Star Wars

Galaxy’s Edge

It’s time for the blog post I’ve both been looking forward to and dreading…the one focused on our time at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Hollywood Studios at Disney World!

I like Star Wars, but I never get the words right. I’m the one who famously asked “Why does that guy have Luke Skywalker’s haircut?” at the end of The Mandalorian, season two. So I’m not really sure what I’m going to screw up looking back at our adventures at the Black Spire Outpost on Batuu (I hope I at least got that part right!), but I’m still excited to share the details of this amazing section of the park!

If you are looking for an immersive experience, one that puts you right into the universe of Star Wars, this is the place for you…it’s actually like being in a whole other world!

Our first stop was Dok-Ondar’s Den of Antiquities, because we had an unbelievably long list of lightsabers we wanted to buy before any of them sold out for the day (14 total, if you’re keeping track). I especially like that Dok-Ondar is an Ithorian, one of my very favorite species in Star Wars due to their humorous necks!

At Ronto Roasters, you can see a pitmaster droid hard at work turning a side of Ronto on the spit:

The Ronto Wrap is as delicious as it looks (so delicious, in fact, that I made a copycat recipe from the official Walt Disney World anniversary cookbook when we got home!):

We stopped by the Creature Stall, where we saw an adorable sleeping Loth-cat:

We went on “Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run,” where we took the Falcon on a smuggling run to Corellia for Hondo Ohnaka. I don’t want to brag, but as one of the pilots, I got to engage the hyperdrive!

One of the big highlights of the day was going to Savi’s Workshop to build lightsabers (if you’re keeping track, this brought our total up to 21 lightsabers purchased or built in one day!). This was an amazing experience…I had no idea what to expect, but I found it strangely moving, especially when Yoda spoke to us from the Force.

If you’re wondering how it works, after you’re admitted to the assembly room, you choose your Kyber Crystal (mine is, of course, purple). They then bring you a tray of lightsaber parts based on the style you chose before entering the building (I picked Protection and Defense). The staff there is great, both at telling the story and at helping with the assembly…some of the pieces can be a little challenging to put together (or at least they were for me, but I wasn’t too proud to ask for help!). Once they check to make sure your lightsaber hilt is complete, they have you put it into a slot in the table, and that’s where the connection to the blade is made. The moment everyone turns their lightsaber on in the darkened room is really special, and we all loved it.

Here’s a look at our family’s collection…no two are exactly the same!

We had to be aware of our surroundings, because there are Stormtroopers wandering around looking for trouble…I mean Jedi…no, maybe I mean trouble!

The details in every part of the design of the park are excellent:

We also went to the Droid Depot to build our very own droids. There are tons of options in a great selection of colors, with the base models being based on R units, BB units, and C units. You can make your droid look like it’s from one of the movies, or you can make it look completely unique (I based mine on Roald, my favorite Animal Crossing character). The building process goes like this…after looking at the day’s available options, you go to a conveyor belt and pick the pieces you need based on the droid series you chose (they give you a card that shows what you’re looking for). After you have everything in your basket, you head to a droid-building station, where they walk you through putting it together, then activate it and teach you how to control it. They’re quite talkative, and interact with other droids nearby!

This is a sample of the eight total droids our family built:

We had to wait until our last day at the parks to finally ride “Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance” (apparently it breaks down a lot). This was probably the longest line we stood in on our trip, but it was worth it…like everything else in the park, it was completely immersive, and you really felt like you were in trouble with the First Order officers who were gathering people for interrogation. There were familiar faces in this ride, including an appearance by BB-8, and we also met a new R5 unit who aided us in our escape.

It was a really cool ride, and not too scary (not even for me, the thrill ride coward), and there were so many great details…we even got to go under a walker!

Everything about the experience at the Black Spire Outpost is awesome!

I loved our time at Galaxy’s Edge, and I’d love to go back someday!

Markels Making Magical Memories–Day Eight

Hollywood Studios; 14,624 steps

We finally made it to Hollywood Studios, the park everyone was most excited to visit…you’ll see why in a minute! I loved the mid-century feel of the gates:

It really did feel like being in Hollywood (well, as far as I can imagine, anyway)!

One of the best parts of our trip to Disney was sharing the experience with a friend! I’m so happy the children got to make so many memories with their godfather!

We were most excited about exploring Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. It really feels like you’re in one of the movies!

Where else can you see the Millennium Falcon?!?

I won’t even try to describe it all now…I’ll save that for a full post later. But we built lightsabers at Savi’s:

And we built droids at the Droid Depot:

Plus we picked up a job flying the Millennium Falcon to Corellia for Hondo Ohnaka (I was a pilot, which was probably a bad idea, but I got to engage the hyperdrive!).

We also got to see Muppet Vision 3D and explore that area of the park:

And we checked out the hand and footprints by the Chinese Theatre:

Before lunch, we spent some time relaxing and taking in the sights around Echo Lake:

Our other big event for the day was our one fancy meal on vacation…lunch at The Hollywood Brown Derby. It was just like I remembered it from my childhood, and one of the best meals I’ve ever had (full details to come):

We didn’t go on any of the rides in Toy Story Land, but we did enjoy walking through it and seeing everything!

We did have a fun ride on Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railroad…and we were very happy to see that Goofy was recognized as Employee of the Month!

Another evening, another lights and fireworks show:

And a night photo of the Fab Five with their lightsabers lit up:

It was a great day full of amazing experiences!

