TCD's College Road Trip (via the Fort)

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

{threadjack}

I live in CT, about a half hour from NYC. I had season tickets for the Pats for years, until munchkin #3 arrived. Hard to give up 8-10 sundays a fall after that point.

Make way for Gronklings!

[/threadjack]

Sorry, Andrew.

He was due a hijack anyway!

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

OK, time to move along.

It is still early Saturday morning, January 28th.

I arrived at the Fort in the dark, and the sky gradually grew lighter as the sun continued to rise.

As you have seen already, I pretty much had the Fort to myself.

That is an awesome feeling.

I wish there was a way that photographs could convey the way things feel at the scene depicted.

But they can't.

As I stood there by the marina, I could hear boat whistles in the distance, and even the whistle from the train in the MK. Plus, birds were chirping, and gradually growing louder. The air was crisp. There was a hint of campfire smell in the air. There was also the gentle sound of the banjo music coming from the music played over the speakers around Pioneer Hall. You can't experience any of that in photos.

I wish you could.

I gave you some bum information at the end of my last update.

I said that I went over to check out the 100 loop before heading to Trail's End.

But, I got the order wrong.

I went over to Trail's End first.

It opens at 7:30, and I was the first customer of the day.

Earlier this year, they brought back take-out offerings for breakfast.

This was the sign posted on January 28th:

I don't think things have changed since the last time I posted that sign.

While we are on the subject of Trail's End take-out for breakfast, let me address a question that comes up often. That is: Can you use a Disney Dining Plan credit to get one of the breakfast take-out items? You can see on the menu that there are little DDP marks next to some of the items. But not the sandwiches. But, as I stood there and waited for my sandwich to be made, a gentleman came up and asked the lady at the register what he could get for breakfast with his DDP credits. She told him that a DDP meal credit would get him one of the sandwiches with a side and drink. And I have witnessed that before too.

So, despite the lack of clear information, I am confirming that you can use the DDP to get one of the breakfast take out entrees from Trail's End.

I also witnessed something else I never had before as I waited for my breakfast. A gentleman came in with three of the old red, yellow and black style mugs. You know, the ones 2009-2010? He was going to fill them up, like I have seen lots of other people do. Well, before he could get to the drink machine, the manager on duty, Debra, approached him and told him that his mugs were expired and that he would need to buy new ones. She was right, but it is the first time I have personally seen anyone get stopped there. So, there's a head's up to you soda thieves reading along- if you want to steal soda, you at least need to buy one of the current mugs. Of make sure Debra isn't around.

My bagel, egg, cheese and bacon sandwich was ready to go in just a couple of minutes, and I enjoyed it outside on one of the picnic tables.

As I was eating, I noticed that there was a group of about a dozen old men inside Crockett's Tavern, sitting around drinking coffee. Right there by the door, on the lower level. I don't know where they came from or what they were doing, but they must have somehow gotten there early. They cleared out by 8 am. I wonder if they do that every morning? Maybe they are some of those Northern Pioneer guys that take over the full hook up loops every January?

After the old guys cleared out, I popped in to Crockett's for just a minute to snap this photo:

That item was hanging on the wall next to the model of the Gullywhumper in the tavern. In my NYE trip report, I shared photos of all the Davy Crockett artifacts that you can find displayed in the tavern. When I looked at the photos I took then, I noticed that I had missed getting a photo of this item. As you can see, it is a map printed on a piece of leather. I guess it has something to do with Davy.

Needless to say, I enjoyed my breakfast immensely. As far as I'm concerned, Trail's End is the best place to get a quick breakfast anywhere in WDW.

As I headed away from the porch, I stopped to take this photo of the fenced-in area in front of Crockett's Tavern. The last time I was here, there was a big Christmas tree there. A long time ago, there used to be a canon there. Now, it just has trees and flowers. Also note how you can see the beautiful water of Bay Lake shimmering in the background of the photo:

From here, I walked over to the front of Pioneer Hall, and took a look over toward the ranch that they named after me.

These flowers were blooming in front of the ticket window:

And, here's a look at the big field adjacent to Pioneer Hall. You can see TCD ranch over there to the far right. The Settlement bus stop is straight ahead. If you look carefully, you can see that there are some red azeleas already in bloom on the bushes near the bus stop:

Azeleas usually don't start blooming in these parts until late February/early March. But it looks like we aren't going to have much of a winter this year, and the plants think Spring has sprung.

There were a bunch of azelea blooms on the plants around the Pioneer Hall golf cart parking area:

I was looking forward to walking down this path:

But first, I wanted to see how my old pal Fiesty had her site decorated. I was lucky enough to see her Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas decorations in 2011. But those holidays are now behind us. What would Fiesty do now?

