MsFst/H'moon/Annvrsry, Updated 1/27 FINISHED!!! About This Page:

[ripkensnana]

MOUSEFEST 2004
OUR WONDERFUL TRIP WITH THE MOUSE

Day 6, Animal Kingdom and Illuminations

We staggered out of bed at 6:40, and prepared to face the day (which took a while... ). We drove to POR-FQ to pick up Pat and Linda for our 8 am PS at Donald's Breakfastosaurus. It was great to see Pat again, and to meet her friend, Linda !

We arrived at Animal Kingdom (early entry day), and headed for Dinoland. The skies looked threatening, and it had apparently rained overnight, but for now we were dry .

We posed for pictures while waiting to be called for breakfast, and found out how PhotoPass works. Your picture is taken by the WDW photographer , and a card (similar to a credit card) is swiped in this little thingy strapped to his belt. You carry the card with you, and whenever a WDW photographer takes your picture, the new ones are added to the card, so all the photos are in one place. You can get pictures taken all over the parks: in front of the icons, with characters, etc., and there's a website where you can look them over and/or share them via email...you can also purchase them there, as they remain online for 30 days. The neat thing about this is that you're not rushed into deciding whether or not you want the pictures - no more hasty "take it or leave it" decisions! I really like this new service !

During our breakfast, we were met by Pluto, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey, and had a great time with the characters. I exchanged kisses with Mickey , and Bob threatened to tell Minnie,but Mickey pointed to his ringless finger, indicating that he's not married ! Really funny .

After the meal, we headed toward Africa and the KJS Meet. I met more of my online friends - Brian (tiggerguy) from WDW Trivia.com, and Bob (boBmouse), and Maggie (Maggiemay).
As Tracey, Matt, and Maggie approached, I noticed that they were soaking wet! I concluded (rightly) that they must have just done Kali River Rapids.

We all posed for a group picture, and while waiting to be allowed aboard our Safari vehicle, Deb asked what I'd won since leaving the ship...I told her about the Hidden Mickey hunt at Epcot....

Eventually, we boarded our Safari vehicles. Somehow, we'd lost track of Pat and Linda, but Bob(mouse) joined us to make a threesome. Our guide explained that once we set out on our tour, we wouldn't be stopping for anything, unless an animal was in the road, as the critters have the right-of-way. very prophetic, as it turned out.

So we set out on our trek, and wended our way through the KJS ride...there were lots of animals to be seen - rhino, cheetah, zebra, giraffe, etc. We caught sight of the new baby elephant, which was quite a treat! So cute!!

As we reached the spot where we were supposed to begin chasing the poachers, an ostrich decided that this was the time and place to begin a leisurely stroll down the road...So we waited.....and waited.....and waited....Finally this overgrown chicken got out of our way, and we were able to begin our pursuit of the bad guys. The poachers would have gotten away if this big bird had taken much longer, and we wouldn't have been able to rescue Little Red !

We returned to base, and wandered through the Pangani Forest Trail back into Africa, where it was time to gather for the Hidden Mickey hunt. The Two Bobs and I met Steve behind Tamu Tamu, and received our pictures and questions. We found one of the items right where we were meeting, and another right outside, then rode the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch. It was beginning to rain by this time, so we hurried to get from the train station to the building. I spotted Pipa, the walking, talking recycle bin doing his thing with the kids. It took quite a while to find the HM's here, as some were really small, but we finally found what we thought were all of them, and headed to Camp Minnie-Mickey.

We found what we could, but were still missing a couple! Where were they? By this time we were all feeling the heat (made more uncomfortable by the intermittant rain , so we three went to the tables outside Island Mercantile to find Steve.

We discovered that several people had already found all the HM's, so we gave up....We parted company from Bob, and did a bit of shopping before heading for Flame Tree Barbecue to do lunch with TheGoof and son, Pat and Linda, and Joy (Joy_J) and her spouse and son .

When we got there, everyone was present except Joy and company....We waited for a bit, then started shouting, "Joy....Joy from Canada...."

Joy finally showed up, husband and son in tow, and we all did the "Huggy Glad to Meet You At Last" thing , and we got our food . We then looked for a place to sit together...This was where the real fun started .

