OK guys this is it.
The end of the road.
I know. Day 11 and Day 12. The last two days of the trip.
Right. Yeah. The end of a Disney trip. It’s always a sad situation.
Yerp. The last blog post for a little bit.
…
…
Oh whatEVER you guys. Let’s just get on with it. Oh and guess what? We are covering two days in this post!
Ugh. Stop.
Our 2025 “Celebrating Everything” Walt Disney World Trip: Day 11
The first picture I have from Day 11 is this one.
Which means the whole get-up-and-get-ready routine was pretty uneventful.
OR.
Or it means it was very eventful and the evidence was destroyed.
I guess you’ll never know.
Actually, nor will I. It’s literally a couple hours of my life I do not remember. Which is pretty sobering, huh? I mean, life after all is pretty short. And to lose even 2 hours of a day spent with my family is a loss worth mourning. If I don’t remember those two hours, did they even happen? Have I just been wasting my present running towards the future. Why are we here?
Whoa.
Sorry.
Weed is legal in MA now.
Annnyway though. What we did this morning was walk from our room over to the Transportation & Ticket Center to catch the monorail over to the parks. And that picture up there was taken at around 9:20AM. And I am pretty sure the reason I took that picture is to showcase the crowds heading to Magic Kingdom.
Here’s another one. Showcasing the crowds. Look at how it showcases.
But thankfully? We were NOT heading to the Magic Kingdom. Today, our last day at Walt Disney World this time around, was going to be spent at EPCOT.
Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow? More like Empty Prototype Community of Tomorrow.
Amirite?
Our monorail pulled up at around 9:30.
And we were on our way!
And I kind of love the way the monorail comes into EPCOT. Unlike the Magic Kingdom route, which just basically runs the lagoon and pulls up right in front of the park, this monorail runs a route through the park which sort of helps with the excitement of the whole thing.
Yeah eh, no Test Track this trip. But soon, my little smurfs. Soon.
But stop interrupting. Let’s continue to make our way to the park.
We were inside the gates by 9:45.
And look who was there to greet us.
Yeah, I mean technically even though the Flower & Garden Festival ended yesterday, the topiaries were still kicking around. I mean, look at all these. LOOK AT THEM.
The plan today was basically to head right over to the World Showcase to grab some breakfast. And along the way, I mean, look at this whole lack of crowds going on over here.
Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow? More like Empty Prototype…
Oh. I did? I already said that?
Ha, sorry. Weed is legal in MA now.
Oh.
I did?
OK, moving on. To the World Showcase!
It felt like a betrayal of all that is right in this world, but we started in Canada today. On account of we wanted to get right over to France. And heading to France via Mexico is no bueno.
On the way, though, we passed this whole bit of amazing near the World Showplace.
That right there is a Character-Palooza. Which is a spontaneous, unannounced gathering of characters, many of them rather rare. So exciting. But Nickie had to go to the bathroom just as we spotted this. And there was no telling when it would close up shop.
So I was left with a decision. Do I walk in there, as a single almost-50-year-old on my own and take pictures with Disney characters? Or do I fight those urges and try to act like an adult?
Decisions decisions.
Ha, nah. You know I went in there.
And look you guys. Max Goof!
But that was it. I felt like I didn’t wanna linger. My oldness got the best of me and I started to get in my head about going from character-to-character. I mean, look, I hadn’t even had coffee yet you guys. My brain was being a weirdo.
But at least I met Max!
Ooh man, it was a beautiful day out there this morning.
Our initial breakfast plan was Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie in the France Pavilion. But when we got there, it turned out this was where all the people were. On account of this line was les miserables.
I dreamed a dream of a croissant.
With coffee black and maybe butter.
So we decided to make the short walk over to the the Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure section of the pavilion to get some crepes.
While one could go into the sit-down crepes restaurant if one desired, we opted for the quick-service Crêpes À Emporter by La Crêperie de Paris.
Most around the table went in for the sweet option, ordering the Butter & Sugar crepe.
But I went savory and got a Bechamel, Cheese & Ham Galette.
And yeah both were pretty great. I honestly think this crepe window is such a welcome addition to the World Showcase. It’s a quick, but really well-made option. Plus I love that little area in the back of the France Pavilion.
