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Are You Ever Coming Home?...No! I am playing with Wizards,Farkles & Sparkling Friends


jenseib
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Hello once again. For those that don’t know me, I am Jen. For those that do…..thanks for following again.

I write my reports as a story. I give my opinions on things, but it is not an official review. Some people like this style....some don't. If you don't then just move on.

I will post a lot of pictures and try to post daily.

 

The Intro

 

I am not going to go into a long introduction this time around. I have those in some of my older reports, but I will give you the basics.

I am a Mom of 3, 2 who are now adults and working ontheir own families (I have granddaughter number 2 due is Oct!) and my youngest is Claire, who is now 12. If you have read most of my other reports you have seen Claire or at least know who she is.

My husband is Skip, who is a Dairy Farmer and very busyyear round.

So now you know who I am in a nutshell!

 

The What, When and Where

 

The Disney Fantasy and Walt Disney World.

We did 4 days at the parks (2 before the cruise and 2 after), staying at Port Orleans Riverside and All Star Music. Both of those resorts were new ones for us to try.

The Fantasy was a special sailing of 10 nights, leaving from Port Canaveral, visiting Aruba, Curacao (for the first time!), St, Kitts,Tortola and Castaway Cay. 3 of those ports were new for me!

Our vacation dates were June 26 – July 10, 2017, though we technically left home on June 25 for a pre-night with my sister before flying out at Butt Crack of Dawn on the 26th.

 

The Who

 

This list really could be long, as I knew a lot of peopleon this sailing. I am going to make it much shorter though and just list who I mainly interacted with while I was gone. I also met new people and saw some people I knew from online forums.

 

Claire and I! Of course it would be us. LOL. Skip did not come as this was during some very busy farming time and I didn’t even really ask him to come because I knew his answer. I did ask if he wanted to join us at the end to do some park time and I got a big fat no for that as well.

 

The rest I am listing are co-workers, but I also consider them friends. I have traveled or met up with them all in the past and I always have enjoyed their company. Now I was going to be able to meet some of their family too.

 

Jeanne and her kids, Kelsey, Emily and Nick

Cass and her husband Rob and their daughter Kira

Patty and her husband Fred and their sons Zach and Caleb

Brook and her husband Joe and their son Henry. (I have actually met Joe and Henry a few times already).

 

How this trip came to be

You may have read my last trip report….Claire and I had sailed the Fantasy this past Oct. We went with my extended family and we had such a fun time. Of course, when you get off a cruise you are always hoping to be back on a ship soon, but circumstances don’t always allow it.

Our plans for this summer were to go to Walt Disney World and take my oldest daughter Paige and her daughter Gracie. Gracie will be turning 3 this Oct and we thought now was the time to get her there before we had to pay for a ticket forher.

Paige and I talked about dates, though she did not want to go nearly as long as Claire and I did, we came to a happy medium and I booked a suite at All Star Music for the 4 of us. I had been saving up gift cards and put avery large deposit down.

 

Almost as soon as I booked this trip, Paige told me her and her husband were trying for another baby and she pretty much got pregnant immediately. At this point I wasn’t sure if she still wanted to go, and she wasn’t committing either way at that point.

Not long after, I had Gracie for the day and we went to Chuck E Cheese’s and I put her on one of those small rides and she cried. Uh OH….this will not work well at Disney. She was terrified of anything we tried and I started thinking this Disney trip may not be the best idea yet.

 

Then one day, my friend Brook noticed that the Fantasy was offering some special rates for some of their sailings this summer. We all started drooling over the 2 longer cruises. Before I knew it several girls were booked or had something on hold. This cruise ended up going special rate because it was not selling out….because the cost was laughable. It was so incredibly high, it was unreal. I tended up going Cast Member Rate, Cast Member friends and family rate, Trave lAgent Rate, Florida Resident Rate, Military Rate, and also Guarantee Rates, among other things. They really needed to fill this ship up.

 

My friends kept messaging me and telling me I really need to book it and join them. Yes, I really wanted to, but I had a lot of money already deposited on this Disney World trip. I told them I would cancel it and if the money returned to my gift card in a timely fashion and if the rate was still available I would book it. This cruise had to be paid in full at the time I booked it as well, so I really didn’t want to put any extra money out if I didn’t have to.

 

I then asked Claire what her opinion was. She complained last year that no one asked her where she wanted to go and she would have rather done Disney World than a cruise and I assured her we would be going this summer. I couldn’t believe my ears when she said she would rather do a long cruise. I have trained her right after all!

 

I cancelled the Disney trip and then I knew I just had to wait. On a whim….(or maybe pressure from my friends), I check the next morning to see if the card had been refunded. Mind you, this was a Saturday morning and we all know that that is not a business day, so the chances were slim to none…..but I was wrong. The money was on the card. HOLY CRUD!!!!!

 

I quickly called and the special rate was still available. I was going to just do an inside room. This was an extra trip andI just knew I wanted to be on the ship. I really didn’t care where. So I asked the price of an inside and I was given it. I then said, just for fun,give me the ocean view price as well. It was only $200 more….What? Really? OK, I am a sucker, give me the ocean view!

