Make Mine A BLT with Some MVMCP, MK, AK & More - A Short Solo Trip About This Page:

[lauriep]

Yay! We're both on property at the same time!

[chezp]

Originally Posted by lauriep

Yay! We're both on property at the same time!

And I just discovered that Sharon's December trip also overlaps with ours - and at least some of yours as well. Hopefully we might be able to meet up!

[Colexis Mom]

Great pics!

[shazza]

Originally Posted by tdhc

Great photos....those corn dog nuggets and pork shank look great !!!!

They were both pretty darned good. The pork shank was much better than it might look in the pic - way too big, though.

Originally Posted by Cam22

Looks like you are already having fun and good food!

Yes, it was a good day.

Originally Posted by lauriep

Yay! We're both on property at the same time!

Watch out, World!

Originally Posted by chezp

And I just discovered that Sharon's December trip also overlaps with ours - and at least some of yours as well. Hopefully we might be able to meet up!

Will send our details, Cheryl.

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Great pics!

Thanks, Marnie.


Just checking in. I watched the Holiday Fireworks and Parade, and wandered randomly, leaving the Magic Kingdom just after midnight. Got back to the room and started the photo download process. (I was impressed that Laurie had a photo update ready to go already - I'm afraid it will take me a while longer. I know I take too many photos )

Didn't set the alarm this morning, woke up right about 6:30am - could have used another hour of sleep. No plans for rope drop this AM - getting ready to head over to AK for some fun and my very first PassPorter Meet (hmmmmmm, who could that be ).

Will check in later. Thanks for following along.

[chezp]

Enjoy your PassPorter meet! Great shot by the way - love the action of the water in it!

[shazza]

Thanks, Cheryl.

Ah - today was a very nice day, indeed (and it's not over). I relaxed this morning, then decided to drive over to Animal Kingdom from BLT. AK had EMH today, opening at 8am, but I was a little late for the start of that. As I got in my car, I realized I had left my Annual Pass in the room - duh, newbie mistake

I made it to AK at about 8:45am - just when they started letting everyone in - it was a bit hectic at first:

Once I was in, I knew I needed coffee. As I walked towards Africa (the safari, you know), I passed Pizzafari. Hmmm - never tried it. No one's here. Good place for coffee. I also decided to get the spinach & feta frittata - was I surprised? Why, yes, I was very surprised. This was delicious. It was obviously freshly made - hot and tasty (and I'm not much for egg dishes, but would happily get this again). Even the coffee was good - and very hot!

I had a relaxing breakfast. Almost passed on the Kilimanjaro since I thought it might be too late. But, walked up and got a fast pass for 30 minutes later. Went for a trek along the Pangani Trail. No iPhone shots, but I'll have some fun gorilla ones when I upload the real pics.

Then, it was time for the Safari. "How many in your party, Miss?" "Just one, Sir." "Please step into Lane 1"

So, I did. And - it was perfect, because I got to sit in the front row with no one else at all in the row. Score.

The Safari was pretty good. The light was better than I thought it would be (it's 10:30 am now), and we saw quite a few animals.

The Safari made me thirsty, so I picked up a soda and hiked to the Lion King Theater. It was crowded - I was no. 450 and they let at least a hundred or more in after. Got a good seat in the back row in the Wart Hog section (I always get the warthog!). Enjoyed the show and took lots of pics - downloading now).

It was now time for my FIRST EVER PassPorter Meet. I strolled to Harambe, and there she was - our very own LaurieP. Now, let me confess something. I'm not all that sociable, and normally meeting someone new would lead to a little angst. But, not in this case. I was looking forward to meeting Laurie, and we had a delightful lunch. We just sat around talking after we ate and it was a very nice Meet! (Well, that's my side of the story). There were no attractions we wanted to see, so we meandered to the exit, and said our goodbyes. I imagine our paths will cross again. So nice to see you, Laurie

I had to remind Laurie we needed to take pics of lunch (she was probably just nervous, wondering how she got hooked up with crazy lady):

And then, Laurie got into the spirit, and I took a photo of her taking a photo of lunch. It should be obvious from my report so far, that I am not a vegetarian. We picked up lunch at Tamu Tamu, and the pulled pork sandwich was really good.

