Disney World - Day 2 (part 1)

As would become the theme the rest of the trip, Jackie and I began our second day with an early morning sprint. On this particular Friday, that sprint was through Epcot for our princess breakfast.

Epcot had Extra Magic Hours in effect, so we rose early, slapped on some sunscreen, and joined the busy queue waiting for the bus at our resort. When we got to Epcot, the doors were not yet open, but the lines to enter the park were already a mile long. We tried to find the shortest (and most childless) line, where we waited for the doors to open, and I began to panic about making our breakfast reservation. Word to the wise: don't make breakfast reservations in the parks unless they're at least an hour after the park opens. Yes, you can make it, but you'll stress yourself out and arrive sweating buckets, as we did.

When the doors opened, we pushed our way forward (or were carried forward) with the rest of the masses. At the turnstile, we swiped our cards, gave our fingerprints (I found this wildly unnecessary and very suspicious), and finally entered the park. After grabbing a map and quickly plotting the most efficient route to the restaurant, we took off for the World Showcase. I won't call it a run, but families were certainly throwing themselves out of our path (at least they should have been). We made what turned out to be a very lucky wrong turn and found ourselves by Test Track, so we grabbed FastPasses for later and continued our speed-walk/sprint.

Ten minutes after our scheduled reservation, we arrived at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Norway (thank gosh it's the second country in). Once again, Disney was beyond accommodating. Considering this is one of the most popular character breakfasts, I was concerned we'd get booted, but I guess Disney just doesn't do that sort of thing. Instead, we were greeted by a gorgeous blonde Norwegian girl who assured us everything was fine and was nice enough not to point out how awful we looked. We probably could have immediately joined the velvet-roped receiving line, but I guess Disney likes to announce its guests. So we waited about 51 seconds and then heard "Now seating the Royal Family of Ellen and Jackie." And thus our mortification began.

We booked our shame at the door and entered the banquet hall. First up, posing for a professional photo with Belle - aka the best princess ever. (There's no contest and I will fight you if you dare disagree.) She looked glamorous; we were a hot mess. But she pulled us in close for the photo, complimented Jackie's shirt, and told us purple was Beast's favorite color. Yes, all the princesses had their little quips.

After our photo, we were shown to our table (off to the side, naturally, since we were the only people there not with a table full of kids), where our waiter, Christian, welcomed us. Christian, by the way, was a beautiful man. Seriously, what are Norwegians eating? And how can I get some? Anyway, he pointed us in the direction of the cold buffet and brought over some hot dishes. All the food was exceptionally yummy, if not your standard breakfast.

While we dined, the princesses flitted about visiting with the guests. I know they're supposed to stay in character no matter what, but I'm pretty sure we got a few of them to drop when they swung by our table. Aurora stopped by first and was lovely. When she asked if we were too shy for a picture, I think she expected us to say no. Well, Aurora, when you paid as much as we did for this magical Disney experience, you bet your butt we're taking pictures. As we did with all the princesses. Observe. (P.S. they made us do those silly poses. Also, look closely and you can see Aurora laughing at us.)

 Snow White                                   Aurora                                             Ariel

Perhaps you're wondering why a one Cinderella is missing. Well, I'm sorry to tell you all this (block your ears, kids) but Cinderella is a stuck up bitch. She saw our table, did a 180, and went to visit a different group. Rude! She did come over later, but just to warn us not to lose our shoes. She didn't even ask if we wanted a picture! Well, Cinderella, congrats. You're now on my naughty list.

But I'm not going to sweat it. We got a professional shot with Belle and some fun ones with the other princesses. All in all, a good experience. I will say, though, Disney makes you pay out the wazoo for this magical experience. Yes, the professional shot is complimentary (they give you a large copy in a folder as well as four 4x6s), but when the meal costs as much as it does, it darn well should be. Just keep that in mind when booking a character meal. And be sure to make the most of it!

When we were done being embarrassed, we ventured back out into Future World. We hit a few rides, such as Spaceship Earth, but the lines were insane and nothing truly grabbed our fancy. We spent most of the morning perusing the shops and sampling sodas from around the world in Club Cool. A stop in Club Cool is a must. You may have to fight your way through rowdy crowds to reach the soda machines, but all the samples are free, and most are quite tasty. But beware of Italy! I had to wash my mouth out after that one. 

