"What's Your Problem?" Caught by loop and hook... (COMPLETED 4/20, post 426)
- Thread starter Emma's Dad
- Start date
thechesters420
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2009
- Messages
- 289
I know the "pool" talk you speak of..were not going for another year and a half but she has already said she is swimming. I try to tell her it will be December but she says it doesn't get cold in Florida....so lets hope
Kimberly815
DIS Veteran<br><font color=green>you can call us M
- Joined
- Mar 24, 2005
- Messages
- 2,302
I found your trip report today and I am really enjoying it! Great pictures! My DH and I were always traveling to Disney alone or with a few adult family members or friends. Now with our first child on the way, it is great to get a good idea of what it might be like to travel with kids of our own!
Emma's Dad
DIS Dad #115 Virginia Beach, VA
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2008
- Messages
- 4,560
Great job on the TR so far, really enjoying it. My boys love to play in that same fountain, and have had their share of near misses. Love the idea of the bus to SeaWorld, we were maybe planning a longer trip in Jan and SeaWord is on the list. How did everyone enjoy the day? How was the bus ride?
Disney-on-a-dime! Who would have thought.
Wow... I thought I already replied to you, DisneyDaddy! Didn't mean to get back to you so late. Anyway... It's amazing how kids just love to get in there and get wet! We will be getting to Sea World later, but I must say we enjoyed the park and the bus ride was interesting
(in a good way). I'd liken the bus ride similar to a Disney bus.great update and pics.
I love that mirror, makes me look thin.
HAHA! I never knew it existed before
December is a tricky month... it could be warm enough... it might not. But the pools are generally heated anyway, so she might just get her wish
Hello Kimberly!! I'm glad you found my TR and are enjoying it. Your trip will never be the same again with kids along for the ride! But you'll find a whole different view of the World when you do 
Emma's Dad
DIS Dad #115 Virginia Beach, VA
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2008
- Messages
- 4,560
April 30, 2009
We get up around 7:15 AM and start getting ready for our day at Animal Kingdom. This is my least anticipated day of the vacation... I haven't had very good experiences at this park. About the only thing I ever look forward to at this park is Expedition Everest... one of the most awesome roller coasters I've ever been on. But I put on my optimistic hat and prepare myself for a good day at a Disney theme park
Waiting for a bus to AK took a lot longer than we were used to. Actually... we started noticing a lot more people waiting for the buses this morning. It took nearly a half-hour to get the bus from bus stop 1. This was a theme that would continue through the rest of the vacation. We were so spoiled the first 2 days!
We arrive at AK just before 10:00 AM and stopped at the first store outside the entrance to see if they had any sunglasses straps for DD. We were determined to have her wear her sunglasses this day and she had been complaining about not having anywhere to keep them. So while DW was looking, I had DD put on this Dale hat:
I guess I could take this time to mention DD's introduction to Chip and Dale prior to our trip. As I mentioned previously in this TR, DD is not a big movie watcher. Getting her to watch even one Disney movie is challenging. This has been both a blessing and a curse for us. BUT... before the trip I managed to get her to watch some old Donald Duck cartoons on YouTube! She fell in love with Chip and Dale and asked me almost every night to watch the shows. She became very interested in having the chance to meet them at one of the parks during this trip. And according to the sources I've researched, Chip and Dale can be found in both AK and MK. We were hoping that today was the day we'd find them!
Fortunately for my wallet, DD wasn't too interested in keeping the hat. DW found a strap for DD's sunglasses and we were off to the entrance for AK. Once we got through the gate, we headed straight over to the kiosk to order our "picnic in the park" meal. This was new to us... I had read about it from Kathy Werling's review on April 14th and it sounded interesting. Plus... we can use a quick service credit for the meal. We placed our order and would be back a few hours later to pick it up. They give you several choices as to when you want to pick up the meal. More on the meal later
During our visit last year we did not have the opportunity to check out the Dinoland part of the park. This is the one thing I set my sights on the make sure we experienced this trip. So we make sure we have all our belongings and start our trek over through Discovery Island then over to Dinoland. I have to make a comment at this time. WHY... WHY... WHY did Disney create this theme park to funnel all traffic to go through Discovery Island? This has to be my biggest gripe about this park. The traffic patterns that are created with this setup creates nothing but frustration as people are trying to cut through each other to get to various places. I would even go as far to say that I would never visit this park again simply because of the way foot traffic is handled. OK... I'm done venting... for now. You'll most likely hear another tantum later in this installment as I display my distaste for Discovery Island.
