Tag Archives: Starbucks

Day 156- Epcot Rainy Day

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It is such a rainy afternoon! The rain is light as we get to the Epcot parking entrance. We get parked, walk in the rain to the entrance, get our bags checked, and scan our MagicBands.  We enter and see the beautiful purple flowers; with the rain, they smell awesome!

We near Spaceship Earth and there is an amazingly long line for a late afternoon. We go on around and see so many colorful raincoats. We see the family of orange rain ponchos, the pink poncho family, and there are so many Disney ponchos. Then, I see one green poncho. It is a myriad of color. Even in our group, we have a red raincoat, a green, and a pink one!

The rain begins such downpour that we go to get drinks at Starbucks and decide to go to sit in the Electric Umbrella. We find that they have a pin trading umbrella! So, we had to take a minute and look at these cool pins!

We enjoy a few minutes of drinking our coffee and teas as we watch all of the people going through the walkway near MouseGear. Then, as we are fixing to leave, there is a family who sits at the table near us. They were so cute: the mom and dad were searching their phones, and their teenage daughters were talking to them, trying to get their attention. I walked to their table and the daughters looked up. I smiled at them and said, “Do you have trouble getting your parents not to watch their phones when you are sitting down at the table?” The daughters laughed and said, “Actually, we do!” They laughed as they explained that their mom just got a new phone and she is on it all the time! Just then the mom looked up and asked, “What was that?” The girls and I giggled. It was fun talking to them for a minute and their daughters thought that it was really funny!

Now, we are off and heading for the front gates on this rainy day. It is not very cold today, just wet… very wet! We had fun, rainy day at Epcot!

Day 152- Hollywood Studios

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Today is absolutely beautiful! We are off to enjoy the weather and Hollywood Studios! We get to the parking lot and park close enough to walk to the front entrance. There is a soft, lightly busy bustle as people are coming and going. We get our bags checked and our MagicBands scanned. The security guard mentions to us that when the sun goes down, it will get chilly fast. What a nice tip for later!

The sunshine is so pretty bouncing off of the Art Deco-inspired buildings on Hollywood Boulevard. The beautiful buildings on this street are so amazing. It is like you are transported back in time!

We get pictures of the progress as Mickey’s Sorcerer’s hat is being dismantled. I am excited to see the changes coming to Hollywood Studios, and it will be nice to be able to see The Great Movie Ride from down the street!

Now, time for coffee at the Trolley Car Café! It is so nice to have Starbucks Coffee here in such a fun and amazing building. It is worth stopping in for a moment to see the interior of the building; it is full of so much detail of that era and decorated like a trolley station! I love the display full of cupcakes, sandwiches, and other goodies! We meet the mom and daughter in front of us. They are on a mother/daughter trip and are having a wonderful time! The mom asked us if we were on a mother/daughters trip. I smiled and said that we were having a great time here at Disney, it is so much fun!

We got our coffee and were off to find a place to sit for a few minutes. We chose to go to tables near the vintage looking ship at Min and Bill’s Dockside Diner. Today is a bit chilly, so hot coffees and chai teas are perfect.

After a few minutes, we finish our coffee, and stop in to Keystone Clothiers to check on a Minnie Mouse scarf. We see the beautiful Minnie Mouse items they are carrying this season. There are so many cute purses, clothes, and scarves, but not the particular one that I am thinking of getting. While we are in the store, the kids do some pin trading.

I think we are going to call it a fast trip. The sun is beginning to set, and the wind is picking up, so it is getting cold quickly. We walk out to our car and enjoy the last bit of sunlight for the day. We had a blast at Hollywood Studios today!

Day 150- Magic Kingdom & SpaceX

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Today is a beautiful day! We see so many ibis and turkeys walking along the road near Magic Kingdom. I love the wildlife! Sometimes we can see deer blending into the landscape. It is absolutely beautiful day! As we leave the house, it says it is 65 degrees and feels like 71; that is going to be perfect.

