Hmmm... If we had a "bad" day on our trip in '06, it was at Animal Kingdom. Can't say we ticked off any parking lot employees this time around, but it wasn't any easier getting started! Grace was moody... and Caleb was sick... so I decided to rent a double stroller.... for $31.00... WHAT? You've got to be kidding, right? So, I stand in line and pay in cash, and when I get over to the place where they're supposed to give me my stroller, the guy tells me that I have a voucher for a single stroller. So, I stand in line again, and the original Disney Cast member apologizes and gives me the right voucher, and I go claim my double stroller which already has our name on it, even though the stroller guy didn't believe me that I paid for it!
And so we begin our day... with Mom and Dad... again... because everyone else in the family has conveniently disappeared... again...
We walked through the oasis exhibits and then back to Africa, where we secured fast passes for Kilimanjaro Safari and then immediately jumped on the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch:
Once there, we actually went over to the Conservation Station and Habitat Habit exhibits this time, but we avoided the Affection Section like the plague, because I have a serious phobia of petting zoos. You might be laughing, but I am completely and totally not kidding!Just as we were ready to leave I noticed Jimminy Cricket standing nearby, so of course we went to meet him, at which point Rafiki and Pocahontas made appearances, so of course we went to meet them, too. Jimminy Cricket kissed Mom, but we didn't have the video camera running at the time, which was a bummer:
We then hopped back on the train and got in the fastpass line for the Safari, which really did move fast. I got all settled in to my seat and switched my camera on, which read "change the battery pack". this would ordinarily not be a problem, but the battery pack was plugged into the wall at the house! I quickly tried to snap some pics. with the kids cameras (that don't have nearly enough megapixels to take decent pics. while riding in a rickety safari vehicle and shooting at moving animals. After giving up on this plan, I tapped Mom on the shoulder and said, "Hey, can I have your camera?" And she gave it to me, even though she looked confused that someone with five cameras (and two video cams.) in her bag would need to borrow a camera. I was conserving battery on the olympus, because I also left that extra battery pack at home and wanted it for video later in the day! In my stressed out state I took some shaky, lousy pics. of the safari, which Mom did e-mail to me, but which I have not yet downloaded... Still, I love the safari!We met Baloo, which was definitely a highlight of our day (again, the pics. are on Mom's cam., and I haven't downloaded them), and I think we saw trees having sex. Please... there is no possible way to explain this. I am pretty sure there is video of this somewhere if you really want to see it. To tell you the truth, it was beautiful and artistic except for the fat, old man that was standing near us lusting after the tree...
We picked up fastpasses for Kali River Rapids and then headed to Restaurantasaurus for lunch, where we had more typical Disney counter service fare that was about to make me puke at this point.
We picked up fastpasses for expedition Everest on our way back to Kali River and then enjoyed getting wet on yet another raft ride! We went back to Dinoland (again) and rode Triceratops Spin and looked longingly at Primeval Whirl, which was closed for refurb., and which we still have not ridden! Then Phil and the kids played in The Boneyard, while I changed Ian's diaper and wondered why Animal Kingdom always has to be so stinkin' hot...
We walked over to Finding Nemo: The Musical, which was very good. And I will probably have the "Big Blue World" song in my head for the rest of my life! After the musical, it was time to conquer Everest... but not with Caleb who turned out to be about a fraction of a quarter of an inch too short to ride... which ticked me off...
In the end, I'm not sure it even mattered, because I didn't care for the ride. It gave me a headache. And it's not like I am a coaster wimp or anything. But, come on, only a moron would go to Disney for it's coasters. Everyone knows that. Still, here's the video:
This basically ended our day at Animal Kingdom. And to tell you the truth, I'm not sure I really need to go back there... well... except to ride Primeval Whirl... As Disney Magic goes, Animal Kingdom is just OK...
We made a quick stop at the house for batteries and at Chick-Fil-A for dinner.
From there, we went back over to Epcot again (yeah... believe it or not), where we hit Character Spot in order to meet the classic Disney characters we had not yet seen on this trip:
Phil, the kids, and I then set up camp with leaking glow sticks (that turned Ian's hair a fluorescent purple color) and premium Mickey Mouse ice cream bars (that Caleb ate this time around, but Ian wouldn't touch). By the way, I really enjoyed telling the guy at the ice cream cart that all six bars were for me! We scoped out an area of prime real estate for the Illuminations show and waited there for an hour and a half, warding off other spectators who hoped to take our spots. And finally, the rest of our family showed up... which was a good thing, because it isn't easy to save that much space!We saw Illuminations together, and to tell you the truth, I thought it was pretty good, but not the amazing show that everyone seems to rave about. I guess I'm just partial to Wishes, though. Afterward, we has somebody take a quick pic. of us all in front of Spaceship Earth. Unfortunately, there were no Photopass photographers in sight, so this picture is just alright... not the shot I'd really hoped for:
Oh... please take note of my flashing Mickey Mouse ears. Those were really fun!
And thus ended the part of our vacation with everyone there in Florida.
Lisa
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