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Ground / Goofy's HUGE!
/ Day Two- Happy New Year! / Les Miserables.... |
Ajax
Cast Member
Posts: 1032
Registered: Aug 2002
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Posted 01-19-03 04:00 PM
Day Two- 12/31/2002
Ajax Family WDW Trip- 12/30 thru 1/03
Cast- My lovely wife Sandra, darling daughter Lauren, and myself.
The dawn came up like Thunder! Oops, wrong metaphor.
We didn’t quite see the dawn. I think I rolled out of the rack about 7:15 am, quietly shaved, showered, dressed, and dropped a casual word to the ladies that it was time to get up. Then I grabbed the mugs and my camera and headed off to the food court for java for Sandy & I, and coke for Lauren.
You see, I’ve been accused and found guilty of too many ‘Commando Trips’ to WDW. Up at 5, EE everywhere, thrown out of the parks at closing, PS’s twice a day, all the usual sins.
What my family had in mind was something that might approach a real vacation. My wife manages a seasonal produce/specialty market that is open from April 1st thru Christmas Eve. During that time she is usually there 12/7, with a single day or afternoon off here & there, and a week off in July. She was ready for a break!
Lauren was coming off her toughest semester ever at MSU, and had worked at the market alongside her mother during her winter ‘vacation’ from school. She was also ready to keep the trip at a lowered level of intensity. So be it.
On this particular morning, at 8am it was 65 degrees and sunny, and a good day to be alive. I walked along the river to the placid Doubloon Lagoon pool, took pictures of the lush POFQ grounds and cobblestone streets, and then ambled into the food court to fill up the mugs.
It was like opening the door to the waiting room in Hell! The place was crammed with families trying to feed the kids, load goodies and lunch into backpacks, and beat it for the parks before they reached capacity (expected by 10am) and closed, forcing people to ring in the New Year at Scat Cats! God forbid!
I chuckled and stood to the side, taking it all in. From the conversations I overheard, the rumor was that if you weren’t in the park of your choice by 10, tough luck. No soup for you! From my conversations with the CG folks the day before, I wasn’t worried, and didn’t care that much. I wasn’t at my desk, it wasn’t snowing, and there was coffee to be had! So I filled the mugs, took one last look at the mayhem behind me, and walked back to our room.
Sandy and Lauren were both showered, blown dry, and ready to rock by 9:15. Off we went to the food court for chow. The girls both had French toast and I had the Heart Attack platter. At least I’d die happy. The food was good, but not spectacular.
The crowd and noise level had dropped by at least 60%, allowing us to enjoy a pleasant meal at an outdoor table. I was struck by the friendliness and jocularity of the POFQ CM’s, after what had to have been a crazy morning. They’re a good krewe (get it? krewe! hehehe).
We boarded a bus for EPCOT, arriving at the gate around 10:30. I had been prepared for something resembling the Oklahoma Land Rush. I was shocked to see a crowd that was in no way the size of what I’d anticipated. We quickly entered, roamed the Spaceship Earth area, strolled through Mousegear, then headed over to Test Track to see what FP times might be available. The survey said- None!. All gone, right up to the start of the New Year! And a 2hr standby (uh, no thanks). No Test Track for you, Ajax Family, you soporific dolts! Which turned out to be cool, in light of what happened sooner, then later.
As we walked off looking glum, CM’s came out of TT en masse, notifying those in both lines that a car had gone off the track, and it would be at least an hour before the ride resumed. Having heard that, we felt better for some bizarre reason, and went off to take pictures of the ‘Mission: Space’ entrance. It looks great, but from what I’ve read the ride might slip into the ‘puker’ category, which gives it a big ‘no go’ as far as I’m concerned.
We then took the back channels over to World Showcase, arriving at the Christmas Tree by the cross-lagoon boat dock just in time to see the Character Caravan pull in! We were able to get good shots of each other with our favorite characters pronto, with no crowds!
That little stroke of luck set the mood for the remainder of the morning, and we ambled off towards Mexico, taking in the sights, smells and sounds of EPCOT. Without boring everyone with the gory details, we hit every pavilion, took in every ride, and stopped to listen to every performer that we could right up until our 1pm PS at Chefs of France. The music was the best part- I didn’t remember seeing so many acts on previous visits. Then it struck me- Today is New Years Eve, Jackass! That explained the alcoholic drink carts and stages being set up all over the place, and the lobotomy scars on my forehead.
At 1pm, we walked up to the podium at Chefs of France and announced our presence. I’d been advised by counsel not to wear any identifying name tags, lest I have my ass kicked in public by people who really didn’t give a damn who I was, but noticed the stupid tag. And I also had previously called a person I knew high in Disney management to see if I might be able to wear a big hat and play drums in the TOD parade, but her secretary said ‘Who?’, threatened to have ‘Hater’ tattooed on my forehead, then hung up on me!
But we were allowed in anyhow.
