jrgutknecht
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2000
- Messages
- 199
Day 5 - May 9th Animal Kingdom
Cast of characters: Me - 36 first trip in about 15 years
Tom - also 36, first trip to WDW
Were halfway through our vacation and so far everything is going great. Weve managed to stick pretty close to the plans and so far the only physical casualty are some very small blisters on Toms feet. Nothing a little first-aid and moleskin cant handle. Im glad I decided to switch back to my old shoes, as Ive had no problems at all. About 3 months before we left we decided to buy new sneakers and break them in. I couldnt find a new pair like the ones I had so after much debate I bought a new pair of New Balance shoes (I had heard good things about them.) After 3 weeks I started having these TERRIBLE foot pains and considered going to the doctor to find out what the problem was. Finally I decided to switch back to my old worn out Nike shoes and within days of our departure date the foot pain was entirely gone. It could have been a co-incidence, but Ill never make that mistake again.
Anyway, the plan for today calls for a early departure for Disneys Animal Kingdom. We have a 7:30 PS for breakfast at Donalds Breakfastsaurus. Since we were having breakfast we skipped the concierge food and headed right for the bus stop. The concierge had called the transportation department the night before to find out exactly what time the first bus arrived. She told us it would be here at 7am, so we made sure to be at the bus stop a few minutes early. At 7am right on the button, the bus pulled up and we got on. We were joined by one other couple who were on their way to the Animal Kindgom Lodge to check out the newest resort. We had a great conversation on the (long) bus ride over to AK. We talked about how the best time to see Disney is before 8 am and its really true. The place is beautiful in the morning.
We arrived at the AK about 7:15 but surprisingly we were not the first guest there. There were about a dozen people already standing in line for regular admission. We looked around and saw a Donalds Breakfastsaurus sign hanging at the far right end of the gates. We headed in that direction and waited a few minutes before some CMs showed up with the Priority Seating cards. We gave them our names and she opened the gates and asked us to wait until our escort arrived. Other families started arriving and they all got checked in and waited with us in line. A few minutes later a CM arrived and she checked with the CM who was doing the check in and came back to us and asked us for our park passes. We handed her our combination room key / park pass and she went over to one of regular turnstiles and passed our tickets through. She then came back and with a BIG smile on her face handed them back to us and said Okay, follow me please
I was stunned! I didnt realize they were going to bring people through one by one. She quickly explained that this was something special they did for the first people in line. She went on to tell us how it would give us a little more time with Donald and the gang. Well, I was just too excited to believe it. We were the FIRST people in the park! Ive never had this opportunity ANYWHERE and it was a great surprise. I quickly got my camera out of my pocket and was fumbling to try to take a picture of the tree of life as we were walking but our escort suggested we just stop, that we were in no hurry. I thought this was great, so I snapped a quick couple pictures of the park which show what the AK looks like before its invaded by humans they are some of my favorite pictures.
As we headed down the ramp (and boy was this park full of ups and downs!!!) to Dinoland, I snapped a quick picture or two of the Dinosaur and who should I see peeking over the rocks at us but PLUTO!! What a hoot! Pluto was trying not to let us see him and as we walked under the bridge he was circling around behind us. I quickly turned around to catch him and snapped his picture as he was trying to figure out where we had gone.. it was great fun!! We stopped for a moment while our escort snapped a picture of us with Pluto, then Pluto grabbed our arms and led us up to the entrance. When we got to the restaurant the entire wait-staff was outside waiting for us (all with big smile) and they led us inside where Donald, Mickey, and Goofy were waiting for us. We spent the next few minutes joking around with the characters and our escort (who turned out to be our server) took our picture with the whole group. We then had one on one pictures and Donald signed our menus for us. They also then presented us with a Disneys Animal Kingdom Memories certificate that reads: We certify that this moment during your visit to the Walt Disney World Resort was Magical! It had our names on it and listed us as Honorary Guests AND was signed by all the characters. I was so stunned by the whole thing and having such a good time I forgot I was there to have breakfast until our server showed us to the buffet and took our drink orders just as the other guests were beginning to arrive.
The characters were greeting the other guests and we helped our selves to breakfast. This was one of the BEST breakfast buffets Ive ever eaten at. Probably because the food was fresh, but there was such a variety. I had some of the omelet and bacon, sausage, fresh (really fresh) fruit and fresh bread. I would recommend this breakfast for the food alone, let alone the opportunity to meet the characters. Tom and I each made a couple trips to the buffet. After my second return, he disappeared to check out the decorations in the dining room. Tom is an amateur wanna-be paleontologist and he was intently inspecting all of the decorations around the room. About this time most of the 7:30 guests had been seated and were eating when Donald came and sat down with me. He was so funny. He pointed out a story in the newspaper about him and was making jokes about Goofy.. We had a great time. Our server came over and I told her we were using our Discovery Magic wishes for the breakfast and she suggested I take a couple water bottles with us. I agreed and thought this was a great idea. She included them in our discovery magic charge and although we used two wishes which had a value of $70.00 and the check only came to $45, I think it was WELL worth it. This is one of my most memorable moments during our entire trip. IT was all such a surprise that I want to go back and do it again, so I can really enjoy it next time it all seemed to go by so quickly!
