Well...Trip 3 of 3 in the books

The crowds weren't bad. Except at Osbourne Lights which was my fault for going as soon as it started. Also MVMCP was sold out, but only the 1st parade and Wishes felt crowded.

A few more random pics

The next day of our little trip was an Epcot Day. We slept in again and went to the Marketplace for a quick breakfast.

I was standing on line in the Marketplace, waiting for a register, holding two sippy mugs of coffee and two breakfasts, and a register became available and I began to move towards it and at exactly that instant, a little girl was walking by and her head was about up to my hand level and boom! One coffee hit the deck and completely opened and spilled all over. The little one was so cute, she bent down to help me clean up and she was all apologetic. But I told her it wasn't really her fault, and I was just glad she didn't get burned and don't worry about it to go on. And the CMs were dolls also and told me to leave it.

My wife poured new coffees and wouldn't let me carry them, and I thought hey- I can use this to my advantage. Tomorrow morning I'm going to have PTSD (post trumatic spill disorder) and my wife can go get the coffee while I sleep.

Anyway- today was going to be a big day. We had Candlelight Processional Dinner Package booked and I was psyched for that. But first we hit Epcot for a while.

These two were mad popular- no way I was waiting on that line.

That's pretty red

Dick Van Dyke made a rare appearance

I planned the vow renewal after Thanksgiving. It was really a rush job. I didn't like the way the pictures came out, but there are a few on FB.

I was afraid I was rude when I met you but I was honestly in terrible pain. Disney first aid is very good with things like that, and they fixed me up with butterflies and antibiotic ointment. And of course I had to liquor myself up to bear the excruciating pain for the rest of the vacation. Doctor's orders!

I wanted the 6:45 Candlelight Processional Show. My logic was that the early show was too early and may even be light outside and the late show may not give you enough time to get around WS to the designated Illuminations watching area. So with a 6:45 show, you get a 3:30 dinner.

I had originally scheduled Via Napoli, but Disney screwed that up so I wound up at Rose & Crown. I had not eaten in Rose and Crown for years. The reason is that the last time I ate there it was horrendous. The food was alright but the service was probably the worst I've ever had in WDW. But here I was.

Anyway, we had this adorable little server, Chloe. She was right on the mark with all her recommendations and she was a very good server. I had a steak which was very, very good. A nice cut of meat and cooked perfectly. The sides and dessert were all good. I was pleasantly surprised.

And I'm happy about that because I wanted to like R&C. I love the English Pub atmosphere. It's a major component of the grown up Disney World; having a pint at a make-believe English Pub. I was mad at R&C for quite a few years. But we've made up now, exchanged numbers, FB friend requests, etc.

Of course I have no pictures because I am a gavone.

Before and after dinner, I caught a couple of shows of Off Kilter and British Invasion. British Invasion were the usual shows. I caught the sets ending with Led Zep Rock and Roll and Bohemian Rhapsody. Good fun. I don't know why they couldn't work a few Christmas songs into the show, but whatever.

Off Kilter on the other hand was renamed "Holiday Voyageurs" or something like that. They added a female singer and relegated Jamie to guitar, and lost the bagpipes. I thought it was sad. They clearly were not as good as Off-Kilter. Why they just didn't let OK do some Christmas songs, I do not know. I don't think I was the only one disappointed by this.

Jamie looked absolutely miserable. He did not crack a smile for the entire two shows I saw. Randy was phenomenal as usual, but he is just a fabulous musician. But their hearts were clearly not into it. Off Kilter has been a mainstay at Epcot since 1997. All the newbs didn't realize what they were missing, but the regulars did. It was sad.

After eating and catching one more show of British Invasion, we headed over to the American Showcase Theater to get on line for the Candlelight Processional. We were on line about 45 minutes, which went pretty fast.

There were people on the stand-by line for over two hours! We met a couple who said they come down from New Jersey every year just for the CP. We listened to their advice, and instead of rushing to the closest seats, sat directly behind the wheelchair row. The advantage of that row is that there is about 6-8 feet of clear space directly in front of you, so you have clear sight lines. We also had dead center. IMO we had the best seats in the house.

Our show featured Mike the plumber from Desperate Housewives, James Denton. He basically read what was put in front of him and stood there looking good while the music played. He really didn't add much to the show.

The show was very, very good. And I would do it again. But it certainly didn't live up to the raves reviews I had heard. If you enjoy this type of show, I would advise you to check out a Trans-Siberian Orchestra Christmas show. They take it to a whole nutha level.

Totally OT, but Neil did a stellar job at the WDW Xmas parade this year. The parade opening was phenomenal. I think it's more than coincidence that he was involved and how entertaining and fresh it was this year.

