Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How Are Things Where You Are? (was "Routine" ​ 😁 ​day in lockdown... how was yours?)

[lenquixote66]

9 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

Just checked MLB standings. Not good for the Mets. And the Rays are smoking the AL east. Must be something in the water.😉

I refer to the team as the MESS. I detest the Crankees and hope that the Rays keep them out of the playoffs.

[lenquixote66]

1 hour ago, HBE4 said:

Ed Asner passed away at 91. Best known as Lou Grant on 2 different TV shows - "Mary Tyler Moore"  and the drama "Lou Grant"  - and to the younger generation as Santa Claus in "Elf",  I always thought his best role was as a very bitter father in  the miniseries "Rich Man, Poor Man" starring a very young Nick Nolte & Peter Strauss 

He was the recipient of 7 Emmy Awards,I believe.

[reallyitsmema]

4 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

He was the recipient of 7 Emmy Awards,I believe.

 

Yes, that was what I saw when I googled too.

[lenquixote66]

Don Everly of the Everly Brothers passed away August 22.I just read this on another CC thread.

[A&L_Ont]

I’ll post a few more car pics tomorrow. It’s been a long day and I’m just exhausted.  I might just have to see what drama is brewing on the CC boards. 
 

We also have a big rain storm going on outside. Don’t have to water anything for a few days now. 

[reallyitsmema]

2 minutes ago, A&L_Ont said:

I’ll post a few more car pics tomorrow. It’s been a long day and I’m just exhausted.  I might just have to see what drama is brewing on the CC boards. 
 

We also have a big rain storm going on outside. Don’t have to water anything for a few days now. 

Look forward to seeing them.  What a great event for the kids!

[Ozark_Kid]

43 minutes ago, Lionesss said:

The weather had  different plans. By the time we got to the dock on Portage lakes. Thunder lightning.

Hate that you didn’t get out on the Lake.  My brother from Seville, just west of Akron, came up to Lakeside to surprise us.  He told me it had been storming over that way.  It has been nice up here until about the time I started writing this now we have thunder and lightning 😂 I told him you were going to Akron Lakes and we guessed it would be Portage Lakes.

[Sea Dog]

1 hour ago, A&L_Ont said:

I brought my 2020 Shelby GT500.

Beautiful car. I'm sure you had a blast. "I feel the need for speed."

[Sea Dog]

Just watched a teaser for the the new Peter Jackson documentary on the Beatles. This is really going to be good. Check it out.

 

[jagsfan]

7 hours ago, harryfat1 said:

 

Bucca is great for feeding family on a budget.  All the food here was a Thursday special that was only $50 and we ended up eating it for 2 days as the amount of pasta they give you is insane. I can't even feed a family of 4 for $50 at McDonalds for 2 meals...Two thumbs up from Cheapo Dad 👍👍

 

 

 

 

Yeah, back in the old days, Walt Disney was hiding the purchase of various swamp lands in Florida. Here’s a quick documentary of the WDW inception for those unfamiliar with the background

 

 

 

Walt never step foot onto WDW as he died before it was completed with the California Disneyland the only Disney park he ever stepped foot on.

 

If you research the history of EPCOT, you will see Walt was more of a Utopian on what he thought the future world would be.  The current version of EPCOT is not close to what he had in mind where he actually had people living EPCOT and working instead of rides featuring Frozen.  For non Disney fans, EPCOT stands for Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow or Every Person Comes Out Tired.

 

WDW is super-sized in being over 40 square miles of land space. If you stay on property during your stay and be immersed in the Disney bubble, you can disconnect from the real world.  Last time we were there was Christmas week in 2018 staying onsite and it’s a different type of vacation experience with magic bands and prepaid meal plan makes it almost like a land cruise with meals prepaid.

 

All the pics are from food/drinks that was inclusive in the package. I ate/drank better at WDW than on a typical cruise.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whereas Disneyland is more about rides than vacation experience with many of the attractions so closely together. The entrance between Disneyland and CA Adventure (separate theme park charge similar to Hollywood Studios/EPOCT/Animal Kingdom) is a mere 200 yards apart so park hopping is super easy.  Whereas in WDW’s Magic Kingdom, walking out 200 yards only gets you in line for a bus transfer to Hollywood Studios.

