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Sue's 2017 Memorial Day Weekend Trip - Day 1 of 4
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Sue/WDW1972
May 26, 2017, 9:33:08 PM5/26/17
to
Who: Sue (58), DVC Member
SB (59), my husband
Chris (30), son
Amanda (28), daughter-in-law
Ari (10.5 months), grandson (8th WDW trip)
Plan: Drive to WDW, Epcot
Actual: Today went pretty well. Work was less crazy than the other days this week, so I actually left a few minutes before noon. What I didn’t see was the email letting me know my room was ready! I assumed it wouldn’t come before 1:30, so by the time I started checking it was too far back to be seen. SB followed me but detoured off to get a bite to eat in Ocala. I arrived at Beach Club Villa at 2, which was right on schedule.
I was able to carry everything but a jug of water, and went to check on my room in the Villas lobby. Unfortunately, that wasn’t open – not sure when that changed. I took my stuff over to the regular Beach Club lobby, and stood in line at the front desk. I wasn’t particularly happy about this, and there were 2 cast members out front but both were with a single guest and didn’t even look up to notice me approaching and passing with luggage, cooler, etc. I was obviously checking in. Plus, the security cast member at the parking entrance had called up to report that I’d arrived. When I got to the front of the line one of the cast members from outside asked if she could help me, and she gave me my room number and packet.
I’m in a room I’ve had before – good location but in a corner so people in a couple other rooms can see into this studio. On the balcony there would be no privacy at all. Oh well, it’s only 3 nights. I started unpacking, and soon SB was on the phone asking for the room number, and he arrived a minute or 2 later. We watched the end of General Hospital and I worked on the report while we waited for the Hollands. They’re due around 3:30. SB & my first fastpass is 2:50-3:50 so I asked him what he wanted to do, and he said wait for Ari! That works for me too. On my way in from getting the jug of water I noticed they’ve moved the smoking area at the quiet pool to outside the fence! This is much better – people enjoying relaxing around the pool shouldn’t have to smell that stench. The smoking area has some shade, and a table, so they can sit there and play cards or set their drinks down.
Chris & Amanda arrived around 3:20 and are a few rooms away, around the corner. We waited for them to get settled and then went to their room. Ari has changed a lot since our last trip in March. He crawls like a speed demon, walks quickly when pushing a toy, and can stand on his own (without holding anything) for a little while. He hasn’t figured out how to walk without holding onto something or someone yet, but he will. He seemed a little unsure of SB, who he hasn’t seen on the last trips so SB is more of a stranger.
With a diaper change, general organizing of stuff, and a feeding, it was after 4 before we left the resort to walk over to Epcot. We had no wait at the security check or entry, which was nice! Once in the park it was somewhat crowded, but not horrible. Amazingly, we never encountered lines at the food kiosks and we were there until 8pm. Imagine that on a Friday night during Food & Wine, lol! Our first stop was in the UK, where both Chris and SB bought overpriced beers.
We headed to the Land first, and used our fastpasses there. Chris & Amanda had Living with the Land, while SB & I had Soarin’. We were able to get the center seats in the front row of the center section, so it was perfect. They were waiting for us in the exit area when we came out of the attraction. Their ride went much quicker, so they had time for Ari to crawl around and play with other kids & flirt with people, lol.
By now it was 5:23 and there was no way we’d get to the 5:30 concert so we walked over to Spaceship Earth. I was shocked to see hardly any standby line (10 minute wait posted, but it didn’t look that long). We used our fastpasses since there wasn’t anything else we were trying to do. Ari rode with us, and upon entering the vehicle he selected our language – Chinese! A few years ago Chris chose Japanese for my car, so I guess Ari’s a chip off the old block, lol! Our narration was in Chinese, and the words printed on the screen (in Chinese characters). Ari enjoyed the sights, and at the end we let him “choose” the answers to the questions since Chinese is more his language than ours. Also, at the beginning, for the picture – I held him up in front of my face, so the ending video was SB and Ari.
We headed out to World Showcase, after a detour through Club Cool and a restroom stop. Amanda gave Ari strawberry yogurt in a tube, which he loved. She’d wanted to try the frozen violet lemonade but missed it last time, so we went there next – Pineapple Promenade. SB got the pineapple soft swirl (dole whip) and Chris had the spicy hotdog, which was piled with some salsa that included pineapple to offset the really spicy stuff. He seemed to enjoy it. Amanda loved her frozen lemonade, which tasted more like berries than lemonade.
