Who Says a Platypus Doesn't Do Much?

tyandskyesmom

DIS Veteran
Joined
Apr 18, 2007
And so it ends, as all good things must. We were all very sad to come back to reality. Even with the heat, the bus issues, the heat, the boat issues, the heat, and all...oh, did I mention the heat???...we wanted to stay longer!

17 days just was not enough!!!! I know there are those of you who will say we're crazy. That 17 days is just too long at Disney World. But for us it wasn't. We did not even do everything we wanted to do or do things as much as we wanted to. We left with on "plus option" remaining and one day on our park hoppers too. So let me get on into it.

You can catch the pre-trip here...

Is 304 Days Too Soon To Start Planning?

I will have lots of pictures. I will do a dining review also but it will have the same info as here basically, in fact I may do them simultaneously. I believe we have pictures of almost everything...minus a few snacks. We did manage to use all of our credits for dining and snacking. We did ditch out on two breakfasts we had planned but ended up using the credits elsewhere. It all worked out though.

I got to meet justacrazymom accidentially at Disney Hollywood Studios in part two of our trip. That was nice. I did miss a meet with some people from another board due to the room transfer but that is a story for another day.

Now I will part here so you'll have to wait for my pictures to be uploaded to photobucket to get a good Day #1 update...

I cannot wait to re-live this with you~
 
Sounds great! I am in. I know what you mean about not having enough time. We went for about 12 days and we didn't come close to finishing all that we wanted to.
 
Can't wait to hear about your trip! I would LOVE to be able to visit WDW for 17 days....Lucky family! :cool1:
 


Can anyone tell me why I can buy a 16GB card to take pictures on but there is no place that has a machine that can remove those pictures easily to discs???

I spent over two hours last night at Sam's Club making discs. Their Fuji machines that are cheaper and hold more per disc would not sort the pics into date files so it was one large file that was too large for one disc. So I could not use that machine. I had to use the Kodak machine. Well, they have two of them. They are very slow. Each order could only be five discs and each disc would only hold around 130 -140 pics. SO in an order I could only do about 750ish pics. Well, we took over 4000!!!!

So I ended up with 18 discs and that is not even all of them...but i was tired of sitting there...I was tired of waiting...the guys were on the way home from football practice...the store was closing soon...and I was just plain tired!!! So I am going to remove the pics from the camera that I have and then I think I should be down to a number that the Fuji machine can handle all on one disc!

SO I am almost ready to get started....​
 
So after actually getting to bed around 11:00pm the night before, and surprisingly enough getting to sleep pretty quickly, the alarm went off at 3:00am!!! I jumped in the shower first and then Tyler. As Tyler was in the shower I woke Skyler up and she got ready (she had showered the night before. We ran around pacing the last minute things (ie. Glasses, chargers, batteries, etc) and we turned the last page of the countdown calendar…



Isn't that pretty??? THAT is the first one I did and my favorite!
 


So just as we were ready to go my dad (Pa) shows up to take us to the airport!!! He tells us my mom (Grammy) is very mad that she got called into work that evening (she works overnights in Labor & Delivery and on a Pediatric floor) because she wanted to see us (well, really, the kids not me) before we left. He gave each of the kids $100.00 to spend and we were off. It was about 4:00am. We arrived at Midway Airport shortly after that (we live about 5-10 minutes from there, especially at 4:00 in the morning. We checked in at curbside which was a first for us. Pa tipped the curbside check in guy $10.00. And since they rush you along pretty quickly up there, the kids gave Pa hugs and he was off. We headed to the elevator just inside the door. As we stepped out on the floor right outside of Security and I was counting carry-ons, I realized one of the bags was not there! It was the one that was between the kids in the middle of the car. It was the one with all our swimsuits and clothes for later that evening. Go figure the kids did not notice it sitting there still! So as we are running back downstairs to where we left Pa, I call him.


What? It wasn't my fault?!?!?

He is about half way home so turned around and came back a few minutes later. Phew!!!! I was really hoping this was not an indicator of things to come!

All in all, we were through Security and at out gate (B1) by 4:45am for our 6:00am flight…not too bad all-in-all!