 

Here is the plaza separating the 2 theme parks – to the right by the yellow topped building is Disneyland’s railroad building. If zooming in, you should be able to see the line to enter the park.

 

 

Swing immediately to the left, you see the entrance to CA Adventure.  That’s how far apart they are.  Super easy for Park Hopping.

 

 

If you are short on vacation time, Disneyland and CA Adventure will do the trick with a 2 or 3 day park hopper pass as you can slam out more rides within that period of time than you can at WDW where you spend so much time commuting back and forth between parks.  But if you have multiple days on your vacation, then WDW is a much better "vacation experience”.

 

The combination of Disneyland and CA Adventure is similar to WDW’s Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios as both combinations have Star Wars Land and all the classic Disney theme park rides (Splash/Space/Thunder Mountains) and Toy Story Mania and Tower of Terror (Rethemed in CA to be Guardian of Galaxy).  CA Adventure now has the new Avengers Campus as well as rides at other parts of WDW not within the MK/HS combo like Soarin (at EPCOT), Cars Land (like Test Track at EPCOT).

 

With Anaheim being smacked in middle of the very densely populated Orange County/Southern CA, there will not be a third park nearby.  They will just likely tear down old areas and re-theme it (like current Avengers Campus used to be Bugs Land from the old movie of the same name). Someday they will likely replace the cheap carnival type rides on the west side of the park.

 

If it wasn’t for Covid, we would be looking at another visit to WDW in December 2022 for the upcoming 50^th year celebration. Looking forward to ride TRON as they transport that concept from Shanghai Disneyland.  Also, EPCOT was looking old and tired back in 2018 with not much happening at the future world section so that needs some sprucing up.

 

Bet you are sorry you asked…

 

Thanks for explaining about CA and how close it is to Disneyland. I’ll probably never get within 3,000 of it again!

I have a book…a paperback that’s about 10”x10”. It’s about the building of DW starting with showing from the air the swamps and  orange groves Walt looked at. Then the building of Main St and Magic  Kingdom. The underground city with lockers and commissaries. 
The text and the photos are fantastic.  
A friend was one of the architects and his office was over one of the stores on Main Street. 
The Contemporary Hotel was one of the first to have prebuilt rooms inserted by cranes…I guess cruise ship builders thought that was a good idea!

A lot of high school graduates worked at DW the first few years, and we knew a dozen or so of them. They lived in Disney housing and their take home pay was low. The rules were strict, and Big Brother was always watching. 
BTW, I hate how EPCOT is changing. 
The World Showcase, with young people from the countries involved, was wonderful. My favorites were China and Norway, followed closely by Canada and France. 
Exchanging the glimpse of Norway to a show based on a Disney movie will appeal to families with children, but everyone loses the chance to learn a little about Norwegian history and culture. 

 

[Lionesss]

39 minutes ago, Ozark_Kid said:

Hate that you didn’t get out on the Lake.  My brother from Seville, just west of Akron, came up to Lakeside to surprise us.  He told me it had been storming over that way.  It has been nice up here until about the time I started writing this now we have thunder and lightning 😂 I told him you were going to Akron Lakes and we guessed it would be Portage Lakes.

 

My new son in law is from Seville

Went to Wadsworth High school.

 

small world

[ReneeFLL]

On 8/27/2021 at 9:17 AM, John&LaLa said:

 

I always use my C&A logo discount to buy them. Kinda look like something crew woul wear. We have 7 or 8 total now

Is the C&A logo discount only for Pins? I didn’t see it listed.

[harryfat1]

2 hours ago, jagsfan said:

Thanks for explaining about CA and how close it is to Disneyland. I’ll probably never get within 3,000 of it again!

