Who/When/Where:
Who: Sue (62), DVC Member
Holli (57), friend & co-worker
Fran (60s), cruise buddy
Dates: November 5 8, 2020
Resort: Disneys Beach Club Villas
Experience: Very Experienced 52nd stay at BCV
INTRODUCTION:
This was a totally unexpected trip. Fran is also a dvc member, and had booked a 2-bedroom villa for herself and her daughter & son-in-law from NJ to enjoy Food & Wine, pre-covid. With all the covid crap, her daughter decided to cancel at the time FL was doing poorly, and since they live in NJ and work in the school system couldnt really quarantine for 14 days after coming back from the supposedly infected Florida <g>. Rather than cancel her reservation, Fran asked if Holli & I would join her, which was very nice. But then, from my experience, DVC members as a whole ARE very nice!
Fran and Holli know each other through me. We were all booked in separate staterooms on an 11-night HAL cruise in early December, and had face timed several times. Sadly, HAL canceled all cruises through 12/15, so were waiting for the next season to be released so we can rebook for December 2021.
Frans reservation starts November 4th, but since thats my birthday and I typically spend it with my husband, Holli & I agreed to come down on the 5th. Holli has 2 days left on her park pass, Fran & I have annual passes, so we decided on Epcot for Thursday, nothing for Friday, and Animal Kingdom (Hollis never been there) for Saturday. Sunday we head home. With that decided, Fran booked Hollywood Studios for herself on the 4th. She likes that she can just walk over from Beach Club like me, shes a walker!
About a month before the trip I booked a lunch reservation for us. Since my birthday is November 4th and Im in the loyalty clubs for Landry (Rainforest, Yak & Yeti, T-Rex) and Levy (Terralina, WG Puck & Paddlefish) I get a $25 birthday credit from both. The Landry credit is good until December 15th, so I can use that with SB when were at Saratoga Springs w/Chris, Amanda & Ari in early December. The Levy credit is only good in the month of the birthday, so its basically find time to use it this trip or lose it. Although Paddlefish is a seafood restaurant, the lunch menu has some stuff Ill eat, so I was able to book lunch at noon right when they open. Its a pretty setting, and hopefully well be seated at a window with a nice view of the water. I showed Holli the menu & she found something she liked, and then I emailed Fran to let her know. Had anyone not wanted to eat there, I would have canceled it.
Holli & I do a hell of a faux concierge lounge, and well do some of that, maybe on a smaller scale, on this trip. I figure the first night being at Epcot for Food & Wine that day, we may be more interested in wine than cheeses by evening <g>. The next couple nights may be more typical for the faux lounge.
As far as accommodations, we have a 2-bedroom villa shared by 3 women who are used to having their own lodging. Clearly Fran gets the master bedroom & master bath. That leaves Holli & I neither of which care to share a bedroom. Well have to share a bath since theres only 2. I tend to be up earlier than Holli, so Id told her Id take the sleep sofa, but she wasnt having any part of that and said I should take the bedroom and shes fine on the sleep sofa. Either way, itll work out fine. Since they both drink real coffee, Im bringing my electric hot pot to heat up water for my cappuccino Ill use it on the bathroom sink if I take the bedroom, and on the kitchen counter if I take the sleep sofa.
The plans so far are:
Thursday 11/5: Drive to WDW, Food & Wine
Friday 11/6: Disney Springs, Paddlefish lunch, Pool?, Faux Concierge Lounge
Saturday 11/7: Animal Kingdom
Sunday 11/8: Drive to Gainesville
DAY 1 Thursday 11/5/20
Who: Sue (62), DVC Member
Holli (57, friend & co-worker
Fran (60s), cruise buddy
Plan: Drive to WDW, Food & Wine
Actual: Holli & I are both off from work today, and wed agreed to get on the road at 7:30 so wed have time to get our stuff moved in and get settled before heading over to Epcot for 10:30 pre-opening (it opens but the official opening time is 11). As it worked out we were on the road at 7:35. The drive was pretty easy, and we were in the Beach Club Villas parking lot by 9:30.
Fran came out to help us move our stuff into the villa, and we quickly put the food and wine away. Were here 3 nights I think we have 9 bottles of wine, lol! But, better to have too many vs too few usually we end up bringing bottles back home.
