[Tyffni]

Well, we're wrapping up our trip a day or two early. Original plans were to go home on Sunday. Then it got switched to Saturday so my husband could go on a fishing trip. Now it looks like we will have to go home a day earlier than that due to the hurricane

We arrived late Friday afternoon to learn that our hotel was leaving the Hilton family (it was a Homewood Suites when we reserved it). This meant we would not be getting our points toward a free stay (this was a big deal since we were staying over a week). We expected to have a newspaper at our front door each weekday...instead, "extras" were available at the front office. We expected a manager's reception in the afternoons Monday through Thursday with free beer...this was cancelled. We expected a free American buffet breakfast...which was limited and icky. On the positive side: we were allowed to bring our cat, it did have a kitchen (missing only the oven), an iron and ironing board, it was right near Disney and I-4 (which was important because we would be traveling to Orlando for shopping twice). Overall, the accomodations were nice for the price during the time of year ($84 a night).

Thank goodness I know my way around the area. The construction they are doing at the US192 exit to I-4 is extreme. With the hotel being literally right beside I-4 (we could see it from the window), we had to deal with the sound of pile-driving several times. However, the sound of the interstate was great for luring me to sleep at night.

We also had to deal with the power going out not once, but twice!!! Being the rednecks that we are, my portable alarm clock and my husband's portable radio both had small flashlights on them and we had purchased a souvenir candle that got us through the second one. The hotel did not have anything to help the other guests so many were using their cars for lights and a/c (this is 90 degree temperatures!!) for almost 2 hours. Finally the power came back on at 11pm. The first time (luckily) was at 6 in the morning and lasted only about 20 minutes. I have to say that neither time was any fault of the hotel, but it was obvious the hotel was unprepared for this.

Saturday was our 1st anniversary and I had chosen Citrico's. The menu seemed the most versatile without being too exotic. The meat was extremely tender and Cinderellabration is to die for, but the main courses just didn't seem worth the money. I would say dine here for drinks and desert. BTW, I saw little ones getting Mickey straws in their drinks and no longer saw them for sale anywhere! If you find where they are for sale, let me know! After dinner, we proceeded to the beach to watch the electrical parade then went back to the hotel.

Monday was our first real taste of Disney. We shopped the marketplace in under two hours!!! Power shopping at its finest!!! (Note: As of this trip I saw a new Stitch hole puncher only in the store beside the Art of Disney...I think it's called the 3 R's. The lady said she hadn't seen it there last week and I didn't see it at any of the parks for the rest of our trip. They also had Tigger, Pooh, Minnie, and the castle. If you are looking for post-its, a shop on the left side of the street in MGM has a better selection than World of Disney...they had Tinkerbelle!!!.) We went to the other end of DD to see Mr. and Mrs. Smith at the AMC. Loved it!!!

The Magic Kingdom was just that...magical. By getting to the park early on Tuesday, we were able to ride 4 rides in an hour during a holiday week!!! Our longest wait was on PotC which was made worse by people not respecting personal space, but the a/c was a blessing. We left by 2 pm with hopes of returning for Wishes, but just didn't make it back.

Epcot on Wednesday was nice. I am REALLY suprised by the quality of landscaping at Epcot lately. The rose walkway looked sad. Ground cover was escaping onto the sidewalk. Muck was standing in some of the water. It just seemed like it had been let go since the flower festival. Even MGM looked nicer than Epcot. We were also disappointed in the fish at the Living Seas. Their fins showed that they just were not healthy. It also seemed like the water wasn't as clean as always. (New hidden Mickey...upstairs down the aquarium walkway. Right side. I think it was the first or second window. Look down at the rocks below arranged in a Mickey. This is NOT in the first edition of the Hidden Mickey book.) My husband learned the pleasure of Fast Pass. We explored Innoventions while waiting one for Test Track and ate lunch while waiting on one for the Land. We went back to the hotel to take a nap and return to the World Showcase in the evening for shopping. (Shopping ideas: an ornate magnifying glass in China for a visually impaired person in your life, $18; scarfs in China, $6 and up; neat "toe" socks in Japan which keep your big toe seperate from the rest...meant for sandals, but better used for teenage girls who like neat socks, $7; picking a pearl and having it set as a pendant in Japan, under $50 but I don't remember exactly)

We ended with MGM on Thursday, quickly hitting our 4 major attractions (ToT, RRC, MoDA, and WWtbaM). We hit them so quickly (and the temperatures felt even hotter than the previous days), that we didn't want to hang around for the new extreme stunt show.

Biggest suggestion for those staying off property...withdraw from your bank the exact bills needed for parking and keep it in the bank envelope in your glove compartment. (Example three days of parks means 3 five's and 9 one's). It was so easy to reach in there each day and pull out a five and three one's.

Feel free to ask away with questions about what was going on in the parks. I'll be glad to answer as best as I can.

[Dana]

Sounds like a great trip. I like how you took the negatives things that happened and got over it not allowing it to ruin any of your trip. Sorry to hear that Epcot wasn't very magical looking. Hoep that is corrected quickly....I can't believe the fish didn't look healthy...that is not like WDW at all. Thanks for sharing you trip with us.

[Andrea]

I'm really sorry to hear about the Homewood Suites! I was really happy with my stay in one in TN and was considering it for a WDW trip in a few years' time. Now I'll know better- thanks!

Your shopping ideas are terrific! Any more suggestions?

Andrea

[Tyffni]

I think part of the problem is just that we got caught in the transition phase. The rooms were nice and several of the things were beyond the hotel's control (like the construction and the loss of power).

As far as gifts are concerned...You could do a lovely gift basket of treats from each country around the world if you know someone with adventurous tastes. You could also do a gift basket of incense (cheaper than candles, but I don't know if EVERY country has it).

A friend's family chooses a theme each holiday and you have to purchase with that theme in mind (maybe each person gets their own "theme"). If your family chose music, you could buy very interesting CDs in each country. My favorite are the drummers in Japan.

Japan also had some interesting candle holders I considered (they were in the window displays). They had cute purses I haven't seen before. Some cute silk pajama pants, but I think they were $50. There were some Disney pajama pants (cotton I think) in World of Disney for only $26...great for teenagers too.

Basin in Downtown Disney lets you create your own gift basket. I would prefer to buy a basket at Michael's when they have 50% (or any such craft shop in your area) and make my own with the Basin stuff....some soap, Body Butter, Bath Bombs, etc.

The ESPN store always has some cute clothing not available outside of the World (at least as far as I know). A shirt with a subscription to Sports Illustrated would be great for a sports fan.

The pet lover would probably love some of the things at the relatively new pet store in Downtown Disney...treats, leashes and collars, a machine which allows you to engrave a Disney ID tag. I think I saw a few other different pet items at Mouse Gears in Epcot.

I was shopping with a particular group of people in mind (and it was a whirlwind tour of the World) so I can't think of any other suggestions off of the top of my head.

[queensmama]

Thanks for sharing. I can see that you are great shopper so thanks for the tips.

[Pooh Fan]

Thanks for sharing your trip with us. It sounds like overall you had a lot of fun.