"At Least The Disasters Are Magical!" A January TR (CRAZY SEAGULL ATTACK update 5/11)

[Sneezie]

Great report and beautiful pictures. What part of Louisiana are you originally from? I live in Louisiana!

 

[Born 2B a Princess]

Joining in! I'm enjoying your trip report so far. I also get terrible motion sickness...which is awful because I have to commute to work every day and so I take less drowsy Dramamine every day -- even so, I still end up carsick sometimes. It's awful! I also take less drowsy Dramamine when we go to Disney World, but again, even with the Dramamine, some rides still give me motion sickness. :-(

 

[wdwcarla]

There are actually a few threads here on the DISboards about "funniest thing overheard at Disney World" - and yes, some people think all of EPCOT is in Spaceship Earth ... and some get to Disney World and had no idea there were 4 parks, or think Uniersal and Disney are the same thing and ask CMs in Magic Kingdom how to get to the Harry Potter area, etc. .... actually a pretty funny read

That is hysterical!! I actually did overhear someone think that Universal and Hollywood Studios were the same thing.

 

[wdwcarla]

Great report and beautiful pictures. What part of Louisiana are you originally from? I live in Louisiana!

My family is from Alexandria! What part are you from?

 

[wdwcarla]

Joining in! I'm enjoying your trip report so far. I also get terrible motion sickness...which is awful because I have to commute to work every day and so I take less drowsy Dramamine every day -- even so, I still end up carsick sometimes. It's awful! I also take less drowsy Dramamine when we go to Disney World, but again, even with the Dramamine, some rides still give me motion sickness. :-(

Thanks for reading! Dramamine never works for me for some reason. I use a natural motion sickness controller from a local all-organic store. I basically tested it out during this entire trip and I prefer it more that Dramamine. Ideally it would have eliminated all of the sickness, but it brought it down enough that I could enjoy myself a bit more. What rides are total no-nos for you?

 

[wdwcarla]

Hello everyone! Welcome back! ​

And jambo! Because today was Animal Kingdom day! Animal Kingdom is one of our favorite parks so we dedicated a whole day to it. Every time we try to force it into a half day, it doesn’t work out at all. So, when I woke up this morning, after a 10 hour day at Universal the day before, my feet and legs were still hurting. I went out to do some stretching.

Today was much more bright and less foggy. Perfect for walking around and seeing animals!​

Unfortunately, it took us a long time to get going out the door for breakfast. We were still so wiped from the night before. Definitely have to work on better planning Universal. We got to breakfast around 7:45 am. We picked the same place as yesterday and got the same thing and were quickly on the way to AK at 8:15 am. We arrived with still a few minutes of EMH, which was pretty good considering how tired we were. We still decided to go ahead and take our time checking out the animals in the Oasis section.

Grant is the biggest animal lover and way better at finding them when they’re hiding.​

As we moved into the middle of the park I got kind of bummed out because I saw a bunch of construction walls up and couldn’t really see the tree of life.

These walls were everywhere. I knew there was refurbishment but you never really know how extensive it is until you get there. ​

No matter! First order of business was to get on some rides! We already had FP reservations for Everest and Kilimanjaro Safaris so we decided to go to DINOSAUR. I had been on it only once before.

It's definitely a blast from the past, in more ways than one. ​

I don’t know how many people will agree with me but this ride is SO awesome. Grant and I spent most of the time laughing at how silly it is. Our “time travelling” just cracks me up. But this ride was pretty jerky so I definitely had to sit for a while afterwards. But it was worth it. At 10 am, we had a date with a Yeti. Our first FP was at Expedition Everest!

The decor is so awesome. ​

​

This is easily my favorite ride EVER. It’s the first rollercoaster that I can handle. It might be because there are so huge drops, spins, or screens, but it could also be that I just cling to Grant’s arm and scream the entire time. But I love, love, love being able to go on a faster ride without feeling totally sick afterwards. So yeah, BEST RIDE EVER. After the ride, we walked over to India, Orlando to get some food. It was still early (around 10:30am) so there was no need for anything fancy. We went over to a food cart and grabbed some falafel. It was pretty good and pretty cheap. But again, neither of us are big eaters.

​

Up next was the walk through Maharajah Jungle Trek. A lot of the animals weren't there because it was too cold according to some of the castmembers. We saw a good amount though. And the area is just gorgeous!

