I had a conference this week at Disney World. So, we brought the family up on Monday and we played hooky for the afternoon to have Q get his first taste of the mouse in Orlando. Participants in the conference were given a free afternoon ticket to the park and Florida residents get tickets at discounted prices. Some how junior manages to get in free (at Disney?). Oh that Walt, so smart. I am not big on crowds and I'm even less inclined to wait in line. So, for me it was a good Florida bucket list item and I hoped Quinny had a blast but wasn't sure what the experience would be like. I am officially a believer. The last time I was at Disney World I think I was 6. I'm not sure what's changed. Space Mountain, Splash Mountain and It's a Small World all still exist today as they did then. But this is an extremely well run operation. The staff was awesome from the housekeepers to the bus drivers to everyone in between. They were pleasant, cheery and helpful. I had the towel guy at the pool wish me luck in a meeting I was heading to after dropping Carrie and Q there. Just a great staff. We were at the park for 7-8 hours and we didn't see a single person drinking or smoking, no swearing and not a single child did we witness cry including our own. Shocking. It was immaculately clean. The whole experience was a positive one. They did a great job.
We stayed at the Yacht club so they have boats that take you to Epcot or buses that take you everywhere else. We went to Fort Wilderness for about an hour by boat. Too hot! How are all these people surviving mid-Florida in July? We didn't know what it was, but it's a glorified camp ground and you don't go camping in Florida in July. The temperature was in the 90s as was the humidity. When is that boat coming back?! I dropped my waist size two inches by the time we left. We drank bottle after bottle of water, which was easy to find. Upon arrival we walked down Main Street, USA and there was a 12 person marching band that Quentin loved. He immediately starts dancing while I'm wondering how these people are surviving playing, dancing while wearing band uniforms. They were great. We moved up to the castle for some photo opportunities and then the adventure began.
Straight to the Dumbo ride we went with Quentin saying Dumbo, Dumbo, Dumbo. Line - 45 minutes long. Okay, what's next? You can't take the stroller with you and he's too young to stand and wait in line, which means you have to hold him. It's 93 degrees and he weighs 31 pounds give or take. To hold him while waiting in line for 45 minutes is fine. But to repeat, repeat, repeat and I'm gonna look like I was at the gym for the last 7 years with Hulk-like biceps. So we decided we would go to it's a small world. That wait was 30 minutes, but half of it was air conditioned, a major bonus. Quentin was just staring in amazement. There is too much stimulation in there for him. There is stuff on the ceilings and both sides of the boat so it's a lot to take in. He got a kick out of it and it was a good first ride to go on.
Then we took off to the carousel, which he has been on before from our trip to Boston. When he saddled up he had the biggest grin on his face. He was ready to ride that stallion and there was no wait so he got right on. He really likes the carousel so it was fun to watch him and I got some good pictures. I can't take all that spinning so I had to watch from a far. We then saw the Country Bear Jamboree. Every time one of the bears went "back stage" he would yell out bye-bye or uh-oh! Where did they go? The show lasts 15-20 minutes and the characters are changing every 2-3 minutes so there were a lot of uh-oh's and bye-bye's. He got a big kick out of the talking mounted heads on the wall; a deer, a buffalo and a moose, which were the comic relief.
We caught some dinner, which again I was impressed with. Quinny had a cheese burger with grapes, a cookie and a milk for $5. Not bad. I couldn't believe how reasonable the food was. It's not grocery store cheap but it was cheaper than the fare poolside at the hotel. The place is pretty crazy during feeding time. One of the observations of the crowd, which was international and about as diverse a crowd as you will ever see in one place with different classes, races and languages. The weight on these people though. We need a serious diet. I would estimate 80% of the crowd was overweight. I don't know how these people were surviving in such heat. There is very little shade and only the shops sported A/C. We didn't see anyone having an especially hard time but it had to be rough for many a park goer.
We ate dinner and then stumbled onto the Pirates of the Caribbean ride with no wait. There are two entrances and we chose wisely and got right on in less than 5 minutes. It was dark and scary but it didn't phase Quentin. We were in a boat going through a cave and it's pitch black and you drop a good 20-25 feet (waterfall) in total darkness. Quinny didn't make a peep. He took it like a champ. There was a little boy in the row behind us getting scared and his dad said, "Look at the little boy in front of you. If he isn't scared you shouldn't be." Quinny, not even 20 months old and already a leader. The ride ends and spits you out into a gift shop. That, Walt, so sneaky! We bought Quinny a new dinner set for $3 with the Pirate theme so he got a souvenir. That seemed awfully cheap to us. At this point our little guy was pretty tuckered out and it was right around his bed time of 7:30.
