Kick'n It at Kidani (aka Am I Becoming a Resort Snob?)Final Update 8/20 p.54

[MEK]

I wasn't expect LJ to have the rash, I don't know why but I thought it was going to be your DS. Poor kid! He seems like such a mellow kid and takes everything in stride. Did your SIL panic when you called her?

Loving all the pictures, it is a truly beautiful resort!

It would have been better if it had been one of the teens, then I would not have lost any park time! My SIL took it all in stride.

You know - I am posting all those extra Kidani pics for you, cause I know you are going to buy there - someday!

Beautiful pictures!!! I am so excited about staying there in September!!

Bummer about LJ's rash, but I'm glad it wasn't more serious! How cool he got to make his own pin!! I bet he enjoyed the foosball too!!

Looking forward to more!! Happy 4th of July!

I want everyone who's going to AK in the near or distant future to get their fill of pics!

You know - LJ treated his "homemade" pin the same as any of the "real" pins he ended up purchasing. That's what I liked about him. He didn't think something was better just cause it cost more. He displayed all his pins with equal pride!

I have read this from the very beginning and I am loving it. We just bought at AKV and our first trip is 10/28-11/06. DH and I do not have children so we are doing a studio with SV. I am a nurse too. I am a certified wound, ostomy and continence nure---woo hoo for pee, pus and poop. So the Derm nursing I love....hearts freak me out unless it is a sternal or saph harvest site wound....OK moving on..

I especially loved the great pic of the pool with the bald headed guy in it. That could be my DH. He is completely bald and pooh sized--so a mirror image of your pool man. I am trying to convince him to bring a suit on our trip...so I showed him what he would look like in the pool....he grinned and thought that was funny. Can't wait for more...loving your trip report!!

Hi ToddyLu - Welcome - and just for the record, I have always liked every ostomy/wound care nurse I have ever met, so I know we will be great friends. Seriously, I think you guys are awesome! You all really know your stuff. It makes my job as an NP soooooooo much easier. We have an excellent wound care nurse at our hospital. If I see anything even the least suspicous in follow-up clinic, I call and she comes right over. her!Who else would do that?

About your DH. I'll have to go back and look at the picture. I am glad your DH has a sense of humour. Mine does too. That's why I don't feel bad about posting gnome pictures of him courtesy of Paula!

You biked 16 miles on a whim?? That is impressive! Isn't it fun re-discovering old favorites?

I am giggling picturing your quest for coffee. That manager must have been surprised to see you!

Poor LJ and the rash. I'm glad his mom was so calm. Based on them finding a way to get to the gate at the airport (which I never knew you could do!) I would have thought she might hop on the next plane! Hope he felt better quickly.

Yeah - the bike ride was a bit of a whim, but I do have a nice racing bike so it's not as impressive as it sounds.

I'm glad you got a chuckle out of my coffee hunt. The next day I got smart and made the coffee before I went to bed.

LJ's mom was cool about the rash. I guess with four boys she's seen lots of rashes!

 

[MEK]

I wish we weren't missing you . Unfortunately, September was not working out date-wise for me -- Connor's birthday, rooms not available...

Since I won't be seeing anyone down there, I am consoling myself with all the food I will be eating!

That's awesome! How are your arms feeling this morning?

Good! surprisingly good after my death grip!


I would have felt foolish, too, but hey, for coffee, you do what you have to do.

I know all the caffiene addicts must understand where I was coming from




You got some great pictures without strangers cluttering them up!

Thanks. I am so amazed at the quality of the art work!


Poor LJ with the rash. That's no fun!

He handled himself like a champ. Not one complaint!

I will say that I was so impressed with all of the activities available at AKL -- we didn't even manage to do all the ones I wanted to either -- yet another reason to stay there again!

I know - I really wanted to do the nighttime animal viewing with the goggles and we never got around to doing it! [/COLOR]

Caught up!

Awesome finish to MK! the park just takes on a whole new magic at night and I spectro, what a happy accident!

Your poor son's leg and LJ with a rash Sometimes a quiet day makes for a pleasant vacation, just not at the beginning of the trip.