This little guy was running around like crazy. I wish I had filmed him.
​

After the trek, we were heading back to Harambe to refuel. On the way there, there was a pre-show at Flights of Wonder with an owl. It was actually pretty interesting!

​

I actually don't think I've ever seen an owl up close before this moment, to be honest. Eventually we headed back to Harambe to wait for our next FP. Harambe is probably my favorite area of Animal Kingdom. Time for a picture overload!

These guys were great!

We took a quick coffee break at a little bakery. I got some iced coffee because it was HOT.

But it was very sweet, and probably really bad for me. Oh well. Worth it. ​

We chugged the coffee and got to Kilimanjaro Safaris, our second FP. I didn’t get that many great pictures of the animals up close, but the ride was still amazing.

​

Hooray for animals! At this point it was only 1:30 or so. The day was certainly not over. Next time I'll talk about the second half of the day. Thanks for reading!

 

[MrsSkellington]

I'm a HP nerd too, so now I REALLY want to go see everything. Sadly it won't be this year, but thanks for posting the pictures! I tend to get motion sickness too, so thanks for posting about that as well so I know what to expect. I love your pictures from AK!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

It's always tough for an early morning the day after a long day/late night - but seems like you did pretty well to get there with still some EMH to go

I've heard how bad it was for a stretch with the walls up around the Tree of Life. With that, what is going on with the hub in MK and all the work at DHS - that is a lot of construction to have to deal with - and always sucks when it is to the icon/wienie of the park

Everest really is a great ride - do wish the Yeti was still working, but oh well.

The theming in AK really is wonderful. Despite running out of money when building it, they definitely didn't skimp out on the details

Sounds like a pretty good day so far!

 

[Landslide305]

Loving your report so far. I'm not a meat eater so I am really interested to see your food choices!

 

[Born 2B a Princess]

Thanks for reading! Dramamine never works for me for some reason. I use a natural motion sickness controller from a local all-organic store. I basically tested it out during this entire trip and I prefer it more that Dramamine. Ideally it would have eliminated all of the sickness, but it brought it down enough that I could enjoy myself a bit more. What rides are total no-nos for you?

I would love some information about the natural motion sickness controller you are using! What is it called?

I absolutely cannot do the teacups, Expedition Everest, Space Mountain, or Mission Space. I can do BTMRR a couple of times but not in a row. I have never tried Splash Mountain so I don't know about that.

 

[LuvEeyore]

Hello everyone! Welcome back! ​

And jambo! Because today was Animal Kingdom day! Animal Kingdom is one of our favorite parks so we dedicated a whole day to it. Every time we try to force it into a half day, it doesn’t work out at all. So, when I woke up this morning, after a 10 hour day at Universal the day before, my feet and legs were still hurting. I went out to do some stretching.
Days on a Universal/Disney Vacation can be brutal but fun. Our feet hurt most days of our vacation. I took Ibuprofen at night before bed most nights.

Today was much more bright and less foggy. Perfect for walking around and seeing animals!​

Unfortunately, it took us a long time to get going out the door for breakfast. We were still so wiped from the night before. Definitely have to work on better planning Universal. We got to breakfast around 7:45 am. We picked the same place as yesterday and got the same thing and were quickly on the way to AK at 8:15 am. We arrived with still a few minutes of EMH, which was pretty good considering how tired we were. We still decided to go ahead and take our time checking out the animals in the Oasis section.

Grant is the biggest animal lover and way better at finding them when they’re hiding.​

Great pic of Grant!! Looks like he is having fun.
As we moved into the middle of the park I got kind of bummed out because I saw a bunch of construction walls up and couldn’t really see the tree of life.

These walls were everywhere. I knew there was refurbishment but you never really know how extensive it is until you get there.
Agreed. It seemed the walls went up more every day we were there.
We already had FP reservations for Everest and Kilimanjaro Safaris so we decided to go to DINOSAUR. I had been on it only once before. ​

It's definitely a blast from the past, in more ways than one.
Great pic. Dinosaur was a great ride.​

I don’t know how many people will agree with me but this ride is SO awesome. Grant and I spent most of the time laughing at how silly it is. Our “time travelling” just cracks me up. But this ride was pretty jerky so I definitely had to sit for a while afterwards. But it was worth it. At 10 am, we had a date with a Yeti. Our first FP was at Expedition Everest!
Love Expedition Everest!! This is a great ride.