If you've ever been to Flame Tree, you know that there are several seating areas....It seemed that everybody went to a different one! We quickly got separated, then met, only to get separated again (TheGoof refers to it as a Keystone Kops routine in his TR)! We finally got back together to find that TheGoof had found a place that had two tables for two separated by a table for four, overlooking the river. Since the tables are all cemented into the floor, we made do - TheGoof and MaxGoof sat at one table, Pat and Linda by another, and Bob and I sat with Joy and her husband Kim, with another chair drawn up for their son (I can't seem to remember his name because I didn't write it down) .

We enjoyed a nice lunch, and at one point a boat drifted past, with musicians playing and Chip and Dale dancing. This was lots of fun, but the time was drawing close for Pat, Linda, Bob, and myself to go to the MouseyMindboggler Hunt, which we'd preregistered for.

By this time, it was raining in earnest - not heavily, but enough to let you know that the sky was falling...

We got to Pizzafari and when all were assembled, we were given the rules and our little booklet of riddles. There was one riddle to be answered for each area - Africa, Asia, Discovery Island Trails, and the Oasis, and each team had a ddifferent set of riddles. We were also to find a "hostess" in each area and collect a sticker on each page to prove we'd actually been there. The winner would be the team who returned in the least amount of time with the most correct answers. Okay, gang, we can do this!

We decided to sit down and figure out the riddles first - as a former zoo docent this didn't seem too difficult , and there was only one animal I couldn't identify from the clues ...So we decided that since this was in the Oasis, we'd head there first to try to figure out what it was.

We found the Barbirussa (yeah, that was the one) almost immediately, then hunted for the hostess. We found her sitting on a bench in one of the protected areas, as it was still raining.

We then went to Asia to find the hostess there. She was easy to locate, right inside the Maharajah Jungle Trek. Off to Africa, where we found the hostess at the beginning of the Pangani Forest Trail.

The last one we needed was to be found in the Discovery Island Trails, and since our tablemate from the cruise, Doris, was one of the hostesses, and we hadn't found her yet, I knew who to look for.

I spotted her husband, Dennis, first and knew that she had to be close by, and sure enough, there she was! We had all our answers, and had found all the hostesses, so we hotfooted it back to Pizzafari.

We were pleased to find that we were the second team back, and that the first team had one answer wrong! I was elated!! My elation was short-lived, however, as there was one answer wrong in our booklet. What? How could there be one wrong? Which one? We'd have to wait until all the teams returned to find out!

Pat and I went pin shopping, then returned to Pizzafari to wait for everyone else got back so we could discover who the winners were.

Finally everyone was there, and the winners announced. The winning team had all the answers, even though they were w-a-a-y behind us, time-wise. I finally had a chance to find out what the correct answer was to the riddle I'd fail to guess the Asian animal rightly - the answer was the Siamang, instead of the Gibbon as I'd thought. Bummer! That's what I get for being too overconfident!!

The Jingle Jangle Jungle Parade was starting, but Bob and I didn't have time to watch it, because we needed to go back to POR to change for dinner at Bistro de Paris, also figuring that we could catch it later in the week .

Pat and Linda went back with us, as Pat collects the refillable mugs from the resorts, and wanted to see if the Riverside mug was different from the one she'd gotten from the French Quarter. We dropped Linda off at FQ, then drove Pat to the Guest Services building at Riverside (she wanted to walk back to FQ, as it wasn't too far).

After changing, we drove to Epcot, and strolled to France. We found the entrance to Bistro de Paris, and sat in the small but elegant waiting room until it was our turn to be seated.

Our server was Brice, and he was a really handsome young man. He was quite amused at my meager knowledge of French. Bob had an entree of scallops and caviar, while I had escargot and frog's legs. I don't know how his was, but my appetizer was wonderful (yeah, I know - snails - I love 'em )!

