Savvy's 2015 Princess Half Weekend
DATES: 2/20/15 - 2/23/15
TRAVEL: EWR to MCO via United, Magical Express
RESORT: Yacht Club
PARTY: Me (Savvy), 26 and Sis (23)
HIGHLIGHTS: Glass Slipper Challenge and surprising Sis with the hotel
I apologize, I'm quite late with this. Life got in the way.
Anyway, 2015 is my Coast to Coast year, and here's the first installment for you.
PRE-TRIP REPORT
I'm so ridiculously excited for this trip, I started writing the report two months in advance. I meant to post this before leaving so it's written in future tense. Feel free to skip ahead. I'm too lazy to rewrite it.
In summary, Sis and I will be flying down for the weekend to do the Glass Slipper Challenge, the Enchanted 10K on Saturday, followed by the Princess Half Marathon on Sunday. We went as a family last year and loved it. We'll also be making trips to CA for Tink in May and Wine & Dine next November, but I couldn't resist this race again.
Plus, the weekend is Frozen-themed this year, and who doesn't need some Frozen medals in their life? I mean, I couldn't even resist the Frozen cereal I saw in the grocery store the other day - which was not that great if I'm being honest.
So anyway.
Last summer, I booked a stay at Port Orleans French Quarter for Princess Weekend as a sort of place holder. I wasn't convinced I could afford it but really wanted to make the trip. Some part of me knew there was no going back after getting that confirmation email. With at least one family trip already on the books for 2015, my options fell down to convincing my DBF or my sister. I've dragged DBF down to Florida quite a few times already, and we do really need to save money, so I eliminated him. Sis is always a willing participant, but she and her boyfriend are also saving. So although I'd be stretching my wallet, I decided on a bare-bones, surprise sister/sister trip, with the majority of the expenses covered by yours truly. I thought I'd register the two of us for GSC in August, then think up a creative way to spring it on her.
That plan lasted like a month.
Sis spotted a piece of Disney mail about our "February" trip, and the surprise was spoiled. She was psyched; I was annoyed she robbed me of "the big reveal" I'd been planning. On registration day, however, I was nothing but thankful she could sit at home and register us. Active.com basically went into meltdown mode as tens of thousands of princesses tried to register at noon, and what should have taken 5 minutes took her 2 hours.
Sis later got some money to cover her portion of the trip and refused to let me foot the bill. That got me thinking I might be able to steal my "surprise thunder" back. I reached out to our family's Small Worlds travel agent to get a quote for the Yacht and Beach Clubs. For three nights, I thought the price was reasonable. I asked her to update our resort to Yacht.
Sis, however, has been making it a very difficult secret to keep. First, she wanted to cancel our reservations and book a DVC rental. She dangled the idea of staying at AKL in front of my face because I'd always wanted to stay there, so I came up with some excuse to shoot that down. Then, as we work at the same place, she wanted to have in-depth discussions on our lunch break about which POFQ building we should request to stay in. Then she was spending all of her downtime reading POFQ reviews online, listening to the soundtrack from the Princess and the Frog, and essentially getting herself all worked up for a resort we're not staying in.
I nearly blew the secret when our travel agent emailed me to say room discounts had come out and she'd already saved me 30%. In my excitement, I sent Sis a screenshot of the email. Ten seconds later I realized what I had done, and cue the Tower of Terror feeling in my stomach. Thankfully it didn't reference the resort, nor did she realize that the amount saved would be too much for what she thought was 20% off at POFQ.
Everything else fell into place very piecemeal. We finally got our vacation time approved in December, including Monday of the trip - which, YAY, because I really didn't want to hop on a plane after running 19 miles. Our Dad was very generous and gifted us his miles, so we got one set of airline tickets for free. Then our uncle, who has done a few Run Disney races with us, also gifted us the cost of the Race Retreat for Christmas.
Training has been rough. I made it to about 6 miles in my long run before we got our first snow. From then on, the limited daylight, icy roads, and extreme cold made this a treadmill-only affair.
