morning, but I just couldn't bring myself to do that. So I decided we'd try to do a couple of things over at Disney Studios, since that would be the least amount of walking for me. I wasn't vomiting anymore, I just felt horrid.
The boat service from the Boardwalk dock is a nice feature of staying here. We got very spoiled on this trip, getting around so quickly to Epcot and the Studios. I look forward to renting points at one of the Beach Club Villas someday, as I know I want to return to this resort area.
We got into the Studios, where Miles was fascinated by the Hat. "It's BIG! What is it, Mommy?" You can't see the Chinese theater at all, anymore, as you enter the park. The hat is pretty nice looking in and of itself, but it's too big, and in a bad spot. And a pin stand?? What was the point? Pretty expensive pin stand.
We checked into Hollywood & Vine and were seated after just five minutes' wait. The place was 2/3 empty, at around 9:30 a.m. Minnie was waiting right inside the door, and we saw lots of all the other characters, as they came around a couple of times each. They do a cute "floor show" here, as well, which Miles really enjoyed.
The restaurant looks like Cantor's Deli in Hollywood, for any of you who have visited that most excellent Jewish deli in L.A. I have a very fond memory of eating at Cantor's with my husband before Miles was born, and I wasn't expecting to see a facsimile of it here! It's not exactly the same, and maybe there are a few other old diners in Hollywood that had the same chrome and serving line, open kitchen, etc., but I'm betting they based it on Cantor's.
The food was great. The selection was a little limited, but everything was fresh and well-prepared. Miles found his biscuits & gravy, thank goodness, because that meant he ate scrambled eggs buried underneath the gravy (I try to make it almost all eggs and just a little biscuit), a much-needed addition to his diet of nuggets and milk&cereal bars he'd been eating the last couple of days. My stomach felt horrible, but I managed to eat a little scrambled eggs and a slice of bacon. Miles pigged out, and as he was still two years old he was free, so between the two of us the $16 plus tax and tip was worth it to me. I thought the decor and the characters were especially worth it.
From there, we headed to Indiana Jones. I've never seen this show, and was looking forward to it after breakfast. But we were three minutes late, and the cm wouldn't let us in. I thought that was a little excessive. They weren't full -- I'd be surprised if they were half full. I guess this show doesn't have a section for late-comers like most others do. So be warned, and if you want to see it be there before show time.
I headed us for Muppetvision instead. I wondered if Miles would be ready to wear the 3D glasses. He had been really keen to play with my sunglasses the whole trip, so when I asked him if he wanted to go and put on glasses, he yelled "Yaay!" We walked into the pre-show area. When everyone was seated, I'd say the theater was about 1/3 full.
Miles wouldn't keep his glasses on. He still enjoyed the audioanimatronic muppets and Sweetums, plus you can see the movie without the glasses, it's just blurred. He especially enjoyed the bubbles coming down from the ceiling.
Next we headed for Beauty and the Beast. Nice show. Kind of a crummy theater. They need to do something better with the proscenium. B & B has been running there long enough that they could theme the theater and make it more than painted cement and aluminum bleachers with a couple of plants.
My Requisite Weeping at WDW: I actually teared up this time during "Be Our Guest." I thought the staging of the number was clever, with the dishes and forks and such dancing on the shelves, and a bunch of other fun effects. Why it made me cry, I don't know. Maybe the last of the bacterium was being exterminated in my small intestines, and they were tears of relief. Seriously, it was a sweet and relaxing moment. I love Alan Menken and Howard Ashman's work so much.
Now I was feeling really, really worn out and needed to rest. There was a boat waiting for us at the dock, and we were the only ones getting on it. In fifteen minutes we were back at Boardwalk.
I think I did a pretty good job of making sure Miles still had a good time in spite of me being sick. I don't think he ever noticed, really. I did say no to a lot of exploring he wanted to do, and we certainly would have spent more time at the Studios if I had felt well.
HI, PATCH!
I finally realized I could be using the refrigerator and microwave in my studio to save a bunch of money, and now I was motivated to not fool with Disney counter service any more. So I made a quick stop in the sundries store for a bag of not-too-overpriced frozen waffles, a bottle of definitely overpriced syrup, and a half gallon of very reasonably priced milk. Of course Miles had to do a little shopping too, and picked out a big bag of Mickey Mouse pretzels, which we're still working on back here at home. Back up to the room, and I fixed him a waffle, which he ate only a couple bites of (still full from breakfast I guess), though he drank a good bit of milk. Changed his diaper, and watched a half an hour of cartoons on t.v. together.
