How To Survive a Hurricane with Pizza and Kurt Russell- An Oct DR *Complete

[TeresaNJ]

Holy Smokes! What an ending to your trip! I would have been exactly like you. I hate not knowing where I'm going. We lived in central Florida for a year, between September 2006 & September 2007, moved for my husband's job, but due to my incredible home sickness, and my mom's health issues, we decided to move back to NJ. My husband was driving a huge rental moving truck, and we were trailering a car behind us. I was scared poopless the entire drive home. We got lost in Georgia, at night, on a dirt road, and came upon a Boy Scout camp in the woods that we pulled in to to turn around, & it was deserted, with a swinging sign! It was a circular turnaround, surrounded by trees, and my husband couldn't see to back up the trailer, and he wanted me to get out and direct him. I was like, "have you lost your mind"? There was no way in heck I was getting out! OMG. He finally turned it around. This was after we had a harrowing experience at a rest stop where we stopped to let our dog out to do her duty, and I needed the rest room. Now you know what I'm talking about when I said I expected a rest stop like the ones we have here in NJ & PA. I was scared to walk to the bathrooms, lol. I kept thinking I was going to be abducted. Then I come out of the rest room, and this tractor trailer had parked right next to us, when the rest of the parking lot was practically empty, scaring our dog to death, and the driver gets out, apologizes for scaring the dog, and asks me if I like Crisco!!! He said he had a lot in the back of the truck, and he wanted to give me some. I'm like, uh, no, I heard it's unhealthy for you. I'm looking at my husband like, let's get the you know what out of here!!! I can laugh about it now, but I wasn't laughing then. We also witnessed some feral children & toddlers in diapers running around a gas station in Georgia at about 11pm at night, with their adults hanging out in front of the gas station. This was right before getting lost at the Boy Scout camp. My husband got out to pump gas, and I'm sending him signals like hurry it up, for God's sake! I thought we were in the Twilight Zone! Oh, and we were driving home with a Golden Retriever and two cats in cat carriers in the front seat with us! I had the cats under my seat, and would take turns putting the carrier on my lap and opening it up so the cats could stretch and get some fresh air. The dog sat between us on the bench seat. This was the one and only time I have ever been on a road trip farther than NJ to Virginia, or NJ to MA. Def NOT a good experience, although one to remember.

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

I can't even image! That must have been horrible. The battery on the phone dyeing would have been the most nerve racking for me! Glad you made it home safe and sound. And that you didn't let the whole experience deter you from coming again!

 

[hill6]

Another great report. Sorry you had such a bad time getting home.

We were there just a few days before you. We celebrated our 30th anniversary by celebrating WDW's 45th anniversary. They are the same day.

 

[docsoliday1]

Oh the final day. We had no idea what was in store for us. Ugh, I am actually sick to my stomach writing this post as I think back on this day.

So sorry...horrible end to an otherwise fabulous trip.

We got to Alamo and shelled out another $250 to rent a car back to Jersey and by 2:00pm we were on the road. What I did not expect this trip was to have to drive back to Jersey. We were honestly numb.

I'm not lobbying for Enterprise in any way, but in my experience they're cheaper than the others. I'm not sure the rates for the Orlando area (I'm sure higher...everything seems to be), but I think it should have been less that $100 for two days to get back.

AND STILL I CAN'T GET ROB ON A PLANE TO FLORIDA!!!!!

I think the flights were affected also, but not quite as bad...mostly flights into the affected areas having to be re-routed. That being said, since I've flown since I was a little kid, I don't understand the fear of flying, but I'm not saying that to cast dispersions...I know many people do have that fear. We live in the ATL area and although I don't like the 7 - 7.5 hour drive, it's usually much cheaper than flights.

 

[jerseytinkerbell]

Oh.My.Gosh. I just cannot imagine going through all that. I hate being lost too! It's so scary. I'm not one of those "fly by the seat of your pants" people. I would be beside myself as well.

Did Amtrak ever reimburse you for the return portion of your ticket?