If I needed to have a quiet day anywhere, at least it was at AK. I just couldn't soak in even of the ambiance. I need to find the music sound track to play at home when I am having a bad day. Or any day, for that matter!

 

[LOVEMY3KIDDOS]

Just happened upon your tr beacause we are staying at kidani in dec. So wanted to check it out! Subbing! Can't wat to hear more to keep me grounded til I go!

 

[MEK]

Just happened upon your tr beacause we are staying at kidani in dec. So wanted to check it out! Subbing! Can't wat to hear more to keep me grounded til I go!

Welcome LOVEMY3:

You will love Kidani! It's so beautiful and I bet they have great decorations at Christmas!

I bet the weather is nice in the Poconos today!

Hope you keep following along!

 

[MEK]

When I left off I was missing my pictures of Sanaa. Well, I found them. For some reason they did not upload to Photobucket. For some other reason, ALL my pictures are terribly out of order on my computer. I am trying to upload them to photobucket according to day. This is going to make day 4 and so on, very difficult since they are strewn everywhere. Bummer.

So, here's Sanaa......

This place looked so cool that I instantly wanted to it there. I still do, but I am going to wait for a longer trip. I considered going in September, but I prefer to eat at places where I can leave quickly and go to a park. Also - if for some reason we decide NOT to rent a car, I wanted easy transportation.

Here is some more artwork......

By the time LJ and I had visited the gift shop and gone to community hall it was probably about 11am. I did give LJ fruit and a crossiant for breakfast, but I figured he might be hungry. Same as yesterday - the answer was "Yes". I think LJ needs something more than carbs for breakfast! I suggested that we go over to the Jambo house and get food at the Mara. DH, LJ, DS14, and I decided to drive over. DS16 and his friend were going to the health club and then the pool. DS16 was sternly warned NOT to use any equipment that exercised his legs - arms and abs only!

Here was Timon in the parking garage:

Here is LJ enjoying lunch - pizza, me thinks!

I like the ordering system at Mara. I think it helps move people through the line faster. I wish I could remember exactly what I had, but I can't. It was sometime of turkey sandwich. I'm pretty sure DS got a flat bread and I don't remember what DH got. Everything was really good. If I had to be stuck inside today, at least I got decent counter service!

Look..... a Hidden Mickey!

The zebra domes were so good. Before I visited the Mara I thought you could only get them at Boma. I was so excited to see they could be found elsewhere! My only complaint about zebra domes is they are not particularly resistant to the heat! And they are not quite as pretty after they melt and refreeze!

We ate in doors, but we wandered out to the pool area to sit in the shade and take pictures.

Hmmmmm....what is DH doing?

One thing I really like about the pool at the Jambo house is that it's so shaded. This was a perfect spot for LJ to chill out of the sun. There are so many shrubs and plants.

We found a nice, quiet alcove over by the animal viewing area. I don't know if there rooms were considered pool or standard view, but they looked like a nice quiet place to call home.

DH found another CM to make friends with.....

The rest of us chilled on the chaise lounges. I actually took a 10 minute power nap. I really didn't mind that we weren't in the parks. That's whats so great about being a frequent Disney flyer. Now the down time is as important to me as the park time. I was really enjoying my "chillin". By this time the teens had walked over to get lunch at the Mara, then they went back to the pool at Kidani (which they liked better). This is when I discovered that Kidani does not have any CS dining plan options. I hope this changes because I don't think its convenient for folks at Kidani to have to go to Maara for CS. There are sandwiches and such at the Kidani pool bar, but nothing is on the dining plan.

What a cute little critter.....

 

[MEK]

I'm not sure how long we chilled, but then we decided to go inside for awhile. The kids checked out the gift shop and the huge Jambo house lobby. Oh yeah, I almost forgot......When we first entered the Jambo house my DS14 said to me, "Mom, no offense, but this place is way cooler than where we are. Sorry. I hope you're not mad I said that". My DS clearly knows that I am a major planner and I want everything to be perfect. He probably suspected it was going to hurt my feelings. Nah! I was just happy just to be there. While we were in the main lobby I also got LJ's first visit pin. He was quite excited to have another "pin" for his lanyard!

