Don't Wear Bright Colors!: A July 2015 Disney Trip Report, Day 2, part 1

Day 2: Saturday July 18, 2015

Because I fell asleep so early, I was awake fairly early. I watched a bit of TV and took my time getting ready for the day.

Eventually I headed down to the food court for a super healthy breakfast of Powerade and an apple turnover. From there, I headed back to my room and got my bag for the first part of the day, then headed to the bus stop.

Since it was, well, summer, and I had one day more than I usually have on my summer trips, I had decided to spend some time at Typhoon Lagoon. So that was my destination this morning.

Since it says everywhere that buses start running an hour before park opening, I had no reason to believe Typhoon Lagoon buses are any different. I got to the bus stop about 8 am. Not long after I got there a bus pulled up labeled simply Downtown Disney. So I asked the driver if he was going to both places. He actually radioed into dispatch to see if he could. Turns out that buses supposedly start running to the water parks half an hour before they open. He was told he could if I wanted him to. But I'd heard the whole exchange and felt weird getting there crazy early so I thanked him and told him I'd wait in air conditioning until the buses really start running, explaining that I had simply used the theme park guideline.

Now, to add to my confusion, Downtown Disney didn't open until 9:30 that day. Why would anyone want to go there an hour and a half before it opens?!

So I wandered a bit and then went back out to the bus stop about 8:20, just in time to step on a waiting bus for Typhoon Lagoon. Now my math is not the strongest, unless it involves figuring out which is a better discount: 20% or $10 (Thanks Macy's!) but last I checked, 8:20 is more than 30 minutes before park opening, and the bus had clearly already stopped at All Star Sports. Consider me confused.

Anyway, the trip to Typhoon Lagoon was easy. When the bus arrived, I saw other buses arriving, and many people already at the entrance gate. So I’m still a little confused about the water park bus situation. Oh well.

I headed for the entrance, hoping the ticket would work right. I had purchased it the day before at the hotel, so it was attached to my Magic Band. Thankfully there were no problems, and I was walking into the park minutes after stepping off the bus.

Once in the park, I hopped into the very short line for locker rentals, and before it was even 9, my stuff was stashed in a locker, and I was ready when they dropped the rope and let us into the rest of the park. I headed straight to the Crush n’ Gusher.

Last time I was at Typhoon Lagoon it was unseasonably chilly by Florida standards. It was April, so I was pretty ok with the low 70s, but apparently most of the world wasn’t, and it was a super uncrowded day at the water park. It was also pretty breezy. Because of the combination of low crowds and wind (I guess?) Crush n’ Gusher was only open to people riding in pairs. I was solo on that trip (shocker I know), so I didn’t get the chance to ride, because I was not cool with the idea of pairing up with some solo stranger to sit in a raft in swimsuits. That’s a bit beyond my comfort level. I was hoping that on a day approaching 100* in July I would not have the same issue.

It was a quick walk over to Crush n’ Gusher where I found an even shorter ride. I was more than a little confused when, despite stating that I was riding solo, I was directed to grab a double tube. That’s what I get for being a newbie on this ride. So I grabbed the tube, that was roughly the same height as I am, and headed for the stairs, trying to figure out how to haul that sucker up the stairs. That thing was heavier than it looked!

There were a lot more stairs than it looked too. By the time I reached the top of the stairs, I was really wishing I had a park buddy. That tube is heavy, I’m embarrassingly out of shape, and I’m one of those conundrums where the doctors can never decide if I have asthma or not, because my numbers are always JUST on the border. I was sucking some serious wind by the time I reached the top of the stairs...like hiking at elevation in Colorado style sucking wind. This ride better be worth it!

It was. But despite the non-existent line when I exited the landing pool, I did not keep my tube and rejoin the line like so many others. I knew a set of lungs that needed a bit of recovery time…

I wandered a bit, checking out the Shark Reef for a bit. I thought about trying the snorkeling, but hearing people’s screeches as they entered the cold water was enough turn off for me. It’s July. I’ll be encountering cold again in about 2 months (and, I was right, almost 2 months to the day, we saw upper 30s overnight!). After watching for a bit, I headed for the other corner of the park.

