Leonard Topolski - September 2003

Due to my wife's unexpected pregnancy, we rescheduled a trip for WDW from May 2004 to 9/27. We took advantage of the Fairytale Package to book a trip to the Polynesian.

Flew nonstop from Houston to Orlando on Continental. Plan was to arrive early afternoon, check into the hotel and spend half a day introducing my son and wife to MK, where neither had ever been. Flight was uneventful, and we were met by YourRide at the baggage claim. Had to wait for our luggage for about 20 minutes due to a thunderstorm that prevented crews from unloading the plane safely. Finally got all our stuff and we were on our way to the world. Nice trip in - wish I could remember the drivers name - I am terrible with names. Check in was smooth and we got a second floor garden view room in Raratonga that was right next to the GCH. Very convenient - got to see the monorail going quietly past the room. Settled in and jumped a ride to MK. Big thunderstorm hit right after we got in and were walking down Main Street. Ducked under an awning by the bakery and donned our ponchos as people bailed out of the park in droves. Rain let up after about 30 minutes, but it was humid. Went over to Tomorrowland and rode TTA, Indy Racers and Buzz. Had a 7:15 PS for Crystal Palace. Really worried about this one since my son's previous encounters with characters in costume such as the Easter bunny were a disaster. Pleasant surprise when Tigger first came by. He started to warm up to them, allowing us to take pictures with some encouragement. Previously he would scream, cry and cling, so this was a big advance. By the end of a pretty decent meal (the buffet there is plentiful and has a lot of variety) he was getting his picture taken with Eeyore without being prompted. Success!! Everyone was tired from the trip by this point. We headed to the monorail for our trip around Seven Seas Lagoon back to the Poly for a good nights rest. Tomorrow we would tackle MGM.

Today we decided to push our luck and see how my son would do with a character breakfast before hitting the parks. The most convenient was the one at the Poly, where we were staying, so we made a PS and headed up to Ohana's. Brandon easily was able to tell the difference between Chip and Dale, which impressed me for a 4 year old, and loved Mickey but was a little intimidated by Goofy. The food was not especially good, lacking in variety and choice, but with the exception of Chef Mickey's you are really paying for the characters. We then caught the bus to MGM. The parks all looked crowded to us rookies, but based on how fast we either did standby this whole week or used the Fast Pass it really was not that bad. MGM was no exception. We spent the whole day in the park and did most of the attractions, except for Indiana Jones. My son really does not like loud noises and explosions and such, and we were not going to force him through it so that we could see it. I used FP and rode RRC and T of T. I know that lots of people are not big on roller coasters, but I love them. It may not be saying much, but RRC is a pretty tame ride. The themeing was exceptional, especially the loading area. You really felt like you were in a dingy back alley waiting for a limo! Now Tof T was a great ride! You really could not anticipate any part of the ride, and it made it that much more thrilling. We made a PS and ate at Sci-Fi. I love the themeing of the place with the cars and the cheesy B movie trailers. Food was real good, service was even better, and my son got one of the glowing ice cubes that fascinated him. We also did Great Movie Ride (ok), Muppets 3D (very funny, a great way to relive your childhood if you grew up with the Muppets), Backlot Tour (not worth the long ride), Sounds Dangerous (a real waste of time, and the dark is scary to small children, although my son loved the elephant special effect). The whole park is really accessible and nicely laid out. My son really got into the character greeting today and got pictures with Buzz and Woody and some other characters I did not know (Goofy Jr??). He also is quickly beginning to spot the penny pressing machines, and I can see where I will not have many quarters left by the end of the week! We got in at the last second to watch Millionaire. I loved the show in prime time, and did terrible here. I guess I was too excited!

The New York backlot is completely fenced in and scaffold. Hard to tell what they are doing with it.

As I go on with these reports, I can answer any questions about the parks if anyone wants to write me off line.

Tomorrow, MK backwards and forwards!

This was the day we had looked forward to - we had planned to spend the entire day at MK and do everything a 4 year old could. As this was the first visit for my wife also, and my last time was in 1986, it was pretty much a new experience for our whole family. The day was a blur - we rode Astro Orbiter twice, Buzz Lightyear again, Dumbo, Peter Pan, Small World, HM, Goofy's Jamboree, Country Bears. Got to see a sneak preview of Mickey's Philharmagic - don't want to ruin it, but this is a must see!. My son in his shoes just gets to 40 inches, but he made it through the first check at Splash Mt, then he would not stand up straight and they would not let him get in the car! Thank goodness he took it in stride and I rode it by myself. We ate lunch at Liberty Inn, walked outside and got a great place to watch the parade. Spent time in Toontown where my son got his face painted like a dalmation and was the talk of everybody who saw it. He also saw the Barnstormer and wanted to ride it. First time on a real roller coaster. He was a bit apprehensive, but once on he screamed with joy and we would up riding it 5 times! Can't wait till he is taller and can do all the big rides! I did Space Mt twice on each side while my wife was on Astro Orbitor - I love this coaster because the ride lasts so long! Sorry that things like BTMR and TimeKeeper and Carrousel of Progress were closed. Swiss Family Robinson also being refurbished. Rode the Jungle Cruise. Did Pirates. Lines were short for all rides!