We continued walking, getting to America about 15 minutes before the 6:45 concert. Chris & Amanda took Ari into the air conditioned counter service place to feed him (Amanda had brought some baby food she’d made – spaghetti & meatballs today) and get a snack themselves. SB & I found great seats in the front row of the 2nd section, close to the center of the stage. The Spinners put on an EXCELLENT concert! They sounded great, and while SB knew every song, there was only 1 I wasn’t familiar with. The theater wasn’t even quite full, but the people there thoroughly enjoyed it. This is definitely a group we’ll hope to see again, and I think Tiana will really enjoy them tomorrow.
After the concert we met up with the Hollands, who were standing by the fountain outside the American Adventure. We continued walking, stopping in Norway for a photo before going to Mexico and riding the boat ride. We asked for the front row, so Ari could see everything. He seemed to really enjoy it, and we had fun watching him. After this it was almost time for their Frozen fastpass, but we went to the festival food kiosk first.
I got the grilled chicken w/red and green bell pepper served with salsa chile morita and garnished with micro cilantro and edible flowers. This was delicious, but very spicy! I took it to a table in a nice shady spot, and the Hollands joined us after getting food from La Isla Fresca for Chris. He had the sugar cane shrimp skewer with steamed rice & coconut lime sauce, and the flan. He seemed to love them both. I tried a bite of the flan and it was very tasty.
We parted ways at this point – they went to ride Frozen before returning to the resort. SB & I walked back to the resort, with him having pain from walking suddenly after not walking or exercising at home. We stopped at Beach Club Marketplace for his dinner, getting him the clam chowder and a frozen pot pie. To my surprise, he said it was a great dinner – he loved it, lol! I worked on the report and we had HGTV on in the background.
Today was a great start to the trip, although I wish SB would get himself used to walking! Ari is such a joy – it’s wonderful having him around (his parents too, lol). Tomorrow we’re starting really early, leaving here at 6:30 for Animal Kingdom! I hope we can walk through Pandora, but if not it’ll be here next trip.
Sue
SB (59), my husband
Chris (30), son
Amanda (28), daughter-in-law
Ari (10.5 months), grandson (8th WDW trip)
Plan: Drive to WDW, Epcot
Actual: Today went pretty well. Work was less crazy than the other days this week, so I actually left a few minutes before noon. What I didn’t see was the email letting me know my room was ready! I assumed it wouldn’t come before 1:30, so by the time I started checking it was too far back to be seen. SB followed me but detoured off to get a bite to eat in Ocala. I arrived at Beach Club Villa at 2, which was right on schedule.
I was able to carry everything but a jug of water, and went to check on my room in the Villas lobby. Unfortunately, that wasn’t open – not sure when that changed. I took my stuff over to the regular Beach Club lobby, and stood in line at the front desk. I wasn’t particularly happy about this, and there were 2 cast members out front but both were with a single guest and didn’t even look up to notice me approaching and passing with luggage, cooler, etc. I was obviously checking in. Plus, the security cast member at the parking entrance had called up to report that I’d arrived. When I got to the front of the line one of the cast members from outside asked if she could help me, and she gave me my room number and packet.
I’m in a room I’ve had before – good location but in a corner so people in a couple other rooms can see into this studio. On the balcony there would be no privacy at all. Oh well, it’s only 3 nights. I started unpacking, and soon SB was on the phone asking for the room number, and he arrived a minute or 2 later. We watched the end of General Hospital and I worked on the report while we waited for the Hollands. They’re due around 3:30. SB & my first fastpass is 2:50-3:50 so I asked him what he wanted to do, and he said wait for Ari! That works for me too. On my way in from getting the jug of water I noticed they’ve moved the smoking area at the quiet pool to outside the fence! This is much better – people enjoying relaxing around the pool shouldn’t have to smell that stench. The smoking area has some shade, and a table, so they can sit there and play cards or set their drinks down.
