"Hey, Mom, Dad, get on plane and go to Disney" Trip report Thread two - "the last of the final thoughts and it's COMPLETE!" **5/10** About This Page:

[Nala]

If you are just joining us, you may want to start here for the pre-trip report and first three days of our adventure.

The fun filled evening we had the night before must have worn Kiara out because she slept in this morning. Until 7:30. When she got up, Grumpy (or I, I don’t really remember which one of us it was) headed to the lounge and picked up breakfast to eat in our room. Epcot was the order of business for today so we all got ready and headed out. We made the short walk from our building to the TTC.

We headed up to the monorail and waited for the next one to arrive. Grumpy attempted to chat with the CM next to us, but she didn’t seem to be in the mood for guest interaction. In fact, she had a very non Disney attitude and we chalked it up to her just having a bad day. We gave up trying to talk to her and soon boarded the monorail that had arrived. Our interaction with this CM (or rather the lack there of) sparked a conversation between Grumpy and I as we waited for the monorail to leave the station about how we really hadn’t encountered an outstanding CM like we had on our previous trips. There were the two young men from the night before that were friendly and fun, and all of the staff at the Poly had been nice, but we were yet to encounter a Janice from the AK, or a Teena from the BC.

But, the trip was young. (and these are key words here)

So there we sat, ready to get to Epcot when we heard the familiar phrase of “Please stand clear of the doors” and watched as the doors of our car closed. Or tried to close. One of the doors of the car we were in wouldn’t close all the way and a CM came over and repeatedly attempted to slam it shut. After several tries, he got it to close Everyone in the car joked and laughed about not leaning on the door as no one was convinced it was really closed all the way! We began to pull away from the station, went about ten feet when we heard a horrible sound. It sounded as is the monorail was dragging something along with it. The monorail then came to a halt with our car still in the station. Hmmmmmm. This didn’t appear to be a good sign. Right about then, my phone rang and it was Janine. She and Terri were driving to the MK and we talked about our plans for the day. I told her that we were trying to get to Epcot, but thought we were on a broken down monorail! I lost my signal and by the time I was able to call them back, we had been moved off the monorail and were told we would have to wait for the broken down one to be moved off the track and wait for another one to come. I think I was talking to Terri at this point and she offered to swing by the TTC and drive us to Epcot! Aren’t PassPorters the best? I really didn’t feel right about making them change their plans for us and declined the kind offer. We figured out that we were all going to be in Epcot later that night and hoped to hook up for a brief meet that evening. By the time we ended our conversation, the lame monorail had been moved and another one had arrived to take us to Epcot.

This one traveled without a hitch and soon we were entering Epcot. The WSC was not open yet, so we headed to the Living Seas to take Kiara on another ride with Nemo. And as we had done the day before, I headed off with Kiara and Grumpy went for FPs for Soarin’. We both knew that Kiara had said no to riding it again the day before, but we hoped she would change her mind. Kiara and I headed into the queue and what should have been a walk on turned out to be a bit longer because of the people in front of us. Two couples in their mid to late sixties were holding up the line. Not so much because they were walking slow, or taking time to take in the details of the queue, but because they were debating as to where they were and what they were walking to. I can’t remember exactly what it was they said, but I do remember laughing to myself at what was coming out of their mouths. I think one of them was certain that they were making their way to a restaurant and didn’t want to go there. Finally, we made it to our clam mobile and Kiara and I were enjoying our ride. Until it stopped. And this wasn’t a load a wheelchair kind of stop. The entire ride stopped. Soundtrack, lights, everything. And as we sat there, the voice of Crush (or maybe it was Dori) came over the speakers and told us all to stay put. We sat there for a few minutes and then the ride sprang to life again. Thankfully, this wasn’t a major malfunction and we were not forced to walk off this ride!

Kiara and I exited the ride and managed to get by the two couples who were still trying to figure out where they were and I overheard one of the funniest things I have ever heard another guest say while at WDW. As we walked past them, one of the women said “You know, in those last few windows, some of those fish in the background looked real.”

True story, I swear.

We managed to find Grumpy and since our FPs for Soarin’ were not until later in the afternoon, we decided to head to the WSC which was now officially open. More F&W Festival here we come. Since we had left off in Spain, which was right next to Mexico, it made sense to walk towards Mexico rather than Canada. Plus, a trip through Mexico would not be complete without a margarita and since the day was already warming up, I was ready for one. With a direction in mind, we left the Living Seas and started to head to Mexico. But as we were walking away from the Living Seas, two young boys caught my attention as they walked by me. Their face looked so familiar, but what really made me almost 100% sure of who they were was one of two women walking behind them. I was certain the woman I was looking at was Tina (loobyoxlip). I couldn’t help but stop and call out her name and she answered to it. I introduced myself and also Grumpy and Kiara and Tina introduced me to Shelia (wheatenwalker). It was so cool to have a random PassPorter meeting! We chatted about our plans for the day and what we had done so far. I told them that we had been stuck on both the monorail and Nemo, so if they saw us later in a line for anything to run in the opposite direction.

