Sue Holland - December 1999 - Dixie Landings, Old Key West, Hilton Head Island Resort

[Trip Reports]

Cast of Characters:
Sue (me - 41), DVC member
Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17
Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17
Linda - childhood friend (42) - for days 5-10
Dates: December 15 - 31, 1999
Travel Method: Personal car
Resorts: Dixie Landings (4nts), Old Key West 2 bedroom villa (5 nts), Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort 2 bedroom villa (7 nts)
Experience: Extremely experienced, over 75 trips so far, averaging 35 - 40 nights per year in Disney resorts.
INTRODUCTION:

This is the 6th and final Disney trip for 1999, and we were joined by Sheila & Colin for at least part of 3 of those trips. We travel well together, and enjoy their company. Those of you who’ve read many of my earlier reports will be familiar with them. Linda and I grew up together, were best friends from the age of 4 or so until we grew up and I moved away. After several years of no contact she called me following a May trip to WDW with her extended family, and was talking about wanting to go back before Christmas (her first visit was with us in 1992). I told her the OKW living room sleep sofa would be available if she wanted it, along with free park passes for 5 days, and she jumped at it. She also added 3 nights at Dixie Landings to the beginning of the trip. Linda will likely be the zany one of the trip. She’s got a great sense of humor...as evidenced by her planned travel wardrobe - fishnet stockings, hot pants & leopard print tube top...and she claims to have had her suitcase all packed for months now! She’ll be sure to notice any WDW hunks that escape my eye (or Sheila’s), not that I’m likely to miss many .

Sheila & Colin will be spending an early Christmas at her parents’ house in Sebring before joining me on Saturday. She’s pulling Colin out of school on Friday, so Thursday night they’ll head to her parents’ house for 2 nights. They’ll spend Saturday night at Caribbean Beach Resort before moving into the 2nd bedroom in my OKW unit. Chris was going to sleep on the living room couch, but since I’ve invited Linda to use that spot he’ll sleep on the air mattress on the floor of the master bedroom.

As usual, the trip has evolved since it was originally planned. Life is full of changes, and when those changes result in extra time at WDW then it’s a good thing indeed! The original plan was to arrive 12/18. The current plan is for me to arrive alone 12/15 - so that’s an extra 3 days of WDW, and more importantly, 3 more nights for possible Comedy Warehouse shows. I love that place, and enjoy going there alone, since it’s easy for a party of 1 to get a good seat even if I’m kind of far back in line.

My portion of the trip was moved up to 12/15 when I found out a business meeting (a follow-up to the November meeting) was scheduled for 12/16 in Orlando. I was able to add the 15th & 16th at Dixie Landings, so I wouldn’t have to move an extra time (already had it booked for the 17th & 18th - having added the 17th about a month ago). In early December the meeting got moved to Tampa, to coordinate with another meeting that was scheduled before ours was. Rather than change my plans, I decided to stay at WDW and commute to Tampa. I hope my travel voucher doesn’t get audited...it’s going to look very strange to be driving past Tampa, staying in WDW, and then commuting to the meeting! I’m limiting my reimbursement request to what the State would have paid if I’d just gone from home to Tampa and stayed at the hotel there, so this isn’t costing anyone (except me) any extra. I’d absolutely never do anything illegal or unethical, even for a WDW trip! Later the meeting was cut to ½ day, which was fine with me, as long as we get everything done.

The only one without a way to get to WDW was Chris! I used to be able to fly him up there on Delta Express for around $40, but when I checked the fares the lowest was $185! No thank you, I’m not paying that for a ½ hour flight. Sheila was willing to take him with her, but I was hesitant about him missing another day of school. He missed 3 days during Thanksgiving week while we were on a 7 night Caribbean cruise, and will probably miss a day in April to fly out west to join me for a vacation during Spring break. Since I’ve got a 2br unit at OKW, and my points include free park passes thru 12/31/99, I get passes for 4 people with this unit. Chris and Linda are the only 2 needing them, which left 2 “available”. I told Chris’ dad that if he’d drive Chris up to WDW he & his friend could use the passes for up to 5 days (they’ve got a friend who lives in the area they could stay with). Unfortunately, Chris’ dad is a full time student, and his friend is unemployed right now, so they are flat broke & were unable to take advantage of the passes. Eventually they called with an alternative...if I give them gas money, they’d gladly drive Chris to WDW on Saturday since they didn’t really have anything else to do anyway (& they enjoy driving). It seemed like a reasonable solution, so for $30 in gas money Chris won’t have to miss any school, and I don’t have to return home to get him. It might sound like a strange arrangement, but it works for us.

As the trip drew closer, it got a little crazy with so many different friends who either live in the area or will be vacationing here during my trip. Trying to see them all will be impossible, and it’s frustrating to not be able to do it all! Some things are not negotiable...I must have several nights at the Comedy Warehouse, it’s not a WDW trip without spending time with Kathy (dznynut), Darla (iluvdvc) & I have had plans for months now, and new DVC members Tom & Leanne (mickeytl) booked a few nights during my stay. Despite the fact that I saw Tom last month, and will see him again on the 16th at our meeting, it’s been a year since I saw Leanne - so I want to see them, hopefully with Bob (ex-boss) & Donna (his wife). There’s a breakfast on the 18th with several aol people I hope to attend, hope to have time to see Nancy (cm at PI), will skip dinner but hope to stop by to see several aol/DVC friends at a dinner on the 19th, have been invited to another aol friend’s villa at HH for Christmas eve, need to spend time with my guests (Linda & Sheila), and there are several others I’ll be keeping my eyes open for! If I miss anyone, I apologize in advance...it’s not that I didn’t want to meet you, I just wasn’t able to make it happen THIS time. I’ll definitely be back, and if you’re a DVC member I know you will be, too :-)

The plans so far...understanding that I’ve left most days somewhat open in order to accommodate what Linda wants to see since she’s only been to WDW a few times....

12/15 - Work ½ day, drive to Dixie Landings, meet Kathy, Comedy Warehouse at night
12/16 - By 7 drive to Tampa for meeting, get back to DxL by 3pm, Comedy Warehouse at night
12/17 - Magic Kingdom in morning, maybe pool in afternoon or other park, Comedy Warehouse
12/18 - Breakfast at Yacht Club Galley, Belz or Epcot, Chris arrives at noon, meet Sheila/Colin in afternoon & give CBR another look, Hoop Dee Doo at 7:15, Sheila & I might hit Comedy Warehouse late
12/19 - Check in OKW, some park - maybe Epcot??, might be joined by Tom/Leanne for the day, see aol/DVC friends at Olivia’s around 5:30, maybe Osbourne Lights or Illuminations.
12/20 - Nothing specific - some park, either Osbourne or Illuminations
12/21 - Girls’ Night Out (w/Linda, Sheila & Darla) at Comedy Warehouse. First time there for Darla. There might be a dinner with Bob/Donna & Tom/Leanne - and if it’s early enough I’ll join them before the Comedy Warehouse.
12/22, 12/23 - Nothing specific, except Comedy Warehouse for sure
12/24 - Drive to HH, check in/get groceries, visit Pat (dsnydiva) & family in their villa
12/25 - Open gifts, call family, eat in villa, ride bikes . Last year restaurants were mobbed on this day, so we’ll eat in this year.
12/26-30 Enjoy leisurely days at HH - biking, walking on the beach, shopping, eating out, etc
12/31 - Drive the 9 hours home
As I’ve seen others do in their trip reports, I’ll try to remember to mention the “plan” each day and then we can see how close the actual came to that plan.

DAY 1 - WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 15, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

PLAN: Work ½ day, drive to Dixie Landings, meet Kathy, Comedy Warehouse at night

ACTUAL: I worked until about 11:30, and was on the road by 11:40. Originally I’d planned to leave around noon, but it was lightly raining all morning so far & I was afraid the weather might slow me down & make me late meeting Kathy at 3pm. Once I was a couple of counties away the rain stopped, and it was sunshine & blue skies again! Traffic leaving I-75 to get on I-4 was at a complete standstill, but it wasn’t long before I saw a helicopter lift up and fly away. Sure enough, there had been a major accident (1 car was on it’s side, a pickup truck was all smashed up) and they’d closed my side of the highway in order to land the helicopter. Once the road was reopened traffic moved very well. I stopped in Lakeland and drove around looking for a gas station with a car wash. Chris had washed my car on Saturday, but now it was all dirty from driving in the rain - but I didn’t find anything in Lakeland. I tried again at exit 23, but had no luck there either, so I’ll either live with a dirty car or stop at one in Tampa tomorrow.

I arrived at Dixie Landings before 3, and Kathy was waiting in the lobby. I checked in and she helped me move some stuff into my room. I got exactly what I wanted - Magnolia Terrace building, top floor, non smoking! The rooms have been refurbished since my last stay here (1996 or early 1997) and they look great. I’m near the center of the building, just around the corner form the stairs/elevator, so it’s a great location. There’s a bus stop right across the parking lot and a pool on the other side of the building. We didn’t linger long in the room; I didn’t even unpack anything. We headed to Animal Kingdom to see Kathy’s favorite attraction - the Pangani Forest Trail. We didn’t bother with the other animals, but headed straight to the gorilla area. Kathy goes so often that the dominant male silver back actually knows her. He’ll look right at her, and if she turns away to leave he’ll make a grumbling noise until she returns to where he can see her! He did this about 3-4 times, and it wasn’t until the trail closed and the gorillas were called back into the cave for the night were we able to leave! I didn’t mind staying though - they’re interesting to watch & on the other side the baby gorilla was running around being very playful.

We ran into several cast members that Kathy knows, and stopped to chat with some of them - they’re all very nice. She took me over to Asia to show me the chicken satay stand, and to buy a scarf for her daughter. The chicken satay stand was closed, but I might have to come back & try it another day. I loved the chicken satay at the food & wine festival in Epcot last month! While in Asia this bratty little boy came into the shop & roughly was playing with some piece of merchandise & broke it (I think it was some sort of dragon, and he broke the wing off). He must have been 8-10 years old - certainly old enough to know better! A few minutes later I felt myself getting sprayed, and wondered if the little monster was spitting or something - but he was just flapping his arms around and his sopping wet tee shirt was splashing me! I guess they’d just gotten off Kali River Rapids. Once Kathy got her scarf I was happy to leave Asia, lol!

We stopped at some other shops, and I bought the millennium cd. It’s a few dollars cheaper at Virgin Records in the West Side ($13.99 vs $16.98) but I didn’t want to have to remember to buy it later so I just got it here. By now it was 5:30, and I was starting to get nervous that I’d not make it to the Comedy Warehouse for opening! Kathy had more shopping to do, so we said our good-byes and I headed for the exit.

The Dixie Landings bus arrived around 5:45 and after a brief side trip to Blizzard Beach (nobody at any bus stop there) we stopped next at Port Orleans and then the main stop at Dixie Landings. I got off there and walked back to the room, since I knew my stop would be the last one. Besides, I enjoy walking and this is a beautiful resort. In the room, I grabbed my jacket, camcorder, and Comedy Warehouse refillable bottle - and went to the car to drive over there. I didn’t want to risk having to wait for a bus. I parked in the usual spot - over near Planet Hollywood. I had time, so I stopped at the candy store in the West Side & bought a Mickey Truffle in case I got hungry later ($.69 with tax). I didn’t have time for dinner...but wasn’t really hungry anymore so it didn’t matter. I checked out the skating rink in the West Side. This year it’s $12/adult, $8/child including skate rental. I’m not sure Chris will want to do this - the ice rink is pretty small.

I entered Pleasure Island, and just wandered around until after 7. At the Comedy Warehouse I asked cm Bob if he could check the schedule, and he told me he didn’t have it. I didn’t believe him, but got in line anyway, and once inside I checked the book myself & found that he was right - the only schedule in there was from last night. As luck would have it, Layden was in the show (along with Mark, Matt, Christine & Jake), and it was pretty funny.

After the show I let the crowd beat me out, and Layden spotted me. He said he’d watched the tape I’d given him last month, and he thought it was great. He seemed to like the technique as much as the content, commenting on how he liked the editing I’d done (cutting out the stuff they didn’t need to see) and the zooming (without blurring) that added to the quality of the tape. I was pleased, as I was kind of afraid that they’d look at the tape & think it was obviously the work of an amateur. We got to talking about a lot of different things, and eventually went outside to continue the conversation because they were letting guests in for the next show. He shared a lot of ideas he had for the club, stuff he’s trying to work on, as well as some of the frustrations (Disney’s not perfect, lol). I did mention that several people have written to me after reading my trip reports to say they were going to try Comedy Warehouse for the first time and some were looking specifically for him, and that I’d started saving some of the comments in a word processing document but hadn’t printed it. He asked me to bring it on a future visit, as guest comments are very important, and the Comedy Warehouse is sometimes overlooked when it comes to budget & other things. So - if you head to Comedy Warehouse or are planning to, keep the comments coming (you can email me & I’ll include your comments in the document).

Layden was working in the next show (which was starting in less than 10 minutes), so we said good bye and I went around to the entrance. They’d already opened the doors and all but a couple people were already inside, so I got in line behind them & went to the second show. It was also very good, but slightly more than ½ full. I decided to call it a night after this show, for a number of reasons. Layden knew he was off either show 3 or 4 (couldn’t remember which), and I knew I didn’t want to still be there by show 4, and besides I still had a trip report to write and a meeting to prepare for. Plus, I needed to check my Tampa map to see where I was going tomorrow! I stopped to let him know I was leaving for the night, but planned to come back tomorrow - and then left Pleasure Island to drive back to DxL.

Kathy had reminded me this afternoon that I needed to remember I’m not on vacation. I’m here to write a trip report so she’s got something to read each morning, and I’d darn well better have it posted by early morning! So, I recharged the camcorder battery, wrote today’s report, viewed & made notes of what little bit I taped at Comedy Warehouse (in case I want to use any of it for the next tape), read the DxL literature I got at check in, figured out how to get to my meeting, read about 20 pages of material in preparation for the meeting, handled my email and downloaded message board/newsgroup postings. Just another day on (non)vacation! Oh yes, I did eat one of Mickey’s ears off the truffle, but will save the rest for another day.

For today it looks like the actual matched up with the plan exactly - for whatever that’s worth .

Total miles walked: Dang, I can’t find the pedometer! I hope it didn’t fall off...maybe it will turn up tomorrow (I hope).

DAY 2 - THURSDAY, DECEMBER 16, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

PLAN: By 7 drive to Tampa for meeting, get back to DxL by 3pm, Comedy Warehouse at night

ACTUAL: I’d set the alarm for 5am, and got up then. For some reason I didn’t sleep much at all last night - not sure why. Normally in a Disney resort it’s so comfortable/familiar I have no problem falling asleep right away. As I was finishing up my online stuff last night around 11:30 the people in the (connecting) room next door came back & turned on their music very loud. They were even singing with the music - it was very strange & I could hear them OVER my tv! I peeked out the door to get their room number, and saw that they even had their outside door propped open with the lock thing. I was ready to go to bed, so I got off-line and made a quick phone call over there to politely ask them to turn down their music. Their initial response was “huh?”, so I restated that I wanted them to turn down their music as it was too loud and was disturbing the rooms around them. They said ok, so I thanked them & we hung up. They did turn the music down, so there was no ugly confrontation between guest rooms in Magnolia Terrace (no need for Disney security...in case any of you remember the “spoof” news article Diana wrote about a fictitious encounter between me & some Disney security people at Pleasure Island).

After showering (wish they had a hand held shower head), and thought of Kathy’s comment yesterday that it wasn’t right that OKW gives us just a tacky vinyl shower curtain when this moderate resort has a nice 2 piece cloth shower curtain. I made cappuccino and ate some of the biscotti left from the previous trips in September & November (it’s actually biscotti I got in a gift basket last Christmas, but it keeps fine sealed up in the refrigerator). The temperature is in the 50’s now, but a cold front is passing through which will put it into the low 40’s tonight/tomorrow morning. Brrrr!

Not sure how long it would take me to get to my 9:00 meeting, since I’m not familiar with downtown Tampa traffic, I left around 6:45 and except for bumper to bumper traffic in Tampa it was an easy drive. I arrived at the meeting site about 8:15, and went to the snack bar for another breakfast since it felt like hours since I’d eaten the biscotti. A cup of ice water and an english muffin (yes, I ate both halves) set me back $.64 - can’t beat those prices! Soon a group of guys from the meeting came in and got their breakfast and we sat around talking until 9am. The meeting finished up around noon, which was 1 hour ahead of schedule. It’s not a happy meeting, as we’re working on a plan to implement a decision that will result in hundreds of people losing their jobs...about 600 by June 30th alone, and thousands over the next few years. The Governor ran on a platform of reducing the size of government, so our job is simply to develop a plan to implement the restructuring so that the state’s business will continue to get done despite the work force reduction. During the meeting we got word that the decision was just announced on which “region” of the state would be the first to be implemented, and thankfully it’s not my area - so I’ll be contacting my staff immediately to let them know they’re off the hook for probably at least a year (of the 5 departments I supervise, 1 is disappearing completely and another is losing just 1 main function). Ok, enough boring business.... On a happier note, when I went to the car this morning my pedometer was laying on the front seat :-) Total miles for yesterday were 3.17.

My friend Tom was at the meeting, and he & his wife will be checking into a studio at OKW for 3 nights starting Sunday. This is their first stay as DVC members, and they just booked it a couple of weeks ago. Coming back to WDW traffic was at a standstill on I-275 before downtown Tampa. Ick - I thought to myself that there really is traffic worse than Orlando, but it turned out it was only due to a broken down car. Once I got past that it was clear sailing back to Dixie Landings, arriving shortly after 1:30. I wrote up the report for the day so far, and decided to head to the food court to look for something to eat for lunch/dinner before heading to a park for a little while. It is VERY cool today, and I imagine tonight I’ll be saying it’s downright FREEZING, lol!

There wasn’t anything of interest in the food court Everything looked good & smelled good, but it was all more than I wanted. I would have done a slice of pizza, but they’ve replaced that with very large individual pan pizzas - so I just headed to the bus stop. I figured I go to either AK (for chicken satay) or Epcot (for Canadian cheese soup), and the AK bus came first - in less than 2 minutes. It was definitely chilly, and although I was wearing a jeans jacket (made more for looks than for warmth) I really wished I’d brought my gloves. I went directly to Asia, and stood in line for chicken satay. The line moved way too slowly - they’ve got to get faster here! You order at 1 window, pay, and then go to the other window to pick up your food. It should move quickly, but it wasn’t moving fast today, and each person in line only ordered a single item. I can’t imagine what it’s like when someone’s ordering for their whole family! The chicken satay was $4.19 including tax, and was a large wooden skewer with chunks of chicken, pepper, & pineapple. They dip it in peanut sauce, wrap it in a wax paper thing, and hand it to you. I would rank it as “ok”, but not something I’d bother with again. The chicken satay at the food & wine festival was much better. It’s not something you can eat while walking around, because the peanut sauce runs off, so I stood by a trash can until I was finished with it.

Next stop was Kilamanjaro Safari. The standby time was posted at 10 minutes, and fastpass time was about 25 minutes away. I wasn’t planning on seeing the gorillas today (sorry, Kathy), so I went into the standby line and walked right into the loading area. I ended up being seated with the young couple in front of me. She didn’t look to be even 20 years old, and was a beautiful girl - but she had full makeup on her face and MAJOR eye makeup. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t face painting like they do at AK, but it was way overdone - we’re talking black eyeliner extending out to a point, and about ¼ inch thick in areas, plus 2-3 other shades of eye shadow layered. Maybe that’s the style somewhere??? Whenever she’d see an animal she liked she’d say “wow man, that’s hardcore”. Needless to say, I was feeling pretty old & decrepit, lol! I spotted the male lion sitting up tall before we made the last turn into that area and pointed him out to her so she could photograph him when we got there. I’ve seen the lion laying there but never sitting up tall like this. Of course, my camera and camcorder were back at Dixie Landings. The cm driving the vehicle was not very impressive - she went through the script as if she was bored to death. People were STANDING while the vehicle was moving, including one little boy who actually stood on the seat (he was about 8-10 yrs old) and she never once said anything to tell people to sit down. I noticed too that the pictures of the animals are not on the back of the seats anymore; they’re up near the ceiling where you don’t even notice them, much less read the names. I did enjoy the safari, because there were so many animals out. The other stuff I’ve mentioned was irritating, but it certainly didn’t ruin the experience.

