Today was is the day T was waiting for....Animal Kingdom!
We got up early to catch the bus to the park. The kids were tired but in good spirits but needed a lot of coaching to get them out of the room and on the way to the bus. We had to hustle since the bus was supposed to arrive at 6:42am.
We made it to the bus stop just before 6:42. We waited and waited. A bus showed up for Epcot which wasn't on bus board so Lola went and asked the bus driver if there was another bus on its way for Animal Kingdom. He wasn't sure but must have radioed dispatch to say that there was about 15 people waiting for AK and no one for Epcot. He was given the go ahead to take us to the park instead of making an empty trip to Epcot.
We arrived at the park right in time for when it opened at 7am. We made our way to our first ride (Avatar: Flight of Passage) which was a big hit with B and T. They really liked how you were riding a winged creature flying over the mystical land of Pandora.
Next we went to the Pandora River Adventure - a water ride through the caves and forests that we flew over in the previous ride. After a short bathroom break, we made our way across to Dinoland USA for the Dinosaur ride. As we walked through the entry / waiting area, the adults were informed about all the different dinosaur fossils that the kids saw.
After the ride, the kids continued on their Wilderness Expedition (WE) scavenger hunt where they learned about many different subjects at different stations located around the park as we made our way to a jungle walk called "Maharajah Jungle Trek". Again, the kids enjoyed learning about the many animals that they saw.
We then made our way back to the other side of the park with a short stop on the Discovery Island Trails near the Tree of Life. There were a couple more WE stops and then it was time for lunch. It was good timing too - beating the lunch crowd and fuelling everyone up for a busy afternoon of rides and exploring.
After lunch, we took the Wildlife Express train to the Africa station to collect some more WE stickers, see a show about how Disney trains animals such as goats to perform specific actions like kneel, wave and walk in circles. B and T even go to spend some time seeing the animal hospital that they had seen on one of the shows they had watched on Disney+. And we were able to pet some animals such as goats and pigs.
After a short train ride back we went on another exploration trail to see more animals, building up to see some gorillas.
Everyone was starting to get tired of the heat and slightly hungry so we took a short snack break to have some frozen treats before setting off on the Safari that T had been waiting for all day. The Safari did not disappoint with many animals to see including a giraffe that was very close to the vehicle.
Next, the plan was originally to go to the Everest roller coaster but we decided to go and watch the Disney KiteTails water show which was starting in a few minutes. AA and DD got some beers and the kids collected a couple more WE stickers. MBM had read some reviews that the KiteTails show was not very good and the reviews were not wrong. For a Disney show, it was very underwhelming.
Sitting in the sun for 20 mins had everyone feeling quite warm so the next stop was Kali River Rapids to hopefully get a little wet and cool off. The ride did the trick with T and Lola both claiming that they were the most wet out of the crew.
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It was getting close to 5pm and everyone was getting hungry again so we made our way to have supper at Flame Tree Barbecue. We got a table under a shelter just in time to avoid a couple of short rain showers. Supper was ok, filling the void but not the best meals that have been eaten on the trip.
After supper, we made our way to collect the last few WE stickers where the kids made their Wilderness Explorers pledge.
Next up, we made our way over to Everest to complete the day's itinerary of rides. T had decided the ride was not going to be for him, so he waited with MBM while the others got in the 15 mins line for the ride. B loved it and so did everyone else.
Once rejoined with MBM and T, there was still a few minutes before the safari had its last departure so the team decided to go for one more drive to see the animals. Many animals had already made their way off of the savanna but we were able to see three lions - Lola's favourite.
Before leaving the park, there was time for a quick dessert stop before the kids wanted to see Pandora at night - with all of the iridescent colours and lights to make it truly look like you are on a different planet.
But before we could really see the lights at night, it started to rain. And not a little rain shower like before - it was a full-on down pour and everyone got soaked. We are now back at the hotel, showered and dry clothes on and are trying to figure out the best method to dry our shoes. We might need to take shifts manning hairdryers.
Tomorrow is our last day at the parks and are ending with Magic Kingdom. Hopefully with some dry feet.
AA
