| 2009 Disney
Daily
Blog
Click here to
see a sampling of pictures.
7/11/09
Today
we started our 9th vacation to
Disney World! We woke up
early to catch our 7:45 flight,
and arrived in Orlando at 11:00.
Disney's Magical Express picked
us up at the airport and brought
us to our beautiful hotel, The
Port Orlean's Riverside.
Our room wasn't ready, so we ate
lunch at the food court, pin
traded with cast members, walked
around outside and took
pictures, and looked in the gift
shop. Once our room was
ready, we unpacked, and headed
to the Magic Kingdom! We
did alot today in four hours and
had a great time!
When we arrived at the Magic
Kingdom, we walked around in the
Main Street shops and bakery,
took some pictures, and just
enjoyed being "home" again.
We headed over to Frontierland,
and we were surprised to see
Cowboy Goofy, as we have NEVER
seen him before doing meet and
greets! After a Texas
howdy to Goofy, we went over to
Adventureland to take a ride on
Aladdin's Magic Carpets.
It started to rain, so we went
inside for a meal that all four
of us love, taco salads!
We found these a few years ago
and have made them at home, but
it was nice to have the
"original" again! The rain
let up, so we went back to
Frontierland, and had another
character first! We met
Donald Duck dressed as Davy
Crockett! After autographs
and pictures, we went over to
Tomorrowland for one of our
favorites, The Monster's Inc.
Laugh Floor Comedy Club.
This is a fairly new and really
neat attraction that uses
technology to incorporate
audience members into the comedy
acts. One of the acts
included a monster telling a
story using guests as characters
from the Monster's Inc movie.
All of a sudden, we saw Neil's
face up on the screen - and he
was the character of Mike
Wazowski, who is his favorite
Monster's Inc. character!
Since Mike only has one eye,
Neil had to cover up one of his
eyes with his hand. It was
really cool to see Neil up on
the screen!
After the
show, we went over to use our fastpasses for Buzz Lightyear's
Space Ranger Spin that we had
picked up before Monster's Inc.
We saved the galaxy with Buzz,
and decided to head to
Fantasyland. On the way
over, it started to rain again,
so Courtney and Megan got ice
cream and we went inside to eat
it. By the time the ice
cream was gone, the rain had let
up and we headed out. Our
plan was to get fastpasses for
The Many Adventures of Winnie
the Pooh, and then watch
Mickey's Philharmagic. As
we were getting our Pooh
fastpasses, we got surprise
fastpasses for Mickey's
Philharmagic that were
immediately good. We
enjoyed the show, and after
taking a ride through the 100
Acre Woods, we decided to head
back to the Riverside. We
pin traded our way down Main
Street and made some good
trades. Our bus was
waiting for us when we got to
the stop, so we got on and
enjoyed the ride back. Our
driver even pointed out a
"Bambi" on the side of the road!
Courtney and Megan put on their
swimsuits and enjoyed a swim at
the pool by our room.
Everyone showered and was
exhausted from the long day!
The plan for tomorrow is Typhoon
Lagoon water park in the
morning, and Epcot in the
evening, with dinner in Japan.
Check out pictures from today
and check back tomorrow for
another update!
7/12/09
Today
was our second day, and we
decided to head to Typhoon
Lagoon water park for some fun
in the sun! After saying
aloha to Stitch and Lilo, we
went to the HUGE wave pool!
We all had fun catching some
waves. After that, we went
to the family raft ride,
Gangplank Falls, where we got in
a big inner tube and went down a
river. We went to another
tube ride, Keelhaul Falls, that
had individual inner tubes.
Next, we jumped into the lazy
river, Castaway Creek, and rode
it around to the front of the
park. We got off and
grabbed a bite to eat at Leaning
Palms. It was nice because
we found a large seating area
that was completely empty, so we
had a private dining shack!
The parks have been pretty empty
so far this trip, which we have
enjoyed. After lunch, Neil
and Megan got back in the wave
pool again, while Bonnie and
Courtney walked around the water
park. After 3 hours, we
went back to the hotel.
Courtney and Megan still wanted
to be in the water, so they took
a swim in the main pool at the
hotel, that has fountains and a
water slide.
After showers and resting, we
headed to Epcot for the rest of
the day. When we got
there, it started to rain, so we
looked around in the Art of
Disney store, and then continued
on to Innoventions.
