We're Back!

Yep, the cart was included.

Day 3 - Epcot F&W Fest, Ohana & The Big Surprise

We headed down to the food court for breakfast, but I only had coffee (terrible coffee) because I was saving room for the F&W fest. We hopped a bus and were at Epcot by 9:45, just enough time to walk straight to our 10:05 Soarin FP. It was the first time my nephew was riding it. He had a lot of questions about what to expect when we went into the theater. He was still reeling about how claustrophobic he felt in Star Tours. We calmed his nerves and waited for Row 1. Have to have the top row! My entire family just loves this ride. At the end, when all of our feet were back on the ground...my nephew declared, "Again Again Again". He loved it! Of course, the 70 minute stand by time meant "no again again again", but we headed to Spaceship Earth for our next FP and then on to the Character Spot to meet up with Mickey, Minnie and Goofy. We got a lot of great family shots as all three characters were having some fun!

After that, it was time to hit the F&W booths. We started in Mexico for shrimp tacos for Mom and my sister in-law. They changed the recipe from the last time we were there....no more red cabbage....pickled onions now. I wasn't crazy about it. I liked the other recipe better. I did however enjoy the shots of Patron at La Cava I got for myself, my dad and DH. The chaser they served with it was pretty darn good too. Then it was on to the China booth which I usually blow off because I can get Chinese food at home, but this time they were serving Beijing roasted duck in steamed bun with hoisin sauce. It was so good it ranks in my Top 3 for favorite things I ate at F&W. Then on to the Refreshment Post to find my Kimchi Dog. Its a full size hot dog this year, and its still as yummy as ever. From there it was on to Germany for a couple of Oktoberfest beers and then to Poland for the Kielbasa and Pierogi. YUM! Mom tried the Ravioli alla caprese: Cheese ravioli, tomato sauce, mozzarella, parmesan and basil from Italy (she loved it) and my sister in-law got the Filetto di pollo, con funghi al marsala: Chicken tenderloin, cremini mushrooms, marsala sauce and ciabatta bread. She said she couldn't believe how good that chicken was and she hates mushrooms. From there we worked our way around the world, taking it all in and stopping in France for our must have on every trip....the Grey Goose Slushy!!!! DH was helping the kids with Agent P's adventure when he found his new favorite drink at Epcot - Innus & Gunn beer at the stand in the UK. Its an ale aged in a whiskey barrel. His two favorite things beer & whiskey together in one drink. He was hooked. I on the other hand did not like it at all!

We decided at that point, to work our way back to the front of the park and head to the hotel to relax a bit before dinner at Ohana. We wanted to make sure we stopped eating at the F&W Fest so that we would all be hungry for dinner. We hopped a cab from POFQ to the Poly and were there by 6:15 for our 6:30 reservation. We did have to wait a little while, but we enjoyed checking out the updates to the Poly and looking in the shops. When we were seated, we did not know what to expect. When the food started coming and kept coming, we were all laughing about how we wouldn't be able to walk after dinner. That's when I told my family about the surprise....I had booked a Hallowishes Fireworks Cruise, and we were catching a private pontoon boat outside at the marina. Everyone was so excited, especially me! I love the Hallowishes fireworks...they are my favorite Disney fireworks. Our skipper was a young woman just out of college. She was great. She took us all around the lagoon and into Bay Lake. We saw the old, long abandoned Discovery Island, and then River Country, both were kind of creepy. Then we got to see Fort Wilderness up close. Its very pretty at night. After our boat ride, it was time to head back to the front of the MK and get the most perfect spot to watch the fireworks. They piped the audio in from the park. It was so awesome! It was so worth keeping the surprise for 6 months. After we got back to the marina, we hopped a cab back to POFQ and all went to bed. It had been a long and fun day.

Day 4 - Magic Kingdom

So after a wonderful evening of Ohana and Hallowishes, it was finally time for the Magic Kingdom. Rope Drop has been on my bucket list for years, but for one reason or another, I've actually never made it in time. This trip I was determined to cross it off the list....and.....WE MADE IT! The whole group of us managed to get there in time to see the welcome show. It was really cute, but the best part was getting into the park as soon as it opened. We were able to ride so many rides with little to no wait. We hit the big ones we did not have a FP for right away. First up Space Mountain, then the kids wanted to do the Speedway. Then we headed to Pirates (they really cleaned it up, all new costumes and everything), then to the Haunted Mansion. Sadly Peter Pan was packed almost as quick as the park opened, and we missed that one this trip. Our Fast Passes were Big Thunder Mountain, Splash Mountain and of course the 7 Dwarfs Mine Train. We ate at Peco Bill's. The new menu is good but very limited in the amount of choices. I wish they could have added the Mexican and left the burgers too but sadly no. The kids weren't up for Mexican so my nephew grabbed a hot dog and my niece got chicken nuggets from the outpost. Dole Whips and Mickey ice-cream bars were the snacks of choice for the day. We did some shopping, some people watching and headed out of the park around 4:00 to go back and relax before dinner.