We were out the door by about 8am and although the unofficial guide book plan was for Kilimanjaro Safaris first, we decided we had to do Dinosaur first since we were already there. We spent a few minutes trying to get our bearings (since we had an escort into the park I wasnt really looking where we were going) and finally found the directional signs that pointed to Dinosaur. Everyone complains about the crowds in the parks, but Ill tell you its really hard to find your way around when there is no crowd to lead the way! Even when we found the signs to Dinosaur, we still ended up in the wrong place.. Finally we found the entrance and there wasnt a soul in sight. We approached what we thought would be the queue entrance when two CMs came around the corner in mid-joke. When they saw us they immediately changed the subject and put on their best Disney faces. One of them (who had a radio on) came up and wished us good morning and asked us how we got there so quickly. (apparently the park was just now opening) We told him about our breakfast with Donald and he offered to call and check to see if they were open for business yet. He made a quick call and reported back that all was well and we could go right in for our Tour We made our way into the lobby and spent plenty of time looking at the exhibits. We rounded the corner and another CM greeted us and wished us a good morning and ushered us into a side room where just as we rounded the corner the pre-show film started JUST FOR US!! This was so cool, we were the only ones in the building it was like a private show! We then went in and boarded our vehicle and off we went. We have the funniest picture from this ride of the two of us in a car by ourselves with these scared looks on our faces Its another of my favorite memories from the trip. I loved this ride and although Tom had to point out a few minor scientific inaccuracies about the dinosaurs, he loved it too.
After the ride we made our way (against the flow of the incoming crowd) over to Africa. We again managed to get lost on the way. Somehow I turned the wrong way and we ended up heading back to the Exit, but we made it to Africa in no time. Once we were heading in the same direction as the rest of the crowd , it didnt see so crowded, but I quickly noticed how the crowd flow patterns here were very different than anywhere else.
As we approached the safari entrance I realized that I had not brought enough film for the day. I had on all previous days been carrying the camera and two extra rolls of film. This gave me at least 24 pictures, if not closer to 36. Well, this morning I had started with a roll that was almost empty and I used another roll during breakfast, so I had to buy more film. They conveniently had film available at the entrance to the safari where I paid $16.00 for two rolls of film The moral of this story is ALWAYS bring more film than you need. I could have kicked myself for it, since I had at least 10 rolls of film back in the hotel room, if I had just remembered to bring more! It was my own fault, but it was a mistake I promised myself I would never make again.
We had about a 15 minute wait in the safari line and if I had been thinking clearer, we would have gotten a fasspass and gone to do the Pangani Trail and Conservation Station instead of waiting. As it was we never did do the Pangani Trail we just ran out of time. But the wait wasnt too bad and the line moved rather quickly. We boarded the bus and went off on safari. Dont make the same mistake I did dont waste your time trying to take pictures of the animals on your first trip. I wasnt sure where the animals would be and instead of enjoying the ride I was too busy trying to take pictures. I enjoyed it none the less and Im looking forward to doing it again when I can leave the camera in my pocket!
Next (according to the unofficial guide plan) we to head over to the Kali River Rapids, but it was too early to get wet so we decided to go see Its Tough to be a Bug instead. We found our way back to the Tree of Life and saw the wait was 30 minutes, but the fast pass return was only an hour away. Tom wanted to go back to Dinoland so we grabbed a fastpass for 9:45 and headed over to Dinoland. We walked the Cretaceous Trail and took a couple more pictures with the dinosaurs and spent some time in the gift shop at Dinosaur. We also stopped at the Island Merchantile and did some shopping. We picked up some Animal Kingdom hats here (which soon became the home for our Disney Pins collection and I swore before we left I wasnt going to become hooked on pins .but thats another story) We also picked up our Animal Kingdom time piece which was available to us through our Discovery Magic package. We had everything but the hats shipped back to our room, then headed over to see Its tough to be a bug.
We arrived JUST as they were seating for the next show, so we walked right in and grabbed a seat in the middle in the very last row. I wasnt sure what to expect and since the bugs from A Bugs Life dont really bother me as much as real bugs, I figured I would be okay. Well, I dont want to ruin it for those that havent seen it yet, Ill just say this was my favorite 3D movie ever. Its a hoot. At one point I quite literally JUMPED out of my seat. It was great fun. It was especially fun to listen to the little kids screaming.
