WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

[ColinA]

Not a nice way to start the Disney part of the vacation, the joys of traveling.

Do you think you will be up to Be Our Guest on Tuesday.

[ColinA]

Anthony is on top of the world, the Eels are at the top of the table!

[ajp]

Anthony is on top of the world, the Eels are at the top of the table!

YES! -/

[churros]

Bad news Keith - I am an expert on being sick in WDW and on the cruise. Disney will give you info on a local doctor service which picks you up at the resort and bring you back.

And I agree with Anthony about the cruise - lie and do not tell them you are sick or you won't get on the boat or be confined to your cabin!

[ColinA]

Anthony is on top of the world, the Eels are at the top of the table!

YES! -/

I spoke too soon!

[KeithS]

Do you think you will be up to Be Our Guest on Tuesday.

Hi Colin.

Yep - we are still going tonight. I might not eat a great deal, but I'll still there!

Feeling a little better today - yesterday I spent the entire time in Hollywood Studios - I'll post the journal entry later. At the moment, Della has gone to Downtown Disney to shop and I'm back in the room relaxing.

Thanks for the advice about the cruise, but I should be fine by then, there is still nearly two weeks to go.

[KeithS]

I know, I know - you wanted some photos and I have been slack. So here are some daily photos of the day for you.


Day 1 - Hogsmeade - love the roofs off the buildings in this shot, and Hogwarts Castle in the background.


Day 2 - Universal Studios - Della enjoying the sunshine on a cold clear morning.


Day 3 - Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Centre (I need to go back and visit again!)


Day 4 - Honeydukes Sweet Shop in Hogsmeade. All the shops here were insanely detailed!

[alice in wonderland]

Glad you are feeling a little better -/ -/

[ajp]

Thats a spectacular HP photo with Hogwarts in the back.

[churros]

Great photos!

[ajp]

They've been a little quiet, Keith must be healthy again and they're having too much fun.

[ColinA]

They've been a little quiet, Keith must be healthy again and they're having too much fun.

Yes, I was thinking that. Waiting for the report on Be Our Guest!

[KeithS]

They've been a little quiet, Keith must be healthy again and they're having too much fun.

LOL! Sorry guys, that is exactly what's been happening, we've been flat out over here.

Anyway, I'll post the journals now for the last few days!

[KeithS]

11 March 2013 – Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Today is our Hollywood Studios day and while I was still sick, we thought we’d do a full day just taking in all the shows as they allow more sitting down which will make it easier on me. We got through security okay at the park but before heading through the turnstiles, we pulled over to fix up our back packs and came face to face with a black snake – and not an animatronic one! He was lying in the sun in the garden, just beside the fence where we were standing. We’ve seen lots of Florida wildlife this trip, lots of squirrels, alligators, and now a snake.

Anyway, after going through the gate, we headed straight to the Great Movie Ride. Last time we here in 2006, we rode the left queue, so this time we took the right hand side for the alternate version of the ride (it has taken us 7 years but we’ve finally seen both versions!)

After that, we wandered over to the Lights, Motors, Action, stunt show. We’d seen this in Paris many years ago, but not the WDW version – but it was essentially the same. They have added a sequence with Lightning McQueen though, and that bought a huge laugh and cheering from the crowd. The show went for about 50 minutes (a little longer than normal as one of the cars broke down! LOL)

We stopped for a quick lunch before heading to the Muppets. That theatre was so comfortable that I started drifting if to sleep until they started squirting things at me – hehe. Of course, Della took the obligatory trip to the gift shop and bought some Muppet stuff, then we headed over to the Disney Animation area to see the animation show. We also saw Wreck-it-Ralph, Vanellope, Mr & Mrs Incredible.

Next, it was on to the Voyage of the Little Mermaid which is still a great little show (and Ariel was beautiful!)

And finally for the day, we headed to the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. I’d forgotten how good and how funny this show is. If only the kids on the row behind us hadn’t chatted for the whole show! In general though, this trip we haven’t had much drama with bad audience or behaviour here – considering this is Spring Break and the place is PACKED, that’s not a bad result.

We had dinner in the Farmer’s Market area before hitting the shops and making our way back to the hotel, and big day over.

[KeithS]

12 March 2013 – Downtown Disney/Magic Kingdom
This morning we awoke to steady rain, which immediately posed a problem for us – how do we get to the food court without drowning? We didn’t have an umbrella or ponchos and the rain was quiet heavy. We stood on the balcony discussing options when we decided to go back in the room and perhaps grab a towel. Inside the room, I noticed we had a large garbage bin with two bags. I threw one over Della’s head to experiment, and it fit perfectly – we just needed to cut a head-hole for each of us and we were off! We had a few weird looks but we only needed to get to the shop and buy proper ponchos.

After breakfast, Della said she wanted to go to Downtown Disney and that I could stay at the resort if I wished (woohoo!) – so Della hit the bus and I sat down to update journals and photos until her return, which is exactly what I did. It gave me an extra day of rest prior to visiting Be Our Guest Restaurant later in the evening.

Della meanwhile hit Downtown beginning with The Christmas Shop – then she hit Design a Tee, Wonderful World of Memories, The Art of Disney, Little Miss Matched, Fun Finds, Pin Traders, Once Upon a Toy, Tren-D, and Team Mickey. Obviously with that much shopping, she needed a break, so she popped into Ghirardelli for a Nob Hill Chill chocolate drink. An orchestra was playing by the water, so she camped near them to drink and listen. Back to the shops and next up was Arribas Bros, World of Disney, then back to Arribas. She also popped into Mickey’s Pantry before coming home to show me the loot.

It was late afternoon, so we prepared to head to the Magic Kingdom for our dinner at the Be Our Guest Restaurant. We arrived at MK and headed straight down Main St, through the castle, and into the New Fantasyland. We had a quick walk around, looking at all the new areas before checking in for our dinner.

We walked into the restaurant and wow! We were blown away by the central dining room where we were seated – it is a replica of the ballroom from Beauty and the Beast. While being lead to our table, we were shown the Master’s drawing room where the Beast stood, greeting diners. Our server was Joe who was great (everyone in this restaurant was great) and Della and I both ordered the strip steak with garlic and herb butter and pomme-fritts. It was totally yummy. Della had the lemon meringue cupcake dessert, and I had the chocolate (double chocolate?) mudcake cupcake. Both of those were fantastic too.

While we were waiting for main meals, we asked if we could speak to Becky who is Colin’s friend. She came over to our table and was absolutely gorgeous – a nicer person you’ll never meet! We got a group photo together and also a group photo with our server (and the Beast!) and then made our way out of the park for the evening (dodging the Main Street Electrical Parade.) Two thumbs up for the Be Our Guest restaurant!