TO DISNEY AND BACK.. in less than 48 hours! ~Dec 2011 Mini TR **UPDATE 10/21**

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Why, Hello!

Come aboard explorers and join me as I tell the story of my shortest trip to Walt Disney World- ever.

Yup, in less than 48 hours, my mother and I flew down to WDW, had as much fun as we possibly could, and flew back to our home in New Jersey. Why, you may ask? Well here's the story...

Last year, in October 2010, my mother and I ran a local 5K, and after the race, there was a raffle for 2 free JetBlue airline tickets. Annnnnnd... WE WON THE RAFFLE it was quite exciting I must say, since we've never won anything that big before. After much discussion, we had decided to use the tickets for our upcoming August trip to WDW for our family of 5, but when we called to see if we would be able to use our free flights on the dates we had planned to travel, we were told there was only availability for paying customers. This was a little frustrating because we were planning on purchasing 3 more tickets in addition to the 2 free ones, but what can ya do? So we bought 5 tickets through our usual airline, which is United, and we had a great time during our trip in August.

So now we still had 2 free airline tickets expiring in January [2012] that we couldn't let go to waste, so we discussed some more about what to do with them. We eventually decided that my mom and I would fly down to WDW on Friday, December 9th and fly home Sunday, December 11th. Kinda crazy, right?

There was a reason behind our madness. As much as we would have loved to stay longer, we decided to just keep it short and sweet because we wanted to keep costs as low as possible and I didn't want to miss school. So we booked a room for 2 nights at Pop Century- which was going to be our first stay at a value, and purchased 1-day base tickets.

I know I'm super super late starting this, considering the fact that it's May already, but better late than never!

NOW, on with the show! First up, our cast..

Hi, I'm Amanda! I’m a 15-year-old Disney addict, and this was my 3rd trip to the World. My favorite ride at WDW is Soarin’, my favorite show is Festival of the Lion King, and my favorite restaurant is Crystal Palace.

This is my mother, Jennifer, pictured with my little brother during our August trip. It was her 6th trip to the World, and our first trip to WDW together without the rest of our family, which was a little sad. I know she loves planning trips just as much as I do though Her favorite park is Epcot, which was our park of choice for this short trip.

Quick wrap-up:
December 9th-11th
Pop Century
Me and my mother

Not too complicated

Now that we've got that boring stuff out of the way, lets carry on and LET THE MEMORIES BEGIN! ​

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Table of Contents​

Introduction​

​

DAY 1- 12/9/11
Chapter 1: And We're Off!!!
Chapter 2: Our Magical Arrival
Chapter 3: It's a Great Night for Downtown Disney!​

DAY 2- 12/10/11
Chapter 4: Good Morning, Pop!
Chapter 5: Future World Uno
Chapter 6: Future World Dos
Chapter 7: World Showcase​

 

[StephaniexMarie]

Hi Amanda! That's so cool you and your mom got to go on a little weekend get-a-way. I'm subscribing!

 

[tigerali]

I'd love to see what fun you had in your short trip! My husband and I are doing the exact same thing in August - 2 nights at POP and one day park hopper tickets. Can't wait to read your report!!

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Hi Amanda! That's so cool you and your mom got to go on a little weekend get-a-way. I'm subscribing!

Thank so much you for joining in!! ​

I'd love to see what fun you had in your short trip! My husband and I are doing the exact same thing in August - 2 nights at POP and one day park hopper tickets. Can't wait to read your report!!

Thank you so much- and that's so funny, I hope you guys have a wonderful mini trip as well! ​

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

And We're Off!!!


Boy oh boy, I apologize for my long absence! I've been wanting to get this mini TR started for weeks now, but I have been quite busy with school! Now that I've finally found some free time, I figured I'd finally begin!

So as of right now, it is Friday December 9th. My mom and I both agreed that I would go to school for a half day (in order to get credit for being in school, you have to stay for a half day, which is until 11:25). This meant I would be leaving school in my 5th period class. Let me tell you- sitting through class that day was PAINFUL! I just couldn't stop thinking about the fact that in just a few hours, I'd be in my favorite place in the ENTIRE WORLD.

At last, 5th period came, and at 11:25, my mother signed me out of school. At this point, I just couldn't contain my excitement. WE WERE GOING TO WALT DISNEY WORLD!

We stopped home to pick up our bags (I packed everything the night before) and drove to the airport, which is about 30 minutes away from where we live. We arrived at the airport around 1:30pm, and quickly made it through security. We headed to our gate and waited for our JetBlue flight, which was to take off at 2:00.

Our plane at the gate-

Since we had some time to kill, my mom purchased a grab & go sandwich for us to split. This was disgusting, it literally tasted like cardboard. I just could not wait to be eating my precious Disney food!!

