Tuesday October 18th 2016

Today’s adventure was at Walt Disney World. I didn’t go to any parks, but toured some of the resort hotels instead. I gave Disney transportation got a workout.

My tour started at Disney Springs this afternoon. I had a hot fudge Sunday at Ghiradelli’s using the dollar off coupon I got at the Food and Wine festival. It still is a very expensive Sunday, but good. From the Springs I caught a launch to the Port Orleans Riverside resort. The ride up the canals passes the Sarasota Springs resort and one of the golf courses. It was very picturesque with quite a few wading birds along the way.

Along the bank of the canal leading to Port Orleans Riverside

Small period patrol boat following the launch in the canal through the golf course.

From the Port Orleans resort I caught a bus to the Magic Kingdom. The bus takes a route through lesser developed areas of Walt Disney World. There were a couple of deer along the side of the road. One father on the bus attempted to convince his kids that the deer were Bambi’s children. Even at about five years old, the kids weren’t buying it. I think the father had a little to much Disney cultural indoctrination.

The bus drops you off at the entrance to the Magic Kingdom. It was organized chaos with departing day visitors and arriving visitors for the separate admission Halloween Party trying to pass through security. I bypassed the crowds my getting on the resort Monorail to the Polynesian Resort.

The Polynesian Resort had its own crowd scene with people waiting for dinner reservations at the Ohana restaurant and another line for the Luau. I walked from the Polynesian to the Grand Floridian resort checking out the beach area along the way. After the death of a child to an alligator attack last spring, Disney has put up a fence between the beach sand and the water. It sounds really strange but way it has been accomplished looks fairly natural. If you hadn’t been there before or you didn’t know the why behind the fence you think anything of it.

Beach with fence and 6 feet of heavy boulders around the Seven Seas Lagoon at the Polynesian Resort.

Fence and boulders between the beach and water at the Grand Floridian resort. It looks normal.

From the Grand Floridian, I took the Monorail back to the Magic Kingdom to pick up a boat to Fort Wilderness. The crowd at the Magic Kingdom had more arriving visitors for the Halloween party this time around. People were really into it. I saw people in costumes from the complete range of Disney movies and animation. The only restriction was visitors couldn’t wear masks. There was plenty of face paint used to get around that restriction.

At Fort Wilderness the Halloween theme continued. Many campsites were heavily decorated. There weren’t as many sites decorated as I’ve seen during Christmas, but the decorated sites were just as over the top. As Halloween gets closer there probably will be many more sites decorated. I grew up with decorating for Christmas, but the concept of decorating for Halloween has never set in.

Halloween decorations at Fort Wilderness

Halloween decorations at Fort Wilderness.

Halloween Decorations at Fort Wilderness by an avid Greenbay Packers fan.

I returned to Disney Springs by bus to pick up my car and return home. The Springs at night is more alive than during the day. Live music is played throughout the complex and acts like jugglers and mimes are performing. I didn’t get to check out the lanterns in the river that I saw during the day light. That means another trip to Disney Springs after dark.