Background

This is my third trip to WDW. My first trip was from July 12-21, 1996, for which I am guilty of never writing a trip report. My second trip was in 1998 when I was part of the Walt Disney World College Program. I worked at the Columbia Harbour House in the Magic Kingdom from June 2-August 23, 1998. I did write a trip report for the time that I spent living, working, and playing there!

My friend, Rich, has been there twice before as well…but not for as long as me. He went to WDW for the first time in 1993 or 1994, I am not sure of the exact dates. His second trip there was with me in 1996. His younger brother, Phil, went to WDW for the first time with Rich and me in 1996. That trip also included three other people.

I started talking about a return trip to WDW even before my first trip in 1996 was completed! We were walking around the Disney Marketplace on our last day there, killing some time before we had to catch our plane, and I suggested coming back in 1997. The talk escalated after we returned home, and after some serious planning, I even booked a stay at WDW for July 1997. However, Rich and Phil ran into some money difficulties, and I scampered around to find replacements. I convinced another one of my friends, Louis, to go, but I had to cancel that reservation and make another one for October 1997 to accommodate him.

As the months wore on, Louis, who had never been to WDW, seemed excited about going, but he started complaining about his own financial problems. This was quite understandable, as he had an old car that was dying and his housing situation was precarious at best. In September, I did the honorable thing and told him I was canceling our trip. This helped him out, because his car went soon after that and he had to buy another one. In early 1998, he found himself in a position where he had to find another place to live, and after months of searching, he bought his first house in May 1998.

I was determined to get back to WDW, although my dream of making it during the 25^th Anniversary Celebration had died. To my delight came my friend Rich, who decided that the time was right to go back to WDW. Although he would not have the money in time for his vacation in June 1998, he told me that he would definitely be able to go in June 1999. Therefore, on January 20, 1998, I made reservations at the All-Star Sports for June 5-20, 1999. At the time, I made it for four people, because another one of our friends, Dave, was planning to join us.

On February 5, 1998, I mailed in our deposit of $116.48 for the room. Later that same month, I had the opportunity to interview for the Walt Disney World College Program, and in March 1998, I was accepted. I told my friends that this would not affect our June 1999 trip, and I told them to continue saving for it.

Starting in June 1998, I spent three glorious months at Walt Disney World, which was chronicled in my trip report for that summer. Upon returning in August 1998, I had a clearer understanding of some of the tricks of experiencing WDW, as well as 3 free one-day passes, which I donated to my friends for next year.

For the rest of 1998, I just talked about the trip and saved up the money to go. I mentioned to them that I wanted to book the flight in January, so they needed to have their money for the plane fare by then.

Around the second week of January, I talked with the others and told them that it was time to make the plane reservations. I discussed the cost of the trip, as well as the length of the trip with them, and discovered that some changes had to be made. The first one was that there would only be three of us instead of four. Dave ran into his own money troubles and could not afford to go any longer. The second problem was that Rich and Phil, who work at the same place, would not be able to get three consecutive Saturdays off. We had to rearrange the trip to come home on June 18 instead of June 20.

After confirming everything with them, I did some more figuring. It was at this time that I discovered that if we left on Friday night (June 4) instead of Saturday morning, the amount of money we would save on airfare would just about cover an additional day at the resort. The cost for leaving on Friday would be $182 each for a round trip ticket on a Delta Airlines Express flight, down from $218 if we had left on Saturday. The amount the three of us would save by leaving one day early was $108, which was only about $9.00 less than that cost of one day in the room ($116.48). So, on January 14, 1999, I called up Disney and changed the reservation to June 4-June 18. After completing that telephone call, I booked the airline tickets, making sure I got myself a window seat!

In February, I read on RADP that Annual Pass discounts were available for June, so I called and was delighted when I was given one. The entire package for the room was $1317.12, which worked out to be $94.08 per night. This meant that it would cost us $22 less by arriving on a Friday night instead of a Saturday morning and not $9 more! More importantly, we would have an entire Saturday at Disney instead of half a day!

Earlier in the planning stages, we decided that we would pay for as much as we could in advance. On my last two trips, I always came home with more charges on my credit cards than I wanted to. In addition, by charging the room I would never budget out the money in advance and the interest on the cards made the room more expensive than it would have been if I paid for it in cash. Disney already had my deposit ($116.48) since February 1998, and in March 1999, I sent them payment for the remaining balance ($1,200.64). The room and the plane fare were now paid for; all that was left to pay for in advance were the park tickets.

In early April, my friends gave me the money for the park tickets and I went to my local Disney Store and purchased them two 6-day All-In-One Hoppers, with my MKC discount. Being an alumnus of the Walt Disney World College Program, I am able to get a free MKC card every year for life. Not a bad deal and it is not something that is well publicized. I would say that 90% of the alumni do not even know about this bonus!

Anyway, when I arrive in WDW, I am planning to trade in one of the 6 day passes for a 7-day pass. This will mean that they will both have 8 days in the parks (remember I had 3 free One-Day Hopper passes from working there last year). I did not buy my ticket yet, for a very good reason…I want to see if I can get in the parks free. Since I worked there last year, I could go back at any time and work again. If I do so, I will get a new Disney ID, which will get me into the parks free. My old one expired, so I can no longer use it. At this point, it is not yet known if I will find the time to do this. If I am able to go, then I will trade in one of their 6-day passes for an annual pass, since we need it for the room rate. If not, I will just buy an annual pass for myself when I get down there.

The next thing I planned was transportation to and from the airport. At first, we planned to take a Mears Shuttle using the coupon that came with the Disney reservation. However, after talking with a few people on RADP, I decided to book a Tiffany Town Car. Using the $5 off coupon from their web site, the cost of the car would be about the same per person as the Mears Shuttle would have been. In addition, we would have the added benefits of a stop at a grocery store and direct service to our resort. I made the reservation online, and received a confirmation within 24 hours.

During the middle of April, I started to plan what we will be doing each day while we are down there. I called Disney and made plans for the Polynesian Luau (20% annual pass discount) and the All-American Backyard Barbecue. Although I would love to go to the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue again, I had gone there last year. I wanted to experience some things that I never did before and these other two shows were what I picked. I also made reservations for a character breakfast at Chef Mickey’s and several other priority seatings at some of the restaurants at various resorts, and one at the Studios.

At about this same time I picked up a used copy of Bob Sehlinger’s Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World (1998 Edition.) Most of the information and touring plans should still be useful, and I could just make any modifications to them based on what I learned touring the parks for 3 months in 1998. I also contacted someone I met on RADP, and he made me three 8-hour tapes that were filled with almost every episode of Walt Disney World Inside Out, which I sorely miss watching. I will never understand why the Disney Channel canceled that wonderful series. The combination of Brianne Leary, J.D. Roth, and George Foreman was wonderful! I even enjoyed the first season of the show, when Scott Herriott was the host! In any case, watching those three tapes gave me many hours of enjoyment while I anxiously waited for our departure date of June 4.

I wanted to take a class in photography at the Disney Institute, and I called their fax-back system to get a list of classes that were being offered during my stay. After deciding which one I wanted to take, I called…only to find out that ‘day visitors’ to the Institute were only allowed to make reservations 30 days in advance. Therefore, I marked my calendar for May 11 so that I could call back and reserve the class I wanted to take on June 10. I hope that there will still be a space available!

I started work on an Excel Spreadsheet and planned out a day-to-day itinerary of what we be doing. I wanted to make sure I did and saw everything that I wanted to, and planning it out should allow that. I hate coming home and thinking about things that I should have done, etc. This should prevent some of those ‘regrets.’

I planned to meet up with some of the people I worked with last year and hang out with them on June 12. This left that day free for my friends to do whatever they wanted. They considered going to visit Universal Studios. I had gone to twice in 1998, so I had no interest in going again this year. I scheduled them to go to Universal Studios on that day, but they later found out that there was a Sports Card show scheduled for that weekend at the Belz Outlet Mall and they might want to go. Since we had definite plans on the 11^th (Disney Quest/RADP meet) and 13^th (Islands Of Adventure/Luau), they could not do them on separate days, but they could attempt both of them on one day. It is their decision once the days arrives, and I am curious as to what they choose!

I also made plans to join a RADP Cruise on the Seven Seas Lagoon on June 6. I would love to go to Deb Wills’ RADP meet on June 5^th at the Magic Kingdom, but since it is not only an Early Entry Day, but also Gay Day, I expect the crowd levels to be extremely large. That is not something I want to tackle on my first day at WDW, so I am scheduling that day to be Epcot. As the day approaches I may change my mind, but Deb will be on the Cruise with me the very next day, so I will still get a chance to see her. As of this writing, these are the only two RADP meets scheduled during my stay. There is another one scheduled for the opening of Tarzan on June18, but that one is scheduled for 2:00 PM and my plane takes off at Noon! If I had know about it back in January when I booked the flight I would have chosen an evening flight back home! I am planning to extend my Disney vacation once I arrive home by going to see Tarzan, although I really wish I could watch it at WDW. I saw Mulan at WDW last summer and I think it is more special watching a Disney movie at Walt Disney World then it is back home.

On May 10, the formal invitation and boarding pass for the June 6 RADP Cruise arrived in my mailbox. The next day I called the Disney Institute and registered for the Traveling Photographer class on June 10. The class begins at 8 AM and runs until Noon. I am looking forward to class because I love taking pictures and this particular class allows us to enter and tour Epcot’s World Showcase before it is open to the general public. Later that day, I called my local Disney Store and ordered my Premium Annual Pass, with MKC discount. I really would have rather gone to WDW sometime in May to work and get a new employee ID. However, the cost of traveling to Florida (plane fare, food, etc.) just to get the pass would have been almost identical to the cost of Premium Annual Pass, and the ID does not include entrance into the Water Parks! So, I gave up hope of continuing my employment status there and just ordered the pass.

The rest of the trip planning had to wait until the E-Ride Nights were determined. Once they are announced, I can plan the park touring days and strategies. I still have a few items on my shopping list that I must pick up before I leave (like a water-proof disposable camera for the water parks, sum block lotion, etc.), but for the most part I can now relax and wait.

Well, on May 17, E-Ride Nights were announced for June. I will be at WDW for four of the five nights…the only one I will miss is June 1! However, one of those four nights is June 4, the day I arrive, so I am not sure if I will go to that one. The other three nights are the 8th, 11^th, and 15^th.

After reviewing my tentative schedule up to this point, I noticed that it worked out perfectly! The 8^th was a day I scheduled for the Disney Studios…which closes at 9:30 PM. E-Ride Night at the Magic Kingdom starts at 10:00 PM, so I can just head on over there instead of going back to the resort, which had been the plan!

The 11^th I was planning to go to the Magic Kingdom in the evening anyway to meet some friends that I met online, so I will just stay longer than I was planning to! The 15^th was also a day that I planned the Magic Kingdom in the evening…so either I am extremely lucky, or someone at WDW looked at my tentative schedule! J

The only problem that I ran into was that I had scheduled a Character Breakfast at Chef Mickey’s for 8:00 AM on June 16. Since E-Ride Night on the 15^th would not start until 11:00 PM, it would last until 2:00 AM. By the time I get back to the resort and into bed it would be almost 3:00 AM. In order to get to the Contemporary in time for my priority seating, I would have to get up at 6:30 AM, which would translate into 3 ½ hours of sleep! That is not something I look forward to doing. So, I immediately called Disney and was able to change my priority seating from 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM. This will allow me to sleep until 8:30 AM, and five and one-half hours of sleep are plenty for me when I am at WDW!

At this point, I started to plan each day of our trip…that is, until May 22! On this date, Walt Disney World announced not only new ticket prices, but also new tickets! Gone are the All-In-One Hoppers that I purchased for my friends. They have been replaced with Park Hopper Plus Passes. If you recall, I was going to trade in one of the 6-day All-In-One passes for a 7-day All-In-One pass when I arrived. However, that plan is on hold until I decide if the new Plus pass is suitable to our needs.