Tyler sat with our carry on bags while Skye and I ran to the bathroom and to find a McDonalds. We never did find it. I don’t know why though because there is always a McDonalds I few gates away no matter what gate you are at. So we turned around and went back to Gold Cost Dogs. We got a Fruit Cup, Blueberry Muffin , Apple Juice, and a Sprite Zero ($13.61).












Our plane getting ready for us.

Skye ate most of the fruit and the apple juice. Ty had the muffin and shared the Sprite Zero with me.

We started boarding the plane around 5:40am and we had pulled boarding passes with the numbers A30, A31, and A32 so we did not have long to wait. We were able to snag the third row on the left when you walk onto the plane.




ChiChi loves vacation because that is the only time he gets to fly! Chickens in real life don't fly!

We wanted to be in the front because I hate standing in the isle waiting to get off the plane while tons of others mess with their luggage and take forever to move. So row three was good!
 
Shortly after we took off the flight attendants came around for drinks and snacks…Skye and I got Sprites and Ty got a Coke then we each got a bag of Lorna Doones.





Tyler took some pictures from the air when we got up into the clouds. Whe he was little, he would make himself stay awake, or try at least. Once we hit the clouds, he was out...every time. The last few times we have flown, he was able to hold out until about half way there.

As soon as we got our goodies we hit major turbulence over Indiana and into Kentucky. It was pretty bumpy but the Pilot kept coming on letting us know what was going on. So needless to say, we were to keep our seatbelts fastened most of the way there, which we do anyway bit it sure makes it a bit more relaxed to know you can take them off! However, the woman behind us, in a row all by herself because the flight was not full and in fact have very little children on it which was odd for a flight to Orlando on a Saturday morning (we were later told there was 53 passengers and a couple of lap babies), kept getting up and walking to the front of the plane to stand by the bathroom there. And we all know, that’s a NO-NO!!! I don’t know what she was doing because she never went into the bathroom…and the flight attendants kept telling her she could not stand up there and that the Pilot had the seatbelt light on still. But she kept doing it for most of the flight. Weird!

So Tyler played his PSP most of the way while Skye and I colored a Princess Picture. Then she and ChiChi started watching Diary of Wimpy Kid on my iPhone while I did some word searches (actually she helped me with three of them while watching the movie too).



At one point the Pilot came on around 6:40am and said we were just west of Louisville, east of Nashville, on top of Atlanta with 665 more miles to go and we were looking at an on time arrival! That was nice to hear. I have never had a Pilot keep us that well informed before but it helped put into perspective for us where we were. I was able to show Skye where we were on the map on the napkins so it helped her know about how much longer.

Tyler spilled most of his cup of Coke all over his tray at one point…UGH! I don’t know what they don’t put the tops on the cups all the time. I know they have them. I would even like one when trying to work with that small tray, two kids, all their stuff, my stuff, and a bumpy plane! So we were able to get the tray cleaned up, by ourselves by-the-way, but Ty’s shorts were a little wet. Luckily I travel with baby wipes so we were able to salvage everything. Shortly after that, Tyler fell asleep.

At 7:45am we were 100 miles out of Orlando and starting our descent. He said it was 79 degrees with east winds at 5 knots…I did not know how that last part affected me but it sounded good???

Tyler woke up as we were coming down and took some pictures.





At 9:15am we landed. We were off the plane quickly but it never fails, our stroller is always the last one brought up…one of the reasons I did not want to bring one.



But it was not a bad wait and then we headed off to the mini-monorail!!!







We’re here…we’re here!!!!
The kids love to get in the front and sit for that three second ride to the other side…it’s just one of those things for them!

 
Once off, Skye led the way to the elevator and the Disney’s Magical Express counter...




Tyler took those pictures and was still getting used to my camera.

...where we had some “housekeeping” of sorts to do before getting in line. We were directed right into the line where we were checked off and sent to the next podium to let that cast member know about our untagged bags. She had to manually write down all our numbers off of our claim tickets to make sure they were all received. It took her quite a while to write down five numbers! But then we were on our way down that line and were the first in it!



It did fill pretty quickly behind us though. We waited about five minutes before we were directed to a bus at 9:55am.





We left the airport at 10:05am. Carmelo Garcia was our driver and he was very talkative and informative.








 
We stopped at….



…Coronado Springs first. Then headed to...



Where we stopped at...




Are we there yet???

...first and then here...



