Twas the Night Before Christmas at WDW

Very cool reading of the classic Christmas tale from WDW Cast Members. Really shows the diversity there is at WDW. Enjoy!

Art of Animation Resort Opening Soon!

Golden Oak community at Walt Disney World Resort

Golden Oak community at Walt Disney World Resort

New Fantasyland Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Videos

2011 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Menu Overview

2011 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Map

Enjoy the 16th Annual Epcot Food and Wine Festival from September 30th until November 13th. More than 25 international marketplace kiosks offer sample size portions of the below mentioned regional specialties from $3 to $8. There are also many recommended wines, beers and\or other adult beverages to complete your dining experience.  

Disney sells handy mini gift cards wristlets than can be loaded up at the Festival welcome Center and used at all of the kiosks. I find this a good way to stay within a budget. Also, don't forget to pickup your festival passport at the Welcome Center (located next to Mission Space). Get it stamped as your make your world food and wine tour. and take home as a nice keepsake.

Here are your menu items and locations, Bon Apeteit! :

1. Australia

• Shrimp on the Barbie with Pepper Berry Citrus Glaze
• Grilled Lamb Chop with Potato-Goat
• Cheese Salad and Shiraz Reduction
• Lamington (Chocolate and Coconut covered Yellow Cake);
• Penfolds “Koonunga Hill” Chardonnay
• Greg Norman Estates Shiraz, Limestone Coast
• Lindeman’s “Bin 90” Moscato
• Penfolds “Thomas Hyland” Cabernet Sauvignon

2. BRAZIL

• Brazil’s National Dish - Feijoada (a Black Bean and Pork Stew) 
• Seared Mahi Mahi with steamed Rice, Hearts of Palm and Coconut-Lime Sauce
• LeBlon frozen cocktail Frozen Caipirinha

3. ARGENTINA

• Grilled Beef Skewer with Chimichurri Sauce and Boniato Purée
• Beef Empanada
• Terrazas Reserva Chardonnay
• Terrazas Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon
• Terrazas Reserva Torrontes
• Terrazas Reserva Malbec

4. CARIBBEAN

• Ropa Vieja (slowly braised beef ) with White Rice
• Jerk spiced Chicken Drumstick with Mango Salsa
• Frozen Rock Coconut Mojito
• Frozen Dragon Berry Colada

5. MEXICO

• Rib Eye Tacos
• Shrimp Tacos; Flan
• Dos Equis Beer
• Lime Strawberry Margarita on the Rocks
• L.A. Cetto Chardonnay
• L.A. Cetto Petite Sirah
• Dasani Bottled Water

6. SCANDINAVIA

• Taste of Scandinavia - Shrimp Salad, Cured Salmon and Herring
• Swedish Meatballs with Lingon Berries
• Rice Pudding with Driscoll’s Berries
• Xante Sunshine

7. CHINA

• Black Pepper Shrimp with Sichuan Noodles
• Pork Pot Stickers
• Xinjiang Barbecue Chicken Stick
• Caramel-Ginger Ice Cream
• Tsing Tao Beer
• Dragon’s Hollow Chardonnay
• Green Tea Plum Wine Cooler
• Happy Lychee

8. SOUTH KOREA

• Lettuce Wraps with Roast Pork and Kimchi Slaw
• Boolgogi BBQ Beef with steamed Rice and Kimchi
• Myung Jak Bokbunjajoo (New Raspberry Wine)
• Charm Soon Soju (New)
• BEK SE JU (Herbal Rice Wine)

9. SOUTH AFRICA

• Seared Filet of Beef with smashed Sweet Potatoes and Braai Sauce
• Bunny Chow (Vegetable Curry served in a Bread Loaf )
• La Capra Chardonnay
• La Capra Sauvignon Blanc
• La Capra Pinotage
• La Capra Shiraz

10. CHEESE

• Cheese Fondue with Sourdough Bread
• Artisan Cheese Selection with Sweet Gras Dairy Thomasville Tomé
• Delice de Bourgogne
• PC Wyngaard Chevre Affineurs
• Goat Gouda

11. BREWERS'S COLLECTION

• Radeberger Pilsner (German Pilsner)
• Altenmünster Oktoberfest 
• Altenmünster Dunkel
• Hovel’s
• Schöfferhofer Weizen
• BraufactuM Indra
• Rauchweizen Roog Smoked
• Wheat Bier
• Sion Kölsch

12. GERMANY

• Goulash Suppe
• Nuernberger Sausage in a Pretzel Roll
• Apple Strudel Featuring Werther’s Original Karamel Sauce and Vanilla Sauce
• Selbach-Oster Estate Spatlese
• Selbach JH Riesling Kabinett
• Selbach JH Riesling QbA
• Selbach JH Riesling Classic
• Radeberger Pilsner (German Pilsner)
• Altenmünster Dunkel