Next I went to Dinoland to ride Countdown to Extinction, where the wait ended up being about 2 minutes. I think the final dinosaur wasn’t working - I had closed my eyes briefly but I don’t think they were closed long enough that I wouldn’t have seen it if it was there. None of the other dinosaurs looked or acted any different than they always have.

By now it was about 4pm, so I decided to leave AK. I walked right onto a waiting Swan bus, got off at the Swan and waited 10 minutes (in the cold) for a boat to MGM. I ended up sitting next to a man from Massachusetts (my home state) and the couple behind us were from there also - so we all chatted during the ride. Inside MGM they had no waits posted for anything at all! I stopped in the candy store and bought a marshmallow thing for another day - and was shocked to see the price had increased to $2.00! That’s a 60% increase in just a month, lol! But, even at $2.00 it’s a good deal (especially when it can be at least 2 meals, lol).

I walked right onto Star Tours, missing the pre-boarding announcement. Once again I found myself daydreaming on this attraction - this time mentally composing the note I’d be sending to my staff about the meeting. I don’t think that’s the kind of guest reaction the Disney Imagineers were hoping to achieve! I looked in the Christmas shop, walked around a while, shopped along Hollywood Boulevard, and then left MGM around 5:20. There was about a 5 minute wait for the bus, and then it sat there a while longer. I got off at Port Orleans to see if they were doing any holiday celebration (warm cider sounded good right now), but there was nothing going on. I went back to the bus stop and hopped on the next bus & rode it to the bus stop by my room so I could stop at my car to bring in our jackets. I think I’ll be wearing Chris’ jacket tonight, since it’s the warmest thing I have. Unfortunately, it’s a men’s size large, and is bulky. I tried it on, and laughed! The sleeves extend several inches below my fingertips (the end is not tight enough around my wrist), and I can almost wrap the jacket around myself twice. I’ll look like an idiot, but at least I’ll be a warm idiot.

I finished up the Mickey truffle and updated the report until about 6:30 or so, then drove over to Pleasure Island, parking down by Planet Hollywood again. Even with the big jacket I didn’t want to be standing out in the cold waiting for a bus later! It’s easier to just drive. After entering Pleasure Island I checked with Steve outside the Comedy Warehouse, but he didn’t have tonight’s schedule. Since no line had started to form yet I wandered down to the Jazz Club & asked a woman out front if Nancy was working tonight. She didn’t think so, but told me to go around the back & take a peek inside. I felt kind of like a criminal or something opening this door that was clearly marked CAST MEMBERS ONLY - but as soon as I did I could see Nancy and another cm. Nancy had her back to me, but the other guy immediately asked what I wanted, so I just told him I was looking for Nancy, and she came outside to talk with me. She wasn’t expecting me until Friday, so I explained the change in plans. Today was the holiday meal for all the Downtown Disney cast, so Nancy had been working all day and they’d done 2000 meals since 11am - wow! Soon it was time for me to return to the Comedy Warehouse, so we agreed I’d call her in the morning to figure out when we’d get together next week.

By now there was a line at Comedy Warehouse, but it wasn’t bad. Steve said he still didn’t have the schedule, and since Adventurer’s Club wasn’t opening until 9pm tonight I had nothing better to do than see the comedy shows - regardless of who was working! I met a terrific family from Kenosha, Wisconsin (Elizabeth & Gary) and we had a great time chatting like we were long lost friends. They’d experienced Cheesecake Factory cheesecake today - yummy! We were all seated together in the front row of barstools, and it was their first visit to PI. The cast did the scripted piece (I haven’t seen it in months), and the show was very good. Afterwards we said our good-byes and I immediately got in line for the next show.

Once again I was seated in the same section, and it happened there was a single guy from Toronto next to me. He struck up a conversation by asking if I was from Florida. When I asked how he figured that, he rattled off - my tan, mickey backpack, etc. Evidently he’d paid me some attention before I noticed him . We talked non stop until the show started. Layden was in this show (not the first one) and he must have seen me in the audience. When the show was over, Toronto man started talking to me again, asking inane questions about the camcorder - basically stalling for time. I didn’t buy for a minute that he would be intrigued over whether it was digital or not (it obviously is not), lol! Layden had been doing an inventory of the backstage props but since he’d seen me he came out from backstage as Toronto guy & I were heading towards the exit and asked me to wait here for him. Last night one of the things he’d mentioned is that he had a photo/resume prepared (pretty standard in his profession - thank goodness I don’t have to include a picture if I did my resume), and I’d commented that I’d love to have one. I waited for him while he went to his locker to get me one. Toronto guy hung around the exit door, stalling some more, but eventually they closed the doors and he left. I would have seen the next show with him if he was getting back in line, but wasn’t about to run after him & suggest it. A couple of the other actors (Jennifer & Jake) recognized me & stopped to say hi, which was nice.

Eventually Layden returned with the photo, autographed it for me, and then explained about the inventory thing. I asked if he’d be in the next show, and since he was - I decided to get back in line one more time. This time I didn’t meet anyone in line, and didn’t talk to the guy sitting next to me. I was pretty boring - more like I usually am . I ran out of camcorder tape during a funny musical skit about the family activity of “giving grandma a bath”, where they bathe her in the car wash because she’s so huge, but after scrubbing off a year’s worth of dirt they discover she’s really an elf. Layden & Matt played schizophrenic Uncle George and his alter-ego Schleppo - it was pretty funny. I put in a new tape figuring I’d try for the next skit since the cast was particularly funny, but then the battery died! I’ll have to bring both next time.

When the show ended I left the club, and left PI for the evening. I got back to Dixie Landings around 10:30 or so, finished up the trip report and then went online to check mail & the boards.

It looks like today was pretty much according to plan. Overall it was a great day, despite the nasty interruption of a business meeting (I enjoyed seeing some of the people). It was great seeing Nancy again, and getting the pic from Layden, and meeting nice people 2 out of 3 shows. If only it was warmer, lol!

Total miles walked: 5.3 (that’s nothing...I’ll have to get moving the rest of the trip, now that I’ll have full days).

DAY 3 - FRIDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Linda (42)

PLAN: Magic Kingdom in morning, maybe pool in afternoon or other park, Comedy Warehouse

ACTUAL: It took until almost 1:30am to finish the online stuff - good thing I left after show #3 last night! The weather people are calling for cloudy, cool & chance of rain today/tonight I’d set the alarm for 7, but woke up around 6 realizing that there were a couple of people I was supposed to contact & had forgotten to do so. Since I was awake, I just got up then & went online to send some e-mails out. Unfortunately the message boards were not accessible - aol sure does an awful lot of “maintenance” on them.

I slept very well last night. I didn’t have the heat/AC on at all, so the room was comfortable. No noisy neighbors, either. I called the switchboard and asked for Linda’s room, but they told me they showed her arriving today. I could have sworn she was arriving Thursday, but maybe I was wrong. I left a message for her to let her know what room I am in, and then got ready to head out. I finished the last piece of biscotti with my cappuccino this morning. I’ll have to start on the chocolate covered marshmallows rolled in m&m’s thing sometime today - it needs to be gone before I switch resorts on Sunday. You can probably bet it’ll be dinner tonight, but we’ll see what happens. I left the room at 8:30, stopped at the front desk to drop my time sheet & travel expense report in the mail, and check on Linda’s reservation. I requested they put her in my building to make it easier when moving to OKW on Sunday. The bus to Magic Kingdom arrived just after I did, and it wasn’t even ½ full despite it being the last stop. There were fewer than a dozen people at the turnstiles - adding both sides together. It was very strange!

After entering I stopped to answer a survey on why I had come to the MK. I had to select 2 answers - to see a specific attraction (Big Thunder), and “other” (meeting Darla). It was almost 9am, and I got to the Adventureland entrance just as the rope drop announcement started. The cm’s led everyone slowly to the attractions, and I headed to Big Thunder. Two teen girls and I were the only ones on, sitting in the back. They were screamers, so my eardrums were pretty much shot, lol! I went around and rode 2 more times without getting off, but on the third trip I realized I was thinking about some of the Comedy Warehouse ideas I’d been discussing with Layden a couple of nights ago, rather than focusing on the ride, so it was time to move on to something else. It would be so much fun to manage that club - except the night time hours stink & I don’t really want to live in Orlando. As much as I love the place I’d definitely make some changes, though - and find ways to bring in more revenue (not that they’re hurting - it’s just that you always need to improve the bottom line & I’d rather do that by brining in additional income than focusing on cutting costs). When I took over the cafe at work I turned it from a money loser to a profitable operation & had cleared up the prior losses within about 6 months, and had a lot of fun doing it. Oh well, it’s a fun fantasy, but it’s not going to happen.

It was about 9:30 now, and since I was supposed to call Nancy between 9&10 I stopped at a pay phone to call her. We decided to meet for lunch in Canada on Wednesday - I love their soup! We’ll spend a couple of hours visiting before she has to go to work. Once I know whether Linda/Sheila want to come along I’ll make a priority seating. Next I walked right on to Peter Pan, and then rode Pooh with less than a 5 minute wait. Some poor little boy had just gotten sick in line going up the ramp, and his parents were trying to clean it up but in the process unavoidabling blocking the lady in a wheelchair right behind them - so we had to wait a little bit to get by. After Pooh I went to Buzz Lightyear, with a less than 2 minute wait. My score was 83,200 - which is a good score for me! My “trigger thumb” was pretty sore, though - or maybe I’m just wimpy.

Next I rode the Tomorrowland Transit Authority, getting the front car as usual. By now it was after 10, and the park was still deserted! Inside Space Mountain I saw that the line was extremely small, and for some strange reason decided that now was the time for me to ride that ride. Those of you who’ve read my previous reports might realize that you’ve never read about me going on this ride. That’s because I’ve NEVER ridden Space Mountain. I’m a major ride chicken, and don’t like anything that drops you - I hate that stomache “tickle” feeling. Chris is the same way, and doesn’t even like Pirates of the Caribbean. I’m not sure what possessed me to try Space Mountain, (maybe being bored enough to daydream about business decisions running a comedy club while riding Big Thunder, lol) so I realized I’d better get myself over there quickly before I changed my mind.

I stopped to ask the cm’s outside Space Mountain several questions, and then continued inside. The tension was mounting...pulse racing...but strangely I felt more excited than scared. There was no line until you got to the loading area, and even then they weren’t snaking people around at all. In a matter of a few minutes I was in a car (4th seat) on the right side, and it took off. I expected to wish I could die instantly, but to my total surprise I LOVED it! It was not too much for me at all, and as soon as I got off I ran around & got in line again! I swear the big grin was plastered on my face for a good long time afterwards - I was so proud of myself for conquering Space Mountain! The next ride the line was longer (about 10-15 minutes) and I rode the left side, seat 1. Seat 1 was cool because there was nobody in front of you to block your view. I really didn’t notice any big differences from one side to the other. I think 1 drop on the left seemed longer than anything on the right, but not to a major degree. It’s definitely a little bit wild in parts, and somewhat jerky, but seats are so cushioned & comfortable it was fine. I was so pleased with myself I pretty much floated out of there, and headed towards Main Street since it was about time to meet Darla.

I stopped at the Main Street Bake Shop to buy a piece of their delicious banana nut bread ($2.11 including tax), cut a small piece off for a snack, and went to meet Darla in front of Tony’s. She made some wise crack about how now I had my food for the week (referring to the piece of banana bread - it was in a clear plastic “to go” container), lol! She wanted to take a picture of me with my food, so I let her. We left the MK and rode a bus to Port Orleans and then walked along the river to Dixie Landings. She’d never really seen DxL before and really loved it. She couldn’t understand how anyone could post saying they hated it - and since I’ve only had great experiences here I would agree with her. She took a bunch of pictures along the way, including 1 of my room and one with my chocolate covered marshmallow thing I bought yesterday. Those chocolate covered marshmallow things seem to be my “signature dish” on the boards.

We grabbed a couple of things from my room and then drove over to her villa at Old Key West. I’d brought up a tape I’d made for her to show a few Comedy Warehouse scenes (so she’d know what to expect) and also film from my recent cruise. She’s only cruised Disney, and I’ve never cruised Disney, so it was fun to hear her comments comparing the 2 ships. We sat on the porch a bit, but it was raining & kind of damp so we didn’t last long. About 1:30 my beeper went off - Linda had arrived at Dixie Landings, so I drove back there to meet her. She lives in the Boston area, and she ended up in a room around the corner from mine at DxL. I dropped off my stuff, and then went to her room. She’d just finished doing her nails (typical Linda - always gotta be glamorous, lol) and was drying them by turning the air conditioner up (pretty smart). We went to the food court so she could get some lunch, and I ate a little of her pizza. We browsed in the shop at the resort, and since it was still raining we decided to return to the rooms. I worked on the trip report while she called home to try to get a copy of her driver’s license faxed to her here. She lost it while shopping yesterday, and was told the Massachusetts state police will fax you a copy of it to keep until she can get it replaced.

Bob beeped me - so I called him. His wife is in New Hampshire (surprising a friend for her 50th birthday - sound familiar, Donna {iluvWDW}?), and he was thinking of coming to Pleasure Island tonight and just hanging around the Comedy Warehouse hoping to run into me. I told him he was welcome to join Linda & me for the evening, so we agreed to meet at 7. I got changed & went to pick up Linda to do some resort holiday decoration inspecting before going to PI. We drove to the Polynesian, and on the way the beeper went off again - this time from another Linda (elfriar - I’ll refer to her as DVC Linda to keep the 2 of them straight in this report). We parked at the Poly & found a payphone so I could call DVC Linda, who wanted to meet us at Comedy Warehouse also! We looked around the Poly - not anything real special there - and then rode the monorail to the Grand Floridian. Of the monorail resorts this one is easily the best decorated. They had a huge gingerbread house that doubled as a snack bar, and did not do the gingerbread carousel that they’ve done for the past several years. We shot some video of the holiday decorations, and then went to the shop. Linda was playing with the plush Pooh snowman, and they all started falling off the table! She cleaned up her mess and then we continued to the Contemporary. This resort was nothing special either, so we didn’t spend much time here.

We went back to the Poly to pick up the car, and tried to drive to Pleasure Island. It was dark though, and we were talking, and I missed the turn and ended up on I-4. Eventually I got us to PI and we parked by Planet Hollywood. It was raining pretty hard - a really miserable night. We stopped at the Jazz Club & dropped off some Christmas cookies for Nancy, and then went to the Missing Link & shared some chicken tenders for dinner. There are no indoor tables but since we were the only ones there they let us use their counter for our table. About 7 we went outside and found a stand with a slight overhang and tried to stay dry. Soon DVC Linda arrived. There were so few people the 1st Comedy Warehouse show was canceled The 2 Linda’s went into the Adventurer’s Club & I stayed outside waiting for Bob. He ended up never showing up, which is very strange. I didn’t have his home or cell phone number with me, so I couldn’t reach him. Eventually I joined the Lindas in the Adventurer’s Club to pass the time until the 2nd comedy show. We enjoyed the show in the Treasure Room, but there wasn’t much else going on there so early in the evening. Dvc Linda brought me a cool DVC pin - one that I’d never seen before and I guess is hard to get. I put on my jacket with my other 2 pins (THANK YOU). I’m not into the pin trading thing, but I enjoy wearing a few that have a special meaning (like DVC).

We returned to Comedy Warehouse and they were letting people in out of the rain a little early. We got great seats - 1st row of the bar. It was a great show, and the last skit was a song they made up about someone’s embarrassing moment, so of course I had to volunteer an embarrassing moment of Linda’s It was about the time she was at MGM Studios waiting for the Beauty & the Beast show 7 years ago, and it started to rain so she used a WDW merchandise bag & cut eye/mouth holes out & wore it over her head/face. The song was really funny, and I taped it for her. We got back in line for the next show, and this time were in the very front row. I call this the dental section, as you have a perfect view of any fillings the actors have in their upper teeth, lol! It gets rough on the neck, too - but for 1 show was ok. The show was funny, so we didn’t mind.

By now it was after 10, and DVC Linda needed to get home to her husband. The other Linda was tired from traveling, so we returned to Dixie Landings. It’s still raining, and has been since around noon. I sure hope it stops tomorrow - this is the pits!

I finished up today’s report, did the online stuff, and recharged the camcorder battery. I also have to start eating the marshmallow thing I bought yesterday, so I’d better eat 1 of the marshmallows. I don’t want to have to move it to OKW on Sunday! Today went pretty much according to plan, except for the laying by a pool part. It was way too cool and rainy for that! The most important stuff got done - MK, meeting Darla, and doing Comedy Warehouse. The weather could have been better, but the day was still fun. I still can’t believe I RODE SPACE MOUNTAIN!!

Total miles walked: 8.06

DAY 4 - SATURDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

Linda (42) - for days 3-10

PLAN: Breakfast at Yacht Club Galley, Belz or Epcot, Chris arrives at noon, meet Sheila/Colin in afternoon & give CBR another look, Hoop Dee Doo at 7:15, Sheila & I might hit Comedy Warehouse late

ACTUAL: AOL was acting up again last night, with flash sessions not working. I’d planned to just download the messages to read later, but ended up reading quite a few online. Finally I went to bed around 12:45 - not great, but not too bad. Got up around 7, tried the online stuff but flash sessions still aren’t working. I received an instant message from someone who’d just returned from WDW and took the DVC tour, and wanted to ask questions/get information. I told him I’d be glad to handle it via e-mail, since my time is limited right now.

Linda arrived just after 8:30 or so, and we drove over to the Yacht Club. Today was a breakfast with several aol people at the Yacht Club Galley at 9am. Unfortunately, 30 were expected but only a few of us showed up! Shan (Shan92069) recognized me from a picture somewhere - she and her sister Cissy (CisPittman) were there with their 3 kids. Soon Mary Kay (MKGRN3) and her husband Mike showed up, and with Linda & me that was the whole group. We all got the buffet ($11.95 plus tax/tip), which was great. Debbie (djev) and her family arrived late and were seated on the other side of the restaurant, but she recognized me and came over to chat before we left. Natasha & Josh came over from their honeymoon at the Grand Floridian, and sat at the table next to ours. Just before we left, Tara (mickeybop) and Melissa (Mburley) arrived, so we got to talk for a little while. It was nice to meet some of my online friends, and put a face to the name.

We left the Yacht Club and saw a couple getting married on the porch outside. It’s too bad they had such lousy weather! Linda & I walked over to the swan, and I called Bob while she shopped. He never made it to meet us at PI last night due to a sudden situation that didn’t get resolved until too late. Depending on what he gets done today he might meet us tomorrow. I picked up Linda from the shop and we were going to continue walking around the boardwalk. You know I enjoy just walking around WDW. Well, Linda felt that since it was raining & kind of cool, and she’d seen BW before that perhaps we shouldn’t bother. Wanting to be considerate, I said ok, and we walked back to the Yacht Club. I showed her Stormalong Bay & we looked inside the Beach Club.

Let just vent now for a minute. I don’t think Linda will be reading this report, but if she does I’ll delete this paragraph because I truly don’t want to hurt her feelings. Ok - when we made our plans, I was VERY clear that “our” trip would start on Sunday. My days prior to Sunday I’d figured were “my” days, to do what I wanted. We’ve not seen each other in many years, and in my opinion we’re not necessarily the most compatible travel companions, so I thought 5 days would be better than pushing it any longer. She’s real nice - we’re just different people than we were as kids growing up together. Also, I know I clearly told her that her park passes would be for the 5 days we were at OKW. She booked the extra nights at DxL thinking she had free park passes then, too - and I figured she was getting her own passes for those days or had some left over from her May trip. So now, here we are on a cold rainy day at WDW with her not having any park passes. We’re paying for hotel rooms for no reason, basically. I was also clear up front that I’d be going off to meet other people from time to time, and told her that there would be times we’d want to separate to do our own things...but when I mentioned that again after she arrived her reaction was one of “what - me, alone go somewhere???” Arrgh! I’m sure things will get better tomorrow, when we’ve all got park passes, but for right now I go back and forth between being irritated because I’m not doing any of the stuff I would have done today had I been alone, and feeling like a schmuck for her not having a wonderful day. I know there’s things she wants to do (like Candlelight Processional, Jellyrolls, other PI clubs), and I keep telling her that I’m not interested but she should do them - don’t let her vacation be limited just because our “to do” lists differ. Ok, enough of this.

