Where are we, Jersey? Bye, Phoenicians! An August 2017 TR * NEW DINING/TR LINKS*

[ALEXandFAB]

our schools don't have A/C

WhaaAAATTT?!

So fancy

 

[MeghanEmily]

How did I get so behind on everything in life ever!?? Well...I'm here now! I got through the intros, and I'm super psyched to hear about this trip. Be back soon!

 

[ariane37]

It is amazing how you have to be persistent at times or sorry you get NOTHIN!

Right Our fairly nightmarish stay at the BW in 2015, I started out being very nice to the clueless, unhelpful CM's - including management - but we got nowhere and things kept getting worse. I eventually showed how pissed I was but still, we got nothin'. No way will I let that happen again.

Love your son sitting by himself on the boat!

That kid is a pisser for sure! One minute I'm fuming at him and then I'm laughing

Boy, the temperatures sure rise fast in your TRs

lol they do! That's how I feel down there in August!

Oh this just cracks me up.

He's one of a kind my Chris. He's also going to be living with us until he's at least 45, I'm sure.

I cannot believe the whole MB/key debacle! And what do they mean they "don't have more keys" - that's crazy! And how convenient that suddenly one "appeared" out of thin air. Good for you for insisting - CL has certain perks that should be a given!

As I said above, after the crap that happened a couple years ago and the total lack of assistance we got from the BW staff, I wasn't even going to give them much of a chance here lol.

We enjoyed CSR in July. Their concierge staff was amazing!!! You should enjoy it! We had a new room in the Cabanas section, and thought it was nicely done...The construction didn't bother us in the least.

k
We had a great stay there back in 2014! Loved our room location, the pool, all the food options. We won't even be eating there much this time, and since every section has a bus stop I'm sure we'll enjoy it again I'm hoping for a refurbished room but still, for 3 nights even an older style room will be ok.
All reports on the CSR thread say the construction is non-intrusive and my clients who stayed there late Aug. said the same thing

yay! How exciting! You arrive on the...4th? I can't remember correctly!

Yes! 4th-8th I have to check your plans again so we can figure something out! I'll post my plans here soon or just text you

Sweet! Do they only give all these products for CL rooms? I

I'm not sure, it seems GF gives some of it? I've never gotten all those extras at any of the other deluxes we've stayed at, so maybe only club and the GF.

My point exactly about how CL was supposed to make your life easier, not harder! And how do they run out of KTTW cards?!?
At least you got a bit of a discount.

Overall we were very happy and impressed with the lounge and CL as a whole, especially the CM's there. However I did expect more with this whole MB issue. No idea what the problem was giving us more than one KTTW at first?? Yes the discount was nice and I felt successful lol.

 

[ariane37]

Love those club level h2o amenities! We got them once at the GF... will report back in October as to whether they are still there!

Question: why are you always going during the months I'm NOT going????

I love your boat diva

lol really you have to love him

Thanks for the tour of the new offerings at WL! That grill pavilion looks so nice!!!

They've done a wonderful job with everything there! I don't see myself ever using the the grill area but I understand some will and it looks very nice and welcoming.

WhaaAAATTT?!

ok ok, it's not abuse! Remember we're in NY, so the only months they're in school that it really gets hot are June and Sept. and Sept. can go either way once your past the first 2 weeks. But since we go through the end of June, the last couple weeks of school can be BRUTAL

How did I get so behind on everything in life ever!??

Ah, maybe because you were busy getting MARRIED????

Well...I'm here now!

And I'm so very glad to have you

I'm super psyched to hear about this trip. Be back soon!

I'll be waiting for you!

 

[wdwnut61]

We've stayed at CSR once when they still had business class and we really enjoyed it. I'm glad you were able to switch and saving money is always good.
I like the look of the WL cabins we got to see them in March when we got on the wrong bus
I'm so glad you spoke up to the WL CM I mean come on people
CL or no CL a family of 4 with 2 teenagers needs more than one key
I laughed so hard I scared my 2 sleeping dogs when you wrote about Cris not wanting to sit with you

 

[kittylady1972]

Ah...the joy of kids...loved the shot of your son with his "new friends" on the boat. Every parent here can probably relate to that!

