Mandalorian30
05-30-2007, 07:39 PM
Hello everyone!
I recently took a trip to WDW at the end of March. Upon returning, I wrote up several write-ups about my experiences. I will be posting each individual write-up for you all to read! I really hope you all enjoy! Thanks for taking the time to check them all out!
Animal Kingdom
Disney’s Animal Kingdom is actually the youngest of the four main Disney parks in Walt Disney World. It’s quite a bit different, too. This park is known for its beautiful scenery. The entire park is filled with beautiful plant life, and is set up as thought you are walking through different countries such as Asia or Africa. Animal Kingdom also features many forms of wildlife all over the park. But, as many of the signs in Animal Kingdom point out, it is Notazu! Get it? Not a zoo!
Upon arriving, we were greeted by characters right away at the main entrance. Seeing as how Christina was on her mission to get as many pictures taken with Disney characters as possible, we stopped to say hello. I was quite amazed to see Launchpad, the pilot duck from the Ducktales TV series! We hopped in line to see him and get our picture. It was there that I was a little upset to hear kids, and parents, asking who he was. It kind of made me feel old, knowing that this was a character from a popular TV series from my childhood, and seeing that kids these days had no idea who he was. Poor Launchpad.
The first thing we decided to do once we got inside was head straight for Animal Kingdom’s newest attraction: Expedition Everest! Expedition Everest is a roller coaster that, like all Disney rides, has a story to it. There is a huge, man made version of Mount Everest that the coaster goes through. The story has to do with the legendary Yeti being sighted in the mountain. The ride is quite thrilling! You start the ride like a normal coaster, but you suddenly come to a screeching halt when you realize your track has been ripped away in front of you! Suddenly, you start going backwards at incredible speeds, before stopping again to see a really cool animation projected on the wall that looks like the shadow of the Yeti ripping up even more of the track! The coaster adjusts and you start flying forward again, zipping around several turns and many drops before seeing an awesome animatronic Yeti hanging right above you just before the ride ends! It is fantastic the way they incorporated an awesome thrill ride with cool special effects! This ranks as one of the best coasters I have ever ridden. Hands down! If you go to Animal Kingdom, hit this ride first. You’ll have a better chance of getting on with little wait if you go right to it in the morning. Otherwise, you’ll be waiting upwards of 70 minutes for this ride. Once you get off, do like we did and fast pass it so you can ride it again later!
Dinosaur is another of my favorites in Animal Kingdom. This is a dark ride that simulates driving over rough terrain right through the end of the Cretaceous period! The story is that you get teleported back in time to snag a Dino to bring back with you. You arrive just as a huge meteor shower is getting ready to hit Earth and wipe out the Dinos! You zip all over bumpy terrain, out running Carnisaurs and trying to get back to your own time before you become extinct with the Dinos! It’s a really cool, exciting ride with great special effects. There are times where you are in total darkness, and it sounds and almost feels as thought there are dinosaurs right next to you! This is probably the second best ride in Animal Kingdom, so don’t miss this one if you go!
The landmark of Animal Kingdom is the Tree of Life, a huge; man made tree that sits right in the middle of the park. It stands a whopping 145 ft tall! The cool thing about this tree is that all the way through it are images of several different animals carved right in! In fact, there are a total of 325 different animals on it! You could stare at it all day and always find something new on it! It’s quite an amazing sight!
Underneath the Tree of Life lies “It’s Tough to Be a Bug,” a really cool 3-D show starring characters from A Bug’s Life! Just as with all of the other Disney 3-D shows, this one is fantastic. But, if you have a fear of bugs, you might want to pass this one. Poor Stina had her head buried in my shoulder when those spiders came out!
As mentioned earlier, Animal Kingdom is also home to several forms of wildlife. There are a few different nature walks that take you through beautiful sceneries and show off some really cool animals such as Tigers, Gorillas, and some of the biggest bats I have ever seen! Another fantastic attraction is the Kilimanjaro Safari. Animal Kingdom holds a huge plot of land set for their safari attraction, where many wild animals that are native to Africa roam freely. There is about 800 square miles of land for the animals. Just so you get the idea of how big that is, that’s enough land to fit the entire Magic Kingdom comfortably inside! During the attraction, you board a safari bus, and you are driven through the land, where many animals will be seen just roaming around. On our trip, a Giraffe decided to stop right on the road we were traveling and we had to stop to wait for her to pass! It was pretty cool seeing an animal such as that so close!
While Animal Kingdom may not have as many rides as the other places, there is still a lot to do, as well as a lot to look at. The few rides that they do have are fantastic, and some of the shows you can watch are a lot of fun. Shows such as “Festival of the Lion King” are perfect if you have a family or if you just want to sit down for a bit and have a bit of fun. The scenery is an amazing site, and very relaxing. While this may be the park on the bottom of my Disney list, that doesn’t at all mean it’s not a good park. Its still leaps and bounds ahead of any regular theme park. It’s unique, and a must see if you plan on visiting Walt Disney World. Hakuna Matata!