Some lobby pics:

I have a ton of AKL lobby pics that I took in December, so I didn't go overboard on this trip. LJ and DS did decide to go up and visit the bridge that spans the lobby.

Notice how all the artwork at Jambo is behind glass:

This is a pretty cool light fixture that I took for LL. But honestly, I don't remember where this was in the Jambo house. If anyone knows - tell me!

We drove back to Kidani and put our left over smushy zebra domes in the frig. I pretty much lost track of time, but since LJ's rash was improving after a second application of hydrocortisone, I suggested that we head over to Epcot around 4pm. Our ADR for Teppan Edo was for 6:30. The older boys decided they would take the bus and meet us there. The rest of us drove.
Naturally, our first ride at Epcot was Spaceship Earth which LJ deemed, AWESOME".

How did I get so thin in the future????

LJ practically ran off this ride and before I knew it he had emailed his video home to his mom and his own email address. The one thing I did not tell you about LJ is that he is a computer geek. Yes - a 9 year old computer geek. When people say a kid is gifted it can mean many different things. But LJ is really gifted when it comes to computers. He talks in technical terms that I do not understand. He talks about main frames, operating systems, motherboards, RAM, networks, ect. He told me that when he was 4 he had a "life changing event". He said his dad and just gotten a new computer and he saw the microsoft tutorial, so he decided to click on it. Then he proceeded to complete the tutorial 4 times! That's when he knew he was destined to work with computers. He carries around the book Computers for Dummies and he has read it cover to cover, several times. He has his own website. He is even enrolled in the beta testing for whatever the next Microsoft operating system is (he told me the name, but I don't remember). My kids are constantly amazed by him. "He talks like our computer teacher", they say. When LJ gets to college he won't have any problems deciding what his career path will be. I wish that one day he would get to meet his hero, Bill Gates. So LJ was quite excited to be able to mail home his video. This was right up his alley. Average looking 9 year old by day, computer wizard by night. That's LJ.

After we left spaceship earth we grabbed some FP's for mission space. That was the only ride with remaining FP's. We didn't know if we would use them, but we got them anyway. AT this point DH must have had the camera. How could I tell?

We took LJ over to Club Cool. LJ doesn't like soda, but he did find one drink that he liked. Not sure which one it was. I doubt it was beverly!

From Club cool we headed over to Nemo:

I got One picture to turn out. That's a record for me.

 

[MEK]

Oh shoot. I wasn't supposed to post that update yet, just preview. Oh well. After Nemo we went to watch Crush. I asked LJ if he wanted to sit in the front and he declined. I think this show was probably a littlw juvenile for him because he seemed underwhelmed. I guess its the age. After Crush we toured the aquarium for a bit until it was time for our ADR. We got very lucky because we were at the tanks just as a group of divers were doing their free swim.....

The dive experience really looked intriquiging and it seemed that the divers were really enjoying themselves. I can't believe this is the biggest indoor aquarium in the US (or is it the world????). It's really well hidden and I would love to see a floor plan of it.

At this point I checked my watch and it was about 6:10. We decided to start walking over to the world showcase for our Teppan Edo ADR. It was at this point I got a text from DS that said Mom. We have been waiting for the bus for almost 40 minutes and its still not here. Somebody already called to complain Great! I texted back and told them there was nothing they could do but wait and not to worry. I would explain what happened. About 5 minutes later I got the text that said just got on the bus

Up next.....Do the boys get to Teppan Edo by 6:30PM? and the rest of our evening at Epcot.

 

[BigEeyore]

I think that mystery light fixture is in one of the halls by the elevators at Jambo.
I really really want to dive in that tank one of these days!

 

[eandesmom]

Thank you for the Saanna pics, that's on my list for the next trip. Although I don't know, reading everyone's stories about ADR's during FD...we could end up eating CS more than I'd like!

