Celebrating Legacies, Love, and Jalapeno Pretzels: Anniversary TR (Replies 6/12)

[natebenma]

Have a fantastic trip and a magical Valentine's Day!

 

[annnewjerz]

We interrupt this report to allow Jen to go on her mini Disney vacation! We're heading out Friday morning and I'm not sure I'll have time to update between now and when our flight leaves. Weather looks to be typical Florida confusion, so we'll see what we get.

Coming back on Wednesday, and will pick up the report from there!

Hope everyone is doing well!

Jen

I hear ya on the weather! I keep checking and Saturday/Sunday it'll be 61, then two hours later it'll be 71, then it's back down to like 68. Who knows! All I know is 68 and overcast in Disney is better than the 40s here in NJ at work.

It looks like a couple of our days will be spent at the same parks, so I'll keep an eye peeled.

Have a great trip, looking forward to hearing all about it when you/we get back!

Ann

 

[IheartDDuck]

Have a great trip!

 

[mkandjpsmom]

Have a Great trip!

 

[jenneth79]

Hello everyone! We're back from a whirlwind (in more ways than one!) mini-vacation to the World! Sad and Happy to be home at the same time.

Hope everyone had a great weekend, a magical Valentine's Day, and you're staying warm this week!

Updates to come soon. Debating if I'm going to do my Feb TR separate. Probably will because there were some funny happenings, even if it was for a short time! (and because I have the BEST title ever for it.....)

More on THIS TR soon....better hurry up, my next ticker is coming up shortly!

Phew. Disney overload. Is that even possible?

Cheers!

Jen

 

[407-W-DISNEY]

Welcome back! Can't wait to hear all about your trip!

 

[MissDisney121]

Hi Jen.
I just found your tr this weekend and I love it so far. Your attention to detail and your pictures are great. Can't wait to hear more about the rest of your trip.
-Sara

 

[jenneth79]

First off, I cannot believe THIS IS MY 1000th post!!! Wow, I've been chatty over the past year! Couldn't think of being chatty with a better group of people though, the DIS, truly, Rocks!

Anyway, I have some catching up to do!

Have a fantastic trip and a magical Valentine's Day!

Thanks! Hope you had a great Valentine's day as well!

I hear ya on the weather! I keep checking and Saturday/Sunday it'll be 61, then two hours later it'll be 71, then it's back down to like 68. Who knows! All I know is 68 and overcast in Disney is better than the 40s here in NJ at work.

It looks like a couple of our days will be spent at the same parks, so I'll keep an eye peeled.

Have a great trip, looking forward to hearing all about it when you/we get back!

Ann

Hi Ann! I hope you had a great time is Dinsey as well... I think the weather got better for you all after we left and took the cold back to VA!

Have a great trip!

Thanks!

Have a Great trip!

Thank you!!!

Welcome back! Can't wait to hear all about your trip!

Thanks!

I started a little TR for it, figured it had enough info to warrant splitting it off onto its own thread, but to just combine dining and TR into one. I'm going to have way too many reports going at once otherwise!

Hi Jen.
I just found your tr this weekend and I love it so far. Your attention to detail and your pictures are great. Can't wait to hear more about the rest of your trip.
-Sara

Thank you thank you, and !!!

 

[jenneth79]

Chapter Nineteen
I would say lions and tigers and bears…but all we saw were tigers and flying monkeys….

After our two “must see” attractions in AK, we decided to just walk around and enjoy the other sights and attractions. I’ll admit that without a plan we were probably a bit less efficient in our touring but we weren’t really trying to do too much this day. I’ll share a few random pictures we took here, in both Africa and Asia.

…and I just came across these two from our Safari pictures… (told you, completely out of order….ha!)

(Wild squirrel!!!!!)

Ahem…ok, back to this post…..

After wandering about Africa for a bit, we debated heading back over to DinoLand or wandering through the Jungle Trek. We decided to take a look at the Maharajah Jungle Trek and headed over that way….

I really like how they give you laminated maps to walk through with. I thought it was a nice touch and helped you know what to look out for without a guide.

We spotted some really interesting wildlife… including this dragon:

Just a fun theme that ran throughout the attraction. You kind of got the feeling after a while you’d be eaten by a tiger!

