Top 5 Things To Do Beyond The Parks

Beyond the parks?  What the heck does that mean?  You mean there are other things to do?

Heck, yeah!  I LOVE doing all the other things you can do without having to use a day on your park ticket.  Now, it really doesn't matter for me because I always get an AP, but I really want people to see that there are a lot of things you can take in outside the big 4 parks.

1. Miniature Golf

Disney has two fabulously fun mini golf courses on property!  And these just aren't your run-of-the-mill mini golf spots from back home.  You get fabulous theming!

Fantasia Gardens is located near the Swan and Dolphin Resort.  It's themed to...you guessed it...the classic Fantasia!  Actually, the classic themed course is just one of two 18-hole courses at Fantasia Gardens.  The other course I haven't actually done.  It's supposed to be fairly challenging.  But it's also pretty popular because supposedly this course can have the longer wait times.

Cost is around $12 for adults and $10 for kids under 10. Last I checked, if you played a second round right away it was half price.

Winter Summerland is located right near Blizzard Beach waterpark.  So it's a little closer to the Animal Kingdom park area. It too has two 18-hole courses:  one is covered in "snow" and the other is more tropical and holiday themed.  Both courses are probably equal in difficulty, which I'd say is not terrible.

Prices are the same as Fantasia Gardens.

2. Resort Hopping

Resort Hopping means you visit other resorts and just check them out.  This can be as simple as deciding to eat at the counter service place at another resort and doing a Hidden Mickey hunt while there.

Keep in mind that pool hopping is not allowed at some resorts.  Some resorts allow it, but you need to call ahead and ask about availability.

3. Waterplay

There are lots of water options you can take advantage of.
* Fishing excursions are available.  You go out on a pontoon boat and do a little catch-and-release.
* Pole fishing is available at some resorts.
* Rent a SeaRaycer.  These little two seaters are available at several resort marinas.  Kids age 12+ can pilot with an adult in the same boat.  Ages 16+ can drive solo.


4. Dinner Shows

Ahhhh...here we are, back to food!  There are three dinner show options on property and all of them are outside the parks.

* Hoop Dee Doo Revue is an old West Vaudeville type show at Fort Wilderness.  It's all you care to eat ribs, chicken, salad, corn bread and strawberry shortcake for dessert.  There are usually three shows each night.

* Mickey's Backyard BBQ is a bit of a character experience and located at Fort Wilderness as well.  It features more of your picnic type foods. Chicken, hot dogs, ribs, salads, corn on the cob...stuff like that. This one is not held year round nor is it every day.  It's usually on Tuesdays and Thursdays and is on hiatus for part of the winter months.

* Spirit of Aloha Luau is held at the Polynesian Resort.  You get the whole nine yards: hula dancing. tiki torches, fire dancing, etc.  You can expect the food to feature salad, pineapple, chicken, rice vegetables and a "volcano" dessert. There are usually two shows each night the show plays, which is Tuesday through Saturday.

5. Shopping at Downtown Disney

I think this is probably an obvious answer, but sometimes people forget that Downtown Disney is on the Disney Transportation System and is easy to get to.  You can take a leisurely shopping day, but it window shopping or buying the stores out.  Plus, the people watching can be very entertaining!

A couple more tidbits... It's sounding like Disney is NOT raising ticket prices tomorrow.  They may be waiting for the first full weekend in August to do that.  Stay tuned!

Also, it seems that Rapunzel and Flynn from the new Tangled movie will be moving into the space where Storytime with Belle used to be in Magic Kingdom later this year.  I'll be interested to see that.  From the previews, Rapunzel and Flynn look like a hoot.  They could be hugely entertaining.

Have a great weekend!

Mary

Tasty Tidbits Update - plus a reminder to get your tickets!

Sorry for my recent hiatus.  It's been one of those weeks where work gets in the way of play!  ;-)

Here's a bit of news to digest:

* Disney announced earlier this week that the Main Street Electrical Parade will stay in Florida with no specific end date!  Great news for those of us who just couldn't make it there this summer.

* Via Napoli, the new Italian restaurant at Epcot, is soft opening on August 5.  Have you seen the menu yet?  It's definitely tantalizing.  See AllEarsNet.com and check the menu (with prices) out.

* Disney announced HP is taking on a larger corporate role and there's a new field house at the WWoS involved.