Se checked the show schedule and decided to go see Tarzan Rocks next. We made our way back to the Theatre in the Wild and after a short wait in line got in and had great seats for the first show of the day (10:30). Maybe one of the Disney regulars can tell me who the lead singer was in this show? I swear Ive seen him someplace before. I think it was at a show I did 20 years ago at Great America in Chicago, but Im not sure. Anyway the show was a lot of fun, if just a little bit too long. The audience participation number seemed to go on too long. Some people have complained the show was too loud, but I didnt think so at all. In fact at some points I would have liked it to be louder. I suspect Disney was controlling the sound very carefully after a few too many complaints because I noticed on the sound board operators console was a very LARGE decibel display meter. It was so big I could read it from 20 feet away. I watched it during the show and it never once got above 99db. The show was good, but ended up not being one of my favorites. Funny because Tarzan is one of my favorite Disney films.
After the show we realized we were (for some reason) quite hungry. So we decided to grab a quick bite to eat at the Flame Tree Barbecue. We spent some of the time at lunch going over the map. I generally have no need of a map at a theme park. Ive only been to MGM once and could find my way around again right now without a map. It had also been 15 years since I had been to either the MK or Epcot and I didnt need the map for either of those either. But AK is very different. I spent the entire day referring to the map. I think its because the vegetation around the paths is so dense you cant really see anything. Unlike all the other parks, the AKs weenie (as Walt would have called it J ) is a TREE.. well there are millions of trees in the park and frankly they all start to blend together This would be my one criticism of this park is its layout and ability to handle crowds. When its not yet noon and you cant walk down the main pathway without having to weave in and around other people the park is poorly designed.
After watching the native birds waiting for anyone to drop some crumbs on the grown (Whatever you do dont feed the birds, it just makes them worse!) we headed over to check out Flights of Wonder and managed to get in early and grab a front row seat. This is the one show I would recommend getting in early for. The theatre is not that large and the time between when they open the theatre and start the show is about 15 minutes. Being in the front really gave me a close up view of the birds which were remarkable. I decided Im going to send one of my cockatiels here to have him trained because they have done some amazing things with these birds.
When we got out of the show it was just a little past 12:30. I guess we werent managing our time as well as we had the previous days, or maybe it was because it was a new park, but we seemed to be falling behind the schedule for the day. I checked our plan and we realized we were in Asia so we decided to walk the Maharaja Jungle Trek. We are both big animal lovers and except for the crowds we really enjoyed this. The best part was the aviary. Mostly because most people skipped it and we had the entire aviary to ourselves and the birds. We tried to spot al the birds we could and after just a few minutes found all the birds on the check list. I really liked the way the trek was designed, but I wish they would limit the number of people entering. Everyone (of course) was clustered around all the big attractions and they also tended to move in large groups from one animal to the next. Most people were walking through so fast they werent taking the time to really enjoy the surroundings. It was like Okay, theres the tiger, now lets go. Okay, theres the bat, now lets go I was really bummed at this attitude. I wish these people would have stayed away from the attraction if thats all they were going to do, but I suppose they paid their money and they were going to see every attraction even if they had no interest in it. Or maybe they were expecting the Jungle Safari from the MK? I think far too many people have the wrong expectation from this park and perhaps its Disneys fault for charging the same admission price. I saw way too many people who were so busy rushing from one attraction to the next that they didnt stop to look at the animals. After all thats why the park is here isnt it?? For the animals?? If and when Disney builds the beastly kingdom section of this park, I hope they add enough attractions to keep these people happy so that true animal lovers will have the opportunity to view and watch the animals in peace. Okay, Ill get off my soap box now. The jungle trek is great, but if youre expecting an attraction dont go. Its just animals laying around sleeping and being boring. If youre an animal lover, you have to go check it out, it features some of the most beautiful animal habitats Ive ever seen and gives you a chance to see some exotic and endangered animals up close.
By now it was starting to get REALLY crowded and REALLY hot. I thought it must have easily been in the 90s which was surprising because it was only supposed to be 82 today. As we headed over the bridge back to make our way back into Africa I realized that on the bridge it was a good 10 degrees cooler. And then I realized that was because there was a breeze blowing here that wasnt blowing in the park. The vegetation was so thick that it was blocking the breeze. No wonder it was hot in the park.
