[roxie]

Originally Posted by packerbeth

Let me take a minute to talk about crowds. It seemed like the parades and major shows (Illuminations, Fantasmic, etc.) were really crowded, but there was almost never a wait for any attraction in any of the parks. We often saw the standard 20 minute wait posted, but I don’t think we ever waited that long for anything. A couple of times, the wait was less than five minutes, so the wait time sign didn’t have any number in it at all!

We noticed that, too. Sometimes it would look like it was packed, but we really didn't have to wait for any rides very long at all. We even got front row "seats" for Boo to You and SpectoMagic parades!

[packerbeth]

Originally Posted by roxie

We noticed that, too. Sometimes it would look like it was packed, but we really didn't have to wait for any rides very long at all. We even got front row "seats" for Boo to You and SpectoMagic parades!

Of course, you probably showed up more than 5 minutes beforehand to secure such a great spot, like we did. It was very important for me to see both of these parades, so we staked out our spot way in advance. There were folks who tried to scoot in just before it started; I'll talk about one particular family when I get to MNSSHP. It was aggravating, but also funny in a "did she just say that?" kind of way. Stay tuned!

[roxie]

Originally Posted by packerbeth

Of course, you probably showed up more than 5 minutes beforehand to secure such a great spot, like we did. It was very important for me to see both of these parades, so we staked out our spot way in advance. There were folks who tried to scoot in just before it started; I'll talk about one particular family when I get to MNSSHP. It was aggravating, but also funny in a "did she just say that?" kind of way. Stay tuned!

I have a story about a family, too!

We got there about 20 minutes before hand for each.

[packerbeth]

Day two – September 20

Today was the first day we’d begin and end at WDW. My conference started at 9 a.m. both Friday and Saturday, and of course we’d be leaving by Sunday evening, so we had a lot planned for this day. Here were our plans; we stuck with them for the most part:

8:00 EMH MK
12:00 AK
5:00 Boma
7:00 Epcot for Illuminations

We wanted to be in the car on the way to MK by 7:15, so I think Mickey and Stitch woke us around 6:15. Yes, it was early, but we were at WDW with no kids, so it was fairly easy to get ready and out the door. We stopped by the food court to fill up our mugs, and we were on our way to the TTC. We really debated whether to take the bus or drive, and we decided to take Flip only because we were doing so much running after MK. If we only had MK to go to, we definitely would have taken the bus. I did not want to wait for a bus to AK, wait for a bus to AKL, wait for a bus to Epcot and wait for a bus to ASMu. Taking Flip was easier, even though we had to make the trip from the TTC to MK.

We arrived at the TTC, parked in the closest row to the entrance (remember this; we didn’t) and headed in to take the monorail to the Magic Kingdom for the first time this trip. While we were waiting for the monorail to leave, a group came in with these three adorable kids, two girls and one boy. We let the kids have our seats and started chatting with them. They were starting their first full day at WDW, also, and the kids were so excited. I pointed out the castle to them, and one of the girls said, “We’re going to EAT there!” She couldn’t have been more excited; it was really cute.

It was 8:00 when the monorail pulled into the station, but there were no opening ceremonies at EMH, so we didn’t miss anything. Our plan was to get to Space Mountain first, then try to conquer all of Fantasyland by 9 a.m. However, as we came through the tunnel underneath the Main Street Station for the first time, the sight of the Magic Kingdom decorated for fall completely overwhelmed me. I was practically jumping up and down, and although I received many strange looks (especially from children!) I didn’t care. It was fall, and I was at the Magic Kingdom; it was two of my very favorite things all rolled into one. Take a look at these gorgeous decorations:

[Tyffni]

I hope some of it is still there when I go the first weekend of November!!

[packerbeth]

Here are some more. I have never been to WDW during a holiday period, and I can’t say enough about how much I enjoyed seeing MK all decked out for my favorite season.


We have a few Photopass pics in various places at the MK, where you should be able to see more of the decorations. I should be getting my CD in a couple of days, so I’ll share more then. I hadn’t really planned on stopping for photos, but with MK looking so fabulous, I couldn’t pass it up. Plus, crowds were light, so I knew we wouldn’t have trouble doing what we wanted to do.

By the time we got done taking all of the pictures, we headed over to Tomorrowland so get a FP for Space Mountain. I knew the return time would be 10:00, but we had a lot to do, so I didn’t think we’d have trouble passing the time. We eventually ended up in Fantasyland, and the first thing we did was ride The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.

This was closing the week we were there in January, and much to our disappointment, we didn’t get to MK before it closed. I took a video to take home to my girls. I’ve always loved Pooh, so I was happy to be able to ride it myself. Next up was Peter Pan, which I’ve always enjoyed.

I even took a photo, since I really wanted to show my girls the mermaid that looks like Ariel. Shame on me! What a mom will do for her kids…

[packerbeth]

For those of you who, like me, love it's a small world, these photos are for you:

[LuvDisney24]

I must tell you that I am soooooo enjoying this TR. It really is getting me excited for out Dec. trip.

[packerbeth]

Originally Posted by LuvDisney24

I must tell you that I am soooooo enjoying this TR. It really is getting me excited for out Dec. trip.

Glad you're enjoying it. Thanks for reading.

More to come!

[lovemysons]

I love IASW too! I could ride it over and over, thank you very much.

