All Ears® Guest Blog

Guest Blogger Amy Bedore visited the Grand Floridian on opening day of the Ginger Bread House!

It smelled like the holiday's when you first walk in the Grand Floridian and the Ginger Bread house was amazing. While the Gingerbread house was done the rest of the resort was still being decorated.

The House was beautiful. It's the 10th anniversary and a giant gingerbread sign was decorated and attatched to the home to notate that.

Here are some photos. Below the photos is the menu of goodies for sale!

Ginger Bread House Goodies for Sale:

Large Chocolate Chip Cookie (4 oz) $2.50
Gingerbread Cookie People (1.6 oz) $4.00

Lollipops
Oreo Cookie White Chocolate Pop (1.6 oz) $4.00 *new this year*
Mickey Face (3 oz) $5.75
Princess (1.6 oz) $5.75
Chocolate Mickey or Minnie Head (3.25 oz) $6.75
Gingerbread House Shingle (2.8 oz) $7.00
Chocolate Snowman with Chocolates (4.2 oz) $7.25
Chocolate Mickey in Gold Box (3.2 oz ) $7.50

Gingerbread Ornaments
Small (1 oz) $ 8.50
House (3.8 oz) $16.50
Butterfly (5.4 oz) $16.50
Tree (3oz) $16.50
Cup (4oz) $16.50

Chocolate Gingerbread House (5.6oz) $10.00 *new this year*
Chocolate Holiday Hexagon Box with Truffles (7 oz) $10.00 *new this year*

Peppermint Bark 1/2 lb bag $12.00
Chocolate Holiday Frame (5.8 oz) $12.00
Assorted Gingerbread Cookies 1/2 lb bag $15.75
Seasons Greetings Chocolate box with Truffles (14.6 oz) $16.50
Stollen Bread with Marzipan (2lb) $18.25

Chocolate Disney Characters
Belle (14.4 oz) $19.50
Donald (9.4 oz) $19.50
Goofy (10.4 oz) $19.50
Mickey (14.2 oz) $19.50
Minnie ( 12.5 oz) $19.50 *new this year*
Tinker Bell (9.4 oz) $19.50

Poinsettia Chocolate Box with Truffles (20 oz) $19.50

Chocolate Champagne Bottle with Chocolates (1lb 2.6 oz) $35.00 *new this year*

Signature Gingerbread House (3.5 lbs) $65.00

Signature Chocolate Box with Truffles (2lbs 5 oz) $75.00

Sue, Mick and Sam Farrell, May 30th 2008.

On Friday 30th May 2008 we were invited to be the Flag Family!

After breakfast we were escorted to the roof of Disney's Wilderness Lodge by Ranger Stan.

He gave us a guided tour of all the sights from the roof and then we took it in turns to raise the five flags for that day. The view is amazing and offered us some fantastic photo opportunites.

Sam started with the American Flag, then Sue raised the white Wilderness Lodge flag, next it was Mick's turn to raise the State of Florida flag, then back to Sam for the Disney Flag.

Lastly Mick with the green Wilderness Lodge flag.

We did a short version of this in August 2004 (see our earlier photos below), but this time we were lucky to enjoy the full ceremony.

I would suggest anyone else staying at Wilderness Lodge to try and do this. It's a secret attraction that will remain a favourite of ours.

Thank you Ranger Stan and everyone at Wilderness Lodge.

Our 2004 Flag Family Photos:

Our family suffered a huge loss from the Flood in the Midwest in the middle of September. One of the items we lost were the two boxes of all of our Disney Souvenirs and memories from my son's first trip in January 2007.

He is now almost 3 and we just visited the Disney parks again as in late October.

We checked into the Pop Century Resort - very emotional because we were going to relive my son's first trip all over again this week. The cast member at checkin was very understanding and gave exemplorary service as we received a room early and nearby the main entrance. We checked in and our luggage arrived about an hour later.

Soon, a knock came to our door. One of the managers of the Pop Century was at the door and he had drove up on a Segway. He had 3 packages in his hand for our family. One package was with several balloons and a large plush Mickey for my son, Andrew.

