If you aren't familiar, the Monorail Resorts are The Contemporary and Bay Lake Tower, The Polynesian Village Resort, and The Grand Floridian, and a lounge is a place to get inebriated. And lounge. Put them together, and you get The Monorail Loop Lounge Tour, which was on my must do list for my solo trip to Walt Disney World.
Since my wife wasn't with me, I figured it was the perfect time to do it because Barbie doesn't drink, so I wouldn't be dragging her from resort to resort to watch me imbibe. Plus I was actually staying at The Polynesian Villas, making my commute very simple indeed.
I didn't actually start out intending to do the tour on Saturday evening. I'd been at Disney's Hollywood Studios, and was in the mood for dinner, but everywhere I went was packed, as it was one of the last evenings for The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights.
So I hopped a bus back to the Polynesian, and headed over to Trader Sams, which was also very crowded. I walked upstairs intending on checking if Kona Cafe had any open seats when I saw a spot open over at Kona Island, which is the sushi bar next to Kona, where I assumed that I'd be only able to order off their menu. I was surprised when a server approached me with a Kona Cafe menu!
I ordered the Kona Coffee Rubbed Pork Chop, which was delicious and a Lapu Lapu, which was also delicious, consisting of Myers’s Original Dark Rum and Tropical Fruit Juices served in a fresh Pineapple topped with Bacardi 151 Rum.
It was after drinking this concoction that I had the brilliant idea to do The Lounge Tour.
As I had been updating my Disney Exchange Podcast co-host Lisa Green as to my plans via Facebook Instant Messaging, I informed her I was about embark on this adventure, and she became my voice of reason. My Jiminy Cricket of sorts.
Unfortunately, like Pinocchio, I went somewhat astray. More on that later.
Perhaps my first misstep of the evening was my decision that Kona Island clearly isn't a lounge. It's an island. Luckily, a lounge is very close to that. Tambu Lounge is located adjacent to O'hana.
So I strolled over there, and, not wanting to get another Lapu Lapu, because, I'm pretty sure it's a rule that a different drink must be had at each stop(?), I started to peruse the drink menu. About this time a young lady sitting next to me received her drink, which had what looked to be a long backscratcher sticking out of it! Well, it looked that way, because it was indeed a backscratcher, which appropriately enough is the name of the drink it was in!
The Backscratcher is Bacardi Superior rum, Myers's Original Dark rum, and passion fruit juice topped with Jack Daniel's and, of course, a bamboo backscratcher.
About this time Lisa started telling me to be sure to drink water! So I did. Honest.
After this very tasty drink, I was feeling pretty good. So I headed over to the monorail stop, where I saw a very, very long line. As it was a fairly nice evening, I decided to walk over to the Grand Floridian. Is there a rule that one must ride the monorail on this tour? If so, I guess I'll just have to do it again in the future! But I digress.
The second lounge on the tour was Mizner's. This is a very quiet spot. That is until The Grand Floridian Society Orchestra started playing, and I was swinging to some jazz.
Well, by swinging I mean tapping my toes and drinking a very simple Bacardi and Coke.
I chose this option because I figured, hey, it's rum. The other drinks had rum, so...
Lisa: "Stay Hydrated!" Yes ma'am!
If you have not caught The Grand Floridian Society Orchestra, you should! They play a wide range of great jazz standards, I especially loved The Pink Panther, as well as Disney classics.
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This spot at the top of BLT offers a great view of the Magic Kingdom and Seven Seas Lagoon.
It was not very late, but Wishes was over, the lounge was almost completely empty.
I sat down and ordered a Monorail Yellow, which is Myer's Platinum Rum, Pina Colada Mix, and Orange Juice.
Lisa: "Are you still drinking water?! Don't mix too much." Me: "Well, all my drinks had rum in them, does that count?"
Well, it didn't count, it turns out, because the next morning, I felt none too well!
My advise, stick to one type of drink. A beer or a whiskey at each stop instead of several tropical drinks. Have a bite to eat in between. And, yes, stay hydrated!
This article was originally posted on The Disney Exchange Blog, official home of The Disney Exchange Podcast!
