Meeko's Walt Disney World Christmas 2002
After a morning at the Magic Kingdom, I took the monorail to the TTC and headed on to Disney's Animal Kingdom .
Thursday (Continued)
Arrived at the Animal Kingdom some time after noon. I had never been to the Animal Kingdom at Christmastime so I was looking forward to see the decorations. The tree at the main entrance certainly didn't disappoint. On the way in the park, I spotted Wes Palm the talking tree dressed up for the holidays and interacting with the guests and also got a few pictures of some of the characters including Mushu who I rarely find in the parks anymore.
After watching some of the animals in the Oasis it was over to Africa by way of Discovery Island. On the way I spotted Lilo and Stitch signing autographs near the bridge to Camp Minnie-Mickey. Had to get their picture since I didn't get the chance to see them last Summer. After that it was straight to Africa.
There was no wait on Kilimanjaro Safaris so I got on in no time. Even in the hottest part of the day the animals were more active than they are at the coolest part of the day in the Summer when I usually visit the park. Even spotted a couple hippos out of the water, something that I had never seen before on the Safari. Having the animals more active really made what is one of my favorite rides at WDW even better.
It was getting late so I decided to have some lunch. On the way, I spotted DeVine on the path between Africa and Asia. I think half of the people around the area didn't know what the other half of the crowd was looking at, which made watching the guests just about as fun as watching Devine's act. After that it was over to Flame Tree Barbeque for lunch. The view of the Discovery River and Asia was very pleasant, but I think the food may have been too much for me not being use to eating a whole lot of barbeque.
Next it was on to Asia and the Maharajah Jungle Treck. Like on the Safari, the animals here were much more active than they are in the summer, especially the Komodo dragon and the tigers who were actually awake and walking through their habitats. You never realize how big or powerful a tiger is until it is walking next to you and watching you from only inches away. The Animal Kingdom was defiantly more active in the cooler weather; it was almost like going to an entirely different park.
Next it was across Discovery Island to Camp Minnie-Mickey. I had heard there were some Christmas festivities here so I figured it was worthy of a visit. The festivities were primarily a collection of Disney character themed trees and holiday music playing throughout the area. The trees were fun to look and try to figure out which character was the theme of each tree (although most were easy, how many characters would put red polka-dotted hair bows or pots of "hunny" on their tree). Because the Lion King show was going on, there were also no lines on most of the character trails so I got some pictures of Minnie, Daisy, and Santa Goofy.
After leaving Camp Minnie-Mickey, I took a quick look around Discovery Island and the shops there. Next it was a trip to the Oasis and out the turnstiles. After getting a picture of Brer Rabbit, another character I had never seen in the parks before, it was over to the bus stop and on to EPCOT.
Haha I can imagine how much fun it was watching people discover Devine. 
These pictures are great! I love the santa Goofy one!