 

I couldn’t believe it. I had just booked a 10 night Southern Caribbean Cruise on the Fantasy! Someone slap me!

Edited by jenseib
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The planning

Now let me make this clear from the start….This was NOT a work event. I know some of you have read some of my trip reports that involve traveling for work. This is not one of them. I just happened to be taking a vacation with my daughter at the same time many of my work friends were.

Because of this, I wanted to be careful not to intrude on people’s family time. We enjoy doing group things, but not everyone does.

I approached 2 of my closest friends, Jeanne and Cass,and asked if they wanted to link up for dinner. I let them know that if they said no I would not be offended in the least. But if they did want to, that would be great too. They both said yes,and we decided to not link with anyone else. Not because we are mean. LOL….but as Cass pointed out, many times when you have large groups at a table the service isn’t as good. I totally agreed with her. I have been on 3 big group sailings now. 1 we had a waiter who could not really handle it, but 2 of them we had excellent waiters. Cass has had issues with groups in the past as well.

 

So we called and linked up. I asked if any of them had a favorite waiter from the Fantasy and neither did. I asked if they minded if I requested Ferdi, who was our waiter in Oct. I thought he had done a fine job with our large group and he was very nice….a little hard to understand at times, but still super nice, and he took care of my sisters allergies as well. We can be a bit of a pain in the butt at times, so when a waiter can handle that I am usually impressed.

They agreed to Ferdi so we noted him as a request as well.

 

At some point Patty asked me for a server to request, and I told her to ask for Ferdi too. That way we would still be in the same seating area. I told Brook the same when she asked me for a name.

 

Another thing we decided to do was a private Fish Extender Exchange. This was something I had done in Oct with my family and we just bought nicer things for the kids. It worked out so nicely.

Some were also joining the public exchange as well, but for Claire and I, we were happy with just the private one.

 

With the discounted rate we booked with, we didn’t have a choice of room selection. With this rate you are guaranteed a level of room, for instance I booked an ocean view, and I was guaranteed to have at least the lowest level category of ocean view, but you may be “upgraded” for free to a higher category. I was going to be perfectly happy with what ever room I was given, but I will admit that since I was linked with both Cass and Jeanne, who booked verandah rooms, I hoped that I would get an upgrade and be semi close to them.

 

The room assignments do not have a date they have to be given by…and technically they may not even be given till you check in at port….but we were lucky and got our assignments several weeks beforehand. And I TOTALLY lucked out!!!! I got state room 8020! I was on deck 8! (many of the ocean view rooms are on deck2). I had a room that was bigger than a standard room, which included a murphy pull down bed, a window seat, and I was only 5/6 doors down from Cass and Jeanne. I was so excited. I really won the stateroom assignment lottery. I got an 8C which was about 4 levels up in an upgrade!

My room was forward though, and I have never been forward on a ship, so this would be a new experience for me.

 

Originally, I figured we would come in one day before the cruise and leave the day we got off the ship. I priced out flights and coming in on Monday (2 days early) the flight was only $70 one way per person. WOW! Claire had enough Southwest rewards points to cover that flight. I had a $50 voucher from SW that had to be used by Feb. Perfect! We paid basically $20 for the flight (though I did add early bird check in later too)! The downside was that it left at 5:30 AM

 

As I checked the flights to go home I found another really cheap rate. It was for July 10th though (we disembarked on the 8th). And it was for 7:15AM. Ugh! Another early flight……But worth it for the price and I had points, so we purchased it with those.

 

Well now I am going to be there 2 days before the cruise and 2 days after…we might as well go to Disney World too. Hahahaha. So hotels were booked and tickets purchased.

The more I thought about it though, that 7:15 return flight just made me feel sick. If I took Magical Express we would be leaving at 4:15 AM. If we had a rental car then we could leave a little later, and I do have Global Entry now, which means I usually get TSA precheck…but I thought it over and for not many more points I could change my departure time till 2 PM. Yes. I think that might be best.

 

I made my transfer arrangements to and from port, made my excursions, many with several of my friends, made fastpasses and a few dining reservations and then it was time to sit and wait.

 

I started gathering things to pack and then a few weeks before the trip, I packed 2 suitcases, one almost completely full of Fish Extender gifts. Both were smaller suitcases, but I had 2 big ones to pack yet. About a week before we left I tackled that task. We were going to have 4 checked suitcases plus carryon bags. EEK! Most of the time I would not have to handle the bags much, but even fitting them in the car to get to the airport was going to be tricky.

 

People often ask me what camera I use as I tend to take alot of pictures. I usually bring a big Canon SLR, but this time I only went with my Olympus Tough point and shoot and my iphone. I took a lot of pictures, but not nearly as many as I usually do. Also, you can tell the quality of them is not as nice, especially the night pictures. I just can’t capture those well without the big boy. But I wanted to be more free and save my shoulders from aching so much from carrying that heavy guy.

Edited by jenseib
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Day 1, June 25,2017, Sunday

 

So today is the day…..sort of.

