The Mouse

Where do I start? We stayed at Disney All Star Movies Resort. It was less expensive than just about any other hotel off the Disney property at $89 per night. Go figure. When we pulled up I could see there were several different sections. 101 Dalmatians. Fantasia. Toy Story. And please no – The Mighty Ducks. Guess where we stayed? The room was basic, no frills, but 'ya couldn't beat the price. Our weather was grey the first day, but when we left I remembered to take some pictures outside our hotel room. I worried about those hockey masks.

We decided to see two Kingdoms this time. First was Epcot.

In the World Showcase I picked up two new canes in China. Now this may not seem like a big deal, but they’re great. Buying and transporting canes while you’re walking about is, well, cumbersome. But The Mouse delivers your stuff to your hotel so you can enjoy the rest of your Disney day. Way cool. Lunch was in Mexico in the middle of a cactus garden. Such unusual shapes . It was interesting to see the local birds navigating the thorns to hunt for bugs and stray crumbs. Like all food areas in Disney, our restaurant was a hangout for the local birds. We even saw a large bird apartment complex full of Purple Martins (yes Martins). They are natural predators for mosquitoes and other pests.

In Morocco, Canada and England there was excellent music to enjoy while we took a break. The Canadian band played Celtic Rock complete with bagpipes. Bobby and I caught the whole show and they were quite good. England’s group was called The British Invasion. The word Invasion was very small and the font was the same as The Beatles. They had the clothes, the haircuts, and were pretty good in the sound department. In other performing arts, France brought us a talented street actor. His Comedia was very reminiscent of Harpo Marx. He used a whistle to punctuate his gestures which I remember Harpo doing – as well as my friend Mark Jaster. Very effective and funny. He had excellent control over the audience - especially the 9 year old who was his unwitting accomplice. The entire crowd was into the performance as he pranced about gesturing and demanding the kid catch is ball from over there. No over THERE!

Last time we were here, Test Track kept breaking down. We finally made it this time and had such a good time. We had picked up Fast Passes earlier. It's a sort of appointment to come back later and get in a shorter line - but spreads the biggest crush lines out. Before we knew it we were off to the obstacle course and the final speed test. Wheee! I can’t praise Disney enough for their progress in accessible amusement parks and other hospitality standards. They had a test car for me to practice getting in an out. More about that later.

This year our one night of fine dining was at L’Originale Alfredo di Roma Ristorante in Italy. I believe the waiter was truly pleased when I ordered the lamb. It’s so easy to order pasta. When I’m given an opportunity to taste another type of dish in a more upscale restaurant, I relish it. The lamb was like a nice handspun yarn as opposed to the sturdy acrylic I use for charity work. Tasty. We both ordered dessert, a rare indulgence for us. Chocolate Mouse for Bobby and Tiramisu for me. They were almost to pretty to eat. Almost.

That night Bobby and I watched the fireworks on a bridge over a canal in Italy.

It was like stepping back in time.