Next on the agenda was Mayday Falls. By now, crowds had started to arrive in the park so there was actually a small line. While the person behind me was not impressed, my lungs were grateful. I spent my time in line wishing I could ride Gangplank Falls. Mayday is fun, but one of these days I should really go to Typhoon Lagoon with more people than just me. Group raft rides are more fun.

After splashing down Mayday Falls twice, I was ready for some being lazy, so it was off to the wave pool. I stayed there for not long, before deciding to attempt Crush n’ Gusher one more time. I figured by now there might be a bit of a line. With pauses for the line, perhaps the trek up those stairs wouldn’t be quite as bad.

Wishing Fitbits were waterproof, I walked back over to Crush n’ Gusher. There was a brief wait for a tube, and then it was time to hike up the stairs again. This time went better. It really does help to have a line/have to pause occasionally. And yes, I’m still baffling the doctors…

After my second trip on Crush n’ Gusher, it was lazy river time. I had to wait a bit for a single tube, but eventually one came along. I did several laps in the river before I decided I’d had enough of kids trying to swim through the river. I really missed HersheyPark’s VERY strict policy that everyone must be in a tube in the river.

When I was done in the river, it was time for lunch. This is where the Magic Band shined. I found a spot I wanted for lunch, and hopped in line. I’ve never been one to charge to the room, because historically, I had to dig out the key card and if I was digging for the card, I might as well dig for the credit card. With the band on my wrist, I didn’t have to dig (or in this case, return to the locker) for a card. The Magic Band has changed the way I pay for things at Disney.

I had a chicken dish for lunch that involved beans, rice, and plantains. It was VERY good. After lunch, I decided I’d done everything I wanted, and it might be time for a break. So I packed up and headed out of the park, stopping for a couple pictures along the way, and considering finding a way over to Blizzard Beach, since those 1 day tickets are hoppers now. But, it was starting to cloud over and the crowds were pretty thick (people were now being parked on the lawn), so, since the crowds were probably just as thick at BB, I decided to just go back to the hotel. I stopped for a couple of pictures along the way.

It was a fairly short wait for the All Star bus to appear...and drive right by the All Star stop, to stop at the next one. Huh? The few of us that were waiting for it raced over to the next stop, where the driver apologized for going to the wrong stop. Haven’t seen that one before.

I kind of started wishing I had chosen the water park closer to my hotel and gone to Blizzard Beach instead of Typhoon Lagoon, as I shivered my way back to the hotel. The bus ride isn’t really that long, and I thought my swimsuit had had plenty of time to dry, but with the air conditioning blasting, it was a chilly ride back to the hotel. Once I thawed out and started thinking straight again, I went back to being glad I had chosen TL over BB. Granted, I’ve never been to Blizzard Beach, but, I see enough snow at home!

Don't Wear Bright Colors!: A July 2015 Disney Trip Report: Day 1

Day 1: Friday, July 17, 2015

As anticipated, the 3:15 alarm was a bit rough. Somehow, Nick slept through it, but he had set an alarm for 3:45. He was just the driver; he didn’t need much time to get ready.

I SLOWLY got ready for the day. It was only about 40* in NH that morning, but it was summer in FL, so an outfit had been difficult to plan. Ended up going with an Omni-Freeze t-shirt, shorts, and a sweatshirt. I also added sunscreen into the morning routine, because I’ve learned from experience that I always forget to put that on when I arrive at Disney. Just too excited to get to the parks. I had to take a couple breaks when getting ready too. My sinuses had been a big problem in recent days, and sometimes when I’m overtired, I get dizzy. When you combine the sinuses and the over-tiredness, you get extra dizzy. I know, this doesn’t bode well. Maybe I’ll sleep on the plane?