We arrive at Dinoland a few minues later and we immediately head over to Primevel Whirl. DD was not tall enough for this ride last year, and I love roller coasters... so this was one of the must-do's for the day. The sign in front says 30 minute wait. Seemed about right from what we could see, so we get in line. Now, I don't know if you've had the chance to wait in queue for this ride, but let me warn you... it's LOUD. Perhaps I have passed the "if it's too loud, you're too old" point in my life, but WOW was it loud. Between the whirring of miscellaneous displays in the queue and the constant clanging and motions of the cars this was almost unbearable. Then we had the luck of being "entertained" by a group of a dozen or more, matching t-shirt tweens who thought it was hilarious to keep yelling at each other for no apparent reason about every 5 minutes. Yeah... they had "chaperones". My poor DW kept saying over and over that she wanted to leave the queue, but we wanted to see what the ride was like. We managed to get through the queue without applying bodily harm to anyone and we were all 3 in one car. OMG! That ride simply blows. I've been on local carnival rides that were way better than that piece of junk. It was very jerky, loud, and overall a bad experience. To think we wasted nearly an hour on this ride still make my blood boil thinking about it today. As we were stepping off the ride, my DW just kept saying "Get me out of here!". We needed peace and quiet... quickly. SO we head towards Expedition Everest and found Finding Nemo on the way. We never even looked over our shoulders... Goodbye, Dinoland!
*Note: I was so frazzled at this point that I did not take any pictures in Dinoland. I'd rather not have any visual reminders of it either.
As we approached the entrance for Finding Nemo - The Musical we see the line is moving and are entering the stadium. We go in and find seats close to the exit in the front section of seats... optimum location for a quick exit. Waiting for the show to start we find Nemo hiding and playing in the bubbles at the side of the stage. I didn't catch him, but here's a blurry shot of the bubbles:
This was such a welcome break from the madness. The show was awesome! My favorite character was Dory... she was fantastic! Not having read any reviews or anything about this show, I was very pleasantly surprised by the great acting and beautiful props for the show. Absolutely top notch. You have to see it!
From the show we go over to EE and grab some fast passes, then start making our way to Africa to get our meal by Tusker House. Remember how I was taken aback by how slow the parks were and how we were able to just walk on rides? Well... this was my punishment for enjoying those 2 fabulous days. It seemed as though everyone in Orlando had made an appearance in AK for the day. AND the temperatures were rising quickly. And with those temperatures, my patience was getting thinner. Mind you, I am probably one of the most patient people you would ever meet. I was in the Navy for 8 years... I know patience. We all needed food, water, and rest.
When we finally arrived at the window to pick up our food, there was no one waiting and the nice CM's were able to quickly provide all the items for the meal. We walked over to the Tusker House outside seating area and made ourselves comfortable. For the meal we ended up getting the chicken, potato wedges, a dessert, and water. I'm not much of a food review person (I'm a picky eater), but on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the best, I would give this meal a 5. The chicken was OK... there was not much meat to it. The potato wedges have some funky-tasting spice to it that did not appeal to my taste buds - and they were rubbery. The dessert was one of the prepackaged brownies and was pretty good. In all, I would say it was not worth the price, but was OK for a quick service meal. Would I do it again? Maybe... if I go with the sandwiches next time. Just my 2 cents here.
