Newsies' Quest for the Unicorn Pinata - A Julaugust TR - FINISHED 9/21!

:welcome: I'm so glad you're here!

I'm also so, so glad to have another theatre geek on board! What are some of your favorite shows?

I certainly love meet and greets! It's so annoying that you couldn't meet Moana, hopefully when you come back she'll be a regular again and you'll be able to meet her! She's a lot of fun to talk to!

Well, I have many favorite shows, but right now my favorites are Great Comet, Groundhog Day, Into the Woods, Hamilton, and The Wedding Singer. I also FINALLY won the lottery to see Lion King on Broadway which was very exciting!

Jasmine's meet and greet spot looks so pretty. And that pizza is making me hungry. I don't think I've ever been to Via Napoli before but I'll definitely be going on a future trip. I hope your night in Mexico is fun! My family has a great inside joke regarding Gran Fiesta Tour, so even though it's not the most thrilling ride I always try and go on it.
 
What a great morning you were having! TT & photopass photos and you STILL were able to get on Frozen with a short wait! Cute pics with Anna & Elsa too :)

Why did you have to post a pic of those stuffed llamas? Now I want one...bad!!

Wow the new pick a pearl area looks fancy!!

That's awesome that you could experience such an empty park! And it sounds like you had a lot of fun with your fam when they arrived!
 
“Are you looking for your diamond in the rough today?” She asked.

“Girl, YES!” I replied. She really gets me.

“Well, Aladdin and I will take you on a magic carpet ride and help you look sometime.” She offered. That’s my girl, offering to help set me up with a nice diamond in the rough.


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Such a cute meet! And all the details in Jasmine's little area are fantastic.

I flipped out when I saw that the Fairy Wings were back in Epcot and I knew they had to be mine!

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WHAT. How did I not know this was a thing????

“Which one of you brave souls would like to volunteer to go solo?” The Photopass CM asked. That would be me.

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Aww this is so cute!!!
 
Awww, look at Belle, so happy to leave her set to go help Maurice in a timely manner. So very very blessed this day.

Omg, you never met Jas and Al in Morocco? You missed out. And what a lovely M&G you had with her. Jas is honestly the sweetest. Also, just putting this in, I know Jas' friend and she's also friends with Elena so yeah, she'd be a pretty bomb meet since Elena is so lovely too. :thumbsup2

Oh I love the hidden fountain in Morocco! It's always so quaint and quiet in there.

YAS to the fairy wing magic shot. Boo to them not finding a decent spot for them. :sad2:

Your dad's face on Test Track is literally the best yet. Werk.

I SECOND YOUR VIA NAPOLI REC. Such a beautiful beautiful place with beautiful beautiful people (read: men) and delish delish food. I haven't had a pizza there though... I SHOULD GO BACK!!!

Awww, your family Photopass photos in China are so cute. I especially love that magic shot with you and Mushu. Honestly my favorite yet. You look so happy!

YOU NEVER RODE THE GRAN FIESTA TOUR BEFORE?!?! Ok, we REALLY should've hung out more on our DCP, particularly in Epcot because this is a travesty. Even though I totally know where this little cliffhanger is going... :teeth:
 


It was pure heaven! For those of you unfamiliar with Via Napoli, the flour for the pizza dough is imported from Italy, and the water is sourced from a spring here in America that matches the water in Campania. This gives you an “authentic” Italian pizza experience. The crust is very crispy, and topped with a thin layer of tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella. If you’ve never had Via Napoli pizza, VN is my top suggestion for your next Epcot ADR.

I totally agree! My husband and I tried Via Napoli on our last trip. I was skeptical, because I am picky with pizza, but it was SOOOOOO good! They also have my most favorite dessert, the Ugly But Good! OMG it was sooooo yummy!
 
Well, I have many favorite shows, but right now my favorites are Great Comet, Groundhog Day, Into the Woods, Hamilton, and The Wedding Singer. I also FINALLY won the lottery to see Lion King on Broadway which was very exciting!

Jasmine's meet and greet spot looks so pretty. And that pizza is making me hungry. I don't think I've ever been to Via Napoli before but I'll definitely be going on a future trip. I hope your night in Mexico is fun! My family has a great inside joke regarding Gran Fiesta Tour, so even though it's not the most thrilling ride I always try and go on it.

I haven't seen Great Comet or GHD yet, but I LOVE Into the Woods, Hamilton and Wedding Singer. Lion King on Broadway is so special and I'm so glad you won the lottery!

