Sorry Gaston, They are MUCH More Interesting Than You!*6/8* NEW Trip Report Link p154

[annmarieda]

As I read through your bests and firsts, I was struck with the thought "best vacation EVER". You certainly seem to have had it! What an amazing time.

Can't wait to read all about your next adventures.

 

[rndmr2]

Great wrap up! It really was a fun TR to follow! Can't wait for the next one. I would love to do a Girl's trip one day but I don't know that my DH will want to be left out of the fun! LOL

 

[dawnbu40]

Great wrap up! Thank you for sharing another wonderful trip report

 

[MEK]

Fantastic wrap up, Mary Ellen. I love the long list of firsts! That's what's amazing about disney, no matter how many times you go there are so many new things to be done and seen and eaten.

It's true - there are always more firsts to add to the list. Some are big firsts like new attractions and some are just minor firsts. But they all count as something new and I seek them out every trip!

I love your favourites list too. Many of my own favourites made their way there.

Right on Sister! I had so many favorite moments this trip. It really was so magical!

I've done September and November, but not October. Some day. I want to do a girls trip too, it just looks like so much fun!
I have very much enjoyed this joint TR by the two of you, thank you both for sharing. Mary Ellen, I can't wait to hear about your next one!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

Thank you for being such a big part of our TR! I really didn't think October would be as great as it was, but it was better than I imagined! Part of it is the weather. I love the weather here in September and the October weather in Orlando was just like September weather here. Just so refreshing.

What a great wrap up and I cannot believe I made your favorites -

You are surprised about that? Meeting you with all our extended meets was too much fun!

Seriously though- I love Food and Wine and getting to share part of it with you and Cynthia was great. I truly appreciate the invite to the party and part of the famous trio and had a wonderful time visiting and getting to know you both.

Same here! I really hope we have trips that align again in the future. We really did have a blast at the party. I know May is not good for you, but I'm still hoping that maybe you'll be able to make an appearance during our May 14 trip!

Enjoy your trip and I look forward to hearing all about it.

Thanks! I do NOT want any medical incidents this trip!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Thanks for the re-cap and all of the great pictures again! I hope you have a blast on your upcoming trip!

 

[afwdwfan]

Excellent write up on your final thoughts/favorites (and a whole lot of good pictures)! One thing just really stuck out to me.

First time using an Annual Pass for 21 days total in a calendar year.

I'm extremely jealous of this fact.

I look forward to following along on your next TR!

 

[emmysmommy]

What an awesome wrap up with all your favorites and firsts. That carrot cake cookie, those sunsets, the misty woods from your run, and your random Dis-meets, dining al fresco at HBD - what a fantastic trip!

With your next trip on-deck, I hope you have as much fun and good times to make more magical memories! Oh, and give Kathy (KatMark) a hug for me! And then have her give one to you from me!!!

 

[Pinkocto]

Favorite random shot of someone else's children, too funny

I felt the same way this trip, I'm coming home. It's a great feeling.

Thanks for the great recap. And thanks again for sharing the adventure

 

[mickeystoontown]

Just wanted to pop in to let you know that I'm caught up thanks to my boss having appointments this morning. Thanks for a couple of pictures of Caribbean Beach Resort. As you can imagine, I'm having some post Disney blues right now.

The pictures from the airplane are gorgeous!

 

[KatMark]

Loved your list of firsts, your recap and your photos.

I look forward to meeting you a week from Monday.

 

[jash08]

We love food and wine too! Being there on our honeymoon was AMAZING!

Great report as always. Can't wait to join in the next one.

Trust me, if Jeremy and I can drive to Florida and back and not dispose of each other, so can you!

 

[jecskc]

I enjoyed your TR as always Mary Ellen !! Can't wait to read about the next one and see your amazing photos.

 

[MeMom]

Such a nice way to end the report - great pictures and wonderful thoughts.

 

[eandesmom]

Ok I can't possibly comment on all the amazing pics but what a GREAT recap!!! I feel very lame, that was wonderful!

Final Thoughts

What haven't I said already???

I absolutely loved going to the world during F&W. I certainly understand the appeal. It's just a fabulous time to visit. It gives a whole new dimension to the Disney experience. I think I have found my new favorite time to visit and I seriously can't wait to go back this October.

The weather in October was perfect - sunny, warm, and low humidity during the day and pleasant/occasionally cool evenings. True perfection!

The crowds were steady, but nothing I would really call heavy, with the exception of Saturday night in Epcot.

Bottom line - if you've never done a F&W trip and have been dreaming of one, what are you waiting for? GO!

Ditto
Ditto
and
DITTO!