I really like Chefs of France. We enjoyed a light lunch of Flatbread topped with crème freche, onions and bacon, bowls of Lobster Bisque, then Roquefort salads, followed by Chestnut mousse with Pear Parfait for desert. We also drank glasses of the house Chardonnay & Merlot. All the food and the wines were delicious, and the service was very good! I like to be seated at Chefs where I can watch the Maitre De and host/hostess ‘work’ the floor. That place operates like a well-oiled machine.
After lunch, we casually worked our way back to the entrance, had our hands stamped, exited the park around 3:30, and boarded our bus back to POFQ for a break. We’d elected not to pull a ‘John Wayne’ day, and if we couldn’t get back in, that was cool too. Once back at the resort, we propped open the door, snoozed, read, watched TV and prepared ourselves for a long evening.
Around 5:30 we came to life, spurred on by the amount of people walking past our door wearing party hats. While the girls got into their dancin’ duds, I watched the local weather channel to check on the expected rain. What I saw was a frightening map of Florida with bright yellow line of storms in the Gulf reaching from the panhandle to the Everglades. It was expected to come ashore around 6pm, and reach Orlando at 7pm, the time of our PS at Le Cellier. The weatherman said he’d never seen so many lightning strikes in a storm. That was encouraging! So we packed our raingear, and off we went for EPCOT redux.
We had no problem returning- people were leaving in droves, spurred on by the feeling of impending doom approaching from the west. We looked for party hats along the Rose Walk, but alas, all were gone. So we settled for a handful of hooters instead, and headed for Le Cellier.
At Le Celliers’ podium, we were given a ‘buzzer’ and took a seat outside of ‘O Canada’ to await our seating. Around 7:15 it began to sprinkle rain, and people with whom we’d been speaking who had a 7:10 PS were buzzed and seated. I walked up to the podium, and inquired why them and not us. They checked our buzzer, found that it wasn’t working, apologized and immediately seated us. I told the hostess that I was ‘Ajax’ from CG & RADP, and that the faulty buzzer was part of a sinister plot. She said ‘That’s a load of crap’, but led us to a nice table anyhow. My wife said she kept looking at me while my back was turned, making swirling motions with her finger alongside her head, and then pointing at me. So what? I’m used to it.
Our meal was excellent, from the appetizers thru desert. I’ve got to say that Le Cellier has the best beef filet I’ve ever eaten at WDW, fork-tender and succulent, and served on a bed of mushroom risotto that should be made available by the gallon, it’s that good.
About midway through the meal, a wet, wild-eyed Englishman wielding a half-yard of beer and wearing the first of many yellow ponchos I saw that evening strode into the restaurant and announced ‘It’s raining bloody buckets out there!’ Having never seen a ‘bloody bucket’ tumble from the sky, I jumped up and was about to run out and look when a big lumberjack grabbed my shoulder, said he knew who I was, and would I please behave? So I did.
We stretched our dinner out a long as possible, left our server Elaine a big tip, and walked out into what can only be described as a tropical storm. The Englishman was right; it was coming down in bloody buckets, and then some. Sheets of rain, driven sideways by a 20+ mph wind, were propelling bands of yellow-clad refugees helter-skelter through the byways of EPCOT. We took one look at the storm, put on our raincoats, and headed for a port, any port. We soon found out that our raingear wasn’t up to this deluge. Our Columbia raincoats were leaking through every seam. So we headed off to Mousegear to purchase our Yellow Army uniforms.
Once inside, the only things missing from what resembled a full-blown disaster site were the guys in the FEMA jackets. Wet people in party hats were sitting and laying everywhere! In the aisles, against the walls, in the spaces between the dressing rooms, you name it. Strollers filled with wet, crying children clogged the doors and aisles. Complaints, wailing, the gnashing of teeth, and a general aura of misery filled the air. And stacks of ponchos sat next to every cash register requiring only $6 (plus tax) as a membership fee to join the cast of ‘Les Miserables’. We purchased ours, put them on, and headed back into the wet, lurching off in the general direction of ‘Honey I Shrunk the Audience’.
Once there, we were quickly marched into the ‘True Colors’ pre-show, after being given our 3-D glasses and also being told to remove our ponchos. After it was over, we waited... and waited. Then a male CM with a Cuban or Mid-Eastern accent walked out and did about 10 minutes of unintentially funny stand-up comedy. Turns out the audience before us rebelled when they saw the intensity of the storm, and tried to get back into the theater. Mutant CM’s with cattle prods and pepper spray were forcing them out while our new friend stalled us. He was saying stuff like- ‘How many of you peoples at Disney are to be liking the time you are having here for a minute?’ or ‘ In a second of a short time you will be going to the Shrinking of the Audience! Will you be liking that?’ Then he gave up when an ominous murmur began to rise from the masses, and ducked out. He was soon replaced by the regular show CM, who assured us that the previous audience had been bludgeoned into submission, and now it was our turn.
