A peek behind the magic

As a special treat for the Disney fanatic, I went on a backstage tour of the Magic Kingdom called the "Keys to the Kingdom." One of the big rules of the tour is no cameras, so you'll see quite a bit fewer photos from this day of the trip. Another rule is no kids, so I went by myself while Daddy and Benji slept in and then did the Teacups three times, the Indy Speedway twice, the Peoplemover, and Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor. It's a little weird that there's part of the Disney trip that I didn't participate in, but I also got to do my way cool special tour.

It's too bad I don't have any pictures from the backstage tour, but let's see what I do remember. A large part of the tour was actually "onstage" where the tourguide would point out hidden details and tell the story behind various aspects of the park. For example, did you know that Disney World was originally not supposed to have Pirates of the Carribean? As a result, its version is smaller than the one at Disneyland and has a hill so that it can get outside the berm to its show building. And for many of the larger indoor rides the vast majority of the ride isn't actually within the walls of the themed park but rather in nondescript green buildings outside your view. It was very strange to see half of Splash Mountain turn into the green show building as we went backstage. It was even stranger, though, to see the Jungle Cruise hippos sitting on the side waiting for repair. We also got to see the parade floats and I will definitely say that the Electrical Parade floats look so magical at night and very unimpressive during the day.

As part of the tour we rode the Jungle Cruise on our own boat where the skipper didn't do his normal spiel but instead out tourguide pointed things out. Did you know that the restless natives are actually saying "I love disco"? Listen carefully next time. It's not an urban legend; totally true. A true highlight of the tour was going into the utilidoors, the underground corridors that service the whole park. It was completely unmagical in that it is a utility corridor with service vehicles, etc., but it was really interesting to think about what it takes to make the magic work. I know it sounds strange, but I liked reading the employee bulletin boards. And there were signs everywhere telling you what part of the park you're in and how to get elsewhere. But I think the best part was having a tour guide to ask questions of that normal cast members aren't allowed to answer, both with the questions I asked as well as the questions others asked.

But that's enough of my Disney fanatic stuff. Back to the normal vacation stuff.

After the tour I caught back up with the rest of the family and let Daddy have a bit of a break. Since I took Benji over to roller coaster, it's not like Benji even noticed Daddy was missing. We also did Small World, Aladdin's Carpets, the Tiki Room, and the Jungle Cruise. Unfortunately Benji was not very impressed with the Jungle Cruise, but I think the problem was he couldn't really see the animals from his vantage point. Maybe next time.

For dinner we headed back over to EPCOT, this time at Chefs de France. I had shrimp and scallops with creme brulee while Matthew had the beef tenderloin and sorbet sampler dessert. Last time we were there I had a fantastic escargot appetizer, but now that the appetizer isn't included in the dining plan I decided to hold off and get the escargot at the Food and Wine Festival. After dinner we went on the Malestrom twice and saw the fireworks/laser show.



In Tomorrowland they have a giant granite globe that basically sits on water. Despite its size and weight, you can easily push it and turn it. It's another one of those simple pleasures that in a big hurried trip you can easily miss but that really intrigued Benji.


I really like the family reflection in this one.


Throughout the trip I was on the lookout for Hidden Mickeys. I couldn't find this one in the unofficial Hidden Mickey books, but I swear there's a hidden Mickey on this surfer's swim trunks. Can anyone else see it?


Can anyone guess Benji's favorite food? And he sure got a lot of it on this trip!


For quite a while Benji has loved to walk carefully on sidewalk squares. At Disney World there are many different ground treatments and textures. A particular favorite was this patio near a food stand in Adventureland. He loved the trapezoid and square mix and both Benji and Mommy had to jump around the shapes and call out the shapes. It was a peaceful resting time.


On our way out of EPCOT for the evening, Benji found this cool sidewalk. It didn't have nifty shapes like the Adventureland patio, but it had lights. How cool is that?


Nifty picture, eh?

Libellés : Benji, Disneyworld

Roller Coaster Galore!

As you'd guess, we spent tons of our time at the Magic Kingdom. So after spending "yesterday" at Hollywood Studios with fewer Benji rides but the very fun and crowded Toy Story Mania, we went back to the Magic Kindgom "today." Of course our first stop had to be the roller coaster, where we rode four times in the morning and another three times after lunch. That brought the trip total to twelve! And did you know that no matter how many times you ride the roller coaster, Benji gets angry and begs for more? On two of the morning rides Daddy sat in front of us to get video of Benji's insane joy on the ride, from the anticipation of going up the hill to the "roller coaster scream" the whole rest of the ride. On one of those rides, Daddy lost his baseball cap but I don't think you can actually see it flying past me in the video. (Incidentally, we called lost and found many times and never got it back despite a great reputation of Disney for reuiniting people with their lost objects.)

Around lunchtime we went over to Frontierland and saw the "Woody's Roundup" show. It's out in the middle of the street in front of the Country Bear Jamboree and on previous visits I might have found it a nuisance since it blocks the street. However, with a preschooler I have a newfound appreciation for this entertainment. There's maybe a dozen cowboys and cowgirls as well as Jessie, Woody, and Bullseye and they invite the kids into the show. Benji loved getting out there and dancing and being part of the show! (Unfortunately, this particular show was a victim of budget cuts and we saw one of the very last performances.)

After lunch Mommy went on the Haunted Mansion by herself. This has never been one of my favorite rides, but it had just undergone a major rehaul and people were raving about the new effects. The effects were really cool and made the ride creepier than it had been in the past. I won't be taking Benji on this one, but I'm glad I tried it out.