OK... we are now sort-of rested, fed and ready for more "fun". Next up is DW's favorite part of the park... Kilimangaro Safaris. There was hardly any wait for this ride (maybe 10 minutes) and this is where I handed off the camera to DW. I had already video taped the entire ride last year and I was ready to see it without having to concentrate on snapping photos or holding a camera still. We all enjoyed this ride and even got to see a few more animals than last year. Giraffes are cool Here are a few shots (there are plenty more in the album if you are interested):
Our driver:
Baby giraffes:
After the ride it was time for our EE fast pass to be used. Back over to Asia we go... talking DD into going on the ride all the way there. She has been scared of the Yeti ever since I told her about it. She seems to think it's somehow going to escape and get her on the ride
By the time we get to the entrance she is still unsure. I pull out my bribe card and offer her a prize of ice cream if she goes through with the ride. SOLD! So we zip through the FP line (I love FP... have I said that lately?) and we walk on the ride. I love how the ride is just so smooth. You know a woman had to design this thing! A man never creates a ride thinking "how smooth and pain-free can I make this?" Hehe... I'm just kidding. DD had a blast on the ride and actually wanted to do it again. But the standby line was around 45 minutes and I didn't have the patience to try my luck in another queue at that point. Instead, we decide it's time to track down Chip and Dale! Of course, DD got her ice cream along the way 
The only place we could think of that might have Chip and Dale on standby was over in Camp Minnie-Mickey. On our way over there we find a photo op:
And Daisy with her nephews:
We made it to Camp Minnie-Mickey and we found several other characters, but Chip and Dale were not to be found. Also, I was pretty much done with this park. It was too hot, too crowded, and I needed to get out of there. So we called it quits for Animal Kingdom and we headed for the buses. We did manage to say goodbye to this guy before we left:
And by 3:30 we were out of there. For future trips I may have to think long and hard before we come back to AK. If we do, we better have park hopping added to the tickets because I am NOT staying all day! HAHA!
Next up... Day 3, Part 2: "Ahhhh... this is more like it"
We get up around 7:15 AM and start getting ready for our day at Animal Kingdom. This is my least anticipated day of the vacation... I haven't had very good experiences at this park. About the only thing I ever look forward to at this park is Expedition Everest... one of the most awesome roller coasters I've ever been on. But I put on my optimistic hat and prepare myself for a good day at a Disney theme park
Waiting for a bus to AK took a lot longer than we were used to. Actually... we started noticing a lot more people waiting for the buses this morning. It took nearly a half-hour to get the bus from bus stop 1. This was a theme that would continue through the rest of the vacation. We were so spoiled the first 2 days!
We arrive at AK just before 10:00 AM and stopped at the first store outside the entrance to see if they had any sunglasses straps for DD. We were determined to have her wear her sunglasses this day and she had been complaining about not having anywhere to keep them. So while DW was looking, I had DD put on this Dale hat:
I guess I could take this time to mention DD's introduction to Chip and Dale prior to our trip. As I mentioned previously in this TR, DD is not a big movie watcher. Getting her to watch even one Disney movie is challenging. This has been both a blessing and a curse for us. BUT... before the trip I managed to get her to watch some old Donald Duck cartoons on YouTube! She fell in love with Chip and Dale and asked me almost every night to watch the shows. She became very interested in having the chance to meet them at one of the parks during this trip. And according to the sources I've researched, Chip and Dale can be found in both AK and MK. We were hoping that today was the day we'd find them!
Fortunately for my wallet, DD wasn't too interested in keeping the hat. DW found a strap for DD's sunglasses and we were off to the entrance for AK. Once we got through the gate, we headed straight over to the kiosk to order our "picnic in the park" meal. This was new to us... I had read about it from Kathy Werling's review on April 14th and it sounded interesting. Plus... we can use a quick service credit for the meal. We placed our order and would be back a few hours later to pick it up. They give you several choices as to when you want to pick up the meal. More on the meal later
During our visit last year we did not have the opportunity to check out the Dinoland part of the park. This is the one thing I set my sights on the make sure we experienced this trip. So we make sure we have all our belongings and start our trek over through Discovery Island then over to Dinoland. I have to make a comment at this time. WHY... WHY... WHY did Disney create this theme park to funnel all traffic to go through Discovery Island? This has to be my biggest gripe about this park. The traffic patterns that are created with this setup creates nothing but frustration as people are trying to cut through each other to get to various places. I would even go as far to say that I would never visit this park again simply because of the way foot traffic is handled. OK... I'm done venting... for now. You'll most likely hear another tantum later in this installment as I display my distaste for Discovery Island.