Jasmine's M&G spot is super lovely! I highly recommend Via Napoli and we did end up having a wonderful night in Mexico that I can't wait to share with you soon!

What a great morning you were having! TT & photopass photos and you STILL were able to get on Frozen with a short wait! Cute pics with Anna & Elsa too :)

Why did you have to post a pic of those stuffed llamas? Now I want one...bad!!

Wow the new pick a pearl area looks fancy!!

That's awesome that you could experience such an empty park! And it sounds like you had a lot of fun with your fam when they arrived!

It was definitely an out-of-the-ordinary quiet morning, I got to do a lot!

They're SO CUTE!!! I STILL want one, now about 3 weeks after I took that picture!

It's a lot different and a lot quieter, but it's also a lot prettier!

We had a lot of fun together in Epcot, I can't wait to update again!

Such a cute meet! And all the details in Jasmine's little area are fantastic.



WHAT. How did I not know this was a thing????



Aww this is so cute!!!

They did SUCH a great job with the details in Jasmine's M&G area. I love the lamp and the book so, so much!

The PP CMs have been REALLY quiet about this one, especially since it's only in Epcot with limited photographers. Now Disney has Facebook photo albums that show you what magic shots are available in each park, which really helped me on my quest for cute pics this trip!

Awww, look at Belle, so happy to leave her set to go help Maurice in a timely manner. So very very blessed this day.

Omg, you never met Jas and Al in Morocco? You missed out. And what a lovely M&G you had with her. Jas is honestly the sweetest. Also, just putting this in, I know Jas' friend and she's also friends with Elena so yeah, she'd be a pretty bomb meet since Elena is so lovely too. :thumbsup2

Oh I love the hidden fountain in Morocco! It's always so quaint and quiet in there.

YAS to the fairy wing magic shot. Boo to them not finding a decent spot for them. :sad2:

Your dad's face on Test Track is literally the best yet. Werk.

I SECOND YOUR VIA NAPOLI REC. Such a beautiful beautiful place with beautiful beautiful people (read: men) and delish delish food. I haven't had a pizza there though... I SHOULD GO BACK!!!

Awww, your family Photopass photos in China are so cute. I especially love that magic shot with you and Mushu. Honestly my favorite yet. You look so happy!

YOU NEVER RODE THE GRAN FIESTA TOUR BEFORE?!?! Ok, we REALLY should've hung out more on our DCP, particularly in Epcot because this is a travesty. Even though I totally know where this little cliffhanger is going... :teeth:

Belle must have felt #blessdt this morning. Oh, to be friends with Belle on an easy-going Epcot day.

I wanted to meet them in Morocco, but halfway through our very own program Disney #cuts took Al out of that M&G so I skipped over it. Also, I wasn't going to do this on the DIS because #integrity, but I'm pretty sure she was one of Elena's first friends that I met and she was equally as lovely.

It was SO serene and quiet, especially on this day, I was #shookt and had to take pics.

I'm sure they have MUCH better spots for the wings, but because it had been raining on/off, I didn't run into a whole lot of PP CMs, so I took what I got. We'll look out for better spots when we go next time.

Via Napoli is magical because one beautiful man brings you to your table, another beautiful man pours you a glass of water, and another beautiful man takes your order. Easily the most beautiful CMs in WS. God bless them and I can't wait for us to go there together.

TY BBY! I was happy because I love Mushu and knew exactly what she was posing me for. I was so excited!

My biggest regret is STILL not having hung out with you more, but there will be PLENTY of chances for us to go back!!!

I totally agree! My husband and I tried Via Napoli on our last trip. I was skeptical, because I am picky with pizza, but it was SOOOOOO good! They also have my most favorite dessert, the Ugly But Good! OMG it was sooooo yummy!

Via Napoli is one of the greatest restaurants in WDW! I had the Zeppoles when I went but the Ugly But Good sundae sounded fantastic as well!
 
Real Life Update: Carrying the Banner!
Hey ya'll! I just wanted to update you really quickly with what I've been up to for the past few days. I haven't been neglecting the TR, I've just been away from my computer for the past few days!

When I posted that update Monday morning, I was sitting in a Starbucks with my laptop, waiting for a train into NYC so that I could see a concert with my friends. My two friends live in a really cute historic neighborhood in Sunnyside and they have the sweetest dog ever!

