“I do not deal with my problems like I know I should” - F&W Fest 2018 - Update 1/20 Going Home

Looks like a nice morning, mimosa included! The chocolate displays are nice this year. I love Coco.

We missed F&W this year so fun to see reviews.
 
Congratulations on the recent choice. I will look forward to hearing about it in Oct!

So funny, would you believe I have never noticed that they are studying the same things each time in The Land? And I DO look at the sign each time. What a dope I am.

The Festival Center is certainly much more lively this year. I can't blame them for a smart business decision and maximizing their real estate but some part of me misses the days when it was a bit of a secret and you could easily walk up and get your $6 prosecco and relax in the AC. I tried the frozen mimosa with White Claw but otherwise didn't explore too much. It was so crowded. I'm looking forward to my trip in Oct when I can go on a week day.

Sorry to hear your ankle is hurting today. Hope it feels better soon!!

Yes! Good news to come!

I think most people don't notice it either. I had thought about it a few time in the last year so I made sure I took note of it mentally each time and this time around since I'm doing a trip report and not just a dining report, figured it would be a good time to pose that question!

I think the Festival Center will die down in crowds once we get further away from the opening of the festival. So many bloggers out that first weekend trying to be the first to report news. I saw it a ton on Friday as well. How was the frozen mimosa?

This week has been good for the healing ankle. Not a lot of walking when you are flying across country and are in 8 hour long training! I have no plans this weekend so that will also help.

Add on night at the grand booked! Yay! First time! Rack rate $1892 for a stinking outer building garden view but sooooo much less with a CM discount!!!

Looks like a great start at Epcot. Waff-Ale sounds good!

Yay! Enjoy the Grand and the CM discount for the room! Hopefully we'll actually see each other this time around!

I can't wait to try the full flight!

Looks like a nice morning, mimosa included! The chocolate displays are nice this year. I love Coco.

We missed F&W this year so fun to see reviews.

Mimosas are such a great way to start the morning! Made me very happy :) I can't wait to try more of the flavors in November!

The Coco one had a nice amount of detail to it! I like seeing them as its always as a good reflection on the year.

Sorry to hear you are missing F&W this year! That will probably be us next year since not sure how I'm going to fit it in with our long France trip.
 
Old Favorites

After we left the festival center, we headed into Innovations where I remember it kinda is a fail now as nothing is inside of there. We did look at some really microscopic things like butterfly wings, cork, wood grain but I think that was just me being silly.

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Our window for our Spaceship Earth FP+ had opened so we headed that way and learned about the history of communication. It is always nice to avoid the heat as well for a bit!

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The photos weren’t working so we didn’t get to see which one of us broke the arm in the ‘health’ story line. That didn’t matter too much as once we left, we knew it would be time to start eating our way around EPCOT! It was still before 11AM but many of the booths around Future World were already open.

Flavors from Fire

Our first booth was Flavors of Fire where we got two repeat dishes from past festivals. The piggy wings were super tender and hit the spot for both of us! The corned beef was not a hit this time around as the beef was super fatty and stringy but the warm potato chips and beer fondue were easily eaten instead.

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Piggy Wings: Roasted Pork Wings with Korean BBQ Sauce & Sesame Seeds

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Smoked Corned Beef with Warm Crispy Potatoes, Pickled Onions and Blonde Ale Beer Fondue featuring BelGioioso Romano and America Grana Cheeses

Coastal Eats

We headed towards the Eats pavilion and just visited one of the 3 booths there. Of the three booths, menu wise Coastal Eats was the winner for us. I got the shrimp scampi dip as it was one of my favorite dishes from last year. It was just as great this time around too! Lots of shrimp for the size of the dish and lots of yummy creamy sauce. My mother had the seared scallops which made her happy. She also enjoyed some of the scampi dip with the scallops/corn after I was done with eating all the shrimp.

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Baked Shrimp Scampi Dip w/ Sourdough Baguette

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Seared Scallops with Roasted Corn and Butter Bean Succotash and Chili-Chipotle Sauce

Canada

Our next visit was more so for my mother than me. She has some fond memories of the festival eating that soup with her husband so I let her have that moment and I drank some beer. This beer had great citrus flavors and easily went down! Hopefully, it still is there in November as I can totally see drinking more of it!