* Have you heard about the Taste of Africa?  It's this new street party at Animal Kingdom that's in a trial run this summer.

The scoop is that there's a lot of entertainment in Harambe with specific food vendors and even some wines you can taste.  You can get a tasting card and try a certain number of wines during the festivities. The pics I've seen so far make it seem like a great family-oriented (Yes, stuff for kids, too!) activity in the latter part of the day at AK.

I'm staying tuned to this one because I hope it's still around OR becomes a permanent fixture in time for my next trip in a few months.

* Get your tickets by tomorrow.  Disney typically raises its ticket prices on the first Sunday in August.  And rumors seem to support that happening again this year.  So if you know you are traveling to WDW and need your tickets still, consider ordering them before Sunday.

* Disney has confirmed that it will not offer Wishes Dessert parties on hard-ticket event nights.  So if you are planning on attending an MNSSHP or an MVMCP, don't expect the Wishes Dessert party to be available.

I'm going to get my act together more here in the next week.

Have a great weekend!

Mary

Passporter Giveaway Results!

Well, I'm pleased to announce that Beth G is the winner of the Passporter!  Congrats, Beth!

Please send me an email so I can get your mailing address and get the Passporter out to you.

Thanks to those who did submit a comment.

Here's my next challenge for you, gentle readers:  I want to hit 100 followers for my blog in the next week. 

This is definitely do-able!  I helped a friend on a Facebook (she writes a cat-oriented blog) and in the space of a week, she and nearly 200 followers found each other! If you find my blog to be valuable and/or entertaining, I'd love your help in spreading the word!

Here's a couple of suggestions:

 - "Friend" me on Facebook, if we aren't already friends.
 -  Click the Facebook Share and/or the Tweetmeme button to share with  your friends if you are on Facebook and Twitter.

If there are other topics you'd like to see my blog about, please post a comment or send me an email!  I fixed the comments section so everything should show up now.

Have a fabulous day!

Mary

Holiday Happenings Announced & Passporter Giveaway!

Disney released a bunch of information regarding the Christmas Holiday Happenings at Walt Disney World.

Here's the pertinent information:

Castle Lights at Magic Kingdom - Nov. 8 through Jan. 3
This is has been a huge hit in the past few years.  Imagine Cinderella's Castle full of icicle lights that shimmer in blues and whites.  It totally puts you in the Christmas spirit.  I've been fortunate to see the Castle Lights each year since it's inception.  Here's a picture from one of my visits:

The show that leads up to the lighting of the castle is very sweet. It's one of those things where everyone is gathered around Main Street to take in the show.

Mary's Rating:  Totally Awesome!

The Osbourne Family Lights at Disney's Hollywood Studios - Nov. 8 through Jan. 3

I won't repeat the history of the Osbourne Family Lights, but read about it here if you aren't familiar with it.  The Backlot of the Studios is decked out with more than one million lights.  Be sure to check out the section that's set to music a la Transiberian Orchestra.

Mary's Rating:  Must See!

Holidays Around The World at Epcot - Nov. 26 through Dec. 30

I love Epcot at Christmastime. There are just so many things that you can take in.  I could go to Epcot every day over Christmastime. Here are a few of my faves:

Holiday Storytellers - Each country in the World Showcase has its own traditional storyteller based on the Christmas/ New Year time of year.  Each story is usually less than ten minutes and it makes for a really great way to tour Epcot.

Christmas Tree at the World Showcase Lagoon - While there is no longer a Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, this tree is very cool because it has not only versions of the traditional ornaments, but banners with the words, "Merry Christmas" in many different languages.

Candlight Processional - Every day, at the American Gardens Theater, the Story of Christmas is read by a celebrity and the music of Christmas is sung throughout the reading by different choirs from around the country.  There are three performances each day and the theater tends to fill quickly.  Want to guarantee yourself a seat?  Purchase the Candlelight Processional Dinner Package on the day you want to attend the CP. Reservations aren't being taken as of yet.  But stay tuned; word is July 25 is the currently rumored opening day for those reservations.

Holiday Illuminations - Epcot's fireworks show usually has an extra 12 minute ending choreographed to, "Let There Be Peace On Earth."  I'm not hugely emotional to fireworks shows, but if you don't tear up during that holiday ending...well, you are a much stronger person than I.

