I was having dinner with a cast member a few weeks ago at Morocco’s Restaurant Marrakesh in Epcot when the conversation turned to “things you didn’t know you can do at Walt Disney World.” He started listing off things, I added a few, and next thing I knew I had an idea for a story.

Of course, it’s stuff we Mousejunkies probably know, but a lot of people who aren’t as steeped in the Mouse might not.

Also, there’s a picture of Amy in the article. Can you guess which one she is?

And now that I look at the list, I’m going down it checking off things we’ve done:

Want to do it.

Did it.

Didi it.

Did it.

Want to do it…

In the meantime, here’s a look at bass fishing at Walt Disney World.

What’s your favorite ‘extra’ activity at WDW?

What follows is her “non trip report” – a blog entry about what she did while we were at Walt Disney World. It’s her take on things, word for word. Take it away, Katie.

The first day of college

I left my grandmother’s house to head off to college – I would be staying at Colby-Sawyer College. I was staying in a house with my cousin, Ryan, and some of her friends.

Katie and Ryan about a week later.

Right when I got there I would watch my fellow students perform a chorus show consisting entirely of Disney music. When I actually got there, I got front row seats. Ryan had a solo. She sang “Part of Your World” from “The Little Mermaid.”

Ryan - the night of the Disney concert - in her Cinderella dress, and the Fairy Godmother.

I was so proud of her. They grow up so fast.

When the show was over me and Ryan and a few of her firends had a conversation. I even got her song book with all the songs she sang. Finally, when it got late, we headed to the house. I had the shortest tour ever. I got my pajamas on and I sat on the bed and wrote. The action hadn’t started yet. That’s tomorrow, I think, or the day after tomorrow.

The next day I woke up and called my parents to say good morning. When I was done talking to them I read a little. After a little while me and Ryan headed down to breakfast at the food diner. I met some of her friends. They are awesome. I learned four life lessons that day:

1. Don’t play hide and seek in the dark

2. Don’t put your dresser in front of the door

3. Don’t stand on top of slides that go into your house

4. Orange juice and hot chocolate don’t mix well together

When breakfast was over, Ryan and I headed back to the house. Ryan made me an account on a Harry Potter-themed web site called Pottermore. It sorts you into a house – Ravenclaw, Slytherin, Hufflepuff or Gryffindor. I got sorted into Hufflepuff. That’s the last house I’d expect to get sorted into. I really wanted to be Ravenclaw. But I’m proud of being Hufflepuff. It means I’m in the nice house.

I was on the comptuer for so long, I finished my first year. But before I was on Pottermore I chatted with my parents. My dad got a Perry the Platypus hat.

Oh, did I mention, my parents are at Disney. Yeah, without me. That’s not the worst part. While they were in Disney, they met the two guys that work on “Phineas and Ferb” and the actor who does the voice of Phineas.

Padraig Kavanaugh reads "Mousejunkies" as Amy looks for Katie. Who wasn't there.

So I was saying, my dad got a Perry hat with a fedora, his eyes and a duckbill. My mom said I could be Perry for Halloween.

Katie and her Perry hat peruse the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom cards.

When I was finally done playing with Pottermore, I watched a movie on Ryan’s computer. I watched “Hercules.” Then when I was finished with the movie, I saw “Meet the Robinsons.” When that was done, I just sat in my bed doing something. I forget what I was doing.

After a long time, I went to a puppy therapy session at the college. I met a black Lab named Lincoln, and a Shih Tzu named Checkers.

By the time we got hungry, Ryan and I ate dinner. When I became stuffed, me and Ryan walked back to the house. I watched one of Ryan’s friends who lived with us play video games on one of two of the TVs. Yeah, that’s right – two TVs next to each other. Then I discovered on the second TV there was a Nintendo 64. So I played it. I played a Mario game. When I got tired of it, I watched another movie, but on the TV. I watched “Alice in Wonderland.” By the time it was over, I went to bed.

Just to let you know, I had a horrible sleep.

