Kirby
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 7, 2000
Today is Animal Kingdom day!
Woke up about 7:00 a.m., eager to get the day started. We ate breakfast in our room with what we had brought with us. I tried to get PS for the Rainforest Cafe at AK but was told that they don't take them. Got PS for 50's Prime Time Cafe for the next day. On to the buses about 8:30 and was at the park by 9:00.
Walking through the Oasis we chanced upon a unique individual, the Vine Lady. She just came right out of the foliage. If she had stayed where she was we would never of seen her. In fact, we walked through the Oasis several times and only saw her twice.
We tried to take our time walking through but were eager to get to the Killimanjaro Safari ride. Coming into the Africa section we came upon a very, very long line. Of course, like many others, we joined it. After standing in it unmoving for a minute or two, I noticed in my map that it was a FP ride. I had found out what FP was the night before but not having used it yet I was a little unsure what to do. So my DH went on up the line to investigate. He came back momentarily and said that yes we were in the Safari ride line but that he had found out where to go for the FP. We went over there, questioned the CM and got our FPs. We had about an hour to wait so we decided to go on the Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail.
We enjoyed this. The kids liked looking at the animals and the CMs were very informative. The highlight of course were seeing the gorillas. Not like in a typical zoo in a cage but actually out in the open, just like you might see on a National Geographic special. We spent quite a bit of time watching them.
Our time came due for the Safari ride so we headed over there. I must say that we felt special and a little odd too, like we were cutting in line or something, being able to go ahead of those who did not have FPs.
The ride was fun and different. The effect would have been much better had we not been able to see the vehicle in front of us at times but I realize that Disney has to do that in order to move the amount of people it does through.
We chose to leave Conservation Station for another time and headed over to Dinoland. There is no direct route there so we went past Asia. This was a fairly peaceful walk until we got over by Asia, then the crowds multiplied.
Our first stop was to get FPs for Countdown to Extinction, though I think it might be called Dinosaur now. Wouldn't you know one of our cards got stuck in the machine and we had to track down a CM to get it out. No harm done we had about another hour to wait. Tarzan Rocks was starting in 20 minutes so we headed over there.
This show was not anything that we were expecting. I was a little turned off at first but after a song or two we all started to get into it. Once the skaters came out, our kids just thought it was the most. I thought please do go home and try this. We enjoyed the show and would recommend it to anyone with the warning that its not a typical Disney show. And try not to sit in front of any of the speakers if possible.
Countdown to Extinction was fun! We were thrown around quite a bit and me with my inner ear problem, I began to feel a little nauseous. My DD did not like the ride and left crying.
We couldn't decide what to do next. I wanted to eat at the Rainforest Cafe. It was 11:00 and we had to go right then or wait a couple of more hours until the lunch crowd left. My DS and DD did not want to go but my DH overruled them. So off we went back to the front of the park.
I got in line at the restaurant and only waited about 20 minutes to put our name in while the rest wandered about the store. I had just stepped aside when our name was called. What luck! They had just opened up the back part of the place.
I am sure that most of you with children have gone out to eat with them at one time or another when they were not thrilled to go. Well, our dining experience was not all that pleasant. We should probably have gone somewhere else to eat. I had hoped that the decor would brighten and interest them but no such luck. We ordered the sampler for starters. It was okay. I don't remember what my DH or I ate but my DS had spaghetti and my DD had pizza. Neither one liked their food.
Our overall impression of the Rainforest Cafe was not so great but it probably was tainted somewhat by the attitudes of our kids. The area where we sat was fairly dark and the tables just did not feel very clean. Our waiter was nice enough but he seemed be gone for very long periods of time. Our area was not all that much full that he could not have been more attentive.
Our kids were glad to leave the restaurant and once we headed back into the park their attitudes improved immensely. We stopped in front of the Tree of Life and had our picture taken. This turned out to be one of the best ones of the trip.
Next we went back to Dinoland to go through the Dinosaur exhibit and then let the kids play in the Boneyard. After about 40 minutes they returned hot and sweaty and ready for the water ride. On the way we stopped to get an ice cream. I discovered the strawberry bar or whatever it is called. Over the course of the next couple of days I would eat several of them. They were so refreshing.
