Monorail Chronicles - The 4 Things that Made Me Cry at Disney

As mentioned before, Disney for me was once not the experience that everyone raves about. At one point, it just all seemed like hype to me. Because of poor planning, timing and a negative attitude, I really could have cared less about having the experience. That was many years ago.
  The weeks that preceded the big adventure seemed normal- day to day life, work, cleaning house, school. I didn't even really start packing for the trip until a few days before we left. Never before would I ever imagine that anything about the experience would bring me to tears. But it did. More than once.

1- Getting Out of the Car.

   There are just some days that are set apart from others where life will never really be the same once that day is over. On this day I knew we were going to have a major life event together as a family and we knew it was all about to start. The drive on the way to the park was rather quiet and filled with anticipation. It was early and very sunny outside. Madi was wearing her ball cap. I didn't think it would actually be as powerful as it was. We were parked at Simba 119. We were here!

2- Walking Down Main Street.

Disney Parade with Ariel

                                                            
Another powerful moment. Once we had made the journey from the shuttle train, through the crowd to the Monorail and followed that same crowd through security and scanned our fingerprints at the gate, the journey was now about to become very real. It was overwhelming. I could not stop gazing at the Magic Castle where it seemed like everyone I knew had had there picture here and posted on Facebook. I waved hi to Peter Pan and I think he maybe saw me! I was not thinking about finances, I was not thinking about work situations or schedules. Here I was at the happiest place on earth...and well, pretty happy!

3- Elsa, Anna and Deidre

                                                                  
There are many rides throughout the Disney parks that take you through imaginary worlds in the form of boat rides through water canals. Some of these floatables were of clam shells like the ones we rode on for The Seas With Nemo and some took us through cool misty caves with a view of skulls as we became Scallywags on The Pirates of the Caribbean. They are all a little different and, in any event, a nice relief from the Summer heat. There was one of these particular voyages, however, that I remember well.
  You may be wondering - whose Deidre? She wasn't an unknown character in the movie "Frozen." She's part of my story. She's my youngest at 7 years old and I was 42 years old when she was born. She was sitting in front of me in our viking boat on the Frozen Ever After ride. Though the song "Let it Go" has had it's share of plays and replays and endless airtime on the Disney Radio-waves, it still remains timeless. But it was a little different this time...

I was at Disney. It was ever more so powerful!
 
  I thought about Deidre and the fact that, though I may be getting older, she is still young and has more time to build memories with us just like this. I know I made a fool of myself as I sat behind her and struggled to control the waterworks.

4-Torrential Downpour

   Yes, a sudden downpour can happen at anytime in Orlando Florida during the Summer, However this can be a problem at Disney if it's late, it's time for fireworks and you have not yet ridden Space Mountain.
   Our beloved family recommended that we have our Space Mountain adventure late just before the park closes. This makes sense because Space Mountain has one of the longest wait times and after the firework show is over, there is usually a mass exodus from the park at that time.
   We knew things were grave when our Jungle Cruise ride was cancelled due to lightning in the area. We had hoped for the best but checked the weather radar online and sure enough we were doomed!
With the fireworks delayed and the rain endless, we waited under the canopy of the It's a Small World ride.
   When someone in your family has special needs, things like Space Mountain can be very important. I have a little bit of autism myself so I understand this. However, Space Mountain was not as much of a priority for everyone else as it was for Rebecca. We were at the Magic Kingdom for nearly 12 hours and everyone else was ready to call it a night. My beloved family was kind enough to stay with Rebecca and take her to the ride and drop her off with us later.
   Our goodbye to the Magic Kingdom ended with no fireworks, a long exhausting walk in the rain which led us out of the park to the Monorail and from there eventually to the shuttle train through the very large parking lot. It wasn't exactly what we had planned. We then arrived before the massive crowd feeding into the monorail which didn't seem to be moving too quickly. Tired and spent, we then received the dreaded text message that Rebecca had not made it to the ride on time before it had shut down for the night.
   Though heartbroken at the time, the magic once again found us when our beloved family was able switch out a Park Hopper pass the next day and her friend that was with us had one additional fast pass. Rebecca's disappointment then turned to triumph when she heard the good news! Then, finally to our surprise, the delay for the firework show had been lifted and we watched them late into the night from the Monorail line.

Now wasn't that sappy?! In any event, Summer is over, school is back in session, and there are difficult moments during my days that leave me thinking "Gosh I wish I was at Disney right now!" It is all we have talked about for the past month! I can now say that I have officially crossed over!

Tomorrowland where Space Mountain is located.

 



Frozen Ever After with Ana and Elsa

The coolest part of this ride is where the boat ascends during the ride and later shifts and shoots the viking boat backwards during the chorus of "Let it Go.
     Frozen Ever After is located in Norway at EPCOT. The cold never bothered me anyway!





                                                        


                                                                Yeah. Crazy. I know.

