Eventually, we made it to Art of Animation. This time we were staying in a standard Little Mermaid room right by the massive statue of Ariel. I was delighted that our room was on the first level because I’m lazy and do not want to climb steps. Once we made it to our room, a torrential downpour ensued. Unfortunately, I never prepare myself for rain with umbrellas or raincoats. It’s no one’s fault, but my own. While we were waiting it out, we were getting dangerously close to our reservation time at Planet Hollywood in Disney Springs. After a few attempts to catch an Uber, the rain finally let up and we were able to walk to the buses without getting rained on.
We made it to Planet Hollywood only 10-15 minutes late, which is great timing in my opinion. I didn’t particularly like the atmosphere of the restaurant as it was my first time eating here. The entertainment was too loud on top of the noisy chatter of patrons. Nonetheless, the food here was pretty decent. Danny got the Bistro Sirloin Steak, and substituted the two sides for two sides of mashed potatoes. Are you surprised at this point? This man will gladly eat mashed potatoes everyday of the year, which I get, but I didn’t think I’d meet someone who loved this superior form of potatoes as much as I do. Both the steak and potatoes got approval from Danny. I ordered the L.A. Lasagna, which was fresh pasta tubes filled with ricotta and bolognese meat sauce, fried to a golden brown. This was actually one of my favorite dishes of the vacation. Everyone knows pasta and I are best friends, but this went a step further, and gave me fried ravioli vibes. After a successful dinner, we went out to explore Disney Springs. My main objective was to go to Goofy’s Candy Company for a Jack Skellington caramel apple. I ended up with the Jack Skellington Rice Krispie treat, and the Mickey spiderweb sugar cookie to top it off. Oddly enough, I find Rice Krispie treats to be too sweet for me, even though I was craving them before going to Disney. How ironic?
The next day we were off to Magic Kingdom. Danny got his first taste of the Monorail since the parking lots are nowhere near the park. We were able to catch the Magic Kingdom cavalcade as we made our way down Main Street, and to my dismay, Stitch was facing the opposite side! I never saw this cavalcade again, and so my fate was sealed. I don’t know why Disney is keeping us apart. We also saw Tinker Bell’s cavalcade as it traveled from Frontierland towards Main Street.
Of course, we got distracted by balloons as we made our way to the castle. After all these years, I have still yet to get myself a Disney balloon. I almost had a heart attack when a little girl nearly stole the last pink balloon from me, but alas, it was mine. These Disney balloons are something else. I got booped in the head several times by this balloon, and they hit with brute force. I must say, for what these balloons cost, they are definitely durable.
For lunch, we stopped at one my favorite places in Disney… Casey’s Corner for Corn Dog Nuggies! I haven’t had them in so long, considering Casey’s Corner has been closed since the start of the pandemic in 2020. These miniature corn dogs were as delicious as ever. While we were eating inside, it began to rain again. Luckily, Danny and I were able to buy ponchos at the gift shop in AoA the night before. I really need to buy myself a cute raincoat for Disney, but knowing my luck, I’ll buy one and I’ll never need to use it.
During our adventure at the Kingdom, we rode our fair share of rides despite the rain, including Danny’s first time on PeopleMover. Danny was also introduced to the nightmare that is It’s a Small World. Although, they seemed to be targeting my best friend’s husband this time around. Apparently, they have personalized goodbye messages at the end of the attraction now, and the screen literally said “Goodbye Dario.” It scared the shit out of us because how many Darios could possibly be on this ride!? LMAO! We thought maybe it was just a coincidence at first, but after doing some research, it definitely was not. I’m surprised he wasn’t kidnapped during our stay at AoA, and enslaved to sing that God forsaken song for all eternity.
Danny and I decided to watch the new fireworks show, Enchantment, from the Tomorrowland bridge that gives you a beautiful side view of the castle. The front of the castle was overflowing with people, and so we tried a different angle. In hindsight, it didn’t work out since you cannot watch the projections on the castle simultaneously with the illuminations. The fireworks are launched further back from the castle than your eyes perceive them to be when viewing the nighttime show from the face of the castle. At least, I know for the future. There is no harm in viewing the fireworks from different areas in the park to get a different experience. In all honesty, I was just glad fireworks were finally back in Disney after two vacations without them.
Our dinner reservation for the night was at Be Our Guest. This time we were seated in Belle’s Library. I’ve finally gotten to dine in all three dining rooms at this restaurant… the trifecta has been completed! Well, for me at least. Unfortunately, I still need Danny to experience feasting in The West Wing or as Dario was calling it… the “Murder” room. LOL. Speaking of The West Wing, Chinh and I tried to get the portrait switching over from the Prince to the Beast on video. We waited diligently, convinced every strike of lightning was the exact one that triggers the switch. As soon as we gave up and left the room, BOOM! The portrait finally did its parlor trick. I can never win. Our dining experience was pretty much the same as it was in May, except Danny joined the rest of us in ordering the Filet Mignon this time around. If you want to read about our experiences in May, click here.
Once again, we exited the restaurant into an empty park. It was another slow stroll down a quiet and lonely Main Street as I thought about my favorite things about our adventure. There’s nothing I regret about this day. More and more Danny has experienced mostly everything that Magic Kingdom has to offer. I’m happy that during this trip new experiences were still being sprinkled in for him. My favorite part of the day was watching the fireworks with him after a long hiatus without them. It was just the cherry on top.
Next up! Epcot and Boo Bash After Hours Event…
Photos by Noelle Miles Photography
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