I'm glad the rash improved, I've heard good things about Mara. I love the way you are really enjoying and utilizing your WHOLE resort, very cool! Not just a place to sleep!

My niece and exBIL have done that dive and say it's amazing!

 

[Lady Lallie]

I love the mystery light fixture, very pretty!

I just adore LJ, he seems like the coolest kid ever. How amazing to already know what he wants to do with his life. I don't even know yet!

 

[MEK]

I think that mystery light fixture is in one of the halls by the elevators at Jambo.
I really really want to dive in that tank one of these days!

I went back and looked at that picture again and I think you are correct - It IS neart the elevators! Nice observational skills!

Thank you for the Saanna pics, that's on my list for the next trip. Although I don't know, reading everyone's stories about ADR's during FD...we could end up eating CS more than I'd like!

I'm glad the rash improved, I've heard good things about Mara. I love the way you are really enjoying and utilizing your WHOLE resort, very cool! Not just a place to sleep!

My niece and exBIL have done that dive and say it's amazing!

Sanna looks even cooler in real life. Those pictures don't do it justice. It was definately one of the better themed restaurants on property.

We did utilize the whole resort. Honestly, I probably spent more time at the resort on this trip than any other trip. Like I said, I now understand why people want to do deluxe. You can really play up the resort aspect of the stay when you are so place so impressive with so much to do. We swam more on this trip than any previous trips. It was all around top notch!

I love the mystery light fixture, very pretty!

I just adore LJ, he seems like the coolest kid ever. How amazing to already know what he wants to do with his life. I don't even know yet!

Thanks LL. He really is super cool. He's got all the good qualities you want in a kid - smart, respectful, laid back, appreciative, and non demanding. I miss him and I hope I can get him to spend the weekend (with his younger brother) before school starts!

LL - You would go crazy with all the light fixtures there. It was amazing. When you go to OKW in Sept make sure you take lots of pics because that resort is probably going to be my backup plan for early May!

 

[Charleston Princess]

We did do the night vision viewing -- it was really neat, but you will get the full story on that later in my TR.

If Sanaa's food is half as good as the theming, then I want to eat there -- what a gorgeous restaurant!

LJ is too cool -- as I was reading, I was thinking, "Yep, Connor is really gifted in computers as well." But then, I kept reading...never mind...LJ is light years ahead of him . I was impressed that Connor could do a Powerpoint presentation.

I was looking very closely at your pictures from Jambo to see if we happened to be in there -- we must have just missed you -- we returned about 3:00 that day from the Magic Kingdom and hung out there for awhile. We loved just hanging out there as well -- that was one of the things I loved most about AKL -- I never felt antsy to get back to the parks.

 

[LOVEMY3KIDDOS]

It actually was a beautiful day in the Poconos! I spent it just hanging out in the house and reading my book. My DH said he felt guilty that we should have taken advantage of such a great day and got something done. NOT ME!! I never just sit and take me time, so I didn't feel bad at all! And, yes, I plan to keep following! I saw your DS's comment about AKL being cooler than Kidani. We were originally booked for Jambo and switched. I was hesitant because it seemed a bit better at Jambo, but figured we could easily go there for whatever we wanted. I hope I'm not disappointed when I see Jambo We are actually doing the first few days at POR so I hope that going to either AK resort will be exciting!

 

[KathyRN137]

A few more outside pics:

For LL:

Ahhh... I love all your Kidani pix!! I'm so excited and cannot wait to see all this in person!!

Kathy

 

[KathyRN137]

I Love this picture of the 4 boys waiting for dinner:

I will stay here some day....I will stay here some day..... I will.......

Me too!!!

So glad to see all the boys together... naturally, it took food to do it!!

Kathy

 

[KathyRN137]

By now we didn't have much time to wait until our FP was due so I thought we might start heading over towards BTM. But guess what I forgot????????

Any guesses????????

Well, shoot, I totally forgot about Spectromagic! sheesh - I had flunked Disney planning 101. I mean I had MAJORLY FLUNKED Disney planning. This was no small mistake. This was a BIG BLUNDER!

