Who's Turn Is It To Throw Up Today? A Feb 2014 Wedding TR - New TR link 10/27!!

[Pluto0809]

Love the animal pictures, Ariana. There is just so much to see and do at AK, isn' there?

Yes there is, I swear I see something new every trip.

That baby gorilla was just darling. It would have been so much fun to just watch it play.

She definitely is fun to watch. I'm sure we would have spent more time but we had other things to do that day.

Have a great time visiting your mom!

Thanks, we had a very nice time.

Super cute pictures of Lily. She is so adorable and it must have been so fun to watch her play.

It was a lot of fun and I was so glad she was out and about on the day we were there.

I love the pictures of the hippo swimming. One visit I got to watch that over and over again. It was awesome.

Thanks! That guy was actually not moving at all, I think he was asleep. It always amazes me how they lift their heads to breath even while sleeping.

Your pictures are great! Thanks for giving me a quick trip to the AK this morning. Loved it.

You are welcome, glad you enjoyed the pictures.

FUN update! i can sit and watch all primates all day. even sleeping they amaze me.

They are amazing creatures for sure!

Enjoy Mom time!! can't wait to hear all about it!

Thanks, we had a great time. Not too much to talk about, we mostly visited family and shopped.

I'm looking forward to finally doing the Pangani trail on my upcoming trip. You saw lots of cool animals (and pictures)!

There are a lot of cool things to see on that trail so you should definitely visit it on your next trip!

I know you're at your Mom's visiting, but I just got back from my trip yesterday and am getting caught up. I had missed quite a few updates!

No problem, it took me several months just to make it to yours. And now of course I'm behind yet again.

The lego event looked amazing! Ruthie actually said what I was thinking…legos vs stuffies…who is 5??? I hope we all are! I love doing legos with my 7 year old granddaughter. She gets the "Friends" series.

The Lego event was a lot of fun. Between Jim's Legos, the dogs toys and all my bears and Plutos our house looks like it belongs to a couple of five year-olds.

I love the Rafiki photos and all the goings on. At first glance, that CM holding the alligator looks like she has three arms!! haha And it's hard to believe anyone could miss the hippo! But she's been sick, so we'll cut her some slack!! Dan and I haven't been on either walking trail our last couple of visits. I think we need to remedy that in September. And we've only been to RPW once. We actually did enjoy the sounds of the rain forest. We didn't think we would, but it surprised us. They were sterilizing a horned animal when we were there. Can't remember which kind. And I always have to laugh when because the word "express" is attached to that train!!!

Hmmm, I didn't notice the three arms, I'll have to go back and look at that one again. I always try to catch at least one of the walking trails although I tend to skip them if it's hot. I got to see an examination on a bird when I was back at RPW in 2011.

Loved the shots of the monkeys, gorillas and birds. Well, all the animals. When we went to the Rocky Mountain zoo in April, I kept thinking how small the animals' habitats were. Not fair to compare AK to any zoo since it's so much more than a zoo!!

I love all the animals too! It's the same here at the Atlanta zoo, it's so small compared to AK.

I hope you had a good trip to your Mom's. Is she still in PA? Have a great visit and have fun planning your next Disney trip for October. Safe travels home!

Yep, she's still in PA. We had a great time and I think we have most of the plans done for the trip. Just need to do our FP+ reservations in 19 days.

 

[Pluto0809]

Welcome back great to see you again Ariana

Thanks Ruthie! I'm going to post an update to each of my TRs then I'm going to try to get caught up on everyone else's. Unfortunately August is going to be a rough month at work but I'll try my best to keep up.

 

[Pluto0809]

When we finished on the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail everyone was hungry so we decided to stop for lunch. John and Jocelyn both remembered how much they enjoyed Flametree Barbeque in 2010 so we headed there for lunch. Here’s John and Jocelyn’s tray. I’m pretty sure the salad was John’s and the sandwich Jocelyn’s.



Mom and I both got the ½ chicken.



Flametree was excellent as usual, I’ve eaten there on almost everyone one of my trips since 2010. While we were sitting there we had a visitor.



He kept eyeing up Jocelyn’s plate but we were good and didn’t feed him. Looks like Mom is also trying to steal some of Jocelyn’s sandwich.





When we finished up lunch it was almost time for the 1 pm Flights of Wonder show. We missed FOW in 2010 and since we are all huge animal people, John and Jocelyn wanted to see it. Mom and I saw in in 2012 but had no problem going back again. We headed towards the theater but I know I got sidetracked by a pin board that was out at the Garden’s Kiosk which is the allergy friendly food kiosk.

As we crossed the bridge into Asia I looked beside me and saw this.





I’m not sure if they were going from or to their meet and greet area because I don’t know where it is now the Camp Mickey is closed.

We had a little bit of time to spare before the show started so we headed to a spot where we saw a PP photographer on the previous AK day. There was no photographer there at the time but I took a few of John and Jocelyn for them.