We headed back to Africa which by 1:15 was MUCH more crowded that I wanted to deal with so we headed to Rafikis planet watch and took a nice cooling ride on the train. At the Conservation Station two CMs greeted us and thanked us for contributing to the Wildlife preservation fund (we were wearing the buttons) and we spent the next hour here watching and interacting with the various exhibits. I marveled at the traffic pattern here. Big groups of people would get off the train, walk (more like march) down to the conservation station walk through and turn around and walk back to get on the next train. During our stay we saw at least 3 such groups go through. In my mind these people missed one of the nicer areas of the park. We spent some time trying to find the gorillas and other animals on the web cams. We watched a short video about elephants. Spent some time talking with some of the CMs that worked there and watched a vet perform a toe trimming operation on a blue macaw.
After a nice refreshing break, we were ready to head back into the main park. It was like the difference between night and day when we arrived back at the main park. While the Conservation station was practically abandoned, the main park was packed with wall to wall people.
Consulting the show schedule we realized if we were going to see the Festival of the Lion King we better make our way over there quickly. It was almost 2:15 and there were only three more shows. We just missed the 2:30 show. We were both hot and tired so we decided to grab a bench in the shade and wait for the next show. It was during this time that we had our first real session of people watching which is almost as much fun (if not more so) than watching the animals. We watched people come and go for about 30 minutes and enjoyed our Mickey Ice Cream bars. We finally made our way to the entrance and after a short wait made our way into the theatre where we sat in the Lion Section. I had read that this was one of the best shows on the property and I would have to agree. I could see this show over and over again. There is so much going on and the performers are SO good, it was a real delight to watch.
We got out of the show at 4:00 and checked our list to see what else we wanted to do. The only thing we really didnt get to do was the River Rapid Rides and the wait at this point was over 40 minutes and we both exhausted so we decided to head back to the hotel. We were both shocked at how tired we were. It was true we had an early start, but not that much earlier than the previous 4 days. I guess maybe it was all catching up on us. When I checked the itinerary I commented on how even if we had the energy to stay, there was still more that we wanted to see than could be done it a day.
Just then the coolest thing happened to us. One of those Disney CMs with the wireless pads stopped us and asked us for our opinions on the park. I wish I could remember all of the questions, but I cant. Most questions were asking us to rate things on a scale of 1-5 or some such similar scale. The ONE question I do remember was Did you have enough time to do and see everything you wanted I answered this with the lowest possible score, because even though we were leaving for the day, if the park had been open until 6 or 7 or even 8pm we would have stayed and been able to see everything we wanted to see. There were some questions about how we thought about the layout of the park which I scored low. I gave high marks for beauty and detail and offered let Disney contact me after I returned home if they had any questions. I keep hoping they will call, but to this date, they havent followed up. I just thought it was great to give them my opinion on a park that I really loved; but that I also felt has some serious design flaws and issues.
We finally made it back to the hotel by 5pm and took a short break before our dinner at the Artist Point at 6:30. When I asked the concierge the night before to make the PS arrangements for us, I had assumed that there might be some trouble getting a table at the last minute, but much to my surprise when we arrived the place was almost empty. I wouldnt be surprised if this restaurant (as good as it was) gets an overhaul in the near future. The entire time we were there it was never more than 40% full and the breakfast (which I now understand they are stopping) was even less full. You can read my review on the restaurant board, but Ill tell you it wasnt one of my favorite meals. I would eat there again in a pinch, but I wouldnt go out of my way to work it into the itinerary.
This evening was supposed to be our backup for Epcot and Illuminations but we had decided the night before to re-arrange the itinerary. Instead after dinner we went out to the beach and grabbed a chair and waited for the Electric Light Pageant to pass by the hotel. While it was fun and a bit romantic, you wont miss much if you cant squeeze this one in. Having said that it was a great way to end the day and it was nice to have the entire evening to ourselves. We had now been to all the major parks and I finally felt like I could relax a little. The rest of our itinerary was much more relaxed and if I had to do it again, I would spread the last 3 days out over 5 or 6 days instead of trying to do so much.
We sat on the beach for a while after the pageant pulled away and just enjoyed the mild night air. We went for a quick swim and from the pool we could see fireworks in the distance over Bay Lake. When we asked a couple cast members by the pool what the fireworks were (they were in the wrong direction and too far away to be MK) one of them told me they were Epcot (again wrong direction) and the other said they were Fort Wilderness (again wrong direction and much too far away) Finally another guest told me that as I had guessed, they were coming from Universal Studios. I dont know if the CMs really didnt know where they were coming from or if they werent allowed to say Universal Studios In either case I thought it was funny that they couldnt answer our questions.
It was nice to have an evening to relax, and next time Ill plan more of them Now that weve seen all the big attractions we finally had some time to relax.
Its been a LONG 4 days. Im not even sure I remember what day of the week it is by this point. All I know is that tomorrow we get to meet the dolphins at 9am. I cant even imagine how much fun that is going to be. In spite of being more excited about this than I was about coming to Disney World in the first place, I have NO trouble at all falling asleep that night.
