Three Weeks in the Magic About This Page:

[mikki]

The players:
Mikki – mad about the mouse
Andrew – dh – who has grown to love Florida
Figaro – plush toy times 3 versions; Original, traveling beanie and floppy
Staying at OKW for just under 3 weeks

Day 1 – 30/11 The Journey
Very early start today - up at 4.50am to be ready for the cab to the airport. As usual the cab arrives early and we are not as prepared as usual so feel a bit rushed. We are both tired and cranky but relieved to be on our way. It has been a hectic few weeks at work with too much to do before we have our vacation but now we are really going! At the airport it is a very quick check in and got seats we wanted - plane apparently had 150 seats empty. Nice for us traveling, but not for the airline (BA). We have breakfast with toast and reconstituted orange juice – not too long before we can have the wonderful fresh orange juice from Florida! Quick boarding the plane - ended up with row of 4 for 2 of us. Good flight - I even managed to sleep a bit - and very speedy through customs and getting cases.

When we got through to the final baggage pick up there was a nice man with a sign with our name on it. We were using a towncar for the first time and it was excellent. Had a grocery stop, which was very useful and then onto OKW. We saw the Welcome Home sign & we felt it!
Got an almost perfect room in a new building near Hospitality House. Great when you don't have a car. Unpacked & then had dinner at Olivia’s - could not do justice to food as so tired. Time to go to sleep in our huge bed. Tomorrow the holiday starts proper!

[mikki]

Day 2 – 1/12 The big meet and greet
I never sleep well after a long flight so slept in a bit this morning and then we had some cereal for breakfast - special k red berries and discovered that instead of lots of different berries there were only strawberries in the USA version; still very tasty!
With the birthday celebrations going on there were lots of groups having meetings in WDW this week and we had decided to join in on some bits of a few of them. Our only commitment today was the big meet and greet for RADP where we would also meet our old Passporter friends Jennifer and Dave.

First we had to get to the parks and buy our annual passes. We had some old tickets we wanted to use towards the cost. In the past we have bought tickets at the resort but now you have to do it at the park. The queue was not long for tickets but when we said we wanted to use the old tickets towards the new ones we had to go to the guest relations window – long, long queue very slow moving. Oh well. When we get to the front the cast member was really helpful and our tickets save us nearly $400! Well worth the wait.

The security was a little cursory where we entered and I could see other guards looking more carefully. Then we were in Epcot and wandered around happily. The meet was at 1pm ish so we had a bite to eat (chicken strips which were tasty and always a good standby) and then made our way to International Gateway for the meet. A huge crowd of people was already there and I saw some whose names I recognised so got chatting. A few pin trades later and group photos taken and it was time to move on. The Teddy Bear and Doll show was on in the area that used to house all those extra countries - fun to look at for a brief while and a cute logo pin (isn't everything that Disney does cute?).

We were still jet lagged and for us it was hot. A brief word on the weather here: every day the forecast said it would get cool in a few days time. That day did not come until our last full day and the weather stayed a very pleasant mid 80s the whole time with no rain that we noticed. We went back home for a rest and then took the boat to Downtown Disney. Looked round the shops (bought a bit!) and then took the boat back. Snacked in the room (thank goodness for grocery stops!) and went to bed.

[bfth]

Great report Mikki. Waiting patiently for more! [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[maggy_1]

Thanks Mikki for TR can wait to read more about your adventure in the world

Chantal [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[mikki]

Day 3 – 2/12 An unexpected encounter
Got up in a leisurely fashion. Andrew is still trying to get the coffee maker to make decent coffee! Better than yesterday but still not brilliant. Then some tidying - put the pins I traded for in the pin album, sort out which postcards to keep & which to send. Postcards make great souvenirs & you can see how the parks change over the years.

Next we decide to head for MK to join the RADP dole whip meet. It is a long time since I had a dole whip and I had fond memories of them. Security was tight and organised and although the queues looked long they moved quickly. We looked into the Town Square exposition hall where there are some fun but informative interactive areas. The mini cinema is still there and the area was quiet. I looked up from the interactive bit and sitting side by side as the only audience were Prince John & Friar Tuck! We took the photo opportunity & then Prince John danced on stage - very funny. It is little moments like this that I love – we really had the characters to ourselves and they were a hoot.

The meet was good fun. I had the pineapple float and Andrew had the mix of chocolate vanilla. Mine was good and Andrew's OK. I’m sure I remember bits of pineapple used to actually be in the whip but no more. We chat to a few more people and I find out a bit more about them. You meet such interesting people at Disney!