I also took the time to try to line up the temple peaks with EE in the background. I think if I would have taken one more step to the left it would have been perfect.



We watched the monkeys in that area for a few minutes then headed on to the Flights of Wonder theater.









If you haven’t seen this show, it’s basically a showcase of different birds. Disney does a good job of adding a little bit of a story line and some humor but it’s really all about the birds. I’ve seen the show three times now and it’s different each time depending on which birds they use. So you probably just want to see the pictures I took, right?









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[Pluto0809]

Continued From Previous Post





















Oh, there are a few other animals besides the birds.















Up Next: Yep You Guessed It, Even More Animals!

 

[KatMark]

OOOOh....Flame Tree. Love that place (we'll be back in September for the first time in a couple of years). Everyone's food looks great. That's one big bird (we usually only see ducks back there).

Nice job on taking the pictures in taht spot without the PP person. You did great with them.

Love watching those moneys.

We have never seen Flights of Wonder; I don't like birds flying over my head and Mark has no interest, but we always hear great things about it and some of those birds are really pretty.

 

[missangelalexis]

Great pictures!

How cute spotting King Louie and Baloo

Never seen Flights of Wonder but it seems like an entertaining show!

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

I love Flame Tree. Such a nice change from the normal QS meals.

I also love seeing characters out roaming like that even if they are just going to/coming from a meet and greet. Still something special about seeing them in the wild.

 

[purplegirl1818]

When Morgan first booked the wedding, she had looked into getting characters to come but she found out that it would cost $900 for Mickey and Minnie to come for a ½ hour. She decided that it was too expensive and she would not have any characters at the wedding. So imagine my surprise when this happened.

I hate to tell you but that's just the price for Mickey! It's about $1400 for both.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Lovely pictures of the birds!
The food at Flametree looks as delicious as always.

Baloo and King Louie's meet and greet is a little nook behind the main walkway after you turn towards Asia from where Africa is. Sometimes, they may stay on the main walkway but I've been to their M&G spot. It's a little more shady and on a hot day, they tend to go there.

 

[katt789]

Yay for animal kingdom!!

LOVE Flame tree, seriously, so much delicious stuff there! Love it!

Haven't ever done fow, and don't think I will...the whole bird thing freaks me out bahaha!

 

[Chicago Mo]

Welcome back!!!!!!

Hope you had a great trip with Mom!!!

Great line up pictures with EE!!! also i am in LOVE with the eagle!!!

 

[Pluto0809]

OOOOh....Flame Tree. Love that place (we'll be back in September for the first time in a couple of years). Everyone's food looks great. That's one big bird (we usually only see ducks back there).

Flame Tree is one of my favorites, I can't wait to eat there again this fall! That bird was huge! I have seen a few like him before in that area.

Nice job on taking the pictures in taht spot without the PP person. You did great with them.

It's a beautiful spot to take pictures that's for sure.

Love watching those moneys.

We did too! I think we would have stayed longer but we were in a hurry to get to the FOW show.

We have never seen Flights of Wonder; I don't like birds flying over my head and Mark has no interest, but we always hear great things about it and some of those birds are really pretty.

It is a very fun show but you are right, if you don't like birds flying over your head it might be a problem. You might be ok if you sit in the very top of the bleachers in the back of the theater. I've never seen the birds fly back that far but that doesn't mean they don't once in a while.

Great pictures!

Thanks!

How cute spotting King Louie and Baloo

It's funny but it always makes me smile when I see a character just randomly walking through the parks.

Never seen Flights of Wonder but it seems like an entertaining show!

It definitely is but of course we wouldn't expect anything less from Disney!

I love Flame Tree. Such a nice change from the normal QS meals.

It truly is. So good compared to other options.

I also love seeing characters out roaming like that even if they are just going to/coming from a meet and greet. Still something special about seeing them in the wild.

Me too! It reminds me of the early days when they did roam freely.

I hate to tell you but that's just the price for Mickey! It's about $1400 for both.

Ouch! That is really expensive. I was just going by what Morgan told me.

Lovely pictures of the birds!
The food at Flametree looks as delicious as always.

Thanks! The food was delicious.

Baloo and King Louie's meet and greet is a little nook behind the main walkway after you turn towards Asia from where Africa is. Sometimes, they may stay on the main walkway but I've been to their M&G spot. It's a little more shady and on a hot day, they tend to go there.

Oh, ok, I don't think I've ever seen them at their greet. I'll have to check it out when I go this fall. I've never met them and would like to do so.

Yay for animal kingdom!!

I know! I really missed it in May as we didn't go there on the short trip. I can't wait to get back again this October.

LOVE Flame tree, seriously, so much delicious stuff there! Love it!

It is a really great CS place!

Haven't ever done fow, and don't think I will...the whole bird thing freaks me out bahaha!

Yeah, if the birds freak you out you might not want to go. The funny thing is, the story line is about a guy who is afraid of birds.

