Party for the Senses 10/20/07 - Join Us!!!

[yearbook50]

Well I'm just excited for a vacation!! I was just changed from teaching learning Disabled students to teaching Emotionally Handicapped students and I'm ready to cry at the end of everyday. They are so frustrating! And I know they are actually sick but it's just frustrating when a 14 year old child doesn't see why running around the cafeteria and throwing bananas is wrong! Especially frustrating when their parents don't understand the problem either!

Ok... vent over! So F&W Fest HERE I COME!!!!!!!! in 15 days, lol

It takes a big heart and patience to teach those types of students. Kudos for you for doing so! I hope it gets easier for you as it goes along. You'll need your drink when you get there!

 

[girli565]

It takes a big heart and patience to teach those types of students. Kudos for you for doing so! I hope it gets easier for you as it goes along. You'll need your drink when you get there!

Definitely! A big drink!! I'm making a beeline straight for the fiesta margarita when we get there!

 

[shovan]

Well I'm just excited for a vacation!! I was just changed from teaching learning Disabled students to teaching Emotionally Handicapped students and I'm ready to cry at the end of everyday. They are so frustrating! And I know they are actually sick but it's just frustrating when a 14 year old child doesn't see why running around the cafeteria and throwing bananas is wrong! Especially frustrating when their parents don't understand the problem either!

Ok... vent over! So F&W Fest HERE I COME!!!!!!!! in 15 days, lol

Definitely! A big drink!! I'm making a beeline straight for the fiesta margarita when we get there!

Hold on, you'll soon be in World Showcase sippin on a tasty fiesta margarita!!!! I know for me, I walk into WS & the troubles of the whole world just disappear! Once I have my drink in hand that is!

It really does take a special person to handle a job like that! You continue to make your Mama proud!

I'm pretty sure that in our school system, that emotionally handicapped children are just lumped in with the special ed students.

 

[girli565]

Hold on, you'll soon be in World Showcase sippin on a tasty fiesta margarita!!!! I know for me, I walk into WS & the troubles of the whole world just disappear! Once I have my drink in hand that is!

It really does take a special person to handle a job like that! You continue to make your Mama proud!

I'm pretty sure that in our school system, that emotionally handicapped children are just lumped in with the special ed students.

Well, I did take this job knowing it would be frustrating but I guess my EH experience at my previous school which was in an upper middle class school region was sugar-coated EH, I'm in a mostly migrant population and if anyone's familiar with Miami I'm in the Homestead/Florida City area which is low levels and low preformance. I hate the labels but the deeper I get into Special Ed the more I realize how socio-economic issues affect preformance levels.

Fiesta margarita, citron slush in France and then a wine flight and I think I'll be good to go!! lol

Thank you for the kind words! They really help!

 

[dizneykid]

Hey all,

Sorry I didn't post right after coming back, but I have just been so busy.

It's 15 days for us too!! Can't wait. Going this past Saturday was a real tease But worth it. We first stopped at the Magic Kingdom to ride the Haunted Mansion (2x). It was fantastic!!

After that, we went over to Epcot, got there around 11:30am. We strolled around the WS and had a few tastes. We tried the Munfungo, buffalo, escargot and the glazed chicken leg. Very yummy. The buffalo was out of this world. It was like butter. We also tried the pomegranate and kir in France, It was $6.00 but so well worth it. I can't wait to have more. We thought the food was much better and fresher tasting than last year. Also, we thought that the way they set up the booths this year is much nicer to navigate. They are switched around a little.

We did one paid event, The Cheese Tasting. They had French wines and cheeses from the Artisinal Cheese Company. We both thought this was fantastic. They gave you two wines, one white and one red. And four different types of cheeses. The seminar was wonderful and very informative. I never knew there was a "proper" way to taste cheese Also, what we thought was so interesting was that you tasted each of these cheeses with both of the wines. Sometimes, the tastes were completely different. Well worth the price, highly recommended.

The Festival Welcome center is now in the Wonders of Life Pavillion as all of you have heard. We think this was the best thing Disney has done for the F&W. The wine seminars are in there and it will be a pleasure to stand in line this year as opposed to last year standing in the direct sunlight for over an hour. The Pavillion is so spacious and everything is not on top of one another.

One thing that we saw was that there is a meet the winemakers table. When you first enter the pavillion you will see it. They have two different winemakers there several times a day. You can purchase a glass of wine and talk with them. I know they had this last year, but we never found it.

The Wonderbar is nice and spacious also. Many, many by the glass wines, champagnes and port!!! I'm a port girl

Anyway, if you all have any questions, just ask. The booklets went out first thing on Monday, so they should arrive soon.