Dinner was at Raglan Road in Disney Springs (the name officially changed while we were there). We got there in time for our 7:00 PM reservation and by 7:40 we still hadn't been seated. I politely asked the manager how much longer because the kids were getting very hungry, and he apologized profusely and said a few more minutes. When he came to seat us, he asked if there were any food allergies in our group. There are not. He then proceeded to send over a round of appetizers to our table free of charge so we had something to munch on while waiting for our food. That was extremely nice of him and much appreciated by all. The place was packed. Service was slow, but the food was delicious. My brother declared the lamb some of the best he's ever had. I had the fish and chips. They were very good, but I still think my favorite fish and chips are from Yorkshire over in Epcot. The kids got pulled up on stage to learn the Irish jig. They had a blast. We were hoping to do Characters in Flight after dinner, but the winds had grounded the balloon. We were bummed, but safety first! We walked around Disney Springs and hit a few stores then it was time to go back to bed. We were exhausted from getting up early to hit Rope Drop.

Day 5 - The last full day in WDW

Thursday was our last full day, and we decided to spend it at the F&W Festival at Epcot. We arrived a little later around 11:00 or so and headed for Nemo and then stopped by to see Figment. Then we walked our way over to the World Showcase and out the back entrance to go to Beaches & Cream for the very first time. It was scrumptious. We decided to share the No Way Jose and Milky Way Sundaes, and they did not disappoint. The No Way Jose did get the most votes as the best sundae. While we were there, a family of 3 did order the Kitchen Sink. Wow is that think huge! We didn't stick around long enough to see if they managed to finish it.

After our ice-cream break, we headed back into Epcot to hit some of the food booths we hadn't tried on Day 3. Since we came in the back entrance, of course we had to stop for another Grey Goose Slushy before our tour around the world. The kids signed up for Agent P's adventure again and this time we started in the UK. DH got his Innus & Gunn beer again and we took our time walking through the countries and checking out the booths. Favorites from this day included the Le Cellier" wild mushroom beef filet mignon with truffle butter sauce from Canada, the Pescado con coco: Seared grouper, pigeon peas and rice with coconut sauce from the Dominican Republic (my overall favorite) and the Loaded mac n' cheese with Nueske's(r) pepper bacon, cheddar cheese, peppers and green onions from Florida Farm Fresh (a very close second for me - it was out of this world). We also tried the Croissant aux escargots with garlic and parsley (which was good but a little too heavy on the garlic for me), the Chicken gyro with tzatziki sauce from Greece (good but not excellent), the Kalua pork slider with sweet and sour Dole(r) Pineapple chutney and spicy mayonnaise (always a crowd pleaser), and the Lobster and seafood fisherman's pie (which truthfully did not impress me this time). My sister in-law and I also had the Steamed green lip mussels with garlic butter and toasted bread crumbs from New Zealand (they were good but there weren't enough of them). My brother liked the Beef empanada from Patagonia, but I didn't get a chance to try it. Given my sister in-law is Scottish, we had to stop by the Scotland booth. I had the Seared sea scallop with spinach-cheddar gratin and crispy bacon (kind of bland) and they split the Haggis with neeps and tatties: Traditional Haggis with rutabaga and mashed potatoes and said it was pretty good. I'll take their word for it, I don't eat Haggis.

Somewhere in there among all of the food, we did manage to use our FP for Test Track. It was the first time for both of the kids, and they loved it. DH and I still prefer the old version better, but since the kids had no idea about the old version, we didn't spoil it for them. We ended up spending just about all day at Epcot. I think we left somewhere around 8:00 PM. We would have liked to stay longer, but we had to get packed up and ready for the Tragical Express to take us to the airport in the AM.

The trip flew by so quickly, but that's what happened when you are having too much fun. My niece starting to tear up at breakfast the following morning. She said she was sad to leave and was worried about when she might get back to WDW next. I explained to her that what she was feeling was the Post Disney Blues and that those of us who have Disney in our hearts always feel that way when the trip comes to an end. I think I have a new Disney addict in the family.

Well thanks for letting me tell you all about our trip. I'm sure I've forgotten a few things, but if I think of them, I'll definitely update the report. I'm looking forward to reading all about your upcoming trips and living vicariously through you for the next 4 months until I get back to the World for the Princess 5K!