Trip Report - OKW and Toy Story Mania

[glypnirsgirl]

May 9 – 13 OKW Trip Report Including Toy Story Mania

Friday, May 9, 2008

We arrived at MCO at 8:30 p.m. We took the DME for the first time. I believe that it was less time to take the DME than it was when we rent a car. The process was painless and the price could not be beat. Very happy! We arrived at OKW at about 9:15. We

Because of the injury to my toe, my DH was concerned about me climbing stairs and requested that we be placed in a ground floor studio close to a bus stop. It took some time for guest services to find an appropriate room. We received our room assignment, checked our carry-on luggage with Bell Services and boarded the boat for DTD. We were right on time for our Raglan Road Reservations.(see separate Raglan Road review for pictures).

Raglan Road was as good this trip as it was the first time that we tried it in February. I had the salmon appetizer (good) and the Its Not Bleeding Chowder. The Not Chowder was heavenly delicious. I am still dreaming about it. Two large shrimp, two large scallops chunks of fish in a creamy broth with potatoes and onions. So simple, so delicious. My mouth waters still just thinking of it. DH had the Shepherd’s Pie. He did not believe that it was traditional enough. It was good, but not heavenly like the Not Chowder. Dessert, poor DH struck out again. He ordered the berry panna cotta. This was light, which he wanted. It was also almost flavorless. I had the bread pudding. It was absolutely fabulous. It has a light consistency as the bread that is used is not “doughy” (is that a word?). It is lightly spiced with cinnamon, cardamon and nutmeg. It comes with a hard sauce and heavy cream. Wonderful.

We were seated in the main rotunda area with a great view of the dancing platform and a fair view of the band. I really enjoyed the dancers. The music was lively and there were many regulars that were really into the music. It made the evening even more special.

We took a cab back to OKW because the boat had stopped running. This turned out to not have been necessary, there is a bus stop at DTD that goes back to the resorts, but we did not know about it until we passed the buses in the cab.

We were assigned room 5216. It was a corner room in South Point right behind the bus stop. Great location given the requirements of my injury, but I would not otherwise recommend it because there was no view and it was far from the pool. The room itself was clean and orderly. The bathtub had been refinished and the finish had started to peel. It was a minimal blister about the size of two quarters. There were no other issues with the room.

I love the Old Key West. I was so happy to be back. The beds were comfortable and we had no trouble falling asleep.

Tomorrow – Toy Story Mania awaits!

[glypnirsgirl]

Saturday, May 10th

After a good night’s sleep, Ian and I both woke up at 6:45 – long before the alarm went off. We got dressed and headed for the bus stop. The Hollywood Studios bus was the first one there. We decided we had time to get breakfast and stopped at the Hospitality House. I ordered the Chocolate Mango French Toast with Ham. It was good, the chocolate was detectable, not overpowering. The mango was incognito. This will not come close to supplanting Tango Toast as my favorite WDW breakfast.

We finished breakfast at 7:45 and we went straight out to the bus stop. No one was waiting for the DHS bus. The first bus to arrive was Magic Kingdom and most people got on. Then Animal Kingdom, a few more people left. Then Epcot, everyone got on but us. An internal resort shuttle stopped (I had never seen these before – it was a full-sized bus. Is this new?). Then Typhoon Lagoon. Downtown Disney/Blizzard Beach. Great – its our turn. Nope, Magic Kingdom. Epcot, Animal Kingdom. Great its our turn. Nope, Magic Kingdom, Internal Shuttle, Downtown Disney. Good Heavens, we are going to miss rope drop after getting up at 6:45!!! I am beside myself with anxiety. We have been waiting for the bus for 40 minutes. Finally it arrives at 8:30. Okay, relax we are going to make rope drop after all. We head off and only a few minutes later, we arrived. The parking lot is half-full at 8:45 a.m. We are in trouble! We go through the turnstiles and everyone is lined up on Hollywood Boulevard. It seems to be filled. We can hear (but not see) the opening ceremony. Lights camera action, rope drop. The “director” comments on how everyone is going straight ahead. Absolutely no one turns right to go to Tower of Terror or Rock’n Roller Coaster that I can see. The whole crowd surges forward towards Commissary Row and makes the turn to Toy Story Mania – the line is getting longer faster than we can find the back of it. It grows past Little Mermaid and starts winding back along the wall, winds again out to the hat. We are in the back of the line!