Along with the balloons and Mickey was a package of books, crayons, markers, Playhouse Disney items, and some toys all from someone special - a signed picture of Mickey Mouse with our name on it was presented to him as well! He was fast asleep - so this was a huge surprise for him when he woke up.

One more package was for our family from the Pop Century Resort - it was a bucket on a Frisbee filled with toys and candy from the decades that Pop Century represents! Why did we receive this? We don't know - but we think the Cast Member who checked us in said something.

That wasn't all however, we got back to our room late one evening after having a great dinner at Whispering Canyon Cafe - we had 3 messages on our phone from the Management of the Pop Century. They were sort of urgent, giving me very small bits of information - something about Epcot on Thursday and being there by 8:45am and something "special" for our family - but we needed to get in touch with them right away!

So - my wife said - run to the front desk now! Find out what is going on. I came back with a sign with our name on it and some very specific instructions...we were to be at the front gate of Epcot by 8:45am wearing my yellow hat with our sign that had our family name on it.

Thursday, 10/20 - 8:45am at Epcot - people were being let into the park, and out popped Mario, a Manager at Epcot - he told us to come this way and we needed to hurry. We rushed into Epcot - followed him to the front of the rope where everyone stops until the park opens.

He then told us to come underneath the rope. We did and as we walked under the rope - an announcement was made that our family was the Epcot Family of the Day and we would be opening the park.

I couldn't even understand what was going on because at the same time - a Photo Pass photographer was taking our photos, Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto were walking towards my son, and a Test Track car was waiting for us to get inside and speed us away!

My son was grabbing a hold of Mickey's leg, my wife and I were just in tears, he was so excited (almost 3 years old) and we were given a stack of yellow sheets that were essentially fast passes for any ride that day in Epcot we wanted to go on, told we had to get into the Test Track car, and all the Disney executives were introducing themselves at the same time the crowd of guests were cheering! We took a few family photos with the characters - jumped in the Test Track car and sped off as fireworks shot out into the sky.

We drove past Innoventions as Cast Members wearing Mickey hands waved us on and cheered...we arrived at Test Track! I got to ride all by myself and was the first one of the day! My wife and son were whisked away up to the control room to watch me on the track.

After that - we met a lady named Cecilia. She is one of the Dream Team Cast Members and said she was assigned to our family until around 12noon. Anything we wanted - she would take care of. We were thrilled - the only thing I could think of was - WOW - what did we do to deserve all of this? My son was just in amazement and still in shock that he had his own personal time with the fab five earlier that morning! It was amazing!!!!

We then went over to Mission Space and I rode alone again - but afterwards we were brought into the lounge for Cast Members and other Executives that overlooks the queue area and other locations in Mission Space. We even got to access the Mission Control room where my son had 3 huge panels to play with - imagine a 3 year old getting to press all the buttons and switches he wants!!! They even presented us with a certificate as the Family of the Day!

BUT - it wasn't over - we then were whisked over to Soarin', Nemo & Friends, and then Turtle Talk with Crush! We were wiped out by 12noon and Cecilia had to leave us - but we had the BEST TIME! However, it still wasn't over - we were then told we had a reservation for a VIP viewing location in Italy that night for Illuminations and that I could bring anyone I wanted. So - I invited my cousin and his family who were also staying at Disney that week to join us!

We had the best day and were presented the "Honorary Citizen of WDW pins" - we wore them proudly that day and this is something that we will always remember! Thank you to Disney and all the Cast Members who made this happen for us!!!!

Guest Blogger Amy Bedore visits the new Pixie Hollow in the Magic Kingdom's Toontown Fair. She files this report and shares her photos.

I spent the afternoon (10/27/08) at the Magic Kingdom to see the new Pixie Hollow and Tinker Bell Meet and Greet.

I got to the park about 11am and took the Train from Main St to Toontown Fair . The Pixies are meeting in the Country Fair tent and have taken over the room where Goofy, Pluto and Donald used to meet guests.

The area is now half princess and half fairy. The princess line was over 60 minutes long at noon. The Fairies had a 90 minute wait time showing but it took about double that to get into the room with Tinker Bell and her Fairy Friends.

Once through the door you are led into a hallway where "pixie dust" and "fairies" are born. Everyone "shrinks" to be the same size as Tinker Bell (you are given a photopass card on a stretch cord similar to the food and wine gift card or Waterpark Photopass).

