wilma-bride
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- Jul 13, 2005
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Chapter 7: An update
Sorry, guys, before I begin with Chapter 8, I must just add something to Chapter 7 that I had completely forgotten about.
On returning from our shopping trip and, knowing that we wouldn’t be going out that night so didn’t need to rush anywhere, we decided to take a trip down to the pool. Obviously, this was done purely with the kids’ pleasure in mind and absolutely nothing to do with the pool bar whatsoever
However, since we were in the vicinity and the bar was open, it would have been incredibly rude not to partake in a couple of drinkies. And, since Gary was not driving, he even joined in and had a beer.
Our good friend, Dee, was working the bar and asked if we’d had a good day, to which we responded that we had been shopping with 6 and 8 year old boys. At that, Dee promptly decided we needed an extra shot in our drinks so we got nice strong cocktails (not that they’re not pretty strong in the first place). Needless to say, our new friend Dee became our new best friend Dee
Anyway, the reason I had to add this little addendum is because it is relevant when we get to Chapter 9 – stay tuned!
Chapter 8: A Cold Day at Animal Kingdom
A bit of background: Whilst this trip was still in the planning stages and the discussion about which parks we wanted to visit was taking place, Animal Kingdom was very much off the list as far as I was concerned. Our family has not had much luck with Animal Kingdom in the past, particularly in relation to the weather. It is always either very cold or raining – or both – when we visit. Hence I wasn’t in any real hurry to head back there on this trip. However, Nat and John really wanted to include AK on the list so, as a compromise, Nat promised us nice weather for our Animal Kingdom day. Amid much scepticism from the Alcocks, I might add, however I always deliver on my promises !
So, here we were some 6 or 7 months later and this was the view that greeted us out of the windows.
The first thing we all said was ‘Great day for Animal Kingdom then’
In actual fact, it turned out to be one of the hottest days of the holiday but we spent all day moaning about how cold it was much to Nat’s annoyance. They did as well!
We were able to have a slightly later start this morning since we were only going round the corner. Nonetheless, we were at the park shortly after opening and soon heading toward Expedition Everest. Nat and I did the FPR (Fast Pass Run) while the others (yes, even Rea) joined the line. Rea had decided to brave her fears and meet the Yeti. By the time Nat and I had conquered the Fast Pass machines, the others had disappeared so we joined the line, only to reach the front and find them waiting for us. I sat next to Rea for her first ride and she clung to my hand. It’s probably fair to say that Rea didn’t really enjoy it – but, don’t worry, the feeling returned to my hand last week and the doctors say I will be able to play the piano again so it’s all good.
Rea decided she didn’t really want to go on again but we still got more Fast Passes for another ride later in the day.
Next, it was over to Dinorama where we rode Dinosaur – yes, all of us. So, how come you can hate expedition Everest and like Dinosaur! Answers on a postcard please.
While we perused the shops, John took the kids on Triceratops Spin.
Next up we had an audience with Pluto and Goofy, then it was back to Everest to face the mighty Yeti again.
On the way we realised that Finding Nemo, The Musical was just about to start and, although Nat and family had seen it, we hadn’t so it would have been rude not to take the opportunity. I have to say that I really enjoyed it, thought it was very cleverly done. Finding Nemo is one of my favourite Disney Pixar films so that might have biased my opinion, though.
Back at Everest, we rode again with our Fast Passes. This time Rea opted out and we were seated towards the back of the train - definitely a far more thrilling ride at the back, in my opinion.
After Everest, it was off to It’s Tough To Be A Bug. Obviously, we had to take the obligatory ‘3D glasses’ picture, although a big ugly bug managed to creep into mine and Rea’s photo.
None of us had any real wish to go on the safari since it just can’t compare to the one at Busch gardens so we had a general wander and took some photos. The kids met Turk from Tarzan and then we saw Devine. Nat and John had never seen her before so Nat was really pleased and we took lots of pictures and stopped to watch her for a while. She really is so beautiful.
Soon we were all pretty hungry so we had lunch at Yak and Yeti counter service.
The food was pretty good and it made a real change from burgers and chips – we were all impressed with it. Another wander after lunch and, since it was so hot, everybody wanted to go on Kali River Rapids. Nat and I decided we weren’t really in the mood for getting wet so opted to stay off and take some video footage of the others on the ride. We soon began to wish we’d gone on though as it was absolutely sweltering waiting for them. It also seemed to take an age for them to come round, every time we though this was going to be the raft it was someone else's.....very frustrating
Since we’d done all we really wanted to and it was so hot, we decided to end the day with a stop off at rainforest Café for a nice, refreshing drink. The kids had been promised ice-creams so, after despatching the girls and Daniel to get frozen lemonades, we headed for the exit, agreeing to meet them outside Rainforest Café.
