“Rise” to the Challenge, FREAK!! Done and new trip report started 5/2/21

[pkondz]

I’m not going to lie, it was cold out! I should have bought a hat.

Shoulda, coulda, woulda...

I have lived in Minnesota all my life and I have not worn a winter hat since I was a kid. Stubborn I am!

Wow! Surprised you haven't gotten frostbite on your ears!
Then again, you have hair and I do not.

My curly hair and face shape don’t look good in a hat

I highly doubt this.

I don’t even own a winter hat. I didn’t feel like buying a hat today

So... you're saying no hat?

We then went to The Seas, we found Nemo, Bruce, Dory, and Marlin as we rode in our clamshell.

Ha! Now I'm thinking if I ever watch those movies again, I'll be thinking. "Nemo's lost? Nope! Caroline found him!"

The divers were getting ready to feed the fish in the aquarium and we really enjoyed watching this.

That's cool. I've never seen that.

We spent some time in America and I found a really nice print of Epcot. It is small and perfect for my shelf at home.

I like that one.

We also went across the Delaware with George Washington.

Ah yes. Love the Disney boat transportation.

I have to say I had never entered any of the shops in Italy I mean really what is wrong with me.

Yeah! What's wrong with you???

Um... margherita? with mushrooms?

Cute shot of you guys. One has a hat, one has gloves...

It was so windy waiting for this, I was cursing myself for not getting a hat.

So... hat? Or not to hat?

We went out and saw the Living statues

I'm thinking they must've been cold!

This evening was a quiet one for me. I never left the room. I relaxed and stayed warm watching TV.

Sounds very nice.

I ate snacks in the room. I had cheese and crackers, chips, and candy. Perfect TV watching food.

 

[disneyAndi14]

Time to get our Palooza on.....

We walked right into a Character Palooza in WS, this was so fun. We met all the characters that were out.
This is a fun and casual way to meet some favorites!
Pluto

Goofy

Rifiki

Mickey

#1 Donald

We had a fun meet and the CM’s are very willing to take photos for you with your phone or camera.
Here are a few more pictures of our Epcot morning, Morocco passport, the living statues, obligatory bubble gum wall photos and the last one isn’t the best but I wanted to show you all my night view from the room. Fireworks from MK in the far background!





Stay tuned for Day 9, still cold and “I lava you”

 

[pkondz]

We walked right into a Character Palooza in WS, this was so fun. We met all the characters that were out.

Score!

the living statues,

Statues... because they were frozen solid?

I wanted to show you all my night view from the room. Fireworks from MK in the far background!

Wow! What a view!

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Great photos and amazing room view! Well deserved too

 

[kastoney]

We will hopefully be going 8/17-8/24 and staying at The Boardwalk Inn, yay! We will get new AP’s with our tickets from this package and eat a lot of food!!

I'll keep everything I can cross crossed for you. I'm hoping to redo our April DL trip in August but haven't booked anything yet.

I booked the California Grill for us at HEA time, excited about this!

Oh I so love CG at anytime but watching the fireworks from up there really just makes the whole experience

We are also thinking about a November trip for Andi’s 21st Birthday It is hard to believe my baby girl will be drinking age! She wants to drink around WS, responsibly of course!

I cannot believe she is going to be 21. You should be a proud Mama that your 21 year old wants to spend her birthday drinking around the world with you. We should all be so lucky

Our dates would be 11/21-11/28 so a Thanksgiving Trip. I would like to stay in the Epcot area again. The prices are high at this time.

We are currently at AKL for the first week in November. Hoping that rates will drop once Disney reopens and they try and entice folks back

don’t even own a winter hat.

How does someone from Minnesota not have a winter hat???????

Our pizza was so yummy We both really enjoyed this.

Even with the mushrooms this looks great. Via Napoli really is just the best pizza

Andi bought me the Star Wars refillable mug this trip. She surprised me with it at OKW. She felt bad because I was stressed with all the problems we were having. I thought this was so sweet of her! I was loving this and we both used it many times to fill up on soda.