Great pictures, and I just love that little table from Beaches and Cream. How cute!! And, I am curious to know where did you wind up watching Illuminations from?

[packerbeth]

When we finished my favorite ride, we decided that we’d done all that we needed to do in Fantasyland for the time being. We were going to be back at MK two more times during the trip, so we’d catch the rest of the attractions either Friday or Saturday. It was already 9:00, which meant the park was open and people would be heading for Frontierland, so we did the same. Splash and BTMRR, here we come!

I had never ridden on Splash before, and I was really looking forward to it. I’d brought along super sized Ziploc bags to put our backpacks in, just in case we got wet like Brer Rabbit warned us we might! I used to have the record of this movie, and listened to it quite often. “Zippadeedoodah” is a family motto. If someone slips, we say, “Slipadeedoodah” or if they trip, it’s “Tripadeedoodah.” If something happens that we don’t like, someone will say, “Crapadeedoodah.” My husband’s barbershop chorus sings the song, as well, and my girls heard it first as a barbershop song. They were very surprised that it’s actually a Disney song! My girls refused to go on Splash in January, saying it was too cold. I guess they were right, and I saved myself a lot of headache by not going on it with them, because I would have heard about it if they were cold and wet for the rest of the day! I was disappointed that I didn’t get to go on it myself, though.

Anyway, all that is to tell you how much I was looking forward to riding Splash! We were in the boat with a family which included two young girls and two boys. One boy had ridden it before and the other hadn’t. They were from the south, and had the most charming little accents. The inexperienced boy kept turning around to talk to us, saying, “This is it!” and then nothing would happen. It was pretty funny. The photo is hilarious, as well. Look at these poor, terrified little baby girls!


Poor babies!

[packerbeth]

So, being in the back, we didn’t get very wet, but we decided to dry off on BTMRR. We had no wait, and before we knew it, we were off to Adventureland to experience the new & improved PotC. This was another ride my girls had refused to go on, so it was at the top of my list for this trip! I liked the addition of Capt. Jack; he was very lifelike!

Well, by this time, we’d finished everything I had on my EMH to-do list, and it was about time to head to Animal Kingdom. But wait, what’s this? We saw Wendy and Peter Pan walking by, and there are Capt. Hook and Smee, with almost no line. Hooray, characters! We visited briefly with the pirates, but Stacy really wanted to track down Peter and Wendy, since her family had not met them before. We didn’t have to wait too long in line, and while we were there, Stacy noticed the cool hat the man in front of us was wearing. It had the many representations of Mickey over the years, including Steamboat Willie and Sorcerer Mickey. She asked where he’d gotten it, because she thought her DH would really like one.

We told Wendy how beautiful her dress was, and she said, "Oh, it's just my nightclothes" in her little (fairly authentic!) British accent.



Character count so far this trip: 7!

We headed for the Adventureland bridge to we could keep up with the schedule, when suddenly we saw a sign that said, “Meet Captain Jack Sparrow!” Stacy's DH had heard about this opportunity, but had read that the only day he would be there was Sunday. We were planning on spending the whole day at Epcot on Sunday, but considered making our way to MK if it meant a visit with Capt. Jack.

The meet was right around the corner from Aloha Isle. There was a CM manning the door, and we asked how long it would be and she said about 30 minutes. It turned out to be less than that, but even if it were longer, we would have done it.

This is one of those times when you take advantage of the opportunity, throwing the schedule out the window. I was really glad we did it, but even though it was one of the highlights of our day, it did give us less time to be at AK, and that did stress me out a bit later on in the day. We have awesome photopass pictures to share once the CD arrives. They have a printed frame around them and it says, “I met Captain Jack Sparrow at the Magic Kingdom.”

Here are a couple from my camera:




This guy was great; he had Johnny Depp's mannerisms down pat. He was really funny and flirty. He looked at my wedding ring and said, "That's a nice bit of gold you've got there..." and then tried to pull it off. "It won't come off!" he said. Then when we left, he said, "If you won't give me your ring, maybe someday I'll have your heart!"

In the first picture, he was asking for a quill, because Stacy had given me her pen so he could sign my Passporter, but it had run out of ink. In the back of the Passporter, there are places to have characters sign autographs. At the top, it says “Notes & Autographs” and “Scribbles & Doodles.” So he goes to sign my book, and says, “Shall I do a note, an autograph, a scribble or a doodle?” pointing at each word with JD’s dramatic flair. He was hilarious.

Character count is up to 8!

[packerbeth]

Originally Posted by lovemysons

I love IASW too! I could ride it over and over, thank you very much.

Great pictures, and I just love that little table from Beaches and Cream. How cute!! And, I am curious to know where did you wind up watching Illuminations from?

The pictures of Illuminations were taken on the bridge between FW and WS. It had a little side rail that I hooked my camera onto with the gorillapod.

[lovemysons]

Originally Posted by packerbeth

The pictures of Illuminations were taken on the bridge between FW and WS. It had a little side rail that I hooked my camera onto with the gorillapod.

Ok. I thought so!! But I wasn't sure.

[packerbeth]

Originally Posted by lovemysons

Ok. I thought so!! But I wasn't sure.

Unfortunately, all we could see was the fireworks portion. We couldn't really see the globe or the effect of the pavillions all lit up. But we thought we'd be back the next night, so it was okay (at the time!)