...before heading this way...



...to here...





YEA WE MADE IT!!!

We had done on-line check-in and I was a bit worried about it. Ty waited by the bus for our stuff to be unloaded and Skye and I went in to get in line. I was pleasantly surprised though to find that the lobby was almost empty.



We did have one group in front of us in line, a mom and adult daughter, but within five minutes we were at the counter getting our Welcome Package.







It was not as quick and painless as described by Disney but it was not a long process either.

So the moment of truth was here. Would I like our room location? Would it be in an acceptable building? Would it be on the first floor? Would we be able to see a pool from it?

Yes, yes, no, and yes. So most of our requests were met. But the thing that over-rode the second floor room we did not want was that IT WAS READY!!!!!
 
We were give room #5801.





Here's some pictures on our first walk to our room...the anticipation was growing with each step!!!







It was in Fantasia, second floor, corner right by Mickey’s Sorcerer Hat, looking over the pool. Almost perfect…had we been directly below that I would have been ecstatic!!!!


See it??? Right behind Saturn!

We took some pictures…


View from the door into the room.


The new beds.


New TV and dresser. It was enough for us for six nights but for more than three people or for any longer a trip it might have been squished a little.


I just loved the new hat hooks!


New shower curtain.


View from the bathroom area towards the door.

One thing the kids noticed was missing are the old lights on the wall that look like popcorn boxes...they used to like them. But, overall, we were really happy with our room...I still wished we had the one under us but if that was all I had to complain about, I was doing good...GREAT in fact!
 
We dropped off our carry-ons. We rearranged what we needed with us and headed down to get our mugs and fill them up for the first time!



Ty got a blue mug, Skye got pink, and I got black. That’s all they had there. I could swear I had seen other colors before we left on-line but maybe not??? Skye and I got Lite Pomegranate Lemonade and Tyler got Coke. Three mugs would have cost us $44.91…WOW!

By 11:50am we were our in the blazing hot, sweat-running-down-your-face-think-you-are-crying sun waiting for a Magic Kingdom bus to arrive.







We waited about ten minutes…not too bad.





At 12:35pm we were on a monorail waiting to leave the Magic Kingdom station. Apparently Monorail Lime was having some issues so we had to wait on clearance to leave.






The Grand Floridan from the monorail.​
 
I'm here!

So glad you realized Pa had the bag before it was too late!!

Thing2 and Thing3 love to sit up front in the fake monorail too!

What a great room location!

Can't wait for more!!
 
Ok, so, I am so mad right now! After all my careful saving amd planning...I don't know where all my receipts are from part one!!!! I am so mad...so, you'll be getting an approximation from our dining. Sorry!


We finally arrived at the Grand Floridian at 12:51pm. First stop was the bathroom. We seemed to do a lot of that this trip…I guess that’s good…means we weren’t dehydrated at all!

As we started walking down the big starcase Skye started singing "Here comes the bride"...guess who needs to start saving now????

At 1:00pm we checked in for lunch at Grand Floridian Café. We were right on time for our 1:00pm reservation and taken in right away. We were led to a great table along the windows looking out onto the Grand Floridian grounds.





We were very happy with our table placement…although there was almost no one else in there so we should have been given a good seat. The hostess was not friendly though…did not smile and greet us, did not talk to us…not even the kids, did not explain who our wait staff would be, nothing! Once again, I was hoping this was not foreshadowing of our whole trip!

Andrew was our waiter. He was nice but not very personable. This was weird for a Disney restaurant, especially at a Grand Floridian restaurant. We have usually had great service there! He was efficient and did his job but he did not make it very fun for us!

We ordered our drinks…two diet cokes and a coke.




(That is the only non-alcoholic drink Perry would partake in this trip and he would spend hs trip in the backpack from her on out until Lou gets here.)

The first round of all the drinks are fine but the second go-round tasted funny…all of them…not sure why. The fish of the day was pan seared rainbow trout…don’t worry, I get less detailed as the trip goes on.

For an appetizer Skye ordered the Kid’s Chicken Noodle Soup…



Which she really liked…well, she liked the noodles that she pulled out and some of the carrots and a little bit of the chicken. Do I have the only kid in the world that eats soup with a fork? She does not actually eat the soup part of the soup…what a weirdo!

