** Magic Mirror ** Back from the World! VIDEO ADDED!!!

We got to MK about 3:45pm...the MNSSHP had it's own entry area and they were going to allow them in at 4pm. Because we had regular park tickets we went to the turnstile and walked right in. They told us that there were 3 wrist band stations set up inside and anytime between 4pm and 7pm we could go to the stations and get our wrist bands put on.

I haven't been to the Magic Kingdom for about 15 yrs+... and I don't remember a lot about it. Since than I've read the Disney books, realized the importance of the history of MK and of the inventions that have changed the way things are done outside of Disney. So I was super excited to be in the Mouse's Kingdom and as soon as we entered I was overcome with emotion. The first sight of Main Street, the Castle, and all those wonderful halloween decorations.... WOW - AMAZING.

I had tears running down my face and my voice was quivering when AJ asked me a question. She did a double take and said "are you ok? are you crying?".... YES I'm so fricking happy !!!! It's gorgeous and I LOVE it and there were more balloons!!!!!!

There was a brass band playing on the streets-

The atmostphere was fun and happy and walking towards the castle was the greatest feeling in the world!

We walked thru the Main St. shops, taking in the sounds of the band, the sights of the decorations and the little princess's and pirates running around...we went in to Main St Bakery to gaze at those heavenly cinnamon rolls, wishing we weren't so full from lunch that we could stuff one down...

I had wanted to find the wishing well, as I have never seen it before....but the allure of the Haunted Mansion was too much for me to withstand, so I drug AJ thru the streets as we made our way to "my" perfect gothic house.

And out great -no line to wait in- luck continued.... we walked right on in and jumped onto our Doom Buggy! Aj has never been on this ride before and she absolutley loved it!

We rode it and went right back around and got on it again! Whoo hooo!!! The first time we got the hitchhiking ghosts that took our heads off and juggled them and put them back on our wrong bodies,,, it was amazing! Such great technology!
We wanted to ride it again and again..but there was so much more to do..and we knew we would be back after the halloween party started to see what they did to the Haunted Mansion...so...sigh...we decided to move on.... it was already after 5pm and so we started towards the opposite side because I wanted to catch Pirates of the Caribbean before 7pm and Amy had a few other rides picked out that would be closing...so off we went.

As we were walking I glanced over and saw this :

We had seen rain moving in the whole week..but it was never this dark looking and the air was getting cooler. I was starting to get that dreaded feeling in the pit of my stomach that this wasn't going to be a slow drizzle.

We barely made over to the other side when the sky had become jet black. We had our umbrellas ready and soon came the first downpour. It rained..and it rained hard. The wind had picked up and our umbrellas were almost useless as it tried to either suck us up like Mary Poppins or turn them inside out. We tried to store hop but everyone was running for cover and there weren't many places to go.

I had been trying to watch for the wristband stations as we were moving thru the park but there seemed to be no signs or booths posted and I had to ask a couple CM's who finally pointed me to the dining hall across from the Pirates ride. The CM's were also lined up at the back of a wall seeking cover, and they scanned our tickets in with a hand held device , gave us a wrist band and a candy bag.

By now there was lighting and thunder and did I mention torrential downpouring of rain??? We found a seat at the outdoor but covered dining area and sat down. We were soaked even with the flimsy umbrellas and we were so happy we didn't wear our costumes. We sat , and we sat, and the rain didn't quit. It poured buckets and I was beginning to wonder if this is what Florida hurricanes look like. The palm trees were swaying and the streets were bare.

I kept telling myself this would have to blow over, it couldn't possibly stay like this till midnight! right??

We were just about to ditch our seats and take a chance thru the rain to find a ride that might be open. I was getting bored just hanging out and time was slipping away. We were already wet so why not use our umbrellas to shield what little dry spots were left and make a run for it?

That's when the lightning decided to go from horizontal to vertical and I swear it struck somewhere behind Pirates. A huge, blazing yellow, orange and white bolt went down behind the trees and buildings and the thunderous boom shook the ground. A few people screamed, the few who were on the streets ran for cover, and the sky lit up a few more times. Ok well not such a great idea to use umbrellas or be out walking the streets..so we stayed put.

I would have even just found a place to eat to at least pass time more pleasantly but with everyone looking for cover the food places that were open were packed full. Finally the rain went from monsoon to regular thunderstorm size and although there was still lighting I convinced AJ that we should move on. The villains were supposed to be making their first showing for a meet and greet which had originally been set for in front of the castle but the fine print said in case of inclement weather it would be moved to the Terrace and I wanted to start making our way closer.

