Blogger's Note: Part 5 continues with the evening portion of our first day in The Magic Kingdom.
A tired crew of 5 got back to our vacation home for our mid-afternoon break from the park on Sunday March 6. While the wives and granddaughter relaxed, James and I went to the nearby Super Target to do some follow-up grocery shopping.
When it came time to get ready for her return to the Magic Kingdom Aria was in her Princess Anna dress. I took this picture when she was proudly giving her Papa an exclusive fashion show.
We ate dinner at a Golden Corral restaurant on West Bronson Parkway and then did some shopping at the souvenir shop right next door.
At about 7 o'clock or so we headed back to experience the Magic Kingdom at night.
The 3 things on our radar were: the nighttime parade, the castle projection show, and the fireworks.
We walked through the tunnel into town square about 15 minutes before the Main Street Electrical parade was about to start.
One of the more valuable tips I had learned just a week or so earlier was that up until the last few minutes before it started there was a good chance of getting a decent spot in Town Square to watch this parade.
The reason being that most people think it starts in Frontierland and travels through the Kingdom ending in Town Square, just like the daytime parade. The Main Street Electrical Parade begins from the backstage area just near the barber shop and runs the designated route in the other direction.
The parade started at 8 PM, just like the tip suggested we got a good spot to watch in front of the stairs to the train station despite having arrived at 7:45. Although it's not a very good picture here's an idea of our point of view.
Here's a shot of Aria with her souvenir toy waiting for the parade to start.
As we passed the Town Hall on right I noticed on my Touring Plans app on my phone that the wait to meet Mickey Mouse was only about 10-15 minutes. We decided to kill 2 birds with 1 stone and go do the ultimate Meet & Greet while the crowd was funneling down Main Street heading to the hub thinned out a bit.
Aria seemed excited about the idea of meeting Mickey as she stood in line with her autograph book and pen.
But that would change once we got to Magician Mickey's dressing room.
Now let me explain, what I think, was the reason for Aria's uneasiness with Mickey. It was that he moved his mouth, blinked his eyes and talked. A bit overwhelming for a four year old to process. It spooked her a bit.
Despite Mickey's efforts, the cast member's assurances and, even after both Brandi and James went in for a hug...
...my granddaughter wanted nothing to do with the "Big Cheese."
Finally we decided that the only way to get a picture of Aria with Mickey was for all of us to get a picture with Mickey. It turned out to be one of my favorite group pictures of the trip.
Our decision to linger in the Town Square area proved to be effective as the area was a lot easier to navigate once we emerged from meeting Mickey. With just a few minutes before the start of the castle projection show we headed down Main Street toward the hub.
We got about halfway there when James decided that he wanted to go into the Starbucks to get a coffee.
Since James missed the first projection show, they decided that they wanted to watch the next Celebrate The Magic show again, but closer to the castle.
We walked with them to the end of Main Street and then took refuge at one of the tables outside the Plaza Restaurant. They went on to the castle where the watched the show and had this picture taken.
Exhausted from such a busy day Paula and I were grateful for some time to sit and relax. My wife took advantage of the view of the castle and put her camera to work.
She also took a plethora of pictures of the Celebrate The Magic show. Here's 5 of my favorite.
Once we were reunited at the far end of Main Street we were caught up in yet another mass exodus. The park was officially closed and families were heading home.
We decided to get out of the sea of humanity and browse the Emporium (a string of indoor shopping areas that encompasses the whole right side of Main Street until the crowd thinned out.
As I was walking around I came across some dropped change on the floor in front of a pressed penny machine. It was enough to make a couple of pennies from the machine.
I gave James the money and he pressed a couple more coins to add to Aria's pressed pennies book. He would make it his mission to collect as many of these transformed souvenirs for his daughter as he could during our time in The World.
While walking around the shops, Paula & I decided that we were hungry. We made our way back thru the Emporium to Casey's Corner hot dog shop.
We placed an order for a drink and a serving of mini-corn dogs. They were very good. Probably one of if not the best quick service food we had during our entire trip.
By the time we were done with our food, the Conners had made their way to the front of the park. They texted to let us know that they were waiting for us and were ready to go.
We made our way to the front of the park and said good night to the Magic Kingdom. After a few minutes of trying get to get both the Conners and the Havens onto the ramp to the same monorail route, we were on the platform waiting to take go back to the TTC.
While waiting we looked out over the Seven Seas Lagoon and saw the Electrical Water Pageant float by. It was the first time we'd ever seen it.
I thought the patriotic display was pretty cool.
Once we were back at the TTC there was the long walk back to the car left in our day.
As I slowly walked away from the "most magical place on earth" I mentally reviewed our first day. What wonderful memories. We were all very tired but it was the good kind of tired.
I looked forward to getting back to the vacation home, taking off my shoes, putting up my feet and get a good night sleep.
Our little princess totally agreed with me as shortly after we got back from the our night at the Magic Kingdom she took her own private visit to dreamland.
