Anita Talk

AllEars Team Member Anita Answer files this report:
Just back from a quick Mothers' Day weekend trip to the World, and wanted to share a couple of things:

New Fastpasses: Saw them at the Safari and Everest. They're about 1/3 bigger, on heavier stock. The issue date is BIG now, so no cheating! The new FPs also reference the pass you used to get them, and have a ref number printed at the bottom as well as bar code on the sides. I think this foreshadows some other changes coming to the FP system in the near future, but I'm not really sure yet what they may be.

New Show at the Safari: First ride on the Safari on Sunday morning was the old show (Miss Jobson, Wilson, Big Red, Little Red, Shifty- eyed Crocodiles, etc.) I asked an area coordinator when the new show was starting as I thought it already had. He said there are 3 shows right now as they phase the new one in: The old one, the new one with a recorded spiel, and one where the driver does the whole thing. He asked if we wanted to check out the new show (Uh, let me think...YEAH!) and he back-doored us back onto the ride and made sure we got a truck with the new show. By the way, the trucks now have 2 extra rows on the back and a canvas roof. Anyway, back to the new show. Miss Jobson has been made redundant, Wilson has had a voice transplant and now sounds like Mr. Bean imitating Wilson. I was on the floor of the truck I was laughing so hard. It's unintentionally hilarious. What can I say? I'm easily amused.

In the new show, the driver handles most of the spiel now, and the poacher/dead elephant story has been relegated to the back page, with more emphasis on the animals now. Bottom line, the old show was silly and probabably needed some work. The new show is just...blah. The animals are spectacular as usual. Several times during the ride, we were eye to eye with rhinos, giraffes, and ostriches.

Saw the new Monsters, Inc. show. It was not an E Ticket, but not as bad as I had been led to believe. I thought it was cute. The audience interaction was very funny and entertaining.

Saw the new Three Caballeros ride at Mexico. Also cute and well done, but the boat goes too fast for you to catch on to what's going on in the story. You may have to ride it a few times to figure it out.

New queueing in Rock 'n' Roller. The queue is completely different from the entrance to the load zone now. There are three lines: Stand- by, Fastpass and Single Rider. The pre-show area has been rebuilt. The upper tier is now much smaller and for Fastpass guests. The lower tier is larger, and for Stand-By guests.

I rode Everest 12 times on Sunday. This is not my personal best, however, which is 29 times in one day during the first day of previews.

Saw the Nemo show again, and they've changed Crush's human's costume. I liked the old one better (dreds, board shorts, sandals). Now he wears one of those body suits the other puppeteers wear, and it's kind of a washed-out mottled khaki. Now it looks like there's another turtle riding on Crush's back. I thought it looked odd. Bring back the original costume, please?

Went to have lunch with friends yesterday (May 15) at the Yacht Club Galley and found it closed and under rehab! The hostess told me they had only found out at 2:30 on Friday they were closing. They'll re-open on May 23. Meanwhile, lunch is being served at the Yachtsman Steakhouse. The menu is the same. Lots of changes happening to the World's restaurants these days!

Stayed at Shades of Green for the first time and it was pretty much a bust. Although the resort is absolutely gorgeous and the rooms are huge, pretty and spotless, the restaurants were awful, and the guest service was worse. I started my stay on Saturday at lunch in Evergreens where I had an entire glass of iced coffee dumped on me by the server. Did she apologize? No. Did she offer to get me a towel to clean up? No. She didn't offer a free drink to replace the one I was now wearing, and in fact I had to ask for a replacement drink four times from two servers before I got it. Some of my clothing was ruined and my capris were soaked through to my skivvies.We didn't have a room yet, so it made for an uncomfortably damp coffee-scented afternoon. It did not set a good tone for our stay.

Although SoG is located right next to the Poly, it's impossible to get anywhere easily without a car. It's also impossible to park at the TTC and try to get back to SoG without going about 20 miles (slight exaggeration...) out of your way unless you know the Super Secret exit that will not put you on World Drive going south. I knew it was there, but could not find it at 1:00 am Sunday morning in the dark. After three loops around the parking lot, I gave up and went all the way down World Drive and turned around and came back. Frustrating, since you can see the
resort, but you can't get to it! By the way, it costs $5 a day to park at SoG, and your park parking is not covered. Parking is also in a garage, and the rows are so narrow you can't back out without doing a five-point turn.

Yesterday, they left our bill on our door. We opened it and noted that they had charged the wrong rate. We also noted that there was a room service charge we did not make. Then we noted we had been given the next room's bill! So...downstairs my friend goes, which was ok since she had to pick up a package we had delivered from Epcot. The front desk was less than helpful and had to be begged for a new printed copy of the bill. The desk clerk seemed unconcerned about privacy and identity security issues (at a military hotel!? ) and told her not to worry about who might have her bill. The the clerk then rolled her eyes at my friend as if it was all her fault!

Now it was time to get the package...which they had lost. Nowhere to be found. They said if they found it they would call and she could come get it! Uh, no! Shouldn't they mail it at their expense since they lost it? They finally found it and called, shortly before we were due to leave for the airport. "It was sent over to Saratoga Springs. You can pick it up there." Why did they send it to SSR? Needless to say, we both agreed that no matter how inexpensive it was to stay there or how lovely the resort was, we would never ever- did I mention NEVER?- ever stay there again. DND (Definitely Not Disney). It remains to be seen if the package ever makes it home.

The Flower and Garden Festival has certainly been pared down this year! The grounds are stunning this year, but the "Festival" part is lacking. The Odyssey Festival Center contained a demo area, a display of arrangements and about 3 vendors. We kept asking if we were missing the rest somehow, but were assured this was pretty much all there was. Outside, there were some kiosks along World Showcase Plaza, and that was about it. They extended the show, and then got rid of 1/3 of it? That didn't make sense to me, but I'm not in charge of Epcot Special Events either.

Yak & Yeti - Second floor is taking shape, but still no roof. I don't think they're going to make that July 2007 deadline for opening. Had a "Farewell To Tusker House" breakfast on Sunday. Goodbye, old friend...

The Magic Kingdom Noodle Station is open 5pm to 9 pm daily. El Pirata in the Magic Kingdom has been open for lunch.

Apparently, the exhorbitant shipping costs did not go over well with guests and shipping costs are back to normal again. I didn't experience this personally, and I'm just repeating what my friend told me she learned when she bought something at Downtown Disney and had it shipped home. YMMV.

Saw the Animal Kingdom Lodge models and chatted with the sales people. I loved the layout, and especially the master bathroom in the new bigger 1 br. (there are two full bathrooms and the unit sleeps 5!) I did not like the general decor, however. Animal prints and dark woods are not to my taste. By the way, the dining table only seats 4, but the unit sleeps 5. Guess someone didn't think that one through?

