The Airport transfer to Disney is easly achieved but the drivers French accent don't help. I kinda catch the Pop but the Century is practically indecipherable. Still he does the job and drags us to the gaff via International Drive.
First impressions of Pop Centuy are OK, it's as kitsch as it could be and I love that with huge rubics cubes, jukebox, table footballers, yo-yo, a flower shaped pool and a bowling pin shaped pool too. The accommodation is named after decades and we having confirmed we would rather not have a smoking room and get sent to the 90's. Cal and I drag the bag over to the room while Monst books a breakfast with Lilo and Stitch (well a couple of the moth eaten rugs that pretend to be them anyway).
Pin Shaped Pool
The room smells like the inside of an ashtray to me but I don't trust my nose on such matters. We meet Monst for food that to be honest we are all far too tired to eat and I casually mention that I think I can smell smoke in the room. Monst confirms the whif of tabs in the room. So off we drag the bags to complain and to try and change rooms. All of this is compounded by the fact that this was a change of room because the one we were supposed to be in wasn't ready on arrival. No dice, too late in the day and despite being asked if we wanted a no-smoking room apparently we should have told the travel agent this. Instead we wll be moved in the morning and someone will be sent to freshen the room (a geezer turns up and sprays some sort of generic Fabreze about, a little later). The result is we head to bed at midnight all a little short-tempered with each other and unintentionally carry out the intructiosn to stay awake as long as possible. Cheers MM, really the way to do it.
I of course suffer from my usual sleep issues and at 5 am local time my brain is muttering at my body 'Get out of bed you lazy bastard', I leave the pair of them to argue it out and eventually rise bleary eyed at around 6 am when Cal succumbs to a fit of coughing. throw on some clothes, grap my resort mug which will provide access to coffee over the week, grab 'Glue' and head off to the dining area. Search for a wallet (requiring a new one having previously lost the second in a fortnight), battle with an ATM, toy with the whole Fanny Pack concept because it will amuse the folk at work and feed my holiday postcard habit. With lack of blogging work bear the brunt and replace Margaret on my daily postcard list (along with my folks, Mattie and Ashleigh).
Coffee is bearable if not great and wlcome and I read a good book and enjoy the delights of the Disney bonus that I'm not as big an FLB as I could be! Why am I tempted to buy a pirate hat? Dunno, maybe thi place is having a bigger impact than I think. Thank non-existent deities that we aren't somewhere like Butlins, I'd be entering knobbly-knee contests.
To my delight my return to the room allows me to witness a bunch of cheerleaders training (we later learn it is the UCA National High School Cheerleading Championships 2007 type thingy). I get to see enough of the old pearlies clenched in smiles to make me wanna burst out with a chorus of 'Mack the knife'. The sun is rising, the sky has wispy little clouds in it, people have bid me a good morning and I'm unwinding having vowed no work for a week for a change. I've even noticed the odd pyjama girl and wondered do they count as sightings if you see them in a hotel.
We move rooms and from the 90s head to the 50s and find ourselves next to the Bowling Pin shaped pool and the Big Jukebox in the sky, just up the way from a huge Lady and the Tramp that look like they coulda come out of an episode of the Goodies....
The Big Jukebox in the Sky
Post ablute we head to the Magic Kingdom (neither magic or a kingdom but hey, who cares!)
The Boy With the Disney Face
Cal though isn't well and by lunchtime he wants to head back to the room to rest. I head to Downtown Disney for headphones at the Virgin and a pint at Raglan Road. Good it is too!
Meet the folks back at Pop Century and then head back to the Magic Kingdom. We have dinner booked at the Liberty Tree Tavern, where moth eaten rugs will be dressed as calonial rebels.... Cal leads us round and we generally chill. We avoid the parade for Wishes and watch the fireworks from elsewhere.
The meal is a set menu but we've all arrived at the point that we could eat a scabby cat. It was more than adequate to fill a need. Cal though is ill and tired and we're back in bed by 10.00.