Valentine's Day, of course! :

This is Fiesty's next door neighbor:

And this is the site across from them:

Here's one more look at Fiesty's site:

And this is Fiesty's buddy, Tina, who has the site right across the path from Fiesty:

I remember seeing Fiesty's valentine decorations last year, and I would say she has scaled back a bit this year:

But, Fiesty still had the best decorated site I saw on my brief visit to the Fort on this cool January morning.

From here, I headed down the Settlement Path, and walked up to the 600, loop, and back to the foot bridge.

Here is the canal that the footbridge crosses. The 600 loop is on the left, and the 1400 loop is on the right. The water is kind of low:

I snapped this photo of a tree that was growing right next to the canal. You can't really tell, but the reason why I took the photo is that this tree is already sprouting new leaves. Like trees do in the Spring. But, today was January 28th. It is still winter. I guess this tree, along with all of those azeleas, disagrees:

This is interesting to me. I think trees and azeleas know more about the weather than the weather experts we see on TV. I interpret this to mean that we aren't going to have winter in Florida this year. So far, we haven't had much cold weather at all. This is a big change from the past few years. But, if these plants are already getting ready for spring, then winter must be passing us by this year. Fine with me. I just hope that doesn't mean really warm water in the Gulf, and a more active hurricane season. But, I'm afraid that is what it means. The "experts" have already predicted a less active hurricane season for this year, after they wrongly predicted active seasons for the past few years. To me, that is cause for concern. Hopefully I am wrong and the experts are right.

We are now back in the spot where I began taking photos earlier this morning. It has barely been an hour, but the scene has changed greatly since the sun has risen. The fog has burned off:

There's the 600 loop over there:

We are going to walk along the lake here to the other bridge behind the Trading Post:

In this photo, you can see that there is some juvenile delinquent fishing on Bob's dock:

Here's a closer look at that situation:

Who does that punk think he is?

I yelled across the lake to him and told him to get the Fort off of Bob's dock.

He looked at me with a blank look on his face.

I yelled again. And told him he had better get off that dock before I got over there or he would be sorry.

The kid looked really surprised, but he got off the dock.

Score.

Gotta protect my man Bob's turf.

Right?

Here's one of those reflection shots folks like. See how the Meadow Trading Post is reflected in the lake? :

Lately, I have been talking photos of the big sycamore behind the Meadow Trading Post. In the summer it has leaves on it, and in the winter it doesn't. This is your winter shot:

The azeleas over here are on the early bloom schedule too:

Here's a shot of the Bike Barn from across the lake:

As I passed by the back porch of the Trading Post, the kid I had yelled at was sitting there crying.

I asked him what his problem was.

He said I was a mean old man.

I said he was a crybaby.

And he was.

I didn't let the crybaby bother me.

Instead, I took this photo of Bear Rock:

As you can see, the Bear was high and dry.

Over there is the tree where Bob likes to keep his bobbers:

I headed back to the Trading Post to get some coffee.

I noticed that the new Fort merchandise area was fully stocked:

And I left some of my money there in exchange for two of the new mugs.

It was here where the incident happened.

What incident, you ask?

Well, it seems that that young punk I had chased off Bob's dock had a dad. The dad was inside the Trading Post when I was straightening out the punk. Well, that punk was not only a crybaby, but he was also a tattletale. And the Dad somehow had a problem with me making the crybaby cry. As luck would have it, the Dad was a big fellow. You know, the kind with muscles and tattoos? And he came right up to me in the Trading Post and asked me what my problem was.

That is the incident.

I am pretty quick on my feet, so I knew I had to diffuse this situation. I decided that I would pretend that I was Bob, so the guy would understand why I asked his son nicely to get off of my dock. So, I told the guy my name was Bob and that I was from Tennessesee, and that I owned the dock behind the Trading Post. I handed him a FortFiends card, and said that he could feel free to look me up some time, and that he could even see on-line when I would be back to the Fort again so he could come by and visit, and then I finished with a z-snap.

The guy looked stunned.

Then I ran.

On the way, I snapped this photo of some more azeleas blooming early:

But, I couldn't linger and take any more photos.

Bob's new friend was coming after me.

Luckily, a bus pulled up, and I was gone.

So, Bob owes me one for protecting his dock.

The guy with the muscles and tattoos told me that he is at the Fort often. So, maybe he can arrange to meet up with Bob to discuss the dock situation the next time Bob is at the Fort.

From here, I headed back to All Star Music.

It wasn't even 9 am yet.

And, I was going to wake up the TCD twins so we could hit the parks.

And that's what we did.

I'll tell you all about it in the next post.

Because I just shared another 30 Fort photos with you, so this post is done.

TCD

[TnBob 311]

Ohhh Lawdy, you are trying to get me killed, are you trying to get my dock all to yourself after I been killed??