You wait in the hallway until you are led into Pixie Hollow, three groups are allowed in at a time.

Each fairy takes you to their station. They are true to character and very nice. They take photo's and sign autographs for everyone.

Rosetta

Iridessa

Tinker Bell

At that point you are shown out to the hall to "follow the magic" out to the park.

It was a great experience but the wait times will be long.

Those who may have mobility issues may find it to be difficult to wait that long. I use a cane or a scooter and it was too much for me but I didn't want to leave since I had already waited so long. 3 hours was way too long and for me I wouldn't have gone out of my way for this but since it is new I just had to see what it was like.

So how exactly does one get from Canada to Istanbul in 1 hour? The International Food & Wine Festival at Epcot!

Hi, my name is Megan and I'll be blogging LIVE from Epcot's Food & Wine Festival for the next week or so. Tonight our group, myself, 23 and my parents, decided to cover the International Marketplace Booths that stretch from the Canadian Pavilion to the French Pavilion.

Upon entering Epcot, through the International Gateway, we purchased these adorable Disney Gift Cards themed to the Festival. They feature a small coiled wristband and a square card that you can load with any denomination from $5.00 to....well more than most would spend on the Food Booths!

We decided that we would rank the items on a scale of 0 to 5.

0 = awful!
1 = forgettable not worth trying
2 = mediocre, not worth trying
3 = good, worth trying once
4 = excellent, worth repeating
5 = exceptional, give me as much as i can get!

As we made our way to Canada, intending to work our way back to France for our dinner reservation, we noticed the crowds were relatively light and lines at the Marketplaces were a few minutes at most. I started at Athens, Greece, while my parents went to Krakow, Poland.

Our first round of marketplace items consisted of Spanakopita $3.50, a spinach and feta cheese filled phylo pastry, and Kielbasa with Potato Piergoies with caramelized onions and sour cream $4.50. We also sampled two Greek wines, one similar to a cabernet sauvignon and one similar to a sauvignon blanc, unfortunately we didn't catch the names.

Our party would rate the items as follows Spanakopita = 4 out of 5 Kielbasa & Pierogies = 3 out of 5.

For our second round we travelled to Montreal, Canada, our home country!

We ordered the Cheddar Cheese Soup $3.25, the Maple Glazed Salmon with Roasted Corn & Arugula $4.25 and a Moosehead Beer $5.50.

Our party would rate the items as follows Cheddar Cheese Soup = 5 out of 5 (Dad says 6!) Maple Glazed Salmon = 4 out of 5 (Dad & I) 5 out of 5 (Mom) Moosehead = 4 out of 5

For our third round we continued around the world to Istanbul, Turkey.

We tried the Meze $3.00, cucumber & tomato salad, pita bread and eggplant hummus and the Manti with Yogurt Sauce $3.50.

Our party would rate the items as follows Meze = 2 out of 5 Manti with Yogurt Sauce = 2 out of 5 This was our worst round of the evening. The pita was dry and the eggplant hummus had an odd spice to it. The cucumber & tomato salad was nice, but not good enough to buy the whole plate just for that item. The Manti were oily and the filling, beef & vegetables was tough and chewy as was the dough.

Our fourth round took place after a light dinner at Chefs de France.

We were all in the mood for something sweet. So we continued the theme of our dinner and went to Lyon, France where we picked up one Milk Chocolate Creme Brulee $3.75. In addition we had a glass of champagne, a grand marnier slushie and a pomegranate kir.

Deciding that this little portion would not satisfy all our sweet cravings we also visited Louisiana for the Praline Bread Pudding with Bourbon Carmel Sauce $2.75.

Our party would rate the items as follows Chocolate Creme Brulee = 4 out of 5 Louisiana Bread Pudding = 6 out of 5! This seriously deserves its own rating category! Its a fantastic value for a rich, cinnamony, creamy, luscious and rich dessert. We could eat this every night of the Festival!

Well that's all for tonight! Tomorrow evening we will be returning to Epcot to continue our journey and we are planning on visiting the following marketplaces:

Lyon, France
Tokyo, Japan
San Francisco, USA
Hops & Barley Market
Cork, Ireland

Amy Bedore just sent this beautiful photo of Main Street USA.