These new passes have some benefits, most notably the ability to use a 7-day pass over 11 days…if you go to the water parks/Pleasure Island on days that you do not go to the major parks. A 7-day pass is good for 7 days at the major parks and four visits (not days) to the smaller ones. What this means is that if you visit a water park and Pleasure Island on the same day, it counts as 2 visits, whereas with the All-In-One passes it only counts as one day. My plan was to visit all three water parks and to spend at least three evenings at Pleasure Island. This could be accomplished with the All-In-One passes, but not with the new passes. Therefore, I must decide if I am still going to turn in one of the 6-day All-In-One passes for the new 7-day Park Hopper Plus Pass. If I do, then one of my friends will only be able to go to Pleasure Island once…since we definitely want to go to all three water parks. If I do not trade it in, then my friends will only be able to spend 7 days in the parks instead of eight. It would be unfair to give one of them two of my free one-day passes and the other one only one. I still have 2 weeks before I must make that decision, so I will discuss with them how important it is for them to visit Pleasure Island more than once.

After discussing the ticket options with them, the decision was made to keep the 6-day All-In-One Passes instead of exchanging them for the new 7-day Park Hopper Plus passes. We decided to buy a single one-day pass and use it for our very first day since will plan on going to Epcot and not park-hopping on that day. Those 6-day tickets combined with the one-day pass, and the three free one-day passes from last year will give my friends a total of 8 days in the parks.

I started to contact a few people who I will be meeting down there. On June 12, I am supposed to meet up with a few people who I worked with last year. We made the decision to meet that day at 10:30 AM at the Disney Studios. I also compared my touring schedule with a few others who had trips planned at the same time. I found out that there were some days that were had the same thing scheduled. On June 13, a woman who I met on a Disney mailing list, Binnie, is also planning on going to Universal’s Islands of Adventure. We discussed transportation to the park, and decided that my party of three and her party of four should share a ride. I will get a cab large enough for the seven people and pick her up where she is staying, at the Port Orleans. From there we will travel to IOA and split the cab fare seven ways. Another person is planning on being at Typhoon Lagoon the same morning as me, but we have not made plans to meet up as of this writing. There is also a possibility of me heading over to Epcot in the afternoon on June 12 for an Internet Postcard session at Innoventions at 1:00 PM. It all depends on what my friends from last summer want to do. If they do not mind, then I will go…if they want to do something else, then I will. We shall see.

On June 1, I called the Disney Store where I ordered my Premium Annual Pass and found out that it was ready to be picked up. They tried to call me, but I do not have an answering machine so I did not know! I will go tomorrow and pick it up.

I also faxed my room requests to the Room Assignor at the All-Star Sports. I requested a room in the baseball section (Home Run Hotel) and for a non-smoking, first floor room. I stressed that being in the baseball building was highly important…I only booked the All-Star Sports because I love baseball. The other two requests are not that important. I am a former smoker, so if I get a smoking-optional room, the smell will not bother me. Also, being on the second or third floor will not ruin my vacation, but after walking the entire day, I would rather not have to climb stairs. I plan on calling tomorrow and asking in person in case the fax did not get to the person responsible for assigning the rooms.

The next day I drove to one of the local Disney Stores and picked up the Premium Annual Pass ($418.72 with MKC discount) that I ordered. I was wearing one of my cast member shirts from last summer and I got quite a few comments from the cast members. We struck up a nice, pleasant conversation about where I worked at WDW, etc. It really is nice that the Disney Magic is alive and well at your local Disney Store. The cast members there are well trained and are just as wonderful as the ones at Walt Disney World. And, I have had the pleasure of working at both places…I worked briefly at a different Disney Store in my area for a few weeks near Halloween last year.

Later that day I called the All-Star Sports directly to re-affirm my room requests and, to my surprise and delight, all three were met. When I asked the room assignor to place me in a room in the baseball building, she told me that I was already there! After expressing my thanks, I told her I had two more requests. I asked for a non-smoking room, and again I was told that the request was already met. At this point I was pleased and did not even care if the last request was met, but I asked anyway. I told her I would like a first-floor room and she again said that I was already assigned one! I told her how happy I was at my room assignment, and she said she would make sure that the room was not switched on me. It really is wonderful how accommodating Disney can be!

The day before my trip I started to pack, and made sure my VCR was set and had a tape in it. There will be two episodes of Mouseworks broadcast on ABC on each Saturday morning that I will be in Florida! I cannot miss my Disney cartoons, even for Walt Disney World!

The day had finally arrived and we were off to Walt Disney World. This departure would be different from the last two times I visited. During the two previous trips, I always took an early flight out so that I could enjoy most of the day in Florida. However, this time I could not do that. My two friends had to work this morning; in fact, Phil had to be in work at 5:00 AM! In order to accommodate them, I had scheduled an afternoon flight. It was originally scheduled to take off from Bradley International Airport in Hartford, CT at 4:00 PM. However, sometime in February or March I received a call from the airline informing me the flight was moved up to 3:15 PM. I checked Delta’s website last night and I noticed that the time was again moved to 3:25 PM. Either way we were leaving my house at 1:00 PM for the 45-minute drive to the airport.

Since I had some time to kill before they came to pick me up, I sat down in the living room with my father and looked through the 4 albums worth of photographs that I took during my 3 month stay there last summer. I made a few telephone calls to say goodbye to some friends, and then I went online to check my email on last time before I left. I also checked the weather in Orlando…the next 4 days all call for scatted thunderstorms! I really hope it does not turn into anything major…especially since we were planning on going to River Country on Monday morning. I guess we will just have to wait and see.

Rich came to pick me up promptly at 1:00 PM and we made the short trip to his house. From there, we transferred my luggage from his car to his other brother’s car (Mike). After that the four of us piled into Mike’s car and we drove to Bradley International Airport in Hartford, CT. We unloaded our luggage, thanked Mike for the ride, and checked in. The line for check in was very long, all flights to Atlanta were canceled and everyone was scrambling to find an alternate route and it increased the lines for all the airlines. Once we reached the podium, check in was quick and smooth and we made the short trip to the gate and waited for them to allow us to board.

Take off was late, about 3:35 PM, and we arrived at Orlando International Airport at 6:25 PM. We walked to the baggage pickup and met out Tiffany Town Car driver, Darcy. We chatted with him for awhile about the Yankees and other sports teams while waiting for our luggage to appear. Once our bags came through, we gathered them together and made the short trek to his car. One thing I found quite interesting was that his Town Car was not the usual Florida color of white! His Town Car was a maroon color. I liked the fact that it was not like all the others. While walking to the car we passed a sea of white Town Cars and Cadillacs, and Darcy’s maroon vehicle was a pleasant departure from the norm…plus it made it easy to find!

We made a quick stop (about 15-20 minutes) at Publix where we picked up some bottled water, snacks, and an ice cooler. There was an enormous amount of traffic on the highway, so Darcy asked if we wanted to take the scenic route to the All-Star Sports. Since we were not in much of a rush, we agreed. The ride there was longer than it should have been, but we were able to see much of Orlando and the surrounding areas.

We arrived at the resort around 7:45 PM and paid Darcy. With the $5 off coupon from the web site, the total for the round-trip Town Car ride was only $70. We gave Darcy the entire amount; in addition, a $10 tip…making the total $80. We set up a time for him to pick us up on the 18^th for the ride back to the airport and then we inside the All-Star Sports’ lobby to check in.

The wait to check in at 8:00 PM was about 20 minutes. Once I got to the desk, I was given our room cards and directions to our room…#8160. All my requests were filled and I was given a non-smoking room on the first floor of the Home Run Hotel (Visitor’s Side) facing the pool. I could not have picked a better room if I wanted to! I also purchased a ticket for E-Ride Night on June 8 ($10.60 including tax) and then we made the trek to our room. One interesting note is that I booked the room using an annual pass discount. When I checked in, the CM did not ask to see it, nor did she even ask if I had one. I thought that was interesting.

Upon arriving in the room, we discussed our plans for tomorrow and I set the alarm that was in the room. Then, as my friends unpacked, I made sure all the room keys worked and then I left to go to a park. My original plan was to purchase an E-Ride ticket for tonight and go to the Magic Kingdom, but I was somewhat tired and I wanted to get to bed early tonight. I did not think it would be worth the extra money to only spend one hour at the Magic Kingdom. When I checked in, I was told that the bus stops had been temporarily relocated to the back of the resort in the parking lot. This might have been a hassle for some people, but it worked out perfectly for me. The bus area in the front of the resort was being redesigned so it was closed off and they moved the bus stops to the parking lot that was between baseball building number eight and Tennis building number five. Since I was staying in building number eight; this was a much shorter walk for me every day than if the bus stop was still in front of Stadium Hall!

I went to the bus stop and caught the first bus I saw…to the Disney-MGM Studios. This worked out perfect for me again, because that is the park that I decided to go to as I was walking to the bus stop! The bus that I stepped onto was not even supposed to be there…it was for the All-Star Movies, but he was dropping off a guest who had gotten on the wrong bus.

I talked with the driver for the entire length of the ride and we discussed many things, including the Rock ‘n Roller Coaster. He was surprised to know that I knew about the Cast Previews that we to take place next week!

Upon arriving at the Studios, I went directly to Guest Relations and handed in my Annual Pass Voucher for an actual pass. The CM, Kevin, was very helpful and explained all the benefits of the pass…although I already knew them! I also purchased a one-day one-park pass for my friend to use tomorrow at Epcot ($46.64).

I entered the park about 9:15 PM and headed directly to the Tower Of Terror! This ride is greatly improved since last summer when there were only 3 drops. Now there is something like 6 drops. They happened so fast, that I lost count. I was also having too much fun to even care about the number of drops! It definitely made a great ride even greater!

After the Tower, I walked around a bit and stopped by the ABC Commissary to grab something to eat. It was about 9:50 PM and I had not eaten since about noon. I ordered the chicken strips, but I did not want the french fries that came with it so I asked if I could get it without them. The cashier was unsure about what to do, but fortunately, the server helped her out. She told her to charge me for a child’s nuggets meal (which was about $2.00 cheaper, and she would make sure that I got the strips instead of the nuggets. I also ordered a bottle of water to wash down my meal with. Since the nugget meal includes a drink, ordering a bottle water with it was only $.70 more! Total price was $5.74.

After I ate, I walked over to the new Drew Carey attraction, Sounds Dangerous. It was okay, nothing great. A definite improvement over the boring One Saturday Morning attraction that was there last year, but still not as good as the Monster Sound Show that was there during my first trip in 1996. The sound effects are decent, but the lack of guest interaction is sorely missed. Drew Carey was great as usual, but they definitely need to bring back the interactive nature of this attraction instead of the sit-back-and-listen feature that is has now.

At 10:35 PM, I walked over to the Fantasmic Show that was scheduled to start at 11:00 PM. Four for a Dollar did the pre-show, and they were just as good as I remember from seeing them last year as the pre-show for the Beauty and the Beast show. Fantasmic lasted about 25 minutes and was excellent. If you have not seen this show, then you are missing one of the best attractions at Walt Disney World. My only complaint is that they relied too heavily on projecting images on the water screens. It seemed like half of the show was made up of that. It is a nice feature, but I think it is being overused here. Other than that, the production and special effects are great! Moreover, if you go during a time when they are performing this twice a night, go to the second show because you can get seating almost up until show time. The theater was about three-fourths full when the show began. However, the earlier show is almost completely full about 45 minutes before showtime.

The walk to the bus was about 15 minutes, and I caught the very first one back to the resort. I arrived home a little after midnight and my friends were already asleep. I jumped in bed and tried to sleep, but the combination of the bed (very uncomfortable) and trying to adjust to a different bed than my own caused me to get only about one hours sleep during the night. This problem was solved the next evening when I switched beds with my friend. This bed was much more comfortable and I had no problems sleeping the rest of the trip. It worked out perfectly, because my friend had trouble sleeping in that bed the first night, but after we switched beds, he slept comfortably the remainder of the trip. It is too bad that we did not discover that the first night!

The alarm rang at 6:30 AM, however I was already awake. I showered quickly, ate a pop tart for breakfast, and then loaded film into Rich’s camera (he always loads it wrong so I had to do it for him the entire trip.) I then went outside to snap some photos of the resort.

