After arriving in Orlando, we took an uber to Port Orleans French Quarter - one of our very favorite places to stay - and grabbed some breakfast, and while we were eating, we got a notification that our room was ready, which was a very welcome surprise! So we were able to drop our bags off in our room before heading to Magic Kingdom on the bus!
After a few hours at MK, we took the monorail over the Polynesian for a little while, and then took an uber back to our resort for beignets and a nap because we were operating on not nearly enough sleep! As usual, a nap makes everything better, so we took the bus over to Epcot to finally watch the Epcot Forever fireworks, which we hadn't ever seen. The fireworks were pretty underwhelming, but the soundtrack was so, so, so good! After the fireworks, the park cleared out, and since we were exiting through the back of the World Showcase, we got to wander through some of the pavilions with almost no one around! I loved it! We walked over to Beach Club, because we had a very late dinner reservation at Beaches and Cream for the second trip in a row! We try to get a reservation there every trip and usually have no luck, so two trips in a row is amazing! As always, we had a great time, because the atmosphere is super fun!
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when we were rode the PeopleMover,
the lights inside Space Mountain
were on |
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| they played "You're Welcome" from Moana! |
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| Germany |
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| America |
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| Japan |
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| Italy |
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| France |
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| the holiday carousel at Beach Club |
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| the best! |
We slept in on Saturday and then took the bus to Animal Kingdom for a few hours where we had lunch and then went to Rafiki's Planet Watch, which is something we've never done before. However, I really only had one reason to go to Animal Kingdom and that was to see Kevin, but despite waiting for a very long time, it never happened. Disappointing!
We went back to POFQ to take a nap because we had a long night ahead of us, and then took the bus over to DHS for the Jollywood Nights Party. If you've read anything about the party, it was kind of a disaster and I absolutely do not recommend it because the tickets were expensive, especially for the limited offerings. There were long lines for wristbands, as well as food and drinks (we waited 40 minutes to get checked in a receive a wristband; we waited 30 minutes to get one of the signature items - the PB&J donut), and WAY TOO MANY PEOPLE jammed into the front of the park. That being said, once we got away from the front of the park, DHS felt pretty empty! The rides were all walk on, with the exception of Rise of the Resistance, which had a virtual queue for the party, so in terms of the value we felt we got from the attractions, we were happy we attended. DHS also has beautiful decorations at Christmas and the music and lighting and snoap made for a festive atmosphere, We were too busy riding attractions to concern ourselves with the supposed entertainment, but we did go the last showing of the musical stage show that featured Kermit and Miss Piggy (it was all right, but not something I'd watch again). Unfortunately, it started raining around 11:45, so we were completely drenched as we waited for fireworks/projection show that capped off the party. Similar to Epcot Forever on Friday night, this show was also underwhelming, but even a less-than-stellar fireworks show is a fantastic way to end the night!
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| spotted these turkeys hanging out at our resort |
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| gross |
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every time one of the winter creatures came out,
I was mildly annoyed because I was waiting
to see Kevin! |
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I am a huge PB&J lover, so I was determined to try this donut...
it was really good, but I'm not sure worth the 30 minute wait |
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walked right in to Oga's Cantina where
we can NEVER seem to get a reservation! |
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| my drink had glitter in it! |
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| the stage show |
Sunday was a laid back day - we packed and checked out, then took the bus to DHS to catch the Skyliner to Art of Animation, where we had an early lunch. We then took the bus to MK, and given the overcast skies, the temperature was surprisingly pleasant! A gloomy gray sky doesn't make for the best photos, but lower temperatures are always a trade off I'm willing to make! Eventually the skies cleared and there was lots of sunshine when we were leaving MK, so the timing worked out perfectly for my liking! We took the bus back to POFQ, then an uber to the airport for our flight home, which was number 2468 (I am obsessed with number patterns!) We got home around 10:45 pm, which was four hours sooner than the previous weekend when we got home from the airport at 2:45 am!
We picked up Avalanche early Monday morning so I could see him before I went to school, and he was very excited (if you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen the video of him I posted as he howled in the back seat of the car on our drive home from his dog hotel - LOL!). It's just ridiculous dramatics on his part, though, because every time we drop him off there he is super happy and walks off without so much as a backward glance toward us!
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only negative to traveling...
being away from this guy! |
Another great weekend in the books!
Happy Tails to you!
