Part 9

 

Today is the day I've been waiting for- It's time to transfer over to the Polynesian!!!

 

The Poly was the first Disney resort I ever stayed at, and it was love.  I love everything about the place, and if only it were cheaper, I may never stay anywhere else!  Of course, it is so not cheap, even with a massive Annual Pass discount, so I usually get 2 nights there on a trip at the most.  Still, two nights are better than none!  I happily threw my stuff into my bags, and said goodbye to PO-FQ.  I'm actually really surprised that I didn't like FQ.  It felt like more like a value resort than a moderate to me, although I'm not sure why.  I found myself wishing that I had just stayed at Pop Century instead, and saved some money. 

 

I was SO happy to be going to the Polynesian!  Funny enough, I was more excited to get to the Poly than anywhere else on the trip! 

 

I checked in well before 3 (Not sure what time now, but I think it was around 11am?), and asked the CM checking me in for "anything with a balcony".  (I had ended up in one of the older buildings on my last trip where the 2nd floor rooms just had the big windows out, no balcony!  I love my balcony dearly, so asking is important!).  I mentioned to the guy checking me in that tomorrow was my birthday, and he said "Oh, you know, when you say that kind of thing, Mickey overhears, and things happen!"  Ooh, intrigue!  Would I be getting a card from Mickey tomorrow, or some other fun surprise? 

 

I ended up with room 3101, which was on the 3rd floor of Rapa Nui.  I had never stayed on this side (near the TTC) before, but the best way to learn is to try all different buildings, so I set off to check my room out.  It turned out to be the first one after the elevator, with a view mostly of the parking lot.  I used my mad photo skills to take this picture from the balcony, which makes it look less parking lotty than it really is.

 

 

 

 

and the balcony itself, from both ends.  You may notice that it looks REALLY stormy.  The weather channel was predicting some crazy storms for today, so I called Katie up to see if she still wanted to go to Epcot today, as we had planned.  After some debating it, she decided to skip out, and try again another day.  I decided to hang out at the resort for a while, partly to see if it would in fact start storming, and part because my feet really hurt, and I was pretty tired, and could use the break.  I took my shoes off, and found that the blister on my toe had gotten HUGE, to the point where a big chunk of my toe looked like it wanted to fall off.  I uploaded a picture of it here, for anyone with a strong stomach who wants to share my pain.  Aren't I nice for not sticking it right in the report?

 

I used my hanging out time to take some pictures of the room and the resort.  I had already taken 500 photos on my other memory card, so I popped in a new one, and within about an hour of hanging out at the Poly, it already had 50 pictures on it!  Here are a few.

 

In the Room:

 

 

I was amazed at how HUGE my room was.  I think that the Rapa Nui rooms are some of the bigger ones, but am not sure.  Either way, it felt like a hike across the place!

 

 

Can you see the hidden Mickeys in the shower curtain?

There he is!

The layout of the rooms in Rapa Nui, just in case you were wondering!

Outside:

Outside my building. 


Just in case you don't know your way around

One of the many Tiki gods that watches over the resort. 

Taken on the stairway in the Great Ceremonial House.

How many Mickey heads can you find?

Isn't it sweet that they named a shop after me?

My classic Polynesian lunch.  What can I say, I only go gourmet.  A few years ago, the fries at Captain Cook's were amazing, they had some kind of seasoning that just made them awesome.  Unfortunately, now the fries are just plain.  I am addicted to the Pooh juice, and you can never go wrong with a chocolate Mickey rice krispy treat! 

After my high class lunch, I decided to just give up and go to Epcot.  If it rained, it rained, and "home" was only a monorail ride away!

I decided to pay Figment a visit over at the Imagination pavilion.  I'm so glad he's back in the ride- the one without him was awful!  In the gift shop after the ride, I searched around to find some kind of Figment souvenir that wasn't too expensive, and found the bargain of the century!  A box of Figment fridge magnets for $9!  I couldn't tell how many were in it in the shop, so when I got oustide, I opened it up, and counted 15 of them!  That comes out to just 60 cents each!  They're all different- Figment painting, flying in a hot air balloon, dancing, just being Figment, etc.  Highly recommend if you want a lot of Figment for your dollar!

I took some time to literally stop and smell the roses on my way to World Showcase.  The flowers in Epcot are always beautiful- makes me miss coming during Flower & Garden festival!

I decided to go clockwise today, starting out in Mexico. 

And then Norway.  I have to show you the comparison of WDW's Stave Church and a real one in real Norway:

the WDW version...   And the real thing (real photo from this site)  Talk about authentic! 

It was in Norway that I began my quest to buy chocolate from every country.  (Norway's was awesome!  $2.50 for a normal candy bar size)

I continued this quest in Germany:

I got two different kinds of chocolate in Germany- a marzipan one for my mom (who loves marzipan), and a hazelnut one for me ($3.25 each).  Again, both REALLY good!  (What else would you expect from German chocolate?) 

In France, I found chocolate in the mousse form in the Boulangerie Patisserie.  Everything in that shop looks so yummy, I think I could die happy there.  ($3.57 for chocolate mousse- well worth it!)

 

I found a bench on the UK side of France and spent some time listening to the French Christmas storyteller, enjoying my mousse, and watching Beauty & the Beast sign autographs. 

 

I made it to the UK just in time for British Invasion, who I had never seen before, but really enjoyed.  I have video of them to upload as well, once my computer gets upgraded.  I especially enjoyed seeing them at night- the ambiance was perfect with the lights and people dancing, just perfect!

 

Finally, in Canada, I really wanted to complete my chocolate search with a chocolate hazelnut beavertail, but Trapper Bob has moved on.  Instead I ended up buying a cute stuffed moose, and a moose magnet.  Canada's shop has lots of cute stuff!  And, following the "look up, look down" rule, I found this cute display up in the rafters:

 

It reminded me of Harry Potter's owl, Hedwig!

I contemplated staying for Illuminations, but decided to skip it for tonight- I was tired, and ready to get back to the Poly!  I took the monorail to the TTC, and then walked from there (The plus side of being in a building on the TTC side- so close!)

 

A sign welcoming me back.

 

After a quick dinner of pizza from Captain Cooks (How much pizza have I eaten on this trip!?) I decided to go sit by the pool, and put my poor tired feet in (It was a little too chilly, and I was a little too lazy, to change into a swimsuit).  It was incredibly peaceful sitting by the pool with nobody around!  And boy did that water feel good on my tired little feet!

 

I noticed the cute Tiki shower by the pool, and went over to take a picture of it.  To my surprise, right as I took the picture, the shower turned on! 

 

After a few more pictures, I finally figured out that it is motion activated, and so the camera flash was setting it off!  A much nicer explanation than "haunted shower!"   

 

I also snapped this photo of the purse I picked up in China for just $12 two days ago (forgot to mention it in that part!)  After having forgotten to bring a purse with me, I was glad to have an alternative to carrying my backpack everywhere!

 

With another long day behind me, I went back to Rapa Nui, thinking how nice it was to be "home".

 

Part 10 Coming Soon! *  2004 Trip Report Index