Cast of characters: Me - 36 first trip in about 15 years
Tom - also 36, first trip to WDW
Were halfway through our vacation and so far everything is going great. Weve managed to stick pretty close to the plans and so far the only physical casualty are some very small blisters on Toms feet. Nothing a little first-aid and moleskin cant handle. Im glad I decided to switch back to my old shoes, as Ive had no problems at all. About 3 months before we left we decided to buy new sneakers and break them in. I couldnt find a new pair like the ones I had so after much debate I bought a new pair of New Balance shoes (I had heard good things about them.) After 3 weeks I started having these TERRIBLE foot pains and considered going to the doctor to find out what the problem was. Finally I decided to switch back to my old worn out Nike shoes and within days of our departure date the foot pain was entirely gone. It could have been a co-incidence, but Ill never make that mistake again.
Anyway, the plan for today calls for a early departure for Disneys Animal Kingdom. We have a 7:30 PS for breakfast at Donalds Breakfastsaurus. Since we were having breakfast we skipped the concierge food and headed right for the bus stop. The concierge had called the transportation department the night before to find out exactly what time the first bus arrived. She told us it would be here at 7am, so we made sure to be at the bus stop a few minutes early. At 7am right on the button, the bus pulled up and we got on. We were joined by one other couple who were on their way to the Animal Kindgom Lodge to check out the newest resort. We had a great conversation on the (long) bus ride over to AK. We talked about how the best time to see Disney is before 8 am and its really true. The place is beautiful in the morning.
We arrived at the AK about 7:15 but surprisingly we were not the first guest there. There were about a dozen people already standing in line for regular admission. We looked around and saw a Donalds Breakfastsaurus sign hanging at the far right end of the gates. We headed in that direction and waited a few minutes before some CMs showed up with the Priority Seating cards. We gave them our names and she opened the gates and asked us to wait until our escort arrived. Other families started arriving and they all got checked in and waited with us in line. A few minutes later a CM arrived and she checked with the CM who was doing the check in and came back to us and asked us for our park passes. We handed her our combination room key / park pass and she went over to one of regular turnstiles and passed our tickets through. She then came back and with a BIG smile on her face handed them back to us and said Okay, follow me please
I was stunned! I didnt realize they were going to bring people through one by one. She quickly explained that this was something special they did for the first people in line. She went on to tell us how it would give us a little more time with Donald and the gang. Well, I was just too excited to believe it. We were the FIRST people in the park! Ive never had this opportunity ANYWHERE and it was a great surprise. I quickly got my camera out of my pocket and was fumbling to try to take a picture of the tree of life as we were walking but our escort suggested we just stop, that we were in no hurry. I thought this was great, so I snapped a quick couple pictures of the park which show what the AK looks like before its invaded by humans they are some of my favorite pictures.
As we headed down the ramp (and boy was this park full of ups and downs!!!) to Dinoland, I snapped a quick picture or two of the Dinosaur and who should I see peeking over the rocks at us but PLUTO!! What a hoot! Pluto was trying not to let us see him and as we walked under the bridge he was circling around behind us. I quickly turned around to catch him and snapped his picture as he was trying to figure out where we had gone.. it was great fun!! We stopped for a moment while our escort snapped a picture of us with Pluto, then Pluto grabbed our arms and led us up to the entrance. When we got to the restaurant the entire wait-staff was outside waiting for us (all with big smile) and they led us inside where Donald, Mickey, and Goofy were waiting for us. We spent the next few minutes joking around with the characters and our escort (who turned out to be our server) took our picture with the whole group. We then had one on one pictures and Donald signed our menus for us. They also then presented us with a Disneys Animal Kingdom Memories certificate that reads: We certify that this moment during your visit to the Walt Disney World Resort was Magical! It had our names on it and listed us as Honorary Guests AND was signed by all the characters. I was so stunned by the whole thing and having such a good time I forgot I was there to have breakfast until our server showed us to the buffet and took our drink orders just as the other guests were beginning to arrive.
The characters were greeting the other guests and we helped our selves to breakfast. This was one of the BEST breakfast buffets Ive ever eaten at. Probably because the food was fresh, but there was such a variety. I had some of the omelet and bacon, sausage, fresh (really fresh) fruit and fresh bread. I would recommend this breakfast for the food alone, let alone the opportunity to meet the characters. Tom and I each made a couple trips to the buffet. After my second return, he disappeared to check out the decorations in the dining room. Tom is an amateur wanna-be paleontologist and he was intently inspecting all of the decorations around the room. About this time most of the 7:30 guests had been seated and were eating when Donald came and sat down with me. He was so funny. He pointed out a story in the newspaper about him and was making jokes about Goofy.. We had a great time. Our server came over and I told her we were using our Discovery Magic wishes for the breakfast and she suggested I take a couple water bottles with us. I agreed and thought this was a great idea. She included them in our discovery magic charge and although we used two wishes which had a value of $70.00 and the check only came to $45, I think it was WELL worth it. This is one of my most memorable moments during our entire trip. IT was all such a surprise that I want to go back and do it again, so I can really enjoy it next time it all seemed to go by so quickly!
