[Joy J]

This has been a record winter for those of us living in Ontario when it comes to snowfall, and unfortunately the weekend we were scheduled to fly down to Orlando was no exception. On Saturday the snow began to fall and fall and then fall some more and we were seriously worried that our flight might not take off the next day. I kept phoning the airline’s automated information line and each time it told me that our flight was still slated to take off on time. So Sunday morning very early, we headed out to the airport after finally managing to flag down a cab since phoning for one met with zero results.
We got in the very long check-in line and waited and waited and then waited some more. It turns out that Air Canada doesn’t open their check-in desks until after 4:00 a.m. so our arriving extra early didn’t do us much good. By the time they finally opened at about 4:30 a.m., the line was horrendously long. Because I was concerned about the possibility of the airline having overbooked our flight, I decided to do something that I never do - leaving Kirk to hold our place in line, I checked in at one of the airline automated kiosks. It printed out two boarding passes for me but with no assigned seats. When we eventually got to the check-in desk and checked our luggage, I inquired about this lack of seat assignment and was told that this was a good example of why people should pay the extra money in advance to get pre-assigned seats. I asked if this meant that perhaps we wouldn’t be able to go out on this particular flight and the only answer I got was a shrug of his shoulders - not exactly reassuring.
After dispatching our luggage, we walked over to our gate and waited for an airline employee to show up so that we could ascertain our seating situation. To say I was concerned would be a major understatement as I had been watching on television the night before as reports kept flooding in about all the folks who were waiting for seats on flights due to the cancellation of their originally scheduled ones. I feared that if we did not make it onto this flight that we might not get out today at all. When an Air Canada employee finally showed up (about 20 minutes before our flight was due to take off), my worst fears were confirmed. The plane was completely booked. Since I was first in line, the employee did say that we would have priority and that she would do the best she could to get us on the plane. She asked me to wait off to the side while she dealt with the flood of people approaching the desk, all with a similar story - they were on standby after having their flights cancelled the day before and were hoping to get on the plane. I felt terrible for these people as I watched their sorrowful expressions upon learning that it was highly unlikely that there would be room for them on this flight. I reflected that as usual, our trip was off to a rocky start (anyone familiar with my earlier trip reports will realize that rough beginnings seem to be a feature of all our trips) but that this start might just be rockier than usual.
After what seemed like a lifetime, the Air Canada employee informed me that she did indeed have two seats for us but that we wouldn’t be able to sit together. At this point in time, I was so relieved to be able to get on the flight at all that I probably would have agreed to sit in the luggage compartment. It turned out that my seat was slightly better than that. In fact, for the very first time in my life, I got to sit in first class - what a treat. Although Kirk wasn’t quite so lucky, he still had a seat in the exit row so he had extra seat and leg room.
I have always been curious as to what goes on behind that first class curtain and now I had the chance to find out. Although I still wouldn’t pay the exorbitant amount they charge for first class seats, I can now understand the appeal. From the time we sat down until the time we left the plane, it was non-stop attention and service. From newspapers to hot towels to refresh ourselves with to our choice of hot breakfast served on china plates with real silverware to non-stop beverage service, the entire experience was a real treat.
After arriving at the Orlando airport, we made our way to the Magical Express check-in desk and were soon on our way to our resort. I must be exceptionally lucky when it comes to DME because we have used them for several trips and on each and every occasion, we have boarded a bus immediately which then takes off right after we’re seated. It can’t get better than that. This time, our bus stopped at the Caribbean Beach Resort first and then we were off to the Boardwalk.
There was no line at the front desk for checking in so our rough start was now nothing but a dim memory. Our room wasn’t ready yet so after collecting all our info, we stopped off at the bell services desk long enough to leave our carry-on bags with them and soon we were taking that first magical walk over to the International Gateway leading to Epcot.
Kirk had yet to experience the Finding Nemo ride so that was our first stop. Being the three-year-old thirty-three year old that he is, he pronounced this ride to be one of his all time favourites. After leaving Finding Nemo, we experienced our first healthy dose of Disney magic. We stopped at an ice cream cart to get a couple of Mickey bars and when I attempted to pay for them, the sweet, friendly cast member said, “No, not this time. These are on Mickey.” What a wonderful way to start our trip in earnest.
Next up was the new version of Spaceship Earth. I must say that both of us were really impressed with the improvements to this attraction. I particularly liked the interactive features on the screen in our vehicle - what fun! As we wandered around Future World, Kirk quickly noticed the Character Connection and wanted to start our trip off with a hefty character fix. We did have to wait in line for about thirty minutes but it was well worth it as we then got to see six characters, one after another with no wait in between characters.
After frolicking with Mickey and the gang, it was time for our late lunch at Le Cellier so we strolled over to Canada. My last meal at Le Cellier in November hadn’t been quite up to the standard I usually expect at this restaurant but thankfully, this time around, it was once again a stellar experience. We both had the New York strip steaks and chocolate raspberry shakes. For dessert, I had the vanilla crème brulee and Kirk had the sorbet.
Now completely stuffed, we headed back to our hotel to see if our room was ready. It was and I was delighted to discover that all of my room requests had been granted. Our room was literally only steps from the elevator on the fourth floor so it made for a very short walk to the lobby, the bus stop and the main pool. In fact, our room overlooked the pool. The balcony was large but had solid walls so you had to stand up in order to have a good view of the surroundings but that was fine with us. We hadn’t got much sleep the night before so we spent the rest of the evening unpacking, settling in and relaxing. We went to bed fairly early so that we could get started bright and early the next morning.

Joy