Afterwards we wander round to Fantasyland and go into Tinkerbells Treasures to see if Figaro was there - to our delight there is a new version who is adorable and one of them quickly joins our collection. That makes 8 different versions of Figaro the cat that live with us and they all enjoy having their photo taken – more of that later!

We decide to try and lunch at Tony's and get in with only a 10 minute wait. I go for an Antipasto starter, which to use my mother in laws expression, was a meal in itself - marinated peppers, mushrooms, artichoke etc, cheeses, olives, lots of meats and greens all mixed together in a tangy dressing. Good value for $6. Pizza was OK but goat’s cheese a bit strong, and besides I was full from the starter! After lunch we went to the Contemporary & checked email & entered a bid to win business class flights for our next trip - one can always hope! Then we went home for a quiet afternoon - a busy week awaits us!

[mikki]

Day 4 – 3/12 Fireworks Cruise
Today is Fireworks Cruise day! We wake up early & give up on going back to sleep. Andrew makes coffee & it has bite! We write all our postcards (almost 6am now!) and decide to go to the Animal Kingdom to see if we can find where to get AP pins from & to see the new bits in Dinoland. AK is the first bus - hurrah! Security is well organised here & the gates open almost as soon as we get there. Our timing is good so far.

We wander round to Harambe but there is a 30 minute wait and no fastpass for the safari. We head to Camp Minnie Mickey to get pictures with Mickey - Xmas style! We are planning ahead for next Christmas! Then we find out where to get the pins from by seeing someone get one - suddenly about 6 people are there saying they want the same! We get a lanyard and pin with a couple of special show options in AK. Nice!

We go to Dinoland and try the new Tricertops ride - quite fun and less scary than Dumbo. Don't much like the midway games but the dino running around was mischievous but fun!
We have an early lunch at Pizzasafari and then head out of the park. After a rest in the afternoon we head towards Yacht Club. Just miss a bus so get a boat to DD and wander round there for a while before getting a bus to YC. We find the Marina as I have volunteered to ‘host’ one of the boats, and then go to the Crews Cup for some supper. The Flat bread with Sirloin was excellent!

Back to the Marina and there are some people there now - I am given my hosts bag with some instructions: give out gifts to children, buttons to all and raffle prizes. I especially liked the instruction that said sit back and enjoy the cruise! Jody was our excellent captain - thanks Jody! We had a tour down to Studios, which look great at night. Then back to Epcot and 6 boats tie up under a bridge with a good view (although not quite as good as I had expected). It was quite an experience and well worth doing. There were some people who had been every year for the last 4 years. The journey back to OKW via DD took about 40 minutes, which was not too bad. A glass of Port (part of our duty free purchases) and then off to bed.

[wdwlovers]

Great trip report! Can't wait to read more. Sounds like the flight was nice...no people sticking their butts in your face like Nate experienced.
mikki, I will be going to London in March for school. 10 days-I will have get some sure to see tourist attraction list from you. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Emily]

Loving the reports, Mikki! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] Can't wait to read more! 3 weeks... I wish I could have gone! What I wouldn't give to spend 3 weeks at WDW!

[Fortissimo]

Great report, Mikki! I love little Figaro and I'm very glad he (or they) get to travel with you!

Kee p the reports coming!

Beth and Emily, it's nice to see you two!

[mikki]

Rose - I'm glad hubby likes the pins; I did try to bring some from europe that people might like [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[maggy_1]

Mikki the report is great can wait to read more

Chantal
[img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[mikki]

Day 5 4/12 WWTBAM marathon
Today is Passporter Millionaire day. We meet up with Jennifer and Dave outside MGM. Amongst others in the group is Nate who we last met in September 2000 who writes such hilarious trip reports. We go thru security and then get a group photo taken – once Dave is found as he disappears as we enter the park. Joining in with other people does make things more fun! The first show was not until 10-30 so we all get fast passes and meet back for the first show and get fast passes for the second. At the end of the show one of us is top of the board and I am second (amazing!). We go back in and thru all the hullaballoo again (we are almost talking along with the floor manager by now....) and this time Brant gets in the hot seat. We get very nervous watching him as he keeps leaving his final answer until the last second! At the end of the show he is still in the seat at 32000 and we discover that not only does the contestant stay but so can all their party so we are in for show 3!

The host and floor manager have swapped roles! Dennis is now the floor manager and he says Hi to us before all the audience are in. Brant has told us in the interval that he will not walk away but keep trying. He still has 1 lifeline - 50/50. He quickly gets to 64000 points but gets the next question wrong - Aagh! A smart 9 year old goes next but crashes out on the 1000 point question. Next up is another from our group - Nate (hey Nate, how are the trip reports going?). Nate does well but not as good as Brant!

