Disney Days, May 17 - Animal Kingdom!

Day Two of the Robertson Disney Adventure began with a trip to the Animal Kingdom. I knew the two biggie "to do" items here included the Kilimanjaro Safari and Expedition Everest.

Kilimanjaro was first because I had heard that the line gets worse throughout the day and that you should go first thing because the more animals will be out earlier in the day. Off we go!

I started off trying to take pictures, but this guy wasn't slowing down for anything! Ron took over the still camera whilst I took video. You ride in these safari jeep looking things and they are driving down these bumpy roads and through streams and such. Sam didn't want to go at first, but thought it was the coolest thing ever within just a few minutes. On the video you can hear him say several times, "Mom, isn't this a cool safari?" like he's been on a hundred of 'em.

Out of the pictures Ron was able to get, here are some of the better ones:



There's a monkey in this one, sort of in the center to the right of the picture on one of the rocks:


Elephants!!










Meerkat Manor:


During the ride, the guide is talking over his radio and it's on a speaker so the entire jeep can hear... Anyway, he's talking with this guy and they get all excited about a runaway elephant and poachers and all sorts of stuff to make you feel like you are really on a safari adventure. Corny for adults, but soooo fun for the kids. Sam talked about those daggone poachers all day. LOL

Then, after much convincing we went on the Pangani Exploration Trail. We kind of breezed through it because Sam was none too interested. He wanted to get on Expedition Everest!!!

He was pretty much bored with this until we got to the gorilla exhibit.


They were behind glass, but Sam was still a little skiddish.


On the way out, you crossed this bridge and could see the gorillas without the obstruction of the glass. This one was just sitting there minding his own business:


A lady that was standing beside us and I were joking about he was just completely oblivious to us standing there. I jokingly said, "It's probably a Cast Member in a gorilla suit." And this is what happened next:

And he like laughed. It was hilarious!!! Everyone on the bridge just about lost it! LOL

On to the Mountain!!! On to Everest!!

This is the smoothest roller coaster I have ever been on! It was absolutely awesome! No jerks, no headaches, no whiplash! Smoooooth as silk! Sam loved it too! I had prepared him for the shadow of the Yeti, but neither of us were prepared for the real Yeti!! I was trying to hold his hand and comfort him as we went careening straight for the snow monster! So, here I am, holding his hand trying to make him feel safe and I'm screaming my head off, "It's ok! AAHHHHH!!! It's ok!! AHHHHHH!!!" LMAO

We probably rode Everest twice or maybe three times before lunch. Then right before lunch we rode the Kali River Rapids. Very cool, very wet. I have to say that it wasn't a lot different than the white water ride at King's Island, but Sam enjoyed it and it was all part of the experience.

At some point, I don't remember when we saw DeVine. I totally wasn't expecting her. We were just walking from Everest and saw a small crowd gathered and there she was.





It was just mystical to stand there and watch her. Sam was captivated. I don't know what drew her to us, but she came over to us and made an arch with her body. The Cast Member that was with her said she wanted us to walk through. Very cool experience.

We just had sandwiches at some sidewalk vendor in the park. Then we went on to Camp Minnie Mickey to meet some characters. He really hadn't gotten to meet any characters yet and what better way to get acclimated than to start with the biggies, right? LOL

On the way we found these guys. I know one of their names is Baloo because that's what he signed in Sam's autograph book, but I don't know who the other one is. Someone said they are from the Jungle Book?




We started with Donald. As you can see, Sam's not too sure about all this yet.




But by the time we got to Goofy, we was feeling much better about the whole thing:






Now on to Minnie Mouse:




And the big guy!




I have to say that was such a cool experience seeing those characters through Sam's eyes. He was absolutely mesmorized by them and watching him interact with them was just so cool.

After that, we went to see It's Tough To Be a Bug. Sam was bummed because it wasn't an actual ride, but he thought it was cool nonetheless. Here he is in his bug 3-D glasses.


After that, we did Expedition Everest again. Lines were not bad at all. Stand-by postings said it was a 20-30 minute wait, but it was 10-15 tops.

Then we found the Winnie the Pooh meet and greet area. We knew we would be seeing them later on in the week at Crystal Palace, but Sam was on a roll!
Waiting...


Bear hug:




Eeyore




Tigger signed his book upside down... Silly Tigger! LOL




Lastly, on to DinoLand USA where we met T-Rex, whoever that is. LOL


Here we rode the Triceratops Spin a few times and watched Primevil Whirl. Both Sam and I really wanted to ride it but it had a 48" height requirement and he's only up to 45" or so.

Also at some point we went to the new Nemo show. Sam was NONE too happy with that. It was just a show, no interaction at all. It was a cute show, but he was ready to get outta there. He was tired and hot and he had no interest in watching shows. LOL

On to dinner at the Maya Grill at the Coronado Springs resort. We both had shrimp cocktail for appetizer. I had filet mignon, garlic mashed potatoes and grilled veggies for dinner and creme brulee for dessert. Oh.My.God. The food was wonderful!!! We were like three stuffed turkies rolling out of there!!

We decided to do some shopping at the resort before we left. We just needed to be on our feet for a while to digest. Here's what Sam found and no, we didn't buy this stuff. LOL




Then, we hear all this commotion and a man with a Mexican blanket over his shoulders and a big 'ole sombraro comes over to Sam and hands him a tambourine and tells him to follow him. We look up and this man has a line of kids behind him in a little parade. Sam joins in and had a blast! They paraded through the gift shop, lobby, restaurant. It was great! Then, he got a little certificate for his participation in the parade... Hmmm, I haven't scanned that in yet. I better do that later.








And thus ends Day Two of the Robertson's Disney Adventure... Thanks for reading!!