We agreed that Id take the bedroom, Holli is taking the sleep sofa in the living room, and well share the bathroom in the 2nd bedroom. I showed Holli where drawers and shelves were in the living room in case she didnt want to live out of a suitcase. I set up the laptop but didnt bother unpacking just yet.
It was almost 10:30 when we headed over to Epcot, and I learned Fran never knew about the shortcut. Holli was surprised how close Epcot is to the resort. We quickly walked through the temperature checkpoint and security, then Holli got hung up at the entry point. Her pass was coming up as needing to be activated because it hadnt been used. However, it was used in September she bought a 3-day pass and used the first day to enter Epcot with us in early September. The cast member told us to look at that as a gift, because right now theres no record of any days having been used.
Holli went to Guest Services and was back in no time, and was able to get into the park. We turned left towards United Kingdom, and were going to get the cheese soup in Canada but the food hadnt arrived yet (it was well before the 11am opening time). Holli wanted to ride Soarin, so we walked into Future World and went there. Fran wasnt interested, so she rode Living with the Land. None of us had any real waits.
Unfortunately Holli & I got the far end of row 3, so the view was pretty distorted in some of the scenes. As we were walking out the exit I checked the time and it was 11:06 very quick! Fran was still on the boat, so Holli & I sat on a bench at the exit and waited for her. We left the pavilion at that point and walked over to Flavors from Fire.
We each got the chimichurri skirt steak and took them around to the abandoned slushie place to eat in a shady spot. Everyone loved it this is so good! From there we cut through Odyssey and walked into Mexico. There wasnt any wait at the pavilion so we went inside and walked right onto the boat ride.
We continued making a loop around the countries, and poked through a couple shops along the way. Holli got the baklava from Morocco and loved it. When we got back to UK we went inside the old Millenium Village. At the Festival Favorites stand Holli got the lamb chop from Australia and Fran & I each got the dry Riesling. We took our stuff to the back section of the building and grabbed a stand-up table until one of the lower tables with chairs became available.
Holli said the lamb chop was excellent my dvc friend Jodi always raves about this too. She went up to the mac & cheese stand to get a glass of wine, and we sat around relaxing and talking. Eventually Carol Stein came out and did her latest set, and afterwards I introduced her to the others. Holli had watched some of her performances on facebook during the pandemic, but Fran wasnt familiar with her (but was impressed by her piano playing).
A bit later we got up and checked out the festival merchandise, then went back outside to do another loop around the countries. By now it was significantly more crowded, and felt really hot in the sun. We stopped in Canada, where Holli & I each got the cheese soup. It was great, as usual. Somewhere along the way I bought one of the Disney Christmas masks made from the new fabric. I wasnt sure on the size, so got XL figuring better to be too big than too small, and I could adjust the ear straps.
In France we went to the bakery, where Fran bought a couple things and I got a chocolate mousse. We took all that stuff back to the villa, which is where we headed next. The rest of the afternoon we sat around in the living room, with me updating the report as I could while talking with them.
Fran wasnt up for any more of walking around Epcot but Holli was, so around 4:45 she & I headed out. Sunset was just after 5:30, so by now it was mostly shady and actually felt cooler than it was due to the breeze. We made 2 loops around the countries, only stopping for her to buy a new Disney mask. I was going to get a piece of baklava to take back, but on the final round they had around 6 people in line so I took that as a sign I didnt need any baklava. Besides, theres still the chocolate mousse in the fridge.
We walked back to Beach Club and got to work setting up the faux concierge lounge. We selected 5 cheeses, salami, and 4 crackers for tonights offerings. We shared a bottle of Governors Bay sauvignon blanc, which everyone enjoys. At 6 we turned on the local news to catch the weather, but mostly ignored the rest and all the election nonsense that followed. We had a nice time sitting around eating, drinking, and sharing stories it was a very pleasant evening.
By 9 Fran was ready for bed, so she went into her room. I decided to take the laptop into my room so Holli could relax in the living room, but first I offered to help her set up her bed. When we opened the container of linens there were no sheets! I called housekeeping and soon they brought a set of sheets and the couple extra blankets we requested. Once we made her bed up, I retreated to my bedroom and settled in for the night with HGTV.
Today was a great first day and a great start to the trip. Everyone gets along well, and when we finally do get to cruise itll be smooth sailing. I really enjoyed Food & Wine Festival, even with the limitations, and Im sorry to see it ending soon.
