Anniversary #4 (Part 1 - MNSSHP)

By the time Anniversary #4 rolled around, we were practically professional Disney vacationers. Of course, what makes Disney magical is the element of surprise, so we made sure we planned lots of new experiences this trip. I will try to fit it all in, but there is SO MUCH to share!

Day 1

Although we typically arrive on a weekend, we flew in on a Thursday afternoon and the Magical Express line was delightfully short. We took the bus to POP Century, our favorite value resort. After dropping off the bags in the room, we consecrated our arrival with a tie-dyed cheesecake. 

When we returned to the room shortly thereafter, I found this surprise waiting for me - have I mentioned I married my Prince Charming?

Bracelet, sparkly pink rose and a love note.What a way to start a magical trip!!

If you've read previous blog posts, you know that we always visit Downtown Disney on arrival day. This time we thought we'd shake things up a bit...

 Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP)

This is a holiday party at Magic Kingdom which requires a separate ticket for entry. With the hard ticket, party guests can enter the park at 4pm, even though the party doesn't technically start until 7pm. They give party guests wristbands and I was amazed at how quickly the Disney CMs cleared out park guests from earlier in the day. By 7:30 the crowd levels had dropped dramatically. 

One of my favorite things about this party is that all the villain characters come out and mingle with the guests. I'm not usually big on character meet and greets, but I loved it at the Halloween party because you don't have to wait in line and the villain interactions are far more entertaining to me. 

• When we met Gaston, I thought I would stroke his ego by commenting "My, your muscles are so LARGE!". He turned to Bill and said, "You've got yourself a keeper!".
• When we told Jafar that it was our anniversary, he twirled his finger in the air as if to say "Big Whoop". Halloween music played throughout the park and he just glared as I danced along to Thriller. Oh, that grumpy, evil magician!

Other MNSSHP highlights....

• The parade was great. The headless horseman majestically led up the beginning of the celebration. It was fun to see the villains get to take the stage along with the "good" characters dressing up in costumes. Another memorable moment was when the 2 evil stepsisters stood right behind us and watched the parade with us. 
• The music and show at the castle were fabulous. I bought the Boo to You soundtrack and listen to it year round. The fireworks show was great, too. I love the ghosts projections on the castle.
• Adults get to trick or treat! 

Since our anniversary is in October, I foresee enjoying this party for many years to come. Boo to YOU!

Design a Tee Review

By the time we hit our 3rd anniversary, we started to realize that celebrating at Disney was a bonafide annual tradition. So it seemed time to indulge in my wish to Design a Tee in Downtown Disney.


Designing the t-shirt was a memory itself. There are computers where you can pick out every aspect of the Tee, from the shirt's cut, color, icons, text, and font. It was a control freak's dream!

After reviewing all the possible options and much deliberation, it seemed fitting to settle on an anniversary theme for the t-shirt. ("I'll wear it on all the future anniversary trips", I reasoned with myself.) As the shop was slow, I think it only took about 20-30 minutes from submitting the final design to receiving the tee. We browsed nearby shops while we waited.  If I weren't so impatient, I could have had the shirt delivered to our resort room the following day. 


The price was reasonable and I was happy to wear it back in the World for Anniversary #4. I think this is point in my obsession where I officially started the Disney t-shirt collection, but that's a post for another time...


What is your favorite souvenir from the World?

Anniversary #3 (Part 3 - Universal Studios)

Universal Studios
Alright, it's not Disney, but as a Harry Potter fan I felt a sense of duty to see if Universal could measure up to the amazing world I've imagined. We got up early and took a Mears bus from Disney to Universal. (Planning tip: you can get a great deal on transportation if you purchase a bus/theme park ticket here). 

Forbidden Journey
Forbidden Journey was first on our list. It reminded me of doing Toy Story Mania in the morning. I'm always torn between the excitement of finally getting to ride the attraction and enjoying the queue. The queue for Forbidden Journey feels like it's a mile long, there are many large different rooms to walk through. There was a huge greenhouse room to represent the botany classes.  Indoor rooms included castle scenes with moving portraits, huge statues of the 4 houses, and rooms where hologram characters passed along messages to guests in the queue. There was even a pensieve.


Luckily, it wasn't nearly as crowded as it could have been and there was hardly a line. On the other hand, we ran right through queue so excited that I'm sure we missed some other great details.


The ride itself was nothing short of amazing. If I had to describe it (and that's difficult to do), I would say it's similar to the motion/flying effects of Soarin' with huge screens before you. We flew in and out of the castle, over the quidditch field, through dragon nests! However, it was not peaceful, like Soarin'. There were parts that were jerky and terrifying, reminding me of Dinosaur from Animal Kingdom. Spiders and dementors thrust themselves at the riders and chased them. I can't explain the thrill. Suffice to say, as soon as we exited the ride, we ran right back through the queue to ride it immediately again!

Hogsmead

After all the excitement of surviving the Forbidden Journey (twice!), we cooled off with some butterbeer. It was very sweet (not a problem for me, I've got a big sweet tooth), and tasted a bit like cream soda and butterscotch with a foamy marshmallow topping. (Last summer my girlfriend and I attempted to recreate an adult version here.). 

I was a little disappointed in the size of the village. It was not designed with large crowds, or even medium crowd levels, in mind. Despite the cute storefronts, many were just that: a front. There were only a few stores patrons could actually enter. And once inside there was very limited space to move around. Honeyduke's was visually pleasing and Zonko's joke shop was cute. We didn't dare attempt Ollivander's wand shop as the line was out the door and then some.

My brother and I rode each of the former "Dueling Dragons" while my mom and husband (not being rollercoaster fans) hung out at the Owlery. We had lunch at the 3 Broomsticks and the theming and food were good. I was a bit baffled that there was a well-decorated 2nd floor, but it was not available to guests. The restaurant sure could have used more seating up there. 

Overall, it was a good time. We don't go to Universal every year, but try to go every couple of Disney trips. 

Other Universal Notes

• Spiderman and the Hulk attractions did not disappoint!
• My mom, being a big "I Love Lucy" fan, was tickled pink to run into their "characters" at the park. One of my favorite moments is when Desi planted a big kiss on her. Unfortunately, we zoomed in too much on that photo and cut out Lucy looking shocked (think Home Alone).