I finished getting ready about the same time Nick’s alarm went off. I crawled back into bed for a couple minutes to warm up while he got ready. Much to the dismay of the confused, glaring dog, Nick and I headed for the car just before 4 am. That’s ahead of schedule. We were both pretty proud of ourselves!

At that hour, with no traffic, the drive to the airport took about 30 minutes. Nick dropped me off at curbside, and I headed inside, a bit confused to see people walking out of the airport with their luggage as though they had just arrived. As I got into the airport, I saw people gathering at baggage claim. I definitely started wondering where that flight had come from.

There was essentially no line at the ticket counters, so check in was even easier than usual. Once my suitcase was checked, I headed upstairs. As I got to the top of the escalator, I noticed that the security checkpoint in front of the escalator had a significant line. The one over to the left had a sign that said the lane was open and NO ONE in it. DUH.

Needless to say, my experience at security involved joking with the TSA agent about herd mentality, and I was through the checkpoint in no time at all. As I gathered my stuff, I could see that people were still deplaning and I heard the welcoming announcements. Turns out that flight that arrived about 4:15 am was a very delayed flight from Chicago. I tried doing the math to figure out what time they would have had to leave to land at that time. Between the time zone change and everything else, I never quite figured it out, but OUCH.

Once I’d collected my stuff and tried doing math, I noticed that Dunkin’s was open, so I headed down the hall, where I found almost no line (I was shocked!). I got a bottle of water and a muffin, thinking I would eat it. I really need to stop doing that. I always end up throwing away half of the muffin days later in the hotel room.

Sustenance obtained, I headed for the gate area. I think it was gate 12. When I sat down, it became obvious from the radar exactly why that flight out of Chicago was so delayed. I also discovered the kid the amber alert was issued for had been found safe.

After too much time had been killed, boarding finally began. I was in the A30s for a change, so I ended up in the 3rd row, in a window seat. The person on the aisle started chatting with me because my sweatshirt was a Disney sweatshirt. Turns out his daughter is a character performer. We chatted for awhile.

The flight pushed back from the gate a couple minutes early, and after taxiing ALL the way around the airport, we were finally airborne. I listened to music, and attempted to read and eat some of the muffin. I fell asleep instead, and napped on and off for a good portion of the flight.

We ended up landing 20 minutes early. Love those lead foot pilots! We had to wait a few minutes for the door to be opened, but once it was, deplaning was quick. Extra vacation time!

I made my way down to the DME check in, which had very short lines...of people that didn’t understand what documents/magic bands the CMs needed to check them in. The CM seemed almost relieved that I was already holding my Magic Band clad wrist up when I reached the scanner.

I waited in line about 10 minutes before we were led out to the bus. Then we sat there for probably 20-25 minutes. However, as I got on the bus, I got the text that my room was ready, so I knew when I got to the hotel that I would be able to go immediately there and drop my stuff off. Always nice when I don’t have to put a park bag together in the corner of the lobby. As an aside, the first time I stay at a resort I haven't stayed at yet, I'm sure I'll miss the welcome packet, but this new "we'll just text you if you've checked in online" system is nice.

By the time the bus got rolling, I was bored. I’d facebooked, texted everyone and their uncle, and had a lengthy phone conversation with Nick. Have I mentioned that I hate hurry up and wait situations? I do like the ease of Magical Express, but that particular wait was no fun. I wanted to go have fun!

Music was the third stop, so it took awhile to get there, but at least we were making progress. Once we arrived at Music, I hopped off the bus (just about literally; I have short legs!), and headed straight to my room, number 1623, on the 3rd floor of Calypso building 1.

Once in the room, I took roughly 10 minutes to put together a park bag, and head back out the door. I stopped by the food court to get a refillable mug and fill it with Powerade, and then continued on to the bus stop. I was on a bus to Animal Kingdom about 11. Not a bad turnaround!

Bag check was one of the more thorough bag checks I’ve experienced at Disney, complete with asking if there were any sharp objects in my bag. That’s a new one! Once inside the park, I headed for Everest.