Tyler ordered the Sauteed Shrimp with Corn Cakes and Brandy Cream.



He did not like them. Not his thing but there was not really anything else on the menu he wanted and I could not see wasting an appetizer on a salad he’d pick at dry. Plus, he was on an “I’m-gonna-try-new-things” kick so he tried. I, on the other hand, thought they were wonderful…and wished I had ordered them! The Corn Cakes were super sweet with the taste of a good cornbread but the texture of a pancake. The Shrimp was done perfectly, not to tough. And the Cream was a great compliment to both the Shrimp and the Cakes. I may have eaten more of Tyler’s appetizer than my own!

I ordered the Crab Cakes served Pan-Seared with Mango Relish.



They were good but nothing special. I ate most of them but I would have been more happy if Tyler’s appetizer were mine…not that it mattered because he did not want it but if he had, it would have been disaster! I should have ordered the Onion Soup to try instead. Oh well, live and learn!

For entrees, Skye got the Kid’s Cheese Pizza…



…which she liked just fine. They are both pizza fiends so it would have to be really odd pizza or really bad pizza for them to not like it.

Tyler got the New York Strip medium rare and substituted Fries for the Mashed Potatoes (Ty doesn’t do potatoes…except fries!) and also had two Carrots and Fresh String Beans (which Skye and I ate…Ty does not eat cooked carrots and would never eat a bean!) …



He loved it…But he scraped all the fried onions off the top even though he loves Blooming Onions and Onion rings. It was perfectly cooked to his liking. They had no problems with his substitution of the fries. This began his quest for beef around the World!

For my entrée I ordered the Grand Floridian Burger which is an Angus Chuck Burger, Lobster, Asparagus, and Horseradish-Chive Hollandaise with a Tomato Salad…



It is a huge burger and it was difficult to pick up to eat so I ended up using a fork and knife. I was disappointed though. I had been craving this burger for ever! The burger was tough. The bun was hard. And I think the sauce was different…I remember a whiter sauce. It wasn’t horrible. I ate at least half of it. And the tomato salad was really good…so that helped a little.

Dessert made up for any entrée disappointments though!

Skye had the Worms-In-Dirt…



Now last time she ordered it, she refused to eat the “dirty worms”…Tyler had to eat them. She insisted that she was going to eat them this time. Well, she didn’t…and Tyler had too much other things to deal with than Skye’s worms!

Tyler and I shared a Dessert Sampler for Two…



… that included smaller versions of all the desserts on the menu…Lemon Cheesecake, a Fruit Tart, a Boston Crème Cake, and a Key Lime Tart...and the best part???? The solid chocolate Mickey standing among them all!!!! Tyler liked the Boston Crème Cake the best and I liked the Fruit Tart the best…and Skye, well, she went right for the Mickey! He was really good chocolate so I cannot blame her. But when we got to his head, she shoved it in her mouth and apparently did not realize it would be so difficult to bite into a solid chocolate Mickey head the size of a ping pong ball and dripped chocolate slobber down the front of her dress!!!! This was not in my plans for the day…she was supposed to wear that dress to dinner tonight! Luckily, butt wipes work wonders on stains and most of it came out. UGH!

Our total for lunch was $ 95.00. We charged the tip to the room charge. We had no out of pocket expense here. We used 2 adult and 1 child’s meal credit…and I was disappointed to not see that all spelled out for us like it used to be.

Overall, we had a good meal. It is quiet here and never crowded. Usually we have great service. I don’t know what was wrong today but it was not up to par with what we have come to expect here. In the future, we would return here. I don’t know that I’d go out of my way for a meal here but on a “do-nothing” day or of you were going to the Grand Floridian for some other reason, it is a great little spot. The place reminds me of a local kind of family restaurant but up a notch…like there are fresh roses on all the tables…nice touch!
 
At 2:16pm we were headed to the bus stop...

We took our time though and looked around and of course, took some pictures...






The wedding march staircase...


We loved the floors...I think they were done after our last trip we had the Deluxe Dining Plan about 4 or 5 years ago so this was the first time we were seeing them.


And I got really into lights this time...you are going to see a lot of pictures of Disney light fixtures...I think I was just enjoying how well even the lights enhance the atmosphere of where ever you are!