Click here to view my photo album from Animal Kingdom! (http://s27.photobucket.com/albums/c179/Mandalorian30/Animal%20Kingdom/)
I recently took a trip to WDW at the end of March. Upon returning, I wrote up several write-ups about my experiences. I will be posting each individual write-up for you all to read! I really hope you all enjoy! Thanks for taking the time to check them all out!
Animal Kingdom
Disney’s Animal Kingdom is actually the youngest of the four main Disney parks in Walt Disney World. It’s quite a bit different, too. This park is known for its beautiful scenery. The entire park is filled with beautiful plant life, and is set up as thought you are walking through different countries such as Asia or Africa. Animal Kingdom also features many forms of wildlife all over the park. But, as many of the signs in Animal Kingdom point out, it is Notazu! Get it? Not a zoo!
Upon arriving, we were greeted by characters right away at the main entrance. Seeing as how Christina was on her mission to get as many pictures taken with Disney characters as possible, we stopped to say hello. I was quite amazed to see Launchpad, the pilot duck from the Ducktales TV series! We hopped in line to see him and get our picture. It was there that I was a little upset to hear kids, and parents, asking who he was. It kind of made me feel old, knowing that this was a character from a popular TV series from my childhood, and seeing that kids these days had no idea who he was. Poor Launchpad.
The first thing we decided to do once we got inside was head straight for Animal Kingdom’s newest attraction: Expedition Everest! Expedition Everest is a roller coaster that, like all Disney rides, has a story to it. There is a huge, man made version of Mount Everest that the coaster goes through. The story has to do with the legendary Yeti being sighted in the mountain. The ride is quite thrilling! You start the ride like a normal coaster, but you suddenly come to a screeching halt when you realize your track has been ripped away in front of you! Suddenly, you start going backwards at incredible speeds, before stopping again to see a really cool animation projected on the wall that looks like the shadow of the Yeti ripping up even more of the track! The coaster adjusts and you start flying forward again, zipping around several turns and many drops before seeing an awesome animatronic Yeti hanging right above you just before the ride ends! It is fantastic the way they incorporated an awesome thrill ride with cool special effects! This ranks as one of the best coasters I have ever ridden. Hands down! If you go to Animal Kingdom, hit this ride first. You’ll have a better chance of getting on with little wait if you go right to it in the morning. Otherwise, you’ll be waiting upwards of 70 minutes for this ride. Once you get off, do like we did and fast pass it so you can ride it again later!
Dinosaur is another of my favorites in Animal Kingdom. This is a dark ride that simulates driving over rough terrain right through the end of the Cretaceous period! The story is that you get teleported back in time to snag a Dino to bring back with you. You arrive just as a huge meteor shower is getting ready to hit Earth and wipe out the Dinos! You zip all over bumpy terrain, out running Carnisaurs and trying to get back to your own time before you become extinct with the Dinos! It’s a really cool, exciting ride with great special effects. There are times where you are in total darkness, and it sounds and almost feels as thought there are dinosaurs right next to you! This is probably the second best ride in Animal Kingdom, so don’t miss this one if you go!
The landmark of Animal Kingdom is the Tree of Life, a huge; man made tree that sits right in the middle of the park. It stands a whopping 145 ft tall! The cool thing about this tree is that all the way through it are images of several different animals carved right in! In fact, there are a total of 325 different animals on it! You could stare at it all day and always find something new on it! It’s quite an amazing sight!
Underneath the Tree of Life lies “It’s Tough to Be a Bug,” a really cool 3-D show starring characters from A Bug’s Life! Just as with all of the other Disney 3-D shows, this one is fantastic. But, if you have a fear of bugs, you might want to pass this one. Poor Stina had her head buried in my shoulder when those spiders came out!
As mentioned earlier, Animal Kingdom is also home to several forms of wildlife. There are a few different nature walks that take you through beautiful sceneries and show off some really cool animals such as Tigers, Gorillas, and some of the biggest bats I have ever seen! Another fantastic attraction is the Kilimanjaro Safari. Animal Kingdom holds a huge plot of land set for their safari attraction, where many wild animals that are native to Africa roam freely. There is about 800 square miles of land for the animals. Just so you get the idea of how big that is, that’s enough land to fit the entire Magic Kingdom comfortably inside! During the attraction, you board a safari bus, and you are driven through the land, where many animals will be seen just roaming around. On our trip, a Giraffe decided to stop right on the road we were traveling and we had to stop to wait for her to pass! It was pretty cool seeing an animal such as that so close!
While Animal Kingdom may not have as many rides as the other places, there is still a lot to do, as well as a lot to look at. The few rides that they do have are fantastic, and some of the shows you can watch are a lot of fun. Shows such as “Festival of the Lion King” are perfect if you have a family or if you just want to sit down for a bit and have a bit of fun. The scenery is an amazing site, and very relaxing. While this may be the park on the bottom of my Disney list, that doesn’t at all mean it’s not a good park. Its still leaps and bounds ahead of any regular theme park. It’s unique, and a must see if you plan on visiting Walt Disney World. Hakuna Matata!
Click here to view my photo album from Animal Kingdom! (http://s27.photobucket.com/albums/c179/Mandalorian30/Animal%20Kingdom/)