JoAnn's November 2013 Pre-Trip Report and Trip Report

Let the trip report begin.....

Day 1

I arrived at the airport a little after 4:00am for a 6:00 flight to MCO. The flight was uneventful and arrived about 10 minutes early. After deplaning, I got a coffee and waited for my mom's flight. Her flight was scheduled to arrived 1 1/2 hours after mine. Her flight arrived 20 minutes early and off we went to the Magical Express. The Magic Band made it even easier to check in for the DME.

We checked in at Pop, dropped off our stuff and headed to Epcot. My mom hadn't been to WDW since 1981. I was very excited to show her Epcot for the first time. We had lunch at Sunshine Seasons (the first of many new restaurants I tried on this trip). I had the Sweet and Sour chicken and chocolate mousse cake.

After lunch we went on Living with the Land. My mom loved it, followed my Finding Nemo (it has become a tradition that I ride this my first day) and Journey into the Imagination. We walked through World Showcase and headed back to Pop to freshen up for the Spirit of Aloha show.

It had been raining most of the afternoon while at Epcot but cleared up for show. We had front row seats. We really enjoyed the show and the food. I'm not a fan of coconut (unless it's in the form of rum) but I could not get enough of the coconut pineapple bread. Delicious.

After the show we went to Magic Kingdom and arrived in time to see the Main Street Electrical Parade.

My favorite float

After the parade, we headed to Fantasyland to ride It's a Small World. We stayed and watched the fireworks and then headed back to Pop.

Day 2

As with past trips, I was up early and ready to start my day in the World. We had a breakfast ADR at Olivia's which did not disappoint. We took a taxi this morning as I wasn't sure when the boats started running from Downtown Disney to Old Key West. I had the traditional eggs benedict and mom had the crab cakes eggs benedict.

After breakfast we walked around the resort a little and took a boat to DTD. I became an annual passholder on this day. The CM linked the pass to my Magic Band and I was good to go. We went back to Pop to hang by the pool for a few hours. My friends were arriving that afternoon as well.

After relaxing by the pool it was time to get ready for dinner at Biergarten. We arrived at Epcot with enough time to ride The Grand Fiesta Tour in Mexico and watch the Chinese acrobats on our way to Germany. We sat with a family of four and a local couple who were celebrating their anniversary. The food and entertainment were good. I decided to quench my thirst with a German beer flight.

I really wanted to yell "Ricola" when they brought out these bad boys.

After dinner we went to Club Cool. I wish I had taken a picture of my mom when she tried the Beverly. We walked through the Mouse Gears store and went back to Pop. We were going to try to meet up with my friends in Epcot but it didn't work out.

Day 3

Breakfast this morning is at the Grand Floridian Cafe. I had the Citrus Pancakes with a Florida Sunshine. They were very good.

After breakfast we took a few pictures of the Gingerbread house and then took the boat to MK.

Today's agenda included Mickey's Philharmagic, Hall of Presidents (the scene with President Bush in NYC after 09/11 gets me every time), Carousel of Progress, The People Mover and the Jungle Cruise (got to love the corny jokes). As we were making our way out of the park, the Move it, Shake it, Celebrate it parade started. We stayed and watched it for a while before heading back to Pop.

I did not schedule any fast passes for this trip and we didn't need them. We walked on every ride or had a minimal wait. The longest wait was for the Jungle Cruise (posted stand by time was 40 minutes but it didn't take that long).

Tonight we were finally having dinner at California Grill. I had been looking forward to this meal since May. We arrived a little early and took a look around the Contemporary.

My mom and I ordered different appetizers to share. We had the 3 meat signature meatballs and Sonoma Goat Cheese ravioli.

To drink I ordered the Cucumber Fizz. Very refreshing.

For dinner I had the 24 hour short rib filet and mom had the oak fire filet.

For dessert, I had the chocolate pudding cake and mom had the seasonal tasting.

Everything was delicious. I took a couple pictures of the sunset while waiting for our meals.

Day 4

This morning's breakfast was at Whispering Canyon Cafe. We took the bus to MK and the boat over to Wilderness Lodge. My mom wasn't feeling well this morning so she stayed at Pop Century. This was the first meal with my friends. The prior meals were just my mom and I. I was looking forward to asking for ketchup. As soon as we sat down, the people at the table next to us asked for ketchup. There weren't a lot of people in the restaurant so not a lot of ketchup was delivered.

We ordered the breakfast platter and mimosas. My friend's niece got a milk shake which she didn't care for.

After breakfast we looked at the Christmas decorations.

It was then time to catch the bus to Animal Kingdom.