Well we gave it a good try but monsoon came back and the lightning rods on the top of the buildings were not comforting AJ so we made it to Its a Small World and jumped right on the ride.

That was pretty much the only ride in the area open. I had wanted to try a Dole Whip but it was raining so hard I was having trouble trying to see where we were. The map I had tried to use was useless as it was soaking wet and falling apart. I assumed this was inclement weather enough that the villains would be moved to The Terrace but I wasn't sure what or where exactly the Terrace was. We walked, got lost, turned around, and just couldn't plain see well enough to make out where we were or where we were going. When I finally got the castle back in sight, I told AJ to just head towards it and we'd figure it out as we went. I asked several CM's about the villains but no one really seemed to know what was going on or where we should be going.

As we were getting off It's a Small World AJ's (empty) candy bag slipped from her grasp. She grabbed it in time but as soon as she stepped off the ride she realized she dropped her umbrella. We didn't know which car we had been riding in but we immediately told the CM and stood there for two cycles hoping someone would turn it in. Well, they didn't so off we went to buy her a poncho.

It became obvious we weren't going to get to the villains first showing so we turned our attention to finding cover and food. One of the CM's didn't know what the villains were doing but did know where the Terrace was and gave us directions. On the way we came across Cosmic Rays and thankfully it was open with room to sit and hot food to eat. AJ secured us a seat and I ordered our food. We stayed there about an hour, trying to dry off and actually warm up a little. Even though it wasn't exactly cold outside it was cooler and with us being soaked to the bones it was damp.

After we left Cosmic Rays we went right to the Terrace and got in line for the villains. The line wasn't very long and we were right by the area where the villains would come out to pose for pictures. Finally, they came out and they all lined up on the other side of a half wall barrier.

There was Capt. Hook, Maleficent, The Evil Queen, The Queen of Hearts, Cruella, and I believe one of the villains from Pirate. I did laugh when the EQ came out as she was flipping her cape and portraying her character very well- when the Queen of Hearts was following her and making fun of the way she whipped her cape...it looked like the EQ caught her making fun and they shared a few words.

They all came out so fast it was very hard to get photo's ..they rushed them right along. When you entered the area you got to meet each character and be photographed with each character with your camera and the photopass photographer.

Well with some luck the wall we were behind was right behind the evil queen. She had her back to us and I was getting only this type of shot:

So, not being exactly shy, I shouted out in my best loud voice "Long Live The Queen"...and to my delight, the EQ did a slow purposeful turn and gave me the "eye"..not only did she pose but she posed long enough for me to refocus my camera and take a shot..

As the line moved we were able to see the other characters a little bit:

Now I knew when I got in line that they only did the meet and greet for about 20 minutes. I also knew almost the whole park was shut down for rides and there was very little going on. While in line we heard the first parade had been delayed and the headless horseman would not be making an appearance at all. It was comfortable out temperature wise and so I thought perhaps they would keep the villains out a little bit longer to entertain the people. Well I was wrong. At exactly 20 minutes what appeared to be the person in charge (designated by his yellow shirt) came over and roped the line off. We had exactly 5 people before us before it was to be our turn. So I stood there contemplating how Disney could not make a reasonable guess at about how many people they would get thru in 20 minutes and cut the line off right away to keep people from standing there for an hour or more when they wouldnt see anything. We were lucky that we were under cover the whole time but others were not so lucky. Or maybe they should have each person pick their 1 favorite villain and the line would move faster? I'm not sure but I find it hard to believe that they can't find a better way to run the system.

While in line the little girl behind me, all dressed up in her princess outfit, who had been so excited to meet her villains, was now crushed. She didn't cry, she didn't have a fit, she just stood there, dejected and crushed. My heart cried for her and her parents were trying their best to explain what was going on.

The villains started to make their exit and while I know they had to stay in character, they were literally whisked away and didn't make any acknowledgement to the crowd still in line.

Oh I'm sure they have rules, and they have handlers, and they probably have contracts and liability on how long they can stay out - and I know they have to draw the line somewhere...but after an incredibly terrible night I just had hoped for a little more Disney Pixie Dust.

As they ran by us, one by one, it seemed they had more villains than handlers. Suddenly Cruella came out and she stopped right before us. Staying in character, she still took the time to walk down the line and shake hands, pose for photos and talk to people. She was very good- and the little girls face behind me lit up (well, ok mine too) - Cruella shook my hand and she bent down to talk to the little girl, posing for photos and working her way down the line. She must have hung around for almost ten minutes..mingling and talking, until a handler came and whisked her away.