Our FP time for the water ride was a lot later than our last one. We had about two hours to kill. We went through the Maharajah Jungle Trek but the animals were not moving around much. The tigers were all laying up in the shade. I don't know what people do in the summer there cause it was getting quite warm by that time. We walked back through Asia to go to It's Tough to be a Bug. We sort of meandered around looking at the flora and fauna until we got to the show entrance.
Walking through the passageways around the Tree of Life is amazing. Just think of all the talent that went into just making that tree. We would have liked to have spent more time there but we had people behind us. Maybe we should have let them go on ahead.
Once we got into the show I began to have doubts. In 1996, my DD did not like Honey I Shrunk the Audience and it was all I could do to keep her in there. Well, she did not like this one any better, but then neither did I. I get claustrophobic in closed in places and with the dark and all the mist it was about all I could do to stay in there. I am not afraid of mice but spiders give me the willies.
With two of us being glad to get out, we headed over to the water ride. Once again we took the back route behind the Tree of Life. This walkway seemed so much less crowded all of the time than around front. The FP wait for the water ride was the longest we would experience our whole time at WDW. The ride was fast and we got plenty wet. Isn't that the purpose of going on it?
It was close to 5:00 by now and we decided to make it an early day and head back to the room.
Once getting back we decided to head to Downtown Disney to use our flex features. Here is where we made a mistake and did not use them wisely.
First we got on the bus and was dropped off on the Westside. Having never been there before we soon realized after a brief walk that we were in the wrong place. Off we go to wait for another bus to try and get to the Marketplace. Little did we know that with a little walking we could have gotten there faster. Back to the resort and a wait for another bus. This time we got to where we wanted to go.
We were tired, we were hungry and not happy when we had to get t-shirts not of our choosing. Of course their were other features but we had all decided on t-shirts and by golly thats what we were going to get. So we had to get what was offered. And after our not so glorious experience with Rainforest Cafe, thats the t-shirts we got because it was convenient and we were just to tired to walk and look at what the other three establishments had to offer.
The Disney store was the highlight of that evening. My DD purchased a medium size Minnie Mouse and my DS purchased a Goofy hat. My DH who has trouble with crowds anyway was having a hard time staying in that store. We made it out okay and went back to our room. We fixed sandwiches from our groceries and went to sleep.
Woke up about 7:00 a.m., eager to get the day started. We ate breakfast in our room with what we had brought with us. I tried to get PS for the Rainforest Cafe at AK but was told that they don't take them. Got PS for 50's Prime Time Cafe for the next day. On to the buses about 8:30 and was at the park by 9:00.
Walking through the Oasis we chanced upon a unique individual, the Vine Lady. She just came right out of the foliage. If she had stayed where she was we would never of seen her. In fact, we walked through the Oasis several times and only saw her twice.
We tried to take our time walking through but were eager to get to the Killimanjaro Safari ride. Coming into the Africa section we came upon a very, very long line. Of course, like many others, we joined it. After standing in it unmoving for a minute or two, I noticed in my map that it was a FP ride. I had found out what FP was the night before but not having used it yet I was a little unsure what to do. So my DH went on up the line to investigate. He came back momentarily and said that yes we were in the Safari ride line but that he had found out where to go for the FP. We went over there, questioned the CM and got our FPs. We had about an hour to wait so we decided to go on the Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail.
We enjoyed this. The kids liked looking at the animals and the CMs were very informative. The highlight of course were seeing the gorillas. Not like in a typical zoo in a cage but actually out in the open, just like you might see on a National Geographic special. We spent quite a bit of time watching them.
Our time came due for the Safari ride so we headed over there. I must say that we felt special and a little odd too, like we were cutting in line or something, being able to go ahead of those who did not have FPs.
The ride was fun and different. The effect would have been much better had we not been able to see the vehicle in front of us at times but I realize that Disney has to do that in order to move the amount of people it does through.
We chose to leave Conservation Station for another time and headed over to Dinoland. There is no direct route there so we went past Asia. This was a fairly peaceful walk until we got over by Asia, then the crowds multiplied.
Our first stop was to get FPs for Countdown to Extinction, though I think it might be called Dinosaur now. Wouldn't you know one of our cards got stuck in the machine and we had to track down a CM to get it out. No harm done we had about another hour to wait. Tarzan Rocks was starting in 20 minutes so we headed over there.