We were out the door by about 8am and although the unofficial guide book plan was for Kilimanjaro Safaris first, we decided we had to do Dinosaur first since we were already there. We spent a few minutes trying to get our bearings (since we had an escort into the park I wasnt really looking where we were going) and finally found the directional signs that pointed to Dinosaur. Everyone complains about the crowds in the parks, but Ill tell you its really hard to find your way around when there is no crowd to lead the way! Even when we found the signs to Dinosaur, we still ended up in the wrong place.. Finally we found the entrance and there wasnt a soul in sight. We approached what we thought would be the queue entrance when two CMs came around the corner in mid-joke. When they saw us they immediately changed the subject and put on their best Disney faces. One of them (who had a radio on) came up and wished us good morning and asked us how we got there so quickly. (apparently the park was just now opening) We told him about our breakfast with Donald and he offered to call and check to see if they were open for business yet. He made a quick call and reported back that all was well and we could go right in for our Tour We made our way into the lobby and spent plenty of time looking at the exhibits. We rounded the corner and another CM greeted us and wished us a good morning and ushered us into a side room where just as we rounded the corner the pre-show film started JUST FOR US!! This was so cool, we were the only ones in the building it was like a private show! We then went in and boarded our vehicle and off we went. We have the funniest picture from this ride of the two of us in a car by ourselves with these scared looks on our faces Its another of my favorite memories from the trip. I loved this ride and although Tom had to point out a few minor scientific inaccuracies about the dinosaurs, he loved it too.
After the ride we made our way (against the flow of the incoming crowd) over to Africa. We again managed to get lost on the way. Somehow I turned the wrong way and we ended up heading back to the Exit, but we made it to Africa in no time. Once we were heading in the same direction as the rest of the crowd , it didnt see so crowded, but I quickly noticed how the crowd flow patterns here were very different than anywhere else.
As we approached the safari entrance I realized that I had not brought enough film for the day. I had on all previous days been carrying the camera and two extra rolls of film. This gave me at least 24 pictures, if not closer to 36. Well, this morning I had started with a roll that was almost empty and I used another roll during breakfast, so I had to buy more film. They conveniently had film available at the entrance to the safari where I paid $16.00 for two rolls of film The moral of this story is ALWAYS bring more film than you need. I could have kicked myself for it, since I had at least 10 rolls of film back in the hotel room, if I had just remembered to bring more! It was my own fault, but it was a mistake I promised myself I would never make again.
We had about a 15 minute wait in the safari line and if I had been thinking clearer, we would have gotten a fasspass and gone to do the Pangani Trail and Conservation Station instead of waiting. As it was we never did do the Pangani Trail we just ran out of time. But the wait wasnt too bad and the line moved rather quickly. We boarded the bus and went off on safari. Dont make the same mistake I did dont waste your time trying to take pictures of the animals on your first trip. I wasnt sure where the animals would be and instead of enjoying the ride I was too busy trying to take pictures. I enjoyed it none the less and Im looking forward to doing it again when I can leave the camera in my pocket!
Next (according to the unofficial guide plan) we to head over to the Kali River Rapids, but it was too early to get wet so we decided to go see Its Tough to be a Bug instead. We found our way back to the Tree of Life and saw the wait was 30 minutes, but the fast pass return was only an hour away. Tom wanted to go back to Dinoland so we grabbed a fastpass for 9:45 and headed over to Dinoland. We walked the Cretaceous Trail and took a couple more pictures with the dinosaurs and spent some time in the gift shop at Dinosaur. We also stopped at the Island Merchantile and did some shopping. We picked up some Animal Kingdom hats here (which soon became the home for our Disney Pins collection and I swore before we left I wasnt going to become hooked on pins .but thats another story) We also picked up our Animal Kingdom time piece which was available to us through our Discovery Magic package. We had everything but the hats shipped back to our room, then headed over to see Its tough to be a bug.
We arrived JUST as they were seating for the next show, so we walked right in and grabbed a seat in the middle in the very last row. I wasnt sure what to expect and since the bugs from A Bugs Life dont really bother me as much as real bugs, I figured I would be okay. Well, I dont want to ruin it for those that havent seen it yet, Ill just say this was my favorite 3D movie ever. Its a hoot. At one point I quite literally JUMPED out of my seat. It was great fun. It was especially fun to listen to the little kids screaming.
