Another day in Disney means another day started with a fancy Disney breakfast! This day was slightly different from the previous. I had the overnight oats, the quiche, a chocolate chip muffin, Mickey pancakes, but I also had a Mickey waffle! As much as I love the look of the Mickey waffles, I think the Mickey pancakes are better because of how fluffy they are.
Isn't this making you so hungry?!
A few months leading up to my trip, I took to Etsy to buy some shirts to wear. All of the ears you've been seeing I made myself with fabric and materials I got from either Etsy, Hobby Lobby, or JoAnn Fabric. Today's shirt was especially for Ariel, and it says "This Mermaid Drinks Mermosas," and you can buy this shirt, along with other princesses through TheGraviteeShop.
My outfit for meeting Ariel!
My outfit for meeting Ariel!
Since you can't take a boat to Magic Kingdom, we had to take the bus, which I absolutely hate. Waiting for the bus is very unorganized, and they don't run as frequently as they should, so I recommend getting there fairly early to allow for a long wait time. We headed out around 7:05/7:10 since it was another Early Magic Hours day. We luckily were able to get on the first Magic Kingdom bus that approached, but several families had to wait for the next one.
When we got to the park, you can immediately go through bag check, tickets, and walk in, even though the park wasn't open yet. This process prevents lines from getting to long outside of the park, however they keep the different lands closed until early opening at 8.
Cinderella's Castle
Cinderella's Castle
Cinderella's Castle
Cinderella's Castle
Magic Kingdom, towards the end of August, was already decorated for Halloween!!! That sounds crazy, right? But it was so worth it because it looked beautiful. Scare crows, pumpkins, warm flower arrangements, the works! Every little part is decorated, as well.
The entrance to Magic Kingdom!
Main Street, U.S.A.
Main Street, U.S.A.
The entrance to Magic Kingdom!
Cinderella's Castle
Main Street, U.S.A.
The entrance to Magic Kingdom!
Main Street, U.S.A.
Main Street, U.S.A.
Main Street, U.S.A.
The first ride we were going to do was Ariel's Undersea Adventure. Most people ran immediately to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, but we had a scheduled fast pass at 2:30 that day.
Ariel's Undersea Adventure was my favorite ride in Disney World (yes, I'm biased because she is my favorite Disney Princess), that is until I went on a ride at a different park--check the posts following this one to find out which ride is my new favorite ride of all time.
Anyway, Ariel's Undersea Adventure is an adorable, slow-moving ride. It's colorful and fun, and the animatronics on Ursula are so smooth that she appears to be a real... octopus? She's not a person so...
Outside of Ariel's Undersea Adventure!
Outside of Ariel's Undersea Adventure!
Outside of Ariel's Undersea Adventure!
Ariel's Grotto wasn't opening until 9 A.M., which is normal park opening, so we spent the hour we had left going on as many rides as we could. We hit It's A Small World and Space Mountain before getting on the queue to meet Ariel.
I always forget how cute It's A Small World is until I am actually on it... even though the song gets stuck in your head!
It's A Small World!
It's A Small World!
It's A Small World!
It's A Small World!
It's A Small World!
It's A Small World!
It's A Small World!
It's A Small World!
It's A Small World!
After going on those rides, it was time to get on line to meet Ariel. We only waited about 20 minutes, and it was SO WORTH IT!! She signed my autograph book and then put her dinglehopper in my lanyard, so it was a very magical experience. I know I mentioned this is my Epcot post, but I really mean it when I say that if you have time, definitely meet some characters. It's a really fun experience for everyone, even if only one person from your party talks to them. It's also fun looking back at the pictures that the photographers take.
Ariel's Grotto
Ariel's Grotto
Ariel's Grotto
We took some time after Ariel's Grotto to walk around and see which rides had short wait times. We spread Magic Kingdom out over two days, so we were in no rush at all to get rides done.
We walked over towards Liberty Square and Frontierland, where I took some pictures of Corona, the kingdom in Tangled. When we got to Frontierland, I also got to meet Shaker from Country Bear Jamboree, one of my favorite shows in Disney World. I'm not sure if you guys have ever seen the "Disney Sing-A-Long" videos from the '90s, but I loved them when I was younger. In the "Disneyland Fun" video, the bears sing "The Great Outdoors," and I remember so vividly what Shaker sounds like in that video, so it was pretty surreal to meet him after growing up seeing him in my video.