The next day, I knew there would be a little bit of action. That afternoon I was going to see “A Very Potter Musical” (a “Harry Potter” themed musical.)

Ryan told me about what we were going to do today. First, we went to the computer lab so Ryan could print out some papers. Second, we headed down to breakfast. We stayed there so long that we stayed until lunch. So we stayed there and ate lunch. Third, we went to the library and Ryan printed some more stuff, and finally, we went back to the house.

Ryan got cleaned up while I was on her computer, “Pottermoring” the rest of the day. That day I began to realize why I’m a Hufflepuff. I friended pretty much everyone that I wizard dueled with and I friended a million of my fellow Hufflepuffs. Like I said, Hufflepuff is the friendly house.

When the morning became afternoon, Ryan, me and Ryan’s closest roommate, Leah, got ready for the “Very Potter Musical.” I mean we dressed more festively.

I wore a Slytherin shirt and tie, (both were Ryan’s, so the shirt was gigantic on me.) Ryan dressed as Bellatrix, and Leah said she was mixed between a Hufflepuff and a Gryffindor. We walked over to  the theater. They gave away awards for MVP for the theater club. Then they gave pins to the members of the theater club. Even I got a pin. (I took part in some improv on the stage.)

Then we walked into the room where we would watch the movie. I knew you were thinking I was actually going to see it in person.

We didn’t get to see the whole thing, which was four hours long. We only saw the first act. My favorite character was Draco Malfoy, who was played by a girl. Almost every time it was time for her to come in, he/she would start to roll on the floor and say her/his lines. Draco said by the time that year of Hogwarts was over, he/she would be transferred to another school (which was on Mars) called Pigfarts. And the headmaster’s name was Rumbleroar – he was a lion that could talk.

So pretty much all the evil people were the funniest. When act one was over, we went home and I went to sleep.

The next morning I took a shower, then Ryan and I headed down to breakfast immediately. We met Leah and her boyfriend there. When I was done eating I fled. I was tired of being so smart.

The end.

(Editor’s note: Katie has recently told us that she wants to be a comedy writer just like Tina Fey. I think this is the start of her career.)

I think this was taken in the 70s or something.

I saw a couple of these videos on Facebook and wanted to pass them along.

Remember to wish your mom a happy Mothers Day this weekend. Or call. Or remember fondly.

I feel like I should make a joke about that “Time” cover, but I’ll just let it go.

Wait a minute – no way that kid is three, amiright?

Here’s more Disney moms.

Happy Mothers Day to my mother, Amy, and Amy’s mom. I thought about making a home-made Dole Whip for Amy, but I think she’s more interested in the absinthe I bought on a lark one time. It’s been a long week for her.

"Toot toot," said the boat.

It’s only been six weeks, but the Fantasy is in full swing.

Here, take a look for yourself at this brand new sizzle video (I think that means “video clip” in marketing talk):

And if you want in on that, just drop me a line and let me know.

They’re almost here.

My first Star Wars weekend was last year when they re-opened Star Tours. I loved everything about it. The character procession was great, and if you look closely in this video, I think you can see me sweating on some Stormtroopers up front.

One of the best moments was when my friend Kevin captured this Jawa teaching a youngster how to get down Tatooine-style.

Have you been to a Star Wars Weekend? What was your favorite part of the event?

Practically perfect put-in for paddling

I met Steve and Rhonda at the put-in site just before 9:00 this morning for a three hour tour of the lagoon. And the “three hour tour” reference did not escape me, believe me. As I said, I’d never kayaked, and I was a little nervous. However, I was also excited and ready to try it. Rhonda would be the guide for our small group (just me and Steve and Bonnie, a Massachussetts couple who are regular kayakers back home). Guide Steve was leading a different group that was heading out later. Rhonda fitted me with a kayak and gave me a quick lesson in paddling and entering/exiting the kayak safely. I eventually got the hang of getting into the kayak, but I need to work on my core strength quite a bit before I can easily get out of a kayak correctly. The kayaks have foot pedals that operate the rudder and once I got accustomed to the feel of the kayak, I felt very stable and comfortable.

