Disney Archives - Page 17 of 31

Travelogue of the Trip That Irene Canceled, Part 2

September 29, 2011 TechyDad Disney, Food, Hurricane Irene, Travel, Vacation

Back on September 8th, I posted the first half of our travelogue of the trip that Irene canceled. I meant to post the second half, but got side-tracked. So here it is:

Thursday, September 1st:

Thursday would have started with a light breakfast (either something packed with us or at the Pop Century’s restaurant). Then, we’d head over to Epcot. We might have gone on a few rides, Test Track and some other favorites, but our main draw would have been in the World Showcase. Here, we’d have brought out our Hidden Mickeys guidebook and browsed through the countries, looking for Mickey shapes hidden in various places. There would have been many photos taken as we found Mickey Mouse hidden in the most unlikely of locations.

As lunch approached, we would have headed to the San Angel Inn in Mexico. When we last went to Disney World, we brought the boys on the Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros. They loved it so much that we wound up riding it two more times. The beginning of the ride takes you through the San Angel Inn facing a big pyramid. This seemed like the perfect spot to have a nice, romantic lunch with my beautiful wife. (The “Grilled fillet of fresh Mahi-Mahi prepared with capers, olives, bell peppers, spanish onions and tomatoes, seasoned with white wine, and spices, served over a bed of poblano rice” sounds mouth-watering.)

After lunch, it would be time for more rides and hidden Mickey hunting. As the day ended, though, we’d hop on board the Monorail to go to the Grand Floridian. Once there, we’d have eaten at Narcoosee’s. Here I’d likely have gotten the Spring Vegetables dish (Delta Asparagus with Meyer Lemon Sauce, Sautéed Baby Vegetables, Wild Mushroom Quiche, and Toasted Cous Cous with Spinach and Preserved Lemon).

Friday, September 2nd:

Friday would have likely seen us going to the Magic Kingdom. Here, we could have gone on Small World, Haunted Mansion or any other ride and have been seated side-by-side. (Something that we haven’t done in years.)

Both lunch and dinner would have been in the Contemporary Resort. Lunch would have been at The Wave. (The Vegetarian Cuban Sandwich with Sun-dried Tomato Pesto and Bulgur Wheat Salad sounded fantastic.) Dinner would have been at the California Grill (possibly the Handmade Fettuccine with Sautéed Chanterelle and Summer Mushrooms, fresh Buttermilk Ricotta, Tiny Basil).

Saturday, September 2nd:

Our last full day at Disney would have been spent back at Epcot, at least for part of the day. When considering restaurant options, I had initially written off France as not working with my dietary restrictions. However, once I looked at the menu for Les Chefs de France, I fell in love with a few of the options. A big contender would have been the Lasagnes de legumes du soleil a l’huile d’olive au thym (Zucchini, eggplant, onions, bell peppers and tomatoes baked into thin layers of pasta).

Dinner would have been at Artist Point at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. My last dinner at Disney World would have been House-made Yukon Potato Gnocchi with Heirloom Carrots, Chanterelle Mushrooms, Fresh Ricotta, English Peas, and Sweet Corn Nage.

Sunday, September 2nd:

On Sunday, we would have packed up, grabbed a quick bite to eat and caught our Magical Express ride back to the airport. Part of us would have been reluctant to leave, but part would have been happy to see the kids again. We would have been relaxed and refreshed and ready to restart our parenting duties.

Ah, what could have been had Irene not ruined our plans.

Talk Like a Pirate, Disney-Style

September 19, 2011 TechyDad Disney, DisneySMMoms, Photos, Videos

Arrr, me hearties. Today be Talk Like a Pirate Day. We be big Disney fans and me boyos love that scurvy scallywag

Captain Hook.

The little landlubbers also love Jake and the Neverland

Pirates, I thought this be quite appropriate.

Especially because me boyos

met Sharky and Bones at Disney Social Media Moms Celebration.

So pepper ye speech with “arrrr’s” and “avast’s” me hearties. Shiver me timbers!

Travelogue of the Trip That Irene Cancelled, Part 1

September 8, 2011 TechyDad Disney, Hurricane Irene, Travel, Vacation

I wrote briefly about our cancelled trip before. Normally, writing is very cathartic for me. Yet, I wasn’t feeling any better. After putting some thought into it, I realized two things.

One, I knew, intellectually, that there were roads closed and flooding and loss of life due to Irene. Still, when I looked at our house, I saw a lack of damage and thought “It wasn’t that bad, maybe we *could* have made it work.” That doubt in our decision to cancel ate away at me.

Two, I had geared myself up psychologically for this time off. I was looking forward to waking up beside B without any little guys barging in. I was looking forward to walking hand-in-hand with her without having to keep an eye on where the boys were. I was looking forward to eating beside her without worrying about getting home before bed-time. I was looking forward to going to sleep beside her without having the boys sleeping in the next bed over. No worries. No responsibilities. Just B and I enjoying each other’s company for five glorious days.

Instead, the entire trip evaporated into nothingness thanks to Irene’s meddling. I needed some time to grieve for the trip-that-never-was. I had even intended to write this last week, but it was too painful. Now that a bit more time has passed, here’s a quick overview of what could have been had Irene not intervened. (NOTE: We might not have done things exactly as described here. I’m mostly imagining how things might have gone with our dining reservations as anchors. With luck, we’ll reschedule soon and I’ll be able to make real blog posts with our real travels.)