Mary's Rating:  Totally Must-Do!

Jingle Jungle Parade at Animal Kingdom -  Nov. 26 through Dec. 30

The parade at Animal Kingdom gets a holiday makeover in this parade. When we've taken this parade in, we've had great Cast Member interaction and a seriously enjoyable time.  The fact that Animal Kingdom closes earlier in the day at that time of year makes it easy for you to take in this parade and be able to hop to another park for the rest of the day.

Mary's Rating:  If you aren't a parade person, then you probably could pass on this.

This is just a snap-shot of some of the bigger happenings.  Like everything else at Disney World, all the little touches make the experience.

You know that O.D.D. I have...I'm a total believer in that Disney World IS the Place Where Magic Lives. But I especially live and breathe it at this time of year.

Now that I have gotten the news out of the way, let's get on with the giveaway.

I'm a huge planning type person.  Maybe you aren't or maybe you know you should be.  Maybe you are going to Disney soon, or maybe you know someone who's thinking about planning a trip.  Or maybe your friend is planning a trip and they haven't really done any planning.

I LOVE the Passporter!  I have a brand spanking new Passporter to give away.  AND you can choose if you want the Passporter for Walt Disney World OR the Passporter for Disneyland!

I know what you're thinking...how can I get one?

It's totally easy!  Make a comment on this post of the blog with your first name and first initial of your last name (e.g. Mary A.).  On July 28, I'll take the list of names and use Random Name Picker to select a winner.  I'll post the winner's name in a post after July 28 and we'll connect to get you your choice of Passporter!

Let me know if you have questions!

Mary

Random Resort Ramblings

Have you ever had one of those days where everything that can go wrong does?  Or what you want to have happen seems foiled at every turn?

It's only Tuesday and I'm having one of those weeks.

So in an effort to perk up my outlook on life, I've decided to do some Random Resort Ramblings.  Hopefully my little bit of trivia perks you up and makes you say, "Cool!  I didn't know that!"

*Did you know there was going to be a 4th monorail resort?
Way back when, there are some old plans for a Venetian themed resort between the Polynesian and the Contemporary.

*'Ohana, one of the table service restaurants at the Polynesian,  used to be called Tangeroa Terrace.

* Port Orleans French Quarter and Port Orleans Riverside used to be called Port Orleans and Dixie Landings, respectively.

* There are 25 two bedroom dedicated villas with two queens in the 2nd bedroom at the Beach Club Villas.  Rumor has it that an architectural mistake made the rest of the dedicated rooms too small to have the two queens in the 2nd bedroom of the rest of those room types.

* Some Grand Floridian rooms have Alice in Wonderland wallpaper.

* The Polynesian and the Grand Floridian both have boats that can ferry guests to and from Magic Kingdom in addition to the monorail.

* You can take the boat to Fort Wilderness from Magic Kingdom.  Take advantage of visiting Trail's End Buffeteria and exploring the campground.

* Boardwalk Inn has 14  Garden Suites that look like a two story cottage.

*Archery classes are offered occasionally at Fort Wilderness.

* In Caribbean Cay at Caribbean Beach, once you get through all the foliage, in the center are gazebos, hammocks, and picnic tables.

Stay tuned for a future blog post with a Disney giveaway.

Southwest Airlines - New Favorite Airline...Or Not?

Sorry for my recent absence.  It's been one of those things where work and life got in the way of posting here.

Earlier this week, I headed to Chicago for a business conference.  For those of you who don't know, my home airport is MSP (Minneapolis) and Delta is the major player in town.  I rarely get the deals that airports, say on the east coast, tend to offer.

I would usually fly NWA-now-Delta into Chicago-Midway for my conference because they had a time schedule I liked and usually met the prices of the "other guys."  Well all the other airlines had dropped the route for this year.

Until Southwest came to town.

Like all WDW fans, I'm well aware of the reputation that Southwest has among the flying public.  Low fares, on-time, friendly, etc.

So when Southwest came to town, I was glad they finally entered the MSP market.  Initially, I was hoping SWA would influence fares to MCO.

But since I needed to head to MDW and Southwest flew there, I thought I'd check the schedule and see if it would work for me.