I love to see those little guys fishing, they are so intense, problem with most of the people that do come fish there is they have no idea what to do IF they catch a fish. Most times the kids of all ages, including teens get a fish, take a picture then don't want to touch it :rofl2: More then one mother stands there with their little rugrat clueless as to what she is going to do to get the fish off the line.

I have officially changed my name to George from Wisconsin

[jjbescher 17]

I went over to Trail's End first.

It opens at 7:30, and I was the first customer of the day.

Earlier this year, they brought back take-out offerings for breakfast.

This was the sign posted on January 28th:

I don't think things have changed since the last time I posted that sign.

While we are on the subject of Trail's End take-out for breakfast, let me address a question that comes up often. That is: Can you use a Disney Dining Plan credit to get one of the breakfast take-out items? You can see on the menu that there are little DDP marks next to some of the items. But not the sandwiches. But, as I stood there and waited for my sandwich to be made, a gentleman came up and asked the lady at the register what he could get for breakfast with his DDP credits. She told him that a DDP meal credit would get him one of the sandwiches with a side and drink. And I have witnessed that before too.

So, despite the lack of clear information, I am confirming that you can use the DDP to get one of the breakfast take out entrees from Trail's End.

The reason that the Sandwiches do not have the DDP symbol next to them, is that those with the symbols can be bought using the Snack Credits. In order to get the sandwich you need to use a Quick Service Meal or a Table Service Meal to get it.

jon

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Ohhh Lawdy, you are trying to get me killed, are you trying to get my dock all to yourself after I been killed??

I love to see those little guys fishing, they are so intense, problem with most of the people that do come fish there is they have no idea what to do IF they catch a fish. Most times the kids of all ages, including teens get a fish, take a picture then don't want to touch it :rofl2: More then one mother stands there with their little rugrat clueless as to what she is going to do to get the fish off the line.

I have officially changed my name to George from Wisconsin

Curses!

You figured out my evil plan!

Just so nobody gets his or her panties in a wad, I was kidding about yelling at the kid.

He was having a great time feeding the fish.

You are right, Bob, there is always some good people watching available at that dock.

The reason that the Sandwiches do not have the DDP symbol next to them, is that those with the symbols can be bought using the Snack Credits. In order to get the sandwich you need to use a Quick Service Meal or a Table Service Meal to get it.

jon

Thanks for clarifying that.

But, there is nothing official posted anywhere around Trail's End saying that you can use Quick Serve credits there for a meal. Even the information they provide at check-in just mentions the Meadow Snack Bar and the Wilderness Lodge counter service location as the closest places to use Quick Serve meal credits.

TCD

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

1. Our current neighbors have one of those lighted palm trees in our lot.. soky. Decorations for free.

2. I love the Fort in the morning.. although we usually see it on our way to the Marina for EMHs or to fill up our mugs.

3. Why didn't you go for the cinnamon rolls?

4. good for you protecting Bob's deck

5. glad you can run fast :rofl3:

6. I need some of that there Fort Merchindise...

7... time for a new post - not greed or anything!

[TheLug 10]

I'm here BTW! in case you were concerned.

[stefa70 205]

Gee I didn't know that part of fiendom is protecting Bob's dock! My apologies, I have seen different people on it every day. I will spread the word from now on!

Should I stick with TnBob or George in Wisconsin? I'll run them out of there!

Andrew.....no worries whatsoever on getting my panties in a wad.

[BuckeyeFortFan 35]

TCD....did the guy who came into TE with the expired mugs buy new ones? Did he make a scene? Did he claim that when he bought the mugs he was told they never expired so he is entitled to free refills for the rest of his life as is the lucky devil he wills them to? I would have just filled them and paid the price of a regular drink and saved a disposable cup from the landfill.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

1. Our current neighbors have one of those lighted palm trees in our lot.. soky. Decorations for free.

2. I love the Fort in the morning.. although we usually see it on our way to the Marina for EMHs or to fill up our mugs.

3. Why didn't you go for the cinnamon rolls?

4. good for you protecting Bob's deck

5. glad you can run fast :rofl3:

6. I need some of that there Fort Merchindise...

7... time for a new post - not greed or anything!

I haven't tried the cinnamon rolls at the Fort, but from what I have heard, they aren't near as good as the MK's.

I'm here BTW! in case you were concerned.

Well, I'm glad to hear that.

I was worried about you

Gee I didn't know that part of fiendom is protecting Bob's dock! My apologies, I have seen different people on it every day. I will spread the word from now on!

Should I stick with TnBob or George in Wisconsin? I'll run them out of there!

Andrew.....no worries whatsoever on getting my panties in a wad.

You know, Bob ought to make one of those signs he is so good at making to hang on his dock. Then we wouldn't have to keep chasing those rotten kids off of there.