Sunday, August 28th

With Irene not a concern, we packed the car up early and headed down to see my parents. The boys hugged Bubbe and Grandpa and we had some fun shopping, eating out, and talking.

Monday, August 29th

We began the morning with breakfast at my parents’ house and then had a leisurely day together. We ate lunch at a Greek restaurant near my parents that we love. (Their spinach pie is to die for and I’m perpetually trying to replicate their chickpea recipe.) As we tucked the boys into bed, we said goodbye to them knowing that this would be the last time we’d see them until we returned.

Tuesday, August 30th

We woke up very early and my father drove us to the airport. After checking in and getting past security, we had some breakfast in the food court (or perhaps something we took with us from my parents’ house). Then, we got on our flight and we were off to Orlando.

After landing, we boarded the Magical Express for the Pop Century hotel. We quickly checked in and left our carry-on bags at the hotel. Then, we headed over to Hollywood Studios for our lunch reservation at the Hollywood Brown Derby. I ordered the Coriander-dusted Grouper with Cauliflower Risotto, fresh English Peas, crunchy Sunchokes, and a Yellow Tomato Coulis. It was fabulous.

We spent the rest of the day in Hollywood Studios and I made good on my promise to ride the Rockin’ Rollercoaster with B. (Given my fear of falling, I typically avoid fast, winding, flipping rollercoasters.) We had some snacks to hold us and then saw Fantasmic. We returned to Pop Century tired and hungry, but very happy. A quick stop at the Pop Century food court for dinner (and Tie-Dyed Cheesecake) and then we headed to our room for the night.

Wednesday, August 31st

We woke up Wednesday morning for our first full day at Disney. After grabbing a quick breakfast, we headed back to Hollywood Studios. Getting there when it opened, we quickly headed for Toy Story Mania. After quickly procuring some fast passes, we rode the ride together. Then, once the Fast Pass time arrived, we rode it again.

As noon approached, we went to our lunch reservation at Mama Melrose’s. We went here during our honeymoon 10 years ago so this was going to be an extra-special lunch. I opted to get the Wood-grilled Tuna over a seasonal Vegetable Risotto, warm Vine-ripened Diced Red and Yellow Tomatoes, and Olive-Caper Butte. Yum!

We stayed in Hollywood Studios for a bit longer and made sure to stop by Starring Rolls Cafe for a cupcake. When we went there in March, they had, sadly, just closed for the day so I was never able to get my cupcake fix. This time, however, I got to try not just one cupcake but two. (B ordered one and I ordered a second and we split them.) Delicious! Yes, I took photos of it all.

After awhile, we left Hollywood Studios and bus hopped to Animal Kingdom (Hollywood Studios to Animal Kingdom lodge to Animal Kingdom). To be honest, this is the Disney park in which we had the least number of places we wanted to visit. We went on the safari and a few more items. With our half-day at the park ending, we caught a bus back to the Animal Kingdom lodge.

Normally, this would mean dining at Boma. We *love* Boma. But we decided to shake things up so we (*gasp*) were NOT eating there! We were eating at Jiko. It was tough deciding between the great options, but I finally decided upon the Aleecha, Shimbra Asa, Inguday Tibs with Goat Cheese, Cream Ethiopian Vegetable “Stack”, Chickpea Cake, and Spiced Mushroom-Spinach Roll.

Stuffed, we bus hopped back to our hotel for some much needed quiet time and sleep.

Coming next week, part 2 of the Travelogue of the Trip That Irene Cancelled!

Aloha Friday: Away From Kid-Time

September 2, 2011 TechyDad Aloha Friday, Anniversary, B, Disney, Marriage, Parenting, Vacation

As you read this, B and I will be enjoying time in Disney World to celebrate our 10th anniversary. (This post has been scheduled, however. Therefore, as I write this, our trip hasn’t begun yet.) Meanwhile, my boys will be (hopefully) enjoying time with my parents. Yes, we will be spending 5 days without our kids. This will be the longest that we’ll both be away from them. (The second longest was BlogHer last year.) Part of us will surely be missing them being sweet, cute, and/or excited, but this time will be spent relaxing and enjoying each other’s company.

The above words were written as we planned for a wonderful 10th anniversary trip in Disney without the kids. Instead, Hurricane Irene hit. Our original plan was to drive to my parents’ house on Sunday, stay until Tuesday and then fly out leaving my parents in charge of the kids.

Let me repeat part of that. The original plan was to drive to my parents’ house on Sunday. My parents’ house on Long Island. My parents’ house on Long Island that Irene was bearing down on. Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen.

Then, we decided to wait for Monday to see whether we should cancel or go. However, attempting to plan for two very different scenarios (stuck at home for a week or away from home for a week) was too stressful. Plus, if we lost power, we might not be *able* to cancel in time. We finally decided to cancel and focus on staying safe until Irene passed.

Thankfully, both Disney and Southwest Airlines were great about refunding our money (Disney) and giving us credit for another plane trip (Southwest). Hopefully, we’ll get a chance to take a sans kid romantic vacation sometime soon.

My Aloha Friday question was going to be: What is the longest that you’ve been away from your kids?

Considering that our vacation was cancelled, though, I’ll ask: Have you ever had to change your vacation plans due to weather?

Actually, why not answer both?

Don’t forget to enter my Hot Wheels Nitro Speeders giveaway!

Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.