How frustrating about the key situation. Wow. I'd have been pretty annoyed also and probably would not have been nice about trying to have it fixed either.

I'd love to stay at WL again someday. We are waitlisted for it for December, but it's not looking good for that. I finally caved and booked 3 of the 4 nights we needed last not at CBR, a place we've never stayed before. Today...no confirmation number of my booking so I hope it's there! I had to do it by phone because for some reason the online booking system wouldn't take it.

Can't wait to read more!

 

[JessH87]

I usually just lurk and read reports but I had to comment even if a little late about the Boardwalk pizza. My husband and I stayed at Yacht club this past week and we were there during Hurricane Irma. Well on Monday after Disney lifted the curfew ban we walked around the boardwalk a few times to stretch our legs and there was a line that was probably 30 to 40 people long for the boardwalk pizza place! I laughed and had to tell him about how i've heard that pizza isn't good but because on Monday Disney was really pushing their "food boxes" people were looking for other options and the pizza place just happened to be open. We opted for Ample Hills ice cream for dinner

 

[MeghanEmily]

Does this look familiar to those of you with kids?? What the heck did we do in airports before all the electronics???

Right?? I have vague memories of colouring books on my first couple of flights as a small child. Then I got a cassette-tape-walkman and it all went downhill from there.

And then we sat until 10:19, whoo-hoo!!! Not. This is the part Steve hates and I have to hear it every single time. I thought we were getting a taxi but.....................so we arrived at the first hotel of our stay at 10: 40 thanks to a lead-footed driver:

HOly smokes! Your driver was FAST!

Neat constellation curtains!

So cool!!

I'm sorry if I offend anyone (not really) but, this has got to be the worst pizza in the world. I really, truly hope it is because if anyone serves pizza that tastes worse than this they should be shut down immediately. When we ordered in 2015 we all ate it because 1. the kids didn't think it was that bad and 2. Steve and I ordered the supreme and the toppings kind of masked the nastiness. This time Steve and I just couldn't stomach it after 2 bites so we ended up getting pretzels. Chris saw nothing wrong with the pizza; Ricky didn't like it but wanted more than pretzels and so he ate it. Yuck. Between our later arrival time, wait on ME, room that was far, far away, and not good late night meal, arrival night was kinda crappy.

Oh gawd that sounds awful...

Hey, is anyone watching "The Mist"? It's a series on Spike based on the short story by Stephen King. He's my all-time favorite author, I had seen the previews before the series started and then totally forgot about it. There have been like, 10 episodes of the first season so far so Steve and I are watching them every chance we get to catch up! It is AWESOME. I read the story when I was in high school and now I need to go back and read it again. I also need to go see "The Dark Tower" which came out the night before we left for Disney. Has anyone seen it?

Is it very scary? I'm a wimp. But as I mentioned in @xlsm's TR, it was filmed right here around Halifax/Bedford area, so I'd like to try to watch...

Here's a blurry picture of my Redhead! Had to capture her before she's gone:

Sidenote: I know this can be "controversial" but I'm not happy they're removing her. Or redoing her or whatever. I think the reasons people are upset about the scene are ridiculous; people are reading too much into it and getting way to picky and whiny. I normally don't get upset about these things but this is pissing me off. I also realize the "official" reason for redoing the scene has nothing to do with guest complaints.

I'm a major feminist, and I don't want them to change the redhead scene. Lame. Love the redhead.

Every time I tried getting to one for a picture their handler would move them along. This happened every single day we were in MK and I never had any luck, but at least I got to see them.

Oh no!! I forced myself in and didn't really give Big Al a choice when I grabbed a selfie, and I have no regrets.

We were definitely ready to chill at Yacht Club by this time, and my super smart husband came up with the wonderful idea of riding the train back to Main St. Perfect!