We hit a bit of glitch while entering Animal Kingdom. My friends' park passes weren't linked to their magic bands. We went to Guest Services and it was taken care of pretty quickly. Our first stop after entering Animal Kingdom was Expedition Everest which we walked right on. What's better than a ride on EE? It's a second ride on EE, walked on again.

We headed over to Dino-Land. We walked on to Primevil Whirl. Not my favorite but it is growing on me. Then we hit Dinosaur. Love that ride. We stopped for a snack before getting in line for the safari. Had a short wait but not too long.

After the safari, we took the train to Conservation Station and walked around there a bit. Before leaving Animal Kingdom, we went to It's Tough to be a Bug. That never gets old.

We went back to Pop to freshen up before going to Magic Kingdom. We wanted to look our best for the Princesses.

We arrived at MK just before 5:00 as I wanted to see the Flag Retreat. I've said it before and I will say it again. If you haven't taken the time to watch the Flat Retreat in the past, do it during a future trip. It's an experience everyone should see.

We had time before dinner at Cinderella's Royal Table to hit a couple of rides. We all went on Pirates of the Caribbean and three of us went on Space Mountain. Then it was time for dinner.

Here I am with Cindy and Snow.

For dinner I had the beef tenderloin. For dessert, I had the clock strikes twelve.

My mom's birthday was a couple of days before our trip. She got a birthday cupcake.

During dinner, my friends declared it the best day ever. Being in a princess mood, I said "mirror mirror on the wall, who's the best trip planner of them all?" To which they all replied "you are".

After dinner we went to Enchanted Tales with Belle and Under the Sea Journey of the Little Mermaid before heading back home to Pop.

Thanks. Plus it has juice in it so it's acceptable for breakfast.

Day 5

Day 5 started with breakfast at Kona Cafe. We left a little early so we could watch the opening show at Magic Kingdom.

Tonga Toast and a Lapu Lapu anyone?

My friend, Memoree, didn't come with us . She woke up with a rash all over her face. She ended calling a doctor at a local urgent care place. He couldn't help her over the phone so he sent a shuttle to pick her up. She had a reaction to the sun. She got some meds and stayed out of the sun for the day.

After breakfast, we hopped on a bus to Hollywood Studios. The first ride we wanted to hit was Tower of Terror. I was pretty full from breakfast so we took our time walking over there, stopping in a couple of stores along the way. By the time we got there, I was still too full and didn't think it was a good idea to ride it just yet. We parted ways. My mom and I headed to the Great Movie Ride while my friend, Debbie and her niece went on Tower of Terror.

After the Great Movie Ride, my mom and I went Studio Back Lot Tour and watched Muppet 3D. My mom loved all the 3D shows in the World.

I even stopped for a photo op with Lightening McQueen and Mater for my nephew Zach who loves Cars.

Before we headed back to Pop to relax by the pool, we were starting to get hungry so we split a meal at Studio Catering Co.

After a couple of hours by the pool it was time to get ready for dinner. Dinner this night was at The Yachtsman Steakhouse. Love that place. We left early to give us time for Memoree and I to ride Tower of Terror before dinner and to see the Osborne Lights. When we were on the elevator, I kept asking "who's idea was this?". Oh yea, it was my idea.

After we watched the lights, we hopped on the boat to the Yacht Club.

Dinner was as delicious as it was last year. I had the 8oz filet and the Yachtsman Sundae for dessert. Once again, I couldn't eat the sundae but I sure did enjoy the cherries. The manager stopped by to ask how our dinner was and we started talking to him about the cherries. He brought us over a bowl. Debby went outside to call her husband and her niece went with her. My mom, Memoree and I enjoyed the cherries. Not sure where I put them.

We enjoyed the Christmas decorations at the Yacht Club and made our way back to Pop.

Day 6

Day 6 was another Princess filled day. We headed to Epcot for breakfast at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. I was very excited to get my picture taken with Belle for the first time.

Breakfast is a combination buffet and family style. Here's a shot of the buffet. I didn't get a picture of the food served family style (eggs, potatoes, bacon and sausage).

After breakfast, we walked around the world. My friend's niece had to keep a journal for school so I suggested we watch The American Adventure. I was surprised to learn that my friends had never seen it. I was trying to keep the day fun and educational for her. I kept telling her "this is good stuff for your journal". She didn't care.

As we passed through France, we stopped for a drink. I got the Grande Marnier slushy and my friend got the cranberry Grey Goose slushy so we can try each one. Yummy on both counts.

We stopped for a photo op with Mary Poppins. She was awesome. She spelled that really long word that I'm not even going to attempt type and then spelled it backwards. She also liked my "carpet bag".

While looking through the shops in England I spotted Winnie the Pooh and Tigger so we got in line. They were a lot of fun.