I have waited in long lines before. I can do this. My DH and I use the time to visit. It is rare that we have uninterrupted time together. So we converse. We are having a good time just visiting with each other. We discuss our upcoming trips and how we want to handle them. Both of our next trips are with family, so DH is not looking forward to them as much as this trip. He wants me to make commitments to schedule some alone time. We discuss strategy for that. An hour later, we are getting our i.d. checked at the potted plants they are using as a screen. Yea! We are almost there! Nope. We have just passed the first obstacle. There is a huge line in front of us to the front door. Then there is a large building for the line. We pick up our glasses. We are almost there. Or not. There are stairs to go up and down. And then we really are there! The line is interesting. There is no moving belt. I thought that was going to be a problem with load speed. Then I noticed that there is a completely separate queue for physically challenged people to load. That loading area is set up so that it is flat. A separate door off of the main line after the glasses are dispensed. Then the “car” stops on a spur. I loved this. It makes everything so fair. The special cars then just fit right into the main ride attraction without having impacted the speed of the main line loading at all. A+ for ease of loading/physically challenged access.

The car takes off from the queue with a jerk and does some back and forth action reminiscent of old carnival rides. The car then stops in front of a screen for practice in using your pop-gun. You pull a string to shoot the projectile (which varies depending on the game). Then you play midway type games – shooting balloons with darts, shooting plated with eggs, knocking over moving targets like toy ducks. All fun. This ride was fun, but not great. Really not worth the hour plus line that we stood in. Oh well, it was fun to do something brand new.

[JimP]

[We arrived at MCO at 8:30 p.m. We took the DME for the first time. I believe that it was less time to take the DME than it was when we rent a car. The process was painless and the price could not be beat. Very happy! We arrived at OKW at about 9:15.
I remember advising that you only had a 0.0000001% chance of making it to Olivia's... I guess I was wrong. However... if I remember right, you claimed to be arriving at 9:00. In any case... well done!

/Jim

[JimP]

Then I noticed that there is a completely separate queue for physically challenged people to load. That loading area is set up so that it is flat. A separate door off of the main line after the glasses are dispensed. Then the “car” stops on a spur. I loved this. It makes everything so fair. The special cars then just fit right into the main ride attraction without having impacted the speed of the main line loading at all. A+ for ease of loading/physically challenged access.
Nice... doesn't that make you wish you invented this!

/Jim

[AZeno]

Sounds like you made the best use of time while waiting in que, preplanning the next visit is one of my favorite past times.

Thanks for the nice report,

[Hallfamily4]

Enjoying your reports Elaine. Hope you are elevating your foot at night!!
Looking forward to the next report!

[glypnirsgirl]

I remember advising that you only had a 0.0000001% chance of making it to Olivia's... I guess I was wrong. However... if I remember right, you claimed to be arriving at 9:00. In any case... well done!

/Jim


Yes - we were fortunate. Our plane actually took off on time and landed early. There was even a gate waiting for us! As it ws we just barely made it to our RR ADR.

[glypnirsgirl]

Sunday May 10th

We woke up bright and early. We immediately decided to go straight to Epcot. We did not want a re-occurrence of the bus fiasco from yesterday, so we did not eat breakfast and went straight to Epcot, arriving at 7:50 for a 9:00 rope drop. We were at the very front of the line for rope drop. DH followed the rope to Soarin’ while I went straight to wheelchair rental. Because we were split up, I opted for an ECV. I was to go straight to the land as soon as finished with the rental. I was so fast to the rental, that I was able to get into the crowd following the rope and I went straight to the line for Soarin. There were approximately 120 people in front of me in the stand-by line. Ian is tall (6’4”) and I could not see him in front of me. I called him on my cell phone. I actually had passed him – he was behind me in the line. He would not cut in front of people to join me (neither of us believes the “I am with them” unless you were in the line and had to leave for a bathroom break, the people up front needs to join the people in back, not the revense). I let people pass me until he caught up. We could still see the turnstile once we met up. About two ride cycles later we were Soarin’. I love this ride. As soon as we got off, we could see that the stand-by line was still short. So we got back in the stand-by line and rode a second time. Yeah – loved it as much the second time. After we got off, the standby line had grown and the time for our fast passes had arrived (9:42 on the FPs). So we got in the FP line and we were on the ride again in 22 minutes. When we got off of Soarin’ for the third time, it was just turning 10:40.