Actually, it turns out Southwest worked way better than Delta.  I didn't want to spend any more money on the expensive conference hotel room than I had to.  But I needed to be to McCormick Place in Chicago by 9am.  Delta's first flight didn't leave MSP until after 7am.  But SWA had a 6am flight that got me into MDW at 7:25am.  The return flight options were good so I booked with SWA.

Since I was on a time schedule, I paid the $10 Early Bird fee so I didn't have to get up and check-in to get the coveted "A" boarding pass.

"What's that?", you say?  Well, SWA doesn't have assigned seating.  You board in three groups: A, B and C.  Obviously, if you get to board with the A group, you have the best choice of seats. 

Like all airlines, you can only check-in online 24 hours ahead of time. And it's first come, first serve.  So you need to be online at the right time, with everyone else, to get a "good spot."

If you don't care where you are on the plane, then SWA is definitely your deal.  I am totally anal about where I sit on the plane.  I need to be in an aisle - it's a control thing - and I want to be as far forward as possible.   So that's why I did the Early Bird.

Anyway, back to the flights themselves.

I wasn't sure how I'd like what the traveling public refers to as the "cattle call" that SWA uses to board its planes.

At the gate in Humphrey Terminal, there were six posts in the floor, spaced equally apart.  Each post had a set of numbers on it on each side.  One side went: 1-5, 6-10, etc. through 30.  The other side was 31-35, 36-40, etc. through 60.  As each group is called, passengers line up in the order that is printed on their boarding pass.

Each flight, I had A20.  FYI, A1-15 is reserved for Business Select - essentially the biz traveler who's paying the higher fare.

I honestly thought it would take longer with people seeking out an open seat.  But it went REALLY fast.

Let me repeat that: It went REALLY fast.

I don't know exactly what time we pushed back from the gate, but I can tell you, we arrived at our gate in Chicago at 7:12am - almost 15 minutes early.  And it wasn't because we caught a tailwind.

The flight back boarded a lot slower.  But there were issues beyond SWA's control.  The usual people carrying on a bag that's too large seemed out of place for SWA.  I mean, come on, you can check two bags for FREE with them!  Check your big honkin' bag already!

Now, here's what I didn't like about SWA:

1. Seats.
The seats were very uncomfortable for me.  They seemed permanently reclined even when fully upright.  If I leaned into the seat back for any length of time, my lower back was killing me.  I felt like I needed a pillow or something for some lumbar support. I can't imagine how bad my back would have felt on a flight to MCO that's three times the length of a flight to MDW.

2. Check-In Reminder Email
Maybe I didn't get this because I signed up for Early Bird.  But I never got one reminding me to print out my boarding pass.  I'm not one to need it, but it would have been nice when I was traveling to receive one.

Bottom Line:  Southwest's operations made a favorable impression.  But the uncomfortable seats combined with no available non-stop flights to MCO means that they'd have to have a seriously low fare for me to fly them on a Disney vacation.

Could It Be...Disney Finds A Way To Do Italian?

Disney and Italian food? 

I've never been a fan of Disney's attempts at Italian.

Tony's Town Square in Magic Kingdom: 
To me, the menu seems limited and uninspiring. Is it a cute environment?  Sure.  But why should I pay Disney prices for what is basic Italian that I could get at a chain restaurant?

Tutto Italia has some interesting items, but frankly, I'm not interested in spending $24 for what is essentially a vegetarian pasta.  Oh, and that's the lunch price.

But the new Via Napoli is raising eyebrows all over the place.  Today, the Disney Parks Blog released some details on the menu and to me, it just sounds like a breath of fresh air.