I have a book…a paperback that’s about 10”x10”. It’s about the building of DW starting with showing from the air the swamps and  orange groves Walt looked at. Then the building of Main St and Magic  Kingdom. The underground city with lockers and commissaries. 
The text and the photos are fantastic.  
A friend was one of the architects and his office was over one of the stores on Main Street. 
The Contemporary Hotel was one of the first to have prebuilt rooms inserted by cranes…I guess cruise ship builders thought that was a good idea!

A lot of high school graduates worked at DW the first few years, and we knew a dozen or so of them. They lived in Disney housing and their take home pay was low. The rules were strict, and Big Brother was always watching. 
BTW, I hate how EPCOT is changing. 
The World Showcase, with young people from the countries involved, was wonderful. My favorites were China and Norway, followed closely by Canada and France. 
Exchanging the glimpse of Norway to a show based on a Disney movie will appeal to families with children, but everyone loses the chance to learn a little about Norwegian history and culture. 

 

Super cool.  You have special connection to the building of WDW.

 

Yeah, I think EPCOT lost it’s whole name concept.  There’s nothing Experimental about it or even future looking.  At least the older EPCOT with its Universe of Energy or Sea was more educational.  Now it’s about Fantasy rides .  Other than the Land ride where they show some cool plants growing above ground, nothing else is educational in the Future World section.  Think Walt would be pretty disappointed with the current version of EPCOT

[harryfat1]

Day 7 of the Disney Trip Report – Our last full day at Disneyland

 

Woke up at 6 something and thinking I can secure a spot on Rise of Resistance before going to breakfast.  At 7:00:10, the app says I am locked out.  All tickets have already been issued!  WTH? You gotta be kidding me.  That leaves the next option of trying to secure a spot at the park at 12 noon, the next opening.

 

Feeling dejected, went downstairs for the daily breakfast.

 

Customizable pancake toppings

 

 

My bet is not too many kids will pick this

 

 

My son’s plate – not seeing any spinach/goat cheese…

 

 

My plate

 

 

My wife’s banana oatmeal

 

 

Headed out to Disney on our daily walk.

 

Here’s the Guardian of the Galaxy ride from the outside street level view.  Will miss the daily walk to the parks

 

 

As always, rent a locker first to drop off lunch

 

First ride of the morning is Splash Mountain again

 

 

@JamesEM mentioned previously that I take folks along on my vacation but I just realized that not everyone has been to all the rides.  I was assuming everyone knows what the rides feels like, but such may not be the case.  So, for the remainder of the report, I will try to drop in various YouTube videos on the ride so whoever wants to follow can do so.

 

Zip a Dee doo dah…

 

 

 

[harryfat1]

After that, it was time to head back to Star Wars Land.  Huge line to enter the Rise of Resistance for people that have faster fingers/better phone connections than me.

 

 

More Star Wars props as we head for the other ride at Star Wars Land – Millennium Falcon.  If you never heard of it, go ahead and bypass this post.

 

 

Very elaborate set up and state of the art animatronics with its very life like movements

 

 

 

 

The famous chess table from the movie

 

 

YouTube video on the ride

 

 

 

Edited August 30, 2021 by harryfat1

[harryfat1]

Time to see the other parts of Disneyland. My wife likes to take all the reflection pictures

 

 

OK, time for another thrill ride (double checking I have taken all my heart medications and my life insurance is current) as we head for Space Mountain.  The iconic dark roller coaster ride where you have no idea where you are going as the entire ride is dark. My wife didn’t want anything to do with this ride after she went on It years ago so it’s again me and the boys in line.  The infamous Disney queue that wraps you this way and that way…

 

 

 

That’s where we will be soon

 

 

Or not so soon as while we were in line we heard some muffled PA announcement that the ride is down.  Quick check on the app and sure enough, we are going nowhere fast.  Guess it’s time to just hang out and chill in the queue.  At least it’s indoors and somewhat air conditioned.

 

We have never technically been stuck on a ride.  The closest was at WDW on Splash Mountain where the water log stopped moving forward for awhile and we just sat there.

 

 

After awhile, they resolved the technical issues and the line started moving again. For those who tracks such things, the Disneyland version of this ride is 2 X 2.  The WDW version is single file.  The exact opposite from the other Splash Mountain earlier for both parks.