And yes, we do have a photo of the two of us, but it was taken with my camera, so it's being downloaded now. (EDIT: Photo Added)

You might think this was enough excitement for one day. But, upon my return to BLT, I thought it was a good time to sample a Holiday Treat. I'd read that the Contempo Cafe served the special Peppermint Cupcakes at Christmas Time. They had none (although they had an interesting Cool Mint Cupcake), so I went for the Red Velvet Cupcake! With a kiddie milk, since I just didn't see the pairing with a Corona Light.

After a brief rest, I'll head back to the Magic Kingdom, taking advantage of being so close.

[Colexis Mom]

Glad you had a great time with Laurie! Great pics!

[JKnott17]

It sounds like you are having a wonderful time. I'm glad you got to meet Laurie for lunch

[lfredsbo]

Sounds like you are having a great time! Glad you got to meet Laurie!

[shazza]

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Glad you had a great time with Laurie! Great pics!

Originally Posted by JKnott17

It sounds like you are having a wonderful time. I'm glad you got to meet Laurie for lunch

Originally Posted by lfredsbo

Sounds like you are having a great time! Glad you got to meet Laurie!

It was a very good day - and spending time with Laurie was the highlight.

I'll go ahead and provide the start of my "official" TR for this trip in the next post.

[shazza]

Day One - Part One


I could have easily called this TR "The Trip of Many Firsts." Just some include

My first solo trip to Disney (but have traveled much as a solo during my working career)
My first visit to the Magic Kingdom in many, many years
My first official DVC stay as an owner
My first stay at Bay Lake Tower (actually, first time in the building)
My first attempt to photograph anything at the Magic Kingdom - parades, fireworks, rides
My first PassPorter Meet

and lots more firsts. Without further ado, here are some pics from my first afternoon. As reported earlier, I drove to Orlando from South Florida - arrived at noon - room was ready - room was good. I also scored a parking spot right next to the entrance:

After checking in (more on the room later), I skidaddled to the Magic Kingdom by walking along the path from BLT. Easy Peasy (longer, I think, than walking from the Epcot Resorts to Epcot, but still easy). I enjoyed watching the monorails run overhead:

There were no lines to get into the Park. Touring Plans rated MK a 1 for this day. Crowds were light throughout most areas of the park. The weather was perfect - some cloud cover with temps in the 70s.

Most of the Christmas Decorations were up, except for the big tree which goes up for the Taping of the Parade. I do like the Toy Soldiers.

Before I knew it, the "Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It" Parade was coming down Main Street:

You can see how Main Street is not crowded at all at this point. I must admit, I did get a bit teary-eyed at the parade (which is surprising for me). It musta been Woody - he hearted me

After the parade, I meandered down Main Street towards the castle, looking happier than some of these random strangers:

Since I'd had no lunch, I picked up some Corn Dog Nuggets and a soda - they were tasty.

There was a castle show going on, but I didn't watch it since I planned to catch one in the evening:

So, where did I go first? Now tell me that none of you would make a beeline to the "New" Fantasyland That's where I'll pick up tomorrow.


Coming Up: What's all the fuss about?

[chezp]

So glad you got to meet up with Laurie - and I hope we can work something out so that we can get together in a couple of weeks' time!

[Colexis Mom]

Great pictures from the start of your trip!

[lauriep]

Great photos! I enjoyed our meeting so much, Sharon. I'm glad we both overcame our inclinations and decided to get together. You beat me to posting your updates!

[rlb38]

Glad you were able to meet up with Laurie. Love the monorail shot. I can't wait to see the FLE for myself!