The Only Way to "Do" Disney - Part IV (Moviestars in Wonderland)

Disney day two began with a lot of coffee. That's always a sign of a good beginning. We checked out of Coranado Springs and drove on over to Hollywood Studios.

I made sure the camera was working. Apparently this is my go-to-Disney face.

This is Ty's. It's a very handsome face.

We decided to do without the tourist get-up today and go strictly as our good-lookin' movie star selves. It seemed appropriate, since we were headed to Hollywood.

We perfected our movie star faces while on the tram.

Ready for some fun!

Are you ready? That is, ready for the recap? Here goes...

HS Attraction no. 1 - Beauty and the Beast

This is a live musical show that I've been wanting to see for ages! It never worked out in the past, either because of show times or large groups. In keeping with our "Try new things" mantra, we decided to give it a go! We arrived fifteen minutes prior to show time. But first we swiped our fast passes for Rock 'n' Roller Coaster. They do have a single-rider line, but we chose to go fastpass.

Beauty and the Beast ended up being the highlight of day two for us! While it may come as no surprise to you that the Belle-related attractions were my favorite (after all, she is my favorite princess!), they were admittedly Ty's favorites, too! As a musician, I thrive on live performances. My main problem with musicians these days is that 9/10 of them rely on producers and sound engineers to make them sound good. Have you ever heard a band live only to realize they actually can't sing on key or listen to one another? Okay, soap box over.

I was thrilled by the performances of the dancers and singers at the Beauty and the Beast show. While there were definitely pre-recorded elements to the show, the lead characters were all singing live - and they were fantastic! Gaston was particularly excellent. We were also impressed by the supporting cast; there were only six men and six women (I think) who reappeared in different scenes wearing different attire throughout the show. They were all good dancers, too.

Just before the Prince was transformed in to the Beast (behind the blanket)

The charming castle characters!

Ending dance! Those are some PINK dresses!

Can you tell I liked this show? Okay, moving on to...

HS Attraction no. 2 - The Great Movie Ride

We've done it a zillion times, but it's always slightly different depending on your guide. As we entered the car, Ty leaned over and whispered in my ear, "I hope we get a good gangster." I won't give it all away, but there are some fun surprises in this ride. At the end, there is a short montage of famous movies. It goes by lickity-split, but I think I counted twenty-nine that I had seen.

HS Attraction no. 3 - Star Tours

There was also no wait for this ride, so we walked right on in! Also, like The Great Movie Ride, your experience varies each time. You even get to wear these awesome glasses. They fit in perfectly with our movie star costumes. My only warning: try not to make any gross faces while waiting for the ride to start. You never know when Disney is snapping your picture to show to your entire ride group. (The Rebel spy!) The girl sitting next to me may have been caught in an unfortunate moment. You have been warned.

Wow, that guy is totally creepin' in our picture.


HS Attraction no. 4 - The Legend of Jack Sparrow

Again, another first for us. I have to say it was just okay. We both kept expecting to be taken into a second room, but it turns out you just stand in a decorated warehouse for the entirety of the "show." The show features Johnny Depp (via some fancy technology) at the helm of the ship. It is all pre-recorded, but live explosions occur along with the recording. We hit the show time just right, so there was no wait. I think I would have like it less after a length wait time.

By this point it was time to use our fastpasses. I love roller coasters. And I dislike walking behind slow people. Naturally, the Determined Theme Park Walk turned on. One of the downsides to Hollywood Studios is that it's so crowded, especially in the corner with Rock 'n' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror!

Clueless to the paparazzi.

(Ooo! More media coverage for my bag!) 

Finally catching on. I usually forge ahead and push through crowds only to find I've left a patient Tyler waiting behind strollers of screaming children or a mass tourist group in matching Ts. Guess this is my payback.

HS Attraction no. 5 - Rock 'n' Roller Coaster

This is one of my all-time favorites at any Disney park. The beginning lunge of the Limo is always more fun than I remembered. I love all the bright city lights and the highway theming. It is fantastic from beginning to end. Unfortunately we had large groups of shoving, screaming teenage groups in line with us. At least it was a short line!

We had planned to visit The Magic of Disney Animation as our final attraction at Hollywood Studios, but our bellies were growling and we knew it would take a while to park hop. Tyler used a Dining Plan snack credit for a pretzel at Hollywood, but we were saving our quick-service credits. (We don't prefer the restaurants at Hollywood.)

