Tales from A December to Remember--Day 2--Friday, December 2, 2011

Since I had an early night on Thursday, I was up bright and early Friday morning ready to go! But the parks wouldn’t open for over two hours, so I had some time to kill. I took a walk over to the Hess Station near the Boardwalk to get some water. I always bring an empty suitcase with me to carry the water back to my room. It took me about 25 minutes to walk to the store, grab some water, and walk back. For you coffee lovers who don’t like the Nescrape coffee they serve at Disney World, note that they sell Dunkin Donuts coffee at the Hess Station.

After filling my fridge with water, I made my way to the bus stop to catch a bus to the Animal Kingdom, where I would be attending a couple of RADP meets. I’m not really part of RADP, but many of my friends do, so I was attending the meets to see them.

Once through the gates of the Animal Kingdom, I made my way up the path on the right, and waited for rope drop. I figured that I was bound to run into someone I knew, so I turned back to walk back towards the entrance. Within a few steps, I ran into my friend Catherine and Jack! I met Catherine about five years ago in San Antonio when we were both at the same conference for work. Jack lives in a neighboring town in Massachusetts, but he is a Disney friend who I only see in Florida. Hey Jack, we should go get some shepherd’s pie at Harrington’s sometime!

Jack was also kind enough to inform me the rules of bing part of RADP.  If you heard of it, you're in. So I guess I'm in. But I also heard that Jack sends new members $50, so I'm waiting to get that money. I was the one who said it, so it must be true, right Jack?

When the rope dropped, we made our way to Expedition Everest to grab fast passes to use later in the day. Along the way, we ran into more RADP people, most of whom I did not know.

I broke away from the group to grab some French toast sticks for breakfast at a counter service restaurant. They were very yummy (though a bit pricy for what is basically one thick slice of cinnamon coated bread and a small container of maple syrup.

I then headed to the Safari to meet the rest of the RADP group. My friends John and Sue were there, as expected. But so were my Tagrel friends Carol and Gary, who I didn’t expect to see at the meet. It sure was great to see Carol and Gary, who also happen to be some of my favorite Canadians--I put them right up there with Trevor Linden, Ray Bourque, Bryan Adams, Corey Hart, and the cast of MVP: the Secret Lives of Hockey Wives.

After mingling and chatting with the RADP group, I joined Carol and Gary for a ride on the Safari. I have about as much interest in animals as I have in having my teeth pulled without Novocain, but I always have interest in spending time with my friends, so where they go, I am willing to go. We wound up sitting in the last row of the truck, and it’s really an ideal spot to get some great pictures of the animals, as you can turn around and snap pictures from the back window. There were tons of animals out this day, and we even got to see a hippo lying in the sun outside the water.

An unusual animal climbed into

our truck and sat next to Carol.

After the safari, we walked through one of the animal trails on our way to Expedition Everest. We were too late for the RADP meet, so we wound up riding on our own. We were in the last two rows of the train. The front car and the back car are the best cars to ride in for Expedition Everest! It’s especially fun when you are riding it with friends who love it as much as you do!

After our ride, Carol, Gary, and I had a Photopass photographer take our picture with Expedition Everest in the background. It was then time to say goodbye to my friends, as I had lunch reservations at the Kona Café, and they had to go back to Fort Wilderness to let their dogs out of their trailer. I really enjoyed the unexpected time I spent with Carol and Gary! They sure are a great couple!

And this is part of my December trips that I love so much. Spending pockets of time with different friends!

I made my way to the Polynesian bus stop, and just made a bus. I arrived at the Polynesian shortly before the Kona Café opened for lunch at noon. I checked in, and was seated a few minutes after noon. Kona is normally one of my favorite restaurants, but I was a bit disappointed this time. The service was extremely slow. I waited 10 minutes for a waitress to come to my table, and then another half hour before I had any food on my table! I was sitting there for a full 40 minutes before I got any food.

I asked my waitress if it was possible to order sticky wings for one instead of the sticky wings for two on the menu. She told me they didn’t do it, but she would check with the chef. She came back a few minutes later and told me that they would do it just for me, but don’t tell anyone. Well, you may be asking, why am I writing about it in my trip report if she told me not to tell anyone? I’ll tell you why. They also made sticky wings for one for the table next to me. So, it really isn’t that big of a deal. They weren’t doing it just for me. They did it for anyone who asked. So if you want sticky wings for one, then order sticky wings for one.

As I waited, and waited, and waited for my wings to arrive, a manager came over to me and explained that he was going to charge me $8 for my chicken wings, but I would receive a full order even though I only paid for a half order. Apparently it is too confusing for the chef to count out six wings instead of 12 wings. When the wings finally arrived, they were as wonderfully stickily delicious as I remembered them being the last time I had them.

For my entrée, I ordered the beef teriyaki salad. The beef teriyaki salad at the Kona Café used to be my favorite salad on Disney property, but they changed it. It used to be a delicious salad of mixed greens, cheddar cheese, and slices of beef teriyaki tossed in an honey lime vinaigrette served in a crispy wonton bowl. Now, it’s a good, but not nearly as delicious salad of mixed greens, vegetables, crispy noodles, and slices of beef teriyaki tossed in an Asian vinaigrette served on a plate. I enjoyed it, but not nearly as much as the old version of the salad.

