Disney has been embedded in my blood since birth. The stories have inspired me, the animation captivated me, the magic shaping who I am today. But, as Rumple said, “All magic comes with a price.” And oh boy! The boss mouse has a hefty cost. So, going to the land where dreams come true seemed like a fantasy, vivid enough to touch but always out of my reach, like the stars.
My dear friend Cat got accepted into the Disney college program, a goal she has always wanted and I was so thrilled for her. For some reason, she wanted me to come experience the magic. With my lupus, I know my health will get in my way sometimes, but oddly, this has made me more determined to try new things, live out some dreams.
Although it was a lot of hard saving, I was able to do it and to make it even better, my best friend Marissa agreed to go with me. Having her there made me feel safe and we needed a bestie trip so bad.
And I had a wonderful Disney consultant help me plan my experiences.
This trip was a huge milestone for me. Not only going to a place I have envisioned so much, but I had so many firsts, this the grand start of my summer of me! So how magical was my trip?
More than I can describe, but I will do my best!
Top Tens and Review of my Disney Trip:
Mad Hatter Tea Cups
Aladdin’s Magic Carpet
Buzz Lightyear Speed Race
Under the Sea: Little Mermaid
Dumbo Flying Elephant
Prince Charming Carousel
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
It’s a Small World
ImageWorks: The What-If Labs
Peter Pan’s Flight
Haunted Mansion
Pirates of the Caribbean
Top Disney Shows/Attractions:
Mickey’s PhilharMagic
The Muppets Present Great Moments in History
Monsters INC Laugh Floor
Hall of Presidents
Enchanted Tales with Belle
Carousel of Progress Enchanted
Tiki Room
Top Ten Character Interactions:
Princess Jasmine in Morocco
Chef Mickey characters
Winnie the Pooh and Tigger
Rapunzel
Aladdin in Adventure Land
Tiana
Alice
Mary Poppins
Ariel (both with her fins and with her legs)
Mickey Mouse in Epcot
Food Rating:
Be Our Guest breakfast: Very kind chef checking on me, wonderful eggs, bacon, and potato cake. They even changed the fruit for me for my allergy and I got special pastries just in case. The staff was wonderful and the building beautiful. The master’s cupcake with the gray stuff was yummy too.
The Friar’s Nook- Fancy Mac and cheese- Really tasty and you got a very big amount.
Mickey Pretzel- Sadly, this was very disappointed, but the cheese was nice.
Mickey Waffles- Great!
Liberty Tea Tavern restaurant: I had the pot roast, mashed potatoes, and green beans. And we also had cheese dip and special bread. It was all incredible!
Chef Mickey- This is extremely pricey, but interacting with the characters was one of my favorite memories. It is a buffet and I wasn’t very hungry due to a headache, but the food was decent. And the staff grand. Also, the Chef Mickey dance and song was adorable!
Royal Princess Hall in Norway at Epcot- Breakfast was very disappointing and also expensive. You pay to meet the princesses. I guess they were not awake or unhappy because only a few of them were upbeat.
Tea House in China at Epcot- I finally had bubble tea! It was refreshing and the right amount of sweet, but I did not like the texture of the tapioca beads at all.
France- I had my first macaroon (chocolate). It was good and light. I liked how they wrapped it in newspaper. I also had a caramel milk chocolate in Germany. It was very rich.
Tokyo Dining California Roll- Wonderful, polite staff and the sushi was tasty and well put together. They even sang to Marissa for her birthday and gave her ice cream!
Cupcakes from Main Street and our resort were excellent.
I also got my pink drink at Starbucks twice.
Due to the heat and all the walking, I wasn’t nearly as hungry as I thought.
Magical Moments:
Peter Pan sneaking behind me and telling me stories while we were sitting in Fantasy Land.
Dancing with Goofy and getting a kiss from Doland at Chef Mickey.
Seeing Winnie the Pooh and Tigger fight over Marissa and I had to make them make-up.
Splashing in the fountain at Epcot.
EVERYTHING about the Japanese store and area, including the kind staff at the store. They were so sweet being impressed with the little Japanese I spoke, picking a pearl, and trying on kimonos. Getting caught in a downpour was interesting too.
The kindness of Princess Jasmine in Morocco.
Spinning the teacups until we got super dizzy.
Shopping at all the stores.
Interacting with all the amazing cast members and random people in lines or on buses (the little British girl and her mom at Enchanted Tales with Belle were most likely my favorite).
How caring the cooks were to check on my allergy.
Wearing our bestie shirts.
Picking the perfect Mickey ears.
Seeing the downpour at Epcot and our lovely ponchos as we got a lift with dresses on! HA!
Having our hotel room be by Buzz Lightyear’s butt and all our comments. LOL! Our room, resort accommodations, and their workers were all gems.
The luck I had with short lines everywhere and my good experiences on the plane and airports.
Missa really helped and said I was lucky!
The best part was hanging out with my best friends and bonding. I needed that so badly and love how we had so much fun and grew closer. <3
Things I didn’t get to do:
Meet Gaston
Try the Peter Pan float at Storybook treats in Magic Kingdom
Meet Sleeping Beauty in France at Epcot Meet Belle in her blue dress in France
Meet Mulan in China
Getting all my countries stamped in my passport
Spending real time at each showcase country
Eating at the Canadian showcase
Try a crepe in France
Drum show in Japan
Acrobats in China
Going to the beach
List of Firsts:
Going to an airport
Riding on an airplane
Riding in a lift (like an uber)
Going to Disney
My first macaroon
My first bubble tea
And, of coarse, my first time at a Disney location!
But I still did A LOT and much more than I thought we could fit in time wise.
Magic bands are so epic! I wish real life is like that.
And the Magic Express is so useful and nice!
Disney was a dream come true in every light and I am so glad I got to finally go, especially with my best friends.
We walked 25 miles through the parks and 4 through the airports!