No comment on your undergarments.

TCD....did the guy who came into TE with the expired mugs buy new ones? Did he make a scene? Did he claim that when he bought the mugs he was told they never expired so he is entitled to free refills for the rest of his life as is the lucky devil he wills them to? I would have just filled them and paid the price of a regular drink and saved a disposable cup from the landfill.

No, the guy didn't make a scene. He had to have known he was busted. He had to know how old those mugs were.

I felt bad for him. He kind of just hung his head in shame and walked out.

And probably headed to the Meadow Trading Post and got them filled there.

The funny thing is, when I was back at the Fort that evening, I saw people using all kinds of expired mugs, and nobody said a thing.

This would be a very simple thing for them to fix if they wanted to. They could just post a photo of what mugs are allowed and tell everyone else to beat it. I think that would do the trick.

TCD

[stefa70 205]

If you read threads other than the ones you're mentioned in Stef, you would have read that wifi at the sites is in the works.

Patience, it's coming, it's coming.

As Disney did with the resorts that already have it, they will announce it when it happens.

Lou just left my site and I cleared the old dude up on this issue, but it would be unlike me not to respond to a snarky comment for anyone reading along.

We knew that there was not wifi at the sites...what some people were hoping was that (the now free) wifi at the trading post would seep over into the nearest camp sites. No such luck. While we could get a weak signal here and there, with just a turn, it would be gone.

And whether TCD mentions me or not, I will continue to stalk his reports!

So there Lou!!! :tounge-smiley:

[DaveInTN 3,247]

....and tell everyone else to beat it.

"beat it" ?? Isn't that hippie terminology?

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

It looks like I can squeeze in one more update today, and then we will put this little report to rest tomorrow.

I left off with me returning to All Star Music from the Fort.

The girls actually were up when I got back. They wanted to get some breakfast before we headed out for the day.

We made the quarter mile treck to the food court.

It was a long walk, but it was a nice morning, so no problem.

I love the food courts at the value resorts. Quick and easy. I wish the Fort could have one.

The girls got Mickey waffles, and then we headed back for them to get showers and ready to go.

I have to say, after camping as much as we do, that checking out of a hotel is so much easier than packing up and leaving the Fort.

We took our one little bag each, and walked to the car.

I parked the car in the main lot, and we got on line for the Hollywood Studios bus.

This is where some weird stuff happened.

At All Star Music, the bus stop for Hollywood Studios is also the bus stop for ESPN Wide World of Sports. An ESPN bus came first. There was another family at the bus stop, and we didn't know if the ESPN bus also went to Hollywood Studios, or if there were separate buses. The mom in that family asked the ESPN bus driver, and he said that a separate Hollywood Studios bus would be coming. Right after he said that, a regular, non Disney bus came pulling up next to the ESPN bus. The ESPN bus driver motioned to us that this was the Hollywood Studios bus. The guy driving this bus was not dressed as a castmember, in fact, he was wearing a Florida Department of Corrections windbreaker. We walked up to the bus, and I asked him if he was going to Hollywood Studios, and he said yes. I asked why, and he said Disney had called in some extra buses because it was busy.

Huh?

We were at WDW on Thanksgiving and New Years. That was busy. We didn't see freelance bus drivers then. It wasn't that busy this weekend.

The whole thing seemed weird.

And, as we stood there, a Disney Bus with Hollywood Studios on the lights came pulling in to the driveway.

I told the Department of Corrections guy we would wait for that bus.

The other family got on the weird bus.

We got on the regular bus.

As we drove off, another weird bus pulled up in the Epcot spot. I took a photo of it:

I wonder what this was all about.

I wish Lou read trip reports.

Because I wonder if he knows anything about these weird buses.

Anyway, our real Disney bus got us to Hollywood Studios without incident.

We knew that we were getting there late, so we lowered our expectations as to what we would try to do there.

We headed to Star Tours first.

Since it reopened last spring, we have had good luck with this ride.

We have never had a very long wait.

Even when it has been busy.

On the way to the ride, we noticed the Jesus Jet trying to write a message in the sky:

Love Go?

What is that supposed to mean?

The line for Star Tours was out the door, but it moved quick.

I actually was glad that there was a bit of a line, because it gave us a chance to enjoy some of the props in the queue.

This next photo is blurry, but I think you can make out what I want to show you.

There is a robot in the middle of the queue who is supposed to be scanning luggage being loaded onto the transport ships. He keeps on talking, and missing things on the scanner. You can see that this suitcase had Aladdin's lamp in it:

Other suitcases had Buzz Lightyear, and some of those bad droids from Star Wars Episode 1.

This is looking down at the same robot, after we went up and around him on the queue:

We had another great ride.

And, you will never believe it, but Twin #2 was the Rebel Spy.

Again.

