It was a busy summer
for me, travel-wise. I visited California for the first time last June
and spent Labor Day weekend by the lake in Michigan. I supposed I could
include Lollapalooza in here, though I just had to take the bus downtown for it
(it’s really another world inside those gates). I’ve only managed to take
a couple days off of work this summer, packing everything I could into short
trips. I hesitate to call them “vacations” because to me, a vacation is
lazing by the pool and not doing anything, which these trips definitely were not. This September I did my last big trip for the foreseeable future, this time to
Florida. I’ve been to the Sunshine State loads of times, especially as a kid, but I had never
quite attacked the state the way I did this time.
My friend/frequent
roommate Abby moved to Florida after graduation to work at UF, and I miss her
terribly. She’d been back up in Chicago once since graduation, for New
Years, and I wanted to visit her because it’s just weird not having her around
all the time. We share a great love
for Mumford & Sons, so when they announced a St. Augustine date as part of
their Gentlemen of the Road stopover tour, I suggested that maybe we should
attend. Tickets weren’t terribly cheap so we sat on the idea for a while…
that is, until the band’s performance on the Grammys ultimately convinced us
that we absolutely had to go. At that point, tickets for the festival
were sold out but travel packages were still available. $400 each for
tickets, hotel, transportation, a shirt and poster? Yep.
This was in
February. The festival would take place in September.
The gap seemed like an eternity. It did leave us time for planning
though, so we figured we might as well pay a visit to Disney World.
Because of reasons. Plus, my Aussie friend Saskia, who I had met online
through The Killers’ fan club back in 2008 (no, it’s not sketchy, I promise), had
been working at Disney World since January. We could finally meet each
other in person, and as an added bonus she would get Abby and me into the parks for
free. And, most importantly, 100 Montaditos, the wonderful Spanish chain
restaurant which Abby and I ate at nearly every Wednesday when we studied in
Madrid, had opened a location in Orlando. Seriously, you can’t understand
how excited we were about this unless you’ve eaten at Cien, as we call it, or
“One Hundred Montaditos” as it’s apparently called in America.
At Cien in Madrid... the good old days.
Skip ahead to September
11, 2013. The day had finally come! I had an unproductive morning
at work before I skipped out early for the airport. After an uneventful
plane ride—aside from discovering the effects of changing air pressure on a
closed Camelback water bottle—I landed in Orlando. Abby and I reunited
and made haste to Cien.
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| The most excited I have ever been in a strip mall. |
Waves of nostalgia and
excitement washed over me as I laid eyes on that beautiful logo. Inside,
even the tables looked the same, and the signs and the menus, except that
everything was in English. It was Wednesday, which meant all montaditos
(little sandwiches) were $1. The options were overwhelming and all
equally enticing. We settled on a few montaditos each, as well as glasses
of “tinto de verano,” which is red wine mixed with lemon soda, the
quintessential Cien beverage. The jamón was wonderfully salty, the
tortilla authentic, the bread fluffy perfection. The bacon/chicken/guava
was excellent and I even got the “Madrid,” which was calamari and ali oli on
chapata. And the DESSERT montaditos! Warm chocolate bread with a cookies
and cream bar inside? Heaven. We would have tried all one hundred were it
not for the money and the human limits of food intake. Besides, we had to
check into our resort.
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| ¡Montaditos sabrosos! |
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| Dessert montaditos. AW YISS. |
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| Completely appropriate reaction to Cien in America |
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| Look at this stuff! Isn't it neat? |
Abby and I changed to our swimsuits for a swim in the resort’s main Finding Nemo pool, which is decorated with giant jellyfish, the P. Sherman mask, and a huge Crush the Sea Turtle. We figured there would be towels by the pool (after all, they had towel return boxes) so we didn’t bring any, but there were none. We decided we didn’t care and jumped in anyway, and just drip-dried all the way back to the room, where Abby gave me fabulous triangle mosaic nails.
DAY 2: Walt Disney World, Saskia, and Doug
After a hearty breakfast
of Disney waffles, strawberries, sausage, and naan breakfast sandwich (not
"non-breakfast sandwich" as I first thought Abby said) we took the hotel's shuttle to the Magic Kingdom to meet
Saskia. I was excited to finally meet her in person. As we walked
toward the park I recognized her immediately, though her back was turned.
We hugged and I did quick introductions and we headed into the park,
scanning our fancy Cast Member Guest cards and our fingertips (I guess this is
a thing now. A little creepy, Disney). Main Street USA was just as I
remembered it, though perhaps more adorable given the little details I noticed
this time around as well as their Halloween decor (yes, already). We
headed straight to Tomorrowland, letting Saskia take the lead. We were
dismayed to find Space Mountain closed for maintenance, but bravely carried on
to Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. Abby and I shared a car, and she
beat me by about 20,000 points. Behind us, Saskia moaned that she did
terribly, with a score that was more than mine and Abby's combined. Such
a pro Space Ranger. We also rode the Astro Orbiter, which, despite what
they might tell you, does not fit two grown people to a car.
