wendinator

Did they call them pig knuckles in Germany, or was there a German word for them?  Because, they are not knuckles.  And they're not wings either.

I fell in love with schweinshaxen (pork hock, pig's knuckle) when I was in Germany. Here's one I had in Frankfurt:

In Toronto, you can get an excellent one at The Musket, and they also have my favorite German beer on tap.  :beer:

The Boma/Jiko tour was awesome. My Mom and I did it last year. The tour guide we had was from Africa, and they give you a lot of information about the design and décor of the restaurants and also give you free samples of some of the food at both restaurants.

If you stick around AKL when it's dark, they also have night vision glasses viewing of the animals. That was a neat experience too.

This is totally off topic, but looking at that first picture I posted from April 2011 reminds me of one of my favorite memories.

My sister and I snuck a trip with just the two of us (she left her husband and 2 kids at home!).

We drove down to Buffalo and had dinner of chicken and ribs at Kentucky Greg's BBQ then caught an early flight out the next morning.

The first day at Disney we went to Whispering Canyon for dinner and had the skillet that includes chicken and ribs.

The next night we went to the Hoop Dee Doo Revue and had... chicken and ribs.

Our last night there we discovered that she and I had had a little miscommunication and instead of booking 'Ohana the restaurant, she'd booked us "Ohana, the Spirit of Aloha show".

When they brought out chicken and ribs for dinner that night, we couldn't contain our laughter.  :rofl3:

I did the tour August 2013. Arrive hungry!

These photos need captions! I'm pretty sure that's not guacamole that they're serving. So what is it? Mashed peas?

Mushy peas.

I am sorry to say that our latest underwater camera went belly-up right after that photo was taken.  I couldn't take any more photos after that last one, and the camera has since refused to turn on, no matter what I try.

 

So, no barracuda or sea turtle photos for you to enjoy. Bummer.  That camera lasted us two summers, and this would have been the third.  We have bad luck with underwater cameras.  So, I buy the cheapest ones I can find.

Just a quick hijack while this TR is on hiatus. I was on my favourite "best of" site today (parents' TV died recently) and saw they of course have a recommendation for what they consider to be the best waterproof camera.

Hope the computer gremlins get sorted out for you soon!

One of the beers in your beer pic is Bell's Oberon.

Deliciousness in a bottle, brewed here in Michigan. Even better on tap.

http://bellsbeer.com

I just had an Oberon last weekend at the Kalamazoo Beer Exchange. What a neat place that was!

Check your charger to see if you even need one.  I know for our laptop, camera charger and I believe the ipad charger.....we only needed the adapter for the different plug sizes, but not a converter as the power packs are built for any location in the world and automatically adapt to different power levels between 100-240 volts.  However, we did use a converter for other items and I picked them up at the luggage store in the mall.  Somewhere between $10-20 IIRC.  

Dave is correct all around. Your iPhone/iPad will handle the voltage no problem, it's just the shape of the plug you'll need an adapter for, and a luggage store (or even Wal-Mart) should have a multi-plug adapter kit.

Edit to add: Most, but not every device is voltage flexible, so make sure you double check before you plug them in.

That is really cool.  I could have some real fun with one of those.

 

And your husband has one?  He needs to bring it to the Fort the next time you come!

He has something similar. He bought components and built his own.

The white one I showed you requires no assembly. It's turnkey.

We're heading to the Smokies soon and he's already lamenting that he won't be able to take the quad with him. (There's not a lot of trunk space in a Miata!)

My husband lost one of these doing some work, got stuck in a tree and they could never recover it. He was not happy. 

Yes, my husband has had some excitement with his too. He crashed it into a tree and some of the propellers came off. They were bright yellow and somehow one went missing. We both scoured the area and still can't figure out how we were unable to locate an 8" bright yellow plastic propeller. Oh well. It gave him an excuse to buy new ones.

The wall was too high for me to reach my arm over and snap photos.  And I didn't have my broom stick and duct tape with me.  So, I couldn't get any photos over the top of the wall.  I could peek through a crack next to the door, and could see that there was a bunch of cinderblock stacked in there, and that white thing we saw peeking out of the top in the previous photo is the roof of a porta-potty.  But, that's all I could see.  What this is all about remains a mystery.  I would say it's a staging area for a project to be completed at Pioneer Hall, but I don't understand why it would be sitting here in the field if that was it.  I don't recall ever seeing this extensive a construction wall around the Fort before.  For the pool and loop work they did a few years ago, they just used the standard chain link fence with green fabric.  But this is a solid wood enclosure.  I'm stumped.  For now.  I just need a way to see over the wall, and then I'll know more.  For now, what we have is a real unsolved mystery.

I say we take up a collection to get you one of these. It's a mere $1000.  :rofl3:

My husband has something similar... If only I could convince him to drop everything and go down to the Fort to solve the mystery!

But I still need to know why there's a fat guy with ear muffs driving the dragon. 

When I saw this parade in March I seem to have taken the same picture you did. Same guy? (Minus the lunch bag.)

