Crystal Palace

Following a very late, dry, New Year's Eve, Janie and J. R. decided to skip Extra Magic Hours early entry at the Magic Kingdom, but Alex, Thomas, Rebecca and Bethany woke early and headed to the MK for morning rides on Space Mountain, the Mine Train and Haunted Mansion. It was a chilly morning with a light drizzle falling so Rebecca and Bethany opted for the ubiqituous white Disney Parks ponchos. Thomas decided Disney World needed a stand on days like these called "Poncho's Villa". J. R. and Janie were not too far behind and got a quick whirl through Seven Dwarves. It was not a very fun ride with ice pellets pelting you int he face, so they headed next to Winnie the Pooh and It's A Small World before it was time to meet for breakfast at Crystal Palace. After a cup or two of free hot cocoa, we were welcomed inside for Mickey waffles, eggs, omelettes, bacon and more. Our waitress was less the impressive as it was very hard to hear her. She disappeared towards the end of our breakfast so we got up to leave but she reappeared then and tracked us down to make sure we signed for her tip.

Magic Kingdom

After breakfast, we rode Pirates of the Caribbean and the "Jingle" Cruise, which is a Christmas overlay of the normal Jungle Cruise, which was cute.

Frozen at Epcot

Our FastPass times were scheduled for the afternoon, we all rode Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain and took another ride through Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. We also had some time for the kids to ride Splash Mountain in the rain before we decided to leave the park and go to Epcot. The drizzle had most ended but the weather had turned decidedly colder as the sun was going down and we arrived in the Epcot wind tunnel under Spaceship Earth. The original plan was to head to Soarin' to stay indoors, but Alex and Bethany wanted to ride Spaceship Earth so we went there first. The lines for Soarin' and Test Track were several hours long, so we decided to walk to the World Showcase and ride the reimagined Frozen ride. The temperatures matched the movie as we waited outside but we finally got into the building and were able to warm up, The line was long and slow moving and we all agreed we never needed to wait in it again. Bring back Maelstrom!

Next we decided to hop through some of the shops before it was time for our dinner reservation. We skipped Mexico and went to Germany where Thomas wanted to look at the glassware. Bethany found a tiara to replace her mouse ears and then we ventured back outside. The chilly air had turned to downright cold and we were rethinking our decision to stay. But we found some warmth in the massive department store in Japan and then made a run to Morocco to walk through their shops.

Our dinner reservation was at Spice Road Table and it was one of the best meals of the trip. Janie had a sangria while we waited and then we were seated at a window table. We started with some Fried Calamari and the Hummus platter. Both were excellent and the calamari was so good, Rebecca ordered it for her entree. Thomas and Janie split the Coriander-crusted Rack of Lamb while Alex and Bethany had the Mediterranen Vegetable Platter and Moroccan Lamb Sausage. The only miss of the night was the Spicy Garlic Shrimp which J. R. ordered, which were not spicy at all and were overcooked.

As were finishing our meal, Illuminations: Reflections of Earth was starting. We were able to see most of the fireworks out the window and they played the music inside the restaurant so we didn't have to stand in the cold to watch the show. After that, it was time for a cold walk back to the bus stop and the ride to the hotel. Bethany had to go back to Custom House to get her Magic Band fixed and they found her a room in Martinque for the rest of the week so she would be moving the next morning.