I dealt with runner's knee, plantar fasciitis, and some sort of tendonitis in my baby toe, all of which set me back quite a bit. Two weeks before race day, I managed a pained 9.5 mile run on a rare 40 degree day, which isn't ideal, but itll do.
****
DAY 0 - PRE-PRINCESS PREP
I spent the week slowly packing and was ready to go by Thursday morning. But first, I had a full day of work.
I grabbed my dog's weekend bag and dropped him off at DBF's house, which is basically like sending him on a vacation of his own: lots of room to run, lavish attention, and I'm sure a number of snacks he would never get at home. He didn't look back as I walked out the door. In theory that's upsetting, but it does make travel easier when I know he's as happy as a pig in...mud.
Anywho. I got to work before Sis and left a surprise on her desk: her Magic Band, which I had decorated with a Run Disney decal and sat atop some sparkly stuffing in a box. The decals were cute but once we started wearing the bands, they did tend to get caught on our sleeves and peel off. I'm also not totally sure the seller should be selling them, as they are the exact Run Disney logo.
After getting through the day, I stopped home, threw everything in the car, and drove over to my parents' house, as Dad was giving us a lift to the airport tomorrow. Sis and I arrived at the same time and chatted with Mom and Dad awhile. The topic of conversation remained on our "staying" in Port Orleans for a while, which got uncomfortable. Sis was really into the idea of taking the boat to Downtown and eating beignets, and Mom and Dad were fueling the fire. I also felt bad they weren't coming with us. We normally take these trips as a family, and Dad especially was having a hard time hiding his disappointment.
Mom, however, used the opportunity to drop a bomb: theyre taking a cruise on the Fantasy, without us. Now I'm fine with that, but Sis went a little nuclear. She's been craving a Disney cruise for years. She'll get over it I'm sure. Eventually.
We moved the party upstairs and tried to rearrange our bags as best we could. We were both carrying on, but our bags were bursting at the seams. We had to empty everything out and eliminate what we could. This included my foam roller, plantar fasciitis boot, and throw-away sweats for before any chilly races - big mistake! But it had to be done. We argued over what time to leave for the airport and said our goodbyes to Mom.
DAY 1 - A FITTING FROZEN WELCOME
I ended up getting to bed later than I wanted, around 10 I think, but fell asleep pretty quickly. Our family dog, who is going on 14 years old but still acts like a total clown, started crying at my door around 2 am. Assuming she wanted in bed with me, I zombie-walked over to let her in. She stood there wagging her tail for a moment before tearing down the hall and disappearing into the room Sis was sleeping in. I threw my hands up in the air and tried to go back to sleep, but I just dozed until the alarm went off at 3. I rinsed off, threw the rest of my things together, and dragged my suitcase downstairs.
Dad got the car going to warm it up, and we were on the road by 3:30. The car said it was 3 degrees outside, and I was looking forward to getting into an environment where it didnt physically hurt to breathe. Dad got us to Newark in no time and left us at the terminal a little after 4. Having purchased Sis's set of tickets with his miles, she was given premier access, so we skipped a sizable line at security and had plenty of time to wander the terminal. I hoped a good breakfast would ease the fatigue I was feeling, but there's been some sort of franchise overhaul in Newark. Dad flies frequently and thinks all the leases were up at the same time, including those for Dunkin' Donuts, McDonalds, and a cute little diner. Theyve been replaced with some less-than ideal stuff. Therefore I was stuck waiting for a no-name pizza place to open at 5 and start serving their mediocre breakfast foods. I ordered a plain bagel, which they toasted in a multi-hundred-degree pizza oven, then immediately slathered in approximately half a cup of peanut butter; Ill never think of the term "hot mess" again. I ate half of it then cleaned myself up in the bathroom.
Premier access won again at boarding time as we sidled into boarding group 2. I was technically boarding group 4 and getting nervous they were going to give me the axe, but Dad insisted family is always allowed to board together in the lower group. I cared because they were advising groups 4 and 5 to check their bags, and I really wasn't willing to part with my running gear. I died a little when a couple in front of us were sent shamefully away for being in the wrong group. Dad's intuitions, however, proved correct, and we both boarded without a problem. While watching everyone file in, it was obvious that quite a few Princesses were on board: lots of cute running sneakers and Disney Vera Bradley bags.