We drove over to Old Key West and went into the shop. Linda bought a pretty flannel Pooh nightshirt, and I got the DVC members only pin. It’s so funny that you have to show your DVC id before they’ll even let you see the pin! They keep it under the counter, in an envelope - kind of like the way a dirty magazine would be kept behind the counter or something, lol! By now it was almost noon so we had to hurry back to Dixie Landings.

Tim and Chris had arrived, and were waiting in my room. I was surprised, and asked them how they got in and they told me the door was open. Housekeeping hadn’t been there yet, and Chris showed me how the door doesn’t close all the way & latch unless you pull it shut. Luckily the laptop & camcorder were still there! We all visited a while, and then Tim returned home. Linda went to her room to check on possible transportation to Universal Studios - she had a day left from her May trip. I updated the report. Sheila & Colin should be arriving at Caribbean Beach Resort by mid afternoon, and will be beeping me when they get in. Chris was getting hungry, so we called Linda and the 3 of us went to the food court. Linda found out the shuttle to Universal was $10 round trip and the next one would be picking up at 2:20 pm. She got nachos for lunch; Chris had the kids’ chicken strips with fries ($4.23 including tax). I’d eaten 2 of my marshmallows last night, and had another one just a little while ago, so I just had part of one of the chicken strips.

Sheila beeped me to report they were at CBR, but their room was not ready yet. It was a little before 2, so we left Linda at DxL and drove over to CBR. We found Sheila & Colin at Old Port Royale and just sat in the food court talking for a little while. I really don’t like this food court at all, for a number of reasons. First, it’s way too small for 2000 rooms of guests. It was crowded now, and I can’t imagine what it’s like at breakfast time! Second, you have to pay at each separate stand. That’s fine for a person traveling solo, but if you’ve got a family who all want something different that would be extremely inconvenient. About 2:45 Sheila called & was able to get her room number - building #44 in Jamaica. This is a pretty village - bright orange/yellow buildings with blue roofs, across the island from Old Port Royale. We drove over there, but since it was still raining so hard she didn’t bother bringing any stuff in from the car. Their room overlooks a courtyard and the room itself looks like it was recently refurbished. The carpet is kind of ugly, but everything else is attractive.

We sat around for a short while, and then Sheila & I decided to go to Disney MGM Studios. We left the boys in the room playing video games (gameboys). We drove over and parked as close to the front as possible. We did NOT want to be riding the tram in the rain! I was amazed at how many people were entering the park, and how crowded the park was! I didn’t see the tip board to see how long the waits were, but it looked like everything had a longer line than I’d care to experience. We just walked around chatting for about an hour, not going on any attractions, and then headed back to CBR. If this many people are in the parks this time of day in the rain, I don’t want to think about how bad it’s going to be starting tomorrow when the weather gets nice again (or so they say).

It was after 4 by now, and the DxL people had told me there was direct transportation to the Hoop Dee Doo from the hotel starting at 6. We decided to take Disney transportation because if we drove we’d still have to take a bus from the parking lot, and also we don’t need to be driving in the dark in the rain after drinking sangria at the show. I returned to DxL to start packing up my stuff. I left out our clothes for tomorrow & packed everything else so that I could load the big suitcase into my trunk. Chris stayed with them, to show them how to get to our room when they came over for the Hoop Dee Doo. Tomorrow Sheila will be coming here to help move Linda over to OKW since I don’t have room for her and her stuff in my car due to the Christmas tree being in the back seat! They arrived about 5:30, I brought my suitcase out to the car, and we headed to the main building to catch the bus.

The bus came just before 6, picked up at Port Orleans and then went to the main parking lot at Ft Wilderness. From there we took the internal bus to the other end, and looked in the shop and sat on a bench until it was time for the show. They didn’t open the doors until after 7:20 (for the 7:15 show), and thankfully they weren’t doing a photo opportunity before seating people. Our table was front & center (reservation made a year or so ago). The food was very good - salad, bread, fried chicken, ribs, corn, baked beans, and strawberry shortcake. I had the sangria to drink, which was also very good. We all enjoyed the show - especially the teen boys. Colin was laughing at all the corny jokes! At one point one of the characters, Six Bits, accused me of being goo-goo eyed over his backside, lol! Now how does he know I can appreciate the male form.....unless Rich has been telling my secrets . Don’t worry though - I didn’t swan dive up onto the stage or anything.

The show ended about 9 or so, and the boys returned to Dixie Landings to play with their game boys. Sheila and I took the bus to Downtown Disney, which happened to be a bus to the disgustingly awful Ticket & Transportation Center! Gosh, I CAN’T STAND that place! We stood forever in a long line there waiting for a real Downtown Disney bus - thank goodness the rain had finally stopped. Eventually we got on a bus & rode to Pleasure Island. We got in line for show #4 at the Comedy Warehouse, and had great seats. I know to count the people in line so that I can enter in time to get the exact seats I want. It turned out Layden wasn’t working this show, but I wasn’t going to stick around for the 12:05 show since I had stuff to do back in the room. I was pleasantly surprised to see Steve come out on stage. He’d left to move to Los Angeles last summer, and I was really sorry to see him leave. I’m not sure if he’s back for good or if he’s just back to satisfy working some minimum # of days to retain his status of being in the cast. Our waitress was one of the girls I know in there, and later I stopped to chat briefly with Leigh - the food & beverage mgr. Nancy - she said they really miss you over there!

We left PI and waited at the bus stop. Eventually 2 DxL/PO buses pulled up almost together. We got on the 2nd one and were back at DxL before 12:30. We saw the PI fireworks from the road while the bus was sitting at a red light, so that was pretty cool. The boys were tired, so Sheila & Colin left for CBR and Chris went to bed. I finished the report, did the online stuff, and finished my marshmallow thing (which was starting to get a little extra chewy by now). Even with the light on, Chris was asleep in a matter of minutes.

As for compliance with the original plan - that’s pretty much exactly how the day worked out.

Total miles walked: 8.74

DAY 5 - SUNDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

Linda - childhood friend (42) - for days 3-10

Tom - friend for about 12 years, he’s got my job in another city, new DVC member (50)

Leanne - Tom’s wife, Disney nut, (perpetually 39)

Bob - friend recently moved to Orlando, used to be my boss (51)

PLAN: Check in OKW, some park - maybe Epcot??, might be joined by Tom/Leanne for the day, see aol/DVC friends at Olivia’s around 5:30, maybe Osbourne Lights or Illuminations

ACTUAL: At last aol had their flash sessions working again last night, so I didn’t spend quite so much time online. However, I did see Darla had posted day 3 of her report - along with lots of great pictures, so it was close to 2am before I went to bed. I was up at 6, Chris got up around 6:45. I had my cappuccino and part of my MK banana bread. After showering Chris went to the food court & got a breakfast which he brought back to the room to eat. He got 2 of the breakfast sandwiches (1 bacon egg & cheese $2.99, 1 egg & cheese $2.59, 1 choc milk $.99) - and had better not be hungry for lunch for several hours after eating all that! I called Linda to see if she wanted him to bring her anything, but she didn’t need anything. She mentioned she’d signed up for the DVC tour (I think for later today) and had a story to tell me later.

There was no bill hanging on my door, so I called the front desk to make sure they had me down for express checkout. They did not! Duh, I gave a credit card specifically for express checkout, but I guess the girl didn’t set it up. They let me check out over the phone though, so that worked out well. Sheila & Colin arrived about 8 and we all drove over to OKW. Tom & Leanne beeped me to say they were on 192 and would be there soon. OKW check in went quickly, and of course the unit was not ready. My beeper went off again - this time from Bob. I went to a pay phone to call him & he was wondering where we were. I asked him where HE was, and he said Dixie Landings! LOL - I suggested he come to OKW, and he did. He arrived shortly after Tom & Leanne did - and we were all ready to wait for the Epcot bus by 8:30.

We arrived Epcot around 9, and headed directly to Test Track. There was only a 10 minute wait so we got in the regular line so we could ride together. It was the first time for everybody except me, Chris, Sheila & Colin. Everyone loved it - we rode the outside part with our arms up in the air! Bob insisted it was just like riding with me when I’m driving . Next we stopped in the Land so most of the group could get something for breakfast. Bob didn’t want to ride the boat, so the rest of us rode Living With the Land. When we came back to get him he asked where was the ride that showed them growing things in the air, etc. LOL - I told him that’s what we just got off of, and he was sorry he missed it. We saw the Circle of Life movie, which everyone enjoyed. Next stop was Innoventions to send an email postcard to our friend Larry in Scotland. Wish you were with us, Larry!

We rode the Journey Into Your Imagination ride - with mixed reviews. Some liked it better than the old ride, but most of us disagreed. The boys went to Ice Station Cool for a drink, while the older folks hit the restroom. After picking up the boys we headed to World Showcase. First stop was Norway to ride the Maelstrom. We were all crowded into the first 2 rows - with Bob enjoying riding with 3 women. Sheila rode with all the other males - Tom & the 2 teens. The front of the boat was so heavy that Linda got quite a bit of splash down the hill since she was on the outside. Sheila & I gave the boys money for lunch and let them go off to Innoventions for a few hours.

The adults walked all the way around the world, stopping in Morocco to try the new Tangierine Cafe for lunch. Bob & I enjoyed it, Linda got a kids’ meal, Sheila & Tom were kind of quiet, and Leanne absolutely hated it. We all got the same thing - chicken sandwiches. I might try this place again, but wouldn’t choose it over Canada or France. The regular restaurant in Morrocco is much better than the cafe. Leanne did some shopping in the United Kingdom, buying a couple of books on Scotland. Off Kilter had just begun performing when we got to Canada, so we stopped to watch their show - very good! They did a lot of jumping & twirling to show off what they had under their kilts. Before heading back to Future World we stopped so Bob could buy the Millennium CD for his wife Donna.

We were going to see if the fastpass time for Test Track would work into our plans, but I made the mistake of leading the group through Mouse Gears, where the other women got distracted. After waiting for Linda to make her purchases we went back to Test Track. The fastpass time started at 5:35, which was way too late for our plans, so we just headed to Ellen’s Energy Adventure. We enjoyed the show, and afterwards stopped for water for Bob and a Mickey ice cream bar for Linda. I called OKW - my room was not ready yet, but Tom & Leanne’s studio was. They headed back to get settled, and Bob decided to ride back with them to pick up his car.

Sheila & I got the boys out of Innoventions and rode Spaceship Earth before heading to the bus stop. The OKW pulled in just as we got there, and the others were still waiting there! They’d just missed the 3pm bus, so rode with us on the 3:30. Tom & Leanne went to move into their room - in building 23. Mine still wasn’t ready, so we sat in the lobby to wait. They were giving out big sugar cookies that you could decorate with frosting and colored sugars. The cookies tasted pretty good, too. Finally just after 4 our room was ready, and we drove over to move in.

We’re in building #33. I got all my requests - top floor, non smoking, water view. We overlook a pond area and one of the greens on the golf course. It’s a 2 bedroom unit, and everything looks very good. I threw a couple small loads of laundry in, since I’d been here since Wednesday. It didn’t take long to get unpacked, since we put the boys to work helping out. Chris decorated the Christmas tree, which we put on the little bar/shelf area in the dining room.

I was planning to meet other DVC/aol friends in Olivia’s at 5:30, but lost track of time while working on the trip report. About 5:45 Sheila asked me what time I was meeting my friends, and I realized I was late! I pretty much ran around like a maniac and then drove up to Olivias so I’d have a little bit of time to visit with my friends before we were meeting up with Tom & Leanne to return to Epcot at 6pm. The DVC/aol group was the only large party in the restaurant, so they were easy to spot! They had all the adults at one end of the table and the kids at the other, which made visiting really easy. Present were Darla (iluvdvc), Dottie (ilovebskts) & Joe, Tina (Tfarmer) & Sam, SweetP & Mark, and all their kids. SweetP was the only online friend I hadn’t already met previously, and it was an unexpected surprise! Everyone’s so nice - meeting them all is a great bonus of my DVC membership. Darla took a picture of the group - so I imagine it’s on her webpage now. Tom & Leanne came in, so I introduced them to everyone as our newest DVC members! By now the rest of my group had arrived, so I had to leave.

We drove to Boardwalk and valet parked there. It was dinner time, and although none of us were very hungry most needed to eat something. We ate out on the boardwalk - nachos for Chris ($4.00), brownie for Leanne, cinnammin yummy for Tom, ham/turkey sandwich for Colin, foot long hot dog platter shared by Linda/Sheila, and I got a brownie ($2.50) that was shared with Chris. Linda had the bright idea of renting a surrey bike, so the boys & Sheila went to do that. After the 2nd loop they stopped and were begging to switch adults - so Tom & I replaced Linda/Sheila. We made it up all the hills (the others had to be pushed), and it was a pretty wild ride with me as the driver. At one point Tom’s knee was sticking out a little and I cut a corner so close he thought he was going to hit the tree with his knee! There was time for one more lap, so the boys gave Leanne a ride around.

Now Linda’s legs were killing her, lol! The poor girl kept falling behind, without us realizing it. When we watched the video tape she shot we saw many great shots of our backs as we were walking on ahead, leaving her, lol! We entered Epcot at the International Gateway, and were heading towards Millennium Village (ugh) when we got split up between a restroom break and an Off Kilter show. I ended up wasting time trying to find the missing parts of the group, and most of us missed the shuttle launch. I know Sheila saw it, and probably Colin. By the time we all regrouped it was time to start thinking about staking out our spot for Illuminations. We’d decided to watch it from the bridge between United Kingdom & France. Once there we realized we hadn’t seen the Lights of Winter thing, so we walked (ok, Linda hobbled) back to the entrance to Future World to see that & take some pictures/video. I’ve always thought that was one of the prettiest holiday things. Once done, we went back to our bridge, which was now considerably more crowded but luckily got enough space for all of us at the railing. In about 45 minutes Illuminations 2000 started, and we all enjoyed it. It was the first time I’d seen it. I prefer the Comedy Warehouse, but wanted to see it with my friends. I don’t think I’ll bother to see it again though.

We exited out the International Gateway, stopped at BW for Leanne to buy her Mickey bellhop beanie (they bought in with 150 BW points and added 50 OKW at the same time) and then went to wait for the valet to bring up the van. We were back at OKW shortly after 10pm. Linda the party animal was dragging - absolutely pooped out. Sheila was pretty tired also. Chris was out like a light within 10 minutes, and I’m not sure about Colin. I’m the lone survivor...finishing up the report and preparing to go online for a couple hours.

Today was a great day - especially since Bob came in to join us and Tom/Leanne toured with us. Solo trips are great, but sometimes sharing the day in WDW with a group of friends you don’t see very often is even better! How’d we do compared to the original plan??? It looks like a match!

Total miles walked: 11.06 (now that’s more like it, but poor Linda)

DAY 6 - MONDAY, DECEMBER 20, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

Linda - childhood friend (42) - for days 3-10

Tom - friend for about 12 years, he’s got my job in another city, new DVC member (50)

Leanne - Tom’s wife, Disney nut, (perpetually 39)

PLAN: Nothing specific - some park, maybe Osbourne or Illuminations

ACTUAL: I had trouble with aol again last night. When I’d try to do a flash session it would freeze up & I’d have to reboot to shut it all down and then log back on. It’s so aggravating dealing with them lately! I spent over an hour on e-mail but didn’t want to spend the time it would take to read the message boards online. After getting frustrated with aol I just logged off for the last time (using the trusted alt-ctrl-del sequence) and it was lights out at 12:45.

One thing I notice every time I stay in a 1 or 2br unit at OKW - there must be dozens of light switches in the place! Even for the master bathroom there are so many I spend most of the trip turning them on & off, trying to find the one that controls the light I want! By the time the trip is finished I’ve almost figured out how to work a couple of the lights. ;-) I didn’t sleep as well, since Chris was in the room with me. At one point I crawled over to the other side of the bed and hit him with a pillow to tell him to stop making noise, lol (he’s on the air mattress on the floor). I’ll be glad when we get to Hilton Head and I’ve got my bedroom to myself again. I got up just after 6, showered and had some cappuccino with the last of the banana bread. The rest of the group had either cereal or crumb cake.

We left the villa by 8:30 and drove to MGM. At rope drop Sheila, Linda & Colin headed for Rock N Roller Coaster, and Chris & I waited for them in the shop. Linda ended up changing her mind about riding, lol. She saw some of the cars get shot out of the station and thought she’d better not ride. Sheila & Colin loved it - in the picture Sheila’s hair was standing straight up! We stopped at the DVC booth for Linda to cancel her appointment for a 10:30 tour today - she might reschedule later in the trip if she’s got time. I can’t imagine anyone wanting to sit in a sales office at 10:30 in the morning - that’s prime park time. There are a lot of attractions in MGM she’d like to see, many of which the rest of us aren’t interested in, so we’ll see how it goes.

The boys went ahead to Star Tours while the rest of us saw the Drew Carey show and then went to Star Tours. The boys ended up riding twice, and had to be moved when their simulator died. Next stop was going to be Muppetvision 3D but we saw the Toy Story 2 characters were outside Pizza Planet and Linda needed to see them all while I video taped her. She doesn’t have a camcorder, so I’d told her before the trip to bring a blank vcr tape and I’d let her use the camcorder and just transfer those tapes to her vcr tape each day using the vcr in our villa. It’s worked out well for her, but I realize now that I’m not able to do any taping for myself during the day.

We saw Muppetvision 3D, and then Linda & Colin went to the 11:15 Indiana Jones show. Chris went to the candy store & bought fudge to eat while wandering around; Sheila & I split a pretzel and walked around. A cm at the pretzel cart loved my DVC member pin - and knew better than to suggest any trade, lol! We found a sunny bench to sit on while waiting for Indy to finish. At this point the group decided to split up. Chris & I took the boat to Stormalong Bay. We had hunky Captain Ron as our driver. His microphone voice is so sexy - too bad he’s not chatty like some of the drivers. Sheila & Colin went to DisneyQuest to buy him a ticket for tomorrow ($22.90 after DVC discount), and Linda stayed in the park to see the Beauty & the Beast show. After buying the DQ ticket Sheila dropped Colin off at OKW so he could play video games in the room. He didn’t want to go swimming, and when Chris heard Colin was going back to the resort and decided he didn’t want to swim either I told him he didn’t have a choice. He’s much better off out in the fresh air getting some exercise! He can play video games at home, within reason. Sheila came over to Stormalong Bay after dropping him off.

Chris rented an innertube and floated around the lazy river. I laid on a lounge chair & relaxed until Sheila arrived, and then chatted with her. Stormalong Bay wasn’t crowded at all, and the weather was perfect. About 1:30 Linda beeped - she was on her way over from MGM. We waited for her, and after a little while returned to OKW to transfer what she’d recorded onto her vcr tape and we also did a load of laundry. About 4:40 we walked towards the main building, where we were supposed to meet Tom & Leanne at 5. Along the way we ran into Tom outside building 23, waited for Leanne to come out and then walked up together. Linda had to pick up a sweatshirt she’d bought in Epcot yesterday and had delivered to OKW, and then we waited for an MGM bus.

At the bus stop we had 3 different parties where people were smoking. It was disgusting, and hard to get away from...I felt badly for the toddler sitting on a bench with both of his parents puffing away. Thank goodness the bus finally came, and we were on our way. The bus was standing room only, but it’s a short ride. After entering the park we checked the menu at Commissary and Backlot, and the consensus was to eat at Backlot. Personally I consider the Commissary to be much better, but I wasn’t planning to eat and we had some people in the mood for chicken strips or burgers. I got Chris a chicken strip meal & ate one of his chicken strips. Because we had to wait for the fries to finish cooking the cm asked if I would like a free brownie or piece of cheesecake. It was totally unnecessary, but very nice of her. Leanne had been eyeing the brownie, so I took that figuring I’d share it with her. The chicken strip meal was $6.63 including tax. I gave 1/3 of the brownie to Leanne, then took a couple of bites of mine and gave the rest to Chris - I wasn’t impressed at all. I asked her how she liked it, and she really didn’t either.

