On this day, our third day of WDW, we decided to take the Hotel Shuttle, which was not as comfortable as the car, and somewhat more stressful as there's strollers to fold, toddlers to wrangle and the general discomfort of sharing transport with strangers...
 |
| Tinkerbell, excited at the prospect of going inside THAT CASTLE!!!!Can you guess the story depicted in the stunning mosaics? |
We had no idea what to expect, and were surprised at just how intimate it actually was. We were ushered into one room, where we were given a little introduction, then into another where a talking wardrobe was opened and most of the assembled children - and some adults(!!) - were assigned cardboard costumes so that they could participate in the show. It was all very exciting!!
I was quite beside myself - more so than Isabella as she was in the moment and not computing what it actually meant - when she was selected to "be the Beast", wearing a red cape ... I was already seeing her in the starring role with Belle, and was a little overcome, hence the lack of focus!!!
 |
| Lumiere, on the mantelpiece blinked, spoke and moved...no idea how they did it. The magic of Disney, I guess! |
The attendants who selected the "stars" must have perceived a certain military bearing, despite the holiday garb!
To be honest, we could have gone home right then and there - the absolute highlight of her trip being the Beast and dancing with Belle!!
But no! We had three booked FastPass+ experiences to crank through, along with a number of others I had made note of that I thought we'd all enjoy, so carry on we did, to...
 |
| Tink, about to meet the "real" Tink! |
Daniel, who would have made a perfect "Chip" (the teacup in Beauty and the Beast) but was too scared to participate, had excess nervous energy to burn off ... just as well Isabella has young legs.
Got him!!
  |
Country Bear Jamboree (cutesy, corny and rather un-PC, but amusing), Pirates of the Caribbean (less impressive than my 5 year old self remembered from Disneyland in the 70s), Enchanted Tiki Room (kitschy and gorgeous), and the Jungle Cruise (impressive and fun, but probably more convincing in the dark), were on my To Do List, so off we went, with "go hard or go home" ringing in my ears.
    
This is midday, not midnight!!
"In the Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room..."
        |
Clearly, the whole experience is much more impressive when you're 3 or 7 years of age...though we enjoyed a modicum of amusement from the fast-talking, corny double entendres dished out at lightning speed by our cruise captain.
Before leaving Adventure Land, for Tomorrow Land, the kids - big and small - had to experience the "spitting" camel. On such a hot day, it was quite the draw card!
As we were heading back, we came across the Move It! Shake It! Celebrate It! Street Party...a Disney-Pixar character parade.
And there they are, the stars that started it all...or their topiaried cousins, at least!
 |
| I can't count the number of photos these two "bombed", while waiting to take this shot!
Another interactive show we'd booked for was the Monsters Inc Comedy Floor, a clever show with interactive elements featuring hapless members of the audience. Thankfully, we weren't amongst them!
Time for a train ride on the Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover...such simple pleasures!
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh looked like it might be a cute and slow ride for the kids, but while waiting in the queue, it was declared out of service - not the words used by the Cast Members, oh no! They told the assembled crowd that there'd been a "honey spill", so we should check back later.
As we started dispersing, Isabella discovered she'd lost one of her (plastic, clip-on, "Frozen") earrings. She cried real tears and was really quite distraught - partly due to the whole over-stimulation of it all, and partly due to the fact that she really was fond of her little earrings and she'd chosen to bring them to Disney World especially.
One of the Cast Members - pictured below in the background - saw this and took Isabella and retraced her steps in the queue, scouring the ground as she went. After this little exercise, the lady went and searched inside a little booth at the entrance gate, took out a little book, and wrote out a voucher for Isabella to exchange in one of the gift shops for earrings up to the value of $25!!! While she didn't really appreciate what it all meant, until I'd explained it to her, we were all overcome by this beautiful gesture.
It also brought to stark relief, for me anyway, that so much of what had been memorable and magical about visiting Disney World with small children - as painful as they were, on occasions - were interactions with the staff. On the days Isabella wore her Alice in Wonderland and Tinkerbell dresses, almost without exception, every Cast Member we passed while going through rides, or to shows, would greet her with a, "Hello, Alice!" or "Hi Tink - got any fairy dust for me?!", etc - she lovvvvved it!!
Before the Earring Incident
Apart from wearing costumes in character with the rides, shops or restaurants in which they were working, all Disney staff members wear name badges with their city, and state or country of origin.
When Isabella and I went to redeem her earring voucher in the Fantasyland giftshop, we were more than happy to be helped by Kaitlin, from Benalla, Australia!!
All that excitement and raw emotion required another food break - icecream, at the Pinocchio Village Haus, where we sat outside and enjoyed the view of the Carousel and Castle...and looming storm clouds! Gotta love Florida in September!!
    
No amount of sweet talking would encourage Daniel to willingly part with his chocolate slush...
much to Daddy's chagrin!
One Disney experience we chose not to partake in, amongst others, was the not-at-all-reasonably-priced Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique...the results freaked me out a little and took me back to images of certain toddler beauty queens whose parents enjoy watching their young children being transformed into some over-coiffed freak show! Is that too harsh?! Sorry, but there is something scary about seeing a 5 year old in more makeup and hairspray than your average adult woman!
Our last ride for Magic Kingdom was the much feted, long-waited, Seven Dwarfs (why not Dwarves?) Mine Train. Daniel sat this one out, so Isabella rode once with me, and once with Dave - she was starting to develop quite the need for speed!!
Check out the look on her face - post-ride!!
|
Almost done, except the shopping...but first, lets say "hi" to a real duck!
"Mm, which Chrissy dec should I get?!"
 |
| Now he goes to sleep! So much for the family shot ... |
 |
| And with his head propped up! |
 |
| I think this was just after Isabella and Dave had photo-bombed Elsa and Anna (Frozen), who were clearly making a bee-line for the Castle and properly queuing subjects! |
 |
| I think some circulation was cut off by this extended display of gratitude! |
No comments:
Post a Comment