♥ ♥ ♥

Wow, that is some amazing view. We will definitely have to stay here sometime

 

[dwonderz]

I am not fond of hats even if it is a necessity.

I am 100% with you! Going to college in Western NY it was frigid and I never once wore a hat! I just can't stand them.

I found a really nice print of Epcot.

I love that print!! I got a print of one of the resorts in that same size by the same artist - I think they're great!

Love the character palooza shots!

 

[Gina Starr]

It’s funny how alike our days were! We also went to Epcot this day and did a lot of the same things, including leaving early to get out of the cold and hanging out in the room for the night!

I’ve been wanting to try Via Napoli based on all the rave reviews but I’m not a big pizza fan (blasphemy- I know!) so I will have to check out the menu.

 

[disneyAndi14]

Shoulda, coulda, woulda...

The hat dilemma haha

Wow! Surprised you haven't gotten frostbite on your ears!
Then again, you have hair and I do not.

I do have a nice pair of ear gloves, they fit right over each ear and with a scarf, it works perfect

I highly doubt this.

Thank you!

So... you're saying no hat?

No HAT!!

Ha! Now I'm thinking if I ever watch those movies again, I'll be thinking. "Nemo's lost? Nope! Caroline found him!"

Those fish keep getting lost, will it ever end? Haha

That's cool. I've never seen that.

The fish feeding was very interesting. A CM narrates what the divers are doing. We really liked watching. Look for it next time. I believe it was right at 10am.

I like that one.

I bought a frame for it and it looks so nice on my built in shelf.

Ah yes. Love the Disney boat transportation.

So true!

Um... margherita? with mushrooms?

I guess more of a cheese pizza base, they did put some basil on it, no tomato

Cute shot of you guys. One has a hat, one has gloves...

I’m not opposed to gloves!

So... hat? Or not to hat?

Did I talk about this to much, I sure did

I'm thinking they must've been cold!

They had layers and layers of cold blocking paint.

Sounds very nice

Relaxing for an evening at the resort is always a nice reprieve from the busy parks

Score

It was so fun to be at the right place at the right time for the Characters

Statues... because they were frozen solid?

Exactly

Wow! What a view!

I was surprised to see the fireworks out there it was wonderful!

 

[disneyAndi14]

Great photos and amazing room view! Well deserved too

Thank you, it was really fun “accidentally” running into all the characters
and the view made it easy to have a lounge night!

 

[ariane37]

August, maybe??

My Magic 8 ball says..............yes

November, please???

OH definitely yes!!!

We will hopefully be going 8/17-8/24 and staying at The Boardwalk Inn, yay!

Glad the FD is working out for you! Pretty much all my clients took advantage of it and I don't blame them lol.
Also right now we're booked for most of our July stay at BWI!

Our dates would be 11/21-11/28 so a Thanksgiving Trip

My favorite time to go Just yesterday Steve was talking about going for Thanksgiving but since it'll be Ricky's first larger break at home from college I think he'll want to spend time with friends................

I should have bought a hat. I am not fond of hats even if it is a necessity. I have lived in Minnesota all my life and I have not worn a winter hat since I was a kid.

While not quite as cold in NY as Minnesota I do feel the same about hats and can't remember the last time I wore one at home! I didn't even have one - until our January trip when I caved and bought that blue hat with the castle on it! Totally glad I did, we needed it lol

We spent some time in America and I found a really nice print of Epcot. It is small and perfect for my shelf at home.

Really nice We have quite a few of Larry Dotson's prints hanging at home

We walked right into a Character Palooza in WS, this was so fun. We met all the characters that were out.
This is a fun and casual way to meet some favorites!
Pluto

Awesome!!!

 

[disneyAndi14]

I'll keep everything I can cross crossed for you. I'm hoping to redo our April DL trip in August but haven't booked anything yet.