At 6:20 we walked over to the Osbourne Lights display and got our snowflake glasses. These glasses aren’t as obnoxious as the angel ones from last year. With those it turned everything into angels, which made it hard to look at the lights because it was too distracting. With the snowflakes only the stuff close to you had the illusion added - the rest of what you saw was just regular lights so it was much easier on the eyes. I taped a bunch of it, and hope it turned out well. Linda had never seen anything quite like this, and really enjoyed it.

After going through the lights we split up - Tom and Leanne returned to the Magic Kingdom, and the rest of us took the bus back to OKW. To save time we got off at Peninsular Road and walked over to Conch Flats to wait for the Trumbo Ferry to Downtown Disney Marketplace. We were the first ones there, but by the time the boat came there was a big crowd. The driver took the first 10 of us and we were off on a chilly ride to the Marketplace! The first stop was the Christmas store, where Linda bought a bunch of ornaments and some figurines from the Rudolph tv show. She didn’t want to hold us up, so eventually the rest of us went on ahead and she found us later in World of Disney. She’d decided to stay and look around for a while, so we’d go back to OKW without her. Chris bought 3 pins for himself (to wear, not trade) and did his Christmas shopping after I left the store. Sheila, Colin & I got the OKW bus from the Marketplace and when it stopped at Pleasure Island Chris got on! He’d made his purchases and walked to that bus stop before we got there on the bus. After we got back to the room Sheila helped him package up whatever he’d bought (we don’t have wrapping paper), took a shower & played video games with Colin for a short while. I finished up the report, did the online stuff, and hopefully will be in bed by midnight.

Since our “plan” didn’t call for anything specific other than Osbourne Lights and we did that - I guess we followed our plan!

Total miles walked: 7.2

DAY 7 - TUESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

Linda - childhood friend (42) - for days 3-10

Tom - friend for about 12 years, he’s got my job in another city, new DVC member (50)

Leanne - Tom’s wife, Disney nut, (perpetually 39)

Bob - friend recently moved to Orlando, used to be my boss (51)

Donna - Bob’s wife (40’s)

PLAN: Girls’ Night Out (w/Linda, Sheila & Darla) at Comedy Warehouse. First time there for Darla. There might be a dinner with Bob/Donna & Tom/Leanne - and if it’s early enough I’ll join them before the Comedy Warehouse.

ACTUAL: Today’s the day Darla and I have been talking about for months - she’s finally going to get to go to Comedy Warehouse. She’s so excited to see Layden, I hope she’s not disappointed when she sees he’s just a regular person (ok, maybe funnier & more talented than most), lol! The weather people are calling for some rain tonight...sure hope that doesn’t mess things up for her big night out.

Linda got in about 11 last night, and had bought me a mousepad in the Ghiradelli store. In the move from Dixie Landings to OKW I somehow lost the one I had with the laptop (it’s faster for me to use a mini mouse rather than the touchpad thingy). Since it featured a Universal character (Taz) it probably vanished into thin air - vaporized by pixie dust or something. The Ghiradelli one is cute, with a “bite” taken out of one corner .

I was up at 6, and woke Linda up at 7:45 since we were due to leave at 8:30. I wasn’t sure she’d make it in time, but she did! She’s really starting to drag, though - but I did warn her before she arrived. The boys were spending the day and night at DisneyQuest, so they got up just as we left. DQ doesn’t open until 10:30, so they’ve got plenty of time for breakfast and to get over there. We headed to the bus stop, and found that same awful smoking family from last night - with their toddler trapped between their 2 cigarettes. It was so bad I stood around the corner from the bus stop until they got on their bus...and then it still stunk because their lit cigarettes were still smoking away in the ashtray!

We got on the bus to Magic Kingdom, arriving shortly after 9. Sheila wanted to ride Splash Mountain, so we decided to head there first. However, we stopped for a bit of a tantrum/disagreement first. Sheila & I were in a hurry to get over there, to beat the line as much as possible. Linda wanted to take her time and browse to look at everything, getting there whenever she happened to get there. Here’s where the differences in touring styles became a source for conflict within the group! It is tough to tour with someone who is of a different style. In Linda’s eyes we were “racing through the parks at 60 mph running from 1 ride to another and then racing out of the park after an hour”. While that was of course an exaggeration to some degree, to be fair I have to admit that we tend to walk quickly (in WDW and out of WDW), don’t care about stopping to see characters, and since we know how the lines can get we try to see the stuff we like before the lines get long. Linda suggested she just go off on her own, but we agreed to try a compromise - we’d walk more slowly but still not dawdle too much for the first hour or so, and then if we still needed to we’d split up so Linda could just wander around. You all know from my trip reports that I enjoy walking around WDW - the more walking the better. Linda is not used to walking, and to her 3 miles is a big deal. To me 10 miles is just getting started. Sheila is used to it - as she told Linda, she learned along time ago that she needed to either keep up or be left behind, lol! So, she keeps up and usually loses a few pounds on a WDW trip and has no problem keeping up.

Anyway, we got over our little spat with no lasting hard feelings (I hope), and meandered towards Splash Mountains. We stopped for Linda to film along Main Street, and then some ducklings in Frontierland. Sheila went on ahead since she was riding Splash & Linda & I would be riding Big Thunder. There was no real line to speak of at Big Thunder - and we walked right onto the last seat (my favorite). I usually ride alone, and with the bar pulled all the way down I still have a few inches between it & me. This time I rode with Linda, and the bar was quite a bit higher up - but having the 2nd person in the car kept me in my corner so I didn’t go flying out of there! It was a fun ride - one of my favorites. We walked back to meet Sheila and got to the bridge just as her log was coming down the big flume.

Next we rode Peter Pan with a 5 minute wait. We then headed to the Pooh ride, which Linda (a big Pooh fan) had never ridden. The sign said 30 minutes, but it really was only 10. Linda taped a bunch of it. We went into Tomorrowland to check on Space Mountain, but the standby time was 40 minutes and the line was extended far outside. We got our fastpasses and went to a snack place for them to get hot chocolate and a muffin. The fastpass time started in about 50 minutes - so it certainly made sense to spend 50 minutes doing other things rather than spending 40 minutes standing in a line. We ended up riding the Tomorrowland Transit Authority twice, and when we got off it was time for Space Mountain. It was so cool to walk past that huge long line. One person asked Linda how come she got to skip the line, and Linda replied that she was smart enought to get a fastpass. We had maybe a 1 minute wait (after the walk) before we boarded. We were in the front car - me, then Linda, then Sheila. It was Linda’s first time, but she figured if I could handle it then it couldn’t be bad. She loved the ride - and screeched all the way through it!

Our last stop was Haunted Mansion, which we got onto with about a 5 minute wait. The park was VERY crowded by now (11:30), and it was very unusual for me to still be in the MK at that late hour. We grabbed lunch at Cosmic Rays. Sheila & I shared the chicken caesar salad ($5.99) while Linda got the Greek salad w/chicken ($5.99). We stopped at the Main Street Bake Shop on the way out and got 3 pieces of banana nut bread. Those brownies in there look delicious, and they had some German chocolate cake that looked incredible too!

We left the MK and took the boat to Wilderness Lodge so Linda could tape the decorations there. I talked to the DVC guy in the lobby for a little while. The new building is due to open by 1/1/01, and is coming along nicely. I wasn’t impressed with the red shingle roof. The shingle just looked cheap to me - I hope they cover it with a material like the existing building. It turns out the DVC guy is going to Hilton Head for a couple nights next week, so I told him to say hi if he sees us there.

We took the bus to MGM and transferred to the OKW bus. Linda was talking about needing a jacuzzi for her aching legs, so I showed her the Turtle Pond pool area. She wanted to drink wine in the jacuzzi though, but I told her glass was not allowed there, so she came back to the unit and laid on the couch. I transferred the camcorder tapes onto her vcr tape, and then worked on the trip report. Linda decided to do her jacuzzi in the tub in my bathroom, and Sheila went to take a nap in her bedroom. I’m wide awake, don’t understand why people are so tired, lol! I go to bed long after everyone else, and am always the first one up - I figure if I need sleep I can get some at Hilton Head since there’s no Comedy Warehouse up there!

Tonight we’re meeting friends for dinner at 5 at Planet Hollywood. With our DVC card we should get seated immediately, and will get a 10% discount. Our party will be the 3 of us, Tom, Leanne, Bob & his wife Donna, Darla (iluvdvc) and the boys will take a break from DisneyQuest to eat with us - 10 people all together. First Sheila & Linda stopped at Dixie Landings, since Linda’s piece of paper from the Massachusetts registry of motor vehicles had been delivered via Federal Express over there this morning. Without it, she can’t buy a pass to Pleasure Island tonight. I drove to PI in my own car, in case I wanted to return later than the others. On the way out of OKW I saw Tom & Leanne walking to their bus stop so I picked them up and took them with me.

By shortly after 5 we were all gathered outside Planet Hollywood. We were seated immediately, up on the 2nd floor, all at 1 table. I’d brought Bob a couple of pictures from his 50th birthday last year - which we celebrated at 50’s Prime Time Cafe during my 40th birthday trip. At one point Darla asked Bob if he missed working with me (or something like that) and he replied that he did, but actually he’s happy now to have me as a best friend - without the boss thing. That was so sweet - but he did remind me to just say the word when I want to move to Orlando, and spent a little time trying to sell me on the idea. Right now my place is in Ft Myers, though.

Tom & Leanne’s 31st anniversary was today, so we celebrated that at dinner. Chris & I shared the LA Lasagna, which we’ve had before & it was excellent as usual ($11.95). 5 of the 10 people ordered the Penne Pasta with Broccoli, which judging from how little was left in the bowls I’d say it was also excellent! I showed my DVC card and we got 20% discount on the check. Dinner (including 2 drinks, some soft drinks, and a couple of smoothies) for 10 people was $143 after discount and including the automatic 15% gratuity (due to party size), which was not bad at all.

We left Planet Hollywood after 6:30 and one of their employees took pictures of our group with some of the cameras. Then, Linda & Sheila went to wander around the West Side, Tom/Leanne and Bob/Donna walked to the Marketplace to shop, and Darla & I went to the Comedy Warehouse. At last she was going to see one of the comedy shows I always go to, and she especially was interested in seeing Layden because she’s read his name in my reports. As luck would have it, he opened the first show. Our waitress was one of the people I know, so we chatted briefly before the show started. One of the skits was the “Fill in the Blank” where they take 2 audience volunteers up on stage, and the actors pause in what they’re saying to have the volunteer fill in the blank. Steve & Krista were the 2 actors, and Steve picked me as a volunteer. Darla taped it, but I haven’t watched it yet. Overall the show was ok...the cast seemed to be struggling a bit and Layden just wasn’t “on” like he can be. It wasn’t bad or anything, just not anywhere near as good as they can be.

When the show ended we waited for the other guests to head out, and a man came over to me to ask if I was WDW1972. I said yes, and asked who he was - it turned out to be Robert, a DVC member from the dvctalk onelist that we both subscribe to. We’d never chatted or anything, but he’d sent me an e-mail a couple days ago, and I’d replied. He & his wife are in a building close to me. When I went up on stage and was introduced as Sue from Ft Myers, and he noticed my DVC member pin he thought it might be me. I introduced Darla, and we all talked for just a minute or 2. Layden came out from backstage finally - most of the other actors were already out & the guests were gone. He seemed kind of distracted, but said hi & posed for a picture. He was going to get the cast together for Darla’s picture, but Darla insisted she only wanted him & me. Krista offered to take the picture so Darla could get in it, but she refused that, too. She didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, but nobody ever asks about the rest of the cast, they only know Layden’s name, lol. Anyway, we thanked him & left.

We found Linda & Sheila in line for the 2nd show, but cm Tammy told me that Layden was only going to be working #3 & #5. We were hoping Darla would have a chance to see him doing better, so we decided to wait for show #3 & go to Adventurer’s Club in the meantime. Linda & Sheila had just come from Adventurer’s Club so they decided to stay for show #2 and then go home. On the way to the Adventurer’s Club I ran into the keyboard player from the Comedy Warehouse, Jim Roberts, and talked to him briefly. He’s starting to recognize me, and seems pretty nice.

As we entered the Adventurer’s Club the butler greeted us and kissed our hands. He said he was glad to see us, then winked at Darla and commented she was wearing a lot more clothes this time, lol! Downstairs everyone had just gone into the library, so we sat in the main salon and ran into Robert & his wife Cindy (from 20 minutes ago at the Comedy Whse). We had fun talking with them about DVC, pins, WDW trips, etc. He’s read my reports for a while, so he knows a lot about me. Both he & Cindy are really nice. Around 9pm they headed for the Jazz Club and Darla & I went back to Comedy Warehouse. Linda & Sheila saw us in line, so we invited them to stay for 1 last show.

We were seated next to the phone, but that one didn’t ring. I’ve never sat next to the phone before, in all my visits to the club. This show was funnier than the first one, but Layden was still not quite 100%. Jennifer was hysterical though, and everyone had some funny moments. I felt bad that Darla didn’t get as good of an experience that I’ve seen at the club, though.

We all decided to leave at this point. Between the 4 of us we had 3 cars, and were all back at OKW in no time. The boys are still at DisneyQuest and aren’t expected home until after it closes at midnight or 1am. It’ll be difficult getting them up for Magic Kingdom in the morning, but they can catch up on their sleep on the way to Hilton Head on Friday. Larry - Chris came with 989 points left from his last trip, and had added over 300 more as of dinner time. Not quite the millions he earned in the “spoof” trip report you wrote, but it’s better than nothing!

Today’s only real plan was to get Darla to Comedy Warehouse, and we did that. Darla got her picture, which is included in her trip report on her website. The address is http://members.aol.com/PtsQueen/Day6/Day6.html Just scroll all the way down, it’s near the bottom. Most of the time Layden’s not wearing glasses, so don’t let them throw you off.

Total miles walked: 5.86

DAY 8 - WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

Linda - childhood friend (42) - for days 3-10

PLAN: Nothing specific, except Comedy Warehouse for sure

ACTUAL: Last night the boys got in just after 12:45, having gotten their money’s worth at DisneyQuest for 13.5 hours! I had trouble with the aol flash sessions again - they just hung up at the retrieving unread messages part, and I had to reboot the machine twice. That’s so aggravating, and I hate getting a hotel bill full of local phone charges. I’m not sure what the solution is, besides just not bothering to go online until after the trip is finished. I gave up when Chris got home, and just went to bed.

Today we’re headed back to Magic Kingdom for the morning. I’d like to ride Space Mountain some more, now that I’m not scared of it, and I know Linda & the boys will want to do Buzz Lightyear. We left the villa around 8:30, and the MK bus came right away. Today we arrived at MK just before 9, and while Linda visited the ATM machine Sheila & I rinsed out her mug. There was a really nasty guest sitting in one of the rental emv’s who was screaming at a cast member, saying she was a resort guest and “do you want me to write a really nasty comment about you on a comment card?” I can’t imagine what the poor cm could have done to deserve such treatment, and a security officer was there telling the lady to keep her voice down.

We headed to Tomorrowland first, and the 3 of them did Buzz Lightyear while I went to Space Mountain. The line said 15 minutes, so I just got my fastpass for 45 minutes later and returned to wait for them at Buzz. I knew if I got in line then they’d end up having to wait for me to get back. Once they got off we walked back to Space Mountain. Colin got a fastpass, I got another one using Chris’ pass, and then Sheila, Colin & I got in the standby line (still 15 minutes) while Linda & Chris waited for us. This time we rode the right side, trying to get a less jerky ride for Sheila. The right side definitely felt less jerky than the left side. At this point Linda & Sheila decided to go ride Splash Mountain and Colin went with them to ride Big Thunder. I took Chris over to the Grand Prix Raceway (15 minute posted wait, but it was longer) and returned to use my 2 fastpasses at Space Mountain. I took the left side both times - I like that side better. Chris had returned by the time I finished the 2nd ride, so we rode the Tomorrowland Transit Authority. Every car was full, and Tomorrowland in general was very busy (10:15 am). The line for Buzz Lightyear was very long on both sides outside the attraction!

Next we walked to Toontown Fair to take the train, but first I stopped on the Barnstormer since there was no wait. We got on the train and rode around to the Frontierland station to meet the others by the Splash Mountain bridge. They’d done their rides, and Linda even did Hall of Presidents. We sat over by Sunshine Tree Terrace and got some citrus swirls. They were pretty good, but I’d like them better if the orange was sweeter.

Baloo came over to where we were sitting and sat down between Sheila & me. He took my spoon and pretended to eat some of the citrus swirl. Sheila asked Linda to take a picture, and went to hand her the camera but didn’t let go of the strap. CRASH - the camera landed on the table, the battery compartment opened and the battery went flying to the ground! Colin picked it up, put the battery back in, and handed the camera to Linda. People were gathering around, wanting their turn with Baloo. Colin didn’t quite let go of the strap either, so this time....CRASH - the camera went flying to the ground, cracking the case! We were hysterical at this point, and Baloo was looking at us and twirling one finger around the side of his forehead at us, saying we were crazy! Linda picked up the camera, and then didn’t know how to turn it on to take the picture! Finally, we somehow managed to get the picture taken and Baloo got out of there as fast as he could. Can’t blame the poor bear...I can only imagine what he was thinking, lol!

Sheila, Colin & I rode Pirates of the Caribbean while Chris & Linda did the treehouse. We then decided it was time to leave the park, but first Colin went back to get a turkey leg. Chris & I went on ahead to stop at the candy store and we agreed to meet at the bus stop. I bought us each one of the marshmallow things (4 marshmallows on a stick, dipped in chocolate, rolled in m&m pieces) plus we got a chocolate Mickey truffle ($3.17 total). This time the marshmallow things came up at $1.25 each - very strange. When Chris & I got to the bus stop the bus was waiting, so we got on & went back to OKW. The others arrived on the next bus.

We exchanged our Christmas gifts with Linda. She got Chris the Disney Trivia game, which will come in handy during the Hilton Head portion of the trip. I got her a Disney tee shirt with Mickey & Minnie embroidered on it, and a tree ornament from Cozumel. She got me a Warner Brothers shirt with Scooby Doo. However, her shirt might be too small, and my shirt is definitely way too huge! It’s tough buying for someone when you haven’t seen them in 5 years or so!

The boys decided to stay in the villa (I think they’re tired from their long day yesterday) - watching tv - for a while. Linda took the camcorder & went back to MK to tape the Christmas parade. Sheila relaxed at the villa, and I drove over to the Beach Club. I entered Epcot and headed to Canada to meet Nancy (cm friend from Pleasure Island). We try to meet on each of my trips, and I always enjoy spending time talking to her. I’m lucky my trips haven’t been spaced too far apart lately, but I don’t expect to be here every month in 2000.

While I was waiting (I was early) Papa Noel (Canada’s version of Santa) came out to tell a story about Christmas traditions in Canada. It was brief, but nice, and then he posed for pictures. Once Nancy arrived we went into Le Cellier - it was her first time there. We both had the cheddar cheese soup, which is absolutely wonderful. I also had a glass of wine, but she stuck with soda since she had to go to work soon. She got the berry cobbler for dessert, which was delicious. I didn’t think I’d like it, but it was great. It had strawberries, raspberries, rhubarb & apples in it, along with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone. Nancy brought me a bag of Christmas gifts, including some nice cranberry candles and some silly Disney stuff. There was even a package of 3 Mickey & Minnie pens for my trip report note taking, lol! It was very thoughtful of her, and lots of fun opening the little packages! She got her cm discount on the restaurant check, and I bought lunch. We looked at the pictures from my cruise, and sat around talking a while until it was time to leave. We walked back out of Epcot - she parked at BW and I was at Beach Club.