In the late afternoon we headed over to EPCOT for our coveted Coral Reef dinner reservations. We had to take the monorail over so I made the special request to sit in the pilot's compartment. I also made sure to get the "monorail copilot license" to add to the collection of "bus trading card" and "Barnstormer frequent flier card" that we had gotten earlier. I think I thought it was cooler than Benji did, but hey, I'm allowed to be a kid at Disney World.

When we got to our dinner reservation, I made another special request to get a seat right by the fish tank. They were like "we can't guarantee anything, blah, blah, blah" but less than 10 minutes later we had a fantastic seat. It just goes to show that it doesn't hurt to ask. And it was definitely worth it! Benji loved watching the fish tank so he was peaceful while waiting. The kids meal was macaroni and cheese with a cute dolphin on his mile, so he was peaceful during the meal. And he got make-your-own sundae for dessert, so he was very happy at dessert. A peaceful meal is worth so much! But in addition to the peaceful meal, the food was fantastic! I got the catch of the day and it was so delicious. Not to mention the "Wave" lava cake for dessert. I could get so used to these meals!


Do you think Benji is looking forward to the roller coaster? He just loves the "roller coaster scream"!


Daddy forgot to take off his hat. Oops!


It's funny how the simplest things are some of the favorites. Don't get me wrong — Benji LOVED the roller coaster — but he also enjoyed playing with the fence posts and walking on the sidewalk patterns.


Cute closeup.





Benji so loved the roller coaster that he began counting the number of times he had ridden it. He kept a running tally throughout the trip, from day to day. So you'd see him with his fingers held up like in this photo as he walked around the park. It looks like "seven" in this photo (although it might have been "eight" as I think he sometimes started counting with his thumb). It was pretty amazing that when he woke up each morning he'd remember where he left off and start his count again (without us telling him).


Getting fancy with his fence walking.


See the coaster car just coming over the top? Such a high and scary coaster!


One of the cute live entertainment shows they has was "Woody's Roundup" where they invite kids into the show to dance with the characters. How cool!


It felt a little weird to let him leave my side and join the group of kids, but he is a preschooler and was still well within my sight.


The kids got to use hobby horses and do a little parade in the middle of the street in Frontierland.


Benji was several inches taller than the minimum for Goofy's Barnstormer, but he still liked to measure himself every time we got to the entrance. Still tall enough!


On our last visit Benji loved the Pooh Bear water play area. This time, he found Donald's boat which was right next to the exit of the roller coaster.


Not too wet yet, but having fun.


Hmmm... I wonder what this will do?


Surprise! This seems like a nice companion to the surprise water photo from our last visit.


Benji has gotten much better at playing with other kids.


One of my few scenic photos.


Since Benji and I were wearing nice matching shirts, Mommy wanted a photo in front of the castle but Benji was not interested.


When Benji and I finally smiled at the camera we got an extra person well-posed in the background.


On our way to EPCOT we were able to ride in the front of the monorail, but Benji was not impressed at first. He was far more interested in his lollipop.


It was pretty sunny on monorail until we made a turn.


Mommy has to steal kisses whenever she can.


Here Benji is pointing at the numbers on the track and counting them. Who knew that was the best part of riding in front?


If I can't get a picture in front of the castle, maybe I can get one with the golf ball.





A traditional arms' length photo.


Family photo from the Photopass (Disney cast member) photographer. I actually think Matthew's is better.


Benji the model.





For dinner we ate at the Coral Reef and were able to get one of the coveted tables right against the enormous fish tank. Benji enjoyed watching the fish go by while we waited for our food and looking for the fish to circle on our fish guide.


The Disney Dining Plan included dessert at every meal, and this was probably our favorite. A fantastic chocolate lava cake! Makes me hungry thinking about it.


Coral Reef also had Benji's favorite dessert — a make-your-own sundae at the table. He particularly liked eating the sprinkles right out of the cup.

Libellés : Benji, Disneyworld

Pre-Christmas

This year I decided to take off the last two weeks of the year, giving myself a long Christmas break. It was so nice to have so much time with Benji and Matthew, even if we didn't do anything super exciting but instead played games, baked cookies, and just hung out. Benji really got used to his "bonus Mommy days" too since he wasn't happy at all this morning about Mommy going back to work. He was excited about school, but he wanted Mommy to come with to school. And Mommy sure wasn't thrilled about going back to work, either.

So, let's take a look back at winter fun in our household.



Near Woodfield Mall there's a new "Legoland Discovery Center" that we tried out when my parents found some free admission coupons in the newspaper. Benji enjoyed himself, especially in the building area where he got to race Lego cars. I particularly liked the photos with the giant sculptures.


Oh no! Daddy's been eaten by a lion!



Although we're back to grass and bare pavement right now, we had quite a few snows back in December and Benji was very excited to go out and play in the snow. He also enjoyed kicking the snow.


The snow was so hard and ice coated that Benji didn't sink in at all when he tried to make snow angels.


Sledding down the driveway gives just enough slope for tons of fun.


Snow chair!


For our gingerbread house, I decided it would be easiest and let Benji participate most by coating the roof with "gingerbread glue" and letting Benji create an artwork.


Surprisingly Benji didn't eat the candy until after he was done decorating.


He made a careful design on this side of the roof, includng "polka dots" and "eights" and gave me an adorable interview about his project.


We also went to Enchanted Castle with my parents and brother. Benji had a wild good time, including air hockey with Uncle Dave.

Libellés : Benji