Rhonda was an excellent guide. Not only did she give a lot of guidance to me as a beginning paddler and reassurance about the very shallow depth of most of our route, she provided a lot of great information about the wildlife and ecology of the lagoon. She has done a lot of research on the birds, fish, and plants of the area and was able to easily identify what we saw and heard as we paddled. From describing how ospreys dive for fish (which we got to see while she was describing it) to showing us the holes moon snails burn into mussel shells to encouraging us to sample the edible plant sea purslane (tasted like a salty snap pea), Rhonda was extremely well-informed and a great tour guide.

I would definitely take a kayak tour of the lagoon again.

I spent the rest of the day lounging on the beach and around the pool at the resort. I got some pretty weird and painful sunburns for my trouble. Always, always remember sunblock! Especially on the top of your feet! It being a Saturday, both the beach and the pool were very popular. Even so, it was not hard to stake out a spot on the beach or a lounge chair at the pool. I had dinner in Sebastian at a popular restaurant called Squid Lips and it was excellent!

After dinner, I came back to the hotel and joined a large number of the other guests in gazing at the supermoon as it rose in the night sky. It was huge and golden, and it reflected in a long, glittering strip over the ocean. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.

Moonstruck

Here is a list of what I did yesterday:
- I drove to Sebastian Inlet State Park and watched people fish in the inlet and off a jetty into the ocean. Anglers catch snook, pompano, flounder, sheepshead, tarpon, trout and others in the Indian River and the Atlantic beaches of the state park.. They rent equipment in a bait and tackle shop next to the jetty, if you don’t have equipment with you. Admission to the State Park is $8/car for a 24 hour pass.
- I stood on the jetty and watched surfers riding the waves. The Treasure Coast is home to some of the best surfing on the East Coast and several competitions are held here. Disney’s Vero Beach Resort hold “Surf School” or you can take lessons through Lou Maresca’s Surf School in nearby Ft. Pierce.

Surfers, surfing

- I learned about sea turtles and conservation at the Barrier Island Education Center. Sea turtles have to face seemingly impossible odds just to survive to adulthood. The Education Center is very informative about local ecology and conservation and puts on imaginative programming, especially for kids. Admission is by donation.
- I visited the McLarty Treasure Museum and learned all about why this part of Florida is called “the Treasure Coast.” I can see why local treasure hunters catch “treasure fever.” In an interesting (but a little long) video, one treasure hunter described seeing the ocean floor “blanketed with gold” from the 1715 Plate Fleet. There is still millions of dollars worth of gold and jewels that have not been recovered. The possibility is very exciting! And this is not just professional dive crews finding treasure from the wreck. One of the park rangers had a “piece of eight” that he found beachcombing after a hurricane. In the city of Sebastian, you can find Mel Fisher ‘s Treasure Museum. Fisher has found vast treasures from shipwrecks all over the coast of Florida. (Admission to the McLarty Treasure Museum is $2/person.)
- I hiked a couple of trails in Pelican Island Wildlife Refuge, the nation’s first national wildlife refuge. There, I observed brown pelicans, wood storks, plovers, butterflies, and – cover your ears, Bill- I saw a rather long snake that I didn’t get too close to.

Seriously, Bill, don't look at this

The Centennial Trail is a 3/4 mile paved trail that is completely wheelchair accessible. It ends at a viewing platform overlooking Pelican Island. Pelican Island is a roosting site for a number of birds.
Pelican Island is only accessible by boat, but there are telescopes at the viewing platform. I saw the snake on a different, more primitive trail, the Bird’s Impoundment Trail, which is a well-defined 2.5 mile loop. I only walked 1/2 mile in and 1/2 mile out, and probably shouldn’t have done that, because it was very late afternoon, I was by myself, and there was not a single car in the trail parking lot when I got there. If I was traveling with a hiking buddy, I would start out earlier and hike every trail of the wildlife refuge. It’s beautiful land and is very well-maintained. It’s also free.