Which concert were we seeing?

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NEWSIES STOP THE PRESSES AT 54 BELOW!

My friends and I met thanks to Newsies and we were really excited to be seeing the annual reunion concert in Midtown. Stop the Presses has been going on every year since 2014, but every year the concert cast gets smaller and smaller so I'm not sure how long it's going to continue. This was my first time seeing Stop the Presses and I was really excited! I got to see most of my favorites, including Andy, who is just the sweetest boy on earth. I haven't seen him in about two years and it was so nice getting to catch up with him!

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The concert itself was so much fun. We went to the 9:30 show, which is a lot... um, saucier... than the 7:00 show. There were a few different numbers, including a pop-punk mashup with all of my favorite songs. It's always great seeing what the guys are up to nowadays! Our seats were lovely, so close to the stage and even though we were to the side, we could see everything perfectly.

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I stayed in the city overnight Monday, came home late Tuesday, and spent most of yesterday baking. Today I'm going to the mall with my friend Alex to do some last-minute dorm shopping since move-in day is coming faster than the Rock-n-Roller Coaster Launch! I'm also very rapidly approaching the finish line for writing this TR, which I'm really happy about.

I'll post the next update in a few hours.

-Kaitlyn
 


I'M SO JEALOUS!!! Not just because you got to go see the Newsies boys doing their saucy thang, but 54 BELOW AND NYC GAAAAAHHHHH I miss it so much but I'm going to Cali and we're going to see each other there so I can't be upset that basically nixes NYC. Glad to hear it was a fun night and you little Crutchie Andy are adorbs.

GET THAT UPDATE HERE ASAP PLEASE :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2
 
I'M SO JEALOUS!!! Not just because you got to go see the Newsies boys doing their saucy thang, but 54 BELOW AND NYC GAAAAAHHHHH I miss it so much but I'm going to Cali and we're going to see each other there so I can't be upset that basically nixes NYC. Glad to hear it was a fun night and you little Crutchie Andy are adorbs.

GET THAT UPDATE HERE ASAP PLEASE :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2

Duuuuuuude I need you to come to NYC with me ASAP. We'd have a BLAST together. Andy and I are like basically BFFLs and I'll introduce you to him.

IT'S COMING FOR REAL NOW I PROMISE it's a double update for you.

What a fun night!!

I really enjoyed getting to see my friends and favorite actors!
 
The Perfect Piñata
August 2 cont.
They had cute little baskets and stalls of different types of things for sale. There were a lot of painted skulls and glass ornaments and shot glasses and such. Everything was very beautiful.

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Then in the middle of the temple, in the most unsuspecting place in all of Walt Disney World, I found the most perfect souvenir of all time.

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There it is. The unicorn piñata, in its entire glory.

They came in various sizes— the smallest, cutest, and cheapest one being $11. Like most things in the temple, they were handmade in Mexico.

I was sold on the piñata right then and there, of course. It was perfect. It was such a fun and unsuspecting souvenir. The perfect dorm decoration for the upcoming year. I love unicorns and at that moment, I realized that I was ab-so-lutely the type of girl to use a tiny piñata as a decoration for the top shelf of the desk in my dorm.

Long story short, the love affair with the unicorn piñata had begun.

I pulled myself away alongside the rest of my family after a good 5 minutes of hot internal debate.

Mom and dad needed to go to the bathroom and Grace wanted to go with them, but I decided to get in a short line to meet Donald, since I had never met him in his cute little sombrero and poncho.

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The meet itself was meh. It was quick and we just took a photo and parted ways. I wasn’t upset.

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After we reunited, mom told me that Frozen was apparently down. With less than an hour until our FP+ window opened, I got nervous so we made our way over there real quick.

It turns out that the ride had been down, but was just reopening and a group of people was rushing into it, so we rushed into it too. We ended up waiting about 30 minutes, which wasn’t bad!

We were stopped at the merge point, as it typically goes when you live the stand-by life, and a manager walked up to us to ask us about how long we waited. We ended up talking about my previous life as a Peter Pan/Small World CM and then went off to the boarding area.

What was the family verdict on Frozen Ever After?

They LOVED it! And I’m so happy they did, because I was worried they’d hate it and I would have wasted that golden Tier-1 FP+ on an experience they didn’t like.

Mom, Grace and I used that golden FP+ after we got off the ride since our window had opened while dad opted to sit the re-ride out in favor of a Norwegian beer.

