Rosebud
03-27-2003, 02:54 PM
Part 3
Day 10, December 24,
They were predicting rain beginning in the afternoon, so we made our plans accordingly. Last year we saw the 1st part of the Lord of the Rings at DD and planned to see the 2nd part there this year. However, last year we didn’t really think about it and ended up going on one of the few nice days. This year we decided to wait for one not so nice day. Christmas Eve turned out to be that day. After lunch we decided to head to DD and check out the show times. I think it started to rain about 1:00 – 1:30, but not too hard at that point. When we got to the box office, we bought tickets for a show that started a little later. After we got our tickets we did a little window shopping and watching some of the tricks at the Magic Shop before heading back to the movie. We knew the show was long, but were really surprised to find out how long the previews were – about 20 minutes I think.
After the movie it was raining so we decided to do some resort hopping to check out decorations. We drove over to Coronado first and it just happened that Mickey & Minnie were in the lobby area near the fountain so it was a bit chaotic when we walked in. They had Santa way at the end of the lobby where you check in and no one even seemed to notice him. Looked around at the decorations and then left. Next we decided to go over to the monorail resorts to check them out. We figured that way we only had to park once in the rain to see 3 resorts. We parked at the Poly and went inside. They were handing out hot cider and cookies, so we grabbed it and sat down and relaxed for a bit. We then checked out the decorations and took the monorail to the GF and Contemporary doing the same. When we got back to the Poly the storm had really, really picked up. We actually got pretty wet walking from the monorail into the hotel. There is a roof there but no sides and the wind was blowing so hard the rain was coming right at us. We were not about to walk out to our car during that storm, so we found some chairs over outside of Ohana’s and sat relaxed and did some people watching. When the rain let up a bit we took off and went back to our hotel.
Next part – Christmas Day and beyond.
Day 11, December 25 – Christmas Day
It was Christmas day and for the 2nd year in a row we would be spending it at Disney World. I couldn’t ask for a better thing. One very good thing about working for the company that I do is that we get the week off between Christmas and New Years. The days previous to Christmas were my vacation days, but starting today most of the rest of my trip I wouldn’t be using vacation days, but holiday days. Since we had driven we bought a little 3 ft fiber optic tree with us and we also packed our Christmas stockings. Santa very generously filled our Christmas stockings, so as soon as we woke up we checked them out. I then went and picked up breakfast and brought it back to the room. After we ate, Valerie opened the few presents I bought for her. By the time everything was said and done we managed to get out of the room before lunch time today.
Our original plan was to spend the day at the MK and watch the parade there, but we changed our minds. We so enjoyed seeing the Christmas parade at the MVMCP at night and agreed it was better in the dark and since we saw it last year on Christmas Day we would do something else today simply because we felt like it. It was a beautiful day so we decided to head over to AK. See part 2 for some of the things we did in the AK – all the days just kind of blend together. It is really nice to walk around this park when it is not so hot – during the summer it just gets too darn hot. One thing we did notice was that they either slightly changed the color of the pavement or it was just worn in more. Previously the pavement there was so white that during the summer many people ended up with heat type rashes on their legs because of the strong reflection of the sun. The darker pavement should definitely help that problem, however, just because it is too hot there, we probably will continue to avoid that park in the summer.
This was a very budget conscious trip for us and we didn’t eat that many meals out and when we did we pretty much shared a meal. But this was Christmas, so we were going to splurge. We decided to go to Germany and have the buffet there. Germany is our favorite buffet at Disney, whenever we walk by and smell it we have a hard time not going in. On the way out of AK we stopped at Guest Services and requested a PS for 3:45 – the last seating for lunch. We drove over to EPCOT and then decided to take the boat launch over to Germany. We got there right at 3:40 – perfect timing, or so we thought. We walked up and there was quite a long line which you had to wait to check in whether you had PS or not and it didn’t matter what time they were for. At this point I got a little nervous because I was not willing to pay the extra price for the dinner. We usually just walk into Germany and immediately get a seat since we don’t often eat at your traditional lunch/dinner times. When we got up to the check in desk it was already 4:00. I told them we actually had PS for lunch at 3:45 and would not stay if we couldn’t get in for lunch anymore. The CM told us it was okay since we had the PS and gave us a beeper. Our beeper went off almost immediately compared to other people that were in front of us – they must have had dinner reservations.