We arrive at Dinoland a few minues later and we immediately head over to Primevel Whirl. DD was not tall enough for this ride last year, and I love roller coasters... so this was one of the must-do's for the day. The sign in front says 30 minute wait. Seemed about right from what we could see, so we get in line. Now, I don't know if you've had the chance to wait in queue for this ride, but let me warn you... it's LOUD. Perhaps I have passed the "if it's too loud, you're too old" point in my life, but WOW was it loud. Between the whirring of miscellaneous displays in the queue and the constant clanging and motions of the cars this was almost unbearable. Then we had the luck of being "entertained" by a group of a dozen or more, matching t-shirt tweens who thought it was hilarious to keep yelling at each other for no apparent reason about every 5 minutes. Yeah... they had "chaperones". My poor DW kept saying over and over that she wanted to leave the queue, but we wanted to see what the ride was like. We managed to get through the queue without applying bodily harm to anyone and we were all 3 in one car. OMG! That ride simply blows. I've been on local carnival rides that were way better than that piece of junk. It was very jerky, loud, and overall a bad experience. To think we wasted nearly an hour on this ride still make my blood boil thinking about it today. As we were stepping off the ride, my DW just kept saying "Get me out of here!". We needed peace and quiet... quickly. SO we head towards Expedition Everest and found Finding Nemo on the way. We never even looked over our shoulders... Goodbye, Dinoland!
*Note: I was so frazzled at this point that I did not take any pictures in Dinoland. I'd rather not have any visual reminders of it either.
As we approached the entrance for Finding Nemo - The Musical we see the line is moving and are entering the stadium. We go in and find seats close to the exit in the front section of seats... optimum location for a quick exit. Waiting for the show to start we find Nemo hiding and playing in the bubbles at the side of the stage. I didn't catch him, but here's a blurry shot of the bubbles:
This was such a welcome break from the madness. The show was awesome! My favorite character was Dory... she was fantastic! Not having read any reviews or anything about this show, I was very pleasantly surprised by the great acting and beautiful props for the show. Absolutely top notch. You have to see it!
From the show we go over to EE and grab some fast passes, then start making our way to Africa to get our meal by Tusker House. Remember how I was taken aback by how slow the parks were and how we were able to just walk on rides? Well... this was my punishment for enjoying those 2 fabulous days. It seemed as though everyone in Orlando had made an appearance in AK for the day. AND the temperatures were rising quickly. And with those temperatures, my patience was getting thinner. Mind you, I am probably one of the most patient people you would ever meet. I was in the Navy for 8 years... I know patience. We all needed food, water, and rest.
When we finally arrived at the window to pick up our food, there was no one waiting and the nice CM's were able to quickly provide all the items for the meal. We walked over to the Tusker House outside seating area and made ourselves comfortable. For the meal we ended up getting the chicken, potato wedges, a dessert, and water. I'm not much of a food review person (I'm a picky eater), but on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the best, I would give this meal a 5. The chicken was OK... there was not much meat to it. The potato wedges have some funky-tasting spice to it that did not appeal to my taste buds - and they were rubbery. The dessert was one of the prepackaged brownies and was pretty good. In all, I would say it was not worth the price, but was OK for a quick service meal. Would I do it again? Maybe... if I go with the sandwiches next time. Just my 2 cents here.