Courtney and Megan did a 3 part
game called the Great Piggy Bank
Race. Next, we picked up a
Mission Pass for the new Kim
Possible World Showcase
Adventure. Courtney and
Megan got a snack of a lemonade
slush and a churro, and Bonnie
got a margarita in Mexico.
We walked over to Italy where we
picked up our Kimmunicator (a
special cell phone) for the
adventure. Our adventure
was in Japan, so we made our way
over there. We watched
videos on the Kimmunicator that
told us the clues and gave us
hints, which took us around the
Japan pavillion. After
completing our mission, it was
time for our dinner at Teppan
Edo. We enjoyed our salads
with ginger dressing, filet
mignons, shrimp, rice,
vegetables, and ice cream.
After we were STUFFED from a
wonderful dinner, we went to
America and watched Billy Joel
perform. We made our way
over to the United Kingdom,
listened to the Beatles, and
took pictures with Pooh, Eeyore,
and Tigger. After that, we
went to Epcot Character Spot,
where Mickey, Pluto, Minnie,
Donald, and Goofy were waiting
to greet us. To finish off
the night, we took a ride on
Spaceship Earth, and headed back
to our hotel. Tomorrow, we
are having breakfast at Animal
Kingdom, and dinner at Downtown
Disney. Check back for
tomorrow's update and take a
look at some great pictures from
today!
Today
was our third day and we went to Animal Kingdom for a
day in the wild! We got there at 8 when it opened for
resort guests, and headed straight back to Expedition
Everest! Neil, Courtney, and Megan rode it and Bonnie got
fastpasses so they could ride it later. Then, we went to
the Tusker House restaurant where we were joined by Mickey,
Donald, Daisy, and Goofy! It was a great way to start our
day. After breakfast, we headed over to Camp Mickey-Minnie,
and said hello to Pocahontas. Then we went and watched The
Festival of the Lion King, which was AMAZING! We took some
pictures by the Tree of Life, and then headed to Dinoland.
Bonnie got fastpasses for Kali River Rapids, and Neil,
Courtney, and Megan rode Dinosaur. Then it was time for us
to use our Expedition Everest fastpasses. We rode it once
with the fastpasses, and once in the single rider line. We
saw Flik and stopped for some pictures and autographs, and
then got a snack of pineapples and pretzels. Then we made
our way over to Asia where we rode Kali River Rapids. Since
we were wet from the ride, we decided to head back to the
hotel and get a bite to eat there. We enjoyed fish,
chicken, and hamburgers, and rested before our night at
Downtown Disney.
When we got to Downtown Disney,
we went to the Art of Disney store, where Bonnie got a neat
holographic poster for the living room. Then we went to a
new store called Tren-D, that has unique Disney clothes and
jewelry for teen girls. Courtney got a pretty bracelet and
earrings and Megan got a cute wristlet. Next, we walked
around and took some pictures, then made our way over to
Raglan Road for dinner. We had never been here before, so
we were excited to try this Irish restaurant. Bonnie,
Courtney, and Megan had steak and mashed potatoes, and Neil
had fish and chips. We enjoyed hearing our waiter’s Irish
accent, especially when he said tomato. When it came time
for dessert, we decided to order four different ones and
share them. They were all delicious! We stopped in some
stores along the way after dinner, including the Harley Davidson
store, Magnetron, and Disney’s Candy Cauldron. After that,
we went in to Disney Quest for some indoor fun. Courtney
and Megan played a neat virtual pinball game which they
liked. Then we went downstairs and all rode the Virtual
Jungle Cruise, which made it seem like we were paddling down
the river – we even got splashed! Then, Courtney and Megan
decided to try CyberSpace Mountain, where they built their
own roller coast and then rode it. They set it to medium
speed and didn’t put any upside downs since it was their
first time, but after riding it they decided it was too
boring so they made a new one! This one was on the fast
speed and went upside down three times. They liked this one
a lot better, but next time we go back, they want to make
one with all upside downs! After a very fun night, we
decided to call it a day and head back to the hotel, because
we’re waking up early to get to Epcot when it opens. We’re
VERY excited for our dinner at Yachtsman’s Steakhouse.
Tomorrow is someone’s anniversary!!! 19 years! Check out
pictures from today and check back tomorrow for another
update!