After Club Cool, it was back to the World Showcase, easily the best part of all of Disney. We started in Canada and wound our way over to Japan for our lunch reservation at Teppan Edo. As hibachi is one of the coolest and tastiest meals one could ever have, I was pretty pumped. Teppan Edo did not disappoint. We were once again seated away from the main hub-bub dining room in a secluded room with just two hibachi grills. We shared ours with an older couple and a family from Texas. Good times were had by all. Jackie and I also discovered that the mystery white sauce they served is the most delicious thing known to man. If you ever get white sauce: eat liberally. And let's hear it for the traditional onion volcano!

After lunch, we continued our circuit around the World Showcase, snapping many photos and taking inventory of all the food we needed/wanted to eat when we had more room in our tummies. On the way out, we cashed in our FastPasses and took a (literally) quick trip on Test Track. Then it was back to the resort for the afternoon for some pool time and a photo-shoot of all the cool themes.

 Canada                        United Kingdom                             France

            Morocco 

 Japan                                          Italy                                       Germany

China                                      Mexico

Disney World - Day 1

After the madness of the last week or so, I am finally ready to tell y'all about my time in Disney! So here we go:

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of spending a few days in Disney World with my friend, Jackie. She wanted to have one last hurrah of acting like a kid before she shipped off for med school and the serious life of studying and saving lives, so we threw our cares in the backseat and flew down to Orlando for some fun in the sun... and the rain.

We arose bright and early Thursday morning at the ungodly hour of 4:45am for our flight to Florida. We'd already packed our bags and laid out our clothes the night before (more like a few hours before), so we threw on our dresses, grabbed our stuff, and headed straight for the airport. Fun fact we learned: dresses are an automatic flag for pat-downs at airport security. So ladies, you may be going for easy and comfortable, but I advise leggings instead. Same effect, no pat-down. With our new-found appreciation for privacy, we boarded the flight and were off. We spent pretty much the entire trip down trying to catch some shut-eye, and before we knew it, we'd arrived.

And may I just say, Disney is a well-oiled machine. We walked off the plane, passed right by baggage claim (they picked up our bags and delivered them to our room), and got on a coach bus headed for our resort. So easy! I am a huge fan of Disney's "all inclusive" mentality. In about an hour we were dropped off at the Pop Century Resort and shown our room. We dropped our stuff, did a quick change, and headed for the parks.

First up was the Magic Kingdom. Arriving in the height of the afternoon - in terms of both heat and people - prevented us from really getting around the park easily, but we tried to make the best of it. We started with hot dogs from the famous Casey's Corner on Main Street, U.S.A, which are delicious at any point in time but particularly when you haven't eaten all day, and then headed for Adventureland. Pirates of the Caribbean only had a five minute wait, so that ride got the honor of officially kicking off our Disney experience. After that, we had much tougher luck. We ventured over to Frontierland, where naturally the line for Splash Mountain was a mile long, but Big Thunder Mountain was much more reasonable so we took our chances there. When we were half way through the line, the skies opened up for Florida's typical afternoon summer shower. We were lucky enough to be under cover, but we looked out to see a train just cresting the hill. Unfortunately for them, the ride has to stop when it rains, so they had to sit there for about 15 minutes while the rain poured down on top of them. Then to add insult to injury, when the rain stopped, the ride broke and they had to be taken off via the emergency stairs while the rest of us filed out of the queue.

Next, we wandered through Fantasyland, dodging children, aggressive parents pushing strollers, and now puddles - and determining that no continuously moving kiddie ride justified a 30+ minute wait - before hitting Tomorrowland. We rode Buzz Lightyear, where Jackie kicked my ass at shooting Zurg, and then decided to cut our losses and head to Downtown Disney.

Now here is one of my beefs with Disney: transportation between parks in an absolute pain. With a few rare exceptions, you can't get from one park to another without first going to a resort and then switching to a bus for the next park you want to visit. For example, we took the Monorail from Magic Kingdom to the Contemporary and then switched to a bus for Downtown Disney. Annoying. 

Luckily we hit all the transportation pretty much instantaneously, and soon we were wandering Downtown Disney. Since we had dinner reservations in about an hour, we just moseyed through some shops while working our way down the length of Downtown to the restaurant, Bongos. We also said hello to some Lego friends (yes, they are made completely out of Legos). 