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| Me and Saskia on the teacups |
We moved on to New
Fantasyland, recently expanded to include areas for Beauty and the Beast, The
Little Mermaid, and Tangled. Saskia currently works in the Little Mermaid
area, and she got us right in to meet Ariel! Ariel asked us if we had
found any treasures yet, and when we did, to bring them to Scuttle. Little
did we know that our treasure was yet to come. We then went on the Little
Mermaid ride, which is home to a host of dancing and singing sea creatures and
a mean octopus lady.
We stopped to ride the
carousel in the new Fantasyland with Cinderella's step-family. We watched
Drizella befriend a little girl and I told the stepmother about a nightmare I
had a few weeks ago in which she was trying to kill me. She was
flattered. Next was Enchanted Tales with Belle, an interactive show, in which I was selected
to play the role of Philippe, the horse. Neeeeiiiighhh. In Fantasyland we
also got our first look at where we'd be dining that night: Be Our Guest
restaurant, for which Abby made reservations for us six months in advance.
We wanted to add Saskia to our reservation but weren't sure if we could,
so we stopped at the information booth outside and they assured us that we
could do it if we came a few minutes early.
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| Drizella made a new friend. |
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| Neeeeiiiiigh |
Of course we went into
the Haunted Mansion next, where there was no line. It should be noted
that at this point we hadn't waited in any lines, and barely did so the rest of
the day--this was not due to our cast member friend but to the general absence
of crowds in the park. Pro tip: Fall really is the best time to go to
Disney. Also, it was a Thursday, when everyone is in school or at work.
The lack of lines really contributed to our magical experience and
allowed us to do a lot that day. So after Haunted Mansion, we walked onto
Splash Mountain, a ride on which no trip to Disney World is complete
without. It’s old and has animatronic swamp animals singing
Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah and another unintelligible song and is inspired by a
now-banned, super-racist film, but it’s a classic ride and there’s a fun drop
and you get wet. Saskia mentioned that Disney is planning to redesign the
ride to fit with The Princess and the Frog, after all these years. I’m
not sure how I feel about this; on the one hand, it’s one of the last
un-updated rides and is a legend. On the other hand, The Princess and the
Frog doesn’t have an area at Disney yet and the ride could use some updating,
as evidenced by the frequent stops we experienced on our ride.
After Splash Mountain we
were about ready to move onto Animal Kingdom.
Abby and I had
originally planned to only visit Magic Kingdom and EPCOT, so I was really
excited that we could fit in Animal Kingdom too. I LOVE Animal
Kingdom. The animals, the incredibly detailed geographical regions, the
lush vegetation… it’s just fantastic. PLUS, I hadn’t been on Expedition
Everest, which opened since the last time I was there. It has been hailed
as “The best ride ever!” by critics (aka Abby and others) so I was
excited. Saskia went to talk to some friends and Abby and I headed into
Nepal. There was a small line but it felt like nothing because there was
so much to look at on the way. While you wait you pass through a small
museum that features historical “evidence” to prepare you for your Yeti-seeking
expedition. The ride itself was excellent. It’s a rollercoaster
that takes you up and through the mountain, complete with ripped up tracks
thanks to the pesky Yeti. But we survived the expedition! Phew!
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| Practicing my Ansel Adams skills |
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| Expedition Everest's line. Disney does detail right. |
We lunched at the Yak
and Yeti restaurant. This is where we discovered our aforementioned
treasure. As we sat eating, Saskia was looking past my shoulder and said
“Do you think his real name is Doug?” I followed her gaze to the beverage
window behind our table, inside of which stood a young Hispanic-looking man
with fantastic hair and long eyelashes. We all agreed that he was
beautiful. Before we left the restaurant I went up to the window to ask
for a cup of ice water. He obliged with a smile. “Thanks, Doug,” I
said. We walked away giggling, off to ride Expedition Everest again. Ariel was right; we did find a treasure.
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| Doug water. More delicious and thirst-quenching than the leading water. |
Of course, we couldn’t
miss the crown jewel of Animal Kingdom, Kilamanjaro Safari. The most
impressive part of Animal Kingdom is the vast savannah somehow hidden in the
middle of the park, which is home to free-ranging lions, zebras, hippos, crocodiles,
giraffes, and a myriad of other African animals. Our bus stopped to let a
giraffe cross the path in front of us, and I watched it walk through the grass
as if I were watching a nature documentary. The safari is a must for
anyone who goes to Animal Kingdom.
As we passed the Yak and
Yeti again after the safari, it was decided we needed to pay another visit to
Doug for some water. He graciously obliged, as he always does. He
asked me if I wanted another cup of water (he remembered me from before!) but I
declined, as my water bottle was still full. Such a gem, that Doug.