We caught a bus to Epcot at 7:30 AM and immediately went to the line for Test Track. There were already a lot of people in front of us when we got in line at 7:45 AM. They did not open the attraction until 8:00 AM and it took us about 20 minutes before we reached the front of the line. We were the very next to go in when there was a slight technical problem that delayed us another 15 minutes.

All I can say about this attraction is that is was definitely worth the 2-year wait! I loved it! If you want to ride this and see the entire queue area inside, then go to it first thing in the morning. The singles line, which I used every other time I rode this attraction, does not take you through the queue area inside the building. The queue is worth seeing at least once, but I would never use it again…I will always go the singles route!

After Test Track we journeyed our way to the opposite end of Future World and saw Honey I Shrunk the Audience. It did not open until 9:00 AM, s we had 15 minutes to kill. We spent some time watching the jumping fountains and the reverse waterfall. I found out that it was Rich and Phil’s first time seeing this show. During their previous trip they spent very little time at Epcot, I think it was about two or three hours and they did not experience much. Therefore, I had my work cut out for them to show them how fun Epcot can be!

We were let in at promptly 9:00 AM and saw the first performance of the day. During the part of the show where the mice came through, Phil put his feet up for the remainder of the show! Afterwards, Rich told me that he liked this better than the Captain EO attraction that was there during his first trip in the early 1990s. I never saw that one, so I could not compare the two.

After the show they wanted to see ‘the Figment ride’, but I had to tell them that it was closed. We walked over to the Land Pavilion and walked right into the Circle of Life movie with a two-minute wait. The Lion King is one of my favorite Disney movies, so I enjoyed this movie greatly. It has a real powerful message, so I hope it helps people understand about protecting the environment.

After that we headed downstairs and walked right onto the Land boat ride. This ride is very interesting and someday I will take that walking tour that spends more time in the greenhouses. We then headed over to Food Rocks, which was another walk on. Rich remembers the old Kitchen Kabaret, but he enjoyed this new musical just as much. By now it was about 10:00 AM and I let Rich and Phil use my calling card to call their mother back home since their card wasn’t working.

Once they were done, we left the Land Pavilion and went into the Living Seas. Again there was no wait and we entered the hydrolator for our trip ‘under the sea’! I spent quite a while in here last summer, but Rich and Phil were not interested in it so we left quickly.

As we walked to Spaceship Earth, we stopped and watched the Jamminators perform at around 10:40 AM. I always enjoyed their performance, and I wish I had caught it again later in the trip, but I never did. Spaceship Earth had a 20-minute wait, so we passed it for now and headed over to Ellen’s Energy Adventure, but it was closed today. It was a planned closing because it was listed in the guide map, which I did not look at until I saw that this attraction was closed. I do not know why it was only closed for one day; it could not have been for a refurbishment. In any case, we made plans to come back another day for it and headed to the Wonders of Life Pavilion. Inside there, we went directly to Body Wars, which had a 10-minute wait. Then hit Cranium Command. They never saw that before and walked out of it smiling. It really is interesting to go on rides and attractions with people who have never done them before. Their thoughts and impressions of them can be fascinating.

After Cranium Command, we walked right into the Making of Me. Again, it was their first time seeing it and they enjoyed Martin Short’s performance…as did I.

It was now around 12:15 PM and we headed out of Epcot via the International Gateway and walked to the Beach Club. I showed them Stormalong Bay (someday I will actually swim in it) and then we headed inside to Beaches and Cream for lunch. We sat at the counter and I ordered a cheeseburger/fries combo with a bottle of water. For desert, I ordered a delicious vanilla sundae with butterscotch topping. My share of the bill, including tip, was $13.00. While we were there, the cast members brought out balloons, cake, and gifts to the cook. It was his last day there. I do not know if he was leaving Disney or transferring to another location, but it was enjoyable to see them treating him like family. They dimmed the lights when they started the festivities…and they even tied the balloons to the back of his apron while he was cooking!

After we finished we walked back to Epcot and re-entered the park. We headed right and walked right into "Impressions de France." The Hunchback of Notre Dame was outside signing autographs, but we passed on that. I was never into collecting character autographs, and getting a photo of myself with all the characters is not a major goal for me right now. Someday it will be, but for now it is not a major item on my list.

From France we headed through Morocco and then through Japan. We did not spend much time in each country for two reasons. Rich and Phil are not really interested in the architecture and ambiance of each nation so they would have been bored if I spent time in each one. The second reason was that I had a Traveling Photography class scheduled for later in the week and I would be spending a lot of time in World Showcase before it opened to the public. I would be able to enjoy the countries then without feeling rushed.

We finally stopped at The American Adventure, sat down in the America Gardens Theatre, and watched the International Storybook Show at 2:15 PM. I never saw this show in its entirety last summer, so I was pleased that I was finally able to catch the whole show. It was very enjoyable and I would love to see it again. Perhaps next trip.

When the show was completed, we headed inside the pavilion. The Voices of Liberty were not performing today, which was a disappointment for me since I watched them many times last summer. We walked around the gallery for a little while until the show started. Again, they had never seen this before. In fact, they had never even been to World Showcase before today! How could you go to Epcot and never even enter World Showcase? I had seen the show a few times last summer, and since I only had one hour sleep the night before, I almost dozed off during it. Those seats, combined with the lighting, make it very difficult to stay awake if you are tired!

We walked quickly through Italy, Germany, and the Outpost and entered China just as it was starting to rain lightly. We watched the ‘Wonders of China’ movie and then set off for Norway. It was here where we hit our first significant line of the day. We entered Maelstrom about 4:15 PM and waited about 35 minutes for it. I had never been on this before, so I did not mind the wait. It was not that bad of a ride, probably the best one in World Showcase. In addition, we did watch the movie, "Spirit of Norway," afterwards!

After the movie ended, we walked over to Mexico and walked right onto El Rio del Tiempo. This ride is similar to It’s a Small World, but not as annoying! I was happy to see that it was open, because it had previously been announced that it would be closed for refurbishment. I am looking forward to it being converted to a Donald Duck attraction, unless the powers that be change their mind. There is not enough Donald Duck at Walt Disney World! There used to be an excellent ice cream shop called Donald’s Dairy Dip at the Marketplace, but it was closed sometime in 1997 to make room for the McDonald’s! A huge mistake if you ask me.

After Mexico, we stopped briefly at a food cart so that Phil could buy some lemonade, and then we were off to Canada. We had to wait about 15 minutes for the next showing of "O Canada," but we needed to rest our feet anyway so we had no complaints. After the movie, we walked to Spaceship Earth were we found it to be a walk-on.

After the ride, we went over to Innoventions West where we did the IBM Planet Rider, and then checked some sports scores on one of the IBM Internet Stations. The other Internet station (I think it was sponsored by AT&T) was closed for refurbishment…as was the entire Innoventions East. They are undergoing a complete revamping for the Millennium celebration that is set to begin on October 1. Sometime in September, the rest of Innoventions West will close for its refurbishment.

After checking the scores, we went over to one of the Digital Postcards stations and sent a couple of postcards to some friends. It was now about 7:15 PM, and we headed over to the Electric Umbrella in Innoventions Plaza. I grabbed a dinner consisting of a cheeseburger/fries combo and a coke ($7.84) and then headed off towards Test Track. The wait was one hour, and I had no interest in waiting that long to ride it again.

We caught the Friendship II boat and crossed the lagoon over to Morocco. From there we ran to the America Gardens Theatre and caught the 8:00 PM showing of ‘Lord of the Dance.’ This was the first day that it was being performed, and it was the fourth (and last) show of the day. We did not make it in time to get a seat, and we had to stand behind the ropes, but the view was still good. It was a wonderful show, although one of the male dancers fell during the performance. I really would have liked to see this a second or third time, but time constraints did not allow it during the remainder of my trip. It will only be there until the end of September, so if you want to see it you should make your plans now.

After the performance, we walked casually to the World Showcase entrance and sat down at about 8:45 PM and waited for Illuminations to begin. At promptly 9:00 PM, the show began. It was just as nice as I remember, but it just does not give me the same emotional feeling that Fantasy in the Sky at the Magic Kingdom does. I could watch Fantasy in the Sky every night, but I only need to watch Illuminations once per trip.

Upon completion of the show, we rushed to the bus stop where we caught a bus back to the resort. I went to bed almost immediately, but I did not fall asleep until about 1:00 AM. However, once I did fall asleep I rested comfortably.

The alarm woke me up promptly at 6:00 AM and I hopped into the shower. While they were getting ready, I ate my pop tart breakfast! We made it to the bus stop around 6:40 AM and caught a bus to the Animal Kingdom. The bus that actually picked us up was for the Transportation & Ticket Center. Since there was no one waiting at that line…or any of the other lines…the bus driver picked us up and took us to the Animal Kingdom.

We arrived at 6:50 AM and I thought they would be letting us in at 7:00 AM. Before I left for Florida I checked the opening times on the Internet and it listed Animal Kingdom as having a 7:00 AM opening time, however when we arrived we found out that it opens at 8:00 AM. Therefore, we had to wait around for about a half-hour because they let us in at 7:30 AM.

We walked in and headed left towards Asia and Dinoland U.S.A., while 90 % of the crowd headed towards Africa to go on the safari. Phil grabbed a bite to eat while we waited for the rope drop at 8:00 AM.

As soon as the roped dropped, half the people waiting in this section headed towards Dinoland U.S.A, while the other half (myself included) headed for Asia. We entered the long queue line for the Kali River Rapids ride and walked right onto it. Rich and Phil only rode it once, while I stayed on it for three rides. I really enjoyed this ride and wish I could have ridden it again. However the wait was too long later in the day, and the next time I came to Animal Kingdom (specifically to ride it), it was having technical difficulties and was closed! Rich and Phil had a good time controlling the elephants and squirting me as I passed under the bridge. I acted like I was mad at them, but I did not mind. After all, I was on the ride to get wet and they were just trying to help me!

After my river adventure, I went to the Radio Disney River Cruise. I had been on this attraction last summer when it was called the Discovery River Boat and had a different theme. This ‘improvement’ was not much better. Since we had gone on it early, we only had to wait 10 minutes to board a boat. When we exited the boat, the wait was up to 30 minutes. I really felt sorry for anyone who has to wait that long for it, as it is definitely not worth it. I hope that Disney will come up with something for the attraction that works, because what they have now certainly does not!

After our boring boat ride, we headed to Countdown to Extinction. This was another walk on. The first time I went on it last summer it was really fun and exciting, but with each subsequent ride, the thrill gets smaller and smaller. For me, this attraction is like Alien Encounter at the Magic Kingdom…thrilling the first time, but almost a waste of time to do it again. Some people find it exciting and scary every time they ride it, but the repeat value of it just is not there for me. As a side note, the water fountains they were in front of the ride entrance have been changed. The water has all been drained, and the fountains have been completely filled with potted plants. I do not like this change at all. The water was much nicer to look at then more plants. It was a nice place to cool off and I always saw children playing in the water. I wonder why it was changed? Perhaps some child was hurt while playing in the fountain? Oh, well, there is nothing I can do about it except recall the days when the entrance looked nice.

After Countdown to Extinction we headed over to the Tree of Life and saw It’s Tough to be a Bug 3-D movie. This is my favorite 3-D movie at WDW, and it was even more enjoyable this year now that I have seen the movie, "A Bug’s Life."

By now it was about 10:00 AM. I stopped briefly at Beastly Bazaar to picked up a crushed Donald Duck Penny. There are five Donald Duck pennies at WDW. I obtained three of them last summer, and the last one is in the lobby of the Dixie Landings Resort. From there, we headed to the Kilimanjaro Safaris where we encountered a half-hour wait. There were still plenty of animals active at this time, so we got some good photos.

After the safari, we decided to get something to eat. We walked over to the Flame Tree Barbecue, but they did not see anything on the menu that they liked (this would happen often during the trip), so we went over to Pizzafari for lunch. I had the pepperoni & cheese pizza, a side salad, and a diet coke ($8.68).