Tomorrow were headed to Disney Springs and lunch at Paddlefish, then later will probably head to the Magic Kingdom area to tour some of the dvc villas at those resorts. Dinner will be the faux concierge lounge again.
DAY 2 Friday 11/6/20
Who: Sue (62), DVC Member
Holli (57), friend & co-worker
Fran (60s), cruise buddy
Plan: Disney Springs, Paddlefish lunch, Pool?, Faux Concierge Lounge
Actual: Last night it was nice & quiet, and I slept well, not making it through the 10pm House Hunters episode. I got up just after 4:30 and made my cappuccino. Id brought my hot pot with me, and set it up in this bedrooms bathroom so I wouldnt disturb Holli in the living room. After my cappuccino I texted Fran and she was up, so we got dressed and headed out to walk a little before 6. Holli was already up, and said the sleep sofa was very comfortable.
We were back just after 6:30, having walked to Hollywood Studios and back (3 miles). Some of the walkers & joggers were wearing their masks and some were not. FL rules say you dont have to when exercising outside, so we carried ours figuring if a cast member said anything we would put them on. A couple different security cast members passed us but neither said anything so I assume we were ok.
We had some of the pumpkin bread Fran had baked and brought it was delicious! Holli had taken her shower while Fran & I were walking, so I took mine. Afterwards we were talking and I threw out an idea. Since Disney had the glitch with Hollis pass and she has an extra day that will expire before she can use it, we decided to book a Magic Kingdom park reservation for today. Well be in the area, and will be able to see the holiday dcor along Main Street it doesnt matter if we do any attractions. Everyone agreed, so we got that booked.
We left the villa around 9:45 and walked over to the bus stop. Our bus arrived shortly, and we were the only ones on it for the ride to Disney Springs. Theyd just opened up, but there was no wait at the temperature checkpoint. It was nice and uncrowded hardly anybody was there yet. We wandered around, heading towards what used to be the Marketplace.
We went into World of Disney, where Holli bought another mask since the new fabric is so comfortable. I should probably get another (non-Christmas) too, but I can do it later or next trip. The selection of holiday merchandise wasnt overly large, but what they had was cute. I do like this store better now that its been redone, and like the open layout much better than the separate rooms they used to have before. Fran looked for a mug but didnt find anything that jumped out at her.
From there we continued walking and went into the Christmas shop. Fran didnt find a mug there either, but she did buy a Christmas countdown thing (wooden tree with 25 ornaments you add one each day. Next we walked through what used to be Pleasure Island (so sad), and the West Side. We stumbled upon the Christmas tree trail and enjoyed seeing each of the trees. They werent spectacular, but they were nice to see.
We ended up back near Paddlefish at 11:30 so we sat at a table outside Cookes of Dublin and chatted. Just before noon we entered Paddlefish and soon were taken upstairs to our table. The server was great, and I like how theyve redone this restaurant. Fran had the crab cake BLT and iced tea. Holli and I each had the caprese sandwich and a glass of wine she got green beans with hers and I got fries. Everything was very good, but the sandwich was hard to eat. The bun was not particularly big, but the sandwich was stacked up with way too many layers of tomato and mozzarella. I ended up taking out some of the layers, and still didnt finish what was left of the sandwich or the fries. It wasnt the type of sandwich where leftovers would work, and with being out for the rest of the afternoon I didnt want to bother with it anyway.
We got 10% discount on the food for DVC, and applied my $25 birthday credit from the restaurant company. We returned to the bus stop and waited a minute or 2 for the bus to Wilderness Lodge. Fran had never been to this resort, which shocked me. We came in through the front door, and she thought it was really pretty. We found out which cabin was open for the dvc tour and headed down there.
The cabin was a very pleasant surprise its much nicer and a little bigger than the bungalows over at Poly. The finishes are prettier, and the porch is much larger than the bungalow deck. Instead of a soaking tub outside, they have a jacuzzi. Id love to stay here, but just cant justify the number of points per night.
We walked over to the boat dock and had a short wait for the boat which took us first to Fort Wilderness and then to Magic Kingdom. I could see where theyd cleared out River Country and got ready to start Reflections (another dvc resort), before pulling the plug on that project after the pandemic started. For the first leg of the ride we had to sit inside but once at the campground the people from out back disembarked so we moved out there.