That makes the third time that she has been the Rebel Spy.

Twin #1 has never been the Rebel Spy.

I have been the Rebel Spy once.

It is really strange how Twin #2 keeps getting picked to be the Rebel Spy.

Since we have been watching the Star Wars movies, the gift shop after the ride is much more interesting to the girls now.

They spotted Star Wars vinylmations, and I got them each one.

These come in unmarked boxes, so you don't know which one you are going to get. The castmember behind the counter asked if we wanted to pick which box we wanted. I asked her to pick out two good ones. I think she must have had a way of knowing which ones were in each box, because she did pick out two good ones.

This is supposed to be a candid photo of the twins' reactions as they opened the vinylmation boxes:

But, there were too many people walking by for that to work.

So, here is Twin #1 with her C3P0 vinylmation:

And here's Twin #2 with her Darth Vader vinylmation:

They both liked the ones they got.

Win!

Here the girls are on one of those flying things from the Star Wars with the Ewoks (Episode 6?) :

And here's one of those big walking things that shot at the Ewoks in that same episode:

From here, we headed over to the American Idol show. It has been a while since we watched that.

I think people are loosing interest in this attraction. The park was fairly busy, but the theater was only about 3/4 full.

And I am growing suspicious about the "guests" that are chosen to sing in the show.

The three folks who sang in our show were all very good singers, and there was something about two of them that made me think that they were plants. This is something that I have always wondered about this attraction. Wouldn't it eventually get to the point where all of the people who were really interested in traveling to Hollywood Studios to sing had their chance, and then they would have to struggle to find contestants? What do they do if they don't have enough contestants? It would seem easy enough for them to just hire a few folks and stick them in the show. I think that is what was going on when we were there.

After American Idol, we headed down the New York Street to see how it looked without all of the lights that have been there for the past few months. It looked like this:

I said we should all look to see if we could spot any lights that had been missed.

Sure enough, we found a stray strand:

We then headed over to the Ariel show. We hadn't seen that in a while, and we were lucky enough to be able to walk right in just as they were seating for a show-so we had no wait.

From Ariel, we popped over to the Art of Animation attraction. We had fun last year meeting some of the Pixar characters there, including Lotso from Toy Story 2. When Lotso left, Pooh came. Pooh is OK, but none of us were interested in meeting him. We checked, and it was still Pooh. Boo!

We also always enjoy the elaborate displays that they have had in there before the release of the next big Disney movie. We saw displays in the past for Up! and Tangled. We were sad to find that the room where the elaborate displays used to be was basically empty, except for a few models from Cars 2. Boo! again.

I did like this piece of art in the gift shop, though:

You see how the Fort is getting some love there?

I liked that.

From here, we decided that we should get some lunch. It has been a while since we ate at Pizza Planet, so we gave that a try.

We enjoyed our food there.

Then it was time for Tower of Terror.

Just for giggles we walked past Toy Story.

90 minutes.

No thanks.

Tower of Terror said it was a 20 minute wait.

It was less.

Here's an artsy photo from the arbor in the queue, looking up:

And, here's a photo of some of the detail on the side of the building:

We had fun on TOT.

As we headed back to Hollywood Blvd, we noticed that they had the exit over by the Beauty and the Beast show open, as there was a parade under way. We decided to take advantage of this and head on out.

We had been to MK, Epcot and now Hollywood Studios on this trip.

So, that meant we had to go on over to AK, right?

Right.

So that is what we did.

We headed to the AK bus stop.

And within minutes a nice old man came and got us.

There was just and another small group on the bus, so we got to sit up front.

I got to watch the driver.

He kept on fooling with this box you see him looking at here:

I wish Lou read trip reports, because I would love to know what that box is, and what the old guy was trying to do.

Also, I noticed that there were a lot of things displayed on this bar above the driver, which he didn't really seem to pay any attention to:

I wonder what gets displayed up there?

Anyway, we made it over to AK just fine.

For some reason it was staying open until 7 that night, so we had plenty of time to have fun.

I'll pick it up from here in the next post.

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Lou just left my site and I cleared the old dude up on this issue, but it would be unlike me not to respond to a snarky comment for anyone reading along.

We knew that there was not wifi at the sites...what some people were hoping was that (the now free) wifi at the trading post would seep over into the nearest camp sites. No such luck. While we could get a weak signal here and there, with just a turn, it would be gone.

And whether TCD mentions me or not, I will continue to stalk his reports!

So there Lou!!! :tounge-smiley:

Thanks for clearing that up, Stef.

Although, I think everyone other than a certain someone already knew what you were doing with your little experiment.

And, I think you will always get a mention in a TCD trip report.

Although the camping gnome did not come along on this trip.

"beat it" ?? Isn't that hippie terminology?

No, I don't think so.