When we finished eating at about 11:40 AM, we went to the Maharajah Jungle Trek and saw some interesting wildlife, including bats and tigers! Although I enjoyed the Jungle Trek, I think that there are too many self-guided walking tours at this park. Besides the Maharajah Jungle Trek, there is the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail and, to a lesser degree, Conservation Station. I know this is "Animal" Kingdom, but although this is the biggest of the four Disney parks, it has the least amount of things to do. I know that watching and studying the animals is a large park of the park’s appeal, but how long do normal people actually look at each animal? I know I look for about a minute or so, snap a photo, and then move on. Perhaps I just like actual rides and attractions more than live animals, but I think two self guided walking tours at the same park is too much. One would have been sufficient. I had walked through the Pangani Trail last summer (when it was still called the Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail), so I skipped it this year. The Maharajah Jungle Trek was nice, the buildings and trails were stunning, and the animals were nice to look at, but as far as repeat value, there is just none for me.

Anyway, after the Jungle Trek we headed over to the Flights of Wonder show that was scheduled to begin at 12:45 PM. This show has changed since last year. When I saw it last year, it was on a big outdoor stage, with open-air bleacher type seating. This year it was inside a tent with chair, and floor seating. It was also air conditioned, which made it more enjoyable than last summer! I watched the show in near 100-degree weather in full sunlight last year and it was almost unbearable! The explanation that I was given was that the outdoor stage was being refurbished. Why a one-year old stage already needed refurbishment is beyond me, but perhaps they are going to enclose it so that the guests watching the show do not suffer as I did last year.

The show itself was wonderful. I think it has changed slightly since last summer, more humor has been added, and more interaction with guests. It was a very enjoyable show and a definite improvement over last year’s version.

After that show ended, we headed over to Camp Minnie-Mickey at about 1:20 PM and we were seated at Grandmother Willow’s Grove for the 1:40 PM presentation of Pocahontas and Her Forest Friends. While waiting for the show to begin, it started to rain again, but it only lasted about 10 minutes.

Immediately after the show ended, we headed over to the Lion King Theater and we were seated in plenty of time for the 2:30 PM presentation of the Festival of the Lion King. I saw this last summer and it is, in my opinion, one of the best shows on Disney property! My friends enjoyed it immensely, and we made plans to visit it again later in the trip.

As soon as the show ended, we did some shopping at Island Mercantile. I picked up several items including a 9" Donald Duck Safari Doll, an Animal Kingdom magnet (for my magnet collection), and three postcards to mail to friends back home. Total with tax was $18.24.

By now, it was 3:30 PM and we were finished with the Animal Kingdom. We had ridden all the rides and seen all the shows. The only things we had not done was walk through the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail and take the Wildlife Express to Conservation Station. I had done both last summer and, from experience, I knew that my friends would not be interested in doing either of these things. So, we talked to the bus stop and arrived just as a bus was getting ready to leave for our resort. We hopped on it and we were home by 3:50 PM. I snacked on some granola bars while watching a little television.

At about 5:15 PM I went to the lobby and to guest services. I had gone there to pick up the tickets to the dinner shows that I had scheduled, as well as pay for them. The first one was for the All-American Backyard Barbecue, which I had scheduled for Thursday, June 10. Total for three adults was $110.99, which I paid for in cash.

I then ran into a little problem when I tried to get my tickets for the Polynesian Luau. I had scheduled the show for 9:30 PM on Sunday, June 13. However, when Julie, the guest services CM, looked at my reservations she said that they had been canceled! I told her I never canceled my reservations and asked her to find out why it was listed that way in her computer. She picked up the telephone, called the Luau directly, and talked to Carol, who told her that effective immediately all Sunday and Monday performances of the Luau were being discontinued. Anyone holding reservations for those days had them canceled. Since it had only been decided a day or two before, there was no time for them to contact me to let me know. Julie continued to talk to Carol and found out that there was still room at the 9:30 PM show for Saturday, June 12 if I wanted to go then. It was also the last day that there would be a show held that late. Starting Tuesday, June 15, the Luau will now be held at 5:15 PM and 8:00 PM. Mickey’s Tropical Luau, which was held in the late afternoon, has also been discontinued.

Since I had never been to the Luau before, I did not want to miss it this trip, so I agreed to the day change. Julie and Carol stayed on the telephone while the reservation was changed, because Julie was unable to book a discounted reservation from her computer. She had to book it at full price, and once it went through the computer system, Carol discounted it from her end. Total for three adults, with my 20% annual pass discount, was $111.18.

I thanked Julie for her help and returned to the room at 5:50 PM. I told my friends about the change and then I left for Epcot at 6:30 PM. My plan was to ride the Universe of Energy because it was closed when I was there yesterday, but the bus ride was one of the longest of the trip. It stopped at Blizzard Beach before it went to Epcot, and it was a little past 7:00 PM when I finally arrived. I knew there was no way to enter Epcot, wait in line at the attraction, ride it, and then get over to the Polynesian Resort in time for the 8:00 PM RADP meet. So, I just walked past Epcot’s entrance and hopped about the monorail to the TTC.

From the TTC, I took a leisurely stroll to the Polynesian Resort. It was still too early to check in for the meet, so I walked over to the Shades of Green entrance and photographed the entrance sign. Last summer I photographed all the entrance signs to all the resorts on Disney property except the Shades of Green and the Disney Institute, so I had some catching up to do. After the photograph, I walked back to the Polynesian and grabbed a bagel and milk at Cook’s ($2.28). I ate outside at one of the tables and a large bird, I think it was some sort of crane, stared at me the entire time hoping for a handout!

Around 7:45 PM I walked over to the Polynesian dock and I was met by CM Jenny who greeted me and put a lei around my neck. I chatted with her for awhile until the others arrived and I found out that she was from Chicago and in the college program. We discussed the program a bit, since I had done it last summer, and had a few laughs.

This meet was a cocktail party thrown by Michael Lane Blanchard and it was to take place on Disney’s Grand One yacht on the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake! Lane made the announcement for the meet on March 24 on RADP, and space was limited to the first 12 people (21 and older) who responded. Luckily, I was one of those 12! By 8:00 PM everyone had arrived, Lane and Mike Scibetta were already on the yacht when it docked at the Polynesian. The other attendees were Deb Wills, Sarah, Barb (Gardenia), Mike, Kelly, Bruce Metcalf and his wife, Marta, Tom and his wife, Aimee, and, of course, myself. Before this trip, I had only met Deb, but I had read about most of the others either in RADP or in trip reports, so it was nice to finally put faces to the names!

The Grand One is a gorgeous white and gold 42-foot yacht that Disney rents out for small parties. It has three bedrooms and two bathrooms (including shower) along with a dining room. Space is limited to 12 guests, a driver and second-mate, as well as a bartender.

Lane certainly knows how to throw a party. Before hand he had asked each of us what are preferred drink was, and he made sure that there was plenty on board! In fact, at the end of the evening whatever was left he gave to us to take back with us! There was an awesome buffet consisting of some of the largest shrimp I have ever seen, as well as many different types of cheeses, crackers, and fruits.

As the music blared throughout the yacht, we danced and sang along to the songs enjoying the spectacular view. We sailed from the Seven Seas Lagoon to Bay Lake and back all evening. It was a beautiful and comfortable evening, with temperatures in the low to mid 70s and a slight breeze. The sunset was gorgeous, I could not think of a better place to watch one from.

As we sailed by other boats, we waved to the other people and they usually waved back. We traveled almost every inch of the two bodies of water, and at one point even sailed into a backstage area. We also caught a glimpse of one of the submarines from the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea attraction that is now closed. Disney is storing them in dry dock in near the back end of Bay Lake and if you know where to look, you can see them.

We had a prime view of the Electrical Water Pageant at about 9:10 PM, and we settled into the perfect location at 10:00 PM for a viewing of Fantasy in the Sky fireworks! For this special viewing, our bartender, Michael, served us all champagne.

The cruise was only supposed to last until 11:00 PM, however around 10:30 PM it was announced that we would be staying out on the water until 11:30 PM. This was not a problem for me or anyone else on board, we all wanted this night to last forever, and it was truly magical.

However, alas, all good things must come to an end, and at 11:30 PM we docked back at the Polynesian and disembarked. We took a group photo and said our goodbye to the yacht and its crew.

Since it was nearing midnight, getting from the Polynesian to the All Star Sports would be rather difficult, especially since I was carrying a cooler filled with beer. Bruce offered to give rides to some of us, and I accepted the gracious invitation. Bruce and Marta first drove Deb, Sarah, and Gardenia to the Boardwalk Villas, and then they took me to the All-Star Sports. Upon arrived home at about 12:15 AM, I promptly went to bed and fell asleep immediately!

The pre-trip plan for today was for us to go to the Magic Kingdom for early entry and then head to River Country. This sounded good to us while we were back home in Connecticut, but last night I shot the plan down for several reasons. The first reason was that we did not want to wake up at 6:00 AM since we had just done that two days in a row. The second reason was that we did not want to carry towels with us while at the Magic Kingdom. In order to save time at the water parks, we bring our own towels from the resort instead of waiting in line to rent them at the park. I also figured that since we were ahead of schedule due to the short lines at Epcot and Animal Kingdom, we would have more time to go to the Magic Kingdom later in the trip. This new plan of sleeping an extra hour was readily accepted by my two friends!

Anyway, the alarm rang about 7:15 AM and I woke up my two friends and we headed to the Food Court for breakfast. I had the French Toast with bacon and a large milk ($6.19), and then we caught the bus to the Magic Kingdom. Once there, we caught a boat launch to Fort Wilderness.

While we were on the boat, it started to rain lightly. Upon arriving at Fort Wilderness, we walked to River Country and entered it exactly at the 10:00 AM opening. There must have been only about 20 guests there, besides us. The rain was keeping people away, so we had the run of the park. We had no wait for anything the entire time we were there!

The first thing I went to was the Whoop ‘n Holler Hollow Body Slides. I did not try the smaller slide; all I did was the larger one. Throughout the morning, I must have slid down it about 15 to 20 times! At one point, the lifeguard at the top of the slide was a CM named Shawn. From talking with her I found out she was from Chicago and in the College Program. I chatted with her for a good amount of time about my experience last summer, as well as some tales about Vista Way, the apartment complex that CPs live in.

I also rode the White Water Rapids Tube Ride twice and spent a good amount of time in the Bay Cove Swimming Hole. As a break from all that activity, I went over to the Upstream Plunge Pool and went down Slippery Slide Falls a few times.

A one point Goofy pulled up in a boat off Bay Lake and visited with everyone. I posed for a photo with him and then went back to swimming. About an hour later, Goofy and Minnie made an appearance near the pool and I took photos with them. It was right about that time when Phil stepped onto a bee and was stung. He went over to first aid and was given some medication to put on it, but we tried not to push him too much the remainder of the day because he had difficulty walking after that.

Rich and Phil rode the Body Slide with me as soon as we arrived in the morning, but they did not go on anything else during the entire time we were there. They can be so boring sometimes! It did not matter too much to me because I can have fun without anyone else around.

At noon, they announced that they were closing the park because of the threat of lightning. After two hours of playing in the water, I was ready to go anyway so it did not affect me at all. My only complaint was that I forgot to pick up a Typhoon Lagoon magnet to add to my collection! I made a note to stop by later in my trip to pick one up, but I never got around to it, which leaves another thing for me to do on my next trip!

After leaving the park, we walked back to the dock and caught a boat back to the Magic Kingdom. From there we transferred to a bus and went back to the resort, arriving about 1:00 PM. I took a quick shower, grabbed a granola bar snack and headed to Sport Goofy Gifts and Sundries, the gift shop in the All-Star Sports lobby. There I bought a Donald Duck key chain, two magnets, and eight more postcards to mail to my friends back home. Total cost was $13.17.

I went back to the room and relaxed for a little while and then we headed off to the Disney-MGM Studios at 3:45 PM. The bus was waiting for us, and, in 15 minutes, we were walking through the gate of the Studios.

The first attraction we went to was Muppet-Vision 3-D. It was a walk on, and we timed it perfectly so that we also saw the entire pre-show. If you go to this attraction, make sure you watch the pre-show as it is one of the best and funniest of all the Disney pre-shows! This was my favorite 3-D attraction at WDW until last summer when I first saw It’s Tough To Be A Bug. This one is still great! In fact, I think it is much better than Honey, I Shrunk the Audience, but it is now my second favorite! Rich and Phil somehow never saw it during their previous trips(s); I wonder how they missed it?

Anyway, when that let out we hustled over to the Backlot Theater and entered the Hunchback of Notre Dame: A Musical Adventure Stage Show just as it was beginning. The CM at the entrance would not let us enter because the show was about to begin, but she directed us to the exit and told us to step over the rope and enter that way. I do not understand why she wanted us to do it that way, but we had no time to argue since the show was about to start. Once inside the theater we found an empty row and settled in for the half-hour production. This show ranks among the best of all of Disney’s stage shows. The cast is so talented and the songs and staging are indescribable! This one is a "must see" when you are at the Disney Studios!

Once the show ended we headed over to Star Tours and had a walk on. This ride is tame after riding it dozens of times; I am really looking forward to the rumored new movie.

After Star Tours, we headed to Mickey Avenue and we saw Pocahontas outside signing autographs. Phil decided that he wanted to have his photo taken with her, so I said go ahead. I jumped into the line of people (mostly children) waiting to meet her, but Phil just doesn’t understand the concept of patience and respect and walked right next to her and stood their while Rich snapped a photo. Now, I know it only took about 3 seconds for the photo, but it is downright rude to cut a line like that, especially when there are children waiting patiently. I made them know how angry and disappointed I was about what they did.

After that incident, we entered Soundstage 2 to catch a live taping of "Petsburgh, USA." This show, which is shown daily on the Animal Planet, is in the process of taping its second season. The host of the show is Brianne Leary, who most of you may know as the host of Walt Disney World Inside Out. Although that show was a favorite of mine, I remember her from the television show "CHIPS", where she played Officer Sindy Cahill during the show’s second season way back in 1978/79.

I will admit that I had a huge crush on her when she was on "CHIPS." However, after she left that show I did not see her in anything again until around 1995 when she took over for Scott Herriott on Inside Out. It was after I ‘re-discovered’ her that I found out that she spent a considerable amount of time on "Good Morning America" as a correspondent. She also made many guest appearances on such 80s shows as "Night Court", "The Love Boat", and "Simon & Simon", and was the host of a few other short-lived talk shows in the early 90s.

Why I am telling you all this? Well, it is because in-between the taping of a few segments with a horse named Rocky, I went up to her and told her that I remembered her from "CHIPS." Her initial reaction was, "Wow, now I feel old!" but she was only joking with me. She asked my name, and we started talking. After a minute or two, I asked her if I could take a photo with her. She said sure and led me over to the set. I handed my camera to one of the assistants who worked on the show and sat next to Brianne on the couch in the middle of the set. I put my arm around her (I asked her first) and the assistant took our photo. After it was taken, another assistant came over and told Brianne that she needed a wardrobe change for the next segment, so she had to leave. She said goodbye to me and told me to come back and see another taping when I had a chance. I thanked her as I left the studio and waved goodbye. Meeting her was a highlight of the trip because, even after all these years, I still have a small crush on her. As you will see later in the report, I had plenty of time to come back for more tapings!

After meeting Brianne, we all decided that we were hungry and we went over to Pizza Planet for a bite to eat. I ordered a pepperoni pizza and a medium diet coke, which came to $8.47 with tax. Since it was dinnertime, around 6:30 PM, all the tables we filled. It took us awhile to find an empty one to sit at, but with three of us looking, it was not as difficult as one might imagine. We just went to separate corners of the eating area and waited for someone to leave and then we pounced on the table, claiming it for ourselves!

From there, we walked over to the Disney-MGM Studios Backlot Tour. It took us about 15 minutes before they let us in to the water effects area, and then another 15 minutes waiting in the line for the tram. There are quite a few hidden Mickey’s in that queue area, so looking for them made the time go by faster. This attraction is rather boring as you see the same thing repeatedly. They rarely add anything new. In fact, since last summer there are only two new things that stick out in my mind. The first one is the George of the Jungle Treehouse, which may actually have been there last summer, I do not recall. The second new item was the Armageddon vehicle, which was on display in front of the Chinese Theater last summer. I also think the vehicle from My Favorite Martian is on display there, but my memory fails me now.

I also did not recall seeing Walt Disney’s plane on the tour last year, but it was there this year. It is on the left-hand side of the road, across from the ‘bone yard.’ I was loading my camera with film as we sped by it, so I was not able to photograph it this time. I have to go through the attraction one more time before I depart for home so I can take a few photos. If you want to take a decent photo of this plane, make sure you sit on the left-hand side of the tram and photograph it as you are approaching Catastrophe Canyon, not after you have already been through it. The reason for taking this seat is that you drive by it slowly on the way to Catastrophe Canyon, but you speed by it on the way out of Catastrophe Canyon. Just remember to look for it on your own, because they do not point it out until after you have been to Catastrophe Canyon.

After the tour, we headed to the Great Movie Ride. For some reason, I never get too excited about this attraction. The audio-animatronics are very good, as well as the choice of movies, but the acting of the CMs usually leaves much to be desired. I think it would be more fun and interesting to go through the attraction without the western or cowboy scene. We boarded the vehicle that takes us through the attraction and wound up getting the cowboy scene. In fact, we went on this ride more than once so I can look for the hidden Donald and Mickey in the hieroglyphics, and we got the cowboy scene every time. I never saw the hidden Donald/Mickey and I was sure I was looking in the right spot. From what I was told, it is in the Indiana Jones scene, on the left-hand side near the bottom corner. There are two rooms for the Indiana Jones sequence, one you ride right through, and one that you stop in so the CMs can continue with their bad acting. Both my friends and I looked for it, but could not find it. If anyone has a more detailed location for the hidden characters, please let me know!

Another interesting note, the movie clip at the end has changed a bit. I am not sure if they removed any of the old clips…or even if they shortened a few of them, but there are new clips that have been added to the movie. I saw brief clips from Armageddon & The Lion King. I am sure a few others were in there as well, but I do not recall them as I write this. I also noticed the 1999 copyright date at the end of the movie. I think updating the movie occasionally is a good idea, however I am not sure if Armageddon belongs in there. Sure, it was a good movie, but certainly not a great one. It definitely does not fit the mold of a classic. Now, on the other hand, Titanic should have had a clip in there, as that is a classic film that will be remembered for many years to come. However, Armageddon is a Disney movie and Titanic is not, so that has a lot to do with it being selected.

After leaving the Great Movie Ride we wanted to see the Voyage of the Little Mermaid show, but it was only 8:25 PM and the next show began at 9:00 PM. We did not want to wait 35 minutes for a show we have all seen many times, so we postponed that one for now and headed to the Tower of Terror.

Back in 1996, I was the only one of us who had the guts to ride the Tower. I even bought the photo of me in it as proof since I did not think I would ever go on it again. Last summer I rode it about a dozen times, and fell in love with it. The new drop sequence, which I first experienced on Friday, has made me love the ride even more! There was a 15-minute wait for the attraction, and I did not feel like walking the entire queue alone so I convinced them to walk it with me. They could take the regular elevator down once we reached the loading area. I also wanted them to experience the pre-show areas of the lobby, library, and boiler room since they just sat on a bench outside when I rode it in 1996.

I embarrassed them once we reached the front of the line by telling the CM that I was riding alone since my two friends had ‘chickened out!’ The CM tried to convince them to ride, but they refused. She led them to the normal elevator as I was boarding the ride.

After meeting up with them near the photo area, we went back on the Great Movie Ride so I could look for the hidden Donald/Mickey. Again, I had no luck finding them!

From there, went over to see, or should I say ‘hear’, Sounds Dangerous with Drew Carey. I saw this on Friday and was disappointed with it, however my friends had not experienced it yet so I had to sit through it again. When it was all over, they voted it one of the worst attractions of the trip…along with the Radio Disney Cruise. What makes it even worse is that we had to wait about 10 minutes before we were let in! I wonder if Drew Carey’s star power is enough to make this weak attraction last? I say bring back Chevy Chase and Martin Short in the Monster Sound Stage Show!

After that extremely boring attraction, we walked around for a bit and did some window-shopping. At 10:15 PM, we headed to the Hollywood Hills Amphitheater and were seated for the 11:00 PM Fantasmic Show. There were two Streetmosphere characters dressed as bellhops from the Tower of Terror performing at the bottom of the seating area. They did some very funny comedy routines that contained some good juggling and balancing routines. One of them even walked the entire length of the stairs on his hands!

The show was excellent, probably even better now that I was seeing it a second time! My friends loved it and wanted to see it again on another day, but due to scheduling conflicts (and sore feet), we never made it back!

When it ended we ran to the bus and got on the first one, which was waiting there for us, and sat back and relaxed as we were driven back to the resort. We arrived home at 11:50 PM and went directly to sleep.

The alarm woke us up at 8:00 AM. I showered quickly, grabbed a pop tart breakfast, and then caught the 8:45 AM bus to Epcot. Our original pre-trip plan did not include Epcot today. However, since we completed more attractions at the Studios last night then I expected, we had some extra time today. My plan was to go to the Universe of Energy and see Ellen’s Energy Adventure since it was closed when we went to Epcot on Saturday. I ran short on time Sunday when I attempted to see it by myself, so I was wondering if this attraction was jinxed!

We went directly to the attraction and joined the line. After about 5 minutes of waiting the side doors opened and guests started to exit. They announced to us as they walked by that the attraction had lost power and they were taken off the ride before it was completed. A CM, who came outside and walked the line, confirmed the situation by explaining what happened to everyone who was waiting.

By now, I was wondering if I would ever see this attraction during this trip. I was zero for three at this point! Since it was the only attraction left to see at Epcot, besides the performers in World Showcase, which wasn’t open yet, we decided to leave and head to our original plan for the day, the Studios.

Before we left the park I stopped at the Centorium and made the first of two WDW Forever CDs that I would create on this trip. The total with tax came to $21.18. I thought this was expensive for a CD that only had 10 songs (with a running time of only about 30 minutes.) However, I ignored the facts and purchased it anyway! I had it shipped to the resort since I didn’t want to wait the 10-15 minutes it took to create it. I heard that some resorts no longer deliver the package to your room directly. Instead they leave it at the front desk and you have to pick it up yourself. As I found out the next day, the All-Star Sports delivers the packages directly to your room, which is much more convenient.

As we were walking out of the store, the fountain was performing one of its amazing water shows, so we stopped to watch it. I really enjoy watching the fountain; I made sure to stop and watch it at least once a day whenever I was in Epcot last summer. However, with the stage that is now in front of the fountain, as well as all the construction that is going on near the back of Spaceship Earth, it is hard to get a good view of the show. I used to stand in front of the fountain, on the side near the World Showcase entrance, and face towards Spaceship Earth. That view of the fountain with the geosphere in the background was breathtaking; however, with the new stage that is used for the Cast In Bronze show, the fountain show loses some of its magic.

On the way out of Epcot, we passed Spaceship Earth, which was also without power. It was then that we realized that it was a park wide problem. Funny, there was still power inside the restaurants and shops. It seemed only to affect the attractions, which leads me to assume they are on a separate power system.

We hopped aboard the second bus that was heading to the Disney-MGM Studios at about 9:45 AM. We arrived there a short while after and we had problems getting in. Since we had just entered Epcot a short while ago, our passes were denied when we put them into the ticket machine. My friends had to show their hand stamp and I had to show a photo ID, since I own an annual pass. Once that was settled we went directly to the Voyage of the Little Mermaid show, which only had a 10 minute wait.

When it ended at 10:40 AM, we went into the Magic of Disney Animation Tour, although it was a 20-minute wait until the next one began. I really enjoy this tour, especially the Robin Williams/Walter Cronkite film. I especially wanted to see it today because it was a weekday and there would be animators working. It seems that in 1996 and 1998 when I went on the tour I always went on a Sunday when no one was working. I did not plan for it to work out that way; just my bad luck I guess! Anyway, Phil did not want to go on this tour at all, and Rich was less than enthusiastic about it. I reminded them that although I made the touring plan up, they were not slaves to it. If they wanted to do something else, they were free to do so. All we had to do was set up a meeting time and place for later in the day. I would rather enjoy an attraction alone than with someone who went with me but complained about it. They decided to stick with me and follow my plans, but I made them promise not to complain during the tour.