Se checked the show schedule and decided to go see Tarzan Rocks next. We made our way back to the Theatre in the Wild and after a short wait in line got in and had great seats for the first show of the day (10:30). Maybe one of the Disney regulars can tell me who the lead singer was in this show? I swear Ive seen him someplace before. I think it was at a show I did 20 years ago at Great America in Chicago, but Im not sure. Anyway the show was a lot of fun, if just a little bit too long. The audience participation number seemed to go on too long. Some people have complained the show was too loud, but I didnt think so at all. In fact at some points I would have liked it to be louder. I suspect Disney was controlling the sound very carefully after a few too many complaints because I noticed on the sound board operators console was a very LARGE decibel display meter. It was so big I could read it from 20 feet away. I watched it during the show and it never once got above 99db. The show was good, but ended up not being one of my favorites. Funny because Tarzan is one of my favorite Disney films.
After the show we realized we were (for some reason) quite hungry. So we decided to grab a quick bite to eat at the Flame Tree Barbecue. We spent some of the time at lunch going over the map. I generally have no need of a map at a theme park. Ive only been to MGM once and could find my way around again right now without a map. It had also been 15 years since I had been to either the MK or Epcot and I didnt need the map for either of those either. But AK is very different. I spent the entire day referring to the map. I think its because the vegetation around the paths is so dense you cant really see anything. Unlike all the other parks, the AKs weenie (as Walt would have called it J ) is a TREE.. well there are millions of trees in the park and frankly they all start to blend together This would be my one criticism of this park is its layout and ability to handle crowds. When its not yet noon and you cant walk down the main pathway without having to weave in and around other people the park is poorly designed.
After watching the native birds waiting for anyone to drop some crumbs on the grown (Whatever you do dont feed the birds, it just makes them worse!) we headed over to check out Flights of Wonder and managed to get in early and grab a front row seat. This is the one show I would recommend getting in early for. The theatre is not that large and the time between when they open the theatre and start the show is about 15 minutes. Being in the front really gave me a close up view of the birds which were remarkable. I decided Im going to send one of my cockatiels here to have him trained because they have done some amazing things with these birds.
When we got out of the show it was just a little past 12:30. I guess we werent managing our time as well as we had the previous days, or maybe it was because it was a new park, but we seemed to be falling behind the schedule for the day. I checked our plan and we realized we were in Asia so we decided to walk the Maharaja Jungle Trek. We are both big animal lovers and except for the crowds we really enjoyed this. The best part was the aviary. Mostly because most people skipped it and we had the entire aviary to ourselves and the birds. We tried to spot al the birds we could and after just a few minutes found all the birds on the check list. I really liked the way the trek was designed, but I wish they would limit the number of people entering. Everyone (of course) was clustered around all the big attractions and they also tended to move in large groups from one animal to the next. Most people were walking through so fast they werent taking the time to really enjoy the surroundings. It was like Okay, theres the tiger, now lets go. Okay, theres the bat, now lets go I was really bummed at this attitude. I wish these people would have stayed away from the attraction if thats all they were going to do, but I suppose they paid their money and they were going to see every attraction even if they had no interest in it. Or maybe they were expecting the Jungle Safari from the MK? I think far too many people have the wrong expectation from this park and perhaps its Disneys fault for charging the same admission price. I saw way too many people who were so busy rushing from one attraction to the next that they didnt stop to look at the animals. After all thats why the park is here isnt it?? For the animals?? If and when Disney builds the beastly kingdom section of this park, I hope they add enough attractions to keep these people happy so that true animal lovers will have the opportunity to view and watch the animals in peace. Okay, Ill get off my soap box now. The jungle trek is great, but if youre expecting an attraction dont go. Its just animals laying around sleeping and being boring. If youre an animal lover, you have to go check it out, it features some of the most beautiful animal habitats Ive ever seen and gives you a chance to see some exotic and endangered animals up close.
By now it was starting to get REALLY crowded and REALLY hot. I thought it must have easily been in the 90s which was surprising because it was only supposed to be 82 today. As we headed over the bridge back to make our way back into Africa I realized that on the bridge it was a good 10 degrees cooler. And then I realized that was because there was a breeze blowing here that wasnt blowing in the park. The vegetation was so thick that it was blocking the breeze. No wonder it was hot in the park.
