Have you ever had a "It's a small world" experience at WDW?

[goofyrn13]

We were coming back from one of the parks in July 99 on the bus to DXL.We were talking to the couple next to us when the bus driver overheard where we from.Come to find out he once was members of our church and used to run a small travel agency in our home town.He moved to Orlando and worked for Disney transportation and was hoping to do something in the travel industry in Orlando.I hope he made it.He seemed like a nice guy.

 

[lmack6654]

This happened to us. I found out the day before I left for WDW that someone I knew would be there at the same time. We happened to run into each other at the busy intersection were TOT, RNR, and the bathrooms all meet together. We stopped and talked for a few minutes. On a previous trip, I was standing in line to order lunch and began talking to the man next to me. I soon found out that he lived about five miles away from me. Very small world!

 

[Mike]

Some of these stories reminded me of another experience that we had on another trip. Although we did not know these people, we ran into them several times. Again, they were seated next to us at Chef Mickey's. It was just a mom and her little girl. The little girl and my daughter became very friendly. In fact, by the end of dinner, my daughter was sitting at their table eating dessert.
Well I'd say over the course of the next week, we ran into them at least 5 times. We were sitting on the curb at MK waiting for the parade and we hear the girl calling my daughter's name. They were seated right across the street from us. A couple of nights later at Fantasmic, they were two rows behind us. Still another night at McDonald's at DTD, she casually walked by our table and said "Hi Jennifer" like she was expecting to see her. They were on the same Safari truck as us at AK. We saw them at MK at the sword in the stone ceremony.
It was really bizarre. It was as if she got a hold of my schedule. They were right in synch with us. I was beginning to think they were CIA and they were on to me

 

[carene]

Mike...........

The little girl and my daughter became very friendly. In fact, by the end of dinner, my daughter was sitting at their table eating dessert. Well I'd say over the course of the next week, we ran into them at least 5 times. We were sitting on the curb at MK waiting for the parade and we hear the girl calling my daughter's name. They were seated right across the street from us. A couple of nights later at Fantasmic, they were two rows behind us. Still another night at McDonald's at DTD, she casually walked by our table and said "Hi Jennifer" like she was expecting to see her. They were on the same Safari truck as us at AK. We saw them at MK at the sword in the stone ceremony.
It was really bizarre. It was as if she got a hold of my schedule. They were right in synch with us. I was beginning to think they were CIA and they were on to me

Do the kids still keep in touch??

Carene

 

[sha_lyn]

This always happens to DS.2 yrs ago during our spring break,at US he saw 2 girls from his class.
Then on our last day there we were at IOA. Previous to leaving the mom of one of DS's friends ask me to pick up park maps for her. Theywere planning on going to IOA/US that summer. Well they were suppose to be at the beach that week, but somthing happened with the time share so they drove over to Orlando the night before. We spent the rest of the evening together.

Then last yr at City walk DS ran into a friend he had attended school with 2 yrs before.

 

[hightown]

My story happened on arrival in Orlando. We deplaned and headed down to baggage looking for town car driver. I spotted him holding sign with my name and went up to him. There was a man standing next to him and after talking with the town car driver, glanced over and it was a friend I hadn't seen in 6 years who lives in Phoenix! I was so shocked and it was so nice getting a nice big hug on arrival by an old friend.

The flight originated in Phoenix and he was on it in first class. He headed down to baggage and would have been long gone had he not seen my last name on a sign--a semi unusual name. He figured with the flight in from Denver and my name on the sign, he just had to wait and see.

He was attending a business conference at the Contemp. and we were at W/L.

It's a small world after all.

Sharon

 

[treesinger]

This past week we were in MK and alked right by my cousin and his family who were on vacation as well. They called out to us, but we never heard them because it was so crowded. BIG spring break week.
Anyway, we got on the ferry to leave and, wouldn't yu know, we were standing 20 feet from them!! We had no idea we were going the same time. We live in the same county 1000 miles from WDW! And we ran into each other twice!

 

[katerkat]

We've bumped into people we know several times. But my favorite...

When I worked there, I lived next to Ben. Turns out Ben's best friend, Lee, went to the Virginia Military Institute. Huh, funny, that was the college right next to mine, and I knew a lot of cadets. Well, it turns out that Lee was roommates for three years with my stand-in-date-friend. (Whenever I didn't have a date to a function, I took Ryan. He's great!) Really freaky.

 

[barbeml]

We were taking the boat from POFQ to Downtown Disney. The "captain" asked us where we were from and we said New Jersey. He then asked where everyone else was from--all of them said New Jersey! Most of us lived within a 25-mile radius.