Dinner at Bongos was absolutely delicious. As someone who is wary of any menu without chicken fingers or a cheeseburger, I was a bit concerned about finding something I'd like among the Cuban cuisine, but I needn't have been worried. Jackie voted it the best meal we had in Disney, and I voted it second best (I may or may not have been biased for hibachi in Epcot). I also appreciate how accommodating - as are all Disney restaurants - they were with our reservation. We arrived a little early, but they still sat us right away. We were also mercifully seated outside the main dining room, away from the children and band, in a private booth by the bar. 

Towards the end of our meal, we heard the first rumble of thunder and soon the skies opened again. But this was no summer shower. I wish. It was a full on torrential downpour. I didn't know it could rain that hard for that consistent a period of time. We tried to linger over our meals and pray the rain stopped, but we realized it was a lost cause; the rain was going to carry on for a while. Luckily we had a small plastic bag to put our valuables in (thanks for the shot glasses, Bongos!), because we decided to make a break for it. I can safely say we were drenched within seconds. There was absolutely no way around it. It was too windy for an umbrella, and by the time we stumbled upon ponchos, we were already soaked through. It was such a ridiculous situation, we actually laughed the whole way back to the bus stop. I honestly don't know which was worse: walking through the rain, which was at least warm, or riding on an air conditioned bus sopping wet, which was beyond freezing. Certainly one heck of a way to start off our Disney vacation. 

The storm was probably a blessing in disguise, though, because for the rest of the trip, we weren't the least bit deterred by a little rain. We got an afternoon shower every day we were there, but nothing compared to that downpour. After that, showers were no problem. The biggest problem was inventing creative and effective ways to dry our clothes, but luckily we got pretty good at avoiding the outdoors during the afternoon showers. 

Anyway, when we made it back to our room the first night, thawed and dried off, we crawled into bed and promptly passed out. Next up, stories from Day 2, including our princess breakfast and tour around the World Showcase in Epcot!

It Must Be Love - US Open 2011

Hello travel bugs! So sorry for my sporadic posting, but it's been a whirlwind last few weeks. The good news is... I was able to get to the US Open after all! Woot! I can't even begin to describe my joy. I was so relieved we were able to make it happen, and it all worked out because we saw even better tennis than if we had gone on Monday like originally planned. God works in mysterious ways I suppose.

So Monday night, when the schedule was released for Tuesday's sessions, we decided we had to be there. Between Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Caroline Wozniacki, David Ferrer, Jo-Willy Tsonga, Fernando Verdasco, and so many others, there was just no way we could miss that much amazing tennis. We quickly bought new tickets, figured out train schedules, and packed our bags. A mere nine hours later, at 6:30am, we were in the car headed for the Open. We drove to New Haven, Connecticut (about a 2.5 hour drive) where we got on the train for Grand Central (almost a 2 hour ride). At Grand Central, we switched from Metro North to the regular old subway and rode that about 17 stops (30 minutes) out to Flushing, home of the Open. Lots and lots (and lots) of travel, but we arrived just before 1pm, perfect timing.

We made our way to Louis Armstrong Stadium, where David Ferrer was in a tight battle with Igor Andreev. We watched about a set of that match and then wound our way along the concourse to the Grandstand court. I have to say, I love how the two courts are connected. It's probably the best place on the entire grounds to watch tennis. We stood on the upper deck and looked down on Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as he defeated Yen-Hsun Lu.

David Ferrer                    Jo-Willy Tsonga

Next up, we made our way inside Arthur Ashe Stadium to watch current women's #1 Caroline Wozniacki. I'm going to come right out and say it: I'm not a huge fan of women's tennis. I'm not really sure what it is, maybe it's how they all grunt or scream, or maybe it's because they just don't hit the ball as hard. I would watch almost any men's match, but I just can't seem to get into the women's side. With that said, it was interesting to see Caroline, but I had no problem leaving after a few games in order to go to a meet and greet with John Isner.

That's right people, John Isner. The 6'9" American was signing autographs and posing for pictures while I was at the Open. I mean really, does it get much better? (It does, but I don't think you'd ever see Rafa doing a M&G because he'd get mobbed.) Anyway, I moseyed over to the booth and got in line early, which was smart since the line ended up reaching the gates to the park. Eventually John sauntered out and sat down. I was hoping he'd stand so you could see in our picture just how big our height differential is, but hey, not going to complain. When it was my turn, I stepped forward and had him sign my program and then stepped around the table for our picture. It was a short exchange, but John was really pleasant, and I was excited to get another celeb-photo notch in my belt. (We also just had an exchange on Twitter. We're best friends now, it's cool.) 