Bob ordered lobster for his entree, and I opted for a veal chop. Bob's dinner was placed right in front of him (the lobster was pre-shelled), but mine included a "show". Brice wheeled out a large cart, and brought a cast-iron pot to the table, removed the lid, and showed me a huge veal chop, "For Madame." He then returned the pot to the cart, where he proceeded to cut the meat from the bone and slice it. The sliced meat was then arranged on a plate and presented to me. It was lovely, but huge ! I ended up giving part of it to Bob.

Time for dessert....we decided on the dessert sampler, which was supposed to be for two, but I think that one person could have handled it nicely. It was delicious, as was everything else .

We'd gotten two dinner vouchers as part of our MouseFest package from MEV, and had decided to use them here, as we knew that unless we won the lottery, we'd never be able to afford eating at Bistro de Paris. When the check was presented for our signatures, we found that our decision was a good one...the bill came to over $130 (including tip) for the two of us ! Maybe not a lot to some people, but overwhelming to us!

We had some time before the Illuminations Dessert Party (part of our MEV package), and ambled to Morocco and Japan. In the Mitsukoshi Department Store I found a stuffed Totoro, which I'd have purchased if the price had been reasonable . There were several stuffed Miyazaki critters, which I'd have liked to have purchased, but they were a bit pricey for what they were. For those who don't know what I'm talking about, Miyazaki is known as the Japanese Disney (he wrote and directed "Spirited Away", among others), and his works (for the most part) have been distributed in the USA by Disney. Totoro is a character from "My Neighbor Totoro", a movie that is absolutely charming and which my two-year-old grandson loves .

It was nearing time to be getting back to the International Gateway, so we made our way back. We found some friends from the cruise, and made some new ones. We were escorted to the UK pavilion, where the area just south of the Rose and Crown is - where you eat your fish 'n' chips in the daytime.

There was an array of desserts and soft drinks, so we got some munchies and sat with Ann and George, who introduced us to Pat and Ray. In the course of conversation, we discovered that Pat's maiden name had also been Ray, so we wondered whether she and Bob were related.

Soon it was time for Illuminations to begin....I don't think I have to describe the show, as it was the same as always - spectacular ! There was an added bit at the end, red and green fireworks to the tune of "Let There Be Peace on Earth." Really nice .

After the show, we were going to exit Epcot with Ray, but somehow we lost him .

We passed through the lighted arches between Future World and World Showcase, which changed colors and blinked off and on to the music which was playing.

Back to POR. In our room, I discovered that there wasn't a towel animal waiting for us, so made a monkey....Hint, hint!

And so, to bed.

[dzneynut]

[ QUOTE ]

We were pleased to find that we were the second team back, and that the first team had one answer wrong! I was elated!! My elation was short-lived, however, as there was one answer wrong in our booklet. What? How could there be one wrong? Which one? We'd have to wait until all the teams returned to find out!

Finally everyone was there, and the winners announced. The winning team had all the answers, even though they were w-a-a-y behind us, time-wise. I finally had a chance to find out what the correct answer was to the riddle I'd fail to guess the Asian animal rightly - the answer was the Siamang, instead of the Gibbon as I'd thought. Bummer! That's what I get for being too overconfident!!

[/ QUOTE ]
I know what you mean, Carol!
We were the first team back, but we also got one wrong, so I think we ended up in 4th place. We didn't stick around for the results, because we were on a mission to get into the hotseat, so we went to MGM Studios with John (Towncrier) and Krista (KristaTX). Krista was able to make it into the hotseat that day!
Great trip reports. Keep up the good work!

[luvnwdwgal]

What a fun time you're having!! I'm really enjoying reading all about it!!

[Colexis Mom]

What great updates Carol! You're having so much fun at all these Mousefest events, and meeting so many great people! Can't wait for more

[ripkensnana]

MOUSEFEST 2004
OUR WONDERFUL TRIP WITH THE MOUSE

Day 7, The Mega Mouse Meet

We finally got a chance to sleep in for a bit, so took advantage. At about 9, I phoned TheGoof to change our plans to meet the next day, as I'd remembered that Bob and I had another obligation at the time that we'd agreed to meet . I caught him just as they were getting ready to leave for their days' adventures, so we decided to meet at 11 at the Haunted Mansion. TheGoof had told me that he'd found a Hidden Mickey he wanted to show me, so we were going on the ride together to see it (I love Hidden Mickeys! ).