Here was a special moment - we were making the character rounds and had to go back to catch Peter Pan. Well worth it. It is easy enough IMHO to stay in character in a costume. The person playing Peter Pan really had to act the part, and the person they had doing it was fantastic. He took the time to interact personally with each person. Asked my son what was his favorite ride - My son pointed at him and said "Yours!" Told him that he had ridden it about 5 million times, and could ride it free anytime he wanted because his name was on the building. Told him the story of cutting off Hooks hand and feeding it to Tick-Toc. I cannot say enough how enthralled my son was with him.

Got back late to the Poly that night and split an entree with my wife at the Kona Cafe. Son pretty much petered out there and went off to bed.

Tomorrow we were off to Blizzard Beach and more adventures with my son in my next report.

We opted for some fun at the beach, Disney Style. BB looked more suited or 4 year olds, and it proved to be so. The only type of thrill ride I have ever been afraid on in my life is one similar to the Summit Plummet that is here at Water world in Houston. BB's ride is supposedly higher, so I had an opportunity to overcome a nagging fear in my psyche! About midday I climbed to the top of Mt. Gushmore, and found a way to get over my fear - no one was in line in front of me to give me time to chicken out! Got in the slide quickly and plunged over the slide. FAST!! Not bad at all. Got up again and did it with my eyes open this time! Did the double dipper next - you catch some air on this one, but it is slower so it is not as bad. Once I got those out of the way, I took my son up to do the toboggan snow stomper and racers. He bravely jumped on the mat, listened to my instructions, grabbed the handles and rode both rides to the bottom screaming with delight! I was so proud of him! He did the snow stompers 6 times, choosing a different path on all 3 runs every time! We also did the large family raft ride 4 times, which is long and fast and he loved! All three of us floated twice around the river on the inner tubes, which unfortunately was the only thing my pregnant wife could do. Afterwards, we headed out the gate and played a round at the Winter/Summertime miniature golf. This, in typical Disney style, was a fun course. Some challenges, and each hole had a unique theme and trick to it. The weather was beautiful and warm but not hot all day long.

We headed back to the hotel to clean up, then went over to DD to eat and shop. The Disney store there is fantastic! Once Upon a Toy had great selections, and we over to Ghiradelli to replace those calories we had lost at BB that day! We got there late, so Brandon opted for chicken nuggets from Uncle Ronald and we got a pizza at Pucks that was really good.

We did not make it to the park until 11:30, which is a mistake with the short hours the park has. After meeting Rafiki and Timon at the gate, we hustled over to Festival of the Lion King. I have seen the Broadway show, which is out of this world. This show is simply the best production I have ever seen at a park. It is colorful, creative, and leaves you singing along. After the show they pass out Simba masks, which are also a reminder that the DVD is going to be released on Oct 7th!. I read a lot of negative stuff about AK and am here to tell you it is wrong. This is a beautiful park. The themeing is so authentic when you get to Africa you feel as if you are really in a village marketplace, with the exception of the Mickey's in the gift shop! The detail in the buildings shows how far imagineers have come. The park is a real learning experience about culture and animals. I was surprised how green everything was. You feel as if you are in the jungles of the world. The Kilamanjaro tour is a wonderful way to see the animals, especially if they are active like when I went through, but the whole chasing the poacher bit was overdone and cheesy. It should not have been necessary to do that just to jazz the ride up. Don't miss the train ride out to Rafiki's Conservation Station. It is fascinating to talk with the vets and see just how advanced the whole park is. You will be amazed at the size of the backlots and the facilities they have. It is all first class and not worthy of all the criticism the park took. Just to the other side of Asia one can view a massive construction site that is probably the location of the new Everest roller coaster. Looks like there is going to be some access point to it by the entrance that section of the park. I did not ride the Kali River Rapids because my son is not big on getting soaked, but it was humorous seeing the number of people in the bathroom trying to use the hand dryers to try and dry some of their clothes out. A word, though, about Dinoland. Very out of place at this park. It looks like a half-hearted attempt to add colorful attractions that really seem unnecessary. The midway games made me feel like I was at a carnival here in Houston. The dig area kept my sons interest (step on the footprints for a big surprise!) but overall it was a glorified gym you can find in any outdoor park.