As I was walking toward Everest, I discovered a new breed of tour group. I’ve taken a few summer trips to Disney. I’ve seen plenty of yellow and green. This group was PINK. Bright pink. They even ALL had pink Magic Bands.

Guess what color I was wearing? Pink. BRIGHT pink. Before the trip I had invested in a couple of Columbia Omni Freeze shirts. Kind of a gross concept, but basically, they’re lined with sweat-activated cooling something. For Florida in the summer, I was willing to try this concept. After all, their Omni Heat line works incredibly well. The downside, though, is all of the shirts come in exceptionally bright colors. Pink was one of the less hideous choices. And at least I wasn’t chanting my way through the park!

Once I’d gotten over the fact that I blended in with the tour groups, I cruised through the single rider line, and was on Everest a couple minutes later. I was a little concerned to find that Everest made me a little queasy on this trek, but I was really hoping it was just related to the fact that I’d barely eaten anything today. But that problem was going to be solved soon. 

As I got off Everest, I saw a text from Eric that he had arrived at Animal Kingdom. We’d already discussed via text that neither one of us had really eaten, so I told him I’d meet him at Pizzafari and started walking that way. As I was walking into Discovery Island, I could see him a bit ahead of me, but it was too far ahead to get his attention, or catch up. So I met him in front of Pizzafari.

We headed straight inside to get food. Unlike the last time we ate here, I got the quick line. He got the SLOW line. I found a table and started eating. I was starving, but ended up full before my pizza was done. We chatted while eating, and then it was back to Everest, me hoping that the previous ride’s queasieness was only because of hunger.

It was. This trip on Everest was much better, although the single rider line was certainly longer than when I’d been through an hour before.

After Everest, we started walking and ended up veering towards Maharajah Jungle Trek. It was pretty hot and it was Bazillions of Brazillians (and Argentinians and kids from Paraguay and Uraguay…) season, so the area around Kali River Rapids was more than a little chaotic. Getting to Maharajah required a bit of bobbing, weaving, and just generally thinking like I was driving through New England, but we made it and wandered through to see the tigers. One was visible AND awake.

Some of the other animals were surprisingly active, given the heat, so a bit of picture taking was done.

Once finished with Maharajah, we continued walking towards Africa. There was no line at Tamu Tamu, so I headed for that queue. Dole Whip with coconut rum sounded really good about then. I found a spot out of the way to enjoy it. Tasted great as always, but since it was summer in Florida and they gave a huge serving, I ended up with a pretty big mess.

Once I’d eaten as much Dole Whip as I could, and spilled a bit more, we started walking and discovered that the wait for Safaris was only 10 minutes. In the middle of the afternoon. In July. We were shocked too. The ten minute wait was actually more like a walk-on, so as soon as we had wound our way through the line, we were being loaded onto a truck, in about the second row. Given that it was mid afternoon, the animals were more visible than I had expected. 

When we returned from our safaris, we started wandering, checking out various wait and show times. By Dinoland, I began to realize I was DONE, particularly when we found a 30 minute wait for Dinosaur. Apparently I’m getting old and can’t do those super early flights anymore. So we headed for the exit, discussing the possibility of meeting up again later in my trip. 
 

After wrapping up our conversation, I headed for the bus stop and Eric headed for the parking lot. A bus arrived shortly after and pretty soon I was back in my hotel room, where this no-nap queen actually fell asleep for a bit.

The nap didn’t last very long, but it worked. I then relaxed a bit, watching TV and listening to the rain falling outside.

Once the rain stopped, it was time to poke around the resort gift shop and find some food. So I got ready to do just that.

Side note: I keep hotel rooms really cold. For one thing, I’m a human furnace when sleeping, but also, I really enjoy being in a genuinely cool room. In NH, central air is not the norm in houses. It started becoming more common place in houses built in the last 5-10 years, but most of us live in houses older than that. We get by with fans, window air conditioners and portable air conditioning units. It’s pretty normal for rooms to be warmer than is truly comfortable. So when I get into a hotel room in the summer, that thermostat gets cranked down into the upper 60s.