Welcome back!!!!!!

Hope you had a great trip with Mom!!!

Thanks! We had a wonderful time as always.

Great line up pictures with EE!!! also i am in LOVE with the eagle!!!

Oh man that eagle was so beautiful. I've seen the show three times and I think that was the first time they brought him out.

 

[Pluto0809]

There was one more area we wanted to explore before heading out of the park and that was the Maharajah Jungle Trek.



John remembered that there was a Tapor on this trail and was anxious to see it but the area it used to be in now has these birds.



Jocelyn had been fascinated with the Fruit Bats in 2010 but they were kind of boring this trip so we didn’t spend a lot of time watching them. John did ask the CM there about the Tapor and she said that it had passed away a few years ago. It was an older Tapor and the CMs in that area were very sad when it died. Disney decided not to get another one and added the birds there instead. Anyway, back to the bats.









Yeah, they weren’t doing much so we moved onto the Tigers.











Another Hidden Mickey in that tiger mural.









We were moving a little quicker through this trail because our FP+ times at HS were fast approaching.





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[Pluto0809]

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A CM pointed out some uninvited guests that were hanging out it a tree along the trail.



It’s all in the details…..



We saw one more tiger from the other side then headed into the bird sanctuary.





John and Jocelyn loved these birdhouses and asked me to take some pictures. I think they were joking but Jocelyn was going to see if her Dad could build one for them. Joking or not when someone asks me to take a picture I have no problem complying.











I think this is one of the creepier statues in AK.



When we left the trail we headed back towards Discovery Island so we could exit the park. We ran into a bit of a dance party as we passed Yak and Yeti. It looked like a lot of fun but the location was horrible as this area is a bit of a bottle neck already. Add in the dance party and we had to fight our way through.





We quickly explored some of the Oasis area on the way out. Someday I want to spend more time walking through there.





So a long boring story for you. Back in 2010 we got a new Finance Director here at work (I work for county government). She came from the corporate world and as a result had quite the mouth on her. Well, the work environment she came into was very different, I’m not sure I heard a swear word prior to her arrival. She had to tone it down a bit so instead of swearing she started using the term “Aardvark” instead. The Aardvark has sort of become our team mascot and most of us have stuffed Aardvarks on our desk. Yep, we get some weird looks from outsiders. So this next picture was for her.



And that was the last picture I took at AK before we headed out. I think we waited about 10 minutes for a bus to HS. It was past 2 pm by now and we had already missed our first FP+ for Star Tours which was from 1 pm – 2 pm. I wasn’t worried about that one as I figured we could easily go through the standby line if we decided to ride. What I was worried about was our TSM FP+ which was for 2:10 – 3:10 pm. We were cutting it awfully close.

Up Next: I Find a New Favorite Seat

 

[DisneyKid4Life]

Even though they're not doing much, I still love watching the bats. They fascinate me to no end.

Hmmm, yeah I think that dance party is certainly new to me. You're right, not a great location.

I don't think I've ever spent much time in the Oasis. That's a good idea to plan some more time there.

 

[missangelalexis]

Great Jungle Trek pictures, especially of the Tigers!

 

[KatMark]

Great update, Ariana.

I skipped the bat pictures.

LOVE LOVE LOVE the tiger pictures and you actually got them walking.

The birdhouses there are very unusual and pretty.

Funny story about the aardvark.

 

[NiniMorris]

I hated that dance party!


Nini

 

[missjackiemcg]

When we were at AK for Christmas, my son was totally entranced by watching the one tiger walk around. He kept saying to me, I think she wants to go swimming. Why doesn't she hop in because she wants to swim? I told him, "Oh I don't think that tiger feels much like swimming today." CUE THE PIXIE DUST. Doesn't the tiger wander right over to the water, paw at the floating ball and prance right in!?! It was playing with the ball and swam the length of the little creek/river several times. I couldn't believe it, and my son just looked up and said, "See, Mommy. I told you she wanted to swim."

Also, the picture of all the pots, etc. hanging on the wall. I took the same picture from the left side and the three plates/pots on the bottom left corner make a hidden Mickey

Great update! Looking forward to hearing all about HS!

 

[disneychic2]

Great updates! I love your take on AK. We go to FOW about every other year. Twice we were the ones to hold the dollar up for the bird to take. It was pretty cool. I actually get a little teary when they bring out the Eagle. We've seen it every time we've gone. I didn't realize it wasn't there at every show.

Flame Tree is a must do every trip. We never get tired of it. And we love the location of seating down by the water. We've never been graced with the presence of that particular bird. He was beautiful!

We love the Tigers too! A couple of trips ago we got to see them get fed big chunks of raw meat. They were never so lively as we saw them that day! Looked pretty ferocious, actually. Very Cool.

Sounds like a great day at AK, and I so glad Jocelyn was feeling so much better and could really enjoy it. I can't wait to see if you made it to TSM FP time and what in the heck is your new favorite seat??? Do tell!