We were hungry and went over to Seasons and used 4 snack credits for breakfast. I ate a banana (paid OOP) and a choclate brioche and tuna salad. DH had the other chocolate brioche and oatmeal. Yummy!
http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1101starringrollsbreakfast.jpg


Dh headed over to TT for more FPs.

We then headed to Norway to ride Maelstrom then get in line for our brunch ADRs. We stood in line for 20 minutes. The ride was down the whole time. After a while I got tired of standing asked DH if we could go sit down in thr courtyard and just wait for our ADRs. We checked in at the podium. Akershus was jam-packed with little girls all dressed up as princesses. I really enjoy the character interaction here. We were really here for the food. I am Finnish and I was raised on pickled fish and smoked salmon (my granddad pickled his own fish and smoked his own salmon and sturgeon). Anyway, the Koldbrodt is still pretty good, now only two kinds of pickled herring instead of three. I missed the sour cream herring. The herring that was there was good. The shrimp salad was good. I also had beets and tomato salad. Dh ordered the Kjofftekake (a meatloaf of beef and pork – tastes a lot like Swedish meat balls). It was good and was accompanied by mashed potatoes and green beans. The only other authentic entree was the lamb stew, I had the misfortune of ordering the lamb stew. There were two small chunks (bits would be more accurate) of lamb and the stew was oddly bitter. This restaurant used to be a “must” for us, but no longer. This was the worst meal we had at WDW. I doubt that we will be going back.

Koldbrodt plates - this is mine first. Starting at the top, Beet and apple salad.tuna salad, cucumber salad, shrimp salad, tomato herring, glassmeister herring, smoked salmon, peppered mackerel, and in the middle, tomato salad.
http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1103ahussweetiecb.jpg

And DH's:
http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1104ahusiancb.jpg

I am skipping the pictures of our entrees because they just look like brown blobs.

After the disappointing lunch, we went to TT and rode. This was our first time on TT since our first trip to WDW together in 2002. I really enjoyed the ride this time. While we were waiting in line, a young woman in front of us who was in an air cast, was pushed off balance and her cast landed directly with all of her weight on my poor yucky toe. This just did me in. I had to go back to rest. We headed straight to the buses. DH rode my ECV to the rental place while I slowly made my way to the bus stop. Went back to the room and caught some ZZZs.

[bababear]

Welcome Back Elaine

Hon I'm alittle suprised they didn't try and get you a little closer to the HH . I know lots of people enjoy the "southpoint" area due to quietness but with an injured toe and mobility issues I just think it would have made your trip more "magical" .

Mmmmmm any form of chocolate for breakie is a breakfast Mel loves,,I'll have to try it next time we have breakie at Olivias .
I didn't realize how busy it is during May--but I still do want to try for a flower and garden month.

Poor Elaine ,,I can't believe with Ian's height that you two would loose each other,,kids tease me cause I'm 4 foot eleven inches and they loose me all the time(((((((maybe they really mean to loose me))))))))).I try wearing bright t-shirts but at Disney I just blend in.

I think Toy Story Mania will be good to see in terms of Nostalgia(sp) but not so sure it's up there with my Favorites.Thanks for the review Hon.
One thing I appreciated a few years back was Disney's attention to people with special needs--I pushed a wheel chair for miles in the Hot Aug heat,,,those special ques are very much appreciated.

OUCH OUCH OUCH ,,,you mean someone fell on your poor wee toe,,oh My Goodness Hon,,,,,OUCH,,,You should have had me there with yah --I'd have tied a Big red bow on your foot with a balloon and a sign ---"Touch My Toe and Deal With The Big Guy!!..

Thinking of You and great Trip report.((((more))))please))))))!!

Hugs Mel

[tomandrobin]

Great trip report! Sounds like you had a really good time.

