WDW Summer 2013 - Day 7 Part 2

So where were we then...ah that's right we were getting wet!

So our morning's golfing adventure had been curtailed by the weather and as we made our way towards the Boardwalk and meeting up with friend Michelle the rain struck again...

Look at the size of the puddle...sorry more like a pond!

I think I'm a little bit wet!!!!

So after meeting up with Michelle we made our way from the Boardwalk to the Beach & Yacht Club resort, more specifically to Beaches & Cream Soda Shop where we thought we'd have a little something to eat..

Our first challenge was getting a table...now at the time we were there Beaches & Cream, despite being a very popular eatery, didn't take reservations and on enquiring after a table we were told that current wait times were about an hour!!  Not one to be deterred our Michelle spoke to the cast member in charge of tables and the next thing we knew we were going inside!  Now I'm not sure what Michelle did or said but we got in!  I think the reason we got in so quick was because we were happy to sit at the counter rather than at a table or a booth; sitting at the counter was great because you got to see all that was going on making the burgers and the sundaes and it really added to the atmosphere of eating in an old fashioned styled ice-cream parlour.

Still a bit soggy but at least we were inside out of the rain, although the air conditioning wasn't really needed!!

Ooooo what to have?!!!

Now I'd better confess that we had a very particular reason for wanting to eat here, something that was on our 'to do' list...the 'Kitchen Sink'...a sundae of epic proportions! How epic you may say, well here's the list of ingredients;

• ½ cup fudge topping, warmed
• ½ cup butterscotch topping, warmed
• ½ cup peanut butter topping, warmed
• 1 medium banana, sliced in 1/2 –inch slices
• 1 cinnamon spice cupcake (2 ½ x 1 ¼-inch), quartered
• 1 angel food cupcake (3 x 1 ½-inch), quartered
• 2 4-oz. scoops vanilla ice cream
• 2 4-oz. scoops chocolate ice cream
• 2 4-oz. scoops strawberry ice cream
• 1 4-oz. scoop mint chocolate chip ice cream
• 1 4-oz. scoop coffee ice cream
• 3 tablespoons chocolate syrup
• ¼ cup marshmallow crème
• ¼ cup strawberry topping
• ¼ cup pineapple topping
• 1 14-oz can dairy whipped topping
• 1 brownie (6-inch x 6-inch), quartered
• 1 regular-sized (2 ounce) candy bar, quartered
• 4 chocolate cookies with cream filling
• 1 tablespoon sliced toasted almonds
• 1 tablespoon dark and white chocolate shavings
• 1 tablespoon chocolate cookies with cream filling, crushed
• 1 tablespoon chopped jellied orange slices (approximately 2 large slices)
• 1 tablespoon milk chocolate chip morsels
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter chip morsels
• 1 tablespoon chocolate sprinkles
• 1 tablespoon rainbow sprinkles
• ½ cup drained maraschino cherries

Suffice to say we ordered just the one between the four of us!  Oh and if you do decide to go for one of these be prepared for the whole of the restaurant to know about it; lights flash and an announcement is made to one and all, much to our kids embarrassment :)

Ready to dig in!

So we tackled it with gusto and I have to say we made short work of it!

Are we going to be able to manage this?

Getting there....

And we're done!

All gone!!!

It was such a fun experience and whilst my first reaction after finishing it all was 'never again' I think that now a little time has passed I would be willing to give it another go...although I think the kids and I would ask for the peanut butter topping and chips to be replaced with more chocolate!!  But all of the food here was great, and the choice of sundaes and desserts may tempt me to try something different next time.  A lovely place to eat and a definite recommendation from me.

At the end of our meal we were joined by yet more friends, Phil & Lauren who we had met through the WDW Radio Meet of the month a couple of days earlier.  The sun had now decided to come out and everywhere was drying up leaving us to spend the remainder of the day in Epcot.

We took a stroll through the World Showcase indulging in a couple of games of Phineas & Ferb: Agent P's World Showcase Adventure; which is great fun and I shall go into more details in a later post.  

Look at the concentration...this is serious stuff!

We had dinner at the Katsura Grill in the Japanese pavilion (just love it here)...

Sushi anyone?

...before a little shopping in Mousegear and a ride on The Seas with Nemo & Friends before heading home.