We both swiped our tv's and watched Big Hero 6; I thought it was a really cute movie. I could have done without the dramatic death of yet another beloved character, but it wouldn't be a Disney movie without that, would it? My seatmate was a jaded businessman who had good plane etiquette other than a minor case of arm-rest hogging. So it was an enjoyable and uneventful flight.
By 9 am we had touched down in Orlando, which was sunny but 39 degrees. My adrenaline was going as we moved throughout the terminal and approached the Magical Express desk. FINALLY, the moment I had been waiting for was here - my big Yacht surprise! I mean, I am an awful secret keeper. This was a big deal for me.
We did our initial tap-in and moved toward the second CM. I hung in the background and let Sis tap her Magic Band again. The CM cheerily confirmed our names - though they had Sis's first and last names backwards - and that we were staying at the Yacht Club. For a split second I thought she wasn't going to pick up on it, but then the confused smile came over her face. I said "Surprise!" and she got all emotional on me, happy but exasperated at the same time. She said a few things about this being ridiculous, but there was a heartfelt "thank you" slipped in there, which I appreciated. On the ride over to the resort, she got more exasperated as she realized how long I'd been keeping the secret, and how Mom and Dad had played considerable supporting roles in tricking her.
We felt both excited and a bit awkward as the only two people getting off at the Yacht Club and being welcomed home by some cast members. The Yacht Club is really a place for families or older couples, and we did feel a bit out of place as two twenty-somethings checking ourselves in. Nevertheless, the girl at the front desk cleared up Sis's name swap and informed us that our lagoon view room was ready. For once it was my turn to be surprised; Sis and I gave each other a quick side glance and shrugged. We went straight up to the room on the fourth floor and squealed at the view, which overlooked Crescent Lake on the right and the wedding gazebo on the left. Im not sure how we got the free upgrade, but I wasn't complaining!
We freshened up, and I put my contacts in so I wouldn't be constantly swapping glasses and sunglasses. Normally I'd also change out of my plane clothes, but as the jeans on my body were one of two pairs of pants I brought with me, I decided to keep them on. We were both starving and went to the Beach Club Marketplace for a second breakfast. While gluttonously chowing down on an egg and potato platters, I used the My Disney Experience app to swap around some of our Fast Passes for today. I found the process pretty easy and secured a few spots in Magic Kingdom. I brought my coffee with me to the bus stop, where we stood in the few spots of sun we could find while waiting for an expo bus. Only a few other Princesses gathered to wait with us before it showed up 20 minutes later. Once at Wide World of Sports, we hurried a little faster than usual, as the light sweatshirts we brought were not quite warm enough. You'd think a few weeks of living in 10 degree weather would have toughened us up, but I was having none of this cold Florida crap. Everything looked as it should, green and full of life, but the bitter air was all wrong.
If I remember correctly, Glass Slipper pickup was in the Field House, where they corralled us throughout the building to get our bib and take a photo. Last year we got a simple wristband to pickup our GSC medals; this year the photo was another measure to crack down on any shenanigans. Officials would be checking our 10K results online and also pulling up the photo as a form of ID before handing us a GSC medal. After posing for our money shots, we picked up our three t-shirts and walked over to the Josten center to browse the merchandise. I'd seen most of the vendors a few times before, so we browsed the official merchandise, which had been picked pretty clean. I found a teal, long-sleeve GSC shirt in my size, and Sis picked out a very cute tank top I also would have liked, but they were all out of smalls. I ended up throwing my shirt on right away and was much more comfortable once we got back outside.