[aamove]

Thanks for the great trip reports. We had a trip a couple of years ago where both me and the DW and her mother had to rent ECVs. DW twisted her leg the day before we got to Disney and I was recovering from a severe infection in my leg. Talk about creating a bottle kneck in certatain sections of the parks. By the third day DW and I were out of the ECVs and hobbling along.

Thanks again for your report, brought back some memories for me, even some that are embarrasingly funny in retrospect.

[harmrose22]

Great trip report! Thanks for sharing about TSM. My DS is so looking forward to riding that!

[pollymn]

Great trip report Elaine!!!
Thanks for sharing your adventure.
:corn: Next

[glypnirsgirl]

Thank you for reading my report. Now I am ready to add more.

After leaving Epcot because of my poor stepped on sore toe, we headed back to OKW to rest and relax. When we arrived at our room, I immediately called WDW DINE and cancelled our Artist Point reservations. Too tired to even think about the travel to Wilderness Lodge and eating at 5:30. I immediately fell asleep and had a great nap - 4 hours! When I woke up, DH was already awake and he was ready to go. I woke up refreshed and Buzz was calling my name. We arrrived at MK about 6 p.m. People were streaming into the park. DH and I headed straight to Buzz and rode threel times. After the third time, the line had a sudden surge in length so we went and rode the TTA. I love the TTA, it is relaxing. When we got back around to the exit, we asked to stay on. We frequently will do TTA several times in a row if it is not crowded. We call it "in park rest time." The evening was beginning to cool down and it was starting to get dark. This ride actually become romantic - almost like a love boat ride for the future. DH and I just enjoyed visiting about our day and we were both starting to get hungry. DH loves Cosmic Rays. I do not share his opinion. He wanted to eat there and he knows how I feel (I will usually do lunch there with him. But dinner? No Way). He offered to get me a turkey leg. He sat me at one of the tables at the lunching pad with a view of Wishes and I sat and enjoyed my turkey leg and watched Wishes while he went to Cosmic Rays, returning with a tray of food to eat with me. DH cares very little for fireworks and I love them. I would gladly watch every fireworks show that they have every night of our trip and I still would not be tired. To me the fireworks are the epitome of Disney magic.

After Wishes was over, we went straight back to Buzz and got a ride in. The line quickly grew with people coming back into Tomorrowland from the hub. (EMH tonight). We exited Buzz and went to the Laugh Floor. I love the Laugh Floor when it is crowded. The audience participation really makes or breaks this show. This was a great audience. The guys that they picked for interaction really got into it. They made hilarious faces and gave funny answers. My favorite was the guy that they picked to be invisible. Every time that they would focus the camera on him, he would duck and really disappear. It was great! When we exited Laugh Floor, Buzz was still busy and they had started issuing FPs again so we pulled a FP again and waited a few minutes for the people that had gone to Buzz after Laugh Floor to cycle through. We rode Buzz 3 more times and used our FPs the next time that Laugh Floor crowd circled through. I love Buzz and was really disappointed to not like TSM more. I had been expecting to love it.


After leaving Tomorrowland. DH decided that he wanted a snack. I had read good things about the snacks at Main Street Bakery so I asked DH if we could get our snacks there. He was surprised. I am not a pastry person, but he is. I usually want to go to the ice cream place next door. Because of DH's dairy allergies, I thought that it was best to avoid it. The last time we went to Plaza Ice Cream, DH ordered the Rice Dream and they did the whole big allergy production thing and then served him Tofutti which he dislikes instead of the Rice Dream that he had ordered. I did not want a repeat of that and I had read about the chocolate chip cookie ice cream sandwich. So that is what I ordered DH ordered the apple turnover. Usually DH and I share our meals and snacks and we do not like to order the same things so that we can maximize the variety of what we are eating. This was an exception. We both liked our own items so much and did not care for what the other one had ordered so we did not share. Now that I look at the picture of DH's apple turnover, I cannot imagine why I did not want to try a bite. It looks lovely.