On a positive note, I enjoyed following your January trip on Insta! Glad it was a much better trip for you

It was such a crazy experience. Thankful to have it behind us. We did get our points back from the return trip which we used for our January trip.

O I could feel your stress just reading that! I am so sorry for what yall went through! I am glad your last trip was so wonderful....I know your instagram pics always make me jealous! haha looked like lots of great time!

January was much better! I was worried about snow, but fortunately we had great weather on our travel days.

I think I just sweat through my clothes reading that. O.M.G. I am the SAME way, and I freak out when I don't have some sort of navigation. Justin can keep his cool a lot better than I can, but when things like that happen, I want to curl up in a ball and sleep and wake up when it's all better, lol. Crazy that he still won't fly!! If this doesn't get him to fly I don't know what will! I would have been livid with the train situation - did you ever find out why you didn't get an alert?! That's ridiculous. I'm glad you got your money back from the town car though.. wow, how crappy. Well at least it's all behind you and you had a fabulous January trip!

We drive from NC and my husband likes to leave around noon so we're home at a decent time, but I convinced him to do Homecoming for lunch on our last day. A week from today and I literally cannot wait!!

Haha we are definitely of the same mind set! I just wanted to curl up in a ball and wake up at home.

Yeah, I'm thinking nothing will get him to fly at this point. He's a lost cause. I have no clue why we were not alerted. I was quite unhappy with Amtrak for that one.

How did you like Homecoming?

Not sure how I missed this review! We were there at the exact same time. Love all of your Food & Wine pics! Our trip also ended in a hot hurricane mess but luckily we were going home to the Midwest and not back up the East coast. Hopefully all of your upcoming trips are much less stressful . We're headed back in March and October for do-overs. Looking forward to the F&G Festival - I swear the food offerings look just as good as F&W!

Glad you made it back ok with the hurricane. SO much craziness. A March and October trip sound great! I love the offerings at both festivals. So much great food. Hope you have a blast on your do-over trips!

I'm so sorry u guys went through that for hours!!!! Om Gosh!! That is so scary!! I'm glas u shared it though b/c it might help someone else in the same situation when they travel. Besides that ur guys trip sounded amazing. are you doing another DR!?? Love them, I hope!!

Oh what a mess! So thankful it is all over. Starting the DR for my January trip today! Our make-up trip was a blast!

Omg I had anxiety reading this so I can't imagine what you were going through! Such a bummer that a great trip ended this way, but you're home safe! Looking forward to the next DR!

It was a super crummy end to the trip. It put a cloud over the whole thing. But at least our January trip was awesome!

Oh my - that is not the way to end a trip! I can't believe Rob still won't fly??

I just went to Homecoming this past weekend and it was everything you described and more!! So delicious. Amazing how Disney Springs has really transformed.

Can't wait to hear about your January trip!!!

Ugh, that man, I swear.

So glad you enjoyed Homecoming! Disney Springs is so different! I'm still getting used to finding my way around.

Oh my gosh, what an ordeal! I would have been sweating/stressing/freaking out right along with you in a major way. So glad you made it home safely and also that you had a great trip in January to wash away those bad memories

Oh my gosh, it was crazy, but like you said, at least we made it safely home and had an awesome do-over trip!

Late to the party, but as always, great dining report!!! I'm so sorry your trip ended so badly. I would have probably reacted the same as you.

Can't wait to hear about your January trip!

Thanks so much! January DR coming right up!

Just want to say that I love your trip reports and how you do Disney!!!

Wow, what an experience you had with the trip back home after the hurricane! Sounds horrendous! So glad you made it home safely, though. I was at WDW the following week for Food & Wine and it was beautiful....Was I lucky or what!?

Glad you had a great make-up trip in January, though. Looking forward to your report. I do love January at WDW, too!

Thank you! You definitely had a great week for F&W. It was so beautiful the day we left. Our January trip was definitely fabulous though. That's going to be our new time of year to go.