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Moosehead Radler: Lager infused with Grapefruit, Grape and Lemon Juices

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Canadian Cheddar Cheese and Bacon Soup Served With A Pretzel Roll

As we turned towards England, we noted that there were a bunch of characters hanging out at the World Showplace. I’m pretty sure all of them were in training along with the CMs helping them since many of the CMs helping had on Earning Their Ears ribbons. They had some rare characters out that we visited and we passed on the common ones (Chip, Dale, Donald, Goofy)

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So cool you saw those characters! Your new tank looks great too! Loving your food and wine reviews so far! Can't wait to read more!
 


Old Favorites

After we left the festival center, we headed into Innovations where I remember it kinda is a fail now as nothing is inside of there. We did look at some really microscopic things like butterfly wings, cork, wood grain but I think that was just me being silly.

aWaVZsn.jpg


mJIYMfm.jpg


Our window for our Spaceship Earth FP+ had opened so we headed that way and learned about the history of communication. It is always nice to avoid the heat as well for a bit!

hVx7d6T.jpg


gNusMOz.jpg


JT7NBYg.jpg


The photos weren’t working so we didn’t get to see which one of us broke the arm in the ‘health’ story line. That didn’t matter too much as once we left, we knew it would be time to start eating our way around EPCOT! It was still before 11AM but many of the booths around Future World were already open.

Flavors from Fire

Our first booth was Flavors of Fire where we got two repeat dishes from past festivals. The piggy wings were super tender and hit the spot for both of us! The corned beef was not a hit this time around as the beef was super fatty and stringy but the warm potato chips and beer fondue were easily eaten instead.

gB7F7Em.jpg


QeW1vaR.jpg


qQrrbAR.jpg

Piggy Wings: Roasted Pork Wings with Korean BBQ Sauce & Sesame Seeds

xM6RE6J.jpg

Smoked Corned Beef with Warm Crispy Potatoes, Pickled Onions and Blonde Ale Beer Fondue featuring BelGioioso Romano and America Grana Cheeses

Coastal Eats

We headed towards the Eats pavilion and just visited one of the 3 booths there. Of the three booths, menu wise Coastal Eats was the winner for us. I got the shrimp scampi dip as it was one of my favorite dishes from last year. It was just as great this time around too! Lots of shrimp for the size of the dish and lots of yummy creamy sauce. My mother had the seared scallops which made her happy. She also enjoyed some of the scampi dip with the scallops/corn after I was done with eating all the shrimp.

sRjIYQd.jpg

Baked Shrimp Scampi Dip w/ Sourdough Baguette

gUQ1jDx.jpg

Seared Scallops with Roasted Corn and Butter Bean Succotash and Chili-Chipotle Sauce

Canada

Our next visit was more so for my mother than me. She has some fond memories of the festival eating that soup with her husband so I let her have that moment and I drank some beer. This beer had great citrus flavors and easily went down! Hopefully, it still is there in November as I can totally see drinking more of it!

6KGOj4b.jpg
3YL5jes.jpg

Moosehead Radler: Lager infused with Grapefruit, Grape and Lemon Juices

8tdeZuw.jpg

Canadian Cheddar Cheese and Bacon Soup Served With A Pretzel Roll

As we turned towards England, we noted that there were a bunch of characters hanging out at the World Showplace. I’m pretty sure all of them were in training along with the CMs helping them since many of the CMs helping had on Earning Their Ears ribbons. They had some rare characters out that we visited and we passed on the common ones (Chip, Dale, Donald, Goofy)

rtiO24d.jpg


mJABq8R.jpg


6pogwV3.jpg
The scallops look so good. I'm getting hungry now!
 
Hopefully we'll actually see each other this time around!
We better!!

I love the coastal eats booth but I’m devastated to report that after 37 years I think I’ve developed a seafood allergy! Wah!!! I mean scallops have always bothered me but we had a lobster and shrimp bake last weekend and my lips were tingling and my face was itchy and swollen! No hives or throat issues but I’m not going to risk it! I will definitely be hitting up the flavors from fire and Canada booth for shizzle! Yum!

Great character photos!
 
So cool you saw those characters! Your new tank looks great too! Loving your food and wine reviews so far! Can't wait to read more!

It was great just randomly running into them. It happened again that day as well with random huge groups of characters with little/no lines as well but I'll get to that shortly :)

The scallops look so good. I'm getting hungry now!

My mother was really happy with the scallops! I'm someone really picky about scallops and how they are cooked so I won't try them in the booths. To me - I need a Diver Scallop perfectly seared on both sides so I have to trust the restaurant making them!

We better!!