Tyler and I both suffer from GBS - Grumpy Butt Syndrome, which is nearly always hunger-induced. (Sometimes it's crowd-induced for me.) Instead of ruining the magic of the day, we decided to leave The Magic of Disney Animation for another time. (That's the beauty of annual passes!) I do, however, recommend this attraction. You will learn to draw a Disney character, and you get to take home your drawing as a souvenir! Free souvenir! They take you step-by-step, so even non-artists (like me!) can make a recognizable picture. I was pleasantly surprised by how my Tigger turned out last time.

On to Epcot! 

We wanted to eat at Japan (Disney bloggers informed me that you get top value for your dining plan there!), so we hiked all the way to the back of the park. It's quite a distance to Japan.

Bonjour! I miss Paris!

I had to stop in England and use the restroom. England has nice restrooms. At least in Epcot. I've never been to real England.

After checking out the restrooms, I found Ty listening to the British rock band. Of course. When I didn't seen him nearby, my ears led the way to a very happy husband.

Unfortunately, when we got to Japan, a supervisor informed me that there was nothing they could do to accommodate my gluten allergy. The sit-down Japanese restaurant had options, but everything at the quick-service restaurant was pre-prepared. Needless to say we were disappointed. I had been thinking about Japanese food all morning and even started recognizing some words on the menu. (High school Japanese was coming back!) It was about 3 o'clock at this point. I pulled out my phone and quickly consulted my Disney blog sites. The quick-service in Morocco was highly recommended. While this isn't our favorite type of food, we decided to give it a try. The fact that it neighbors Japan also meant we didn't have to travel far. We were definitely Grumpy Butt at this point.

I don't know if we had an off-day with food service, but our experience at Morocco was unprofessional and unsatisfactory. The cashiers and other workers were unhelpful and unclear. I'm not sure if this left a bad taste in our mouth (har, har) or what, but our food was just okay. I think my taste buds were still expecting Japanese food. Still, we left nourished and energized to continue on.

My food

Ty's food

Next we went to Mexico. The decor in Mexico is some of my favorite. The nice restaurant looks like this inside! Just gorgeous! It really stinks that this is where I dined the night before my half marathon, because I am certainly not anxious to eat there again and relive memories of that night. (Let's just say I was up all night and experienced my dinner again in a most unpleasant way.) Still, it's lovely inside the restaurant. The ride is inside the restaurant. It's very cute!

Epcot Attraction no. 1 - Grand Fiesta Tour

Us getting waiting for the ride to begin. We were joined by some most unpleasant guests, who were harassing the cast members and disregarding the rules. This is us trying not to laugh.

Afterward, we swung by a snack station and Ty used our final dining plan credit to purchase coffee. It was the smallest cup of coffee ever. We were definitely fading at this point. We wasted just enough time and walked back to England to meet Alice in Wonderland, who was greeting at this point.

This Alice was the best. She wished us a happy anniversary.

Epcot Attraction no. 2 - Character Greeting (Alice in Wonderland)

(Did I mention my friend Macy is friends with Alice?)

Ty's surprisingly successful attempt to take a photograph devoid of persons.

Epcot Attraction no. 3 - Captain EO

I can't believe I don't have a single photograph of our final attraction of the day.

Captain EO is a rad show! Think George Lucas meets Michael Jackson. Strange? Definitely.

Ty had never seen this 3-D show, so I dragged him over to The Imagination Pavillion We were both happy to sit and rest during the show. If you're wondering if there's a moonwalk scene, I can assure you there is. You won't be disappointed. There are also lots of pre-show scenes featuring the making of Captain EO. Be prepared for the 80s dance outfits.

It is interesting to note that this show was originally featured in 1986 and ran until 1994. It was reopened in 2010, following the death of star Michael Jackson.

After our space-dance show, we began the final walk of the day - to the car. Why is it that the arrival to the car seems like the longest wait of the day? We had a splendid time, but we were POOPED! How do families with small children do this - for a whole week?

Speaking of small children...

We picked up our dog-child (who is not so small and seen below terrorizing the small dog) and crashed on Big Mammoth for a while before making the final, final trip home. For those of you who don't know, Big Mammoth is an overstuffed leather couch/sectional at Ty's parents'. It is infamous for inducing sleep.

There you have it. We celebrated and wore the buttons to flaunt it. It was a Magical two days, and we are so thankful for the opportunity to take two days off.

Just arriving? Go check out Parts I, II, and III.

Have a magical day.

The end.