DaveInTN’s Off-Site, Off-Topic, Off His Rocker Trip Report - Oct 2010

[Katman1356...Jason 1,140]

Disney, Disney, Disney. Geeze is that all you people can talk about?!?

Ummm Yes

[Beckers 1,136]

I'm not bitter or anything lol

[DaveInTN 3,247]

I am not even going to try multiquoting you people.  I'll just say....well done.  You make me proud.  LOL> 

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Those Are The Georgia Beach Mountains

 

Friday, October 15th

 

We pulled out of our driveway a bit past 10am on Friday the 15th. I planned on driving about half way the first day, stopping around Macon. The van was full, with the 6 of us, our two dogs, the bunny in its cage, and all our stuff.  :bugeyes:   And even though they were just tagging along on a business trip (or so they thought), the kids were excited to be getting away from home.



We packed a lunch and stopped for a picnic at a rest area along Nickajack Lake on I-24 near Chattanooga.

 

Most rest areas aren’t as beautiful as this one.



After lunch, we stopped briefly at Shipp’s RV in Chattanooga to look at a travel trailer I’ve been viewing online…the Outback 301bq.   :jumpforjoy This is a great floorplan for a large family. We really liked it, and when the time is right we may seriously consider this trailer. But, that won’t be until sometime later next year at the earliest.  



We breezed through downtown Atlanta, and arrived at the Residence Inn near Macon in time to get settled into a room and head across the street to Logan’s Roadhouse for dinner. Let the kids swim in the hotel pool before turning in for a good night’s sleep.



Saturday, October 16th

The next morning we hit the road by 8:00. Now, if we had really been going to St Simons Island, we would be turning southeast at this point of the trip rather than continuing south on I-75. Fortunately, my kids don’t pay much attention to those things. They did, however, find it a bit odd when we entered Florida. But I had told them that we needed to dip into Florida briefly to get where we were going in Georgia.   :smartass: 

When we hit the Turnpike, I thought they’d question things. Nope. Then we started seeing billboards advertising Disney and other Orlando attractions. Nothing. We turned onto 429…nothing. Finally, one of my kids saw the Contemporary in the distance. I said it was a beachfront hotel that resembled the Contemporary. They bought it. And then I hit a snag. One of my kids spotted Everest. Uh oh, think fast Dave. I told them that was just one of the Georgia Beach Mountains. And this is where the jig was up. It turns out my kids aren’t stupid. And they actually had figured it out way back near Ocala…knowing that you really don’t cross through Florida to get back to Georgia. They didn't want to say anything so as not to be presumptious. And a part of me was actually relieved to know that they aren’t dumb! Yay!  :jumpforjoy 

And so, just a few moments later we turned off of 429 on 192 and, within minutes, were pulling into the driveway of our home away from home for the next week.

Coming up…I Miss Forting Around

[mouseketab.....Carol 1,261]

Nice drive down Dave!!  Oh, and you need to fix the first post - this trip is NOT March 2010.

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Nice drive down Dave!!  Oh, and you need to fix the first post - this trip is NOT March 2010.

 

You are right....fixed! 

[alexwyattmommy 181]

Now that you are officially on property, I can post.

Post

 

Oh and you don't have enough photos of INC.

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Now that you are officially on property, I can post.

Post

 

Oh and you don't have enough photos of INC.

 

Let me get this straight.  Normally, I don't have enough photos of Anna.  But since at that point we had not yet met her, the complaint now shifts to "you don't have enough photos of INC"? 

 

Well...I can fix that.  More of those to come. 

[jengarynew adventures 0]

I'm in.  Agree with your take on the rest area at Nickajack, it is beatiful!!

 

Where can one find that awesome musket Mickey sticker??

[Judy in Texas 150]

You guys are awesome!  Stuck at home like me while all those other clowns are partying at the Fort.  It'll be page infinity for them.  

 

But let the record show.....Judy was #1.  She gets a free Anna hug.  All she has to do is drive to TN.  