When we got on the bus
to go to EPCOT, it had begun to rain. Which was actually really nice as
it had been terribly hot that morning. For some reason, I didn’t pack an
umbrella, despite having been compulsively checking the weather every day the
week preceding the trip and saw that there would be multiple instances of
rain. Whatever. I bummed shelter off of Saskia and Abby, or just
got wet. Whatever. In the presence of the giant golf-ball that is
EPCOT’s Spaceship Earth, I didn’t really care. I insisted that we ride
it. It’s another pretty classic and outdated ride which takes you through
the history of communication and human invention. It glosses pretty obviously
over eras and geographical areas, and basically shows only white men until you
get to the 1970s, where it kills two birds with one stone with a black lady
scientist. Pretty much the highlight of the ride is when it takes your
picture near the beginning and then shows you and your car-mate’s face in
various locations: Under the sea, the future, etc. Pretty great.
After Spaceship Earth we hit up Club Cool, only the coolest club to ever
exist. Mostly because the focus of Club Cool is free soda fountains
offering free samples of pop from around the world. Yum.
In keeping with this
international theme, we entered World Showcase, the main focus of our EPCOT
experience. It’s situated around EPCOT’s lake and allows you to travel
the world in less than a day! Amazing! We saw real French people in
France, a sign advertising a Martin Short show in Canada, smelled garlic
everywhere in Italy, rode the traditional, thrilling, completely updated and
non-stereotypical Maelstrom ride in Norway. The most impressive pavilion
was Morocco, which I like to think of as the Southern Spain pavilion (I like to pretend I'm in Spain whenever possible, as you may have surmised).
It’s extensive due to the Moroccan government’s generous monetary contribution,
and is actually quite authentic, down to the slightly distressed yet gorgeous
tile work and courtyard fountain. It made me nostalgic for the Alcázar in
Sevilla. We spent a good deal of time inside the Mitsukoshi store
in the Japan pavilion, where it was easy to forget you were in Disney World and
not an Anime theme park. Pokemon, Miyazaki, and pocky abounded. I’d
definitely recommend a visit here when in EPCOT.
In the Morocco pavilion
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| Japan |
While sipping margaritas
in Mexico—it’s so strange drinking alcohol at Disney—we
planned our next move. We had thought about going to Hollywood Studios,
rounding out all four parks in the day. But our dinner reservation was
for 8:15 at the Magic Kingdom, and it was already past six. We opted to
spend more time in EPCOT instead of rush around the other park. Plus, we
were tired and honestly really only would have cared about Tower of Terror.
So we strolled back to the futuristic part of EPCOT and embarked on our mission
to space. Mission Space, actually, the ride. There are two lines
for this ride, one ride more intense than the other. Saskia said the
intense line terrified her, that it felt like she was actually shooting into
space, and I don’t think Abby and I were in the mood for extreme G-forces
either. So we stood in line in front of a 5-year-old girl and her mother.
After we successfully
completed our simulated mission, it was time for our much-anticipated dinner
reservation. When we got to Magic Kingdom, the sun was setting and Main
Street was all lit up, its streets lined with families waiting for the
parade. But we continued on to Beast’s Castle, checked in for our reservation,
explaining that we were adding one person. The cast members at the kiosk
told us that was fine, that we’d just have to wait about 15 more minutes.
It wasn’t quite 8 yet, and a mere five minutes later our table was ready.
We were ushered in by an amiable cast member to our table in the
Ballroom. Everything was in cream and gold, the ceiling painted in clouds
and cherubim, and outside the windows on the end of the room it was made to
look like it was snowing. Say what you like about Disney, but they have
atmosphere down to a science. Even the napkins at our table were folded
into roses. Our waiter was Carlos, and we decided that he was
definitely the most Doug-quality waiter in the restaurant, so it was kismet
that he was ours.
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| Oh, we're invited to the Beast's castle for dinner tonight. No big deal. |
Abby and I both ordered
the salmon, and Saskia ordered the lamb. The salmon was incredibly
delicious and tender, and served atop leeks and mashed
potatoes. UNF so good. Between that and the fluffy rolls, we were
stuffed… though of course not too full for dessert. I tried the gray
stuff—it’s delicious! Don’t believe me? Ask the dishes! I’m not totally
sure what it was but it was creamy and fluffy and served upon a chocolate
tart. It was a very classy dinner, though we weren’t out of place in our sweating-in-Disney-World-all-day state. And, because we dined
there, we got to meet The Beast!
We ended the day
watching fireworks at Cinderella’s Castle. Tinkerbell flew through the
sky and set it off, the projections on the castle changing vibrant colors as fireworks
exploded in time with music.
Saskia had parted with
us before the fireworks, so Abby and I shuttled it back to our hotel, where we
conducted an epic search for car keys that were found to be in the room the
whole time. PHEW. With the keys found, we could finally relax and rest up for the long day ahead.
Coming soon: Part 2: Fake Spain and the City of Mustaches
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