Saw Davy Jones on Sunday! We were so close to the stage we could almost touch him. Woohoo! For a 61 year old man, he sure looks good! He can also sing and dance just as well as he could when he was 21. Amazing. Can you believe the Monkees TV show is 40 years old? Special guest was his sister Hazel, sitting two rows behind me. He sang a Swing song for her, and a young couple began swing dancing near the back. He called them up on stage, but they didn't hear him as they were concentrating on their dancing. He walked all the way out into the audience and brought them onstage, then brought his sister out of the audience to dance with him. It was a really nice moment, and nice way to end my Epcot visit.

Now it's back to reality until my next trip.

Anita
Read Anita's Weekly Column!

Deb recently asked me to start blogging, but I was having a hard time deciding just what to blog about. As you may have noticed, I love to talk and write about WDW, and could drone on and on about the minutiae of the parks and restaurants and resorts for days on end until everyone within earshot got that “glazed” look and their eyeballs rolled into the backs of their heads. It was hard to zero in on just one thing to talk about that wouldn’t act as a sleeping aid.

So there was my dilemma:
What to write about? Where do I begin? WDW is a big place and the Walt Disney Company is a huge and diversified company. Daunting! I hemmed and hawed and tossed ideas around with friends and relatives and still couldn’t decide on a topic. Weeks went by, and still I had nothing. But, then I got some assistance from an unexpected source!

One of my weekly column’s readers was trying to convince some skeptical friends that a trip to Walt Disney World would be the best vacation ever, so she wrote to me for advice. She wanted to know what it was about the World that keeps me coming back time after time. It turned out that my answer was far too big for the column, so here I am writing my first blog, and hopefully, no one will doze off out of boredom. Here goes...

What I Love About The World
Pt. 1, The 1970's: The Love Affair Begins

Over the years, many of my friends, co-workers and relatives have asked me why I love WDW so much, and why do I return there several times a year? The answer lies at the very beginning of my Disney fandom. Way back in the late 50's, my love of Disney started off with TV. (This also kicked off my lifelong love of TV, but that’s another story for another day.) The Mickey Mouse Club came on every afternoon, and I watched it with my older sister. My favorite parts were the serialized stories, and my very favorite was “Spin and Marty”. Even though Annette was something of a local girl, born and raised in a town nearby where I grew up, I thought she was a dork. In recent years, I’ve come to admire her, but back then Tim Considine was my idol.

In addition to the MMC, every Sunday evening was spent with Walt Disney and Tink and what eventually became The Wonderful World of Color. Even as a pre-schooler, my life’s goal was to get to Disneyland and see Sleeping Beauty Castle and the Matterhorn in person! Growing up 3000 miles away in Central New York, it seemed a lofty and almost impossible goal, so I was forced to defer it until I was older. My parents were not “theme park types”, so there was no use begging, whining or scheming for a family trip to Disneyland. If I was going to get there at all, I knew it would be under my own steam. OK, I can wait...

Fast forward a couple of decades. A jaded 17 year old hippie-type high school junior reads that they’re building a Disney park in Florida!! OK! Florida is actually achievable! My grandparents (and later my parents) lived in Florida about 90 minutes away from Orlando, and so did my recently-relocated best friend. I could do this! I could finally get to a Disney park!! I began to save my money and to plan my trip.

The next year, 1973, I made my first trip to the World during spring break. My boyfriend, who was a college freshman, and I hopped on a train and went south, ostensibly to visit with my grandparents and my friend, but we all know the real reason, don’t we? We wanted to visit Mickey! We were staying in Tampa, and Greyhound Bus (or was it Trailways?) had a package deal for day visitors to the World that included transportation, a ticket book, and lunch. I can’t remember how much it cost, but I think it was in the $14-$15 range.

We took the bus over to WDW early in the morning. I remember that long drive up World Drive with nothing but trees on either side. Would we ever get there? The excitement mounted as we saw the TTC parking lot and bus drop-off area. At last! I have reached my goal (well, sorta...)! At last!

We hopped on the monorail (Oooh! Ahhh! Look, it actually goes through a hotel! How modern!) and sped toward the Magic Kingdom. The one thing that stands out in my mind from that first glimpse of a Disney park is not Cinderella Castle or any of the rides. Oddly, it was the Mary Poppins topiary along the monorail route and the serpent topiary that still resides in the Magic Kingdom, which is generally known as the oldest topiary at the World.

Now, mind you, I am not a gardener of any sort. House plants run away from me. The front lawn cringes when it sees me coming. I have no idea why those topiaries were important to me, but they were. I still have to tell the serpent “hello” on every trip. He never cringes, just looks benevolently over the lawn, but maybe that’s because a fence separates us, keeping him safe from my Brown Thumb.

Once inside the turnstiles, it was like walking into a lovely dream. Suddenly, it was not 1973, there wasn’t a Vietnam war, Richard Nixon wasn’t the president, Watergate wasn’t even a hotel yet, let alone a scandal, and our nation’s college campuses were not in turmoil. I didn’t have a paper due in History, and my English book report on Shakespeare was far from top of mind, nor was I doing miserably in Algebra. For that one day, I was in turn of the century mid-America, with flowers and music and charm and beauty. I fell instantly and hopelessly in love. As we moved through the park’s attractions, streets and shops, we serious hippies lost that hardened shell we had developed, and were kids playing in a giant fantasy-filled playground. Today, in 2007, I see the same thing happen with my teen daughter as soon as she arrives on property. That’s what I call “magic”!

The Magic Kingdom of 1973 was different from the Magic Kingdom of today, but fundamentally, they are the same to me because they retain the common foundation of fun, innocence and fantasy (and Utilidors...). There weren’t many thrills like we’ve come to expect today. The 1973 version didn’t have any “mountains”, for instance. No Space Mountain, no Splash Mountain, no Big Thunder Mountain.
It had instead Dumbo, Peter Pan, It’s a Small World, and best of all, the Haunted Mansion. Pirates wouldn’t open until later that year. To this day, Haunted Mansion and Peter Pan remain my favorite Magic Kingdom rides. In that spring of ‘73, we didn’t care that there were no roller coasters or bumper cars. This place was a thrill unto it’s own. The colors, smells, designs, architecture...Pure excitement!