After my brush with the tallest man alive, I went back inside Ashe to see current men's #1 (and most likely winner of this tournament) Novak Djokovic. I've never been his biggest fan, especially now that he's threatening the reign of my beloved Rafa, but even I have to admit, the man can play tennis. He absolutely annihilated my Irish countrymen Conor Niland, who ended up retiring with food poisoning anyway. 

So back we went to the Grandstand to watch Fernando Verdasco take on Jarkko Nieminen. Verdasco is one of my silent favorites, much like Ferrer. They always put on a show and really take it to their opponents. Plus they're Spanish, and I think we all know how I feel about Spanish tennis players. 

Fernando Verdasco                 Jarkko Nieminen

When that match was over, we found ourselves in a lull as the afternoon sessions started to wind down and the evening session got ready to start. We watched two points from Francesca Schiavone (2010 French Open Champion) because that's all I could take of her grunting, and we checked in on Li Na (2011 French Open Champion), who ended up being upset in straight sets. Then we went to the Nike booth for our official Rafa t-shirts, got some eats, and made our way back inside Ashe yet again for the evening session. 

Francesca Schiavone                               Li Na            

And who kicked off that session you ask? None other than Rafael Nadal! (His opponent, Andrey Golubev, was also there.) If you haven't figured it out by now, Rafa is my favorite player in tennis. In history. Ever. Like whoa. We got to see him practice last year, but this was the first time we got to see him in an actual match. I was dying. I don't do well when I watch him on TV, so being confined to a seat in the stadium where the match was taking place was bizarre. I handled it pretty well, but luckily he won in straight sets. If he'd dropped one, which he almost did, I would have lost it. I don't think I'll ever be able to watch him live in a final because I'd definitely come out of my skin and get kicked out of the stadium. 

Because Rafa's match took so long and we had a long trip back to Connecticut, we didn't stick around for Serena Williams' match. I was a bit disappointed, but we all know women's tennis isn't my favorite. So we headed back to the subway, mercifully got an express train, and made it back to Grand Central just in time to get on Metro North back to New Haven. Seriously, we had mere minutes to spare. Phew! That train, unfortunately, was not an express. By the time we got to our hotel in Connecticut, it was 2am. That's about 20 hours of straight traveling and tennis for those keeping track. A long day, to say the least, but so worth it. We even learned that our methods of travel this year were less expensive than taking Amtrak and about the same convenience, so we'll be repeating that next year. I guess I should thank Hurricane Irene after all. If she hadn't messed everything up, I wouldn't have seen Rafa, met John Isner, or learned what I did. And since the US Open is exchanging our tickets for next year, we're set for 2012! I am one happy panda. 

The Art of Playing it by Ear

Hello my travel bugs! So sorry for my absence, but I have been off traveling! Surely that is a legitimate excuse.

I promise blog posts are in the works about my time spent at Disney World this past weekend, but I'll ask for a bit of patience on that front as I rant now about... just that, patience. And flexibility. These are two traits rather foreign to me, but traits I am currently exercising in light of Hurricane Irene and the havoc she is reeking upon the East Coast and my travel plans.

This weekend I am scheduled to travel to New York City to attend the US Open, which kicks off on Monday. I have dinner plans with some college friends Saturday night, tickets to see How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying starring the one and only Daniel Radcliffe on Sunday, and of course, day and evening session passes for the US Open all day Monday. Irene, however, has other plans. She is crashing into the entire East Coast from... that's right, Saturday to Monday. It could NOT be worse timing. Everything is shutting down, including NY mass transit, Amtrak, and potentially even the US Open considering it takes place entirely outdoors.

You'd think I'd be pretty flexible when it comes to weather given that I was born and raised in New England, and we're very familiar with crazy weather, but I think that's backfiring now, and I'm left jaded and annoyed. I'm sick and tired of weather ruining my plans. If I had a nickel for every show, concert, birthday party, sporting event, or general merriment I've missed in my life due to snow, floods, hurricanes, or what have you, I'd be a very wealthy person.

So no, I am not willing to just brush off Hurricane Irene. I have waited for this weekend for too long to have some swirling weather system of doom ruin it for me. I mean, really, couldn't she have just hooked a right and gone out to sea? Or take a sharp left, slam into the Carolinas and then fizz out over land (sorry Carolinas, someone has to take one for the team). There is a great chance my all-time favorite tennis player, Rafael Nadal, will be playing on Monday, and I do not want to miss the opportunity to see him. "There's always next year," you say... but I am not a patient person.