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When we finished our second (well, my third) ride through the story of Frozen, we decided to head to our ADR. Even though it was an hour and a half early, I felt like the lucky streak was going strong that day, so I asked if we could check in early.

Turns out, we could.

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Hacienda was one of the ADRs I was most excited about this whole trip. I was a huge fan of the shrimp tacos they served at the Food and Wine Festival last year, and when I was doing my research for this trip, seeing them on the menu immediately put Hacienda on the radar. Grace was a little skeptical at first, so I really wanted the food to be good for her.

Hacienda was empty, and we had a lovely view of the water.

Our waitress this evening was Tatiana, and she was totally amazing. She was so fun, friendly, and had so many great recommendations for us!

The meal started out with chips and two different types of salsa (rojo and verde).

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At her recommendation, we opted to pay OOP for the Queso Fundido as an appetizer. “It’s my favorite and if you don’t like it, I’ll take it off your bill.” She assured us.

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She was right!

The Queso Fundido is basically just a small pan of melted jack cheese with chorizo sausage, some peppers, and a drizzle of some avocado-based puree. You can’t see it in this picture, but underneath the pan were a few soft tortillas for the cheese.

It was heavenly! I was skeptical because I’m not a huge fan of queso in general, but I’m so glad I tried this. The cheese was melty and stringy, and on top of the tortillas they were like little chorizo and pepper quesadillas!

For dinner, I ordered the shrimp tacos.

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Much like the Food and Wine version, these tacos are built on soft tortilla shells and contain fried shrimp, shredded red cabbage, a chipotle mayo sauce, and salsa verde. I almost ordered mine without the salsa verde, but Tatiana talked me into keeping it on their and again, I’m glad I listened to her, because they added the perfect “tang” to my favorite F&W dish! The shrimp is battered lightly, which I really like. The chipotle mayo is a little overpowering, and they really slathered it on these, but the tacos were still awesome.

For dessert, Grace, mom and I each ordered the Empanada de Manzana. Dad didn’t want anything at first, but Tatiana was just not having that.

“You gotta get dessert, it's the best part! Can I surprise you? I’ll bring you something that’s not on the menu!” She insisted. I swear, she was just the sweetest and coolest server we had all week! The food was already great, the restaurant was already beautiful and serene, and the meal just went a step above with her awesome service. I did end up tweeting to @WDWToday about how great she was that night.

Here’s a photo of the Empanada de Manzana.

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It tasted every bit as delicious as it looked. The pastry was nice and crisp on the outside, and the apples on the inside were sweet and not too mushy. Plus, the vanilla ice cream was amazing and really complimented the pastry, as vanilla ice cream tends to do.

So what did Tatiana surprise dad with?

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Churros! I tried one (or two), and they were everything a churro should be. Warm, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and a bundle of cinnamon-sugar goodness!

Sadly, our fantastic meal had to end and we had to leave Hacienda de San Angel. But we left with full bellies and a new favorite restaurant in the World Showcase, and I was more than content with that!

As we were walking towards Future World, I looked back at the Mexico pavilion one last time. I didn’t know if I would be able to return to Epcot, and that unicorn piñata was still on my mind. I made a compromise with myself: if I still wanted the piñata tomorrow, I would get it tomorrow. Tomorrow, it would be easy for me to just pop on over to Epcot and grab it, since it was my Hollywood Studios day and it was easy to get to Epcot from DHS.

We left after using our Spaceship Earth FP+, which I kind of didn’t want to do because it isn’t my favorite. I love the newsie and the smell of Rome burning, but it’s too slow for my liking. Grace and I had a lot of fun together on this ride, though. That was fun.

We went back to the resort, and I rested up for a little bit before heading out to Magic Kingdom. It was the Magic Kingdom EMH night, and I was really looking forward to it!

Or so I thought.

(Click here to continue!)
 
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The Crazy Crowds
August 2 cont.
When I got to Magic Kingdom, the turnstiles were out of control which was my first red flag. There were four lines, each crowded and out of control. It really didn’t help that each greeter raised their hand for guest service assistance at least once every three parties.

I got in about 10 minutes later and decided to go meet Tink, since there was nobody waiting to meet her. She was SERIOUSLY gorgeous!

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Tink actually gave me what Timmy told me is called a “love-and-shove”, where she basically took a photo with me and told me to fly back again real soon. That should have been my SECOND red flag. My homegirl Tink?!?! Giving ME love-and-shove?!?!? Unheard of.