13. POLAND

• Kielbasa and Potato Pierogie with Caramelized Onionsand Sour Cream
• Golabki (Pork Stuffed Cabbage)
• Belvedere Strawberry Chiller

14. ITALY

• Ravioli Di Formaggio all’Emiliana(Baked Cheese Ravioli with Creamy Beef Bolognese Sauce, Parmesan Cheese, and Melted Mozzarella
• Cappellini con Gamberi Piccanti (Cappellini Pasta with Spicy Shrimp)
• Cannoli al Cioccolato(Chocolate Covered Cannoli Shell Filled with Sweet Ricotta Cheese, Chocolate, and Candied Fruit)
• Primavera Smoothie
• Fantinel Prosecco
• Placido Chianti
• Placido Pinot Grigio
• Moretti

15. FIFE & DRUM

• Featuring Frozen Red Stag Lemonade by Jim Beam

16. HOPS AND BARLEY

• Linda Bean’s Lobster Claw Cuddler with drawn Butter
• Linda Bean’s Perfect Maine Lobster Roll
• Pumpkin Mousse with Ocean Spray Craisins and Orange Sauce
• Samuel Adams Boston Lager
• Samuel Adams Octoberfest
• Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat
• 16th Anniversary Festival Beer - Boston Ale
• Samuel Adams Light
• Samuel Adams Cream Stout
• Latitude 48 IPA
• Samuel Adams Blackberry Witbier

17. SINGAPORE

• Shrimp Cake on a Sugarcane Skewer with Singapore Noodles
• Beef Rendang (a coconut braised beef ) with Jasmine Rice
• Singapore Sling; Tiger Beer

18. JAPAN

• Spicy Tuna Roll
• California Sushi Roll
• Tuna and Salmon Sensation
• Pork Kakuni
• Kirin Draft Beer
• Sake: Itami Onigoroshi
• Sake: Junmai Ginjo Masumi
• Tokyo Sunset

19. NEW ZEALAND

• Seared Sea Scallop with Kumara-Red Curry Puree and Apple Radish Salad
• Lamb Slider with Tomato Chutney
• Mohua Sauvignon Blanc
• Mohua Central Otago Riesling
• Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc
• Whitehaven Pinot Noir

20. MOROCCO

• Kefta Pocket (Ground Seasoned Beef in a Pita Pocket)
• Harissa Chicken Roll
• Baklava
• Casa Beer
• Ksar White
• Sangria
• Royale Mimosa

21. PORTUGAL

• Calamari Salad with Fennel, smoked Paprika and Olive Oil
• Linguica Sausage with Onions, Peppers and Olives
• Pastel de Nata
• Confraria Leve Moscatel Portugal
• Bridao Classico Tinto
• Caves Vale do Rodo Douro
• Xairel Cartaxo Tinto
• Caves Bonifacio Red

22. PORTUGAL WINE BAR

• Confraria Leve Moscatel Portugal
• Caves Vale do Rodo Douro
• Caves Bonifacio Red Wine
• Plexus Frisante Branco
• Bridao Classico Tinto
• Xairel Cartaxo Tinto
• Porto Reccua 10 year

23. BELGIUM

• Steamed Mussels with Roasted Garlic Cream and a Baguette
• Belgium Waffle with Berry Compote and Whipped Cream
• Guylian Belgian Chocolate Seashell Truffles
• Stella
• Hoegaarten
• Leffe
• Godiva Chocolate Iced Coffee

24. FRANCE

• Escargots Persillade en Brioche (Garlic and Parsley Snails in Brioche)
• “Coq au Vin sur gratin de macaroni” Red Wine braised Chicken, Mushrooms, Pearl Onions and Macaroni Gratin
• Crème Brûlée au Chocolat au Lait (Chocolate Milk Crème Brûlée topped with Caramelized Sugar)
• Chardonnay, Bouchard Aîné & Fils; Merlot, Chateau de Beauregard-Ducourt, Bordeaux
• Sparkling Pomegranate Kir
• Parisian Cosmo Slush (Ciroc Vodka, Grand Marnier, Cranberry Juice)

25. IRELAND

• Lobster & Scallop Fisherman’s Pie
• Kerrygold Cheese Selection: (Aged-Irish Cheddar, Dubliner and Ivernia Cheese) with Apple Chutney and Brown Bread
• Warm Chocolate Lava Cake with Baileys Ganache
• Guinness Draught
•  Bunratty Meade

26. CANADA

• Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup
• Maple and Moosehead Beer glazed Salmon with Barley Salad
• Chicken Chipotle Sausage with Sweet Corn Polenta
• Moosehead Beer
• Neige Sparkling
• Neige - FB