Finally, at 1:30, we were able to board the plane! This was our first time flying on JetBlue. One major perk that I discovered as soon as I boarded was the FREE Direct TV! This was a major plus. During the flight, I was able to watch 2 or 3 re-runs of Grey's Anatomy, which is one of my favorite shows

The beautiful Dr. McDreamy ♥

Another minor thing which I liked about JetBlue was their blue potato chips, which I thought were delicious! (And yes, the chips are actually blue! )

The flight, which was about 2 hours and 45 minutes, went by fairly quickly. Before I knew it, we were landing in Orlando!

Ahh, finally! The real fun was about to begin! I know this was a short post, but I'm trying to spread out the trip as much as I can since it was so short! Be sure to check back for my next post, which will be the start of our magical mini trip!​

 

[leshunlenese]

Hey! I was there during that time and thought i would join the party. I did this thing last year with the give a day get a day ticket. My son and i wentdown for 2 nights not to waste them and we had a flight credit to use from airtran i did not want to waste!
Jetblue needs to come to atlanta. I love Grey's! I was kind of disappointed in the finale though.

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Hey! I was there during that time and thought i would join the party. I did this thing last year with the give a day get a day ticket. My son and i wentdown for 2 nights not to waste them and we had a flight credit to use from airtran i did not want to waste!
Jetblue needs to come to atlanta. I love Grey's! I was kind of disappointed in the finale though.

Thank you for joining! I am finally getting back to writing now that school is over I was also disappointed by the Grey's finale- and also heartbroken over Lexie! She was always one of my favorites. ​

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Our Magical Arrival

Now that school has ended, I finally have the time to continue writing this mini trip report! I believe I had left off with my mother and I landing in the Orlando airport. And now our journey continues with this long update

The excitement continued to build as we walked out of the gate and into my favorite airport, MCO! Walking into that airport after your flight has to be one of the greatest feelings in the world.

We found our way to the fake monorail, hopped on board, and were on our way to the Magical Express desk. I'm not sure if everyone has this issue, but we always seem to have a little trouble finding the ME area! It's just so well hidden!

Oh look, we found it! Time to join the Pop Century queue!

We were able to board our bus right away. There were quite a few people already on the bus when we came in. I had hoped we would be leaving soon, but we sat there for a good 30 minutes before heading to the happiest place on Earth. It wasn't an issue though, I just tried to soak up as much of the ME atmosphere as I could!

And finally, we were off! I waited patiently for the movie to begin

I just love that movie so much :') Before I knew it, we were approaching the most magical arch on the face of the Earth! Unfortunately, I can never get a decent picture of it! These were all I got-

Despite the poor quality of my pictures, the arch was looking just as beautiful as always! Our bus was headed to Caribbean Beach first. At this point, it was starting to get pretty dark out. By the time we left CBR and were approaching our resort, Pop Century, it was almost completely dark out. This was a little unusual for me, since I am used to arriving at WDW in the afternoon!

AHHHH! WE WERE FINALLY AT OUR RESORT! Can't you just feel the excitement?

We disembarked from the bus and went right on in to Classic Hall! I was immediately impressed by the lobby.

While my mother was checking in, I decided to explore a bit. I immediately knew I would like this place from the moment I walked in.

Just look at this beautiful tree! Christmas was definitely approaching!

I met up with Mom when I saw that she was finished checking in. We hadn't requested any specific location, but we were pleased to find out that our room was in the 80's section- building #9! Although this is not a "preferred" location, it is an extremely close walk to Classic Hall and the bus stop if you cut across the parking lot.

TIP: If you are planning to stay at Pop Century and would rather not pay for a preferred room, make sure to request building 9 in the 80's section! It is a super close walk to everything!

We walked over to our building. I loved the Rubix Cube staircases in the 80's section! They were too cute! Our room was located on the second floor.

I completely forgot to take a picture of our room number! I know it's written down somewhere, but it would take awhile to find it. So although I cannot say exactly which room this is, here is a picture!

We weren't blown away, but we were satisfied with its simplicity. This was our first time staying at a value resort, so we were expecting the rooms to be small. It was the perfect size for just the two of us, but with four people it would definitely be a tight squeeze!

We were greeted by this cute little towel animal!

Mickey in the bedspread!

The 80's poster on the wall!

We then settled in and got ready for Downtown Disney! Stay tuned for the next update! ​

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

It's a Great Night for Downtown Disney!

Hello once again I last left off with my mother and I arriving in our room at Pop Century. We were so excited to finally be settled in and ready to take on Disney World!

After finally getting organized, I grabbed my bag and my pin lanyard and got ready to head out the door! I was so excited to pin trade again, I became a pin trader on my previous trip and have been loving it ever since! If you are interested, I definitely recommend buying a starter kit and beginning your collection. It's tons of fun and a great way to interact with cast members

Here is a picture of me right before we left the room, my lanyard was all loaded up with new pins I had ordered, ready to be traded!