Here's a snippet:
Appetizers: Sicilian eggplant with olives and raisins; salad of lettuce, fagiolini (string beans), fennel and tomatoes; arancini (fried saffron risotto balls) with meat ragù, mozzarella and pomodoro sauce; corn-crusted fried calamari; and minestrone with basil pesto. Or share a plate of arancini, mozzarella, calamari, portobella mushrooms, asparagus, zucchini and carciofi (artichokes).
Main course salads: Manzo (filet of beef) with greens, red onion, gorgonzola, apple and cucumber with a red wine-mustard vinaigrette; chopped salad with lemon chicken, greens, cantaloupe, cucumber, red pepper, green beans, onions, almonds and pasta crisps with honey-citrus vinaigrette; calamari with arugula, carrots and fennel with orange vinaigrette.
Pastas: candele (long, tube-shaped pasta) with sausage ragù; linguine with seafood; malfadine (ribbon pasta) with guanciale (unsmoked Italian bacon) and pomodoro sauce; lasagna verde.
Piatti alla Parmigiana: (dishes topped with Parmesan and mozzarella gratinée): veal, chicken and eggplant.
Wood-fired pizzas: made with caputo flour imported from Southern Italy, San Marzano tomatoes, handmade mozzarella and water from a local spring just like in Italy’s Campania region – 10-inch, 20-inch or 1/2 meter to share: a dozen choices, from a simple pizza Margherita with tomato, mozzarella and basil to carciofi with artichoke, potato, pecorino cheese, prosciutto and cantaloupe.
Sweets: tiramisù, zeppole di ricotta (ricotta cheese-fried dough, whipped cream and chocolate sauce); apple cake with almond sorbetti; gelatie; and vanilla gelato with almond cookies and amarena cherries.
 *~*~*~*
Can I just say that I'm highly interested in how cantaloupe tastes on a pizza?  I never in a million years would have tried that!

And the risotto balls just sound divine ~ but I love rice, too.

I'm particularly interested in the chopped salad ~ minus the onions.  Follow me long enough and you'll soon find that onions don't exist is my world.  Ick on all fronts.

Here's the other news:  Via Napoli opens next month!  August 2010!  No firm date yet, but keep following and I'll share as soon as I know. 

I can't wait to try this place...

Star Tours 2.0 will be an ever changing journey at DL and WDW

Too excited to do more than quote the LA Times...

Imagine a theme park ride that is never the same experience twice.

Riders aboard the new Star Tours attraction coming to Disneyland in Anaheim and Disney’s Hollywood Studios near Orlando, Fla., in 2011 will have the power to change the storyline throughout the simulator ride, resulting in a different beginning, middle and end for every journey.

Star Tours 2.0, taking place between the “Star Wars” prequels and the original trilogy, will update the 1980s simulator ride with high-definition 3-D technology and special effects.


In the new ride dubbed “The Adventures Continue,” riders on board the StarSpeeder 3000 transport ship will join a pod race on the fictional planet Tatooine; fly above the skyscrapers of Coruscant, another fictional planet; and visit other destinations in the “Star Wars” universe.

Although not yet confirmed, those other destinations may include the Wookie planet of Kashyyyk, the unfinished Death Star space station and Queen Amidala’s home planet of Naboo, according to images released by Disney and LucasFilm.

A top-secret Star Tours film shoot in West Hollywood reportedly included action sequences featuring bounty hunter Boba Fett, a holographic communiqué from rebel alliance commander Admiral Ackbar and scenes involving familiar “Star Wars” aliens, according to Slashfilm.

*****

All I have to say is that it sounds amazing!

Free Dining? Should you do it?

Well, the word has leaked today that Free Dining has been extended into December at Walt Disney World.

Not familiar with Free Dining? Here's a quick summation:

When you purchase a full price resort room package of at least 3 nights plus a 2-day theme park ticket, you can get a Magic Your Way Dining Plan for free.

If you stay at a Value Resort, you can get the Quick Service Plan for free. If you stay at a Moderate, Deluxe or Deluxe Villa Resort, you get the regular Dining Plan for free.

Now the question becomes: Is this a good deal?

Here are 5 things you need to ask yourself:

1. What's my total out of pocket cost going to be?
Crunch your numbers! There are many people out there who have crunched the numbers and found that the "free" dining you are getting is not offset by having to pay rack rate for the room you are staying in.

As always, your mileage may vary. So crunch the numbers and don't get caught up in the buzz of getting free food.

2. Be aware of the cancellation policies of packages.

Unlike room-only reservations, package reservations require payment in full 45 days in advance. And unless you buy trip insurance, you have to cancel more than 45 days in advance if you decide not to go.

3. Can you get a better deal with a room-only discount?
Many times, room-only discounts come out and are 20%-40% off rack rate. This can be a greater savings for you overall, depending on how you like to dine. There aren't any of that type of public discount out right now, but if you sit tight, you might get one.

4. Are you really going to use all those food credits?
People go for the dining plan for convenience or because they feel like they are getting a "deal." I know two families, personally, who did their best to use the dining plan to its extent and still had oodles of snack credits left on departure day. One family used their credits on some fruit to take with them on the plane, but they had so many credits leftover that they left my family a full grocery bag of bottled waters just so they could use up the credits.

