[graygables]

On the Eleventh Day of Disney, Mickey gave to me…a VMK day and a chance to bid Epcot arrivederci!

We had breakfast w/ Lilo and Stitch today, so the girls were excited! They wore their Stitch gear and we drove to the Poly. Breakfast was good, but during the parade, I was back in “Holland” again, no more visions of “Italy” for me. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/cry.gif[/img] It breaks my heart b/c they so very much want to be like the other children, but neither one can bring themselves to try it. Took the monorail to MK and rode the train to Frontierland. BTMRR and Splash were top of the list! Went to Fantasyland and did the usuals there…IASW, Peter Pan, Philharmagic, and we stopped in Pinnochio’s for lunch. Went to the front of the castle and were able to catch the last half or so of Cinderellabration that made Dds happy. Went to Tomorrowland for one more whirl on Buzz and Space (another ride without me…yay!) They had brought another quest so needed to stop by the VMK place to get their code when they spied a Christmas Quest! I didn’t have a cheat sheet for this one, so off we went! [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/smileysanta.gif[/img] We had to watch the Country Bears which they HATED [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/ukid.gif[/img] [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/bear.gif[/img], but we got it done. Went back to the VMK place and got loaded up with codes/cards and they were thrilled. Hopped the ferry to the TTC and waved goodbye to the MK for 2 years. [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/cry.gif[/img]

Took the monorail to Epcot and went straight to Soarin’. They were debating whether or not to do another robot and decided against it. Test Track was next and then another stop at Club Cool. It was about 600 and we had 715 ressies at Akershus. I have never, EVER had any problem checking in early and being seated at the next available table for your party size. Ever. We went to Norway and were able to see part of Julenissen which was fun. Went to the podium and was told we’d have a 30 minute wait. It was COLD and we had no coats, so I asked to wait inside and was told it was too crowded. After about 10 minutes, B started to lose it, so I just told the CM we were waiting inside. It wasn’t crowded at all and there were even seats available. Dds saw Belle and got her autograph/photos and we waited. And waited. People were angry, pushy, yelling, managers were running around, it was a mess. Finally, 45 minutes later, there were people being seated who had checked in after us (and had been late for their ADR time), so I asked what was going on. The manager told me that they don’t seat anyone before their scheduled time [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img] I asked why I hadn’t been told that (we could have ridden Maelstrom or done something else this whole time) and he just shrugged. I’m sorry to say that I became one of “those” people and I told him he’d better find us a table (I was quiet, but he knew I meant business).

We were seated and Aladdin showed up right away. Dds were blushing and enjoyed meeting him, although every other time we see him they say, “We aren’t in love with Aladdin, we love Jasmine!” [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/rofl2.gif[/img] Jasmine followed shortly, sat down and said, “What’s for dinner, ladies?” We were still looking at the menu, so she gave us some recommendations. The server came and took our orders. We went to the koltbord and enjoyed some items from there. S ordered the grilled chicken, B had pasta w/ sauce on the side, and I had the salmon. As has been our previous experience, the service was painfully slow. We finished our meals and still hadn’t seen Cinderella (she was making an appearance along with Aurora), so the server found her for us. We left there at 845, so 2 ¾ hours from when I checked in, and 2 hours for the meal. yikes.

I wanted to buy some Milka chocolate (my Hershey’s growing up in Germany), so we swung through there and went to find a spot for Illuminations. Dds weren’t all that interested and I reminded them that very little of what we’d done on this trip had been for me and this was for ME. B wanted a pretzel, so I picked one up for her. We found our spot, spread out the ponchos and S and I sat on the ground. It was breathtaking again and I was crying by the time it was over. We took our time leaving, walked out under the Lights of Winter with lots of stopping and looking back for me. I’m such a sap. I know I need a break from WDW, I’m feeling a bit “Disney-ed out” and people were really hard to get along with this trip…lots more un-magical moments than I’d ever seen before. Even so, leaving Epcot is the hardest for me. Went back to CBR to finish packing and OMG, I’m really cramming stuff in here! If the suitcases don’t explode, it will be a miracle. I have 6 to check and 6 to carry on. Ugh!