Wow, I can't believe all you had to endure just to try and get home. That is ridiculous that Amtrak didn't let you know. I hope you at least got your money back. And I would have been just as terrified as you. Being lost in the middle of no where and coming upon flooding sounds horrendous. Glad you made it home safely and even had it in your to brave another trip

I was so furious with Amtrak. Their customer service is pretty lousy. At least we made it home safely and that ordeal is behind us. I never want another drive like that!

I remember when I was following along on your Instagram when your train kept getting cancelled. I don't blame you for freaking out! No idea why Rob wouldn't fly especially after that. As someone that works in the aerospace industry, I much rather fly than drive anywhere! The amount of testing and checks/balances that goes into the build of the plane is crazy! If you fly with any of the major carriers, they have lots of checks in place as well!

Glad you made it home even if it wasn't the end you wanted!

The man is crazy, I swear. I feel the same way. I feel more stress driving than flying. One of these days I'll get him back on a plane. Hopefully.

Wow! Not a very magical ending to your vacation! Very scary. The food and fun before it did look awesome. I also fell in love with Homecoming. I could eat that fried chicken and mac & cheese about now!

It was so scary, but F&W was awesome at least!

Oh, that mac and cheese is heaven. What I would give for some of that right now.

 

[jerseytinkerbell]

Holy Smokes! What an ending to your trip! I would have been exactly like you. I hate not knowing where I'm going. We lived in central Florida for a year, between September 2006 & September 2007, moved for my husband's job, but due to my incredible home sickness, and my mom's health issues, we decided to move back to NJ. My husband was driving a huge rental moving truck, and we were trailering a car behind us. I was scared poopless the entire drive home. We got lost in Georgia, at night, on a dirt road, and came upon a Boy Scout camp in the woods that we pulled in to to turn around, & it was deserted, with a swinging sign! It was a circular turnaround, surrounded by trees, and my husband couldn't see to back up the trailer, and he wanted me to get out and direct him. I was like, "have you lost your mind"? There was no way in heck I was getting out! OMG. He finally turned it around. This was after we had a harrowing experience at a rest stop where we stopped to let our dog out to do her duty, and I needed the rest room. Now you know what I'm talking about when I said I expected a rest stop like the ones we have here in NJ & PA. I was scared to walk to the bathrooms, lol. I kept thinking I was going to be abducted. Then I come out of the rest room, and this tractor trailer had parked right next to us, when the rest of the parking lot was practically empty, scaring our dog to death, and the driver gets out, apologizes for scaring the dog, and asks me if I like Crisco!!! He said he had a lot in the back of the truck, and he wanted to give me some. I'm like, uh, no, I heard it's unhealthy for you. I'm looking at my husband like, let's get the you know what out of here!!! I can laugh about it now, but I wasn't laughing then. We also witnessed some feral children & toddlers in diapers running around a gas station in Georgia at about 11pm at night, with their adults hanging out in front of the gas station. This was right before getting lost at the Boy Scout camp. My husband got out to pump gas, and I'm sending him signals like hurry it up, for God's sake! I thought we were in the Twilight Zone! Oh, and we were driving home with a Golden Retriever and two cats in cat carriers in the front seat with us! I had the cats under my seat, and would take turns putting the carrier on my lap and opening it up so the cats could stretch and get some fresh air. The dog sat between us on the bench seat. This was the one and only time I have ever been on a road trip farther than NJ to Virginia, or NJ to MA. Def NOT a good experience, although one to remember.

Oh my gosh, that is scary! Definitely quite a crazy story you got out of it.

I can't even image! That must have been horrible. The battery on the phone dyeing would have been the most nerve racking for me! Glad you made it home safe and sound. And that you didn't let the whole experience deter you from coming again!

Yeah I would have felt better with a fully charged phone. I keep my car charger in my purse now!

Another great report. Sorry you had such a bad time getting home.

We were there just a few days before you. We celebrated our 30th anniversary by celebrating WDW's 45th anniversary. They are the same day.

That's so awesome! How fun!

