Trip Report: Day 3 – Magic Kingdom

Light Meter by Lisa K. Berton

Driving along in our automobile with my Disney music mix CD playing, we delighted in singing along with attraction songs and soundtracks. My favorite part was when Terri became engrossed in You can fly! You can fly! You can fly! from Peter Pan and let out a Freudian slip. Wendy says: I’ll think of a mermaid lagoon. Terri said: I’ll think of a pirate lagoon. That stuck for the rest of the day and made me crack up every time I thought of it.

Inside the Magic Kingdom we made part of our way down Main St. via the shops because it was hot and humid. I looked at my new camera which told me the battery was about to give out. The night before it said the battery was 2/3 full so I figured I’d use up the power at Magic Kingdom and recharge it at night. Sometimes you learn the hard way. Without a spare battery, I was left extremely aggravated with myself. Eventually, I forgave myself because it was a brand new camera and now I know that 2/3 power means it’s going to wear down fairly soon. Not to fret, I had my professional gear on me as well and used that for the day.

Our focus for the morning was to conquer Fantasyland and so we set out on a cruise highlighted by singing children, those who I interviewed were delighted to see me. We garnered FastPasses for Peter Pan’s Flight and re-visited Snow White’s Scary Adventure for what may be the last time before the ride is removed. We soared with Dumbo all the while trying to see what progress was going on in the expansion part of Fantasyland and bounced along with Tigger at the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Our FastPasses came with bonuses for Mickey’s Philharmagic which we poo-poo’d as unnecessary. Let me tell you, next time I get a surprise FastPass for Mickey’s Philharmagic, I’m using it. We waited in a packed queue while the smarter folks strolled right up to the 3D glasses bins.

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Beyond the wooden fence lies the future Fantasyland expansion. I can’t wait to ride the bulldozer!

Something I forgot to mention is that I brought along a bag of lollipops, each tagged as a thank you for attending Terri’s birthday weekend. We didn’t hand out as many as we meant to due to fried brains but I did catch Cast Member Abby off-guard. As we approached Peter Pan’s moving sidewalk, I handed her a lollipop as she asked “How many?” To which I responded, “Two by the window, please.” I’m so funny. I always make myself crack up.

Yes, as we sailed over Neverland and the pile of pirates Pan conquered, I pointed out “a pirate lagoon” in my finest English accent.

I can’t remember what happened in what order anymore so bare with me as I sort out what lands we visited during daylight and after the sun disappeared.

The Haunted Mansion’s new interactive line is worth checking out. I had a good time touching things, reading, and taking photos. While seeking out a place for lunch we stopped at the Columbia Harbor House. The colonial gentleman out front overheard us and offered to get us samples of the lobster salad if Terri would fill in for him and ring the bell. Deal! Terri loved the lobster salad but ordered a fish platter and I got the shrimp basket. When I picked up our food the Cast Member, whose name shall be withheld to protect her or him, gave me an extra mini chocolate cake for some unknown reason. She also gave the people ahead of me a free lobster roll. Neither of us had coupons either. Score! I mean she or he. Yeah.

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Dare the new interactive queue at Haunted Mansion if you dare. Muah ha baw whoo hi-ya!

Tomorrowland was busy so we opted for relaxing rides on Tomorrowland Transit Authority and Carrousel of Progress. All of the lights were on inside Space Mountain. The track still scares me so I won’t be attempting it anytime soon.

As all of our shopping expeditions had been a complete bust so far, I had no hope for finding anything at the Polynesian or Grand Floridian. Still, we wanted to visit both resorts before our early bird dinner at 1900 Park Fare. Neither of us needed anything at the Contemporary Resort so we permanecimos sentados. No reason to get out at the Ticket and Transportation Center either. At the Poly, as it is affectionately called, I lucked out and found some H2O products on sale. I have been longing for the body butter and foot lotion since using both during my Disney Cruise in 2007. They had one out of two which was better than zero. At the Grand Floridian we stopped to smell the soaps at Basin White but didn’t buy any. Heck, I still have 3 bars from a previous trip. They’re so pretty I just want to look at them and sniff ’em. Perhaps there’s a self-help program I should enroll in.

What can I say about dinner at 1900 Park Fare other than wow! This was my 2nd time dining here, the first was breakfast with Barrie, at the very same table, in 2008 or 2009. Ask Barrie. The server, let’s call this Cast Member…Peggy, knew her job extremely well with an added flair of New York diner personality. If that makes any sense at all. The chef took excellent care of me and gave me way too much food.

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This is my 2nd meal that was served on sticks. At least he didn’t attempt shish kabobing the ziti. They work better being strung together.

If you haven’t been for dinner, your dining experience is enhanced by appearances from Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine, Anastasia, and Drizella. They dance, they chat, they pose for photos, and on a good night, the sisters will freak out a little boy who high tails it out the door because he doesn’t want to date let alone dance with either of them. It was a very entertaining evening despite Drizella and Anastasia’s antics which lead me to suggest to their mother it was time she called Super Nanny. Lady Tremaine agreed.