Once the villains were all away, we knew we had about 45 minutes till they made their next and last appearance. There were mublings behind us of unhappy disney guests and many of the same sentiments I voiced about they were voicing too. There was nothing to do and it was still a downpour so we decided to stay in line knowing we would for sure get in for photos on the next showing. About this time, Mr. in charge in the Yellow Shirt came up. He said they were going to have to do the fireworks and the parade before the villains would come back. He did not know when this would be and would not tell us if it was going to still be in about 45 minutes...he was curt and lacked any type of apology in his statement. People tried to ask questions but he pretty much dismissed them and left.

It seemed useless to stand in a line when it sounded like nothing was going to happen for a long time. It was about 9:30pm now and the rain wasn't subsiding. We decided, like most everyone else, to forget it. We literally walked down the Terrace ramp and the intercom went on saying the fireworks were still being delayed and so was the parade.

It was pretty much the end of my rope. We decided to just leave. As we started out I told AJ I was going to stop at City Hall and ..well.. I dont know what... but I wanted to express my displeasure. I know my ticket said rain or shine-no refunds. And I know even Disney can't control the weather. But I had such a bad taste in my mouth from the whole night that i didn't want to leave feeling that way. I've heard so much about Disney making things right that I didn't want to not give them a chance to make it better somehow. It's like not wanting to go to bed without making up after having an arguement. I just wanted that happy Disney feeling back and I was desperate to cling on to the hope I could get it.

Even more so I was frustrated with the CM's who seemed to have no idea where things were, what was going on or where we should be going. I know this isn't the CM's fault as they can only pass on what their uppers have given them and I wanted City Hall to know they needed to form a better communcation and / or training with their CM'S for MNSSHP.

As we got closer I noticed a huge line snaking from City Hall..I thought perhaps this was another candy line or I was missing something important. I stopped and asked somebody in line what they were in line for. They said they were in line for City Hall to get their money back. They said a CM had told them they could get a refund, get a ticket for the following night MNSSHP or get a 1 day park pass good anytime in a year. Oh I was delighted that Disney had already took control of the matter and was working on a solution. We got in line. The line was really long considering they only probably had 2 people inside City Hall to work. I started wondering why they didn't make an announcement, or get the word out a different way.

After an hour in line, in the open, in the downpour, dodging lightning.... some CM's came out and took ropes out of the storage area to start marking out the lines which were now going down Main St. Later CM's came thru the line informing us that noone was getting a refund. They said you could come back the next night or get a one day pass.

Oh people WERE NOT happy. The CM's WERE NOT happy. I'm sure they were tired of being yelled at by unhappy guests but they were very rude and downright nasty at times. I tried to explain to one of the CM's that I can't afford to come back here within a year and I already had other plans for Friday night. wasnt there any other option? All I got was yelled at about how the ticket was rain or shine. Several more CM's came thru yelling and shouting and I couldn't help but think they were henchman sent out to dispel the crowds. They were really working the people up and voices were getting angrier, kids were crying, everyone was upset.

I felt guilty being in line, like I was a Mickey traitor.. I mean the ticket did say rain or shine. Part of me was angry part of me was conflicted and all of me was disappointed. My best friend had moved to Florida 5 yrs ago and she was driving up to see me and hang out the next night. Plus we had dining reservations at Les Chefs De France to see Remy the Rat and this was a highlight for AJ. There was no way I would be able to come back Friday night and it was very unlikely we could swing another trip within a year. I thought of all the people I had met during the week that had flown here from another country. What a huge financial burden for them to have to come and have such a terrible evening.

People in front and behind me were telling the CM's that other CM's had told them they could get a refund. The CM's would only shout , we need the CM'S name, who's telling you that? Well I'm sure they wanted to correct their employee's but none of us were in the frame of mind to be asking and remembering CM names as they came thru.

They were trying to divide the lines into those wanting to come back friday or those wanting to come back in a year. Than they said if you want to come back Friday you have to wait in line, if you want to come back in a year, you could leave the line and just bring your card back the next time you came to Disney. The stories kept changing, the lines became a free for all- and it was overwhelming and a mass public chaos of confusion.

I just told AJ - let's go. We pushed our way thru the crowd and exited the gates to head back to POFQ. And I kid you not, it was still downpouring and we made it to the beginning of the bus terminals, and without warning or announcement , they lit off the damn fireworks. We stopped, stunned and of course our view was blocked by trees, I could barely see a firework peeking out from behind. I just burst into tears. AJ felt bad and said we could try to hurry and get back in to see some of them..but I just stood there and watched what little I could see rise about the trees for about 2 minutes, crying like I'm some 3 year old baby, and finally we boarded the bus and headed "home".