 

 

 

Similar kinds of irrelevant facts that cruise folks tracks the difference between various ships that 99% of the people just rolls their eyes over

 

Hard to see this ride on video as most of it is in semi darkness except for some lights (stars) but you get the idea

 

 

[harryfat1]

OK, ride over.  Checking the heart still working and all muscles are functioning as it should…

 

It was getting closed to 12 noon and we need to snag a spot for the Rise of Resistance virtual queue that we missed out in the morning.  We figured by main street at 12 noon is pretty quiet and has good network coverage.

 

While waiting, saw these goodies

 

 

 

Misses being on a cruise as on the Promenade deck, all you have to do is point at something and it's yours.  No need to fork out $5.99 + tax for every item…

 

 

Mickey came out with band for mini parade while we waited

 

 

Ran some DSL speed test while waiting for the 12 noon timeframe

 

Free Disney wifi at main street

 

 

Carrier (Verizon) speed was significantly faster. 

 

 

So we all took the phones off the Disney wifi and switched to carrier in trying to eek out the extra millisecond of difference.

 

At exactly 11:59:45, all 4 of us had our phones ready for trying to refresh on the 12 noon dot.  Helps to have watch with a seconds display. All members of the party can try to get in.  No penalty for all people trying.  But if one person gets in, the others in the party will all be shut out so you won’t be given multiple ride groups.

 

As the Force was with us, we got a spot!  My younger son with the newer cell phone and faster young person’s finger reflexes was able to snag a time slot for later that afternoon.  Screen shot at 12:01

 

 

Overall, it shouldn’t be this way.  It shouldn’t have to come down to having teenagers with newer phones/faster reflexes that will get spots in the queue while grandpas out there are still trying to figure out where on the app to even find the virtual queue request.

 

Maybe the new Disney ride payment system will give rich grandmas a chance to be on these rides that they couldn’t see otherwise with their slower reflexes so they can just pay their way to being on a ride.  One can debate the pros and cons forever on the Disney forum…

[FromSea2ShiningSea]

@harryfat1Did you do the Millennium Falcon:  Smugglers Run?  The line was very long for that, too.

[Ocean Boy]

7 hours ago, ReneeFLL said:

Is the C&A logo discount only for Pins? I didn’t see it listed.

No, it starts before Diamond but I get remember exactly which level. The discount does increase as you go up levels.

[Ocean Boy]

[John&LaLa]

10 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

He was the recipient of 7 Emmy Awards,I believe.

 

Speaking of Emmy awards, Guess who this is.

 

He received various awards for his work as a standup comedian and actor in both television, and film including five Primetime Emmy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, two Daytime Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards. He also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002, and the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award in 2003. He also received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1977.

Edited August 30, 2021 by John&LaLa

[jagsfan]

7 hours ago, harryfat1 said:

Super cool.  You have special connection to the building of WDW.

 

Yeah, I think EPCOT lost it’s whole name concept.  There’s nothing Experimental about it or even future looking.  At least the older EPCOT with its Universe of Energy or Sea was more educational.  Now it’s about Fantasy rides .  Other than the Land ride where they show some cool plants growing above ground, nothing else is educational in the Future World section.  Think Walt would be pretty disappointed with the current version of EPCOT

The Land has been closed for a couple of weeks with no word on why, or when it might reopen. That was a peaceful little boat ride, and always wonderful to see everything growing in the air instead of the ground. 

[Ozark_Kid]

37 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Speaking of Emmy awards, Guess who this is.

 

He received various awards for his work as a standup comedian and actor in both television, and film including five Primetime Emmy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, two Daytime Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards. He also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002, and the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award in 2003. He also received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1977.

I cheated and googled it so I will hold back my "guess". I got to see him live.  His facial expressions was what made me laugh.

[island lady]

23 hours ago, Ozark_Kid said:

Our driver was our wake up alarm this morning 😂 

 

Get up Daddy!!  😉 

[island lady]

23 hours ago, Ozark_Kid said:

Seems like this guy is here every time I am there.

 

 

Hahaha!  Yup, great "decorations" indeed.  😄