Today was
Bonnie and Neil’s 19th wedding anniversary,
and we were very happy to be celebrating it in Disney
World! We got to Epcot right when it opened and headed
to the Land pavilion. We got fastpasses for Soarin’ and
then rode it in the standby line. After our flight,
Neil, Courtney, and Megan rode Living with the Land, and
Bonnie went over to get Test Track fastpasses for
later. We ate a snack at Sunshine Seasons before using
our fastpasses to ride Soarin’ again. We shopped around
in Mouse Gears before riding Test Track. Then, it was
time to hit the countries. We started in Mexico and
then continued on to Norway and China. We stopped in
the Africa outpost and then went to Germany. We took
pictures with Snow White and got a German pretzel. Then
we stopped in Italy and America, and took some
pictures. We ate lunch in Japan and had teriyaki
chicken, rice, and salads. Courtney and Megan got to
help the aquaculturists feed the Koi fish in the pond.
Then we finished our way around the world with stops in
Morocco, France, the United Kingdom, and Canada. We
took some pictures in front of Spaceship Earth and
headed back to the Port Orleans.
When we got back to the
hotel, Bonnie and Neil had an anniversary card and
balloons waiting for them from the hotel. Courtney and Megan put on their swimsuits and
took a quick swim. We showered, rested, and got ready
for our favorite meal, dinner at Yachtsman’s
Steakhouse. We got to the Yacht Club and took some
pictures around the beautiful resort. Then we got
seated at Yachtsman’s and ordered our appetizers, caesar
salads. Bonnie got a filet mignon and Neil, Courtney,
and Megan had 24 ounce Porterhouses, which is filet and
strip. We were STUFFED from the steaks, but we ordered
our desserts, which we all enjoyed. We headed back and
called it a night. Bonnie and Neil had a wonderful 19th
anniversary, and they loved spending it in their
favorite place with their daughters. Tomorrow we’re
heading to Hollywood Studios in the morning and Epcot in
the evening, with dinner in China. Take a look at
today’s pictures!
We had a great 5th day in Disney World. We started out
at the Extra Magic Hour for resort guests, and got in to
Hollywood Studios an hour before the park opened to the
public. Courtney and Megan rode Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster
twice in a row since the line was short. We got
fastpasses for that and Tower of Terror before a quick
breakfast at Starring Rolls Café. We did some pin
trading at Guest Relations and under the hat, picked up
fastpasses for Toy Story Mania, and then headed to the
American Idol Experience. We were all excited to see
this brand new show since we are big fans of American
Idol. It was SO neat. Before the show, they did some
taping in the waiting area which they used later in the
show, and we watched a special edition of American Idol
Today. Three park guests that had auditioned for the
show producers sang for us and we got to vote for the
best one. The winner from each of the shows during the
day goes to the Finale at 7 pm. The Finale winner
receives a special pass to the front of the line at any
American Idol audition. The stage was set up exactly
like the real show, and we all enjoyed it a lot. Next,
Courtney and Megan used the fastpasses for Tower of
Terror and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, which they love. We
had lunch at a place we’ve never eaten at before,
Backlot Express. We took some pictures and then headed
to the Animation Courtyard. We saw the Magic of Disney
Animation, which was about how Disney characters come to
life. Then, Courtney and Megan went to the Animation
Academy and got to learn how to draw Donald Duck in a
step by step class with a Disney animator. After that,
we went over to Pixar Place to use our Toy Story Mania
fastpasses. This ride opened right before our trip last
year, and we really enjoy it. We loved the American
Idol Experience so much, that we decided to catch
another show. After Idol, we headed back to our hotel
for showers and to relax.
Our original plans for tonight were to eat in China at
Epcot, but we decided to cancel that reservation. We
went to Downtown Disney in the evening and had dinner at
Earl of Sandwich. We love the one in Houston, but it’s
far so we don’t eat it often. Next, we went to the Pin
Store and made some great trades to complete a lot of
our sets. We shopped around in Once Upon a Toy and
World of Disney. The plan then was for Bonnie to head
back to the hotel and do some laundry and relax, and for
Neil, Courtney, and Megan to go to Disney Quest. The
sky was DARK and there was lots of thunder. Bonnie went
to the bus stop and got on the bus, and Neil and the
girls went over to Disney Quest even though it looked
like it was going to pour any minute. When we saw how
long the line was, we changed our minds and went to the
bus stop. We ended up getting on the same bus as
Bonnie. We relaxed in the room and watched America’s
Got Talent. The plans for tomorrow morning are Ohana’s
Breakfast at the Polynesian hotel and Magic Kingdom
after that. We’re heading to Hollywood Studios in the
evening so we can see a Finale of the American Idol
Experience, and to have a late dinner at Mama
Melrose’s. Check out today’s pictures and come back
tomorrow!