We stayed at the Yacht club so they have boats that take you to Epcot or buses that take you everywhere else. We went to Fort Wilderness for about an hour by boat. Too hot! How are all these people surviving mid-Florida in July? We didn't know what it was, but it's a glorified camp ground and you don't go camping in Florida in July. The temperature was in the 90s as was the humidity. When is that boat coming back?! I dropped my waist size two inches by the time we left. We drank bottle after bottle of water, which was easy to find. Upon arrival we walked down Main Street, USA and there was a 12 person marching band that Quentin loved. He immediately starts dancing while I'm wondering how these people are surviving playing, dancing while wearing band uniforms. They were great. We moved up to the castle for some photo opportunities and then the adventure began.
Straight to the Dumbo ride we went with Quentin saying Dumbo, Dumbo, Dumbo. Line - 45 minutes long. Okay, what's next? You can't take the stroller with you and he's too young to stand and wait in line, which means you have to hold him. It's 93 degrees and he weighs 31 pounds give or take. To hold him while waiting in line for 45 minutes is fine. But to repeat, repeat, repeat and I'm gonna look like I was at the gym for the last 7 years with Hulk-like biceps. So we decided we would go to it's a small world. That wait was 30 minutes, but half of it was air conditioned, a major bonus. Quentin was just staring in amazement. There is too much stimulation in there for him. There is stuff on the ceilings and both sides of the boat so it's a lot to take in. He got a kick out of it and it was a good first ride to go on.
Then we took off to the carousel, which he has been on before from our trip to Boston. When he saddled up he had the biggest grin on his face. He was ready to ride that stallion and there was no wait so he got right on. He really likes the carousel so it was fun to watch him and I got some good pictures. I can't take all that spinning so I had to watch from a far. We then saw the Country Bear Jamboree. Every time one of the bears went "back stage" he would yell out bye-bye or uh-oh! Where did they go? The show lasts 15-20 minutes and the characters are changing every 2-3 minutes so there were a lot of uh-oh's and bye-bye's. He got a big kick out of the talking mounted heads on the wall; a deer, a buffalo and a moose, which were the comic relief.
We caught some dinner, which again I was impressed with. Quinny had a cheese burger with grapes, a cookie and a milk for $5. Not bad. I couldn't believe how reasonable the food was. It's not grocery store cheap but it was cheaper than the fare poolside at the hotel. The place is pretty crazy during feeding time. One of the observations of the crowd, which was international and about as diverse a crowd as you will ever see in one place with different classes, races and languages. The weight on these people though. We need a serious diet. I would estimate 80% of the crowd was overweight. I don't know how these people were surviving in such heat. There is very little shade and only the shops sported A/C. We didn't see anyone having an especially hard time but it had to be rough for many a park goer.
We ate dinner and then stumbled onto the Pirates of the Caribbean ride with no wait. There are two entrances and we chose wisely and got right on in less than 5 minutes. It was dark and scary but it didn't phase Quentin. We were in a boat going through a cave and it's pitch black and you drop a good 20-25 feet (waterfall) in total darkness. Quinny didn't make a peep. He took it like a champ. There was a little boy in the row behind us getting scared and his dad said, "Look at the little boy in front of you. If he isn't scared you shouldn't be." Quinny, not even 20 months old and already a leader. The ride ends and spits you out into a gift shop. That, Walt, so sneaky! We bought Quinny a new dinner set for $3 with the Pirate theme so he got a souvenir. That seemed awfully cheap to us. At this point our little guy was pretty tuckered out and it was right around his bed time of 7:30.
We moved into Tomorrowland, the future. There was a DJ playing dance music with Pluto and the chipmunks on stage. Quinny was bobbing and getting into the groove. I caught him coming back through that area again on video so we have him dancing. It's hilarious watching him get down. He gets self-conscious though, if he knows you are watching so I had to shoot it from behind. We went on a few more rides and then headed back for the electrical parade and fireworks. One of the best firework displays I have seen in a long long time.
Quinny made it through the whole day awake with no tantrums and no crying. He was great. We all had a fantastical time. It was a little hot but everyone enjoyed themselves and got to see everything they wanted. What would you expect from Disney? Next time he will be tall enough for Space Mountain and some of the bigger rides. As soon as we made it out way out of the park and onto the bus he was out cold. We changed his clothes and he didn't wake up. We made it back to the hotel by 11. But guess what? He still got up at 5 am this morning. That Quinny! He's never going to sleep in!
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