Hunky Tuna Tostada - Fall 2017 DR - completed 7/12 - Animal Kingdom Snacks

[paradesintherain]

Well, despite my best intentions, the final six weeks prior to the wedding really de-railed my reporting endeavors! I'm happy to report that we are blissfully wed and safely home from our "mini-moon"

ahhh CONGRATULATIONS!!

This is soooo cute, I love it!

Wow your dress is gorgeous, and this photo is stunning. Feel free to share many more!

This is a really nice ring!

So the verdict?! Very decent pizza at a very reasonable price.

I just had Blaze in my town tonight! It's sooooo yummy and really such a reasonable price. Tempting to have it again at Disney!

 

[ThreeBoyMama]

Congratulations! Can't wait to hear/see more about the wedding. I love your hubby's ring!

I also want that pizza. Like right now.

 

[amalone1013]

I love the balloon photo! And can't wait to see more wedding photos, looks amazing so far. You look beautiful!

And I love R's band, but I'm biased Zack fell pretty in love with a watch there back in January. We might have to stop in there this fall... Though apparently there is a Na Hoku about 30 mins from us? Never knew!

We stopped at Blaze at DLR twice, on our way back from the parks at 12:30am for midnight snacks I was pretty surprised by how much I enjoyed it! I think it's really good for the price, and I love that it's customizable.

 

[pepperandchips]

We did this on our last trip, it was a lot of fun! A great way to start the day!

It really was, I can't believe we'd never done it before. I *JUST* saw your Disneyland report and "watched" it. You're probably done with it by now but I can't wait to catch up. And I finally connected the dots on fb... Doh! Sorry about that but we are official now! Cue the happy dance. haha!

His eggs look ok here. The whole plate looks yum

It's not that I find them to be of poor quality, I just don't eat buffet eggs because I eat so many eggs at home and a scrambled egg is a scrambled egg, in my book! Gotta save tummy space for the GOOD stuff!!!

Your plate looks better!

Of course it does (hair flip!) haha. Okay now this review from MONTHS ago is making me hungry. Back on the diet plan this week stinks.

Welcome back! Loved seeing all your photos on Facebook. You ladies certainly seemed to be having a great time!

So infinitely jealous of how close you are to Disney and how you can get there with just an over night trip.

Looks like you all had a great breakfast at Trails End. We've done it once and were big fans too. Definitely one of the best Disney deals going.

We had the best time ever. Seriously it might have been my favorite ever Disney trip... well, Disney WORLD. Disneyland is hard to beat! It is rough being exactly six hours away as it's ALMOST close enough to justify a normal weekend trip but that drive back is awful at the close of every visit. If we were one hour closer or one hour farther I think the choice would be more clear. Though maybe not, I'd probably just justify the extra hour anyway Love that Trail's End! I actually suggested it to R on our "mini-moon" after we cancelled CG Brunch (yes I know ) and he said NO! I was so shocked. It's like his favorite. However I know we will return!!!

I'm glad you had such a good time for your bachelorette. Disney is a perfect place to celebrate

Oh my gosh yes, it was so fun! I need to get more "friend trips" on the books! My girls all got a picture at my wedding as the Mindie bach reunion. Made me cry a little! (They didn't all know each other before that weekend). I love it when my friends love each other!!!

I've never ridden that before, how do you do that exactly? It sounds like fun.

It just so happened to be waiting in front of the main street theater (where you meet Mickey) just as we were passing and we just climbed aboard! It was fun. I feel like we've never done it because I always blaze down Main Street on the way to something else. I will have to force myself to take it slower from now on!

My mouth is literally watering over that pulled pork benedict! I've never been to Trail's End but the food looks right up DH's alley. I don't think I can convince him to do any more breakfasts on our next trip though. But I will keep TE in mind for sure!

We have that issue too as we are frequently still in the park during prime breakfast hours (or we are in sleep-in mode and lunch is the first meal of the day!) The holidays were great for breakfast though because the parks open so early you can get a couple of hours of rides in prior to breakfast. Wish they would keep them going until 11:30!

You girls did all look like you were having SO much fun! It's awesome you're so close to Disney that you could have your bachelorette party there

Ugh, as my favorite resort I am ashamed we've never managed to see the Christmas decor there. Our stays have never been during the holidays and while we planned to visit twice, never made it. I need to remedy that.