Up next: A day at the Magic Kingdom!

Tasty Tuesday–Cooking with Star Wars

Over the last few years, we’ve really enjoyed trying recipes from our two Star Wars Cookbooks…Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge: The Official Black Spire Outpost Cookbook and Star Wars: The Life Day Cookbook. Here’s a look at the recipes we’ve tried so far…main dishes, side dishes, drinks, and desserts:

  • Stuffed Puffer Pig
  • Fried Zuchii
  • Roasted Chando Peppers
  • Cliff Dweller
  • Bespin Cloud Drops
  • Ronto Wraps
  • Blurggfire
  • Zoochberry Surprise
  • Joh Blastoh Punch
  • Bantha Milk Hot Chocolate
  • Mudhorn Eggnog
  • Jogan Fruit Parfait
  • Five-Blossom Bread
  • Eopie Roast
  • Plicated Orga Root
  • Roasted Rootleaf
  • Kyyyalstaad Fizz
  • Kashyyyk Cakes
  • Bantha Surprise
  • Rorkid Bread
  • Photon Fizzle
  • Mirial Teacakes

These cookbooks have been a lot of fun, and very useful in planning our May the Fourth and Revenge of the Fifth dinners, as well as special additions to other meals. I’m looking forward to continuing to try new recipes, and also the release of Star Wars: Everyday, which promises not only recipes, but crafts and activities as well, later this year!

And Also with You (Revenge of the Fifth)

The Jedi had their day, now it’s time for the Revenge of the Fifth! I didn’t make quite as many dishes today, but we still had a special dinner. I turned back to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge The Official Black Spire Outpost Cookbook and Star Wars: The Life Day Cookbook for inspiration. For the main course, I made Bantha Surprise (beef stew)…do you know how hard it is to find fresh Bantha around here?!?…and served it with Rorkid Bread (garlic bread dusted with matcha powder).

I made another special drink, the Photon Fizzle, and just left out the gin. I got to work with a new ingredient (boba pearls), which was a lot of fun!

For dessert, I made Mirial Teacakes, which also had matcha powder:

This won’t be the last themed dinner before our big trip…I already have something special planned for the last day of school next week, and beyond that, who knows?!?

May the Fourth Be With You

Happy Star Wars Day!

We have especially been looking forward to this holiday this year, because we’re so excited about our trip to Disney World and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge next month! I planned some special meals to celebrate, featuring recipes from Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge The Official Black Spire Outpost Cookbook and Star Wars: The Life Day Cookbook. We started the day with Five-Blossom Bread for breakfast:

For dinner, I made an Eopie (pork) Roast, Plicated Orga Root (hasselback-style russet and sweet potatoes), and Roasted Rootleaf (cabbage).

We also had a Kyyyalstaad Fizz (lemon and lime juice with sparkling water):

For dessert we had Kashyyyk Cakes (chocolate cake, raspberry jam, and chocolate-mascarpone filling):

We’re not done yet…I have another special dinner planned for Revenge of the Fifth tomorrow!

Kyber Crystals

Happy Star Wars Day Eve!

Yesterday I took a look at the Kyber Crystal necklace I bought as an early vacation souvenir. I’m not the only one who wanted one of these, though…the thing our family is most looking forward to about our trip to Disney this summer is visiting Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, where we’re hoping to build lightsabers and droids, go on the rides, and visit the shops, so Kyber Crystal necklaces are natural souvenirs for multiple members of our family! Chickadee picked Rey’s, Bunny went with Ahsoka Tano’s, Ladybug had to have Kylo Ren’s, and the Darksaber was the perfect choice for Turkey:

I think it’s pretty cool that most of us were able to find a necklace that fit us and that we love!

An Early Vacation Souvenir

I’m so excited about our family vacation this summer, I already bought a souvenir, and we don’t even leave until next month!

I knew I wanted to get a RockLove Jewelry Kyber Crystal necklace to commemorate our time at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, even without knowing for sure if they’re sold anywhere at Disney. When RockLove had their birthday sale last month, I decided to just go ahead and order it ahead of time, promising myself I wouldn’t wear it until our trip (although I am going to make an exception on Star Wars Day!). I chose Princess Leia’s Kyber Crystal, both because I think it’s the prettiest necklace in the collection, and because the words “optimism, stability, serenity” really resonated with me.

I’m really looking forward to wearing this unique piece, and I’m glad I already have something to remember our trip by!

Chickadee Thursday

Like her sisters and myself, Chickadee bought an early souvenir of our trip to Disney World when RockLove Jewelry had their Birthday Sale last month…her choice was Rey’s Kyber Crystal necklace, and she absolutely loves it!

Getting Ready

Our hotel reservations have been made, our tickets to Disney World have been purchased…we even put new tires on the van! Now all we have to do is wait out the last few months before our postponed-due-to-COVID-19 epic family vacation begins!

Advent 2021–Day Twenty-Seven

Today Turkey put the finishing touches on the Lego Millennium Falcon!

He added the radar dish:

There is also an alternate build for the radar dish to correspond with the sequel trilogy, which I think is pretty cool:

There were a few stickers in the set, including this big one…you’d think a set as high end as this one wouldn’t include stickers, the bane of every Lego fan’s existence, but you’d be wrong!

Here’s a look at it from all four sides:

And a few more angles:

The whole set is massive (no, we don’t actually know where its permanent placement in our home will be):

This was a fun build as we look forward to a big family trip next summer!