It was in the middle of Happily Ever After when I got out of Tink’s M&G, and this was the worst night to be in the park during HEA. It was the last night of park access for a lot of the Summer Alumn/Spring-to-Summer Extension CPs, so everyone and their momma was watching HEA. I battled the crowd all the way to Tomorrowland, and well into Tomorrowland I sought refuge from the crazy crowds on my favorite Tomorrowland attraction, The PeopleMover.

I got off the PeopleMover, and there was a LINE to get on the PeopleMover. A line. PeopleMover. Third red flag.

I decided to just head back to Fantasyland and ran into one of my previous coworkers who I had seen earlier that week. We had fun chatting before I used a last-minute FP+ on the Punzie/Tiana side of the Hall.

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Punzie and I had SO much fun.

“You know how Attila makes cupcakes?” She asked me.

“Yes, they’re sublime!” I told her.

“Exactly! Well, our other friend Vladimir really likes unicorns, so Attila is going to make cupcakes with unicorns on them for him!” She told me.

“That’s CRAZY. Next he should make mime cupcakes for Ulf!” I suggested. We shared a laugh and took some photos.

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Tiana was also adorable that evening.

“Have you ever had a beignet?” She asked. She LOVES to bring the conversation to beignets.

“I haven’t, but I heard you make fantastic ones!” I told her.

“I do! You’ll have to try some, I’m trying to bring them into this Kingdom! You know I have a riverboat party, maybe I’ll start serving them there!” She explained.

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After a fun time in the Hall, I made my way to Small World. The Small World line was a bit large, as it usually gets after fireworks, so I kept walking into Frontierland.

I stopped to look in the pin store in Frontierland, but ended up not buying anything and continued to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. I got in the standby line JUST as they were making the switch to EMH and brought the handled scanners out. I had never been scanned for EMH before, I was always the scan-ee on my program, so that was a fun experience.

I pretty much walked onto BTMRR, so I thought about doing it again. Then when I got out of BTMRR, I saw the line to enter… and it was backed up all the way to the Splash Mountain bridge with at least two coordinators trying to get everything under control.

That was pretty much the fourth and final red flag for me that evening. I had been tired from a long day in Epcot, and decided that the crowds this evening just weren’t worth the three or four rides I would get to do, so I headed back. Even Aloha Isle had a long line for Dole Whips!

I got in a line for the monorail that was literally out of control. I waited for three monorails before I could board my own. It was intense.

Looking back, throwing in the towel for EMH at MK at 10:20 in the evening was probably the dumbest thing I did that entire trip. I should have sat down somewhere, or gone into a few stores until 11:00. Instead I battled the giant crowd of CPs on the monorail.

I got back to the hotel room at 11:15, took a shower, and went to sleep totally unprepared for the events that unfolded on our Hollywood Studios day.

(Click here to continue!)
 
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Lol I'm trying not to spoil anything, buuuuuttt... a unicorn piñata? Really?

Anyways, CANNOT BELIEVE YOU NEVER MET CABALLERO DONALD BEFORE!! Wow, I'm truly a character nut omg

Wow, y'all got so lucky with Frozen Ever After! I've only ridden it twice in my whole life and I'm pretty good with that, but I'm pretty proud of that. You did two runs within an hour. Insane.

La Hacienda looks and sounds so good! I don't think I ever got to try the shrimp tacos at Food & Wine. Such sadness. Next time because those look to DIE for. Just everything and what a delightful surprise with the churros! Yum yum YUM.

Our friendship might've ended because you cannot appreciate the brilliance that is Spaceship Earth presented by Siemens narrated by the Queen Dame Judi Dench. I'll move on, I'll move on.

Oh dear lord, THIS was last night for CPs. I am feeling a whole host of emotions on this update give me a minute.

SHOUTOUT TO ME ON THE "LOVE-AND-SHOVE"! And yeah, Tink NEVER gives "love-and-shoves", you usually have a little convo. Glad Punzie and my sis Tia didn't give you that. The hugging photos with them are so adorable. I miss their hugs :sad:

Ugggghhh, I'm sorry to hear your EMH was cut short because CP crowds and such. Throwback to me actually chilling on the Hub Grass after sobbing my way through the entire day eating Casey's waiting for the Kiss Goodnight... oh, now my keyboard's tear-stained. Oh whale.