After the show we split up & we go look at the special animation cel of the hat and Mickey. It looks good and the artist says that the next day (Walt's birthday!) there will be a special signing by all the artists involved. As we are due in the park the next day we decide to wait. Shipping is not till April as they have so many orders!

Time to go home as we have some people coming round to watch videos of attractions that no longer exist (and the holiday haunted mansion at Disneyland with Nightmare before Xmas). We set up all the seats around the TV and then have a rest. When everyone arrives it is a fun evening bringing back lots of memories and people sharing interesting facts about the rides.

[mikki]

Day 6 – 5/12 It’s Walt’s birthday!
Disney MGM Studios open at 7.30 today & the Passporter treasure hunt begins at 9.30 so we decide to go early and arrive around 8am. They are handing out little paper birthday hats with ears in honour of Walt. These need a genius just to put together without falling apart in a second (but a 5 year old could probably manage).

We go straight to Animation Courtyard but nothing is open yet. We wander out back to all the television cameras and see Mickey in full Sorcerers Apprentice outfit extremely well lit up by the lights but we manage to catch his eye and get a great photograph. Also on the stage is a very expensive Sorcerers hat, complete with guard. Someone sad it had been on the Regis & Kelly morning show and was worth over $1m. It looked nice, but not that nice!

We pop onto the Great Movie Ride and walk straight on with an immediate start. I do enjoy this ride and would be sad to see it go. We got the gangster scene played by a woman, which was a nice twist - 'Bonnie' was very good! As we exit the ride we see a queue under the hat. Being British we can't resist this and ask someone why they are queuing - for pins of course! We find the end of the queue and join it and a few minutes later get confirmation that we are in a part of the queue where you are guaranteed the pins. These pins are supposed to be general release pins but nowhere has more than 600 today. We don't find this out until we have queued for 20 minutes so by then I am committed - who knows if the pins will come out again before we leave! They are also very nice - a picture of Walt with a little Mickey underneath.

While we are in line we chat with a couple of Floridians who said this was a short line, they had a 2 hour line for the Monsters Inc pin. As time goes by they suddenly decide this is also a long queue and we all laugh about it! The time for the Treasure Hunt is drawing close but we won't reach the end of the line in time. I run off to get our entry forms and get back to find that Andrew does not seem to have moved at all. Oh well, at least the exercise was good for me, wheeze. We look at the questions and think Agh these are difficult! One set requires you to go into One Mans Dreams, which we had saved for today but it is closed - being used for the press! At last we get to the front of the queue and as we are paying I see a smart box with what looks like Pewter images of the park icons on it. I ask what it is and am shown it is a box set of 5 pins - Mickey and 4 park icons as Dangle pins. Very nice looking. I am told it is a limited edition set of 1000 and costs $75 so it gets added to the basket! Almost better than the pins we had queued for - we find out later that we were lucky, as they had only had 20 of the sets there!

Now we could concentrate on the Quiz and it was great fun trying to find out the answers. Cast members were very helpful and keen to find out the answers themselves as they thought it was a tough quiz! Thanks to Jennifer and Dave for creating such a good quiz - despite Disney trying to cause problems by closing one show and moving some exhibits to make room for the press! We meet back at the Backlot Express and have the ubiquitous chicken strips for lunch and discover we actually managed to come 4th in the quiz! Some of our guesses must have been right [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

We all troop off to see (well hear) the presentation of the cake - 100 large cakes put together to make a whole with the picture of Walt on the front. By this time Andrew's neck is troubling him and we cry off the rest of the planned tour and head back to Animation Courtyard with what turns out to be perfect timing - no people and the artists have just started signing again! We purchase the cel picture and head out the park; we had intended to get the photo of us with hats on taken in the morning but the line was the longest we have ever seen - we will have to try another day and hope they still have the picture.

Back home for a rest and then I am off to West Side, Pleasure Island and a mini moderators meet. After a pleasant boat ride from OKW I walk to DisneyQuest to check email and reduce the 100 + to 40 (where do all these emails keep coming from?). Back to the meet spot and the mini meet was even more mini - just PixieDust and me. We went to the Adventurers Club briefly and saw a couple of funny shows and then left - we were all tired!

[TiggGrrrl]

Great report mikki [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] We just love OKW - how great that you got to spend 3 weeks there!

Keep that report coming! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Peace, love & ºoº

[tinkerose]

Hi Mikki! Your report is terrific. I'm enjoying reliving it with you.

It was great to meet you and Andrew during the trip. And I must tell you that my DH is so happy with the DL Paris pins you traded with him - thanks!

Looking forward to more of your report.