Let the countdown begin!

[mellymell]

I now have 1 year, 6 months, and 10 days to have Celeborn fully ready to spend a 4 day holiday at The Shire.

I am registered. I have the same rooms secured (East Family Wash House). We are go for ALEP2.

Comments

[lordofhaladin.livejournal.com]

where can I register?

[mellymell.livejournal.com]

Site will go open to the public this weekend. I'll post up a link when it does.

[lordofhaladin.livejournal.com]

okay yay! thanks, I really am upset I didn't get to go to the last one. could you tell how much (round about) it will be?

[mellymell.livejournal.com]

It is $350 for the four days plus the cost of lodging (which is rather reasonable if you room with people, especially compared to Dragon*Con room prices, if I remember right). An $85 deposit is due within 30 days of your registration, then the remaining balance ($265) due by Sept. 15th 2011. They've set it up this time so that if you use a credit card, you can opt for 5 monthly payments.

The cost includes all of your meals, access to all the village has to offer (demonstrations and exhibitions), plus all of the special panels/classes/lectures/etc. that are going on just for the ALEP participants. Also, there's a riverboat cruise included.

[lordofhaladin.livejournal.com]

that is pretty good. and its thursday through sunday? or friday through monday? (how much time off school can I take considering very close to D*C) yes i am bugging you with a ton of questions. ;p

I *really* want to go!!!

[mellymell.livejournal.com]

Actually, it's Wednesday through Sunday this time (Sept 28th-Oct 2nd) which I guess is technically 5 days. But in 2008, on Sunday, we pretty much got up, packed and left by lunch time or so. I think breakfast is the only meal included that day, if I remember right. And apart from a showing of the trilogy, there weren't any events. You can do a la carte days as well, if for some reason you can't make it for the whole thing.

But once you register, I would book your room quickly thereafter. There's not a ton of space at the Village itself and I think there's going to be a bigger response this time. They're making info available for off-site lodging, which is not something they did last time.

I'm putting my all into making it to D*C this year because with ALEP 2 next year, I'm not sure I could pull off the two events in basically the span of one month. My reasons are financial mostly, but also and in terms of child care. I want to keep Chris from having to take time off to stay home with Jonah and not overburden my in-laws with keeping him too much as well.

Bug away! I'm happy to answer them. It's one of the few events I have experience with. D*C=deer in headlights. ALEP=all good. ;) I'll check and see if I can share the link tomorrow. Then you can get on the forums and bug others about it. :P

[lordofhaladin.livejournal.com]

oh okay, so I could even leave sat night and tech not miss much (except a cool night with my buds!).

I *really* hope you can come to D*C this year, it would be nice to meet you in person, lol.

okay, so how many costume changed did people typically do? and is the con actually held outside or at a building? (how far in case I bring costume changes)

thanks for answering! if you need to ask about D*C I'm always here! I really really want to go! how quick do rooms book for this do you think? I knwo for D*C they book in 10 mins of opening.

[mellymell.livejournal.com]

Well, if I were you and wanted to cut it short, I'd skip the front end day. The big event is the final night.

For D*C, I have a room at the Hilton and it looks like as of today, I have room mates. I might not have any new costumes, but I am definitely doing everything in my power to get there. As long as nothing stupid happens between now and then, I should be good. *knocks on wood*

Honestly, a lot of the participants weren't really costumers and only wore costumes because it was so enthusiastically encouraged (to maintain that "lost between the pages" feel of the event). There were several that donned the same costumes everyday because they maybe only had one costume for it or they chose to stick to one character. Those that changed more often seemed to either stick to one costume a day or they'd wear one during the day and change for the special events at night.

Also, there's a lot of down time and plenty of time to leisurely do what you want and still get to where you want to go (i.e. plenty of time for costume changes, heh). You might not want to attend every panel and since there are only a couple going on at once, you'll have some free time. I even fit in a run last time. It's so much more laid back than any other con schedule I've ever seen.

Here's a map of the grounds. Most of the panels are indoors, but there's walking between buildings and to where the events are. We had/have one of the farthest houses from the panel locations and such (I think), but I never felt overwhelmed by the walking. A few of the panels and night events are outdoors, though.

As for the rooms, I think last time there were still some available for people that came in and paid at the door. I could be wrong, though. This time around, I expect there to be a bigger interest. I don't expect it to sell out in minutes, or even days or weeks necessarily (but there again, I could be wrong). But it's best, if you're sure you're going, to snag your spot while there's still a good choice of rooms.

And, without further ado, the site is http://www.alep2.us/ Click on the register button and fill out the info. The confirmation email you'll get will give you info on how to book your room (you have to call the village to book, since they've blocked all the rooms for ALEP). When I booked ours, nothing was charged to my card. She said they might do a first night's deposit later, but they'd contact me beforehand and to update card info and such (since my card will expire before the event).

[arymetore.livejournal.com]

Master Bilbo is saying about a third of the available spots are already registered. ALEP had a limit of 144 for registration (the number invited to the 111th birthday party of Bilbo). This event is likely to be bigger since word has spread of the original, but I think they are still putting a cap on the overall number.

The big event is definitely Saturday night so certainly don't want to miss that. Check out the schedule on the ALEP2 site.

Costuming is pretty casual, though it should be something slightly more geared towards the outdoors and preferrably something that might fit into Middle Earth. I got away with just what I would typically wear to a Ren Faire :) Also, if you wear a particular type of costume, you might get pulled into the fun (if you are willing). Such as elves backing up Lord Elrond, rangers providing escort for nightly group walks, and other things to help one get into the spirit. Hehe, I still remember the rush of the half dozen or so rangers during the ghost dare :P Also, we're going to be in a restored Shaker village that has it's own business of tours (which we can go along on if desired), though at night the village is solely ours (excepting the ghosts).

Speaking of costumes... Witchcat is considering developing a costume that involves a basket of stuffed cats ;) I at least will need to do some research on her proposed character as I don't remember her (I'm thinking 1st or 2nd Age?).

[mellymell.livejournal.com]

She mentioned the basket of cats costume last Saturday while I was over. I wasn't familiar with the character either (one of the queens of Gondor?), but certainly sounds like a fun (and insane) character to portray! ;)