We met a Photopass photographer on the way out and couldn’t resist some fun shots. (I am hoping the CD will arrive any day now so will post some of our Photopass shots in my summing-up chapter)
At RFC, we waited…and waited…and waited. Eventually, Gary went off to see if he could find the girls and Daniel. He thought maybe they’d been reluctant to exit the park, knowing they wouldn’t be able to get back in if we weren’t there. After about 30 minutes, I wonderd if they may have thought we meant the back entrance to Rainforest café (the shop side) so went off there to have a look and, lo and behold, there they were. After gathering up Gary and the others, the adults settled themselves at the bar while the kids finished their ice-creams and looked around the shop.
It was very pleasant to sit and have an adult conversation while sipping an ice-cold adult beverage. Amen to that!
Soon, the troops were getting restless so we decided to head back.
Once showered and changed into something warmer – did I mention it had been an incredibly cold day – we set off for Chillis, our restaurant of choice tonight. As we parked up outside the restaurant, we saw a troupe of raccoons scampering across the grass and up a nearby tree. We stood and watched for a little while, like the tourists we were, until stomachs started rumbling and hunger drove us indoors.
Gary and I had been to Chillis before but none of the others had and, it’s fair to say, while the food was good the service was sadly lacking with Daniel not getting his meal until the rest of us had nearly finished ours. And, because Daniel had been sharing with me while he waited for his own dinner, he didn’t really want it when it arrived anyway.
It was, therefore, quite late by the time we headed back to the resort so it was straight off to our rooms. I believe Nat may have found enough energy from somewhere to venture down to the library and read for a while but I’m pretty sure none of us were that late getting to bed. The hectic schedule and lack of rest days was starting to catch up with us all. Yes I did indeed pop down to the library for a little while. I found a quiet corner by the fire and read a few chapters of the DIS book club read “Can any mother help me”. It was very relaxing in there.
Coming soon: New rides, new friends and…is my Mother-in-Law here?!?
Sorry, guys, before I begin with Chapter 8, I must just add something to Chapter 7 that I had completely forgotten about.
On returning from our shopping trip and, knowing that we wouldn’t be going out that night so didn’t need to rush anywhere, we decided to take a trip down to the pool. Obviously, this was done purely with the kids’ pleasure in mind and absolutely nothing to do with the pool bar whatsoever
However, since we were in the vicinity and the bar was open, it would have been incredibly rude not to partake in a couple of drinkies. And, since Gary was not driving, he even joined in and had a beer.
Our good friend, Dee, was working the bar and asked if we’d had a good day, to which we responded that we had been shopping with 6 and 8 year old boys. At that, Dee promptly decided we needed an extra shot in our drinks so we got nice strong cocktails (not that they’re not pretty strong in the first place). Needless to say, our new friend Dee became our new best friend Dee
Anyway, the reason I had to add this little addendum is because it is relevant when we get to Chapter 9 – stay tuned!
Chapter 8: A Cold Day at Animal Kingdom
A bit of background: Whilst this trip was still in the planning stages and the discussion about which parks we wanted to visit was taking place, Animal Kingdom was very much off the list as far as I was concerned. Our family has not had much luck with Animal Kingdom in the past, particularly in relation to the weather. It is always either very cold or raining – or both – when we visit. Hence I wasn’t in any real hurry to head back there on this trip. However, Nat and John really wanted to include AK on the list so, as a compromise, Nat promised us nice weather for our Animal Kingdom day. Amid much scepticism from the Alcocks, I might add, however I always deliver on my promises !
So, here we were some 6 or 7 months later and this was the view that greeted us out of the windows.
The first thing we all said was ‘Great day for Animal Kingdom then’
In actual fact, it turned out to be one of the hottest days of the holiday but we spent all day moaning about how cold it was much to Nat’s annoyance. They did as well!
We were able to have a slightly later start this morning since we were only going round the corner. Nonetheless, we were at the park shortly after opening and soon heading toward Expedition Everest. Nat and I did the FPR (Fast Pass Run) while the others (yes, even Rea) joined the line. Rea had decided to brave her fears and meet the Yeti. By the time Nat and I had conquered the Fast Pass machines, the others had disappeared so we joined the line, only to reach the front and find them waiting for us. I sat next to Rea for her first ride and she clung to my hand. It’s probably fair to say that Rea didn’t really enjoy it – but, don’t worry, the feeling returned to my hand last week and the doctors say I will be able to play the piano again so it’s all good.