WHAT?! You're practically the queen of the WL. How could you not visit your realm during the holidays?!

Haven't had those particular drinks there but Geyser Point = fabulous

Your TE breakfast looks great! Steve and I did brunch there a couple years ago and then we all had Thanksgiving dinner there in 2016 and loved both meals. Chris has actually asked for breakfast there but we haven't made it yet

I'm not ashamed to admit that we tend to seek out the lower priced breakfast buffets if "all you can eat waffles" is in the forecast for us, as the character meals are super fun but we just don't enjoy them enough to justify the cost very often. If I am remembering correctly Trail's End is the most affordable one and certainly even better with TIW, but I think brunch is the way to go with the lunch offerings added in. It's hard not to miss that yummy fried chicken! And omg thanksgiving dinner... YES! Sounds like an amazing plan. I'm still pondering our Thanksgiving plans. I think we will be at that other park on Thanksgiving Day since we can do express and avoid a little of the Disney insanity.

And I am having Geyser Point withdrawals... though all I have to do is remind myself that it's probably 900 billion degrees there right now even with the breeze coming off the lake

 

[pepperandchips]

Ive been off of the boards boycotting because of my canceled trip and totally missed you’re engaged!!!! I’m so happy for you!

I am so happy for YOU! Getting your trip!!! And thank you, it means a lot. We WBC people have a special bond... haha

Hey Melinda!! It’s Samantha! So fun meeting you and I hope you had a great time on your bachelorette trip!

EVERYONE! It's a CELEBRITY!!! The only Dis-er I've randomly bumped into in real life!

my friend is still telling people that story. And also thank you for being our bus friends because those guys on the bus were kinda creepy after we all disembarked at the Dolphin. It was weird... And thank you again for saying hi. It made me so happy!

Love your update and the breakfast at Trail's End looks fantastic! It may have to go on the list for this summer's trip with my niece! Your wedding must be coming up so quickly now, hope all the planning is going well!

Well obviously I did a horrible job responding since I am married now! Hopefully that's a fair excuse. The problem with reading all the yummy reports on the Boards is that I want to pack everything into "the next trip" and it's agony deciding!

Just found and read your entire report in one go! You have had a crazy busy, trip filled year!! How wonderful for you! Thanks for taking the time to provide so many great reviews

Wow thank you! Yes, I have a Disney problem... it's hard staying away when we're in driving distance! Don't worry... many more reviews still coming but not too many installments left in this report. I hope!

Loving these reviews! Your California Grill brunch makes me so excited that I booked that for my next trip!

I have it booked for my next trip too, but I have to admit... I cancelled my reservation for just over a week ago We had just eaten TOO MUCH at that point! I can't believe I just said that. It's really such a fantastic experience, I am looking forward to returning. On our fall trip CG Brunch falls on Day 2, so I am sure I will find room for all the deliciousness on that visit!!! Thank you for reading along!!

 

[pepperandchips]

CONGRATULATIONS!!!
I love his choice of wedding band-it's gorgeous!

Thank you!!! I love it too! I always knew R was a sweet guy but the wedding stuff really brought out his sentimentality. I love that his ring is an homage to the location of our engagement. Though our rings don't match they both have a nod to nature which I love

Congratulations! The wedding picture of you two is gorgeous! It's funny, I was just thinking about you today and was wondering how the wedding went. Can't wait to hear all about it!

I will have to do a little write up since the couple things I shared didn't bore everyone silly. Maybe when I finally catch up on all my reports I will share a little from the "mini-moon" stop we did at Walt Disney World and some more pictures when we get them back from our photographers.

Congratulations! And great photos of the two of you - even the one you “stole”.

Thank you!!! I just loved that idea so much - a Disney wedding was definitely out of the question for us but I liked honoring my "Disney side" with the photo shoot.

Omgoodness! You looked amazing! Congrats

Thank you!!! When is your trip? Soon, right? Isn't it THIS WEEK?!

Congratulations! I love your wedding dress! Absolutely beautiful!


Fabulous Photo!

Thank you so much!!!

Congratulations!!!! You both look happy & awesome!!

Thank you!! It is still wedded bliss Definitely the happiest day I have ever had!

Congrats!

Glad you finally tried blaze! It is a wonderful cheap option!

Thank you!!!