We headed for the Magic Kingdom, and as we arrived at the TTC, we saw huge crowds....What were we getting into ? Since the monorail entrance was really full of people, we decided to take the ferry - a good choice, as it turned out, as it was just getting ready to depart . We landed at the Magic Kingdom dock, went through bag inspection, and into the park. We hustled up Main Street, past Cindy's Castle, and through Liberty Square, fighting humungous crowds ! I remembered (too late ) that you should never visit the Magic Kingdom on Saturday, because that's when all the locals visit ! I've never seen such crowds in my life....except at the Hallmark Store the day after Christmas !!

We got to the Haunted Mansion entrance (15 minutes late ) and couldn't see TheGoof or MaxGoof !! Did they get tired of waiting? Where were they ??? Bob went off to get a drink of water while I waited. I stood there, and stood there, and stood there, then happened to glance across the way, and there they were ! Bob was just approaching them, so we finally made contact. TheGoof was just putting the finishing touches on a note (with a picture of Mickey he'd drawn) thanking us for taking VIP Lounge vistit the day before. What a nice addition for our trip scrapbook ! It's going to have a place of honor !!

TheGoof told me that MaxGoof wanted to ride with me to show me the Hidden Mickey, and that he'd ride with Bob. This made me feel very special , because Max had just met me a couple of days before, and I was proud that he trusted me enough to ride alone with me .

So, we went into the Haunted Mansion, and boarded our Doom Buggies. Max and I didn't talk much, but he pointed out a few things along the way. When we got to the graveyard (where the Hidden Mickey was), I didn't hear Max tell me where to look, so I missed it ! TheGoof managed to get Bob to see it, though, so he'll show it to me. Max was a bit exasperated with me, telling his Dad, "She missed it!"

After the Haunted Mansion, Max asked if we could all do Splash Mountain (his favorite attraction, and one of mine), so to Frontierland we went ! Splash was great (as usual). We checked out the picture, but didn't get it, because some of our faces were covered up .

It was getting to be time for all of us to leave the Magic Kingdom for other parts - TheGoof and MaxGoof to Epcot, and Bob and I to the Swan for the MegaMouseMeet. We were all supposed to meet for breakfast the next morning at the Crystal Palace, but knowing about the trouble that TheGoof has getting Max out of bed in the morning , we said our goodbyes "just in case".

We jumped on the train back to the Main Street station, and boarded the monorail back to the TTC.

We arrived at the Swan a short time later, and entered through a side door, right where the meet was! How lucky was that ?

We went into the ballroom, and met lots of folks from lots of websites - RADP, Tagrel, MousePlanet, etc. While I was chatting with Lou Mongello and Brian (tiggerguy), Dennis (I can't remember his nickname) came along, so I got to meet him, too - another chatroom buddy !

I had a nice visit with Deanna Mongello and Vickie Barret, then wandered around and picked up some freebies (pens, pins, etc,), and I won a Tootsie Pop and pin for getting the correct answer to a puzzle that was put in the MouseFest booklet by MousePlanet.

Then came the drawing - and I didn't win anything ! Pat (joguss) won a tote bag with a couple of lunch vouchers, but I didn't win anything! I went up to Deb Wills after the drawing, and said, "Hey!" She replied, astounded, "I know!" I was beginning to think that my lucky streak had come to a halt!!

In the meantime, I'd talked to Dave Marx, and asked if he'd ever been in the VIP Lounge at Test Track. He replied in the negative, so I asked, "Would you like to?" He, of course, said that he would, so we planned on a time and place to meet on Tuesday morning.

I got my WDW guidebooks autographed - "Hidden Mickeys", my PassPorter guides (to WDW and to the Cruise Line), and the "Unofficial Guide". I even managed to have my Passporter signed by Allison, so mine's signed by all three authors - thanks again, Allison !

After the meet, we returned to POR and hung out for a couple of hours - got a bite from the food court, then put on some warmer clothing and headed for DownTown Disney, and the MEV party at the Adventurer's Club on Paradise Island.

