conan617
10-27-2011, 12:46 AM
Let me start off by apologizing for taking longer to get this out than originally planned. I had a trip report put together, but it was short and so many details were left out. Instead I am opting to post my detailed journal and hope you will excuse my weak writing style and the fact that some of the details contained within are very pedestrian to most of the readers on INTERCOT. Anyway, thanks for reading….here we go.
Cast
Me – the nervous Dad and narrator
Kelly – the Mother of my beautiful children
Matthew – age 11
Mara –age 7
Pretrip report link
http://www.intercot.com/discussion/s...d.php?t=184956
9/30/11
Sadly, our last day at WDW has come. We are up and at the Animal Kingdom about 8:30. Extra Magic Hours are going on so we take advantage and go to the Tree of life and check out It’s Tough to be a Bug. I really enjoyed the show, but Kelly really didn’t care for the ending where the bugs crawl underneath you and Matthew didn’t care for the sting from the Wasps. The Tree of Life was really cool and I think that every time I looked at it I saw something different.
From the Tree of Life we made our way to Africa and got in line for Kilimanjaro Safaris. The Standby time was 20 minutes but I don’t think we waited that long. The exhibits in the queue were interesting and made the time pass quickly. During my pre-trip research I had heard conflicting reports about the activity of the animals on the safaris. Some said to experience the safaris in the morning when the animals are out and active and some said it didn’t matter. Well, we were on the safari about 9:30 AM so hopefully the animals are up and about. Our driver was nice and did a good job of explaining to us what we might see. We rounded the first corner and he said that he usually sees animals around this corner. Not this morning. Then next corner the same thing…Nothing. Finally, there are some birds and hippos in the water ahead. Just when we get up close and ready to take a picture – the driver takes off! My pictures are blurred. Next up are some crocodiles and once again – we drive off before we can get any pictures. I was lucky to reach back and snap a picture of a croc as we drove away. We round a turn and there is a giant boab tree and then a savannah where giraffes are sometimes (not today – thank goodness they are more plentiful at our hotel). Also in the savannah are Thompson’s gazelles, but our driver must be in some kind of hurry because we don’t stop or even slow down for pictures. Around the next turn is a mound of termites and a gray blur that I think is a couple of wildebeests. Finally, there are some giraffes and I actually was able to get some pictures (even though I have about 50 giraffe pictures from the resort). The next corner has a pack of elephants and in the pack is a baby elephant. While the driver slowed (finally) I did get a few good pictures and a few blurry ones. Following the elephants, there were some rhinos right next to the road and thankfully the driver did slow down for them. Our wild ride then came to a complete stop. Apparently, something ahead on the safari tour was crossing the road so we had to stop. Good thing we hurried to get to this point. Luckily, some cheetahs were resting in the shade and I was able to zoom right in on them for some cool pictures. There were a few goat-like animals (I have to look up what they were) right on the side of the road. I could have reached out and touched them but all hands and arms must remain within the ride vehicle at all times. The last few minutes of our safari didn’t yield any more animals except for 2 warthogs and our driver must have been late as we drove right on past. I understand that the attraction is based on live animals and they may not be in easy viewing areas when we pass by. I get that. I don’t understand why the drivers can’t stop or slow down when there is something that would be interesting to see or photograph. I have a hard time believing that this attraction is on such a tight schedule that a five second stop would throw everything off especially when the animals themselves could stop the ride. I’ll get off my soapbox after one more thought. I enjoyed the experience and that attraction is probably as close as I will ever come to an actual African safari, but after our talk with Junior the other night at the resort, I know that the actual African safari guides are taking people out to see the animals and allow for photographs and not to drive by quickly.
At the exit of the safaris is the beginning of the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail. Matthew and Mara were interacting with the cast members along the way and one cast member gave each of them some animal cards with facts on them. The hippo viewing area made it much easier to get pictures of the hippos than on the safari, but also we could see the hippos swimming under water. Also interesting were the meerkats and the gorilla was taking a nap right by the viewing window.
From Africa, we hopped on the train to Rafiki’s Planet Watch. The train ride was very cool as it allowed for a behind the scenes look at the animal pens and barns. Rafiki’s was also cool, but only because it was air conditioned. We tried to watch the veterinarians perform a surgery, but we kept getting crowded out by rude people. We looked at the frogs, spiders and snakes and then went out to the petting zoo. The petting zoo, in my opinion, is not up to Disney standards. There were a few goats and sheep, a llama and pig. The llama and pig were smart and stayed away from the countless hands. The sheep were all about getting petted and Mara was able to pet them. The reason I say the area is not up to Disney Standard is that petting zoos at home have more to interact with. I guess people that live in cities may not have as much access to animals as we do, but rabbits, kittens, ponies etc. should be staples in a petting zoo. After the petting zoo we made our way back to the train station in Africa.