Corona from Tangled
Corona from Tangled
Shaker from Country Bear Jamboree
I wish someone recorded it, because while I was meeting Shaker, when I showed him my Country Bear Jamboree button (which I'll post a picture of and link to below), he started dancing with me!
You can buy this button through TheHappiestThingsCo on Etsy. It's a 3" button and the delivery was so quick! I also bought two more buttons, which I'll talk about later!
My mom's favorite ride is Haunted Mansion, and since she doesn't go on many rides, we of course have to go on it. Oh, and it's a CLASSIC! It's not scary, but Disney World definitely did a good job of of making it spooky. The technology definitely is pretty cool, being as though the ride is old, making it seem like the ghosts are real-ish. And the whole bit before actually going on the ride is still so cool and eerie, adding to the affect it has.
Queue for Haunted Mansion
Queue for Haunted Mansion
Queue for Haunted Mansion
Queue for Haunted Mansion
Queue for Haunted Mansion
Queue for Haunted Mansion
We went back over to Tomorrowland after Ariel's Grotto to do Astro Orbiter and my favorite show, Carousel of Progress. Carousel of Progress, if you haven't done it, was an animatronic show that Walt Disney first presented at the New York World's Fair. It's a rotating theater show, that travels through time showing how technology was changing. It begins with the 1900s, then goes through the '20s, '40s, and the 21st century. There is a recurring song throughout, "There's A Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" and it might be one of my favorite Disney songs. The show is 20 minutes long, but is definitely worth it if you have never done it before.
I'm not going to spend much time talking bout Astro Orbiter, because in my opinion, it is not worth the wait. If the wait time is 5 minutes, do it, but if it's anything over 10, it is a waste of time. You spend a lot of time waiting, only to be on the ride for about 30 seconds.
Tomorrowland
Tomorrowland
SNACK TIME! The moment I am sure you all have been waiting for on here. When in Magic Kingdom, Pineapple DOLE Whip is the obvious snack answer. Only available at a few locations in Disney World, Aloha Isle in Adventureland by Aladdin's Magic Carpets is one of them. The line is usually super long, so I recommend ordering it through the My Disney Experience app. You pay and everything though the app, and when you are ready to pick up your order, you just press the button that you're ready and then you go to the mobile ordering window to pick it up.
I had the treat twice during our trip, but this first day I got the Pineapple DOLE Whip Float, which is the pineapple whip served over pineapple juice. Definitely a little on the sweet side with the juice included. On our second Magic Kingdom day, I got a twist cup, which is a pineapple whip and vanilla whip swirl in a cup and that was perfect! So if too much sweet bothers you, definitely opt for either a pineapple, vanilla, or twist cup!! Anyway, it is one of the most refreshing things I have ever had!
Pineapple DOLE Whip
Pineapple DOLE Whip
Aladdin's Magic Carpets
Part of Adventureland
After our DOLE Whip, my dad and my brother went to go on a ride, and my mom and I went to do a little bit of shopping on Main Street. On our walk over, we stumbled upon a super fun show happening on the Cinderella Castle forecourt. Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire is a show featuring Rapunzel and Flynn, Tiana and Naveen, and Anna, Elsa, and Olaf. Oh, and of course Mickey, Minnie, and friends! There was music and dancing - and no Disney show is complete without fireworks! It was such a magical thing to stumble upon.
Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire
Tiana and Prince Naveen in Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire
Rapunzel and Flynn in Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire
Anna, Elsa, and Olaf in Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire
The fireworks that conclude Mickey's Royal Friendship Faire
On our walk through Main Street, I remembered seeing a poster to meet Tinker Bell at Town Square Theater. The wait time was only ten minutes, and when the wait time to meet a character is that short, you really should take it (I will say that over and over until you completely understand).
The queue to meet the sassy fairy was so detailed. Since she's a fairy and is very little, everything was huge. There was a giant thimble, a giant flower, giant key, and a giant necklace. And as if that didn't impress enough, Tinker Bell was exactly as I had imagined. Sassy and completely fabulous - I wish I had an attitude like her!