...to catch a bus to Blizzard Beach. I have a quandary about Deluxe Hotels and maybe someone can help me out. Admittedly, my experience with bus service from a Magic Kingdom or Epcot area deluxe hotel is limited but every single time we have tried, we have had worse waits than at values. Is that normal? Because if I am spending all that money, I don’t want to have to sit at a bus stop for half an hour to get where I am going. Boats too…seem to take a long time. Monorail service is great but we cannot get everywhere by monorail. So, is it just me? Do all people who stay deluxe have cars on property? Call cabs to go anywhere they would have to take a bus to? I just don’t get it!

Anyway, it was 2:37pm before a bus came going our way…and I mean any bus…not one other bus passed us in all that time…luckily, the bus that did come was the one we wanted though.

At 2:50 we got to Blizzard Beach. I obviously don't have many pictures from here though. We got in, go into the first store on the left, purchase a large locker key ($15.00 with $5.00 of that returned when you return the key), got to our locker, and they are kicking everyone out of the water for the weather….REALLY?!?!?!?! It’s not raining yet. No thunder or lightening seen yet where we were. I ask the kids what they want to do. They know the drill because out parks and pool do the five mile radius thing on lightening and then the waiting until 30 minutes have passed before allowing activity again. They wanted to stay and wait it out. I was hot. I just wanted to be cool. So we go into the locker room to change and it is like a sauna in there…why no air in there? Ty is out by the locker with our extra junk waiting for us. When we are done he goes in to change and we realize Skye left our mugs on the counter in the changing room. We run back in there, which is no easy feat because there are tons of people coming out and leaving the park and they are still there…PHEW!!! So we are all ready for if/when the reopen the pools. Skye finds an outside shower thing and plays with that for a while…till she’s soaked. Ty goes to walk around and see what is there…it’s been a while for us. Soon he comes back and we all go exploring. It is getting pretty empty in there so we’re just kind hanging out. It rained a little here and there but nothing hard. We did not see any lightening but there was thunder so I’m sure it was there. About 4:30pm we were allowed into the water! I tried to convince them to leave though instead of going in, knowing it would be more difficult to leave then, but they agreed to no trouble when it was time to go. So Tyler headed off to the slides with explicit instructions to return to our chair in one hour. Skye and I played in the wave pool. Ty returned a little early and we all went for a rice around the Lazy River…then went to change. Again, why no air in there?

By 6:07pm, we were walking out of Blizzard Beach to catch a bus to Animal Kingdom Lodge for dinner. We took a few pics on the way out...



 
I have a quandary about Deluxe Hotels and maybe someone can help me out. Admittedly, my experience with bus service from a Magic Kingdom or Epcot area deluxe hotel is limited but every single time we have tried, we have had worse waits than at values. Is that normal? Because if I am spending all that money, I don’t want to have to sit at a bus stop for half an hour to get where I am going. Boats too…seem to take a long time. Monorail service is great but we cannot get everywhere by monorail. So, is it just me? Do all people who stay deluxe have cars on property? Call cabs to go anywhere they would have to take a bus to? I just don’t get it!

Im with you! I stayed at Pop on my past trip AND POLY! and I have to say the bus service was better at pop! REally! :confused3 I felt the same way.
 
At 6:19pm a bus for Animal Kingdom Lodge pulled up…full. We were standing but a lady offered her seat to Skyler. The bus stopped at Kidani Village first. It was 6:31pm before we arrived at Jambo House. We love it here! This is our favorite hotel anywhere! The were doing a bit of work in the lobby. Not sure what it was because every time we were there is was moved a little. We headed downstairs and checked in at Jiko. We were seated for our 7:15pm reservation at 6:47pm.



We were seated at a table looking over the water as you walk out the door between Jiko and Boma.










It was really pretty and we got to watch the sun set while there. The kids were really excited to be here because we have seen it from the outside but never have we eaten here. This was on my original ADR list when we were only ding the deluxe dining plan for part two of the trip. But it was one of the few that got cut in favor of other things. So I was very happy to add it back when I decided to do the deluxe dining plan for part one too!

So it was really light in there when we arrived. As the sun set outside, the lights dimmed and changed. It was a really pretty and calm meal.

Our waitress was a little difficult to understand but friendly and smiling and helpful. Skye and I got diet cokes and Tyler got a Virgin Strawberry Daiquiri.