Because I keep hotel rooms pretty cold, my belongings have to face the humidity when I walk outside. Sure enough, the second I opened the door, my sunglasses fogged. They didn’t even wait for me to step outside.

Once I’d defogged my sunglasses, I continued over to the main building. I did a tour around the gift shop to see what was available there. Then I went next door to the food court. Time for dinner. I think I had the turkey dinner, with mashed potatoes and corn. I wasn’t expecting much. It was surprisingly not bad.

After dinner, I headed for the lobby concierge line. It was time to buy a water park ticket. The process was quick, and the ticket was attached to my magic band. Side note, though: The annual pass discount for the water parks can only be applied to tickets bought at the front gate of the water park. I was ok with that though. $4 was not worth standing in line at water park opening in the heat. The air conditioned line was totally worth that extra $4. Once the ticket purchasing was done, I headed for the bus stop. Time to go see about a Boba Fett stein for Nick.

The bus to Hollywood Studios arrived quickly, and pretty soon I was making my way toward the park entrance. The Frozen Summer After theme was alive (no pun intended) and well, and I was really liking the improved skyline with the removal of the BAH. 

Once inside the park, I cruised through the gift shops, checking out Magic Band options. Then I moved on to Backlot Express.

Nick is a big Star Wars fan, and about a week before my trip, one of the Disney pages (Disney food blog maybe?) had posted on Twitter that Boba Fett steins were still available from Star Wars Weekends. They’re plastic (easy to pack), and came with soda for just $9.99. Nick wanted one as soon as he heard about it, and even more after I showed him the picture online. Thankfully, when I arrived at Backlot Express, they were still available, and the line was short. They gave me the “stein” and a separate paper cup for my soda, so I tucked the Boba Fett stein into my backpack, filled the cup with soda, and continued on my way. This is what the “stein” looked like (Nick was of the “picture or it didn’t happen” mentality).

From here, I wandered a bit, slowly making my way over to One Man’s Dream. With all of the closures and rumored closures, I wanted to make sure I had the opportunity to cruise through there one more time. 

While I was in One Man’s Dream, it started raining again. I waited a few minutes, and then once it turned to a drizzle, I headed out, ending up in the shops along Sunset Boulevard. I did a bit of shopping, and then moved back toward the stores on Hollywood Boulevard. Here I got a patriotic Mickey Magic Band for myself.

Once I’d finished shopping, I decided to make my way out of the park. I just wasn’t feeling the whole fireworks thing tonight. Once back at the hotel, I showered and collapsed into bed. I was sound asleep by 9. And by sound asleep, I mean I didn’t even wake to the Frozen fireworks, which are about the world’s loudest fireworks.

Don’t wear bright colors!: A July 2015 Disney Trip Report Pre-trip

Have annual pass and airline points will travel. That’s my motto! Ok, in all seriousness, as I was waiting for my flight for my December Holiday Extravaganza (see previous posts), I got kind of...well...jealous...of those doing a full Disney trip. Don’t get me wrong, I loved seeing how all the different parks were doing Christmas, and I spent a fair amount of time at Disney. But there’s just something about those yellow DME tags, and the ease of a trip to just Disney. I didn’t have any only-Disney trips in the works, and I started really wanting to book one.

Sometime in January, on one of our half dozen snow days, or dozen (literally) delayed openings, I found some airfare I liked for July. I wasn’t 100% thrilled with the dates, but I had the points, so I decided to book that and keep monitoring. I heavily debated between a summer trip and booking a long weekend Food and Wine Fest trip, but I just couldn’t justify booking a trip for just a couple months after the AP expired. So summer it is! I’ve done summer in Disney before and done just fine with it, so I had no concerns about booking.