So sorry...horrible end to an otherwise fabulous trip.


I'm not lobbying for Enterprise in any way, but in my experience they're cheaper than the others. I'm not sure the rates for the Orlando area (I'm sure higher...everything seems to be), but I think it should have been less that $100 for two days to get back.

I think the flights were affected also, but not quite as bad...mostly flights into the affected areas having to be re-routed. That being said, since I've flown since I was a little kid, I don't understand the fear of flying, but I'm not saying that to cast dispersions...I know many people do have that fear. We live in the ATL area and although I don't like the 7 - 7.5 hour drive, it's usually much cheaper than flights.

The problem I found with every rental company was the fact that we were dropping the car off in Delaware instead of the same location in Florida. I called four different companies and each one quoted me about $50-$60 until I said we would be returning it 1,000 miles away. That's when they raised the price up to $250-$300. Craziness, but I get it.

I wish I could help him get over his fear. He's not buying any arguments. Stubborn. Yeah the flight situation was not great either. Fortunately my SIL got out in time, but I know so many people had cancelled flights.

 

[Vernie822]

Haha we are definitely of the same mind set! I just wanted to curl up in a ball and wake up at home.

Yeah, I'm thinking nothing will get him to fly at this point. He's a lost cause. I have no clue why we were not alerted. I was quite unhappy with Amtrak for that one.

How did you like Homecoming?

I didn't get to Homecoming! Gah, I was so sad. Justin drove to Daytona to meet his brother for the Nascar race the day before we left, so he was gone all day and was exhausted, so on our last day, he kinda just wanted to do breakfast and leave early. I made him promise we can go next time, ha!

I would not have been happy w/ Amtrak either. It's great that you finally made it home but it sounds miserable along the way!

 

[docsoliday1]

Oh my gosh, that is scary! Definitely quite a crazy story you got out of it.



Yeah I would have felt better with a fully charged phone. I keep my car charger in my purse now!






The problem I found with every rental company was the fact that we were dropping the car off in Delaware instead of the same location in Florida. I called four different companies and each one quoted me about $50-$60 until I said we would be returning it 1,000 miles away. That's when they raised the price up to $250-$300. Craziness, but I get it.

I wish I could help him get over his fear. He's not buying any arguments. Stubborn. Yeah the flight situation was not great either. Fortunately my SIL got out in time, but I know so many people had cancelled flights.

Before I forget again, good job on the DR. We ate at Ragland Road this last trip and it was fantastic!! Have not tried Homecoming...will definitely have to try that our next visit. I will disagree with you on WPE. The bacon covered meatloaf sounded great, but I'm allergic to peppers and it has green peppers in it. Why they'd have to ruin a perfectly good meatloaf, I don't understand. Actually, looking at much of what you and your hubby ate, I couldn't have much of it.

I'm not sure how the phone comment ended up in this, because that wasn't part of what I had previously commented on nor what you replied to me about, but since it's here...Oh, I see now...you responded to several different people (one of which was me) and that comment was for someone else.

You might want to get one of those power bricks...I have one and they're great because a) they have a USB cord, so you can steal it to plug into car and b) even if you can't find an outlet, still gives you plenty of power until you can get to one. The one I have is about the same size as an iphone 4 and has enough to charge 2 dead phones to 70-80% full each.

It's been a while since I did a one way trip, so yeah, didn't think about that. I know when I checked rates for rental cars when I came down in December/January, it was twice as much at the airport vs. if I went to one 15 min away from the airport.

 

[Sarahboo]

What a fantastic DR! I immediately booked Homecoming after reading it.

I am so sorry your trip ended that way. Coming home is already sad, but adding all of that stress to the tail end? Yikes!

 

[DeterminedOne]

Enjoyed your report a lot. Thank you for finishing it. Not trying to offend anyone, but loathe reports that carry on for months & months with no end in sight. Nice report and great pics. Thanks!

 

[DrunkJam]

OMG! Poor You. Thank you for sharing your report. I do love reading your dining reports, but, WOW, what bad luck.
Looking forward to January...