Pin Celebrations Part 2
By Guest Blogger Carol Cruise
In my first blog, I told you all about the annual Pin Celebrations that are in Walt Disney World each fall. Now I will share some tips with you.

Tips for First Timers:

Disney has a wonderful pin site, I suggest becoming familiar with it and if you are planning a trip to WDW checking it out for the new releases.

http://eventservices.disney.go.com/pintrading/index

Collect pins that you like - I like to collect series or special event pins, also passholder pins. Also Pluto, Nightmare Before Christmas and Haunted Mansion pins.

Don't by shy about asking a CM if you can see their lanyard, the CM's don't have to wear a lanyard, they wear it because they like to trade.

Don't hesitate to ask a CM about a specific pin on their lanyard, most will be able to give you some info about it.

If you see pins on sale at a Disney store or Outlet, stock up on traders.

If you shop eBay for pins and it looks too good to be true, it probably is. You can only trade Disney © pins and there are scrappers out there.

If you are going to an event for the first time wear comfortable shoes (lol) you spend a lot of time standing in lines, the lines for the boards make the busiest day at Soarin' look good.

When you are at a trading board, with a time limit, start scanning the board up and down going from left to right, if you see a pin you think you might like, put your finger on it, keep scanning, if you see another pin put a finger on it. That way when they say times up, you know where they are, otherwise you won't find them again.

When you wear pins on your lanyard and you do not want to lose them, take one of the black plastic backing cards that the pins come on, cut it into little squares about 1/2" x 1/2", stick your pin through the lanyard, then through the little black square then put the pin back on. The pin will not fall off, this is a whole lot cheaper than buying the locking pin backs.

When trading expect to trade even, by that I mean LE 1000 pin for a LE 1000 pin, or Hidden Mickey for Hidden Mickey. The lower the edition size the more valuable the pin.

If you are trading outside a Pin Trading Station and a trader says "if you go and buy me this pin I will trade you the one you want" - that's not right :(

Like any collection, you need to be able to enjoy it so determine how to best display your collection. I have way too many pins to hang on a wall so I keep them in binders, labelled and categorized so I can sit and go through them easily. Lots of people display their pins in shadow boxes.

The best advise I can give is to have fun with it!

Pin Trading Etiquette:

http://eventservices.disney.go.com/files/Etiquette122004.pdf

Disney Pin Celebrations Over the Years!
by Guest Blogger Carol Cruise

Once a year Disney has a Pin Celebration, it is usually the first weekend after Labor Day. Each year has a different theme and I have been lucky enough to attend the event the past four years. These weekend-long events are a wonderful time for avid pin traders and novices alike!

The first year I attended the theme was Disney’s Pin Celebration 2005 - The Happiest Pin Celebration on Earth

“Celebrate the happiest moments, memories and pins at the Happiest Pin Celebration On Earth. Tinker Bell and friends invite you to a magical, three-day pin trading experience at Epcot. From Princesses to Villains, everyone has something to celebrate”

This event sold out by August 2, 2005. I was so excited to be going to my first official pin event but I was new to the whole “pin trading thing” and very unsure as to what to expect. We flew to Orlando on the Thursday and the pre-registration took place that afternoon at the Yacht & Beach Club. The lines were long and we were both tired but the excitement kept me going. I met some familiar people in line, from Toronto, so it was nice to have someone to ask questions and look to for advice. These people would soon become very good friends and we have all attended many pin events together since that time.

Walking into that pin event was like walking into another world. The even is held every year in the World Showplace, located in EPCOT between Canada and the United Kingdom, in the old Millennium Village site. Disney spares no expense when decorating for the event; pictures do not do it justice. It is simply magnificent!

The second year that I attended was themed Disney’s Pin Celebration 2006 – It All Started With Walt. “

Celebrate Walt Disney and all the ideas that his imagination continues to inspire at Disney's Pin Celebration 2006. "It All Started With ... Walt," is a spectacular three-day Disney Pin Trading Event that will take place at Epcot from September 8-10, 2006. Join your Friends for a magical tribute to Walt Disney's groundbreaking achievements in Animation, Live Action Film and Television and Disney Theme Parks...a legacy that continues to guide the Walt Disney Company today. “

This event also sold out just days before it started.

