Day Four: Animal Kingdom

Here is how Day Four started:




We were all pretty exhausted this morning and stayed in bed later than we intended. I wasn't too upset or worried about it though because Animal Kingdom has never been my favorite. It seems to be an overpriced, over-hyped zoo and pushes conservationism at every attraction. Sleeping in was a great option. Plus by this time the heat and humidity were really getting to us. I can't believe how humid it is here! I have a new appreciation for living in the desert like we do. I've decided I prefer arid to humid!



To really get into the mood for the Animal Kingdom today, we had breakfast at Boma, at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. The food and decor were both supposed to be African and we really enjoyed it. The selections at the buffet were a bit different than we were used to, but still tasty.


Finally, we arrived at Animal Kingdom for the day. Just like Epcot, there weren't too many people and we didn't spend much time waiting in lines.


Instead we waited in the gift shop at the exit for Expedition Everest (which is an awesome ride!). Here we have Janica and Kierra checking the maps to decide what we should do next.


So they decided that we should go to DinoLand USA which is a really cheesy kids area with only two rides, one of which was closed for refurbishing. The kids were a little disappointed, but we made it up to them by taking them to see "Nemo - The Musical." It was cute and well acted. I probably liked it more than the kids, but who cares. It's my vacation too!


One of the highlights for Tegan today was meeting Donald Duck. He is Tegan's favorite Disney character. He endured Mickey Mouse and all of the princesses, and meeting Donald was his reward. He loved it.


While Janica didn't ride on all the rides that Tegan did - she was actually too scared to ride them - she really enjoyed the shows at Disneyworld. Today, both she and Tegan were asked to participate in the Festival of the Lion King and while Tegan was too shy, Janica jumped right up and ran to be part of the show. She was really fun to watch too. The performers gave her some marraccas to shake and shake them she did! I defy anyone to find a marracca shaker as good as my daughter!


When I went to Disneyworld in 1998 with Keturah and Malauna, we didn't take too many pictures. I might have ten from the whole trip! Well, that is unless you count the safari ride at Animal Kingdom. I think I took a full roll of film just on that ride! This was before the days of digital cameras, so I'm really surprised I was so free and easy with pictures of animals. Anyway, this time, we gave the camera to Tegan to get the pictures of the animals. He loved it! It really kept him interested, looking at things so he could get good pictures. Janica loved it too, because she kept pointing out the animals to Tegan. If you have children old enough, give them the camera if you dare. You'll get a really interesting perspective. Here are a couple of pictures from Tegan's point of view.








We really had a fun day at Animal Kingdom. However, we realized that it had been a whole day since we had eaten a meal with princesses, so off we went to the Grand Floridian resort to spend the evening with Cinderella, Prince Charming, et al...

Tegan isn't a big fan and Kierra fell asleep. Janica, on the other hand, was in heaven!







It was another really fun day.