At Magic Kingdom we went through temperature check and security, then walked on the waiting resort monorail and rode to Grand Floridian. Once there we found the room numbers of the models open for viewing. We did the 2-bedroom villa first, which is very nice. After that we walked down the hall to the grand villa, which is spectacular! Id been in once before, with SB and Pete & Judy.
This grand villa has a beautiful tray ceiling over the dining/living room, a pretty but small kitchen, 3 bedrooms and a separate media room. The master bath is particularly fabulous, and huge. We all wanted to just live there forever although wed need 3 so we could each have our own master bedroom/bath <g>!
When we felt we were starting to feel like we might wear out our welcome we headed back to the main building and got on the waiting monorail to Magic Kingdom. The park is all decorated for Christmas, and Christmas music was playing. There were LOTS of people along Main Street, many sitting on the curb as if they were waiting for a parade (most likely the next cavalcade). We checked attraction wait times but the decent stuff was all too long, so we just walked down to the castle and back.
We meandered slowly, taking pictures and enjoying the sites. As we got back to the train station the Dapper Dans had come out to sing holiday songs from the upper level. We stayed for their set, as did many other people. It was a nice start to the holiday season, even though its 80+ degrees and early November, lol!
We left the park and got on the waiting bus back to Beach Club, then relaxed in the villa wed been out from 9:30 until 4:30 today. Around 5:30 Holli started preparing the cheese for tonights faux lounge.
Tonights cheeses were the cranberry cheddar, cheddar, drunken goat, honey goat, and midnight cypress. Along with the crackers, salami and some strawberries, I eventually heated up a butter chicken entre from Trader Joes and portioned it onto 3 saucers for each of us to try. Fran hadnt had it before but she really liked it. Holli & I are used to it from the Jambo House concierge lounge (theirs is made fresh before our eyes but tastes the same).
Everything was great, and we had a fantastic evening sharing stories. Its going to be great cruising together, and Im so glad Holli & Fran get along like theyve been friends forever. For whatever reason, Ive been lucky to always have really terrific people as my friends.
Fran headed off to bed just after 8, after we agreed to leave for the Animal Kingdom bus at 7am tomorrow. Holli & I stayed up a little bit longer with our wine, and for me to finish the report, but not doubt will each be in bed before 9.
Today was a terrific day great company, nice weather, and everything went perfectly. In a sense we didnt do much yet in another sense we did quite a bit. I was really happy to see the cabin at Wilderness Lodge and would love if it ever works out for me to stay there some trip. The grand villa at Grand Floridian is beyond luxurious, and Ill likely never stay there although Id love to live there <g>. Having the brief visit to Magic Kingdom was a bonus, and it was very festive.
Tomorrow is our Animal Kingdom day, and sadly our last full day here. Hopefully we can do Flight of Passage and the safari without ridiculous waits. Later well ride the skyliner to check out Riviera, since Frans never been there.
DAY 3 Saturday 11/7/20
Who: Sue (62), DVC Member
Holli (57), friend & co-worker
Fran (60s), cruise buddy
Plan: Animal Kingdom, Pool?, Faux Concierge Lounge
Actual: Holli & I had agreed Id shower first, so I was up at 4:30 to do that & get ready for the day. When I opened the bedroom door at 5, she was already up and having coffee in the living room. I moved the laptop out to the dining table, made my cappuccino, and Holli went in to shower. I could see the light under Frans bedroom door, so she was up too were all early risers.
Since I hadnt touched the chocolate mousse, I ate a few bites of that before settling down to get online. One of the emails was from my power company down home in Ft Myers about the upcoming storm. Another was from my health insurance company saying my oncologist (the whole place not just my specific doctor) is no longer in the network as of November 1st! This is a real pain, as I have an appointment next week, and I really liked them. Now I have to figure out what to do about that when I get home.
Fran decided to skip Animal Kingdom, as her IBS was acting up this morning. Its a shame, but understandable. Shes been to that park before, so she doesnt mind skipping it today. Holli & I headed out at 7, and walked over to the bus stops.
.
The bus arrived just after we did, and it was about 10 minutes or so before we were pulling into Animal Kingdom (7:12am). Getting through temps, security and entry was a breeze, and once inside the park we walked directly over to Panda for Flight of Passage. Shockingly the line was just outside the attraction, and not back to Harambe.