I should note that I did everything I listed above in a six hour stretch. Afterward, I feasted on a positively enormous seafood boil at Shutter’s, one of two sit-down restaurants at Disney’s Vero Beach Resort. The seafood boil is almost like a clambake in a pot, except that instead of baking the ingredients on the beach, it’s boiled in Yuengling Lager, butter and Old Bay. It includes crab legs, mussels, clams, peel and eat shrimp, sausage, potatoes and corn on the cob. When it was all over, I was covered with butter and flakes of crab, but there was not a single piece of seafood left in that pan. Lots of potatoes and a couple of pieces of sausage, but nothing else. I’m almost embarrassed by the zeal with which I devoured that meal. The service was excellent and I thoroughly enjoyed my dinner.

No snakes here!

Now this is more like it.

I’ve never really been a fan of the Flower Power Concert Series, or even many of the bands that have taken part in Eat to the Beat during the Epcot Food and Wine Festival. But this is looking good.

I guess it’s a sign of my age. When I was 20, I don’t imagine any of my favorite bands would have been invited to play Epcot. Iron Maiden ripping it up in front of the American Adventure? I just dont’ see it.

I’ll list the bands below, with a comment – mainly because this is my blog and I can.

Note to attorneys representing any of these bands: I make no claim that these are the original lineups, or that these are the lineups that will appear at Epcot. The videos are just a representation of music that a band by that name may have been known for. (I got into a bit of trouble last year when some guy who used to be in the Guess Who got pissed and told his attorney to send me a nasty “take that Youtube video down” letter.)

9/28-9/30: Night Ranger – Oh yes. These guys can play, and they probably hit their peak when I was in high school, so it brings back great memories. They wrote some great songs, plus I loved the duos thing Jack Blades did with Tommy Shaw from Styx.

10/1-10/3: Sugar Ray – I’m ambivalent. I don’t really know much of their music. Mark seems funny enough, and I think Amy likes him.

10/4- 10/7: STARSHIP starring Mickey Thomas – If they play “We Built This City,” I’ll climb the Mexico pavilion and hurl myself off. (Though I do like “Find Your Way Back.”)

10/8-10/10: Boyz II Men – I’ve never been a fan. I don’t dislike them, I just don’t have any opinion. They certainly can harmonize though, eh?

10/11-10/12: Smash Mouth – Mmmmnah. Catchy original tunes and all, but there are a lot of covers in there that I’m not crazy about.

10/13-10/14: Javier Colon, winner of “The Voice” – I got to interview him for a story once. Nice enough. Not my style of music though.

10/15-10/17: Air Supply – *coughs*

10/18-10/19: Gin Blossoms – When I first started dating Amy, the song “Hey Jealousy” was pretty big. Brings me right back to those early days with my girlfriend/now wife.

10/20-10/21: Survivor – Yeah, sure, I guess if I was walking by I’d sit down and watch.

10/22-10/23: Hanson – Mock me if you will, but these guys can play, and that’s no joke. They were always tagged with the “Mmmbop” label, but you’d be shocked at how good they are. And yes, this is coming from a Motorhead fanatic. Also, did you know these guys have like a bajillion kids between them?

10/24-10/25: The Pointer Sisters – Not really interested. I’m just not into dance music. Besides, you don’t want to see me dance. You really don’t.

10/26-10/28: Sister Hazel – *looks out the window* *shrugs shoulders*

10/29-10/31: Billy Ocean – I saw a good chunk of his set last year, and I was shocked at how many songs I knew. He was a fun entertainer, but I wouldn’t go out of my way – only because again, it’s not my favorite music. Also, he got OLD since the 80s. Not like me.

11/1-11/2: 38 Special – Yes, absolutely. I’ve always like them. Southern rock with a commercial accessibility.

11/3-11/4: Howard Jones – Great songwriter. His songs got a little muddied up in 80s production, but boy this guy is good.

11/5-11/6: Blues Traveler – I’d fly to Disney JUST to see Blues Traveler. One of my favorite jam bands. Popper is a force.

