Trip Report: Rose & Crown Lunch (December 2019)

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It was almost time for lunch so we left The Seas and headed to World Showcase. We were doing the Candlelight Processional dining package at Rose & Crown. There was some time to kill so we were able to stop and watch the singers perform in Canada.

After checking in, we waited about 5 minutes to be seated. We ended up outside. It did get a little chilly toward the end of the meal, but not too bad. We’ve been outside in colder weather here before. 

My dad and I are normally just entree people, but the package included an appetizer, entree, and dessert. It was a lot of food! For our appetizers, I got salad and my dad got a scotch egg. He does love the scotch egg. Normally, we both get bangers and mash (that’s the whole reason we do lunch) but apparently we felt like risk takers today. I don’t remember the name of my dad’s dish but he liked it. I think it was braised pork. I got a burger which was pretty good. I got a trifle for dessert and it was good, but complete trash compared to my dad’s dessert. He got the sticky toffee pudding. It was spectacular. Can you go to the bar and just get the pudding?

I need more pudding!

After lunch, we hit up the bathrooms and checked out the UK gift shops. 

Then, we continued around the world showcase and checked out other country pavilions.

We saw France and then Morocco. I really like the aesthetic of the Morocco pavilion. They also had a really interesting exhibit. I like learning about other countries and cultures. 

Next, we checked out Japan. The gift shop was different than I remember. THere must have been a refurbishment and I’m just oblivious. They had a kawaii exhibit which was interesting, but I liked the Moroccan one more.

When we came out of the exhibit, the Japanese storyteller was about to begin so we stopped and watched her. The story is about a New Year’s celebration and something I knew nothing about. She was an excellent performer and very captivating.

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Trip Report: Epcot is full of Construction (December 2020)

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For Day 3, I set an alarm for 8:30, but I ended up waking up at 7:45. I got around and took a shower.

It was going to be colder today-around 65 degrees. But there was a sleety snowstorm with 4-6” of snow so it’s all relative. 

We ended up leaving the room around 10. Dad was really liking these later more relaxed mornings. I still like the “go-go-go” mentality, but can appreciate the more relaxed trip. Especially as I have the opportunity to go more often I’m more open to calmer vacations.

An Epcot bus was pulling up as we got to the bus stop. As we rode, dad switched our Spaceship Earth FP+ to the evening. That way our early afternoon would be less full/stressful. It was a tight squeeze between FastPasses and our lunch reservation.

There were so many construction walls! I had heard, but it was crazy to actually see in person.

We decided to try Living with the Land, but the line was way too long for us. So, instead we visited by buddy Figment. The wait was 10 minutes and there actually was a line! I’m glad people appreciate Figment and are giving him the respect he deserves. I did some shopping in his gift shop to show my support. I was able to get a DVC exclusive pin for the Festival of the Holidays, too. 

The Pixar shorts (also at the Imagination pavilion) were starting soon so we headed in there. I don’t know how often these change, but we saw 3 shorts. My favorite was Piper. I almost cried. Next, was Get a Horse. This was classically funny and had a Walt voice. My least favorite was Feast. I didn’t write any notes on this one. I think it just didn’t stand out for me. 

Next, it was time for our The Living Seas with Nemo and Friends FP+. The line wrapped all around the building. There must have been a ride down at some point or something. But the line moved pretty fast. It’s a cute ride, but I wouldn’t want to wait longer than 10 or 15 minutes. 

Then, we checked out the aquarium. I like seeing the animals, but the aquarium glass hurts my eyes. Does anyone else have this problem? The manatees (my favorite animal) were being shy 😭 We were able to see them cleaning some of the tanks. We also got to see a Scuba demonstration in the middle of the aquarium. It was very cool to see. 

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Trip Report: Nighttime Resort Hopping (December 2019)

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After dinner, we planning on hitting up the Magic Kingdom resorts. the plan was to do Wilderness Lodge first, but after a long wait for a boat we went on a Contemporary boat.

When we got to the Contemporary, we couldn't dock so we headed to the Wilderness Lodge. I guess it worked out for us.

I wanted to see the gingerbread house. This was the first year they had one. I wanted to buy the pin for the house, but they only sell them when the house is "open" so I was out of luck. The gingerbread display is on the smaller side, but still cute.

After buying some stuff at the gift shop, we walked around a little more. Dad said we should check out Roaring Forks to see if they had the Christmas refillable mugs.

Guess what?

They did!!!

It's a Christmas miracle.

You can use them at any of the hotels, so it doesn't matter where you buy/activate them.

We watched the Electrical Water Pageant form the dock. It's one of my dad's favorite things in Disney and I enjoy it.

Then, we decided to head back to our hotel instead of doing more resort hopping. It was about 10 and we didn't want to push ourselves to far.

We took a boat to Magic Kingdom and then a bus to French Quarter. You do have to go through security when you get off the boat, but that's fine. There was a couple who had to get escorted to the bus, because they had a bottle of wine. that makes sense, because you can't bring it in the park. Just be aware in case you're shopping at the resorts. 

The fireworks were happening while we waited for the bus, so we got to see some of that.

At the hotel, I stopped by the front desk to waive housekeeping. They'll give you a $10 gift card for every day you waive. We ended up with $50. It's great, especially if housekeeping isn't really important to you like us.

I also bought a bow and two pins from the gift shop. we used our new mugs to get drinks. The French Quarter has Coke Freestyle machines which is nice.

In the room, I took some notes on the trip and put the plushes I bought in our window. I rolled out my feet with my lacrosse ball, soaked them in some cold water, and went to bed.

Steps walked: 15, 912

Up Next: Epcot is Full of Construction

Trip Report: Hoop-Dee-Dooing It!

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The boat to Fort Wilderness was a little delayed, but we weren't worried.

We check in for dinner and waited for the doors to open. I sat down and took notes on the trip so far. Dad went for a walk. The barns were under construction so we couldn't see the horses this time. My dad said he saw two fawns which is cool. 

We were seated in the third row back from the stage and our table was right in the middle. 

There wasn't honey butter-just regular butter for the cornbread. That is a true travesty.

I'm actually not the biggest fan of the food here. It doesn't have to do with the quality, but personal preference. I did pull the skin off the chicken and ate some chicken breast. I know I'm weird, but I don't like chicken skin. They had green beans instead of corn which was good. I like corn, but that's a lot of carbs for one meal. The strawberry shortcake was especially good this time. 

The show was of course fantastic. And it was Christmasy. It was different from last year's Christmas touches. 

Claire sang about how she wanted a hippo for Christmas. And we had seen this Jim before. I like that this cast sticks around for a long time. Six-Bits and Dolly were especially good. They played off each other very well. Claire saw my shirt while walking around. She stopped, did a double take and laughed. That may be one of my proudest moments. I'm obsessed with Claire.

It was a great experience as always. Hoop-Dee-Doo is an absolute must do.

Up next: Nighttime Resort Hopping.