Because I had a dentists appointment in the morning, I didn't set out until around noon. If I'd planned ahead, I would have had some swag ready. As is, I just put on a yellow polo and hoped to find someone selling butterfly badges.
Now, I live fairly close to Sea-Tac, so the commute wasn't too bad, comparatively. Ninety minutes and two buses later, I stepped off and walked north the couple hundred feet to the Holiday Inn. Man, I had the goofiest smile the entire time I was walking in--people in cosplay, brony shirts. Semi-permanent gleeful grin, alright--I was geeking out in a major way.
Turns out, the registration was at the Marriott up the hill. So, off we go in the dry-ish heat, still grinning at the number of WeLoveFine bags, shirts, and cosplays in evidence. I wish I'd taken a picture with that guy in the Soarin cosplay; he had made himself a dress outfit like Soarin wears in "A Canterlot Wedding," complete with patches and gold trim.
The woman at the reception desk pointed me in the right direction, and the people gave me my badge.
First stop was the vendors. Ten minutes and forty-five dollars later, I had a WeLoveFine bag of my very own filled with swag. (On a side note, I have no idea what I'm going to do with that bag. No amount of brony pride will ever allow me to carry around a poster-sized, two inch wide bag with a giant RD on the side. Maybe I could fashion a backpack from its plastic flesh.)
I poked my head into the autograph queue, mingling my voice with the flash chorus of "The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000," before deciding to push on to the art gallery. Have you seen the models with the Travelling Pony Museum? I was just stupidly awestruck by the detail work on
this model. I would pay good money for that. Unfortunately, I can't figure out how to upload the pictures from my phone, so you're stuck for pictures right now. (Rambling a bit: I've made one of the pictures--an interesting human gypsy Pinkie--into the background for my phone.)
Also, I loved the little Pony Fortress diorama on its own merits. However, the scenery made it even better--a water tower that looks like a jam jar, bearing the warning: "May contain Nuts." If you get down at its level, you see a jam-smothered pony poking his head out of the jar.
I peeked into the game room, watching people play Fighting Is Magic. Tomorrow, I'll give it a try for myself, and maybe borrow one of those Magic card decks to try out the game balance.
Having seen all that I wanted in that building, I headed back to the Holiday Inn via the Marriott shuttle bus. More bronies brought back my goofy smile, which had faded a bit in the WeLoveFine T-shirt line.
I rode the elevator up to the twelfth floor just in time for them to turn up the lights at the end of the
Smart Cookie screening. Kind of disappointing, but now I get to do research and find out what it is I missed. Since the Friendship Is Witchcraft panel was in half an hour, I just grabbed a seat near the aisle, plugged in my laptop, and started reading Fallout: Equestria. (Thank you, past me, for getting the entire thing in PDF format, so I can read it regardless of WiFi status.)
The FiW panel was tons of fun--The Sherclop Pones duo brought a short for everyone to watch. (It's surprisingly entertaining to watch Twilight dip the moon in the sun and then bludgeon Ponyville with a flaming celestial sphere.) We had some Q+A. If you were watching the livestream, I was the guy behind the Discord cosplay who asked about who their best pony was. (I'm surprised and somewhat disappointed that all three answered Rarity. Luna forever.) Some memorable quotes:
Q: I'd just like to say that Raincloud is Best Pony.
A: I'm afraid you're mistaken in your biology.
Q: Discord is best pony.
A: He's not a pony either.
Q: Have you ever considered a collaboration between yourselves and FlimFlamFilosophy?
A: *awkward silence* Um. We've never considered working with anyone to that detail.
I waited eagerly for the Double Rainboom premiere, only to be told ten minutes before the event that they had to cancel, due to travel issues. I noticed the time, and decided to leave as well, since I had no idea when the bus would leave.
TLDR: More fun than a barrel of monkeys. If the barrel of monkeys were ponies.