We were getting hungry and felt like sitting in the air conditioning so we tempted fate and tried to get a walk in spot at Yak and Yeti as we didn’t have a reservation. Luck was in our favor as we only had to wait about 5 minutes and we got a table. The food was delicious, but our server was slow. We were in the restaurant an hour and a half! The rest and food were a welcome break, but after an hour we were ready to get back to the park.
After lunch our plan was to head for Expedition Everest. We tried to tell the kids that the ride was easy like Big Thunder Mountain, but as we got close, they saw a train come out of the mountain and they pretty much said “no way!” We tried to persuade them since we didn’t get to ride Tower of Terror and the Rock n’ Rollercoaster yesterday but we had no luck. Kelly and I were disappointed for sure, but we will have to add this to our growing list of next time must dos.
As we backtracked through Asia, we checked the wait time on Kali River Rapids and it was over and hour (we weren’t sure we would enjoy being wet the rest of the afternoon anyway) so we walked through the Maharajah Jungle Trek. We got some great pictures of the komodo dragon and the tigers were in full view. The fruit bats were awesome, but I think they creeped out Kelly and Mara. The disappointing portion of the Trek was the Aviary. I walked in and there were two ducks close to the door and those were the only birds I saw in the entire aviary. I’m still in awe that I only saw two common ducks in the entire exotic aviary. Kelly wanted to be sure to catch the Flights of Wonder show and we were lucky enough to have a showtime in the next few minutes. We got to the theater and got seats three rows from the front and right in the center. The show as really cool as birds would swoop right over our heads and land in back and then swoop back down to the stage. One guy ahead of us held up a dollar and bird (I think it was a raven) landed on him and took it to the trainer on stage. The show had a good mix of comedy and tricks and it was a good time.
Next on our list was the Finding Nemo the Musical but we had about 45 minutes before the show started so we tempted fate and went over and rode Dinosaur. We walked right into the preshow area and were boarding the ride shortly after. The ride was a little scary, but the kids did fine (Kelly not so much we later found out). The premise of the ride is that you are being sent back in time to pick up a dinosaur and bring it back with you. After the ride was over, I asked if the kids had seen the dinosaur we were supposed bring back because I never saw it. The kids laughed at me like I was joking and said “seriously Dad? The dinosaur was right next to you.” I was sitting in the front left seat and kept looking back and to the right and apparently missed the large dino to my left. The kids teased me the rest of the day. “How could you miss it Dad? It was huge!” I have no idea how I missed it, but I did.
The ride on Dinosaur only took about 15 minutes so we walked through Dinoland USA and checked out all the sites as we made our way back to Nemo. We had a few minutes to wait, but got into the theater and were able to get some good seats. The musical was neat. It took a minute to get past the puppeteers, but then you were sucked right into the show. Crush was awesome and the sharks were also cool.
Cast
Me – the nervous Dad and narrator
Kelly – the Mother of my beautiful children
Matthew – age 11
Mara –age 7
Pretrip report link
http://www.intercot.com/discussion/s...d.php?t=184956
9/30/11
Sadly, our last day at WDW has come. We are up and at the Animal Kingdom about 8:30. Extra Magic Hours are going on so we take advantage and go to the Tree of life and check out It’s Tough to be a Bug. I really enjoyed the show, but Kelly really didn’t care for the ending where the bugs crawl underneath you and Matthew didn’t care for the sting from the Wasps. The Tree of Life was really cool and I think that every time I looked at it I saw something different.
From the Tree of Life we made our way to Africa and got in line for Kilimanjaro Safaris. The Standby time was 20 minutes but I don’t think we waited that long. The exhibits in the queue were interesting and made the time pass quickly. During my pre-trip research I had heard conflicting reports about the activity of the animals on the safaris. Some said to experience the safaris in the morning when the animals are out and active and some said it didn’t matter. Well, we were on the safari about 9:30 AM so hopefully the animals are up and about. Our driver was nice and did a good job of explaining to us what we might see. We rounded the first corner and he said that he usually sees animals around this corner. Not this morning. Then next corner the same thing…Nothing. Finally, there are some birds and hippos in the water ahead. Just when we get up close and ready to take a picture – the driver takes off! My pictures are blurred. Next up are some crocodiles and once again – we drive off before we can get any pictures. I was lucky to reach back and snap a picture of a croc as we drove away. We round a turn and there is a giant boab tree and then a savannah where giraffes are sometimes (not today – thank goodness they are more plentiful at our hotel). Also in the savannah are Thompson’s gazelles, but our driver must be in some kind of hurry because we don’t stop or even slow down for pictures. Around the next turn is a mound of termites and a gray blur that I think is a couple of wildebeests. Finally, there are some giraffes and I actually was able to get some pictures (even though I have about 50 giraffe pictures from the resort). The next corner has a pack of elephants and in the pack is a baby elephant. While the driver slowed (finally) I did get a few good pictures and a few blurry ones. Following the elephants, there were some rhinos right next to the road and thankfully the driver did slow down for them. Our wild ride then came to a complete stop. Apparently, something ahead on the safari tour was crossing the road so we had to stop. Good thing we hurried to get to this point. Luckily, some cheetahs were resting in the shade and I was able to zoom right in on them for some cool pictures. There were a few goat-like animals (I have to look up what they were) right on the side of the road. I could have reached out and touched them but all hands and arms must remain within the ride vehicle at all times. The last few minutes of our safari didn’t yield any more animals except for 2 warthogs and our driver must have been late as we drove right on past. I understand that the attraction is based on live animals and they may not be in easy viewing areas when we pass by. I get that. I don’t understand why the drivers can’t stop or slow down when there is something that would be interesting to see or photograph. I have a hard time believing that this attraction is on such a tight schedule that a five second stop would throw everything off especially when the animals themselves could stop the ride. I’ll get off my soapbox after one more thought. I enjoyed the experience and that attraction is probably as close as I will ever come to an actual African safari, but after our talk with Junior the other night at the resort, I know that the actual African safari guides are taking people out to see the animals and allow for photographs and not to drive by quickly.