My Dad who Miles calls "Patch" was due to come in at 4:05 p.m. from Denver. I called Frontier Airlines, and found out his flight was about twenty minutes late. It was only 1:00 p.m. now, but I really wanted Miles to take a nap. He was getting very grouchy, and I still felt just awful and wanted to rest, too. Once we got in the car, Miles was asleep by the time we got out of the parking lot. I drove up the direct toll road to the airport, 417 aka the Florida Greeneway. There are three or four exits here with supermarkets, and there's even a huge Target visible from the highway, so if anyone needs to stop coming in from the airport, you've got a lot of choices. Very fast and direct route, and there's barely anyone else on the road.
I pulled into a supermarket parking lot, close enough to not worry about our security, made sure the doors were locked, and reclined my seat as far back as it would go. 45 minutes later, Miles and I both woke up from our MUCH needed naps. We went inside to do some grocery shopping. My first stop was for Maalox and Rolaids, and epsom salts to try and help my very painful muscles. (Some of it was from walking and standing, some a symptom of the food poisoning I think.) Picked up iced coffee, juice, more milk, stroller snacks, chicken nuggets and diapers.
We were still early to pick up Patch, and I discovered when we got to the baggage claim area that no airport is letting anyone sit and wait for their party anymore, out in the car. So I went and paid to park, and we went down to baggage claim to meet him. Miles was just thrilled. I didn't think he'd remember him, since they hadn't seen each other since May, but Miles was just beside himself with excitement. He was jumping up and down and waving "Hi Patch! Hi Patch! You're Patch! I'm Miles!" In the elevator back to my car, he even said "I love you, Patch."
We had a nice drive back, catching up. Dad checked in to his own studio at Boardwalk, and they were able to put him just a couple doors down from us. Bell services brought up his luggage and my groceries, and then we were ready to head into Epcot.
Dad was understandably impressed with the short walk into Epcot. We caught the Tapestry of Dreams parade first, just a few feet from the end at Morocco.
Why oh why oh why do they play that music so loud, and for so long, before the parade gets to you??? Talk about annoying! We waited for almost twelve minutes with the Way-la Way-la going full blast in our ears. What happened to Disney's audio system that syncs with the actual parade? The "new" parade is a lamer version of the old Tapestry of Nations. Dad hadn't seen Nations so he had nothing to compare it to, and he loved the puppets, which are SO cool. But he made fun of the Dream-monkey-man guy at the beginning and end, for the rest of the trip. Corny, and a really, really bad wig. Plus the paper coin things from the Kidcot masks that kids are supposed to throw into the nets? Not enough people stop at the Kidcot stations to get it, and lots of adults were throwing money in the nets. Maybe donations for Eisner's next bonus?? I distinctly saw a cm roll his eyes as he fished out yet another dime from the audience.
If you've never seen Tapestry of Nations, by all means make a point to see this "new" parade. If you loved Tapestry of Nations, and saw it to your heart's content, don't go out of your way to see Dreams. None of the changes are for the better, and it will probably just annoy you. Plus, let me say that I'm criticizing from the perspective of someone who's produced children's theater and hired/supervised performing artists. I'm really, really picky. Probably anyone seeing this for the first time would just think, "Wow! Great music, and look at those cool puppets! And those guys were really playing those drums!" It's not a dud, it's just not perfect like it was when it was Tapestry of Nations. This isn't a new parade. It's a budget cut.
Immediately after the parade, we wandered by the drummers in Japan just beginning their show, and I talked Miles into sitting still for the whole thing. Pretty awesome stuff. I think it would be more fun to do it myself! What a great workout. Reminded me of martial arts.
Next I stopped in America to use the bathrooms (Something soothing about waiting to take your pants down until you're in your own country. I wonder if the bathrooms at Norway are full of Norwegians, the bathrooms in England full of Brits, etc.?), change Miles and pick him up some nuggets.
Then we let Miles check out the train over at Germany. He had a ball running around with other kids, as the train went in and out of tunnels and under the walkway. We never saw it running up on the hill, only on the track along the ground. Maybe they switch tracks sometimes, or there used to be two trains? Miles loved looking at the little pumpkins and pigs on the "farm" by the tracks, too.
For dinner we tried the Sommerfest counter service. I hadn't had anything to eat since the eggs and bacon that morning, and I was getting really hungry. I had an intuition that sauerkraut would really feel good in my tummy, so I got the bratwurst sandwich. Dad had the schnitzel. I pulled out Miles' nuggets and we all ate. My sandwich was really good. I've seen tons of reviews slamming the buffet inside the Germany pavilion, but this food was fine. I had never had fresh sauerkraut before, and there was such a big difference between canned and this! It was great, not too vinegary, but well-seasoned with fresh caraway seeds. The bread was delicious, soft and spongy, and the bratwurst not greasy at all. I felt much better after eating.