 

Since we fly out of Columbus usually, and it’s a 2 ½ hour drive away, we typically head down the day before and stay with my sister who lives there.

 

We told Amanda we wouldn’t be coming till the evening though, as we needed to spend some extra family time with Skip.

 

At some point this day or the day before (memories are blurred that weekend. LOL), Skip asked us when we were coming home. Yes…that’s right, he never asked us how long we would be going till right before we were leaving. Hahahaha. And really if he had, he would have said I never told him anyways. I told him we would be flying home July 10th. He did the math in his head….You are going to be gone for Half a Month! Yes we are! For some reason this time he seemed like he was going to miss us more than usual. I mean I am sure he always misses us, but he is usually so busy that the time just flies. This time was different and he did fuss a bit about how he was going to be so lonely.

 

I finished up the packing of last minute things and started to load the car in the afternoon. This is when the comedy show started. Seriously, if anyone was filming this, I am sure it would provide many people with lots of laughs. I weighed the suitcases before putting them in the trunk and they were all way under…Hmmm. How did that happen? Well let’s pull them back out and condense them down to 3 then. I had to really stuff things here and there to make it fit, but fit it did. Weighed again….still under. OMG…I was weighing in KG’s instead of pounds. Ok, rearrange again now that some are overweight. I had them sprawled out in the garage and I was moving things all over the place.Finally I got them all underweight, with some on the border. I weighed with 2 scales and I figured I would have Amanda weigh with hers too and if needed, I would throw something in my carryon. I was trying to keep those semi-light so I could add water bottles in them later to take to the port.

 

I totally worked up a sweat doing that! But I was able to now have 3 checked bags instead of 4. One bag was mainly Fish Extender Gifts,so that would empty out and even though we would be getting some in return, I highly doubted that the gifts for one kid would take up the whole suitcase. (I was almost wrong there. LOL).

 

Ok, we are packed and ready to go. Since I had misplaced my license and debit card on my trip in Feb., I showed Claire that I had them and where they were so there would be no issues later. We also pulled out our passports and opened them up to show each other that we had the correct passport and then to show we put them back in our bags which then went in the car.

 

We said goodbye to Skip and then headed off to my sister’s house. I listened to an audiobook and Claire had her headphones on the whole time….probably listening to Harry Styles.

We made our traditional bathroom stop at McDonalds about half way down and got something to drink and went on. Skip called right as we were pulling in to see if we made it yet. Um no…only half way so far!

 

We arrived at my sister’s condo then and brought our suitcases in the house for safe keeping. She had made tacos for dinner so soon we were sitting down to have a nice meal and chat about our upcoming trip. Amanda also was telling us about her weekend with her friends and it was just anice evening.

 

My plan had been to drive to the airport and leave our car in the parking lot while gone. Our return flight came in at 4:10 and Amanda works till 5 and she said she really couldn’t take the time off to get us. Skip had told me to ask again, but I told him I was not going to keep bothering her about it.

We discussed what time we should leave and I mentioned that I worried about the outside check in desk not being open that early, and if it wasn’t then we were going to have to haul our bags on the shuttle from the parking lot because I was not allowing Claire to sit with them at the terminal and wait for me at 4 in the morning.

I had tried to dig around to see what time it opened but nothing returned anything that confirmed it one way or another.

 

Amanda asked what time our return flight was again and I told her and she said she may be able to come get me after all. I told her if she was late, that would even be fine. It would make things easier for drop off for sure that early in the morning….and of course save me some parking money as well.

 

After that, we headed outside and walked around her complex for a little bit and talked and worked off our taco dinner. Then we needed to get to bed. I knew I would have issues sleeping and we would be up super early, but I figured at least if I got a little rest, it would help immensely.

 

And I was right! We both tossed and turned quite a bit, though at one point Claire was snoring and very loudly! Of course she told me the next day she never slept a wink. I should have recorded her snores! Even though it was not the best night’s sleep, I did get some and it kept me going the next day!

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Day 2, June 26,2017, Monday

 

Rise and shine….ooooh so not so bright, but very early.But we had no issues popping out of bed and getting ourselves ready. Cass, Jeanne and Brook had all arrived a few days earlier and I was anxious to get down there too. I had that “I’m missing out on things” feeling.

 

We loaded the car and double checked we had everything (we had reweighed the bags again the night before) and headed off. Amanda had totally miscalculated how long it would take us….because there was no traffic at 3:45 AM…so we arrived much faster than anticipated. And good news! The Curb Side check in was open that early and we were able to drop our bags off right there. Yay! Less toting is good!

 

We got our tickets and headed through TSA precheck, which was very fast and soon were at our gate. Columbus is a very small airport, so it was super easy. Unfortunately nothing was open at this time and we could not get any snacks or Starbucks, which is what Claire wanted. There was a line for Starbucks already but the time they opened and as long as the line was, I was worried we would be cutting it too close.

 

Soon boarding started for our flight and we got in line and then boarded and found some good seats. I was really hoping the flight would not be full. Who else is dumb enough to fly this early in the morning….well I guess a lot of people are. Every seat was filled according to the flight crew. UGH!

