We had the usual, I had my croissant sandwich and Jason had the Bounty Platter! I really wish they would cook the eggs a bit more (or use real eggs instead of the powder). Our breakfast was just ok. The good thing is Sassagoula accepts Tables in Wonderland!
We got the shuttle and sat up front so we could talk to the driver. This is a major tip I suggest to anyone interested in relocating - talk to the locals. Jason and I have talked to many Castmembers, drivers, and local guests. We have gotten some really valuable information! Our shuttle driver said that he lives in the area in which we were focusing our search and he assured us it was a great area to live. He suggested activities outside of Disney and told us the main roads we would be using and how to get around. He was one of the most helpful people we have spoken to and we showed our appreciation with a generous tip!
We picked up our car at Alamo with no hassle, it was very easy! We even got a sweet upgrade to a convertible!! We had fun driving around Florida in our sweet ride!
This was our first experience driving around Walt Disney World and we loved it so much we ended up extending our car until the end of our stay! We had only planned to use the car Sunday and Monday but we ended up extending it until Wednesday morning. We returned it before 10AM so we only had to pay for one extra day.
The plan for the morning was to drive around to the houses we picked to see with our Realtor, Amy Reed. We had an appointment to walk through the houses the next day but we wanted to scope out the neighborhoods first. We used the free MapQuest app on the iPhone to get around and it worked perfectly. Soon we were driving down 27 to the first house!
Scoping out shopping centers!
As we drove through the first neighborhood, we absolutely LOVED it. There were orange trees around so the neighborhood smelled like oranges! I loved everything about this neighborhood - it was quiet, clean, and the neighbors looked nice. Plus, it's far enough down 27 that it isn't near the tourists.
The second neighborhood was okay but it just seemed a bit older. We just didn't get the same feeling about the neighborhood that we had with the first house. We definitely had a favorite already!
Both houses were about 20 minutes from Disney and I made sure we chose houses that did not have a toll on the way to WDW. We drove back to Port Orleans French Quarter to regroup. I had lunch plans at a Cracker Barrel off property with a friend so Jason went to EPCOT solo. It was so nice to see my very good friend and have some girl time, we hadn't seen each other since 2009! She gave me awesome tips about everything from thinning my hair to Fios. I am so lucky to have someone who knows me so well in Florida! Too bad I didn't get a picture! On my drive back, I had to snap a pic of the very first time I drove through the Welcome Sign (and I cried of course!).
I can't even believe Jason and I actually considered leaving the car at the hotel and continuing to use Disney transportation. We met up at Port Orleans French Quarter, came to our senses, and drove over to EPCOT. All we had to do was show our Annual Pass and we were in! It was a total breeze and with the low crowds, we parked close enough to walk! That was it, we were hooked. We never want to take a Disney bus again!
We went straight to World Showcase to continue Jason's morning beer tour. On our way to China, we caught the globe from Reflections of Earth entering the lagoon. Neither of us had seen this or even knew it existed!
Here's a video of the bridge opening I found from OrlandoParksNews!
We stopped off in Italy, glad to see the Food & Wine booth was still there!
I want THAT!
I love me some Moretti beer!
We made our way over to America and I had to stop because I wanted a picture of the Flower and Garden Festival Marquee because Davy Jones was scheduled to play. I was so sad to find out a few days later via Twitter that he had died :(
I have a photo from 2009 where I had missed him by just 1 day and I was really looking forward to seeing him this year.
We stopped off in America for some beer and Jason's usual turkey leg!
This next photo I'm adding via special request from Jason. Enjoy :)
We stopped in Japan (of course, I always stop there) and paid a visit to the Art exhibit which was actually open! We loved the Tanookis from Mario to Tom Nook!!
We shopped in Mitsukoshi and I bought too much. I always do! We made our way to the front, stopping in France of course for our favorite lemon slush!
After we were good and drunk, we went to Hollywood Studios to meet up with my Castmember friend, Karen. We had an unforgettable ride on Tower of Terror with some Castmembers in training! I never buy the ride photo but I had to buy this one!
After the Tower of Terror awesomeness, we went straight to Star Tours 2.0. The line was nonexistent so we rode it twice in a row! The first ride was Droid - Kashyyyk - Yoda - Coruscant. The second time it was Droid - Pod Race - Leia - Naboo.
We went to see Fantasmic but it started drizzling and Jason got soaked and was shivering so we left before it started. Oh well we'll catch it when we're back in April!
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