Miles ditched us while we finished, and hung out around the fountain right by where we were sitting. He had never seen people throw coins in for luck before, and was just begging to have a turn. Before I could get to him with some pennies, an older couple started handing him quarters! I think they stood him to about a buck, and then I put a stop to it. A couple of pennies from me, and I think we had donated enough money to Disney.
It was getting dark now, and I wanted to take Miles and Patch on Maelstrom, their first ride together this trip. Miles buried his face in my shirt for most of the ride, but he loved the trolls. Kept talking about them for the next day and a half. We stayed and watched the Norway film, as I figured Tapestry of Dreams would be running outside again, so there was no reason to hurry up and get caught in it. The Norway film highlights lots of healthy happy handsome Norwegian youths.
Outside the tail end of the parade was passing, and we didn't try to squeeze out. It was kind of nice, actually, to stand back and watch the puppets "float" by over the tops of everyone's heads.
I suggested we head back the way we came, and stop to watch Illuminations closer to the International Gateway bridge. Miles was getting tired, so he hopped in his stroller and off we went. We ended up stopping to watch on a bench between Japan and Morocco. We didn't get a perfect view that way, but we also got to sit down just three minutes before the start of the show. Really, the seats were fine.
What a great show this is. It's clever, has an excellent score, and the Earth is really lovely. From where we were both Sunday night and tonight, you couldn't see any of the lasers. (Later in the trip we'd see this show from the Future World side, and get the full effects. We both thought the lasers were cheesy and we liked the show better when you can't see them.) The ending sortie of firecrackers made us laugh out loud with joy every time we saw it. Really. :-)
On the way back to Boardwalk, Miles was clearly exhausted. At the sight of the crowds now all around us, he burst into tears. I picked him up and cuddled him. Once I assured him we were going "home" to brush our teeth and read a bedtime story, he calmed down. I think the poor child thought we were just going to keep wandering in a circle around World Showcase forever. He really doesn't like crowds. It's the only thing I ever saw him get upset about on this trip. Oh, I forgot restaurants. And shopping. And adults having conversations that aren't about him. Toddlers, can't live without 'em, can't sell 'em.
Bid goodnight to Patch in the hallway, and Miles and I got on our jammies, brushed our teeth, washed our face and hands, and got into bed. By this night, Miles was starting to get the hang of where we were, and our new routine. He still wouldn't go to sleep until I put all the lights out and lay down next to him, but I was able to prop myself up on some pillows and watch Star Trek Next Gen again.
This was the first day I have EVER spent at Walt Disney World or Disneyland where I actually took it easy. EVER. It's been my goal to stop and smell the petunias for my past three trips, but I just couldn't seem to do it. Now some lovely little microscopic organisms had finally done for me what I couldn't do for myself. So see? In every cloud there IS a silver lining. You might feel a bit nauseated, but someday Disney will make you slow down and start enjoying yourself. :-)
Wednesday, Sept. 27
THE JOY OF LAUNDRY
Ahh, to be at Disney World and not be in a rush. My life as a park commando nearly over, I took a page from the book of RADPer old-timers and planned a morning to hang out and do laundry.
Of course, this was laundry someplace special -- the Polynesian resort! Since we were "guests" of a DVC member at Boardwalk, we had pool-hopping privileges anywhere on property. I called and snagged us a ps at 'Ohana and we drove there with our laundry and our bathing suits in tow.
The food at breakfast was nothing to write home about, but the atmosphere at 'Ohana is just wonderful. I love the Poly, and would just die to get to stay here someday. Maybe when Miles is older, or when I come for RADP in the future! Lots of nice character interaction. Really it was Miles' being cranky and restless that kept us from having a great time.
I thought that booking character meals would ensure Miles would sit and take his time, even though I've been having some really bad experiences with him at restaurants lately. The first two we did (Garden Grill and Hollywood & Vine) that was true, but for some reason this morning he just didn't want to be eating or sitting. He did enjoy showing Chip and Dale his t-shirt which had a non-licensed chipmunk that looked suspiciously like some other famous chipmunks on it, a school mascot for a Catholic school here in New Orleans one of his cousins attended. Chip and Dale were very impressed and enjoyed seeing themselves on his shirt. I hope said Catholic School doesn't now get a call from Disney Legal.
After breakfast we had a bit of treasure hunt trying to find the bathrooms and the towels at the pool. (Towels were out on a chair, arond the back of the volcano, bathrooms are under the volcano behind the waterfall.) The life guards were just coming on duty as we got changed and into the water. When they are not on duty, the water slide was roped off/turned off. So don't plan on using the slide before 10 a.m. if you're staying there, or ask if it's important.