At the exit of the safaris is the beginning of the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail. Matthew and Mara were interacting with the cast members along the way and one cast member gave each of them some animal cards with facts on them. The hippo viewing area made it much easier to get pictures of the hippos than on the safari, but also we could see the hippos swimming under water. Also interesting were the meerkats and the gorilla was taking a nap right by the viewing window.
From Africa, we hopped on the train to Rafiki’s Planet Watch. The train ride was very cool as it allowed for a behind the scenes look at the animal pens and barns. Rafiki’s was also cool, but only because it was air conditioned. We tried to watch the veterinarians perform a surgery, but we kept getting crowded out by rude people. We looked at the frogs, spiders and snakes and then went out to the petting zoo. The petting zoo, in my opinion, is not up to Disney standards. There were a few goats and sheep, a llama and pig. The llama and pig were smart and stayed away from the countless hands. The sheep were all about getting petted and Mara was able to pet them. The reason I say the area is not up to Disney Standard is that petting zoos at home have more to interact with. I guess people that live in cities may not have as much access to animals as we do, but rabbits, kittens, ponies etc. should be staples in a petting zoo. After the petting zoo we made our way back to the train station in Africa.
We were getting hungry and felt like sitting in the air conditioning so we tempted fate and tried to get a walk in spot at Yak and Yeti as we didn’t have a reservation. Luck was in our favor as we only had to wait about 5 minutes and we got a table. The food was delicious, but our server was slow. We were in the restaurant an hour and a half! The rest and food were a welcome break, but after an hour we were ready to get back to the park.
After lunch our plan was to head for Expedition Everest. We tried to tell the kids that the ride was easy like Big Thunder Mountain, but as we got close, they saw a train come out of the mountain and they pretty much said “no way!” We tried to persuade them since we didn’t get to ride Tower of Terror and the Rock n’ Rollercoaster yesterday but we had no luck. Kelly and I were disappointed for sure, but we will have to add this to our growing list of next time must dos.
As we backtracked through Asia, we checked the wait time on Kali River Rapids and it was over and hour (we weren’t sure we would enjoy being wet the rest of the afternoon anyway) so we walked through the Maharajah Jungle Trek. We got some great pictures of the komodo dragon and the tigers were in full view. The fruit bats were awesome, but I think they creeped out Kelly and Mara. The disappointing portion of the Trek was the Aviary. I walked in and there were two ducks close to the door and those were the only birds I saw in the entire aviary. I’m still in awe that I only saw two common ducks in the entire exotic aviary. Kelly wanted to be sure to catch the Flights of Wonder show and we were lucky enough to have a showtime in the next few minutes. We got to the theater and got seats three rows from the front and right in the center. The show as really cool as birds would swoop right over our heads and land in back and then swoop back down to the stage. One guy ahead of us held up a dollar and bird (I think it was a raven) landed on him and took it to the trainer on stage. The show had a good mix of comedy and tricks and it was a good time.
Next on our list was the Finding Nemo the Musical but we had about 45 minutes before the show started so we tempted fate and went over and rode Dinosaur. We walked right into the preshow area and were boarding the ride shortly after. The ride was a little scary, but the kids did fine (Kelly not so much we later found out). The premise of the ride is that you are being sent back in time to pick up a dinosaur and bring it back with you. After the ride was over, I asked if the kids had seen the dinosaur we were supposed bring back because I never saw it. The kids laughed at me like I was joking and said “seriously Dad? The dinosaur was right next to you.” I was sitting in the front left seat and kept looking back and to the right and apparently missed the large dino to my left. The kids teased me the rest of the day. “How could you miss it Dad? It was huge!” I have no idea how I missed it, but I did.
The ride on Dinosaur only took about 15 minutes so we walked through Dinoland USA and checked out all the sites as we made our way back to Nemo. We had a few minutes to wait, but got into the theater and were able to get some good seats. The musical was neat. It took a minute to get past the puppeteers, but then you were sucked right into the show. Crush was awesome and the sharks were also cool.