We arrive at the Transportation and Ticket Center, park, and catch the tram to the Monorail. There are several fun people on the tram. We reach the drop off point and walk to the Monorail. It is fairly busy and the Monorail is full as we take off to Magic Kingdom. We do have one stop at the Contemporary Resort on the way today.

As we walk to the entrance, I hear a family talking about the Flag Retreat Ceremony and how Disney honors our veterans every day. The Flag Retreat Ceremony is incredible. I love being able to watch it!

We get our bags checked, MagicBands scanned, and enter into Magic Kingdom. The sun is so beautiful as it shines down onto the Victorian-styled buildings. It is so beautiful! I can see Cinderella’s Castle as we head down Main Street USA. We stop into the lightly busy Main Street Bakery for a cup of coffee. It is fun seeing every getting sandwiches and bakery items to go with their coffee!

After we got our coffees, I had to go back in for a minute, and as I came out, I could not see my kids anywhere! I scanned faces across the street. Then, I turned and scanned up the street and down the street, but no sign of my kids. So, I stopped, pulled out my phone and texted them. Almost instantly, I hear Tooti’s voice. They had found the cutest little spot to sit and drink coffee. I had to laugh since I thought it was down a ways from here. Plus, they were laughing so hard that I had to think it was funny!

Since there are 3 of us, we walked to find a table where we could sit and have our coffee. As we walk, we pass the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor; it is fun seeing all of the beautiful ice cream creations—some of them even have Mickey ears on them! I pass by a grandma enjoying a milkshake, I had to stop and tell her how cute she is sitting there enjoying her milkshake! She started laughing and got the cutest twinkling eyes. I love seeing the kid come out in everyone here at Disney!

We find a table and take a moment to enjoy our coffee. We talk about our day and what we are up to. As we are talking, I see a young dad bringing 2 of the cute Mickey Ice Cream Cones for his little ones. The little princesses are surprised and begin eating their perfect little treats.

The breeze has a chill to it, but it is nice as we are finishing up. We head back to Main Street USA and see the new Minnie purses through the doorway at the Emporium. Detour! We must see these cute purses, backpacks, and shirts that are now in the Emporium.  I love Minnie Mouse clothes and accessories!

We make our way through the Emporium until we are back on Main Street USA. As we enter into Town Square, I notice a line of people. As we start past them, I hear one of the cast members telling a joke, so I stop and see that there is an empty spot in the line. I step into that spot and ask the young teen if they are in trouble or something. He looked at me, started laughing, and said, “Yes! And my Mom is in this line too!” His mom saw us laughing and he let her in on the joke! She thought that was great. Then, my kids stepped closer and we all had a grand time. Twinkie was giving us some trivia about the cast member’s blue nametag. So, I asked Twinkie to take my spot and ask the cast member about his blue nametag so we could all hear about how he got it and celebrate with him. So, she asked and the cast member had a blast telling us about the story behind his blue nametag (long story short, it means that the cast member is super awesome!). What fun!

Then, I could hear the dance party parade, well, it is called Move it! Shake it! Dance it! Play it! The line of people became the front row and got to see the parade enter into Town Square. Everyone was dancing and having fun, from the little kids to the grandparents!

We checked a few more pins for trading on the way to the Monorail. We had so much fun today enjoying the park and the wonderful people who come to Disney! I love seeing so many folks smiling and I am so glad to help them get family pictures.

Once we arrive at the Transportation and Ticket Center, we begin to walk out to our car, when we glance up to see a rocket and a trail of smoke! We stop for pictures, as we realize that this is the NASA SpaceX launch! A young couple stopped beside me to watch with us, and said that there was a launch today. I thought they both had high voices, until the young man lowered his voice and explained that they had been talking in character voices all day. He wished he could do the voice of Mickey Mouse! We all laughed as he demonstrated his Mickey Mouse voice, and his girlfriend spoke in her best Minnie voice. They were too much fun!

What a fun day at Disney!

Day 149- Epcot, Seagulls and Coffee!