Miles had a good time jumping off the edge of the pool into our arms. After a few minutes I left Patch in charge of the aquatics and headed off to find the laundry room. There was a commercial washer available which was cheaper than running two separate loads, and as it was all color-fast stuff I just put everything in together.
Went back and did the slide, to see if it would be o.k. for Miles to try. It is definitely not for small children! It's totally enclosed, pitch dark, fast, and you can't sit up all the way. There's no way you could safely take a little one down on your lap. Miles wasn't happy he couldn't have a turn. He loves to slide, but this was just too intense. He told me he "wasn't little anymore, I'm too big now," with a pout.
We all got out as Miles was getting cold, and changed into our clothes. I let Patch and Miles run around in the arcade while I went to put my stuff in the dryer, right next door. I told them to just come on in, as there was a t.v. in there and a drink machine, if they got tired of the arcade.
Magic Moment of the Day: Watching the Price is Right, lying down on a comfortable sofa, while my laundry dries, chatting with cm's
There's something so soothing about the sound of dryers. I was treated to half an hour of my favorite daytime t.v. show of all time, with Bob Barker still going strong. A handful of Polynesian maintenance guys came in, and stood and watched with me for a few minutes. We had a nice conversation about the games and prizes, and then they took off back to work. Folded my clothes, and picked up the troops in the arcade.
Walking out of the resort, there was no one in the quiet pool by the laundry/arcade/Neverland Club, and there hadn't been since we got there that morning. If you want some serious peace and quiet, the Polynesian was the place for it today! We picked up our car from valet parking and headed out for a drive to lull Miles off to sleep.
Dad wanted to find a golf discount shop he remembered from a previous visit, so we drove through McDonald's and got Miles a Happy Meal to munch while we looked for it. I got turned around on 192 and we ended up going out past Splendid China, to where 192 actually ends. By that time, Miles was fast asleep and we just drove around a bit. Dad regaled me with tales of vacations from his childhood and we had a great time talking. After 45 minutes of this, we figured we'd head for the Magic Kingdom.
PATCH BEHAVES BADLY
I thought my Dad would have a better time in some of the other parks this trip, but I'll be darned if he didn't get some of Tinkerbell's dust all over him. He was as big a kid as Miles in the Magic Kingdom today. So much so, that I almost had to punish him! Read on...
Getting out of the car, Miles had just woke up and he promptly burst into sobs as we made our way through the parking lot. We couldn't figure out what was wrong, until we got up to the underpass near the TTC, and he saw a statue of Mickey Mouse. Then he promptly calmed down, and stopped crying so hard we could understand him. It seems that when he woke up, he expected to be in the Magic Kingdom, and when he just saw a parking lot, thought he was missing out on something!
By the time we were on the monorail, he was happy as a clam on Sunday. Or something like that. We went straight to Fantasyland and picked up Fastpasses for Winnie the Pooh, then rode the carousel, Peter Pan, and Small World. Our Pooh time wasn't until way later, so we headed toward the parade route in Frontierland and got a great spot in front of a hat shop where there was air conditioning streaming out into the street (my idea of a good time!).
Patch LOVED the new parade. LOVED it! He kept saying "Wow, there are really a lot of characters! Look at all the characters!" It was kind of cool. The only thing I don't get: when the whole parade stops and there's supposed to be pixie dust or magic or whatever, what exactly happens? It just seemed like a couple of extra light bulbs came on the floats, and maybe the characters did a little extra thing like kiss eachother or wave... I think Aladdin's carpet started moving... but I couldn't decide if that was it or I was missing something else. It was a big build up and then *fizzle*. But the floats were cool, and I really like the huge number of Disney "stars" in this parade. The characters did an excellent job getting the kids out into the street for participation, and each group did something that fit in with the characters' personalities. Like the Mary Poppins and the chimney sweeps had everyone twirling in circles, etc. Overall, I'd recommend going out of your way to make sure you see this at least once on your next visit.
Next we hit Country Bears. Dad said he'd never seen it before. Miles adores this attraction. Heaven help me. I've seen it enough already! They had a good time in it anyway.
My plan was to head over to Adventureland, but Patch saw Splash Mountain and got the bug. Now here's what he said: "I have to ride Splash Mountain just one time while I'm here." Me: "I wonder if the line is really long." Dad (already taking off in that direction): "I'll just go see how long the line is." Me: "There's a tote board that will tell you how long the wait is just over the bridge, to your left." Dad (now about 40 yards away and running): "Okaaayy!" I follow, figuring he'll stop, look at the board, and we'll discuss this some more. Instead, I found myself hollering "Dad! Dad!" as he suddenly and completely disappeared somewhere over by the gift shop.