The bus ride was dead silent, no one said a word. My heart was broke. I tried to stop the tears from falling but they just kept coming. I was glad the bus was dark. I tried to tell myself it's not like we can't come back, it's certainly closer for us than for many others. I mean, come on, it was just one night in an otherwise perfect week. It was just a Halloween party. For goodness sakes, why was I so upset about this? I kicked myself for sleeping in and not sticking to our original plan to be at the MK early , at least we would have gotten some more attractions in. And why did I leave MK to the end of the week? Now it was almost too late to catch up and make up time- what was I thinking???

Friday was a free day for us, until 5pm when we had ADR's in Epcot. We had park hoppers so it was going to be a day for going to wherever we wanted. Originally, I had wanted to go back to Animal Kingdom. Our time there had been so short because of the Trek and we missed alot of the other animal areas. I really enjoyed the props at Mt Everest and I wanted more time to look around and take pictures.

Now Friday was going to be a return to Magic Kingdom. There was so much we didn't get to do and I wanted to leave with a happy feeling not a sad one. We agreed we'd get up early and get to MK to spend as much time as possible before we would head over to Epcot.

We went back to our room and I just wanted to go to bed. I wanted to turn the tears and my brain off and just sleep. As I went about getting ready for bed I went to get our nightly Mickey Shampoo and Conditioner and - there was none. REALLY? Mousekeeping had forgotten to leave it. Sigh- - off to bed.

Tomorrow we would try to redeem what was left of our last full day in the World.

Thank you everyone for your information and your sympathy! and.. count me in for a beer too! (or maybe that shot)
Now I felt so bad to leave you all hanging that rather than wait till tomorrow when I get up...I figured
I'd finish Friday right now! ! ! I just got off work, its almost the witching hour..so what better time to write a few more passages ~

I got up promptly Friday morning and got ready. While AJ was getting ready I decided the coffee in the room was not going to suffice and I headed down to the food court where I had spied Illy Iced Coffee in the fridge.. YES! On the way I took a left turn and hovered in the concierge area. Should I say something, shouldn't I say something, should I say something, shouldn't I say something (shifting left foot to right foot to left foot to right foot) sigh.

Ok I walked up to the concierge and a very nice lady asked if she could help me. I walked up and stammered out something to the effect of "umm, well , i uh.. well you see, i was at the halloween party last night and uh"... she slowly put her head down in her hands and shook her head. She than said "I wasn't even there and it's giving me a head ache, I can't imagine what you went thru.. I AM SO SORRY - SO SORRY- that the party was ruined."

And you know, I felt better already. Just hearing someone acknowledge it was a bust made me feel like I wasn't insane and sad and totally irrational. I wasn't alone. Someone acknowledged my pain. I would have been happy with that.

She continued and said I hadn't been the first person there today and that she had heard it was total chaos. She asked if a CM there had told me to come to her desk. I told her no, I had just taken it upon myself to stop by. She said many people were showing up saying the CM's were sending them to their resorts to get a refund but their computer was not linked to that part of Disney's computer so they were unable to issue refunds. She also said her manager was currently talking to Disney and if I had bought my tickets thru the resort, I might be able to get a refund later in the day if the manager could work out the system. I thanked her but told her I had bought the tickets online direct from Disney's website.

I told her I didn't understand why there had been so much confusion, this must have happened before? They must have a contingency plan? She said no, actually this hadn't happened before. She said Disney considered last night's MNSSHP a cancellation and they had never had to actually cancel a party. She said they were unprepared for the amount of people they had to deal with and they didnt have enough people at the party to take care of the crowds.

I hadn't realized when I left that Disney was considering the party actually cancelled.

She told me they were issuing refunds and I had to go to any park to either guest relations or the ticket counter and they would refund my money. And than she apologized again and asked if there was anything else she could do to make it better..I told her no, she had done so much already that I appreciated it.

I went back to the room and got AJ and we headed off to MK. We opted for the Guest Relations windows outside the park..the line was about 40 people deep but not as bad as I expected. About half way thru the line there was a CM standing there and I asked him if we were in right line for the refund. He went into a speech about how they WEREN'T issuing refunds and only exchanges. I was taken aback and told him I had just been given this info from my resort concierge. He repeated his statement when another person behind me said but I just was told that too from my resort. The CM than said he wasn't making any promises and we would be judged on a case by case basis. So after about an hour wait we made it up to the window. I really would just be happy with a gift card to the shops, there was plenty of Evil Queen merchandise calling my name! So when I got to the window I was waiting for a long speech about how they couldn't do this and they couldn't do that...so when the young lady asked why I was there I said well I was at the halloween party, the other options won't work for and I wondered if I could get a refund or... and before I could spit out "get a gift card" she said.. refund? yes ma'am , no problem.. do you have your credit card you paid for the tickets with? I think I just stood there dazed for a moment and she continued to smile..I was so braced for a different response... I pulled out my credit card and she apologized for the wait and said it would take her a few minutes..she pulled everthing up, confirmed I had paid $135..and said it was refunded. Then she asked what else she could do for me. Just like that. It was all done.