Good call, Steve!! Nathan loves this strategy.

And, my absolute absolute favorite that I can totally blackmail my 15 year old son with:

OMG! Steve and I were dying because we knew how this one was going to turn o

Oh my goodness, yes!!!

I left you last as we were relaxing and enjoying some adult beverages at what might be coolest pool on property, Stormalong Bay.

Sounds heavenly in August

A CM in the lobby told Steve you "go through the Lyft website" so he did, and we promptly got a text that a gray SUV of some sort would be there for us in 7 minutes When Steve asked the CM's outside the Yacht Club, we found out that once on the Lyft site, a CM had to do some type of thingy and get us linked to the actual Minnie Van part of the site. So while we didn't have a special vehicle drive us, we did arrive to our dinner destination in record time.

Hahah oh my gosh! Well, a ride is a ride!

The next morning we were moving to my favorite resort:

OMG yay!! Spoiler alert: I did fall a little in love with WL, as will be revealed in my eventual TR.

My goal like many of you is to try every resort, so I'm glad we stayed at Yacht Club and it certainly wasn't bad. The room was nice but I prefer carpeting. I also prefer my room not to be at the end of the earth, but that's a chance you take at the bigger resorts and this wasn't the first time we were far away from civilization at a Disney resort! It just kind of takes a little wind out of your sails when that's your location. The new(ish) Marketplace there had quite a large selection of hot items in the grab and go section and tons of snacks so it's a nice addition. Steve did feel it was "stuffier" than BC and BW which I've heard before; I didn't feel it was stuffy but BC definitely to me has a more fun, relaxed vibe. WL still beats it for me though!

I also have this goal, but it's hard when you find places you love and want to keep going back to. Interesting review of YC. I'd also like to stay here, but I don't think I'd like it as much as other Epcot resorts...

I wish I'd taken pictures because it was actually hysterical: once you got to the Tree of Life, the two of us and about 8 other people went right - and 7000 people went left to Pandora

Oh my gosh!! Amazing how Pandora has changed the whole dynamic of AK rope drop.

As we approached Island Mercantile we saw a line and realized it was for Flights of Passage ALL the way out there, and the CM holding the sign letting people know where the end of the line was kept yelling, "the wait time from this point is approx. 3.5 hours!" This was at 9:30 in the morning people, holy crap I wish I had pictures!

Holy cow!! That's wild! I can't imagine waiting that long in August (or ever!) for a ride...

Neither of the boys have watched Avatar yet so they really had no idea what they were seeing, and since it's an extremely tame ride they weren't all that impressed. And other than how beautiful the details are, neither were Steve and I. I don't have any desire to ride this again in the near future, although I do think since they could only manage 2 rides in Pandora it's good that one is a non-thrill ride.

I have to kind of agree. I liked it ok, especially since I have issues with motion on the thrill rides...it was pretty...but I don't feel any particular need to do it again any time soon. It's pretty slow...

I got to spend yesterday in Manhattan at a travel agent luncheon on the Norwegian cruise ship, the Gem

So cool!! The ship looks beautiful!

I said in my dining report, I knew we got chocolates but I had no idea they'd be WL themed!

Oh no way!! How cute! And tasty...

Then they had our itinerary printed out. I'd made changes since they printed it but still pretty cool:

Neat! You're such VIPs!

The main problem was having only one key to get in, and that key wouldn't work to open the lounge door so if we wanted to get in the lounge we had to call a special lounge CM #, tell them we were at the gate, and they'd come open it. A big reason we decided to try club was so the boys could come and go from the lounge without us, especially if they didn't want to come to a park with us. With only one room key and having to call to access the lounge, it seemed this would be tricky and annoying. But again, we didn't want to worry about it now especially since we were starving!

I sense this is foreshadowing and this issue won't be resolves easily...

I looked at the toiletries in our room as there were a few extra ones than we normally get:

Spoiler alert, that solar relief gel comes in handy later in the week and it's not for sunburn!

