Jae's WDW Trip
February 2003

Trip Report - Day 3

Cast of Characters:
Me - twentysomething little girl, otherwise known as Princess
DH - thirtysomething big kid, otherwise known as Flower the Skunk

The Minnesotans were in the pool when I got up this morning. I bounced out of bed at 8 AM and heard their happy little shrieks as soon as I was out on the balcony. These kids must be part polar bear, since it wasn't even 50 degrees.

The plan today had been to go to MGM. But DH saw something about Downtown Disney on the TV and wanted to check it out, since neither of us had ever been there. We got take out from Roaring Forks and went out to the bus stop.

It was still chilly and windy when we got to DTD, but the sun was shining and the day looked like it was going to be beautiful! We watched the little kids playing in the fountains and then explored the Christmas store, where I bought a special edition Wilderness Lodge Ornament. I had bought a Fantasia bell in Epcot the day before, but forgot to mention that. We checked out a bunch of other stores and I got a decent coffee in the Gourmet Pantry - though the woman behind the counter was incredibly rude when DH said he didn't have anything smaller than a twenty. After having fun in the garden shop and talking to the very cool birds outside the Rainforest Cafe, it was time for lunch. We went to Wolfgang Puck's express and got yummy, yummy, yummy mac and cheese and pizza, which we split.

After lunch we finished checking out all the shops, and ended up in the World of Disney, I think, where DH found the BEST shirt. I had been teasing him every time we saw a Grumpy shirt - Grumpy U, Grumpy Mechanics, Grumpy Athletics - because he really is a grouch sometimes. Well, this was a baseball shirt that said Bad Attitude on the front, and just had a teeny picture of Grumpy on the back. It was perfect! Of course, we had everything we bought sent back to the resort.

At this point, we decided it was time to go to MGM, so we went to go catch a bus to the Swolphin. My stomach had been upset again - now I think I must have had a bug - and when we got on the bus, I thought I was going to vomit. I get really bad motion sickness to begin with. Then DH remembered he wanted to check out DisneyQuest. So we got off the bus.

Luckily, DisneyQuest was included in our tickets or it would have been a huge downer. Compared to the arcade at the Contemporary, DQ is overpriced and too heavy on the VR rides. I did get a huge kick out of the Star Wars game, which I immediately became some kind of super-ace at. For a while, I had a bunch of 10-year-old-boys watching as I took on all Tie Fighters and Storm Troopers in sight. Finally, we had had enough and really wanted to get back into the sun.

We waited and waited for a bus to one of the Epcot resorts, but none were coming. By this point we were getting cranky, so when we saw a WL bus, we hopped on it and went back to the hotel. It was getting late, and even though I really wanted to see Fantasmic, neither of us could handle the original plan, which was to see Fantasmic and then come back to the hotel for dinner. So we decided to change our plans yet again (this was getting to be a habit) and go to Epcot.

We couldn't get into Le Cellier, so we had dinner at the Rose & Crown. I lived in London for a summer, so I thoroughly enjoyed the food and atmosphere - right down to the Ty Nant bottled water. DH had a gigantic slab of prime rib, which he said was too well done for him, but he also admitted that was his own fault because he asked for an end piece and it's hard to get a rare end piece. We finished eating really early, and when we went outside, it was freezing again - even through my arctic fleece. Well, there was no way I was missing Illuminations a second time, so we began a commando search for a fuzzy for me. Neither of the two world showcase souvenir stores had anything I liked, so it was off to MouseGears. I wasn't going to pay $50 for a sweatshirt, and all the cheap ones were ugly. I was getting desperate. In the little kids section, I found a pink Minnie fleece. It was cute as all heck, and even better, under $30. The CM at the register took the tag off, and we raced back to the world showcase with time to spare. Now that I was warm and cuddly, we found spectacular seat at the little plaza at the entrance to the world showcase, right by the rail and the water.

What a show!! Illuminations was even better than I remembered, and this was the BEST seat. It was so close we could feel the heat from the flames. DH and I both agreed we should have bought the CD of the music and that this is not to be missed - just thinking about when the torches go out gives me shivers.

The Minnesotans were still in the pool when we got back. Maybe they're not children - maybe they're little children shaped robots.

High points: Illuminations, Grumpy shirt, yummy dinner, cute fuzzy pullover
Low Points: Lame games and prizes at Disney Quest, crummy bus service

Day: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7