When we reached the room with the Disney animator does a quick drawing and answers some guest questions, Phil actually was interested. He even raised his hand a few times, but he was not called upon. As we were walking out of the room he went over to the animator and asked him a question.

By the time the tour was over, it was 11:40 AM. We had priority seating for 2:00 PM at the 50’s Prime Time Café, but I was hungry now so we went there to inquire about early seating. We were told that the wait would only be about 10 minutes, so we had a seat on the couch, and waited for my name to be called.

We were finally seated near the back of the restaurant, and our Uncle John waited us on. He was funny, and really played up his role…that is until Phil spoiled it for everyone. Phil and Rich are, how shall I say it, cheap! They have no problems spending huge amounts of money for their baseball card collections, but when it comes to actually going out an enjoying themselves they keep their wallet in their back pocket! I understand that they do not have a lot of money, neither do I. In fact, I admit it, I am also cheap in everyday life, but I am on vacation now. I am a totally different person on vacation. I spend more freely, I do not let the little things bother me, and I just let myself go and I try to have a good time in spite of any negativity around me. They have a problem letting go of reality when they are on vacation. Sometimes I wonder why they go on vacation if they continue to act the same way they do back home. I thought the point of a vacation was to have fun and escape your everyday life. That is how I look at it. If I wanted to act as I do everyday when I am on vacation, I would just stay home and save myself a few hundred dollars instead of traveling 1200 miles!

However, I have gotten off track. When we were seated, Phil looked at the menu and instantly complained about the high prices. He refused to order anything, not even a glass of water. Uncle John even offered to bring him a free bowl of soup, but he turned that down! Rich, on the other hand, did some complaining about the prices, but he ordered a small salad anyway. I ordered a turkey sandwich and a diet coke. Uncle John noticed the fact that Rich and Phil were not ‘into’ the restaurant and he did not interact with us as much as he did with the surrounding tables. I really enjoyed the atmosphere and the food, and I cannot wait to come back…I will just remember to do it with more energetic people. My share of the meal was $14.00.

After we left there, Phil decided that he wanted to eat. We headed off to Pizza Planet again where he ordered a boring pizza. I was in the mood for a snack, so I bought a chocolate chip cookie ($1.45).

After Phil ate, we headed over to see the "Doug Live!" stage show. We waited about 20 minutes for it to begin. I never watched the cartoon before, so I was not sure if I would like it, but I thought it was good. The guests that were picked to star in it were hilarious, and the songs in the show were enjoyable. Rich and Phil, as usual, hated it. Oh well, some people are just grouches!

At this point, we separated briefly. They were to use the restroom and I went over to the front gate to check what times they would be letting in to watch Petsburgh, USA. Then I walked over to an area near the Tower of Terror and went backstage. I went to the CM cafeteria to look for copies of the cast newspaper, Eyes and Ears, but none were around. I bought a bottle of ice tea from the vending machine ($0.60) and then headed to the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular entrance where I met up with Rich and Phil.

We waited about a half-hour for the 2:45 PM show, which was as wonderful as ever. Funny, last summer I remember them returning the car that flips over in flames to its upright position during the show. This time they left it upside down and just put a few racks of clothing in front of it. I wonder why this was changed?

After the show, they headed back to the resort, while I headed to Soundstage 2 to catch another taping. I entered the stage about 3:45 PM and grabbed a seat in the front row.

This one had another segment with the horse, Rocky, as well as a few segments with puppies. I started talking to the announcer/warm-up comic, James, during some of the breaks. He would entertain the audience during the down time between takes. He is funny and does improvisational comedy on the weekends at a club in Orlando.

At around 6:05 PM, they stopped taping and broke for dinner. All the guests were asked to leave at this point because it would be about an hour or so before they resumed. I asked James if I could go onstage and ask Brianne for an autograph. He told me that it was okay to do that, so I went up to her.

She saw me walking over and extended her hand towards me as she got up from her chair and said, "Hi Joe!" Just the fact that she remembered my name was more than enough to make me happy! I shook her hand and talked to her for a few minutes. Since she was just sitting down to eat I didn’t want to delay her any longer, so I told her that I would let her get back to dinner. First, I asked her if I could get an autograph. She said sure and asked me if I had anything to sign. Sadly, I said no, so she suggested a script from the show! I told her that would be great, so she looked around and found a copy of that day’s script (Show #202). She picked up a pen and signed it for me, "To Joe! Thank you! Brianne Leary" and handed it to me. I told her thank you, and shook her hand again. Then I let her get back to her dinner and I exited the soundstage.

I walked to the bus stop and waited for a bus to show up. About 1 minute after I arrived, so did a bus! My timing on this trip, for both the busses and attractions, has been excellent so far!

I settled into my room for about 15 minutes. We then headed to the Food Court to grab dinner, as it was almost 7:00 PM. I was not too hungry, so I only had the broccoli and cheese soup, a side dish of mashed potatoes, and a grape Frutopia. Total was $6.29.

After eating we walked to the bus stop and caught the bus to the Magic Kingdom. This was my first visit to the Magic Kingdom during this trip and as soon as I entered the gates, I felt like I was finally back home again. The Magic Kingdom is, like many others, my favorite park. The fact that I spent 3 months working there last summer just added to the reasons why it holds a special place in my heart. When I told my friends that I was ‘back home again,’ they just gave me a weird look. They do not understand the Magic of Disney as I do!

I went immediately to the area next to City Hall and exchanged my E-Ride ticket for a wristband, and then we walked up and through Cinderella Castle. I made a quick trip into the utilidors to grab a few copies of this week’s Eyes & Ears and then I headed to the Columbia Harbour House to see if I knew any of the CMs who were working. I did not recognize anyone inside. They mainly looked like new College Programmers, but when I went outside to the fruit wagon, I saw an old friend.

I was not wearing my glasses, but from a distance the figure working behind the wagon looked familiar. She happened to be looking in my direction and noticed me. When she saw me she ran from behind the wagon and came up to me. It was Joann, who I worked with a few times last summer. She mainly worked the outdoor wagons, so we did not work together much, but when we did, we had a lot of fun. I gave her a hug and talked with her for a little while. She ran through the list of the people who were still working at CHH from last summer. However, it was not a very long list, as most people realize, fast food has a high turnover rate. Many of the full-timers who worked there when I did have either left Disney for other opportunities, transferred to another location within Disney, or simply moved out of Florida! Why anyone would leave Florida, especially when he or she lives so close to Walt Disney World, is beyond me! My goal in life is to move to one of the cities surrounding WDW!

We could not talk long because she was working, but I told her to tell the others I was in town and that I would be stopping back to see them. My friends and I then went to the Haunted Mansion, because it had a short wait and it is one of their favorite attractions!

From there we started to walk to Adventureland when a CM working the entrance to the Liberty Belle Riverboat saw my shirt and commented that he liked it. The shirt was a Cast Member Mickey Mouse Cruise Line shirt that I bought last summer at Company D. I thanked him, but I could not stop to talk since we were headed over to The Enchanted Tiki Room Under New Management before the next show began. We arrived just as the pre-show was ending and we walked right in. My friends saw this on our last trip in 1996, when it was still in its original form. Sadly, I missed the original version of this attraction back then as my first visit to the Tiki Room came in 1998. They enjoyed this new version; in fact, later in the trip they went to see it again!

By this time it was starting to rain lightly, so I went into the House of Treasure and asked the CM behind the counter if I could have a bag. He handed me one without question and I put the copies of Eyes & Ears that I was holding into the bag.

We headed to the Jungle Cruise, as I had never ridden it after dark before, and we were treated to the best skipper at the attraction! ‘Jungle’ Jim was our skipper, and he really got into his role. We were seated up front right next to him and there were times where he really made it feel like we were in the deepest jungles of Africa! In fact, at one point when the boat was turning to escape an animal, he leaded all the way over, put his feet up on the wheel and started to turn it with them. Even my friends commented on how fantastic he was! If you ever ride the Jungle Cruise when it is a walk-on, ask if ‘Jungle’ Jim is working. If he is, then wait for his boat…it is worth it!

By now it was about 9:00 PM and we wanted to see the Main Street Electrical Parade. We headed over to Frontierland and situated ourselves at the very end of the parade route…on the side of Pecos Bill, where the parade enters the backstage area.

I have ambivalent feelings towards this parade. The floats were spectacular; many of them were better than the SpectroMagic floats. In fact, my favorites were Pete’s Dragon and the America float that ends the parade. I also think that the mine car that Dopey drives has a dazzling display of lights to simulate the gems.

However, I have some negative comments that I must express:

1 - I have not timed either parade, but it seems like this one is shorter than SpectroMagic. I could be wrong, but even if I am, it SEEMS shorter!

2 - The music to the MSEP is nice, and I know many people love it, however I have a special fondness for the SpectroMagic theme. I supposed it is because it was the first night parade that I ever experienced (1996) and because I saw it almost every night in the summer of ‘98!

3 - Donald Duck is not in this parade! He was in SpectroMagic, so it would not have been too difficult to make him appear in this parade!

4 - I know it is a ‘classic’ parade, so the newer elements of Disney are not represented, but I miss seeing the Little Mermaid floats that were in SpectroMagic.

These are all my personal opinions and are not meant to be representative of my group or of anyone else. I would love Disney to combine the two parades, using the best floats and elements from them, and setting it to the SpectroMagic music. That, however, is a dream that will never see the light of day. I just hope that when the MSEP leaves in 2000, they bring back a revamped SpectroMagic!

This is not to say that I did not enjoy the parade, because I did. It is definitely a spectacular parade and I would watch it again before I left; however, I do not have the same fondness for it that others do.

When the parade ended at 9:40 PM, we headed to the middle of Main Street, near Casey’s Corner and the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor and waited for Fantasy in the Sky to begin. At promptly 10:00 PM, the lights dimmed and the music began. Tinkerbell made her wonderful flight from the top of Cinderella Castle and the fireworks began.

I watched these fireworks countless times in the summer of ’98, and I still cannot get enough of them. Many people prefer Illuminations, and some even preferred the Sorcery in the Sky fireworks display that the Disney-MGM Studios used to have daily before Fantasmic opened. However, for me, watching fireworks with Cinderella Castle in the foreground is just about as magical as it can get!

It was now after 10:00 PM, the park was officially closed, and E-Ride night had officially begun. My friends did not by E-Ride tickets, so I handed them my bag to carry back to the resort for me and said goodnight to them. They left the park and I headed directly to Space Mountain.

While in line there, I met a gentleman from Colorado and his two daughters who had arrived that day. In fact, they had just entered the park about an hour earlier and this was the first attraction that they were going on. His 11-year old was frightened, but his 9-year old was not! I talked to them for the entire time we were in the queue line (about 15 minutes) and convinced the 11-year old that there was nothing to fear. However, I could not get her to ride in the front car! When the time came to choose which side to ride on, we choose the left-hand side. The ride was just as fun as ever, but I still can not shake the feeling that I get when I ride it. Since I cannot see the track very well, I always worry that I am too tall and that I am going to hit my head on the tracks above or on the side of me!) I know that there is plenty of room for tall people, but I suppose that that is part of the effect they are trying to achieve with the darkness. It works for me!

After leaving that attraction, I headed over to Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. This attraction was being built when I was here last summer, so this was my first time on it. I do not know how people get those high scores that I hear about; I have a hard time aiming the gun at the targets. When I think it is lined up, I pull the trigger and nothing registers. Other times when I think it is not pointing anywhere near a target, the points pile up! I guess I will never be an expert at this ride.

My score was 116,900, which made me a Planetary Pilot. Not bad for my first time, however I rode this a few more times during the remainder of my trip and I never scored that high again! Although I am not an expert, and probably never will be, I enjoyed the ride and think it is a definite improvement over the old Take Flight attraction that was there on my 1996 trip!