In 1973, every shop in the MK had different merchandise. If you didn’t buy what you liked when you saw it, it involved a trek back to that particular store to get it. Now, just about everything is the same in every store in every park, resort or shopping area, but not back then. Each and every store was an adventure, and had to be explored shelf-by-shelf. When you had limited funds like we did, you had to see everything before making the all-important decision to buy! I can still remember the special souvenir I bought on that trip. It was a white china mug decorated with the Pooh characters. It had a gold rim and handle. I had to make a special trip back to the Emporium on Main Street to buy my special mug. I loved that mug, and still miss it to this day. It got lost somewhere when I left New York for Texas in the late 1970's. I expect that at the end of my life, that mug will prove to be my “Rosebud”.

From that trip, I recall nothing about entertainment, characters or parades. I recall “atmosphere” more than anything else. We were so smitten with Walt Disney World, we shelled out another $15 later that week to come back again.

In 1975, we returned again, driving our 1969 VW Squareback down the east coast, and camping out along the way to save money. We had to experience Pirates and Space Mountain, after all! We waited 2 hours in the hot blazing sun in a line that stretched out across the plaza in front of Space Mountain, and you know what? It was worth it. I would do it again too, but thank goodness for Fastpass!

The 1975 trip would unfortunately prove to be my last trip until 1986. A cross-country move, college, and a career change got in the way of my Disney goals for awhile, but not forever. Next time, we’ll explore the Walt Disney World of the 80's and why the 1980's big-haired, power-suited Anita loved it. Brew plenty of strong coffee!

Anita

Photographs are @AllEarsNetCC and may not be used or reproduced in any fashion without express written permission from AllEars®.
Postcard Scans are courtesty of Brian Martsolf who has an online guide to WDW Postcards.

My last story left off in the late 1970s. After my 1975 trip, I wouldn't be able to get back to the World until 1986. It sat at the back of my mind to make a return trip, but things got in the way, like college, jobs, layoffs, moves, lack of funds and the like.

By the very early 80's, I had met Mr. Answer, and after a few years, we decided to get married. We originally wanted to go to Hawaii for our honeymoon, but just starting out, we didn't have much money, and Hawaii is expensive. We sat down with a travel agent to explore our [meager] options. "Well, how about Disney World?" he asked.YES!! Why didn't I think of that?

He set us up with a package that included 5 nights at the Howard Johnson on Hotel Plaza Boulevard, tickets, including the new park that had opened in 1982, EPCOT Center (Woohoo! A NEW PARK!), Discovery Island, and River Country, plus one lunch.

We couldn't afford to stay at any of the Disney resorts, which then consisted of the Contemporary, Polynesian Village, Fort Wilderness, the Disney Inn and the Village Resort. The Grand Floridian and Disney's first moderately priced hotel, the Caribbean Beach, were still under construction. As our wedding date approached, we found we were far more excited about the honeymoon trip than we were about the wedding and reception!

Finally, after months of planning, it was time to go to the World! Mr. Answer had never been, but was a fan of Disney's films, and of their technology and innovative techniques. We were both anxious to see them in action at EPCOT Center.

EPCOT stood for "Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow". Walt Disney's original concept was to build an actual community, but when all was said and done, EPCOT became more of a permanent World's Fair than anything else.

The "community" was built nearby in what was then called Lake Buena Vista Village. Model homes, townhomes, unique Treehouses, and apartments were built, but due to politics that I won't get into here, the homes were never sold or used for personal dwellings. Instead, for the first couple of years, they were rented out to corporate entities, and they later became The Disney Village Resort and were rented to guests.

Anyway, back to our first look at EPCOT. Entering the turnstiles, we were both completely blown away by what lay before us. The beautiful geosphere that towered over us! The fountains and gardens! The clean modern architectural lines!

We explored Futureworld pavilion by pavilion, savoring every detail. Somewhere, I had gotten a copy of a guide (Birnbaum's?) that advised us to tour the parks clockwise; and when given the choice, to always choose the left-hand queue. To this day I still tend to follow that advice, but now that I've shared it with all of you, everyone will do it and I'll have to learn to tour counter-clockwise and choose the right-hand queue. I'll have to break 25 years of habitual veering to the left.

My lasting impression of that first trip to EPCOT Center was how absolutely visually stunning the park was. It was artful and modern in Future World, yet tempered with gorgeous plants, trees, fountains and lagoons.

Spaceship Earth was majestic. It truly was an icon, so beautiful when seen from anywhere in the park. Now that the Millennium Wand is finally down, I can't tell you how happy I wias to see it a couple of weeks ago in it's original pristine state, and to view it the way it was meant to be viewed. Unfortunately, the granite monoliths will still stand in what was originally a more wide-open area blocking that wonderful fountain beckoning you to move toward it and into Future World. I hope against hope that someday, the plaza will be returned to something like it originally was, with that lovely plexiglass sculpture in the middle of the fountain and with flower beds instead of boulders which interrupt the entire flow of the plaza.

I think I miss the rows of palm trees that framed the geosphere the most, but I did read recently that the oak trees surrounding Spaceship Earth will be removed and replaced with palms. These days, the plaza is most definitely lacking in Feng Shui and sports a rather cold and uninviting look. Removing the Leave a Legacy kiosk at the bottom of Spaceship Earth, and the sales/photo area on the west side of the plaza is a huge start toward restoring it to it's original beauty and flow. With Epcot's 25th birthday coming on October 1, 2007, it looks like this park will finally be getting some much-needed attention,along with a re-dedication ceremony.

But that is now, and I want to talk about the early days. Besides the name and the entrance plaza being different in 1986, there were some other things that made the park differ from the Epcot of today.

For instance, Innoventions didn't exist. Those buildings were known as Communicore East and West. Spaceship Earth had a different show and a different narrator. The Universe of Energy also had a different show: There were dinosaurs, but no Ellen. The Wonders of Life didn't exist yet. I guess that pavilion has come full circle, since it pretty much doesn't exist today, either.

A pavilion called Horizons, featuring a trip through the possibilities of the future where you could choose your own ending, was located where Mission:SPACE now stands. In the space station area of the queue in Mission:SPACE, you can still see the Horizons logo.

The World Of Motion, a great "dark ride" about transportation with a track that went up the outside of the show building and a catchy theme song, stood where Test Track is today.

That strange looking building perched on the lagoon between Test Track and the Mexico Pavilion didn't used to be just a bathroom and first aid stop--It used to be a counter service restaurant called The Odyssey.

Meanwhile over in Future World West, a brand new pavilion called The Living Seas had a ride called the "Sea Cabs" that took you on a slow, very short ride around the aquariums. No one had yet found Nemo.