But I mean. It was just like one crepe, right? How was I going to survive the next 20 minutes on just one crepe? So after breakfast, we walked on over to the Canda Pavilion to get a refill in my popcorn bucket. But not just any refill. A MAPLE refill.
So good, hoser.
We kept walking past Canada and out of the World Showcase for the time being to jump on a no-wait Journey Into Imagination.
We quickly made our way through the queue.
And were journeying through imagination with Figment in no time.
Of course Figment is a Celtics fan. Dude knows whats up.
But yeah ok. I know this isn’t the best version of Journey Into Imagination. And I too hope our boy Figment gets an update. But I’ll take any Figment I can get.
And Tony? Tony will take any Uncrustable he can get.
We then actually headed back into not only the World Showcase but also the France Pavilion. And not only the France Pavilion but also the specific area where we ate breakfast.
I know, it doesn’t make much sense. But here’s the deal. The Falzones actually didn’t join us until a little later today. That picture of Tony trying to eat a wooden uncrustable is kind of around the time we first saw them for the day. And we had an anytime Lightning Lane today that we wanted to use on Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure but we wanted to wait for the Falzones to join us. So yeah, now that we were all together, it was back to France!
Déjà vu, right?
Right? That’s French? Déjà vu?
OK let’s hop in our little rat car.
Or we are rats now? I am honestly not too sure. Half this ride is in French so like it could be either.
But regardless. Whether I am in a rat or I am a rat or some sort of man-rat crime against nature, I dig this attraction for sure. I am ALL for bringing attractions into the World Showcase. Like what about maybe a Mulan attraction in China? Or maybe they revisit that idea of doing a Mary Poppins one in the UK. Oh, or how about a Great Mouse Detective attraction in the UK? Oh, or maybe a Winnie-the-Pooh attraction in the UK? Oh wait. What about a Bedknobs & Broomsticks attraction. In the UK. Oh or an Alice in Wonderland attra..
…
Hm.
101 Dalmatians?
Robin Hood?
Disney makes a lot of UK-based movies. Is what I am saying to you now.
All that armchair imagineering is making me thirsty. Welp, when in France…
Pictured there is Nickie’s Citron Slush (Grey Goose Citron, Vodka and Lemonade) and my Orange Slush (Grand Marnier, Rum, Grey Goose Orange and Orange Juice). And yeah, both are delicious. But mine has three alcohols. So I win.
Oh right, you can get those beauties at the incredibly long-named Les Vins de Chef de France kiosk in the France Pavilion.
Our next stop was EPCOT’s Land Pavilion.
To ride one of the unsung heroes of EPCOT – Living With the Land.
I’m just kidding btw. It’s totally a sung hero. Real Disney folks be like “I HEART LIVING WITH THE LAND” so much that it’s almost too sung. Not quite though. I mean, it’s still a banger.
I mean, it’s a boat ride you guys. So you know I am all kinds of down.
Yeah, it’s a ride through a greenhouse. But like, you know. Hear me out.
OK, like let’s go to lunch you guys. Reservations today were at the Space 220 Lounge over near Mission: Space.
Now, the reason this is called Space 220 is because the story behind this restaurant is that you are dining 220 miles above Earth. So after you check in, you are brought into this elevator that takes you alllllll the way into space. And you get to watch your departure from Earth and your arrival in space from inside the elevator.
It’s like, I don’t know why Katy Perry made such a big deal about this. You literally can do it whenever you want at EPCOT.
Like I said, we were eating in the lounge this time around as opposed to the actual dining room. But really, it’s all one big room and you still get this view from the lounge.
And not only do you get to look down on the Earth and all those jerks that bullied you in high school.
You know who you are.
But yeah, not only do you get to do that. You also are treated to random stuff happening out there in space. Like look at these space shuttles.
And not only were there space shuttles there but look at those astronauts out there. They’re doing…
I don’t know. Something?
Of course, we started with drinks. I ordered the Up All Night (Absolute Vanilla, Chilled Espresso, Kahlúa, Crème de Cacao).
And why yes, that IS an ice cream sandwich floating in there. But it’s not just any ice cream sandwich. It’s an astronaut ice cream sandwich. So basically, it’s like freeze-dried ice cream.
Super fun drink. Highly recommend.
