Wednesday was a busy day as we hit several parts of Walt Disney World for different reasons. Our day started out by going to Disney’s Hollywood Studios where I used one of the 20% off merchandise coupons to purchase two Disney, Star Wars lanyards and the new four pack of Disney, Star Wars pins. This was the only store that carried these items that had the 20% off discount so we went to the Studios just to make this purchase.
From there we exited the park and decided to go to Downtown Disney and we went via Saratoga Springs. We took the bus, which was a long wait, to Saratoga Springs and we had lunch at the Artist’s Palette at Saratoga Springs. They had a nice pepperoni flatbread pizza which was great. We then had yet another wait as we picked up the Downtown Disney bus from Saratoga Springs.
In Downtown Disney we visited the Disney Pin Trading store where I purchased the Pass-holder exclusive Mickey Mouse pin and the Mickey Mouse Flower and Garden pin. We then took a bus to “The Swan” resort which is located along the Boardwalk and walked to the Atlantic Dance Hall where we attended the Disney Vacation Club’s “Welcome Home Wednesdays”. This was the first time we had attended this event which was a trivia game where there were four contestants chosen from the audience to answer questions in a “Jeopardy” style and if the contestant who buzzed in answered incorrectly the host would allow the audience to answer. Whatever audience member answered correctly received a “Welcome Home Wednesdays” trading pin. Unfortunately I didn’t get picked for that or a door prize but all who attended received a DVC hat which is nice.
We then went to Magic Kingdom by taking a bus (another decent wait time) via the Boardwalk resort. When we arrived at the Magic Kingdom we registered for and played a bit of the new “Sorcerer’s of the Magic Kingdom” game which is really neat. What happens is you are given five cards a day free of charge from the volunteer station which is located next to city hall in the Magic Kingdom. When you register you are given a key card and then taken to the first station which is in the volunteer station. At this, and all other stations throughout the park, there is a key shaped knob and you place your key card in front of this knob. It recognizes you and where you left off in the game. You are given a scenario and you have to use one of the cards you receive to cast a spell. Each card, which is randomly given in the pack of five, has a different level of power. They also give you a map of where each of the stations are located but you must complete the stations in the order of your individualized quest as they are all slightly different. When you complete a station, it tells you where to go next. If you go to the wrong station it will tell you where you should be. I got all of the stations on Main Street USA completed today.
After playing the game for a while we caught the tail end of one of the shows on the castle stage. We then made our way to Tomorrowland getting a picture of the Mickey and Minnie topiary on the way. We went to “Stitch’s Great Escape” and then got fast passes for Buzz Lightyear. While waiting for our fast pass time we went to “Monsters Inc.” By the time we were done with Monsters Inc. we returned to Buzz Lightyear, which I never do well with score wise. Having enough time we also rode the “Carousel of Progress” before having to leave for our dinner reservations.
We had dinner reservations at 6:50 PM at Chef Mickey’s in the Contemporary, which was convenient as we are staying at Bay Lake Tower. This buffet dinner is a character meal where Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto, and Goofy come around to your table. We had been to this restaurant previously but for their character breakfast. The characters are a lot of fun and I wore my brand new Mickey polo shirt to which Donald pointed to the Mickey icon and gave me a thumbs down which was hilarious!