The only difference from the previous year was that pre-registration took place at the Contemporary Resort in the convention center room Fantasia H. This year we arrived at Disney the day before the event so we didn’t have to rush so much and we beat the lines. Once again we met our friends from Toronto in line.

On the last day of the event the World Showplace is opened to the public at 11 a.m. and any unsold limited edition event pins are sold to unregistered guests at that time.

2007 Pin Celebration

The theme for my third event was Disney’s Pin Celebration 2007 – Where Dreams HapPin. I was particularly excited about this event, as the main character in the logo was one of my favorites, Figment!

“Step into a world of Disney Pin Dreams at Disney's Pin Celebration 2007 - Where Dreams HapPin. Immerse yourself in a world of endless possibilities where you can dream like Mickey Mouse or imagine like Figment. Enjoy trading opportunities, games and activities, and a "dream-tacular" collection of pins featuring your favorite Disney characters created especially for this event. So, pack your "dreamiest" pins and plan to attend this exciting event. After all, this is the place where pin dreams come true.”

Lined up and anxious to get started despite the early morning.

As in previous years the pre-registration took place on the Thursday and this year it was back at the Yacht & Beach Club. I am always amazed at what Disney does to decorate the World Showplace; this year was no different. We arrived before the event opened and stood in line with our fellow pin traders waiting for the gates to World Showplace to open.

2008 Pin Celebration

That brings us to this year’s event. Disney’s Pin Celebration 2008 – Pin Trading University.

”Graduate with highest trading honors at Disney's Pin Celebration 2008 - Pin Trading University. This three-day, Disney Pin event will be held September 5-7, 2008 at Epcot® - World ShowPlace.

Recall your school days with a "superlative" collection of Disney pins created especially for this event. Students will also enjoy games and activities, plenty of pin trading opportunities and "A Live Auction" presented by the drama club. “

I registered early so that I would be eligible for my “Early Registration” pin, I also only registered myself this year, in previous years both Gary and I registered. He would come to the event with me and help out with the trading boards and also get me the extra gift pins. This year we would be on the Disney Cruise and not arriving at the event until Saturday morning so it didn’t make sense for him to register. Besides, he needed to look after the luggage and get us checked into POFQ while I high-tailed it to the event.

We had arranged for Quicksilver to pick us up at the cruise terminal and I had them drop me off directly at the Yacht and Beach Club, it would be the quickest route for me to get to the event. I said my goodbyes to everyone and started along the path towards EPCOT’s International Gateway. As you all know, there is a bag check when entering the park and traveling with pin bags can sometimes be quite the exercise. Disney is prepared for this during the Pin event; they have a special entry point for pin traders and a sniffer dog that checks out the pin bags. It is very quick and efficient.

Once inside EPCOT the excitement builds.

When you approach the gates to World Showplace, it doesn’t look like much until you actually walk through. You cannot get into the event without credentials; since I was on the cruise and missed the pre-registration a cast member escorted me to the registration desk inside so I could get my lanyard and credentials.

Once I reached the registration desk and gave them my name I was given my package which contained all the pins I had ordered plus all the event information and coupons. There are quite a few special items given to each participant. The registration is $100 and that seems like a lot but what you get back sure makes it worthwhile for an avid pin trader!

EVENT ADMISSION INCLUDES:

Opportunity to pre-purchase limited edition pins designed especially for this event.
"Purchase with Purchase" pin promotion for event Guests only featuring exclusive pins.
Trading activities and games at World ShowPlace located at Epcot.
Limited edition commemorative gifts.
Live and silent auctions of pre-production pins, artist proof pins and more.
"First Trading Opportunity" to collect brand new Hidden Mickey pins.
Opportunity to meet Disney Pin Partners from The Walt Disney Company.
Two (2) $15 Gift Cards redeemable at Epcot Food and Beverage locations.
Plus extra special surprises throughout the event.

I also received a letter to visit the Dean’s office; this was a random thing that some guests got in their package. It gave you a specific time to go to the Dean’s office and each group got a special gift. My time was 3:30 p.m. so I was lucky that I did not miss it by arriving late.