Wow! How fancy! We got the solar relief gel in one of our deluxe stays (maybe also WL?) and I think we got mouthwash from one, but this club level life seems to have the BEST toiletries! Like, mint foot rub? Wow!

I won't go in to our BW troubles from 2015 but if you're familiar with that trip, there was no way I was taking an answer I didn't like and accepting it!

I'm not surprised to see you stick to your guns after that nightmare!!

Chris with his new boat friends.

Oh my gosh hahaha! Chris!

 

[Wood Nymph]

The key problem must have been really annoying. I'm glad you got the discount and extra card, but you shouldn't have had to fight for it in the first place. We had a problem with our MagicBands bands not working for our BC room in July. And it was a crazy glitch where they had to reset every sinlge one of our bands to make them work. Usually if they get one band to work then the rest will automatically work, but not this time. I think we spent an hour or more getting this fixed.

Were they always there? Anyone?

The topiaries of the Bison and the baby were placed their just before the new CCV's were opened. We saw them there in July. I think they originally were located in front of the main entrance by the parking lot.

 

[ariane37]

It Feels Oh So Good...........
​

Let's get right into it and finish up our 2nd day! We arrived at Epcot at 5:20, an hour and 5 minutes after we started the trek. Not our finest transportation moment for sure. Since our dinner reservation was at the Beach Club at 6:30 we only had a short period of time to stay in the park, and we'd just made our Soarin' FP window which ended at 5:30.
I wasn't a fan of the old Soarin' at all; it made me extremely nauseous and I had to keep my eyes closed the entire time. I didn't have high hopes for new Soarin' but to my surprise and delight I handle it much, much better and know I enjoy it. I think the new film is beautiful, even when it's bent
That's all we did in FW so we began our walk to the IG to get the boat to the BC. We didn't have to totally rush so we did a leisurely stroll of sorts, and made our (my) first stop inside the Mexico pavilion at La Cava Del Tequila.
I was surprised given the heat that the line wasn't long at all; in fact there was only one group ahead of me. Steve wasn't in a margarita mood so he waited with the boys while I looked over the menu. Normally I go with the very smooth Avocado margarita, but I was in the mood for something different. In the end I decided to try the PINEAPPLE MARGARITA: 100% Agave Tequila Reposado, ginger liqueur, caramelized pineapple nectar, fresh lime juice and gave nectar, served on the rocks:



I'm not sure what they put around the rim but it tasted like nicotine.......lol the margarita was pretty good. Not as good as the Avocado, but good enough to drink on a disgustingly hot Epcot evening. While my watermelon moonshine at lunch was too sweet, this was on the bitter side, more bitter than I thought a pineapple flavored drink would be. I need my drinks in between pucker your cheeks sweet and bitter, but again this was good enough to satisfy. I kind of miss the avocado marg though so if I need an adult sized beverage during F&W in Nov. that'll be in my hands.

The boys were looking forward to grabbing a blue raspberry slushie from the kiosk in Morocco to drink as we continued through WS, but when we got there we saw they no longer had them. I suggested they try something new: KAKI-GORI in Japan:



Yes, none of us had ever had this before! Ricky got cherry and Chris got watermelon, but neither got the sweet milk on top. They both loved this and asked my why I never had them get this before........I don't know, you guys are so deprived that you only go to Disney ever year, excuse me for showing you tons of things each trip and forgetting shaved ice? I did smile smugly after they showed enthusiasm for the new treat I was able to point out to them

By the time we got to the IG it was sprinkling and so muggy, a Friendship boat had just pulled up so we jumped in. Soon we were at the Beach Club and checking in for our dinner at Cape May Cafe. Some of you may remember that Chris and I ate here for the first time last Nov. Unfortunately Steve and Ricky weren't able to, as they had to come down a couple days later at the last minute due to Ricky's school basketball schedule and being Thanksgiving week we didn't want to mess with ADR's. Chris and I thought the buffet was very good and since Ricky loves mussels and Steve enjoys seafood, I thought it would be a nice "new" place for us to try again. It was also another place Chris requested last minute along with Narcoossee's and again, mom came through moving things around and getting us in.