I hope we can go in August! It will be so sad if everything is still closed!
DL is a place we want to visit and had thought of August for that in 2021.

Oh I so love CG at anytime but watching the fireworks from up there really just makes the whole experience

I’m excited, we haven’t eaten dinner here before!

I cannot believe she is going to be 21. You should be a proud Mama that your 21 year old wants to spend her birthday drinking around the world with you. We should all be so lucky

It is so hard to believe, I want my little baby girl back, haha Actually it is nice having adult Andi to share trips with and yes so lucky she still wants to spend time with mom!

We are currently at AKL for the first week in November. Hoping that rates will drop once Disney reopens and they try and entice folks back

The rates are crazy right now, $600.00 for YC/BC come on! I would expect a butler with those prices!

How does someone from Minnesota not have a winter hat???????

I do have ear gloves and a scarf, that works for me, plus I am opposed to being outside in very cold weather for more than 5-10 minutes

Even with the mushrooms this looks great. Via Napoli really is just the best pizza

It really was good and the olives were a nice addition.

Wow, that is some amazing view. We will definitely have to stay here sometime

It really is a wonderful view and the price was great. I hope it doesn’t increase a lot in the next year!

I am 100% with you! Going to college in Western NY it was frigid and I never once wore a hat! I just can't stand them.

Yay! Another hat hater! My daughter wears on all the time, no way, not me!

I love that print!! I got a print of one of the resorts in that same size by the same artist - I think they're great!

Love the character palooza shots!

I really liked his prints and I bought a frame and it looks so nice on my shelf
The character palooza is such a fun time!

 

[disneyAndi14]

It’s funny how alike our days were!

It is! It was cold that morning and even more noticeable in WS! These couple cold days were nice to relax in the room and not feel bad about it.

I’ve been wanting to try Via Napoli based on all the rave reviews but I’m not a big pizza fan (blasphemy- I know!) so I will have to check out the menu.

I have heard positive reviews about other menu items at Via Napoli, other than the Arancini, bread, and mozzarella/tomato appetizer, we have only had pizza!

 

[disneyAndi14]

My Magic 8 ball says..............yes

I like your Magic 8 ball!

Glad the FD is working out for you! Pretty much all my clients took advantage of it and I don't blame them lol.
Also right now we're booked for most of our July stay at BWI!

It really just barely comes out ahead and that is because I added the cost of our AP’s into this. I normally wouldn’t do a FD because it doesn’t really work for us. I thought I would try it and if a better rate comes out for AP I will switch to that. The cost of the AP’s is the real killer. I would take the partial refund for our AP’s this year and use towards the new ones. I would rather do that since we won’t get use out of ours even with the extension.

My favorite time to go Just yesterday Steve was talking about going for Thanksgiving but since it'll be Ricky's first larger break at home from college I think he'll want to spend time with friends.

We really liked Thanksgiving time only 2017, we didn’t find it crazy like some other times!

While not quite as cold in NY as Minnesota I do feel the same about hats and can't remember the last time I wore one at home!

You were smart to buy a hat, my ears, Head, and neck could have used one

Awesome

The Palooza’s are so fun! We have been lucky to come across several!

 

[Jenny Sanders]

Hi, Caroline. Too funny! I often refuse to wear a winter hat too.
We left on Tuesday so we only spent time in the cold at DS.

 

[Steppesister]

It is and we came upon it by accident!

Don't you love when that happens? The parks and resorts are so big and so detailed that I am still constantly finding new things.

I have read about the cattle herding walk over there, not fun when you are short like us!

Absolutely. Almost scary, actually.

Ummm, probably a few

I would stay a step up from Casey’s

Even better!

Yes, gives me time to finish this one way before our next trip!

Which will be whenever WHO knows? Pun intended. In all seriousness, I'm worried about my trip to Italy in September. If international travel is out... not sure.

Yes they are back, hope you get a fresh one!

Can't wait!!! Nom, nom!!

I decided to book the Free Dining for August after much Disney math!