Therefore, I'm working to perfect the art of playing it by ear and making every effort to get to NYC this weekend for the Open. I've already changed my train reservation from Sunday to Saturday to try to beat the storm to NYC, but now I'm prepared to cancel it all together and drive to New York myself Monday morning should it come to that. Call me crazy, but I will get up at 3am and drive the 5 hours to the city to see some good tennis (obsessed? perhaps). I pray it doesn't come to that, but weather is almost impossible to predict and right now everything is hanging in the balance. I have books, a flashlight, and snacks packed in my suitcase should I risk the odds and head to NYC tomorrow, where I could potentially be stranded in a hotel room without power. I've checked all the "inclement weather" policies for Broadway and the US Open, and I'm ready to reschedule or forfeit tickets.

What would really annoy me is if we took all these precautions and Irene ending up fading to nothing more than slightly heavy rain. I don't want to cancel everything just to have Monday dawn bright and sunny, and I'm at home watching the Open on TV. And trust me, this has happened before. I appreciate being overly cautious to avoid potential damage and loss of life, but I can't help but be cynical too. I've watched the Northeast freak out over weather quite a bit just to have hurricanes turn to heavy fog and blizzards turn to flurries.

I guess playing it by ear is all we can do in situations like these, though. Travel, as with life, is all about being patient and flexible and making the best decisions we can with what we have to work with. I hope Hurricane Irene isn't causing you too much trouble this weekend, and if it is, stay safe and dry. Also, do you think we could get a billion or so of our closest friends together and blow this beast out to sea? No? Well, it was worth a shot.

Photo Friday - Sainte-Chapelle

Sainte-Chapelle - Paris, France

This week's photo comes from one of the most gorgeous sites in all of Paris, Saint-Chapelle, which is saying something since pretty much all of Paris is completely gorgeous and amazing. I wish any of my pictures came close to doing it justice. Standing in the middle of the chapel surrounded by huge stained glass windows on all sides is truly something to behold. It's also a stone's throw away from Notre Dame, so definitely make time to hit it while you're on Îll de la Cité. There's a good chance you'll wait in a fairly lengthy line to get in, but trust me, it's worth it.

Photo Friday - Belgium

Brussels, Belgium

This week's photo comes from my travels to Brussels. I actually visited the city twice while in Europe (it's not that exciting a place, that was just the luck of the draw), and this picture is from my second visit - when the sun was actually shining, and I didn't get insanely lost. I love how the buildings almost look rounded on the edges as they go around the corner. The distinguished photographer I like to think resides somewhere inside me desperately yearns for a panoramic lens to really play it up, but a girl's gotta work with what she's got at her disposal. I also love that I managed to sneakily capture my friend Jackie as she popped a squat to check out the fountain.

I met Josh Groban, and thus, life became complete

I know I promised this post last week, but I've still been coming down from cloud nine, plus a certain surprise had to shake out first. That surprise came to fruition today, though, and my feet are almost nearly back firmly on the ground, so please allow this slight deviation in posts as I talk about the (so far) greatest moment of my life: when I met Josh Groban.

For anyone who doesn't know me, I'm obsessed with Josh Groban. I mean, it's bad. He's so unbelievably talented, funny, and kind (not to mention easy on the eyes). The man really can do no wrong. I've seen him live several times before and even traveled all the way to London to catch him in Chess with Idina Menzel and Adam Pascal a few years back. Last Tuesday, Josh was at the TD Garden in Boston for a stop on his Straight To You Tour. And my oh my was it ever straight to me.

As a member of his fan-club, Friends of Josh Groban (FoJG), I was given the opportunity to enter a lottery for a chance to win meet and greet passes to meet (and greet) Josh before the show. Naturally, I put my name in and hoped for the best, but I never actually expected to win. So imagine my surprise when I whipped out my Blackberry to take a picture the Friday before while wandering the National Mall and found an email saying I'd won (that email is still sitting in my inbox. I refuse to delete it). If I hadn't been in public I probably would have screamed. Instead, shock hit me as I tried to determine the likelihoods of whether or not it was a sick joke. Fortunately, it wasn't, and I was now destined to meet the man himself. Holy. Crap.