Again, don't get caught up in the "deal" just because it's "free."

5. Do you want to be tied to a meal schedule?

This kind of goes with #4. I'll be the first one to tell you that I have done trips where I did schedule our touring plan around where we were eating.

This was before the dining plan was born.

When you have all these credits and you are trying to get the most our of your free dining plan, you may have to sacrifice touring time to waiting for your ADR, leaving a park early to meet an ADR, or getting out of line for an attraction to meet an ADR.

Only you can decide if you want to be ruled by your dining plan.

Bottom line: Look at the big picture. Take the emotion out of this decision. In these economic times, it's so easy to just jump on the first thing that says "FREE" on it. Like everything else, you need to look at the fine print. With this free dining offer, you need to assess how well it will work for your individual travel party.

Celebrate The Magic - June 15, 2010 - It's Party Time!

The after-hours party at MGM Studios was set to start at 7pm. Sorry, I still can't call it Hollywood Studios.  Using the acronym DHS makes me think of Homeland Security and I can't think about that at Disney.


Anyway, the info I had was that the buses would be leaving CSR at 6:30pm.  I figured it would be a good idea to leave the room around 5:45pm so we had time to walk to El Centro and find out where we would be catching these buses.

We left a little later than I wanted and got to El Centro around 6pm. 

I need to back up a little and talk about our shirts.  I mentioned in an earlier post that we make tie-dye Mickey t-shirts for our trips.  Well, I also make what I call "Paint Mickey" shirts.  I have a foam cutout of a Mickey head and I get paint in a spray bottle from Michael's craft store.  I spray the paint colors randomly over the template and tada!  Paint Mickey.

Here's Bryan and the kids in their Paint Mickey shirts:

and the boys being goofy:

We got into El Centro and followed the sea of people that were going to this event. I heard from a couple of different sources that there were 5000-6000 people traveling with this incentive group.  Now, I wonder if it was 5000-6000 people or 5000-6000 consultants plus their traveling parties.  I never did find out.


We wandered down the same hallway that we took to go to our special Extra Magic Hours.  And then we came to a stop.  I guess everyone else thought to get there a little early, too.


Here's the sea of people in front of us:

And here's the sea of people behind us:

We slowly got to the place where they were handing out these cool light-up cakes with the company logo on it.  It was on a string and meant to wear around your neck.  Stefan decided he wanted to be a walking light bulb and put Bryan's and Cate's on with his at the same time.

We slowly moved outside to what seemed like a huge number of buses to take us all to MGM. Once we got on the bus, I'm like, "Come on!  Let's go."  As we waiting, I looked out the window and saw that my friend Laurie was on the bus right next to ours.


Finally, I could see some movement at the front of the line.  The buses were moving.  Wait a minute!  Laurie's bus is moving!  Mine isn't moving!  Ack!  Waiting on a bus is like waiting in line and Mary does not wait in lines!


Our bus finally made it out of CSR and was on it way the short distance to MGM. We crossed over the bridge and...wait a minute...we're going in the back way!  The entrance that says, "Cast Members Only"...seriously, I just about died with excitement.  Getting to see backstage at Disney is not something you get to do everyday.


Of course, I am on the wrong side of the bus to get the best pics, but here are some I snapped as we are driving backstage.

We're behind Tower of Terror.  I don't even like that ride.  But we're behind Tower of Terror!  It's SO cool!

We finally come to a stop and as I look out my window, I can see where our entrance to the park will be.  See all the Disney Security people?

Here we go!

It turns out we are entering right by Rockin' Rollercoaster!  It was a really fun way to enter the park.  Disney was handing out beverages and we had a choice of bottled water or cans of pop.  We had a special map just for our event showing what was available to us.  And since it had rained earlier in the day, Disney was also handing out ponchos for anyone who wanted them, just in case.

These cool banners were all over the parks. It's kind of hard to see in this picture, but the girl in the lime green shirt was part of a group of cast members dressed up as Aerosmith groupies.  They were very funny.

And even though it seemed crowded as you walked into the park, you can see how quickly people dispersed to where it felt like there was practically nobody there.


Here's a shot looking down Hollywood Blvd. toward Mickey's Hat.