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This is an absolutely beautiful day to be at Disney World! The sun is shining as we begin our day! I think we will head for Epcot. It is not too busy as we drive up to the Epcot parking entrance. As we drive onto the parking lot, I can see we are going to park at the far end of this parking row. Once we park, we decide to walk to the park entrance.

As we begin to walk, the family who parked beside us has a little one melting down. I stop and say, “Hi!” and they begin talking about how the little one did not want to ride in his stroller. As we are talking, they mention that they are going to walk and not take the tram since they have 2 strollers that they would need to fold in order to board. I mention that we are going to walk to the entrance too. They were a delightful family to chat with: the mom and dad, their daughters, and the grandkids. I knew they were going to have a wonderful day!

We say our goodbyes, go through the bag check, scan our MagicBands and enter into Epcot! We make our way through the crowds and around Spaceship Earth. We see Starbucks on the right, located in the Fountain View. The lines today are not very long, so we stop and grab a coffee. It is pleasantly warm outside, so I order a Very Berry Hibiscus Refresher with Raspberry Syrup.

As we leave Starbucks, the music is playing, and the big water fountain outside is giving a great show. We head for the World Showcase Lagoon and turn toward Canada.  We notice that the flowers are going in for the annual Flower and Garden Festival that happens March 4th through May 17th.  Can you spot the Hidden Mickey shape in the flowers?

The Canadian Lumberjacks are beginning a show as we walk through Canada. I hear the lead lumberjack let everyone know that there is a Canadian Lumberjack photo opportunity, and see the team strike a pose! Many in the crowd are laughing and taking pictures. It is a really great place to stop and see these Canadian Lumberjacks.

We make our way through Canada and now walk through the United Kingdom. I see Alice greeting guests, and soon we see Mary Poppins signing an autograph book for a little girl. As we walk up toward the bridge to France, we see Cinderella taking pictures with little ones. We have never seen her in this area, and are surprised that Tinkerbell is directly across from her talking to a little girl. It is so much fun to see Alice, Mary Poppins, Cinderella, and Tinkerbell all near the United Kingdom pavilion. After a moment of watching and taking all of this in, we begin to cross the bridge to France.

I stop on the bridge and look across to an area with benches that we have seen regularly, but it is usually packed with people. I told the kids that the benches were empty, but I was not sure how to get down to that area by the water. Twinkie said that she would take the lead and she found the path, past the fish and chips shop, to that little peninsula. We picked a bench and sat for a few minutes as we were greeted by a swarm of seagulls flocking toward us to see if we had brought any tasty snacks that they could snag.

As we sat, we realized that as people tried to bring their food into the area, the seagulls began swooping down and trying to get their food. After several failed attempts by the seagulls, a young couple made it to a bench with their food, just as seagulls swooped down again. I hollered and said that the birds were after their food. The couple laughed and turned toward each other to block the swooping birds. It became even more interesting about 30 minutes later as we heard the gulls squawk. We looked up to see a couple with their child across the way, close to the fish shop, looking out over the water as they were trying to share a fish dinner. The dad waved the seagulls away a few times. The lady swatted a seagull off of the wall and we could hear the swat. Soon, a seagull swooped down, flapping its winds just in front of her face; it even looked like it touched her. We heard them say something about one of the seagulls bothering their child as the dad turned, leaving his fish dinner on the wall. Two seagulls instantly swooped in and grabbed a big fish filet! The dad hollered, and turned to swat at one seagull, when another swooped and grabbed some French fries in a fast swoosh. The dad hollered at the seagulls again as a cast member approached and started talking to them.

We decided that there had been enough action going on, so we walked back up to the walkway, and headed for France. Our mission today is to walk around the World Showcase. It is fun walking “around the world” on such a beautiful day.

We go through France, Morocco, Japan, The American Adventure, Italy, Germany, The Outpost, China, Norway, and Mexico as we finish our 1.1 miles around the World Showcase Lagoon. There are no clouds now, and the sky is so very blue. I enjoyed seeing so many families having fun. Today it seems like there are a lot more grandparents with their families and grandkids. I love seeing the three generations interact. I love seeing grandparents having just as much fun as the kids! As you enjoy your vacation, it’s fun to look around and notice the wonderful families who are here with you. There are some really amazing families enjoying their time here at Epcot today!