I know, I can't believe it took us that long to try Blaze but I knew they were a chain. Still it was great for a later night especially with us being so close to our resort. The December trip really opened our eyes to Saratoga Springs. We will definitely be looking at it more for renting points (I can't bear to use my dear VGF points for SSR!)

Congrats!

I know you can order a thicker crust for an upcharge. We have one around here, but we're not too crazy about it. It is a neat idea to have a pizza place where you can pick the toppings like that though.

Thank you! We had a similar chain to Blaze here for a while but I think all the locations near me went out of business - Uncle Maddio's... the idea was the same. I have very specific ideas about what thick crust pizza should be, so I'd probably better stick to their thin crust lol

So funny story, apparently R's facebook always suggests you as a friend for him in the "people you may know". He saw that you liked something on my feed recently and he was like "Why did Raeven like that? She likes Disney?" I was like ummm I know her from the boards! He apparently thought we worked together so you've made it to the big time!!! hahaha

ahhh CONGRATULATIONS!!

Thank you I have your Poly trip report open in a new tab to follow... I can't believe you finished the whole thing already! Can't wait to catch up.

This is soooo cute, I love it!

Thank you!

Wow your dress is gorgeous, and this photo is stunning. Feel free to share many more!

Well, I mean, if the people demand it! hahaha!

This is a really nice ring!

I love it, and I am so glad he was able to pick it out in person. As Alyssa's husband found out the hard way, the wood grain can be very very different from ring to ring.

I just had Blaze in my town tonight! It's sooooo yummy and really such a reasonable price. Tempting to have it again at Disney!

I am trying so hard to get back on the wagon with eating after letting myself enjoy everything I wanted from the rehearsal dinner on... I WANT PIZZA

Congratulations! Can't wait to hear/see more about the wedding. I love your hubby's ring!

I also want that pizza. Like right now.

Thank you! I will make sure to include more wedding details!!!

I want pizza too! Like the struggle is real. Why am I on the boards right before dinner time?! Foolish!!!

I love the balloon photo! And can't wait to see more wedding photos, looks amazing so far. You look beautiful!

Thank you! It was the best day ever. I forgot I haven't shared more on facebook... I will have to share a few here since everybody is being so sweet about indulging me.

And I love R's band, but I'm biased Zack fell pretty in love with a watch there back in January. We might have to stop in there this fall... Though apparently there is a Na Hoku about 30 mins from us? Never knew!

What! That is amazing. Yeah we stopped in the weekend before last because R wanted to see about getting it engraved with the wedding date but they have to send it all the way to Hawaii for engraving so he decided to hold off! It was actually so affordable I offered for us to get him a spare engraved he declined... something about the sentimentality... yeah yeah yeah

We stopped at Blaze at DLR twice, on our way back from the parks at 12:30am for midnight snacks I was pretty surprised by how much I enjoyed it! I think it's really good for the price, and I love that it's customizable.

It is definitely great for a late dinner, especially because by that hour nothing sounds better than pizza! Or tacos... but I mean, I am a mexican food machine... Man now I really want pizza.

 

[kastoney]

Welcome back and Congratulations!!! Missed you around here.

Your wedding photos are beyond perfection. So happy for you both.

Glad to hear Blaze was good. Just found one there is one not too far from our house that we have to check out

 

[Chelley00]

Thank you!!! When is your trip? Soon, right? Isn't it THIS WEEK?!.

We leave Saturday if I get us packed in time

 

[Finkerfell]

Always LOVE your reviews! Beautiful wedding picture as well!!

 

[pepperandchips]

Welcome back and Congratulations!!! Missed you around here.

Your wedding photos are beyond perfection. So happy for you both.

Glad to hear Blaze was good. Just found one there is one not too far from our house that we have to check out

Thank you! I have been saving the end of your report for a nice weekend binge and then I noticed you finished it while I was off getting married and all I WILL catch up!!!

We leave Saturday if I get us packed in time

I am sure you will! You deserve it. I am so jealous, a whole week with that Stormalong Bay pool at your disposal!

Always LOVE your reviews! Beautiful wedding picture as well!!

Thank you so much! And thank you for following along

 

[pepperandchips]

December 22:

The following morning we slept in as we'd had a bit of a late night the evening before. We thought of having a pool day this day but the sun wasn't really out enough in the morning to warm up the weather as much as we'd like, so we decided to explore the resort a little and find lunch!