The cool part about this night is that while there were two specific sites for a dinner buffet, there were these dessert tables all over MGM with birthday cupcakes.  I think I may have mentioned that this year is the 30th anniversary of this company and June 15th happens to be the founder's birthday, too.

Stefan and Cate had to grab one of those for quality control purposes as we were walking.  Two thumbs up.


We're still meandering down Hollywood Blvd.

If you've ever been to MGM, you know that they have some serious "Streetmosphere" going on.  Cast Members in character that probably came from the kitschy 50s and 60s.  Well, we ran into a couple of ladies with some seriously cutting edge fashion costumes.  They had some of the tools from our product line added in for effect.  It was hilarious!

Well, we were hot to trot to get back to Toy Story Midway Mania. As we made the turn to go past the Mickey Hat, there was a stage and a funky sort of fairy godmother on it.

It's a little blurry.  But I was walking a little fast.


Here she is on the big screen that was also right there.

She was there to welcome us and tell us about different special activities that were coming up.


As we headed to Toy Story, we discovered that there was another back entrance that people were being let off at...right there by Toy Story.

So it got to be a little crazy there.  Thankfully, we were there early enough that we probably only waited 15 minutes to get on.  We thought about getting on again, but the line was already long and we were hungry.


One of the dinner buffets was supposed to be near Playhouse Disney.  We walked in that direction, but once there were told that location was totally full and we should head to Indiana Jones for the other buffet location.


So we headed over to Indy:

How cool is this?  We get to eat on the set of the Indiana Jones show!


This was probably my least favorite part of the night.  They really needed to have more locations for eating.  It was packed.  I got into a side buffet line with no people, but it was for salads and then there was some mashed potatoes and steamed tilapia.  My kids had gotten into the main line which was huge. I fed them from my plate because I knew they were hungry.  


I found out that the reason that line was so big was because it fed into the grill section.  Disney was grilling steaks and shrimp skewers. 


45 minutes later I got a plate of food. It tasted good, but the wait was just not cool.  Then as I'm sitting there eating, they announce that all counter service eateries are open for eating.  If only we knew that earlier, we wouldn't have wasted 1/4 of the time on eating.

Anyway, it is what it is.  

Cate thought it was so cool to be eating on the Indiana Jones set and needed pictures.

Stefan headed off to Star Wars while I was finishing.  After I was done, Cate, Bryan and I headed out to find him.



As we got close to Star Wars, all of a sudden this yellow truck comes out from backstage.

It turns out it's Mulch, Sweat and Shears.  Now, here's another first for me!  I had never seen these guys in all the times we'd been to WDW. I told Bryan I was following them to see what they were going to do.  So he and Cate headed over to Star Wars.


Mulch, Sweat and Shears pulled over near the entrance to Indiana Jones.  Turns out, they are a band.  Check out the truck.

Bandscaping!  I love it!


Anyway, the truck is pulling a trailer that looks like it's supposed to be full of landscaping tools but it's really a portable stage!

Pretty soon, they are playing all kinds of 70s and 80s type songs and those of us who gathered are dancing around and semi-head bangin'.  I can't even tell you what all they played right now because I was just totally into it.  I remember the last song they played for that set was "Come Sail Away." 


Here's a pic:

They were super fun and I'm going to make a greater effort to see them on future visits.


Everyone else caught up with me after that and we decided to head toward the Great Movie Ride.  As we walked in that direction, we say the birthday cake all lit up.  Sorry it's a little blurry...again, it was me walking to fast while shooting.

The Great Move Ride was yet another first for us.  We just hadn't made the time to see it before this.  The kids really liked it, except they were a little nervous going through the Alien set. 

At that point, Cate and I were ready to head back.  The boys decided they wanted to ride Rockin' Rollercoaster.


She and I angled our way through the sidewalks because the parade was going on. She stopped to watch for a second, so I snapped this shot from one of the marquees:

There were lots and lots of these types of things all over the park.

We headed out of the park to the buses for CSR.  We waited a little bit for the bus to fill up, but we were shortly on our way.  The bus dropped us off at the convention center so we had a short walk to the room.


Cate and I were both a little sweaty so we took showers before climbing into PJs and waiting for the boys.  They arrived not long after that.  Turned out they got to ride RNR twice in a row because nobody was there.


All in all it was a very enjoyable party! 


Next Post:  Going Home and Summing Up



T