DerekRx Posted July 31, 2006 Share Posted July 31, 2006 So on my last trip to Disney in April one of my coworkers was supposed to be there with her kids so I could show them around a little (she really has problems finding her way out of a paper bag, so I can't imagine she can do Disney for the first time that well). Of course, the dunderhead screwed up her vacation and booked a Disney cruise, then needed to back out a few days early, thus never doing the parks, only the cruise. (imagine telling a 4 and 5 year old they're going to Disney World, and then never getting there!) Well, that made for some great jabs and insults for the past 3 months, and as a way to get me to stop making fun of her about it, she wanted to take me with when they finally went. Since she had tickets from the cruise that needed to be used this year, it was decided to go now (summer, ick!) before the one started school. So with me only needing to pay for my flight and tickets, I planned everything for them/me. Since it was the dead middle of summer, I knew it'd be crowded and hot, and with kids, and afternoon nap was pretty much mandatory. It made sense to skip Epcot and MGM until they're a little older, and focus mainly on Magic Kingdom. Of course, if we're solely doing the Magic Kingdom, we may as well stay nearby. Polynesian Resort won (as Grand Floridian was too expensive, and Contemporary wasn't much different in price from Poly). Part 1: The Polynesian Resort And there are also a few "Quiet" pools at other points in the resort And ending at the pool somehow Like other resorts, the pool is themed, with the water coming from a point inside the main lobby And the swimming pool was great. Themed to a volcano, with a waterfall and a slide As well as a beach The resort is right on the Seven Seas Lagoon, opposite to the Magic Kingdom, and has a marina Home of something for Robb to try, Peanut Chicken with Peppers! The other is a little bit lighter, but still nicely Hawaiian themed, Kona Cafe One restaurant is Ohana, home of everything grilled on a stick The main building has shops and restaurants on 2 stories, as well as the monorail entrance And a place to drop off the kids if parents need a night alone There's also a quick food stop and an arcade Polynesian music is everywhere and at 5pm the torches come on, scorching nearby plants And bigger than I thought! The resort itself is very lush and tropical And a tub/shower combo that's Casey approved and a toilet (wow!) The bathroom comes with 2 sinks As well as a balcony There's also a place for the family to chill out Complete with the new annoying Top 7 Things to do at Disney chick! And a sofa/daybed. Since the rooms were recently upgraded, there are also large flat screen TVs Standard is 2 queen sized beds The room buildings are like long houses So here we are, sleeping closer than the parking lot to the Magic Kingdom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerekRx Posted July 31, 2006 Author Share Posted July 31, 2006 Part 2: The Magic Kingdom Not much has changed here, though it was the first time I was ever here in the summer while Fastpass was around. Wow, what a help! I think the longest we waited in line was 40 minutes, and that was for the new Pirates, which of course doesn't have Fastpass. OK, its hot, its like 2pm, and its not about to rain. Time to utilize the nearby hotel and take a nap and some pool time Haunted Mansion is always good, and rarely a bad line But Big Thunder rocked as always (and was Jade's first coaster) Splash Mountain may have been home to Reid on this day, but I didn't want to wait in the standby line and I missed my fastpass time because of dinner Holy Crap! They sure aren't keeping the new animatronics a secret in here! The Magic Carpets of Aladdin now even give you proper attire while riding! These elephants were recently added like 35 years ago, I thought you'd enjoy them Exclusive shot with my new camera First ride, the Jungle Cruise (where our Captain was named Bobb) I am happy now, the trip is worth it. And yes, I still got brainfreeze at least 3 times Its already blazing hot so first stop of the day, Pineapple Dolewhip! We got to the hotel at 4am. 6 or so hours later, here we are at the Magic Kingdom! Yay with plenty of legroom for sleeping. Too bad the tardbox next to me decided he needed to read the entire time! Stupid reading Finally we were on the plane (and I had an exit row!) By 10pm I was tired and Skylar was still excited about going to Disney (we Benadryl-ed her shortly afterwards) Since I failed to mention it earlier, our flight on Friday night was delayed. Here I am charging my phone and IMming people at the same time (and taking the picture!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xxhershey818xX Posted July 31, 2006 Share Posted July 31, 2006 Description: Complete with the new annoying Top 7 Things to do at Disney chick! I Love her did u do a Triple Mountain whammy!!!!???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Johnson Posted July 31, 2006 Share Posted July 31, 2006 Hooray for Dole Whip brain freezes. Derek will never learn, ha ha! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerekRx Posted July 31, 2006 Author Share Posted July 31, 2006 After a nap and some pool, back for more Magic Kingdom. Though the girls favorite ride was "the Ponies". Next time mom can save $3000 and just take them to Knoebels up the road instead Gotta love the teacups and their spinning ultimateness Skylar even rode Space Mountain twice, but Jade was too small And I made it a business trip by trying out new chemo protection devices We also got the girls the Barnstormer credit Still uber popular, and I'm not quite sure why. Guess this won't be leaving for a Dive Machine anytime soon another shot just in case any Zamperla people want to use my photos for marketing... and I experience Mickey's Philharmagic in either 12-D or 81-D! Random shot to please Elissa And my chocolate mousse cake was pretty tasty, even when it was getting sawed in half But its fun for the youngins You need to make reservations here months in advance! Why its Elissa friendly Gus and Jack! The castle is nicely themed, and whats that on the upper ledge? and meat one I did! And meet one they did I reserved dinner at Cinderella's Royal Table so the girls could meet a princess Hooray, its a real castle! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerekRx Posted July 31, 2006 Author Share Posted July 31, 2006 Part 3: SeaWorld On Sunday I decided to head over to SeaWorld instead and let them do anything else at the Magic Kingdom that they wanted. I didn't want to use another park hopper day off my pass for a mere 4 hours at the park, and I could grab the Shamu Express credit and maybe score some free beer. Best of all, with my platinum pass, it was pretty much a free day! Look, its a Brazilian tour group, complete with flag. And look, my finger looks really really long! Back row of the helicopter offers the most motion (but no beer) Sweet, we're going to the Dells to get pizza and beer! Another first for me, Wild Arctic I remember the old one that used to be here. Mom yelled at me because I was having too much fun or something and she wanted to leave. Good times "Yeah, definitely!" "I think I can get seriously injured in there" Cargo net playground of doom Fun ride, just remember it doesn't open until 10am! Thats a long train, typical of Zierer Oh, its also this spinny ride's name Heehee, dirty A different layout than most of these Shamu looks happy Maybe I can trade him this shirt for some donuts and handcuffs though I got a new credit, a Balder hammer, awesome hair, AND now Rich's signature move! And a credit! Then onward to the new Happy Harbor area, with this funky themed Samba Tower But I was more disappointed because I thought it was Journey to Atlanta and I could go see Joe filing papers Journey to Atlantis was closed when I walked by Even though he ate Mr. Depp, he's still my favorite sock puppet floorless coaster Too bad the waterfall was turned off With not one, but TWO vertical loops! Early enough that there wasn't a bad wait! "Yeah, I knew you couldn't resist!" These Flaming O's don't smell as bad as the ones in the UK Here's the future waterpark across the street "Come on dude, I'm running AND I have this awesome vertical loop!" The Shamus are still chilling, no show until 11 And there be Kraken. It says "hey dude, I'm opened, come ride me" Ooooh, free with my pass. Woohoo! I finally decided to ride the SkyTower. Nicely themed, see? The fairly newly themed Waterfront area of the park, lots of shopping, food, and some nighttime show "Hey! I'm a baby dolphin. Hows it going TPR! Guy, stop giving us a bum rap! Sorry Derek, your coaster doesn't open until 10am, hang out with me for a bit!" "OK, where is this new coaster?" Must...resist...urge to go to...Kraken first... On every visit since 2000 I've only ridden Kraken and JTA and then left! So lets see the park more this time Yey, back at SeaWorld. A park I haven't really "been to" in like 14 years! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Johnson Posted July 31, 2006 Share Posted July 31, 2006 I think Wild Arctic is the first simulator ride that I had some airtime on. That thing can kill people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParkTrips Posted July 31, 2006 Share Posted July 31, 2006 you bastard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerekRx Posted July 31, 2006 Author Share Posted July 31, 2006 I hadn't seen a Shamu show since I was like 12, so I decided that since one was about to start, maybe I could still grab a seat since it was still early in the day. Definitely a good couple of hours at SeaWorld. Can't wait to spend more time here sometime in the future. The End. No trip to SeaWorld would be complete without me saying hi to the sea turtles Here comes the vile "wetter than Valhalla" part that Joe has no clue what we're talking about Finally Journey to Atlanta reopened and LOTS of people wanted to see Joe file papers Its like we're back in Norway! "Hey Frank, what're you looking at?" "I dunno, but those weird humans are looking at me, figured I'd stare back" Oooh, Penguins, lets check em out! SeaWorld's got pearl divers in the Waterfront area, and you can buy their finds No explanation needed But the shark area smells like fish, and not the kind I like In the tube you can see SharkTums' relatives "Leave Elissa alone, fanboy!" Oooh, SharkTum's Encounter, a fanboy favorite But not just any donkey, the Budweiser Donkey! No TPR PTR would be worthy without a donkey "I'm a Clydesdale, hows it going?" Time for a stop to see the Clydesdales They've also got a Brewmaster's Club, but I didn't want to experience the beers all by myself Not too bad! Time for the AB summer brew, Beach Bum And its not crowded yet either Woohoo, I killed enough time that the Hospitality House is opened Check out the flowers and stuff Shamu claimed 4 victims already by the end of the first show Much like the Velociraptor, one distracts you while the other one attacks There goes one victim Hi, I'm a Shamu. Keep in mind I am a KILLER Whale though. Prepare to die! and wave pools! Dorney already bought 12 of them and ripped out more of