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-   -   Going Out in a Blaze of Glory - Summer of Sorcery 2019 - DAY 21 -Farewell Magic Kingdom. (https://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=1177235)

walt4it 24 Jul 20 12:27 AM

Going Out in a Blaze of Glory - Summer of Sorcery 2019 - DAY 21 -Farewell Magic Kingdom.
 
Welcome back once more. I 'm glad you made it - I hoped you would.:wavey::wavey:

Day 20 is just here if you missed it

The whole index to all of this trip is here if you want to read about all of our shenanigans is here


For anyone reading who misses Magic Kingdom, or just needs a bit of a reminder of the most magical place on earth, I hope you read and enjoy. :thumbs-up

It needs no further introduction than to describe this as our final Magic Kingdom visit:cry::cry: Get the tissues ready!

Welcome to Day 21

Tuesday 13th August 2019

We enjoyed a little lie in this morning and made sure we checked the weather forecast for the day. Having made that mistake last year and found ourselves rained out of a day too early.

We had a big night planned today.

We knew that there would be another storm inbound today, you could feel it in the air, so the first thing to enjoy was the pool and the hot tub., whilst we could and whilst the temperatures were at sizzling point.



We just enjoyed the pool and took some photos, finally getting the underwater camera out too!






Bang on cue the rain arrived which then allowed for that bit we least look forward to, we decided to start packing our stuff up – I really hate this bit so I’m not going to describe those feelings just yet.
We just made use of the rain time to save on time tomorrow.

I used the rain break to pop down to Publix and to the Wawa for some cash and also used the time to try to discover where our Tee Shirt order had gone!



It was now showing as back at the US Postal Service and there was no way of being able to pick it up as they were on the way back to Teepublic. They promised to look into it! The time and date given on the US postal service website for delivery was one when we knew we were in the villa – so that in itself possibly showed they never even attempted to deliver.:nonono:

A quick fire Spaghetti bolognaise was rustled up and we were then on our way to Magic Kingdom




We arrived at 5pm and parked in Scar 415- always good to note the parking row as it will be dark when we return to the car tonight.

The boys wanted to go on the tram against what was common sense!
We would have been quicker walking! Especially since we got dropped at the bottom of the car park, before the underpass due to the reconstruction work, but hey this was our final visit to MK and one final tram ride it was then!




A Chaotic bag check followed, where those without a bag were faced with a longer wait than those with a bag- how does that happen?

The Monorail was busy as the overhead skies indicated what may lie ahead in the next couple of hours!



Once more – bang on cue - On entry into the park the outside rides shut!




It mattered not to us - as we simply soaked in the atmosphere and we once more enjoyed a bit of Sorcerers of The Magic Kingdom plus a few pin trades too. It was also a time to avoid taking photos - to simply soak up the place and not allow phones or the camera to distract from this moment of escapism, sorcery and sheer enjoyment at being in Magic Kingdom for a final time.

We also met Leonie from Accrington who was working in the Emporium - I did promise her that she would get a mention.
We headed to the TTA/ Peoplemover as it was a great way to see the progress made on the construction of the Tron ride.





We then headed to Space Mountain to use up one of our fast passes, although a 30 minute wait in that line was hardly fast! It was great to ride and being the final time we really did soak it up that bit more .




From there we wandered, soaked up the atmosphere and just admired the sheer beauty of the place.


Not just visually, but the smells and the sounds that are distinct to this wonderful place, the sight of Cinderella Castle acts as a backdrop to the complete sensory overload.

I have said it before and will continue to do so- this place becomes even more magical the slower you go.

We just took a number of deep breaths, we didn’t speak – we all knew tonight was our final visit to Magic Kingdom.

Each of us had a heightened sense of everything – we just never wanted the time to pass, the absolute reality to bite nor the acceptance that we were at the end of something that began as a family way back in 2008.