We got to DD WestSide, and wandered the shops for a while (I love Starabilia - If I ever win the lottery....! ), waiting for 7:00 to roll around. I finally took the directions to the meeting place out of my pocket....what ?!? 6:15 ???!!! We're late !!!!! Oh, NO!!!!!!! I don't know how I got 7 o'clock stuck in my head, but I did ! We hustled to Paradise Island, got to the Adventurer's Club where we received our wristbands, and went downstairs where the party was in full swing. We were greeted with calls like, "Where have you been?", "You're late!", etc. .

We got some food from the buffet , then went into the library where we found Pat and Ray. We rearranged the seating a bit, and visited while waiting for the fun to start. Several entertainers were roaming the room, and the Gypsy seemed to take an interest in Ray, as she sat and chatted with him for quite a while !

Evenutally, we were instructed to go into the "lobby" (don't know what that particular room is called), where there was a huge cake, and we were inducted into the club by the President. Kungaloosh !!!

Back into the library for the show, which was very funny . At one point, some poor guy from the audience was dragged onstage to hold a cow in the air, while we sang some silly song . Lots of fun .

The party came to an end - much too soon - and as we were leaving, Donna (GoofyMom) introduced herself ! Another PassPorter!!! Cool !!!! I regret that I didn't have much time to chat with her , because Bob had disappeared (which can be dangerous !) and I had to try to find him.

When he reappeared, we left the Adventurers' Club and went to the Comedy Warehouse, where a show was in progress - I'd guess about 1/2 way through. We watched the rest of the show, which was quite funny . I enjoyed it for the most part, although I'm not really a big fan of Improv. These performers were good, though.

After the comedy club, we wandered through a few shops on our way to the Rock 'N' Roll Beach Club, because Bob is a big fan of classic R'n'R. There wasn't enough of that, though - the band seemed to be catering to the young crowd and was playing mostly new stuff, and Bob and I both felt that it was way too loud ! So, we left after only about 15 minutes.

I thought that the Jazz Company would be just the ticket, and it turned out to be a good choice - very cool and mellow . Bob ordered a beer, and we were amazed that it came in a plastic bottle ! We had to take the empty with us, because the folks up here would never believe it!

It was getting late, and we wanted to take advantage of EE at MK the next morning, so it was off to POR and bed at about 10.

[Colexis Mom]

Another great update Carol! Sounds like great fun at all your meets today

Can't wait for more

[BabieeMelly]

Anther great update! You got to meet so many people and went to quite a few meets, that must have been so much fun! I can't wait to hear more

[Tara O'Hara]

What a great day you guys had, Carol!! The Adventurer's Club sounded like a very fun party, too! Looking forward to tomorrow!!

[ripkensnana]

MOUSEFEST 2004
OUR WONDERFUL TRIP WITH THE MOUSE

Day 8, The Magic Kingdom and then some!

We arrived at the Magic Kingdom at 8:10 to take advantage of Early Entry, only to discover that Bob had left the camera in the van . He monorailed back to the TTC, got the all-important camera, and we finally entered MK at 8:30 .

We headed for Tomorrowland to do some things we hadn't done before....We managed to do Buzz Lightyear and Space Mountain before it was time to head for the Crystal Palace and our breakfast PS .

Buzz Lightyear is a clone of the Men in Black attraction at Universal Studios ....I'm not sure which came first , but it doesn't really matter, I love both rides! I managed to score 46,900 points, while Bob managed 17,500 . I don't know what levels those scores put us at, but it doesn't really matter - it was a real blast (pun intended!)

We headed to Space Mountain. While Bob is a rabid coaster fanatic , I am proud to state that I'm a Certified Coaster Chicken (and have a pin to prove it!). I'd ridden Space once before (In 1989), but told my dear, sweet hubby that I'd do it with him, since he did the teacups with me....he hates spinning rides like that!

Space Mountain wasn't as bad as I'd remembered, but I got shaken up quite a bit - which is one of the things I dislike about coasters - the jerkiness. Bob and I agreed that we don't really need to do this ride again - me because of the teeth-jarring shakiness, and Bob because he thinks it's too tame !