This trip really opened my eyes about Saratoga Springs. I'd never given it a shot since it seems to get mixed reviews, but I was able to rent DVC points and get a great rate ($140 per night) for a standard studio. The proximity to Disney Springs is fantastic, despite us getting assigned a room that was pretty far away from the walking path to Disney Springs. While the resort is spread out, this really helped us feel transported and immersed in a relaxing setting. I would probably spring for a preferred location in the future. We were in Carousel 7336. I made this marked up map to show the area where our room was. I had requested a room in The Paddock near the Disney Springs walkway. Oh well.

We decided to try lunch at the Artist's Palette, the quick service restaurant at our resort. It was hopping for lunch!!! It's the usual QS set up where you order and pay and they give you an RFID coaster and bring you your food.

I had the Italian Flatbread sandwich with house made chips - Ham, Salami, Mortadella, Pepperoncini, Lettuce, Tomato and Provolone Cheese with Red Wine Vinaigrette Mayonnaise wrapped in a Flatbread and served with House-made Chips or Vegetable Slaw ($11.49). This was good, the bread was fresh and soft and I LOVE Italian sandwiches so this was a hit for me. It was also MASSIVE and served with a huge portion of chips. We easily could've shared this, but we both tend to get excited about different options so R just had to help me finish mine.

R chose a different but also large sandwich - the meatball sub. If I recall, this was the daily special, and I can't find it on any online menus, so my story is somewhat corroborated here. This was really pretty good for quick service - we both liked the meatballs and given the hearty nature of the sandwich this was also a really large portion. ($9.99)

The bakery case is always particularly tempting to my beloved, and the bakery case at Artist's Palette is in the line for ordering, so R had to pick up a dessert.

He went for the egg nog cupcake ($5.49). Despite having an egg nog custard filling this was pretty dry and one-note and not something I would seek out in future.

Overall, I would definitely recommend Artist's Palette if you are staying at Saratoga Springs and don't feel like heading over to Disney Springs. The best part was that this is one of the few quick service locations that accepts Tables in Wonderland so we saved $6.05, making our lunch $25.79.

After lunch, it still wasn't really warm enough to swim so we decided to head to Epcot to check out the Festival of the Holidays!

On the bus we saw this woman who looked exactly like my grandmother, who passed away in 1997. From her keds and Christmas socks to her sparkly purse and bejeweled holiday sweater, she was the spitting image of my Granny. It was so cute and I loved her style!

As usual, our tour of Epcot began with us heading to Canada to our beloved beer cart, only I was distracted along the way...

I really wanted a tamale as they are one of my favorite foods and a real pain to make at home, but I was still too full of Italian sandwich to stomach it at this time, so we went on to the beer cart... but they didn't have our favorite Unibroue draft due to the festival! So we backtracked to the Yukon (Candada) festival booth and each got a Unibroue Éphémère Elderberry – $4.25

I really liked this (give me all the seasonal flavored Epehemeres, please!) but I think R could have skipped the extra fruitiness from the Elderberry. I loved it because it wasn't too sweet. It looks like Unibroue only brewed this once (in 2017) so I am glad I got to try it!

We wanted to finally watch the Canada circlevision film but we'd apparently JUST missed the start of one and I didn't really feel like putzing around for 18 minutes waiting on the next showing. On we schlepped, and of course our beers were long gone by the time we passed the international gateway, so we needed to stop at another booth!

I'm a major sucker for France's seasonal festival slushes, so I had the Spiced Rum Punch Slush: Spiced Rum, Rhum Clement V.S.O.P., Orange and Pineapple Juice with Cinnamon –$10.75. This was an interesting change from the usual citrus offerings at the Food and Wine or Flower and Garden festival kiosks. You could definitely taste the orange and the spices. I liked it and will get it again if I have an opportunity.

Meanwhile, my then-fiance now-husband is a bottomless pit when it comes to dessert, so he opted for the Bûche de Noël au Chocolat: Slice of Chocolate Christmas Yule Log – $4.75

This was not very good. It was really dry and not what R was expecting. He didn't like it, which is a pretty bad reflection on a dessert as he's usually a fan of anything sweet. I don't even think he finished it (definitely not the norm)

We stopped in to the American Adventure and checked out the hidden Mickeys on the gingerbread capitol, before taking in a showing of the actual American Adventure. We don't see this very often, and I honestly think it might have been R's first viewing. He loves Mark Twain but fell asleep during the presentation...