I drove back to OKW, and showed my gifts to Sheila. We’ll have to light the candles on Christmas day - the scent will go really well in Hilton Head, especially knowing it’s cool/cold outside. Linda came back from MK so I transferred the camcorder tape onto her vcr tape, and recharged the battery. The 4 of them left to go have an early dinner at Outback Steakhouse. Linda’d been wanting a steak & potato meal, but not at $26/entree, so Sheila had suggested Outback. Soup with Nancy at Le Cellier was much more my speed, so I was happy to skip the Outback.

Chris is completely exhausted, and might come back & go to bed after dinner. Linda might do Fantasmic, or possibly MSEP - not sure just yet. I wrote up the trip report and prepared to go to Pleasure Island. I’ve got 2 nights left, and want to spend them both at the Comedy Warehouse. The new guy Philip is supposed to be working both nights (the only 2 of my trip), Steve should be there (found out from Nancy he’s back for 2 weeks only), and of course Layden should be working. Having Steve back has been an unexpected bonus - I was really sorry to see him leave when he moved to Los Angeles earlier this year.

I left about 6 and drove over to Pleasure Island. Despite OKW being so close to PI, and our bus stop being the closest one, I no longer use Disney transportation to get home from PI most of the time. On that route the bus stops at the Hospitality House first, then Millers Road, then Peninsular, Southpoint, and finally Turtle Pond. I don’t want to be the 5th stop to get home, and don’t want to be standing around waiting for a bus when it’s cool/cold and I know I’ve got a trip report to finish and get posted! Instead, I drive my car since I don’t have more than 1 drink per night there, and then it’s a quick 5 minute drive home.

Since I was early, I walked from PI down to the Marketplace and browsed in the World of Disney. I ended up spotting a WDW 2000 tee shirt (embroidered 2000 WDW logo on the front) that came in size x-small and it was only $24 - which is almost a bargain by Disney standards. It came in white or gray, and I thought the white was prettier but I bought the gray because I have so many white shirts already. I also picked up a Mickey antenna topper for Linda since she’d admired mine. They didn’t have any the other night, but tonight there was a full tray of them. I thought about sending my purchase back to the resort, or possibly taking it to the car, but the cm put my shirt in one of the smallest merchandise bags - so I was able to just put it in the backpack with the camcorder tapes and batteries (I left the camcorder case at OKW). It was almost 7, so I returned to PI to get my wristband.

I ended up seeing the first 3 shows, and they were all better than the shows last night. For the first one I got seated in an empty seat down front on the floor - not my favorite spot because you have to look up at the actors. I met a nice man named Mike from Kissimmee who was also a Comedy Warehouse/Adventurer’s Club fan. We talked before the show, and he said he’d look for me at the Adventurer’s Club (but I never made it over there). For the 2nd show I was seated half way back, and unfortunately was next to an extremely LOUD young man who was traveling with a bunch of guys and a girls’ basketball team from Michigan. For the 3rd show I got front row of the raised seats (perfect) and this time met a man from Orlando who’d just come from seeing La Nouba again, and has done work for Disney. He used to do the Christmas window displays in the stores in Manhattan, and does the holiday decorations in my mall in Ft Myers, among others. It was interesting talking to him. He asked me what I did for a living, and said he wouldn’t have thought of me as a comptroller/finance type - he would have thought sales/promotion. I didn’t ask him why...maybe I don’t want to know . Anyway, all 3 shows were great. Steve wasn’t working tonight, and neither was Philip (contrary to what I’d been told a week ago). Layden worked shows #2 & #3, and was back to doing a good job. They did the “story” skit in show #3, where an actor has to die when he messes up, until only 1 actor is left standing, and Layden ended up being the first to die - usually he’s the sole survivor. He was going to be in show #5 also, but I didn’t want to stick around that late so I left after the 3rd show.

When I got home everyone was in the living room. They had a movie in the vcr, and Linda was unsuccessfully trying to sleep. She had the sleep sofa pulled out, she was in her pajamas, and looked like she was sleeping, but kept getting woken up. The boys had been hitting her with pillows, kicking her bed, generally pestering her. She finally gave up and went into the 2nd bedroom & took Colin’s bed. She wants to go to Animal Kingdom in the morning, and when Sheila & I said we’d leave at 7:30 then, Linda just groaned! She teased us that we’d go into the park, run 40 mph from one thing to another and then leave after 30 minutes.

Today’s plan was easy to follow - Comedy Warehouse is pretty much a sure thing when I’m up here. The trip offsite to Outback was unexpected - and not something I’d be interested in doing. I really see no reason to leave WDW property when I’m here.

Total miles walked: 8.16

DAY 9 - THURSDAY, DECEMBER 23, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

Linda - childhood friend (42) - for days 3-10

PLAN: Nothing specific, except Comedy Warehouse for sure

ACTUAL: Today it’s turning cooler, with the high only expected to be 67 degrees. The next few days will be even colder, with freeze warnings 1 night. In Hilton Head they’re forecasting temperatures in the 20’s that night, which I am NOT prepared for! I guess I’ll be the tourist wearing several layers of light sweatshirts/jackets, lol.

The boys planned to sleep in this morning, and the adults are headed to Animal Kingdom. I got up by 5:30 so I could finish reading the message boards. We were supposed to leave the room at 7:30, had made that quite clear the night before, but it was 8:00 before we left the parking lot. Sheila & I were sitting in the car waiting. The plan was for us to be at AK for opening, Sheila & I were only seeing a couple of attractions because we needed to get back to get ready for Hilton Head, and Linda would stay in AK to enjoy that park. Getting a late start was irritating, and created a problem later in the day Linda claims we were ready on time because we don’t have much to do to get ready. I insisted it was because we got up early enough to be ready on time! Can you tell tension is starting to run higher??

Once in the AK parking lot Sheila & I decided to just walk in to the park since we weren’t that far away and it would be very chilly riding that tram. When Linda found out what we were doing she went back and got on the waiting tram. We got to the entrance just before she did, and went to the ticket booth for her to buy a single day pass. She was hoping for a mkc discount, but of course there are none on single day passes. To my dismay, she complained to the cm on duty that for all the money she’d be spending in the park they ought to give her a discount on the ticket. Geesh! I was NOT happy with this - when I bring guests to WDW I sort of expect they’ll conduct themselves nicely. If there is a reason to lodge a valid complaint, then fine, but to complain about a company policy to a cm that has no involvement with setting that policy is not appropriate in my opinion.

We entered the park, and the plan was to ride Countdown to Extinction first since it should be deserted and then head to the Safari. Linda decided it was too early in the morning (about 8:30 by now) to get shook up. Grrrrr! We walked together to the Kilamanjaro Safari and all got fastpasses. We told Linda to go walk the Pangani Forest Trail, and Sheila & I went back to do Countdown to Extinction. There was no wait, so it was great. The final dinosaur still is not working/visible. After CtX we cut through a store and 2 of the cm’s saw me taking notes as I was walking and started goofing around with us. CM Troy & Howard took us to see a picture of Chester & Hester - who the fake gas station in Dinoland is named for.

We walked back to Harambe & met Linda, and we all rode the safari together. We had a great safari driver - Kris with a “K” - and he did a good job making the poacher story kind of fun. At this point Sheila & I were done, so we left after giving Linda instructions to have the camcorder back by 3:30. I’d need to transfer the tape onto her vcr tape & recharge the battery before I could use my camcorder this evening. I won’t be telling anyone that we can tape stuff for them on vacation anymore - it ended up that I lost big chunks of time preparing her vacation video each day and couldn’t go anywhere the 2nd half of the afternoon or I wouldn’t have had the camcorder available for me to use in the evening. From now on my toys are my toys - I’m old enough that I don’t have to share with anyone, lol!

Sheila & I returned to OKW and woke the boys up (at 10:20) - Colin was awake, but Chris was asleep. Sheila started her laundry, but goofed up and did her HH clothes first. She meant to do the FL clothes first since she needed to pack them & put them in my trunk before we left to meet DVC Linda (elfriar) for lunch! I ate one of my marshmallows (had the first one for a late dinner after returning from PI last night), and then had a small glass of wine. I finished packing up the stuff that was staying in Florida and started on the stuff going with us to Hilton Head.

After packing I straightened up the living room. The #1 rule I’d told Linda about - and tell every guest I bring - is NO stuff left in the living room. All suitcases, clothes, shoes, merchandise bags, etc will be stored in the closet and not be left out. I picked up all the clothes that were folded on the living room chair and stacked them on the closet shelf. The suitcase got put in the closet, the merchandise bags were put in there, and the sunglasses & jewelry I put on the island in the kitchen. I imagine I’ll hear something later, but it’s my villa. At home I’m more of a slob, but at a DVC resort I keep it picture perfect and expect the same from my guests. By the way - the only other rule is rule #2, which is: if you go out picking up guys DON’T bring them back here. So far nobody’s had a problem living with those 2 rules in exchange for a free WDW vacation!

The laundry was taking longer than expected, so Chris & I left to head to France. First I bought some overpriced gas at the Exxon station across from the Boardwalk, so on 12/31 I can just get in my car and go home without having to worry about stopping for gas in a busy tourist town. We parked at Beach Club and entered Epcot and to France. We’ve got a 12:10 priority seating at Chefs de France, and met DVC Linda and her daughter Elizabeth there. Sheila & Colin arrived shortly and we had a great lunch. The restaurant wasn’t busy at all, and was a nice respite from the chilling and damp weather outside. I just had the onion soup, which I love in this restaurant. Chris got the kids’ chicken & pasta meal despite being 13 years old. I didn’t order wine since I hate the French wines and had already had some back at OKW. Dvc Linda’s daughter was very nice, and very educated/intelligent.

After lunch the boys went off to Innoventions and the rest of us went to Beach Club to get our cars. We followed DVC Linda to her house, and left my car there for the week. We won’t need 2 cars while at Hilton Head and Linda was nice enough to let me leave my car at her house. Sheila & I drove back to OKW and our Linda was there packing up. She wanted to know why I moved her stuff, and I told her because it didn’t belong there and I wanted it out of sight. The boys came back a little later - Colin went to play video games and Chris played with a finger skateboard he’d bought at Space Mountain yesterday.

Now it’s raining again - a heavy mist, and it’s damp & raw outside. Frankly, with it about to turn cold for a couple of days I’m glad we’re leaving. Being in WDW while it’s cold is not a whole lot of fun. We’ve had great weather for most of the trip, so I’m not complaining. While the camcorder battery was recharging I watched my soap (Gen’l Hospital) and tried to decide what to do when it was finished. Tonight I’ll definitely go to Comedy Warehouse, since it’s my last night for a long time (possibly early March). I’m not sure I want to take the camcorder out in the rain, though, and without my car I’ll have to use Disney buses. We’re planning to start driving by 8am tomorrow, so I probably should make it a fairly early night tonight.

Sheila, Colin, Chris & I left the villa somewhere after 5, and drove to the West Side. Linda was headed to Epcot for the evening. We parked near DisneyQuest and went into their shop to see what pins they have. They had a fairly large selection, all related to DisneyQuest. There were pins for each of the major attractions, and several variations on the DQ logo. I’m not a pin collector/trader, and really don’t want to start that, so I didn’t buy any. I wish Pleasure Island would follow suit and have pins for each of the different clubs - maybe a couple of different styles for each one. Instead, all they’ve got is the single pin with the fairly boring PI logo (Chris bought it, and I was wearing it tonight).

We stopped in the Candy Cauldron, where Colin bought a bag of some type of candy. I let Chris get some jelly beans for the trip tomorrow, and got a Mickey chocolate truffle for myself (for later tonight). We had dinner at Wolfgang Puck Express, and let the kids decide what we’d eat. The moms just ate a little off their plate, which worked out well because the portions were VERY large. Both boys selected chicken strips; Colin with mashed potatoes and Chris with macaroni & cheese. The chicken was excellent, and the mac & cheese was absolutely fantastic! I couldn’t stop eating it - I was like another person, lol! We’ll have to get more of that another trip.

We walked to the Marketplace and went to Ghiradelli to get our free chocolate sample. It was the chocolate mint drop again, and this time we decided to buy some stuff. It’s cold enough it won’t melt in the car, so what the heck! We both spent at least $10 and got a free candy bar for our DVC discount (which Chris ate in about 2 minutes or less). By now it was 6:45, so as we passed back thru PI I got my wristband. Sheila & the boys continued on to the West Side and back to OKW to get a movie. I got in line for the first show at the Comedy Warehouse. They did the scripted piece (Layden played Clarence, the Disney guardian angel - both he & Mark do this role the best) and I finally taped it. I’ve seen this literally dozens of times, and frankly don’t care if I never see it again - but it is a good piece and people seeing it for the first time should really enjoy it. I just pretty much know it by heart now, and can even spot when they make minor little changes to the jokes. My refillable bottle was packed away in the trunk of my car, sitting at DVC Linda’s house - so no Bye Bye Blues for me tonight. Instead, since it was kind of cold and I wasn’t dressed for cold weather, I ordered hot chocolate. It was $2.25, which is a bargain for what I got. The large foam coffee cup had a pyramid of whipped cream at least 3 inches high sitting on top, with a cherry on top of that! It was more like a sundae than a cup of cocoa, lol! I ate a lot of the whipped cream, because there was so much of it there was no way I could drink the hot chocolate. The cocoa was thick, rich, & creamy - delicious but very filling!

I skipped the 2nd show (yes, after checking the schedule) and went to the Adventurer’s Club to see the holiday show that I’d heard was good. I was greeted by the butler again, and when the show started I went into the library to get a seat. Honestly, I was not impressed with the show, and would not go out of my way to see it again. It featured just about all the actors except Samantha Sterling, and it wasn’t terrible or anything - just nothing special. I left the club after this show, and wandered around a bit until it was time to line up for another comedy show. The PI Explosion Dancers were doing a couple of swing songs, so I watched them.

I saw show #3, and knew this would be my last show of the evening. This one was great, and included an improv musical about Santa needing to take a potty break during his toy delivery, and choosing a spot that was also being used as a drug shipment spot. Philip (ex-Adventurer’s Club) was in this show, the only time I’d seen him during this trip. After the show Layden explained where the character of Samovar came from. For people not reading this on RADP - Ronnie had posted a message after seeing Layden’s picture a couple days ago. She’d been to the Comedy Warehouse with a bunch of other RADP friends and one of the actors played a character named Samovar in the Schmeopardy skit. She thought with a black wig & black tape on his upper lip it was probably Layden. She was right - Samovar is a character he created based upon the name of some type of coffee urn. He just thought the name was funny, and used it. He uses it sometimes when he plays host of Up Your Alley at the club, but did remember using it in Schmeopardy recently. He even recited the line that Ronnie mentioned - “all of the women love me, and some of the men, too”. The Samovar character’s occupation was “chick chaser” in the skit Ronnie saw, and I’m sure his performance was way over the top - which is what would make it so funny. I told him Ronnie had described the scene so well I could picture it clearly and that it was “perfect Layden” - a character that nobody could portray as hysterically as him. Thanks for mentioning Samovar, Ronnie - I think he got a kick out of someone writing about it.

Before I left he reminded me to try the Big Bamboo Cafe (restaurant) on Hilton Head, and to let him know how I liked it. We had a couple of barely passable restaurant experiences last year, and a couple of places we walked out of without even wanting to be seated, so I’m looking forward to trying a place that comes with such a good recommendation. He says they’ve got a collection of Disney nametags from ex-cast members there, too.

I left Pleasure Island, getting to the bus stop at 10:20, and on the bus at 10:30. I got off at the Hospitality House to check my bill since I’m leaving in the morning. There was a full page of local calls (thanks, aol) and one long distance call from one of my guests (which they took care of). I walked back to the villa - despite the distance I really enjoy walking at OKW. I’m not sure what time I got in - I think about 11. Everyone was in bed, but Linda was awake so I talked to her a little while. She’d done the Candlelight Processional and said it was very nice. She also shopped and got fish & chips for dinner from the new counter service place in the United Kingdom.

I packed up a few little things, wrote up the rest of the trip report, and was still too full from the hot chocolate to eat my Mickey truffle or any more of the marshmallow thing. I guess it’ll all be coming to Hilton Head with me (unless I do chocolate marshmallow thingy for breakfast...probably wouldn’t be the first time). We plan to be on the road by 8am, but I probably won’t get done with the online stuff until 1-2am at the earliest. It’s a good thing Sheila’s driving, and I’m just responsible for being navigator. If I can get her to I-95 we’ll be all set!

My vague plan for the day was met - I did go to Comedy Warehouse.

Total miles walked: 8.17

DAY 10 - FRIDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

Linda - childhood friend (42) - for days 3-10

PLAN: Drive to HH, check in/get groceries, visit Pat (dsnydiva) & family in their villa

ACTUAL: Even after 9 nights at WDW it’s hard to leave. At least there’s consolation that we’re spending the next 7 nights in another Disney resort (Hilton Head) before going back to the “real world”. I ended up going to bed at 1:30 this morning, and got up at 5:30 to finish reading the messages from the boards. I knew I wouldn’t be going online this morning, since the express checkout was done. We loaded up the car, said goodbye to Linda, and were on the road by 7:40 am. The car was completely stuffed - trunk, back seat, and front passenger seat. The front passenger seat held me, the laptop, camcorder case, a tote bag, backpack, & a couple small items - and lunch for us later. It’s a good thing I’m small and don’t need much leg room!

We stopped in south Georgia at Sheila’s brother’s house, and they opened each other’s Christmas presents. We only spent about ½ hour, and were on the road again to HH. The entire drive was very easy, with no major construction and no real traffic. We arrived HH about 2:15 or so, and when I told the cm at the front desk my name she said somebody had recently asked for me (some man - maybe it was Sandy?). He didn’t leave any message, so hopefully he’ll look for me again. We checked in, but the room was not ready yet. Another cm came out with a couple of boxes of birthday gifts that different friends had shipped to us at the resort prior to our arrival. Between the paperwork from check in and the 2 big boxes, and the already overloaded car, we were quite a sight! The boys went to play pool in Big Murgie’s Den, so we left the papers & boxes with them and drove over to show Sheila the beach house. We started walking on the beach, but the breeze was a little cool so we turned around pretty quickly. There was a girl on the beach in shorts, barefeet & a shirt - and there we were all bundled up & putting on gloves!

We drove back to the main resort and walked around, stopping at the recreation window since the cm looked lonely (Dwayne). We told him we’d be wanting 4 bikes for the length of our stay. I’d called a few weeks ago & found out that the price was $50 for the first 2 bikes and $10 for each one after that, so we were expecting to pay $70. For whatever reason, Dwayne said he was going to give us 4 bikes but only charge us for the first 2 - $50 plus tax. We thanked him, and got our bikes, baskets, & locks. The boys can come back later to pick out their bikes. We’re staying the first 2 nights on a cash rate of $109/night through CRO, and it came with a $25 resort credit, which we applied to the cost of the bikes. With tax and after credit, each family only paid $14 for a pair of bikes for 7 nights - an excellent value! Sheila is paying for these 2 nights, then we go back to using my points for the next 5.

We rode back to Live Oak Lodge, locked up the bikes and went inside to check on the room (3pm). This time it was ready, so we got the boys and went to unload the car. It took 2 luggage carts stacked pretty high to get everything loaded up. Sheila & I pulled the carts while the boys rode our bikes over to building #22. We’re on the top floor, non smoking 2br villa, marsh/water view - just what I’d requested. We’re next to the building we were in last year, and next to the pool/shop/community hall. I’m very happy with the location. After bringing in all of our stuff we let the boys go get their bikes.

The villa is nice, but very different from OKW. The layout is the same, but it’s scaled down in size, and the colors are very dark (kelly green, rust) The kitchen isn’t nearly as pretty or as large as OKW, and the master bedroom is quite a bit smaller. The 2nd bedroom is larger than okw though. There are some cute touches - Mickey & Minnie have carved their initials on a bench in the hall, the resort mascot Shadow’s pawprints are in the tile in the entry way, and everything is very cozy. The carpet is worn, and Dwayne was telling us they’re in the process of replacing the carpet in the units. The master bath is nice, but not as large as in okw. The washer/dryer is a stacking unit like BW rather than a full size side-by-side like in OKW.