After blasting away inside Buzz, I headed to Frontierland and boarded the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad with only a 10-minute wait. This roller coaster was the first one I ever rode, back in 1996. Before that I was petrified of roller coasters and refused to get on them. There is something about Walt Disney World that takes away all my fears. When I am here, I feel and act like a totally different person. I do things that I would never, ever consider doing back home. Although this attraction conquered my initial roller coaster fears, I still had some left in me after my 1996 trip. I braved BTMRR, but I skipped Space Mountain. It was not until 1998, when I was on the college program that I finally rode Space Mountain…and I loved it. I have been on it many times since then, and I am even going to attempt an inverted roller coaster for the first time when I go to Islands of Adventure next week.

After Big Thunder, I headed to Splash Mountain and it was a walk-on. I rode it three times in a row, however I had to exit and rejoin the line each time. The second time I sat in the front seat of the log and got soaked. The third time I had the rear seat and I survived without as much as a drop of water hitting me!

I decided that three times in a row for Splash Mountain was enough, so I headed to Big Thunder again. It still had a 10-minute wait, which is much better than the 45-minute to one-hour wait it gets during the day!

After riding the runaway mine car, I took a slow, peaceful walk along the Rivers of America on the footpath. I exited it at Liberty Square and then headed across the park, through the hub, and into Tomorrowland. By now, it was 12:45 PM and I they were broadcasting the goodnight speech & music over the loudspeakers, while Cinderella Castle was basked in a wondrous display of colored lights!

Since E-Ride night was now ending, I headed to the Astro Orbiter and rode that with a 5-minute wait. I rode this back in 1996, but it was one of the few attractions that I skipped in 1998. I figured I would give it a ride at least once on this trip, especially since it had such a short wait. During normal operating hours it is not uncommon for this ride to have a wait of nearly an hour…and it certainly is not worth the wait!

Since it was now 1:00 AM, and the rides were officially closed, I walked over to the hub and sat on one of the park benches for a few minutes just soaking in all the magic. Then, I pried myself off the bench, walked to the bus stop, and caught a bus home with about a 10-minute wait.

The driver was one of the more enthusiastic ones working for Disney and he kept us entertained by asking us trivia questions. I answered two of them that no one else knew, Donald Duck’s middle name – Faunteleroy and the names of Daisy’s 3 nieces – April, May, & June.

We arrived back at the All-Star Sports at 1:45 AM and I dragged my weary body back to the room and went to sleep.

Happy Birthday, Donald Duck! My favorite character is 65 today! About the only thing special that I noticed for his birthday was a limited edition watch that Disney was selling. I was rather disappointed that they let an anniversary like go pass by without a major celebration. A day or two later, my friends said they saw Donald Duck posing for photos and signing autographs in a special 65^th birthday outfit, but I wasn’t with them. I am disappointed that I missed that!

The pre-trip plan for today was to wake up at 7:00 AM and go to the Magic Kingdom in time for the 8:30 opening. I planned it that way only because I was not sure how long it would take the three of us to get ready in the morning. In addition, I did not know if we were going to have a small breakfast or a large one at the food court. After spending a few days sharing the room with them, I learned that it only takes the three of us about a half-hour to get ready and to grab something small to eat. Therefore, because of that, I set the alarm for 8:00 AM instead. This would give us an extra hour of sleep, which we all needed, and we would still get to the Magic Kingdom early enough to visit the attractions I wanted to.

Anyway, the alarm woke us up right on schedule! I showered, grabbed a pop tart breakfast and we caught a bus over to the Magic Kingdom. We arrived at 9:00 AM and we heard the opening speech & music that is played every day!

I headed immediately to Splash Mountain because, as much as I enjoy riding this at night, I love it even more during the day. If you do not head there first thing in the morning, then expect a long wait for it later. My friends are afraid of this ride, so they skipped it. They have no idea what they are missing!

After riding Splash, I headed over to Big Thunder Mountain so I could ride that during the day as well. They had no idea that it was a roller coaster ride, and when they asked what kind of ride it was I told them it was a nice train ride, which isn’t much of a lie! The line was very short, only about a seven minute-wait, so they were not by the window long enough to see that it was a roller coaster.

When we boarded the car and starting pulling out of the station I told Rich that it would be a good idea if he took off his hat, since I didn’t want him to lose it. He gave me a weird look after that, but he survived the ride okay. Afterwards he said it was not that bad, but he still would not ride it again!

After tricking them onto Big Thunder, we walked to Adventureland and walked right onto Pirates of the Caribbean with no wait. Back in 1996, when I rode this with them, we had a 45-minute wait! This attraction, while still good, is not worth that kind of wait. I am glad I spent so much time here last summer, because now I know the best times to hit most of the attractions. Our average this trip was about a 10-minute wait, with only one or two that were longer than 40 minutes…and we only waited in those lines because they were for attractions that I had never ridden before!

We then went to Tomorrowland and got in line for the Tomorrowland Speedway. I rode this in 1996, but because of long lines all last summer I skipped it in 1998. I did not want to skip it this year, so we braved the line (15 minutes) and I got my own car, with Rich and Phil sharing a car right behind me. I took my foot off the gas a few times in order to allow them to reach me and bump into my car. Unless you crash into someone, or let someone crash into you, the ride is just not any fun.

We then headed over to Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, where my score was lower than last night…108,500. It was good enough for a Planetary Pilot ranking, but still disappointing.

We were right next to Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress so we walked over to that. It was now 11:00 AM, and the carousel was open for its first show of the day. I always enjoyed this attraction, perhaps because it was one of the few attractions that Walt actually worked on. There is a lot of history involved with this attraction, and it is great to see the film clip of Walt outside the entrance!

After our musical journey through the 20^th century, we decided to head for Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café and grab some lunch. It was 11:30 AM, and if we waited any longer we would have to start fighting the normal lunch crowds. I ordered the chicken breast & wing meal, which came with mashed potatoes and a medium coke. Total was $7.80. I went over to the fixing bar on the other side and put some mushrooms on my plate. I know they are supposed to be used as a topping for a hamburger, but they make a tasty side dish. I did not feel guilty about it because I had purchased something there. If I just walked in and put some on a plate, then I would have something to feel guilty about.

We walked to the lower section, grabbed a seat in front of Sunny Eclipse, and enjoyed his show while we ate. I never watched him before, and it was quite enjoyable.

When we finished eating, it was nearing noon. Since we were right around the corner from Cinderella Castle, we decided to catch the ‘Every Day’s a Holiday" show on the Castle Forecourt Stage. It was delayed about 10 minutes because of a passing shower and they had to wipe down the stage. This is an excellent show, with a memorable theme song. I just cannot seem to get it out of my mind! I wish it were available on the WDW Forever CDs. Last year they performed this show and ‘Disneymania!’ on this stage. Since they stopped performing the Galaxy Star Search (which I loved) at the Galaxy Palace Theater in Tomorrowland, they moved the ‘Disneymania!’ Show there. I tried to catch it this trip, but I always seemed to miss it. It is not a big deal because I saw it a few times last summer, but it would have been nice to see it one more time.

When the show ended at 12:30 PM, we walked over to Liberty Square and into the Columbia Harbour House again. I wanted to see if I recognized anyone. I saw ‘Miss Annie’ on one of the registers, but she had a long line so I did not stop to say hi. She was a very sweet older lady who trained me on the registers. I also saw Louis in the kitchen, but since I was not able to go backstage, I could not talk to him. I suppose it was my mistake to go there during the lunch rush.

We walked out of CHH and went over to Mike Fink’s Keelboats for a leisurely ride around Tom Sawyer’s Island. We had to wait about 5 minutes for the boat to arrive and unload, and then we climbed aboard the Bertha Mae (lower level), and were treated to some interesting commentary by our skipper, Moonshine Mike!

After disembarking the keelboat, we headed over to see the Diamond Horseshoe Saloon Review. I always seemed to miss this last summer, so I was determined to catch a show this time around. We arrived 15 minutes early for the 1:15 PM show, and found some seats on the top floor right on the edge. We had a perfect center stage view of the show. It lasted about 50 minutes and was very entertaining. The crowd interaction is hilarious, and the girls are attractive! We all enjoyed it immensely.

From there we went down the road and caught the Country Bear Jamboree show. This is a classic show that we all enjoy. Our favorite is Melvin the Moose, who is mounted on the wall above the exit doors. I recently found out that for a period of about 5 years, ending sometime in the early 1990s, Melvin the Moose had his own Character Breakfast at Fort Wilderness! If that were still around, my friends and I would have been there at least once during this trip!

After the show, we headed back to Main Street and got a front row seat for the Remember the Magic Parade. It was right in front of the cart that sells the engraved nametags. I love this parade, and caught it many times last summer. Even though it was not the first parade I saw here at Disney, Mickey Mania in 1996 was, it is still awesome and my favorite of the two.

After the parade, we caught a bus back to the resort. Our driver was Anthony, and he was highly entertaining. He made us sing songs like, ‘Take Me Out to the Ballgame’ and ‘Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Da.’ I wish more of the drivers was like that, it certainly makes the ride more enjoyable…especially if you have to stand the entire way!

Once we arrived back at the resort, I took some more photos of the Home Run Hotel and the inside of our room. I then went to pick up the roll of film that I dropped off sometime yesterday ($13.72). I normally do not get my film developed until I get back home, because it is about 1/3 the price. However, this roll had the photo of Brianne and me on the set and I wanted to get it enlarged so I could have her sign it. In order for me to do that, I needed it to be developed first.

I also went up to Guest Services and purchased my E-Ride ticket for June 11 ($10.60) and I mentioned to them that I need transportation to a class at the Disney Institute tomorrow morning. I was told just to see the CM outside when I need to go and they would call a taxi over and fill out a voucher for me. I thanked her for her help and started the journey back to my room. Just before I left the lobby and stepped outside, the sky opened up and it started to pour. I tucked the photos under my shirt and ran back to my room.

We hung out at the room for another hour or so, then we headed to the bus stop. It was still raining lightly, but the rain does not bother me. In fact, I think I like it better. The temperature is cooler and the parks are less crowded because many guests run back to their room to avoid the rain.

When we reached the turnstiles, both Rich and I had no problems entering, but Phil’s card was unreadable. He somehow damaged the back of the card and he had to go over to the guest services window to have it replaced.

Once he entered the park we went over to the Columbia Harbour House for dinner. I had the chicken & fries combo and a large coke, which came to $7.53. When I was half way through the meal, I realized that I did not order my normal clam chowder in a bread bowl. There was no way I could eat it now, but I made a mental note to return another day and get one. I also noticed that almost the entire menu has been changed since I worked there last summer. The big items like the chicken, fish, and clam chowder remain but that is it. Everything else is different! It came as quite a shock to me since the people I stay in touch with that still work there never mentioned it to me!

After dinner, we headed to Fantasyland and walked right into the 6:15 PM Legend of the Lion King show. This show is always fantastic, and I make sure to catch it every trip.

We then went on Snow White’s Scary Adventures, which is another boring dark ride that the children seem to love so much, with a 5-minute wait. I do not care for them, and I only ride them if the wait is small and just because I like to do as many of the attractions as possible. Just for fun, I looked at which car we were riding and it was Dopey’s! How appropriate for the three of us!

The remainder of the Fantasyland rides all had long waits, so we left there and headed to Tomorrowland. We went to Alien Encounter, which only had a 10-minute wait. This attraction has no repeat value for me, as the scare factor of the first visit is completely gone. However, my friends said they never saw it before, and since I like to be complete, we went on it.

After having an Alien breathe on us, we walked over to the Tomorrowland Transit Authority and were immediately seated. This ride never has a wait, which is nice because the only reason to go on it is to relax and enjoy the view and breeze. If I had to wait in line for it, the whole idea of relaxation would be destroyed.

We then crossed the park via Cinderella Castle and the Hub and went onto It’s A Small World with no wait! I really enjoy the song, and it does not irritate me as it does other people! However the actual attraction is boring and I only ride it because a trip to Walt Disney World is not complete unless you have ridden it!