We headed out towards the bus stop, which was only a two minute walk away! I really loved our room location.

The DTD bus came within 5 minutes and everyone loaded on board. As soon as I heard the magical bus guy's voice, I instantly felt at home. I hate to admit it, but I nearly started tearing up just listening to the bus spiel. It's beautiful

As soon as we arrived at the Marketplace, my mother and I headed straight for our dining destination for the night- Wolfgang Puck Express! We had never eaten there before, so we were excited to try something new.

We ordered our food and found a table in the outdoor seating area. I love that it's a quick service location, but they still serve your food to you and use real dishes!

Now here it comes.... the moment you've all been waiting for.... OUR FOOD!

My mother ordered the Roasted Seasonal Vegetables pizza, and she absolutely LOVED it! Any time we discuss this meal, she raves about how much she enjoyed it! I had a few bites and I must say it is pretty delightful!

And for me, I ordered the Macaroni & Cheese. I was expecting the typical yellow mac & cheese, but what I got was even better! It's different from the usual, but is hands down some of the best mac & cheese I've ever had!

We finished up our meal and headed out to explore the Marketplace! We needed to get our shopping done.

I absolutely love the atmosphere at DTD at night. I can't even explain it, but it makes me SO happy! As my mother and I walked along the water, I was nearly brought to tears because I was just so happy to be back in my favorite place on the planet. I'm nuts, I know

We looked through World of Disney, but it was really crowded as usual. Then we headed over to my little brother's favorite store, the Lego Store! It was pretty sad being there without him, he is a Lego fanatic and when he discovered this store back in August, he was in heaven!

We didn't plan on buying anything, but we ended up purchasing one of the Christmas lego sets for my grandmother. She loved it!

After we exited, we said hello to my lovely dragon friend!

At this point, we were both pretty tired so we decided to head back to the bus stop (we're lame, I know).

Once we arrived back at Pop Century, we still had one more thing to accomplish before we called it a night. TIE DYE CHEESECAKE!!!!!

We purchased one slice from the food court and brought it back to the room to share.

It was very good cheesecake, however I wasn't quite as blown away as I thought I would be. But hey, it was still enjoyable and very colorful!

That concludes this chapter, my friends! Tune in to find out about our ONLY full day in WDW! See ya real soon! ​

 

[MINNIEmeetsTINK]

Hello

Im In!

I just returned from a SHORT weekend trip myself...
with NO park time!
But it was definatly Worth it.

A mother daughter Trip is definatly a dream of mine

Your Mom's pizza looks AMAZING!!! Im jealous I got a plain cheese one last weekend when we were there and it was good but her's must be amazing!

 

[appleorchard]

What a great little trip--you and your mom are very lucky--and you're a very good writer!

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Hello

Im In!

I just returned from a SHORT weekend trip myself...
with NO park time!
But it was definatly Worth it.

A mother daughter Trip is definatly a dream of mine

Your Mom's pizza looks AMAZING!!! Im jealous I got a plain cheese one last weekend when we were there and it was good but her's must be amazing!

Welcome, and thanks for reading! I must say any trip to WDW is worth any hassle, no matter how short! Also, I definitely recommend trying that pizza next time you're at WPE!​

What a great little trip--you and your mom are very lucky--and you're a very good writer!

We had a great time thank you so much!​

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Good Morning, Pop!

After a tiring night at Downtown Disney, we woke up early to start our soon-to-be action-packed day! But before we headed off to the parks, we had a some touring to do.

I had seen sooo many pictures of Pop Century's giant icons online, therefore I wanted to see all of them in person! After we got ready, my mother and I left the room and began our journey touring the resort.

Our first stop was the 80's/90's section. This section features a computer pool which I thought was pretty neat, and also a giant walkman!

I really loved the Rubix Cube staircases in the 80's buildings!

Next we were off to the 70's section. On the way we ran into two of my personal favorite characters, Mr & Mrs Potato Head!

I really loved this section! Check out that Mickey phone, and the Big Wheel!

We got to check out the Art of Animation construction taking place across the water!

We then made our way over to the 60's section, but first we had to say hi to my good friend, Goofy!

Check out those yo-yo's!

And the lovely pool-

We then ran into some more friends of mine

And finally, we were headed towards our last section, and perhaps one of my favorites, the 50's section! I really love the bowling pin staircases.

Looks like she's getting some maintenance done!

After we finished roaming, we made our way back towards Classic Hall. It was almost park time!

Look at these beauties! I really miss Florida..

We headed into the building and decided to skip breakfast at the food court and eat at the park instead. We shopped for a little in the gift shop and it was soon time to head out!