We also kept up our tradition of not being able to stop ourselves getting souvenir cups. Owen ordered the Moon Rocks (Lemonade, Blue Cotton Candy syrup, Coconut, and Pineapple Juice).
Lookit how fun that cup is. It’s currently hanging out in our drinkware cabinet not being used ever at all.
So fun.
Since we were hanging in the lounge, we stuck to just getting some small bites to share (although I am pretty sure you can order off the main dining room menu as well). We went with a few orders of the Short Rib Sliders (with White Cheddar Cheese, Red Pepper Citrus Aioli, Lettuce, Tomato, and Butter Pickles), served with Fries.
As well as the Blue Moon Cauliflower (Tempura Fried Cauliflower, Housemade Hot Sauce, Blue Cheese Dust).
And the Astro Deviled Eggs (Free-Range Eggs, Maple Glazed Bacon, Scallion, Pickled Shallots, Micro Greens).
ANNNNND also the Starry Calamari (Fried Calamari, Italian Cherry Peppers, Spicy Marinara, Roasted Pepper Citrus Aioli).
Yeah I mean. They were small bites. So like, we had to get a lot of them.
And everything was real good. Well, almost everything. That calamari tasted off. It was super chewy and had a real fishy taste to it. I had one bite of it but that was it. It wasn’t great.
But everything else? Delicious stuff. Like all three things are three of my favorite things in the world – short rib, fried cauliflower, and deviled eggs. I’d be hard-pressed to pick a favorite but if I had to, I think I’d go with the deviled eggs. But just get all three if you go.
Be like me.
Be gluttonous.
Also, after I finished my cocktail, I did order a UFO White to stay on-theme.
That theme? Being an alcoholic.
I commit.
We finished up with lunch at around 3:45 and were soon back in our elevator heading back down to Earth.
But yeah, I think I still am recommending Space 220. I like the lounge for lunch since the dining room is a prix-fixe situation. But it’s just such a unique experience and both the drinks and the eats do not disappoint.
At this point, we wanted to get back over to the World Showcase and we did something that I actually have never done before. We took the Friendship Boats over across the lagoon. On our way to the boat, we made a quick stop at Connections Café (aka: Starbucks) for some boat drinks.
I got a Brown Sugar Shaken Espresso. And yeah, it was good. Doy. Of course it was.
Let’s get boating. Look at these la-goons.
I kind of can’t believe I’ve never taken the Friendship Boats before. It was a lovely ride over across the lagoon. And like, it’s a boat. I have made my opinions on boats very clear.
I like them. Is my opinion. Boats.
Next up was an attraction at EPCOT that I actually have never done before – The Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along at the France Pavilion.
Yeah man. The France Pavilion today had me feeling like Al Pacino in Godfather 3.
Nickie and Larissa heard they allowed alcohol in here. So they immediately made like Roger Rabbit over to the bar.
…
…
Oh sorry. I forgot you didn’t live in my head. It was like this.
Man, two super well-placed gifs right there.
But look. See? Beer.
Honestly, I am just stalling at this point. On account of well? This attraction?
So quick synopsis. It’s like a 15-minute short clip show of random musical Beauty and the Beast moments narrated by Mrs. Potts which portrays LeFou as the hero that actually brought Belle and the Beast together?
Which, like, sounds so intensely nonsensical that I should love it. But eh. It was just kind of like all over the place and not my kind of nonsense and I kind of felt like it shouldn’t exist?
Ha, how is that for a review?
Also pro tip? That picture? I ended up getting reprimanded for it. Don’t be like me. Go in knowing you’re not supposed to take pictures.
Of a movie.
That came out in 1992.
Guess they don’t wanna spoil anything.
But shh – the Beast? It’s really a dude. Swear to God.
Sorry. Spoiler alert.
But hey, at least that ruination of one of my favorite Disney movies of all-time brought us back to World Showcase. So hey, let’s head over to Japan.
And into one of the greatest shops in all of Walt Disney World – the Mitsukoshi Department Store!
And like, I love everything about this store. All the Pokemon. All the Godzilla. Allllllll the kimonos. But today? Today I had one thing on my mind. And that thing? It was Banana Pocky.
IYKYK.
Our tour of the Japan Pavilion was relatively short-lived though. Since there was a strong push to head back to.
I can’t believe I’m saying this.
The France Pavilion.
