Road trip

[PETE FROM NYC]

OK, I know I am late with this report, but DW and I both came back with a bad cold.

We left home the morning of 9/15.
First stop was in Brooklyn to finally meet INTERCOT moderator Elenita B. She is a very nice person and we gabbed for around an hour before we got back on the road again.
The new Expedition had no problems for the entire trip.
We arrived at Bay Lake Tower on Tuesday,
9/18 shortly after noon. The rest of the family, who were flying, arrived at BLT about 30 minutes later. All of us got settled into our 2 BR, and we were off to MNSSHP at 4 PM.
It was a long day for all of us, so we did not close the park.
Wednesday, we went to EPCOT and had dinner in Le Celliere.
Thursday went to the Studios, niece and nephew got on ToT and R and RC. We had a mediocre dinner at Hollywood and Vine so we could book the Fantasmic package.
Friday, back to Magic Kingdom. Then off to the Grand Floridian for dinner at 1900 Park Fair.
Somebody goofed. We arrived for our ADR time of 6:55, but they insisted that our ADR was 8:55. Their mistake or ours, we will never know. They got us into GF Cafe instead. I had unsuccessfully tried to book 1900 our last 3 trips, maybe we will get in there before we die.
Saturday, we went to Universal. Islands of Adventure for the day. I will not go back, too many thrill rides for me. That evening we went to Halloween Horror Night Party. That was a total waste of time and money.Three of us were on ECVs and were denied access to practically everything. I wrote Universal a letter asking for my money back, no answer yet.
Sunday we went to Animal Kingdom, a park I rarely enjoy, but got out-voted.
Monday, back to MK.
Tuesday the family had to head back home, while DW and I did EPCOT again and we had a nice dinner at Teppan Edo.
Wednesday we took a day off to rest and do some shopping.
Thursday back to the Studios that included a good dinner at 50s Prime Time.
Friday we spent most of the day at Downtown Disney Marketplace shopping, eating and people watching. Pack up that night and hitting the road home Saturday morning.
DW wanted to visit the Aquarium in Tampa, but her personal ECV broke down earlier that week and had to rent one from Apple.

Its hard to be handicapped down South with the absence of full service gas stations. They all have a button for handicapped assistance on the pumps, but either they do not work, or are just totally ignored. I could not find a full service place below Jersey, where self service is illegal.

Another observation: The farther south we travelled, the worse the drinking water got. Next trip I just have to buy a Brita filter. I think the water in WDW got alot worse since our last trip 2 yrs ago.

[faline]

Sounds like a less than magical trip though I do hope there were enough magical moments to still have returned home with some happy memories!

[DisneyDawgette]

I'm glad you mentioned the water! Here near Atlanta, it tastes fine. But as soon as you hit that Florida border, I can't handle it anymore! I have a super low tolerance for that metallic taste! And for some reason, I always notice it most when we eat at San Angel! Maybe I'm crazy, or maybe they're going for authenticity with bad Mexican water.

[vizsla]

Thanks for the report.

[January-2007]

Thanks for reporting.

[PETE FROM NYC]

I must be getting old and forgetful, forgot a few things.

My nephew, Nicky, who is 17 going on 35, went parasailing and had a ball. He also hit the gym almost every night for an hour or so. Why is all that energy wasted on the youth?
One night all of us hit the jacuzzi. In all of my Florida vacations, thats the first time I ever went in the water.
Another day, DW and I spent an afternoon at the Boardwalk just walking around and talking to people. Then, we headed to Cape May Cafe for a very enjoyable dinner. I thing that we liked the seafood buffet more than most of our other meals.

If I think of anything else I forgot, I will add it to this thread at a later date.

[ElenitaB]

Hey, Pete! It was so nice to meet you and your wife. I'm still in envy of the truck's ECV hoist.

The trip sounds like it had its ups and downs, but it's always nice to get away.

Stay safe in this storm!