We caught a bus to the Polynesian, at which point I realized I hadnt brought any of my contact stuff with me. I really can't last more than a few hours with them in, so we had to duck into Poly and re-buy drops, solution, and a case. We also got our first look at the completed lobby, which has some cool glass globes hanging from the ceiling. I didnt care much for the tiny waterfall in the center, which I imagine is a tribute to the colossal one it's since replaced. Outside the pool was still a giant pile of dirt, and the front of the hotel wasn't looking much better. As we walked to the monorail, the cast member said it was down "temporarily" but that a bus would be running. So down to the bus stop it was, where a throng of irritable people mobbed the next bus that pulled up and demanded to know when a Magic Kingdom bus was coming. We didn't hear the conversation, but they pulled away looking crankier than ever, and several split off in the direction of the T&T Center. We gave it a few more minutes before heading that way ourselves and taking a very frosty ride over to Magic Kingdom. Naturally, we saw a Magic Kingdom on the way, and the monorail was back in service too. Yup.
I was very chilly by the time we entered Main Street, but we made it a point to savor the moment of finally being there. We browsed some of the stores and marveled at the Haunted Mansion Dooney & Burkes in the Emporium. True story: there is a guy whose job is literally to stand there guarding the bags and politely answer your questions about them.
I managed to pull Sis away from the bags and use our FP's for their namesake attraction. The size of the standby line was a disheartening indicator that we were sharing the park with a LOT of people. We were on and off the ride pretty quickly and ran excitedly into the new HM store. They had a lot of cool merch, a photobooth that turned you into a skeleton (for extra money, of course), and one creepy mirror I suggest not staring into.
Our next set of FP's for Buzz were an hour away, so we detoured into New Fantasyland to browse the Beauty and the Beast shop. The Voyage of the Little Mermaid was closed for refurbishment already, and all of the other rides in the area had long lines. Even Philarmagic was over 30 minutes. We were feeling a bit peckish and decided to get some ice cream from Auntie Gravitys, even thought it was about 50 degrees. We split the biggest "kid's" cup of soft serve Ive ever seen and still tossed a third of it. Next up was a ride on the People Mover (with a wait), and on our return to Rocket Tower Plaza, we saw a second line for Buzz being wrapped around a few times on the outside of the building. Closer inspection revealed this was the Fastpass line; we gave each other mutual looks of apprehension and decided to pass on that.
Cold, tired, and several hours away from dinner, we made our way back to the hub and sat against the low construction walls in the center, just in front of the sadly boxed-up Partners statue. I still hadn't seen the Festival of Fantasy parade, so we simply sat here listening to the Main Street music and soaking up some warmth from the sun. While we waited, I tried to change our fastpasses around, only to have the app give me a systems error message. Despite the fact that people had 20 feet of walkway here, several insisted on walking right on top of us, and one woman gave me a pointedly dirty look because I had my feet stretched in front of me. Were I in the WNBA, I might sympathize with her. But I'm short enough to get a handicap pass for my car if I so chose. (I run half marathons, so I don't.)
For the 30 minutes or so we sat there, we noticed a young man wearing sunglasses and a large backpack hanging around the area. He kept walking back and forth from the center of the hub to the edge, just behind the crowd of people lined up for the parade. His behavior was sketchy enough that we debated saying something to someone. Upon closer inspection, I thought he was more likely undercover security. I made the judgment call based on my own experience working in theme parks, but now I'm thinking we probably should have said something regardless. He seemed likewise just as interested in us, perhaps because we were seated so closely to Partners?
So anyway, the parade finally started, and I really enjoyed it. Being in the circle, we got to first watch as it entered from Liberty Square, passed the castle, then moved down Main Street. I finally understood what all the fuss was about with the dragon. It's really quite impressive, and I got a great shot of it breathing fire in front of the castle. Once the parade passed, we moved down the other side of Main Street to look at the shops there. I started picking up a few souvenirs and talked Sis out of the $60 Adventureland blanket she was staring at.