We revived ourselves with a refreshing (? ) Shipyard Eggnog White Porter, Clearwater, FL – $4.25 - from the American Holiday Table. This had been recommended (I think on the Dis Unplugged podcast) but I didn't care for it much, it just tasted too artificial to me.

We continued our travels, stopping at the Bavaria Holiday Kitchen for the German Artisan Cheese Plate: German ButterKase with Ham, Mushroom Brie with Pretzel Crostini and Tillamook Cheddar – $5.25. These were delicious (though let's be real, I love all cheeses) and I especially enjoyed the mushroom brie, though I could have done with another few crostini. I didn't take notes on the beverage and have no recollection of what it was though I suspect it might have been the black currant cider. Sorry, bad reporting there.

As anyone who's seen it can tell you, we watched the Illuminations globe travel through the drawbridge between African Outpost and China and OMG is it cool to watch!!!

As it had been two hours since our last dessert, we decided to visit the Cookie Nook booth inside the Odyssey Pavilion. I feel like the booths inside the Odyssey can always be counted on for good beer, and this festival was more of the same reliability.

We each selected a beer - I had the Brew Hub Pumpkin Spice Dunkelweiss, Lakeland, Florida – $4.25 while R had the Central 28 Beer Company Joy From the World Holiday Dubble, DeBary, Florida – $4.25. We both liked these picks.

AND HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL! My favorite thing we had tried from the festival so far: Warm Apple Fritter with Cinnamon Ice Cream and Warm Caramel Sauce – $4.75

This ice cream was to die for, especially on top of that amazing fritter with the caramel. Oh yum. I would love to have another one of these! Like all the best parts of churro flavoring with even more yumminess added in. We also enjoyed looking at the art and voting on our favorite of the CM holiday wreaths created by various Disney departments.

I think this is a good place to stop this installment, as there's only a bit more from Epcot and then we had a delicious dinner.

Up next: Do I get my Tamale? Would R convince me to have dinner at Disney Springs again?!

 

[suse66]

Overall, I would definitely recommend Artist's Palette if you are staying at Saratoga Springs and don't feel like heading over to Disney Springs.

Your lunch looks great. Definitely big servings!

As usual, our tour of Epcot began with us heading to Canada to our beloved beer cart, only I was distracted along the way...

Canada is always the best place to start!

This was not very good. It was really dry and not what R was expecting. He didn't like it, which is a pretty bad reflection on a dessert as he's usually a fan of anything sweet. I don't even think he finished it (definitely not the norm)

This doesn't even look yummy. Poor R, not what he was hoping for!

the German Artisan Cheese Plate: German ButterKase with Ham, Mushroom Brie with Pretzel Crostini and Tillamook Cheddar – $5.25. These were delicious (though let's be real, I love all cheeses) and I especially enjoyed the mushroom brie, though I could have done with another few crostini.

Now this looks great! I also have not met cheese that I didn't love!

AND HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL! My favorite thing we had tried from the festival so far: Warm Apple Fritter with Cinnamon Ice Cream and Warm Caramel Sauce – $4.75

This ice cream was to die for, especially on top of that amazing fritter with the caramel. Oh yum. I would love to have another one of these! Like all the best parts of churro flavoring with even more yumminess added in. We also enjoyed looking at the art and voting on our favorite of the CM holiday wreaths created by various Disney departments.

Oh my! I would be in heaven over this. All my favourite flavours! I think I could eat cardboard if it had caramel sauce on it!

 

[MeghanEmily]

Oh my gosh, Melinda! You don't know how long this thread has sat in my "Watched Threads" list. Probably almost as long as you've been writing it, and shortly after you started following my TRs and I noticed how many of the same Disfriends we have. I FINALLY got a chance to read it (as well as your Aulani report) and I'm so glad to be caught up now! Congrats on your marriage I quoted a few stand-out things along the way as I read...

I think it was worth every penny and wish I could have Boma breakfast on every trip.

Um. Yes. All the yes. I wish I could have Boma breakfast every day. But if not, every trip will have to do.

However, I am still enamored with both the land and the Navi River Journey ride. I probably wouldn't wait more than 20 minutes in the standby line (which I've seen at 200+ minutes recently, which is NUTS) but I do think it is really beautiful and serene. I love the music and the detail that the imagineers put into filling all of the space. It's pure Disney magic to me, though I know I am in the minority on that opinion.