Now we make our way back to the park entrance and walk out to our car. It has been a wonderful afternoon. It was so fun seeing all of the characters and countries today!

Day 81- Epcot & The Seas with Nemo and Friends

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Now this is funny: today is our 81st day and the temperature today is 81 degrees!  I love this double number day! Even with the temperature being 81, it is nice outside since there are clouds and a great breeze. I even heard a man walking near us on the way to the front gates say, “It actually feels kind of cool right now.” It’s amazing what clouds and a nice breeze can do to cool off a Disney park.

We are park at Epcot and head for the front gates. We arrive and are looking forward to the new Holidays Around the World. Each country has a presentation for their holiday celebration, explaining the holiday traditions for that country. We have been looking forward to seeing these, but first, we have a FastPass+ for The Seas with Nemo and Friends.

Today it is nice and the wait time for the Nemo standby line is just 10 minutes! I might want to go back through, since there is so much to see. We scan our MagicBands and enter the line queue. There is a short walk before we scan our MagicBands at the second station and go on through the maze of railings. We walk right up to the short line, step onto the moving sidewalk, and are seated in our “Clamshell” vehicle. I love shell rides! It makes me happy to have my own shell to sit in.

As we exit from the Nemo ride, it is beginning to rain. We are head for Starbucks to get out of the drizzle. As we order and wait for our drinks, we find that the rain has stopped. Yay! Let’s find a place to sit and drink our tea and coffees. I love sitting near the Christmas tree, and watching all of the beautiful ornaments sparkle in the sunshine, as the gray clouds float by. We have a nice visit as we watch people go in and out of the Port of Entry shop.

The park is busy, but quieter today. It seems like it was a perfect day for riding rides and seeing the countries, but we will need to make this a short day today! I love seeing how much joy and happy smiles happen when people get their picture taken with the Christmas tree in the background.

It is a good day, and a perfectly wonderful cool night! Happy Christmas month at Disney, where dreams come true! Thank you, Mickey Mouse.

Day 80- Magic Kingdom and Main Street Confectionary

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Magic Kingdom is absolutely beautiful this evening! The lights on Main Street USA are so cheery and beautiful against the darkening sky. The Christmas decorations glitter and gleam as we walk down the street. The Victorian buildings are pristine and beautiful. We are celebrating today and are going to the Main Street Confectionary to get a caramel apple! Twinkie looks at which apples are available, and decides on a Santa Minnie apple. It is too cute!

Our next stop is the Main Street Bakery for coffee to go with our caramel apple. There are fewer people in the park at the moment, so we are in and out quickly. We pass the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor, and then find a table where we can sit and share the caramel apple. We watch Cinderella’s Castle and enjoy our treats at Disney.

Soon, my coffee is gone, the caramel apple is eaten and we head for our FastPass+ for Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. Our line goes quickly. We are on the ride and getting ready to make a high score! Tooti and Twinkie accomplish Galactic Hero today! Congratulations! Once we get off the ride, the girls tell the cast member at the shop (with photo evidence) and are given their “I’m Celebrating” button: Galactic Hero 999,999!

As we are going towards Cinderella’s Castle on the way back to the entrance, we hear Anna and Elsa talking, so we know they are about to light the castle! We stop and watch as Cinderella’s Castle is transformed into a beautiful, icy castle. It is so gorgeous, it is a must see if you are at Magic Kingdom during the holidays at night.

We walk to the front, and are off to the Monorail. It was a nice evening and it is still warm this evening. I love Disney!

Day 78- Magic Kingdom

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Magic Kingdom is beautiful today! The sun is shining and the clouds are so pretty! We arrive and it is busy as we wait to get our bags checked, scan our MagicBands, and enter into Main Street USA. The Christmas season is in full swing at Magic Kingdom with beautiful garlands, lights, and festive window displays.