After we finished our walk around the world, we headed to Magic Kingdom. We took the monorail to the TTC and the ferry to MK. We rode a few rides (Dumbo, Tea Cups and Barnstormer) before dinner at Be Our Guest. I was very excited to learn we were dining in the west wing. I even skipped through the ball room.

We loved watching the picture change. We would be deep in conversation and as soon as the thunder and lightning started we stopped mid sentence, watched the picture change and then went back to the conversation without missing a beat.

I had the salad trio for an app, chicken provencal for entree and the grey stuff for dessert.

My mom also got an extra serving of the grey stuff for her birthday.

After dinner we got a picture with the beast and called it a night.

MK was closing early for MVMCP. We had talked about taking the boat over to Ft Wilderness to if any of the campsites were decorated. It had been raining for a while so we scrapped the idea.

Ok, where did I leave off? Oh yeah.... Day 7.

I woke up this morning to the Magical Express tag on the door with our pick up time for the next day.

We went to breakfast this morning at Kouzzina's.

After breakfast, we split up. My mom and I went to Animal Kingdom. Memoree went to Magic Kingdom. Debby and her niece went back to Pop to swim. I took a few pictures of the Boardwalk Resort before catching the bus to DAK.

As been the trend this trip, we walked right on to the safari. During the ride, it started to rain which lasted about 3 minutes.

After the safari, we went to see the Festival of the Lion King. My mom wasn't too keen on going as she had seen a Lion King stage show and didn't care for it. We walked right in before the show started. We loved it. It wasn't what mom was expecting.

We walked through Animal Kingdom and stopped for lunch. We split the bean burger at Restaurantosaurus. It was really good.

We headed back to Pop to relax by the pool for the afternoon before going to dinner at Portebello. Dinner was good and filling (I had the gnocchi).

We went back to Pop after dinner and organized our stuff for airport check in at the resort the next day (or at least that was the plan).

Final day

I woke up this morning to find another Magical Express tag on the door telling us that we were not eligible for airline check in at the report. I walked down to the check in area to see what the deal was. Because of the merger between Southwest and Airtran, they didn't have access to my mom's flight (she flew Airtran down and was flying Southwest back). My flights were the opposite and I was able to check in at the resort. It didn't make any sense to the CMs either. I went ahead and checked in to save time once we got to the airport. My mom's flight was leaving an hour after mine and our ME pick up was scheduled based on my mom's flight. I called ME to get on an earlier bus so we had time to get my mom checked in. After that was taken care of, it was time to start the day. We dropped off our bags at luggage services and had some breakfast before heading to MK.

When my mom scanned her Magic Band, they told her she didn't have any park days left. I was like, huh?. She had an 8-day park hopper. I was counting in my head "Saturday, Sunday, Monday..." yep today is day 8. The CM at the gate told us they had been having that issue. So another CM scanned my mom's band with an iPad to check my mom's information and let us in.

We hit It's a Small World, Haunted Mansion, Country Bear Jamboree and Liberty Square Riverboat. I loved the riverboat. It had been on my list to try but never had the time. It was very relaxing.

Next thing you know it was time to meet up with Memoree for lunch (Debby and her niece stayed at the pool again) at the Plaza Restaurant. I would definitely eat here again.

After lunch we took the train around the park and said goodbye to the Magic Kingdom until next trip.

We sat by the pool until it was time to get the bus. It didn't take long to get my mom checked in for our flight. Our gates were close to each other. My mom sat with me until I boarded the plane and then went to her gate. She was on the same flight back to Pittsburgh with my friends.

It was 81 degrees in Orlando when I left. When I got back to CT, it was 19. What a shock to the system.

It was a fun week with my mom. I had been on vacation with both my parents. This was the first time it was just mom and I.

I experienced a lot of firsts this trip:

15 new to me restaurants
3 rides / attractions (Festival of the Lion King, Mad Tea Cups and Riverboat)
Visited 2 resorts that I hadn't been to on previous trips (Old Key West and Boardwalk)

The ravioli would make a great entree.

I would consider them again. Of the restaurants I had breakfast at, I would like to try them for different meals.

A couple of other things that I didn't add to day 1.

My mom's birthday was two days before our trip so I added that to our reservation. When we got to our room we had a voice mail from Mickey wishing her a happy birthday.

When we were leaving MK that night, we were in the post fireworks rush. As we were walking towards the tunnel by the railroad station, I heard a CM ask about taking a survey. I was so focused on making sure my mom and I didn't get separated in the crowd that I didn't realize that he was asking me. Then I hear him say "thanks for ignoring me" as we walked by him. I thought to myself "seriously dude, not cool."