I love the coastal eats booth but I’m devastated to report that after 37 years I think I’ve developed a seafood allergy! Wah!!! I mean scallops have always bothered me but we had a lobster and shrimp bake last weekend and my lips were tingling and my face was itchy and swollen! No hives or throat issues but I’m not going to risk it! I will definitely be hitting up the flavors from fire and Canada booth for shizzle! Yum!

Great character photos!

Oh no! I would be so sad if I developed a seafood or dairy allergy at this time as those are some of my favorite things! I don't blame you for not wanting to risk it with eating more as you don't want it to turn into hives or throat issues. Those booths will be totally safe for you as well!
 


More Boozing

After visiting the surprise characters, we continued on our journey around the World Showcase to eat and drink more as it is Festival.

Ireland

We stopped in Ireland as I wanted to get that Guinness Baileys Shake while they still had the glasses with it as I’m sure they will be sold out of it by November, especially with current rumors that they are out of the beakers for the frozen drink in Light Lab and some other merchandise shortages. I really enjoyed the shake but you couldn’t really taste the Guinness at all as the Bailey’s was much more prominent. My mother really enjoyed the chocolate pudding. That has been such a staple of the Ireland Booth the last few years that I’m glad its stayed around!

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Warm Chocolate Pudding with Irish Cream Liqueur Custard
Guinness Baileys Shake


We skipped France despite wanting things as there is only so much stomach space and continued on our way.

Brazil

I went with another one of my festival favorites and had some cheese bread from Brazil. It is such a nice bite to have while drinking as it totally soaks up alcohol well!

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Pao de Queijo: Brazilian Cheese Bread

It was time for a restroom break where I felt for any lady who may have had an unexpected visitor…I noticed a few of these over the weekend.

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Japan

At Japan, I decided to get another drink as it had been all of 15 minutes since my last one. It was the right amount of sweet and sour. Totally different than many of the other cocktails around the festival but if you don’t like notes of sake - I would not recommend it. I know sake is something people either like or don’t like.

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Fuji Apple Cocktail: Sake, Peach Schnapps and Green Apple Syrup

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Right after I got my drink and spied a Remy, the sky was beginning to open up like is typical of Florida in August/September. We made it under the awning before it really opened though.

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So we took a break and shopped in the store where I found some cute things that I didn’t buy. I may buy some of those puzzles in November if they are still there but I haven’t done a puzzle in months due to Gantu.

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The rain eventually eased up and we headed back into the world showcase where we ran into more characters/handlers doing their training behind American Adventure! This time, we just visited my favorite - Stitch! He was a fan of my tank top! These two events were such nice surprises!

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Brewer’s Collection

We continued on our way until I needed another drink. I went with a beer with 2.5% ABV so that is kinda like drinking water right? The pomegranate beer is one of those beers that tastes much better from a keg than it does from a bottle. It was also nice to have a little show to watch while I enjoyed my beer.

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Schofferhofer Hefeweizen Pomegranate Beer

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It was nearing the end of our window for our FP+ of Frozen Ever After so we went to use that!

7QoPlnU.jpg


MBqkBpb.jpg


lDsu2KW.jpg


DP1XQ6t.jpg
 
More Boozing

After visiting the surprise characters, we continued on our journey around the World Showcase to eat and drink more as it is Festival.

Ireland

We stopped in Ireland as I wanted to get that Guinness Baileys Shake while they still had the glasses with it as I’m sure they will be sold out of it by November, especially with current rumors that they are out of the beakers for the frozen drink in Light Lab and some other merchandise shortages. I really enjoyed the shake but you couldn’t really taste the Guinness at all as the Bailey’s was much more prominent. My mother really enjoyed the chocolate pudding. That has been such a staple of the Ireland Booth the last few years that I’m glad its stayed around!

S3n0GTC.jpg

Warm Chocolate Pudding with Irish Cream Liqueur Custard
Guinness Baileys Shake


We skipped France despite wanting things as there is only so much stomach space and continued on our way.

Brazil

I went with another one of my festival favorites and had some cheese bread from Brazil. It is such a nice bite to have while drinking as it totally soaks up alcohol well!

KemeWID.jpg

Pao de Queijo: Brazilian Cheese Bread

It was time for a restroom break where I felt for any lady who may have had an unexpected visitor…I noticed a few of these over the weekend.

esDReAQ.jpg


Japan

At Japan, I decided to get another drink as it had been all of 15 minutes since my last one. It was the right amount of sweet and sour. Totally different than many of the other cocktails around the festival but if you don’t like notes of sake - I would not recommend it. I know sake is something people either like or don’t like.

dHSGTPY.jpg

Fuji Apple Cocktail: Sake, Peach Schnapps and Green Apple Syrup

gaQzms7.jpg


Right after I got my drink and spied a Remy, the sky was beginning to open up like is typical of Florida in August/September. We made it under the awning before it really opened though.

fXqf5m9.jpg


So we took a break and shopped in the store where I found some cute things that I didn’t buy. I may buy some of those puzzles in November if they are still there but I haven’t done a puzzle in months due to Gantu.