Can't wait to hear about your Studios day minus the fact I'll probably cry again because GREAT MOVIE RIDE :sad: :sad: :sad:
 
Lol I'm trying not to spoil anything, buuuuuttt... a unicorn piñata? Really?

Anyways, CANNOT BELIEVE YOU NEVER MET CABALLERO DONALD BEFORE!! Wow, I'm truly a character nut omg

Wow, y'all got so lucky with Frozen Ever After! I've only ridden it twice in my whole life and I'm pretty good with that, but I'm pretty proud of that. You did two runs within an hour. Insane.

La Hacienda looks and sounds so good! I don't think I ever got to try the shrimp tacos at Food & Wine. Such sadness. Next time because those look to DIE for. Just everything and what a delightful surprise with the churros! Yum yum YUM.

Our friendship might've ended because you cannot appreciate the brilliance that is Spaceship Earth presented by Siemens narrated by the Queen Dame Judi Dench. I'll move on, I'll move on.

Oh dear lord, THIS was last night for CPs. I am feeling a whole host of emotions on this update give me a minute.

SHOUTOUT TO ME ON THE "LOVE-AND-SHOVE"! And yeah, Tink NEVER gives "love-and-shoves", you usually have a little convo. Glad Punzie and my sis Tia didn't give you that. The hugging photos with them are so adorable. I miss their hugs :sad:

Ugggghhh, I'm sorry to hear your EMH was cut short because CP crowds and such. Throwback to me actually chilling on the Hub Grass after sobbing my way through the entire day eating Casey's waiting for the Kiss Goodnight... oh, now my keyboard's tear-stained. Oh whale.

Can't wait to hear about your Studios day minus the fact I'll probably cry again because GREAT MOVIE RIDE :sad: :sad: :sad:

The unicorn piñata will add DEPTH and a STORY and a MESSAGE to this TR. It will be POETIC. I promise.

I was FEA insane that day lol. It's SUCH a good ride though! You know how much of a #fan I am of Disney's cutesy little boat rides, especially when Frozen or the princesses are involved. It's like a dark ride with a drop.

LaHa is my new favorite in the WS. Seriously underrated and seriously delicious. And now I miss F&W!

I can appreciate SE sometimes. The first time I went on it, I adored it, and it's the quintessential Epcot attraction. I just wasn't up to it tonight with EMH rapidly approaching.

YES, you texted me that day saying that MK was gonna be a mess and I was so relieved to be in Epcot. I didn't get to enjoy my last day of park admission in Magic Kingdom! I was packing and waiting for mom and dad to come get me so that we could check into the Poly, so I didn't have any of the ~*~ feelings ~*~ that the CPs did that night!

Yeah, it was a shock to me! She's usually the most talkative character, but I guess I used up all my conversation points with Elsa and her chocolate stealing goose that morning.

Looking back, I can't really blame EMH just on the crowds. Like I said, it's totally Disney's fault for the 10 o'clock closings this summer. It screws over everybody staying on property. But that actually sounds like a lovely way to wait for the Kiss. With Casey's on the hub grass... oh, to have experienced that with you :sad:

Okay, I literally had tears coming out of my eyes as I wrote the GMR update. It's the most unnecessarily deep update I've ever written in my entire life. I think I'm gonna write a little bit more because I'm starting to catch up on the gap between what I've posted and what I have pre-written, then I'll post about GMR.
 
Now Disney has Facebook photo albums that show you what magic shots are available in each park, which really helped me on my quest for cute pics this trip!

OO this is good to know!

There it is. The unicorn piñata, in its entire glory.

Awww it's so cute!

“It’s my favorite and if you don’t like it, I’ll take it off your bill.” She assured us.

She was pretty confident, huh?

was skeptical because I’m not a huge fan of queso in general, but I’m so glad I tried this.

WHAT? How are you not a queso fan?? Queso is the actual best thing ever.

I made a compromise with myself: if I still wanted the piñata tomorrow, I would get it tomorrow.

I have had this mental conversation so many times, especially while in WDW.

Or so I thought.

Uh oh...

It was the last night of park access for a lot of the Summer Alumn/Spring-to-Summer Extension CPs, so everyone and their momma was watching HEA.

Oh dear.

I got back to the hotel room at 11:15, took a shower, and went to sleep totally unprepared for the events that unfolded on our Hollywood Studios day.

Currently unsure whether that's a good or bad thing. Either way, can't wait to read about it!
 
