Too bad about the people. Happy belated Canada Day!
Only Tim’s in Town?
Expect a line.
Summer Holiday Begun
So we started our trip yesterday. Today will be driving into Vancouver. It will take about 6 hours. Will stop and Kamloops for some brunch.
Then we’ll spend three days hanging around Vancouver checking out some Once Upon a Time stuff for Sylvia and just basically relaxing before our trip to Seattle.
Talk to you all soon.
Magic Kingdom Gets Crushed, Disney Prices Out the Middle Class on Chicken Parmesans, Quick Service Menu Joy, Where Does the Line Start? – 4/6/16 – easyWDW
As Sly and I begin thinking about what we’d like to do for vacation, I’m reminded that a little cynicism comes in handy when thinking about another trip to Disney world.
Last summer’s double treat of a week at Disney world followed by a week on a Disney cruise was in my top three for vacations I’ve taken in my life. We’re considering a repeat of that for next year and I’m quite excited about the prospect. Sly and I will be looking at cruises for next summer on Thursday when the release the schedules.
Back to the cynicism. The link I’ve included below gives an interesting insight into some of the problems being experienced by guests at the resorts. Things like increased wait times for attractions to increased prices on food in the parks. I thought it was interesting and might be a good read for anyone contemplating a trip to Florida.
Vegas From a Different Vantage Point: Charleston BLVD
Wow, this is very cool for a different look at Las Vegas. There’s more to the city than just gambling and shows. Vice takes us into the some lesser known areas to look at a vibrant and innovative city trying to break out of its self-defined mold.
It’s about 15 minutes long but lots of interesting information.
Vegas: City of Education
Our driver for the ride in from the airport welcomed us to the “City of Education” where in we would have the opportunity to learn many new things about ourselves.
Some Crappy Phone Pictures from Disneyland Hallowe’en 2015
Continental Breakfast
I’ve traveled a bit in my time (the image above is Sly and I standing below the Sacre Coeur in Paris, July 2014) and enjoyed my fair share of “continental breakfast” but I’m not sure I feel exactly the way this guy does.
However…
I must admit a certain excitement when I get the chance to partake of something that reminds me of my travels. Sometimes it’s something as simple as a continental breakfast which reminds me of my trip to Europe with Sly and the Bessons.
Sitting in the tiny dining area at the base of our small hotel(see below). Collecting the bits and pieces that go into the breakfast there: fresh croissant, yogurt, coffee, tea, real butter, muesli, fruit. Seriously good stuff and all of it, seemingly, fresh from a market. Surrounded by other travelers, some from within France, some from without. Yes, the portions are smaller than I’m used to but there’s probably a reason I come back from vacation in Europe 20 pounds lighter after a month!
With this bounty spread out before you, a sense of preparation for a day of exploration and excitement unfurls in your mind! What will the day hold? What new things will you see? What experiences will occupy your day? Will you get lost on the Metro? Will you find a neat little ‘hole in the wall’ restaurant serving traditional French fare at a reasonable cost? Will you walk among the locals without giving away your status as a traveler? So much potential for new adventure!
So I can really appreciate the joi de vie he expresses over something so simple as a free breakfast. There’s plenty of things that remind me of my travels and the continental breakfast at some chain hotel is actually one of them. The Shining twist at the end was something that my cinephile core can really appreciate.
The Hotel Modern, if you’re looking for a place to stay in the middle of Paris, was quite nice and is the memory I use when describing the breakfast above. Decent enough with some very nice people manning the desk. If you’re looking for a cheap two star in the middle of Montmarte you could do worse than book this hotel.
“Fortune and Glory, kid; Fortune and Glory”
Found out over the weekend that Disney plans on opening an Indiana Jones themed restaurant and bar in Downtown Disney. OMG!
Indiana Jones is probably one of my favorite franchises and the thought of being able to have a meal and a drink in this type of themed facility excites me to no end. I’m hoping for a level of authenticity without so much… ‘polish’.
Disney has several areas that could be considered ‘authentic’. The first that comes to mind is the area of the Animal Kingdom that they call Africa. There’s a little village in there with some neat shops, a bar and a restaurant that simply makes me feel like I’m sitting in a bar, having an African beer in the middle of the Congo. That’s the sort of thing I’m hoping for.
When Sly and I started vacationing at Disney, it was almost exclusively for her. Then slowly but surely there were more and more things that I am in and wanted to see. Star Wars was huge. When Disney bought the Marvel Studios means that there will be something occurring in that vein in the future. And now this.
I can only hope they do it right. I have confidence in the Imagineers and their love of the material. And I can hardly wait till I get a chance to tip my Poet’s Hat back on my head and enjoy a shot of whiskey. 🙂
Summer Vacation 2015: Disney!
Sly and I have finally gotten off our asses and booked our vacation for the summer. We’ll be doing a week in The World and a week on a Disney cruise; specifically the Disney Fantasy.
We had a hard time determining the duration of our summer vacations or more specifically how long we were going to take. After spending last X-MAS in Vegas, we were trying to find something to get us back to our Disney roots.
I’ve never been on a cruise before. Closest I’ve come is a couple of ferry rides between Italy, Greece and the Greek Islands. Not really the same when you consider we were sleeping on deck in some of the most uncomfortable chairs known to Man. In fact, both Sly and I have really never expressed much of an interest in taking a cruise. However, Disney gets tossed into the mix and suddenly it’s on the top of our to-do list.
I always have a hard time blowing $750 CDN on flights only to spend a week at our destination hence my insistence on spending a week at the Walt Disney World resort as well. This will be so much fun! I’m really looking forward to it.
We haven’t been back to Disney since our Xmas trip of 2012.
That really was an eye opener about how costly some of these trips can be. It was enough to keep us from going back again during the high season for a couple of years but now we’re returning in middle of summer. Should be interesting with a combination of the heat and the crowds. Assuming you don’t hear about a Canadian suffering heat stroke and a loss of patience to all the little animals crawling around the parks losing his mind and making something explode, we’ll be having a grand time allowing Disney to take care of us.
Walt and Mickey will be happy to see us again; I’m sure of it. 🙂