17-23 October 2014: DISNEY WORLD

Oh, friends, I had a marvelous time. Met a lot of characters, did a lot of shopping, tried new restaurants (50s Diner) and rides (Soarin’! Which I loved despite my intense fear of heights and speed) and soaked up a lot of atmosphere. My Disneybounding was a success, although if I ever do Halloween there again, I am totally doing a real costume. A short, comfortable breathable costume, but nonetheless. There were so many cute ones and I had tutu envy, ha.

Friday: Lizzie Bennet

Bar III dress, Forever 21 leggings, nsync backpack, Mardi Gras beads, Keds

Not Disneybounding, ha. But still fandom. Super comfortable in both the 60s here and 80s down there…though the sleeves did get hot. I met Jennie and A for dinner and did Philharmagic and Small World at the Magic Kingdom, then headed over to Epcot for Nemo and walking after MK closed. Perfect first night.

Saturday: Mr. Smee

Old Navy top, Old Navy shorts, Walmart skull scarf, red hairband, Keds

Second photo in France pavillion. My advice: do not not not visit Epcot during the weekend at the Food and Wine Fest. It’s teeming with drunk people who are proud of their drunkenness and wearing terrible tshirts celebrating it. There was at least one that I could not believe made it through security. It was crowded and not with fun people. It was better when we went on weekdays. I did, however, get to eat my haggis with neeps and tatties with crannachan for dessert from the Scotland booth, though – it was all wonderful except the neeps. I am apparently not a fan of rutabega.

We wandered the world a few times, grumbling, and had an amazing dinner at the Yachtsman Steak House. Then they headed back to the resort and I visited the Boardwalk, which I’ve wanted to do for years. It was everything I wanted. I hope to stay there one day – they even have old time radio broadcasts in their hotel lounge! And then one of the cast members there recognized me as Smee!! I was thrilled. This was my first Disneybounding idea and it came out exactly how I pictured.

Sunday: Goofy

anthropologie flutter hem top, Old Navy shorts, Bebe waistcoat, green hair ribbon, Keds

Not-So-Scary-Halloween Party day! I liked my outfit and thought it was recognizably Goofy. But I was really tempted to buy a Dalek dress in the UK Pavillion and wear that, ha. Jennie Disneybounded as Eeyore and looked adorable, and A wore her Merida costume when it got cooler. After two years of waiting, we finally ate at Be Our Guest in Beast’s castle and it was so worth the wait! It was gorgeous, we ate in front of falling snow, and the grey stuff was indeed delicious. We also met Rapunzel and Cinderella, hung out with our friend who now works in Fantasyland, saw an amazing parade with a firebreathing dragon, and made it to the party. Villains show was funny, castle show was lovely, and the fireworks breathtaking. During the parade, we were sitting on the curb and Eeyore came up super close into my face. I was laughing and said, “hello!” because what else do you do when that happens? He kissed my nose and rejoined the parade. It was hilarious and A looked so gobsmacked.

Monday: Minnie Mouse

Glamorous bodysuit, Forever 21 skirt, Merona cardigan, Forever 21 hairbow, Keds

The ears were only at the resort, since we spent the day at Hollywood Studios! I’d have worn them at the Magic Kingdom. I love this park – I’m a total old Hollywood dork and I get giddy seeing the buildings and hearing the music. Musicals, swing, jazz, it makes me beam. It was really fucking hot, and this skirt was not a good choice, however. Super sticky. And I never realized it was so long. The proportions didn’t work as well as I wanted. I’d have changed and been Piglet but I wanted to be retro-y to eat at the 50s Diner. Which was brilliant – we’re all shy, so it was a little nervewracking, but they must know the drill. Our server, Cousin Dale, teased and had fun, but didn’t do things with us that he did at other tables. Also, there is now Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post, from Frozen, and I was in snowy winter heaven. The snow felt real and was moldable, and the whole room was blue and filled with snow and cabins and fir trees and there was a delightful Elsa cocktail involved.

Monday: Anna

Gap sweater, Old Navy shorts, Loft cardigan, snow jewelry, German tiara

So. I’ve never gone in for the princess thing. I like the Disney princesses, but never went through the want-to-be-a-princess phase. So imagine my surprise when I fell in love with the tiara display in Germany at Epcot. They ranged in price from $10-$60, and I tried on all of them, but this, the first, was mine instantly. And only $14, ha. It really made me happy to wear it. I was taken aback the first time a cast member called me Princess, but I got used to it and it added to the fun. Epcot was dreamy, and we had a blast. The Victoria Gardens in Canada is my favorite place in the park, and I love the little cottage, so I was thrilled with how that second shot turned out. I chose to wear Anna this day because we had lunch in Norway with a few princesses – Aurora, who is my favorite, plus Cinderella and Snow White, who was a bit bitchy. I also got to eat the Kimchi hot dog I’d been dying to try from the South Korea booth, and then we headed off to a very late dinner at Chef Mickey’s, which was a delight.

Wednesday: Elsa

Gap tank, Charlotte Russe sparkle top, Old Navy shorts, German tiara, Keds

SO BLOODY HOT. OMG. It was almost 90 without heat index, the sun was horrific, we were in more lines than usual and I totally ended up with a sunburn. All of this is ironic, given that I was dressed like the Snow Queen – and met her, too. Sigh. It was still a good day – I tracked down the Cake Cups I’d been wanting to try (deconstructed cupcake in a cup with more frosting than you’d expect. Perfection), met Merida, Anna, Elsa, Tiana and Naveen, spent a few hours catching up with my friend who works there, etc etc etc. Tiana and Naveen (Princess and the Frog) had the best chemistry and banter, they were hilarious to meet. Merida was perfectly cast – I loved when she gave an impromptu sword lesson to the boy ahead of it. A fell asleep a few times throughout the day, which meant she missed the most beautiful castle sunset. But she probably wouldn’t have appreciated it anyway. It was a great last full day – I love the atmosphere of Main Street and I spent a lot of time soaking it in.

Thursday: Doctor Who

Her Universe Doctor Who villains dress, Forever 21 leggings, Keds

Back to fandom! Nice and easy to fly in. We spent the morning at Hollywood Studios and did the hilarious Frozen sing along and hit a street show, then I headed to Epcot for one last swing around the world and ate a ton (Lunch in Norway, followed by Puerto Rican fried plantains, Patagonian beef with chimichurri and Canadian apple ice wine), and then headed back to the resort for a rest before my evening flight. I love our resort – I spent time by the river every morning and the design of the buildings coupled with the jazz just always makes me so happy. I spent my last half hour there sprawled on a bench by the river and really relaxing for the first time in a long time. It was a perfect day.

Happy sigh.

I’ve got 400 pics uploaded on my Flickr if you love Disney World as much as I do, hee. Everything I mentioned and more is over there. All told, we walked about 60 miles over 7 days, burning about 7000 calories, which is good, because we ate a LOT, ha.

Countdown to our next trip: 25 months! 😉