 

Yeah me!!! Next time I drive to Ohio on the easterly route or take the Natchez Trace Parkway I'll stop by to collect.  :hugs2:

[DaveInTN 3,247]

I'm in.  Agree with your take on the rest area at Nickajack, it is beatiful!!

 

Where can one find that awesome musket Mickey sticker??

 

That was a gift several years ago from Grumpy Dave. 

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

page two BR

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

Ummm Yes

Ditto!

[DaveInTN 3,247]

page two BR

 

I am so proud of you.  

 

Ditto!

 

Ditto what?

[DaveInTN 3,247]

I Miss Forting Around

 

Sunday, October 16th (cont)

 

When we decided to sneak in a Disney trip this fall, we knew we’d be staying off site. The cost to board our 3 pets, not to mention the trauma, was prohibiting us from looking at on-site accommodations. I had booked a large suite at a Residence Inn, as they allow pets, but the thought of leaving them alone in the room with housekeepers coming in wasn’t appealing for us. So, even though we had never rented a home from an individual, I started a Google search to see what was out there. 

 

I stumbled upon a website called vrbo.com, which features vacation rentals by owner. You can search by area, features and whether they take pets (most do not). I found a couple that interested me and emailed the owners, eventually settling on one where the owner gave me a great deal as it was last minute. We got a 4 bedroom, 3 bath home with a private pool for less per night than we paid for our last Fort campsite.   :bellringer:  And it was literally 5 minutes from World Drive!  It wasn’t the Ritz….or the Fort for that matter….but it served us well. 

 

 

 

 

 

All in all, we enjoyed having the run of the house, including the space to spread out a bit and the pool to swim in. It’s Not Cindy loved having a washer and dryer right there to not have to drag everything to a laundry room. But…it wasn’t the Fort. Not even close. We missed the evening looping, the morning walks, the peaceful coffee under the awning, and getting to the parks without driving. But heck, we were still at Disney.   :waycool:

 

We settled into the house on Saturday afternoon, and I ran to the store to get some essentials. Like beer. Oh, and milk and coffee creamer too. We took a dip in the pool, and then got ready to head out for our kick off dinner at …..’Ohana!

 

I love the Polynesian.

 

 

 

 

We had never had dinner at ‘Ohana, and I was really looking forward to it. I love a lot of what they serve, including potstickers, wings and all the grilled meats and shrimp. 

 

 

 

Overall, I enjoyed the food. Like most Disney restaurants, the quality was ok…not terrible but not terrific either. People say that ‘Ohana used to be fabulous, but since I never ate there in those days I’ll just be satisfied with what I got. Plus, my youngest DD got into the dancing. 

 

 

 

 

 

After dinner, we hopped the monorail for the MK! This is our first ever trip this time of year, so we had never seen the Halloween decorations before. They are beautiful!

 

 

 

We stayed for a couple hours, starting with the flying carpets, then we walked through the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse.

 

 

 

 

There are some good views from the top of that treehouse.

 

 

 

We hit the Haunted Mansion.

 

 

Then we finished our evening riding BTMR before driving back to the house. 

 

 

 

 

Coming up next….Ohhhhh-HANA! 

 

 

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

Disney, Disney, Disney. Geeze is that all you people can talk about?!?

  

Ummm Yes

I replied right after Jason but I didn't hit reply till much later.

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

What a great surprise.

We've used VRBO.com twice now and we are renting a condo in Reno/Tahoe this Christmas. It's a good way to cheap inexpensive accommodations.

[DaveInTN 3,247]

  

I replied right after Jason but I didn't hit reply till much later.

 

Gotcha...LOL.  

 

What a great surprise.

We've used VRBO.com twice now and we are renting a condo in Reno/Tahoe this Christmas. It's a good way to cheap inexpensive accommodations.

 

Yeah, it worked out well for us for this trip as we had no RV to camp in.  I'm not sure if we'll ever do it again, as we would typically stay at the Fort, but for other places besides Disney I would check it out again.