The unicorn pinatas are so cute! The Mexico pavillion always has such cool stuff.

Glad you were able to get on Frozen Ever After. You all look so happy in your ride photo!

What an awesome meal! Your server sounds wonderful and those churros look delish.

I'm sorry EMH were crazy, but at least you got to get a few things done! Your time in PFH sounds like it was a lot of fun!
 
Go to Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie and get your Roule Lard & Fromage on.

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My most favorite snack in all of Epcot! I can practically taste it right now :p


I looooove this, omg!


Via Napoli is a favorite for my family. We love our pizza, and there’s no better pizza in WDW than Via Napoli.
Loved their pizza so much. And I had the best moscow mule there back in November. I still dream about it lol


“It’s my favorite and if you don’t like it, I’ll take it off your bill.” She assured us.
Well, with a guarantee like that, how could you refuse?!
 
OO this is good to know!



Awww it's so cute!



She was pretty confident, huh?



WHAT? How are you not a queso fan?? Queso is the actual best thing ever.



I have had this mental conversation so many times, especially while in WDW.



Uh oh...



Oh dear.



Currently unsure whether that's a good or bad thing. Either way, can't wait to read about it!

Definitely keep checking it out, they're always updating!

It was SO cute, I fell in love!

She was great. I loved the confidence! I'd take a server who pushed me to try a dish over a server who gives wishy-washy advice any day of the week.

K, here's the thing: I HATE liquid cheese. So bad. I think it's the grossest thing in the world. And where I'm from, we don't have good Mexican food so the only type of "queso" we have is the generic, liquid unidentifiable mixture of... "cheese." If ALL queso was like the queso I had at Hacienda, I would be eating it every day!

RIIIIGHT? And it's SUCH a dangerous mindset because you really never know if you're going to see it again!

Even though the rest of that night was rough, the next day was really, really good and I can't wait to tell you about it!

The unicorn pinatas are so cute! The Mexico pavillion always has such cool stuff.

Glad you were able to get on Frozen Ever After. You all look so happy in your ride photo!

What an awesome meal! Your server sounds wonderful and those churros look delish.

I'm sorry EMH were crazy, but at least you got to get a few things done! Your time in PFH sounds like it was a lot of fun!

I certainly thought it was, too! I didn't realize how awesome the Mexico pavilion was until literally two years ago when my family and I went inside for the first time. Really, really great stuff in there.

I'm glad we were able to get on it together, too! They really enjoyed it!

It was probably the best meal we had this trip and I really hope we can return someday.

Eh, water off a duck's back. It may have been crazy, but like you said, PFTH was SO much fun that evening, it wasn't a total loss by any means. And the next day was so great that it totally blew any kind of trouble we had this week out of the water!

My most favorite snack in all of Epcot! I can practically taste it right now :p



I looooove this, omg!



Loved their pizza so much. And I had the best moscow mule there back in November. I still dream about it lol



Well, with a guarantee like that, how could you refuse?!

It is SO. GOOD. I can't believe more people don't talk about it! I'm glad you understand!

Thanks, I was really hoping I could get the shot and it turned out great!

Via Napoli is all around just one of the best TS meals in Epcot. Great food, great drinks, great service. You can't go wrong!

You could say it was an offer I couldn't refuse.

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The Great Goodbye
August 3

I didn’t really want to rope drop Hollywood Studios. But mom, dad and Grace were up at 8:00, so I got up, too.

“Are you guys getting breakfast?” I asked, hoping the answer would be ‘heck yeah we’re going to kona café lets get some tonga toast’.

“No, we’re taking a tour of the Poly suites.” Dad explained.

Story time: This was not mom and dad’s first DVC tour. In 2015, they toured the Grand Floridian. In 2014, there was some other property that they supposedly went on while I was in Magic Kingdom one day. At the beginning of this year, we stayed in a Bora Bora Bungalow which was not really a tour so much as a magical upgrade but we DID get to see the bungalows. And now they were touring the suites at the Poly. They do the tour, talk numbers for 30 minutes, collect their 3 FP+ and continue the vacation. They really want to buy, and they get closer and closer every year. At the start of the vacation, they were casually talking to a DVC rep and mentioned they were trying to buy in December. So we were getting closer, but we weren't quite there yet!

I seriously debated going back to sleep, but once I’m awake, I’m awake, so I just decided to get dressed and do the Hollywood Studios rope drop thing.

