So after our big day at Hollywood Studios, we woke up the next day far, far too early!! We're really not morning people, I'm afraid, and our alarm went off at 6.30am. Oh noooo. That's earlier than our normal work days! We had a 7.30 breakfast ADR at The Wave restaurant at the Contemporary, so we slowly dragged ourselves out of bed and got ourselves ready.
It was the Disney half-marathon day that day, so some of the roads were blocked, which meant we had to catch the little boat to the Contemporary instead of driving there. We found our way out to the boat dock - so pretty!! We loved the little boat!
The walkway to the boat dock...
Waiting for the boat...
Here it is!!
The boat ride to the Contemporary was very quick - only about 10 minutes all up. Here we are!
So we had a lovely breakfast at The Wave - Omelettes and Eggs Benedict and Filet Steak!! Ha, yes! Filet steak for breakfast!
After breakfast, we caught the bus back to the Wilderness Lodge and headed straight to our car - we were off to Seaworld!!
I just love Seaworld! We have one here in Australia, but I haven't been since I was 5. In 2006, we went to Seaworld in San Diego, and had a blast, so we thought we'd better try the Orlando Seaworld this time! I love the combination of fun rides and sea creatures to visit, and of course, the awesome shows.
So we arrived just after 9 oclock, which was perfect timing. I'd done my research and knew where to head first - to the Dolphin Cove, to feed the dolphins! Who doesn't love dolphins?! I was so excited to feed them! I'd never actually touched a dolphin before! We bought two trays of fresh little fish, for $7 each. A small group of us had gathered by then, and we were lead over the huge dolphin pool to be shown how to feed them properly.
It was then that I noticed the problem. There were birds, EVERYWHERE. Massive big seagulls, ready to pounce on the fish. It's time for me to 'fess up - I have a silly phobia of anything with wings. Mostly moths - they're the worst. I know they can't hurt me, and I know it's an irrational fear, but if I see a moth, I panic. I shake and my heart beats crazily, beyond my control. It can get really embarrassing at times, but most people who know me know about my phobia, so it's okay! Birds come a close second, after moths. Birds don't normally come near you though, so it's usually okay! But these birds? These birds were EVIL!! There seriously would have been at least 30 of them, all lined up along the side of the dolphin pool, ready to fight for the fish. Ohhhhh, no.
So we were meant to hold the fish and dip it in the water a little bit for the dolphins to come over to us. Then we had to tickle the dolphin under his chin and place the fish inside his mouth - doing all of this quickly, so that the birds didn't come and steal the fish out of our hands. WHAAAT!? Noooooo!!!
By this stage, I was already panicking. And to cut a long story short, it wasn't good. As soon as the birds saw a fish, they swooped, squawked, flapped and dove straight for us. Sometimes three of them at a time, pushing each other out of the way to get to my fish. Auugghhhhhh!!! Conan fed a couple of dolphins perfectly fine, but two fish were stolen right out of his hand by evil birds! Meanwhile, I was literally hiding behind Conan and shaking like a leaf. I'm sure people thought I was crazy, but I couldn't help it!! So embarrassing!!
I had a try of feeding a dolphin, but my mind was whizzing and I was still shaking and terrified of the birds, so I couldn't concentrate and I got myself in a frazzle, and couldn't remember what to do to feed them properly. So I never got to touch my dolphin!! By the end of our dolphin / evil bird encounter, I was in tears and Conan grabbed my hand and escorted me out of there very quickly.
Nasty, horrible birds!!
But anyway, I did manage to take some photos of Conan feeding the dolphins!
So our day at Seaworld had gotten off to a shaky start - literally! I took a little while to calm down, but eventually decided to toughen up and move on!! No more birds!
We decided the best thing to get the rest of the screams and shakes out of me, would be to ride Kraken, the massively fast, scary roller-coaster!!
Remember how I screamed on Rock'n'Roller Coaster!? Woooo, boy. I'd never screamed like how I screamed on Kraken! It was ace, but very scary!! Lots of twists and turns and loops! Conan absolutely loved it!
Next up, we wandered over to the penguin area. It was just like in Happy Feet! Which kind of made me sad. Are the penguins happy in there, or are they delirious like in Happy Feet? Who knows!?
We stumbled across the sharks underwater viewing area next - which was kind of like a long aquarium that you walk through. Here's Conan, looking absolutely terrified... (hehee!)
It was about then that we discovered how big this Seaworld was!! It took a long time to walk anywhere - we were glad we'd allowed a whole day there, because there was so much to do, and so far to walk!!
We headed over to Shamu Stadium next to see the fantastic killer whale show, Believe. This is the best show ever!! Seriously, if you're planning to head to Seaworld, make sure you make time to see Believe! It's truly amazing. The show is synchronized to music, and a story is interweaved into it too, but mostly, those killer whales are just beautiful. It's in a really massive theater, and it always gets packed out pretty quickly, so make sure you find a good spot early!
Waiting for the show to start...
Clever Shamu, the killer whale!!
Look, two Shamus!!
We went to another show after that, called Alure. It was a bit strange actually, but intriguing! It was a bit like a Cirque de Soleil show with fantastic acrobats and movements, but with a bizarre story of underwater love mixed in. Hehee.
Next up was another ride called Wild Arctic - it was a simulator ride, based on a journey through the Antarctic regions. OUCH!! We thought Star Tours was jerky - this was 10 times worse! Conan actually felt a bit sick afterward. Not a favourite!!
We did see some cute sleepy polar bears afterward though...
And we also went to watch the killer whales from the underwater viewing area...
Look out Conan!
I'll continue this chapter in the next post! I didn't realise I had so many photos!
Those milkshakes at the Plaza look really great! My friend & I will be there in a couple of weeks -- girls only, husbands at home! Perhaps we'll give the shakes a try! Oh, but wait....we'll have to have a Dole Whip Float too! 
Decision, decisions!
I never went through the Animation Tour. Maybe we should try it! You certainly had a beautiful view from your room at WL.
I see you have the same Cinderella issues with your niece that I have with mine. Mal says it's all about the dress. If it's any consolation, I think you are totally a Belle, pal. 
you looked so beautiful on your wedding day and I loved your wedding dress
) and i love how she and the beast dislike each other at first and it takes them awhile to fall in love - more like normal people! well, except that he's a big hairy beast. i think another reason i relate to her is that everyone thinks she's strange and everyone thinks i am too when it comes to disney world! 
dolphins! i fell in love with them at our first trip to sea world when i was 8 years old. and then that developed into a love for any sort of ocean mammals. they're just so amazing! 
That sounds terrible.