Girl's Trips - I am such a big fan of girl's trips. They are SO much fun. I'm not saying that I don't love family trips or couple trips, but there is something really special about a girl's trip. IMHO girls don't do enough for themselves and this is just a fabulous way for a gal to get away from it all. Cynthia is an awesome roommate and I look forward to future girl's trips with her!

YOU are an awesome roomie!!!! There is just something very different and special about a girls trip than a family, couples only, or even all adult (but mixed) trip. It's a wonderful and rejuvenating treat where you can really do just what YOU want all the time and never feel guilty about it! When does that happen in real life?

F&W is also a great time for DIS meets. Let's see - I think we had 6 impromptu or planned DIS meets including (in random order) the group meet, Melissa and her DH, Tracy, Christine, Pat, and Sheree. Oh -and Tina. That's 7!!!

I loved all the spontaneous meets on top of our planned ones, that was so wonderful!

I did neglect to mention that we used the TIW card for all our table service meals and that resulted in a nice savings. I definitely got my $ out of my TIW card since I used it on 3 different trips. This trip has the most table services and I found a lot of value in the impromptu table service lunch. For a few bucks more it was really nice and worth it to sit down and be waited on.

Yes it was! Thank you for having that card

What's cool is the more times I go to Disney the more I really feel like its my home away from home. I used to feel like I was a visitor, but now I feel like I really own a little piece of the magic. It's such a great feeling of freedom. I walk around with my head held high feeling that this is "my place", but I'm kind enough to share it with everyone else.

And you can relax and enjoy, knowing you WILL be back. For me it allows for so much more exploration of new things and not feeling like I "have" to hit everything.

Lastly, I want to mention how grateful I feel to have gotten to spend a little time with Tracy on this trip. I knew there was a chance I might not see her again, but she looked so good and seemed so healthy that, at the time, it seemed improbable that she would do anything other than make a full recovery. Next time you're in Disney world don't forget that Tracy's spirit is there and, no doubt, its there in full force. RIP Tracy!

RIP Tracy. Please have a drink at the Ditch, or a Glass of Bubbly in France, or a Glass of Conundrum anywhere for me and toast to her for me.

Less than a week until BOG!

I'd like to thank everyone for reading and following along and I don't care if you lurked, posted once or multiple times. Thanks for following along with me! I really appreciate it and I know that Cynthia does too.

Yes I do! You said it so much better than I could but thank you all for joining us on our wonderful trip!

 

[Leshaface]

All caught up!

Your pictures of the HM and night make it look terrifying. Especially of Madame Leota

And I do think you have the best view/room in all of the BWV. I don't blame you for always taking shots from your balcony.

I absolutely loved the way your wrapped up your TR! You had me cracking up at a few - favorite inanimate object, random pic at F&W. Some of my favorite pictures of the bunch is the shot of the castle at night with the fireworks in the background (looks like a professional shot) and the shot of the 2 girls with the Mickey ears not looking at the camera. Your shot of the mugs - made me remember that I forgot to buy one on my most recent trip to Disneyland a couple of weeks ago. I was in World of Disney and saw the mugs and remember you saying it was the 'unofficial' mug of the DIS and made a mental note to pick one up. Oops

I've yet to take a girls only trip to Disney. Probably because I don't have enough friends that love Disney like me, but that's what the DIS is for. I'll do one soon I hope!

I LOVED this TR and can't wait to hear about your next big adventure!

 

[jenseib]

Great wrap up. You have some amazing pictures. I love your favorites review. I can only imagine how long it took you to put that together.

 

[MEK]

I need to check out the shop inside Y&Y, because I love tea, and any new kind of tea is good for me.

They did have a nice selection, so put it on your summer trip list!

II love your first and fav's!

Thanks! I love to recap that way even though its more work than a typical update.

I21 total days on an AP! That's awesome.

I was pretty proud of myself for getting 3 weeks in. I hope I can do something similar when I activate this AP. We shall see!

IFavorite Animatronic Lion.

IRandom toe shot in Teva Mush sandals! My favorite Tevas!

I loved Tevas, but now that I have chronic plantar fascitis I just can't wear them all the time. Boo!

II've wanted one of those recycled bracelets or necklaces for a while. I may break down and get one this time.

You have no idea how hard I had to resist buying one of them. I kept saying "step AWAY from the jewelry".

IOctober is my favorite time to visit also, hands down.

I totally get the October trip now. Totally. Perfect in so many ways!

IOne week from today at BOG! Jealous! Still a ways to go for me.

I am really looking forward to that ADR and so glad I booked it when I did.

Oh Mary Ellen you never have to apologize for going out of order on your own TR!

That's the Type A side of me coming out!

Your favorites are so great - I love that I made the cut on a couple occasions! I know that some of my favorite moments involved my fellow DISers!

Of course you made the cut. One of the best things about the time of year was the fact that so many DISers were there. Now I KNOW why! I really enjoyed meeting you and your family and I hope our paths cross again!

