Our first day at Disney World was cloudy and overcast. We didn't set an alarm that morning because we knew that we needed to let our bodies catch up on some much needed sleep. We got up around 9:00 or so and after getting dressed headed to the food court/ market place at our resort. We stayed at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort and everything was great for us. The landscaping really made you feel like you were in the Caribbean and I loved that. There were several different complexes in our resort. We stayed in Trinidad North and it happened to be located right next to the bus stop. That was a huge plus for us!
Eli took this picture as we were leaving the resort and told me to make sure I didn't delete it.
The sun decided to peek out from behind the clouds for just a little that morning while we were walking to Old Port Royale (food court and market place) to get coffee and something to eat for breakfast. I loved the scenery and there was a nice walking trail all along the resort. We made this walk two-three times a day and it was never too long or tiring. It was actually quite peaceful.
Once the grown-ups had their fuel for the day, we headed to the bus stop to wait for the bus that would take us to Animal Kingdom. The crowd calendar had said it was the best park to go to that day. We couldn't wait to see all the animals! Personally, I couldn't wait to see the Tree of Life. I remember hearing about that tree when I was little and I had been looking forward to seeing that tree my whole adult life. I couldn't wait! When we checked in the night before, the lady had given Eli and me both buttons that announced to everyone it was our 1st Visit to Disney World. Eli was so happy to wear his that first day!
We arrived at Animal Kingdom and the first place I had to stop was the Tree of Life. I was so happy :)
Our first stop was the 3D show It's Tough to Be a Bug with some of the characters from the movie A Bug's Life. It was located at the base of the Tree of Life so while we were in line we had the chance to see some of the detailed carvings of the animals in the tree up close. AMAZING! (Had I done my homework and read Birnbaum's Guide to Walt Disney World like I am now while I recap our trip, I would have known that while my child enjoyed the movie A Bug's Life, this 3D show was sure to terrify him.) We got our 3D glasses and made our way into the theater. This was the last happy picture I took of my child. We made it about 7 minutes into the show and then had to leave when 3D Hopper popped out of the tree and threatened to squash my child. Eli SCREAMED and we quickly left! Poor thing was scared to death! Oh well! You live and learn...
After that frightful Bugz show, Eli was a little skeptical about going to anymore shows inside dark theaters. We made our way over to Camp Minnie-Mickey to attend the show Festival of the Lion King. We had to promise Eli over and over again that it was not going to be scary. I had read that this was a show you didn't want to miss and they were correct! We timed it just right and were able to walk into the theater without any wait time. This show was really awesome! We all enjoyed the show...especially the gymnasts who acted like monkeys.
The show lasted 30 minutes and after it was over we stopped to let Eli spend the first of his Disney money to buy an autograph book for all the Disney characters to sign. Our first character stop was to see Mickey Mouse!
The wait time was only about 30 minutes which wasn't bad at all. Eli was so excited to finally meet Mickey Mouse! I even got to get my picture taken with Mickey.
Rather than wait in line to see more characters, we decided to do some rides. On the way to the Kilimanjaro Safari ride, we stopped to get a little snack. By this time it had started to rain so we sat under a covered awning and ate our delicious ice cream. Yummy!
It rained off and on while we were waiting in line for the safari ride to see all the animals. This ride probably had one of the longest waits out of all the rides we did at Disney World, but even it wasn't that bad! We boarded our safari vehicle and got really good seats. We couldn't wait to see some wild animals!
We weren't disappointed! We saw giraffes, hippos, elephants, lions, rhinos, warthogs, alligators, flamingos and so much more! It was lots of fun...a little bumpy, but fun!
Next up, was the Kali River Rapids. This was technically Eli's first real ride and he was so excited about it! We warned him that he might get wet and he was not scared at all! He couldn't wait! Eli loved it! He had a huge smile on his face the entire time we were riding down the river. Eli and Josh gave the ride two thumbs up!
Our next stop was DinoLand U.S.A. There we were able to meet Goofy and Pluto!
There was a huge playground here called The Boneyard and we let Eli take a break and play for a few minutes. He loved all the slides, ropes, ladders, and tunnels they had here. He could have stayed here for so long!
Since we were in DinoLand, we decided to do the ride Dinosaur. Yeah, guess I should have read up about this one, too. It was not fun at all to us! You pretend you are on a mission to rescue the last iguanodon and you go back in time to do this. Dinosaurs pop out at you from all directions, it was extremely loud, and very jerky. Eli covered his eyes the entire time and buried his face into my side. Josh and I were tossed around like rag dolls. We'll definitely skip this one if we ever go back. It just wasn't for us...I feel kind of like an old person saying that.
When we got off this ride it was pouring down rain. Thankfully, the ride exited into a gift shop so we were able to buy Eli a poncho to keep him dry. Josh and I had packed ponchos for us, so after putting all our ponchos on we waded back to the bus stop to go back to our resort. We were finished with Animal Kingdom. There were a few things we didn't get to do, but overall I think we hit the major rides and shows we wanted to do and see. We were exhausted and very wet from all the rain, but we were still all smiles!
My sorority sister and friend's father was the Chief Architect for Animal Kingdom and the Tree of Life was his project and the professional achievement of his career. Her blog is on my blogroll- Gator Family Tales. She has a sweet family. I'm sure she'd be thrilled to know how much you liked her Daddy's work!
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