I'll post the full review in my dining report but in a nutshell, Steve thought it was pretty good, Chris and I enjoyed it again including a new dessert option, and while Ricky wasn't a big fan of the mussels he thought overall it was decent. The best part of the meal by far for Chris was a return of the end-of-meal hot towel:





Ah, he provides so much entertainment. It was 8:15ish when we finished and we felt like walking off some of our meal by going to see the BW entertainment again. Since there was no basketball playing earlier we let the boys spend $100 here (not really but these games ain't cheap!):



Ricky won a basketball and was nice enough to let Chris pick it out and have it. Then we got to yell at Chris repeatedly to stop dribbling it in everone's path along the BW.



OK this was taken before we got to basketball while we were still on the BC side . I'm out of order!

We watched Coney Island Chris again for a bit and then were able to see the other entertainer from the beginning:



One starts a few minutes after the other ends. He was good, Italian and played Italian music while he juggled and did some magic. We were there when Illuminations started:





So waited until it was over to leave. HS was open until 9:30 so we could have taken a boat there and then bused to WL but we chose another method and this time it worked the way we wanted it to!

CONTINUED IN NEXT POST

 

[ariane37]

CONTINUED FROM LAST POST

So, how did we get from BC to WL?



WHEE! This time we got an ACTUAL Minnie Van!!! Our driver was awesome, she was a CM originally from Long Island so I sad in front with her and we had a great conversation about all the foods that aren't good outside of NY
The boys stayed in the room but since it wasn't quite 10 (but just about) Steve and I went to see what was still out in the lounge. I was very happy to find something Kari @kastoney had told me to look for:



I was still pretty full from dinner but I HAD to try this as I didn't know how many nights we'd be back to the lounge before it closed at 10 plus 1. I love cobbler and 2. Kari told me how delicious it is. We know how lame her food reviews usually are but she was right about this, it was delicious and I do not regret filling myself to the point of illness to eat it.
Steve chose more macaroons and a beer:



We sat there for a bit and then retired Oh, and when we first stopped back in the room to drop the boys, this was waiting on our bed:



A nicely tucked in remote, some Ghirardelli chocolates to go with our fancy WL ones, and a cute little notecard with a Native American proverb on it. We'd get one of these cards almost every night. This is one of the CL touches we liked!
Speaking of CL things we liked, when we returned that night our keys still weren't working. We did not like this, no we did not. While Steve and I were hanging in the lounge we asked the CM there what the heck was going on and he apologized, tried linking our bands again, but of course couldn't. So for our troubles we took like 3 sodas and 4 waters out of the cooler when we went back to the room and figured we'd get up in someone's face about it in the morning if they weren't working lol.


UP NEXT: BREAKFAST CLUB STYLE, OR NOT

 

[MeghanEmily]

Normally I go with the very smooth Avocado margarita, but I was in the mood for something different. In the end I decided to try the PINEAPPLE MARGARITA: 100% Agave Tequila Reposado, ginger liqueur, caramelized pineapple nectar, fresh lime juice and gave nectar, served on the rocks:

It looks pretty at least. I think I would have preferred the avocado too, though. I'm a big avocado fan, especially in smoothies and things.

I'll post the full review in my dining report but in a nutshell, Steve thought it was pretty good, Chris and I enjoyed it again including a new dessert option, and while Ricky wasn't a big fan of the mussels he thought overall it was decent. The best part of the meal by far for Chris was a return of the end-of-meal hot towel:

Oh, how could I forget about Chris's towels!!? Haha

Glad you had a good experience here. We went for the first time in August, and while it wasn't my favourite Disney meal, or even my favourite buffet, we both really enjoyed it.

Ricky won a basketball and was nice enough to let Chris pick it out and have it. Then we got to yell at Chris repeatedly to stop dribbling it in everone's path along the BW.