 

Soon we were taking off and on our way! We were served some small snacks and we also ate some we brought along, though it wasn’t hitting the spot and I was getting a little Hangry.

About 2 hours later we landed and we quickly got off the plane and used the restroom and then headed on to the fake monorail.

 

Finally we decided to take a picture. Yeah, I was slacking in that department this morning.

 

35876616646_30bf635a10_z.jpgme4by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We headed towards Magical Express then and got in line.

 

35108164263_2ca4286a51_z.jpgme5by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Our bus wasn’t super full, so we got a seat up front. But we did have to wait a bit before we took off.

 

35896017266_aed628a2b1_z.jpgme6by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Once we filled, we were told we had 3 stops, and I think we were stop number 2. I got an email saying our room was ready. You have got to be kidding me? This early! YES!!!!! I was happy that we could just go and drop off our carryon bags there and not worry about them later on.

 

I had debated about doing online check in prior to coming as I didn’t want it to mess up my requests. I looked at a map and our room was exactly where I requested and I was so happy.

 

We soon were passing through the gates!

 

35936915535_b0d0f811d2_z.jpgme7by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Well actually we went around them with all the construction….but we were on property now!

 

35108164793_9bbb657894_z.jpgme1by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I believe our first stop was Saratoga Springs.

 

35876616886_396996ecbb_z.jpgme2by Jenseib, on Flickr

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I have never stepped foot on this property, so it was nice to see it.

 

35108164583_5c961a98e5_z.jpgme3by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Next stop….Port Orleans Riverside!

 

35508581460_bf8c9c69a3_z.jpgpor11by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

This is another property I had yet to step foot on, so it was exciting to stay here!

 

We pulled in and we got our carryon bags and made our way in. I totally sucked at taking pictures…..sorry. But I was HUNGRY! We were going to head to get some food before going anywhere else. Claire knows I am not always nice when I am starving.

 

I didn’t want too much, just something to take the edge off, so I got a muffin and some milk. I think Claire took a bite, but she was fine. She doesn’t eat breakfast often.

 

35896190766_7b86d71f8a_z.jpgpor16by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Once I devoured that, I then turned around and took a few quick shots of the seating area.

 

35508581350_0118b8b30b_z.jpgpor12by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35896539035_0ef1df2d80_z.jpgpor13by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35508581070_45d4406d13_z.jpgpor14by Jenseib, on Flickr

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We walked outside and started following the signs to the Magnolia section.

 

35508580990_c2a2406ff3_z.jpgpor15by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We passed by the pool and it looked very nice, but we never did go in and look at it more closely.

 

35804994501_6ff0048015_z.jpgpor18by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35804994211_1bfa7f3ab4_z.jpgpor19by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We were in the Acadian building, (80) right along the river.

 

35804994041_6c24ccc27a_z.jpgpor20by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35902942371_8bd3f8a58e_z.jpgpor21by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

 

35902942111_e5ebcc94d0_z.jpgpor22by Jenseib, on Flickr

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35197072044_9029727ddc_z.jpgpor23by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36036910965_edcc6cbce1_z.jpgpor24by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

That’s our building blocked by trees in the next picture.I don’t think I ever took an actual picture of it. I really sucked at getting some pictures this time around.

 

36036910245_2210edc6c9_z.jpgpor25by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We entered the room and it wasn’t as cool as I like it,so I quickly adjusted the thermostat to low and then I went and took several pictures.

 

35197071674_1c9a48bae1_z.jpgpor26by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36036910665_22837294ba_z.jpgpor27by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Disney is going with these white comforters now on all the resorts beds. I am not a fan. I wisht hey kept that runner strip on the end to add a bit of color.

 

36036910515_e195630653_z.jpgpor28by Jenseib, on Flickr

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35902940941_dc6af6bb47_z.jpgpor29by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35197071184_38777884fa_z.jpgpor30by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35206209434_3d1e8fd4ab_z.jpgpor31by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35206209314_5b800844fd_z.jpgpor32by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

These are the new toiletries that all resorts, even Values, are supposed to now have. I did find out later that they are still phasing out the old stuff at the Values…aka the crappy shampoo/conditioner combo.

 

35656345840_c5991f1ca0_z.jpgpor33by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

 

35206209184_62bd9e67a8_z.jpgpor34by Jenseib, on Flickr

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In Oct. our room at Coronado had bug spray, they are now switching to wipes. Though again, I am hearing some rooms have both. I prefer the cans.

 

35896190596_a0f3184e26_z.jpgpor17by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

 

After getting ourselves settled in, we grabbed what we needed in our purses and headed off to the bus stop.

 

35656345600_859378553d_z.jpgpor35by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Luckily I had paid attention to the map and knew one wasn’t too far away.

 

36045828625_b382181f3a_z.jpgpor36by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35656345120_681fea97b7_z.jpgpor37by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We probably waited 15 minutes for the bus….impatiently of course. We kept watching the monitor and it kept adding minutes till it would come. This would become the theme of our stay here.