If anything, that is MJ terminology.

You know, The King of Pop?

He even sang a song about it.

{insert moonwalking banana smileys here}

TCD

[PureTcrazy...rita 380]

That is strange that Twin #2 is always the Rebel Spy!

I also wanted to post a picture I took in December and another I took a couple weeks ago.

These are some of the azaleas in front of my house. I took this pic on Christmas Day.

This is a little wildflower I found growing up by the road. I don't think January is when it is supposed to be blooming!

The trees up here are starting to bud out also, I hope we don't get another freeze before spring.

[Lou... 3,118]

Are you kidding me right now?

Under your definition, how is that not a deliberate Mickey?

Someone intentionally incorporated that Mickey head shape into the design of the boot. So that was deliberate.

Just like all the rest of the HIdden Mickeys.

But it's not my definition, it's the official Disney definition as shown on one of their web sites.

Key word is concealed.

Hidden Mickey Description

A"Hidden Mickey" is an image of MICKEY MOUSE concealed in the design of a WALT DISNEY WORLD attraction or resort.

Deliberate Mickey Description

A Deliberate Mickey is where MICKEY MOUSE's image has been incorporated into a design as a decorative enhancement. They are"Deliberate Mickeys" because they are specifically intended to make MICKEY MOUSE a visual addition to the surrounding artwork or as an identifying logo.

I wish Lou read trip reports.

Because I wonder if he knows anything about these weird buses.

Every once in a while Disney needs to bring in outside buses. It could be during real busy times or if too many of the Disney buses are out of service or if there is a shortage of drivers on a certain day.

I got to watch the driver.

He kept on fooling with this box you see him looking at here:

I wish Lou read trip reports, because I would love to know what that box is, and what the old guy was trying to do.

Also, I noticed that there were a lot of things displayed on this bar above the driver, which he didn't really seem to pay any attention to. I wonder what gets displayed up there?

That small box is the onboard computer called the MDT. It controls the spiels, the music, PA volume, and the exterior and interior signs. It also has the next route and directions if needed. The driver can play special canned messages as we've talked about on another thread. And if the driver deviates from the official route by just 50 feet or so, it tells him he's "off route".

The overhead display doesn't do much of anything. It just has the usual idiot lights.

Oh BTW, you'll notice that the driver is wearing a long sleeve shirt. That usually means that he has visible tattoos.

Also notice the name on the seat, Recaro. You sports car people should recognize that name.

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

1. I think we know why we don't need to worry about stef's undergarments but I too will refrain from further comment.

2. I am so glad you and the twins have finally gotten your necessary Star Wars Edjamication. Really it's past time.

3. I'm studying how you do all this park hopping. We are getting Park Hoppers on our next visit and I'm trying to get out of the mind frame of only one park in a day.

4. Once again, refraining from the "beat it" debate it can only go down hill from here.

5. Lou, thanks for clearing that Hidden/Deliberate Mickey thing up for me. I was getting confusted.

6. I told you that you need to watch Twin #2. Rebel Spy 3 times....

7. It's fun to see the twins really getting the whole star wars thing.

8. Imperial Walker is the name of the thing that is over the ride.

9. My screen named is based on Star Wars.. how geeky is that?

10. It can be time for the TR to be over so soon....

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

Nice update TCD!!!

[FtWildernessFamily...Holly 25]

We had the same convo with Maddie about Hidden Mickey's in December.

She thinks EVERY Mickey head she sees is a hidden Mickey.

And....we did Spaceship Earth in Japanese one time. We laughed the WHOLE way.

[Lou... 3,118]

She thinks EVERY Mickey head she sees is a hidden Mickey.

She has something in common with TCD, Lisa, and Dave.

[stefa70 205]

It's funny that you posted this installment yesterday. Yesterday we were at DHS and retraced a lot of the same paths (- The Little Mermaid) I was disappointed that twin #2 wasn't the rebel spy on my star tour....oh wait, you have to be on the ride to get picked?!

Trevor has spent a lot of this trip commenting on the plants that should not be pruned back and blooming already. It's great for him, since it means business will pick up sooner, bad for the plants that are already blooming if we happen to get a freeze this month. The other night at the beach I get bit by 4 mosquitoes, on the first of February!! If our winter is over, they will be horrendous this year!

I'm happy that you didn't take Gator gnome to the hotel. He only agreed to be happy with his new family if he could be at the Fort.

[Heidi-meetsTCD@TSM 5]

TCD,

How cool that twin #2 was selected as the rebel spy again!!!

You are a good Dad to buy both girls a Vinylmation. My boys, despite being mid to late teens like them too! Heck, I do too! I bought two in August that I put away for Christmas morning. (Its always nice to open a piece of Disney on Christmas!) We have quite a collection lined up and displayed in our living room.

