AKV CL PTR/TR - taking practically first timers -TR starts on P. 17 (completed)

[Pinkocto]

[ToddyLu]

I am really enjoying your TR. DH and I are trying Jambo for the first time and have reserved two value studios one for he and I and one for his Mom and Brother. We love Kidani, but getting 2 value studios allowed us to take a trip in May this year.

We leave this Friday 10/26 and your photos have made my night. I am so ready to be going on vacation--we sound a lot alike.

[Pinkocto]

Originally Posted by ToddyLu

I am really enjoying your TR. DH and I are trying Jambo for the first time and have reserved two value studios one for he and I and one for his Mom and Brother. We love Kidani, but getting 2 value studios allowed us to take a trip in May this year.

We leave this Friday 10/26 and your photos have made my night. I am so ready to be going on vacation--we sound a lot alike.

Welcome! 2 days to vacation, I'm so jealous

Awesome about the May trip. I can't bring myself to book anything but studios. I start thinking how nice a 1BR would be, and then think about the extra trip I could do. Oh well, I'm sure one day I'll try one.

Have a wonderful trip! Jambo House is so wonderful

[podsnel]

Your pics are sooo detailed- I am loving them! We are headed to Jambo 1 week from today in a GV, and bringing family, too. It IS hard to be the one who organizes everything, I know, because that person is always me. It does help, though, when people aren't completely self centered- which does not always reveal itself until you are away (we are traveling with my DH's younger brother this time, and we have been with his family on vacation before, so we think it will all be ok- we get along well on vacation. Can't say the same for other family members we have traveled with in the past, but...we don't invite them anymore. ).

I am also staying CL in May with my girlfriends- this will be my 3rd or fourth time doing AKV CL- I LOVE it! It's been a while, so it is so nice to see your pics- the night time food is very different from what I had on my previous stays. I'm looking forward to it!

[Pinkocto]

Welcome thanks for joining!

One week to vacation!

I don't envy you organizing such a big group. It was hard enough to get four people on the same page. I hope you have a fabulous trip!

I absolutely love CL. I'll be back next March after a cruise which I'm really looking forward to.

[Pinkocto]

I think Ive put off writing about this evening because it agitates me just thinking about it. Sorry its taken me so long.

I left off with us parting ways to shower and get ready for dinner at the Pepper Market. Well Mom and I were ready by 8:30 but waited for R & M until after 9. Apparently they got distracted by a TV show. Im going to chalk up the unpleasantness that is soon to follow on the fact that if they had been faster we would have avoided the whole mess.

The plan was to grab a HS bus and from there grab a CSR bus. I couldnt believe our luck to find one sitting there when we made it down to the bus area. He asked us if we knew that HS was closing in the next five minutes, and we told him our plan was just to grab a CSR bus since we had dinner plans. In the middle of our drive to HS a deluge opened from the Heavens. It was so bad we could hardly see out of the bus. Well, he dropped us off at HS and we ran hoping to find the CSR stop as quickly as possible. None of us thought to bring a cover or ponchos. It was supposed to be a perfect evening. We were all quickly drenched. Thankfully R spotted the stop relatively quickly, and would you believe the same driver was pulling up to the stop. I have to believe he didnt know what stop he was picking up or would have let us stay on. Needless to say this started some people of my party to be grumpy. Mainly Mom and R.

We made it to CSR and I had not thought to look into the bus stops at the resort, so we were all a bit confused that he was first dropping off at a numbered stop. The last time we were there was in 1998 and it has grown a bit since then. Thankfully I guessed correctly, and they dropped off at the main area last.

I forgot how lovely the resort was. M was taking it all in. This was hers and moms first time visiting.







We made our way to the Pepper Market.





We were taken to a table and the ordering system was explained to us. Everything looked completely different from when R & I had been there before and I was starting to have a sinking feeling that they wouldnt have the dreamed about taco salads that were the main reason for having dinner at this establishment. And of course they didnt& R was of course very disappointed. Mom announced she wasnt having anything to eat, she was too cold. She would just have hot chocolate. Argh! We just went through that torrential downpour to get here and youre going to be grouchy. This is not going to work with me. So she walked around with us checking out all the stations. Oh, I forgot to mention how cold it was in CSR. It felt like we were in the actual Arctic. This of course added to the not to pleasant attitudes that had already started to form.

Just some pictures around the restaurant.















