Riviera Tower Studio Stay

Monday - Another Disney Springs day. I found a top I really liked at UniqLo, so I am going back to get one in every color. I also made a stop in Fabletics and picked up a couple things that were on a huge sale. Next I thought I would see if there was a line for the Lego Store, but I was there early enough, no line. Yay. I scored the Sanderson Sisters set for my Son and Grandson. We always spend a week at the beach in September and they put together a big set of some sort. If they don't want to keep this one, then it can stay at my house, and perfect timing for Halloween. Next it was off to World of Disney. I had been seeing the new t-shirts for some of the Pixar Shorts. I absolutely love the Birds short and also the Bao Bun one, so I picked up those two shirts to wear at home with leggings-too hot and heavy for down here in this heat.

Lunch was at Earl of Sandwich. I have not eaten there in a long, long time. I forgot how big the sandwiches are and could only eat half, but I sure enjoyed it. At some point it had rained while I was inside but the sun was out again.

I then headed down to the West End, but realized there was nothing there I was interested in, except TrenD. Well, I would have loved to have stopped at Salt and Straw, but knew I didn't need it, so I headed to the bus stop. And my luck with the buses continued, it got there almost a minute after I did. Back at the resort I went and did some laundry. This heat sure makes you go thru some clothes quickly--changing twice a day makes laundry pile up quickly. By the time I got done with the laundry, it was after 9:00 and time to call it a day.

Enjoying your report and your worldly travels.

Mobile order tip: be sure to check your credit card…I had one go thru that supposedly had not. I stash all the email alerts now in a folder in my email account. I tried calling Disney but that’s a huge mess so I just used the online dispute area for my credit card. Hasn’t happened in a long time, but it happened at MK when it’s busier.  I also check for exact dollar amounts after a trip as well because CMs in training can miss a dining check in too. Things have improved and I haven’t had trouble lately with either, but I always check.

Those corkcicles are nice...I am a fan. I have never been to Sebastian's but have lots of positive reviews. It's one of those places I want to try but on the short stays I take, it's hard to take the time to get there.

I find the CM room interruptions hit or miss the past year. We put the do not disturb sign out all the time when we are in the room. The past few trips , we did not get interrupted. The knock and daily inspection policy was enacted after the Vegas Music Festival shooting. It needs to go away as it wasn't merited to begin with.

Thursday - OK, so today is the start of Food and Wine and I was undecided if I should brave it or not. I know it gets crowded and that combined with the heat can make one very miserable. I decided to test it out and if I was miserable, I could head home. I got to the Booths just as they were opening. First stop was Belgium and I had the waffle with berries for breakfast. It was very good, but the heat of the waffle melted the whip cream very quickly--you have to eat fast for it to feel fresh. Next I went around to Flavors of America and had the warm carrot cake with warm cream cheese frosting-OMG-if you like carrot cake, this is sooooo good. I am not used to have dessert before noon, but I had had this before and knew how yummy it was, so I had to have it.

I went on around to Italy. I hear how bad their Festival food always is, so I wanted to check it out and I ordered the Cavatelli. It was very tasty, but I should not have ordered this on such a hot day. I enjoyed it and would recommend it. I don't know if this is a new dish or a returning item, but I liked it--not worth $10.00 though.

At this point, I was getting pretty full and I was starting to encounter the crowds that I had escaped so far, so I thought I would go check out the Festival Merchandise. I stopped at Port of Entry and got a gift card on the wrist coil. They are not as cute as ones in the past, but I wanted one to use now and on future trips. Nothing else in there caught my eye. I then went into the Odyssey as they had put merchandise in there before, but none this time. They had an herbal tea I would have like to have tried, but the line was about 30 people deep on both sides--not worth the wait to me.

On to the Creations Shop to see what they had in the way of merchandise. I really did not see much that I liked at all. I actually thought the Passholder shirt was ugly. I did pick the one t-shirt that was Encanto themed but that was it. There was also a nice zip up hoodie, but I have no need for any more of those at this time.

When I left, I found the Coastal booth and grabbed a crab cake. It was pretty good, better than most, lots of crab and not much filling. I would get it again. And now it was getting really hot out and very crowded, so I thought I would head back to the resort before rain showed up--it had been sprinkling on and off a lot of the morning, but the clouds kept it cooler than the past few days. There are lots of booths I want to try, (China, Mexico, Australia) and I will do that tomorrow as I will go back to EPCOT while I am waiting for my room to be ready. I made it to the Skyliner and it was running, so I am now back at the resort and I am getting ready to pack up for my move to BLT tomorrow.

I wasn't expecting another full cleaning today, but it was done and the Mousekeeper left me an elephant towel animal. Made me feel like I was on a cruise, but I am not being rocked to sleep at night.

Alright, off to pack and see about cleaning out my Owners Lockers a bit.