Not in the $10 range, but check out Limefuel on Amazon. They have 6,000 13,000 15,600 18,000 and 24,000 mAh versions. They get great reviews and they will charge an iPad for hours and hours of parade-photographing fun!

Since I know you like a good hijack... On the topic of phone charging.

I managed a day trip to the Magic Kingdom back in March and was not shocked to discover that the battery on my phone didn't last the whole day. It wasn't hard to find electrical outlets (e.g., waiting room area of CBJ, near the bathrooms by Space Mountain, inside the SOTMK fire hall) where I was able to boost it out of the red.

When I got back home I bought myself a little 2600 mAh battery pack. It's 3.75" long, 0.75" wide and weighs 2.5 ounces. In my testing at home it has taken my iPhone 5 battery from 18% to 94% in about 90 minutes. (Though that's without using the phone during that time.) Then the battery pack needs a couple of hours to recharge. I'd rather leave a battery pack recharging in one of those public stations than my phone.

Unfortunately I haven't had an opportunity to field test it back at the Magic Kingdom yet. I think I should apply for a research grant.

The reviews on Amazon for that particular model aren't great, but there are lots of similar products, including bigger ones with higher mAh values. I wanted something small that wouldn't add to my purse/bag weight.

I laughed way too hard at this.

I'm not sure whether to flag this NSFW or not... It's the "Hitler finds out about..." style video.

http://youtu.be/LcT6h04qlAI

One more thing- I think that display might be right in the middle of the hub, where the Partners statue is now.  You can see the castle in the background.  I don't have time now to research it, but I know the Partners statue was added some time after the MK had been open for a while.  That round planter may be where the statue stands today.

This photo is from August 1983, which corroborates your theory.

I'm very envious of your talent, Lou!  

If you have the opportunity to track it down, you might enjoy the documentary "Tim's Vermeer". "Inventor Tim Jenison seeks to understand the painting techniques used by Dutch Master Johannes Vermeer."

http://youtu.be/CS_HUWs9c8c

I have no artistic skills whatsoever, but found the movie fascinating, especially his dedication to the project.

I am thinking about surprising DW and DD with a trip to the tea room. The princess tea party is $250 for my DW and DD. Ouch!

Do you think a 9 year old would enjoy the regular tea service? It's a lot more affordable.

I haven't been to the princess tea party so I can't compare the two, but in the afternoon they do still offer a children's version of the tea menu (Mrs Potts Tea). The setting is somewhat formal/quiet by Disney standards, but I've seen kids there when I've gone who did fine.

I think as long as you can manage expectations (quiet respite from the buzz of activity elsewhere, not a character-filled high energy activity) it's a nice little tranquil break.

That looks yummy, but how "spicy" is it. I've tried Boma at dinner before, and there was so much on the dinner buffet that was spicy, that I've been scared away from Jiko. Hate to have an expensive meal that I can't eat because it's spicy.

 

I will state that I am a complete spice wimp!!!  Even too much black pepper in/on stuff kills me.

I'm probably not the right person to judge the level of spiciness. I don't like crazy spicy food, but I've got a pretty good tolerance and know that what I think is "just right" is too hot for my Mom.

Having said that... A couple of the dips in the Taste of Africa might be too much for you, but the sagh (spinach) and hummus would be fine. Here are the descriptions of the dips.

I didn't try more than a bite of the short rib, for fear of losing my hand. My husband practically licked the plate clean. The lamb two ways is what I had and I would say it wasn't spicy at all. I believe the scallops were "jerked", which would make them spicy. I didn't get to try them.

I have no doubt the server could steer you to dishes that would make you happy. I've only eaten at Jiko twice but have enjoyed it immensely both times. You're right though that it would be an expensive experiment if you found it too spicy for you to enjoy.

If you can fit it into your schedule, try going to the 4:00 restaurant tour of both Boma and Jiko. They let you try some of the food for free and give you some interesting info about the design of the restaurants.

Not that I've been to the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor a lot of times, but I don't remember them doing orders this way. There was someone working the line with a stack of papers like this:

That's what I handed to the cashier.

And here's my All American, without whipped cream. My family thinks I left off the best part, but I prefer it without. Love the warm peanut butter topping!

Wow, looks like your current one is the skimpiest of the 3!

Agreed. And it took 30 minutes to get it, too!

Still... skimpy Nutella waffle > no Nutella waffle.

I seem to eat the same things over and over again. Here's another sweet cream cheese pretzel.

I ordered a small frozen Coke with it, and they handed me two! It was a nice bit of "magic", but I was there alone and couldn't picture myself having both, so I gave the second one away to a random stranger. I hope he didn't think I'd done anything fishy to it!

Yum! I'm glad you lied and went back. I love seeing the pictures of the tea. Just wish clotted cream had a different name!

They also refer to it as Devonshire cream, which takes longer to say but you're right that it sounds more appealing!

Pork sandwich

Can you ever have too many Nutella waffle pictures?

A Taste of Africa

Cauliflower flatbread

Lamb two ways

Short Ribs

Scallops

Cheese plate

Bread pudding