Don't beat yourself up too much Mary Ellen... I've made my OMG-I-forgot-all-about-the-parade blunders, too!! And during the Pirate and Princess Party, no less!! Seems like your "blunder" had a happy ending, though. You got a great last-minute viewing spot!!


Kathy

 

[MEK]

We did do the night vision viewing -- it was really neat, but you will get the full story on that later in my TR.

If Sanaa's food is half as good as the theming, then I want to eat there -- what a gorgeous restaurant!

LJ is too cool -- as I was reading, I was thinking, "Yep, Connor is really gifted in computers as well." But then, I kept reading...never mind...LJ is light years ahead of him . I was impressed that Connor could do a Powerpoint presentation.

I was looking very closely at your pictures from Jambo to see if we happened to be in there -- we must have just missed you -- we returned about 3:00 that day from the Magic Kingdom and hung out there for awhile. We loved just hanging out there as well -- that was one of the things I loved most about AKL -- I never felt antsy to get back to the parks.

Oh. I really want to hear about the night vision viewing. Can't wait to read about it.

Sanaa does look super cool. I really want to try it myself.

LJ is so into computers that I was really worried he would go into withdraw without 24/7 computer access. When he comes to my house he talks computer tech talk 24/7. He runs around the house accessing all the computers and the xBox and talks about the Windows media network and how he is going to optimize it. Seriously, when he really gets going I have NO idea what he is talking about.

We were SUPPOSED to go to MK the same day as you, but obviously that never happened. We ended up going on Friday! I agree with you - at AK I never felt in a rush to get back to the parks (or leave for the parks, for that manner)

It actually was a beautiful day in the Poconos! I spent it just hanging out in the house and reading my book. My DH said he felt guilty that we should have taken advantage of such a great day and got something done. NOT ME!! I never just sit and take me time, so I didn't feel bad at all! And, yes, I plan to keep following! I saw your DS's comment about AKL being cooler than Kidani. We were originally booked for Jambo and switched. I was hesitant because it seemed a bit better at Jambo, but figured we could easily go there for whatever we wanted. I hope I'm not disappointed when I see Jambo We are actually doing the first few days at POR so I hope that going to either AK resort will be exciting!

Some days you just have to do nothing! Reading a book on a gorgeous day sounds fun to me!

Even though the Jambo lobby was more impressive than the smaller Kidani lobby, the whole Kidani experience was still top rate. Plus the artwork wasn't behind glass and the lobby and surrounding areas were never crowded! You will love it!

Ahhh... I love all your Kidani pix!! I'm so excited and cannot wait to see all this in person!!

Kathy

Thanks. Make sure you take time to really look at everything. Seriously, where else would you see that stuff except at an exhibit or a museum?

Don't beat yourself up too much Mary Ellen... I've made my OMG-I-forgot-all-about-the-parade blunders, too!! And during the Pirate and Princess Party, no less!! Seems like your "blunder" had a happy ending, though. You got a great last-minute viewing spot!!


Kathy

Thanks Kathy. I was happy to get that great last minute viewing spot. My original plan was to watch Spectro on Friday evening, but as it turns out watching it Tuesday turned out great!

 

[NWOhioAngela]

Where exactly IS Sanaa? We have an ADR there on our next trip and I'm not sure where it is. I've been to Boma, so I can find that one!

 

[MEK]

Where exactly IS Sanaa? We have an ADR there on our next trip and I'm not sure where it is. I've been to Boma, so I can find that one!

It is the new TS restaurant that is located in Kidani. It specializes in African inspired dishes. Its only been open since May. It is located directly below the main lobby. I know if you search it out on the restaurant section you will find some reviews. Podsnel's trip report (Dismoms gone wild) had a review of it towards the beginning of the TR. Also try allearnet.com under the restaurant reviews.

 

[MEK]

Me too!!!

So glad to see all the boys together... naturally, it took food to do it!!

Kathy

I can't see pics at work, so I went back and saw this - The only time all 6 of us were together was for food! Thanks goodness for ADRs or we would never see them.