Next door at the Land, there was a fun show called Kitchen Kabaret, with an earworm theme song called "Veggie Veggie Fruit Fruit". Yes, my friend Flo and I can still do the entire show complete with song, even though it closed in 1994, when it was replaced by "Food Rocks". Flo, this one is for you: "He won't forget the lickin' he got from that big chicken, so now he gets his poultry from the store..." The Kitchen Kabaret theatre used to be where Soarin's queue is now.

And last, but by no means least, was my favorite Future World pavilion and ride, Journey Into Imagination.

Why in the world the original ride was gutted and destroyed is beyond me. The original ride with DreamFinder and Figment was such a wonderful sensory experience, filled with sounds, smells, and colors. The White Room featured an incredibly beautiful glass wall. When you were done with the ride, you could go upstairs and play in the Image Works. That rainbow neon tunnel was so much fun, as were the pin tables and giant kaleidoscopes.

As if that wasn't enough, you could then go see a 3D film called Magic Journeys in the attached theater, and then go outside and play in the leapfrog fountains. Today, we're on the third, better by light years than the second, but still lame version of the ride, the ImageWorks is now downstairs and features not much in the way of imagination, the theatre houses Honey, I Shrunk The Audience, which is possibly the strongest of the three attractions, and luckily, the fountains have all survived intact. Phew! The Rumor Mill has been buzzing lately with tales of a major overhaul for the whole pavilion, to which I say, "hurrah!"

Back to 1986. Leaving Futureworld and moving into World Showcase, each pavilion transported us to those far-away places we had not yet even dreamed of visiting. The only time I had been outside of the US was a car trip to Canada around the Niagara Falls area. Since then, I've been lots of places including Mexico, China, England, France and Canada, and World Showcase turns out to be a pretty darned good representation of these countries!

World Showcase in 1986, like Future World, was different from the one we know today. The Norway pavilion wouldn't debut until 1988. My favorite pavilion, Morocco, with its incredibly intricate tile work, had just opened in 1984.

The other pavilions have remained much the same, occasionally changing out displays, revamping old rides, updating films, and changing theater seats from lush and comfy to cheap, hard and easily broken. (You guilty pavilions know who you are!!)

Some of the restaurants have undergone changes as well. Le Cellier used to be a "buffeteria," for instance. This is where we chose to have our "free" lunch that came with our package. I had prime rib for lunch. How very decadent! Mostly what I remember about dining on this trip was how bad both the food and service were everywhere around Disney property!

Our best meals were at the HoJo coffee shop in our hotel. One really bad meal stands out for me: We ate dinner at Captain Jack's in the Disney Village. My steamed shrimp had been cooked into oblivion, and were served as tasteless mush. The service was worse than the food. My husband and I joked about how bad the restaurants were on that trip for years after that, even when they had vastly improved. Unfortunately, on our most recent visits, we're seeing a return to the bad food and service of the 80's.

In the entertainment area, there was a nighttime spectacular on World Showcase Lagoon called "Laserphonic Fantasy". This show was actually the third show on the lagoon since the park opened. The first two were "Carnival de Lumiere" and "A New World Fantasy". If we saw Laserphonic Fantasy, I have no recollection of it. I do have vague memories of airplanes trailing colored smoke over World Showcase Lagoon and some bizarre boats on the lagoon during a short-lived daytime spectacular called "Skyleidoscope".

It took us at least two full days to explore all that EPCOT Center had to offer, and I'm sure we still missed a lot. I still recall how much my feet hurt after pounding around the park for hours in flat sandals. What was I thinking?? Since then, I have never gone to the World without at least two pairs of tried and true comfy shoes or sandals. Lesson learned!

Of course, we thoroughly covered the Magic Kingdom as well, since my husband had never been before, but we seemed to concentrate our attention on EPCOT Center. We tried to use our River Country tickets, but the day before, a guest had run his rented boat aground on the berm that separated RC from Bay Lake, so it was closed, darn it! We never did get to RC until the 1990's just prior to its closing. At least we got there.

I don't think we made it over to Discovery Island either, with all there was to do at the bigger parks.

As we flew home from our first Disney adventure together, we mused about the things we had missed, so of course, we'd have to make another trip to see those things! It was then that I knew my husband had fallen in love with the World, much like I had a few years earlier. Our next trip would be in 1989, a few months after the Disney-MGM Studios opened.

Next time, a look at the World of the late 80's.

Anita

Special thanks to Brian Martsolf for the use of his extensive postcard collection!
Postcard Scans are courtesty of Brian Martsolf who has an online guide to WDW Postcards.

So, the other day, my dear friend Flo and I were talking about what we could do on our upcoming trip that would be different and exciting.

We tossed around a few ideas like trying new restaurants, or maybe a new experience like a tour, the Richard Petty Driving Experience, etc. Nothing really popped, if you know what I mean.

Then fate stepped in when my AllEars colleague Mike Scopa posted a challenge in his blog earlier this week; a challenge that involves visiting the 4 major Disney parks in the span of 1 day. "Now there's an idea that pops!" I said to myself (yeah, I often have some most interesting dialogues with myself, I just can't help it...) I immediately contacted Flo and broached the idea, and she was also very excited about it.

Mike's challenge is to visit all 4 major parks during one park operating day, park opening to park closing. We must experience three rides or attractions in each park, and Mike has made a list of eligible attractions in each park. Another requirement is to eat two meals during the day, but not in the same park. We think we're up to it.

We're both veterans of dozens of WDW trips, together, separately, and with our families and friends. We like to think that we know just about everything there is to know about how to tour the Disney parks under any condition, during any season, busy or slow.

We know the transportation system, we know the roads, we know the resorts. This will be our chance to find out just exactly how well we know them. Someone asked Flo why we'd even want to do this. "Because we can!" was her answer, and it's the truth! Call us weird, but we actually enjoy doing things like this. Neither of us can wait to try it!

First things first: We set about formulating a plan of attack. We decided on Saturday, May 10, more or less by default because it's the only day during our trip that we don't have to be someplace at a particular time.

I looked up the park hours, including any Extra Magic Hours we might be able to take advantage of. The only EMH that day turned out to be a morning one at Animal Kingdom, making it the park that opens the earliest. Woohoo! We have a starting point!

I then looked at the other parks' hours, and as expected, the Magic Kingdom closes the latest at 11 pm. Now we have an ending point, and know how many hours we'll have to complete the challenge--15.

Next, I looked at what crowd levels were expected to be that day, and which parks would be the most and least crowded. Our plan is tour the parks in a manner that makes geographical sense, but also makes best use of our available time. We decided to go in this order: Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Epcot, Magic Kingdom, mixing the predicted busiest parks with their physical location and operating hours. Whew! Lots of work involved here!