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

Is the the TR were you explain why you got rid of the MoHo and bought a TT?

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Is the the TR were you explain why you got rid of the MoHo and bought a TT?

 

I'm not sure honestly....but I know I talk about in the 2nd update of THIS trip report.  

 

Basically....while in the process of adopting Anna we decided to sell the MH for two main reasons.  First, we were not sure whether we would be camping anymore.  We had committed to adopting a special needs child with DS from Russia....having NO idea of her condition.  We didn't know whether she would have serious medical issues, mobility issues, etc.  So at the very least, we figured we would be taking an extended break from RV traveling.  

 

Secondly, was cost.  The adoption was very expensive, and we needed "funds".  The MH was an expensive asset just sitting at that point, so we sold it.  In reality, while we obviously CAN camp with Anna, we do not take long trips like we had in the MH.  We do more local weekend camping, with occasional trips to the Fort.  Our lives are too hectic at the moment, and travel is difficult.  So it all worked out.  I'd love to own another MH someday, though.    

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

UHPTBR!

 

That's Upper Half of Page Three Bragging Rights!

 

Another classic DIT TR.

 

In this one we will learn the origin of Ohhhhh-HANA! 

 

I can hardly wait.

 

TCD

[DaveInTN 3,247]

UHPTBR!

 

That's Upper Half of Page Three Bragging Rights!

 

Another classic DIT TR.

 

In this one we will learn the origin of Ohhhhh-HANA! 

 

I can hardly wait.

 

TCD

 

Not only is that a "yes"....it's in the very next update.  Stay tuned!

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Ohhhh-HANA!!

 

Sunday, October 17th

 

We’ve reached that point in the trip report where my childish side will come out.  WARNING to those that don’t enjoy discussions about bodily functions: skip ahead to the section titled “Hollywood Studios”.

 

Ok, with that said, let’s take a brief refresher on the previous evening. We arrived at Disney and enjoyed our first dinner at ‘Ohana. As in, the “all you care to enjoy” restaurant at the Poly serving various Asian specialties and large volumes of grilled meats. 

 

Any of you that know me, or have read my trip reports before, knows that I enjoy food. And Saturday night was no exception. I ate bread, salad, potstickers, wings, noodles, steak, chicken, pork, shrimp and banana bread pudding. And I had seconds of most items. All this after sitting in a car for the better part of two days.    :bugeyes:  

 

So Sunday morning, I woke up with a bit of….well, let’s call it “gas”.   :o  Actually, it was a lot of gas. And every time some “escaped”, I’d say in an Asian accent “Ohhhhh-HANA!”. Kind of like Mr. Miyagi was saying it to the Karate Kid. A long “Ohhhhhhh” followed by a strong accent on the “HANA!”. 

 

Everyone say it with me. “Ohhhhhh-HANA!”. 

 

Good. Now, it got to be a joke with the family. Any time one of the kids would let one rip, they’d say “Ohhhh-HANA!”. It was especially funny when DD4 would come out with an “Ohhhhh-HANA!”. We’d know it was time to leave the room. Ah, good times. 

 

But the kicker was Sunday evening. We were at the Fort, and the family had gone inside the Settlement TP while I used the restroom. I made my grand entrance into the trading post by exclaiming to my wife “Ohhhhh-HANA!”. A guy was standing there and he replied “I’ve been there!”. We burst out laughing.   :rofl3:  Poor guy. If he only knew.   

 

Or, it’s possible he was in that restroom with me and really DID know what I was talking about!    And then, I guess the joke would be on me. 

 

Sorry, no pics to share with this post. But I doubt you’d want to see them anyways.    :clint:

 

Coming up…Hollywood Studios…and a visit with Tom on Jackwagon Run! 

 

 

[mommy rainbo.....Bo 41]

Ah, middle of page 3 bragging rights..

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

Ok. I'm now changing from Barking spiders to Ohhhh-HANA!!! Lol!