We headed back to Africa which by 1:15 was MUCH more crowded that I wanted to deal with so we headed to Rafikis planet watch and took a nice cooling ride on the train. At the Conservation Station two CMs greeted us and thanked us for contributing to the Wildlife preservation fund (we were wearing the buttons) and we spent the next hour here watching and interacting with the various exhibits. I marveled at the traffic pattern here. Big groups of people would get off the train, walk (more like march) down to the conservation station walk through and turn around and walk back to get on the next train. During our stay we saw at least 3 such groups go through. In my mind these people missed one of the nicer areas of the park. We spent some time trying to find the gorillas and other animals on the web cams. We watched a short video about elephants. Spent some time talking with some of the CMs that worked there and watched a vet perform a toe trimming operation on a blue macaw.
After a nice refreshing break, we were ready to head back into the main park. It was like the difference between night and day when we arrived back at the main park. While the Conservation station was practically abandoned, the main park was packed with wall to wall people.
Consulting the show schedule we realized if we were going to see the Festival of the Lion King we better make our way over there quickly. It was almost 2:15 and there were only three more shows. We just missed the 2:30 show. We were both hot and tired so we decided to grab a bench in the shade and wait for the next show. It was during this time that we had our first real session of people watching which is almost as much fun (if not more so) than watching the animals. We watched people come and go for about 30 minutes and enjoyed our Mickey Ice Cream bars. We finally made our way to the entrance and after a short wait made our way into the theatre where we sat in the Lion Section. I had read that this was one of the best shows on the property and I would have to agree. I could see this show over and over again. There is so much going on and the performers are SO good, it was a real delight to watch.
We got out of the show at 4:00 and checked our list to see what else we wanted to do. The only thing we really didnt get to do was the River Rapid Rides and the wait at this point was over 40 minutes and we both exhausted so we decided to head back to the hotel. We were both shocked at how tired we were. It was true we had an early start, but not that much earlier than the previous 4 days. I guess maybe it was all catching up on us. When I checked the itinerary I commented on how even if we had the energy to stay, there was still more that we wanted to see than could be done it a day.
Just then the coolest thing happened to us. One of those Disney CMs with the wireless pads stopped us and asked us for our opinions on the park. I wish I could remember all of the questions, but I cant. Most questions were asking us to rate things on a scale of 1-5 or some such similar scale. The ONE question I do remember was Did you have enough time to do and see everything you wanted I answered this with the lowest possible score, because even though we were leaving for the day, if the park had been open until 6 or 7 or even 8pm we would have stayed and been able to see everything we wanted to see. There were some questions about how we thought about the layout of the park which I scored low. I gave high marks for beauty and detail and offered let Disney contact me after I returned home if they had any questions. I keep hoping they will call, but to this date, they havent followed up. I just thought it was great to give them my opinion on a park that I really loved; but that I also felt has some serious design flaws and issues.
We finally made it back to the hotel by 5pm and took a short break before our dinner at the Artist Point at 6:30. When I asked the concierge the night before to make the PS arrangements for us, I had assumed that there might be some trouble getting a table at the last minute, but much to my surprise when we arrived the place was almost empty. I wouldnt be surprised if this restaurant (as good as it was) gets an overhaul in the near future. The entire time we were there it was never more than 40% full and the breakfast (which I now understand they are stopping) was even less full. You can read my review on the restaurant board, but Ill tell you it wasnt one of my favorite meals. I would eat there again in a pinch, but I wouldnt go out of my way to work it into the itinerary.
This evening was supposed to be our backup for Epcot and Illuminations but we had decided the night before to re-arrange the itinerary. Instead after dinner we went out to the beach and grabbed a chair and waited for the Electric Light Pageant to pass by the hotel. While it was fun and a bit romantic, you wont miss much if you cant squeeze this one in. Having said that it was a great way to end the day and it was nice to have the entire evening to ourselves. We had now been to all the major parks and I finally felt like I could relax a little. The rest of our itinerary was much more relaxed and if I had to do it again, I would spread the last 3 days out over 5 or 6 days instead of trying to do so much.
We sat on the beach for a while after the pageant pulled away and just enjoyed the mild night air. We went for a quick swim and from the pool we could see fireworks in the distance over Bay Lake. When we asked a couple cast members by the pool what the fireworks were (they were in the wrong direction and too far away to be MK) one of them told me they were Epcot (again wrong direction) and the other said they were Fort Wilderness (again wrong direction and much too far away) Finally another guest told me that as I had guessed, they were coming from Universal Studios. I dont know if the CMs really didnt know where they were coming from or if they werent allowed to say Universal Studios In either case I thought it was funny that they couldnt answer our questions.
It was nice to have an evening to relax, and next time Ill plan more of them Now that weve seen all the big attractions we finally had some time to relax.
Its been a LONG 4 days. Im not even sure I remember what day of the week it is by this point. All I know is that tomorrow we get to meet the dolphins at 9am. I cant even imagine how much fun that is going to be. In spite of being more excited about this than I was about coming to Disney World in the first place, I have NO trouble at all falling asleep that night.