In the package there was a Passport. You had to take the passport to each of the Pin Partners and get it stamped. Once you had your passport stamped you handed it in and got a special limited edition pin from the partners. The Participating pin partners this year were Disneyland CA, Disneyland Resort Paris, Disneyland Hong Kong, Disney Soda Fountain & Studio Store and Walt Disney World.

I also had to pick up my Early Registration Pin, my gift pins that included a Jumbo Pin, a boxed set and a single limited edition registration pin. There were also my “purchase with purchase” pins that I was eligible for. You could get one pin for every $75 that you spent.

The package also included a voucher for a snack and drink. The snack was a Rice Krispie Mickey head and your choice of drink. Other information in the package included a list of the new Hidden Mickey pins that were being released at the event, an itinerary listing all the activities as well as information on both the silent and live auction.

Once I got myself organized I went in search of Susan, one of my friends. I had a lot of catching up to do. Susan actually found me and led me to the back area, where all the pin trading takes place.

Our group had a table staked out and there was someone there at any given time so you could leave you stuff there and not worry about it. I unloaded some of my bags and said hello to everyone. Susan had already found me most of the new Hidden Mickey pins so I only had a couple left to look for. The pin trading boards would be my next challenge.

I walked back into the main room and took it all in, there is a lot to absorb and I found that arriving late and missing the first couple of days set me back. There was so much to see and so little time left. I immediately got in a line and waited for my turn at the boards.

To explain the pin trading boards, lets see…

There is a queue set up in front of each board where everyone lines up to wait for their turn to trade. There are about twelve different boards in the room. Each board is set in a different themed area, the theme representing the event theme and fashioned after a pin from the event. The boards are large corkboards, each manned by a cast member. When you reach the board you give the cast member two of your pins in exchange for two pins you select from the board.

The catch is that you only have sixty seconds to find the pins you want. That may seem like a long time but there are hundreds of pins on the board and it is very hard to focus on any one specific pin. I was looking for three particular Hidden Mickey pins. When your minute is up, you take your two new pins and the CM puts your old pins on the board. The boards are refreshed every thirty minutes, so new pins come out and the old pins go into the back. It is very exciting when a board gets refreshed just before your turn . . . that means you have a good chance at getting the new pins.

After I had waited through a couple of lines I took some time to walk around and look at the decorations. Disney does a fantastic job decorating for the event; each of the areas represents or replicates a pin that was designed for the event. Everything ties into the theme.

Above you see an area decorated with a car from the old Mr. Toad ride and below it is the corresponding pin with Mr. Toad teaching Driver’s Ed.

Above you see a scene depicting Roz from Monsters Inc. as the Lunch Lady. Beside it is the corresponding pin.

It was getting close to my appointment with the Dean so I just did a bit of wandering and had my snack. People were also starting to take seats for the live auction. When it got to be my turn to go into the dean’s office my “reward” for being a good student was an opportunity to choose a Jumbo pin off a trading board that held about 50 large pins. I had exactly 30 seconds to make my choice. I frantically scanned the board. Since I had just gotten off the cruise I was looking for a cruise pin. Just as the cast member sounded times up I grabbed a large pin from Castaway Cay that had the Fab Five on it. I was very pleased with myself!

At 4 o’clock the live auction started. I have never participated in this, it is a bit too rich for my pocket book, but I do like to watch. The auction consists of one-of-a- kind pins, they may be artist proofs or even a pin that was designed but never released. There are also framed sets and pre-production pins. Some of these go for thousands of dollars!

After the auction is complete the last hour and a half was spent in line at the pin boards and chatting with fellow pin traders. I am not much for going around the back room trading, but I do enjoy trading while in line for the boards. It seems less formal and everyone likes to chat about his or her pins, it makes the wait go by a whole lot faster.

The event is open on Sunday morning for all registered guests until 11 o’clock and then opens to the general public. I usually don’t return on the Sunday morning, I have had my fill by then and my legs are tired from all the standing. This year I was going to go since I had missed so much of the event but we had a chance to meet with some fellow cruisers at Hollywood Studios and ride Toy Story Mania and that won out.