We then made our way over to Mickey’s Toontown Fair to photograph and visit Donald’s Boat. I wanted to ride Goofy’s Barnstormer, but after their experience with Big Thunder, they refused to go on it. Even my explanation that it was made with little children in mind they could not be convinced! Oh well, I rode it last summer and I really did not need to ride it again this year.

We hopped aboard the Walt Disney World Railroad just as it was getting ready to pull out of the Toontown Station. We rode it until we reached Main Street, and then we disembarked. We went into the Town Square Exposition Hall to kill some time before the parade began.

Once the Main Street Electrical Parade began, in fact, the parade did not start until 9:10 PM because of the weather; we left the Hall and we were treated to a prime view from just behind the ropes. I guess since it had just finished raining it made it easier to find a spot at parade time.

The parade was just as enjoyable the second time as it was the first time. When it ended, my friends left the park and went back to the resort. I went back into the Town Square Exposition Hall and waited for the fireworks to begin. I watched a Disney short, Flowers and Trees, which I never saw before, and walked around inside for a little while. There is a fantastic mural of dozens of Disney characters painted on one of the walls at the rear of the building. If you have a few extra moments, go inside there and check it out!

Around 9:55 PM, I exited the Hall and proceeded to the area behind the flagpole and watched the fireworks once they began. Because of the weather, Tinkerbell’s flight was canceled, but that was to be expected.

As soon as Fantasy in the Sky ended, I turned around and exited the park. I caught a bus back home and I was there by 10:40 PM. I made a quick trip to the gift shop before they closed to see if they made 8x10 enlargements of photos, but I was told that it takes 3-4 days. I wanted to get the photo of Brianne and me enlarged so that I could have her sign it. Since it would not be ready by tomorrow, I decided to wait. Petsburgh only tapes Mondays through Thursdays, and since tomorrow was Thursday, there was no way it would be ready for her to sign. I still had one week left, which gave me plenty of time to get a copy made since Petsburgh still had two weeks left of taping.

I returned to the room about 11:00 PM and watched a little television before falling asleep.

The alarm went off right on schedule at 6:15 AM. Since my friends were sleeping in, I shut it off quickly so I would not disturb them. I showered, grabbed my usual pop-tart breakfast, and walked to the lobby. I went outside and talked to the CM at the podium. I told her that I needed a taxi to the Disney Institute for a class that I was taking, and she waved over to one that was parked in the parking lot. She filled out a voucher and handed it to the driver and I was on my way.

I arrived at the Disney Institute and entered the main lobby. I walked over to the Program Services desk and checked in. The cost for the Traveling Photographer class was $69.00, which I paid for in cash. I received directions to the studio that my class was being held in (North Studio F), and I took the 5-minute walk over there.

I walked into the classroom and met my instructor, Brent. Since I was early, he told me that there was free coffee and bottled water in the other room. I grabbed a cup of water and returned to the room. By that time, the other two people in the class had arrived. There was Brue, and his daughter, Hope. They live in Atlanta, Georgia, and Brue is the photographer for his local school, so he knows a little more about cameras than I do.

I was the only one who brought my own camera. The others had to use the camera that Disney provided, which was fine because it was a good camera. However, if I am going to learn tips on how to take better photos, then I think it is best if I learn on my camera instead of one that I will never use again. Brent instructed the others on how to use the camera, and he made comparisons to my camera to see how similar they were. Disney gives the guests a Nikon camera to use (I do not know the exact model), while I own a Minolta Maxxum/Dynax 3xi. I purchased mine in 1991 or 1992, so their camera was definitely newer than mine was. Their camera had a few features that mine did not, but there is no point in learning how to use the features on someone else’s camera!

Disney also provides us one roll of 36-exposure film, 100 speed. I normally use 400 or 800 speed in my camera, but for the kind of photos we were taking (outdoor in bright sunlight), 100 speed was more than sufficient. An interesting note here, the film is not your normal ‘print’ film. It is ‘slide’ film, which I did not notice until I went to get it developed. Because of that, the lab developed them as slides and I had to have them made into prints later…at a more expensive cost.

Brent started the class with a slide show and a detailed explanation of various techniques and tricks that photographers use to take good photos. He also held a question and answer session for us. Since the class was so small, we finished up the classroom part early and we left for Epcot at 9:00 AM.

We hopped into a Disney Institute van, and we arrived backstage at France at 9:15 AM. We walked into World Showcase at that time, almost 2 hours before it was open to other guests, and we were given free reign to walk anywhere we wanted! We were told that we could take photos of anything we wanted…using some of the techniques that Brent had taught us.

We split up and I headed off past France and into Morocco. I started taking some photos of things that I never would have given a second look at before. I also took some photos of various vehicles and CMs that were doing work on various pavilions.

In Morocco, I there was a few CMs that were washing down the clay-like building that has the ‘Kingdom of Morocco’ sign on it. Moreover, in Japan, there were a few men on the end of a crane doing some repair work to the top of the temple.

Later, in Italy, I took a few photos of a commercial shoot. They were a few dozen people running around filming a commercial for the upcoming Millennium celebration. I did not stick around there long, because I did not want to get in the way; in addition, I wanted to visit the rest of World Showcase while there still was no one around.

By the time I had reached Germany, the sun was breaking through the clouds and I was able to get some awe-inspiring shots of the pavilions with a blazing sun in the upper corner of the photographs. I did some experimentation with camera angles and lighting and the results were fantastic. I never thought I could take pictures as I have seen in books and on postcards, but I think a few of them are definite candidates.

I continued onward into China, Norway, and Mexico, finally reaching the entrance to Future World. I cannot tell you how great it was to see people on the other side of the rope trying to enter World Showcase. I felt somewhat important being on the other side where they were not allowed yet!

I passed a few of the tours that Disney offers while I was in Norway and Mexico, but for the most part, it was empty. What I really liked about being here before the opening was that I was able to visit some of the pavilions that I passed right through on all my previous trips. For instance, I never went into Italy before, and when I did this time I came across the loveliest statute in the corridor near the rear. I sat down, took some photos of this awesome sight, and wondered to myself why I never came here before!

After I was finished photographing an empty Mexico, I headed back through World Showcase again. Before we started, we set up a meeting time of 11:15 AM in France, and it was now 10:00 PM. I rushed through the pavilions to get to Mexico, now I could take my time and make a slow journey back to France.

Along the way, I took some interesting photos of Spaceship Earth, framing them using various methods. For instance, in Japan, I framed it in the center of Vermillion Torri Archway that server as the entrance to Japan.

I took, what I think is my best photograph in France. There is a fountain in front of the entrance to the building that is has the Eiffel Tower behind it. I stood directly in front of this fountain, crouched down a bit and centered the camera with the building entrance in the center. The beauty of the architecture and landscape really shine in this photo, and what makes it even more amazing is that there are no people in the photo. I took two shots of it, one horizontal, and one vertical, and I really must scan them so that others can see the beauty of France!

I also photographed two ‘Hidden Mickeys.’ One was in Morocco and was made of three plates hanging on a door. The other was one of the bushes in France.

By now it was about 10:55 AM and I had made my way all the way through World Showcase from Mexico to France. I had about 20 minutes before I had to meet up with the instructor and the other two students. I left the closed portion of World Showcase (just as the CM was dropping the rope) and I entered the United Kingdom to take some photos.

I went to the garden behind the shops and found that it was empty. This is one of the best-kept secrets of Epcot. This lovely garden is usually empty, even in the middle of a busy day, and it has some relaxing benches to rest your weary feet. If you have a significant other, it is the perfect romantic spot to take them!

I wanted to get over to Canada to photograph the Victoria Gardens, but it was nearing the meet time, and it looked crowded. One day I will return to Epcot at its time of opening and head directly to Canada to get some photos without any guests in view.

I walked back to France and met up with Brent and Brue who were already there. It was here that I photographed the Hidden Mickey in the bushes. Brent mentioned that there was one there, but he could not find it. After searching for a minute, I found it and hopped on a bench to get a better view of it. The best view would be from one of those cranes that I saw earlier, but I did not have one at my disposal!

A few minutes later Hope arrived. We snapped photos of each other and then headed backstage to hop back into the van. Brent passed out bottled water to us and drove us back to the Disney Institute. Once there, we had a short wrap up in the classroom, then gathered our belongings and left.

I walked to bus stop 8 and caught the first bus to the Disney-MGM Studios, which was about a one-minute wait!

I arrived at noon and immediately went to Soundstage 2 for another taping of Petsburgh, USA. As I entered the soundstage and walked up the stairs to a seat, Brianne, who was rehearsing a segment right next to the entrance, saw me and said, "Hi Joe!" I looked back at her and said, "Hi Brianne! How are you today." She responded that she was tired!

Not only was I happy that she still knew my name, but also that she acknowledged me while she was working. When I sat down, the guests next to me asked me how I knew her. I acted like someone important and said, "Brianne and I are old friends!" Of course, it is not true, but everyone likes to feel important once in awhile, and this was one of the few chances I would get in life to act that way, so I grabbed it!

I snapped a few candid shots of Brianne while I was sitting, but they only taped one segment that lasted about 15 minutes and then they announced that they were breaking for lunch! I was somewhat disappointed, because I wanted to watch the taping for a little while, but I was also hungry, so I left and went to the ABC Commissary for a small lunch of my own.

At the Commissary, I ordered the chicken strips and fries meal, along with a diet coke, total was $8.43. When I was finished eating, I walked around for a little while and then went back to Soundstage 2 at 1:15 PM.

Taping was just about to resume, and I entered the soundstage and grabbed ‘my seat’, which was in the center section, first row, first seat. This was also where James, the announcer & comedy relief, usually was and where he stored his microphone. I got to know him well, and Rob, who filled in for him one day.

During a break in the taping, Brianne, who was holding a puppy, brought it over to the audience so that we could get a closer look. She saw me again and said, "Hi Joe…back again!" I just told her that I love the show and that I wanted to see as much of it as I could while I was here, which was pretty much the truth!

At about 3:30 PM I had to leave. My plans for today had already delayed enough. The pre-trip plan was to meet my friends at 1:30 PM at the Winter Summerland mini-golf. We were to play golf and then take an afternoon break back at the resort. But, since those plans were made before I knew about the filming of Petsburgh, I told them last night that I would meet them at the resort by 4:00 PM, and we would head off to golf at that time. They had no problems with that because they wanted to relax as much as they could on this trip.

I arrived at the room at 3:45 PM, dropped off the material that I had received during the photography class, and settled a bill with my friends. Since today was a day out of the parks for them, they wanted to do some more food shopping since we had gone through most of the water and snacks that we had purchased last Friday. So, while I was at my Disney Institute class, they boarded a bus to Downtown Disney and then walked to Goodings and bought some food. When I cam back to the room, I gave them my share of the cost ($10.50) and then we left the room and boarded the Blizzard Beach bus at promptly 4:00 PM.

Since Winter Summerland is directly next to Blizzard Beach, they share the same bus stop. This is convenient because you only have to make one stop for two places, but it can be an annoyance when you are going home from Winter Summerland (or traveling to Epcot.) At certain points in the day, the Blizzard Beach and Epcot busses are combined into one for the All-Star Resorts. This makes the trip to Epcot longer, and messy. Many guests do not fully dry themselves when they leave Blizzard Beach, so the bus seats can get very wet. Another annoying factor is the smell of Chlorine that is on all the guests and their clothing. When you are at the water park, you really do not notice it because you are getting wet yourself. However, if you are coming from Winter Summerland, or going to Epcot, the smell of the chlorine can be overpowering at times. It certainly is not something worth complaining about, as it is not a big deal, but it is something to keep in mind when staying at the All-Star Resorts.

Earlier in the day, Rich and Phil had done laundry and I asked them to wash a few things of mine so I could wear them again later in the trip. As we were walking to Winter Summerland from the bus stop, I jokingly offered Rich a quarter for washing the few items. He snapped it out of my hand and said thanks! I figured he would take it, so that is why I only offered him a quarter instead of a dollar or two! I am cheap too! Ha, Ha!

When we arrived at Winter Summerland, the CM who waited on us was very amusing. When we approached him, he said, "Are you guys ready to bowl?" Although I did not expect his joke, I did not miss a beat when I said in return, "I don’t think Disney would appreciate it if