First, we walk down Main Street USA to the Main Street Bakery for coffee. It is busy today, but a nice busy. We know our cousins are at the park and we are going to get to meet up with them in a few minutes. We grab our coffee and head for Tomorrowland, since they were at the Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor just a few minutes ago. On the way to meet them, I needed to get some hot water to add to my coffee, since it was a little bit too strong. So, I asked at The Lunching Pad. The cast member was really, really nice as she got me hot water for my coffee. I sat down to add the hot water to my cup and the kids hollered. They found our cousins!

We moved over to their table, where one of the babies was sleeping in the stroller while we visited. I love hearing the adventures that they have been on these past couple of days. Then, we were all hungry and we were going to have supper at Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café, so they joined us for dinner. We had a lot of fun eating together, and their kids are so cute! Sonny Eclipse serenades us as we eat. Soon, we are finished. Our cousins head out to enjoy the rest of the evening, and we begin walking back to the entrance.

Guess what! 24 days until Christmas!

There are plenty of visitors arriving this evening as we leave Magic Kingdom. We arrive back at the Transportation and Ticket Center, where the arriving trams are completely packed with visitors coming to the parks. We get on the tram and it is lightly filled as we are leaving. It is beautiful tonight, the wind is picking up, and it is beginning to get chilly. We had temperatures in the high 70s today, and the low should be the mid-60s this evening. As soon as the sun sets, it gets chilly.

What a great day!

Day 77- Epcot

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The sun is shining and the day is warm! I think we will head for Epcot! Neil Patrick Harris is at the Christmas Candlelight Processional and that would be amazing to see!

As we arrive and park, we are at the far end of the row, away from the tram. That means that it is almost as close to walk to the front entrance as it is to walk to the tram. These rows are very, very long, but if you are here for the first time, the tram is a great way to make it to the front entrance.

We get to bag check and the security guards are really nice as we go through the line. Twinkie overheard the security guard say that people were lining up to see Neil Patrick Harris at 1:30 today, even though the first Candlelight Processional doesn’t start until 5:00. Apparently, the line was so long, it wrapped from the American Adventure, through Italy, and all the way down into Germany! Wow!

We scan our MagicBands and I laugh with the cast member as she welcomes me. I am laughing because at this very moment there are so many places open to scan my MagicBand! I love these moments!

As we enter, we are talk about wanting to see the Candlelight Processional, especially with Neal Patrick Harris. So, we need to see if there are reservations left for one of the Candlelight Processional Dining Packages. We want to make sure we get to see the Candlelight Processional, and it sounds like this will be the best way to get good seats. Neal Patrick Harris is amazing and we’ve enjoyed watching him throughout his career, even back to Doogie Howser, M.D.!

As we talk to the cast member in Guest Relations, her trainer says that she’s worked at the Candlelight Processional, and she really loved hearing him. He was her favorite! We are so excited, and they begin the search to see if we are able to find a lunch or dinner open. As we explain the restaurant and time we want, they both are so surprised that they have a reservation open. We smile really big and are thankful that there is one available. They completed the reservation, and again reemphasized how surprised they were that there was one still available. We smile and laugh with them and know that it will be an amazing night!

We grab a drink at Starbucks and head for Canada! Oh, Tooti sees a mom that is taking her daughter’s picture and asks, “Would you like me to take a picture of you both?” She was elated, and thanked us several times. We were so glad to get to help!

We are doing a lot of pin trading today. The kids are off and finding cast members to see which pins they have. I love pin trading; we find pins that I have never seen. We find a few and decide to see if we can find the bunny rabbits that live in the gardens in Canada. We see the beautiful gardens and it is so peaceful, but the rabbits must be hiding in the flowers. We continue around, cross the rope bridge, and climb the stairs. It is beautiful, and the waterfall is amazing.

We stop at the Northwest Mercantile shop to see the new items. Twinkie points out the raccoon hat with its plushie head and tail still attached. Then, she finds a little round critter with a Canadian Mountie hat on. They also carry Moose Spit, Bear Breath, Beaver Butt, Sasquatch Sweat, Ferret Farts, and these are soaps by Goat Mountain Soap Company! We do have to chuckle about these. Check out their lip balms! We love those names too!