Tyler was thrilled that he could order a fun drink and not just a coke all the time. It was included on the dining plan. He let us all taste it. It was pretty good!

She brought the breads and butter out.



Skye liked the butter, Ty did not. I could take it or leave it. Skye and I liked the cinnamon-y sweeter bread, Tyler liked the other.

For appetizer, Skye ordered the Fruit Salad…



She loves a good fresh fruit salad and licked the bowl clean! It had watermelon, cantalope, honeydew, and pineapple.

Tyler ordered the Grilled Wild Boar Tenderloin with Mealie Pap, Chakalaka, White Truffle Oil, and Micro Cilantro…



He took the boar off the top and ate it all…except for one small bite he gave me. It was very good. A different, richer flavor than beef. The “stuff” left in the bowl was delicious too. I tried it with my small portion of boar and without. Tyler would not taste it. I ate a lot of what was in the bowl.

I got the Barbecue Chicken Wood-Fired Flatbread with Apple-Jicama Slaw, African Barbecue Sauce, and Four Cheeses…

 
Ok, so the flatbread was not what I had intended to order . I thought Tyler would want them to make him a cheese only flatbread and I’d get the boar…shows how little I know! But it was really good. Neither of the kids would try it though. I could do without some of the greens on the top but it was easily reduced to my liking. It was huge too...definitely an appetizer to share!

For her entrée Skye got the Kid’s Macaroni & Cheese …



Now there are not many mac & cheeses this girl has not met and liked but she said this one was awesome!!! Right up there with California Grill from the past! I tasted it and she was right, it was really good!

Tyler ordered the Seared Barbarie Duck Breast with Potato and Spinach Masala, Royal Trumpet Mushrooms, and a Port Emulsion…



He did not like it. I think he was expecting the duck breast to be like a chicken breast…not sliced and marinated. But I was prepared for that. I allowed him to order it knowing I’d be ok eating it. So we switched. I did like mine better but whatcha gonna do??? It is sort of Asian tasting…at least it was to me. It was definitely good…no doubt about it. It wasn’t something I’d order again but not because it wasn’t good, just not my thing. Tyler did try it and said it was ok but he wasn’t gonna eat it, I could tell so I gave up my Oak-Grilled Filet Mignon.



I did get to keep my Hominy “Risotto” and California Asparagus with Red Wine Reduction though…he was not interested in that! I also did get to take the first taste of it while he was trying his. It was awesome…Tyler agreed! Sure wish I could have eaten more of it! What a mother will sacrifice for her first born!!! He scarffed down the whole thing and loved it. I had some of the “risotto” and the asparagus and it was all good. The “risotto” was pretty plain though so really needed the reduction to give it flavor. SO entrée wise we were all very happy (next time though we will both be getting that filet!).

For dessert Skye got the Jiko “Fun-do”…



It had a bowl of dipping chocolate, a brownie, a cookie,
She liked it…what’s better than playing with your food and having it still taste good? And she brought the brownie and the cookie home for later.

Tyler has the One Last Cup (not on the current menus on Disney’s website or allears)…







He really liked the presentation. The spoon was a cookie kinda thing holding a white and a brown sugar cube…there were one more of each on the plate also. He dipped the spook into the chocolate sauce and poured it over the cake. He was very happy with his dessert.

I ordered the Coconut Bread Pudding (also not on the current menus for Disney’s website and allears)…



It was really good. I don’t know why I ordered it over other things on the menu because I am not usually a bread pudding kinda gal but it was really good and I was glad I ordered it. Neither of the kids would try it though.

Our total for dinner was $150.00. We charged the tip to the room charge. We had no out of pocket expense here. We used 4 adult and 2 child’s meal credit. We will definitely be back to Jiko in the future. We liked everything about it…the atmosphere was nice and relaxing, it was pretty with great views, and the food was great!
 
I am realllly enjoying your trip and dining reports! I can't wait to read more.

I feel the same way about deluxe resorts!!!!! The waits are horrible at deluxe resorts. Definitely the longest I have ever had to wait were at a deluxe resort. Pop century is sooo much quicker!!! I wonder if it is because I go to deluxe resorts at off times? Maybe they are better in the morning?
 

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