Chris & Amanda arrived around 3:20 and are a few rooms away, around the corner. We waited for them to get settled and then went to their room. Ari has changed a lot since our last trip in March. He crawls like a speed demon, walks quickly when pushing a toy, and can stand on his own (without holding anything) for a little while. He hasn’t figured out how to walk without holding onto something or someone yet, but he will. He seemed a little unsure of SB, who he hasn’t seen on the last trips so SB is more of a stranger.
With a diaper change, general organizing of stuff, and a feeding, it was after 4 before we left the resort to walk over to Epcot. We had no wait at the security check or entry, which was nice! Once in the park it was somewhat crowded, but not horrible. Amazingly, we never encountered lines at the food kiosks and we were there until 8pm. Imagine that on a Friday night during Food & Wine, lol! Our first stop was in the UK, where both Chris and SB bought overpriced beers.
We headed to the Land first, and used our fastpasses there. Chris & Amanda had Living with the Land, while SB & I had Soarin’. We were able to get the center seats in the front row of the center section, so it was perfect. They were waiting for us in the exit area when we came out of the attraction. Their ride went much quicker, so they had time for Ari to crawl around and play with other kids & flirt with people, lol.
By now it was 5:23 and there was no way we’d get to the 5:30 concert so we walked over to Spaceship Earth. I was shocked to see hardly any standby line (10 minute wait posted, but it didn’t look that long). We used our fastpasses since there wasn’t anything else we were trying to do. Ari rode with us, and upon entering the vehicle he selected our language – Chinese! A few years ago Chris chose Japanese for my car, so I guess Ari’s a chip off the old block, lol! Our narration was in Chinese, and the words printed on the screen (in Chinese characters). Ari enjoyed the sights, and at the end we let him “choose” the answers to the questions since Chinese is more his language than ours. Also, at the beginning, for the picture – I held him up in front of my face, so the ending video was SB and Ari.
We headed out to World Showcase, after a detour through Club Cool and a restroom stop. Amanda gave Ari strawberry yogurt in a tube, which he loved. She’d wanted to try the frozen violet lemonade but missed it last time, so we went there next – Pineapple Promenade. SB got the pineapple soft swirl (dole whip) and Chris had the spicy hotdog, which was piled with some salsa that included pineapple to offset the really spicy stuff. He seemed to enjoy it. Amanda loved her frozen lemonade, which tasted more like berries than lemonade.
We continued walking, getting to America about 15 minutes before the 6:45 concert. Chris & Amanda took Ari into the air conditioned counter service place to feed him (Amanda had brought some baby food she’d made – spaghetti & meatballs today) and get a snack themselves. SB & I found great seats in the front row of the 2nd section, close to the center of the stage. The Spinners put on an EXCELLENT concert! They sounded great, and while SB knew every song, there was only 1 I wasn’t familiar with. The theater wasn’t even quite full, but the people there thoroughly enjoyed it. This is definitely a group we’ll hope to see again, and I think Tiana will really enjoy them tomorrow.
After the concert we met up with the Hollands, who were standing by the fountain outside the American Adventure. We continued walking, stopping in Norway for a photo before going to Mexico and riding the boat ride. We asked for the front row, so Ari could see everything. He seemed to really enjoy it, and we had fun watching him. After this it was almost time for their Frozen fastpass, but we went to the festival food kiosk first.
I got the grilled chicken w/red and green bell pepper served with salsa chile morita and garnished with micro cilantro and edible flowers. This was delicious, but very spicy! I took it to a table in a nice shady spot, and the Hollands joined us after getting food from La Isla Fresca for Chris. He had the sugar cane shrimp skewer with steamed rice & coconut lime sauce, and the flan. He seemed to love them both. I tried a bite of the flan and it was very tasty.
We parted ways at this point – they went to ride Frozen before returning to the resort. SB & I walked back to the resort, with him having pain from walking suddenly after not walking or exercising at home. We stopped at Beach Club Marketplace for his dinner, getting him the clam chowder and a frozen pot pie. To my surprise, he said it was a great dinner – he loved it, lol! I worked on the report and we had HGTV on in the background.
Today was a great start to the trip, although I wish SB would get himself used to walking! Ari is such a joy – it’s wonderful having him around (his parents too, lol). Tomorrow we’re starting really early, leaving here at 6:30 for Animal Kingdom! I hope we can walk through Pandora, but if not it’ll be here next trip.