One of my favorite sections though had to be the bat house. There was a guide standing by the exhibit with all sorts of stories about bats and how they feed, move, and live. Really fascinating stuff, take a few minutes to chat with them (the guide, not the bats, though I’m not judging or anything if you DO want to talk to the bats….ahem…) Anyway, they were awesome and well worth the walk:

And perhaps the coolest bat of all:

(If you’re searching for hidden Mickeys look down when you leave the bat house…. You just might catch the picture we did!)

-------
Cont...

 

[jenneth79]

(Chapter Nineteen Cont....)

As much as this picture looks bad due to the netting, it shows just how lovely some of the areas on the Jungle Trek are (and why it’s worth the walk!)

(I think we’re getting close!!!)

Once we took a hundred pictures of the tigers (I did actually take 20 or so!) We wandered on, enjoying the murals and architecture once more….

The end of the Jungle Trek takes you through a bird exhibit, which is awesome and scary at the same time. It’s really cool to me because you are right there WITH the birds… no cages, no plexiglass, etc. However, you are WITH the birds. Double edged sword really….

--------
(Cont....)

 

[jenneth79]

Chapter 19 (3 of 3)

(I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but we took an awful lot of pictures in Animal Kingdom. Pretty funny considering we were in the park for a shorter timeframe than most other parks! It’s truly such a beautiful place though; it begs to be wandered through!

There was one bird that was SUPER loud in this area, and he was hiding up in the stonework on the top of the ruins. Might have been a peacock of some sort… he was certainly not happy people were walking through his domain, however, so we high tailed it out of there!

We then made our way back towards Dino Land, USA snapping a few more pictures along the way….

Since the lines were short, we decided to go in and give Dinosaur a shot. Mike had never experienced it, and it had been over ten years for me, so perhaps it wasn’t quite as lame as I remembered it.

Ok, it was just as lame as I remembered it.

Please do not shoot me for that statement if Dinosaur is your favorite AK ride. I actually love the queuing, the large rotunda is amazing! The ride just feels old to me. I wish they’d amp it up a bit!

We ended up heading over to Flame Tree for some lunch, check out the review in Margaritas should be a Snack Credit: HERE.

I think that’s the end of Chapter Nineteen… up next, the happiest pretzel on earth and Dawa bar!

 

[natebenma]

What a nice update describing relaxed leisurely touring in AK. As commando as my family is, we actually enjoy the walking trails in Asia and Africa.

I can't look at Komodo Dragons without thinking about the Matthew Broderick/Marlon Brando movie "The Freshman" Have you seen it???

Tigers are beautiful animals!!!

The giant bats are really cool!!!

 

[MissDisney121]

Nice update. You really take lovely pictures.

 

[jenneth79]

What a nice update describing relaxed leisurely touring in AK. As commando as my family is, we actually enjoy the walking trails in Asia and Africa.

I can't look at Komodo Dragons without thinking about the Matthew Broderick/Marlon Brando movie "The Freshman" Have you seen it???

Tigers are beautiful animals!!!

The giant bats are really cool!!!

Jimmy the Toucan!

I loved that Brando was able to not only be serious, but to make fun of himself and the movie industry as well.

Nice update. You really take lovely pictures.

Thank you so very much! My husband and I both enjoy photography, and it's often hard to tell our shots apart. Except when I get in my "odd" mood. Which means if you see a picture taken at a strange angle, it's probably mine.

 

[jenneth79]

Chapter Twenty
In which our heroine discovers a new watering hole….

After lunch, we walked around the back of the Tree of Life and took a few more PP pictures; my favorite (of course) is where we pointed out some “interesting” wildlife….

(Mike’s face is priceless)

The PP photographers were really good that day in AK, and they all offered up the extra bits of “magic” in the shots. I only wish it wasn’t quite so humid so I didn’t look like a sweaty shiny red ball! Ha.

We got to meet a fairy!

And here is where a running joke started on our trip…. Every time we did this the photographer would then say… “ok, now look at your hand/arms/the ground and look surprised!”

We learned our version of “surprised” varied greatly between Mike and myself. I think I look like I’m going to EAT Tinkerbelle in this one!

Mike and I also took a few pictures of the Tree of Life ourselves:

(this one I will have to mess with in Adobe, because I think if the light levels are fixed it will look awesome!)

And for a different perspective….

We had discussed checking out Dawa bar earlier in the day, so we wandered back over to Africa!

The bar area was pretty empty, so we were able to walk right up and make our selection:

Some cute seating as well:

I was in the mood for a fruity drink, so I ordered a Lost on Safari. Mike opted for a Tusker Lager.