27. GREECE

• Greek Salad with Pita Bread
• Griddled Greek Cheese with Pistachios and Honey
• Chicken Souvlaki with Tzatziki
• Dannon Greek Yogurt Parfait with Strawberries
• Skouras St George
• Boutari Greek (White) “Moschofilero”
• Boutari Kretikos White

28. DESSERT AND CHAMPAGNE

• Lemon Chiffon
• White Chocolate Macadamia Mousse with Dark Chocolate Pearls
• Tres Leches Verrine
• Moet & Chandon Ice Imperial
• Moet & Chandon Rose Imperial
• Moet & Chandon Nectar Imperial
• Moet & Chandon Imperial

29. HAWAI’I

• Kalua Pork Slider with Sweet and Sour Dole Pineapple Chutney and Spicy Mayonnaise
• Tuna Poke with Seaweed Salad and Lotus Root Chips
• Seven Tiki Mai Tai
• Kona Longboard
• Kona Pipeline

30. CRAFT BEER COLLECTION

• Full Sail IPA
• Sierra Nevada
• Abita - Purple Haze
• Red Hook Pilsner
• Blue Moon
• Leinenkugal
• Key West Sunset Ale
• Widmer Hefeweizen

The only way to welcome back the Enchanted Tiki Room

The only way to watch a show in the Tiki Room!

When I heard that 'The Enchanted Tiki Room' was having a soft opening on Sunday 8/14 I was very happy that I happened to be in Magic Kingdom. I was ready to run over and check it out but something was not right. I needed to break it in with style. So we headed to Aloha Isle in Adventureland and I treated the wife and kids to Dole Whips and a Pineapple Dole Whip float for myself. 

With treats in hand we marched over to check out the show. We were not disappointed. The show brought back the classic elements of the original show, but with some nice 21st century technological advancements. Good job Imagineers on this one, Four Dole Whips up!

Disney Imagineers utilizing iPads and latest BIM software in Fantasyland expansion.

A Disney tribute to the classic method of July 4th celebration.....Fireworks!!

Happy 4th of July Everyone!
Here is a tribute to all of the Disney fireworks shows over the years. Enjoy!

Upcoming Vacation Plan

Lambert Family at Chef Mickey's 

When we sat down to plan our vacation this year we entertained the idea of traveling out West to Colorado. Although we had a generous offer from a friend to use his condo in Steamboat Springs, we decided to go back to our favorite place....Walt Disney World! We have been annual passholders since 2004 and can't get enough. Our sons are now eight and five years old which is prime Disney years. We don't want to waste them because we know we won't get them back.

Contemporary from our 2004 vacation

So we decided to stay at our favorite hotel resort. The Contemporary! We love the location and size of the rooms. This year we paid the extra money to stay in the towers for the first time. We are all looking forward to waking up to a beautiful view of Bay Lake and seeing the monorail run through our hotel.

Matthew at 18 months in the Land

Like last year we purchased the Deluxe Dining Plan. We really enjoyed not having to keep track of our spending last year. We did find the Deluxe Dining Plan a bit too much food with three sit down meals allocated. To spread this out this year we booked as many two credit meals as we could. We have reservations at Cinderella's Castle, Hoop-De-Doo Review and LeCellier. In addition to that we have Tusker House character breakfast and Chef Mickey's too.


All in all we are looking forward to a fun and exciting vacation again at the Happiest Place on Earth!

My Sneak Preview of Star Tours: The Adventure Continues

This past Saturday afternoon we got a nice surprise. We were on our way for a late-afternoon visit to Epcot for dinner and Illuminations when I received word that the soft-openings for the revamped Star Tours had started. We immediately changed course and headed to Disney Hollywood Studios.

The rain that had pushed through had slowed to a drizzle. After unexpectedly meeting up with some former neighbors of ours we headed to the ride. After we entered the queue it looked to be about a 30-40 minute wait. We asked the attending cast member if we could utilize our guest assistance pass. We were shown to the fast pass lane and were immediately at the front of the line. (Fast Passes were not operational at that time)

From all that I have heard about the updated Star Tours, it has 50+ possible story lines. This will really enhance future enjoyment. SPOILER ALERT!!! DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO LEARN OF SPECIFIC STORY LINES. Our storyline stated in the Star Tours Hanger. We were immediately met by Darth Vader and his legion of Storm Troopers. They were looking for a Rebel Spy, who happened to be one of the riders in our shuttle. After an intense battle with Darth and his henchman, we head out in hyperspace to the wookie planet of Kashyyk. There we find Chewbacca and his pals battling storm troopers on forest speeders. After a thrilling ride through the forrest we are sent back into hyper space one more time. While in route to our final destination we are greated by a 3D hologram of Princess Leia. She informs us of our mission to deliver our Rebel Spy safely to our final destination. She closes by saying "Help us Star Tours. You're our only hope!" Sound familiar?! For the grand finale we are delivered to Coruscant in the middle of a battle of  Star Destroyers. After a thrilling battle sequence we are falling out of orbit of the planet to the city below. We regain power just in time to careen through the skyscrapers of Coruscant to our final landing platform.