We said our goodbyes and me and my pride headed to the WSC. Mexico came up quickly and Grumpy was kind enough to stand in the long line to get us a margarita. I headed to the shady spot in Norway with Kiara and waited for him. This trip, a new flavor had been added to the margarita stand, sour green apple, and I opted to give it a try. It was quite good, in fact almost my favorite flavor, but still not as good as the traditional lime version. And as we sipped our margaritas, the rain began to fall. I pulled out the ponchos and covered Kiara, but it was rather light and passed quickly. Ireland was next on our list of International Marketplaces to try, so I headed to the kiosk and ordered a Boxty (potato pancake with onion) and an Irish cheese plate. Since we had met a CM who worked at the Ireland marketplace the day before and he had raved about the Boxty, I was looking forward to something spectacular. Now, I know, the F&W Festival is all about tapas size portions, but what was on my plate made me laugh. There it was, a tiny, little pancake, folded in half and filled with a bunch of onion. I headed back to my pride and showed the Boxty to Grumpy which also got a laugh out of him. We joked about the potato famine in Ireland and decided that was the cause of the tiny portion on the plate. Still, it was quite tasty, as was the cheese plate and we enjoyed both very much.

It was time to move on and find other food samples and China was next. Since we had done the offerings here last year, we decided to pass and move on to India. Nothing offered there appealed to Grumpy or I so we headed to South Africa. Grumpy is found of the Bobotie severed at Boma, so I decided to give this version a shot. And much to my delight, they offered a South African wine I had found at home. I ordered a glass of it, not so much because I loved the taste of it, but because I loved the name of it, “Goats do Roam”. I guess I have a quirky thing for wines from vineyards with unusual names.

And as I gave my card to the CM to pay for my order, she looked at it and said “Oh, you are leaving us tomorrow!” I was so happy that I could say we were only leaving the Poly, but had five more nights to stay at the YC! Had this comment happened on the last full day of our trip, I would have been hit with the “We are leaving WDW tomorrow blues”. But thankfully, on this day, that was not the case! I collected the Bobotie and the glass of “Goats do Roam” and headed back to Grumpy and Kiara. Grumpy and I each got a bite of the Bobotie, which I thought was good, but had too much egg in it for him, and gave the plate to Kiara to try a bite. I fully expected the plate to be handed back to me, thinking it wouldn’t be something she liked, but she took one bite, clutched the plate close to her and turned her back to Grumpy and I and fiercely guarded the plate until every morsel was gone.



Neither Grumpy or I were fond enough of the Bobotie to fight Kiara for it, but we did get a big kick out of her being so territorial over it. I guess she gets that from her Momma!


Up next: More of the F&W Festival and Kiara springs a leak!

[Colexis Mom]

Great update Nala Sorry you had such issues trying to get to Epcot, and that Nemo broke down Not a great start! Glad you enjoyed the margarita I'll have to look for that one!

More please

[eawsmom]

[quote]As we walked past them, one of the women said “You know, in those last few windows, some of those fish in the background looked real.” [quote]

And you just kept on walking without falling on the floor laughing? I'm so proud of you! Wonder if they ever figured out where they were and that yes, the fish WERE real!

[DrDolphin]

Wonderful update Nala!!! Glad to hear you made it to EPCOT and got to meet Tina, Shelia and the boys!

[Jookiba]

That is my absolute worst fear-to be stuck on a broken-down monorail. Instant anxiety attack! Glad you all survived it though and made it to Epcot, and how great for an impromptu Passporter greet!

Thanks for sharing another update! I look forward to the rest of your trip.

[kmurburg]

Great update Nala! Sorry to hear about the malfunctions - especially the monorail. I think I would be nervous about riding again so soon after the breakdown. Hope it doesn't happen while we are there. Might have to try that sour green apple margarita - yum!

[ariel14]

Great update Nala!!!!!!

[Grammy Grumpy]

What a great mini meet with Sheila, Tina and the boys! Enjoying your experiences, keep it up!

[mcc0313]

Great update...even with the technoloigal difficulties you sound like you had a wonderful day so far. Glad you got to meet some passporters...

You have me hungry so far after reading your F&WF snackings so far....Kiara was so cute with her new "favorite food"....lol

Can't wait to hear more.....

[chezp]

Thank goodness you weren't broken down on the monorail for too long! It sounds like once you escaped Nemo, you had a good day at Epcot!

[lauren-roxy]

Great update Nala!!! How cool to meet some Passporters!!

[WHMom]

Sounds like a great day so far, despite a couple of hiccups. I love reading your descriptions of the offerings at the F&WF...it all sounds so yummy! (Even if some of the portions are a little less-than-generous. )

Looking forward to your next update!

[PrincessSharon]

Originally Posted by Nala

Kiara and I exited the ride and managed to get by the two couples who were still trying to figure out where they were and I overheard one of the funniest things I have ever heard another guest say while at WDW. As we walked past them, one of the women said “You know, in those last few windows, some of those fish in the background looked real.”

True story, I swear.

That's the magic of Disney! They're really good at those auto-matronic things, you know!

Sorry about the mechanical difficulties you encountered, but it seems like you still had a great morning. Can't wait for more.

[Lemap760]

If you liked Goats Do Roam, we found a wine that we serve on Christmas Eve called "Fat Bastard".

[Jillybean]

I absolutely adore that picture of Kiara slinking off in the corner with her Bobotie! A girl after my own heart!

Jill