Which get a little fuzzy at times.

We will hopefully be going 8/17-8/24 and staying at The Boardwalk Inn, yay! We will get new AP’s with our tickets from this package and eat a lot of food!!

OH...! Sweet set up!

I think we will add a night at the beginning of the trip to spend at US. We will stay at one of the Deluxe resorts for the express pass!

Perfect! Deluxe is the only way to go there.

Our timing was perfect.

I love when that happens!!

Nice one!

I have to say I had never entered any of the shops in Italy I mean really what is wrong with me. We really only shop in Japan and Morocco It was fun looking around the little shops.

I love the little shops! I don't spend a ton of time in each one but there really is some unique stuff in them. Aside, of course, from the American and Canadian ones.

Our pizza was so yummy We both really enjoyed this.

That looks so amazing!

The festival center had images of the new Epcot and it was fun to look around at all the changes that will be happening to the park.

I am so excited to finally have all of that done. I wonder if during all of this they are working on it and maybe the pace has even picked up? I hope so!

 

[pkondz]

I do have a nice pair of ear gloves, they fit right over each ear and with a scarf, it works perfect

So I see!

No HAT!!

But gloves are okay!

Those fish keep getting lost, will it ever end? Haha

It's a seasonal thing, you know.

The fish feeding was very interesting. A CM narrates what the divers are doing. We really liked watching. Look for it next time. I believe it was right at 10am.

Cool. I'd like to see that.

I bought a frame for it and it looks so nice on my built in shelf.

I'm sure it does.

I’m not opposed to gloves!

Yes... I noticed...

Did I talk about this to much, I sure did

Noo? Don't think so?

They had layers and layers of cold blocking paint.

I was surprised to see the fireworks out there it was wonderful!

I bet!

 

[lvcourtneyy]

We will hopefully be going 8/17-8/24 and staying at The Boardwalk Inn, yay! We will get new AP’s with our tickets from this package and eat a lot of food!!

Awesome! I can't wait until we can go to our happy place again.

We are also thinking about a November trip for Andi’s 21st Birthday It is hard to believe my baby girl will be drinking age! She wants to drink around WS, responsibly of course!

Wow 21! I took my sister for her 21st birthday and spending it in Epcot was so special. She had her first legal drink in France and the CMs really played it up.

Ahh writing this makes me a little sad especially missing Flower and Garden this year.

Andi bought me the Star Wars refillable mug this trip. She surprised me with it at OKW. She felt bad because I was stressed with all the problems we were having. I thought this was so sweet of her!

Aw

We walked right into a Character Palooza in WS, this was so fun. We met all the characters that were out.

Oo I love when that happens!

 

[schumigirl]

Caroline, still reading along!!

Love all your pics as always and the palooza looked so much fun!!!! But how cold was January...….and you`re so used to the cold already.....have to admit, I wear a hat constantly in the winter....couldn't go out without one. And you suit a hat too.....

Fingers crossed for your August trip......I truly hope you get to that trip a sit sounds wonderful.…...Andi 21???? How did that happen...

 

[Tracy161]

Tracy, I am so sorry! This is so hard especially if you are planning a major event like your sister! I pray this all improves very soon and you can see your sister! When is she getting married? All my best and stay safe and well!!

Thank you, Caroline! She's getting married June 3... well, that's when it's scheduled. I think we've all came to the realization that won't actually be happening. I'm glad you got your August trip booked! Those dates were the exact dates I was there in August last year I know August is hot, but I LOVE my August trips

I have to say I had never entered any of the shops in Italy I mean really what is wrong with me. We really only shop in Japan and Morocco

SAME! I've so rarely ventured into the Italy shops. I think they intimidate me

I hope you're staying safe and well, Caroline! I think about you every time I show up for a mask-making volunteer shift The world is so lucky to have people like you

 

[missangelalexis]

Lovely Epcot print you purchased!

Sounds like a good lunch!

Great characterpalooza pics! I love your Marie shirt