Halfway through our trip today! Here is a quick rundown. We arrived at the campground Saturday after 13.5 hours of driving. Matt got pulled over for running a red light in Roanoke, but the cop TOTALLY pulled up from a parking lot to the intersection about 20 seconds before and it turned yellow-red so fast there was no way to slam on the brakes! He did not give us a ticket, if he had, I would have gone to court about it!
The WHOLE drive there were cops-Alabama, Georgia, Florida. By the time Matt took back over driving just past the FL border, I had already counted 72 cop cars!!! There must have been some kind of quota weekend or something.
Check-in was super easy, we are in campsite 2020 which is directly across the road from the bathhouse trail. Other than on the bathhouse itself, there are no lights above knee-level in the campground, it is DARK at night!
We set the boys up in the new tent just behind the camper, it was about to start raining when we got here, so we got set up in about 20 minutes, it was the fastest time ever, everyone was giddy with excitement. The boys each have an end of the tent, which is longer than the camper and Chan is in here with us. That's working out fairly well, with all the rain we have everything piled inside along with our clothes and laptop bags and so on and that makes it crowded. I have culled as much as I can and put it in cabinets out of the way and Matt has been staying on top of the laundry, so everything is clean and dry and put away.
Sunday morning we got up and went to Typhoon Lagoon from 10 until around 2 and then had lunch at the camper and went to Disney Quest from around 4 until about 8 and then walked around Downtown Disney.
Monday we went to Animal Kingdom from early magic hours at 8 until nearly close at 5-it was raining, so we left a little early. We opted to just have an early night and came back to camp.
Tuesday we went to Magic Kingdom (via our boat!) from right after opening at 9 until 2 when the bottom fell out and we got SOAKED. There was rain trickling into my butt crack, it was THAT level of pouring. We came back to camp and changed and did laundry, I made a hot meal and then Matt and Jake went off to EPCOT and I took Ben and Chan back to Disney Quest. I was not risking the rain. They ended up busing over to join us just in time for us to leave.
Wednesday we went to Hollywood Studios from 9-4 and then to Magic Kingdom from 5 to 9:30-we had to stay for the Kiss Goodnight! Matt and Ben went back to camp via the van, Jake and Chan and I decided to get creative and take the boat back. Well, the last one left before we got there so we took the Monorail to the TTC and then a bus to EPCOT and finally a bus back to the campground and a final bus to the campground loop. It was 11 before we walked in, we were SO tired.
Thursday was our class at EPCOT, so we got there before opening and attended the seminar on hydroponics and sustainable farming. It was not as good as I had hoped-it was very informative and Laura was lovely, but the kids have always loved the moving around and trying new things that the Disney classes offer. This was sitting still for 90 minutes watching her show the different fruits and veggies they grow and talking about how delicious they all are. Then we left. Okay-there was more to it than that, but dang! Who wants to sit and look at juicy dripping fruits that look amazing and hear how yummy and nutrient packed they are-with no getting up for a closer look or a chance to sample?
We stayed at EPCOT until dark, riding everything and walking around World Showcase until I seriously thought my feet were going to go flat. They HURT, good grief!! What is going on right now is the Food and Wine Festival and there are 25 kiosks from different countries selling 3-5 different foods and 5 or so beverages with their distinct flavors and you walk up and order what you want, swipe the band and pay for it and try stuff! We had DELICIOUS fried cheese from Greece cooked in honey with pistachios, kimchee hot dogs, ravioli, Matt and I split a Red Stag lemonade (go USA!) beef kabobs, haggis...sweets from Norway, a sweet corn cheesecake with caramel from Mexico. I know there was more, I can't remember it all. We were STUFFED, we have to go back, hehehe. There's still so much to try.
Air Supply was playing live, we stopped and watched them for a while. Saw a couple shows, watched the Italian mime, spent a LONG time in Japan, walked the hedge maze at Great Britain, tried on Sasquatch hats at Canada and so on. Generally had a great time. As we were leaving, we decided to check out Sum of All Thrills. Seriously-the most fun I had all day. We also rode Maelstrom, it closes for good Sunday. I am SO sad about that. Poor Norway. :(
Today (Friday!) we got up and went to Blizzard Beach for about 4 hours and had a great time. We headed out and got lunch, came back and did all our remaining laundry and Matt took Jake and Chan back to Disney Quest. Ben turned down going too, but now he's bored and has taken to just eating stuff at random and sighing. I am going to see if he wants to walk to the pool and roast marshmallows with Chip and Dale. :)
We are having a blast, even the rain has not been too miserable. We were able to dodge it fairly well at Hollywood Studios, we had a long lunch during one storm, went to see the Little Mermaid show in another downpour and so on. The new Star Tours Star Wars ride has 53 different random 'tours'. We went to Endor, Hoth, the Wookie planet, that planet Amidala is from, went through the Death Star and once we wrecked, smashed the front window right out. Matt and Jake made light sabers. Jake is bummed his is only 7 feet long. Matt is geeked because there is a panel that comes off and inside are different crystals that can be changed around or removed to make different effects. He has shown me 3 times and Chandler 4 times. Then he just sat and took them out and put them back over and over. He and every 9 year old boy had the same look of total fulfillment at that ride, that whole, "I KNEW IT WAS REAL!" look of satisfaction. Oh, and Jake bought an Ewok and named it Jean Luc.
I know there is a TON I am forgetting, but I have a zillion photos and I will blog later on about it all. No doubt they will jog my memory. :)
Tomorrow we are doing NOTHING. I was going to clean the camper and get the laundry done, but we did that already this afternoon when the rain hit. I just need to make a list of the food we still have and get a menu together and maybe run to the store. Sunday we are going to Apopka to the springs there. Monday it's back to Animal Kingdom, Ben loves that park!
I am hoping a couple days to lounge and explore and just be still will revive us. We are tired, but sleeping and eating VERY well. The campground is large and packed, but not noisy much at all and never after 10 (so far). We have been to the pool once and not anything else-and there is a TON. Horses, archery, trails to ride, bike and walk, 2 pools, nightly movies, nightly sing-alongs and marshmallow roasts, 4-5 restaurants, 2 stores, 2 arcades, volleyball, tennis, tetherball, boats and canoes, kayaks, shuffleboard, playgrounds, the beach where you can see fireworks every night at 9, Magic Kindgom is just across the lake, oh and the Electrical Lights parade every night on the water-it goes right by us! Right now there is a campsite decoration contest for Halloween and activities every day with that theme plus regular arts and crafts offerings. Somebody has their golf cart done up like a haunted pirate ship. There's a campsite with a TON of purple streamers, I think it's actually Princess themed and nothing to do with Halloween. I am feeling a little bare with my 2 LED lanterns...though they do change colors.
Okay, we are off to sing along with Chip and Dale and roast some marshmallows! And if my feet end up in the hot tub a while, all the better. :)