With Tink!
So now it's time for me to tell you all about Seven Dwarfs Mine Train... NOT! Orlando was going through wicked storms around 2 PM this day, and all outdoor rides were suspended. In case you think this is dramatic, Pirates of the Caribbean became an hour and a half wait because it is one of the only indoor rides. We luckily hopped on the Pirates line right after they called it quits, so we only waited about 20 minutes. With all of this being said, we weren't able to use our fast passes, so our second Magic Kingdom day would have to be altered a little bit, since now we would have to run on line for that first since the wait gets to be so long.
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After not getting on Mine Train because of the rain, we went back to the hotel and got ready for dinner. This night, we had reservations at Yachtsman Steakhouse, which is located in the Yacht Club Resort. This is one of the restaurants that my dad always makes reservations for when we go to Disney, so I've been here three times now and it never disappoints.
(If you are wondering, some dining plans ARE accepted here and they have a kids' menu!)
With my brother before dinner at the Yacht Club!
The menu is exactly what you would expect from a steakhouse. For an appetizer, you can get french onion soup, lobster bisque, caesar salad, cheeses, crab cakes (my dad and brother had that and I had a little taste and we all thought it was to die for), shrimp cocktail, and a few more choices. I had a caesar salad, which doesn't look like a traditional caesar. For one thing, it's served in the style of a wedge over coppa secca, with one of those strips of crouton (I'll insert a picture below so you can see).
OH! And I was craving a pina colada, so I got one and it was perfect!
The caesar salad
Yes, I like pina coladas, and getting caught in the rain!
Going to a steakhouse, you kind of have to get a steak, but in case that's not your thing, they also offer scallops, pasta, lobster, and chicken. I always get an 8-oz. filet because it's the leanest. The other cuts they have include prime rib, NY strip, and rib-eye, which I know are all excellent.
Where there are steaks, there are sides, and here they have some amazing ones. Mac and cheese (AMAZING!), mushrooms, spinach, baked potato, and asparagus, are just some of the sides you can choose. I got potatoes au gratin, which I think may have been a special, but I can't remember. They were so yummy!!
My steak and potatoes!!
They have lots of incredible desserts here. Creme brûlée, carrot cake, sorbet, white chocolate cheesecake, semifreddo, and two Yachtsman specialties. One is the "Lexington Sundae," which includes salted caramel and buttered popcorn gelato, brown butter cookies, caramel, whipped cream, and toasted honey marshmallow. I got this back in 2013 when we went and it was very delicious!
The other Yachtsman dessert is the "Admiral's Cake," which is a layered cake that has Valrhona chocolate brownie, caramel crunch, dark chocolate ganache, chocolate sponge cake, bananas foster jam, and caramel ganache. I've never had this, but the pictures online make it look amazing!
You're probably wondering which of these I decided to get. The answer is none. That night my dad wanted to get dessert at the ice cream parlor located inside of our hotel, so I decided to skip the Yachtsman dessert. That was until my wonderful waitress brought me a raspberry bonbon in honor of me graduating college! My family doesn't usually mention when it's a special occasion because we don't want to look like we are looking for something free. But earlier when the waitress had asked for my I.D. and she saw my age, college came into conversation and my dad said, "We're here for her graduation!" So it was extremely thoughtful of her to remember that from earlier in the night.
As my dad was paying the bill, she brought out a glass of prosecco for me from her manager in celebration of my graduation. So the Yachtsman Steakhouse has customer service down to a T.
The cute little complimentary bonbon!
The Fountain is the little restaurant in the Dolphin Hotel. It's open for lunch and dinner, and has very simple dishes, such as soups, salads, burgers, and cool sides. It's almost like a diner! And for dessert they have loads of different shakes, smoothies, and sundaes. My dad and I both had a create-your-own sundae, and I had mine with rocky road, cookies and cream, and cookie dough ice creams, topped with brownie pieces and peanut butter cups, and finished with whipped cream, a cherry, and chocolate sauce.
My sundae!!!
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Everything today was amazing! The rides, the food, and the magical experiences of Magic Kingdom all made the day so perfect. Day three was done, so now it's off to Animal Kingdom for day four!
Until next time! CLINK!!
Jordan xx
