Day 5

Wednesday - Feb 3^rd

Started out the day with a 7am wake up call, as we had breakfast reservations to attend to at 950am. Yes, it does sound as if we had to wake up earlier than needed but these reservations were for the Supercalifraglistic Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare located at the Grand Floridian Resort. We had to take a bus from POP to the Magic Kingdom, then a Monorail over to the resort. So I guess you could say that we got a couple rides in this morning.

The breakfast was 1 dining credit, per person. Without the meal plan, it ran about $21 per person. Totally worth it! Full hot buffet breakfast complete with Mickey shaped plates! There were hot Mickey waffles, crispy bacon, fresh pastries and croissants, delicious coffee and OJ. They even had a made-to-order omelet station, but this was a bust for us as we are not the omelet types. Yes, of course we over-stuffed ourselves. I was ill for hours afterward L It wasn't a good morning for me. E did just fine.

It was a character breakfast, but luckily we weren't disturbed by the charters for too lengthy of a time. Pooh and Tigger did stop by for a high-five. E says Mary Poppins dropped in while I was in the washroom. He said she was so made up that she looked animatronic.

Just before getting ready to leave, I was pouring the rest of the coffee from our table carafe into my travel mug and somehow it slipped from my hand. Luckily it didn't get much on the table. It did, however, spill all along the side of the table, down the wall, and onto the floor. No one saw but E, who I could see was working hard to stifle laughter. Immediately after all this chaos, the Mad Hatter decides to stop by for a jab. It was a bit uncomfortable but luckily quick.. Wonder if he saw? Hmmm.

After breakfast, we walked around the lobby area of the GF. It is a beautiful resort but really not my style. Honestly, it gave me the creeps; I don't know how to explain it.

Next, it was back on the monorail and back over to MK. I still wasn't feeling very well. Ate a couple of Pepto pills, hoping that would sedate my stomach. We took it easy for most of the day. Rode Peter Pan, Small World, and even took in Philharmagic; which if you haven't done, you MUST do! It is an amazing show!! Walt would be proud.

Around 3, I started feeling better and a little hungry. We decided long ago that no eating would be done at MK again as it really is a waste. So, we headed out to Epcot as we knew there were many, many winning dining choices there.

Upon entering Epcot, we grabbed a map and narrowed down our choices based on countries. We decided upon Italy - Trattoria Italia. Neither of us had eaten there before, and I recalled there being several favorable reviews online. Looking at the menu, there were several dishes that looked appealing. We were able to obtain a 430pm dinner reservation.

We were promptly seated at 430. We were brought a basket with a variety of breads, along with a tray of olives, basil butter, and olive oil. It was a great start! When handed the menu, it became a difficult decision as everything sounded wonderful. Not items you find on your average American Italian restaurant menu. True Italian food. For appetizers, I got a tray of mozzarella and tomatoes drizzled with olive oil. E got the calamari with marinara sauce. We both loved our dishes! Entrees were next. I had a pasta dish (E thinks it was a potato type pasta like gnocchi) which were 1" cylindrical but not hollow, with a sausage sauce, and topped with shaved cheese. The waiter said I couldn't have any parmesan cheese on it per the chef's orders. Yes sir!

[E's perspective: I had the ravioli stuffed with lobster, with a red sauce and topped with parmesan cheese. It was amazingly good, managing to use lobster without tasting "fishy." Obviously you only get that from using fresh ingredients. The calamari I had before that, by the way, was great too. The portion was really meant for two people I think, so when you are looking at appetizers and the person you're with likes fried calamari, definitely split it.]

If you've ever seen "Defending Your Life" then you might understand what we are going through with this dining plan. Everything is delicious and you can eat as much as you want. The only difference is that you WILL gain weight and feel miserable, (like I did earlier today,) if you believe the all-you-can-eat statement. It is really not true.

Right after dinner, as we were waiting for our plates to be cleared, I reached for my full water glass for a drink. Can you guess what happened next? You only get one guess! Yes, it slid out of my hand and all onto the floor between our table and the next one to us. Luckily no one was sitting there. It most definitely would've drenched anyone sitting next to us. This time I did let the waiter know what I had done. He laughed and swept up the ice.

Desserts were packaged for us, to go. I ordered the mocha tiramisu and E ordered the cannoli. These are both now in our fridge at the POP room, waiting to be eaten later this evening.

The meal was only 1 credit redemption per person. The bill, without the plan … ready? … $110.00. Yes, that's right! It really was a great meal, and in a classy place (for WDW), but $110.00?!?! Again, glad to be on the dining plan.

On a side note, if you've never been to Epcot: It's really neat that the wait staff in the restaurants and snack kiosks of that particular country speak that language as their native tongue. They all also speak English of course, but it's definitely their second language. Also, they're all young. Curious to know if they're on some sort of work-study program abroad. What an excellent experience for them. Not the experience of serving us fat obnoxious Americans, but the experience to be young and traveling to America. Wonder how they're recruited… wonder how they're compensated… etc, etc.

Their English is limited to really what they're trained to do within the restaurant (or kiosk). There was an obnoxious couple near us at the restaurant who laid down their dietary restriction list. The waiter had to bring over the manager for translation. I'm really not sure what they were doing eating out at the Trattoria Italia if they're on such a restrictive diet. ("No nut oils?"). I mean .. the chef forbade the waiter to put parmesan cheese on my entrée, after all!!!

[Eric's perspective: "No nut oils?" Just stay home. Lock yourself into your pillow-walled room in your rubber underpants. The world is too unsafe for you.]

Now, we're back at POP getting ready to do laundry. No way can you pack for a 9 day vacation without doing laundry at least once. It'll be nice to have the break, really.