We walked thru the doors to the MK and the sun was shining for awhile again.

Pluto had come out for photos

Main Street was hopping

The Castle was standing so beautifully in the sun

and everything was alright in the world again

We took in some rides, and from the top of the Orbit was this view of the new land

We could just see the peek of the new castle.

Can you really ever have enough Castle pictures??

We went to Space Mountain and had about a 20 minute wait

We were 3rd in line at the turnstiles when all the lights came on and the rides stopped. Not sure what happened but it was about 20 more minutes before it started up again.. there was a thunderous applause when the lights turned back off and things started up again

I remember being scared to death the first time I rode Space Mountain, this time I was entranced and exhilerated by it..if the line hadn't gotten so long I would have done it again.

We walked around and enjoyed the atmosphere...at the castle there was a play going and I just missed the Evil Queen as I saw her whip her cape and disappear off stage. We hung back and watched a little bit more of it..

The afternoon was perfect and while we only had a handful of hours I just relaxed and took in the sights..we wondered with no real purpose other than to stop if we saw something we liked and to take a few pictures.

We took in a few more gift shops and Disney had nothing to worry about because that $135 they refunded us got spent right back in the park one way or another!

These were so cute I didn't buy any but had to take some pics of them anyway..

and Hats galore!!

How about these trick or treat containers?

I loved this sign:

and the funny chocolate bars:

By late afternoon we went back to POFQ and did a quick change for dinner. We took a bus and headed back out to Epcot. The rain was back but it was tolerable as it had been earlier in the week. We finally found a store that wasn't sold out of umbrella's so we bought another one for AJ so she didn't have to sweat in that poncho.

It was raining hard enough by the time we made it to the Showcase that we Country hopped gift stores till we made it back to France. We were walking thru the French Perfume stores, stalling for time and for weather, when two ladies were standing by a display rack admiring their young ,maybe five year old granddaugther who the CM was graciously giving a make over to. Suddenly AJ grabs my arm and is transfixed looking over the grandmothers head at the ceiling.

I've seen this look before and I instantly know what it means. It is the absolute most horrifying thing in AJ's world.

A SPIDER

Now this is even more terrifying because we are in Florida and she doesn't know what type of spider it is.
In Michigan we only have a black widow which is deadly and very rare. We do have brown recluse which can cause
significant nerve and skin damage. The rest are fairly harmless. yes, I know this not because I like spiders, but because
I've had to learn to identify them to offer some sort of comfort to AJ when her shoes are flying at eight legged insects
trying to cross her path.

(* insert here, AJ says if anyone else is afraid of spiders she highly recommeds a bug spray called Spider Not! as it has
a great stream and you don't have to get real close*) (trust me we buy it in 12 bottle boxes) (i kid you not) (not that we have that many spiders, but she insists on spraying about a half bottle or until the garage floor is flooded and you have to have an oxygen mask to breathe thru the fumes, we wouldn't want to take a chance they would resurrect) *)

So as she is squeezing my arm till the blood flow has sufficiently stopped and I feel that numb tingly sensation she whispers.. do something! uh ok well I really don't want to just go bouncing over this ladies head and start swinging around trying to kill a Florida spider of which I am unversed on the antidote requirements for if I get bit. Worse than that, I can see me knocking off the multiple bottles of very fine french pefumes that are hovering on that pretty glass display case and must run about a thousand or two thousand a bottle.

I watch in some amusement for a minute at the spider floating up and down above the womans head on a thick string and marvel at how it can unfold its brown legs into tranformer like actions. Than I jump into action and go up to the desk and inform the very nice french CM of the situation. She seems somewhat alarmed and the male CM is close by. He decides he must go up and assist these damsels in distress so he bravely heads to the spider and *whack* smashes it.

And to think, the grandmother didn't even thank me or him for saving her life. hmmmmmmmm

And now it was time for dinner at Les Chefs De France and most important - to see Remy!

It is late now though, so I will have to leave Remy till the morning hours.. but .... before I go I want to share this
great store display with you that I thought was just lovely for Halloween...

Good Night!