I was apprehensive about doing Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios after the GM; I was coming off an intense week, it was miserably hot during the day, and I was wiped out and ready to just sleep.
So I did sleep! I cocooned myself in my hotel room and did laundry and ordered in for lunch (the luxury). Then I went to the parks in the evenings, when it was cooler and quieter.
I ended up going to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party because it was the only way to get into Magic Kingdom on my first night. Worth it! The park wasn’t crowded (January and February were worse) and the ride wait times were minimal. I rode the Seven Dwarves Mine Train and Splash Mountain, and spent the rest of the time walking around, taking in the scenery and the parade.
I spent my second evening at Hollywood Studios, after a leisurely day of lazing around, and an amazing massage at the hotel rec center. I’m not sure my masseuse’s recommendations to drink lots of water and put my feet up included dropping out of the air in the Hollywood Tower of Terror, but I felt no ill effects.
I took lots of photos of Galaxy’s Edge for Tim; to be kind or to make him jealous? Maybe a little of both. But the place is very photogenic in its own right, and the end-of-day lighting was perfect.
I made the exact same face on the Aerosmith roller coaster (single rider line FTW) as I did when I first rode it this January. I’m not going to dig out the original photo, suffice it to say it was VERY ATTRACTIVE. *cough*
I had hoped to try Slinky Dog Dash but the wait time was over 50 minutes, and it was raining on and off. I opted for a twirly shoot-em-up ride instead, which was worth it just for the oversized toys in the queue.
I made dinner reservations at the Prime Time Café, where I sat at the bar and ordered a cherry Sprite from the non-alcoholic menu, thinking I’d avoid mixed drinks since I was alone and would be hailing a cab later that night. The bartender gave me a funny look, but I didn’t think much of it until he returned with this:
That’s a plastic character cup with a flashing rainbow ice cube. Trés adult, no? It’s a good thing I gave up on trying to look cool, like, 20 years ago.
All in all, I’m glad I decided to take some downtime after the GM, and glad I opted to go to the parks. Disney without kids in tow was fun, although I missed them, and was happy to come home.