I am glad to see that the fort is participating in the dining program. A few years ago, I assumed that they took the snack credits and they were not so it threw off our game plan for a second. We had spent a week at the All Star Music, before moving over to the cabins for the second week. On our first day at the fort (which was our last day at the Music) we had quite a few counter service and snack credits that we needed to use up that day before they expired. I had wrongly assumed that we could use some snack credits at Trails End for muffins and such. I also figured that we could get some candy in the Trading Post, like you could at EVERY OTHER gift shop on property.......but NO you could not. In the end it wasnt a big deal, we biked over to the Lodge and used them there, but, still, I was surprised and thought that it was unespecially unfair to the people that were staying in the cabins on the dining program. At any rate, glad to hear that the fort has caught up to the times!!!

You mentioned liking the food court at the Music. We do to, and I wish that the fort offered something like that.

Great report! Sorry to read that it is almost over.........hopefully you go back soon, so we can have another report!

Heidi

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

That is strange that Twin #2 is always the Rebel Spy!

I also wanted to post a picture I took in December and another I took a couple weeks ago.

These are some of the azaleas in front of my house. I took this pic on Christmas Day.

This is a little wildflower I found growing up by the road. I don't think January is when it is supposed to be blooming!

The trees up here are starting to bud out also, I hope we don't get another freeze before spring.

Nice photos, Rita!

The TCD DD up at FSU told me a couple of weeks ago that there were already traces of pollen in the air up there.

I can't remember us having this mild of a winter in Florida in a long time!

I agree with you- bad things will happen should we get a freeze now.

But something tells me that these plants are smarter than us, and they know that winter has ended before it even began.

While I dislike the cold, I don't like this.

I like it when we have some cold weather and then it warms up, and the azeleas all bloom at once. I think the blooming is going to happen gradually this year, with no real spectacular time with everything in bloom.

But it's not my definition, it's the official Disney definition as shown on one of their web sites.

Key word is concealed.

Hidden Mickey Description

A"Hidden Mickey" is an image of MICKEY MOUSE concealed in the design of a WALT DISNEY WORLD attraction or resort.

Deliberate Mickey Description

A Deliberate Mickey is where MICKEY MOUSE's image has been incorporated into a design as a decorative enhancement. They are"Deliberate Mickeys" because they are specifically intended to make MICKEY MOUSE a visual addition to the surrounding artwork or as an identifying logo.

Every once in a while Disney needs to bring in outside buses. It could be during real busy times or if too many of the Disney buses are out of service or if there is a shortage of drivers on a certain day.

That small box is the onboard computer called the MDT. It controls the spiels, the music, PA volume, and the exterior and interior signs. It also has the next route and directions if needed. The driver can play special canned messages as we've talked about on another thread. And if the driver deviates from the official route by just 50 feet or so, it tells him he's "off route".

The overhead display doesn't do much of anything. It just has the usual idiot lights.

Oh BTW, you'll notice that the driver is wearing a long sleeve shirt. That usually means that he has visible tattoos.

Also notice the name on the seat, Recaro. You sports car people should recognize that name.

As far as the Hidden Mickey thing goes, I don't want to think that much. The definitions are still confusing to me. I would argue that under those definitions, every Hidden Mickey is a Deliberate Mickey. While these definitions may be on some official Disney site, the Hidden Mickey book that they sell at the WDW gift shops does not make the hidden/deliberate distinction.

Thanks for all the bus info! I didn't know that about the long sleeve shirts. That old man didn't look like a thug to me. Now I am wondering what he had up his sleeves. Literally.

I have seen you mention the canned spiels a few times. I get the impression that you use these often. The other bus drivers don't. In fact, I think that once we got the birthday spiel, but otherwise nothing. And we have taken a lot of bus rides.

We didn't just see those weird buses that morning. In fact, we had another encounter with a weird bus, which I will be telling about later in this report. I think it is really strange that Disney is bringing in these outside buses, some of which are in pretty crappy condition, and letting non-castmembers drive guests around.

I have noticed those fancy seats before. I think it's great that they put those in for the drivers. Are they in all the buses?

1. I think we know why we don't need to worry about stef's undergarments but I too will refrain from further comment.

2. I am so glad you and the twins have finally gotten your necessary Star Wars Edjamication. Really it's past time.

3. I'm studying how you do all this park hopping. We are getting Park Hoppers on our next visit and I'm trying to get out of the mind frame of only one park in a day.

4. Once again, refraining from the "beat it" debate it can only go down hill from here.

5. Lou, thanks for clearing that Hidden/Deliberate Mickey thing up for me. I was getting confusted.

6. I told you that you need to watch Twin #2. Rebel Spy 3 times....

7. It's fun to see the twins really getting the whole star wars thing.

8. Imperial Walker is the name of the thing that is over the ride.

9. My screen named is based on Star Wars.. how geeky is that?

10. It can be time for the TR to be over so soon....

Whoa- that is quite a list! Even for you!

