Nov 7 – 14, 2022 – First Trip with 2 Kids Under 3 – Day 4

Thursday morning the Tropical Storm was still rolling through, but Disney kept up with their plans to do a phased re-opening of the theme parks starting at Noon with the Magic Kingdom. The Christmas Party planned for that evening would also go as scheduled. It was nice to get up a little later in the morning and cook at hot breakfast in our villa. We had reservations for Magic Kingdom, but my parents, opting for fewer park days, did not. I think they were okay missing out.

Christy, the kids, and I drove off to Magic Kingdom in some relatively high winds and rain and arrived in the parking lot at about 11:15. Disembarking from there was a challenge (if you’re staying a Animal Kingdom – Kidani Village, you get to park your car under the resort and out of the elements, so it was easy getting in the car to go). Now getting out of the car, opening a door, the wind could take it from you if you weren’t careful. Donning a poncho was about as easy as bundling a parachute in the wind. Needless to say, you’d have to be crazy to be there. And crazy we are! We boarded the parking lot tram with a tram announcer that may have missed her calling to be on the Jungle Cruise. She was hilarious! So funny in fact, that she’s probably better off not on the Jungle Cruise. The tram job is less scripted. She was rapid-firing lines like, “Hold onto your hats or they’ll be gone with the wind!” and “Be sure to step out on the left side, not the right side, or you’ll be left out. The last person who went right had a less magical day with the Magic Kingdom to his left and a big tram in his way.”

Due to the weather we could take the Monorail or a bus since the weather was too rough for ferries. The bus, while less magical, had a much shorter line. We got to the park at 11:45 and remarkably the wind and rain died way down. Disney knows their weather! From there, the whole thing is honestly a blur (I should’ve written this sooner, but life got in the way). The bottom line is, we did so many rides! We went to Peter Pan first . Ariel did NOT like Peter Pan’s Flight. No she did not. She kept on saying, “I want to get down! I want to get down!” Not her thing. We went to Cinderella’s Carousel next. Ariel loved riding on that one with Christy! She went twice! We took a break by doing “it’s a small world” after that which went pretty easy. Turns out boat rides are good! We gave Haunted Mansion a run. It was good, but not a smashing success for little Ariel and Enoch hated the dark.

We went over and got a quick bite of potstickers and Dole whips in Adventureland (Pineapple/Coconut swirl is tops!). After that Christy and I agreed to do one rider-switch ride: Splash Mountain. I went and then she went. It was a walk-on even as the sun was coming out. You never know which time on a ride will be your last. Glad we took the time to ride that one before it goes away and gets re-imagined. After that we got in line for Pirates of the Caribbean . The crowds were picking up now as Christmas Party guests began to enter the park. Ariel was okay with Pirates after the drop down the falls. Then we got into what became a rather long line for Jingle Cruise. This was also our first ride on the Jungle Cruise since the re-dress of the theme. Overall it was fun and our skipper pulled a few unique jokes too! We also heard the Jingle Cruise Skipper rendition of the 12 days of Christmas. On the twelfth day of Christmas they got 2 turtle doves, 2 turtle doves, 2 turtle doves, 2 turtle doves, 2 turtle doves, 2 turtle doves, 2 turtle doves, 2 tuuuurrrrtle dooooovves, 2 turtle doves, 2 turtle doves, 2 turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree. You can probably imagine how the song went leading up to that.

By then it was 5:00 and we had to leave to meet my parents for dinner. So we did a grand total of 8 rides (if you count the carousel twice) in 5 hours! Not bad! And we were beginning to get a feel for what rides Ariel was not going to like moving forward. We took the Monorail to the TTC and then got aboard the Tram…with the SAME Tram announcer! The jokes were even better this time: “If you lose your hat, just raise your hand, then I’ll raise my hand, and we’ll wave goodbye to it together!” “Our parking lot speed is 15 miles per hour, that’s not a fast 5-0, but a slow 1-5. Be sure to follow the signs directing you to the EXIT. If you fail to follow the signs, there may be a great big beautiful tomorrow, but you’ll still be here!”

We met my parents over at Port Orleans Riverside for dinner at Boatwrights. My parents had been there once before, but we hadn’t. We asked our server for suggestions, and he basically had a hard time pointing to anything in particular because people rave about most of what they serve. He did say he found the blackened salmon particularly good. I looked at the “Taste of the Bayou” all you can eat option, but passed. It was chicken and sausage, and some other stuff, but having had a real taste of the Bayou at a Louisiana restaurant with gumbo, jambalaya, and etouffee, I couldn’t justify it. Christy got the salmon, and I got the Jambalaya with chicken, shrimp, and sausage. Both dishes were very very delicious. The Jambalaya turned out to be very good with just the right amount of creole heat. For dessert, my parents split a cobbler, while Christy and I got the Crème Brulee. The desserts proved not quite as good as the meal, but we were still glad we got them.

Afterward we saw YeeHaa Bob Jackson setting up in the River Roost. I had heard many a tale of the famed Bob Jackson, but never seen him. Dad and I stayed while my Mom, Christy and the kids went back to the villa. I have to say I was very impressed and we had a great time with Bob’s songs and antics! Definitely worth the late night. Upon his intermission time, Dad and left and went to the villa to turn in. It had been another successful Disney day!

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