We all ended up at the grill station. We did convince mom to have a quesadilla and the wonderful chef made her one with mushrooms even though he had to go get them at the pizza area. He was swamped, and still went out of his way to make her happy. It was very nice. Problem was Ms quesadilla somehow got missed, so I waited with her until hers was done. R had disappeared after he got his fajitas and we later learned he had a problem at the salad station. The CM looked like she was making salads for herself for after work was over and completely left R standing there for 10 minutes. He really wanted a ceasar salad so waited there patiently until another CM came to help him. The whole situation sounded like the twilight zone and I wish he had come and told us what was going on because I would have made a fuss. Ive worked in food service and am not shy when things are going wrong at restaurants. Im not mean about it but Im paying good money and want a good meal. Ok, off my pedestal...

Moms mushroom quesadilla was absolutely delicious.



M really enjoyed her chicken quesadilla.



R really enjoyed all his food but ended up taking half of it home.







My fish tacos on the other hand were too spicy. I ate two but couldnt finish the third.



The fries were delicious though, I ate every last one.



It was really cute, R & M very quickly became used to my taking food pictures, and made sure I remembered their food

Mom couldnt stand the cold any longer so went and browsed the shop while we paid the bill.



I was a bit annoyed that you couldnt pay a tip on the receipt, you had to leave cash at the table. Who carries cash at WDW? Thankfully R had some on him. We quickly left and found mom in the shop. It had a bunch of items Ive never seen before, and if we werent so cold we probably would have spent some money in there. I was never so glad to get out into the humid Florida air.

We were showered with some major pixie dust by the most wonderful bus driver on the planet. We were all sworn to secrecy, but let me just say that we got back to home much faster than it would have normally taken. Immediately up to the room and I put the heat way up to stop our bones from shivering. We found a Zac and Cody show on the Disney channel and I wrote in my journal until around midnight. I dont think Ill be making plans to go to another resort for dinner unless its a monorail resort or we have our own car. It was just too much of an ordeal using the buses.

[PNO4TE]

Pam - Thanks for the update, but I am sorry it was such a nasty evening for you!

[dgbg100106]

pam thanks for the update, sorry your evening turned out that way and you timing is everything.

I know it was not perfect but you did get to spend the time with your family!

[Pinkocto]

Originally Posted by PNO4TE

Pam - Thanks for the update, but I am sorry it was such a nasty evening for you!

I was just so frustrated that mom and R were so unhappy. It was what it was and M and I were trying to make the most of it. I told mom to go but herself a sweatshirt in the shop but she was happier being miserable...

[Pinkocto]

Originally Posted by dgbg100106

pam thanks for the update, sorry your evening turned out that way and you timing is everything.

I know it was not perfect but you did get to spend the time with your family!

That's what I kept telling myself the whole trip. It was a family trip, not a me trip. I do look back at it with good memories, I was just frustrated they couldn't snap out of the funk they were in. I really wanted to explore the resort after dinner but as things went no one else felt the same.

[dgbg100106]

Originally Posted by Pinkocto

That's what I kept telling myself the whole trip. It was a family trip, not a me trip. I do look back at it with good memories, I was just frustrated they couldn't snap out of the funk they were in. I really wanted to explore the resort after dinner but as things went no one else felt the same.

I know that this will sound bad, but oh well.. I love gong on vacation with just David. We travel very well together, we like similar things, we know when each other has had enough, before we get cranky, and how to "handle" each other. We just have a very good traveling relationship and in the end it makes it fun and enjoyable.

When we travel with others we are trying too hard to make everyone happy and make sure everyone gets to do what they want and it just turns out to be a pain. I know that we will continue to travel with others have fun but for me he is the best travel partner.

[MEK]

Pam, I am glad that you are behind on your TR, because that gave me time to catch up.

I love your safari pictures. I can't believe you got a pic with 4 giraffes. That is SO cool.

And the concierge spread just keeps getting better and better. I want to stay there SO badly now. You have no idea.

[MEK]

Oh and Pepper Market - yum. Your food looks great. I don't remember the arctic temps there in June. hmmmmm.... And too bad about the problem with the Caesar salad. Looks great though.

[dolphingirl47]

I am sorry that your evening turned out to be less than magical, but yay for the Pixie Dust. I wonder if it was similar Pixie Dust from what we had a couple of years ago.

Corinna

[Pinkocto]

Originally Posted by dgbg100106

I know that this will sound bad, but oh well.. I love gong on vacation with just David. We travel very well together, we like similar things, we know when each other has had enough, before we get cranky, and how to "handle" each other. We just have a very good traveling relationship and in the end it makes it fun and enjoyable.

When we travel with others we are trying too hard to make everyone happy and make sure everyone gets to do what they want and it just turns out to be a pain. I know that we will continue to travel with others have fun but for me he is the best travel partner.

It does not sound bad at all. I understand exactly what you mean.

My most immediate problem is that I invited some friends to join me on one of next years trips and now I'm really regretting it.