Mike & Missy's Grand Adventure! 9/5/09 DCL Western & WDW TR w/ pics! COMPLETE!

[UGAFan0829]

From Animal Kingdom to 'Ohana...A Day of Firsts​

Today was our Animal Kingdom day, and since we wanted to make it to park opening, we were up bright and early at 6 a.m. We showered and readied for the day, then headed to the bus stop right at 8. We didn't wait very long for a bus, but by the time we made stops at the other resorts, it was about 8:30 when we finally made it to the park, which was just about perfect!!

Since I always use TGM's crowd calendars to chose our parks for each day, I definitely wasn't expecting the crowd that was already there.

I was so excited that we were finally going to be at a park for the opening...this was the first time in 3 trips that we'd actually been successful at doing so! Within just a few minutes, the opening "show" had begun...

With the show being over, and the park finally opened, we headed straight here...

Before, we'd always waited until a little later in the morning or early afternoon to ride the Safari, so we decided to try it first thing off to see if it would be any different. Here's a little sampling what we saw:

I don't know that the animals were any more active than before, but I do think that we saw more different animals.

After the Safari, we decided to trek through the Pangani Forest Trail since we were already right there...
We were very entertained by this gorilla who'd found a morning snack:

 

[UGAFan0829]

After our trip throught the forest, we decided to head somewhere that we'd never been before-Rafiki's Planet Watch. I wasn't really sure what it was all about, but we decided to check it out anyway.

We boarded the Wildlife Express Train and made our way to check out what this area was all about.
First we headed inside to get out of the heat for a few minutes. We immediately realized that there were a couple character greetings going on, so we decided to jump in line for those. First up was Rafiki, which is one of Mike's favorites:

And then there was Jiminy Cricket:

We'd never seen Jiminy out and about before, so it was really cool seeing him there.
Next, we checked out some of things that were going on inside before we headed out to Affection Section where I saw a real live Eeyore...

I've been wanting a miniature donkey as a pet for quite some time, so I was really excited to see one. Of course, everyone I see I always call Eeyore!!
After trying to lure Eeyore over to us and being unsuccessful, we decided to head back to the train station to make our departure.
If you ever take the Wildlife Express, please make sure to note that no cooking is allowed aboard the train!!

After saying goodbye to Rafiki and his planet, we were starting to get a little hungry, so we decided to try and find a quick snack. We made a quick stop at the Kusafiri Coffee Shop and Bakery.

I really wanted a cinnamon roll, but they were all out. So instead, we went with a muffin and a turnover.

They were both pretty good. We sat there for a few minutes and took our time eating. It wan't even noon yet, and it was already a really hot and muggy day. As we sat there, we watched some of the dancers perform.

 

[UGAFan0829]

With our late breakfast snacks finished, we decided to head over to another part of the park that we'd never visited before-Camp Minnie Mickey.

I really wanted to get some character pics in their safari gear, so we headed to the Character Trails.
First up were Chip and Dale:

Next was Donald, who wasn't too happy with my shirt selection for the day. As soon as he spotted my Mickey shirt, he gave me a hard time, telling me that HE was #1!

So this is how he made us pose...

He was so cute!!!
After Donald, the only 2 left were Mickey and Minnie. As were were getting ready to head to their lines, I realized that the 12:00 showing of Festival of the Lion King was just a few minutes away. And since we'd never seen it before, we decided to head over to try and catch it since we knew we could always head back over to meet Mickey and Minnie later. So, we made the short walk over to the theater in the round. We had pefect timing too, as they were already letting people in and we were able to find a seat right away. Thankfully it wasn't crowded, so we were able to find a spot right away.

It was such a good show, and I was really glad that we took the time to see it. Mike and I loved seeing Timon and Pumba, as they are a couple of his favorites as well!!

 

[UGAFan0829]

As we exited the theater, it had been raining, and continuted to do so. We still wanted to catch up with Mickey and Minnie over at the Character Trails, so we headed back over there. As we were standing in line, it started to storm, so they closed the trails for a few minutes. We decided that instead of waiting it out, that we would head over to one of our favorite attractions in the park-It's Tough to Be a Bug! We love this show and couldn't wait to see it again!

Once again it did not disppoint, though I did notice that there were a lot of scared kids there this time. Bless their hearts...there was one little boy behind us that went hysterical after the spider scene. I felt so sorry for him.

After we'd gotten our 3-D on, we decided that it was definitely time for some rides. So where did we head next...Everest, of course! Unfortunately, the wait was up to 40 minutes, so we decided to grab a fast pass. Everest is by far, my favorite ride in the park, but I just didn't want to wait in line for 40 minutes when there were other things that we could be spending our time doing. So, we decided to make the trek back across the park to check out the wait time for Dinosaur. And once again, we were disappointed-another 40 minutes. And since we'd just gotten Fastpasses for Everest, it would be awhile before we could Fastpass Dinosaur.

By this point we were pretty hot and were getting tired from all the walking, so we figured that maybe a meal would be a good choice. It was well past lunch, so we were hoping that the crowds would have died down a little by now. We already knew exactly what we wanted, so we headed straight there.
But, as we were walking, I noticed a sign off the side for a character greeting with Pooh and the gang. Of course, I couldn't pass that up, so we made a quick stop to visit with my favorite friend and his pals!

We liked Flame Tree so much after out last trip, that we already knew way ahead of time that this is where we would be eating lunch on this day. Thankfully our theory about the lunch crowds being down were right, so we quickly ordered then made our way to a table with a great view!

I had the BBQ sandwich and beans, while Mike decided to try something different and went with the SmokedTurkey sandwich with slaw.

Mine was as good as I'd remembered, and Mike liked his pretty good as well. For dessert, Mike had the Key Lime Pie, and I had the Chocolate Cake.

With our bellies full, we still had some time to kill before our Fastpass return time for Everest, so we decided to check out Dinosaur one more time. We were in luck...the wait time was only 10 minutes now! I love this ride, and end up getting scared even though I know what to expect. Here's our redneck ride photo:

With Dinosaur off the list, it was finally time to head back over to Everest for our much awaited ride!! I was brave and decided to try and take a few pics during our ride:

I LOVE this ride...Not only is it my favorite one in AK, but also one of my favorites from all the parks! And once more, our redneck ride photo:

 

[UGAFan0829]

With the day slowly winding down, we decided to head back towards the entrance to try and find a spot for Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade, which was yet another thing that we had yet to see. We were able to find a spot in front of one of the shops right on the parade route. We found a bench and waited for the parade to start, which seemed to take forever. I don't think it really took as long as it seemed, but it was really hot outside, and it had been a long day already! Soon enough the parade started!!

The parade was really cute, and we ended up with an awesome viewing spot. It was like most of the characters were right there in our face. After it was over, we let the masss die down before we headed for the exit. As we made our way out, I grabbed a couple shots of the Tree of Life...

Within a few minutes we were out of the park and waiting for a bus to take us back to the BoardWalk...We had one more thing to do tonight to add to our list of firsts...Dinner at 'Ohaha. We were so looking forward to this meal more than just about anything else on this trip. I'd read and heard so many good thing about the place, and we just couldn't wait to try it for ourselves. I was a little worried though...as picky as I am, I was just hoping that it would live up to all the hype. There's only one way to find out if it did or not...

 

[mousetravel]

Love your pics!!! Great report!

 

[UGAFan0829]

Love your pics!!! Great report!

Thank you! I haven't noticed you around in a while, so it's "good" to see ya!

 

[mousetravel]

Thank you! I haven't noticed you around in a while, so it's "good" to see ya!

Yeah, I've been on the Sea World boards a lot lately trying to find some info and hopefully plan out our next mom/daughter trip. They have a really good deal going right now for Sea World/Busch Gardens. So I'm hoping to make that our trip this year, with, of course a few days of Disney added in!

 

[UGAFan0829]

Yeah, I've been on the Sea World boards a lot lately trying to find some info and hopefully plan out our next mom/daughter trip. They have a really good deal going right now for Sea World/Busch Gardens. So I'm hoping to make that our trip this year, with, of course a few days of Disney added in!

That's awesome! I was wondering if you had any trips in the works, so I'm glad to know that you do. I've never been to either Sea World or Busch Gardens, so you'll definitely have to write a TR!! Keep me posted on your plans--I hope it all works out so that you can go, and especially include those days in Disney!!

 

[Jennifer48]

I've never seen the Jammin' Jungle Parade either. Looks cute!

I see you are going on the Dream next year. Did you rebook onboard? I'm dying to go on that ship!

 

[UGAFan0829]

I've never seen the Jammin' Jungle Parade either. Looks cute!

I see you are going on the Dream next year. Did you rebook onboard? I'm dying to go on that ship!

It was pretty cute! I was glad that we stayed for it!!

Yes, we are going next year...I actually just booked it on Monday. Honestly, we didn't think that we'd be cruising again until 2012 or so. It's really a rambling story as to how we came about booking it....but basically it boils down to wanting to do one of the Alaskan cruises. But we knew that between the cruise and airfare there and back, that it was something that we'd have to save a while for. I had gotten online and looked at the "repo" cruises from Canada back to LA, but decided the ports really weren't worth it. Even though the cruise fare was cheap, again there was airfare to worry about. So, as I was just messing around with the Dream cruises and realized that the 4-nighter wasn't so bad price wise, we decided to book it. Originally it was suppose to be for my birthday, but I booked it for a week later so that it would fall on our anniversary instead. We've already done the 4-night before, but I really wanted to cruise on the new ship, so this was what worked out for us. I am totally excited about it, and can't wait!

 

[Tinkerkell123]

What great pix! I am glad you finally saw Festival of the Lion King. It is one of our favorites. What a great show! Also, that dinosaur at the end of "Dinosaur" gets me every time, even though I know it is coming!!

 

[UGAFan0829]

What great pix! I am glad you finally saw Festival of the Lion King. It is one of our favorites. What a great show! Also, that dinosaur at the end of "Dinosaur" gets me every time, even though I know it is coming!!

Thank you!! I'm very glad that we were finally able to see FOLTK as well. I knew from all the rave reviews that it's gets here on the DIS, that it had to be a great show. And I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who still gets scared at the end of Dinosaur!

 

[UGAFan0829]

When I last left off, we were headed back to the BW to get ready for our 8:05 ADR for 'Ohana. I think this was probably the meal that we looked forward to the most!

Once we made it back to the resort, we showered and and readied for what we hoped to be a great dinner. To make it a little easier, we decided to drive over to the Poly since we planned to make a trip to Wal-Mart after dinner to finally pick up some breakfast items and snacks for the rest of the week.

Other than stopping there on the monorail, this was the first time that we had ever stepped foot on the the grounds of the Poly. Immediately, both of us were impressed. From the waterfall outside the front door...

To the beautiful decor inside, we were just in awe!!

Once we finally figured out where 'Ohana was actually located, we made our way upstairs and checked in.

I really wasn't surprised by the crowded-ness of the restaurant, and the fact that there were several people waiting to be seated. I checked us in at about 7:45, and only 3 or 4 minutes later we were being led to our table!!

I'm sorry, but I don't even remember our cousins name. We were so excited to finally be eating here that we were just taking everything in. First, we were brought the bread....talk about heaven in a loaf!

I don't know what it was about that stuff, but I could have easily eaten the whole thing by myself! We were definitely already off to a tasty start!!
Next, came the salad, which I totally forgot about until now.

I don't even remember if this was good or not, but I'm sure it was.
As we waited for the next course, I snapped a few pics of our surroundings...

While we were waiting, Wishes began! We had a pretty good view of the show, so I decided to take a few pics of what we saw...

These aren't the greatest shots, but you get the idea. It didn't even cross my mind that we might get to see these, so this definitely added to the excitement!!

Once the fireworks were over, more food arrived:

Oh my gosh...between the pot stickers and the noodles, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Those things were the best food I had ever put in my mouth...period. I didn't even care if the meat ever came or not...I was happy with just those two things!

The meat finally did arrive, which made Mike happy...

And though I tried a few pieces of each, you can see here what I was really after:

I could have eaten my weight's worth of that stuff-and that's sayin' something!!

Next came dessert, which to be honest, I wasn't too sure about. But I tried it anyway, and boy was I glad I did! It was fantastic as well!

This was, by far, the best meal we had ever eaten on Disney property!! Before the meal was even over, we knew that this place would definitely be a must-do for us on each trip from now on. This place was incredible-from the food, to the service, to the decor and atmosphere! It is now our favorite Disney restaurant, hands down!!

Sadly, our meal was over, but we knew that we were coming back in the morning for breakfast, so that made leaving just a little easier. As we headed out, we took a few more pics along the way:

Afterwards, we decided to try and walk off some of the ginormous amount of food that we'd eaten by exploring the Poly a little. As I said, we'd never been there before, so this was definitely a treat for us. We checked out the pool area, then headed over to Sunset Pointe to check out the view. We decided that even though it's not a DVC resort, it's definitely a place that we wanted to stay someday in the future.

By this point, it was getting pretty late, so we headed back to the car to make a quick trip to the nearest Wal-Mart. Our quick trip ended up turning into almost midnight before we made it back to the resort, but at least we finally had breakfast and snack food!! We unloaded our stuff then tucked in to get some sleep before our next day in Epcot Future World.

 

[podsnel]

Yum!! That all looked delicious!! We went to Ohana a couple of years ago- and that bread pudding is AMAZING!!! A friend of mine actually has the recipe so she can make it at home. Yum. I'm glad the noodles are so good- they replaced the world's BEST potatoes that used to be served there- it caused a big uproar a couple of years ago! Fun update!!

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Love the Poly! I am too afraid to try Ohana, I am such a picky eater!

Fantastic that you got a great view of Wishes.

 

[praisehisname]

You got to see a lot of animals on your safari! You also hit the character jackpot!

Great pics on Everest; were you in the very back?

Your lunch looks good; I love Flame Tree!

The AK parade looks really fun; we haven't managed to see that yet.

Oh my gosh, your Ohana dinner looks soooo good! We've done breakfast there, but dinner is tops on my list to try!

 

[UGAFan0829]

Yum!! That all looked delicious!! We went to Ohana a couple of years ago- and that bread pudding is AMAZING!!! A friend of mine actually has the recipe so she can make it at home. Yum. I'm glad the noodles are so good- they replaced the world's BEST potatoes that used to be served there- it caused a big uproar a couple of years ago! Fun update!!

It was oh, so delicious! I can't imagine having the recipe for the bread pudding...that wouldn't be good!!! I remember something about the potatoes, but darn it, I never got to try them! I sure do love those noodles though, so it was an okay change by me!

Love the Poly! I am too afraid to try Ohana, I am such a picky eater!

Fantastic that you got a great view of Wishes.

I think you should give it a try some time, Lessa. Honestly, I was a little worried to begin with, but after all the rave reviews I heard, I couldn't wait to try it. I'm a picky eater too, so I understand where you're coming from. I'm just glad that no onions or tomatoes or icky-stuff was involved in the meal!!

You got to see a lot of animals on your safari! You also hit the character jackpot!

Great pics on Everest; were you in the very back?

Your lunch looks good; I love Flame Tree!

The AK parade looks really fun; we haven't managed to see that yet.

Oh my gosh, your Ohana dinner looks soooo good! We've done breakfast there, but dinner is tops on my list to try!

We did luck up on a lot of characters! It was really cool seeing Jimminy since I had no idea he even made appearances!

I think we were in the back on Everest! It was very cool!

'Ohana was SOOOO good. You HAVE to try it. I really liked the breakfast as well. That will actually be part of my next installment...so stay tuned!


THANK YOU to all of you who are still reading and posting. I know I haven't gotten these updates done as quickly as I would like, but thanks for sticking around!

 

[wld4mky]

Thank-you so much for taking the time to write your TR. It is great!!! We are doing this same cruise (Our first) Feb. 20th and could not be more excited! Your photos are fab. even the food!! We usually get to WDW twice a year and Ohana's is always on our list, if we can get a ressie. Glad you had such a great time and your hubby seems like a real sweety sending you to the spa and everything. Although late "Happy anniversary"! Hubby and I are celebrating the big 20 this year! As well as our youngest 5th birthday on this trip. Thanks again. It has been most entertaining!

 

[UGAFan0829]

Thank-you so much for taking the time to write your TR. It is great!!! We are doing this same cruise (Our first) Feb. 20th and could not be more excited! Your photos are fab. even the food!! We usually get to WDW twice a year and Ohana's is always on our list, if we can get a ressie. Glad you had such a great time and your hubby seems like a real sweety sending you to the spa and everything. Although late "Happy anniversary"! Hubby and I are celebrating the big 20 this year! As well as our youngest 5th birthday on this trip. Thanks again. It has been most entertaining!

How exciting that you will be cruising in just a very short time. I'm sure you will love it!!Thanks for joining me...I'm glad that you have enjoyed my report this far!! I am definitely blessed to have such a wonderful husband-he is a sweetie. I was so thankful that he encouraged me to go to the spa-I didn't regret it one bit!

Congrats on 20 years...that's quite an accomplishment!