Such a beautiful sky as we approached The Seas with Nemo & Friends

Another fun-filled day with great friends and great memories.

And we're home :)

WDW Summer 2013 - Day 7

Well I thought I would crack on and get another blog post written all about our vacation last August, so here we are Day 7...

Today was to be a day of two halves....golf...and ice-cream...

Now for some of us the day started very early..Simon was up and out at 7.00am for a run!  He did really well over the vacation and got up and out quite a few times as he was determined to get some miles in as he was training for his first half marathon which was only a few weeks after we got home.  Being at Wilderness Lodge was great because Simon was able to run from the Lodge to Fort Wilderness, around the camp-ground and back to the Lodge, completing just under 5 miles.

Once Simon had returned we headed off for a hearty breakfast...this was strategic eating as will become apparent later on!  We took things relatively easy and headed over to the Contemporary Resort by way of boat, for a leisurely stroll around, before boarding a monorail to the TTC (Transportation & Ticket Centre) and then onto Epcot.

Boat from Wilderness Lodge to Contemporary Resort - wonder what I was pointing out?!

Walking from the dock towards the impressive Contemporary Resort

Can't resist a photo opportunity, especially if it involves a Mickey!

Once we were at Epcot we had a mission...to leave Epcot...OK I'll explain we were actually heading for Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf and had to walk through Epcot to get there.  So we strolled through Epcot, taking in all the sights and sounds.  We made a quick stop at 'Club Cool' for a refreshing drink before heading out through the International Gateway and walking towards the Yacht & Beach Club Resort.  We then walked between the Swan & Dolphin Resorts as we made our way to Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf.

Taking a stroll towards the Yacht & Beach Club Resort

Note what a lovely day it is!!!!

Now, we have a bit of a track record when it comes to playing miniature gold at WDW in that it always seems to rain, but today was a beautiful day and we thought we had finally broken the pattern.  We were all confident that this would be a round of golf uninterrupted by rain...

One pleasant surprise was that the golf was free!  The tickets that we had bought for our vacation, and ones that were exclusive for UK guests, included free rounds of golf every day!  Anyway off we set on our round of golf and as is the norm for us me and the kids played whilst Simon carried the bags and became official sports photographer.

This is serious stuff!!

We were about half way round when it started to come over rather dark, and then we felt a few spots of rain but being British we weren't going to let a little rain stop us!

Is that rain I feel??

We British are always prepared, out came the rain coats

So out came the raincoats and we got on with the golf but just as we reached hole 11 rain, or rather thunder, stopped play :(  A cast member came round and told us that because of the storm we had to stop play. I suppose a game involving metal sticks in a lightening storm isn't perhaps the best idea.  We took shelter and hoped that the storm would pass over...we waited and waited but the storm should no sign of easing and besides we had an appointment to keep!

I think it's raining!!!!

Trying to stay dry!!

As the rain eased we made a break for it and headed over to the Boardwalk where we were to meet our friend Michelle.  Now the rain had eased and the clouds had started to clear but within 15 minutes it all changed again and by the time we set foot on the Boardwalk it was raining again.

So what did we do next?  I think all shall be revealed in my next post...

Forward Planning...Part Two

So a few weeks ago I did a little post about planning for my WDW vacation and in that post I had a list of things that are on my family's 'Disney To Do List'...well we have a few more to add;

• Characters In Flight - balloon ride at Downtown Disney
• Visit the new bakery in the France pavilion at Epcot - Les Halles Boulangerie & Patisserie, pictures and reviews online look lovely!
• Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom
• Phineas & Ferb: Agent P's World Showcase Adventure
• Try a drink called 'Beverley' at Club Cool at Epcot (this is a result of watching Lou Mongello and friends drinking this during WDW Radio's 6th anniversary live broadcast!)
• Boardwalk at night (only ever visited during the day before!)
• Visit the Belle Vue Lounge at The Boardwalk Inn Resort to see the working carousel model - heard about this on Episode 310 of WDW Radio when Lou Mongello was chatting with Jim Korkis, and it sounded fascinating
• Splitsville - bowling & food
• Must buy shopping items - Dooney & Bourke bag of some description, car antenna toppers (I'm sure I've seen a seasonal pack so I can theme my car to whatever time of year it happens to be!

So what else should I be planning on doing?