Friday - Moving Day. I was up and packed and ready to go fairly early. Bell services was great in taking all my stuff and I headed off to EPCOT on the Skyliner. I said goodbye to the Riviera until next February. All in all, I really enjoyed my stay in the Tower Studio. It is more than enough room for me and my stuff. My big two complaints, again, are the lighting in the room and the chiller instead of a fridge. The chiller is useless except for beverages.

Once I got to EPCOT, it was too early for the Food and Wine booths to open so I went to Creations Shop to exchange the F&W shirt I had bought for a smaller size. Mission accomplished so I headed back to World Showcase to hit some of the food booths I missed the day before. Dumplings in China--delicious. I then went back to Mexico and decided I could not eat what they offered that early and in the heat so I went to the Odyssey and got the frozen herbal tea--it was so good and refreshing. Then back out to Australia for some shrimp on the barbie--very good. Then I went to Canada and got the Filet--it was delicious and a much better deal than the shrimp at the same price. I felt I had hit most of the booths I wanted to try as I am fairly picky and not very adventuresome an eater.

I still need to kill some time as my room at BLT was not showing up yet.  I did Figment and then tried to get into the DVC lounge, but it was full and had a waiting list. (they will text you when your table is ready)   The CM had told me there were 10 parties ahead of me, so I thought I had plenty of time and off to the Land and I did Soarin' again, with a much better view in the middle section.  I got the text that my table in the DVC Lounge was ready, but there was no way I could back there in the alotted 10 minutes so I texted back to cancel me. Then Nemo again-always cute and refreshing to be in the A/C. I went back around to see the Creations Shop to kill a bit more time and see if any new F&W merchandise had been put out, as I mentioned earlier, I was a bit disappointed with the majority of the designs this year. Then I figured I would head over to BLT to see about my room. I took the monorail to the TTC and then switched to the Resort monorail to get to the Contemporary. I asked at the Front Desk and yes, my room was ready--they weren't sure why I didn't get a message or why the room number did not show up in the app. While I was waiting for her to finish whatever she was doing on the computer, I reached up and scratched my ear and discovered I had not put any earrings on, and then it dawned on me that I had left my jewelry and my travel purse in the safe at the Riviera. Not good--the jewelry case contained earrings and a pendant that my late husband had given to me. If I didn't get them back, I would be devastated. The young lady at the front desk said they would call the Riviera and would let me know. In the meantime, I could fill out a Lost and Found card. I hadn't lost them, I knew exactly where they were.

I went on the room, had my bags and Owners Lockers that had been transferred over from the Riviera brought up, started to unpack and then got antsy. I have no patience when waiting on something like this. So, I called the Riviera myself and finally got someone that eventually confirmed they had found my things and they could either mail them to me or I could pick them up. I assured them I would be there in just a little bit to retrieve them myself. OK, now, what is the fastest way to get there on an ECV? I thought I should retrace my steps-monorail to EPCOT and then Skyliner to Riviera or Uber or Minnie Van. I asked at front desk and she suggested scooting over to the Magic Kingdom and taking a bus to the Riviera--now why didn't I think of that? I got to the bus stop at MK just as a bus was pulling up-lucky me, and then the bus driver tells me he is waiting for his relief driver, who was late and if the relief driver didn't show up, he would have to pull the bus out of service--not what I wanted to hear. The guy showed up in a few minutes and then we were on our way. We arrived at the Riviera and yes, the front desk had my things and everything was still there. I could finally breathe a sigh of relief and even shed a few tears. I normally don't bring any jewelry with me to WDW, but I thought that with being here as long as I was, I might want to wear some now and then--but it has been too hot to have anything at all extra on your body. Back to the bus, and I was glad that it wasn't the same bus driver. Back to the MK and I didn't think I would need to go thru Security to get on the path back to BLT, but I did, so I decided to just go ahead and go into the MK and get a bite of dinner before heading to the room. Pecos Bill's here I come again.

I had been seeing these cool shirts that lots of families were wearing--dark blue a big circle in silver with a Mickey in the center and it said "100 Years" below the circle. Almost same design on the back- a really nice looking shirt. I had seen tons of these shirts on people but none in the stores anywhere. When I went into the Emporium, which had been totally rearranged--the clothes were now where the toys used to be in the front of the store and the back of the store is all now toys-so weird after being the other way around all these years. I asked a CM about that shirt and she said she had never seen it!!! She suggested that people on Etsy were doing some really good things these days. I had seen way too many for these to have come from Etsy. I saw a lady with the shirt on in the store and I asked her where she got it and you won't believe what she said: "I got it from Walmart." Believe me, I would have never ever expected that answer in a million years.

I was way to early to wait for the fireworks so I headed back to the room to finish unpacking and get settled in.