Good big brother! And Chris is a hoot!

WHEE! This time we got an ACTUAL Minnie Van!!! Our driver was awesome, she was a CM originally from Long Island so I sad in front with her and we had a great conversation about all the foods that aren't good outside of NY

Yay Minnie van!! I've heard great things about the drivers people have had in these

Speaking of CL things we liked, when we returned that night our keys still weren't working. We did not like this, no we did not. While Steve and I were hanging in the lounge we asked the CM there what the heck was going on and he apologized, tried linking our bands again, but of course couldn't. So for our troubles we took like 3 sodas and 4 waters out of the cooler when we went back to the room and figured we'd get up in someone's face about it in the morning if they weren't working lol.

No way!! That's so frustrating.

 

[ariane37]

CL or no CL a family of 4 with 2 teenagers needs more than one key

Right? Really even 2 adults, when Steve and I go by ourselves he'll go do laundry and if I'm ready before he gets back I might run down and get something to eat so we would be annoyed in any case if our bands didn't work and we only had one key.

I laughed so hard I scared my 2 sleeping dogs when you wrote about Cris not wanting to sit with you

Ah...the joy of kids...loved the shot of your son with his "new friends" on the boat. Every parent here can probably relate to that!

He does things like that all the time! We figure if he ever walks away from us, some nice family will take him in. Until they realize just what they brought home

How frustrating about the key situation. Wow. I'd have been pretty annoyed also and probably would not have been nice about trying to have it fixed either.

I had to temper my..........temper lol, but since we'd just arrived I didn't want to make myself known as someone with an attitude lol and I wanted to give them a chance to fix ti quickly. Then when we returned that night I was too tired to argue and knew I'd be ready to fight in the morning if need be!

I finally caved and booked 3 of the 4 nights we needed last not at CBR, a place we've never stayed before. Today...no confirmation number of my booking so I hope it's there! I had to do it by phone because for some reason the online booking system wouldn't take it.

Hmm, the CM didn't give you a confirmation # when you booked? They should have, although since opening back up Tuesday so many of the calls are going to Arise agents and they pretty much suck. As for not being able to do it online, the online system has been messed up since their stupid upgrade over the summer and constantly has issues, not good for anyone and really a pain for us TA's.
Did you get a confirmation yet by any chance? Another thing going on since they're backed up from Irma is that they are very slow sending confirmations after bookings, moreso for RO bookings. They are coming faster for package bookings.

I usually just lurk and read reports but I had to comment even if a little late about the Boardwalk pizza. My husband and I stayed at Yacht club this past week and we were there during Hurricane Irma. Well on Monday after Disney lifted the curfew ban we walked around the boardwalk a few times to stretch our legs and there was a line that was probably 30 to 40 people long for the boardwalk pizza place! I laughed and had to tell him about how i've heard that pizza isn't good but because on Monday Disney was really pushing their "food boxes" people were looking for other options and the pizza place just happened to be open. We opted for Ample Hills ice cream for dinner

Well you made the smart choice lol! Did you enjoy Ample Hills? We had their ice cream once. OMG I suppose after the cold lunches they were serving and being cooped up, the pizza might not seem so bad to people, but even in that situation no way would I eat it again.
How did you guys fare at Yacht during Irma? I hope you were still able to enjoy most of your trip

 

[Tracy161]

I don't know, you guys are so deprived that you only go to Disney ever year, excuse me for showing you tons of things each trip and forgetting shaved ice?

again, mom came through moving things around and getting us in.

The lengths you won't go to for those boys... and here they are berating you over shave ice

Ricky won a basketball and was nice enough to let Chris pick it out and have it.

Awww, that's so sweet!

Then we got to yell at Chris repeatedly to stop dribbling it in everone's path along the BW.

I was still pretty full from dinner but I HAD to try this as I didn't know how many nights we'd be back to the lounge before it closed at 10 plus 1. I love cobbler and 2. Kari told me how delicious it is.