I had to wait a long time for a bus. I think I was out there for 25 minutes or something, other people were getting aggravated. The bus was full by the time we all got on, which was not fun. After a 15 minute drive, we were dropped off at the bus-drop off station which was approximately three miles away from the main entrance. Then the line for bag check was ridiculous, so another 10 minutes, but I breezed through the turnstiles and headed right for Great Movie Ride.

I thought about rope dropping Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster, but I didn’t know how long the GMR line was going to get that day, so I decided to rip the band-aid off and board my favorite tour of the movies for the very last time.

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I waited about 15 minutes in line, which was okay with me, since I really wasn’t looking to rush through this experience. Great Movie Ride was my favorite ride in Hollywood Studios and probably my second or third favorite ride in all of Walt Disney World. Since our first family trip in 2010, I’ve probably been on this ride at least 15 times which doesn’t sound like a lot now but I went on it like almost once a weekend during my DCP, it was intense. When they announced the closure at D23, my heart was absolutely shattered. I knew it had been coming for a while, but I tried to remain hopeful for as long as possible until they announced it. Having to say goodbye this trip was difficult.

I was getting teary eyed as I watched the marquis light up, so we were already off to a rough start.

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We went through the musical movie scene and I was sad when I realized I would never see Mary and Bert up there again.

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Then we went through the gangster scene.

And for the very first time, the ONLY time in my 15+ times on Great Movie Ride, we did not get stopped by a gangster.

I was shook when I realized we were getting the cowboy scene. I first heard about the cowboy in 2014, and back then, it was lauded as a rare occurrence on the DIS, so I became weirdly obsessed with the idea of getting the cowboy instead of the gangster. During my CP, I would go more and more frequently to increase my chances of finally getting the cowboy, but for some odd reason, I always missed him, which only made me more obsessed with him.

And on this very day, on my very last time on the Great Movie Ride, I finally caught him.

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Not to get "deep" on you guys, but... at that moment, I was content to know I would never ride Great Movie Ride again. Seeing the cowboy felt like closure. I really don’t mean to sound cheesy, but looking back, it was weirdly metaphorical. I went on the ride over and over again hoping to get the cowboy hijacker, and after 15+ times of going through the gangster scene, I got the cowboy scene. Kind of like directing a movie. You do the scene over and over again until finally you get the shot you’re looking for. Then that’s a wrap and it’s time to move on.

Well, after ducking my head in fear of the alien for the last time, tearfully looking back at Dorothy for the last time, and basically open-sobbing through the final movie, that was a wrap for the Great Movie Ride.

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I dried my tears up and saw that there was a friendly PhotoPass CM just standing around with a camera outside of the theater, so I went to go and see her.

“I have a fish-eye lense, so it’s different and cool!” She explained. I later learned that they were testing this out for PhotoPass day which happened last weekend.

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“Show me how you’re feeling about this ride closing.” She said.

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“Let’s go to the lion/dragon statue. This is a moving photo shoot!” She said. “I don’t know if it’s a lion or a dragon, but I’m saying it’s a lion. Roar like a lion!”

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She was a lot of fun, I really appreciated the shoot! After the photos, I decided to get some Starbucks from the Trolley Car Café.

While I was in line for the Trolley Car Café, I realized that mom and dad would not be in Studios for literally hours, if at all, thanks to the DVC tour. And I was still thinking about that unicorn piñata. Being in Studios was making me sad knowing that I would never see GMR again, so I decided to take the time to go back to Epcot and grab the piñata. There wasn’t anything else in Studios that I really wanted to do, so I figured I would grab it and if mom, dad and Grace had their heart set on coming here, I could rejoin them later.

I put my order in—venti caramel iced latte, and waited around by the bar for my name to be called.

I felt my phone buzz and I rolled my eyes when I saw it was from my father. I opened it up and I was really confused to see what he had sent me:

“What’s your social security number?”

My heart sank because my first reaction was that I had messed up a tax form for the summer camp I was working at. Dad and the camp director have been working together in the same building for 20 years now, and she went to him first when I messed something up on my rehire paperwork at the start of the summer. I was really NOT trying to deal with township summer job nonsense this week.

“Why do you need to know?” I asked.

“We’re buying the Vacation Club and you’re going on the deed.”

(Click here to continue!)
 
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Holy Crap! They did it! I can't wait to hear more! And I hope you actually got over to EPCOT for the Unicorn Piñata!
 

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