Once we get into the parks, we also have a plan of action, but I'm not giving it away yet. Let's wait and see whether or not our strategy will work. We've adopted the motto "Semper Gumby" (Always Flexible) for this challenge, because let's face it, nothing ever goes exactly according to plan, does it? Rides go 101, the skies open up and pour, restaurant lines suddenly come to a standstill, etc. etc. We're making plans, with alternative plans, with other plans on top. We think we'll be ready!

If you're in the parks on Saturday May 10 and you see two crazy women rushing around with a notebook, a camera and a wild look on their faces, it's probably us. Wave at us as we run by. I promise to report back on whether or not we can successfully complete Mike's Challenge. Wish us luck!

Anita

NOTHING VENTURED, NOTHING GAINED

As you'll recall from an earlier blog, my best friend and partner in crime Flo Tographer and I read about Mike Scopa's 4 parks/1 day Challenge and decided to accept that challenge. What follows is a true and accurate account of our Challenge adventures. No columnists were harmed during the course of the Challenge -- well, Flo had a cold and got a small blister and I caught said cold at the end of the day, but we soldiered on anyway.

The Date: Saturday, May 10, 2008.
Weather Conditions: Unseasonably warm (mid-90's,) sunny and humid, but luckily also very windy. The humidity dissipated by noon, thank goodness.
Clothing of Choice: Very light, sleeveless cotton blouses; cotton shorts, sunglasses. I wore an Animal Kingdom Villas freebee hat, sacrificing beauty for comfort. Hat Hair!
Footwear of Choice: Flo chose Naot sandals, I chose Disney Crocs with low profile moisture-wicking runner's socks. Minnie Answer would have died of shame at the sight of this, but she wasn't there now, was she?
Transportation of Choice: Rental car: Dodge Avenger. We thought it should have come with a cape and its own theme song.
Stuff We Schlepped: A small notebook, two pens, small digital camera, car keys, cell phones, an extra pair of glasses for me. Flo had a small wallet, and I had a lanyard for my pass, money, hotel key, etc. If it didn't fit in a pocket, it didn't go. The plan was to be able to use the Guests Without Bags entrance at each park and skip the long, time-munching security bag check.
Predicted Crowd Levels: On the high side of Moderate.
Actual Crowd Levels: With the exception of two attractions to be named later, the crowd levels were actually on the high side of Low; a pleasant surprise.
Things We Researched and took into account before deciding what to ride and in what order: Location of the ride; popularity; availability of Fastpass or Single Rider lines, duration of pre-show; duration of ride or show; slow or fast loading/unloading; likelihood of it going 101 and how long it takes to reset afterwards, and a million other variables we know from experience.

RISE AND SHINE...OR NOT

Pre-Challenge Early Morning -- The Plan: Get up at 6 am (there's a 6 in the morning?? Who knew?) Eat breakfast in our villa, dress, leave for park #1 (Animal Kingdom) to arrive at 7:30 am.

Pre-Challenge Early Morning--What Actually Happened: I set the alarm for 6 am the night before... and unfortunately, I forgot to turn it on. Luckily I awoke at 6:15, so we were already a little bit behind schedule, but not much. Best laid plans, yada yada, etc. So anyway, I fixed and ate breakfast while Flo got ready, and vice versa. We left Old Key West at approximately 7:30 am.

LET'S DO THIS THING!!

NOTE: For all parks, "Time In" numbers were calculated from our entrance at the turnstile and "Time Out" was recorded at our exit of the turnstile. For attractions or rides, "Time In" numbers were recorded when we entered a queue, and "Time Out" numbers were recorded when we were clear of the attractions' actual exit. Restaurant times were calculated from when we entered the line to order, and exited the restaurant.

SAFARI, SO GOOD-Y

Park #1: Animal Kingdom
Advantages: Morning Extra Magic Hour; close-in parking allowing us to skip the tram, Fastpass and Single Rider lines available at many attractions.
Disadvantages: Crowded and bumpy walkways; no direct route to certain attractions.

We arrived at the DAK tollbooth at approximately 7:40 am, parked, walked to the park and using the Guests Without Bags line (which of course, wasn't a line,) were through Security in a matter of moments. By 7:55, we were standing about 5 people back from the rope on the right-hand margin, watching the opening ceremony, and waiting for the 8 am rope drop.

The Animal Kingdom Plan:
Head to Everest, get a Fastpass, head to Kilimanjaro Safaris, ride, head to Dinosaur, ride, head back to Everest and ride using Fastpass. Leave park.

Animal Kingdom: What Actually Happened:

DAK Time In: 7:53 am

EVEREST Time In: 8:07 am Time Out: 8:14 am
At the last minute, we decided to skip the safari as it is very time-consuming. Instead, we headed right to Everest for a Fastpass, but discovered, to our delight, that the Single Rider line was open already, so in we went. We were the first guests to make it to the loading platform, as the guests in the stand-by line hadn't even made it through the queue yet! We both made it onto the first train out of the station. Next stop, Dinosaur.

DINOSAUR Time In: 8:18 am Time Out: 8:28 am
Our luck held as we literally walked into the pre-show, which had just started. We were on and off the ride in record time, in spite of Carnotaurus attacks and a meteor shower.

Bonus Round! It wasn't on Mike's list, but we decided to ride Triceratop Spin, just because we could, and so we did.

TRICERATOPS SPIN Time In: 8:32 am Time Out: 8:35 am
We were on our way to the safari, when we noticed that Tough To Be a Bug only had a 5 minute wait. Onward to It's Tough To Be a Bug!

IT'S TOUGH TO BE A BUG Time In: 8:40 am Time Out: 8:50 am
We walked right into "Bug" just as the doors were closing. We moved all the way to the end of our row to make room for the guests behind us (zero, by the way...) We positioned ourselves at the very end of the bench to be close to the exit. After all, this was an exhibition game. We weren't there to see the show from the best vantage point. After the maggots and roaches left the theater, we did too.

We made a quick bathroom stop and then headed for the park exit. We had to chuckle as we went through the exit turnstile, as we had already done 4 attractions and the park didn't open to day guests for another few minutes. We cautioned ourselves to not be overconfident, however, as anything could happen during the day to throw us off. We knew from experience that the later into the day we progressed, the longer the lines would become, and Fastpass returns would become later and later, or possibly gone for the day.

DAK Time Out: 8:57 am

Into the car and on to Disney's Hollywood Studios, the second stop of the day.

HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD!