When Tuesday rolled around, my friend Jackie (the lucky-duck who got to tag along but in return had to deal with my insane freak-out) and I traveled into Boston to spend the afternoon wandering and shopping. We had lunch at Cheers in Faneuil Hall and then wandered amongst the shops for a bit. A little while later we found ourselves at the TD Garden, so we decided to see if they had our tickets and passes yet (supposedly Will Call, where our tickets and passes were waiting, didn't open until 5:30pm). We did get our tickets, but the guy seemed unaware or at the very least uninterested in our passes and told us to come back for them later.

Of course, this meant I was back stalking the window promptly at 4:45pm. Jackie should be declared a saint for dealing with me. Will Call opened early at 5pm, and I bolted for the window. The guy said the passes hadn't been brought down yet, but he was hoping they'd be there by 6pm. I tried not to panic as I stationed myself across from his window and waited impatiently. Eventually (or like 10 minutes later) I saw a large stack of envelopes delivered. However, he'd decided to stop letting people come to the window, so we got in line and waited for 5:30pm to roll around and Will Call to formerly open. When we got up to the window, he didn't seem sure that our passes were there (more panic), but they were (less panic). The directions said to be at the meeting point by 6:40pm, a mere 10 minutes after the doors opened, so we made a B-line for the escalators so we'd be the first in.

While we waited, we found ourselves surrounded by three of the other meet and greet winners (we were also with the girl who would later sing with Josh. Small world!). We made small talk and decided to stick together in order to find the non-discript meeting point. Finally, the doors opened and we booked it for the floor, where we found the other meet and greet pass holders. FoJG may have only picked five lottery winners, but there had to be at least 50+ people waiting to meet Josh. I actually felt a little bad (a little).

Darren, Josh's head of security, came out after about 20ish minutes and moved us further into the hallway where he gave us the rules (namely, don't kiss, hug, or slobber on Josh; don't take pictures while in line; and don't talk too much because Josh is really chatty and they were behind schedule) and told us how everything was going to work (hand off your bag and camera (which shouldn't be "zoomed into an eyebrow" as Stefany told us), have your merch ready for Josh's autograph, smile for your picture).

After a few more minutes, Darren opened the door to another hallway right outside Josh's dressing room. Before I could process it, the door opened and out came Josh. Cue my freak out. I actually whispered "Oh my God" aloud. *facepalm* Luckily, there were two groups in front of me so I had some time to get it together. When I was next in line, Darren reached for my bag, which was embarrassingly heavy (and pink). I apologized, and he made a move like it was too heavy to hold and he was going to tip over. And thus, Darren became one of my new favorite people. He also helped put me at a little more ease. But then he waved me forward... and this is where I'm pretty sure I blacked out. So, from what I can remember or what Jackie filled in for me, here's how it went:

Me (extended hand) - "Hi, I'm Ellen."

Josh (shook my hand, smiled) - "Hi." (I actually have no idea if he said this. I assume he did.)

Jackie - "Hi, I'm Jackie." (Again, I have no memory of their pleasantries.)

Me (handed him my photo) - "Will you make it out to my friend Karen? She loves you, but has never been able to meet you."

Josh - "Sure. Is that with a K?"

He then turned and looked at me, and we were standing so close, I'm impressed I was able to remember any letter of the alphabet. Miraculously, I spelled her entire name. Josh signed it and handed it back to me. Jackie then handed him her CD.

Josh - "Is on the CD ok?"

Jackie - "Yup."

He signed it, handed it back, and then wrapped his arms around us and pulled us in next to him. Oh. My. Sweet. Lord. I will never forget the way it felt to stand there with my arm around his waist and his hand on my shoulder. Forgive the detail, but he was warm and cuddly, while also firm and strong. He was taller than I expected too, but I'm short so that's not saying much. What actually went through my mind was the quote from Finding Nemo, "I shall call him Squishy and he shall be mine and he shall be my Squishy." I could have stood there forever. Unfortunately, Stefany, his tour assistant, snapped the photo, and we were done. Josh told us to enjoy the show as he released us, and I thanked him... probably about six times. He was so sweet and kind. I tried to remember to look back as I said bye, but I'm pretty sure I failed and ended up just booking it. Jackie stepped forward to grab my camera and our bags. Apparently she didn't trust me to function correctly. I can't ever imagine why. I then floated back out to the arena on cloud nine.