We were seated with some people that were just about done eating when we got there. I think our waitress was due to end her shift because she just seemed to scowl at us the whole time we were there and just wasn’t very pleasant. I think we held her up from going home and she wasn’t happy about it. I don’t know why they didn’t put us at a table with a new waitress, but oh well. Besides the food there, we also love the water in this particular Disney Restaurant – we love water and it sometimes makes a difference of whether we even like a restaurant. A few years ago they added desserts to this buffet so we ate some food, had some dessert to make sure we could fit it in, and then ate some more food. We caught the end of one show and the 2nd show started close to when we were done, but we didn’t let the surly waitress discourage us and we sat until it was over. We had noticed other people getting little beer mugs with mini candy canes in it with their check. Our waitress didn’t give us one when she gave us our check so I asked and she gave me a little sneer and said “yes I’m going to give you one”. She did when she brought my change, but I seriously don’t think she would have unless I asked. We decided the next time we came back we would ask to make sure they didn’t sit us at a table where the waitress was scheduled to leave.
After dinner we wandered around WS and just enjoyed ourselves, and the end of our wonderful Christmas Day at Disney World. We left before Illuminations and back to our hotel. We would be leaving Disney tomorrow for a few days to go visit my parents and then return for New Year’s Eve.
Day 12, December 26
We had to check out of the hotel today, so we got up and ate breakfast and then packed our car. We had quite a lot of stuff since we were on such a lengthy trip, plus the Christmas decorations. We had pretty much finished everything that was in the fridge and packed what we could in the cooler. We managed to get out of the hotel just about check out time – don’t remember if that was 11:00 or 12:00. We had a long drive ahead of us, but we still decided to make a side trip to check out Vista Way. Vista Way is one of the Apartment Complexes where the College Program Cast Members live, and the complex where they check in. We wanted to know exactly where we would be heading in a few short weeks. We found it easily and drove by – they are a gated community so we couldn’t actually drive in. We noticed Little Lake Bryan was almost across the street from there so we decided to drive over to see if we could see Mickey’s Retreat. Mickey’s Retreat is for Cast Members and their family and friends to go to relax. They have a lake with paddle boats and picnic areas and swimming pools and stuff like that. As we drove in we discovered Little Lake Bryan was also the area that housed The Commons and Chatham Square. The Commons is the place where the International Cast Members live and some of the Advanced Interns too. Chatham Square is the other, newer apartment complex where other College Program Interns live. Chatham Square’s entrance is located right across the street from Mickey’s Retreat. We were excited to have found all three places, even if we could only drive by.
It was then time to head south. It was getting late and we were hungry so we stopped in a rest area and made sandwiches. I had to go pick up my mother in North Palm Beach at my brother’s house. It has been awhile since I have been there, and I thought I would remember how to get there and remember the house. Well it didn’t work out quite that easily, but somehow we managed to find it. My brother and his wife were at work, so we picked up my mother and were quickly on our way.
It was around rush hour and the traffic on the highway was crazy, so we chose to cut straight across Florida instead of driving down to Alligator Alley. Even though the distance is shorter that way, it usually takes a little longer because it is not all highway and you have to slow down going through some towns. Around dinnertime we were discussing where to eat and with not a lot of selections were having problems choosing. We finally settled on KFC – this is about the first time we had any clue about what would happen over the next few days – Valerie was being fussier than usual with the selections. We arrived in Fort Meyers around 8:00 and headed right to the nursing home where my father was. We thought he might be sleeping, but figured we would chance it. He was actually still awake so we had a quick visit and my daughter was greatly relieved that he recognized her – he has alzheimers so you just never know. We only stayed a short while and then went to my mother’s house. That is when it hit – THE NORWALK VIRUS! Valerie’s stomach had been bothering her and that is why she was being fussier that usual at dinner, but we figured it was too much milk and the long drive – WRONG! Things could have been worse, she could have gotten sick in the morning and we still would have had to do all that driving. She remained sick the whole time we were there.