We arrived at the Studios tollbooth at approximately 9:15 am and were shocked to see that we were being directed into the front parking lot! I had expected large crowds for the Toy Story Midway Mania Annual Pass and DVC preview since it was Saturday, but you couldn't tell from the parking lot. We got a space fairly close to the tram stop, but missed the tram by a couple of seconds. The next one pulled up and we got on, but waited... and waited... and waited. We should have walked, but we were already on the tram, and there were others in the seat already who would have to move for us to get out. After finally leaving the parking lot, we breezed through the No Bags line (no wisecracks please...) and found a short line at the Cast turnstile. The Cast entrance can also be used by guests, but for some reason, guests don't choose to use them, which is an advantage if the line is short.

Park #2: Disney's Hollywood Studios
Advantages: Toy Story Midway Mania AP/DVC Preview, hopefully moderate lines there and perhaps everywhere else. Small, compact park. Easy to get around.
Disadvantages: Toy Story Midway Mania preview -- Read on...

The Disney's Hollywood Studios Plan
Head directly for Toy Story Midway Mania and ride before the lines became impossible. Anita goes to Tower of Terror or Rock 'n' Roller Coaster to get a Fastpass for the one with the shortest return window. Anita and Flo ride The Great Movie Ride, then Star Tours, then Anita heads for her Fastpass attraction while Flo does something else.

Disney's Hollywood Studios: What Actually Happened:
Upon arriving at Pixar Place, after showing our APs and IDs, we went behind the barrier to find...about 9 million people in a very long line.

Turns out they were having technical difficulties and the estimated wait was at 1 hour and 45 minutes. We thought it over for about 2 seconds and left. Plan B: Go get a Fastpass for either Tower of Terror or Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, then go directly to the Great Movie Ride.

Disney's Hollywood Studios Time In: 9:22 am

THE GREAT MOVIE RIDE Time In: 9:35 am Time Out: 9:57 am
We walked into TGMR, through the queue, through the preshow, and directly into the ride vehicle. When does that ever happen? We were in and out in record time. Next up, a flight to the Endor moon. I hoped they had a more experienced pilot this time as Captain Rex almost got us killed the last time!

STAR TOURS Time In: 10:00 am Time Out: 10:14 am
Star Tours' queue was empty. We walked the queue, and were directed to our vehicle. We asked to ride in row 5, please. No problem ladies, right this way! This positioned us as first on and first off the ride. The safety film was already running, and the lady with the extremely animated eyebrows and a danish stuck precariously to the side of her head was giving us instructions. The countdown to launch was at approximately 2 minutes. Captain Rex was in charge again, and so we had our usual misadventures on the way to Endor, which of course, we never reached. They really need to hire a better pilot.

It was time for my FP ride, which turned out to be Tower of Terror. Both RnR and ToT had short FP return windows, but ToT is a shorter walk, so in the name of saving time, I chose the Tower . Flo, meantime, cannot ride either RnR or ToT, and was hoping to use Toy Story Midway Mania as her third attraction in this park. Since it was down, she decided to ride Star Tours again and hope that Mike would be understanding. We planned to take one more try at TSMM before we exited the park in hopes that it was back up and the lines had gone back to a manageable length. Alas, that was not to be.

Flo: STAR TOURS Pt. 2: Time In: 10:20 am Time Out: 10:33 am
Once again, no line, she rode in row 5 with no one else in the row.

Anita: TOWER OF TERROR Time In: 10:20 am Time Out 10:34 am
I was the only person in the Fastpass return. I was directed to the library on the right, and had enough time to peek into the directory board between the two libraries to see if Evil Tower U R Doomed was still there. Nope, gone again. Oh, well. Back to the library door. I was first in to the library, and positioned myself in the corner by the exit door to the inside queue. Most of the inside queue was empty, and a quick glance around told me that the queue that goes straight ahead to the left end of the load zone had a much shorter line than the one that goes to the right. I waited in that line for about 30 seconds before the bellhop called for a single rider, which I gladly took him up on. There was some confusion in the elevator's loading area, as people were standing on the wrong numbers. For a minute, I thought I might have to go back and wait again for another elevator, but the bellhop got everyone back on track, and I ended up in the row 6 jumpseat. I never did reach my room, and for some reason I never do. I'm going to have to ask my travel agent to book me into another hotel next time. Arriving back from the Twilight Zone, I hurried to meet back up with Flo at the fountain near the tip board. Another bathroom break, and we were heading for the tram to the parking lot. Next on the list: Epcot.

DHS Time Out: 10:41

BACK TO THE FUTURE

We arrived at the Epcot tollbooths and were able to find a very close-in parking space, enabling us to once again walk to the turnstiles. We went through the No Bags security line and located a short queue at a turnstile.

Park #3 Epcot Time In: 11:09 am

Advantages: Wide walkways, well-laid out park, long list of attractions, lots of dining options.
Disadvantages: Size. It's a long way from Spaceship Earth to the American Adventure!

The Epcot Plan: Try for Fastpasses for Soarin', play the rest of Future World by ear, have lunch near wherever we were. Ride Three Caballeros or Maelstrom to complete our World Showcase requirement.

Epcot: What Actually Happened:

Meal # 1: ELECTRIC UMBRELLA Time In: 11:13 Time Out 11:40
We had worked up an appetite running through DAK and DHS, so lunch was our current priority. we needed a breather, some AC and some sustenance before we could carry on with our mission. Did I mention that it was unseasonably hot that day? After a leisurely lunch and a bathroom break, we began our adventures again.

TEST TRACK Time In: 11:45 Time Out 12:10
Very short FP line, very short stand-by queue. Where was everyone?? Spoooky... We walked over to World Showcase via the Odyssey walkway, and headed to Mexico.

GRAN FIESTA TOUR/THREE CABALLEROS Time In: 12:17 pm Time Out: 12:30 pm
Once again, we literally walked right onto a boat. This is getting freaky...

We exited and started walking back toward Future World, stopping to browse the Flower and Garden kiosks, and making plans to come back on Sunday to buy some things we saw. While walking through the Rose Garden, we decided it was time for a Bonus Round! We strolled into Journey Into Imagination, which is not on Mike's list, but there was not much of a line, so we rode it.

JOURNEY INTO IMAGINATION WITH FIGMENT Time In: 12:42pm Time Out: 12:53pm
Around this time, I began to get overconfident again. Then, when I realized that we still had the most popular and therefore most crowded park ahead of us, I snapped out of it. OK, one step at a time, let's not get ahead of ourselves. We still had things to do here in Epcot. We walked toward the Land and rode Soarin' using a Fastpass.

SOARIN' Time In: 1:00 pm Time Out 1:25 pm
This one always has a long line, even when everything else is a walk-on. Today was no exception. Even so, I've seen much longer Fastpass and Standby lines, so we were lucky.