 

Finally it did come and we were off to Epcot…where we were greeted with large crowds going through bag check. I believe we arrived right about 10:15, which is the prime time for many people entering the parks.

 

We got into what looked like the shortest line, but we soon found out was the slowest one moving.

 

35212478094_f15bbba594_z.jpgepcot8by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

The security guards were switching out and they would check a few, move to the next table, check a few and then when they made it to our table they would head off…I assume for a break or another assignment. We got one guy at our table that literally took out every item of every bag. One guy had a stack of napkins in his backpack and this guard shook each and every one out.

Some guys next to us told us Dave the security guard was down a few tables and hopefully he would make his way to our table soon as he was going fast….and YES as we got closer Dave moved to our table and the line moved extremely fast then.

They were only randomly selecting people to go through the metal detectors today and we were able to bypass that.

 

Epcot, here we come!!!

 

35212479034_88bb931b8f_z.jpgepcot9by Jenseib, on Flickr

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Now let me remind you that this is June and the temps were already in the 90’s this morning. It was HOT! We knew we may be moving slower than normal, but still planned to try and get in as much as we could. We power walked over to the Land to get in line for Soarn’. My feet already were hurting. OMG! I had newer tennis shoes that I had been using for walks at home to get them broken in……but I had put an insert in them at home. A few days before we left, the insert was getting milly and was sticking to my socks so I pulled it out and threw it away. Now without that insert, my feet were sliding all around in the shoe and jamming my toes into the front of the shoe. I already knew I would have a blister before the end of the day. I just can’t win with my stupid feet!

 

35242276613_70e980e2cf_z.jpgepcot1by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We got in line and I think it was about a 45 minute wait. It was cooler in line, but still warm. But we would take this over being outside. The line moved slowly, but we were ok with it.

 

35212479514_2914fbc29e_z.jpgepcot2by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We eventually made it in and we were put on the side and at the end. I hate that spot, and seem to get it all the time, but oh well, we’ll live.

 

This was our first time seeing the new film. It was great, and the wind and movement felt wonderful. I may be the odd one out, but I still like the old version better. It was still a great ride though.

 

We headed out and made a bathroom stop and then hightailed it out and over to Test Track. I got a message from a Diser after I got home and she said she had seen Claire and I leaving the Land, but we looked like we were in a rush so she didn’t say anything. LOL. Yep…we are always trying to get to the next thing fast.

 

We did not have a fastpass for Test Track either, but Claire was now brave enough to do the single rider line, so we went that route and got on very fast.

 

I think we were only a few cars apart, and she waited for me at the end down where they display the pictures and then we were off once again….this time for our first fastpass….Spaceship Earth.

 

And this is what we were met by.

 

35881333432_0f64f49717_z.jpgepcot10by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

That is the FASTPASS line…..totally ridiculous! Luckily it moved fast and we were soon scanning in….only to be met with some queues to go through.

 

35212478864_050c798b91_z.jpgepcot11by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

It did move fast, but I just was a bit disgusted they would allow a fastpass line to get that long. There are pros and cons to Fastpass + and this is one of the cons for sure.

 

35242275933_e03253f6f2_z.jpgepcot3by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

It was nice to sit down and relax for the ride and feel some cool air again. I didn’t really take pictures during the ride so much because I have about 10 copies of each. It did make me feel a bit drowsy and that early morning was catching up to me.

 

35242273923_c148e73b3d_z.jpgepcot12by Jenseib, on Flickr

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I had worn my sunglasses for the picture as Claire was hoping it would give me the “no eyes” look it did for me back in 2014, but no such luck.

 

35212478764_1a7c1166c6_z.jpgepcot13by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We hit the bathroom again afterwards and splashed water on ourselves and applied my travel deodorant. I knew it would be hot, so we had one just for the parks so we could freshen up slightly.

 

And then we moved on once again…..

 

35663096470_7d0110824f_z.jpgepcot4by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

And we were thirsty so we decided a stop in Club Cool was in order.

 

35663096320_57c1ebea6e_z.jpgepcot5by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We tried a few, but Claire had a favorite and drank several cups.

 

35242272533_fd63531103_z.jpgepcot14by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We then were heading over to Journey into Imagination and saw this bird. He had the weirdest feathers and they just stayed all spread out like that.

 

35663096200_4c8c90f231_z.jpgepcot6by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We had a fastpass here too and this is one of Claire’s favorites. There are still rumors they will be closing it eventually, so we must ride it each time and Claire prays they don’t turn it into something else.

 

35242274523_53c4220690_z.jpgepcot7by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

 

No pictures again as I have taken so many over the past years.

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It was now getting close to our lunch reservation time. We were doing one of our favorites, Via Napoli. Time seemed to get away from us and we were moving slower than normal with the heat and already sore feet, so as we started coming up to World Showcase, I noticed a friendship boat pulling in. Let’s do that! We got right on and it took off a few minutes later. This was a first for us too. We always just walk around, but it was a nice relaxing ride. I am sure it shaved off a few minutes and my feet were super grateful.

