Skamarakas - Nov/Dec 2005

When: November 27 - December 3
Who: The Skamarakas Family - Anna (mom, 41); Anna (grandmom, 62); Brighid (DD14); Eilis (DD4); Granuaile (DD 7 months)
Where: Port Orleans Riverside from Sunday until Friday, then one night at the Nickelodeon Hotel

MOVING DAY

Today, we check out of POR and check in to the Nickelodeon Hotel. This is another special treat I have tried to arrange for Eilis since so much of the trip has been ruined with people being sick. We get up nice and early and we manage to make it out by check out time at 11 AM. HUGE effort on Grandmom's part. We have decided to go back to EPCOT today. I am worried that the MK will be crowded because the weekend has arrived, and I don't know how the kids will be, so I figure I might catch another Santa or two and then I plan to spend the rest of the time at the Nick hotel.

Check in went very smoothly. The plan is to drop the bags off, grab lunch, and head into EPCOT. When we check in, though, we get a schedule of activities, and coming up in not too long is the SpongeBob SquarePants Christmas show. Of course we can't miss that!! We drop our bags quickly in the room, and Grandmom runs in to use the bathroom. She says she killed an ant on the bathroom counter, but we don't give it a second thought. We head over to the "mall", which is where the food court is, and we decide on pizza for lunch since it is the only counter with anyone working.

We place the order and are told it will be a couple of minutes. Brighid runs over to guest services and get the tickets for her and Eilis to see the SpongeBob show. Lunch is taking forever, and people who have lined up behind us have gotten their orders and are now eating. I ask how much longer and I am told that the pepperoni pizza is what is taking so long, but he gives me the other pizzas and large drinks, even though we ordered small (they are out of small cups), and someone will bring the pepperoni pizza to me. When we sit down, we find that the pizza we have IS the pepperoni pizza, so I am off again to find the cheese pizza. Oh, mistake, but we don't have one ready. We'll bring it out to you. I am convinced now that the one we get will have some sort of bodily fluid adorning it, but it is Brighid's, and with as little as she eats, she is likely spared the spit.

We do our best to finish up lunch before the doors open to the theater, but we aren't done, so we send Brighid and Eilis into the show and we tell them we will meet them at the table. We wait a little bit, then decide to check out the small gift shop, which is right across from the theater doors. The kids see us after they come out - about 30 minutes later. We hop into the car and head to EPCOT.

The kids ride everything they want, and we hit Club Cool. There, they taste all the sodas and wrap their own soda bottle - not a bad souvenir! We have an early ADR for the Biergarten because of the crummy lunch, so we head over there at about 4. We are seated within minutes, and we have a great time. Eilis is part of the little parade, they sing Christmas songs, and Eilis comes away with a chocolate coin.

It's getting late, it's cold, and Eilis wants to go back to her great room at the Nick hotel. After seeing the tree lighting again, we head out.

Back at the hotel, we find that an army has come to seek revenge for the murder of the little ant my mom killed earlier in the day. There are dozens of them in the bathroom and even more on the kitchen counter. I phone the front desk for help, but it is after 11 PM before anyone shows up - and wakes the baby. A chemical is sprayed, but there are still ants everywhere. I am now worried about all of our bags and taking home a pack of ants with us, so I am furiously picking stuff up off of the floor, packing things that can be put in the car, wrapping stuff up to put it in places where I think ants can't get. As a result, I am up until nearly 4 AM. We had booked a character breakfast here at the hotel for the morning of our departure at 7:30, as I wanted to be on the road by 9, but this morning, it was ME who couldn't get up and out in time. We missed the breakfast, I complained to the hotel management, they refunded my money for the evening, but Eilis was so disappointed to have missed the breakfast.

But, we are headed back to NJ now, not soon enough. This is one of the few times I think I am more glad to be going home than coming to Disney!

Highlight - The Biergarten for Eilis
Lowlight - ANTZ!

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