Days 13 – 16, December 27 - 30
Since Val was sick, she simply stayed home in bed while I took my mother out on errands and to visit my father. Other than that we just stayed home and relaxed. Last year I stayed for New Year’s Eve, and we went to the party in the campground she lives at. But this year I had APs and I wanted to be at Disney for New Year’s Eve. On December 29 Valerie was feeling a little better so we decided to go out to TGIF for lunch. We figured the soup/sandwich combo would be a good choice. Later that night my aunt’s from Maine were due to arrive – they have a place in the same campground as my mother. Someone else was picking them up from the airport so we didn’t need to bother with that. As the evening wore on I started feeling a little funny. When my aunt’s showed up they came over and had brought some treats from Maine. Fried clams for my mother – just can’t get them like that anywhere. She also brought Italians – the closest thing to them is a sandwich from Subway, but the Italians are much better. She knew we were there so she brought enough for us too. Unfortunately about two minutes after they arrived the Norwalk Virus arrived once again! Yup – I got it too! Luckily it didn’t get me as bad as Valerie, because even though we thought she was better, it turned out she really should have waited another day to eat solid food. It was a long, long night with only one bathroom to share!
The morning of December 30 finally arrived. We were suppose to drive back to Disney so we could be at EPCOT at opening on December 31 – New Year’s Eve. I finally managed to drag myself up and did some laundry. I was exhausted and not feeling all that great, but late in the afternoon I did drive us back to Disney. My daughter was amazed that I had the strength to do it, but I was determined. I had cancelled our hotel reservation because the way things were going I wasn’t sure if we would make it back and I didn’t want to risk the cancellation penalty. When we arrived we checked at the Magic Castle to see if they had any rooms, but at that time it was only smoking so we left. We ended up at Motel 6, which cost a little more, but not that much. They had a heated pool (warmer than those at Disney) which we took advantage of one day. We lucked out with rooms there because there were so many people in the office with problems, but everything was okay for us. Most of the problems seemed to be that many of the rooms had not been cleaned. One family did come in to find out their reservation had been cancelled and there were no rooms left. They weren’t happy, but it was their fault because they didn’t guarantee it with a credit card and it was hours after cancellation time. The very busy counter person did manage to find them a room at another hotel, so I guess things worked out and I thought it was very nice of her to do that for them.
Day 10, December 24,
They were predicting rain beginning in the afternoon, so we made our plans accordingly. Last year we saw the 1st part of the Lord of the Rings at DD and planned to see the 2nd part there this year. However, last year we didn’t really think about it and ended up going on one of the few nice days. This year we decided to wait for one not so nice day. Christmas Eve turned out to be that day. After lunch we decided to head to DD and check out the show times. I think it started to rain about 1:00 – 1:30, but not too hard at that point. When we got to the box office, we bought tickets for a show that started a little later. After we got our tickets we did a little window shopping and watching some of the tricks at the Magic Shop before heading back to the movie. We knew the show was long, but were really surprised to find out how long the previews were – about 20 minutes I think.
After the movie it was raining so we decided to do some resort hopping to check out decorations. We drove over to Coronado first and it just happened that Mickey & Minnie were in the lobby area near the fountain so it was a bit chaotic when we walked in. They had Santa way at the end of the lobby where you check in and no one even seemed to notice him. Looked around at the decorations and then left. Next we decided to go over to the monorail resorts to check them out. We figured that way we only had to park once in the rain to see 3 resorts. We parked at the Poly and went inside. They were handing out hot cider and cookies, so we grabbed it and sat down and relaxed for a bit. We then checked out the decorations and took the monorail to the GF and Contemporary doing the same. When we got back to the Poly the storm had really, really picked up. We actually got pretty wet walking from the monorail into the hotel. There is a roof there but no sides and the wind was blowing so hard the rain was coming right at us. We were not about to walk out to our car during that storm, so we found some chairs over outside of Ohana’s and sat relaxed and did some people watching. When the rain let up a bit we took off and went back to our hotel.
Next part – Christmas Day and beyond.
Day 11, December 25 – Christmas Day
It was Christmas day and for the 2nd year in a row we would be spending it at Disney World. I couldn’t ask for a better thing. One very good thing about working for the company that I do is that we get the week off between Christmas and New Years. The days previous to Christmas were my vacation days, but starting today most of the rest of my trip I wouldn’t be using vacation days, but holiday days. Since we had driven we bought a little 3 ft fiber optic tree with us and we also packed our Christmas stockings. Santa very generously filled our Christmas stockings, so as soon as we woke up we checked them out. I then went and picked up breakfast and brought it back to the room. After we ate, Valerie opened the few presents I bought for her. By the time everything was said and done we managed to get out of the room before lunch time today.