Each year at the end of the event they announce the next years theme and dates, this year they announced the theme but no dates. There appears to be some conflict with a pin event being planned at Disneyland so we are all guessing it will be later in the fall, probably October.

The theme next year - The Museum of Pin-tiquities – Search for the lost keys.

I hope to be there! Maybe I'll see you!

Carol Cruise

PS. Stay tuned for the 2nd part of this blog when I will share Tips for First Timers!

We rode the elevator up to the 7th floor and then took a set of stairs up to the roof. The view was breathtaking and the weather perfect.

There were four of us and we each got to raise one of the flags. After my son raised the American flag, Stan asked if we would salute the flag and say the Pledge of Alliegence. I had tears in my eyes as we said it outloud with our hands over our hearts.

Stan took pictures of each of us and as we were thanking him for such a beautiful experience, he huddled us together and told us to always remember to care for each other. I still have goosebumps thinking about it. Stan treated us to breakfast on the concierge level snack room which just was the perfect ending to a perfect memory!

-Cathy

The Bashful Vegan

Hi! My name is Kitty, and I’m a vegan. I’m also terribly, seriously, majorly bashful… which is not very convenient when you’re a vegan. It’s near impossible to eat out as a vegan without attracting some attention, or at the very least, getting a confused look from a server. All of which has nothing whatsoever to do with Walt Disney World, except that it does make my trips to the world’s most popular vacation destination a little interesting.

Despite my “challenges”, I go to Walt Disney World every chance I get, which isn’t nearly as often as I would like, but I guess we can’t all live in Florida. I usually manage at least one trip a year, along with my “Disney tolerant” omnivorous hubby. He’s a bit bashful, too, though he eats a more normal diet.

I was a vegetarian (still ate dairy and eggs) when I made my first trip to Walt Disney World, almost 11 years ago. I was a little worried about what I would eat, but I shouldn’t have been. There were so many options for lacto-ovo’s that it wasn’t even an issue. My expectations weren’t very high, so I was pleasantly surprised that I could find more than just soy burgers and fries.

My first trip as a vegan (about 8 years ago) was more of an adventure. Okay, that’s putting it nicely. It was rough. I was still new to the vegan scene, and suffered pretty badly from Mickey-ice-cream-bar-envy. The soy burgers and fries were still an option, and the sit-down restaurants did try to cater to me, but it didn’t feel like a vacation without all the sweets and treats. (I have since learned to curb my sweet tooth, but at that point, I still associated vacations with lots of desserts.) So I vowed to be prepared before my second vegan trip. The following are some of the tips and tricks I learned while planning my own trips.

My first tip is especially helpful for newer vegans – ones who aren’t sure how they will manage without sweets (ice cream, cookies and churros, oh my!). Bring treats from home. Seriously, pack an extra suitcase full of vegan cookies and candies, energy bars… anything and everything you might eat at home as a vegan treat. (Okay, that soy ice cream might not travel so well, but there are lots of other options.) If the suitcase seems like a hassle, you could also pack up a box of goodies and have it shipped to your hotel.

Or, you could order some goodies from an online source (Vegan Essentials and Pangea are both good options), and have them shipped directly to your hotel. I can’t stress this enough – if you’re a new vegan, or just a new “Disney” vegan, having those comfort foods can seriously make the difference between the vacation of your dreams, and a big disappointment.

Once you arrive, make sure you always have some of these treats with you, in your bag or backpack. Disney does have a policy about not bringing food into the parks, but in my experience, they have no problem at all with a few snacks – and if they say anything at all, just explain that you’re a vegan and this is required for your special diet. (I always have snacks with me, and I have never been questioned – not even once.)

Now, this might sound like a contradiction, but there are a surprising number of vegan treats available at Walt Disney World (and I think I’ve found all of them!). I love sharing them with others, and I will share them with you, but I still recommend treats from home. I’ve heard too many vegans say that they couldn’t find anything to eat, and it affected their trip. Why take the chance, when a handful of your favorite vegan candy or a vegan energy bar will solve the problem? It’s amazing what a difference the little things can make.