After lunch, I took the monorail to the Grand Floridian to check out the decorations. I always have to go see the gingerbread house and beautiful Chrismtas tree at the Grand Floridian. It’s truly a magical spot during the holidays.

I then took the monorail to the Magic Kingdom. I took the train to Frontierland and grabbed a fast past for Big Thunder Mountain. I then made my way to Pirates of the Caribbean to pay a visit to Captain Jack Sparrow. I was thinking about taking a ride on the Haunted Mansion, but the line was long, so I kept walking through Fantasyland. Even it’s a small world had a long line, so I continued to walk through Fantasyland and cut around the side of the castle.

Jennifer Hudson and a choir were filming a song for the Christmas parade, so I stopped on the side of the castle to watch for a bit. I can’t remember what they were performing, though. I guess I’ll have to watch the Christmas parade on television to find out. It was interesting to hear the audience being instructed to step back, move forward, go crazy, and other instructions for the taping.

Jennifer Hudson performs a song for

the Christmas parade

I stopped to have a picture taken

in  front of the castle while

Jennifer Hudson performed

I stopped over at the Main Street Bakery to get a cinnamon roll for a snack. I really love the cinnamon rolls at the Main Street Bakery. It’s my big splurge once or twice every trip. They are warm, and gooey, and tasty. I sat at a table on the lower level near the Plaza Restaurant to eat my cinnamon roll. A nice couple from Delaware sat with me, and I really enjoyed chatting with them while we ate our snacks and watched Jennifer Hudson from afar.  

I then walked back over to Big Thunder Mountain to use my fast pass. I took the train back to Main Street, and made my way to the Boardwalk bus stop. I wanted to be back at the resort in time to meet my friend Masayo when her Magical Express bus arrived. Masayo would be staying with me the next two nights, and also be going on the Disney Dream with me. 

I arrived at the Boardwalk before Masayo, so I arranged to have her Owner’s Locker delivered, and picked up her key. I grabbed a soda at the pizza window, and went to wait at the Magical Express. I chatted with a nice couple from Pennsylvania while I waited for the bus. The husband was originally from Boston, so we talked about the Bruins and Red Sox while we waited.

When Masayo’s bus arrived, I helped her bring her bags up to our room. We set up the couch bed for her, and spent some time catching up while Masayo got settled into the room.

We then made our way down to the ESPN Club to grab some dinner. We both got the Asian chicken salad. The salad was very good, and it even had celery in it, though the menu didn’t say that. I was also happy to see that the ESPN Club served Coke Zero, which is only served at some locations at Disney World. And it was an excellent mix of Coke Zero. You know how sometimes when you get a fountain soda it’s kind of flat, and other times, it is fuzzy and yummy? Well, this was a fuzzy and yummy mix. I wound up taking a cup to go with me just so I could savor it rather than suck it down at the table. Ah. The little things in life make me happy!

After dinner, we went back to the room. I wound up heading down to Jellyrolls to see my favorite piano players, Scotty and Ray. I had only seen them once on my last trip, and this would be only one of two nights I would see them on this trip. I arrived at the bar right at 8:00, and took my normal bar stool in the back of the bar.

Michael W. and Matthew took the stage shortly after 8:00. They were very interactive with the audience, as the piano players usually are in the first hour or two, and were as entertaining as always. Scotty and Ray both stopped by to say hello to me while Michael and Matt were on stage. It sure was good to see them again.

At 9:00, Scotty and Ray took the stage, and I was happily enjoying their set. I put up a few requests to hear them sing some of my favorite songs, including “Haven’t Met You Yet” and “Crazy Little Thing Called Love.”  In the middle of their set, I saw the nice family I met on the monorail the night before walk into the bar! It was a nice surprise to see Mark, Missy, and Emily again. I wound up moving my seat to sit with them on some bar stools in the back of the center section.

Scotty and Ray! 

Mark, Missy, and Emily really enjoyed the bar, and absolutely loved Scotty and Ray. At the end of their set, Mark asked me how anyone could top that. Mark left midway through the next set, but Missy, Emily, and I stayed, and were eventually able to move down up to a table. They loved watching Scotty perform “Why Are There So Many Songs about Rainbows?”.

The crowd was hopping this night thanks to some drunk guys who attended a wedding earlier in the day. They were dancing all over the bar, and with any woman who was willing to dance with them. There was also a family wearing Santa hats who were dancing and acting crazy.

My favorite part of the night was hearing Scotty sing “Seasons of Love” from the Broadway musical “Rent,” which someone had paid him $20 to sing. As many of you know, “Rent” is my favorite Broadway musical, so it was a real treat to get to hear Scotty sing the song. How often to two things you are really passionate about collide? It was a wonderful moment.

I wound up leaving the bar around midnight. I just can’t stay at the bar until closing after a full day in the parks anymore. It’s no fun getting old.

I went up to the room, and climbed into bed, grateful for another fun day with friends, both new friends and old friends.