Rea decided she didn’t really want to go on again but we still got more Fast Passes for another ride later in the day.
Next, it was over to Dinorama where we rode Dinosaur – yes, all of us. So, how come you can hate expedition Everest and like Dinosaur! Answers on a postcard please.
While we perused the shops, John took the kids on Triceratops Spin.
Next up we had an audience with Pluto and Goofy, then it was back to Everest to face the mighty Yeti again.
On the way we realised that Finding Nemo, The Musical was just about to start and, although Nat and family had seen it, we hadn’t so it would have been rude not to take the opportunity. I have to say that I really enjoyed it, thought it was very cleverly done. Finding Nemo is one of my favourite Disney Pixar films so that might have biased my opinion, though.
Back at Everest, we rode again with our Fast Passes. This time Rea opted out and we were seated towards the back of the train - definitely a far more thrilling ride at the back, in my opinion.
After Everest, it was off to It’s Tough To Be A Bug. Obviously, we had to take the obligatory ‘3D glasses’ picture, although a big ugly bug managed to creep into mine and Rea’s photo.
None of us had any real wish to go on the safari since it just can’t compare to the one at Busch gardens so we had a general wander and took some photos. The kids met Turk from Tarzan and then we saw Devine. Nat and John had never seen her before so Nat was really pleased and we took lots of pictures and stopped to watch her for a while. She really is so beautiful.
Soon we were all pretty hungry so we had lunch at Yak and Yeti counter service.
The food was pretty good and it made a real change from burgers and chips – we were all impressed with it. Another wander after lunch and, since it was so hot, everybody wanted to go on Kali River Rapids. Nat and I decided we weren’t really in the mood for getting wet so opted to stay off and take some video footage of the others on the ride. We soon began to wish we’d gone on though as it was absolutely sweltering waiting for them. It also seemed to take an age for them to come round, every time we though this was going to be the raft it was someone else's.....very frustrating
Since we’d done all we really wanted to and it was so hot, we decided to end the day with a stop off at rainforest Café for a nice, refreshing drink. The kids had been promised ice-creams so, after despatching the girls and Daniel to get frozen lemonades, we headed for the exit, agreeing to meet them outside Rainforest Café.
We met a Photopass photographer on the way out and couldn’t resist some fun shots. (I am hoping the CD will arrive any day now so will post some of our Photopass shots in my summing-up chapter
)At RFC, we waited…and waited…and waited. Eventually, Gary went off to see if he could find the girls and Daniel. He thought maybe they’d been reluctant to exit the park, knowing they wouldn’t be able to get back in if we weren’t there. After about 30 minutes, I wonderd if they may have thought we meant the back entrance to Rainforest café (the shop side) so went off there to have a look and, lo and behold, there they were. After gathering up Gary and the others, the adults settled themselves at the bar while the kids finished their ice-creams and looked around the shop.
It was very pleasant to sit and have an adult conversation while sipping an ice-cold adult beverage. Amen to that!
Soon, the troops were getting restless so we decided to head back.
Once showered and changed into something warmer – did I mention it had been an incredibly cold day
– we set off for Chillis, our restaurant of choice tonight. As we parked up outside the restaurant, we saw a troupe of raccoons scampering across the grass and up a nearby tree. We stood and watched for a little while, like the tourists we were, until stomachs started rumbling and hunger drove us indoors.
Gary and I had been to Chillis before but none of the others had and, it’s fair to say, while the food was good the service was sadly lacking with Daniel not getting his meal until the rest of us had nearly finished ours. And, because Daniel had been sharing with me while he waited for his own dinner, he didn’t really want it when it arrived anyway.
It was, therefore, quite late by the time we headed back to the resort so it was straight off to our rooms. I believe Nat may have found enough energy from somewhere to venture down to the library and read for a while but I’m pretty sure none of us were that late getting to bed. The hectic schedule and lack of rest days was starting to catch up with us all. Yes I did indeed pop down to the library for a little while. I found a quiet corner by the fire and read a few chapters of the DIS book club read “Can any mother help me”. It was very relaxing in there.
Coming soon: New rides, new friends and…is my Mother-in-Law here?!?
.