OK... we are now sort-of rested, fed and ready for more "fun". Next up is DW's favorite part of the park... Kilimangaro Safaris. There was hardly any wait for this ride (maybe 10 minutes) and this is where I handed off the camera to DW. I had already video taped the entire ride last year and I was ready to see it without having to concentrate on snapping photos or holding a camera still. We all enjoyed this ride and even got to see a few more animals than last year. Giraffes are cool
Here are a few shots (there are plenty more in the album if you are interested):Our driver:
Baby giraffes:
After the ride it was time for our EE fast pass to be used. Back over to Asia we go... talking DD into going on the ride all the way there. She has been scared of the Yeti ever since I told her about it. She seems to think it's somehow going to escape and get her on the ride
By the time we get to the entrance she is still unsure. I pull out my bribe card and offer her a prize of ice cream if she goes through with the ride. SOLD! So we zip through the FP line (I love FP... have I said that lately?) and we walk on the ride. I love how the ride is just so smooth. You know a woman had to design this thing! A man never creates a ride thinking "how smooth and pain-free can I make this?" Hehe... I'm just kidding. DD had a blast on the ride and actually wanted to do it again. But the standby line was around 45 minutes and I didn't have the patience to try my luck in another queue at that point. Instead, we decide it's time to track down Chip and Dale! Of course, DD got her ice cream along the way The only place we could think of that might have Chip and Dale on standby was over in Camp Minnie-Mickey. On our way over there we find a photo op:
And Daisy with her nephews:
We made it to Camp Minnie-Mickey and we found several other characters, but Chip and Dale were not to be found. Also, I was pretty much done with this park. It was too hot, too crowded, and I needed to get out of there. So we called it quits for Animal Kingdom and we headed for the buses. We did manage to say goodbye to this guy before we left:
And by 3:30 we were out of there. For future trips I may have to think long and hard before we come back to AK. If we do, we better have park hopping added to the tickets because I am NOT staying all day! HAHA!
Next up... Day 3, Part 2: "Ahhhh... this is more like it"
Great update. I personally really enjoy Animal Kingdom. I'm bringing my niece there and I think she'll love it too since she loves animals.
If you ever make it there again, I recommend starting your day at the Safari then picking up fast passes for Everest then heading to Dinosaur and Nemo. After using the fast passes, you want to head to lion king and bugs life. I don't do any of the other rides in Dinoland, and you might want to wait until DD is older for Dinosaur, but I find that this plan works great. I've done it successfully twice already.
If you ever make it there again, I recommend starting your day at the Safari then picking up fast passes for Everest then heading to Dinosaur and Nemo. After using the fast passes, you want to head to lion king and bugs life. I don't do any of the other rides in Dinoland, and you might want to wait until DD is older for Dinosaur, but I find that this plan works great. I've done it successfully twice already.
Wherem I Now
DIS Dad #30
- Joined
- Feb 7, 2007
- Messages
- 2,938
MagicShell
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2008
- Messages
- 1,487
I know what you mean about Primeval Whirl. That ride is painful. I wanted off that thing as soon as it started. I love EE and the Nemo and FTLK shows. I am not crazy about the rest of it. It took us close to an hour to get out last time we were there because we kept getting turned around. AK is definitely my least favorite park.
trennr
"Nater" DISDad #104
- Joined
- May 16, 2006
- Messages
- 4,031
Caught up!
Just back from Myrtle Beach.
Seems you feel the way about AK as I do HS.
ToT and RR being HS only saving graces...haven't seen Toy Story Mania yet...so that may help...just about everything else at HS is a tourturous nightmare for me.
But I used to feel the same way about the World Showcase until I deside to eat my way around the world...made it more...uuuhhhh...palatable. 
AK after the parade is pretty cool...aside from EE everything else is pretty much empty...Primevil Whirl is not all that bad if you can just walk up and get on. We like to ride Kali River Rapids about 2-3 times in a row...also I've had better luck seeing the "Big Lion" on one of the last rides out on the Safari...
Just back from Myrtle Beach.
Seems you feel the way about AK as I do HS.
ToT and RR being HS only saving graces...haven't seen Toy Story Mania yet...so that may help...just about everything else at HS is a tourturous nightmare for me.
But I used to feel the same way about the World Showcase until I deside to eat my way around the world...made it more...uuuhhhh...palatable. AK after the parade is pretty cool...aside from EE everything else is pretty much empty...Primevil Whirl is not all that bad if you can just walk up and get on. We like to ride Kali River Rapids about 2-3 times in a row...also I've had better luck seeing the "Big Lion" on one of the last rides out on the Safari...
carissanboys
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 23, 2004
- Messages
- 7,243
Hey Don - why don't you really tell us what you think about Animal Kingdom.
I love AK! I'm not a huge fan of Dinoland, but there are some things about it I like. Did you go to the Boneyard?? That's the best part! I hated Primeval Hurl - I mean Whirl. Dinosaur is pretty cool though!