Our original plan was to spend the day at the MK and watch the parade there, but we changed our minds. We so enjoyed seeing the Christmas parade at the MVMCP at night and agreed it was better in the dark and since we saw it last year on Christmas Day we would do something else today simply because we felt like it. It was a beautiful day so we decided to head over to AK. See part 2 for some of the things we did in the AK – all the days just kind of blend together. It is really nice to walk around this park when it is not so hot – during the summer it just gets too darn hot. One thing we did notice was that they either slightly changed the color of the pavement or it was just worn in more. Previously the pavement there was so white that during the summer many people ended up with heat type rashes on their legs because of the strong reflection of the sun. The darker pavement should definitely help that problem, however, just because it is too hot there, we probably will continue to avoid that park in the summer.
This was a very budget conscious trip for us and we didn’t eat that many meals out and when we did we pretty much shared a meal. But this was Christmas, so we were going to splurge. We decided to go to Germany and have the buffet there. Germany is our favorite buffet at Disney, whenever we walk by and smell it we have a hard time not going in. On the way out of AK we stopped at Guest Services and requested a PS for 3:45 – the last seating for lunch. We drove over to EPCOT and then decided to take the boat launch over to Germany. We got there right at 3:40 – perfect timing, or so we thought. We walked up and there was quite a long line which you had to wait to check in whether you had PS or not and it didn’t matter what time they were for. At this point I got a little nervous because I was not willing to pay the extra price for the dinner. We usually just walk into Germany and immediately get a seat since we don’t often eat at your traditional lunch/dinner times. When we got up to the check in desk it was already 4:00. I told them we actually had PS for lunch at 3:45 and would not stay if we couldn’t get in for lunch anymore. The CM told us it was okay since we had the PS and gave us a beeper. Our beeper went off almost immediately compared to other people that were in front of us – they must have had dinner reservations.
We were seated with some people that were just about done eating when we got there. I think our waitress was due to end her shift because she just seemed to scowl at us the whole time we were there and just wasn’t very pleasant. I think we held her up from going home and she wasn’t happy about it. I don’t know why they didn’t put us at a table with a new waitress, but oh well. Besides the food there, we also love the water in this particular Disney Restaurant – we love water and it sometimes makes a difference of whether we even like a restaurant. A few years ago they added desserts to this buffet so we ate some food, had some dessert to make sure we could fit it in, and then ate some more food. We caught the end of one show and the 2nd show started close to when we were done, but we didn’t let the surly waitress discourage us and we sat until it was over. We had noticed other people getting little beer mugs with mini candy canes in it with their check. Our waitress didn’t give us one when she gave us our check so I asked and she gave me a little sneer and said “yes I’m going to give you one”. She did when she brought my change, but I seriously don’t think she would have unless I asked. We decided the next time we came back we would ask to make sure they didn’t sit us at a table where the waitress was scheduled to leave.
After dinner we wandered around WS and just enjoyed ourselves, and the end of our wonderful Christmas Day at Disney World. We left before Illuminations and back to our hotel. We would be leaving Disney tomorrow for a few days to go visit my parents and then return for New Year’s Eve.
Day 12, December 26
We had to check out of the hotel today, so we got up and ate breakfast and then packed our car. We had quite a lot of stuff since we were on such a lengthy trip, plus the Christmas decorations. We had pretty much finished everything that was in the fridge and packed what we could in the cooler. We managed to get out of the hotel just about check out time – don’t remember if that was 11:00 or 12:00. We had a long drive ahead of us, but we still decided to make a side trip to check out Vista Way. Vista Way is one of the Apartment Complexes where the College Program Cast Members live, and the complex where they check in. We wanted to know exactly where we would be heading in a few short weeks. We found it easily and drove by – they are a gated community so we couldn’t actually drive in. We noticed Little Lake Bryan was almost across the street from there so we decided to drive over to see if we could see Mickey’s Retreat. Mickey’s Retreat is for Cast Members and their family and friends to go to relax. They have a lake with paddle boats and picnic areas and swimming pools and stuff like that. As we drove in we discovered Little Lake Bryan was also the area that housed The Commons and Chatham Square. The Commons is the place where the International Cast Members live and some of the Advanced Interns too. Chatham Square is the other, newer apartment complex where other College Program Interns live. Chatham Square’s entrance is located right across the street from Mickey’s Retreat. We were excited to have found all three places, even if we could only drive by.