I would have judged you if you HADN'T tried this - it looks OMG AMAZING. I don't care how full I am, if something looks good, something gets eaten.

it was delicious and I do not regret filling myself to the point of illness to eat it.

I wouldn't have regretted it either!

 

[Neverland_Girl]

I'm not sure what they put around the rim but it tasted like nicotine.......lol the margarita was pretty good.

Nicotine? That sounds so appetizing! I don't do salted rims with my margaritas anyways but Disney always has the strangest choices for salt.

Yes, none of us had ever had this before! Ricky got cherry and Chris got watermelon, but neither got the sweet milk on top. They both loved this and asked my why I never had them get this before........I don't know, you guys are so deprived that you only go to Disney ever year, excuse me for showing you tons of things each trip and forgetting shaved ice? I did smile smugly after they showed enthusiasm for the new treat I was able to point out to them

Yum those look so good! I always forget they're there. Those would be perfect on a hot day!

At least you know there's one thing that can always make him happy

WHEE! This time we got an ACTUAL Minnie Van!!! Our driver was awesome, she was a CM originally from Long Island so I sad in front with her and we had a great conversation about all the foods that aren't good outside of NY

So they're actual CMs? I thought they were just Lyft or Uber drivers.

 

[ariane37]

HOly smokes! Your driver was FAST!

HE was! Steve and I were in awe. And happy.

Oh gawd that sounds awful...

Have you ever had NY pizza? It's the best pizza anywhere and that's fact, not just my opinion lol but even if you haven't there are no words for the BW pizza that aren't curse words. It's truly disgusting and close to inedible. I hope you are never in a situation where you are forced to eat it!

Is it very scary? I'm a wimp. But as I mentioned in @xlsm's TR, it was filmed right here around Halifax/Bedford area, so I'd like to try to watch...

Well I don't think it's very scary but then again I'm a big fan of horror. On the other hand, there are actually a couple rather gross scenes that kind of surprised me given it was on TV, but I guess Spike (the channel it's on here) is a more free with what they allow. So if the image of a woman with the bottom half of her jaw gone will put you over the edge then um, don't watch it But it's VERY good!

Oh no!! I forced myself in and didn't really give Big Al a choice when I grabbed a selfie, and I have no regrets.

I loved your selfie with Big Al!

OMG yay!! Spoiler alert: I did fall a little in love with WL, as will be revealed in my eventual TR.

I'm not surprised you fell in love with it and very happy you did Can't wait for you to start that TR!

I have to kind of agree. I liked it ok, especially since I have issues with motion on the thrill rides...it was pretty...but I don't feel any particular need to do it again any time soon. It's pretty slow...

True, you won't be riding FoP so it's good there's an option in Pandora for you. And it's pretty but.............I compare it to Small World but I love Small World and want to ride if every trip, probably for the nostalgia. I don't see Na'vi ever reaching the nostalgia level for me or the boys.

I sense this is foreshadowing and this issue won't be resolves easily...

Well to be honest it did resolve itself quickly, which was good! SO much better than our BW nonsense. But still frustrating, although we still consider our CL stay a win!

Oh my gosh hahaha! Chris!

but do you expect any less from him now lol?

he key problem must have been really annoying. I'm glad you got the discount and extra card, but you shouldn't have had to fight for it in the first place. We had a problem with our MagicBands bands not working for our BC room in July. And it was a crazy glitch where they had to reset every sinlge one of our bands to make them work. Usually if they get one band to work then the rest will automatically work, but not this time. I think we spent an hour or more getting this fixed.

I hate that we had to fight for it too; they should just do something to make it right or make you feel less inconvenienced at the beginning. Sorry about your troubles too. I'm used to the bands now and overall think they're great but the more things that are tied to technology the more open they are to issues. Our first trip with MB's we had 10 park days. No problems for 8 days, then on the 9th day we all scan ned fine at Epcot except Ricky and the CM with a clipboard insinuated he didn't have a ticket. We were insulted number one, plus he could see where all of us including Ricky had been on previous days. Why would 3 of us have 10 day tickets and then one in our family have an 8 day?? We spent almost 2 hours in line at GS there with about 200 other people having band issues and only got 2 extra FP's for that. Steve lost his temper big time there, too and I couldn't blame him one bit; the lady on line in front of us was so crazy I thought they were going to call security!