As soon as we found our seats, everyone around us started asking what it was like to meet Josh (our passes gave us away), and my phone buzzed non-stop with texts from friends asking how it went (I had highly publicized this meeting). My head was spinning. I was still trying to process it myself, not to mention describing it to anyone who would listen. Fortunately, ELEW, Josh's opening act (the most astute of you may also remember him from a brief audition on America's Got Talent), came on after a few minutes, and I was granted a brief reprieve. If I hadn't been coming off my brush with Grobanness, I probably would have enjoyed him more, but even with my brain operating at half-capacity, I found ELEW very entertaining. His piano style is a mix of rock, classical, and even a little comedy. He kept it light and short, perfect for an opener.

When he was done his set, I went back out to the lobby to get a program (I'd forgotten to pick one up earlier when I was still freaking out). The first station I visited had run out, so I moved on to the next one, where I was successful. As I was walking back to my seat, I ran into ELEW chatting with people at the first station. I'd left my camera at my seat (d'oh!) so I couldn't get a picture, but I almost went two for two! I returned to my seat and eagerly awaited Josh's set to begin. I was prepared for a torturous wait, but the time seemed to fly and soon the lights dimmed and the show got rolling.

I immediately turned around, knowing Josh would enter from the rear of the arena. The ladies behind me gave me an odd look as I was suddenly face-to-face with them and then sweetly asked if Josh himself had told me he'd be coming in from the back. I jokingly said yes before correcting myself when I realized they thought I was serious; that Josh had shared this secret nugget with me. Our discussion was short-lived, though, because Josh entered, and the screaming was deafening (I contributed).

We were just a few rows away from the B-stage, where Josh performed the first three songs ("Changing Colors," "February Song," and "You Are Loved"). Part way through "You Are Loved," Josh left the B-stage and hustled down our aisle to the main stage. I couldn't zoom my camera out fast enough, but he was right there! This happened numerous times throughout the night, and I flipped out each time. Bless B-stages.

Our view to the main-stage was equally fantastic; Josh did a brilliant job of making the show feel intimate. His lighting and graphics were sick, especially during "Machine" when all the lights acted as robots. Josh constantly engaged the crowd, too, even while singing! During "Alejete," one female fan hooted her appreciation, and without missing a beat, Josh raised one eye-brow in a "yeah this is pretty sexy, huh" look. I died (again). That man is so quick! He put that quickness to excellent use when he answered fan questions and invited some audience members on stage. Highlights include:

* How do you keep your gorgeous curls so nice? -- "I mix my own concoction: one part ketchup, two parts baby tears. I like to shampoo it every now and then as well. I'm very flattered you think I actually do anything to my hair; this is straight off the pillow, guys. I mean, I love you and all, but not a lot went into this."

* I'm a stage management major. Can I meet your stage manager? -- After making a joke about playing second fiddle to his stage manger, Josh invited the girl up, called out his stage manager, and the three of them had a hilarious exchange where Josh whispered calls into the girl's ear, she announced them, and we all got to watch the light cues change.

* Can my sister sing a duet with you? -- Josh asked if she could "bring it," dramatically threw down his note card, and then raced to her section, where they sang a great rendition of "The Prayer."

* Josh pulled a 21-years-married couple, a single 20-year-old lady, and a young girl on stage and brought out some inflatable couches for them to sit on while he serenaded them... with a song about cheating.

* While posing for the couple on stage, in some rather goofy and long held positions, Josh realized they were shooting a video and proclaimed, "Now I feel like an ass." He also asked what their secret to marriage was and they answered "patience." Josh would have said "booze." 

* When introducing "Bells of New York City," Josh talked about his recent move to NYC and commented on the infamous Boston vs New York sports rivalry. He rather sarcastically wished our city "congratulations" for our championships, and as fate would have it, the speakers gave off feedback. Josh ducked and then said, "Was that a gunshot?! Geez, I mention New York and boom!"

In addition to showing off his incredible humor, Josh also showed off his even more amazing voice. He sang for almost exactly two hours and included songs from all of his albums. Personal favorites included "Higher Window," "Play Me," "Machine," and "Voce Existe Em Mim" (drum solos!).

I could go on and on (and on) - heck, I already have - but I will leave you there. If you haven't yet seen Josh Groban live, DO IT! He's absolutely fantastic, and it will be one of the best shows you ever attend. He's on tour until November, so get to it!