OgqrOOO.jpg


SN8CD3o.jpg


The rain eventually eased up and we headed back into the world showcase where we ran into more characters/handlers doing their training behind American Adventure! This time, we just visited my favorite - Stitch! He was a fan of my tank top! These two events were such nice surprises!

PBlUspm.jpg


Y1fI3Gw.jpg


Brewer’s Collection

We continued on our way until I needed another drink. I went with a beer with 2.5% ABV so that is kinda like drinking water right? The pomegranate beer is one of those beers that tastes much better from a keg than it does from a bottle. It was also nice to have a little show to watch while I enjoyed my beer.

68SMDku.jpg

Schofferhofer Hefeweizen Pomegranate Beer

FMulKgB.jpg


It was nearing the end of our window for our FP+ of Frozen Ever After so we went to use that!

7QoPlnU.jpg


MBqkBpb.jpg


lDsu2KW.jpg


DP1XQ6t.jpg
I can't wait to visit the Ireland booth in November. Bummer those cute cups may be gone.
 
I can't wait to visit the Ireland booth in November. Bummer those cute cups may be gone.
Yeah...the bad part about going towards the end of the festival is that certain things may be out like the glasses or certain beers may have substitutions. At least the food will still be there!
 
Trip #2 Update: November FP+ Planning

Last week I was able to set up our FP+ for our November Trip. I didn't do it at exactly 60 days which meant I missed out on certain choices until later in the week. We aren't going to be too upset if we miss Flights of Passage this time around.

Friday November 2nd

9:20AM - 10:20AM - Haunted Mansion
10:30AM - 11:30AM - Space Mountain
12:10 - 1:10PM - Meet Mickey Mouse

Saturday November 3rd

9:35AM - 10:35AM - Expedition Everest
10:45AM - 11:45AM - Na’vi River Journey
1:00PM - 1:15PM - Up! A Great Bird Adventure

Sunday November 4th

5:20PM - 5:35PM - Voyage of the Little Mermaid
6:00PM - 7:00PM - Alien Swirling Saucers

Monday November 5th

9:20AM - 10:20AM - Toy Story Mania!
10:35AM - 11:35AM - Rock’n’Roller Coaster
11:40AM - 12:40AM - Star Tours

Tuesday November 6th

9:45AM - 10:45AM - Spaceship Earth
12:00PM - 1:00PM - Frozen Ever After

Thursday November 8th

9:00AM - 10:00AM - Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
10:00AM - 11:00AM - Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
11:10AM - 12:10PM - Pirates of the Caribbean

Friday November 9th

9:25AM - 10:25AM - Test Track
10:40AM - 11:40AM - Spaceship Earth

Saturday November 10th

9:35AM - 10:35AM - Rock’n’Roller Coaster
11:15AM - 12:15PM - Slinky Dog Dash
12:25PM - 1:25PM - Star Tours​
 
I will be at BWV 11/4-11/11 too. Our first two nights are at POFQ. We will be at the same parks a few days! Looking forward to read more from your September trip.
 
I think I just missed you at World Showplace that day! That's where I attended the "brunch w/" event and the characters were still out. I think I would have recognized you but I wasn't really paying attention. Bummer! All of your treats look delicious. I skipped the corned beef on the "potato chip dish" too - just the cheese and chips were fine by me! I am really looking forward to the weather cooling off a bit - my big trip is at the end of Oct - as it's hard to have much of an appetite for heavy food when it's surface of the sun hot out. It was sooooo hot that day! But, on the other hand, it totally justifies all of the beverages... hydration is the name of the game! I'd really like one of those Ireland glasses too. The beaker/flask thing just blows my mind -- how could they run out in under a week??? Your Nov FP plans look good! I was surprised how difficult it was to get FoP still - even at 60 days I could only find one day toward the end of a 10-day trip.
 
I always love your trip reports, they are so informative. Great pictures also. I'm looking forward to the drink in Ireland when we go next month. I hope they still have the glass.
 
How awesome to get two unexpected character paloozas!

