Day 1: The Magic Kingdom

It's been like an eternity since I've visited Walt Disney World. It definitely helps when your girlfriend goes to a school on the other side of the country. Without further delay, here it goes.

So it was New Years Eve, a day like any other. Except that we planned a trip to "the Happiest Place on Earth". We didn't plan on staying up all night for the New Year countdown, so we tried to get a full night of sleep since we were waking up around 5 AM. As always, excitement got to us and probably kept us up until 2 AM. So with roughly three hours of sleep, we left the city of Sarasota and hit I-75. Along the way, we stopped by Starbucks to grab one of their holiday drinks, as we usually do around this time of year. All fueled up, we continued on I-4. An hour passed by and we arrived at our resort, Kingstown Reef. The resort didn't have any rooms available for early check-in, so we dropped off our luggage at the front desk and dashed over to the Magic Kingdom.

Look how much transportation is required just to get to the Magic Kingdom! It's as if they want to isolate us from the real world

After being guided by a string of cast members to our designated parking spot, we followed the herd of people heading towards the tram pickup area. Figuring that we were close enough to the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC), we decided to skip the tram and walk instead. I stopped by one of the ticket booths to upgrade my Disneyland Resort annual passport to a Premiere passport. Unfortunately, they don't handle modifications to annual passports at this location. I was told that I can have this done at the ticket center near the Magic Kingdom's entrance. Since the line to board the monorail seemed a bit long, we opted for the ferry.

Once we landed, first order of business was upgrading my passport at guest services, which was just right of the main gates. Unfortunately, they wouldn't let me keep my old pass. It was nice knowing it for the month or so that I've had it. After all the business was taken care off, we went back to the main gates. More accurately though, they replaced the gates and turnstiles with RFID scanners manned by iPad wielding cast members. Michelle waved her pass at the scanner and walked into the most magical place on Earth (don't sue me). I, on the other hand, had no idea why my brand spanking new pass wasn't giving me the green light. One stationed cast members approached me and we verified the pass manually. To correct the issue, I would have to go back to guest services. We figured I could just do this later in the evening and we just walked on in.

Peoplemover, a transportation vehicle disguised as a ride

Why is there a small city and a robot dance club on this ride?

Some like to make Space Mountain the first thing on their list. Some like to go on Peter Pan before the crowds hit. For us, it was going on the Peoplemover. (More accurately, it was Michelle's ritual and I followed along.) Since it seemed like everyone else was on Space or Peter Pan, we almost got an entire train for ourselves. This was my first time on Peoplemover, so I did not know what to expect. Peoplemover was more or less like the Disneyland Railroad. While the Disneyland Railroad passes through the prehistoric diorama, the Peoplemover passes through an early model of EPCOT. While the railroad passes through Chickapin Hill (aka Splash Mountain), movers passes through the lift section of Space Mountain. As we were passing through Space Mountain, all of the work lights were on, thus ruining the magic (jk).

I like how they dedicate a quarter of the menu to teach you how to order food

After a long trip on the Peoplemover, we decided to finally get breakfast. Since it was nearly noon (more like 10 AM), we decided to grab brunch at Be Our Guest. Knowing that dinner reservations for this restaurant are booked months in advance, we figured we might as well have a meal here when we can. Hidden Mickey: I heard that if you have a late lunch just before dinner begins, you can start ordering off of the dinner menu.

We decided to go for the roast beef sandwich, french onion soup, and the Master's Cupcake. After paying, we passed through the ballroom and seated ourselves in the West Wing. If I were to have a mantuary, and I will someday, I would theme it just like the West Wing. The only issue was that the room was extremely dark; though, it is justifyingly dark, unlike the Cheesecake Factory. Like magic, a cast member showed up with our food, a la Panera Bread style. If you're interested in how our meal turned out, you'll have to ask Michelle since I'll eat almost anything.

The trick is to place the red hockey puck on top of your receipt, as indicated on the menu

We then ventured into the gallery, opposite of the West Wing. After getting a shot of the huge music box, I turned around to find a group of people waiting to get a shot of it too. So if you enjoy having a meal without getting into other people's pictures, I recommend not sitting right in front of the room's centerpiece.

I would have this expression too if I were to hold up something on my head

Making your way out of the restaurant may be a hassle, as there are people like me taking pictures of the mosaic that is conveniently right at the exit

Shortly after our meal, I received a call from the hotel letting us know that our room was ready. Figuring that we would be staying until midnight, we decided to take a midday break back at the hotel. As we were making our way to the front gates, we passed by several cast members passing out horns to celebrate the new year. We both enthusiastically asked for a pair. Knowing that Disney rarely gives anything for free, we jumped on this opportunity.

Michelle is trying out a new technique of horn holding

After resting up a few hours, we were energized enough to head back to the Magic Kingdom. This time around, we took the monorail. Before going into the park, I went back to guest services where I received a new pass.

You know, it's pretty normal to have a picture of your boss around

I highly recommend visiting the parks during the holidays. Not only do attractions get transformed into completely different rides, but the park just looks gorgeous in general, and gorgeous is a word I usually just reserve for Michelle. We first ventured into Fantasyland. Seeing how the line for Peter Pan appeared to be short, we jumped in line. If you are looking for the most difficult ride to shoot, Peter Pan is it. We then made our way to It's A Small World. The difference between the Florida and California versions was that in Florida, you don't have to walk a quarter mile to realize that It's A Small World has been closed for another refurbishment. The two versions are pretty much clones, except that I don't think the Florida version has the movie cameos. Maybe they were there and I just tend to shut that part out of my brain.

It is much cheaper taking pictures of merchandise as opposed to buying them

We then made our way to Frontierland where Splash Mountain was pretty much a walk on. I would say that riding Splash at night would be the best time to ride. You don't know if you will get wet or not. Just make sure you sit in the back to avoid splashing water, or maybe was it the front? With our quench for water not fulfilled, we went on The World Famous Jungle Cruise. Sorry, I meant Jingle Cruise. For the first time ever, Disney dressed up the Jungle Cruise with a holiday overlay (don't quote me on this). In actuality, only the queue got some sprucing up, but it was some nice eye-candy. Just don't go in expecting an entirely different experience.

I would have to say that my favorite skipper was the one I had on this cruise. His delivery was so dry, I couldn't help but laugh after each and every joke. If you ever get him as your skipper, please record the experience and send it over.

With some time left before the fireworks would start, we were able to squeeze a ride through on another classic, Pirates of the Caribbean.

Lady in red. No, not Melisandre

I heard they added this scene as tribute to the movie

With quite a bit of time before Wishes, we hunted for a good enough viewing spot. It was packed along Main Street, so we continued towards Adventureland. Along the way, we found a nice spot in front of The Crystal Palace, some character buffet. Since we found a bench that sat on a ledge, the crowd that eventually settled in front of us wasn't tall enough to block our view. About halfway through Wishes, the smoke became really thick, probably due to the lack of wind that night. It became so bad, you could barely make out the castle. Eventually, you couldn't make out the fireworks themselves.

After the crowds dispersed, we grabbed a drink from Starbucks to warm us up a bit. With our drink in hand, we found a spot along Main Street to watch the Main Street Electrical Parade. I believe the last time I saw this parade was in Disneyland. I might have skipped it while it was in Disney's California Adventure (before the name change) because it was weird having the Main Street Electrical Parade, well, not on Main Street. With two minutes to spare before closing, we hopped onto The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.

Starbucks in a Disney park? It was only a matter of time

As we were making our way back onto Main Street, a slight drizzle came running down. Not only did this clear out people, but light from the castle reflects really well off the puddles.