 Off
we went, and ended up between a couple of Magical Express buses on 417
South. Paid $2.00 in tolls and got off at exit 6 to be detoured
off
the main road to Disney due to construction. Circled around and
then
ended up cut off and had to turn right because I wasn't paying close
enough attention. Oops. Saw a sign for I-4 and headed for
that. That
brought us quickly to the Epcot/Downtown Disney exit and we were soon
on Disney Property! Yea! All is well now… I thought!
 OK - due to our late arrival we are staying one night at
Pop Century
before checking in at VWL Saturday. I have never been to
Pop Century,
nor even seen it. And of COURSE I didn't read the directions on
how to
get there from the confirmation sheet. I knew it was near the
Epcot
resorts area and someplace close to Caribbean Beach resort. I
thought
for sure the signs would lead the way. WRONG. We circled a
couple
times and I did not see one sign that mentioned Pop! Stopped at
the
Hess station near the Boardwalk and they had directions.
Yea! We were
VERY close and only had to go down a short way, turn right and there it
was. Hey Disney! Add more Pop Century
Signs!!!!! ;-)
 Check in took about 20 minutes or so. Even at
11:30pm there were
several people just checking in. No problems and soon we had our
room
assignment in the 70's building. The kids REALLY love all the
huge
icons, and were excited to be here. "We HAVE to stay here longer
sometime!" It really is a fun place. Love all the Pop items
in the
main building (had quite a few of them at one time or another!) and the
food court is great! The pool looked fun (we walked by that) and
the
general atmosphere is hopping. It was busy everywhere at midnight!
We found our room and went in. THEN the girls tune changed.
We have
SUCH hotel snobs, and of course I blame DVC! ;-) We
told them the
rooms are simple hotel rooms, but still Maddy walks in, right past both
beds and says - where is our bed? LOL I truly
feel sorry for the
young men that someday will fall in love with our daughters. (OK
-
maybe there is a touch of protective daddy glee, but I DO try to hold
it back!) Such standards will be tough to keep up with!
;-) I think
we need to take these girls tent camping to get their perspective
back! :-)
We were all tired, but the girls took a bit to wind down from their
excitement. Then it was lights out and our first nights
sleep.
Tomorrow we can sleep in a bit and then go check in at the VWL.
We
haven't even decided what we'll do all day! But I'm sure it will
involve the pool followed by a nice dinner at Chef Mickey's!
And so starts this year's adventure!! |
|
After a quick hello, Mik headed off with Brinn and Maddy
to tour her playroom and have some fun. Kristen and I headed into
the living room and chatted with Belle until Beast arrived a short time
later. It was great seeing them again. We had a great time
cruising with them last year, and it was fun having a chance to chat
and catch up a bit. 
Soon
we arrived at the airport and parked and headed in to check the
bags.
It was not busy at ALL and we were through check in and security in
about 15 minutes total. Then off to wait at the gate. I was
happy to
get Group A boarding passes which meant we could board the plane
first. When we arrived there was only one other party in front of
us,
and even a place to sit. Nice! We waited less than an
hour for
boarding, and then after a short delay of 20 minutes waiting on the air
traffic to clear out a bit due to bad weather. Guess to much air
traffic is a bit difficult for the air controllers during bad
weather. We didn't see any bad weather at all and the 2.5
hour flight
down was smooth and uneventful. 
Off to baggage claim and soon our bags arrived one by
one. Always that
fear that some or all would be missing, but no problem! Down to
the
rental car area and across to the National area. We use the
Emerald
Aisle and love the convenience. It was very well stocked tonight,
even
a couple PT Cruiser convertibles, but no vans. In the need for
space
and luggage room we chose a full-size that was on the Aisle. I
think
this trunk is bigger than the room at Pop Century will be!
:-) HUGE!
It easily fit all our luggage (two large, two medium suitcases, and
several backpacks and electronics bags) and would have held more easily.