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1107plazabakerycccsandwich.jpg

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1108plazabakeryappleturnove.jpg



There was a woman in front of us that seemed to be using up all of her snack credits from the dining plan. It was just her in line and she ordered lots of different bakery items and had then packaged to go This seemed like a great idea to me. She had lots of wonderful snacks.
DH decided that Monday was really a better day to really experience TSM so we changed our plans. We had been scheduled (in our minds) to go to AK for the day. Because of the reports that I have read of people here at the forum who love it, I had decided to try it again and to stop and enjoy the atmosphere more. And now we would not be doing AK, opting instead to try Toy Story Midway Mania (as my DH insists is the true name). We left MK right before closing and got to the bus stop before the big crowd hit.

What a lovely evening.

[7swans]

Great report Elaine!
Love the food pic's :yes:
You made no mention of fast passes for TSM, were the fast pass machines working? I am planning our park attack strategies for the students!
Thanks

[tomandrobin]

I love Buzz and was really disappointed to not like TSM more. I had been expecting to love it.

I really, really love Buzz and was looking forward to TSM being better. I hope your second time thru it grows on you. I'll have to wait until July to ride it.

Your poor toe, hopefully it will remain out from under other people's feet the rest of your trip!

[glypnirsgirl]

Our plan was to sleep in on Monday after having a late night enjoying EMH at MK last night We did not set an alarm. I woke up at 7:40! I was happy and excited to be going back to try TSM a second time. Dh was awake, but was just laying in bed waiting for me to wake up. We decided to skip breakfast to make rope drop since we were already up. One of the things that we do at WDW that we do not do at home is take our showers in the evening. I just cannot go to sleep all hot and sweaty. Anyway all we had to do was throw on our clothes and go. We were at the bus stop just a few minutes after 8. We only had to wait about 10 minutes for our bus. We made it to rope drop no problem.

They had the rope further up Hollywood Blvd. than normal, so I was able to get into Earl's to rent the ECV before rope drop. We were all set and were anticipating a huge crowd to be joining us for TSM soft opening. Well, that never materialized. At rope drop there were very few people. We headed straight for TSM.

There was no line before the id check. Went past the barrier, there was no line outside of TSM at all. Once we got inside, there were about 20 people down in front of Mr. Potatohead. This time we were able to enjoy his interactive audio animatronic spiel. Cute. A nice way to spend some time waiting. The small crowd moved forward and we were getting our 3D glasses in less than 5 minutes from entry. It took another 5 minutes to get to the loading dock. So about ten minutes from entering the building to boarding the ride. We were assigned car 7. DH told me that I had not been pulling the string fast enough yesterday (he had scored 189,000; I only scored 79,000). He told me that there was no limit to the projectiles that you can shoot and no penalty for not being accurate.

Boarded the ride and I practiced shooting as fast as i could at the practice screen. I really enjoyed the ride this time. It was great. Really rivaled my love of Buzz. I scored 189,000 with DHs tips, he scored 186,000. I was thrilled. I NEVER BEAT HIM AT BUZZ and I had jst barely beat him here. I fired faster than he did at the final screen and overcame his score. DH demanded a re-match. We got back in line and it was the same as the first time. Back in the car in less than 10 minutes. The rematch was neck and neck. our scores see-sawed back and forth. At the end of the ride, DH had outscored me by a few points, but I was still competitive, not like the total dominance at Buzz. The line was still short and we were really getting into it now. I won again! We are now tied 2 for me and 2 for DH (that includes Saturday's score). We decide we need a tie breaker. Go back throught the line and it has grown some, but not much. We get on in about 20 minutes on this ride. The entire time we are kibbitzing and discussing strategy. Lots of fun and I WON!!! Dh points out to me that i never win at Buzz and I stick my tongue out at him and tell him THIS IS MY NEW FAVORITE RIDE!!! By then we were getting hungry. We decide to go get a snack at Starring Rolls. I opt for Chocolate Brioch. DH gets a Rice Krispy treat with chocolate and a sugar cookie We use 2 more snack credits. And OOP drinks and fruit.