I agree that the park was not set up well and certain areas get very crowded. But, so much fun stuff to see and do. Have you done It's Tough to Be a Bug before? That's really good too.
I love AK! I'm not a huge fan of Dinoland, but there are some things about it I like. Did you go to the Boneyard?? That's the best part! I hated Primeval Hurl - I mean Whirl. Dinosaur is pretty cool though!
I agree that the park was not set up well and certain areas get very crowded. But, so much fun stuff to see and do. Have you done It's Tough to Be a Bug before? That's really good too.
Emma's Dad
DIS Dad #115 Virginia Beach, VA
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2008
- Messages
- 4,560
Thanks for the suggestion. That is pretty much the course we took the year before with the exception of Dinosaur and Bugs Life. We had a slightly better time that year, but the park just doesn't do it for me... which is weird because I love the outdoors and animals and such.
Still reading and thoroughly enjoying! We also show our DD2 the old cartoons on youtube. She loves them!It's a shame that you can't see them on TV any more. I've said for years that Disney needs to start a Disney Classics channel.
BTW, AK is my fourth favorite park at WDW...
Hmmmm... a Disney Classics channel... that's a brilliant idea! There are soooo many kids now-a-days that have no idea what some of the classics look like, which is just a shame.
Eek! An hour?? Wow. I feel your pain!
Caught up!
Just back from Myrtle Beach.
Seems you feel the way about AK as I do HS.
ToT and RR being HS only saving graces...haven't seen Toy Story Mania yet...so that may help...just about everything else at HS is a tourturous nightmare for me.
AK after the parade is pretty cool...aside from EE everything else is pretty much empty...Primevil Whirl is not all that bad if you can just walk up and get on. We like to ride Kali River Rapids about 2-3 times in a row...also I've had better luck seeing the "Big Lion" on one of the last rides out on the Safari...
That's interesting... we LOVE DHS. So much to do and there's not a ride there that DD doesn't like (Excpet for ToT for now
) Funny how everyone has their own favorites!I'm glad you enjoy the ride. There were a lot of people there that also seemed to enjoy it, too.
Thanks! I'm working hard to get another update out soon. This summer has become VERY busy already!
Hey Don - why don't you really tell us what you think about Animal Kingdom.
I love AK! I'm not a huge fan of Dinoland, but there are some things about it I like. Did you go to the Boneyard?? That's the best part! I hated Primeval Hurl - I mean Whirl. Dinosaur is pretty cool though!
I agree that the park was not set up well and certain areas get very crowded. But, so much fun stuff to see and do. Have you done It's Tough to Be a Bug before? That's really good too.
LOL... I thought I was being reserved
We flew by the boneyard. I didn't think DD would be very interested in it and DW just wanted to get out of there. Maybe next time!
HAHA! Nice. Sounds like someone is anxious for another update
Emma's Dad
DIS Dad #115 Virginia Beach, VA
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2008
- Messages
- 4,560
April 30, 2009
With Animal Kingdom in the rearview mirror (of the Disney bus) we turn our thoughts to more relaxing, enjoyable activities... like swimming and reading a book. Back to CSR we go with DD and I changing into our swimwear and DW grabbing her book to claim her favorite hammock. This was a much needed break from the heat and the stress from the morning. I finally remembered to take my refillable mug to the pool this time so I could take advantage of the free refills at the cabana. With an ice-cold Coke in my mug and ice water in DD's mug we throw our stuff on a lounge chair and head for the Jaguar slide. Such a cool slide for a resort pool. It's not too fancy... but it's fun enough to go on it again... and again... and again... without burning up too much energy. The pool was starting to get more crowded on this day. Even with several dozen people in the pool, it was still very enjoyable and fun. DD always meets new friends there and has a blast!
After fun time in the pool, we decide we are going to try a different restaurant this night. Again, being on the QSDP, choices in restaurants are limited. But one that caught both our eyes was Captain Cook's at the Poly. But then we also decide we are going to make this an adventure. We start off by heading to Bus Stop 4 and catching a bus to Magic Kingdom.
Once we get off the bus at MK, we head for the boat launches. Having never been on one of the boats to the resorts we figured now would be a good time to travel to Poly in this fashion. Here are a few pics as we are waiting for the boat:
This one is my favorite...