My second tip really applies to everyone, but is especially important for vegans: don’t wait until you are starved to go look for food. In general, people tend to get grumpy, or at least not feel at the top of their game, when they get hungry. If you can’t get to a restaurant right away, and you’ve got that rumbly in your tumbly, then it’s time to hit those snacks I talked about. Otherwise, look for food before it becomes urgent, and be prepared to settle for a second choice. If you’re planning a sit-down restaurant, odds are very good that you will eat, and probably eat very well. However, if this is one of those counter-service grab-n-go meals, then you might need a little extra time. There are more options than you might think, even at the counter-service places, but some of them require a little thought and creativity.

Which brings me to my third tip: eat at non-traditional times. In other words, avoid the rush and try to eat either a little earlier or a little later than the rest of the world. Eating as a vegan almost always requires some “speaking up”, and I find this so much easier if I’m not holding up a crowd at the time. My meals sometimes require a little extra effort, and for me, there’s nothing worse than feeling like I’m a bother, or that I’m keeping others waiting. Hubby and I generally try to eat early – lunch around 11:00am, and dinner around 5:00pm. We’ve found that this works really well at Walt Disney World.

This fourth tip I’ve shared with quite a few other vegetarians and vegans who have contacted me: for any sit-down restaurants you plan to eat at, call the restaurant 72 hours in advance and ask to speak to a chef. By doing this, you will have a better idea what to expect when you dine, and you also give the chef time to acquire any special ingredients they might need to make your meal something to remember. And this is really great advice. The problem is that I’m too bashful to actually do this myself. Yes, I’m finally going to admit it: I have never actually done this. I have mentioned that I’m a vegan when making reservations, and I’ve mentioned it when I got to the restaurant, but I have never called a restaurant directly and spoken to a chef.

So how do I manage when I’m too bashful to speak up?

Well, there options, even without special requests, but they are very limited.

Soy burgers and Disney fries (but not the ones clearly marked as “McDonald’s) are vegan as is – no special request required.

There are fruit carts in every park, and a number of other snacks which are vegan.

The popcorn, despite its buttery appearance and taste, is actually vegan.

The soft pretzels and roasted nuts are safe (even the tasty cinnamon-glazed almonds!). But it would be tough to get through a whole vacation with only these few things.

There are several things that have helped – the biggest one being the cast members themselves. For starters, I am continually amazed by the number of cast members that already understand the term “vegan”. If you say you’re a vegetarian, many of them will ask “lacto-ovo or vegan?”. Not having to explain this saves a lot of time of trouble – and for me, stress. Also, they really truly seem to want to make your trip special. Disney tries hard to accommodate everyone. I routinely have to make modifications, even at counter-service places, and it’s almost never an issue. They seem prepared for it. They don’t even look at me like I’m from another planet (which I get a lot in the “real world.) Occasionally I am told that there will be an additional wait – which I am always prepared for (thanks to my second tip – don’t wait until you’re starved).

Knowing what is possible, and what to expect also helps. It’s important to keep in mind that most places will do their best to match any request, but they can only work with what they’ve got. In other words, most places will be happy to prepare you a salad minus chicken and cheese, but they can’t substitute it with grilled tofu if they don’t have any tofu in their kitchen.

That’s where the 72 hours notice may help with a sit-down restaurant. The chefs at these places almost seem to thrive on the challenge of preparing something you will enjoy. I have had some extraordinary meals at Disney’s sit-down restaurants. With counter-service, though, I’ve found that it’s better to have a plan before I get in line. Even at the more casual places, they will most often work with me, but the creativity and knowledge is lacking. I need to know exactly what I want, and make requests that I know they can accommodate (such as leaving the chicken and cheese off of a salad, or ordering a fruit plate without the yogurt dipping sauce).

With these tips in mind, even a Disney vegan newbie can have the trip of a lifetime. For me, being a vegan, even a bashful vegan, is no longer an issue at Walt Disney World. Well, being bashful will always be an issue, but I’m working on that. (I’ll never be volunteering for Indiana Jones’ Stunt Spectacular, but I do plan to finally get up the guts to meet my hero, Mickey Mouse… one of these days.)

Boma Dinner: Marinated tofu over a corn salsa

Boma Dessert: Vanilla soy ice cream with raspberries and a vegan chocolate chip cookie.