The Irish dessert is so yummy!
I love your soak up the booze theory.:rotfl2:

Love your Stitch tank, very cute.
 
Trip #2 Update: November FP+ Planning

Last week I was able to set up our FP+ for our November Trip. I didn't do it at exactly 60 days which meant I missed out on certain choices until later in the week. We aren't going to be too upset if we miss Flights of Passage this time around.

Friday November 2nd

9:20AM - 10:20AM - Haunted Mansion
10:30AM - 11:30AM - Space Mountain
12:10 - 1:10PM - Meet Mickey Mouse

Saturday November 3rd

9:35AM - 10:35AM - Expedition Everest
10:45AM - 11:45AM - Na’vi River Journey
1:00PM - 1:15PM - Up! A Great Bird Adventure

Sunday November 4th

5:20PM - 5:35PM - Voyage of the Little Mermaid
6:00PM - 7:00PM - Alien Swirling Saucers

Monday November 5th

9:20AM - 10:20AM - Toy Story Mania!
10:35AM - 11:35AM - Rock’n’Roller Coaster
11:40AM - 12:40AM - Star Tours

Tuesday November 6th

9:45AM - 10:45AM - Spaceship Earth
12:00PM - 1:00PM - Frozen Ever After

Thursday November 8th

9:00AM - 10:00AM - Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
10:00AM - 11:00AM - Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
11:10AM - 12:10PM - Pirates of the Caribbean

Friday November 9th

9:25AM - 10:25AM - Test Track
10:40AM - 11:40AM - Spaceship Earth

Saturday November 10th

9:35AM - 10:35AM - Rock’n’Roller Coaster
11:15AM - 12:15PM - Slinky Dog Dash
12:25PM - 1:25PM - Star Tours​
We are going to be in the exact same places except Monday. I think some of our FP may even overlap, but I'm on my phone and can't check. We are bound to run into each other.
 
I will be at BWV 11/4-11/11 too. Our first two nights are at POFQ. We will be at the same parks a few days! Looking forward to read more from your September trip.

Awesome! If you run into us at the Boardwalk or the parks, please say hello! I may sometimes have RBF when I'm focused on something so don't take it personal if I look unfriendly as if you say hello, I totally will be!

I think I just missed you at World Showplace that day! That's where I attended the "brunch w/" event and the characters were still out. I think I would have recognized you but I wasn't really paying attention. Bummer! All of your treats look delicious. I skipped the corned beef on the "potato chip dish" too - just the cheese and chips were fine by me! I am really looking forward to the weather cooling off a bit - my big trip is at the end of Oct - as it's hard to have much of an appetite for heavy food when it's surface of the sun hot out. It was sooooo hot that day! But, on the other hand, it totally justifies all of the beverages... hydration is the name of the game! I'd really like one of those Ireland glasses too. The beaker/flask thing just blows my mind -- how could they run out in under a week??? Your Nov FP plans look good! I was surprised how difficult it was to get FoP still - even at 60 days I could only find one day toward the end of a 10-day trip.

Aw man! That's so sad you just barely missed me! I'm glad you stumbled upon the character event as well. The treats were good this time around. I'm hoping November is decently cooler. 90+ days mean less eating and more drinking!

They didn't plan very well if they are already out of the beaker/flasks or they just wanted it for the bloggers and who cares about the peons! Yeah - we're only doing 1 real AK day towards the beginning of the trip outside of our Savor the Savannah event so since we didn't get it - oh well! We'll be back eventually to try again. Looking forward to hearing about your 10 days in October!
 
Looks like a good line up!

Yup! I'm pretty happy with them. Now just to buy my express passes for Universal and I'm all set!

I always love your trip reports, they are so informative. Great pictures also. I'm looking forward to the drink in Ireland when we go next month. I hope they still have the glass.

Glad you enjoy my reports! I try to keep the info up so it isn't all fluff! Enjoy the milkshake. I could go for one right now!
 
How awesome to get two unexpected character paloozas!

The Irish dessert is so yummy!
I love your soak up the booze theory.:rotfl2:

Love your Stitch tank, very cute.

It was awesome to get two different unexpected character paloozas! Going this time of year was full of newly training CMs so at least this is a nice gift for that!

Cheese is one of my favorite booze soak ups.

We are going to be in the exact same places except Monday. I think some of our FP may even overlap, but I'm on my phone and can't check. We are bound to run into each other.

We hopefully will run into one another! (Monday and Wednesday - Wednesday we're in Universal!) Please say hello if you see us! I"ll keep an eye out for you as well.
 

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