 

[katerkat]

Originally posted by barbeml
We were taking the boat from POFQ to Downtown Disney. The "captain" asked us where we were from and we said New Jersey. He then asked where everyone else was from--all of them said New Jersey! Most of us lived within a 25-mile radius.

By any chance -- was that during Jersey Week?

 

[barbeml]

Nope, not Jersey week.

 

[merryweather's twin]

We were down for a computer covn. in the CR and we(kids and I) had headed to MK to meet my DH who was skipping out on the last night of the conv. to spend more time with me and the kids.... Well he met me in front of the castle and he went around the island in the middle to get a clear shot of the castle when walsing down Main street toward me and the kids was his company's CEO! He was on vac with his family and had no idea that the conv was even that week. Thank goodness the conv let out early that day we later found out. DH has never tried that agian.

 

[Mike]

Originally posted by carene
Mike...........

Do the kids still keep in touch??

Carene

Hi Carene,

Strangely enough, we never did exchange information with them. The first couple of times it was just a cute interaction - I didn't think much of it . The last few times I guess I was so surprised that we actually saw them again that I wasn't thinking clearly.


Mike

 

[Ajax]

In '99 my DW, DD & I checked into POFQ and headed for the bus stop for the MK. The first two people to step off the bus were my sister-in-laws niece and her husband. The next day we ran into one of my wifes' customers in the R&R line at MGM.

After that we saw no one else we knew, so we could act as silly as we wanted to!

 

[Tarheel Tink]

My DH works at Lowes Home Improvement here in NC. One day at work a woman with a small girl was there and the little girl kept looking at DH. Finally she said "Mommy! I saw him at Disney World!". Her mother just rolled her eyes but DH said "When were you there?".
The woman said "Uh, December." (This was summertime). DH told her we WERE there the same week as they had been! When he told me this, I asked him what on earth he had been doing at Disney World that made the little girl remember him 7 months later, but who knows the way we act when we are there, LOL!

 

[donna in Oz]

No "small world" stories, but this is an entertaining thread!!

Just makes me wonder why, since it seems so common to run into people you know, that it's such a rare occurrence to see someone with a lime-green ribbon, even when you're LOOKING for them !!

 

[jeffemy]

This is a cute thread! On three different trips we saw people from home. 1st - on our honeymoon, my DH saw a friend from college. 2nd- during the 25th anniversary celebration(talk about CROWDS!!) we saw the same family, friends from our DS's school on three different occassions at three different parks totally by chance.We were at MK during EE, than at Epcot eating lunch at the Land. and finally BB. We all agreed that was a little uncanny! And 3rd- I saw my hairdresser last June at DTD. I never see so many familiar faces while home running errands as we did over 900 miles away!

 

[Tess]

Last year we staked out our spot for Spectromagic. Soon after this large family group starts to arrive and seats themselves in front of us (we were on the brick ledge between Liberty Square/Frontierland and they sat on the ground behind the rope). Suddenly these two boys arrive along with their mother--low and behold--they were two kids from our kids' small parochial school (we're talking a school K-6 of 100 students). We live in a town of about 2,000 give or take a hundred.

The year before that we were walking through tomorrowland when my husband spots a family from our town entering the Grand Prix Raceway. The whole family was surprised to see us as well--both guys coach soccer and the kids know one another as well.

Another time we had drinks at Jellyrolls with a former co-worker of my husband. The co-worker and his wife just happened to be in WDW at the same time and we don't keep in touch any longer--we've moved from the area.

Finally, my husband and I were at WDW without kids one October. We were poolside at BWI and struck up a conversation with another gentleman. We got around to where we were from and how we arrived there, etc., etc., and we found we had a mutual acquaintance from our former city. The guy we were talking with was the acquaintance's high school and still friend.

It seems that nearly every time we go on vacation we see someone we know. . .The strangest thing is my husband's brother lives a mere 2 hours from WDW and NEVER bothers to hook up with us while we are there! Go figure. . .

 

[NJmouse]

about 3 yrs ago me my DH and my SIL were fighting the afternoon parade crowd trying to leave the park before the parade started and I kept hearing my name all of a sudden a girl I know was standing if front of me we barely got to say hi she was pushed toward the castle and my group was pushed toward the train station. This was the first day we were there and we never bumped into each other again the rest of the trip.

 

[B&WMickey]

This past December my wife and I were watching the MVMCP parade on MS. I was wearing a red University of Wisconsin sweatshirt. During the parade there was a marching band that was playing a Christmas carols. Suddenly I realized one of the trombone players had broken from the group and was headed right at me. He had suddenly broken into a version of “On Wisconsin”. As he passed he shouted out that he was a UW alum.