I continued to monitor airfare. I also started playing with dining reservations. As luck would have it, on one snow day, I managed to nab a dinner reservation at Be Our Guest, at a reasonable dinner hour, and a lunch reservation at Be Our Guest for the next day. Of course, the days of these reservations were Saturday and Sunday. I had hoped to shift the trip away from the weekend, but, I decided I could deal with weekend hotel pricing and potential weekend crowds, in order to be able to dine at Be Our Guest. I continued monitoring airfare, but only for points credits for decreasing prices and for a better flight time on departure day.

Since I had other vacations on the books that required more planning than this one, this trip got pushed to the side. The school year was...intense...and there just wasn’t time for everything. Then I went on the Made in America roadtrip (see earlier posts), and again, pushed planning to the side. So, I ended up just planning very lightly which park I would start at each day, and decided to mostly wing the rest of the trip. I have a park strategy that works for me, so might as well just roll with it. I only made a couple of FP+ reservations too.

The details that did matter? The trip would be July 17-22, staying at All Star Music. My flight out of Manchester was scheduled for 6:05 am, so I planned to stay at mom’s the night before departure, but then the week of the trip, Nick’s work schedule changed and he ended up with a day off the day of my departure. Since he had the potential to go home and nap after driving me to the airport, we decided it would be better for him to drive me to the airport. Our bedroom has a window air conditioner. Since I’m no longer living at mom’s, the window ac was not put in my room this year. My bedroom at mom’s backs up to attic crawl space. It gets a little warm in the summer.

The day before departure arrived more quickly than expected. The shopping and packing got done, and I tried to go to sleep early, knowing the 3:15 alarm would come early. Of course, about the time I fell asleep, an Amber Alert notification on my phone startled me awake (the child was located safely a few hours later), and then it took even longer to get to sleep. This does not bode well.

December 2014: A Holiday Park Extravaganza: The End

Day 5: Wednesday December 24, 2014

Christmas Eve. Time to go home. I got up fairly early, got ready, and went down to the lobby to eat breakfast. Once I’d finished breakfast, I packed the car and headed for the airport, stopping to refill the gas tank along the way.

I got to the airport shortly before 8:30, and easily returned the rental car. Then I hiked inside and joined the long line at the Southwest counter to check luggage. The line moved very quickly, and pretty soon I was headed for security, stopping for one last giant Christmas tree picture along the way. 

Security was a cluster, but eventually I was on my way to the gate, sad that this trip was already over.

When I arrived at the gate, I encountered the yappiest, highest pitched dog, EVER. There really should be a pitch limit on yappy dogs allowed on flights.

Eventually it was boarding time. My stomach was still messed up from the chicken incident at Sea World, so, for the first time ever, I grabbed a window seat and settled in for the 3 hour flight up to Manchester, knowing it could be a little bumpy.

I’d been watching the weather and had talked to dad that morning while at the gate. Manchester was getting inundated with heavy rain. Since it was unusually warm for Christmas in NH (mid 50s), this was creating a lot of fog. It was also very windy. I had wondered about the likelihood of actually getting into the airport, but dad had clued me into the fact that Manchester is actually rated/has the equipment for military emergencies. Because of this, the airport can handle aircraft in weather that would cause significant flight interruptions in other airports.

Sure enough, it was a bumpy flight, but we made it into Manchester a little after 1. The landing was certainly bumpy, but we made it. As soon as we were taxiing to the gate, the flight crew put Christmas music on over the PA system. I thought that was a pretty nice touch.

Deplaning was easy; everyone was in a very good mood. My luggage appeared on the baggage claim shortly after I got downstairs, and I called Nick, who pulled up to the curb in my car. He helped me load my suitcase in the car and we went for lunch and then headed home.

Despite not feeling well, and not being dressed for the temperatures, it was a good trip, and I’m so glad I finally got to see all of the decorations and shows that I’ve wanted to see for years.

