A Day at Disney World

   Yesterday morning, our family set off for one of our favorite places, Walt Disney World.  We have season passes, so we try to go at least once a month.  Since our passes don't allow us entrance during the summer months, we've only been to Epcot since school started.  This time, we decided to go to The Magic Kingdom.  Even Grandma came along to join in the fun.

   When we walked on to Main Street U.S.A. shortly after park opening at 9a.m., we were greeted by a song and dance team performing some old-time classic songs.  After this brief show, we headed over to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride first, in Adventureland.  If you are ever there and see a large family dressed head to toe like tacky Disney tourists, singing "A Pirate's Life for Me" loudly and off-key, be sure and say hello to us!

   Next we went to Fantasyland, where the popular rides for younger children are.  These almost always have some of the longest wait times in the park, and are some of the shortest rides there, ironically.  Here's a tip:  instead of waiting an hour to ride Dumbo, which lasts less than 2 minutes, head to Adventureland for Aladdin's flying carpet ride.  The line is usually around 20-30 minutes and the ride lasts at least 3-4 minutes.  Just dodge the spitting camel when you're up in the air!  Same concept, different style vehicle as the Dumbo ride.

   In Fantasyland, we first rode "It's a Small World".  This classic ride was refurbished a few years ago and looks as good as new.  I can't tell you how many times I've ridden it, but I never tire of it!  Another plus here is that the line tends to move pretty quickly, even when it's long.  And the ride itself takes you through several large rooms on your boat, which takes awhile.  Worth the wait.  I also got to see the large clock at the entry open up and chime the time, with cute characters popping out -- that was a first for me!

   Next was "Mickey's Philharmagic", a 4-D show requiring 3-D glasses.  It's considered 4-D because not only do your favorite Disney characters, from Donald Duck to Ariel, appear but during certain scenes you can feel the breeze, smell the pie, and get a brief splash of water!  I have heard some people with asthma have had a reaction from the smells they pulse at the audience, but I have asthma and have never personally encountered a problem.

   We went through the rest of Fantasyland over to Tomorrowland.  We took the Blue Line Express, a sky ride that takes riders through Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, while telling you a little about the attractions below you.  We also did one of our favorites, "Carousel of Progress", which Walt designed to take a family from the turn of the century through to modern times.  There you can learn about technology and how it has changed over the years.

   For the first time, we got to experience The Monster's Inc. Laugh Floor show, which is very much like Turtle Talk with Crush at Epcot's Living Seas with Nemo & Friends.  There are favorite film characters on the screen who interact with the crowd.  They're able to do this because the character is controlled by a hidden guy with a camera and a mike.  Very cool and the kids aren't any the wiser to the "magic".

   And The Haunted Mansion, newly reopened after summer refurbishment, was an absolute must with Halloween coming up soon!  Only the youngest children may be frightened by this ride.  It is not very scary for most kids.  Ours love it and our youngest, who is 6, giggles through the whole thing at the hologram ghosts and spooky special effects.  Check out the funny headstones to your left as you wait in line to enter this ride.  And look for the invisible horse's hoofprints as you exit the mansion when the ride is over!

   We were also celebrating our oldest son's birthday, which is coming up shortly.  We had lunch at The Liberty Tree Tavern, over in Liberty Square.  You may remember the old live-action Disney film, "Johnny Tremain"?  Each room in the tavern has a different theme.  We've eaten in the Jefferson room, and the Ben Franklin room, each featuring pictures and items that would relate to the person they're named after.  It has a colonial feel to the decor.  My husband likes the clam chowder and the Tri-Corner sandwich.  I usually order The Pilgrim's Feast, a hearty version of Thanksgiving dinner.  The kids enjoy mac n cheese, chicken pizza (but you can order without chicken if they prefer) and a variety of fun side dishes and desserts.  Each kids' meal comes with 2 sides and includes a soda.  They will refill milk, chocolate milk and juice here if you ask (which is hard to find anywhere, let alone at Disney!).  Price is average for Disney fare.  Lunches are cheaper but dinner features Goofy, Mickey and other classic characters dressed in colonial garb for added fun.  For the birthday boy, they sprinkled Pixie Dust over the table.  Pixie Dust is a Disney park tradition -- it is tiny Mickey Mouse heads in sparkling colors thrown as confetti during the parades.  (Hey, free scrapbooking stuff, Mom!)  And after the meal the staff comes by and rings a bell, then makes a declaration ("Hear ye, hear ye") about the person's birthday or special occasion.  Birthday dessert is a brownie-type cake with vanilla frosting and red and blue stars on top.

   We got to see a few minutes of the daily 3p.m. parade as we left the restaurant.  The parade passes right in front of the tavern!

   After lunch, Grandma wanted to go ride Soarin' at Epcot.  We hopped on the Monorail from The Magic Kingdom to Epcot.  She and our daughter endured the 90 minute wait line which will surely greet you in the afternoons.  All fast passes were already gone for the day by this time.  The rest of us headed over to Innoventions and I sat down for awhile while hubby and the kids played "Where's the Fire?" an educational game where you run through a small house trying to locate fire hazards before they turn into house fires.  Then the kids got to shop for souvenirs. 

   When we met up with Grandma and our daughter back at The Land, where Soarin' is located, the staff came up to us and asked the kids to perform in The Land Band.  The kids were each given an instrument and either a fun hat or a character paw to wear on their hand, as they paraded around the pavilion indoors.  After the parade, they did the Hokey Pokey.  Even Dad and Grandma joined in.  Oh, the pictures I snapped!  But hubby says I cannot share them here on Gather.  LOL.  Don't worry -- I have plenty of fun things for you to see and I will be posting them a few at a time.  Be on the lookout!

   By this time we needed a pick me up.  The outdoor drink cart was very busy, so I saw a sign for Club Cool, which looked very inviting and sold Coke products.  An FYI for Pepsi drinkers -- Disney resort areas only serve Coca-Cola products.  Even local gas stations do not sell Pepsi products!  Bring your own if you are dead set on drinking Pepsi in your hotel room.  At Club Cool, we found out that not only do they sell Coke, they also have a wide variety of international soda flavors to try, for free.  Small sample cups are provided.  We tried a watermelon soda from China, and a Japanese mix of veggies & fruits.  At first that sounded really gross, but it actually tasted good!  Club Cool is located near the large dancing waters fountain, just around the corner from the Character Stop.

   Also, Epcot is currently holding its International Food & Wine Festival.  Each of the countries in The World Showcase features special displays, instructional demonstrations on cooking their cuisine, and tastings.  There are also special food products only available during this time of year, which you will have to purchase.

   By this time we were starting to get tired, and decided to head home.  It was probably around 6p.m., so for us that is a long day with all the kids!  We had such a great time!