F&W was awesome - I agree!

I can't wait from my return!

You have such fun and beautiful pictures!
It's true - no one has ever "done it all before" at Disney World!

Thank you!~ I love how there is always something new to do or some new combination of events to enjoy!

Thank you for sharing!!!!

You're so welcome!

Fantastic wrap up! I love F&W too and am so happy my birthday falls within it....gives me an excuse to go!

Jill in CO

Thank you!

And yay for having an October b-day. Definitely works to your advantage. Denny's b-day is October 31st which explains the timing of our next trip!

As I read through your bests and firsts, I was struck with the thought "best vacation EVER". You certainly seem to have had it! What an amazing time.

It really WAS one of the best vacations ever. It felt very relaxed and free. Sometimes I just felt like I was floating from one event to the next. Loved it! No stress what-so-ever!

Can't wait to read all about your next adventures.

I want to get my next TR started promptly so I make the commitment. I definitely need to get started before I start my new job, because then its going to be tough to focus on it. Well, I hope it won't.

Great wrap up! It really was a fun TR to follow! Can't wait for the next one. I would love to do a Girl's trip one day but I don't know that my DH will want to be left out of the fun! LOL

Thanks! And thanks for reading. The nice thing about my DH is that he likes going to Disney, but once a year is fine for him. So, hence I get to schedule girl's trips in between. It's a win-win for everyone!

Great wrap up! Thank you for sharing another wonderful trip report

Thanks Dawn! And thank you for reading along! It's always nice to have an original reader keep following your TRs.

 

[MEK]

Thanks for the re-cap and all of the great pictures again! I hope you have a blast on your upcoming trip!

You're welcome and thank you! I hope our couple's semi do-over trip is a lot of fun!

It better be!

Excellent write up on your final thoughts/favorites (and a whole lot of good pictures)!

Thank you! So glad you enjoyed me re-cap!

One thing just really stuck out to me.


I'm extremely jealous of this fact.

I have to say that getting 21 days on my AP was definitely a bonus. I didn't intentionally try, but it just sort of worked out that way and I'm glad it did. If I can keep group trips like that it definitely makes the AP more cost effective, so that's my goal. Let it expire, then pick up a new one and get three trips in one year.

I look forward to following along on your next TR!

I probably won't start until I get home, but you never know!

What an awesome wrap up with all your favorites and firsts. That carrot cake cookie, those sunsets, the misty woods from your run, and your random Dis-meets, dining al fresco at HBD - what a fantastic trip!

So glad you enjoyed my wrap-up. I took a long time to go through all my pictures, but it was really fun picking out special memories. It's a good way to finish a trip!

With your next trip on-deck, I hope you have as much fun and good times to make more magical memories! Oh, and give Kathy (KatMark) a hug for me! And then have her give one to you from me!!!

I totally will do that! I am really looking forward to meeting her. She is like a DIS legend! And, of course, Mary and her girl's are delightful. And its Cape May Cafe. What's not to like?

Favorite random shot of someone else's children, too funny

And that COULD have been I good shot if it was a little better focused (hence the heavy edits). I always feel weird what I take pictures of children, but they really do make good subjects for pictures.

I felt the same way this trip, I'm coming home. It's a great feeling.

It's this gradual evolution from being a guest to being an "almost" expert to just being in the place you call home. That's sounds corny, doesn't it?

Thanks for the great recap. And thanks again for sharing the adventure

You're welcome!

Just wanted to pop in to let you know that I'm caught up thanks to my boss having appointments this morning. Thanks for a couple of pictures of Caribbean Beach Resort. As you can imagine, I'm having some post Disney blues right now.

Welcome back Lisa! I hope you had a fantastic trip. And I hope I haven't missed the start of your TR.

I can totally see why you are having the post trip blues. And, of course, anytime I visit CBR I think of you first. I love that resort and really want to stay there again sometime!

The pictures from the airplane are gorgeous!

Thanks! That was fun! I rarely (OK never) get the chance to do that so I'll probably have to use those for all future TRs.

Loved your list of firsts, your recap and your photos.

Thanks! So glad you enjoyed!

I look forward to meeting you a week from Monday.

Can't wait. And be expecting two hugs - one from me and one from Brenda!

We love food and wine too! Being there on our honeymoon was AMAZING!

That has got to be the best honeymoon ever - F&W honeymoon. OMG! I would love that. Fortunately, I can take anniversary trips during F&W!

Great report as always. Can't wait to join in the next one.

Thank you and I hope to start the next one soon. I would love to start it before I get back, but I don't know!

Trust me, if Jeremy and I can drive to Florida and back and not dispose of each other, so can you!