Can't wait!!!!!!!

 

[oybolshoi]

Thanks for the update, Jeanne! It sounds like you had a great "trial run" this weekend.

The wonderbar sounds like a great addition ... and they have port???

Excellent!

One of our favorite things to do is to pour Don PX over ice cream - you should try it sometime if you like port. Our bottle is a 25-year port - looks like motor oil and smells like coffee... and it tastes incredible, but very sweet.

Yummy!!!

 

[dizneykid]

Thanks for the update, Jeanne! It sounds like you had a great "trial run" this weekend.

The wonderbar sounds like a great addition ... and they have port???

Excellent!

One of our favorite things to do is to pour Don PX over ice cream - you should try it sometime if you like port. Our bottle is a 25-year port - looks like motor oil and smells like coffee... and it tastes incredible, but very sweet.

Yummy!!!

Now that sounds yummy!! Marcel and I have been trying different ports and ice wines lately. So many wonderful tastes!! One nice discovery of late is a zinfandel ice wine. It's from Renwood Winery.

 

[shovan]

Well, I did take this job knowing it would be frustrating but I guess my EH experience at my previous school which was in an upper middle class school region was sugar-coated EH, I'm in a mostly migrant population and if anyone's familiar with Miami I'm in the Homestead/Florida City area which is low levels and low preformance. I hate the labels but the deeper I get into Special Ed the more I realize how socio-economic issues affect preformance levels.

Fiesta margarita, citron slush in France and then a wine flight and I think I'll be good to go!! lol
Thank you for the kind words! They really help!

You'll be good, but I don't know how much going you'll be doing!

That section of Miami sounds very much like inner city New Orleans. As everyone now knows since Katrina, we have quite a problem here with the sheer volume of people that are in the lower socio-economic class. Unfortunately it's been going on here for decades with poor uneducated children having children. IMO Schools just can't fix that!

Hey all,

Sorry I didn't post right after coming back, but I have just been so busy.

It's 15 days for us too!! Can't wait. Going this past Saturday was a real tease But worth it. We first stopped at the Magic Kingdom to ride the Haunted Mansion (2x). It was fantastic!!

After that, we went over to Epcot, got there around 11:30am. We strolled around the WS and had a few tastes. We tried the Munfungo, buffalo, escargot and the glazed chicken leg. Very yummy. The buffalo was out of this world. It was like butter. We also tried the pomegranate and kir in France, It was $6.00 but so well worth it. I can't wait to have more. We thought the food was much better and fresher tasting than last year. Also, we thought that the way they set up the booths this year is much nicer to navigate. They are switched around a little.

We did one paid event, The Cheese Tasting. They had French wines and cheeses from the Artisinal Cheese Company. We both thought this was fantastic. They gave you two wines, one white and one red. And four different types of cheeses. The seminar was wonderful and very informative. I never knew there was a "proper" way to taste cheese Also, what we thought was so interesting was that you tasted each of these cheeses with both of the wines. Sometimes, the tastes were completely different. Well worth the price, highly recommended.

The Festival Welcome center is now in the Wonders of Life Pavillion as all of you have heard. We think this was the best thing Disney has done for the F&W. The wine seminars are in there and it will be a pleasure to stand in line this year as opposed to last year standing in the direct sunlight for over an hour. The Pavillion is so spacious and everything is not on top of one another.

One thing that we saw was that there is a meet the winemakers table. When you first enter the pavillion you will see it. They have two different winemakers there several times a day. You can purchase a glass of wine and talk with them. I know they had this last year, but we never found it.

The Wonderbar is nice and spacious also. Many, many by the glass wines, champagnes and port!!! I'm a port girl

Anyway, if you all have any questions, just ask. The booklets went out first thing on Monday, so they should arrive soon.

Can't wait!!!!!!!

Jeanne, Thanks again so much for the guide!!! You must explain the proper way to taste cheese! We all want to look like we know what we're doing! I wish we could do one of those cheese tastings but we'll only be there one Saturday. I'm glad to hear the booth layout works well. I was sort of freaking out over some of the changes. The Champagne booth not being near the American Pavillion is going to change my concert drink & snacks.

Also glad to hear that the Festival Center works well. Did you do any seminars?

I've never had a port! Any tips on what to try?

 

[dizneykid]

OK, you asked for it so here goes:

We were taught this:

First you pick the cheese up and feel it between your fingers.
Then you smell it.
Then you take a taste of the cheese from the middle.
Then you take a taste of just the rind of the cheese.
Lastly, you taste both cheese and rind.

Honestly, though, I never knew that tasting could be so interesting.