Today was a very fun and packed day! We woke up early to catch
a bus to Magic Kingdom, then we hopped on the monorail to the
Polynesian Hotel. We had a great breakfast at Ohana’s. Mickey,
Pluto, Lilo, and Stitch joined us for the family style meal.
After we finished eating, we took the monorail back to the Magic
Kingdom. We went to Mickey’s Toontown Fair to meet Tinkerbell
and other fairies in Pixie Hollow. Courtney has been WAITING
until Tinkerbell was a character we could meet, so she was very
excited. We shrunk down to fairy size and met Iridessa,
Tinkerbell, and Rosetta. After our time in Pixie Hollow, we got
some watermelon and cotton candy (interesting combination,
right?) at the Farmer’s Market and took a ride on the train. We
got off at Main Street and shopped and pin traded. Then we met
Bea Star and the mayor of Magic Kingdom, Mayor Weaver. Then we
headed to Tomorrowland to take a ride on the Indy Speedway
cars. We ate lunch at Pinocchio’s Village Haus which is fun
because you can look into the loading area of It’s A Small
World. Courtney and Megan love to get a table by the window and
wave as the boats float past us. Then, we rode It’s A Small
World and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. We stopped to say hi
to Chip and Dale on our way out, and then we headed back to the
Riverside.
Courtney and Megan went
for a quick swim at the pool and we rested and showered before
heading out to Hollywood Studios. We went to the Finale of
American Idol Experience which was REALLY neat. The winner of
the 7 contestants was Joe Massey, and he won a ‘fastpass’ to the
front of any American Idol audition in the country. It would be
pretty cool if he made it on to the show! After that, we ate a
late dinner at a very good Italian place, Mama Melrose’s. We
headed back to the hotel and relaxed. Our plans for tomorrow
are Hollywood Studios and Epcot for dinner.
Today we
headed to Hollywood Studios again! This
has definitely become our favorite park this
year! We got there at 8:00 a.m. for the
Extra Magic Hour. Neil headed to Rock 'n'
Roller Coaster to get fastpasses for the girls,
and Bonnie, Courtney, and Megan went to Toy
Story Midway Mania. We rode it once, and
then again after Neil joined us. We really
enjoy that ride. We stopped to see Eeyore,
Goofy and Pluto, and Goofy was especially
excited because Neil was wearing a Goofy shirt!
Next, we headed over to Rock 'n' Roller Coaster
so Courtney and Megan could use their fastpasses.
We pin traded and ended up talking to one of the
cast members that we pin traded with, Vance, for
a while. Then we headed back to our hotel
for an early lunch, since we had early dinner
reservations tonight.
We rested and showered, and then took the bus to
Epcot for our 4:10 Le Cellier reservations!
This is our FAVORITE restaurant, and the ONLY
time that they had available for our entire
trip! On the way over to Canada, we
stopped to say hello to Belle. We got to
Le Cellier, and had the most amazing bread,
pretzel bread. We all ordered filet
mignons that were incredible! For dessert,
Neil got a chocolate shake, Bonnie and Megan got
the campfire s'mores, and Courtney got the
chocolate on chocolate cake. After we were
stuffed from dinner, we headed over to Hollywood
Studios for the American Idol Experience finale
show! Can you guess what our new favorite
show is?! Tonight's show was GREAT!
Out of the 7 performers, there was some real
talent and we had a hard time deciding who to
vote for! Juanita Nave sang I Want to
Dance with Somebody and won the finale.
Will she be the next American Idol? After
the show, we went to Downtown Disney. We
did some shopping in World of Disney, and then
headed over to DisneyQuest. Courtney and
Megan had been wanting to do CyberSpace Mountain
again, where they create their own roller
coaster and then ride it. The first time,
they had 7 upside downs, and the second time
they had 9! After a busy night, we headed
back to the hotel. Our plans for tomorrow
are to sleep in a bit, and head to Blizzard
Beach in the morning. Check out some
pictures!