We didn’t bother to unpack just yet. Sheila & I made up a grocery list and headed to the Piggly Wiggly just down the road. We’re not planning to eat out tonight or tomorrow (due to Christmas crowds), but after that should only be doing breakfast at home. The boys didn’t want to come with us, so we left them riding their bikes around the resort. On the way Sheila ended up driving the wrong way down a one-way street, but hoped nobody would come the other way (it wasn’t intentional), so of course another car ended up headed towards us! We were laughing pretty hard - they probably thought we were nuts.

We set up the Christmas tree, and put out the gifts. The boys & Sheila put the lights out on the porch, wrapping 300 lights around the railing. Pat (Dsnydiva) called, and we chatted a bit. We’ll stop by to meet her later. The boys went to play pool, and the moms sat & looked at menus from the restaurants here. It took all of about 5 minutes to find enough restaurants to fill this trip. We want to repeat just a few favorites from last year, and have a couple new places lined up. We decided to head over to Big Murgie’s Den to watch the arrival of Santa Claus at 6:30. I was trying to keep an eye out for Pat, but I had no idea what she looks like. The 4 of us played pool - one family against the other family - I think we played about 4-5 games. Finally this lady came in, and looked right at me & came over to say hi - it was Pat. She had no trouble recognizing me - maybe from an Epcot postcard or something. She’d brought her younger daughter to see Santa, and that helped break with ice with the other kids in the room who were hesitant to be the first one to sit on Santa’s lap. We talked for a little while, then Pat had to get back to her villa because her guests had just arrived. She invited us to stop by later, and it turns out she’s directly across from us, in building 23. I took a break from playing pool to use the restroom, and was surprised to walk in and see a urinal in the ladies’ room. I leaned back to check the sign on the door, and sure enough I was in the wrong place! Nobody was in there, so no harm done ;-)

Santa finished with the kids and then left. Eventually a couple came in and sat near the fireplace. I thought perhaps they were waiting to play pool, but they were just sitting. They overheard part of our conversation, realized I was named Sue, heard Chris’ name, and put it together who I probably was. They came over to talk to us, and it turns out they’re John & Michelle from the boards (I’m sorry I forgot the exact screen name - something similar to “stormkt”). They’re both very nice people, and I’m glad they stopped to talk to me. Meeting people at WDW or at a DVC resort is great - it kind of generates a feeling of being connected to the place somehow - like we’re not just a bunch of anonymous guests - we’re friends meeting for the first time.

When we finished playing pool Sheila & I headed to Pat’s villa and met her friends. We sat around talking for a while, and the boys stopped by briefly. The kids were watching some holiday movie. Eventually we needed to get home to get dinner for the boys, so we wished everyone a merry Christmas and walked across the way to our building. The boys came home before we did and were in the process of heating up a frozen pizza. Sheila had some chips & salsa and then a bowl of cereal. I wasn’t hungry then, but later had some crackers & cheese and a glass of wine while working on this report. The boys played the Disney Trivia game, and Sheila went to watch tv in her bedroom & unpack. Hopefully I’ll be in bed by midnight, after posting the report and downloading stuff, and starting tomorrow I won’t have to get up so early in the morning! I was exhausted on the trip up here, so hopefully I can get caught up from 9 nights of very limited sleep.

It’s supposed to be COLD here tomorrow - only in the mid 20’s in the morning, and 40’s for the high. I didn’t bring clothes for that kind of weather, so I expect I’ll be inside most of the day! At least it’s not raining like it was here last Christmas eve!

The day went according to the plan. I didn’t bother with the pedometer, and likely won’t use it at all the rest of the trip. We’ll do more bike riding than walking up here, which does not register on the pedometer. Tomorrow is Christmas day - our 2nd at Hilton Head.

DAY 11 - SATURDAY, DECEMBER 25, 1999: Merry Christmas!

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

PLAN: Open gifts, call family, eat in villa, ride bikes .

ACTUAL: I slept in this morning - until 8:30!!! That is so late for me - I felt like I’d wasted ½ the morning, but I really needed the sleep. Last night I downloaded the messages but didn’t read many of them, and turned in by midnight. I also finished my last marshmallow thing - wish I could get another one, but I’ll have to wait for another trip.

Everyone was already up and dressed, so I showered quickly & then came out so we could open our gifts. There is no housekeeping service today due to it being Christmas, but a person did stop by to see if we needed any towels, soap, etc. We told her we were fine, since we’d just arrived the day before. It was FREEZING outside - I think they said 26. To make things worse there was a breeze, too! At least the sun was shining, but even still it’s not expected to get above the low 40’s today. I think it’s cold when it gets below 70, so this is tough to take. Unfortunately the weather person last night was saying we’re expecting colder than normal temps all week.

We played some Christmas cd’s while we opened our gifts - and everyone was happy with everything we got. Of course most of my stuff was Disney related, and so was some of the stuff the others got (mainly the stuff I’d given them, lol). Included in my Disney stuff was a really nice pair of Mickey/Minnie bookends, a shirt, the Millennium screensaver/wall paper, Epcot pin, Mickey mouse pad, a separate Mickey computer mouse with another mousepad and a WDW photo album. The boys both got a bunch of long sleeve shirts, which they’ll certainly need up here.

I baked one of those stir-n-bake coffee cakes (just add water), and it wasn’t bad. We sat around looking at Chris’ new Guinness World Records 2000 book, and I called to sign up for the activities at the resort that were of interest to us. Our view from our villa is gorgeous! The trees have few enough leaves that they don’t obstruct the view of the water & marsh. The boys went to Big Murgie’s to play pool while the mom’s waited for the laundry to finish up (although they’re stack units they appear to be full size).

Sheila & I decided to walk around the resort, after bundling up. I wore a long sleeve shirt, my big WDW cardigan sweater, and then a jacket over that - with the only pair of warm gloves I own. Once outside I realize that my sneakers are made of a lot of mesh type material to keep your feet cool - I could feel the wind whipping through them, making them a poor choice for this trip, lol! They’re the only shoes I have with me, though. We went to the store (Broad Creek Mercantile), but didn’t see anything I had to have. The recreation guy (Dwayne) from yesterday recognized us & called me by name when he came in. The pier looked nice, but neither of us wanted to walk out there in the cold. We walked around the edge of the resort & went to check on the boys. It was nice & warm in Big Murgie’s, and the fireplace looked & smelled great. We played pool some more - family vs family then parents vs kids. Pat (dsneydiva) & Kathy came in so I talked to them a little while.

When we tired of playing pool we decided to ride our bikes around Shelter Cove Harbour. Some of the boats/yachts parked there are pretty nice - but I know I’d rather take the money and use it for vacations (DVC, of course). Shelter Cove was pretty quiet - just one couple walking around. Sheila & Colin got to see the menu for San Miguel’s, which is one of the places we’ll be eating at this week. Chris wanted to ride over to FuddRuckers, so we all did that since it’s not far away. After that I needed to back to the villa to warm up - my fingers and toes were freezing (even with gloves). Chris & I called my brother’s family in New Hampshire, and got to talk to my father who was there visiting. The boys then watched a movie while I worked on the report & Sheila laid around relaxing. Our first activity is the Jingle Bell Run Around (a fun-filled family holiday photo run around the resort) at 3pm today.

We left the room about 5 minutes to 3, and I noticed a man with a beard walking by. I thought about asking him if he was Sandy (gometros), but since we needed to be somewhere and I wasn’t sure, I just kept my mouth shut. There were kids in the hot tub (outdoors), and we quickly walked past them & up the stairs into the warmth of Community Hall. A total of 4 families were participating in the Run Around. Due to the cold weather they shortened it from 7 items to 4. Each group was given a polaroid camera to use, and a list of clues (the lists were all the same). Each group also had a prop - a headband with a couple of Santa heads standing up on springs. Each group had to figure out the clue, answer the question, and then take a group picture at that site following the instructions given - and the prop had to be worn by one member in every picture. For a “bonus” each group was to take a goofy photo doing anything goofy, but all members of the group had to be in the picture. We knew where 3 out of 4 of the clues led, and asked a cm for help with the 4th. One clue led us to Big Murgie’s Den, where we had to take a picture with the fish. The bearded man was there, and asked if we wanted him to take a picture of the whole group. I said we were ok, and then asked “Are you Sandy, by any chance?”. He laughed and said he was wondering if I was Sue - so we finally got to meet. He took our goofy group picture - we posed with the girls coming out of the men’s room and the boys coming out of the ladies’ room, all of us holding duck decoys. We chatted briefly with Sandy, but then had to find our last clue.

Returning to Community Hall we were the 3rd group to finish. Dwayne was lifeguarding for some people who were swimming and using the water slide! Yikes - they must have Eskimo blood or something! Everyone got hot apple cider and prizes - little beanie animals and more Santa headbands.

We returned to Big Murgie’s and met Sandy’s family. Their son Seth played pool with Colin, and then they left to go see a movie. The 4 of us played a game of pool and then returned to the villa to prepare dinner & let the boys watch the rest of their movie (Rush Hour).

Dinner was boneless chicken breasts seasoned with lemon pepper, caesar salad, garlic mashed potatoes, and crescent rolls. I turned mine into a small chicken caesar salad and gave the rest to Chris (bottomless pit). For dessert we’d bought some tiny little turnovers at Piggly Wiggly yesterday (apple & raspberry), and got each boy a decorated cookie thing. Everything tasted great, but we were too full for our dessert - so it’ll sit until another time. After dinner the boys went to play on the swing hanging from a tree behind our building, and then went to play pool until it was time for the campfire. I’d gotten matches at the store today, so I lit one of the candles Nancy had given me the other day. They’re cranberry spice, and the color matches these villas perfectly.

About 7pm Sheila & I headed to the campfire area. She went to the campfire pit while I went to check out the health club right upstairs. It’s a small room, but it’s got 2 stairmasters, 2 treadmills, 2 exercise bikes, a universal type piece of equipment, some bench thing for leg lifts, and free weights. I decided to do a little exercising, rather than sit/stand out in the cold by the campfire. The free weights were all 1 pound, so I grabbed 3 in each hand and worked on the upper (old lady) arms for a while, then used the stairmaster to climb 50+ flights of stairs. There’s a tv in there, so I watched home shopping network. After about 25 minutes I’d lost interest in exercise and went outside to see if Sheila & the boys were at the campfire.

I could look down from the porch & see the campfire activities going on. Dwayne was leading the group in some kind of song about sharks - where everyone had to make certain gestures for certain types of sharks - pretty funny. When he turned around he saw me standing there and yelled “Holland, get down here!” Busted.....so, I came downstairs and tried to join in the shark movements. That was the last activity, so he & Jerry explained the procedure for making our s’mores - complete with 2-finger pointing, and lots of safety tips. They were a riot! We got our skewers with 2 marshmallows on them, set it ablaze in the campfire, and then went to the other “distribution center” for Dwayne to add the graham cracker & chocolate. They were delicious! Pat was there, so we talked to her & her friend while eating our smores. Soon it was time to get home for the WDW Christmas parade on tv, so Sheila & I each got another set of smores ingredients for later (we’ll use the microwave). The boys went back to play pool, and might watch the parade over there between shots.

It was strange seeing the parade shot at night. I’d heard they taped it 12/15 - I was there, so I could have gone to watch, but I had a lot of fun at the Comedy Warehouse that night so it was no loss. Watching some of the different segments, I noticed the audience was dressed for much warmer weather than they’re actually experiencing tonight! This was the first December trip I’ve taken where I did not see the parade in person - but I did see the tape Linda recorded when I was transferring it for her. We enjoyed the tv show, but both felt it would have been better with more WDW stuff and less of the musical groups. I’d rather see tape of the WDW stuff that’s new since last year, or even some of the old stuff. No offense to any of the musical groups - but they’re not why I watch the Very Merry Christmas Parade.

The boys got back just before 10, from playing pool in Big Murgie’s Den. Sheila went to bed after the parade, and I got online to post the trip report & read email. The day went according to the plan - and I entered a “plan” for the upcoming days since that part was blank in the “day 0” report. Overall it was a very nice Christmas - about the only thing I’d change would be for the weather to be about 20 degrees warmer!

DAY 12 - SUNDAY, DECEMBER 26, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

PLAN: Shop!!! Also, ride bikes, rollerblade, and go out to eat at one of the restaurants we’ve chosen.

ACTUAL: I’d gone to bed around midnight, and woke up at 8am. After showering I went out to the living room - Sheila was already up getting her breakfast, so I joined her for some cereal and hot chocolate. Chris was asleep on the sleep sofa, but noise doesn’t bother him. Having a 2br unit for the 4 of us is perfect, but I wouldn’t want to put any more people in here! The unit would be too cramped, in my opinion. This week Sheila & Colin have the 2nd bedroom, Chris is on the sleep sofa in the living room, and I’ve got the master bedroom to myself. I don’t sleep in the same room as Chris at home, so it’s nice to not have to on vacation either!

After Chris got up the 3 of us walked over to Live Oak Lodge to check out and check back in. When we got there, though, the cm checked and said we were all set for the rest of our stay since we weren’t changing rooms. The boardwalk was covered in ice, and pretty slippery - Chris had fun sliding on it. Today it was 26 degrees again, but it may go as high as 60 (I hope). The breeze isn’t as strong, so it doesn’t feel quite so cold. When we got back to the villa Chris went out to play on the swing downstairs, and I taped him. When I called his name he looked up and fell off the swing - it was so funny! I’ve got the tape to embarrass him with as he gets older, too!

Sheila & I walked over to Broad Creek Mercantile (store) to buy a newspaper. I was chatting with a DVC couple from South Carolina who were building quite a collection of pins. I told them about the member pin, and showed them mine. The cm said they had them in stock, but hadn’t started selling them yet because they weren’t “in the system”. LOL, we’d never heard of Disney not being ready to take your money. We came back & read the paper, and I wrote out the thank you notes for our Christmas gifts. The boys went off to ride bikes and play pool.

About 11am Sheila & I left to go shopping (boys stayed behind). We went to the 2 outlet shopping centers just off the island, primarily interested in the Disney Catalog Outlet. We went to that shopping center first, but wandered around saving the best for last . Along the way we ran into John (of John & Michelle), who told us that stuff was disappearing fast from Disney - and they had a great deal on jackets. We went right over, and bought a bunch of stuff. It was pretty picked over, but there was still quite a bit left. The problem was finding the right sizes in what you liked. We both bought several Christmas gifts for next year, and at least 1 item for ourselves. I got myself a jacket - it’s nice & thick, sweatshirt material inside, nylon outside. It’s got Chip & Dale embroidered on the front, & their name on the back. It’s got a hood, and is much warmer than anything I’ve got here! Originally it was $78, but I bought it for $18 after the DVC discount. We didn’t do much damage at the other outlet center, and returned back to the resort about 2pm.

We saw the boys’ bikes parked outside Live Oak Lodge so I ran in to let them know we were back and to have them meet us at the room. They had watched a video and then went back to playing pool. We were planning on having lunch at San Miguel’s in Shelter Cove Harbour, and the boys had ridden over there to see what time they would be opening and told me 2pm. I put on my new warm jacket and we all rode our bikes to the restaurant - and found that it was not open. The boys had read the sign wrong - grrr! So, we rode back, locked up the bikes, and decided to drive to the restaurant we’d picked for tomorrow - Boathouse II.

Boathouse II is located almost off the island, on the northern coast. It’s waterfront, and there’s a marina right there. It’s not fancy looking, but is comfortable - and pretty large. By now it was almost 3pm so they weren’t very busy. Chris ordered the fish & chips ($7.95) and a coke ($1.50), Sheila got a cup of crab chowder with ½ turkey blt ($7.95) and iced tea ($1.50), Colin got a cheeseburger ($7.25) & coke, and I got the honey pecan roasted chicken salad ($7.95) and water. Chris wasn’t thrilled with the fish & chips - he thought the portion was too small. Sheila loved her meal, and Colin polished his off pretty quickly. The burger was 8 oz and came on an English muffin rather than a bun. My meal was not what I’d expected. I was thinking it was a salad with chicken on top. Instead, it was a plate with a big scoop of chicken salad in the center, surrounded by sections of fruit, mushrooms, 2 tomato wedges, 4 cucumber slices, and some pickled things. The chicken salad was excellent, however, even though I don’t really care for chicken salad. The pecans mixed with it helped it out a lot! I ate about ½ the chicken and all the fruit, then Chris ate what he wanted and we took the rest of the chicken salad home for later. On the way out we got a complimentary little cheesecake square - some sort of citrus flavor that was strange at first but then kind of grew on you. I don’t think I’ll come back here - I’m glad we came, but it wasn’t so outstanding that I’d repeat it when there are so many other places to choose from. We did get 10% off for being Disney resort guests.

We went back to the resort, and dropped the boys off at Live Oak Lodge again. Sheila and I got our bikes and rode over to the Mall at Shelter Cove. There’s a bike rack where we left our bikes, and it felt strange to walk into the mall so quickly - no hunting for a parking place and then walking from halfway across the parking lot! Our primary destination was Sak’s Fifth Avenue - for any holiday candy they might have for 50% off . Most of it was gone, but we still found some stuff - probably more than we need! They had chocolate & caramel on a stick, with m&m’s on it so we each bought 2 (orig $7 each, now 50% off) so we wouldn’t have to share ours with the boys. I also got a package of biscotti ½ price for $4.50, and we bought some truffles. Those were 70% off - I got the $16 box (7.5 oz) which cost $4.80 and Sheila got the larger one. Plus, we opened Saks credit card accounts and will get another 10% off when the bill comes in. I don’t need the card, so I’ll cancel it when I pay this bill.

We wandered around the rest of the mall, but it’s very small and we didn’t see anything else of interest so we got our bikes and rode back to the resort. Colin was in the room watching tv, but he went to their bedroom since he knows I can’t stand having the tv on all the time (at night during prime time is ok, but the idea of a healthy kid sitting on his butt watching tv for hours during daylight really irks me). Chris was off riding his bike and playing pool.

I tried my truffles - ick! They taste like they’re old or something. Sheila tried hers and said the same thing. Good thing we only paid 30% for them, lol! We watched the 6pm news, and then I went to the exercise room to work out before the evening activity. Tonight it was Sweet Goodnights - sitting around the fire for bedtime stories and a sweet treat of milk & cookies. I don’t really care about the stories, and don’t like milk, but I’ll go just about anywhere for a cookie!

First the 4 of us went to work out in the exercise room. Tonight I climbed 57 flights of stairs, and burned off 100 calories doing so. Sheila & Chris used the treadmills, and Colin worked on some of the universal type weights. We were the only ones there. When we left I saw Sandy & his family in the store so I opened the door to say hi. They’d gone to Savannah for the day, taken the trolley tour, and had a great time. Can’t wait to read all about it in his report!

By now it was about 7:20, so we headed to Big Murgie’s Den and found the story just about finished and only 1 cookie left! The others had a glass of milk, and Chris & I shared the cookie (chocolate chip, but not really anything great). Afterwards we sat around the den a little while, and then Sheila & I returned to the villa. The boys will stay and play pool and ride their bikes home when they get tired or hungry enough! I finished up the trip report, and did the online stuff. Tonight I plan to get to bed earlier than midnight!

We didn’t get around to rollerblading because the shopping took longer than I’d planned, but otherwise the day went exactly as planned.

DAY 13 - MONDAY, DECEMBER 27, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

PLAN: Biking, rollerblading, visit beach if it’s warm enough, eat at another restaurant.

ACTUAL: Last night the boys came in early, so the 4 of us spent the evening playing the Disney Trivia Game. Sheila won, which ended the game (thank goodness - it was getting late). I’m awful at this game, since I don’t know the movies or songs. I do great in the Mousellaneous category, but you need more than that to win the game!

I was up at 8 again, showered, and found Sheila up getting breakfast. Chris got up & joined us for hot chocolate & cereal. Colin tends to stay up late watching tv in their room, and doesn’t get up as early in the morning. Chris went to Big Murgie’s Den to play pool, and we did some laundry. We noticed a funny smell in the laundry room - like burning rubber. We put the first load into the dryer, did another load in the washer, and then left.