So, off to Crystal Palace for breakfast. We'd hoped to get together with TheGoof and his DS, but there was no sign of them - I later read his trip report and found out why - something about forgetting to remove the TV remote from his pocket when he left their room, and his attempts to return it after checking out. From his TR, I ascertained that they'd gotten in for their breakfast at about the time we were leaving - ships passing in the night. Good thing we'd said our goodbyes yesterday!!

When we were seated for breakfast, we discovered that Annette had struck again ! There on the table was a heart fashioned from Mickey confetti ! We'd only been seated a few minutes when Pooh came by. He made a big fuss over the heart, and I got kisses from him. Then along came Tigger, and he and Bob played for a bit (Bob is another Tigger.... ). No sooner had Tigger moved on, than here came Eeyore! Wow !! Three characters in a row, and all before our server even had a chance to get to us. I mean right away, almost as soon as we sat down. This was really quite magical !

I told Eeyore, "Thanks for noticing us," and got another kiss . He is such a sweet donkey !

Laurie, our server, finally got to take our drink orders and we headed for the buffet. So much to choose from! We loaded our plates and had a really scrumptious breakfast. The breakfast lasagna is to die for !

During the course of the meal, we were presented with a really nice certificate in honor of our anniversary. Tinker Bell is pictured on it, and it's autographed by all four characters! What a nice touch !!

We used our meal vouchers (from MEV) and found that we'd also get complimentary smoothies! We put the confetti in an empty film container, and posed with Piglet on our way out of the restaurant.

We went back to Tomorrowland and met up with Steve Barrett for the MK Hidden Mickey Hunt. We met a sweet young lady named Elizabeth (from Orlando), who tagged along with us. She told us that her parents have been letting her come to WDW by herself since she was 10 ....she's now 14. Elizabeth knew where most of the HM's were, but some were really tricky.

Our hunt took us to Tomorrowland, ToonTown (and through Mickey's Country House), Fantasyland, and Liberty Square. In Belle's Fairytale theatre, we had to wait until the show was over before we could find a particularly difficult one . By the time we found them all and located Steve again, we were in fourth place . Oh, well....Better luck next time.

We chatted with Steve for a bit, then went to Adventureland to roam the Swiss Family Tree House (another "new" thing for us). It was quite interesting, but those stairs !!! WOW!!!!! I'd have liked to have had more time to look things over (and catch my breath), but the crowd of people behind us didn't make that possible .

It was almost time for the PassPorter Treasure Hunt, so we went to the Plaza Pavilion to find the Marx's. This was another new thing for us....I guess I didn't realize it was even there! It's kinda hidden away.....

So, when everyone was gathered, we were given our list of questions, and a time limit. Many of the questions required that attractions be visited and had a varying degree of difficulty, so we grabbed a fastpass for Buzz and headed for CoP.

I love CoP. It's going to be such a shame when and if it finally goes to that big attraction heaven in the sky....

We got several answers here, then rode Buzz. We quickly gave up on trying to answer any of the questions for this ride, because things just move too fast in there, and just started shooting stuff (which was more fun, anyway!).

Wandering through Tomorrowland, we found some more answers....We rode CoP one more time, to find answers we'd missed the first time through, then reported back to the Plaza Pavilion "Headquarters".

We turned in our answers, then headed to the Share a Dream Come True parade with Lou, Deanna, and Marion Rose. She really loves Mickey - her parents are raising that child right!

After the parade, we returned to find out who'd won. Bob and I didn't get enough points to win anything, but it was fun just the same! I was pleased that the team winners were friends of ours...James D and Linda took first place, and Lou and Deanna won second....I'm sure that little Marion Rose is going to love the plush Sorcerer Mickey.

Someone (I can't remember who now) told us that Tink's Treasures had finger puppets for $1 each! Hey, great! Wonderful (and cheap) souvenirs to take home for friends!! Off to Tink's, where we found that they did, indeed, have said finger puppets. $1 each with any purchase....The next question was, "How many can we buy with one purchase?" The CM called her manager, and was told "25". I was in Hog Heaven! We grabbed Mickeys, Minnies, Goofys, Poohs, and Tiggers until we had 25, then Bob picked out a Tinkerbell pin he'd been eying. We had our treasures shipped to POR, and headed for Liberty Tree for our dinner PS.