All in all the graphics are amazing and very smooth. With the promised 50+ storylines, I look forward to riding this many times......May the Force be with You!

Shuttle Launch viewed from passing Airplane

Here is an incredible video shot during Thursday's final launch of Discovery from the vantage point of an airplane.


YouTube user NeilMonday captured the whole thing.

Mickey is moving to the FASTPASS Lane

Beginning this spring, Disney will be offering FASTPASS for Mickey at his new permanent home, Town Square Theater, located inside the current Exposition Hall area at the entrance of Magic Kingdom park.

Rendering of Town Square Theater at Magic Kingdom

Once open, it’ll be more than just a new greeting space for Mickey. Disney is also creating an interactive queue. Also, during the New Fantasyland construction, the Disney Princesses will be in Town Square Theater to meet and greet their fans too.

Should be a nice addition to Magic Kingdom.

Source: http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2011/02/mickey-fastpass-first-ever-reservations-to-see-mickey-mouse-begin-this-spring/

My "Live" Broadcast from Lights, Motor, Action! at DHS

We recently visited Disney Hollywood Studios and I broadcasted live from USTREAM. Here are the videos that were broadcasted:

Part 1



Part 2



Part 3-Grand Finale

Autism and Disney: Do they mix?

"Your son has autism." Those are some of the hardest words a parent can hear. Our first emotion was to mourn for the son we dreamed of having. All of the hopes and dreams you had for him are now in question. What we found out was amazing, we have an amazing child who happens to have different abilities.

Autism Speaks says autism affects the way a child perceives the world and makes communication and social interaction difficult. The child may also have repetitive behaviors or intense interests. Symptoms, and their severity, are different for each of the affected areas - Communication, Social Interaction, and Repetitive Behaviors. A child may not have the same symptoms and may seem very different from another child with the same diagnosis. It is sometimes said, that if you know one person with autism; you know one person with autism.

Matthew is our oldest son, so we have been taking him to Walt Disney since he was 18 months old. He was not diagnosed until he was four years old. We always knew there was something developmentally different with Matthew but could not put our finger on it. When you hear of autistic kids you think of the kids who can't stand loud noises, crowds or strange situations. All of these are not conducive to allowing them to enjoy Walt Disney World. Thankfully for us these symptoms are prevalent for some kids, but not as much for others. Matt falls into the latter category and as previously mentioned 'If you know one person with autism; you know one person with autism.'.

We realize for us we are lucky that Matthew is not as severely affected as others. Matt's world is built on routines. Since his parent's are Disney fanatics his routine has been to visit Walt Disney World dozens of times every year. A year or so after Matthew was officially diagnosed with autism we learned of a wonderful Disney policy on autism. For their autistic guests and families they issue a 'Guest assistance Pass' that allows the autistic guest and up to six other party members an alternate entrance to rides and attractions. For rides with Fast Pass you can enter that entrance without waiting. For rides without a Fass Pass you usually will enter the ride from the exit side with little or no wait.

To take advantage of this policy just bring a letter of diagnosis from your doctor to City Hall at Magic Kingdom or Guest Services at the other parks. They will ask how many is in your party and how long your stay is. If you are a passholder they will give you a date range of 90 days. We list the max number of people in case we come with friends.

This really opens the world of Disney to families that need it most. We are so thankful for this Disney policy.

Split Screen View of Magic, Memories and You from Disneyland and Magic Kingdom

Video courtesy of insidethemagic.com

The Magic, The Memories and You! Castle Projection Show on Cinderella Castle at Walt Disney World

Video courtesy of http://attractionsmagazine.com

Florida Resident Monthly Payment Plan-No Deposit Required!

Our renewal date for our Annual passes is approaching next month. We received the above notice in the mail. I was aware that Disney went to a monthly payment option for Florida residents. Basically you would have to pay a down payment equal to (1) days admission per person. The balance would be billed to you monthly.

After reading this notice and adding up the monthly payments it was apparent to me that no down payment would be required. I asked my lovely wife Nadine to call and confirm this with Disney. After being transferred around she did confirm this.

I also tweeted this from my twitter account @aWDWfan and Kristen Ford who writes A Mom and The Mouse column for the Orlando Sentinel picked up on it and wrote this story about it.

We are definitely taking up this offer. Hopefully this helps some of you folks too!