the parking lot and trees Whales can be used for all sorts of things, like boats The Shamus are hoping to be the next Boy Band, or would that be Bouy Band? I think the big one is Rosie O'Donnell The new show is called "Believe" Don't believe me, ask the whale Unless you're a platinum passholder who stole a cop's signature move Wow, they're not kidding when they say show up 45 minutes early for a good seat Either this is where the whale show is or its the ACE buffet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaseyFish Posted July 31, 2006 Share Posted July 31, 2006 SWeet!!!! Another approved Casey shower...LOL....I see a trend starting to appear....Great Trip Report Derek. Casey"Yeah to tall shower heads" Childers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themeparkguy27 Posted July 31, 2006 Share Posted July 31, 2006 Great TR Derek. Haven't been to Sea World in ages, gotta add a day on next time, it looks like a fun day. Your pic of the Magic Carpets and the caption had me rolling! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Really great TR Derek, hilarious captions! I adore Sea World, they've added so much since I was last there, can't wait to get back. New camera since the UK? What is it? Pictures came out really great. (And the two little girls are adorable by the way.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niiicolaaah Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 You know you haven't been to Disney in ages when the only things you recognize are Big Thunder and Haunted Mansion. lol. Great photos, Derek, makes me really want to plan a trip to Florida! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerekRx Posted August 1, 2006 Author Share Posted August 1, 2006 New camera since the UK? What is it? Pictures came out really great. (And the two little girls are adorable by the way.) After Kennywood a few weekends ago my Exilim pretty much died, wouldn't come out and play anymore. I guess it needed camera Viagara, but since I didn't have any of that I just upgraded to a Nikon CoolPix S6, complete with 6 MegaPixel and WiFi. So far the only things I don't like about it is the seizure flash and that it can't take really good indoor pictures, thus you see no pictures from inside Pirates. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kennywood!007 Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Great pictures Derek. I miss Sea World. Well that is the Ohio one. Damn you Cedar Fair! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noyzz Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Great trip Derek,makes me want to go! Man I haven't been to Disney or Seaworld in a minute and I'm from there...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoasterFanatic Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Nice TR Derek. // dropping the kids off at Neverland never sounds like a good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ECZenith Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Awesome TR, and surprisngly good pictures of Shamu express, that one of it going around the turn is great. I have a random question... Does Sea World still sell Kraken/JTA pins in the gift shops? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weeow Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 I saw that you mentioned the annoying WDW girl. I hate her! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoshiFan Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Disney is usually not strict with the fast pass return times. I have gotten fast passes for a ride that says to come back at around 4 and returned at around 7 for example and the worst any employee has ever said to me is, "you're a little late, but ok." They probably would have let you in the Splash Mountain fastpass return line even if you were past the return time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackskellington101 Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Awesome TR. Those places in the Magic Kingdom looks...familiar. Especially that Mansion... Did your Jungle Skipper's name happen to be not just Bob but Danger Bob? If so I know exactly who you're talking about. He's a pretty darn good skipper. And you better believe the Mansion is always good. It's all the hard working and dedicated butlers and maids who make it that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfne2005 Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Yo Derek, Nice TR. Makes me wish October was here sooner! If yo'd like, I'll bring my cuffs and a couple of donuts just for you, well the donuts would be for you, I think the cuffs already have a few reservations already Oh, and if your gonna steal something, get it right! Left is correct. The other side is wrong! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CD Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 I loved the TR Derek it was great, I loved the captions for the shamu show. LMAO! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Palooza Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 Great TR Derek. A lot of good times and great information. I agree with Yoshi above that the fastpasses can be used at anytime after your scheduled time. I did that with 4 passes at Disneyland in February. A park attendant told us about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigstevet07 Posted August 1, 2006 Share Posted August 1, 2006 I was always wondering what Rosie O'Donnell has been doing since the Flintstones. Freaking Hilarious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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