Was he going on the ride? Looking for the line? Looking at the line? After I couldn't see him anywhere in the courtyard, I figured he was riding, so I took Miles over to the playground under the railroad bridge, knowing that Patch would have to walk by us to leave the ride, and I could snag him. Miles had an OK time -- it was crowded. (Why do people try to park their strollers IN the playground? Are they on drugs or do they not have playgrounds in their country? Do they not see all the ample stroller parking along the wall just behind them?) After 20 minutes, Patch goes sailing by, with a look dawning on his face that says "Now where am I and where could my family be??" Lucky for all of us I knew the layout of this area!
I asked him, "Did you tell me you were going on Splash Mountain?" and, "Where did you think you were going to meet us?" He was like "Oh sorry, I didn't remember the ride being that long" and "I figured you'd just be standing where you were when I left." I told him if he took off like that again without permission, we were going to have to go back to the resort for Time Out. I swear, my father could get lost in a paper bag. (You notice he was NOT allowed to do any driving.)
We went on to have a blast on the new Aladdin's Magic Carpets ride. I like the extra tilting control on the ride vehicles. Miles still talks about the camel spitting on us and getting us wet! I wish the camel had spit more. It was a cute ride.
Next and last we took a Jungle Cruise into the heart of darkest Lake Buena Vista. Our Guide narrated as we approached the hippos now she was NOT shooting the hippos and now she was NOT putting away her revolver, etc. Pretty funny.
It was time to ditch Patch and Miles for at least a little shopping, so on our way down Main St., USA I did the all-American thing and spent some money on tourist t-shirts. Couldn't find anything I liked, and not much for Miles this time, either. Everything was "100 Years of Magic." Yuck.
EPCOT RULES
We picked up our car in the lot and drove to Epcot. Dad wondered about the Leave a Legacy monuments. I told him Gretchen's story -- that her daughter had said the worst part of her day at Epcot had been how sad it was that there were all those people buried in the big ball. We had a good laugh over that.
First we hit Universe of Energy, and Miles was just too cute on this. Dad just thinks Ellen Degeneris hung the moon, so he liked the preshow. But the big draw were the dinosaurs of course, for Miles. I was worried he'd be scared but not at all. At one point, a couple of brachiosaurs lean their heads close to your ride vehicle, and one blows snot or something on you. That was a great moment in my son's day.
Then we walked over to the UK. We figured Miles would eat some fish & chips from the outdoor stand there, but he emphatically informed us he wasn't eating, so we skipped it. Dad went into some Scottish sports shop in the back to get my step-mother a golf shirt. They actually lived in St. Andrews for a year, while Dad was an instructor-in-residence there (he's an English literature teacher, and tutored kids reading American lit for the year), and they are both golf fanatics. Their golf shirts they bought in St. Andrews had worn out, so he picked them up two more here in Disney World! Go figure!
Miles and I had our first and last encounter with Kidcot, spending about two minutes making a mask. Miles could care less about arts and crafts. He wanted a mask, but just so he could wave it around. It was all I could do to get him to put two stickers on it. We went outside where some Beatles imitators were playing away. My husband plays the Beatles for Miles a lot, so we know all the songs. Miles perked right up and danced all the way down the street and didn't stop dancing until we got to France.
We decided to stop for dinner at Morocco. Delicious food, obnoxious Miles. Did I mention he wasn't eating this evening? He was terribly put out that we would try and make him sit while we ate dinner. I rushed as fast as I could, and Dad and I finished up our baklava (YUM) while we sat outside for a performance by the pavilion's resident acrobatic troupe. Lots of drumming and a few human pyramids, one contortionist. The most thrilling part of the act was at the end when they borrowed people's small children to hoist way up in the air as part of a final formation. I'm glad they didn't collar Miles for that stunt, because I would have made a fool of myself "spotting" for him below! I don't think I could stand to see my son five feet off the ground and not run over to "help" him.
We figured we'd head over to Living Seas now, and kill a little time before Illuminations. Miles was getting irate at us for something -- finally figured out he wanted to go see the train at Germany again. This time not only was there only one train running, and only on one track segment, there was just the engine with no cars attached. Not a thrill for me, but it was enough for the kids, who all had a grand time running back and forth on the walkway that runs through the layout.
Took a boat across the Lagoon and walked down to Living Seas. Did the fish thing. Miles went bananas for the rays. He and Patch could have spent an hour in the tank observation room, watching the rays go around and around.
Time to walk up and catch a spot for Illuminations. We stood on the International Gateway bridge between England and France, and had a great view with just a five minute wait. Miles snacked out on a milk & cereal bar, and Dad chatted up a British family standing next to us. The show was excellent, as always, and then we went for a quick boat ride back to Boardwalk and went to bed.