The queue inside the building is huge but we moved constantly and were on our banshees in no time. Holli loved the attraction! Its a shame Fran missed it. From there we decided to check out the Navi boat ride and it only had a 5-minute standby wait posted so we joined the queue. Once again, a quick walk and we were on our boat. The boats only have 2 rows, so they put 1 party into each boat.
This is a cute ride, but neither of us saw the movie so we dont know what were looking at. Its pretty, though. By the time we got off the ride the park had just opened 6 minutes ago, so we headed to the safari. We tried taking the back path, and at the end cast members said we couldnt enter Harambe that way. What?? We were right there, but it was not open for some arbitrary reason so we turned around and retraced our steps to Pandora and went out to the main path past Pizzafari and Starbucks. How silly!
The safari had a 5 or 10 minute wait posted, so we were on our truck quickly. Unfortunately, the driver/guide didnt have her microphone volume turned up so we could barely hear her. The people with noisy kids in the back didnt help, either. I was disappointed, as a good driver/guide can really make a difference with all the interesting information being shared. We did see lots of animals, including the cheetahs, 2 lionesses and the male lion. We only saw 1 elephant and no black rhino or zebra.
After we got off the safari the wait was up to 25 minutes but we decided to do it again anyway. This time our driver/guide could be heard clearly, so it was much better! Once again the black rhinos were absent, we had a couple more elephants, and several zebra along with everything wed seen the first time. This safari was terrific.
From there we did the walking trail and saw the gorillas and other animals along that path. Next we headed to Asia, and did the walking trail there. The tigers were hard to spot they like to hide. We did see one laying down in the distance. Expedition Everest is something Holli would have liked, but the queue was ridiculous so we passed. Neither of us wanted to get wet to Kali River Rapids was skipped as well.
Continuing into Dino Land she saw Triceratops Spin and said that would make her sick, so we continued over to Dinosaur. While it had recently had a 10-minute wait, now it was 25 minutes. She wanted to wait, so we did. They dont do the preshow at all, which for me is nice but Im not sure she really knew the story without that explanation. She loved the attraction though, so I guess it didnt matter!
On the way out she asked how Rainforest Caf was themed/decorated so I suggested we go inside so she could see it. She was amazed and thought it was wonderful. We decided to sit at the bar and have a glass of wine, then added an appetizer of chicken strips. My birthday credit covered most of it, and got it out of the way so I didnt have to try to spend it next trip. The chicken strips were excellent, and the coconut curry dipping sauce was spectacular! The honey mustard was good too, but couldnt hold a candle to the other. It was a nice little break, and Holli got to see a few of the thunderstorms while we were there.
We left the park and took a bus to Kidani Village, where we toured a grand villa. This was not impressive to me. Even though the Grand Floridian grand villa would make anything else pale in comparison, this one was just nothing special. It was a 2-story, and the little loft area was nice but everything else was just ordinary not really any different from a 1 or 2-bedroom villa.
We got back on a bus to Animal Kingdom, where we transferred to a Boardwalk bus (it was already sitting there and a new driver was waiting for the Yacht/Beach bus to arrive) and then walked home from there. Fran came in from Beach Club Marketplace just after we got back, and we updated her on what wed been doing.
Around 1:45 we headed out and rode the Skyliner over to Riviera. This is a really pretty resort, and I enjoy staying there its just so hard to get in at the 7-month window since I dont own (or want) points from there. We walked around outside, then went inside and up to the lobby. Both Fran and Holli really liked it too. We checked in at the dvc desk and a cast member took us on the tour.
First he took us into a tower studio, and I stupidly didnt think to take any pictures! Its very tiny, but cute and can be enough for a solo person. The fridge is smaller than a regular studio fridge, so that might be my only concern. If Im lucky enough to ever get to book one again, well see how it works.
Next we went to a grand villa, which is gorgeous! For me its equal in niceness to the Grand Floridian, although Fran preferred this one. The kitchen, living and dining room area is superb I would love to live there! It does not have the screening room, which makes it smaller than the grand villa at GF. The master bedroom & bath are beautiful, as are the other 2 bedrooms and bathrooms. Finally, we toured a 2-bedroom villa lockoff, which was also very nice.