Colin went to join Chris, and Sheila & I went roller blading. We were both pretty pathetic at the beginning - it’d been years since either of us had been on skates. We skated around the resort mostly, and at one point she was trying to get out of the way of a truck and she ended up slowly falling back on her butt! She was laying there on her back on the side of the road just laughing her head off! We must have looked pretty funny to the guy passing by in the truck, lol. Luckily she wasn’t hurt at all, so she brushed herself off and continued on. We skated about an hour or so, and then went back to the villa. Housekeeping was there finishing up our trash/towel service. I can’t believe it’s our 4th day here already!

We checked the clothes in the washer, and they were sopping wet. I could squeeze water out of them with my hands, so we set it to run through the spin cycle once more. That did no good, so I called maintenance and a guy was knocking on our door in less than 5 minutes! I was very impressed with the quick service. He said it smelled like a belt needed replacing, and he’d be back shortly to fix it. We headed on out for a bike ride, after picking up the boys.

We rode our bikes all the way to the Coligney area, and then rode back along the beach to Disney’s beach house. It took about 1.5 hours to make the trip - not sure of the mileage. It was a beautiful ride, but the section on the beach was a little bit of a pain when we’d hit some patches of relatively soft sand (puff, puff, pedal pedal). On the way back we stopped & had lunch at San Miguel’s.

San Miguel’s is located in Shelter Cove Harbour, right across the water from our resort. We’d eaten there last year and I loved their chili because it’s made with sirloin steak chunks and NO beans! I’d looked forward to returning for the past year! I got the chili ($3.95) with a side of sour cream ($.95) and Chris got some big tostada thing (looked like a taco salad - $7.50) and a coke ($1.50). Sheila got chicken nachos ($8.95) and Colin got the chili. There’s no DVC discount, but that’s ok. This place is not fancy at all, but the food is good and the portions are pretty large. It was a struggle to finish the chili, and I look forward to another bowl next trip!

After lunch Chris & Colin went to play pool and the moms went back to the villa to check on the laundry. The maintenance guy had fixed the machine and run the clothes thru the spin cycle, so Sheila put them in the dryer. The boys suggested playing miniature golf, so we found out where the nearest course is and will do that either later today or tomorrow after breakfast at the Hilton Head Diner (golf place is next door).

I updated the trip report, and we just relaxed for a little while. There was a bit of ugliness that occurred last night - and I was trying to not let it ruin the trip for me or the others. Linda had sent several long IM’s while I was online last night, and then jumped offline before I could respond to most of it. Bottom line, she told me she was disappointed we didn’t spend more time together just being together & talking/drinking, didn’t like being on a schedule, felt I was rude, felt I was a really cold person now, I’m not a good mother to Chris, I’m too thin (I look bad and it’s not healthy), I can’t have fun because I’m always doing the trip report thing, etc, etc, etc. Excuse me, but I think if someone had given me 5 nights lodging & 5 days park tickets and invited me to join them on their vacation with it clearly spelled out in advance that they would NOT be spending every hour with them because we have different touring styles, I don’t think I’d be so critical. I told her I do the trip report stuff because I ENJOY it and WANT to do it - it’s not ruining my vacation. I also told her the schedule (basically the AK day I told her to have the camcorder back to the villa by a certain time) is my way of making sure I get to see everyone & do everything that’s important to me during the trip, and I needed to have the camcorder back in time to transfer the tapes FOR HER and then charge up the batteries so that it would be ready for when I wanted to use it at night. Geesh - I guess I shouldn’t be such a hog wanting to use my camcorder myself for 3 hours at night each day! She swears Chris was so much happier when I wasn’t around, and he was sullen and moody whenever I was there. Well, teens do get moody - but I think she’s way off base here. When I told him today that Linda wouldn’t be coming on vacation with us anymore, his response was “good” - he thought she was weird in some ways. Oh well, I’ll chalk this one up to poor judgment on my part. We’ve really had nothing in common for the past 25 years and have limited contact as a result. To think we could recapture our childhood closeness made no sense since we’re not the same kids we were back then. In fact about 4-5 years ago she was supposed to pick me up to drive me to a barbecue that other friends were throwing in my honor (I was up north visiting) and she stood me up - never showed up, never called, and it was just this past June that she ever contacted me again. I think she met some guy or something that day, and so I was just “forgotten”. Anyway, enough ranting here - I apologize to anyone who feels like I’ve wasted your time reading this paragraph. Take a lesson from me though, and choose your travel companions wisely! When in doubt - maybe it’s better not to take that chance.

On to happier things - Colin came back to the villa just after 3; Chris was riding around on his bike. When he got back in we loaded the new millennium WDW screensaver and sat around watching the screen change, lol - talk about your exciting vacation! The boys each ate the chocolate/caramel thing on a stick - I had a couple bites. It’s so big & so rich - over ¼ pound, and neither boy could finish it all.

At 4 we headed out to play miniature golf (decided to just do it today instead of waiting for tomorrow). There was a place called Pirate’s Island that was just about a block away, next to the Hilton Head Diner. One of the brochures we had contained a coupon for $1 off per person before 5pm, so we headed there. They’ve got 2 courses - the more difficult Challenge course for $7 or the easier Original Adventure for $6. We opted for the original, and used our coupon. It was a lot of fun. Sheila started out with a hole in one on the first hole, but was unable to sustain that level of performance, lol. It was a par 40 course and we ended up with Chris & I each getting 47, Sheila with 51 and Colin with 52. None of us are ready for the pro circuit, I’m afraid! The boys found about 8 golf balls in the water or in the bushes as we went along. They picked them up and turned them in at the end. We may come back another day and try the other course.

We stopped at Piggly Wiggly before going home - we needed more milk and hot chocolate. Once home the boys got their bikes and went back to Big Murgie’s Den to play pool. We’re planning on doing the campfire tonight, and Chris is going to go over early to help cm Jerry start the fire. Sheila & I watched the news - and could see the sunset out our window. This is such a beautiful resort, and it’s so relaxing being here. I love the fun outdoor activities (roller blading, biking) and especially love that it’s cool enough to do them without getting hot. I’m not sure I’d like it as much in the summer when it’s really hot & humid here. Another great thing about this resort is it’s so small that within a day you’re starting to recognize other guests and be recognized in return - you’re not just one in a huge crowd of people here.

About 6:45 I went over to the exercise room to work out before the campfire. Sheila decided she’d had enough exercise with the roller blading & bike riding, so she stayed in the villa. I saw the boys were at the campfire already, along with a few other early guests. I worked with the free weights and then did 66 flights of stairs on the stairmaster thing. Chris joined me towards the end, and then we went down to join the campfire late. It was really mobbed, so we stood outside the campfire ring. Dwayne & John did an excellent job with the campfire - making it fun for everyone. The one at Vero was such a bore - I couldn’t stand it for more than 30 seconds, but the ones here at Hilton Head are a riot! Dwayne was announcing to everyone that if they had a lousy time his name was John, but if they had a great time his name was Dwayne. Then he changed it and said if you had a lousy time my name is Chris Holland, lol! Afterwards it was time for s’mores again. Chris was going for the record - currently 8, so he’d have to eat 9 s’mores to break the record! We’d skipped dinner to help him prepare.

It seemed like a lot of people knew about Chris & the record attempt, because they kept coming over to see how he was doing. Colin tried to keep up, but dropped out after 6. For those who don’t know, a s’more is a whole graham cracker broken in half, 2 marshmallows, and ¼ of a hershey bar. The housekeeping guy Jerry asked me to come with him into this back room area - and showed me a big gray laundry cart and said he’d be bringing it to my room. He said Chris should sleep there, because he didn’t want to be cleaning up any mess tonight, lol! He said we can just roll it out to the marsh & dump him out into the water!

Chris managed to eat all 9 s’mores, and probably could have continued except they were all out of supplies. Dwayne congratulated him and now Chris is the official record holder for s’mores eating at Hilton Head. We headed back to the villa so Sheila & I could drop off the s’mores stuff we’d saved for later (it’s better in the microwave rather than charbroiled in the fire) and as Chris sped off on his bike we heard him exclaim “I’m so full of sugar I can’t even feel myself”! Sheila & I just about died laughing!! The boys headed to Big Murgie’s Den and we walked over to get some hot apple cider. Another family was playing pool, so we talked to the cm at the front desk and found a bunch of hidden Mickey’s in the lobby. I then returned to the room - Sheila stayed to catch the end of the movie and then came back also. Chris stayed to play pool, but Colin came back to the villa.

I finished up the trip report, and did the online stuff. Sheila, Colin & I are going to play Disney Trivia. Chris came home, but just wants to watch tv. Tomorrow is an early morning, so I’m hoping not to be up too late tonight.

Today the day went exactly according to plan. We fit everything in, and had a great time.

DAY 14 - TUESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

PLAN: Member Day - Do the members only “Behind the Ears” tour, attend membership social, and do the Starry Nights activity with the naturalist. In between those things, we’ll bike, explore the island some and eat at another restaurant.

ACTUAL: Colin won the Disney Trivia Game last night, and we finished up by 10pm. I’ve got to start studying those cards if I’m going to have any chance at all of even looking respectable when playing that game, lol.

The radio alarm came on just after 6:30 - late by WDW standards, but early for Hilton Head. I showered but skipped breakfast - Sheila made hot chocolate & I made some cappuccino which we put in the carryout cups we’d picked up at Big Murgie’s Den last night. We met the rest of the tour group at Broad Creek Mercantile for the Behind the Ears Tour. It was lead by Jim, the resort naturalist. He said they wanted to put together something like the “tunnel” tour at WDW, just for members, but since this resort is only 7 feet above sea level then any “tunnels” were out of the question. He gave us lots of information about the design of the resort, what the different signs mean, and lots of plant/wild life information. Just like along Main Street in the MK there are names of people in the windows that have special significance, the same is true of the signs on all the buildings here. There’s one for Micheal Eisner & Michael Ovitz, representing the brief period when both worked for Disney. Overall it was a great tour - very interesting, and well worth doing. It concluded at 9am (1 hour) in Big Murgie’s Den, which led us right into the “Coffee with the General Manager” thing.

We met 3 members of the mgt team - general manager Kim, recreation mgr Alicia, and food/merchandise mgr JP. They each talked a little bit, and solicited comments/questions/suggestions. They are working on more merchandise - they’ve brought in a line of Shadow (the dog) merchandise which is selling well. I suggested more “member” stuff, shirts in size x small, and mugs like the pretty acrylic one I bought in Vero last summer. They’ve started doing dinners at Tide Me Over this past Sunday and the people who’ve tried it were very positive about it. We also talked about recreation stuff - people love the activities. One guy said he was disappointed that OKW doesn’t have as many activities - which surprised me. I mean, why on earth would you want to have tons of resort activities when there are 4 theme parks in your back yard? You’ve got all the pools on property to enjoy, too, plus water parks, shopping, mini golf, etc. Oh well, I guess everyone likes different things. Someone else mentioned wanting more stuff for teens. I can’t speak for other kids, but Chris & Colin are having a great time just riding around on their bikes, playing pool, and doing informal stuff with other kids (teens or almost teens). For Chris a structured activity won’t be of as much interest, as it will seem like daycare or summer camp - he’s happier doing his own thing, and enjoys meeting different people wherever he happens to be. Another guest spoke up and said their kids have enjoyed spending time with Chris & Colin, so that was nice. I think an activity like a mini golf trip or trip to the movies would be great for teens, but they’d have to be real careful not to plan stuff that would be deemed too childish.

The coffee thing ended about 10, and we returned to the villa to find both boys still asleep. We made them get up & get showered, and finally got out the door by 10:45 or so.

Colin was still getting ready, so Sheila, Chris & I went to the Disney Catalog Outlet & told him we’d be back to get him later. Chris needed to buy a birthday gift for his dad (January 1st) since I’d be dropping him off at his dad’s house on 12/31 on the way home, and Sheila was hoping to find a jacket like mine, except with Eeyore as the character. She was in luck - they’d put out more jackets including an Eeyore in her size. Chris found a nice black sweatshirt for his dad - it says Walt Disney Co, Entertainment is our Business, and has a leather Mickey patch embroidered on the front.

We returned to pick up Colin, and by now it was after 11:30. So much for breakfast, lol. We decided to ride our bikes to the Hilton Head Diner rather than take the car, and it was a short easy ride. We were seated right away, and except for Colin ordering a burger we all got breakfast items. Chris had the Hilton Head Special (2 eggs, home fries, sausage, pancakes $5.95) with a coke ($1.25) and I got the French toast ($4.25). The French toast is made with challah bread & is very good. Chris ate one of the pieces, and didn’t have room for his pancakes. Sheila got a western omelet, which she said was good.

Leaving the diner we decided to go for another bike ride - back to the Coligny area where we were yesterday. Along the way we lost Colin - he turned back to the resort. Further along we lost Chris - he wanted to go back also. So, it was just the 2 adults who made the trip. It was hard work riding into the fairly strong cold wind, but we did it! The ride back was much easier, thank goodness. We found the Big Bamboo Cafe, which is a place Layden from Comedy Warehouse recommended I try. The menu looks wonderful - if the food is as good as it sounds we might be back for a 2nd visit on Thursday. Also, the entire dining room is non-smoking, which is a big relief to me.

On the way back to the villa we stopped at the Preview Center to see the floor and the Mickey statue that were mentioned on the tour this morning. I overheard a DVC guide talking to a couple, and giving them INCORRECT information - I couldn’t believe my ears! However, I kept my mouth shut, as the error was not a major one. She was telling them that they can book at their home resort 11 months in advance of the day of check IN, and other resorts 7 months in advance of the day of check IN. Any DVC member with any knowledge at all knows that it’s 11/7 months in advance of the day of check OUT. What’s with this person, anyway???

We returned back to the villa, and found that Chris was sick. His stomach was upset and he’d thrown up already. Not sure if it was a delayed reaction from the s’mores last night, or what was going on. Colin was riding around outside but came in and went to their room to watch tv. Chris laid on my bed, and I sat at the kitchen table to update the report. Hopefully he’ll feel better later. Earlier he was wishing for another campfire so he could set a higher record - but I told him he already holds the record so there’s no need to go higher unless someone has beaten him by next year. He said he was surprised I let him break the record, and I told him if he was willing to risk getting sick that was his decision - he’d be the sick one, not me. At 13 he can be responsible to make that decision for himself and live with any possible consequences.

Chris continued being sick, but hopefully it won’t last too long. He just wanted to lay down and sleep, so I left him on my bed. I asked Sheila if she felt like roller blading (after all, we’d been sitting around for what - maybe 30 minutes or something, lol) and she asked if I was trying to kill her with fitness, lol. Hey, I’m certainly no fitness freak, but I will admit when I’m on vacation I do keep active. At home I’m a couch potato, though. She went to talk Colin into joining us, but he didn’t want to. He’d rather play mini golf, but that’s life!

Sheila & I headed outside to rollerblade, but she kept having pain in one leg, and then discovered the reason was a blister from the other day. She went back, but I stayed out for a while. It was fun skating around, flying with the wind....ok, so maybe it was cruising with the breeze, lol. Compared to the first day though, I was pretty good & very fast. It’s so nice to rollerblade when the weather is cool. Some teens came by & noticed my skates are Roller Balls - and commented how “cool” roller balls were. For those of you who don’t know, they’re an item that I think are only sold on Home Shopping Network. They’re basically roller blades, except rather than 4 thin wheels each boot has 5 ball-type wheels. They’re more stable but otherwise I’m not aware of any difference. The models on HSN were doing some stunt type moves, but I’ll settle for just staying upright and skating around.

I came back to the villa just before 4, and Chris was sound asleep. Colin had gone to Live Oak Lodge to play some pool. Shortly before 5, Sheila & I headed over to Community Hall for the membership social (resort & DVC update). Colin was still out, and Chris was still asleep. What can I say about the social...and still be nice? They had wine, beer, soda, crackers & cheese - very nice. It was more crowded than they expected - not so nice. They listed it as being for adults and families, so there were a bazillion little kids who were restless and bored out of their minds - not so nice. There were kids crawling on the floor under the tables, a baby crying, and people of all ages up walking in front of the DVC guide trying to talk to the group. It was awful - I felt bad for him. One charming (not) little boy was standing next to me grinding a cracker into the carpet with his foot. I touched him on the leg and told him to stop doing that - asked him if he did that at his house, and he said no, but the cracker was on the floor. I told him that didn’t matter, and to stop making a mess for someone else to have to clean. I’d say he was about 5 or 6 years old. The talk was mostly about how you should buy more points so you can start using the Concierge Collection and trade out.

One interesting thing I did learn is that they’re planning another price increase - probably to $67/point in the Spring. They’ll be mailing something out soon, so everyone will have the opportunity to add on one last time at $65. They said we’d get the Wilderness Lodge point charts probably in our Fall mailing, but possibly in the Summer, depending on when they’re ready to take reservations. Other than that, there was nothing new going on, and we were out of there at 5:45.

Sheila went up to Live Oak Lodge to check on Colin, and then we we’d planned to walk back to Broad Creek Mercantile to do some shopping. Colin wasn’t hungry, so she left him playing pool. Sheila’s stomach was starting to hurt, so she went to lie down and I went to the store. I got a couple of postcards that show the resort, and a cute enamel refrigerator magnet with the resort logo. With the member 10% off the total was just over $7. I returned to the room and watched the news for a while and looked at my 2000 calendar trying to figure out which trips to plan for the end of next year. If I did everything I wanted, I’d end up being away from work almost 10 weeks - which is way too much! One of them is mostly a conference at WDW, and one is a 5 day weekend, but that still leaves 8 full weeks off. I need to either cut out my 1.5 weeks in late October/early November, or cut my December down to less than 2 weeks (1 week plus a day or 2). Two of my weeks are non-DVC trips, but using all my points takes a lot of time off work. Those points are addicting, as Darla (iluvdvc) can confirm.

Colin came home just in time for the 3 of us to head to the Starry Nights activity. This is a beginner’s astronomy program, where you learn about the stars and then use telescope/binoculors to actually see the stars you’re learning about. We signed up early in the week, as we figured it was a limited capacity activity, and felt badly that Chris was too sick to attend - fearing it meant someone else who wanted to attend would be turned away. Unfortunately, that is not the Disney way. They tell you it’s an activity where you have to sign up in advance, but the reality is they don’t turn anyone away. They had 1 telescope and 6-7 pairs of binoculors, and I counted at least 60 people! It was ridiculous! We listened to the talk, and then when everyone went out to the pier to begin the hands on stuff we just left. I’ll have to add some comments to my comment card - it’s pointless to do an activity like this with 60 people! About 15-20 would have been manageable. I think doing one for the 12 & under age group and then a separate session for the 13 & up would have been better - and have people sign up and when the slots are full tell people sorry - you missed out this time. It’s not fair to those of us who did sign up to allow people to just walk on in 10-15 minutes late, even!

Chris was awake when we got back to the room, and decided to try eating something. We all drove down to Burger King (kids’ choice - the moms’ weren’t eating) and all Chris wanted was a hamburger. He ended up getting sick again before we got back to the resort, so he may or may not ever eat the burger tonight. Colin got a big meal but ate it back at the villa and then went to Big Murgie’s Den to play pool. I finished up my chicken salad from the other day, and Sheila snacked on a few things. We decided to let Chris go to bed early, so Sheila went to her room to watch tv and I went to my room to finish the report and do the online stuff. Not a very exciting night, but then we didn’t come to Hilton Head for exciting nights!

Today went according to plan again, with the added bonus of roller blading. The Starry Nights activity was a disappointment, and it’s unfortunate Chris wasn’t feeling well, but overall it was another good day.

DAY 15 - WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

PLAN: Attend coffee get-together in grand villa, bicycle around, eat at another restaurant.

ACTUAL: Colin got in around 10 last night from playing pool, and I spent a good chunk of time chatting with an online friend (Darla - iluvdvc). In many ways, it was just like an ordinary night at home, and I realized I was home - one of my homes, that is . Feeling free to spend time chatting online during vacation is something I probably wouldn’t do if I wasn’t on such a relaxing & long vacation. It does feel like I’ve been gone forever, yet I don’t feel like I’ve been living in hotels - thanks to the wonderful DVC villas.