 

We got off in Morocco and did a speed walk over to Italy.

 

35212478674_7256fecc0d_z.jpgepcot15by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

And we arrived just in the nick of time.

 

35212478484_338cbc44fb_z.jpgepcot18by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We checked in and took a seat to wait.

 

35212478244_b79c5238d9_z.jpgepcot19by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35212478444_0a6d6677aa_z.jpgepcot17by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We were called soon and taken to the side room this time.I have never been seated in there before…and honestly, I hope we never are again. It was like we were in a forgotten area. I will start out by saying this is the worst service we have ever had here.

 

So we were seated and we waited….and waited….and waited. I was starving again…getting the hungry headache and we were both super thirsty. A waitress went by and said she would be with us soon….and we waited….and waited.

 

Finally we got water and we drank it down like we were camels…The refills were pretty slow…as in almost never.

 

Our waitress was off singing happy celebrations to aboutevery table around us and she then came over to take our order….or did we needto look over the menu. Nope, we have hadat least 10 minutes to do that, we know what we want. First I asked for bread, which doesn’t comeout normally, but if you ask they will bring it. She was confused if we wanted some specialbreak that we would be charged for or just regular bread. I said the regular bread….and keep it coming,we’re starving. She didn’t understand what that meant at all. UGH! We made our order for a small pizza and thenwaited again.

 

Finally a guy brought out our drinks and later thebread…2 pieces….JUST 2 stinking pieces. I guess she didn’t understand the part where I said I was ready to eat ahorse. LOL.

 

35212477984_5a9a01fb04_z.jpgepcot20by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

After a bit our pizza came out and we devoured it.

 

36053060185_3202356642_z.jpgepcot21by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

It was fantastic! We ate the whole thing and we were not over stuffed, which was great,because we wanted to go have some snacks later.

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Then we waited and waited and waited. I saw her bringing celebration treats to other tables and talking and laughing. I finally got the attention of another waitress and told her we needed to leave and needed our bill. It still took a bit, but I think it went faster than if I had just waited. I was paying with a gift card and I handed it right to her to take. I didn’t want her to wait and come back in another 10 minutes or so. I was really frustrated. She was very nice, but she was not attentive to us at all. I think she had too many tables with celebrations going on and she couldn’t keep up with everything. I know this is not the norm, so I will be back again.

 

With our bellies full, we headed outside and sat down on a bench and called Skip to let him know we had arrived safely and were enjoying our day, even though it was 100 degrees out….literally.

 

36053059855_2d4655356f_z.jpgepcot23by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36053059755_77a722620b_z.jpgepcot24by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We then made our way towards France. I had something on my bucket list…..to get ice-cream there.

 

36053059665_26caeae1d9_z.jpgepcot25by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36014454276_5c43e5a4c6_z.jpgepcot26by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36055864915_79a270ed57_z.jpgepcot27by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36014453896_1d4d3c022f_z.jpgepcot29by Jenseib, on Flickr

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I wasn’t impressed with the choices, but I picked something with caramel.

 

36053060035_5204eeb99b_z.jpgepcot22by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

 

And I wasn’t a fan. It had a funny after taste to it. It was not how I expected it to taste at all. Oh well. I have given it a try and I know if I ever go back to not choose that flavor.

Now that I had my dessert, it was now time to get Claire what she wanted….churros! So we headed back towards Mexico.

 

36014453776_46e5c60630_z.jpgepcot30by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

It was getting cloudy and windy, which felt great, but meant that rain was on its way.

 

36055864125_cb5a60a822_z.jpgepcot31by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35884335222_25cbdc0d50_z.jpgepcot32by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36055863875_474cc8938f_z.jpgepcot33by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Some stands were covering up or bringing stuff inside in preparation.

 

36055863685_4b4f35b549_z.jpgepcot34by Jenseib, on Flickr

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We got Claire’s churros, which seem to take quite awhile, and then took them to Norway and sat down to eat them. It started to sprinkle and people were going into panic mode about the rain. It never really got hard, just about 10-15 minutes of a sprinkle and then it stopped. I laughed at all the people who were in ponchos and racing for cover. To us, it just felt fantastic and was never enough to even worry about.

 

Talking to my friends who were in Orlando though, it had rained hard in some areas.

 

After the churro was finished, we headed to the bathroom and then it would be time for our next fastpass.

 

35884337522_3768ae5ae9_z.jpgepcot35by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

A little bit of entertainment going on.

 

35884337352_0761e3fc26_z.jpgepcot36by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35884337072_5d89f20cf1_z.jpgepcot37by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We then got in line for Frozen Ever After. This was another first for us, which is why we used our first tier fastpass for it. I wanted to be sure we did get on this ride.

 

36055862865_3c8b782d60_z.jpgepcot38by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I think we waited around 15 minutes or so in the fastpass line, but it did seem to keep moving constantly.

 

Claire couldn’t really remember Maelstrom that much. I told her that the loading area is totally different now and this was basically where we used to get off.