And here are a bunch of pictures while we are on the boat ride over to the Poly. I never knew the boat rides would be so calm and peaceful.
And here is a video I took while on the boat. I was amazed at how DD was able to see and distinguish Space Mountain! I didn't even prompt her for that! She is catching on quickly to the Disney ways!
We made it safely to the Poly and had fun checking out the volcano pool on the way in. This was the first time I've seen the pool up close. I like how it's close to the beach... too bad you can't go swimming by the beach! Anyway, we find Captains Cook's with little trouble. But then we try to order our food. They have a new touch-screen ordering system that allows you to simply select the food you want and the sides. BUT... you'd think this would be easy. No such luck. Half way into our ordering process, we had to ask someone a question about the kids food. By the time we got our answer (which no one seems to want to acknowledge you), the ordering screen had reset and we had to go through the whole process again. This was VERY frustrating. Once we finally got our food, we took to the outdoors, as the temperature was just right to be eating outside. In all, the food was OK, the service was mediocre, and the atmosphere was good. I do believe we said we would never go out of our way to eat there again.
From Captain Cook's, we found our way to the monorail station. We took the monorail back to MK and then caught a bus back to CSR for more fun and relaxation. We needed to get some more milk for the morning, so DW and DD went back to the room while I got off Bus Stop 1 and grabbed a few supplies. On my way back to the room I took these pics from various parts of the walk:
I dropped off the supplies in the room and went over to the pool to see what DW and DD were up to. DD was in her environment and was having fun with other kids. The pool was pretty busy at this time of the night even though the temps were dropping down into the 70's by that time. Here are some pics of her in the pool:
And another video:
I needed some relaxation, so I grabbed the camera and headed over to DW's favorite hammock. I also wanted to see what the hype was all about. When I get to the hammock and lay down, I could immediately feel all of the day's stresses slowly melt away. There was a gentle breeze coming off the lake right over the hammock and just enough to make the palm trees make that soothing brush sound. The temperature must have been in the mid to lower 70's and very low humidity. I was thinking it was such a perfect night to be sitting there and taking it all in. It then occured to me that I should try to take some night shots with my camera and see how they turn out. Here are the results (sorry for the dark ones... I tried different settings).
This one was taken as I was laying on my back on the hammock. Notice the moon is this picture
And so the day comes to an end. What started as a hectic, blood pressure rising day at AK turned out to be a very relaxing and enjoyable evening. And as we are getting ready to turn in for the night, I took a final picture of DD as she put on her "stare" while watching some TV before the lights were turned out. She slept very well this night... and so did I. I love Disney World.
Next up: Day 4, Part 1: "CHIP AND DALE!!!"
With Animal Kingdom in the rearview mirror (of the Disney bus) we turn our thoughts to more relaxing, enjoyable activities... like swimming and reading a book. Back to CSR we go with DD and I changing into our swimwear and DW grabbing her book to claim her favorite hammock. This was a much needed break from the heat and the stress from the morning. I finally remembered to take my refillable mug to the pool this time so I could take advantage of the free refills at the cabana. With an ice-cold Coke in my mug and ice water in DD's mug we throw our stuff on a lounge chair and head for the Jaguar slide. Such a cool slide for a resort pool. It's not too fancy... but it's fun enough to go on it again... and again... and again... without burning up too much energy. The pool was starting to get more crowded on this day. Even with several dozen people in the pool, it was still very enjoyable and fun. DD always meets new friends there and has a blast!
After fun time in the pool, we decide we are going to try a different restaurant this night. Again, being on the QSDP, choices in restaurants are limited. But one that caught both our eyes was Captain Cook's at the Poly. But then we also decide we are going to make this an adventure. We start off by heading to Bus Stop 4 and catching a bus to Magic Kingdom.
Once we get off the bus at MK, we head for the boat launches. Having never been on one of the boats to the resorts we figured now would be a good time to travel to Poly in this fashion. Here are a few pics as we are waiting for the boat:
This one is my favorite...
