Days 7-8
We didnt get to bed until 1 a.m. after our day at the MK. DW felt really dehydrated when we got back to CBR, so I went driving all over the Caribbean looking for a drink machine that wasnt out of bottled water! The tap water in Florida tastes horrible to us. We avoid the stuff at all costs. Even a Coke with ice cubes in it is nasty! The drink machines I knew about in Trinidad South were both out of order, so I looked in Trinidad North, Aruba, Jamaica, Martinique and Old Port Royale. I would pull into the bus stop at each place, check to see if it had water in stock while watching to make sure there werent any Disney buses that I was going to be holding up, and then rush on to the next one. I finally found a machine with water in stock at the Old Port Royale bus stop (it was midnight-ish, so the shops there were closed) and bought three to have on hand. It was sort of a fun little adventure and really the only time I got to drive around the resort even if it was dark! We definitely want to go back to CBR now and fully experience it (swim in the main pool, eat at the restaurant for lunch or dinner, that sort of thing).
Anyway, we got up around 9 a.m. on Day 7 (Labor Day) and started getting ready for our planned day at AK. I made the usual breakfast run. We decided to take the van to the AK and got there by about 11 a.m.
We went to see Its Tough to be a Bug first thing and got right in. DS said it was scary AND that he wanted to do it again. DD loved it. From there, we headed to Asia to check out Expedition Everest.
When we got to Everest, it was broken, so we decided to work our way towards Africa and the Maharajah Jungle Trek. DS really liked the Tigers. By the time we got through, we were all sweating from the heat and humidity and hungry for lunch. DW decided we should eat at Tusker House. We got a fastpass for the Safari and then went in to eat. It was really crowded. DW and I both thought the food was great. I had my favorite African food, the rotisserie chicken, and of course it was yummy. DW had the turkey wrap with some corn chowder and cucumber salad. DD had a rotisserie chicken leg with mashed potatoes. DS just had fries.
After lunch, I was feeling run down from a cold I was catching, so I went to the first aid stand and got some free generic Sudafed and Tylenol packets. Its pretty nice that Disney takes care of you like that without charging you $10 for a whole package of meds. I guess its like when youre at the casino and they bring you free booze to keep you there losing your money
While we were in line for the Safari, DS wandered away. Thankfully, someone turned him around and told him to go back to his momma. For a brief moment, DW was scared to death. The ride itself was pretty eventful. We saw lots of animals. The highlights were seeing some giraffes drinking water, the elephants, and a large animal with big horns that stands out for DW (shes not a zoologist, so I dont have a name for you.)
From the Safari, we headed back to Expedition Everest. I got in the single-rider line while the rest of the family waited. I figured the single-rider line would be mostly other people like me dads or moms that didnt have anyone to ride with or whatever. But I guess a lot of people (smartly, I guess) decided this line was a way to avoid the long standby time, even if they werent by themselves. I was in line behind lots of people who were obviously together but didnt mind riding separate. The end result was about a 20-minute wait for me to get on the ride. Still, it was worth it in the end. I screamed my head off! Going backwards in the dark was a blast. DW, DD and DS were waiting for me in the post-ride gift shop (DW said she was mostly in there to soak in the air conditioning). I got a T-shirt as a souvenir from the ride and we trekked toward Camp Minnie-Mickey.
We met Flik from A Bugs Life; it started to rain lightly, so Flik had to move under cover while were waiting. The rain picked up shortly thereafter and we all got soaked. As the rain let up, we met Mickey and then headed toward the Festival of the Lion King.
DD got play around at center stage with several of the other kids and some CMs before the Lion King show started. DS would occasionally wander out there looking for his big sister and then come scurrying back to mommy and daddy in the stands.
We really enjoyed the show. We were in the giraffe group. DS fell asleep during the show. DD liked it a lot. The monkey guys doing the circus stunts were really fun to watch and the singing was really nice. We highly recommend the show.
After the show, the park was closing, so we worked toward the exit with everyone else. We stopped at the grocery store on the way back to CBR to pick up some juice and cold medicine.
Once we were back at the resort, I took a little nap to get some of my energy back for our big dinner. DW tried to get the kids to nap with me to no avail. We thought it would seem like a long break between the AK closing and our 9:15 ADR at Ohana, but the time really flew by.
We left for Ohana about 8:30. The rain had stopped and it was a little cooler outside than it had been earlier in the trip. We checked in at Ohana by 9 and ordered a very rummy pineapple drink. We got seated right away and DW ordered more pineapple juice to go in (water down!) the drink, which we were sharing. After we got seated, the food started coming right away. First they brought salad and juice for the kids. Then they brought the appetizers peel-and-eat shrimp, chicken wings and fried wontons with dips. Next, they brought a bowl of vegetables and some scalloped potatoes (good stuff). Then they started bringing the skewers of meat: steak and pork, then turkey and sausage. DW got a hold of some steak that was a little too rare (cold). Other than that, everything was extra delicious. At one point during the meal, DD got up and learned a hula. She was shy about doing it at first, but we told her shed get a necklace (lei) for getting up and that was enough to convince her. Our table was near a window facing Cinderellas castle at the MK. As it got close to dessert time, Wishes started and Ohana switched the audio over to the Wishes soundtrack. We actually got to see all of the fireworks this time from that vantage point (unlike the night before at the MK). It was indeed magical to watch.
The Ohana experience really was a nice way to end what was such a roller-coaster-ride of a trip for our family.
The next day, we had 10:40 reservations for the character breakfast at Chef Mickeys. DW really liked Goofys Vegetable Lasagna. We met Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Chip, Dale and Goofy. I got Mickey to sign a cap I bought the night before at the MK, which was neat for me. Ive been an autograph collector of sorts all of my life.
By noon, we were on our way back home to Georgia, filled with lots of good memories and some bad. Were still trying to make sense of it all. We really appreciate all of the support weve gotten over the last few days as weve told our story. We plan on coming back in the next day or so with an epilogue detailing a little of whats happened since the trip (Saturday 9/16 marks two weeks since "the incident.")
Here are a few more pictures that Im really proud of. The picture of us at Ohana in front of the fire pit is my favorite from the trip. The Goofy picture at Chef Mickeys is probably my second favorite. I also threw in a picture of the kids with Tigger at Crystal Palace the day before that I think is really cute (DS has a fork in his hand this time!).
for your family! I will be waiting patiently 
for your next installment!