I woke up about 5:30 or so - feeling like I was going to die! In fact, death would have been preferable to the terrible pain I felt in my stomach & back. I have no idea what the problem was, but the pain eventually subsided an hour or so later. I was still pretty wobbly when I got up around 7:30 though. Sheila was feeling fine, and when Chris woke up he was fine, so for the moment we’re all healthy. Sheila & I went over to see the grand villa at 8:30, then we returned to our villa and had breakfast. I didn’t lose my breakfast, so I guess I’m ok. We ended up sitting around for what seemed like HOURS waiting for the boys to get up & get ready. Chris wasn’t too bad, but Colin got woken up by Sheila at 10, and it takes him forever to get ready. Finally we were out the door after 10:30.

I stopped at the front desk to drop off my comment card and inquire about where other studio & 1br units are located (besides the 5 under the grand villas). The cm told me there are some studio & 1br units located on a top floor, close to the main building. I think next year I’ll stick with the studio though, since it’ll be just Chris & me. One thing I forgot to mention yesterday - at the member social the DVC guide said there might (possibly, perhaps, maybe) be an announcement of 2 new non-WDW DVC resorts in late 2000 or early 2001. He wouldn’t say where they would be located, but did say that Disney does not handle seasonal occupancy fluctuations very well, and HH being so far north has a definite slow season with low occupancy, so from that everyone pretty much inferred that the new resorts will be in warm climates.

The 4 of us rode our bikes over to the beach house. Chris stayed on his bike, but the rest of us decided to walk on the beach. We walked and walked and walked - I wished I had the pedometer to measure how far we’d gone. We ended up being gone 2 hours and walked at a pretty good pace. Colin gave up on us and returned to the resort. Chris stuck it out, but cheated by riding his bike. We saw lots of big beautiful oceanfront houses, including a strip where they were practically built on top of each other. They were way too close to each other, in our opinion. We saw a couple walking their 2 dogs, and one would chase after a stick and then they’d pick up the stick and the dog would hang in the air holding onto the stick. It was funny - and they let Chris play that game with the dog (I took a picture). After our walk we rode back to the resort and picked up Colin from Big Murgie’s Den.

Back in the villa Chris ate the hamburger he’d gotten at Burger King last night (but was too sick to eat), then drove down to the Big Bamboo Cafe for lunch. Yesterday there was a sign saying it would open at 11:30 today, but they’d changed the sign to say they’d open at 4 today. Grrrrr - that’s 2 trips here so far, and no food. We did check the odometer in the car, to see how long our bike trips were, and it was 8 miles round trip.

The boys were hungry, and I was disappointed Big Bamboo Cafe was closed, so we headed to Fuddrucker’s. The line was pretty much back to the door. Here you order at the counter, find a table, and they call your name when your order is ready. The food is good, but it’s an extremely casual place - mainly burgers. I got a bacon cheeseburger (1/2 pound - $5.88) for Chris, and cut a small piece off for me. I never eat burgers because they’re too big for me, but I do like them - so this worked out well. Sheila and Colin also shared a ½ pound burger and 3 of us shared some onion rings. Everyone liked their burgers, and we were stuffed when we left.

Back at the resort Colin returned to Big Murgie’s to play pool. Chris & I rollerbladed around the resort, and Sheila did some laundry. Chris is a much better rollerblader than I am, but he wore himself out and returned to the villa ahead of me. It’s amazing that these teen boys can’t keep up with their 40-something year old mothers, lol!

Sheila and I left to go see a movie about 3:20, and gave the boys money to go play miniature golf. They went back to Pirate’s Island and this time played the Challenge course, which they said was a lot harder. We had a little trouble finding the movie theater, but got into our seats just in time for the previews to start. The first preview was for 102 Dalmations, starring Glenn Close as Cruella again, coming out Thanksgiving 2000. The story picks up with Cruella getting out of jail, having served her sentence.

We saw Bicentennial Man, starring Robin Williams. We’d seen a commercial for it on tv, and assumed it was a comedy - but it turned out to be a serious movie. I won’t spoil it for anyone who hasn’t seen it yet. It was a good movie, but not anything at all like what we were expecting. I love Robin Williams, and especially like to see him when he’s clean-cut (short hair, no facial hair), which is what the tv commercial showed. For most of the movie though, he was a robot and didn’t get a human appearance until towards the end. Dang, I didn’t even get to enjoy looking at him for most of the movie! Also, they used a body double for scenes when they showed his bare arms or chest - which is a shame.

Back at the resort we found Chris riding his bike and Colin playing pool. Sheila & I went to the exercise room and worked out (did 70 flights of stairs today), and then picked up the boys. We drove back to Big Bamboo Cafe....and it was OPEN! LOL, what a pleasant surprise. This place would be easy to miss, as it’s located upstairs over another shop or something, and is not well marked. You enter into the bar, and then go to the dining room(s). It’s decorated/themed to a bar/restaurant on a tiny tropical island named Tarawa back in 1943. Inside you feel like you’re under a thatched roof, but can see stars through the thatch. There is war memorabilia all over the place. The menu is quite varied - and you could easily eat here every day for a week without starting to run out of new things that look great.

There was a sign on the table saying that due to staffing problems and being closed there were a dozen or so menu items that were not available - but luckily for us we had no trouble finding something to order. I got a bowl of the soup of the day, cream of potato ($3.50) - and it was the absolute best potato soup I’ve had anywhere! I ate every last drop! Chris got a coke ($1.50) and the Big Bamboo Deluxe Pizza ($7.95 - 10” thin crust with pepperoni, bacon, onions, bell peppers, mushrooms & black olives). Colin got the kids’ fish dinner ($4.95 - fried cod & french fries) and a coke ($1.50), while Sheila got the grilled chicken sandwich with fries ($6.95) and iced tea ($1.50). Everyone loved both the atmosphere and the food, and we plan to go back again tomorrow. I asked the waitress if they’d be open for lunch, and she assured me they’d be open at 11:30. It turns out they close on Sunday for 7 weeks (off season), and the reason for the limited menu is they’re just trying to use up what they’ve got in stock without having more deliveries. They usually serve their big salads in a bread bowl, and didn’t have bread bowls tonight - I bet they would have been great. So far, this was the best restaurant of the trip, and when Layden asks how I liked the place I’ll be able to tell him it was as wonderful as he said it was.

We got back to the resort after 8, and dropped Colin off at Big Murgie’s. Chris wanted to watch a movie, so he came back with us and watched Patch Adams (a Christmas gift) with Sheila while I worked on the report and did the online stuff. I was fairly tired today, so I hope to turn in earlier tonight. Tomorrow is our last full day here, and the last full day of vacation. I’ve been on vacation for so long it’s going to be strange being in my non-DVC home this weekend.

We did everything on the plan for today - another wonderful day!

DAY 16 - THURSDAY, DECEMBER 30, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

PLAN: Take Resort Nature Walk in the morning, attend Shadow’s Tales, bicycle, eat at one last restaurant, play Goofy Bingo.

ACTUAL: We had more cereal & hot chocolate for breakfast this morning, and were out the door before 9 for the Resort Nature Walk - a stroll through the resort with Jim the naturalist, learning about the ecology of Longview Island. The tour was really great - loads of information and lots of fun, too. Jim is very knowledgeable and has a sense of humor as well. We learned about some of the different plants & animals here, as well as some of the stuff Disney has done to preserve the property. It was listed as a 1 hour activity, but actually ran about 20-30 minutes over, which was fine with us. Afterwards Jim stayed to answer any additional questions guests had.

Colin went to play pool, Chris rode around on his bike, and Sheila & I went to the villa and started packing up. At 11 we went to the campfire pit for Shadow’s Tales - a chance to meet the actual Shadow and hear the story behind her existence. I had thought it was an imaginary dog, but she’s very real and used to actually roam the property until guests/members started whining - if Disney allows that dog why can’t I bring my dog here??? So, now the dog is banished to someone’s home and only comes out briefly when they schedule Shadow’s Tales. The young kids lined up to get their picture taken with Shadow, but we just sat up on the deck to watch what was going on. Dwayne spotted us, and shouted “Hey Holland” - his usual greeting . The whole Shadow thing wasn’t too exciting for us adults, so we only stayed briefly.

Chris helped us load the packed stuff into the car, and then we retrieved Colin. We got on our bikes and rode the 4 miles to the Big Bamboo Cafe for lunch. They had a special lunch menu, where everything was $6.95 except for the soups - even though it was the same item for a higher price at dinner. They still weren’t doing the bread bowls for the salads, which is what Sheila and I were both hoping for. We were the only people there, until a few more arrived shortly before we left. We walked around looking at all the memorabilia, and taking a few pictures.

I got another bowl of the cream of potato soup, since it was so good! Chris got the meatball parmesan sub with tater tots - which was also excellent. Sheila got a chicken philly wrap with fries, and Colin had the breaded flounder sandwich with fries. Everyone loved what they got, Chris & I look forward to eating here again next year. We bought Big Bamboo Cafe tee shirts ($14.95 ea) for each of the boys - which they thought were totally cool. After lunch we biked the 4 miles back to the resort, trying to work off some of that delicious food.

Colin went back to play pool (or watch tv at Big Murgie’s - not sure which he’s doing more of) and I stopped at the front desk to pay my bill so there’d be no charge on the express check out. The cm working was really nice, and noticed I’d been charged $.75 for an 800 call I’d made - so she took that off. Evidently guests are charged, but members are not, as there was no charge for 800 calls while at OKW last week. She also noticed 2 of my local calls were charged at $.75, due to the fact that our first 2 nights we were here on a non-member cash rate, so she adjusted those down to the $.35 member price. I wouldn’t have bothered to point it out for so little money, but appreciated her taking the initiative to correct it.

Back at the villa I got my rollerblades for one last ride around. Chris followed me on his bike, and Sheila walked around taking pictures. We swung on the big bench swing under one of the live oaks, and got going pretty high. I stopped to talk with Kim (general manager) for a while - she was out walking around. Someone (Susan) e-mailed me yesterday asking if it was a certain Kim, and the answer is YES. She’s worked at 3 of the DVC resorts so far, and seems really nice. She also checks the Pete Werner site and uses the internet to get information on what members are saying about the resorts. Up until a couple of weeks ago she was at Boardwalk, for about 1.5 years. I mentioned that the DVC guide had said there might be 2 more DVC resorts announced in the next year or so, and she nodded in agreement. She said they’re needing to build more to keep up with the demand. I didn’t try to press her to say where they might be located, since I figured she’s not allowed to say (if she even knows).

Chris decided to go swimming, so he put on his swimsuit and the 3 of us headed to the pool. Sheila & each took a couple of pictures of Chris & the other kids in the pool. The lifeguard was wearing a jacket, lol. I’ll bet she hoped she wouldn’t have to jump in to save anyone! Afterwards I skated back to the villa, and Chris came back to use the jacuzzi (the hot tub at the pool was full). Packing up is such a pain - I can’t believe we have so much stuff to fit in a single car!

About 4pm we headed over to the grand villa in building 28. Chris had never seen the inside of one here, and we’d gotten a message telling us they’d be doing warm cider there from 3-5 today. Chris got to look around, and I chatted with cm Joe for a while. He confirmed that Hilton Head is about 55-56% sold, and the projected sell out date is about another 2 years. Chris liked the grand villa, and I especially like the fireplace. I just can’t imagine putting 12 people in here, though. I think 6-8 people would be perfect, assuming a couple were kids.

Sheila went to find Colin, and to let him know when to be home so we could (hopefully) get a seat at Goofy Bingo tonight. There’s been so many people attending the activities that they’ve run out of seats early. There was a message today informing us they’d added a 2nd Goofy Bingo - so there will be one at 6 and one at 7. We figured we’d do the early one, since showing up for 7pm we’d be stuck with the 6pm crowd and might not get a seat.

We went over for Goofy Bingo about 20 minutes early, and were the first to arrive. By 6pm it was completely filled up, and Dwayne was turning people away. Thankfully the people with preschoolers volunteered to share a card with their child, or there wouldn’t have been enough cards for everyone. The game was fun, and since it’s Disney everybody won once. Colin picked some cheap toy airplane, and the rest of us went for the hershey bars! The games finished up shortly before 7, and we returned to the villa.

Since we’re leaving in the morning, we needed to eat as much as possible of the food that was left. There wasn’t a whole lot of any one thing, but it still felt like a lot. The boys shared their last frozen pizza. Sheila made nachos with cheese & salsa - they gobbled that down as well. We had crackers & cheese, and I finished the wine. Chris & Sheila each had a salad. There’s still a couple of dinner rolls and the jar of ready-to-heat cream of tomato soup, as well as breakfast food for tomorrow morning.

Colin went back to Big Murgie’s, and the rest of us did a little bike riding and tv watching. We’ll be locking the bikes up outside the recreation area later, since Dwayne said we didn’t have to return them by 5 today (we’re leaving long before recreation opens in the morning). I finished up the report & did my online stuff one last time from a DVC resort.

DAY 17 - FRIDAY, DECEMBER 31, 1999:

Sue (me - 41), DVC member

Chris (my son, 13) - for days 4-17

Sheila (40) & her son Colin (14) - for days 4-17

PLAN: Leave early, early, early! Stop in Orlando to pick my car, drop Chris off at his Dad’s house, arrive home & unpack. I’d love to run into MK or MGM to pick up a marshmallow thing, but don’t dare try to get in there mid-day on 12/31!! Maybe I’ll settle for a stop at the Candy Cauldron on the West Side for a Mickey chocolate truffle.

ACTUAL: Well, I ended up not going to bed until almost midnight last night, and the alarm went off just before 4:30 this morning. Sounds more like WDW than Hilton Head, lol! We’re planning on being on the road by 6am - we’ll see how we do.

I did get up at 4:30, and got Chris up at 5. We had time for hot chocolate & cereal for breakfast, and loaded the rest of the stuff while the Sheila was trying to rush Colin along. That boy is the slowest morning person we’ve ever seen. Sheila’s always on time or early, so Colin must have gotten his “late” genes from his father, lol! We were in the car at 6:03, stopped so I could check out quickly and were on the road by 6:09 - not too bad. There was very little traffic, but a lot of fog until we got to Jacksonville.

As we came through Orlando there was a sign warning of heavy congestion and a 1 hour delay between Sandlake Rd and 192 (the parks area). Fortunately, it was an exaggerated warning - the delay was more like 20 minutes. We didn’t realize we had a map in the glove compartment, or we would have avoided this stretch of I-4. We got off at exit 27 to head to DVC Linda’s house to pick up my car. Here we (ok, I) made an error in judgment. I knew that right there by WDW 535 was also called Apopka-Vineland Rd. I also knew that we would be turning onto 535 from the road that goes past Disney Institute, so in my wisdom I suggested we just stay on Apopka-Vineland rather than “backtrack” onto WDW property. What I didn’t know, is 535 stops being Apopka-Vineland and becomes something else very quickly, and we missed it. We drove and drove and drove - for miles! We ended up almost north of Orlando before we found a map and saw where we were! So, we turned around and retraced our steps, and this time got on the real 535 and followed the directions to Linda’s house. We got there shortly after noon - nobody was home since they are all in Epcot today.

It took a while to move my stuff to my car, and it completely filled the trunk plus part of the back seat. We drove to the West Side and decided to have lunch at Wolfgang Puck’s Express. The West Side parking lot was very full - much more than usual, but surprisingly the crowds of people weren’t that bad. I’d been hoping that with everyone in the parks there’d be nobody here, but that wasn’t the case. We got in line at WG Puck, and I swear the only person taking care of customers was working while in a comatose state. He was so darned slow! I was getting really aggravated, as there was absolutely NO reason for service to be as awful as it was. It was like nobody in there had any concern for the people wanting to buy food at all - they were like slow moving robots going through their jobs with no life whatsoever!

Sheila & Colin shared a chicken finger meal with garlic mashed potatoes again, and Chris & I shared the chicken fingers with macaroni & cheese ($7.37). The mac & cheese was not nearly as good as last time, in my opinion - Chris said it was better this time, though - go figure. After lunch Sheila & Colin left, but Chris was still hungry. I got him a huge cinnamon bun at 40 Thirst Street, or whatever it’s called ($3.18) and then I stopped at the Candy Cauldron to get 3 of the chocolate Mickey truffles to take home ($.69 each). Finally, we returned to the car and continued our drive.

I dropped Chris off at his Dad’s house, and stopped to visit for a while. About 5:30 I pulled into my garage, got my mail from the next door neighbor and spent an hour unpacking stuff. There’s certainly a lot to catch up on after 17 days!

SUMMARY:

Was this a perfect trip? No, Linda took care of that. However, it was really, really great! Having 17 days was a really nice luxury, and meeting up with so many different (new and old) friends was wonderful! Sheila & I travel well together, as we like enough of the same stuff to want to do stuff together, but also don’t feel like we have to be joined at the hip all the time. If one of us wants to do something that the other doesn’t, we just split off and meet up later. The boys are old enough to go off on their own, also. We’ll probably invite them back to Hilton Head with us in a couple of years.

I always love my WDW & DVC trips, and each trip makes me eager for more trips. Whether I travel solo or with others, each trip is special & wonderful in it’s own way. My next WDW trip will be early March, when I’ll be staying at Shades of Green with a DVC friend for 4 nights. In April I’ll spend a few days in DisneyLAND, and then in August I’ve got another long Disney trip (WDW & Wonder) planned - 16 days.

DISAPPOINTMENTS:

2 days of rain/cold weather while at WDW was a pain, and very unusual for this time of year (the rain, not the cold). It resulted in one of the Comedy Warehouse shows being canceled due to there not being enough guests.
This isn’t anything to do with Disney, but the aol flash session problems were a MAJOR pain in the butt! I absolutely HATE when things don’t work, and find crap like that totally unacceptable. I was tempted to ship the stupid laptop home & just abandon the report until later to avoid the daily frustration. It’s bad enough when it happens at home where the phone calls are free...but to have this happen when I’m paying per call for 17 days is a bit much!
The difference in touring style (Linda’s vs mine & Sheila’s) made things tense/difficult from time to time. I know better, but let my wanting to include her in the trip take precedence over knowing that our styles were very different. In the future I’ll try to just schedule a couple meals or a specific block of time in a park with someone when I know they like to tour differently than me, rather than risking resentment on either part. I think maybe my solo trips have spoiled me!
Linda’s behavior while at WDW after she got home was disappointing, but I guess not a surprise. I really should have never invited her, and take responsibility for that lapse in judgment. I’m sure it won’t happen again. Although our friendship officially ended during this trip, in reality it ended 20 years ago.
It’s nobody’s fault, but the colder than normal temperatures during the Hilton Head trip was a pain. 25 degree mornings are not fun for Florida residents!
THE MAGICAL MOMENTS :

Riding Space Mountain for the very first time, and LOVING it!
Layden’s enthusiasm & praise about the tape I’d made and given to him last month. Also, getting his photo/resume was very nice.
The Hoop Dee Doo was great fun, good food, and even the teens had a wonderful time here. Our seats were perfect, too.
Spending the day 12/19 with the original group plus Bob, Tom, & Leanne. It brought back memories of my 40th birthday trip to WDW, and was a wonderful day! There’s no better place to relax and have a few laughs with good friends.
The cm’s at Hilton Head (especially Dwayne) who were so much fun and did a great job. His remembering our names right from the start was really nice, too.
Hilton Head is such a small resort that within a day or 2 you’re starting to recognize fellow guests and they start to recognize you. It’s kind of like a really nice small neighborhood rather than some massive impersonal resort.
All the people who sent notes or made it a point to meet me or visit during the trip. For someone to take time away from their family during a vacation to share some time with me is greatly appreciated.
The outdoor activities - biking, rollerblading, walking, etc were lots of fun, and great activities for parents to do with their teens. Best of all, it wasn’t too hot to enjoy these activities.
The Behind the Ears and the Nature Walk tours at Hilton Head were both wonderful.
Thanks for reading, and as always - if you have any questions please feel free to e-mail me!

Sue Holland

WDW1972@aol.com