That night we had PS's for Ohana's. Worth the price. You can eat till your hearts content and the CM's really play the parts well. Service is first rate. Again we had worn my son out and he was cranky, but so was I. I dragged him over to the coconut races and halfway through he was whacking at it like a first rate hockey forward!

Not much new to report here. We made this a day to hit all the rides we had missed on our first day through. Got another face painting at Toontown that was a dragon that my son loved. Rode the Mad Hatter for the first time and he loved turning the cup himself. Went through Peter Pan again. Ate lunch at the Plaza while the parade was going on. After that cleared out, we did some shopping on Main street and jumped on the monorail to go to Epcot for a few hours for dinner.

My goals at Epcot were to ride Mission Space and Test Track. Got to do both. I am a big roller coaster fan, and do not suffer from vertigo, so I found Mission:Space to be quite tame. It was a great ride, though. Really felt like you are on a liftoff in a rocket, and the g force you experience was nothing too bad. The switch to zero gravity is so sudden you almost do feel like you are floating in space.

I loved the speed of test track. It is was great for what is was planned as - a learning experience and a thrill ride. Got my son to stand up tall and make the 40 inch grade, but the sound of the cars screaming by the front of the the building spooked him out of riding.

My opinion on Epcot is that this is not a park for young kids, despite Disney's attempt to try and do so. The exhibits are not geared for them. They should stop attempting to try and appeal to everyone. As an educational facility for adults and older children, it is second to none. I look forward to bringing him back when he is older, but I am glad I did not plan a full day here. The park really is huge and takes quite a bit of time to walk around. We really got there too late to enjoy the World Showcase, but will plan to enjoy that in the future. We went over to Germany and had dinner at the Biergarten. My son was pooped out and despite the wonderful attention of the CM, he was unresponsive, but I don't blame him. The buffet was excellent if you like German food.

We were going to be picked up by YourRide at 1:00 so we figure we had a few hours to kill and see MK one last time. Got to the park and did Indy, Astro Orbitor, Barnstormer again. Walked over to Dumbo and made that our last ride of the park. It was magical to get on with my son, see the castle soaring by and relish how much he had grown up this week. Got back to the monorail to ride back to the poly and that is where our last bit of magic took place. We had a short ride earlier in the week from the poly to MK as co-pilots, but my son so wanted to do it again. I tried as gently as I could to tell him not everyone could ride up there. The first train through was full, and we decided to wait for one more to see if we could jump a ride. It was empty! The CM told us we could only stay up front till we got to the Grand Floridian! Well, we were getting off at the Poly, so we got to go all the way around Seven Seas Lagoon, and this time the driver got out at TTC and got us all co-pilot licenses! We rode happily to the Poly, had lunch at Ohana's and it was time to catch our slightly late ride to MCO. Our driver had car problems, but made up time hitting 70 on the Beeline and got us to the airport in plenty of time for curbside check in.

All in all, a great vacation.

Now is the point where I level a bit of criticism. With the exception of a few rides, every single one in the park dumps you right into a gift shop themed for the ride. Now, if I were running the park and came up with this idea, I would probably be sitting somewhere with a bunch of stock options and a drink in my hand for it's brilliant strategy. I was able to limit my son to one toy a day, and it was things like a six dollar pair of binoculars that made him happy. I feel for parents who have to drag a screaming kid out of there because they are overwhelmed by all the choices of stuff. I was pretty selective in what I buy since I have too much stuff from too many trips in the past, but children do not understand that.

Lets face it - no matter what package you buy, or how much you save, Disney tickets are expensive. However, you get your money's worth. It is not just the rides. As far as thrills go, none are particularly of the type that you feel like you are on the edge of death and fear. Many bring back memories of a happy childhood. Many ensure that your children will have one also. It is much more than that. It is looking around and feeling like you are actually in an old frontier town, or in the city of the future. It is the fact you can go in a bathroom and find soap in the dispensers, and someone there to pick up a bit of trash if it hits the ground. There is a lot about the parks you discover that are not on any map. I enjoyed the trip immensely , and will bring my children back in the future. I could not find myself going every year, or every couple of months like some do, but that is what makes us all different. There are so many other places I want to visit and have and will. I hope that it will not be another 20 years before I go back to Disney, but I know that if I do it will still be the same first class group of people I found when I have been there. There is lots of competition out there, but nobody does it as well as they do.