We had lots of fun with the characters - Dale, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Chip, then Goofy and Minnie again. Pluto was particulary funny - He took someone's Christmas tree hat and ran around the room with it balanced on his nose. Then he played around, playing "Hide and Seek" with me behind my chair! He was really cute!

We got ready to leave the park, because it was getting to be MVMCP time, and we weren't doing that this evening. We stopped at Town Square Exposition Hall, which, again, we'd never done before. We were surprised at how much there was to it....I didn't really understand what was in there ! Lots of photo ops.

I was starting to feel the effects of a cold which I'd apparently picked up somewhere, and was feeling kinda punky , so we went back to our room and took a nap.

WARNING: DEFINITELY NON-DISNEY EVENING ENTERTAINMENT AHEAD. PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK!!! DANGER, WILL ROBINSON!!!!

Bob woke me up at 9:20, asking if I wanted to go to Parliament House (which a friend had told us about and recommended). I was really feeling bad by this time, but I got up and dressed for an evening out.

It took us a while to find the place, because the directions we'd been given were from the wrong direction !!! We finally figured out how to get there, and pulled into the parking lot. There was a huge billboard outside stating that this was: "Parliament House, Orlando's Number One Gay Resort and Bar" or words to that effect.

Before you get the idea that we were set up, we knew exactly where we were going and what we were getting into. Bob and I are regulars at one of the gay bars here in Lansing - we photograph all the Drag shows and special events (for their website), and I was one of the judges in a recent "Beauty Contest". So actually, we were looking forward to this evening.

BTW, if anyone would like to see some of the photos we've taken for the bar, here's the website http://www.spiraldancebar.com/
Just click on the Photos link, then check out the Party pix and the Cabaret night pictures....we took all the party ones and all but one - the fuzzy one on the upper right - of the cabaret night pictures. Also, the one on the upper left is the person who sent us to Parliament House.

We went into the building, and found the entrance to the "Footlight Theatre", where we caught the last act of the 10:30 show - a Diana Ross look-alike who appropriately did a Diana Ross number. Then the theatre was emptied, so we went to the bar and had a drink while waiting for the midnight show (which was the one our friend had recommended). As we waited, we were entertained by the piano player, and some of the people he invited to sing (apparently they were regulars). One girl in particular was really good!

Soon, we returned to the theatre, where we found seats in the first row.....Which turned out to be more fun than we'd bargained for.

The lights dimmed, the curtains opened, and we saw a huge, beautiful black drag queen in a shiny rust-colored gown. Our friend had told us that this was an ex-professional football player, and she was certainly big enough! She performed her number, then it was time to check out the audience....and guess who got checked out first thing!

Yup, Bob and me. We had a grand time with her, mentioning the name of our friend in the process (whom she pretended not to know). Then it was time to pick on others in the audience. She ended up by dragging (no pun intended this time) a cute 19-year-old guy up on stage with her, where she proceeded to do some really funny stuff, which I won't go into here, but trust me, it was extremely risque and highly hilarious! At one point she got another cute guy out of the audience, got me up on stage, then offered the first guy a choice of which of us he'd like to French kiss....me, the drag queen, or the cutie....Well, duh! I know which I'd have chosen....

So I returned to my seat (unkissed, which was okay by me, although I got lots of offers from some of the audience ). The two guys proceeded to kiss, then it was time for the rest of the show to begin.

I don't remember all the songs that were performed, but there was a rather large drag queen who did a country number "I'm Just Here for the Party", and another who was in an "Edward Scissorhands" costume who did Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". There was a total of 5 drag queens who performed, including the MC.

As we were leaving, we heard someone running up behind us shouting, "Michigan people, Michigan people". We turned around and saw a guy running toward us, so we waited for him to get to us. He told us that he knew our friend, and asked us to deliver a message for him, which we were glad to do. I'd picked up a couple of matchbooks in the bar, so asked him to write his message inside one of them (for future reference, if you're ever in a gay bar and want to give someone a private message - like your phone number this is one way to do it)....Our friend was ecstatic when we gave it to her.