Blues Traveler deserves two videos.

11/7-11/8: Dennis DeYoung, original member of the group STYX – I’d love to see him. I’ve always had a soft spot for Styx. I had an old cassette of “Grand Illusion” I wore out back in the early 80s.

11/9-11/11: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy – Love these guys. They owned the 90s swing thing. The thing that sets them apart is that they write/cover great songs.

Have you seen any bands that have been particularly great at Epcot? Who would you like to see?

I had delayed booking my airfare for so long that the early morning flights on SWA were more than I was willing to pay. However, the flight to PBI was just right. In typical SWA fashion, I had layovers in Nashville and Tampa. I had a plane change at the latter and took the opportunity to have an overpriced airport salad and a local beer (Cigar City Brewing’s Jai Alai IPA-excellent), and to nearly miss my flight. And seriously, the flight from Tampa to Palm Beach was 50 minutes, with 35 of that actually in the air.

At PBI, I got my rental car and allowed the guy at Alamo to twist my arm into an upgrade to a convertible. On the two hour drive from West Palm Beach to Vero Beach I learned that I have the ideal haircut for driving down the freeway with the top down and pretty close to the opposite of the ideal skin. I’m very fair and didn’t put on sunblock before I took off. Now I have a very weird sunburn. But I am perfectly fine with that because I weighed it against the joy of driving past palm trees on a sunny day with the top down, and guess which came out the winner?

One brief stop for groceries in Vero Beach, and I was crossing over the bridge to that skinny strip of land on the East coast of Florida. I was on the phone with my mother trying to explain why I had not called to tell her I arrived at the hotel and I suddenly interjected “I can see the ocean!” as I got to the top of the bridge. Alas, it would be the last time I saw the ocean until I was actually in the lobby of the resort. That stretch of the A1A is lined with gated communities and hotels, so there’s not much to see. Disney’s Vero Beach Resort is actually located north of the city of Vero Beach, and it’s a pretty substantial drive to get there. Once again- palm trees, sun, convertible. The drive wasn’t so bad.

The lobby at the resort is beautiful, but I didn’t spend a lot of time there, and I was too distracted by the view from the back windows to really pay attention, honestly. One thing I did notice on a later walk-through was that the floor had what appeared to be lots of dents at first. My first thought was, Someone has some seriously heavy luggage. Then I realized, No, they are made to look like sea turtle tracks all over the lobby floor. It’s a neat little detail and a nice nod to Vero Beach’s most famous wildlife. Sea turtles nest on the beach here every summer and Disney has made sea turtle conservation a priority at the resort.

I didn’t make a room request, so my ocean view isn’t the best at the resort, but I’m not complaining. It’s at a corner and has an unusual layout.

My room.

My room from another view.

It’s larger than I’m used to at DVC resorts. My balcony overlooks the pool, but I have a clear view of the ocean.

The view from my window.

My only complaint with that is the music from the pool is a bit loud for me. I want to hear waves, not Smashmouth. Besides the balcony, I have windows that look directly at the ocean, so I can see it as soon as I sit up in bed and when I’m getting ready for the day (one window is opposite the vanity mirror). I’m very happy with the room.

The view from my balcony.

After getting my groceries into the fridge, I changed into my swimsuit and headed down to the beach. The beach is coarser sand and there are a lot of shells and seaweed, but it is beautiful. After wading into the ocean a bit, I sat on a ledge formed by sand erosion (there’s a lot of that) and just stared at the ocean for a while. Honestly, I could do that for hours. I picked up some pretty shells and a piece of what is either coral or petrified bird poop. I honestly can’t tell, but it looks cool. Afterward, I took a brief swim in the pool and bought a refillable mug, then decided it was probably time to shower and have some dinner. I had originally intended to have dinner at the Green Cabin Room Lounge at the resort, but decided to head north into Sebastian to buy a beach chair and beach towel, then have dinner there. I also wanted to make a purchase at a liquor store, which was sort of extremely out of the way. I got to Squid Lips, a Sebastian restaurant that has a very good rep on the DIS Boards, at about 8:30. As I walked across the boardwalk to the restaurant, an employee called out to me that they had decided to close the kitchen early, because business was so slow that night. Um, what? I can understand the logic, but I was hungry.