I'm with you on that one. I wouldn't wait very long for it, but I find it really beautiful and engrossing. Maybe there's more they could have done with plot here? But I also just think it's a lovely reflection of the other-worldly land they were trying to create, the bioluminescence, the plant life, the spirituality and culture, etc. If I'm not having Nathan do the FOP FP thing, I'm happy to ride this on a FP instead.

I was also on some kind of peace sign kick which I can no longer explain...

This is soo pretty! I've never watched Illuminations from Japan before.

Tiramisu with Italian Sorella Mascarpone and Chocolate Sauce $12.00. Maybe it's something in the mascarpone at Citricos, but this was another gem. I absolutely love tiramisu and have a hard time resisting it anywhere, but it's certainly hard to say no to tiramisu in bed with the monorail whooshing quietly by outside your patio. And with that, another heavenly night at the Grand Floridian was complete.

This looks so amazing! I can't imagine a lovelier night than sitting in bed at the GF eating this.

Got my engagement photos back and I absolutely love them.

Gorgeous! You guys look awesome, and this picture really has personality.

And a blurry picture of the hidden mickey in my "dessert" - a chocolate martini

Such a cute hidden touch! And this martini looks amazing.

We didn't have any real plans to speak of this morning, so when we saw the omnibus waiting near the theater, we decided to take a ride!

I've still never done this, but I really want to! Maybe next time...

This is soo cute!

here's one more sneak peek for those of you who haven't found me on social media yet...

Amazing!

Again, congrats! Can't wait to see/hear more.

As usual, our tour of Epcot began with us heading to Canada to our beloved beer cart

If you ever make it up to the real Canada on a beer run, make sure to look me up! I know from personal experience that we're only about a 30 hour drive away from you guys.

We continued our travels, stopping at the Bavaria Holiday Kitchen for the German Artisan Cheese Plate: German ButterKase with Ham, Mushroom Brie with Pretzel Crostini and Tillamook Cheddar – $5.25. These were delicious (though let's be real, I love all cheeses) and I especially enjoyed the mushroom brie, though I could have done with another few crostini.

SUCH a cool photo! And this simple little cheese offering looks so delicious.

 

[amalone1013]

I'm a major sucker for France's seasonal festival slushes, so I had the Spiced Rum Punch Slush: Spiced Rum, Rhum Clement V.S.O.P., Orange and Pineapple Juice with Cinnamon –$10.75. This was an interesting change from the usual citrus offerings at the Food and Wine or Flower and Garden festival kiosks. You could definitely taste the orange and the spices. I liked it and will get it again if I have an opportunity.

Yum! Zack was especially fond of this, I think because rum is his drink of choice

Meanwhile, my then-fiance now-husband is a bottomless pit when it comes to dessert, so he opted for the Bûche de Noël au Chocolat: Slice of Chocolate Christmas Yule Log – $4.75

Me too but this was a bit hard to eat!

We stopped in to the American Adventure and checked out the hidden Mickeys on the gingerbread capitol, before taking in a showing of the actual American Adventure. We don't see this very often, and I honestly think it might have been R's first viewing. He loves Mark Twain but fell asleep during the presentation..

I missed this! Now i need to go for Christmas again.

Zack fell asleep when we did AA too. So he requested going on our January trip... and then they took it down unexpectedly!

We continued our travels, stopping at the Bavaria Holiday Kitchen for the German Artisan Cheese Plate: German ButterKase with Ham, Mushroom Brie with Pretzel Crostini and Tillamook Cheddar – $5.25.

Cheeeeeeese... I surprised myself with how much I liked the brie.

and I noticed how many of the same Disfriends we have

ugh guys, how can we have a disboards friends meet? How??

 

[FSU Girl]

I've thought about staying there, but I don't like how spread out the hotel is.

This looks really good and it's nice when they give you a decent size for the price.

He went for the egg nog cupcake ($5.49). Despite having an egg nog custard filling this was pretty dry and one-note and not something I would seek out in future.

That's too bad that it was dry, it looks really cute.

I really liked this (give me all the seasonal flavored Epehemeres, please!) but I think R could have skipped the extra fruitiness from the Elderberry. I loved it because it wasn't too sweet. It looks like Unibroue only brewed this once (in 2017) so I am glad I got to try it!

This looks really good.