Sue
Rudeney
May 27, 2017, 10:36:53 AM5/27/17
to
On 5/26/2017 8:33 PM, Sue/WDW1972 wrote:
>
> Actual: Today went pretty well. Work was less crazy than the other days
> this week, so I actually left a few minutes before noon. What I didn’t see
> was the email letting me know my room was ready! I assumed it wouldn’t
> come before 1:30, so by the time I started checking it was too far back to
> be seen.
Well, it seems we need a little lesson on organizing our email, huh? :-)
>
> Actual: Today went pretty well. Work was less crazy than the other days
> this week, so I actually left a few minutes before noon. What I didn’t see
> was the email letting me know my room was ready! I assumed it wouldn’t
> come before 1:30, so by the time I started checking it was too far back to
> be seen.
Seriously, I used to have this problem. I'd get so much email generated from
various tracking and alert systems and such that I found myself spending at
least an hour a day doing nothing but sorting it. I finally figured out how
to setup filters so that it would mover certain messages to certain folders
for later review. I set these up on the email server, so that if I was
checking my email remotely (i.e. on my phone) I didn't even get those
messages. It made life so much easier! Of course that was work email, and I
keep my personal stuff separate with my own service. In that case, I get a
lot of spam, so what i have done is to use several different personal email
addresses to keep important stuff on one, spam on another. Oh well, just some
of my experiences. YMMV!
> I’m in a room I’ve had before
> good location but in a corner so people in a couple other rooms can see
> into this studio. On the balcony there would be no privacy at all.
> We had no wait at the security check or entry, which was nice! Once in the
> park it was somewhat crowded, but not horrible. Amazingly, we never
> encountered lines at the food kiosks and we were there until 8pm. Imagine
> that on a Friday night during Food & Wine, lol!
> SB & I found great seats in
> the front row of the 2nd section, close to the center of the stage. The
> Spinners put on an EXCELLENT concert! They sounded great, and while SB
> knew every song, there was only 1 I wasn’t familiar with. The theater
> wasn’t even quite full, but the people there thoroughly enjoyed it. This
> is definitely a group we’ll hope to see again, and I think Tiana will
> really enjoy them tomorrow.
part of a Motown revival convert I went to that also features The Four Tops
and The Temptations. Even though very few on the stage were from the original
groups, they were still very entertaining.
--
- RODNEY
Next WDW Vacation?
Who knows!
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Mark L Fendrick
May 27, 2017, 10:45:10 AM5/27/17
to
On Saturday, May 27, 2017 at 10:36:53 AM UTC-4, Rudeney wrote:
> On 5/26/2017 8:33 PM, Sue/WDW1972 wrote:
> > I’m in a room I’ve had before
>
>
> You know you're a Disneyholic when...
In less than 5 weeks I am sailing once again on the Disney Fantasy. I last sailed on her last August and was in stateroom 8034. When I was assigned my stateroom for this upcoming cruise I was surprised but happy to see that once again I was assigned to stateroom 8034!!
> On 5/26/2017 8:33 PM, Sue/WDW1972 wrote:
> > I’m in a room I’ve had before
>
>
> You know you're a Disneyholic when...
Iris/Jason/Brooke are in the adjoining stateroom!!
Mark
Lisa Cubbon
May 31, 2017, 9:51:42 AM5/31/17
to
L
Mark L Fendrick
May 31, 2017, 11:36:54 AM5/31/17
to
On Wednesday, May 31, 2017 at 9:51:42 AM UTC-4, Lisa wrote:
> > In less than 5 weeks I am sailing once again on the Disney Fantasy. I last sailed on her last August and was in stateroom 8034. When I was assigned my stateroom for this upcoming cruise I was surprised but happy to see that once again I was assigned to stateroom 8034!!
> >
> > Iris/Jason/Brooke are in the adjoining stateroom!!
> >
> >
> > Mark
> >
> WOW Mark, what luck... Sure. nothing like having an in with Disney. right?
>
>
> L
Not sure this had anything to do with an "in". We have booked the same level so the room assignment was probably nothing more than a coincidence, but having Iris in the adjoining room/verandah was due to booking together and requesting it. In fact, in a case like this, being a CM actually puts Iris at the bottom of the priority list.