The topiaries of the Bison and the baby were placed their just before the new CCV's were opened. We saw them there in July. I think they originally were located in front of the main entrance by the parking lot.

We've never been down by the parking lot so I wouldn't have seen them. I like where they are now; I think more people will be walking back there now with the pool etc. so good idea to move them.

 

[MeghanEmily]

Well I don't think it's very scary but then again I'm a big fan of horror. On the other hand, there are actually a couple rather gross scenes that kind of surprised me given it was on TV, but I guess Spike (the channel it's on here) is a more free with what they allow. So if the image of a woman with the bottom half of her jaw gone will put you over the edge then um, don't watch it But it's VERY good!

Hmmm...I'm a bit squeamish. Maybe I'll just make Nate pre-watch it for me (a pretty common occurence in our household! haha) and tell me when to look away.

True, you won't be riding FoP so it's good there's an option in Pandora for you.

I rode FoP once so I wouldn't feel like I was missing out on what some are calling their favourite ride ever...yeah...never again. But I'm glad I experienced it once!

 

[thumper*]

LOL Chris on the boat.
Good for you for not accepting no for an answer.

figured we'd get up in someone's face about it in the morning if they weren't working lol.

Hope hey get those MB worked out.

 

[kastoney]

I was surprised given the heat that the line wasn't long at all; in fact there was only one group ahead of me. Steve wasn't in a margarita mood so he waited with the boys while I looked over the menu. Normally I go with the very smooth Avocado margarita, but I was in the mood for something different. In the end I decided to try the PINEAPPLE MARGARITA: 100% Agave Tequila Reposado, ginger liqueur, caramelized pineapple nectar, fresh lime juice and gave nectar, served on the rocks:

I can't believe there wasn't a line! We actually haven't had anything from La Cava in ages because the lines are always insane. Glad you enjoyed this, but what is that on the rim? Looks like either pepper or ants

Yes, none of us had ever had this before! Ricky got cherry and Chris got watermelon, but neither got the sweet milk on top. They both loved this and asked my why I never had them get this before........I don't know, you guys are so deprived that you only go to Disney ever year, excuse me for showing you tons of things each trip and forgetting shaved ice? I did smile smugly after they showed enthusiasm for the new treat I was able to point out to them

Yum, I'll have to try and remember to let Casey get one of these while she is driving me crazy around the world showcase too. We've never had them before either, but they look great. But why did you hold out on the poor kiddos for so long

Ah, he provides so much entertainment.

He most certainly does. Nothing like a quick bath in the middle of a restaurant.

WHEE! This time we got an ACTUAL Minnie Van!!! Our driver was awesome, she was a CM originally from Long Island so I sad in front with her and we had a great conversation about all the foods that aren't good outside of NY

Woohoo!!!!! Do they all have CMs driving them?

I was still pretty full from dinner but I HAD to try this as I didn't know how many nights we'd be back to the lounge before it closed at 10 plus 1. I love cobbler and 2. Kari told me how delicious it is. We know how lame her food reviews usually are but she was right about this, it was delicious and I do not regret filling myself to the point of illness to eat it.

Even though I'm lame, glad you enjoyed this stuff. When we did CL we didn't miss it any night. We'd load it into some coffee cups and then sit on our balcony and enjoy it with our wine (also conveniently in coffee cups because more ) In fact one night we ended up cabbing it back from dinner at Jiko just so we didn't miss it. We may have had a slight problem.

 

[Jenny Sanders]

Hi Ariane! I can't believe your keys were still not working at this point...I would have been pisssssed! I think it's funny that you took all those drinks from the cooler back up to your room. I bet you showed them!!!! LOL!!! They should have given you some extra fast passes or something...