A Day of Tumult

Yesterday, we began our journey home.

We started the day by getting up a bit later than usual. We had an appointment with the Vacation Club at 11 AM to sign papers and buy our ownership in the program. (What you'll do to be a good aunt and uncle to the kids for the sake of 12 Fast Passes :) ).

The signing went well. We now have enough membership points to vacation comfortably each year. The vacation ownership program appears to be a bargain for us. We've visited the resorts about 12 times since 1988. It just plain makes sense. We break even by staying on a property 7 days every 2 years, for 10 years (or 5 trips). Thereafter, its all gravy for the next 40 years. Disney makes its money by using our money up front and then whatever is purchased in merchandise in the parks. The food isn't even really where they're making money, its all in merchandise.

After that was done we went over to Epcot to try for a lunch at the Land Grill (filled, no luck). Then we went downstairs to the counter-service cafe. I must say that everywhere we found counter-service, and tried it, it was wonderful. Evenly priced and very decent food. They have some great selections including fish, humus, plenty of fruit and vegetables. They even sported a very good grilled veggie sandwich done cubano style.

After lunch was finished we walked over to Soaring and traded in a few of our passes for instant tickets. The pass issuing kiosk ate our cards at first and was out of paper. A nice though limited service person came by and repaired the machine and issued us FP (Fast Pass) tix, though instead of an instant return they came back with regular return times. No good. We were pressed for time. I spoke with a counter rep and true to Disney fashion they gave us some super special trade-up passes. Each of these trade-ups allowed 3 people to use the pass and walk straight in to the FP line. (Still holding the original FP's with dramatic return times I palmed the tickets we had and handed over the later return FP to the unaware clerk. This allowed us to hold onto the special FP (though we never used them. Connor kept them for posterity.)

Soaring is an amazing ride. Its short, about 3 minutes but well worth the wait to do. Don't though think its worth waiting on line for greater than 30 minutes. I do have allot of fun though standing on line making new friends from around the world. I met some very nice people this way including a family of 4 from outside Cambridge, UK. They were on holiday for 2 weeks and we traded a great deal of insight and fun thoughts and happenings with them. Coincidentally to them we also met a couple from Washington, DC. He was a web designer working for the Washington Capitals. Also met a nice family from Australia in town and wondering what to do. Then an older family of 6 from Kansas.    

Attitudes had boiled to the surface of late due to close proximity of everyone. We then headed back to the hotel to catch some a/c and wait for the shuttle to the airport for our 8:10 PM flight. As usual, our chauffeur from Legend Limo arrived spot on time. He's very very good and efficient as all get out. We grabbed our bags from bell service (unfortunately one of the gifts Connor bought for the twins got broken in the shuffle, but true to form, Disney is taking care of it and shipping a replacement ASAP.)

We arrived in MCO is good time, disembarked and stood at curbside check-in. 6 bags to check. Everything was great. Then we find that the kids suitcases are over-weight. A bit of a shuffle of belongings from one case to one of ours evens weights out for one. We can not though overcome a 15lb over-limit. So we spend the $25 and get that headache behind us. No worries. (I have no problem ever dealing with such issues. They happen, we try to plan for them, but this time our preplan left a collapsible bag (just for such an emergency) on our living room floor. When the curbside attendant handed us back our boarding passes he says, oh sorry about this but your flight has been delayed a bit. You're now flying out at 9:15. Ugh.

In to the airport and whisked through security (a record 6 minutes). Onto the monorail and off to the terminal. We get there, make some new friends in the waiting area. A husband and wife, also in the Vacation Club, teachers from Kings Park. We talk and talk and talk. The ins and outs of the Vacation Club, what a great thing it is to do and the benefits and privileges... All good news to us. As we sit there the flight time changes again. Ugh. Now 9:45.

An hour later we moved from one side of the terminal to the other where our boarding would take place, find free Internet YEAH!!! and start wasting time. As the night passes the flight is delayed another 5 times.  Bad weather over Long Island then at the originating airport in Rhode Island (which is our plane).

They switch gates on us and its hustle from one spot to another. Then things deteriorate. Seems people are getting tired. The over-tired. The dirt bag kids around us with parents that don't give a crap are starting to act up. They begin fooling around, bumping into people, stepping on bags, pushing over flowers, move trash bins. Then they find the wheel chairs and start wheel chair races. Thankfully its 11pm and the terminal is basically closed except for our flight. Then a parent gets involved and begins a demolition derby of sorts. He's pushing his teenaged daughter in a  wheel chair into other kids in wheelchairs seeing if he could knock them over. (Where do they make such parents?) This goes on for about 25 minutes before a gate attendant finally looses his patience and yells at everyone. Things begin to calm a bit to a lower roar.

We then hear that our flight has taken off from Rhode Island and will be in Orlando in about 1-1/2 hours. Yeah. Hope reigns supreme.

It was 1:00 when the plane landed, the people got off thanking the very ground of Orlando. The crew turned the plane around in 15 minutes and we were in the air by 1:20. I kid you not. I've never ever seen that happen before. The flight crew was wonderful. The lead steward was a closet comedian. He had everyone in stitches from the point of the pre-flight emergency procedures to in-flight rules. We landed at 3:30 AM and were home and in bed by 4:13 AM.

It was a day of days. Long, arduous and sorrow filled that our vacation came to an end. It's always though worth it to come back to familiar surroundings and your own bed.

 

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