​

This is easily my favorite ride EVER. It’s the first rollercoaster that I can handle. It might be because there are so huge drops, spins, or screens, but it could also be that I just cling to Grant’s arm and scream the entire time. But I love, love, love being able to go on a faster ride without feeling totally sick afterwards.
Agreed!!
So yeah, BEST RIDE EVER. After the ride, we walked over to India, Orlando to get some food. It was still early (around 10:30am) so there was no need for anything fancy. We went over to a food cart and grabbed some falafel. It was pretty good and pretty cheap. But again, neither of us are big eaters.

​

Looks good. You did well with food porn. I didn't do well on my trip. Not much food porn at all.
Up next was the walk through Maharajah Jungle Trek. A lot of the animals weren't there because it was too cold according to some of the castmembers. We saw a good amount though. And the area is just gorgeous!

On the way there, there was a pre-show at Flights of Wonder with an owl. It was actually pretty interesting!​

​

I actually don't think I've ever seen an owl up close before this moment, to be honest. Eventually we headed back to Harambe to wait for our next FP. Harambe is probably my favorite area of Animal Kingdom. Time for a picture overload!
I've never been to flight of wonders show. Is it worth going to?

These guys were great!

Love these pics!!
We took a quick coffee break at a little bakery. I got some iced coffee because it was HOT. We had trouble finding a place for food our early entry morning. I didn't want coffee. Would have loved hot chocolate and a cinnamon roll.

But it was very sweet, and probably really bad for me. Oh well. Worth it. ​

We chugged the coffee and got to Kilimanjaro Safaris, our second FP. I didn’t get that many great pictures of the animals up close, but the ride was still amazing.

​

Hooray for animals! At this point it was only 1:30 or so. The day was certainly not over. Next time I'll talk about the second half of the day. Thanks for reading!

Great update. Great pics. You never know what you are going to get on the safari. On the one we were on Jan 5, the animals we our and even got a picture of the lioness up walking around.

 

[JoshAndEvsMom]

A little late, but joining in! Really enjoying your TR and photos. Your AK day looks amazing! I didn't even know you could get falafel in AK; it looks really yummy!

How was the weather in January? We're going next Jan ('16) and I'm nervous that its going to be really cold!

 

[wdwcarla]

I'm a HP nerd too, so now I REALLY want to go see everything. Sadly it won't be this year, but thanks for posting the pictures! I tend to get motion sickness too, so thanks for posting about that as well so I know what to expect. I love your pictures from AK!

Hello fellow HP nerd! And thank you for following along! I'm so glad you are enjoying the pictures.

 

[wdwcarla]

It's always tough for an early morning the day after a long day/late night - but seems like you did pretty well to get there with still some EMH to go

I've heard how bad it was for a stretch with the walls up around the Tree of Life. With that, what is going on with the hub in MK and all the work at DHS - that is a lot of construction to have to deal with - and always sucks when it is to the icon/wienie of the park

Everest really is a great ride - do wish the Yeti was still working, but oh well.

The theming in AK really is wonderful. Despite running out of money when building it, they definitely didn't skimp out on the details

Sounds like a pretty good day so far!

That's why planning is important for me. It would have made this day a little easier had I not stayed up so late the last day.

Have you seen pictures of the castle under construction at Disneyland recently? The entire thing is obscured. I was glad that the Tree of Life wasn't in similar shape. It must be so disappointing to not be able to see anything of the park icon

 

[wdwcarla]

I would love some information about the natural motion sickness controller you are using! What is it called?

I absolutely cannot do the teacups, Expedition Everest, Space Mountain, or Mission Space. I can do BTMRR a couple of times but not in a row. I have never tried Splash Mountain so I don't know about that.

Teacups are the WORST for me. I'm so jealous of people that can go on it no problem. It looks so innocent! I can do EE, somehow magically, and BTMRR. Space Mountain I can barely do. I rode Splash Mountain once to appease Grant, but I spent the entire time in a panic because I was worried about the drop.

The natural motion sickness controller I used is called Hyland's Natural Relief for Motion Sickness. I take those and I take some ginger chewies and it kept everything more or less under control.