By the time the outdoor rides were open and the obvious backlog of Fast passes from another rainy day kick in we avoided the 2 hour queue time for The 7 Dwarfs, we just enjoyed watching for a bit then as we walked towards Haunted Mansion we walked through Momento Mori for another pin trade and a glance at a 75 minute wait for Haunted Mansion.




No need to get uptight about it nor indeed annoyed, we were on a late start and with thunderstorms for most of the afternoon MK just stumbles towards a stop. Too many Fast Passes offered to change attraction or a return anytime means for long waits. There was nothing anyone could do about it, although the one thing we were not prepared to do was waste the evening in a queue line!

We were about to go to Hall of Presidents but it was 20 mins to the next show- so grabbed a coke to drink and headed to Big Thunder Mountain to use our fastpass there.






Then straight onto Splash Mountain with our next fast pass.
As always, we never tire of this whole ride and with the skies clearing, we enjoyed the beautiful light from the dusk sky.













Lots of photos taken and Joe had plenty of comments about his tee shirt too!



A bargain at the Disney outlet last year and I’m sure when you read this , it will be worth considerable more given the recent news of the retheming of the ride and the quest for merch in the shop since Magic Kingdom reopened after lockdown.:erm:

We ventured round to Pirates which had a posted 20 wait- but we were on in less than half that time. Again we soaked up the whole place and inwardly acknowledged that on each of these three rides we were building internal pictures in our minds as well as taking photos too.







On exit it was dark- that meant just one thing fireworks!


No not Halloween!

We got a great spot in the hub and having avoided the family with the huge balloons being held high, we only got the guy in front who was taller than us all filming on his phone.
Josh grumbled first as it meant he was needing to move, Joe already had and Alison and I just adjusted our line of sight.

What I am about to say will surprise many regular readers used to my love of Wishes, but I really enjoyed Happily Ever After tonight, I think I had nearly got there last year, but tonight the fireworks show was nearly as good as Wishes!

It has much more happening throughout than Wishes and the message is strong although not quite as emotional as the ending of Wishes!

It was good to take photos of too as we seemed to be just in the right place.
No wind although no Tink tonight either.









As it ended we knew we were on the clock and we also knew that we wanted to keep up a three year tradition of having the lantern photo taken again, our previous evening visit to MK had been amid rain and photos being taken in the Peter Pan meet and greet area – it was never going to be the same as this.

We met a lovely couple from Hull, who were going home in the morning, having got engaged whilst out here on holiday.
After a 33 minute wait and lovely chat, they let us go in front of them for our photo. We were in all the queue that was now closed so it was such a lovely gesture from them as they understood what we were going to try to do next!

Photos taken…




then at 9-58 we bode them a safe journey home and congratulations again on their engagement as we ran down to Haunted Mansion, with one CM telling the boys not to run as another was ready to close the whole ride.
We had only just made it!

The new ride photo on here is not where you think it will be, not with the hitchhiking ghosts at the end, it is quite early in the ride with pictures on the wall as your doombuggy turns to face the four pieces of art on the wall- smile at the third and fourth one and you are sorted!
One ride photo and it had taken the whole trip to get one that actually looked as if we were looking!





We were the last to leave the building and as a CM followed us off the ride to close up for the night- there was then a flash of lightning on the Haunted Mansion a rumble of thunder too – they were not real in case you are wondering- they simply linked to the ride being shut down for the night.

Another little something learned on this trip and a moment of magic we had never experienced ever.



With the park closed, we took our time to leave and as we had our photo taken on Main Street more to delay leaving than anything else.
The walk was slow and it was deliberately so.



We ran up the steps at the station just as the 10.30 goodbye was shared, it was at that moment we all stopped, we never acknowledged the moment but we all knew it was there, had we stopped and indeed spoke I think none of us would have had words.
We just blinked it all back, gulped in some of that warm night time Floridian air and looked back in sheer wonderment at Main Street emptying and Cinderella Castle so beautifully lit .