And here are a bunch of pictures while we are on the boat ride over to the Poly. I never knew the boat rides would be so calm and peaceful.
And here is a video I took while on the boat. I was amazed at how DD was able to see and distinguish Space Mountain! I didn't even prompt her for that! She is catching on quickly to the Disney ways!
We made it safely to the Poly and had fun checking out the volcano pool on the way in. This was the first time I've seen the pool up close. I like how it's close to the beach... too bad you can't go swimming by the beach! Anyway, we find Captains Cook's with little trouble. But then we try to order our food. They have a new touch-screen ordering system that allows you to simply select the food you want and the sides. BUT... you'd think this would be easy. No such luck. Half way into our ordering process, we had to ask someone a question about the kids food. By the time we got our answer (which no one seems to want to acknowledge you), the ordering screen had reset and we had to go through the whole process again. This was VERY frustrating. Once we finally got our food, we took to the outdoors, as the temperature was just right to be eating outside. In all, the food was OK, the service was mediocre, and the atmosphere was good. I do believe we said we would never go out of our way to eat there again.
From Captain Cook's, we found our way to the monorail station. We took the monorail back to MK and then caught a bus back to CSR for more fun and relaxation. We needed to get some more milk for the morning, so DW and DD went back to the room while I got off Bus Stop 1 and grabbed a few supplies. On my way back to the room I took these pics from various parts of the walk:
I dropped off the supplies in the room and went over to the pool to see what DW and DD were up to. DD was in her environment and was having fun with other kids. The pool was pretty busy at this time of the night even though the temps were dropping down into the 70's by that time. Here are some pics of her in the pool:
And another video:
I needed some relaxation, so I grabbed the camera and headed over to DW's favorite hammock. I also wanted to see what the hype was all about. When I get to the hammock and lay down, I could immediately feel all of the day's stresses slowly melt away. There was a gentle breeze coming off the lake right over the hammock and just enough to make the palm trees make that soothing brush sound. The temperature must have been in the mid to lower 70's and very low humidity. I was thinking it was such a perfect night to be sitting there and taking it all in. It then occured to me that I should try to take some night shots with my camera and see how they turn out. Here are the results (sorry for the dark ones... I tried different settings).
This one was taken as I was laying on my back on the hammock. Notice the moon is this picture
And so the day comes to an end. What started as a hectic, blood pressure rising day at AK turned out to be a very relaxing and enjoyable evening. And as we are getting ready to turn in for the night, I took a final picture of DD as she put on her "stare" while watching some TV before the lights were turned out. She slept very well this night... and so did I. I love Disney World.
Next up: Day 4, Part 1: "CHIP AND DALE!!!"
Emma's Dad
DIS Dad #115 Virginia Beach, VA
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2008
- Messages
- 4,560
great update don!! (now im home sick)
Thanks
Aren't we all a little home sick?? I'm thinking we might need a mini-vacation in the fall!!
Emma's Dad
DIS Dad #115 Virginia Beach, VA
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2008
- Messages
- 4,560
I'm headed for "home" in 7 Days...13 hours...59 Miutes...
Yeah... you keep rubbing it in, would ya?
You're going to have a blast at CSR!
trennr
"Nater" DISDad #104
- Joined
- May 16, 2006
- Messages
- 4,031
-
Loungefly's New 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' Floral Zero
-
Is Park Hopping at Disney Still Worth the Extra Money in 2025?
-
Photo Tour of The Beak and Barrel, Adventureland's New Pirate Bar at Disney World
-
New Oogie Boogie Bash Lunch Discount in Downtown Disney at Disneyland
-
Dark Universe Soundtrack from Danny Elfman Now Streaming
-
Jock Lindsey's HALLOWEEN Hangar Bar Full Menu Review at Disney World
-
New Disney Character Sweaters Now at Disney World
Receive up to $1,000 in Onboard Credit and a Gift Basket!
That’s right — when you book your Disney Cruise with Dreams Unlimited Travel, you’ll receive incredible shipboard credits to spend during your vacation!
CLICK HERE
That’s right — when you book your Disney Cruise with Dreams Unlimited Travel, you’ll receive incredible shipboard credits to spend during your vacation!
CLICK HERE