Thursday, Sept. 28
GOLF ORPHANS IN ASIA
Today Patch was scheduled to play golf at the Buena Vista course. He said it was no problem getting the Boardwalk front desk to order a free cab for him to get there and back. I believe they gave him a voucher to give the cab company.
His review of the course: nice, but kind of showing its age. A little shabby, and he found the holes a bit on the dull side. Here's an interesting comment -- he said he saw "really run-down apartment buildings" along the course. I described Old Key West - no, that wasn't it. Then I described the Disney Institute Villas and he said yes, that's what they looked like. But I wasn't under the impression those were looking "run-down." Is there a non-Disney apartment complex along that course at some point?
Miles and I, orphaned for the better part of the day by Patch's obsession with a little white ball, headed off for the Animal Kingdom. We had done very little of our original agenda Monday, so I figured we could catch up this morning.
I took the rental car, knowing Miles would need to nap in it later. There were definitely LIGHT crowds at the ol' AK today -- just about nobody in the parking lot. I brought along our own stroller, and we were quickly through the gates.
I thought about stopping for the picture-takers on the AK bridge, and decided against it. Later I wish I had done it, just because one of these photos from each park, and it's paper holder, would have made great one-page layouts for a scrapbook. (I broke down and got a photo of at Epcot and the Magic Kingdom later, and then wished I had ones from the other two parks.)
Miles hadn't been scared by any rides so far, so I decided it was worth trying It's Tough to Be a Bug. Again, he wouldn't wear the 3-D glasses for more than a few seconds at time. He liked seeing the audioanimatrons of the characters from Bug's Life. There's nothing in this presentation that's particularly frightening in and of itself, but being in a dark enclosed space with the audience screaming and cutting up is intense. A large group of girls maybe in the 8th or 9th grade were in the theater with us, and they screamed like they were being murdered at everything. At one point, a bug showed them a flower to sniff -- as it gently came a little ways towards the audience via the magic of 3D, you would have thought the girls were having their skin ripped from their bodies in sheets. Miles tolerated this, but I wouldn't say it was his favorite thing. My advice, even if you think your toddler won't be scared, skip it and spend your time doing something else. I'll try again with Miles when he's five or six.
Next I headed us towards Asia. I'd never done the Jungle Trek before -- ahh, the thrill of exploring something here that's totally new to me! Well, it wasn't a THRILL but it was a pleasant way to spend 45 minutes. This is a beautifully done zoo. Our zoo in New Orleans is really wonderful, but this blows it away. The bat and tiger exhibits in the Maharajah Trek are great. I hope Disney never does away with the cast members stationed at all the animal exhibits throughout this park. They add a lot to the experience.
Fact d' Jour: Fruit bats lead solitary lives, and are not accustomed to hanging out in groups. The bats in Disney's exhibit get into frequent scuffles.
I had thought we'd hit Flights of Wonder and Tarzan Rocks this trip, but we managed again to see neither. Miles was getting hungry, and we left around 11 a.m. and went into Rainforest Cafe for some brunch. We were one of the first people in the place for lunch, though by the time we left, just after Noon, it was getting packed. There may not have been many people in the Animal Kingdom today, but everyone who was there seemed to be heading here for lunch.
Miles was almost too scared to relax in this place, at first, because they seated us just a couple of feet from two very threatening gorillas! He was a kick, playing "hide, hide" in my lap, and screeching along when they went into action every ten minutes or so. But after we ordered, I took him for a walk around the whole restaurant, and he got the idea these weren't real, just "toys" like other rides we'd seen this week, and weren't going to do anything unpredictable. It was a very good time for us to be in there, as there were large sections with no diners yet and we could wander around without bothering anyone.
Review of Rainforest Cafe: This is neat restaurant to look at. Fun to eat in. My son will bug me to eat there for the rest of his natural life. The menu is huge, and the prices just plain silly for a casual place set up to please kids. The food was mediocre, not terrible, but I'm very glad I didn't bother to order anything expensive. I think maybe the food was designed by a chef from the eastern sea board? The way things were prepared were just curious... Like gravy over chicken fried steak that wasn't remotely like any cream gravy I've ever made, or eaten, anywhere. It was some kind of white sauce made with chicken broth, floating a raft of fresh chives. (Talk about how to disappoint a toddler. Adulterating southern cream gravy is a Miles no-no. Said Miles of the little green bits, "P.U." And I thought it tasted odd by anyone's standards. Can someone confirm this is how chicken fried steak gravy is prepared in their state? Maryland? Ohio?) Now my clam chowder that I started the meal with was good, worth the price of admission. Ahah! Food from north of the Mason-Dixon line. C'mon now, someone has to tell me where. We'll go again, because who under the age of 10 and maybe even 99 can resist a mood-lit restaurant full of fish tanks, waterfalls and screeching electronic fauna? But next time I'm getting the kids chicken nugget meal with fries for Miles and nothing but the clam chowder for me.