Our Epcot requirements completed, we made our way to the front of the park where we discovered it was Bonus Round! time again. Spaceship Earth had a very short line, and we knew we probably wouldn't be doing any bonus rides at the Magic Kingdom, so why the heck not?

SPACESHIP EARTH: Time In: 1:39 pm Time Out: 2:05 pm.
The software on the descent is finally working correctly, and we laughed out loud when our faces appeared in the animated short. This is also the first time we had seen the globe in the post show working correctly. Yay!

We walked to the parking lot and drove toward our 4th park of the day. At this point we were amazed that it was only a little after 2:00 pm. We had estimated that we would arrive at the Magic Kingdom sometime around 6:00 pm!

Epcot Time Out: 2:08 pm

THE MAGIC NEVER ENDS, BUT IT DOES SLOW DOWN A LITTLE

Park #4 The Magic Kingdom

Advantages: Long list of attractions, Open until 11 pm
Disadvantages: It's the most difficult park to get to. Parking is far away from the turnstiles. Most popular park, therefore it's always the most crowded. Long lines are the norm here.

The Magic Kingdom Plan: Upon arrival, go directly to the tip board and write down wait times for the attractions on Mike's list. Make decisions on the fly depending on those times, and if a parade, show or fireworks were being performed at the time.

The Magic Kingdom: What Actually Happened: We arrived at the turnstiles at 2:50 pm. (See note above about the disadvantage of the MK's parking situation.) It was almost time for the 3:00 parade. (What time is that parade performed, anyway?) People were lined up on both sides of Main Street, so we crossed to the left side and cut through the Emporium and Casey's. As planned, I headed for the tip board while Flo got a bottle of water. Surprisingly, everything on Mike's list had waits of 30 minutes or less(!) with the exception of Splash Mountain, which had a 70-minute wait. We had already discounted Splash since we didn't want to walk around in wet clothing for the rest of the evening. For our first MK attraction, we headed to Pirates.

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN Time In: 3:10 pm Time Out: 3:25 pm
The wait time said 20 minutes, but it was really closer to 5 minutes. We took the left queue, which is considerably shorter than the right side. If both are open and it looks like the lines begin at about the same place, choose the left side. trust me on this one. We more or less strolled right into the load zone, and were in a boat sailing the high seas in no time at all.

Our next choice was Big Thunder. On the way to Big Thunder, we ran into All Ears Team Member Glo From Miami, and stopped briefly to chat. She wished us well on our mission, and we continued toward Big Thunder.

BIG THUNDER MOUNTAIN RAILROAD Time In: 3:29 pm Time Out: 3:55 pm
The posted wait time of 30 minutes turned out to be more like 20. We held onto our hats and glasses, and took off on the wildest ride in the wilderness. It was so wild, we were ready for an early dinner, so we set off to El Pirata for our second meal of the challenge. Unfortunately, El Pirata had just closed for the day, so we came back through Pecos Bill's and ran into Glo again. Nothing on Pecos Bill's menu sounded good, so we went over to Columbia Harbor House instead.

Meal #2: COLUMBIA HARBOR HOUSE Time In: 4:10 pm Time Out: 4:45 pm

After our early dinner, we took the very short walk over to the Haunted Mansion, where Master Gracey must have been expecting us, because we practically walked right into the foyer and stretch room. We positioned ourselves near the sliding door that leads to the inside queue, in order to save a few minutes once we got inside.

HAUNTED MANSION: Time In: 4:46 pm Time Out: 5:07 pm
The posted 20-minute wait was actually less than 5 minutes. We declined their kind invitation to join them for eternity, since we had now officially completed the challenge and we had data to compile! We decided not to press our luck, and left the MK without any bonus rides.

MK: Time Out: 5:23 pm.

OFFICIAL TIME OF CHALLENGE COMPLETION 5:23 PM

Number of hours it took to complete the challenge: 9 hours 30 minutes from DAK entry turnstile to MK exit turnstile.

AS WE SAY IN THE SOUTH, "A LITTLE LAGNIAPPE."

"Anita and Flo, you've just completed Mike's 4 Parks In One Day Challenge with 4 hours and 30 minutes to spare! What are you going to do now?"

Why... Play a Bonus Round of course! We got back to the car, looked at each other, and decided to give TSMM one more try. We drove back to DHS, to see if we could still ride during the AP/DVC preview, which ended at 7:00 pm. We were able to park in the front lot near the tram again, and could have walked, but decided to conserve the little energy we still had left. Good thing, because by the time we reached Pixar Place, I knew I was getting a cold. Ah-CHOOO!

DHS, Pt 2: Time In: 6:03 pm

TOY STORY MIDWAY MANIA:
Ride 1 Time In: 6:10 pm Time Out: 6:45 pm
Ride 2 Time In: 6:45 pm Time Out: 6:55 pm

DHS, Pt 2: Time Out: 7:00 pm

AND IN CONCLUSION

We had a great time doing the challenge. It made us think about things we generally take for granted in the parks, which added an element of excitement. I wouldn't recommend it for casual visitors, since you can't really take in a lot of the details of the parks or enjoy the attractions as much when you're concerned about time constraints and transportation issues. If you've been to the parks dozens of times like we have, it does put a different and fun spin on things, though. Is there anything we would have done differently? No, I think we made the best use of our time and resources. Would I do it again? Sure! Next time, I may add a degree of difficulty by only using Disney transportation, and of course, I'd prefer not to have a cold.

I've already heard from two readers who have done the challenge successfully, and would love to hear from anyone else who attempts it. Now I'm off to read Mike's account of how he's planning his own challenge in the near future, as I'm curious to see how our plans and adventures compare.

Anita

It's confession time.

Confession I: I started writing this the day the news was released of the impending demise of Pleasure Island.It suddenly seemed like everyone was writing about it and new information was coming in from all directions. I went back and rewrote it. Then I rewrote it again...and again. Then, I put it on hold for awhile so I could take a fresh look at it. Deb Wills has been quite indulgent, allowing me to stew and fret over this darned blog entry for over two weeks now. Even so, I find I don't have a lot to add to what's already been written all over the web. So...I'll take a run at it from my own personal point of view anyway. Please feel free to roll your eyes and hit the Back button to read something far more interesting elsewhere on this wonderful website. This promises to be a snoozer. You've been warned!

Confession II: I was never a frequent visitor to PI. On occasion, I would visit the Adventurer's Club, or maybe 8 Trax, but that's about it. I don't drink, and I'm not what one would call a good dancer by any stretch of imagination. I went through my "Nightclub Phase" back in the late '70's and early 80's, so I was already over it by the time PI even opened. I enjoyed the AC shows, but it still wasn't incentive enough for me to attend as a regular like some of my friends. I do, however, have many fond memories of being at PI with my family and friends. They can take away the island, but they can't take away those memories and impressions. I dare them to try!