 

Soon we were on our boat and heading to our Frozen adventure. I took a lot of pics on my phone and camera, but neither are good with low lights, so a lot are pretty blurry.

 

36014455336_76b185daeb_z.jpgepcot39by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36055861495_85cab8bd86_z.jpgepcot40by Jenseib, on Flickr

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35884335732_4eaa88c387_z.jpgepcot47by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We loved the ride. I know some were not happy that Maelstrom was replaced, but I found it to be a huge improvement. We were basically only riding Maelstrom if the lines were low and as a filler. I would be happy to ride Frozen Ever after each visit at least once.

 

We headed outside and the Vikings were back out performing again.

 

36055861855_f72080a1e2_z.jpgepcot48by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We were pretty much done with Epcot now, so we started heading towards the front.

 

35884335362_81d21b7522_z.jpgepcot49by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I asked Claire if she wanted to stop in and ride the Gran Fiesta if the line wasn’t too long and she said sure, so we headed inside.

 

35884334882_62a14368b0_z.jpgepcot50by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We popped in line and got right on.

 

35894224262_2f7bdbef4c_z.jpgepcot51by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

 

35894223712_c438ab5f48_z.jpgepcot56by Jenseib, on Flickr

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Every time we ride this ride anymore, we get a loud group, usually of guys, and today was no exception.

 

35894223602_ae5f2e00db_z.jpgepcot57by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35894222672_9dde8cd8e2_z.jpgepcot58by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35894223462_392bd4a1f8_z.jpgepcot59by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35894223252_53f739c27b_z.jpgepcot60by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I love this room. It’s always my favorite.

 

35894223082_934b7f22b6_z.jpgepcot61by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35894222562_ffe927f9b6_z.jpgepcot62by Jenseib, on Flickr

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With that done, we made our way towards the front and sat down and took a look at the app to see what might be available for Fastpasses at Magic Kingdom. I wasn’t sure how long it would take us to get over, so I held off making any right away.

 

35894222902_423bb556ab_z.jpgepcot52by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35894224042_278644a3a9_z.jpgepcot53by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35894223942_40f97ce82c_z.jpgepcot54by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Goodbye Epcot! We had fun!

 

We walked out and were talking away.

 

35894223802_691a361139_z.jpgepcot55by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

And we were heading to the bus stop when I realized…..wait!!! We need the monorail. We turned around and made our way over to the station and just missed a train, but it didn’t take too long before another one arrived.

 

 

We sped along over to the Magic Kingdom and as we pulled into the station I took this picture.

 

35278287293_e53f94c4ca_z.jpgmagk11by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

And then a better shot.

 

35697268270_6103297cac_z.jpgmagk12by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I posted it to facebook a few minutes later and saw that Brook had posted almost the same exact picture. I asked her if she was arriving too and she said she was just leaving. She must have been in the station at the same time I was. I think she was heading for a dining reservation.

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Claire and I got off and there was no bag check or security. I was kind of surprised.

 

We went right in and headed down Main Street.

 

35278290203_56ee80d147_z.jpgmagk1by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35278289873_f2b4cc74d8_z.jpgmagk2by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35697269680_999846f8b4_z.jpgmagk3by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I had issues walking and trying to get a castle picture. LOL.

 

35278289053_a2ff3592cd_z.jpgmagk5by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35278286393_fcd1c804a5_z.jpgmagk14by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We needed a snack!

 

35697269360_40c3c5df87_z.jpgmagk6by Jenseib, on Flickr

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Dole whip floats!

 

35697267770_eb31ba15e6_z.jpgmagk15by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Claire was disappointed to find out they no longer serve the orange ones….I totally understand. I am too.

 

We headed back over towards Buzz Lightyear as I made a fastpass for it. We got stopped by the Move it Shake it…or whatever name it may be going by these days.

 

35697267600_a8739bb561_z.jpgmagk16by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35697269070_b9faa98eaa_z.jpgmagk7by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35278288083_0c569b8359_z.jpgmagk8by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35697267200_df321a6b3e_z.jpgmagk18by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

What a beautiful fountain.

 

 

35697267460_6d03bc95ec_z.jpgmagk17by Jenseib, on Flickr

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We kept moving along.

 

35697268680_c72786c220_z.jpgmagk9by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35697268560_25d3369ac0_z.jpgmagk10by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

And on to Buzz!!! Woohoo. We look like we are really into it.

 

35278285173_514e10dd96_z.jpgmagk19by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Next we headed over the Small World. I think we fastpassed this, but I can’t remember now for sure.

 

35697266890_c3c9b994e7_z.jpgmagk20by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35707077170_aa4f920cb6_z.jpgmagk22by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

 

35288863033_7eaf73d5bb_z.jpgmagk23by Jenseib, on Flickr

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35707076900_117f3996dc_z.jpgmagk24by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

We also then fastpassed Pooh. I can’t remember if we rode other rides or not, but I think everything we did was with fastpasses.

 

We needed a little bit of food now so we headed to Cosmic Rays for some dinner.