Here's a tip for you: have faith in the parking lot trams here, they run very frequently and it's not worth walking. We just missed a tram, and I took off (in the wrong direction of course). By the time I got to our car, the next tram was pulling up right next to me to let people off. Could have saved the trek.
Miles fell asleep a couple of minutes away from the Boardwalk parking lot, so I valet parked and rolled him to our room, where I gently snuck him into bed for an hours' nap.
LET'S DO THE TIME WARP
If somebody knows where I was this evening, you can email me at the above address. Because I think I was where I said I was in my Wednesday trip report. But I'm not sure. I was complemented not too long ago by Russell Yim on what a great memory I have, and how amazing it is that I can write trip reports without taking notes. Hey, kids -- TAKE NOTES.
Wait, wait.... something's coming through the fog... something stirring in the distant mist... it's... it's... it's REAL SOUTHERN CREAM GRAVY AT CRACKER BARRELL ON 192! No. That happened on Friday. I'll tell you about that tomorrow.
I'm missing hours from my life here, folks.
Signing off to check my health insurance for psychiatric coverage...
Friday, Sept. 29
NOTES ON THE BOARDWALK RESORT
We have to leave Boardwalk today, and move to the All-Stars. I'm not real clear on why the DVC resorts require SO many more points for the weekend. (The lady we rented the points from is a DVC member, to clear this up if I haven't before. She got the reservation for us in our name, as her "guest", for $10 a point. We aren't DVC members.) At the Sunday - Thursday rate, the rooms were a deal for $600 for 5 nights, (60 points each). But the Friday and Saturday rate would have been $240 a night, and that's just too rich for me so off to the All-Stars we went, for the very cool Annual Pass rate of $49 a night.
You know, looking back on it, I almost wish we had spent the money and stayed two more nights at Boardwalk. We would have been finally able to use the pool (see below), and I really missed our Epcot evening stroll after Illuminations. It's hard to imagine any place I'd enjoy staying more than Disney's Deluxe resorts, now that I've had a taste of them.
The big major bummer was that Boardwalk's pool was closed for rehab our entire stay, opening the morning after we left (of course), having closed the day before we arrived (of course, again). There was a standing offer to the guests to take the boat over to Yacht Club/Beach Club, but somehow that trek in our suits never seemed like a good idea, or there was never quite the right time for it. But I know if our pool had been open, we would have used the heck out of it. Our room overlooked it, which was almost unbearably disappointing on a regular basis. Fortunately my son is not at the age yet where disappointment is a big developmental issue, because that pool would turn any small child's head! A huge slide, elephants, a clown, etc. It's a really great-looking pool. Gosh, I wish I could have a chance to do this trip again, but with that pool open... SIGH.
All of Boardwalk is having a major facelift right now. My Dad thought it was "really crummy" that they charge people full price for the rooms if so much of the resort is covered with scaffolds & tarps and the pool is closed. I'm not sure how I feel about that, and what I think doesn't matter a hoot because there's no way anyone in Disney management doesn't already know their guests are disappointed by such things, and yet they continue to charge full price while rehabbing resorts.
My lesson was that I'm not too keen on renting points from DVC members anymore, because there's no way to cancel. There were so many amazing deals at Deluxe resorts that I find out about on RADP, or the mousesavers.com site, leading up to this trip, and we would have been WAY WAY WAY happier somewhere with an open pool! Thanks to RADP I had plenty of warning in advance about the rehab schedule, it was just way too late for me to do anything about it, having set up my "great deal" with the DVC owner months prior. For just a little more money, we could have been in a garden wing room at the Contemporary, or we could have stayed at Animal Kingdom lodge, Wilderness Lodge, or even a Wilderness Home. It was nice to be able to walk to Epcot, but it didn't really make up for looking at all the tarps and pressure washers, etc., and did I mention I was really torn up inside over the pool? I did? Sorry. I'm not saying it ruined my life, but when you've looked forward to a trip for over a year, it's nice to have the major amenities there that you expected.
Miles Rates the Boardwalk: 6 out of 10
Disappointing pool closure (did I mention that?) and the Boardwalk restaurants and entertainment didn't appeal to him at age 2. But the marks would have been way higher if the pool had been open, and the boats you can take instead of busses, and the easy walk in and out of Epcot can't be beat. The room (a Studio) had a lot of space for him to play, too. Nice big open bit of floor space, and the refrigerator/microwave setup meant he could have some simple meals in the room and not be tortured by the horrible, terrible ordeal of restaurants, ugh get them away, sitting for an hour in the same spot, it burns like fire... well, you get the idea.