Confession III: I certainly won't miss Pleasure Island in it's current state. The Pleasure Island that I will miss, and have been missing for some time, is the original Pleasure Island--The PI that was built and designed based on the very elaborate backstory of Merriweather Adam Pleasure and his family, and that's where I'll begin.

But first...An editorial comment since so many of my readers have asked my opinion of the closing of Pleasure Islands six clubs:

It seems that the Walt Disney Company always releases bad news late on Fridays. I'm not sure if that's pure coincidence, or if it's planned to allow angry people to cool down a bit before they run to their computers to dash off a scathing message, or maybe to give Guest Communications a couple of extra days to respond. My guess is one or both of the latter, but either way, on the last Friday in June, we were given the shocking news that all six clubs on Pleasure Island would be closing this fall, before the end of Disney's current fiscal year. The press release informed us that this was due to "guest demand" for more dining and shopping opportunities and that the area would become more family-friendly in keeping with Disney's family image.Whether that's truth or spin or bits of both, I do not know, however I suspect the changes had to do with both guest demand and money. They're not talking about the money part, and what company would? I wouldn't expect them to. However, it's been obvious for some time that Pleasure Island was not the big draw it once was, and it doesn't take a math genius (which you know I am not,) to figure out that the clubs were not pulling their weight in Downtown Disney, and attendance had dropped. The release went on to mention a "bold vision" for the area, which sounded to me to be about as bold as my local mall. Maybe the person who wrote the release missed the really "bold" parts of the vision and left them out in error? One could only hope. Time will tell...

So, let's talk about a truly bold vision; the one that the original Pleasure Island was built upon.
We have to go back to the beginning to do that, to the time of Michael Eisner and Frank Wells and the kick-off of "The Disney Decade". The Disney Decade was a time of enormous growth at the company, and this included expanding the WDW resort. New hotels were planned and built, a new theme park emerged, and an entertainment district for adults was on the drawing board. According to some accounts, this was to keep guests from wandering off property to local venues like Church Street Station in Orlando. All of those old enough to remember the daily skywriting over WDW advertising Church Street Station, raise your hands. All of those who thought it said "Surrender Dorothy" raise your hands. I thought so...

Anyway, back on track. I've heard some delicious insider gossip about the original plans for the entertainment district which were allegedly put forth by Eisner himself, and which, after false starts, met an untimely and expensive end. I wasn't there, and I don't personally know if it's true, but I have no reason to doubt my source, either. Plus, it really makes for an interesting piece of background for what came next. According to this story, Imagineering came riding to the rescue, and eventually developed an elaborate back story for everything that would be incorporated into what came to be called "Pleasure Island".

A dear friend of mine supplied me with several pages of official press releases for PI from 1986. One, dated July 21, 1986, reported that Michael Eisner himself announced the plans for Pleasure Island while aboard the Empress Lilly. According to the release, construction was slated to begin in August 1986, although my other source says that it had allegedly already begun under the original aborted plans. This would certainly explain the short window between the announcement and the commencement of construction, but I digress. Of particular note in these old releases is that they attribute the creation of PI to guest demand for more nightlife! Guests are of a fickle nature, apparently, as in 1986 they wanted more nightlife, and in 2008 they want less nightlife. Go figure...Also of note to Major Geeks Like Me, Village Lake, often mistaken for Lake Buena Vista, which is actually behind the Buena Vista Palace, is referred to as "Buena Vista Lagoon".

Deeper into the releases are hints about Pleasure Island's back story. (Yes, I know I keep mentioning the darned thing, but keep getting sidetracked and haven't told you what it is. I'm getting there, I swear!) According to the releases, the island originally belonged to early 20th Century entrepreneur and adventurer, Merriweather Adam Pleasure. I bet you youngsters thought it got its name from Pinocchio, didn't ya? Well, it didn't, and this is just one of the wonderful details of PI that got lost along the way. So, anyway, the legend goes that Pleasure set up his sail-making empire on the island, it attracted other sea-faring adventurers, and eventually, an entire town grew out of it. The buildings on the island included a fireworks factory, an electrical plant, Pleasure's family home, his exclusive club, and much more. Pleasure still pined for adventure however, and was tragically lost at sea, leaving his empire to be run by his lazy sons. The sons allowed the empire to disintegrate, and eventually the island and its buildings were abandoned. In the 1980's, the island was rediscovered, and the Imagineers re-invented the island and its buildings as an exciting and imaginative entertainment district.

Much has already been written recently about this, so I won't go into excruciating detail about what each building became, but suffice it to say that each time a club or restaurant was replaced over the years, a little piece of the back story, as well as bits of Disney history were lost. Why? Because whatever new venture appeared had nothing to do with the original story. Once upon a time, there were actually plaques and "historical" markers on each building explaining what they were in Pleasure's time. The last one I remember seeing was at the Portobello Yacht Club, which was supposed to be the Pleasure family's home. Portobello is soon to become a restaurant with a Tuscan theme, so if that plaque is still there, it won't be for long. The Adventurer's Club, Pleasure's personal club and arguably the crown jewel of PI, will soon be gone too. Designed by Joe Rohde, ths incredibly unique, clever and innovative (even after 20 years!) building--This piece of irreplaceable Disney Imagineering history--along with its wonderfully talented cast, will soon be lost forever, and that, my dear friends and readers, is what's making me terribly sad.

Can anything be done to stop it? Probably not, however, if you feel strongly about it, it can't hurt to express your feelings (in a polite manner) to the people who have the power to do something. I'm aware of several online petitions that have sprung up, but the sad truth is that petitions don't work. If you want to be heard, write letters. E-mails are not as effective. It's too easy to relegate them to a file somewhere or to hit "delete". Spring for a couple of stamps and send your messages the old-fashioned way. This ensures that a person has to handle it in some manner. Addresses for Disney officials can be found here. Even if it ultimately doesn't help, it definitely won't help if you don't make your feelings known now, and you and I will both feel better that at least we gave it a try. If you're in WDW before the last week in September, try to make time for a visit to the Adventurer's Club. Take a close look at the building, the theming and the props. Loudly applaud the cast for a job well done, and thank them for all the years they've put in entertaining us. Raise a final Kungaloosh! to Merriweather Adam Pleasure and his unique island, for it, like Pleasure, will soon be sailing off into the sunset.

Many thanks to my Sooper Seekrit Sources. You know who you are, and you are, quite simply, the best.

Anita