December 2014: A Holiday Park Extravaganza: Day 4

Day 4: Tuesday December 23, 2014

I woke up the next morning, well rested, with still swollen tonsils, but realizing I had slept through the night without having to get up for more Advil. Progress! I packed up, packed the car, and then had breakfast in the lobby again. I have a Hilton Honors credit card to accumulate more points more quickly, and with that card, I get automatic gold status with Hilton Honors. Because of this, I get free breakfasts at hotels that offer breakfast but typically charge for it (think Hilton Garden Inn, Doubletree, etc). So, even though I wasn’t eating much, it made sense to eat breakfast at the hotel.

Once breakfast was done, I hopped in the car and drove to Tampa. It was a pretty straightforward drive, with surprisingly little traffic. I got there shortly after the park opened, so no real wait at the parking lot booth like there had been at Sea World.

I found a parking space, and headed for the tram. Because of where the parking lot is, Busch Gardens doesn’t really give you a choice. You more or less have to ride the tram to the front of the park.

Park entrance was easy, and I found the building where the ice show would be held. They started letting us in, and I grabbed a seat in the middle, and did some texting to pass the time. Busch Gardens always has an ice show, but this one is a holiday themed one.

The ice show was very well done, and pretty soon, I was back outside taking pictures of the decorations and some of the animals. There were a couple of roller coasters I wanted to try, but with how Everest had treated me a couple days before, I wasn’t going near the roller coasters here. I really ended up just wandering. 

My original plan for Busch Gardens had been to stick around late enough for the Christmas Town stuff (lights/shows) but those didn’t start until 4, and I made the decision that it would not be a good idea for me to do the hour+ plus drive back to Orlando in the dark, as tired as I was. Plus, honestly, I was bored. Busch Gardens is better when you can actually ride the rides. And, I wanted to see the holiday stuff over at Hollywood Studios. Something had to give. It was kind of a waste of a ticket, but at the same time, it barely cost anything extra to add BG to the ticket, so even with how little I did, it was worth it.

After a sandwich for lunch, I headed for the car and drove to Hollywood Studios. I decided as I drove into the parking lot that Disney might actually own more orange cones than the state of Pennsylvania. My sister lives in Pennsylvania, and I’m convinced that they have more orange cones than any other state, and that they use the roads as their cone storage, since there are ALWAYS lane closures, but only twice have I actually seen evidence of road work.

Anyway, I hopped on a waiting tram and sent a text to Eric. Through facebook, we had discovered that we were both planning on being in Hollywood Studios in the afternoon, so I was supposed to text him when I got there. He responded wondering if I could make it to the Comedy Warehouse show that was starting in 10 minutes. If so, there was a seat by him. I told him it’d be a stretch, but I’d see what I could do.

Of course the tram made a “courtesy stop” for people walking in from a different lot, but shockingly, bag check was nothing more than a cursory glance, and there was no line to actually get into the park. I booked it down to the American Idol theater and walked in just as they were announcing last call. I followed directions and located Eric. We chatted for a couple of minutes, and then the show started.

I never got to see the original Comedy Warehouse. I didn’t turn 21 until just a few months before Pleasure Island closed. Now that I’ve seen the holiday edition, I really wish I had been able to go to the original.

Once the show was over, we wandered and chatted for awhile. We watched the Muppets 3-D show and then continued wandering and chatting. The lines for most attractions and shows were pretty long. It was nice, though, to be able to catch up.

Eventually Eric headed out of the park. I did a bit of shopping, and then had a Candy Cane Milkshake as my dinner. I then did a bit of picture taking before heading over to the Streets of America. 

It was time for Osborne Lights.

Once I’d sufficiently photographed Osborne Lights, I headed out of the park. It was time to drive to the last hotel and pack to go home. The last hotel was the Drury Inn & Suites. I’ve stayed at a few Drury Inns now, and I really like that chain. The hotel was easy enough to get to, and pretty soon I was settling in to the room to pack and get ready to go home in the morning. I collapsed into bed pretty early, knowing I had to get moving fairly early the next morning.