In my very first trip report, I described this feeling as having a golf ball sized lump in my throat, tonight was exactly the same. Not knowing when you will ever return makes that lump all the more difficult to get rid of and the emotion of the goodbye all the more poignant. After so many very happy years watching the boys grow up – we joined together as a family and looked down Main Street – proud of everything we had achieved in all those years and proud of what we still are as a family.

There were no tears though, just a collective hug and an awareness that to come back home to WDW – we had to go away. Who knows how long that time will be.

As all those words were typed on the day in 2019- who would know what would happen since!

We stopped for one final photo outside the train station and the photographer knew it was our last night, she said she could tell! She obviously spotted how slowly we were leaving and we just did not want pass through those tapstiles and say goodnight.
She promised a special photo and she really did deliver – quality photopass photographer and we did share a rather nice chat as we got our stuff to leave.



We headed to the greatest short cut in the whole of Magic Kingdom- to the resort monorail, with large queues for Express Monorail,for the ferry and even the bus back to the TTC, we awaited the next monorail and just climbed aboard, no wait, no pushing and a completely sweat free experience!
You can see the queue across the way for the express Monorail


This was the Resort monorail:spin::spin:



It saved us at least 30 minutes tonight. From photopass picture to the car took 20 minutes and that also included walking from TTC back to the car, which obviously did add to the seat levels!

We were then straight down the I4 and with a quick stop at McDonald’s we were back in the villa in super quick time.

As I type this time was pushing on and as much as I really fancied a late night swim I was outvoted, not by the boys I hasten to add. It was 1 am by the time we got to bed tomorrow was going to be a very late one too!

What a night and what an emotional goodbye - for the first time since 2008 we departed Magic Kingdom without a future trip in the pipeline and with a most definitive thought that we were now going to have some time away for reasons that will become clearer at the end of this whole trip report.

To not have that assurance of a future trip meant for an uncomfortable emptiness that night and that has remained, despite all the mayhem that has occurred since we all still yearn for another day back in our Happy Place.

Thanks for reading right to the end :wavey::wavey:

Day 22 will be coming real soon!:thumbs-up

It can be read by simply clicking on these words

Taffy1959 24 Jul 20 07:14 AM

A lovely day but quite sad too not knowing when you’ll be back.
The lantern and exit photos are so good and I’m sure you’ll treasure these for a long time.

EllieP 24 Jul 20 09:33 AM

Aw really enjoyed reading this, quite an emotional day and read. It is a strange feeling after so many years. I’m sure you will be back there soon.

mick 24 Jul 20 10:14 AM

A great last visit for now to MK with lots done and some great photos love the last one :spin:

Joan :wave:

TractorBoy 24 Jul 20 07:32 PM

Once again many thanks for posting what was a brilliant, emotional last day in WDW.

Will you venture back? That is the million dollar question!

Thanks again and hope you and the family are staying safe!

walt4it 24 Jul 20 11:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Taffy1959 (Post 14587301)
A lovely day but quite sad too not knowing when you’ll be back.
The lantern and exit photos are so good and I’m sure you’ll treasure these for a long time.

Thank you:heart:

Those photos tell such a story - we really did not want to leave:erm:

The memories of the photos and this whole night in Magic Kingdom -will live with all 4 of us - no matter when we return it will be just as emotional.

And as an aside - for the first time ever I can start a read on what we did last year :blush:

https://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/sho...9#post14128069

This is what we did last summer !

sueandco 25 Jul 20 06:15 PM

A great last visit to MK, at the moment we have no idea when we may go back but do know it won’t be soon.
Can’t wait for the rest.

Ilovesnowwhite 26 Jul 20 12:29 PM

A truly magical last day at MK :) A day of fun, and sadness.
xx

BaconAndAvocado 26 Jul 20 05:18 PM

Love your photos, particularly the one of you all looking at the castle at night hugging. Brought a tear to my eye!

Sorry if I've missed something on here but why was it your last visit for a while?

Palm trees 26 Jul 20 06:18 PM

Another lovely day. I've probably said before on previous comments but you really do have such an evocative writing style, and when I was reading about the smells it really took me there!


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