Mommy Rates the Boardwalk for Adults: 10 out of 10
If you're traveling with just grown-ups, this resort would totally rock your world. Patch really enjoyed the scotch and setting in the Boardwalk Inn's hotel bar, I would have loved to try Spoodle's, Jellyroll's and Atlantic Dance if I'd been sans fils. Walking over to Epcot to eat dinner and then see Illuminations every night before bed is a lifestyle I could get hideously accustomed to.
A NEW PARK ON PATCH
After we got bell services to haul our stuff off to the All-Stars for us (our bags would be available after 1 p.m. there, they told us), we loaded into the rental car and headed for Animal Kingdom. Dad hadn't seen it yet, and I knew Miles would be up for a reprise, animal lover that he is. I just find this park downright relaxing. RELAXING?? At Disney?? Very odd.
Patch, in the interest of exploration, and because he had no idea what lay ahead, took his time wandering around the Discovery Trail exhibits in the front of the park. And we found the secret cave! And ducks! And that bird screamed at us! (Miles' commentary)
We wanted to see Festival of the Lion King for the 1st show, but there was a cast member standing at the sign pointing to it, in front of Pizzafari, telling everyone the first show had been cancelled and when the next one would be. Dad said "That's the difference between Disney and everywhere else -- they saved you walking all the way down there for no reason." I'm glad he felt a little pixie dust. I wonder if it was for technical reasons, or if they were just starting the enormous cutbacks that are underway now.
Miles stopped for over fifteen minutes to watch the Amazon fish (picu?, relatives of piranha) and otters in an underwater viewing area. He couldn't get enough of it, and we finally talked him into going to see something else.
There wasn't much of a wait posted for Kilimanjaro Safaris, so with no fastpasses we braved the standby line. We were on the rover within 15 minutes. Our guide was another South African college kid, this time a girl who was so dead-pan and sarcastic, it was really kind of touching. She delivered her script in a way that let you know just how many times she'd done it before. You know, not many guests on these safaris seem interested in learning dip about the animals, and they don't appear to hear a word the guides say, so maybe it's a good way to burn out a cast member in a short period of time. Dad thought the poacher thing was corny and pointless, and guffawed when the cast member had to say "Little Red is OK!" "Hey, how'd ya' like THAT job!" he crowed. He made it a point to say good bye and thank you to our driver. She just looked wistful.
On the Pangani Trail we had a poop and rushed through most of the exhibits, looking for a bathroom. Well, WE didn't have a poop, one of the members of our party did, and no it wasn't me or Patch. There aren't any bathrooms along the Pangani Trail, by the way, so we had to leave without seeing much. NOTE: Even on the slowest day of the year, there is a massive swarm of humans looking at the gorillas here. I would like to come back and talk to the African kids on duty about them. I bet they really have some great insight and stories to tell, if they've been cm's at that station for a while.
Found a bathroom, changed a hienie (sp? anyone? heinie? hinie? hiny? etiology? yiddish? anyone?) and it was time to see Festival of the Lion King. Dad is a theater goer, a symphony supporter, opera patron, church choir tenor, etc. He is a fan of live music and the theater in general. He was massively underwhelmed by Hunchback on our 1999 trip, so I figured this would be a good second try for him to see a top-notch Disney stage show. Did he like it? *sigh* He thought it was "OK". What can you do? It's not Candide on Broadway, Dad, it's... nevermind.
Me, I think FotLK is an excellent show -- I can't imagine Disney ever topping it. Gorgeous theater in the round. It got me itching to tramp the boards and hang some fresnels again. Miles enjoyed seeing this a second time. We were in the Warthog section, and had a nice view. Miles' favorite part are the huge puppet floats, and he also enjoyed Timon's antics as Master of Ceremonies.
Now believe it or not, it was time to beat a retreat and give Miles a lunch and nap break. We wisely made for the car and drove through the on-site McDonald's just down the road, and let Miles munch then pass out in his car seat. We finally got to the golf discount store for Dad, but he said most of the things in there were off-brand items, not closeouts. He did pick up some golf balls on the cheap, including one that said "Breckenridge Golf Club" which is where he and my stepmom play every week in the summer. Hey, it is a small world after all.
With Miles still sleeping we explored towards Kissimmee up 192 and got into worse and worse traffic, and uglier and uglier surroundings. We turned around and headed back, having seen nothing much of any interest. We did note the Cracker Barrell closer in to Disney, which I had forgotten about (wish I remembered earlier in the trip) and I determined we'd bring Miles there for dinner so he could finally get a decent bowl of SOUTHERN CREAM GRAVY! Yaay! No, he