Anxious to escape the crowds, we left the park and took the Monorail for a brief stop in the Contemporary. I took advantage of the quiet bathroom to take out my contacts while Sis browsed the gift shop. We were back upstairs for the Monorail a few minutes later and took it to the Polynesian. 'Ohana didnt open for another hour and the lounge was already pretty full. One family was getting ready to abandon their table and chairs, so we sat on the nearest benches to wait them out. A few minutes later, a group of girls our age ran in and dispersed among the few remaining benches. Meanwhile the line was growing longer at the bar, so I put my bag down in front of/under my seat and got up to get us drinks. I was up maybe 10 seconds before one of the girls literally ran over and sat down in my seat. Sis politely told the girl that I was sitting there, to which she snottily replied, "Right here?" And I promise, I'm not exaggerating one bit with the "snottily" part. It was a bit shocking.
I started to say that it was fine, I would sit somewhere else so she could be closer to her friends, but she completely ignored me and got up to move. She was nasty enough and I was tired enough to just let her go on her way. Plus, the family got up a minute later and the girls, of course, were on their feet to claim the table immediately. Whatever.
I managed to get our drinks, and another table did open up. One of the girls even jumped into the seat to claim it for me and Sis, so I appreciated that. We then watched a rather uptight, twitchy woman claim another table, which she would defend viciously for the next 30 minutes. The problem is that she was saving these four chairs while also standing at the long line for the bar. A few people wandered over, saw there were things on the chairs, and walked away or simply mused aloud that they must be taken - at which point she still felt the need to swoop in and aggressively confirm that they were. One couple came over merely to ask if they could look at the untouched menu sitting at "her" table, and she refused, pointing them in the direction of menus in the bar, then stood there muttering to herself after they walked away. I was fascinated by this display of insanity and was quick to look away when her falcon eyes met mine.
Eager to escape all the drama, we abandoned our table at 5 and went up to the podium to get our buzzer, which went off 5 minutes later. We gorged ourselves and had an enjoyable meal, though I did get smacked in the head with a broom a few times when the coconut race geared up. The waitress also confused me when she brought back half the change I requested. It must have been an honest mistake, but for a minute I thought I had miscalculated the tip wrong and that was her subtle way of informing me I was stiffing her. But no, I crunched the numbers again and had Sis double check me, so I had her bring me the amount requested.
We briefly contemplated going back to MK after dinner, but according to the wait times on the app, the park hadnt emptied at all. Rather than continue fighting our fatigue, we took the monorail back to MK and walked straight onto a Yacht bus. We stayed on until the Beach stop and picked up a few items for breakfast from the Marketplace. I couldn't find peanut butter anywhere for my bagel, but a cast member was kind enough to get me a few packs from the back. On our way back over to the Yacht side, we saw the pool was completely closed, most likely because of the cold. That was kind of sad.
Once back in the room, we laid everything out for the 10K tomorrow and turned the lights off at 8. An hour later, we were woken by what I legitimately thought was a bomb going off. It took me a few moments of panic to realize it was just Illuminations, but I couldn't believe how loud it was. Sis said the same thing the next morning, so I'm wondering if our room was in a weird location where we got a louder echo or something. I dozed back to sleep only to be jarred awake again at 9:45 when the room phone rang at full volume. I picked up the phone, and no one was there. Now irritated, I slammed the receiver back down and went to use the bathroom. I came out to find Sis wrapping up a conversation with someone on my cell phone. Apparently we had a delivery and our phone was broken, so they called my cell. Sis told them to bring up the delivery, so I sat there brooding like a total grump until the CM came with a very lovely gift basket and instantly made me feel like a donkey. The basket had a bottle of wine, and I could tell the CM was uncomfortable because she was saying I looked "so young," so I retreated back into the dark room to dig out my license for her, and in my PJ's nonetheless. She bid us goodnight and told us she'd put in a request to get our phone fixed. She was good on her word too. It was fine the next afternoon. Unfortunately I was so tired I didnt even think of tipping her. Not sure if that would have been proper etiquette for a gift delivery, but now I feel bad either way.
We quickly inspected the basket which my very kind Aunt sent us with a good luck note. It had the wine, two wine glasses, apples, cookies, chocolate Mickey pops, and a large Mickey head basket. All good things, but for now it was back to bed.
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