 

Brook messaged me that she was back in the park, so they came into Cosmic Rays, and once we made our order we went over and said a quick hello. We would be sailing together soon, so we didn’t spend much time, but it was nice to see her again. She was going to find a spot to watch the new Happily Ever After fireworks show.

 

Our food came and we found a spot to eat.

 

35288863263_9ddd7e958a_z.jpgmagk21by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

It was good and hit the spot. We headed back out into the heat to look for a spot to watch the fireworks and it was packed! I mean CRAZY packed. As we walked to look for a spot The Cast Members were directing people to go up front via back stage and to find a spot to watch from up there. We said we were going somewhere else…because I really was hoping to find a better spot.

 

35707076720_0d2f7b1bd7_z.jpgmagk25by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

Nope! It was insane! So we headed up front via back stage and then we saw just how crowded it was up there as well. We made the decision to skip the show. I hated to do it, but we would have another chance after the cruise. It was hot and packed and we were super tired. We really didn’t feel like standing next to hundreds of other sweaty people for the next hour or so.

 

We headed to the bus stop and then had to make the decision of whether or not we wanted to head over to Animal Kingdom and do the Extra Magical hours in Pandora. The app was showing long wait times, but it wasn’t even EMH’s time yet. We still had a bit before it might lesson up. We decided a shower and sleep was more important, so we headed to the POR bus stop and made our way back.

 

We went straight to the room and Claire showered while I went up to get a snack and some drinks for us.

 

36045827505_fc3e6fac26_z.jpgpor38by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I got a crumb cake and some soft drinks and headed back to the room where we snacked a bit and just relaxed. I noticed the room was not cold like I like it and the temp had gone back up since I set it lower. UGH. I wonder if they turned it back up when they brought the suitcases in. I know motion sensors play a part in these rooms, but the actual setting was not where I had it. I then got my phone out and googled how to override the temp setting as I like it much lower than what they allow you to set it at. The override only let me go a few degrees less, but that worked well enough for me.

 

Our plan was to get up early tomorrow and head over to Animal Kingdom so we tried to get to sleep at a decent time, but I think it was still close to 11 or so when I actually turned the TV off.

 

 

It was a fun first day, even though it was long and super-hot. We did some new things and some of our old favorites.

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Day 3, June 27,2017

 

Our plans today were to get up early and head over to Animal Kingdom by rope drop (which was 8 AM) with hopes of riding one of the new Pandora rides before our fastpass for Flight of Passage, which was at 9 AM. Well in a perfect world that would work, but I don’t live in a perfect world!

 

I was up early and ate the rest of the crumb cake for breakfast and got ready for the day. Claire on the other hand was dead to the world. She requires a lot of sleep, preferably during the day. Hahahaha. She was very slow to wake up and not so pleasant. I knew it was partly due to the long day we had yesterday and also partly due to the fact she is a pre-teen and parents are so lame!

 

Finally after some persistent urging she got up and ready and of course made demands of what she will and won’t due today. Oh great….one of those days.

 

We headed out finally and made it to the bus stop.

 

36024365236_ae359edaa7_z.jpgpor39by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I believe we got to the Animal Kingdom around 8:15, so later than I planned, and it was already crowded with long lines to get in. We picked one, which seemed to have a Brazilian type tour group in front. Shoot! Of course they were having issues scanning in.

 

As we stood in line, I heard my name. I looked around and it was Lisa from Passporters (I believe her name is patandclairesmom). We chatted just a few minutes and she introduced me to her Claire and of course her son too.

As we were talking, I noticed the line next to us got really short and I said “let’s move over there”. I don’t think she heard me because she didn’t come, but I kept talking a bit as I moved. Claire then told me I just cut the line and there was a family that just hadn’t moved….oops…sorry family. But honestly, they were standing way back and even after we cut the line it took them a minute to ever join up.

Our line moved much faster and before I knew it, we were in the park and I lost Lisa and kids…..sorry Lisa! But it was so nice to meet you! I was a bit flustered that morning with trying to get into the park for our fastpass and also with miss grumpy pants with me.

 

We then made the mad dash with 1000’s of our newest friends towards Pandora.

 

35128710563_02ae48cc1b_z.jpgak1by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36178394995_f624134e50_z.jpgpandora82by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35686332140_b5c5b52d58_z.jpgak6by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

I was on the move, so my pictures are not the greatest.

 

35942014151_1e21501420_z.jpgpandora6by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35942013981_a6a1fa6101_z.jpgpandora7by Jenseib, on Flickr

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35942013651_66f402d5c3_z.jpgpandora8by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35942013461_bd352f3018_z.jpgpandora9by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

35685802340_4d2cdd065c_z.jpgpandora10by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36093322446_19d71698ee_z.jpgpandora11by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

36093321926_1a5360d8c9_z.jpgpandora12by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

As we approached the area, it was basically roped off. I could see a huge long line winding back towards Africa…which now has a walkway from Pandora. I asked a CM where I should go as I had a fastpass that would be opening soon. She opened the rope and said I could go in. Awesome!

 

 

36178394785_efa705dc37_z.jpgpandora83by Jenseib, on Flickr

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