Our plans for the next day didn't require such an early start but it promised to be just as exciting for my granddaughter. We would be heading for Disney's Hollywood Studios where she would meet and have lunch with even more of her favorite characters.
Coming next in Part 6: Sophia, Sing-Along, Star Wars, and more
The parade made going back to The Kingdom worth the efort. It was amazingly bright and colorful. Each float was better than the last.
Although I didn't take these pictures here are some shots that closely represents our perspective.
Even though they'd gone away for a while as I stood there watching Aria and enjoying the parade my "sentimental feelings" made a roaring comeback. This day was getting more and more memorable as it went on.
Once the parade was over, we made our way down Main Street USA to the castle for the fireworks and it felt like everyone else did too.
As we passed the Town Hall on right I noticed on my Touring Plans app on my phone that the wait to meet Mickey Mouse was only about 10-15 minutes. We decided to kill 2 birds with 1 stone and go do the ultimate Meet & Greet while the crowd was funneling down Main Street heading to the hub thinned out a bit.
Aria seemed excited about the idea of meeting Mickey as she stood in line with her autograph book and pen.
Now let me explain, what I think, was the reason for Aria's uneasiness with Mickey. It was that he moved his mouth, blinked his eyes and talked. A bit overwhelming for a four year old to process. It spooked her a bit.
Despite Mickey's efforts, the cast member's assurances and, even after both Brandi and James went in for a hug...
Finally we decided that the only way to get a picture of Aria with Mickey was for all of us to get a picture with Mickey. It turned out to be one of my favorite group pictures of the trip.
Our decision to linger in the Town Square area proved to be effective as the area was a lot easier to navigate once we emerged from meeting Mickey. With just a few minutes before the start of the castle projection show we headed down Main Street toward the hub.
We got about halfway there when James decided that he wanted to go into the Starbucks to get a coffee.
As we were waiting for him the "Celebrate The Magic" castle projection show started. Aria found a place to get a great view.
It took James about 30 minutes to get his coffee. He missed the entire projection show and some of the fireworks. But he saw most of them.
It was the first time that I watched Wishes from Main Street USA. Although it was very crowded it wasn't anywhere near as suffocating as it had been around the castle courtyard or near the Partner's statue during the fireworks at the Christmas Party.
It gives you a great perspective and lets you see the whole "stage" they use to put on the show.
Once the fireworks were over, Main Street became a stream of bi-directional migration. Half the guests were leaving the castle and hub area heading for the exit. The other half was continuing deeper into the park to gather at the castle for the next projection show, to get in line for a last minute ride on an attraction, do some last minute shopping or get something to eat.
Since James missed the first projection show, they decided that they wanted to watch the next Celebrate The Magic show again, but closer to the castle.
We walked with them to the end of Main Street and then took refuge at one of the tables outside the Plaza Restaurant. They went on to the castle where the watched the show and had this picture taken.
We had all been together for most of the day so I was glad that the 3 of them could have a special family moment in front of the castle.
Exhausted from such a busy day Paula and I were grateful for some time to sit and relax. My wife took advantage of the view of the castle and put her camera to work.
She also took a plethora of pictures of the Celebrate The Magic show. Here's 5 of my favorite.
Once we were reunited at the far end of Main Street we were caught up in yet another mass exodus. The park was officially closed and families were heading home.
We decided to get out of the sea of humanity and browse the Emporium (a string of indoor shopping areas that encompasses the whole right side of Main Street until the crowd thinned out.
As I was walking around I came across some dropped change on the floor in front of a pressed penny machine. It was enough to make a couple of pennies from the machine.
I gave James the money and he pressed a couple more coins to add to Aria's pressed pennies book. He would make it his mission to collect as many of these transformed souvenirs for his daughter as he could during our time in The World.
While walking around the shops, Paula & I decided that we were hungry. We made our way back thru the Emporium to Casey's Corner hot dog shop.
We placed an order for a drink and a serving of mini-corn dogs. They were very good. Probably one of if not the best quick service food we had during our entire trip.
By the time we were done with our food, the Conners had made their way to the front of the park. They texted to let us know that they were waiting for us and were ready to go.
We made our way to the front of the park and said good night to the Magic Kingdom. After a few minutes of trying get to get both the Conners and the Havens onto the ramp to the same monorail route, we were on the platform waiting to take go back to the TTC.
While waiting we looked out over the Seven Seas Lagoon and saw the Electrical Water Pageant float by. It was the first time we'd ever seen it.
I thought the patriotic display was pretty cool.
Once we were back at the TTC there was the long walk back to the car left in our day.
As I slowly walked away from the "most magical place on earth" I mentally reviewed our first day. What wonderful memories. We were all very tired but it was the good kind of tired.
I looked forward to getting back to the vacation home, taking off my shoes, putting up my feet and get a good night sleep.
Our little princess totally agreed with me as shortly after we got back from the our night at the Magic Kingdom she took her own private visit to dreamland.
Coming next in Part 6: Sophia, Sing-Along, Star Wars, and more
