SSRmonkey OKW Trip Report

[SSRmonkey]

Hello out there! We've arrived at OKW. I know, I'm SSRmonkey, but we wanted to explore a new resort, so we're at OKW for the week.

We stayed in Jacksonville last night and got into Orlando this morning. We hit up Wetzel's Pretzels for our traditional first meal. Today, Dad and I shared a Glorious Garlic pretzel which is really a cheese pretzel with garlic salt on it. It was delicious. Mom and Koala shared their usual (boring) regular pretzel, but to each their own, they like sticking with the usual.

We checked in at OKW--Koala flipped out. We didn't tell him that we weren't staying at SSR until we pulled into OKW. He's a creature of habit and we didn't want to listen to his whining the whole 17 hours down in the car. After we saw the sand castle slide at the pool he calmed down and thought this might not be bad after all. Then we got to the room (a studio) and he saw that we have our own separate bed. No more complaints. He's excited., especially after Mom and Dad got him some Lucky Charms cereal at Wal Mart. We are all set now.

Now I think it's time for the pool and then we'll get some dinner and head to MK for the evening. It's open until 2am, so we'll see how late we can stay up. I snuck some Red Bull into my suitcase, so I'm good to go. (I'm not allowed to have Red Bull because you can imagine what all the caffeine does to me. Diet Coke is bad enough, but give me a little Red Bull and I really do think it gives me wings. Watch out TinkerBell--I'm going to give you a run for your money on the zip line tonight.)

I know this picture is of two kissing swans, and that's a little awkward for me and Koala, but I thought I would share the towel art.

Time to work on my tan.

[WilsonFlyer]

Yea! Can't wait!

[iris1910]

I love your t-shirt! Any other new outfits for this year?

Remember the SPF 50....

[nolanboys]

Have fun at EMH at MK tonight. I'm sure you'll have some late night fun!

[Disney Princess]

You and Koala look great and ready to go! I can't wait to hear about your adventures this evening. Maybe you can enjoy a nap by the pool so you have energy for the EMH!

[Tinks "SS"]

I need to try Wetzel's pretzels one of these days. so glad that Koala calmed down about staying at OKW. I think he will really like it when he explores more of it. Can't wait to read more.

[dgaston]

Glad you all arrived safely. We are driving down in 2 weeks. We were going to fly, but Direct Air went out of business and we are driving instead. Do you and Koala have any tips to help people get along in the car?

[cropman]

Love your trip reports! However, it always make me want to get back to WDW! Now I won't be able to focus on work for a week, thanks a lot. Have fun!

[ccigliano]

So glad you writing a trip report. I can't wait to read about your escapades and enjoy the great pictures. Enjoy Wishes and EMH tonight.

[helenk]

Glad you arrived safe, I am anxious to see how you like OKW, I'd love to stay there because the studios have 2 beds. What section are you in?

[SSRmonkey]

Here are a few tips for travelling to WDW by car. 1) You must have some sort of interactive device such as an iPhone or iPad. Koala and I pass the time by playing MadLibs and Family Feud on Mom's phone. You just have to make sure everyone knows that there is no real money involved. Koala also likes the Puss in Boots Fruit Ninja app. His claws make it very easy for him to slice fruit. Plus, it helps him practice his skills in fighting off our evil cat Chloe. 2) Take earplugs. These can be helpful when you want to tune out your travelling companions or if your parents are playing horrible 90's music in the car on the way down. 3) Bring a character pillow of your choice to nap on. My favorite is Nemo, but I'm eyeing up the new Cheshire Cat pillows at World of Disney. 4) Bring an invisible wall that can be put up in the middle of the backseat. I told Koala I have one of these and he believes everything I say, so when he starts to annoy me, I put up the invisible wall and pretend I can't hear him. Eventually he gives up trying to talk to me and I get some peace and quiet.

We saw the new dragon at the Lego store. Doesn't it kinda look like he's throwing up EctoCooler? (Remember the HiC product that came out when Ghostbusters was cool?)



Then to Earl of Sandwich! Yum.



Now we're off to MK for some adventures. Maybe I can ride Dumbo. I'm looking forward to seeing what it's like to fly over the fountain.

[franandaj]

Yay! You made it! We're only a couple days behind you!

[Mick@Tink]

YEEESSSSSS! SSRmonkey is back! Love your trip reports. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[BigEeyore]

Always love your TR SSR monkey! Looking forward to more.

[SSRmonkey]

We had a great time at MK last night. After stopping to pick up our annual passes (with the DVC discount), we hopped onto the monorail. As usual, we picked the slow line for the bag check. I appreciate thoroughness, but let’s not have conversations with everyone coming in, shall we? There’s fun to be had!

First things first, we walked through the confectionary and found that now they are making Mickey shaped cake pops! Wow! We might have to try those out.

Ahh, the first glimpse of the castle.



Then it was off to the Laugh Floor. It must have been amateur night at LF because the show was terrible. On the way in, Koala did some cleaning up. He loves to compact things.



Then we learned about safety in the laugh factory. Always remember, kids, safety first.



If that wasn’t bad enough, we decided to try out the Carousel of Progress.



Apparently progress stopped in the late 80s. Did anyone else notice that the kid in the last scene looks like Michael J. Fox and the dad sounds just like Norm McDonald? The dog in the show looks a little bit like the dog from Pirates.



I think he must have decided to bleach his fur and go to the dark side. At least there he gets to work with an A list celebrity. Who doesn’t want to work with Johnny Depp?

We did some gardening with Rabbit. I love carrots. That’s how I keep my eyes looking so good.



Looks like Whack-A-Mole to me. I will bring my hammer next time.



We visited Haunted Mansion. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make an angry face to match.



Koala wanted to do some reading.



We decided to get a good spot to watch Wishes and got this nice shot of The Magic, The Memories and You. Nice to see that Walt is still hanging around.



Then it was time for Wishes. Unfortunately, the Red Bull wore off and I couldn't keep up with Tink on the zip line. Maybe next time. Here are some fireworks shots.







After some popcorn, we stayed for the late Electrical Parade. It’s moving pretty quickly, but if you look closely, Minnie posed for the picture with me. I almost fainted…



This reminded Koala of a glow worm. He’s wanted a glow worm for years and now I think I’m really going to have to try to find one for him for Christmas. He would be so excited!!



Diamonds anyone?



I don’t believe I will be reenacting my Salute to America this trip, but this will do.



We headed to the Confectionary and got one of those cake pops. Although it was good, the ones my Mom makes are better. I will just have to try to convince her to make them Mickey shaped!

We haven’t decided yet what we’re going to do today, but I’m sure it will be something exciting. Off we go!