When Nathan & Jensey arrived, it was like old home week (I don’t even know
what that phrase means, but I use it all the time...). Me and Jennifaerie and Jensey were chatting giddly and simultaneously while the fellas all slugged each other in the shoulder, or whatever it is boys do. Then there were a few more minutes of that polite murmuring about what we should all do (“We’ll do whatever you guys want to do!” “No,
we’ll do whatever YOU guys want to do!”) until a small voice could be heard chirping that the safari was her absolutely mostest favoritest ride in the park. So off we went – some of us for the fourth time that day!
As our merry band of adventurers passed through Africa, who should we run across but
Lacey and Eric, whose wedding the Roots had shot just days before!
I couldn’t believe it – I think we had ripped yet another
hole in the space-time continuum as three Root Photography couples converged on the same spot. Thank gawd somebody remembered to bring a camera….
Then, as introductions were made all around, Patrick and Eric were involuntarily drawn together by the magnetism of their pin lanyards. It turns out that Eric is as new to pin trading as Patrick and they share similar taste and pin-trading style (i.e., cast members only and trade for what looks cool, not what’s rare/valuable). And then, in an even crazier turn of events, the two of them were approached by the same CM who, on our last trip, tried to offer Patrick three pins from his personal stash for one limited edition pin Patrick had lucked into.
Shady dealings on the streets of Africa!
Finally we let Lacey and Eric get back to their honeymoon, and the six of us hopped on the safari. This time, I will let the Roots’ photos tell the story…
After the safari ride we were wandering the path between Africa and Asia when it began pouring rain. We quickly ascertained that DH was the only one who had any interest in remaining in Animal Kingdom and decided to hotfoot it for Jennifaerie and Rob’s warm, dry hotel room at the Lodge to kill time til dinner.
Herding cats...
When we got to the Lodge, Jennifaerie went to handle check-in, while I went with Rob to retrieve their luggage from Bell Services. Well, he had his “Just Married” button on and I had a “Mrs.” Hat on, and you can pretty much guess what the bellboys thought.
“CONGRATULATIONS!” they beamed, to which I leapt about two feet away from Rob and stuttered, “Ah, no, uh, you see, we’re married, but not to each other, heh heh heh [gulp!] What’s that over there?!!!” [sounds of running, car door slam, squealing tires]
The next thing I knew, we were meeting Disney bride Natalie, who works in Concierge at Animal Kingdom and had spotted Jennifaerie in the lobby. I love running into people from the online community at Walt Disney World, and it was especially fun to meet someone who’s on the inside of all the magic! I just wish I’d had the presence of mind to get a picture with her (guess I was still recovering from that mistaken identity scare of a few moments before).
After we got Jennifaerie & Rob’s luggage to the room, the six of us went to the lounge above Boma to kill time until the Jiko reservation I’d made. Originally it was just me and DH. Then, a few months before, I’d strong-armed Jennifaerie & Rob into joining us even though they’d only been to Jiko once and had hated it (bad server, boorish patrons). So now we had a few minutes to work on Nathan & Jensey, who were ultimately convinced to come to dinner too – my evil plan was WORKING! Muwaaahahahahaha!
We were a highly connected bunch with four smartphones among us, so while we waited, Nathan, Jensey, Jennifaerie and I decide to tweet on Twitter simultaneously (“BINGO!”). Trust me, this was high-larious.… I guess you had to be there… or be a nerd…
Dinner was really fun!
Jennifaerie & Rob split the Barbecue Chicken Flatbread - With grilled onion, apple, African barbecue sauce, and four cheeses.
DH and I split the Chef's Specialty Flatbread - with lamb merguez, Cheddar, Neuskes bacon and lemon aioli.
Nathan & Jensey passed on the flatbread, but then Orlando, or Walt Disney World at least, seems to be the Flatbread Capital of the World (the only item I’ve seen on more menus there is crème brulee). Maybe they’d had flatbread for lunch. And breakfast.
For dinner, DH and I split the Maize-crusted Sturgeon - with Vegetables of the Moment and Tomato-Butter Sauce, which was amazing, as always. I pretty much inhaled my half.
And I ordered a side of the macaroni and cheese so I wouldn’t feel like I was missing out on the filet with macaroni and cheese. The mac ‘n’ cheese was actually kinda dried out that night.
Jennifaerie had the Nantucket Scallops - with Butternut Squash Gratin, Apple Slaw, and Apple Vinaigrette.
I won’t venture to guess what she thought of them, but I think it’s safe to assume they were better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick….
Robifaerie had the Wood-fired Lamb Loin with Spiced Lentils, Baby Carrots, and Lemon-infused Demi-glace.
I don’t know what he thought of his dinner because we are most certainly NOT married.
Nathan had the Kenyan Coffee Barbecue Beef Short Ribs with mushroom Sadza and Onion-Garlic Sauce.
This looked amazing (in person – in picture, not so much), and I wish I’d had a telescoping fork on me so I could’ve stolen a bite.
And Jensey had the Oak-Grilled Filet Mignon with Macaroni & Cheese and Red Wine Sauce.
My second-most-favorite thing on the menu!
At the end of the meal, our server did the sweetest thing – she brought out three FREE pistachio crème brulees, one for each celebrating couple! Yessss!
Free Dessert #2
After dinner, Nathan & Jensey had to go back to work, so we kidnapped Jennifaerie & Rob and brought them back to our place to watch Wishes over the Dumpster—er, I mean over what we could see of the castle. When we got in the room, we discovered the staff had given us turndown service without us even requesting it!
Whohoo! More chocolate!
It was kind of a foggy night, so Wishes looked a little blurry from our deck.
After the show we forced Jennifaerie & Rob to listen to our yammering until their heads began to droop, and then we bundled them in the car for the trip back to their hotel. On the way out of Wilderness Lodge, we spotted two armadillos foraging by the side of the road! This was, like, the coolest thing I had ever seen – I didn’t know they had ‘dillos in Florida! I made DH flip a U-turn so we could look at them again.
Finally we got to AKL and bid Jennifaerie and Rob good night and safe travels home. By the time we got back to Wilderness Lodge, even the ‘dillos had gone to bed!
I mean, like they always say a wedding is just one day, but Lurkyloos trip report [takes] forEVER.......
I knew Id forgotten to take a picture of something...
let's just say what i was thinking was definalty NOT for a family board!!
Cool! I'm glad you're enjoying the report! And you're right - it really is great to celebrate with friends. I'd never experienced that before!
our meet up was not nearly as fun as this! Your tr is wonderful so far! again LOVE LOVE LOVE the roots photography skills!! Mr.and Mrs.Fairie are adorable also!