It should be noted the whole area was covered, so if you’re trying to escape the hot sun, this is a great place to do so! We also were lucky enough to catch some awesome drums and dancing:

They also got the crowd involved:

The kids had a blast, but soon it was time for the parents to get their dancing on:

We stayed for perhaps an hour, but there was more fun to be had, so we moved on!

 

[407-W-DISNEY]

hi!
You took some beautiful pics of AK. We love that park more and more each time we go.

 

[photographymom517]

Finally caught up on your report!!! All of your pictures are amazing, as always!!!

I will say that I HATE bats! I really hate them! Animals don't bother me, the smell of animals don't bother me (my grandparents had a farm that I stayed at every weekend growing up!) BUT I hate the smell of bats! And the look of them & just everything about them!

THAT being said, I LOVE your pictures of the bats!!! And I actually love photographing them myself!

I keep looking at all of your pictures & wondering if I can see myself or Stefy in the background! I can't remember her exact schedule & without my notes, can't remember which park we went to each day either! (Especially since we changed things around a bit!) Hopefully if our trips ever cross again, we can meet up!

We love wandering around Animal Kingdom & just taking in all of the scenery! We usually go to the other three parks two days, but only to AK one day -- but this trip, we decided to head over to AK twice! I'm so glad we made the switch! We enjoy the paths & taking a break from all the commando touring! You really had beautiful weather on your AK day! Unfortunately this trip, we had rain BOTH AK days and they actually cancelled the parade due to lightning!

Can't wait to read more!

 

[TanzUnited99]

Hi Jen! Sorry I've been missing for a bit but am back now!

I love your AK pics - they are great and I love that park in general as it was the first park on our visit!

The pics of the two of you in chapter 20 are awesome - you both look great together

 

[natebenma]

Sounds like a really nice respite at the Dawa bar. Some adult refreshment, cool shade and a show.

 

[jenneth79]

hi!
You took some beautiful pics of AK. We love that park more and more each time we go.

Thank you!!!

Finally caught up on your report!!! All of your pictures are amazing, as always!!!

I will say that I HATE bats! I really hate them! Animals don't bother me, the smell of animals don't bother me (my grandparents had a farm that I stayed at every weekend growing up!) BUT I hate the smell of bats! And the look of them & just everything about them!

THAT being said, I LOVE your pictures of the bats!!! And I actually love photographing them myself!

I keep looking at all of your pictures & wondering if I can see myself or Stefy in the background! I can't remember her exact schedule & without my notes, can't remember which park we went to each day either! (Especially since we changed things around a bit!) Hopefully if our trips ever cross again, we can meet up!

We love wandering around Animal Kingdom & just taking in all of the scenery! We usually go to the other three parks two days, but only to AK one day -- but this trip, we decided to head over to AK twice! I'm so glad we made the switch! We enjoy the paths & taking a break from all the commando touring! You really had beautiful weather on your AK day! Unfortunately this trip, we had rain BOTH AK days and they actually cancelled the parade due to lightning!

Can't wait to read more!

On the subject of bats, I'm kind of growing to like them more. As a kid I hated them, because they had a nest in my grandparents attic, and it would be quite scary in the evening when they all came flying out!!! Plus my cousins insisting they would rip my hair out, etc....

Now we see them every so often in my neighborhood, flying about in the evening, and I kind of like to sit there and watch them....as long as they don't get too close!

I would certainly love to meet up in the future! If you're going back this year for F&W, we'll be there.

So as for the rain.... yeah...take a look at some of the clouds in the pictures... that was what was coming...and it was a doozy!

Hi Jen! Sorry I've been missing for a bit but am back now!

I love your AK pics - they are great and I love that park in general as it was the first park on our visit!

The pics of the two of you in chapter 20 are awesome - you both look great together

Hey sweetie! Welcome back! I completely hear you on catching up, I'm, having a hard time updating my TRs and keeping up to date with everyone else's as well. Ugh. Hopefully soon I'll get ONE of these suckers knocked out.... then again, they really are so much fun to write! I can admit to myself that I'm dragging it out a bit just to savor the enjoyment of Disney when I'm NOT in the parks.

Thanks so much for the comments about the pictures, as well.

Sounds like a really nice respite at the Dawa bar. Some adult refreshment, cool shade and a show.

Thanks! I find that I like the place a lot, I just kind of wish they offered non-alcoholic drinks too, though I get why they don't.