This morning we slept in a bit and then set out
to Blizzard Beach water park. We got there
at 10 a.m. and headed straight to Teamboat
Springs, which is the world's largest family
raft ride, and we all enjoyed that. Then
we went over to the Runoff Rapids, a double tube
ride. Neil and Megan went down, and then
Bonnie and Courtney followed. After that,
we went in the lazy river, Cross Country Creek.
We took that around to the small wave pool,
Melt-Away Bay. On the way out, we stopped
to say hi to Goofy. We had a lot of fun in
the wave pool, and floated on the inner tubes in
there. Then, we headed to the Toboggan
Racers and the Snow Stormers, which were fun mat
rides. We stopped to eat lunch at
Lottawatta Lodge, and then got in the lazy river
again. Neil, Courtney, and Megan took the
ski lift up the mountain to ride the Teamboat
Springs ride again. After that, we stopped
for snowcones and then came back to the hotel.
We rested, showered, and got ready for dinner.
We went over to Animal Kingdom tonight.
Neil, Courtney, and Megan rode Expedition
Everest in the single rider line. This
means that they got in a separate line, and
whenever there was a party with an odd number,
someone from this line fills in the empty spot.
They all ended up on the same train, just not
next to each other. After conquering the
yeti, we headed over to Yak and Yeti for dinner.
Funny story - last year was the first year this
restaurant was open. We went last July,
and LOVED it. When we were seated this
year, we were at the exact same table! We
had an amazing dinner. We got four meals,
baby back ribs, beef and broccoli, sweet and
sour chicken, and tempura shrimp, and shared
them all. For dessert, we ordered two
Brownie Ice Cream Sundaes for 2. The head
chef came over and talked to us and wanted to
make sure we were enjoying our meal, which was
nice. We spent some time in the gift shop
on the way out, and then headed back to the
Riverside. Courtney and Megan went down to
the arcade to spend two free 30 minute cards
that they sent us with our reservation
confirmation. Then, they went to the main
pool and had fun on the water slide and in the
hot tub. Check out some pictures!
We're headed to Hollywood Studios in the
morning!
Today was a very long, fun-filled day at
Hollywood Studios! We were there for
eleven hours! We rode Toy Story Mania and
then headed over to the Animation Courtyard.
We were the first ones there at 10 a.m. when it
opened, and we went straight to where Mickey
was. We ended up getting a private meet
and greet with him, because no one else was in
line! We got to take all the pictures we
wanted and stayed there for a while until
another family got in line. Then, the
girls went to the Animation Academy again where
this time they learned how to draw Minnie Mouse.
Then we got in line to meet the characters from
the movie UP. After that, Courtney and
Megan rode Tower of Terror, and then we went to
ABC Commissary for lunch. As we were
standing there looking at the menu, a man, with
his wife and son, came up to Bonnie and asked
her if we by any chance have a Disney website!
They had seen our website when they were
planning their trip and recognized us from it!
They were the first people who have ever come up
to us in the parks like that - so this is a
shout out to Don and his family! After our
5 minutes of fame, we ate lunch, and then rode
the Great Movie Ride. We rode Toy
Story Mania again and then went to see Buzz
Lightyear and Woody. Then, Courtney and
Megan rode Rock 'n' Roller Coaster twice in a
row. We stopped to get a chocolate
croissant and a rice krispy treat, saw two of the American Idol
Experience shows and then shopped to pass the
time before the Finale. We saw the Finale,
which was great, and Kevin Dees won the Dream
Ticket. After that, we headed to the Port
Orleans French Quarter for dinner. We
stayed here in 2005 so it was fun to come back
for a meal. Neil had a cheese and steak
sandwich, Courtney had chicken parmesan, and
Bonnie and Megan had taco salads. We came
back to the Riverside and chilled.
Tomorrow is our last full day and our last day
in the parks. We are going to Typhoon
Lagoon in the morning, and then to the American
Idol Finale, the Polynesian for dinner, and
Magic Kingdom for the fireworks and parade!
Today was our last
day, and talk about making the most of our park
hopper! We started off at Typhoon Lagoon in
the morning. It was cloudy and at times it
sprinkled a bit, but the park was empty! We
went on Gangplank Falls, Mayday Falls, and the Storm
Slides. We spent a lot of time in the huge
wave pool which we LOVE! After taking a ride
around the Lazy River and catching a few more waves,
we headed back to the Riverside to get ready for our
long afternoon and night!
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