Yeah. I dunno. But here we are at L’Artisan des Glaces, the ice cream shop tucked in the back there.
While I was kind of satisfied with my Banana Pocky for today, some folks opted for the Croque Glacé, which is kind of a miraculous situation. It’s your choice of ice cream and sauce pressed in a warm brioche bun.
Check this shizz out.
Intensely good stuff right there.
But the ice cream overall here is legit. Tony and Mia opted for the more traditional waffle cone.
Now that we all had some snacks in hand, it was time to head out of the park. But like not before taking some final pictures of this pretty girl.
Tony, Mia, the boys and I headed back to the Poly to chill for a bit and change for the night while Nickie and Larissa made their way over to the Enchanted Rose at the Grand Floridian for a quick drink.
I mean, I don’t know why. Like, I was totally able to have a drink right in our room. Whiskey no less!
Oh that? It’s just me, winning.
But after finishing said whiskey, Owen, Myles, and I made plans to meet Nickie over at the Grand so we could do a little shopping, monorail-crawling, and grab dinner. The Falzones, meanwhile, were gonna meet up back at the Poly to lay low for the night.
Off to the monorail!
We arrived at the Grand Floridian at around 8:15 or so.
And stopped off real quick for some fancy handwashing at Basin.
Before picking up a VERY happy (translation: champagned) Nickie and hopping back on the monorail to the Contemporary Resort.
Which, oddly, was a resort we had not visited this trip. Wild wild stuff.
We were all super hungry so we tried our luck to see if we could snag a table downstairs at Steakhouse 71. The hostess informed us they were booked in the dining room, but we were free to grab a table in the lounge off the bar. Which was A-ok with us.
I started off my dinner with a cold Bud Light.
Which was cold. And more importantly, Bud Light.
We also ordered for the table to share the Bacon & Eggs (Maple-lacquered Pork Belly, Smoked Cheese Grits, Perfect Egg).
Which we have had many, many times. Actually we have been enjoying this dish since long before this even was Steakhouse 71 as this is a carryover from the restaurant that was here before Steakhouse 71, the Wave. A crazy delicious app right here.
And we also grabbed an order of Steakhouse 71 Onion Rings (Hand-breaded with Spicy “Ranch” Dipping Sauce).
And like I am not 1000% sure why they put ranch in quotes on their website since like…I think it is spicy ranch dipping sauce. But whatevz. These were also real good.
For my main tonight I went with what I literally ALWAYS go for at Steakhouse 71 – the actually-its-on-the-lunch-menu-but-if-you-ask-nicely-they-will-usually-still-let-you-order-it-at-dinner Stack Burger (Signature Beef Blend, Pork Belly, American Cheese, Lemon Aïoli, Red Onion, House-made Pickles, Brioche Bun) with Waffle Fries.
And yes, this is STILL the best burger on Disney property at this point. They have always cooked this thing to a perfect Medium Rare and the addition of the pork belly on top just adds so much flavor to this thing. And oof LOOK AT THAT CHEESE.
So good.
And that’s basically my last picture from Day 11. We finished up with our dinner, went on back to the Polynesian, and got packing for the trip home.
Alright. It’s been fun you guys. But I am honestly glad its over. This one has taken such a long time to get the whole trip out. I am just really looking forward to not writing about this trip anymo…
Oh crap. Sorry.
Day 12.
Our 2025 “Celebrating Everything” Walt Disney World Trip: Day 12
Ha. I kid of course. Writing these posts have been pure bliss.
With Day 12 being the travel-back-home-day, I figured it would just make sense to tack Day 12 on here rather than dedicate a whole other post to it. Plus, hey. You kind of get two days in one post. Lucky you, right?
Alright yeah, Day 12 we finished up with some last-minute packing and headed down for breakfast at Captain Cook’s. We were down there by 7:20.
I went once again with the Breakfast Burrito (Eggs, Bacon, and Cheddar served with Breakfast Potatoes).
Which was once again a solid breakfast option. Nothing flashy. Nothing fancy. But like, real tasty and not super heavy. And that was exactly what I was looking for today. It was time to try and ease back into reality. To move from eating an inexcusable amount of unhealthy food to a normal amount.
Of unhealthy food.
We finished up our breakfast, got a fresh refill of coffee in our refillable mugs, and went out front to catch our Mears bus back to the airport.