 

[shovan]

OK, you asked for it so here goes:

We were taught this:

First you pick the cheese up and feel it between your fingers.
Then you smell it.
Then you take a taste of the cheese from the middle.
Then you take a taste of just the rind of the cheese.
Lastly, you taste both cheese and rind.

Honestly, though, I never knew that tasting could be so interesting.

Gosh who knew?!!! See we'd would have all looked like uneducated cheese bafoons!!!

 

[yearbook50]

Woohoo I got my guide today! Thanks Jeanne!

Wow a lot goes into Cheese Tasting...I guess I always looked silly just eating it from the edge out.

 

[oybolshoi]

Cheese ... I must really look bad because I won't eat the rind (tastes too musty to me).

Hey Shovan, as far as port goes Jay and I prefer a tawny port, something around 10-20 years. They usually have a lovely caramel color in the glass and are sweet but not overpoweringly so. Port tastes great with cheese!!

For a fairly reasonable bottle try Cockburn's 10 Year Tawny Porto (we were served this at V&A last fall) - it's very good and very smooth.

 

[shovan]

Cheese ... I must really look bad because I won't eat the rind (tastes too musty to me).

Hey Shovan, as far as port goes Jay and I prefer a tawny port, something around 10-20 years. They usually have a lovely caramel color in the glass and are sweet but not overpoweringly so. Port tastes great with cheese!!

For a fairly reasonable bottle try Cockburn's 10 Year Tawny Porto (we were served this at V&A last fall) - it's very good and very smooth.

Thanks Brenda, I think I'll try some when we get to the F&W fest to figure out what we like. So is Port similar to a good brandy?

 

[oybolshoi]

Thanks Brenda, I think I'll try some when we get to the F&W fest to figure out what we like. So is Port similar to a good brandy?

Nope - no real similarities in taste, at least as far as I'm concerned.

Port, whether you go with a ruby or a tawny, is sweet. I don't like the ruby because to me they are too sweet. The tawnys are usually aged in oak barrels so I tend to think they have a more mellow, subtle sweetness. But it really depends on the port and your own preferences.

Brandy tends to have a bite, at least that's how it seems to me, and it usually isn't very sweet. For a good time with brandy, try making cafe mocha at home and then add a splash of napoleon brandy, a couple of sugar cubes, and a healthy spray of whipped cream. Tasty!

 

[dizneykid]

Thanks Brenda, I think I'll try some when we get to the F&W fest to figure out what we like. So is Port similar to a good brandy?

Actually, at the Australian food booth they have Benjamin Tawny Port. This may be a good one to start with

One other that I have found is the R.L. Buller Victoria Tawny from Australia. Brenda, I think you would like this one. I like the less sweet ports also.

My favorite, though, is the Graham's 20 Year Old Tawny. Very good. They actually serve this at the Territory Lounge in the Wilderness Lodge.

Can't wait to meet you all!!!!

 

[TDC Nala]

First you pick the cheese up and feel it between your fingers.

I'm about to leave on my second f&w weekend.

Highland Distillers have their own seminar on the 20th. I couldn't get into the pairing but I can do that for free.

 

[yearbook50]

I'm about to leave on my second f&w weekend.

Highland Distillers have their own seminar on the 20th. I couldn't get into the pairing but I can do that for free.

I'm so jealous you are able to go to so many F&W Weekends!

Enjoy your second F&W Trip!

 

[oybolshoi]

Thanks Jeanne - our festival guide showed up today and we were so excited to look through it and agonize over which free seminars we want to try to attend.

Can't wait to thank you in person.

 

[oybolshoi]

Random F&W post before I leave for work ...

I was ever so pleased to see that China is offering the Green Tea Plum Wine Cooler again this year - that's a tasty and refreshing beverage.

And I was curious to know what the heck Conga juice is and whether or not anyone can tell me what it's like?

Thanks - have a great Friday. I've got a 3-day weekend (I love Federal holidays!) so I should be able to get a ton of stuff organized for the trip - we leave in 10 days!

 

[yearbook50]

And I was curious to know what the heck Conga juice is and whether or not anyone can tell me what it's like?

Thanks - have a great Friday. I've got a 3-day weekend (I love Federal holidays!) so I should be able to get a ton of stuff organized for the trip - we leave in 10 days!

Conga Juice is just a mixture of fruit juices. No alcohol involved. I've tasted it before I became legal...its good just nothing really special.

Have fun organizing for your trip, no three day weekends here . I finish my organization last night as I was avoiding making my heating and cooling curves of my sheared chocolate.

This weekend for me will be spent finishing packing and visiting the future-in-laws since his mother is going to teach me how to sew. This time next week I'll be on a plane