Day 7: Day of favorite rides! New and Old!

May 8, 2009

Disney's Hollywood Studios

We were up early today and got out of the room fairly early. We made our way down to the Boardwalk to catch the boat to the Studios. Janice had time to use her mug to grab a "free" coffee at the Boardwalk stand.

We hopped on the boat, which was quite spacious. They are the same boats that they use in EPCOT, as they are technically on the same waterway.

We walked in to the Studios just before 9am, just before the rope drop. I had never witnessed a rope drop before, so i was very interested to see what they did.

Janice and Steve waited at the back of the large crowd, while I made my way up to the front through the stores. I had heard that Toy Story Midway Mania was a very popular ride and that the Fast-Passes went quickly. We planned it that I would grab the passes and regroup under the hat (which I still can't stand).

The rope drop ceremony was pretty good. The street actors that roam the park during the day are involved in the ceremony. It looked like they had a pair of Newlyweds acting out a "Lights, Camera, Action!" type sence. Before the rope fell to the ground, they emphasized that no one was to run, so that no one was hurt.

As expected most people made their way to Pixar place and the Fast Pass line. I picked up our passes, which were for 10am (already!) and met back up with the group. Donald Duck and Minnie were out for pictures. There was next to no line, so we waited and got some great pictures with them. Surprisingly, Graydon didn't cry, meeting his first Disney characters; he was very intrigued with them. When Charlotte met Donald, she proclaimed he felt really soft!

We took in the Great Movie ride, since there was no wait. Unfortunately, Graydon cried, as parts of the ride were a little loud for his small ears.

We went back to Midway Mania, and took turns, as we didn't think we could take Graydon on. Good thing too, as we probably wouldn't have enjoyed it as much. The ride is really fun and it is no wonder it is so popular. The Fast-Passes were gone in no time!

"Boy, the crowds are large today Sarge!"

The balance of the day was spent taking in Muppet Vision 3D (still one of my favorites), Rock 'n Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror and Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

We did visit most good stores including the Art of Disney (3 down, 2 to go). That the villains store, I purchased the Small World nine inch Vinylmation for Janice for Mothers' Day. I also saw a blank nine inch Vinylmation signed by the Disney Characters. Apparently, the characters will sign anything!

We made it back to the hotel for a swim. This was the second time for Graydon in a pool and he loved it more than the first time.

Back in the room, the kids had dinner and we had some adult beverages before heading out for dinner. Tonight's reservation was at Spoodles so we didn't have to go far.

This was the first time we have eaten at Spoodles. The menu is Mediterranean fare, so something different for a change.

We ordered Sangria, but were disappointed with how much we received. Apparently, they had changed jugs over and there was actually less in the new jugs. The story is that since the restaurant is changing over to Kat Kora's, the old jugs were "walking out" the door, as they had "Spoodles" printed on them.

We commented to the waitress, who mentioned it to the manager. The manager apologized and gave us a free second jug of Sangria.
The food was very good at Spoodles. I had roast pork tenderloin, which was very tender. Probably one of the best pork tenderloin I have ever had.

Overall, we had a great second day. Tomorrow will be fun as it is Janice's birthday and there was one more surprise to come!