I need to comment on a few of those things:

As far a park-hopping goes, we are masters of that. We never stay in a park all day. It used to be hard to hop from park to park. Way back when there weren't direct buses from park to park. Now there are. Plus, there are multiple other ways to get from park to park. One thing that we have really enjoyed is spending the morning in a park and then hopping to a resort for lunch. It is always less crowded and more peaceful to eat at one of the resorts. After lunch, you hop a bus, monorail or boat to your next park. It breaks up the day, and, in time, you get to see all the resorts.

You have no idea how much the twins have embraced Star Wars. As a small example, twin #2 made Star Wars cookies just the other night, and they have talked about going to see the 3D version of episode 1 when it hits theaters soon.

Thanks for giving me the name of that walking thing. We saw those in Episodes V and VI, but I'm not sure that I ever heard the name mentioned. I have heard them called At-At's, but I wasn't sure if that was right. The name Imperial Walker is stenciled on the legs of that one they have outside the Star Tours attraction, but at the time I thought those things were called At-At's so I was confused.

I didn't realize your screen name had anything to do with Star Wars. I thought you were a Civil War enthusiast. Seriously. Either way, it's geeky.

Nice update TCD!!!

Thanks, Carol!

We had the same convo with Maddie about Hidden Mickey's in December.

She thinks EVERY Mickey head she sees is a hidden Mickey.

And....we did Spaceship Earth in Japanese one time. We laughed the WHOLE way.

She has something in common with TCD, Lisa, and Dave.

Yep. I'm with Maddie on this one. I just call them all Hidden Mickeys. Lou will correct me when necessary.

It's funny that you posted this installment yesterday. Yesterday we were at DHS and retraced a lot of the same paths (- The Little Mermaid) I was disappointed that twin #2 wasn't the rebel spy on my star tour....oh wait, you have to be on the ride to get picked?!

Trevor has spent a lot of this trip commenting on the plants that should not be pruned back and blooming already. It's great for him, since it means business will pick up sooner, bad for the plants that are already blooming if we happen to get a freeze this month. The other night at the beach I get bit by 4 mosquitoes, on the first of February!! If our winter is over, they will be horrendous this year!

I'm happy that you didn't take Gator gnome to the hotel. He only agreed to be happy with his new family if he could be at the Fort.

I didn't think about the mosquito thing. You are right- the lack of a freeze is going to mean bug problems in the Spring.

The Gator gnome is packed safely in my camper. That way it will always be with us when we camp. I can't get to it unless I pop-up the camper, so it is going to be just for camping trips.

TCD,

How cool that twin #2 was selected as the rebel spy again!!!

You are a good Dad to buy both girls a Vinylmation. My boys, despite being mid to late teens like them too! Heck, I do too! I bought two in August that I put away for Christmas morning. (Its always nice to open a piece of Disney on Christmas!) We have quite a collection lined up and displayed in our living room.

I am glad to see that the fort is participating in the dining program. A few years ago, I assumed that they took the snack credits and they were not so it threw off our game plan for a second. We had spent a week at the All Star Music, before moving over to the cabins for the second week. On our first day at the fort (which was our last day at the Music) we had quite a few counter service and snack credits that we needed to use up that day before they expired. I had wrongly assumed that we could use some snack credits at Trails End for muffins and such. I also figured that we could get some candy in the Trading Post, like you could at EVERY OTHER gift shop on property.......but NO you could not. In the end it wasnt a big deal, we biked over to the Lodge and used them there, but, still, I was surprised and thought that it was unespecially unfair to the people that were staying in the cabins on the dining program. At any rate, glad to hear that the fort has caught up to the times!!!

You mentioned liking the food court at the Music. We do to, and I wish that the fort offered something like that.

Great report! Sorry to read that it is almost over.........hopefully you go back soon, so we can have another report!

Heidi

You are right about cabin people getting the shaft. For that reason alone, the Fort deserves better food options.

Don't worry about this report being over today.

I found some bonus material, which I will be posting today. It looks like that will push back the end.

TCD

[DaveInTN 3,247]

She has something in common with TCD, Lisa, and Dave.

Why am I being dragged into this? I'm not really into the whole Hidden Mickey thing.

Now, hidden bus drivers...that is an idea I could embrace.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Why am I being dragged into this? I'm not really into the whole Hidden Mickey thing.

Now, hidden bus drivers...that is an idea I could embrace.

I'm not in to the Hidden Mickey thing much either. And, the more I hear about Deliberate Mickeys I am even less into it.

Hidden bus drivers?

Sounds a bit too creepy for me.

TCD