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1201starringrollsbreakfast.jpg


After breakfast, we head back to TSM. The line is now long - compared to earlier, really short compared to Saturday. There is no line outside, but it is almost full inside. Making Rope Drop makes such a difference in how much you can enjoy. We stand in line for a few minutes and they announce that they are having technical difficulties with the ride. It will be 5 minutes before the ride resumes. I hate technical difficulties. Disny always seems to announce that they technical difficulties will be resolved quickly and sometines they are, sometimes they are not. I asked DH if we could go see VOLM, I had never seen it. We get the ECV and make the short trip to VOLM. I start to park the ECV with the strollers as I have been doing at all of the rides. The CM insists that I stay on it and says to follow the black line into the theatre. I decide to not make an issue of it and ride the ECV into the theatre. Well this is a mistake. I do not see well and cannot really enjoy the production - except for the beginning scene which is amazing. I love the opening scene to establish that this is happening under the sea. Lovely. This becomes one of my favorite shows despite not being able to see the performers. I am really looking forward to coming back and sitting closer so that I can enjoy the performances.

After VOLM,. we go back to TSM to check on the status of the technical difficulties. It is still down. We wander around for awhile and decide to go to RockNRoller Coaster. DH had grabbed FPs sometime earlier. We used our FPs. And it took no time at all to get on the ride. After awhile we. decide we are hungry for lunch and check in with the Brown Derby to see if they have any availability. They tell us it will be about a 20 minute wait. We decide to wait.

We get seated in one of the half booths - our favorite. I start with the Mussels appetizer.

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1204bdmussels.jpg

Dh orders the salmon appetizer:
http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1203bdsmokedsalmon.jpg

Both were excellent.

We both were in the mood for steak (shockin for DH who almost never eats steak!) We ordered the ribeye. He got his without cheese.
http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1207bdribeyenocheese.jpg,

For dessert, I opted for the Strawberry cheesecake which was so light it was almost like a mousse.

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1209bdstrawberrymousse.jpg.

I shared the last bite with DH:

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1210bdstrawberrymousse2.jpg.

I actually liked this better than the banana tower.

DH ordered the flourless chocolate cake. It was heavy, rich and moist. I had ordered this on our last trip and it was so dense it was almost like a candy bar. this time it was better: still heavy, but not as heavy. It was rich and moist and overloaded with chocolate. YUMMY!
http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1208bdflourlesschoccake.jpg.

After lunch, we decided it was getting hot. We went back to our room to rest and digest!

Elaine

[glypnirsgirl]

Great report Elaine!
Love the food pic's :yes:
You made no mention of fast passes for TSM, were the fast pass machines working? I am planning our park attack strategies for the students!
Thanks


HI - they did not have the FPs operationsl during the soft opening. I was visiting with several of the Florida AP holders who had been to the EE soft opening . They told me that they had the FPs working for EE, but it had not been necessary, the line was never more than a 30 minue wait and sometimes no wait at all. They were shocked by the line for TSM. I think that TSM has broader appeal. Alot of the pople in line had really small children with them.

[glypnirsgirl]

Welcome Back Elaine

Hon I'm alittle suprised they didn't try and get you a little closer to the HH . I know lots of people enjoy the "southpoint" area due to quietness but with an injured toe and mobility issues I just think it would have made your trip more "magical" .

The CM said that because HH is now a separate booking section. I had not requested HH so I could not be placed there.

Mmmmmm any form of chocolate for breakie is a breakfast Mel loves,,I'll have to try it next time we have breakie at Olivias .
I didn't realize how busy it is during May--but I still do want to try for a flower and garden month.

For chocolate for breakfast, I would recommend the chocolate brioche over the chocolate French toast. You can tell, I love chocolate for breakfast too!

Thinking of You and great Trip report.((((more))))please))))))!!

Hugs Mel

Thanks for reading and replying Mel! :blueflowe

[tomandrobin]

Whew...I am so glad the second time thru the ride was better.

Love the food pics. We are foodies and love reading all the different dining experiences, especially when they include pics. :yummy:

[pollymn]

Thanks again Elaine. I'm hoping to try TSM in Dec. Maybe I'll try Buzz too:upsidedow

[glypnirsgirl]

Thanks again Elaine. I'm hoping to try TSM in Dec. Maybe I'll try Buzz too:upsidedow

Polly - You have got to try Buzz. It is so much fun. The ride is beautifully themed. You should make sure to read a description of where the big targets are before you play! One of the reasons that I do so much better at TSM is because the screens are flat - there are no really far away targets. The high point targets at Buzz have a tendency to be the distant targets and i cannot see my laser dot to aim.