I like this show, but it was hard to enjoy knowing what awaited us outside. All too soon it was over, and we grudgingly filed out into an awaiting crew of CM’s who bleated a mantra of – ‘Keep Moving! Put Your Glasses In The Barrels! Put Your Ponchos On Outside! Keep Moving! Etc etc.
And guess what? Remember the weather report I saw? Well, that wretched lying dog of a meteorologist told us that the worst would be over by 9:30. I’m still looking for him, because we need to talk. It was near 10:30, and if anything, the storm had intensified! It was coming down in dime-sized drops that actually hurt!
So we decided to bag it. We pulled our dripping snouts even deeper into our vinyl cocoons, put shoulder to the wind, and headed for the gate. On the way out, at the stage by the Future World fountain, a group of maybe a hundred young and obviously crazy people were gyrating to the beat of Salsa music. The seemed oblivious to the maelstrom around them. Most of the men wore only their pants and top hats. It was a very strange sight for WDW.
Once on the bus, everyone seemed content that the right decision had been made, and the atmosphere was akin to rowing away from a sinking ship in a lifeboat. We were headed to someplace dry!
Once we closed the door to our room at POFQ, we hung our ponchos, and got out of our wet shoes and clothes. They were hung over the chair-backs by the heater, just like mom taught us. We wished each other a Happy New Year, climbed into dry, warm beds, and quickly fell asleep.
Soon I was awakened by the sound of explosions. I was distressed at first, but soon remembered where I was and what night we’d been celebrating. I got up and opened the door, and was greeted by a clear view of the midnight fireworks over Pleasure Island. Clear, except for the sheets of rain that reflected the detonations and gave them an eerie resemblance to the closing frames of ‘Apocalypse Now’.
Sandy and Lauren didn’t twitch. So after the display was over, I closed and latched the door, then snuck over to where my two girls were sleeping and gave them both their first kisses of the New Year.
Compulsively edited for punctuation 
[Edited by Ajax]
Did you see me at EPCOT on New Years Eve? I was wearing a yellow poncho...
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Crank
Administrator
Posts: 1957
Registered: Aug 2002
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Posted 01-19-03 04:09 PM
Thanks, Ajax! Great report.
I would like to add that a "handful of hooters" beats party hats anyday in my book...
I like persons better than principles, and I like persons with no principles better than anything else in the world.
Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, 1891
BOYCOTT FRENCH TOAST, GERMAN SAUSAGE AND BELGIAN CHOCOLATES
Crank-->
All Content is © the Poster and is to be considered Intellectual Property. All Rights Reserved. Though Brilliant, Breathtaking and Extrememly Well Written the Content contained herein is Opinion and Opinion only.
ib4cruzn at charter dot net
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Ahnalira
Cast Member
Posts: 433
Registered: Aug 2002
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Posted 01-19-03 04:57 PM
I sure do enjoy
your sense of humor, Ajax 
Ahnalira
Grace finds beauty everywhere. Grace is my best friend.
Meet The Our Laughing Place Travel Pixies
Everybody's got a Laughing Place... we'll help you find yours!
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Mary
Cast Member
Posts: 465
Registered: Aug 2002
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Posted 01-19-03 10:19 PM
WHAT? You didn't stay until midnight! I'm very disappointed in you Ajax. You should have come and joined us in MK, we were having a blast!
Thanks for the laughs. I'm so glad you decided not to wear those name badges, we wouldn't have wanted anything to happen to you. Alan was ready to kick some *ass* the day before if he had to. I'm sure you would have done the same.
Mary
First Mate, Good Ship Stickey Mickey and Keeper of the Ships Log
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Robin
Cast Member
Posts: 940
Registered: Aug 2002
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Posted 01-20-03 01:04 AM
quote:
Crank wrote:
Thanks, Ajax! Great report.
I would like to add that a "handful of hooters" beats party hats anyday in my book...
The man definitely has a way with words. LOL
I just hope the owners of those hooters didn't mind.
I toss my cookies for Disney.
I wonder what inspired this new Disney T-shirt? "I'm right. You're wrong. Any Questions?"
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Ajax
Cast Member
Posts: 1032
Registered: Aug 2002
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Posted 01-20-03 10:10 AM
She didn't. I've been grabbing those hooters since 1975.
That was the only action I got on that trip, too!
Did you see me at EPCOT on New Years Eve? I was wearing a yellow poncho...
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Coastalwader
Cast Member
Posts: 935
Registered: Aug 2002
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Posted 01-20-03 10:53 AM
Most excellent!
King Unca Bubba Lord DisneyTex
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Tink *~*~*
Cast Member
Posts: 1066
Registered: Aug 2002
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Posted 01-21-03 09:06 PM
OMG, Janie has a rival.
DUELING TRIP REPORTS!
Tink *~*~*
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Common
Ground / Goofy's HUGE!
/ Day Two- Happy New Year! / Les Miserables.... |
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