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That poor kid got a restraining order against Anastasia (left) and Drizella (right) who are desperately seeking out princes of their own. “There aren’t any princes left in this kingdom. As soon as one comes along, some girl snaps him right up,” Anastasia told me.

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A rare look at Prince Charming mid-blink. I thought Snow White had Prince Charming. Who owns Prince Philip, Aurora/Sleeping Beauty/Briar Rose? That chick has an identity crisis.

The skies grew darker and we kept up the battle to conquer Magic Kingdom in one shot. The Jungle Cruise was a quick wait, Pirates of the Caribbean was not. Terri and I are both Disneyland nuts and so we crossed our fingers and hoped the tiki gods had genuinely restored the Tiki Room to our approval. Did you hear a loud sigh about a month ago? That was us, relieved that the show of shows is back to its glorious splendor. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad? We rode it twice, almost in a row. We had to get back in line and the same mom and son were one seat ahead of us again.

I started wearing down after Frontierland and barely made it into Liberty Square. In fact, I was so “done” that I sent Terri off to play while I waited for the next Hall of Presidents show to begin and then sat through it. It really isn’t a bad show but they could use more padded benches with cushy backs in the lobby.

Eventually I dragged myself out of the park, meeting up with Terri who was in better shape than me. We aimed for the monorail however, it had closed earlier. Here’s the deal, they tell you the monorail will stop running one hour after the park closes. It was Extra Magic Hours and the park was open until 1am for resort guests yet they shut down the operation at 10pm, one hour after “closing” to non-resort guests. Picture an angry mob, hot, sweaty, and tired waiting from the Polynesian/Grand Floridian boat dock aaalllllllll the way back to where the display for Mickey’s-Not-So-Scary Halloween sits. I believe we got on the 4th or 5th boat and waited an hour or longer to board and then we sat there for another 10 minutes before sailing away. EPIC FAIL.

Plopping onto my pirate ship bed was long overdue.

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6 Replies to “Trip Report: Day 3 – Magic Kingdom”

  1. Lisa,
    Love your blog. It makes me miss my favorite place even more! Can’t wait to go back in June and stay at the Art of Animation Resort.

    I’ve been reading about the early monorail closings and was very surprised. I can’t imagine that this would be a permanent thing. Holidays and summer would be crazy!

    Lisa responds: I don’t know what the plan is for the busier times of the year. It’s already chaotic and very stressful with medium-size crowds. Hopefully, the powers that be are reading this.

  2. I really enjoyed reading your post! My favorite was “I can’t wait to ride the bulldozer!” Thanks for posting!

    Lisa responds: Thank you for your support. C’mon that bulldozer looks like fun.

  3. Interesting and well written essay on your day’s events mixed with your wonderful repartee. As for the early monorail closure, I believe this is being done so the maintenance crew has time to do what they do to keep the monorail in good running order. That surely would put a serious crimp in the evening’s transportation. If I was really that tired, I’d walk to the Contemporary, take a cab to my hotel and jump into bed. (I’m assuming there would be cabs available at that time of night) Keep up the good work. I look forward to your blogs.

    Lisa responds: The word on the…pavement by the mob…was that the monorail CM’s complained about working late while the watercraft folks got out of work early so the transportation flipped.

  4. So, Snow White’s prince is just “The Prince.” Cinderella’s is “Prince Charming.” So, they’re different. Really enjoy reading your trip blog–very entertaining. My husband doesn’t like to blog about our trip unless there’s something different because he’s afraid the blogs will be boring. You add some fun to yours, though, and it makes them a great after lunch read.

    Lisa responds: Tell your hubby he can vamp up his trip reports by animating them. I can only draw stick figures so I’m stuck writing.

  5. Lisa,

    OMG you are cracking me up! I hope there is another installment to go!

    I plan out my almost yearly visits the same way.
    Since I live in brrr Vermont and don’t get down there much, I must maximize my time. Most of the time I go alone (but are you ever really alone in Walt Disney World? I think not!)so it is easy for me to ditch the plans and go with the flow as there is no one to stomp their feet and whine (well, sometimes I do anyway).
    I also agree with you on the new fancy, schmancy ear hats…I am not a fan.

    Thanks for your great blog and the pick-me-up for the day!

    Lisa responds: Thanks for reading & writing. Vermont is definitely cold, I think that’s why Cabot’s and Ben & Jerry’s keep their products outdoors.

  6. Drats! I have to keep reminding myself not to eat when I read your blogs. I am running out of computer monitor wipes. ;0)

    “..Aurora/Sleeping Beauty/Briar Rose? That chick has an identity crisis.”
    This caused a true LOL moment!

    Thanks for brightening my day!

    Cheers!

    Lisa Z. from Ohio

    Lisa responds: Glad I could put a smile on your face and Spaghetti-O’s on your keyboard. 😉