My Happy Place

This week I am visiting Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida with my mom and brother.  This is without a doubt my favorite place on the planet, and there's nothing I'd rather do than spend my days surrounded by this magic.

We arrived at our hotel, Disney's Pop Century, around noon on Friday.  We have stayed here for each of our trips and I love the decade theme.  We've stayed in a different decade each time, and Pop has never disappointed us.  One day before we leave I plan to walk around our hotel, as well as Art of Animation across the lake, and take pictures of it all.

For lunch on Friday we walked over to brand new Art of Animation and ate at Landscape of Flavors.  This is my first Disney trip since becoming aware of my gluten-intolerance so I was a bit nervous about the food.  I did my research and heard that Disney is the best place to travel for food allergies, but I still didn't really know what to expect.  My first gluten-free dining experience with Disney was AMAZING.  The chef came out to explain every item on the menu I could eat and every item he could modify for me.  He took my order, showed me a binder that listed every ingredient in the food I chose, went back to cook it, and personally brought it to me so there was no chance of cross contamination.  He took his time explaining everything and did it with a smile, so I didn't have to feel guilty for inconveniencing anyone like I usually do when I dine out.  I had a chicken burger on a gluten-free bun with fries and chocolate gelato that was really delicious. 

That afternoon we went to Epcot.  We went on Soarin', which is my mom's all-time favorite ride, Spaceship Earth, and Living with the Land.  It was raining for awhile so Test Track was down, unfortunately. 

We ate at Sunshine Seasons for dinner and I discovered that their grill section is dedicated gluten-free!  I had salmon topped with a yummy tomato concoction and served with green beans and roasted potatoes.  My dessert options were creme brulee or rice pudding.  I couldn't wait to try the creme brulee but they had just run out, so I tried the rice pudding.  I don't think I'd get it again, but everything else was excellent. 

We crashed early that night because we had taken the red eye from Oregon, but our trip was off to a great start.  I haven't had time yet to journal everything yet, but it'll have to wait.  It's getting very late and tomorrow is HARRY POTTER!!!  Tomorrow we are off to Universal Studios!  Goodnight friends and Disney fans, see ya real soon!