My Beloved Family:

Michael

Rebecca

Madeline

Emma

Laurel

Deidre

Cari 

(Cast Member)

Mel

Taylor

Madison

Donna

Marv

Liselle and

 Hannah 

(Cari's Special Friends)

                                                                            

The Monorail Chronicals - I Was Hungry

My "Pinocchio"
(Yes, it's okay for grown-ups to play with their food at Disney)

.

    Now I am the kind of person who never orders
the salad when I go out to eat. I try to eat fairly healthy as a general rule the rest of the time when I am at home or at the school I work at but when I travel, I usually eat what I want. 
    Disney parks are by in no means short of it's wide variety of eaterys but because I was with beloved family who knew Disney, I once again had a little help with the decision making. Because we were at Disney I believe that there were likely no bad decisions to be made and we found this to be true based on our selections. 
   Our beloved family had gotten an earlier start than we did on that first day for Magic Kingdom and landed a spot in line for the "Peter Pan's Flight" ride which is located in the Fantasyland district of the park. They were kind enough to include Deidre and Laurel (my two youngest) to join them while the rest of us waited. After their "flight" had landed, the inviting aromas from the restaurants around the park served as our summons to feast.

The closest restaurant in proximity at the time was Pinocchio Village Haus. From the outside, the facade was a timber-frame design that would typically be seen in Germany or the Swiss Alps. I wondered how good the Spaetzle would be and what varieties of Bratwursts were served. Then I remembered "But wasn't Pinocchio Italian?" Sure enough, the menu included a chicken Parmesan sandwich, pizza, pasta, and meatball subs which is certainly nothing to complain about, just, well, different than what I expected. I went for the calories and had some of the best white meat chunked chicken nuggets ever!
      The food was great but I really liked the atmosphere as it resembles a Hofbrau style interior decor embellished with Pinocchio and friends. This Alpine-like design was likely due to a change in character adaptation that Walt Disney made in 1937 before releasing the film. He wanted to add more charm appeal from the original character which had somewhat more of a darker story line that followed. For viewing pleasure, the restaurant also has a large window that overlooks the ride "It's a Small World."

                    

  EPCOT

   We spent 12 hours at Magic Kingdom that day. That is a long day with a lot of walking which was good because eating well can go along with burning off the calories. However, we were tired and a little slow to get going the next day. Though I looked forward to our EPCOT visit, I was enjoying the still slowness of the morning on the back patio of our hotel. My time was soon interrupted when my husband came out and informed me that my beloved family had made lunch reservations at an English pub for 12:00 PM. I am an obsessed Anglophile. Anyone who has read my blog before knows this about me (I have been 3 times since 2013). My down time no longer mattered. I did not want to be late for anything that came with mash.

Shepherds Pie is a well known dish throughout the UK.
The bowl was filled to the rim with ground beef and lamb, fresh carrots,
peas covered with mash, and baked with Irish cheese.

   With a view of the World Showcase Lagoon at EPCOT, the cheese, the servers, and the company made for a cozy, lazier feel for the early afternoon at the Rose and Crown Pub. The menu here was very consistent to what I experienced in Britain. Almost every meal contained meat and carbs but in Britain, the two are often a fusion. Meats are often within a pie crust or smothered with potatoes. I like it both ways.
    It is only in Britain where I will likely have a beer before 5 o'clock. My meal was complimented with sample Bass Ale and Harp Lager. 

Chefs De France

What's better than a little girl time while the guys are off having their pizza in Italy. In recent years as I began to take on my great interest in travel, I have coupled this with developing my language skills. I have been studying Spanish in-depth for the last three years and in the past year have decided to expand even more. I have discovered that with the exception of pronunciation, Spanish and French languages have many similarities.
   My brother-in-law was involved in the dinner reservations for the evening and we had to divide the numbers accordingly as there were 13 of us. I was on the swing between Italian and French cuisine and he asked me what I prefered-well gosh, let me think a little on that one! The only time I had ever been to France was passing through Charles Du Gaulle airport last Summer to London and with 5 children, we frequent the Little Ceasars 5.99 deal often enough. Time to put my language skills into practice, which I did that evening as I joined the ladies of our group!
   

 Poulet Pouvais et Pomme Puree avec Vin Rouge

  
The Dole Whip

  There are certain elements associated with Disney that are original only to Disney. This by no means is an experience to be left out. Let's be very clear about that.
   As our day flowed smoothly that day at the Magic Kingdom, we had the pleasure of visiting the tropical paradise of Aloha Isle and Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room. Here we were serenaded with silly songs sung harmoniously by the numerous species of tropical Audio-Animatronic birds. There is nothing better than pairing this delight with another to complete our Luau.
   The Dole Whip gives the tourist the pleasure of the frozen  treat to cool off from the heat of the Summer. Though it is dairy-free, the creamy consistency along with the well known flavor of Dole pineapple can be enjoyed by anyone.
   So once you return from Disney and anyone asks if you enjoyed your Dole Whip, be sure to hold yourself accountable.



EPCOT:

Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow