We had 2 full days left at Disney World, and only one day on our Park Hopper tickets. So we needed to fill a day with something else. Wed considered Legolandwe knew the boys would love it and it wasnt too far away. But Sarah had been to Legoland in California back in January and had seemed right on the edge of being too old to enjoy everything there.
We also considered going to Islands of Adventure in order to see the Wizarding World of Harry PotterSarah is the worlds Most Ginormous Harry Potter Fan and would go apesuh, crazy for it. Shed started reading the novels at age 8, blitzed through all of them, and then decided to go back and read them all again simply because she didnt want the story to end. But one days admission to IoA would be very pricey, and since most of the other rides at that park are of the Extremis Suicidus species, we didnt think it would be a good value for us.
There was one more option: a water park. Our kids had never actually been to a water park, aside from the
dinky one at our local state park. We researched a few in the Orlando area, such as Wet & Wild and Aquatica. They all looked fun, but we kept returning to the Disney water parks as we looked at the pictures. The others looked like they were all concrete, ladders and tubes. Disney had elaborate theming and storytelling. In the end, that extra detail won us over. Not that we were already biased or anything. We decided to head to Typhoon Lagoon.
If you watched our video of their reaction to the Disney surprise, you may remember that Sarah asked if we could go to a water park once she found out where we were. Needless to say, she was very pleased.
We awoke to see the NFLs replacement referees getting in some early practice.
The weather forecast for the day was iffy40% chance of showers. In other words, it was like any other Florida day. We decided we were already going to get wet, so wed head out anyway. Once again, driving ourselves was a snap and before long we were pulling in to the parking lot.
We made it for Rope Drop here, which was basically just a crowd that gathered just inside the gates until they played a welcome message. Then we could go about our business. Move along.
Our first task was to rent a locker near the entrance for our stuff. Apparently pools and waterslides are not good on wallets, cash, room keys, credit cards, etc. Then we went to find an open chair to hold our bags and towels. There arent many areas of shade in the park, and people were pretty cutthroat about rushing to the few that were under canopies. We found ourselves racing from one to the next, hoping to find a good spot. Call it the tropical version of Black Friday at Walmart.
Finally, we found a couple of chairs under trees towards the back of the park, between the wave pool and shark-swim area. Next order of business: get wet!
We headed for the raft slides first. Our good camera was packed away by this time, but we still had the waterproof one with us, and got a few shots of the beautiful theming along the way.
We decided to do the family raft first (Gangplank Falls). If theres a negative about Disney water parks, its that you have to retrieve the raft yourself and carry it up the stairs to the top of the slide. So
some poor jerk ends up lugging rafts uphill all day long. I wish they had a conveyor belt to do this for you.
They only allow 4 in a raft, so we had to split up 3 and 2. I rode with Dave while Julie took the other two. This was their very first raft slide&and they loved it! Its not an incredibly fast slide (none of the raft slides in this park are very fast), but it spins and bumps you around a good bit, and there are a bunch of surprise splashes, waterspouts, and drenching waterfalls along the way. The kids immediately asked to do it again&which is always a good sign.
Julie thought the concrete bump-outs on the slide were a little too rough on her hindquarters, so she opted to wait at the bottom while I took the kids for another go-round.
The crowds werent bad at all yet. I had read that if we wanted to swim with sharks, we needed to get there early, so that was our next stop. We made our way back across the park. The plan was that I would swim with whoever wanted to try it out. Julie, the non-swimmer in our family, would stay back with the camera and whoever didnt want to snorkel.
At the entrance, we found evidence that we were gonna need a bigger boat.
When we reached the line, all 3 kids said they wanted to try the shark swim. This was a mild surprise, but I said ok. We picked up our gearmask, snorkel, and life jackets for the kids. It was here that I fell for one of the classic blunders. The most famous is never get involved in a land war in Asia, but only slightly less well known is this: when the Typhoon Lagoon Shark Reef offers you a free life jacket, you take it. Even if you can swim. (cue ominous music)
(did you start playing the music yet? I can't hear it)
(Ok, that's better)
Heres Larry, Curly, Moe and Shemp getting ready for action. Looking good so far.
We got to the holding area near the pool and the lifeguards started to explain the rules to us. At this point, the boys decided that maybe entering a tank of water with fearsome carnivores wasnt such a good idea. So they decided to bail out and head up the stairs to hang out with mommy, and view the sharks from behind the safety of observation-room windows. Sarah and I went on, undaunted. We had a slight delay as they told us they were finishing feeding the fish their breakfast. I cant be sure, but I think breakfast consisted of people who were caught using last years refillable mugs, resort pool-hopping, or refusing to move all the way down the row in the theaters.
While we waited for our turn, a group went for a swim in the other pool to our right. The attraction is billed as a chance to swim with sharks. Its called the Shark Reef. You are told repeatedly that there are live sharks in the water. And yet, when the other group started their swim, we saw a young boy pop his head up out of the water in panic, and frantically swim back to the start shouting, SHARK!
Finally, our pool was ready. Sarah and I sat on the edge of the pool and tested our equipment. So far so good. We were told that we couldnt kick our feet and were to try not to disturb the water. Sarah worried that she wouldnt be able to swim too well without kicking, but I told her we could stick close and I could push her along if need be.
We were told not to turn around and go backwards or stop, but instead continue all the way to the end. And we were told the water was a little cooler than the rest of the pools in the park. Then we got in. I think Glenn put it best in his TR:
COLD!
Cold cold cold cold cold cold cold.
Thankfully the weather was warm and after a few of those gasps where you suddenly cant exhale, we started to g-get uu-sed t-t-t-t-o itt-t-t-t. The lifeguard gave us the go-ahead to push off. Here goes my little daredevil:
I made sure she got off ok, put my snorkel in my mouth, and pushed off the edge. Almost immediately, I found that the seal on my snorkel wasnt very good, and I suddenly got a mouthful of cold salt water.
You know what would have been great while I gagged and thrashed and choked? A life jacket. Then I could have easily floated in place and emptied the snorkel out. Instead, I had to try and tread water while fixing my equipment at the same time. I could barely breathe. Somehow I managed to steady myself and dump the water from my snorkel. I was gasping for air by this time. I put the snorkel back in and tried to make sure my mouth was tightly closed around it. It wasnt perfect, but it seemed to be better. I could hear myself hyperventilating underwater, and it took a little while to calm myself down.
Unbeknownst to me, Sarah was having the exact same problem to my left. She managed to stop on a rock so she could rest her legs. Because of my breathing issues, I never noticed. The poor kid was having her own panic attack just to my left.
I finally calmed my breathing down and started moving again. Remembering that I couldnt kick and couldnt turn around, I started swimming slowly forward. I turned my head to look for Sarah and see if I could get back with her. But through my mask and without my glasses on, I couldnt pick her out in the crowd. I assumed she had turned back.
Its killing me to tell this story. Sarah was panicking now that I wasnt around. The lifeguard went over to her and asked if she was ok, and she said no. She was crying at this point and said, I just want my daddy.
Fortunately Julie saw she was in trouble and made her way over to get her out of the pool from the lifeguard, who Im sure was filling out my Father Of The Year nomination form at that point. Julie asked if she was ok, and Sarah shook her head and said, I never want to do that again!
So, the optimist might say that it was a comedy of errors that led to an unfortunate situation. And the pessimist would say that I abandoned my daughter in a pool full of live sharks.
So&who wants to see underwater pictures?
After I got through the pool, I made my way back to the viewing area to find the rest of the family. Poor Sarah was visibly shaken, and they told me what had happened to her. I held her close and apologized over and over again. I was crushed. The one time my daughter truly needed me, and I had left her alone. I felt like a failure, and I begged for her forgiveness. I definitely needed to make this one up to her.
I think the attraction itself is a neat idea, and its great to be able to say you swam in a tank with sharks. If you ever do try it, and if you remember nothing else, remember this: for heavens sake, grab the life jacket.
Coming Up Next: I try to distract the kids from their fathers failings with more water slides!