Stay tuned for the next update, where we finally get to our FIRST and ONLY park of the trip! ​

 

[Motocross Tink]

Hey! I'm joining in to ear about the rest of the trip! I'm also 15 and no you are no crazy. I know how it feels to almost be brought to tears by Disney!

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Hey! I'm joining in to ear about the rest of the trip! I'm also 15 and no you are no crazy. I know how it feels to almost be brought to tears by Disney!

Haha I'm glad you understand my madness thanks for joining in!​

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Future World Uno

Boy oh boy, it has been much too long since I last updated! Since August is already coming to a close, I figured I better hurry up and finish this TR before it's already been a full year since the trip

I last left over with me and my mother about to leave Pop Century.

After roaming the grounds of our resort, we headed out to the bus stop to go to our first and ONLY park of the trip. And our park of choice was.....

The bus pulled up within 5 minutes, and we were then off to Epcot! The bus was PACKED so we had to stand at the very front, but I actually liked that spot because I was able to grab a few pictures!

Before I knew it, we saw this in the distance...

YAY!! We had finally arrived! We disembarked and headed towards the front entrance. The park still hadn't opened yet, so while we waited I took pictures of some of the holiday decorations!

After the opening spiel, we entered the park and were ready to pack as much magic into the day as we could! Before we headed to the Land for Soarin fastpasses, we stopped to take pictures by the entrance!

It felt so good to be back! Hello beautiful trees!

My mother and I then made our way towards the Land. We grabbed our Soarin passes and then decided to enter the standby line since it was only 20 minutes. I'm pretty sure this was my first time ever going in Soarin's standby line!

Hey look, it's my best friend!

After our breath-taking journey over California, we decided it was time to take a relaxing boat ride into the greenhouses!

I love that their tank is decorated for the holidays, too!

It would be pretty awesome to work in this lab.

After that educational journey, it was time for some fun with my good friend Figment!

There was absolutely no line for this, we walked right on! Now looking back I wish I rode it twice

That's all for now, folks! The next part should be coming in the near future. See ya real soon!​

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

Future World Dos

After leaving Figment, we headed back to the hub of Future World and took pictures with these ADORABLE Christmas topiaries. Aren't they the cutest?

I made a mental note to make sure I caught a showing of "Joyful!" later on, but sadly we didn't find the time

Check out these crowds.......

We then browsed through Mouse Gear, but I believe we didn't buy anything. After that, we headed over to Test Track to grab Fastpasses for later. It was going to be my mother's first time riding!

To kill time before Test Track, we decided to ride a family favorite, The Seas with Nemo!

This really made me wish my brother was with us, he is a huge Nemo fan and on his last trip, he made us ride it over and over!

Finally, it was time for Test Track! We made it through with no wait thanks to a combination of Fast Pass and the low crowds, and soon enough we were on our journey!

Unfortunately, my mother wasn't too fond of this ride, and it gave her a headache. I felt bad because I really thought it was something she'd enjoy.

Well, that wraps up the Future World portion of our day! Next stop: World Showcase!​

 

[♫♥MickeyManda♥♫]

World Showcase

As we were approaching the World Showcase, we were greeted by this beautiful sight:

It was so much more beautiful in person! Disney at Christmastime is really somethin' I tell ya.

So where would we head first- Canada or Mexico?

Well since we always head to Mexico first, we decided to change it up a bit and start with Canada!

When we vacation with the rest of our family, everyone is usually in a rush to hit all the major attractions that we never truly get the chance to take in the details. Therefore, my mother and I decided that on this trip we would finally get to explore World Showcase more thoroughly.

We decided to go watch "O Canada" for the first time. While heading towards the theatre, I had already discovered an area I'd never seen before! These waterfalls were really cool.

Unfortunately, the 360 degree movie made my mother even dizzier than she already was from Test Track. In fact, I think it started to make my head spin too. The movie was beautiful, but I think I would've enjoyed it more if I was presented on a normal screen.

After that, it was time to headed back outside and explore some more.

We browsed through the UK fairly quickly, mainly because we wanted to grab a bite to eat in France.

We bought a croissant to share, and I remember it being absoluely delicious. It was light, but had enough taste to it so butter wasn't necessary. Croissants are definitely one of my favorite snacks!

After the quick snack break, we continued exploring.

Once we hit the American pavilion, I decided to stop for another snack! I just can't get enough Disney food. I ordered a jalapeno cheese pretzel, which was something I had been dying to try for awhile. Let me tell you, it was DELICIOUS! Super unhealthy, I'm sure, but definitely worth it. It was also very filling, which wasn't good at the time because we were headed to our lunch reservations.

Before we went to our dining destination of the day, we stopped to watch this performance-

Next stop: A new dining experience for us!
​

 

[westcoastfldisneygirl]

That pretzel looks so good! I want one when I go to Disney on Saturday now!