It was then time to head south. It was getting late and we were hungry so we stopped in a rest area and made sandwiches. I had to go pick up my mother in North Palm Beach at my brother’s house. It has been awhile since I have been there, and I thought I would remember how to get there and remember the house. Well it didn’t work out quite that easily, but somehow we managed to find it. My brother and his wife were at work, so we picked up my mother and were quickly on our way.
It was around rush hour and the traffic on the highway was crazy, so we chose to cut straight across Florida instead of driving down to Alligator Alley. Even though the distance is shorter that way, it usually takes a little longer because it is not all highway and you have to slow down going through some towns. Around dinnertime we were discussing where to eat and with not a lot of selections were having problems choosing. We finally settled on KFC – this is about the first time we had any clue about what would happen over the next few days – Valerie was being fussier than usual with the selections. We arrived in Fort Meyers around 8:00 and headed right to the nursing home where my father was. We thought he might be sleeping, but figured we would chance it. He was actually still awake so we had a quick visit and my daughter was greatly relieved that he recognized her – he has alzheimers so you just never know. We only stayed a short while and then went to my mother’s house. That is when it hit – THE NORWALK VIRUS! Valerie’s stomach had been bothering her and that is why she was being fussier that usual at dinner, but we figured it was too much milk and the long drive – WRONG! Things could have been worse, she could have gotten sick in the morning and we still would have had to do all that driving. She remained sick the whole time we were there.
Days 13 – 16, December 27 - 30
Since Val was sick, she simply stayed home in bed while I took my mother out on errands and to visit my father. Other than that we just stayed home and relaxed. Last year I stayed for New Year’s Eve, and we went to the party in the campground she lives at. But this year I had APs and I wanted to be at Disney for New Year’s Eve. On December 29 Valerie was feeling a little better so we decided to go out to TGIF for lunch. We figured the soup/sandwich combo would be a good choice. Later that night my aunt’s from Maine were due to arrive – they have a place in the same campground as my mother. Someone else was picking them up from the airport so we didn’t need to bother with that. As the evening wore on I started feeling a little funny. When my aunt’s showed up they came over and had brought some treats from Maine. Fried clams for my mother – just can’t get them like that anywhere. She also brought Italians – the closest thing to them is a sandwich from Subway, but the Italians are much better. She knew we were there so she brought enough for us too. Unfortunately about two minutes after they arrived the Norwalk Virus arrived once again! Yup – I got it too! Luckily it didn’t get me as bad as Valerie, because even though we thought she was better, it turned out she really should have waited another day to eat solid food. It was a long, long night with only one bathroom to share!
The morning of December 30 finally arrived. We were suppose to drive back to Disney so we could be at EPCOT at opening on December 31 – New Year’s Eve. I finally managed to drag myself up and did some laundry. I was exhausted and not feeling all that great, but late in the afternoon I did drive us back to Disney. My daughter was amazed that I had the strength to do it, but I was determined. I had cancelled our hotel reservation because the way things were going I wasn’t sure if we would make it back and I didn’t want to risk the cancellation penalty. When we arrived we checked at the Magic Castle to see if they had any rooms, but at that time it was only smoking so we left. We ended up at Motel 6, which cost a little more, but not that much. They had a heated pool (warmer than those at Disney) which we took advantage of one day. We lucked out with rooms there because there were so many people in the office with problems, but everything was okay for us. Most of the problems seemed to be that many of the rooms had not been cleaned. One family did come in to find out their reservation had been cancelled and there were no rooms left. They weren’t happy, but it was their fault because they didn’t guarantee it with a credit card and it was hours after cancellation time. The very busy counter person did manage to find them a room at another hotel, so I guess things worked out and I thought it was very nice of her to do that for them.