Whew...I am so glad the second time thru the ride was better.

Love the food pics. We are foodies and love reading all the different dining experiences, especially when they include pics. :yummy:

I talked to one of the CMs that was tending the ride and he said that my experience is fairly common. It is a ride that grows on you as you get better at it. It was so much fun!

I love restaurant reviews with pictures too. DH is the photographer in the family. He discovered a "cuicine" setting on his new Olympus pocket camera. He really enjoyed taking the pictures. Now every time I get on the forum he wants to know what people have said about his pictures.

Thanks for reading!!

Elaine

[wdw1972]

The OKW "Internal" bus has been there since day 1....or at least since 1997 when I joined. It's actually the Downtown Disney bus, but stops at HH first, then does the entire internal loop before stopping at HH again before leaving for DtD. Of course, from Southpoint ANY bus will stop at HH so you can eat at Olivia's. Then to get back, just walk across the street to the Peninsular bus stop and catch the first bus that comes to get to Southpoint without walking.

[glypnirsgirl]

Thanks for the info, Sue. Its funny, when we checked in at SSR they gave us detailed info on how to use the buses to get to the Springs and DTD, but at OKW they just assumed that we knew. I have been staying at OKW since 1994 when we joined, but before this year, we have always been park commandoes. I also usually rented a car so that I could do the grocery shopping because we cooked in our 2 or 3 bedroom. We were totally dependent on the buses this trip so I was much more aware of them.

Elaine

[Colorado Belle]

So I just drove in from the airport at 11:30pm and now it's 12:36 am and I'm still reading your trip report!

So there!!!!!

I've enjoyed reading your tr and tell DH I do like his photos but they make me hon-gry and I've given up food for fat. er, because I'm fat!

I promise I'll try TSM when I next visit...the STORE was open at DL but not the ride (will there be a ride there?) . Glad you explained the way the targets are closer as I have the same difficulty with Buzz...can't tell where my lazer is hitting and have trouble hitting the far targets.

If our paths ever overlap at WDW, I'm a fireworks girl too. Could watch Wishes every night. Cry every time, but then, I've been known to cry at McDonald's commercials.

Keep writing and we'll keep reading...sometimes weekends are really slow for this board, and sometimes people just don't make it to the tr section right away:o. I left my powercord at home, so I was unable to check in to MO the whole week I was gone...(that's my story and I'm sticking to it)

Glad your toe is feeling better, but oh, that must have hurt!

[aamove]

Great report.

We really liked the Laugh Floor too. I was picked to be Skully, DW and DD really enjoyed this.

The food pics are awsome, gotta go get a snack now

Keep up the good reports.

[glypnirsgirl]

THANKS Keith!

[RweTHEREyet]

Thanks for sharing your trip with us. I love the pictures of the food. Looking for more report soon, I hope.

[susandfam]

Thanks for the trip report, Elaine! I am really looking forward to riding TSM in...19 days!! :bouncingg I have always enjoyed Akershus. We don't have it on the schedule for this trip, though. Maybe it's for the best. I have never eaten at the Brown Derby, but now I really want to. Did you have any trouble getting in since you were on the DDP? I am pretty sure we can't get ADR's this close, though. Oh well. Thanks for posting!! I am hungry now!
Take care!
Susan

[JimP]

Did you have any trouble getting in since you were on the DDP? I am pretty sure we can't get ADR's this close, though. Oh well.

Susan,

I do not believe that being on the DDP has any affect on ADR availability.

I would not hesitate to try changing reservations even though you only have 19 days to go. We often change our reservations around even when we are on-site. We cannot always get our first choice... be we almost always get something good.

/Jim

[greenban]

Sunday May 10th

[edited, text removed]....

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll12/glypnirsgirl/2008-05-1101starringrollsbreakfast.jpg
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Elaine:

OUCH!!!!!

Sorry to hear about the toe meeting the gravity accelerated air cast!

But enjoy reading your report.

Also, tell DH, his food shots have me salivating!

-Tony

P.S. Eagerly awaiting a photo-toe update!

[JimP]

Also, tell DH, his food shots have me salivating!

-Tony

P.S. Eagerly awaiting a photo-toe update!