> > In less than 5 weeks I am sailing once again on the Disney Fantasy. I last sailed on her last August and was in stateroom 8034. When I was assigned my stateroom for this upcoming cruise I was surprised but happy to see that once again I was assigned to stateroom 8034!!
> >
> > Iris/Jason/Brooke are in the adjoining stateroom!!
> >
> >
> > Mark
> >
> WOW Mark, what luck... Sure. nothing like having an in with Disney. right?
>
>
> L
One of the things that DCL does do for (to?) CM's and their traveling party is to seat them separately at dinner seatings. Personally I enjoy sitting with and meeting others at dinner, but we always have our own table. Brooke, however, is usually our ambassador to meeting and talking to the folks at the adjoining table. :-)
Mark
Lisa Cubbon
May 31, 2017, 1:32:44 PM5/31/17
to
On 5/31/17 11:36 AM, Mark L Fendrick wrote:
> On Wednesday, May 31, 2017 at 9:51:42 AM UTC-4, Lisa wrote:
>
>>> In less than 5 weeks I am sailing once again on the Disney Fantasy. I last sailed on her last August and was in stateroom 8034. When I was assigned my stateroom for this upcoming cruise I was surprised but happy to see that once again I was assigned to stateroom 8034!!
>>>
>>> Iris/Jason/Brooke are in the adjoining stateroom!!
>>>
>>>
>>> Mark
>>>
>> WOW Mark, what luck... Sure. nothing like having an in with Disney. right?
>>
>>
>> L
>
>
> Not sure this had anything to do with an "in". We have booked the same level so the room assignment was probably nothing more than a coincidence, but having Iris in the adjoining room/verandah was due to booking together and requesting it. In fact, in a case like this, being a CM actually puts Iris at the bottom of the priority list.
Doesn't seem the case this time and you got great cabins.
> On Wednesday, May 31, 2017 at 9:51:42 AM UTC-4, Lisa wrote:
>
>>> In less than 5 weeks I am sailing once again on the Disney Fantasy. I last sailed on her last August and was in stateroom 8034. When I was assigned my stateroom for this upcoming cruise I was surprised but happy to see that once again I was assigned to stateroom 8034!!
>>>
>>> Iris/Jason/Brooke are in the adjoining stateroom!!
>>>
>>>
>>> Mark
>>>
>> WOW Mark, what luck... Sure. nothing like having an in with Disney. right?
>>
>>
>> L
>
>
> Not sure this had anything to do with an "in". We have booked the same level so the room assignment was probably nothing more than a coincidence, but having Iris in the adjoining room/verandah was due to booking together and requesting it. In fact, in a case like this, being a CM actually puts Iris at the bottom of the priority list.
>
> One of the things that DCL does do for (to?) CM's and their traveling party is to seat them separately at dinner seatings. Personally I enjoy sitting with and meeting others at dinner, but we always have our own table. Brooke, however, is usually our ambassador to meeting and talking to the folks at the adjoining table. :-)
>
>
> Mark
>
meeting new people is best on a cruise. Brooke is a very friendly
> One of the things that DCL does do for (to?) CM's and their traveling party is to seat them separately at dinner seatings. Personally I enjoy sitting with and meeting others at dinner, but we always have our own table. Brooke, however, is usually our ambassador to meeting and talking to the folks at the adjoining table. :-)
>
>
> Mark
>
kid!
Lisa
Mark L Fendrick
May 31, 2017, 2:25:36 PM5/31/17
to
On Wednesday, May 31, 2017 at 1:32:44 PM UTC-4, Lisa wrote:
> >
> meeting new people is best on a cruise. Brooke is a very friendly
> kid!
Brooke does indeed like attention. If this cruise is anything like the last one, by the end of the cruise not only will the folks at the neighboring table be paying attention to her, ALL of the servers - not only ours - will be stopping by to say hello to her.
> >
> meeting new people is best on a cruise. Brooke is a very friendly
> kid!
Last cruise she was one of the very few kids at the second seating. It works well with her schedule as it turn out. She was catered to very nicely by our server and the head server and I expect that will be the case this trip as well. Her food was always waiting for her as we got to the table each night. By the end of the cruise, her needs were well anticipated.
Mark
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