As we are leaving and walking down the stairs, we can hear the new Christmas music coming from the Mill Stage. Oh, look! It’s the Canadian Holiday Voyageurs playing Christmas music! How fun!

We are going to back track and see if we can do some more pin trading on the way back to the entrance. We do stop at Pin Central to see the new Christmas Pins. We trade a couple of pins with the cast members and we are off. As we get close to Guest Relations, we stop and enjoy watching little kids dancing with the cast member, she has a bubble gun. Then, we notice that there is a remote controlled yellow car running in huge circles! I noticed that there were stickers attached to the top, with a little note that says, “Take one!” It is the funniest, coolest thing! A little dude walked up and got a sticker. I want one! We all got a sticker and the car took off.  I hollered back at two little brothers, “Hey, do y’all want to get a sticker?” They looked up at their dad and he said, “Sure!” They were hopping and happy when they got them as they headed toward the front gate!

I love Disney and all of the fun things they do. We had a wonderful afternoon of pin trading and enjoying the beautiful flowers. It was a good day!

Day 76- Magic Kingdom & A quick stop at the Contemporary Resort

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Today we are going to the Contemporary Resort first; we have family in town that arrived this morning. We see them and get to say a quick hello before they go back to their Disney resort to rest. It is so good to see everyone! We say goodbye and head for Magic Kingdom on the Monorail.

There is a little dude who is 3 and he was fixing to have a melt down. That little lip was sticking out and his eyes were tearing up. I smiled at his mom, looked back at him, and said, “Hey, how are you?” We talked to him for a little while and found that he got to dance with Baloo earlier today! I asked many questions and he finally smiled, but he was intrigued with his bottom lip sticking out. His mom said that she was glad for the help, and thanked us for taking the time to talk with him.

Magic Kingdom is beautiful, and today is much hotter than expected. It is in the mid-70s, and very busy. We visit a few of the shops on Main Street USA. It is so pretty and festive in its Christmas Season. All of the Christmas lights are beautiful.

We check the Main Street Bakery to see how long the lines are, and it is so very busy. We have waited in these lines for Starbucks before, but today we decide to skip it and head for Adventureland. As we enter into Adventureland, I turn and see the line to meet Peter Pan. Peter Pan is a pop-up character; he doesn’t have a set schedule like many of the other characters do, so it can be a little bit tricky getting to meet him. There are several people in the line sitting and waiting. We have been wanting to meet him, but the line closes quickly. So, we are elated and step into the line to wait. As we stand and wait, they close the line immediately after us. I am totally surprised, but so glad we got in line when we did. I am glad we get to see Peter Pan! While we are waiting, I see a lady we met on the Monorail a few days earlier, this is their 14th day and they go home tomorrow. We chatted while we waited in line.

It is the coolest thing to see Peter Pan interact with everyone. He has this amazing ability to make it seem like you are the only one who is here talking with him. I have seen him from a distance and he is so much fun to watch. One time a mom let her kids meet him, then told them to “move it” and she jumped in, talked to him, and got a picture. She looked like she was a kid again!

We were so excited to see the family finish in front of us… it was our turn! Tooti and Twinkie walked up to Peter Pan and it was so much fun watching them! Peter Pan is now one of my favorite characters to meet! Oh, it is my turn now! Yay!

We have not eaten, but the sun has set, and the chill of the night is rolling in quickly. I suggest a Dole Whip, and a quick walk to the front entrance. I know we will be shivering, but a Dole Whip is my favorite! We make our way past the beautifully lit Crystal Palace. I can see Tigger inside interacting with people at their table, and Pooh is in the distance! It is a great place for a character dinner; they have a buffet and are very good about food allergies.

Main Street USA is glowing with lights and happy people. I love the bustle of the holiday crowds as we make our way to the front entrance. We have met so many nice people today. I love hearing about their Disney experiences, and the parents having a ton of fun, I wonder if they’re having more fun than the kids sometimes!