So I ended up at the Green Cabin Room, anyway. I ordered a sangria and the appetizer sampler platter, which consisted of a crab cake, four Southwestern egg rolls, four of their citrus-sesame chicken wings, and a crock of spinach and artichoke dip with tortilla chips. It was all really excellent, particularly the wings. I sat out on the restaurant balcony with my Kindle, because I didn’t fly to the coast of Florida to sit in a restaurant. I wanted to hear the ocean! It was a bit breezy, though. The wind kept trying to steal my tortilla chips! After a little while, a quartet of ladies came out and sat at the table next to me to have a drink.. I got to talking to them a bit and found they were from the west side of the state. My state, not Florida! I meet Michiganders everywhere. We talked while I waited for my dessert to come out and, upon hearing that I was traveling alone, invited me to hang out with them by the pool some time, if I was so inclined. They understood my need for a totally selfish, get away from everyone vacation, but also noted that sometimes you need company, too. I absolutely agree. I am what I refer to as a “very social hermit.” I need huge amounts of time alone and prefer my own company to anyone else’s, but I love to meet and talk to people. The “don’t talk to strangers” thing never sunk in with me. But I figure, if you never talk to strangers, you miss out on people.

Anyway, I was exhausted from my long travel day, so I asked my server if I could get my dessert packed to go. She asked if I was staying at the resort, and then suggested that I just take the regular restaurant plating up to my room. So I ended the day having awesome banana chocolate chip bread pudding while watching TV in my jammies.

The bread pudding.

So that was my first day. Right now, pelicans keep flying over the hotel as if to tell me, “Jenna, you’re supposed to be going to Sebastian Inlet State Park and the Pelican Island Wildlife Refuge. Get off your butt and come see us.”

Okay, pelicans, I’m on my way!

(Note from Bill: Welcome Mousejunkie Jenna – yes, it’s THE Mousejunkie Jenna from both “Mousejunkies” books. Jenna is at the Vero Beach DVC resort right now, and she’ll be telling us about it in the coming days. Take it away Jenna!)

In January, I found myself with 55 points that were going to expire at the end of July. In January I was also a bit cash-poor, and the prospect of buying theme park tickets didn’t appeal- especially when I was planning a long WDW trip in October. I realized that I didn’t particularly want to go to WDW. Madness, I know. But I also didn’t want to lose my points. I considered renting them out, but it was too fraught with imagined danger and besides, why should someone else get to enjoy my vacation. I have a hard time thinking of them as points or as a commodity. They are nights in DVC resorts.

After carefully considering the options (trading into other vacation clubs/hotels or off-site DVC resorts), I decided to visit Disney’s Vero Beach Resort. If I borrowed ten points from next use year, I could get five nights in an ocean-view Inn room.

I live in Michigan, which is surrounded by lakes, not oceans. My experiences with the ocean as an adult have been limited to a brief visit to the beach at Santa Monica on the way to the airport after a weekend in LA; playing Apples to Apples in a ocean-side park in San Diego, and an hour or so walking along the beach in… I want to say Newburyport with the Burkes when visiting them in New Hampshire. I haven’t actually been in the ocean deeper than my ankles since a high school band trip to Virginia Beach in coughcough1986cough. I checked availability using the new online reservation system and decided on the first weekend in May. It seems pretty odd, but I actually planned my trip around the full moon because I thought it would be really pretty over the water. And now I’ve learned it will be a Super Moon, so that’s like double rainbow time.

I planned some activities in the area, but the main plan is “sit on the beach with adult beverages and my Kindle.” I want to be very, very busy relaxing. Since I’m writing this from my balcony and listening to God’s own white noise machine, I can tell you, that’s a goal I can achieve. Stay tuned! (But be warned- I’m both wordy and overly concerned with details.)