After the tour we continued seeing the outside stuff (family pool, kiddie splash area, Bar Riva, quiet pool) before walking back to the skyliner. We had no wait, and returned to Beach Club Villas. I modified some future park reservations (flipping days), and Fran canceled her park reservation for today.
Fran & Holli went to sit by the pool and do some reading, and I finished updating the report and then joined them at the quiet pool. By 5 we were all back inside it was getting chilly out there even though the weather app said it was 79 degrees. We tried to find some local news on the tv, but being Saturday everyone had football games or other sports.
Just before 6 Holli & I set up the faux concierge lounge offerings, and put the soft pretzel nuggets in the oven. Fran selected the other bottle of Governors Bay sauvignon blanc for tonight (last night we had the one shed brough) since she really likes it a lot. We sat in the living room and found a network with local and then national news, but didnt really pay close attention. It was all politics, and it was so obvious that some of the reporters are biased. Whatever happened to simply reporting the news, without interjecting your personal opinion? Why should anyone care what you think?? People were protesting on both sides, but thankfully it seemed to be peaceful.
It was another pleasant evening, and Fran retired to her room before 7:30 she was tired. Holli & I cleaned up the leftover food stuff and finished up the wine while watching HGTV. Most likely Ill be in my room by 9, giving Holli some time to enjoy being solo out here before going to sleep.
Today was another great day, and Holli loved Animal Kingdom (and Rainforest Caf, lol). Everyone really liked the Riviera grand villa how nice it would be to have unlimited points and be able to book that for some trips!
Tomorrow I dont think theres much on the agenda, so there likely wont be much to report. I didnt bring the camera, so there wont be an album. Frans ride is due to pick her up at 9, and Holli & I will most likely leave around then as well.
DAY 4 Sunday 11/6/20
Who: Sue (62), DVC Member
Holli (57), friend & co-worker
Fran (60s), cruise buddy
Plan: Check Out, Go Home
Actual: This morning I was up around 4:30, and made my cappuccino to enjoy in bed while getting online. Holli was up and about in the living room, and most likely Fran was too in the master bedroom. A little before 6 I texted Fran and we went out walking to Hollywood Studios and back. Once again, some people (joggers, walkers) wore masks but many did not we carried ours to wear inside the resort but werent going to wear it while walking this time of day. We did encounter one jogger (in a mask) who was at least 20 feet away, going in the opposite direction of us, who shouted to put our masks on. We ignored him what a jerk. Had it been daylight and we were out strolling, then we would have worn them, but this was walking briskly with very few people being out.
Back in the villa we talked about cruises and agreed to go ahead and book a HAL cruise sailing in early April 2022. We looked at the deck plans, selected staterooms, and agreed on a family cabana in the Retreat. After notifying Cheryl to go ahead and book today I went in to take my shower and finish packing up my stuff.
I went over to Beach Club Marketplace to see if they had a selection of the new masks, figuring Id get another for myself (non-Christmas) and one for SB. They had a limited selection, so I was able to get SBs but will wait to find a different one for me. Fran left after 8:30 to meet her ride, and Holli & I headed out shortly after that to load up the car.
We had an easy drive home, and arrived around 11am after a stop at the Russell Stover Outlet.
This was a great little trip, and we all had a really nice time together! Its so easily traveling together, as we can do stuff together or not, and everyone is so easy going. The villa worked out perfectly, as we all had our own private space and we had the great living room & kitchen for the faux concierge lounge. Food & Wine Festival was wonderful, and I was thankful to have one more day to enjoy it, with nicer (cooler) weather for a change! We all enjoyed touring the dvc villas, Lunch at Paddlefish was very good, and we enjoyed that too. Holli loved Animal Kingdom and by getting there early we got to do a lot in a short period of time and capping it off at the Rain Forest Caf bar was unexpectedly really appealing to her. I liked it too the chicken strips were excellent, and the wine was more reasonably priced than Disney. The birthday credit was nice too!
The next trip is early December, with SB, Chris, Amanda & Ari joining me in a 2-bedroom at Saratoga Springs. Thats not a favorite resort, but it was a somewhat late decision and that was the cheapest 2-bedroom available. Then less than a week after getting from that, Holli & I head to Hilton Head.
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Sue (Holland) Rayford, Beach Club Villas, November 5-8, 2020
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