We got to the airport, through security, and were on the tram to our gate by 9:20.
We had a little time to kill before our flight so we set up camp at the Bahama Breeze Island Grill near our gate.
Yup. Myles and Owen walked on in there with an Auntie Anne’s bag. They spit in the face of societal norms. Go ahead and try to make them order off your menu. Go ahead.
Honestly, the only other picture I have of this meal is my Painkiller.
But that’s largely because I didn’t get anything to eat. I mean, I just had that burrito and I am trying to ease back into a 4000-calorie-a-day diet you guys.
I wanna say our flight was at like 11:30 maybe? I don’t know. I’m sure there’s a record of it somewhere but you all don’t pay me enough for that level of desk research. So let’s just go with 11:30.
I spent most of the flight reading my latest Stephen King book – The Tommyknockers. Which btw, don’t love so much. So far, in this little Stephen King experiment I have been participating in? Least favorite book. So far.
But eh, paired with some whiskey and a Biscoff cookie? Thing was a little easier to wash down.
I also was loving how Delta tells you about the different landmarks you are flying over. Like when we got close to home, we got to see when we flew over the Harpoon Brewery.
And Nahant Beach.
And.
Wait, Nahant Beach? That’s the landmark they chose. Yeah I suppose there’s not much else to focus on in Boston. Seriously, how much did Nahant Beach pay you, Delta? How much?!?
But yeah – hey we were back in Boston!
And that’s about it, man. I mean, I know I said it before but I think we made it through the whole trip. It’s been a long time comi…
Hm?
Oh wait. What? There’s more?
Jesus.
OK, yeah so in an effort to keep the trip going a little bit longer, we decided to walk from the terminal over to the attached Hilton Boston Logan Airport Hotel, a hotel we have stayed at many many times before a trip, to grab a quick lunch at their lobby restaurant, Connolly’s Publik House.
“Oh it must be really good for you to have schlepped all the way over there from the terminal just for a quick bite to eat,” you must be saying to yourself.
“No, not particularly,” I would say back.
OK, I don’t wanna be harsh. It’s fine. And honestly, when we stay at the Hilton, it’s a good spot to grab something without having to leave the hotel. But it’s not like anything worth, say, walking with a crap-ton of luggage to.
Anyway though, I did get a couple of food pics here. Like this one, of a Pretzel.
And this one. Of a sandwich.
I wanna say turkey. I dunno. And hey, it was nice to extend the trip a little longer. We talked about plans for the summer and our upcoming vacations so it was a good time. Any time spent with Nickie and the boys is a good time.
Plus, it made it easy to grab an Uber. We called it and were able to catch it right outside the hotel lobby instead of walking the maze-like series of hallways, escalators, and elevators to get to Logan Airport’s rideshare lot.
We were home at around 5:00ish and were of course greeted by these two puppers, who we missed so much.
Sorry. Best picture I could get of Lilo. She was hella-excited. She really likes us, apparently.
And now, that is actually it. The trip is over. We’re home.
And woof, what an epic situation this trip was. So many days, so many friends, so many laughs, and so many memories. Thank you to everyone that joined us on this trip. It was seriously SO MANY awesome people that made this awesome trip so awesome. I mean, let me run down the list – Hannah, Tony, Larissa, Mia, Steph, Mikey, Sophia, Scarlett, Jeff, Shannon, Renee, John, Missy, Olivia. Like that’s a lot of people y’all.
And like, that’s not even counting Myles and Owen. Who I mean. I don’t know. I feel so lucky to have two college-aged kids that still wanna hang out with us. It’s really special. I am so blessed to have those two as my sons. Honestly. You both made this trip so special for us. Thank you.
And of course, Nickie. I mean, these trips would definitely not be the trips they are without her. She puts so much time and effort and love into planning out our days so that everyone (yes, that entire list up there) has a great time. And beyond that though, I love traveling with my wife. Thanks love for making all my moments, big and small, better.
And thanks to all of you for reading along with us. It was a fun trip right? And hey – I plan on jumping right into our next series soon. Nickie and I went on an empty nest trip after we dropped the kids off at college.
And yeah, its like another 12-day trip you guys.
STOP it.
Until then – see ya!
Last post – Day 10!
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