But yes Mandy, you would prefer someone up there at CP with some personality.

With the CP Dinner Package, you get a VIP Illuminations viewing area. It's on the Future World side of the World Showcase a Lagoon, in between the two stores. This may at one time, have been a good viewing area, but not anymore. Disney decided that it was too dangerous down near the fence, so it is roped off and, quite frankly, it's one of the worst areas I've ever seen Illuminations from. I only stayed because it was a vantage point that I had never seen before. I should have bailed and looked for a better spot. Anyway we met a lovely CM and her husband and we were chatting away and before we knew it, it was show time. It would have been 100% better if we were allowed to go to the fence on the lagoon.

The Holiday tag on Illuminations was really great.

My well known spots are Italy, the bridge near Intl Gateway, and near Mexico. But my special spot is in front of Tappan Edo.

I showed up at 1145 for my 12 noon lunch reservation at Le Cellier. Checked in and took a seat with a bunch of other people. Some guy came in and he had 130 reservations and wanted to know if they could take him early. No problem.

The wait staff sings Oh Canada every day before they start seating, then they yell "play hockey". Adorable.

So they started seating people. The 130 guy got seated before we did somehow. We got seated at 1215 and I did not like the table. It was in the middle of the room in a high traffic area and there were a number of tables against the wall and I pointed one out and said I would prefer to sit there. So instead of seating us there, we were told to wait again and stood there, waiting for about 10 minutes. I felt like we were in the penalty box. 10 minutes for not liking the table. Finally I grabbed the manager and asked him if I was being punished for requesting a different table. They gave us some excuse about the computer and finally seated us.

Am I being overly sensitive? When I'm paying $160 for lunch for two, I want to be treated decently. Anyway, once we got seated, everything went smoothly and the food was good, (pork bellies...mmmm) but really too much for lunch. And slightly expensive. I enjoyed my last dinner there last time and wanted to squeeze it in again.

There are better steakhouses 10 minutes away at Yachtsman and Shulas. But they are not cheap either. I don't even mind the price, but in an empty restaurant, I should be able to sit at one of the numerous unoccupied tables if I want. I wasn't happy with how I was treated. But bottom, line it's just a theme park restaurant.

"Joyful! A Gospel Celebration of the Season" - these guys were great! Everyone in the group was a fantastic singer and the band was good also. If you saw them, you know what I'm talking about. If you didn't see them, you missed something special.

The Duffy Incident

Warning: If you are a fan of Duffy and think he's all cute and wonderful, as he would have you believe, you may not want to read this.

I've always been a fan of Dufford L. Bear. I bought my daughter his stuffed animal and countless costumes for him. (The lederhosen is my personal favorite, reminiscint of Mr. Pricklepants.) I always thought he was a fair, kind, and gentle bear and I held him in very high regard. But my encounter with him recently in Epcot, would clearly indicate otherwise.

I noticed Duffy in his customary greeting place, his Gazebo in Epcot. The line was not too long, so I thought I would say hello to Duffy and get a picture with him. Mrs. The Colonel graciously agreed to accompany me. We waited on line with a few families in front of us and it was soon our turn to meet the beloved bear.

Duffy was accompanied by an entourage of three CMs; two photographers and a handler. I was all goose bumps, excited to meet such an esteemed Disney character. I was slightly awestruck. The handler pointed out my beard and mustache to Duffy, "look Duffy, he's got fur like you!"

And then it came. Duffy made a motion with his hands as if to say, "yes he has fur on his face, but look, none on his head." And then it struck me like a ton of bricks... Duffy was making fun of me! Everyone was laughing. I was stunned. "Oh sure, nobody likes the bald guys, not even Duffy!" Duffy drove home his point, by grabbing and caressing Mrs. The Colonel, as if to say, if he wanted, she would be his. I was enraged. "Duffy is prejudice against bald men!".

The CMs were clearly alarmed. The Wolf in Bears clothing had gone too far this time. "Duffy is anti-bald!" I cried. Oh, no, no...he didn't mean anything by it. The CMs were desperate now to protect the reputation of their precious Bear. The CMs tried to smooth my ruffled feathers, while Duffy frolicked with Mrs. The Colonel, hugging and posing for pictures. I may be wrong, but I could have sworn I saw Duffy slip a piece of paper with a phone number on it into my wife's hand.

Eventually, Duffy released my wife from his embrace. The CMs managed to placate me and assuage my anger, perhaps realizing that Duffy had placed Disney in a potentially litigious situation. But I am hurt, crestfallen, broken-hearted, and disillusioned that Duffy is such a cad and bigot against the bald brotherhood.

Duffy taunting me

Duffy and Me stare down