 

[DrunkJam]

We decided to get out of the room and go for a walk, so we walked over to the lobby just as they were getting ready to reopen the pool.



I posted a time lapse video from around the resort on Instagram and other than some small branches and general debris from nature, nothing was amiss. It was nice to get out and walk around. Then it was announced that Disney Springs was reopening with some stores and restaurants at 5pm. Yay!!!!!!! We got ready and the second I saw people walking around DS I yanked Rob out of the room.

They had a sign to show all of the stores and restaurants that were open tonight.



I'm so happy to be out of the room!!!



We were deciding where to eat. Rob was leaning towards RR and I was leaning towards Homecoming. Since we hadn't eaten there yet, Homecoming won out. And as it turns out it was the way to go because I heard later that RR had a VERY limited menu of like, five items.

When we arrived at Homecoming it was still fairly empty and seating was immediately available at the bar. Let me tell you, it was a good thing we got there when we did because within 30 minutes there was a two hour wait. Yay for being able to walk to Disney Springs!



I had been dying to eat here and I was super excited and had a hard time choosing what to order from the menu.



But first, drinks!



I started with the Fig and Berries. Fresh muddled strawberries with Dobel Diamante Reposado Tequila, fig jam, agave and lime juice. This drink was so, so, so good!



Later I also got the Bootlegger. RumShine, and dark rum, blackberry jam, house-made grenadine, simple syrup and lime juice. This was also excellent!



Rob also had a Bootlegger and since he loves an Old Fashioned he decided to try their version, an Old Fashioned Elder. Michter's Bourbon, St. Germain Elderflower, dash of bitters, garnished with an orange peel and fancy cherry. He loved this drink!



For our meal we started out by ordering a side of cheddar cheese drop biscuits.



These are fairly similar to the cheddar biscuits you get from Red Lobster, but without the garlic flavor. They were excellent!

For my entree I went with the Fried Chicken and Doughnuts. Two pieces of Chef Art Smith's famous fried chicken served with house-made sugar doughnuts and creamy mashed potatoes with gravy.



Oh. Emm. Freaking. Gee.

This was so good. Very similar to chicken and waffle, but even more decadent. And these mashed potatoes are for real the best mashed potatoes, or any kind of potato, I have ever eaten in my life. The gravy was heaven. I loved the syrup it came with. Amazing fried chicken. So good.

Rob had the Fried Chicken Sandwich. Buttermilk-brined for 24 hours and double-battered, hot sauce aioli, dressed with iceberg lettuce, tomato and bread and butter pickles. Served with house-made barbecue chips drizzled with icebox dressing.



He really enjoyed his meal. I stole one of the chips and they were really good.

Next was dessert.



I was torn between the Shine Cake and the Hummingbird Cake. Eventually I landed on the Shine Cake.



I was drooling just looking at this, but I did not care for this. It tasted so boozy to me. It was literally cake with moonshine. I did not care for the flavor. Sadly most of this went in the trash. It was the only misstep for me this meal, but that's okay. It was just a matter of taste for me.

Rob decided to get a bowl of Addie Mae's Chicken and Dumpling Soup for dessert. What can I say, he's a weirdo.



He enjoyed it though, so who am I to judge.

I also have to mention the service here. We enjoyed eating at the bar and all the bartenders were super attentive and really friendly even though it was absolutely mobbed in there. They left a great impression on us.

I was so glad we were able to eat here and that we were able to get out and celebrate our anniversary. It was such a positive experience after 24 hours of stress. As luck would have it the movie theater was open and a showing of Girl on a Train, which I was dying to see, was just getting ready to start. Perfect!

By the time the movie was over there wasn't another movie we wanted to see starting for another hour or so. We walked around DS and it was really packed since it was the only place for all these resort guests to go. We decided to call it a night and headed back to the room. We had to get ready and pack up for our resort switch the next day.

I redesigned my ADR plan after I read this. I dropped BOG and included Homecomin'!