This show was not anything that we were expecting. I was a little turned off at first but after a song or two we all started to get into it. Once the skaters came out, our kids just thought it was the most. I thought please do go home and try this. We enjoyed the show and would recommend it to anyone with the warning that its not a typical Disney show. And try not to sit in front of any of the speakers if possible.
Countdown to Extinction was fun! We were thrown around quite a bit and me with my inner ear problem, I began to feel a little nauseous. My DD did not like the ride and left crying.
We couldn't decide what to do next. I wanted to eat at the Rainforest Cafe. It was 11:00 and we had to go right then or wait a couple of more hours until the lunch crowd left. My DS and DD did not want to go but my DH overruled them. So off we went back to the front of the park.
I got in line at the restaurant and only waited about 20 minutes to put our name in while the rest wandered about the store. I had just stepped aside when our name was called. What luck! They had just opened up the back part of the place.
I am sure that most of you with children have gone out to eat with them at one time or another when they were not thrilled to go. Well, our dining experience was not all that pleasant. We should probably have gone somewhere else to eat. I had hoped that the decor would brighten and interest them but no such luck. We ordered the sampler for starters. It was okay. I don't remember what my DH or I ate but my DS had spaghetti and my DD had pizza. Neither one liked their food.
Our overall impression of the Rainforest Cafe was not so great but it probably was tainted somewhat by the attitudes of our kids. The area where we sat was fairly dark and the tables just did not feel very clean. Our waiter was nice enough but he seemed be gone for very long periods of time. Our area was not all that much full that he could not have been more attentive.
Our kids were glad to leave the restaurant and once we headed back into the park their attitudes improved immensely. We stopped in front of the Tree of Life and had our picture taken. This turned out to be one of the best ones of the trip.
Next we went back to Dinoland to go through the Dinosaur exhibit and then let the kids play in the Boneyard. After about 40 minutes they returned hot and sweaty and ready for the water ride. On the way we stopped to get an ice cream. I discovered the strawberry bar or whatever it is called. Over the course of the next couple of days I would eat several of them. They were so refreshing.
Our FP time for the water ride was a lot later than our last one. We had about two hours to kill. We went through the Maharajah Jungle Trek but the animals were not moving around much. The tigers were all laying up in the shade. I don't know what people do in the summer there cause it was getting quite warm by that time. We walked back through Asia to go to It's Tough to be a Bug. We sort of meandered around looking at the flora and fauna until we got to the show entrance.
Walking through the passageways around the Tree of Life is amazing. Just think of all the talent that went into just making that tree. We would have liked to have spent more time there but we had people behind us. Maybe we should have let them go on ahead.
Once we got into the show I began to have doubts. In 1996, my DD did not like Honey I Shrunk the Audience and it was all I could do to keep her in there. Well, she did not like this one any better, but then neither did I. I get claustrophobic in closed in places and with the dark and all the mist it was about all I could do to stay in there. I am not afraid of mice but spiders give me the willies.
With two of us being glad to get out, we headed over to the water ride. Once again we took the back route behind the Tree of Life. This walkway seemed so much less crowded all of the time than around front. The FP wait for the water ride was the longest we would experience our whole time at WDW. The ride was fast and we got plenty wet. Isn't that the purpose of going on it?
It was close to 5:00 by now and we decided to make it an early day and head back to the room.
Once getting back we decided to head to Downtown Disney to use our flex features. Here is where we made a mistake and did not use them wisely.
First we got on the bus and was dropped off on the Westside. Having never been there before we soon realized after a brief walk that we were in the wrong place. Off we go to wait for another bus to try and get to the Marketplace. Little did we know that with a little walking we could have gotten there faster. Back to the resort and a wait for another bus. This time we got to where we wanted to go.
We were tired, we were hungry and not happy when we had to get t-shirts not of our choosing. Of course their were other features but we had all decided on t-shirts and by golly thats what we were going to get. So we had to get what was offered. And after our not so glorious experience with Rainforest Cafe, thats the t-shirts we got because it was convenient and we were just to tired to walk and look at what the other three establishments had to offer.
The Disney store was the highlight of that evening. My DD purchased a medium size Minnie Mouse and my DS purchased a Goofy hat. My DH who has trouble with crowds anyway was having a hard time staying in that store. We made it out okay and went back to our room. We fixed sandwiches from our groceries and went to sleep.
We've been to AK twice and even asked cm's when we could find her. We just haven't been there at the right time. 
