My Dad is an avid competetive runner but he is always willing to slow down and visit with those less velocity gifted joggers like me. He wanted to show me some of the trails that he discovered near Fort Wilderness. Even the paved pathway from the Wilderness lodge made one feel like you were in the middle of a rainforest but the trails off the beaten path convinced me that we would soon come upon the head hunters of the Jungle Cruise. It was beautiful albeit rough terrain, and a pleasantly unexpected find in the otherwise carefully engineered environment of Disney World.
Another afternoon at the pool and then off to Ohanas. We had a great view of the Cinderellas castle turning hues in the distance and enjoyed the island theming. The food was good and uniquely grilled and served on long skewers. We especially liked the pot stickers, grilled shrimp, and grilled turkey but again the food played second fiddle to the atmosphere. Our four year old LOVED the coconut races and hula hoop contests which she preformed with the determination of a future olympian (watch out Salt Lake City!). Just when we thought we could not of had a better time the lights dimmed, the music swelled, and we gleefully ogled the MK fireworks from our table.
A rain shower greeted us the following morning as we prepared for MK early entry. Thankfully by the time we boarded the boat it it had ceased. We did Dumbo, Pooh, Peter Pan, and Small world in less than an hour and headed for splash moutain. Our four year old loved it despite her photo documented aformentioned look of terror on the big drop. We did Country Bear and Jungle Cruise before a great early lunch at Pecos Bills. Big Thunder Mountain was intermittently closed througout the day and we never were able to ride it. After lunch we did Pirates before our 4 year old totally lost it and turned into "Sybil". After about an hour of intense parenting and a rented stroller we were back on track with a happy camper.
In the mean time our one year old was holding up great with her Grandparents in the playground in toon town. She was happy to see here dad until I picked her up. Her eyes said "dont even think you will ever get me to leave here!!" Those of us who would tolerate it did the tea cups before Buzz Lightyear. We did Space mountian and the Carosel before the parade started. It had been getting hot enough to be uncomfortable by this time and fearing another return to Sybil, my wife and I took our four year old to Lion King with air conditioning instead. We all felt recharged after some cooling our jets and getting off our feet for a bit.
Our last ride was the Haunted Mansion, always great although our one year old did not appreciate being in the dark for so long. We headed to Main Street to shop but I had had enough and volunteered to hold down a bench for the fireworks with our one year old. We could see the dancers and characters in front of the castle and enjoyed people watching for about and hour. By that time it started raining again and I luckily ended up with a bench underneath an umbrella so we stayed temporarily dry. Another beautiful fireworks display from another beautiful vantage. We left the park in pouring rain enroute to our boat. Our captain was a salty dog ala Popeye who urged us to "pack it in, at this point we all smell the same anyway!" Back at the Villa we all had survival smiles, and the kids were in remarkably good spirits besides this long day. We had some wine, and made a salad, clam fettucini, and key lime pie for dinner before we all finallly conked out.
Another afternoon at the pool and then off to Ohanas. We had a great view of the Cinderellas castle turning hues in the distance and enjoyed the island theming. The food was good and uniquely grilled and served on long skewers. We especially liked the pot stickers, grilled shrimp, and grilled turkey but again the food played second fiddle to the atmosphere. Our four year old LOVED the coconut races and hula hoop contests which she preformed with the determination of a future olympian (watch out Salt Lake City!). Just when we thought we could not of had a better time the lights dimmed, the music swelled, and we gleefully ogled the MK fireworks from our table.
A rain shower greeted us the following morning as we prepared for MK early entry. Thankfully by the time we boarded the boat it it had ceased. We did Dumbo, Pooh, Peter Pan, and Small world in less than an hour and headed for splash moutain. Our four year old loved it despite her photo documented aformentioned look of terror on the big drop. We did Country Bear and Jungle Cruise before a great early lunch at Pecos Bills. Big Thunder Mountain was intermittently closed througout the day and we never were able to ride it. After lunch we did Pirates before our 4 year old totally lost it and turned into "Sybil". After about an hour of intense parenting and a rented stroller we were back on track with a happy camper.
In the mean time our one year old was holding up great with her Grandparents in the playground in toon town. She was happy to see here dad until I picked her up. Her eyes said "dont even think you will ever get me to leave here!!" Those of us who would tolerate it did the tea cups before Buzz Lightyear. We did Space mountian and the Carosel before the parade started. It had been getting hot enough to be uncomfortable by this time and fearing another return to Sybil, my wife and I took our four year old to Lion King with air conditioning instead. We all felt recharged after some cooling our jets and getting off our feet for a bit.
Our last ride was the Haunted Mansion, always great although our one year old did not appreciate being in the dark for so long. We headed to Main Street to shop but I had had enough and volunteered to hold down a bench for the fireworks with our one year old. We could see the dancers and characters in front of the castle and enjoyed people watching for about and hour. By that time it started raining again and I luckily ended up with a bench underneath an umbrella so we stayed temporarily dry. Another beautiful fireworks display from another beautiful vantage. We left the park in pouring rain enroute to our boat. Our captain was a salty dog ala Popeye who urged us to "pack it in, at this point we all smell the same anyway!" Back at the Villa we all had survival smiles, and the kids were in remarkably good spirits besides this long day. We had some wine, and made a salad, clam fettucini, and key lime pie for dinner before we all finallly conked out.