 

[wdwcarla]

Great update. Great pics. You never know what you are going to get on the safari. On the one we were on Jan 5, the animals we our and even got a picture of the lioness up walking around.

Thank you! That's pretty lucky, that you got to see the lioness. Usually for me the lions are really far away, hiding under a rock and sleeping. Some day we'll get a good view!

 

[wdwcarla]

A little late, but joining in! Really enjoying your TR and photos. Your AK day looks amazing! I didn't even know you could get falafel in AK; it looks really yummy!

How was the weather in January? We're going next Jan ('16) and I'm nervous that its going to be really cold!

Thank you! The weather was actually pretty weird. It was really comfortable for the beginning of the trip, but then it got really, really cold and windy for the second half. It was so random.

 

[Born 2B a Princess]

Teacups are the WORST for me. I'm so jealous of people that can go on it no problem. It looks so innocent! I can do EE, somehow magically, and BTMRR. Space Mountain I can barely do. I rode Splash Mountain once to appease Grant, but I spent the entire time in a panic because I was worried about the drop.

The natural motion sickness controller I used is called Hyland's Natural Relief for Motion Sickness. I take those and I take some ginger chewies and it kept everything more or less under control.

Thanks for the info -- I'll try those!

 

[wdwcarla]

Loving your report so far. I'm not a meat eater so I am really interested to see your food choices!

Thanks for following along! And hello fellow vegetarian

 

[wdwcarla]

Hello again everyone! Welcome back!​

I left you all off in Africa during our full day of Animal Kingdom. We saw a couple more animals while we waited for our last FP+.

Check out this fella.​

I actually tried to find some of these birds. Grant found them first.​

Next up on our FP+ list is Festival of the Lion King! This was another show that I’ve seen countless of pictures and videos of, but I’ve never actually seen it live. We were actually supposed to have this FP+ earlier in the day (it was supposed to be our first FP+), but since we got to the park a little later than planned, I had rescheduled it. I’m not sure if the FP+ for this was really worth it, though. We got in well before the long line of people waiting outside, but with the way the theater was set up, there wasn’t really a “better seat" per se. I avoided the first two or three rows because I didn’t really want to end up getting picked to participate in the show. We sat towards the back so that I could get a better view of the whole room.

These guys with the stilts were awesome!

Fire action!

It was a pretty fun show! I was shamelessly singing along to every song, much to Grant’s dismay. But both of us were very impressed with all the cool stunts! There was something interesting that happened though. I was sitting near the wings, where some of the actors would hang out while there was stuff going on on the main stage. The interesting thing was that they would go out of character! I saw a couple of them playing rock paper scissors for something, and I heard them whispering about rides home. I thought it was hilarious!

It was around 4:30pm and time to leave Animal Kingdom. Notice, that we still weren’t able to do everything we wanted! Just another excuse to come back It was still relatively early in the evening, even though we were technically behind schedule. I had hoped we would be able to get back to the hotel by 2 or 3 pm, but it ended up being around 5:00pm or so. We had a dinner reservation that evening at Jiko at 8:00pm. When I had originally booked that reservation, I wasn’t sure if it would be a good idea to eat so late, but I really, really wanted to try Jiko.

We went back to the hotel to enjoy some downtime, and then it was time to go! We got there pretty early and explored the Animal Kingdom Lodge. It such a pretty hotel, and kind of secluded and mysterious looking. It was very cool, even though a lot of the lobby was under construction.The actual restaurant was very cool. Everyone had super awesome South African accents!

In terms of the actual menu, we didn’t know what anything was but we wanted to try a lot of things. It was excited to not really know what to expect! Thankfully, they had a vegetarian menu and a very knowledgeable waiter that was able to answer our many, many questions. But since we still weren’t really sure what we were eating, we decided to start off with two appetizers. We got sambusas and flatbread.

Sorry about the lighting! This restaurant was super, super dark.
​

Everything was so delicious and filling that we actually decided to skip the main course and go straight to desert. We picked the least intimidating looking thing. According to the waiter, this was light and airy.

It’s a lemon cake something…I don’t really remember the exact name. But it was delicious. We ate this in probably 10 seconds. It was so good. We were very close to ordering a second one, but we were so full. After dinner we hung around the hotel a bit more (they had an indoor fire pit) and then headed back to our resort.

This pretty much concludes our third day at the World.
I'll be back soon with Day 4!​