I'm a major sucker for France's seasonal festival slushes, so I had the Spiced Rum Punch Slush: Spiced Rum, Rhum Clement V.S.O.P., Orange and Pineapple Juice with Cinnamon –$10.75. This was an interesting change from the usual citrus offerings at the Food and Wine or Flower and Garden festival kiosks. You could definitely taste the orange and the spices. I liked it and will get it again if I have an opportunity.

Yum! And I love your nail polish, I think I have that color.

This was not very good. It was really dry and not what R was expecting. He didn't like it, which is a pretty bad

Seems like a lot of stuff was dry, that's a shame.

Your magic band is so cute! Is it a specialty one or did you get a monorail sticker?

It's hard to go wrong with cheese.

As anyone who's seen it can tell you, we watched the Illuminations globe travel through the drawbridge between African Outpost and China and OMG is it cool to watch!!!

That is really cool. I knew it opened, but I've never seen it happen before.

AND HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL! My favorite thing we had tried from the festival so far: Warm Apple Fritter with Cinnamon Ice Cream and Warm Caramel Sauce – $4.75

This ice cream was to die for, especially on top of that amazing fritter with the caramel. Oh yum. I would love to have another one of these! Like all the best parts of churro flavoring with even more yumminess added in. We also enjoyed looking at the art and voting on our favorite of the CM holiday wreaths created by various Disney departments.

This looks delicious.

Congrats on your marriage

 

[Sailormoon2]

All of those festival drinks sound amazing, too bad they weren't as delicious as anticipated. I am glad you found a better than acceptable dessert in the end.

 

[Texans_loyal]

congrats hun! You look stunning and that photo is breathtaking! so happy for you!

 

[SweetSerenity]

I'm so glad you're back! CONGRATULATIONS!!! You look so beautiful! I can't wait to hear all about the wedding and see more pictures!

 

[areno79]

Welcome back and congratulations!

 

[kastoney]

This trip really opened my eyes about Saratoga Springs. I'd never given it a shot since it seems to get mixed reviews, but I was able to rent DVC points and get a great rate ($140 per night) for a standard studio. The proximity to Disney Springs is fantastic, despite us getting assigned a room that was pretty far away from the walking path to Disney Springs. While the resort is spread out, this really helped us feel transported and immersed in a relaxing setting. I would probably spring for a preferred location in the future. We were in Carousel 7336. I made this marked up map to show the area where our room was. I had requested a room in The Paddock near the Disney Springs walkway. Oh well.

Glad to hear Saratoga worked out so well for you. We've never considered staying there largely because the large layout and multiple bus stops sounded like more of a pain than it was worth. Maybe we'll give it a try one day.

I had the Italian Flatbread sandwich with house made chips - Ham, Salami, Mortadella, Pepperoncini, Lettuce, Tomato and Provolone Cheese with Red Wine Vinaigrette Mayonnaise wrapped in a Flatbread and served with House-made Chips or Vegetable Slaw ($11.49). This was good, the bread was fresh and soft and I LOVE Italian sandwiches so this was a hit for me. It was also MASSIVE and served with a huge portion of chips. We easily could've shared this, but we both tend to get excited about different options so R just had to help me finish mine.

Yum! This looks so good. I"m a total sucker for an Italian sandwich too so this would be right tup my alley!

On the bus we saw this woman who looked exactly like my grandmother, who passed away in 1997. From her keds and Christmas socks to her sparkly purse and bejeweled holiday sweater, she was the spitting image of my Granny. It was so cute and I loved her style!

Love this!

I'm a major sucker for France's seasonal festival slushes, so I had the Spiced Rum Punch Slush: Spiced Rum, Rhum Clement V.S.O.P., Orange and Pineapple Juice with Cinnamon –$10.75. This was an interesting change from the usual citrus offerings at the Food and Wine or Flower and Garden festival kiosks. You could definitely taste the orange and the spices. I liked it and will get it again if I have an opportunity.

Yum! I don't think I'd ever seen this before. I love, love, love cinnamon so this would definitely hit the spot!

We each selected a beer - I had the Brew Hub Pumpkin Spice Dunkelweiss, Lakeland, Florida – $4.25 while R had the Central 28 Beer Company Joy From the World Holiday Dubble, DeBary, Florida – $4.25. We both liked these picks.

Speaking of hitting spots! Pumpkin beer and apple turnover sound and look divine.