"Dispose of each other" Too, too funny! We actually are flying now for our June trip (despite what my ticker says). You'll have to join in to see why!

I enjoyed your TR as always Mary Ellen !! Can't wait to read about the next one and see your amazing photos.

Thank you! And thanks so much for reading along. I am getting things lined up to start the next one. I am anxious to make that commitment so I don't have second thoughts.

 

[Nermel9]

Wow, great firsts and favorites! Can't believe you did so many firsts in one trip! Even if they are little things, like a new seating area, it doesn't matter, it's still so nice that are so many new things to see in Disney after going so many times!

I love going during Food and Wine, if I didn't love Christmas SO much, I'd go every year, but I can't stand the thought of not going during Christmas!

Have a great time on your trip, can't wait to read about it when you get back!

 

[MEK]

Such a nice way to end the report - great pictures and wonderful thoughts.

Thanks MeMom. So glad you enjoyed it!

Ok I can't possibly comment on all the amazing pics but what a GREAT recap!!! I feel very lame, that was wonderful!

I'm so glad you enjoyed it! And I can't imagine you ever feeling lame. You, who work on multiple TRs. I can't possibly do that and that's pretty lame!

Ditto
Ditto
and
DITTO!

YOU are an awesome roomie!!!! There is just something very different and special about a girls trip than a family, couples only, or even all adult (but mixed) trip. It's a wonderful and rejuvenating treat where you can really do just what YOU want all the time and never feel guilty about it! When does that happen in real life?

There IS something really special about a girl's trip. You summed it up perfectly!

I loved all the spontaneous meets on top of our planned ones, that was so wonderful!

We really hit the jackpot on DISmeets. I think we were very fortunate. I had more DIS meets this trip than in the past several years. True awesomeness!

Yes it was! Thank you for having that card

That card definitely came in handy. I'm buying it again. I know I am just going to break even in June, but I don't care. I'll get my $ back in October for sure.

And you can relax and enjoy, knowing you WILL be back. For me it allows for so much more exploration of new things and not feeling like I "have" to hit everything.

It is always wonderful knowing I am going back. I like that feeling! I know I am going to be sad when I come home from my June trip, but then I have the amazing October trip to look forward to!

RIP Tracy. Please have a drink at the Ditch, or a Glass of Bubbly in France, or a Glass of Conundrum anywhere for me and toast to her for me.

Most likely I will be toasting her with a Rita. I know you don't do bubbly anymore. And - as much as I love conundrum I don't know who serves it besides HBD. I have an app for beers around the world, but I think they need one for wines around the world.

Less than a week until BOG!

I am pretty excited for this ADR and the chance to drink legally in the MK!

Yes I do! You said it so much better than I could but thank you all for joining us on our wonderful trip!

Ditto!

All caught up!

Yay - I know you have been busy lately so thanks for stopping by.

Your pictures of the HM and night make it look terrifying. Especially of Madame Leota

I will admit, that Madame Leota shot is really creepy and I'm glad she is not that close to you when you are on the ride. Seeing that up close would be terrifying.

And I do think you have the best view/room in all of the BWV. I don't blame you for always taking shots from your balcony.

I absolutely loved that view and wish I could stay in that exact some room every single trip. How awesome would THAT be?

I absolutely loved the way your wrapped up your TR! You had me cracking up at a few - favorite inanimate object, random pic at F&W.

Really reaching from straws, wasn't I?

Some of my favorite pictures of the bunch is the shot of the castle at night with the fireworks in the background (looks like a professional shot) and the shot of the 2 girls with the Mickey ears not looking at the camera.

Thank you for posting your favorites. It's nice to know what appeals to people. I do love the one of the kids with the Mickey ears and now wish I hadn't edited it so much and NOT saved the original. Oops!

Your shot of the mugs - made me remember that I forgot to buy one on my most recent trip to Disneyland a couple of weeks ago. I was in World of Disney and saw the mugs and remember you saying it was the 'unofficial' mug of the DIS and made a mental note to pick one up. Oops

I hope you get back to DL soon so you can pick up that mug. I absolutely love mine. In fact, I think I need a second for when that one is dirty.

I've yet to take a girls only trip to Disney. Probably because I don't have enough friends that love Disney like me, but that's what the DIS is for. I'll do one soon I hope!

I know what you mean. I don't have any non-DIS friends who have the same passion for Disney as my DIS friends. That's why it is so fun to meet DISers and they are all totally genuine people who I would have never met.

I LOVED this TR and can't wait to hear about your next big adventure!

Thank you! Next adventure coming up!

Great wrap up. You have some amazing pictures. I love your favorites review. I can only imagine how long it took you to put that together.

Thanks Jen! And, of course, the picture comment coming from you puts a BIG on my face.

It did take awhile, but I did it over several days and it was fun to look back at my pics one more time!