For all those that think that the Riviera Tower is small, if you take away the kitchenette in the BLT studio (which you spend almost no time in at all) I found I had more usable space in the Riviera Tower than here at BLT. I am sure with the kitchenette that the BLT studio is much larger in square feet, but then again, how much time do you spend in the kitchenette? And I definitely prefer the Riviera Tower bathroom to this one. I loved that walk in shower and tons of counter space, which is non-existent here at BLT. Don't get me wrong, I love the BLT as well as the Riviera, they both are home resorts. But I remember that I when I posted that I would spend two weeks in a Riviera Tower that I got some comments that they could never do that. Each and every DVC resort has its pros and cons--aren't we glad we have so many choices.

Saturday--I decided no alarm today. Woke up and enjoyed some yogurt in the room. Couldn't decide what to do--pool or a park or what. I decided pool and by the time I was ready to go, it was raining. Did some stuff on the computer and then sun is out so I gather everything up again and I hear thunder and then it rained again. So, I gave up on the pool and decided to grab lunch at Contempo Cafe and then take a tour of all the monorail resorts. I grabbed a Dole Whip at the Polynesian--my first this trip--I always go for the traditional swirl and it never disappoints. When I got to the Grand Floridian, I was surprised to find out that the majority of the lobby is totally torn up. Only about 20% of it is usable. I knew they were working on it, but the last pictures I saw only a small part was torn up. Now that part is finished, the piano is back and two or three sofas are available for seating. If I were staying at the GF right now, I would be so disappointed as that lobby is part of the charm for me. I was surprised to see that in the middle of the afternoon there was a line of people waiting to get into the Enchanted Rose. I mean probably 20-30 people standing in line waiting for a place to sit. I checked out all the shops and then back to the monorail. One stop at the Magic Kingdom and then back to the Contemporary. I was thinking if it didn't rain any more that I would go to MK tonight and stay for the fireworks. While I was back in the room, it started raining cats and dogs. No thunder and lightening, but sideways blowing rain and the skies were black with no clearing to be seen. So Plan B was to head to Steakhouse 71 and try to grab a seat at the bar to have one of their delicious burgers. By the time I got out the door and headed downstairs the rain had stopped, so I headed to Magic Kingdom instead. I stopped at the fairly new place in the Confectionery where you can get your popcorn mixed with toppings and various candies. It was good, but I decided I prefer my popcorn with just salt and butter. I only ate about 20% of it and will probably give the rest when I see my friend tomorrow. My hot dog from Caseys was not near as good as that burger would have been. I thought I better check and see what time they start letting people into the handicap area for the fireworks, and when I got there around 8:00, there were already people in the area, so I decided to go on in and sit and wait. I seem to get stuck behind a pole or shrub in that area, so I asked for a better view this time and I got a great one, until the family in front of me had a really tall guy stand up when it started and he pretty much blocked the castle projections. I still enjoyed the fireworks as I had not seen them up close in a while, not since they brought Happily Ever After back. I shed a tear or two as memories of trips of the past with my late husband came flooding back. Tink did fly tonight and that is always a highlight.

One of the best things about staying at BLT is being able to scoot/walk back to the resort and to not have to wait for a bus after the fireworks. I did not envy the throngs of folks waiting for the monorail or walking to the buses.

Another good day has come to a close. Part of me wants to set an alarm for tomorrow to get Genie+ and book all the things I have missed doing at the MK and then part of me is enjoying not setting an alarm. Guess I will need to decide before I head to bed.

Sunday--Today was pool day. I went to Contempo Cafe for breakfast and then headed to the pool while the sun was out. Lots of chairs available late morning. The pool water was not cool and refreshing, it was warm, but still cooler than the air temperatures. When it started to get crowded with lots families, I decided to go over and check out the quiet pool over at the Contemporary. I find this funny as this is what Tom recommended after I had done it. He is right, the pool is deeper, quieter and it was actually cooler than the Bay Lake pool. The only problem is, there are only 4 tables with umbrellas there.

I stayed at the pool until around 2:30 and headed back to the room for a quick nap and shower before meeting my local friend. She had been to Buc-ee's and brought me back some Beaver Nuggets which I had never had. I met her at the lounge at Steakhouse 71 and there were plenty of seats available at the bar. We each had that stackhouse burger--one of the best on property in my opinion. In the past I have also had the delicious crabcakes, but they need to give you more than two as they are rather smallish. I don't go to many bars here at Disney at all, so I was surprised to see that they allow minors sit at the bar. I had just never noticed this before, so it was a surprise. I asked and they are allowed at all hours. I was glad to hear that as we will be staying here before our Lighthouse Point cruise next June and it will be ok to bring my Grandson in there.

While we were eating a huge thunderstorm came over and the lights in the hotel actually blinked a time or two. You would think that the rain would cool down the pools some, but it doesn't. We also shared a piece of their chocolate cake. When I say shared, I had about 4 bites and my friend had some and then still had half the slice to take home, plus she took home half of my burger. That cake is very rich and very delicious--worth the calories.

We went back to my room to just visit and catch up and we saw the Electrical Water Pageant go by before she headed home.

I have had enough of the parks and crowds for this trip, but I am enjoying still being here. Tomorrow will probably bring more of the same except I will need to start packing up as I head home on Tuesday.