We get on the Monorail, it is so very full, and it is only 6:30pm. It has been a wonderful day! Once we get to the Ticket and Transportation Center, we take the tram out to our car. What a nice day!

Day 75- Sanaa at Kidani Village and Magic Kingdom

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Today we are going to have naan at Sanaa at the Animal Kingdom Lodge Villas – Kidani Village. We found that they have perfected gluten free naan! We have eaten here several times and it is a most favorite treat to get to eat here! I cannot wait to taste the 9 different flavors of dips. It is a good thing to have a reservation here, since they can be really busy.

It is really chilly today, so I am glad when we walk into the warmth of Kidani Village. It is absolutely beautiful to see all of the details. This is so fun to see if you visit Kidani Village. It takes me a minute to walk through the lobby and enjoy all of the details of this resort, especially with the festive Christmas decorations. The Christmas tree is so beautiful and wonderfully decorated specifically to go with the African style of Kidani Village.

Also, just past the Christmas tree, you can see the animals through the giant windows. It is a beautiful view. As we walk downstairs to Sanaa, I hear a drum beat. There is an authentic feel to the whole African-themed dining experience. We will be seated in a few minutes, and I am glad for the delay. If you are waiting, there is an outdoor viewing area that is wonderful. You are very close to the giraffes, the wildebeests, the zebras, the cattle, and the various other safari animals. There are also ostriches, and many other birds. It is quite an experience to be that close to the free-roaming animals.

It was about 5-10 minutes when we were called to be seated. Where will we be seated? Yay! Today, we are seated by the windows and it is so much fun!

They have new gluten free menus; this is nice and gives you a minute to see what is available. We have had the lamb shank before and it is an amazing dish. We have had some other ones as well, and they have been out of this world, really wonderful meals. If you are ordering an entree, the chef will come to your table and answer any questions that you might have. However, today we are just having the gluten free naan. It was totally worth the wait, and the dipping sauces are so amazing! We order another round of gluten free naan to finish the dipping sauces with! That is how wonderful the gluten free naan is.

We had fun watching the animals out the windows and the East African Crowned Crane was right outside of the window for most of our lunch.

Now, we go back upstairs. The Kidani Village sitting area is fabulous. I love walking through the lobby, the décor and unique lighting features are absolutely incredible.

Now, we are off to Magic Kingdom for a short visit. We park and hop on the tram. We arrive to the Heroes drop off, and it is not very busy as we walk up to the Monorail. On the Monorail, we have a very nice little family sitting by us, and Tooti compliments the little girl’s pink coat with shiny stars. The little girl loves her coat, she showed us her little black boots with a bow on the side. We giggle and as she is showing us her bracelet, her mom starts laughing. They were so cute.

Soon, we are on Main Street USA and it is very busy. We stepped into Uptown Jewelers to look at some of their new accessories. It is decorated to make it feel like you have stepped back in time. I love seeing the new items they have, the purses, scarves, jewelry, and various other accessories.

As we leave, you can hear the Move It! Shake It! Dance & Play It! music as we go to Starbucks in the Main Street Bakery. Starbucks is filling up quickly, and it takes time to go through the line to order and then wait for our coffee. I mean, it is busy! I haven’t seen it this busy until today. I know the holiday crowd is in full swing with the chilly evening setting in. We checked for FastPasses, but most of the ones available were for later in the evening… Magic Kingdom closes at 1am tonight! We are going to make this a short trip, the temperatures are dropping quickly and the wind is picking up. I am so cold, even with a hot coffee.

We leave Main Street USA and walk up to the Monorail. I enjoyed talking to a family as we waited, they were continuing to Epcot. We have a full car and it is a pleasant ride to the Transportation and Ticket Center.

The tram was pretty full, but there was still room to get on, and we had fun talking to the family who invited us to share the double front row with them. This family was fun! We waved at the little kids who were waving as we pulled away from the station. Part of their family was behind us, and also on the third row back. I asked how many grandparents were on this trip. One said there were four and a great aunt! They all laughed! Then, a grandparent asked a question we are asked often, ”Do you all work for Disney?” No, but we love it!