It was now really late, but I was feeling better - I guess I just needed this bit of a boost to perk me up. So we went back to our room to slumber until our visit to the Studios the next morning.

[luvnwdwgal]

Thanks for the update Carol!!

[BabieeMelly]

Thanks for the update. It sounds like you had a great time at that bar - a whole new side of Orlando! lmao! I'm looking forward to hearing more!

[Tara O'Hara]

Great update, Carol!

[Colexis Mom]

Another great update Carol Sounds like a fun filled day, from beginning to end Hurry back with more

[ripkensnana]

MOUSEFEST 2004
OUR WONDERFUL TRIP WITH THE MOUSE

Day 9, Disney MGM

We slept in again , and I found that the throat problems which had begun to bug me the day before hadn't abated overnight. Drat!

We headed for Disney-MGM. Our first stop was my favorite shop, Villains in Vogue , where I found my favorite CM, Andy-Ross ! We chatted for a while, and he told me what the name Chernabog means: Dark God . Interesting! It's Eastern European, he told me. It was getting close to 10, so we thought we'd have time to fit in a visit to Who Wants to Be a Millionaire-Play It! before the 11:00 Hidden Mickey Hunt.

I checked the schedule....the first showing of WWTBAM wasn't to be until 11....drat ! Instead, we went to the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. Well, I'm sure that most of you have been there, and know how they choose volunteers from the audience to be extras..... (Ahem) ....I was a screamer....when we were asked who could scream really loud, I ignored my by now scratchy throat, jumped up and down and screamed my head off ....I was chosen to participate! Another first at WDW....getting onstage for the IJSS !

I ran onstage, and was joined by two other screamers - incidentally, the other female screamer was also named Carol ....what a coincidence! The guy was asked to scream as if a huge boulder had landed on his foot...which he did, with accompanying actions. We ladies were told to scream as if we'd fallen into a pit filled with really slimy worms, etc. I acted as if the nasty little critters were crawling all over me. Bob told me later that he thought I looked as if I were (how to phrase this delicately....? No way to be delicate, I guess) about to pee myself. It was good for a laugh, anyway

We were taken up to the upper right hand corner of the grandstand (as you're entering), and I handed the camera off to Bob as I passed him. Lucky we'd sat on the aisle! The volunteers were outfitted in proper Egyptian attire, then brought back onstage. One of the guys had on a really bright pink shirt....

So we were taken back onstage and given instructions....basically to be the crowd and to react when it was appropriate to do so. We were introduced to Indy and Marion, and went into our act. It's a whole different show when you're onstage. I'm afraid I kept getting caught up in watching what was going on, and not paying enough attention to our "director". This must be something that happens a lot, because I wasn't the only one, and some of the others were guilty of the same indiscretion. The director was right on top of things, though, and kept thing going smoothly.

Soon, we reached the part of the show where Marion starts pummeling one of the extras....the guy in the pink shirt, of course! And you all know who he was...a stunt man, of course ! We then took our bows, were told that we were the best group of extras they'd had so far that day (Hey! We were the first group of extras that day!!) and ran offstage to remove our costumes. I rejoined Bob, where we enjoyed the rest of the show together.

We still had a half-hour before the Hidden Mickey Hunt, so checked out Star Tours....the sign said that there was a five minute wait! Great! We'd ride that and still have lots of time. So we entered, taking the left-hand lane, of course! We got into the "factory" area, where there was a crowd...Oh, oh....!!! But the line should move relatively quickly....Or not....we straggled along, and finally got to the loading area and were about to board our vehicle, when I looked at my watch (for the umpteenth time) and found that we had 5 minutes to get to the meet. We took the "chicken out" exit and headed for the Sci-Fi Dine In, where we were to meet.

We arrived on time, and Steve handed out the by now familiar sheets of photos and lists of questions. Bob and I were joined by two other people....neither of whom we knew, but who tagged along with us. This was okay, I liked the company.

We f