Tony... are you looking for a Toe/Food collage?

/Jim

[greenban]

Tony... are you looking for a Toe/Food collage?

/Jim

We pronounce Toe/Food, as ToFu 'round here!

;)

-Tony

[JimP]

We pronounce Toe/Food, as ToFu 'round here!

;)

-Tony

Maybe the Nine Dragons should post the picture of Elaine's toe on the menu next to their Hot and Sour Soup.

/Jim

[susandfam]

Thanks for the advice, Jim. I will try to call tonight!!! There was a thread on here once about dining availability for walk-ups and DDP. I don't know if you can still see it. Maybe someone could help me? I hope being on DDP doesn't affect whether or not you can get in, but that thread made me wonder.
Anyway--Elaine are you out there? Giving legal advice today? More, more, more!!
Thanks!
Susan

[glypnirsgirl]

Thanks for the trip report, Elaine! I am really looking forward to riding TSM in...19 days!! :bouncingg I have always enjoyed Akershus. We don't have it on the schedule for this trip, though. Maybe it's for the best. I have never eaten at the Brown Derby, but now I really want to. Did you have any trouble getting in since you were on the DDP? I am pretty sure we can't get ADR's this close, though. Oh well. Thanks for posting!! I am hungry now!
Take care!
Susan

Susan - Brown Derby was always one of our standbys when we were eating on cash with NO ADRs, they could almost always accomodate us.

Tony - My husband made daily progress shots of my toe. I think that I will post them on a new thread in Community Hall so no one stumbles on them by accident!!!

Elaine

[glypnirsgirl]

I have found this thread for the fireworks that open vacation season in Tokyo. It is the Sumida Gowa fireworks show - it opens the Sumida river. To put this in perspective, Wishes fires approximately 900 canons, at the Sumida Gowa, there are over 27,000 --- almost a year's worth of Wishes in one show.

This is the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKD7IcFqMWQ

Enjoy!

Elaine

[JimP]

To put this in perspective, Wishes fires approximately 900 canons, at the Sumida Gowa, there are over 27,000 --- almost a year's worth of Wishes in one show.

UMMMMMM....

27,000/900 = 30 days

/Jim (sorry... it is the geek genes in me)

[glypnirsgirl]

LOL ---

I was simply relying on Ian's math. It was what he told me. Maybe I have the numbers wrong??? I know that he had read the Wishes to Somida Gowa comparison of a year's worth of Wishes fireworks being fired in one night. I figure that either I got the numbers wrong or the journalist did the math wrong at the beginning.

JimP - Ian is a geek also. He is a senior engineer that does programming for imbedded firmware on specialized chips for TI. Even though I missed this, I usually quilify for geekdom with no problem.

Elaine

[JimP]

LOL ---

I was simply relying on Ian's math. It was what he told me. Maybe I have the numbers wrong??? I know that he had read the Wishes to Somida Gowa comparison of a year's worth of Wishes fireworks being fired in one night. I figure that either I got the numbers wrong or the journalist did the math wrong at the beginning.

JimP - Ian is a geek also. He is a senior engineer that does programming for imbedded firmware on specialized chips for TI. Even though I missed this, I usually quilify for geekdom with no problem.

Elaine

Before you think I walk around with a slide rule hanging from my belt (but I still own a slide rule for nostalgic reasons... sort of like CoP).

I didn't actually "do the math" to verify. My though process was done via rounding:

- MK uses about 1000 shells a night (900 = 1000)
- Somida Gowa uses about 30,000/night (27K = 30K)
- therefore... that sound more like a month rather than a year

Once I realized that there was probably an error, then:

- I did the math in my head without rounding to verify it was really 30 days
- I do admit i lauchned the windows calculator before I finished posting... just to be sure I didn't embarass myself ;)

I like to have a good "order of magnitude" of how the world works. I just naturally look at things that way... so when I saw you post... that those first three steps above just "happened" without concious thought as i was reading your post.

/Jim

[gopherit]

Sorry I'm tardy reading your report - I never seem to make it over to this board until I'm in a state of dejection over my own vacation ending...

Great food pics, and glad to see you mastered the "pull-string action" of TSM and enjoyed it so much!