Feelin’ Groovy: A Cam and Luke TR Completed 7/31 - Page 18 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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I cry every single time at FotLK. And Finding Nemo. And the Castle Forecourt shows. And fireworks. And Main Street. And, well, you get the idea. My kids say it isn't really vacation yet until Mom cries.
Great pictures!
Just saw this and thought I would answer. I have not read the rest of the posts yet so this has probably already been answered by someone else. You can find the water tower across the courtyard from Restrantausouras (sp) in Dinoland.
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Last edited by rhinohunter; 06-11-2016 at 07:09 AM..
Reason: Picture did not open.
Another great update! I'm glad I'm not the only one that gets teary eyed at FotLK.
I think there might be quite of few of us!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Big Baloo
I cry every single time at FotLK. And Finding Nemo. And the Castle Forecourt shows. And fireworks. And Main Street. And, well, you get the idea. My kids say it isn't really vacation yet until Mom cries.
Great pictures!
I'm right there with you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rhinohunter
Just saw this and thought I would answer. I have not read the rest of the posts yet so this has probably already been answered by someone else. You can find the water tower across the courtyard from Restrantausouras (sp) in Dinoland.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Pangani Forest Exploration Trail started fairly well, though all I could manage was the backside of okapis.
The meerkats were hiding. Word was that one had poked its head out just as we walked up and then gone right back underground.
We moved on as the big draw for me is the gorillas. Behind the glass we discovered two adults, possibly Geno and Azizi. The female was napping while the male was sitting on a plastic shallow bucket. Honestly, he looked like he was sitting on the toilet. One of the baby boys was out, but kept hiding. I would get a glimpse of his head and then he would be gone. Finally, he stayed out long enough that I got one good photo.
I didn’t want to keep Luke in the park too much longer as I could tell he needed some rest. So we walked on to the area for the bachelors, discovering just one silverback way up on a hill. Thank goodness for a telephoto lens.
Hidden meerkats and sleepy gorillas, I was sensing a theme. Everyone, including Luke and me, was hot and tired.
As we walked back into Africa proper from the trail, we veered into the Mombasa Marketplace for a little shopping and to absorb some of the air conditioning. I had seen a giraffe Tervis tumbler earlier and now picked it up. Luke also discovered a new Disney Conservation Fund Simba trading pin for me. Since the Tervis tumbler was all I wanted, we did no linger as some rest back in the room was in order.
But when we reached the area around the front of the Tree of Life, Luke noticed a free PhotoPass photographer. Remember we had checked the lines earlier in the day, but had had no luck. So we walked over and the PhotoPass photographer quickly took a few photos of us.
While she was photographing us, an announcement was repeated a number of times that something exciting was about to happen. We asked the photographer what we were to expect and she said the macaws were about to fly in. Without planning it we had made it in time for the Winged Encounters – The Kingdom Takes Flight. A few moments later, looking in the direction the photographer had pointed out to us, we witnessed the macaws’ arrival. Breathtaking! I didn’t have my camera up, but I don’t know if I would have caught them anyway as they came in fast. They alighted on a stand where several CMs were soon feeding them, and another CM was speaking to us about these beautiful birds. At one point a couple macaws flew off the stand and over our heads. The CM told us this usually is a sign that the birds do not feel entirely safe. She also let us know that in just a few seconds she would be giving the command the birds to return to their home. So if we wanted photos of them in flight, it was time to get ready. We were also cautioned not to duck as that only makes the birds fly lower. I did not duck, and as a result I got to feel the flap of wings as they soared by me and one macaw even touched the top of my head. I was in awe and squealing like a little girl. So exciting! When I turned around, Luke had ducked way down. He couldn’t believe I had remained standing, but that way I felt a part of the beauty of their flight. Now I’ll let the photos of these beautiful birds tell their story. Note the red macaw in the last photo is the one who came right at me.
After our close encounter, we walked to the front, out of the park, and straight to our bus stop. I don’t have anything in my notes about wait times, so it must have been a pretty average wait. One of my favorite parts of staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge is how frequently buses from the resort arrive and how quickly they get us back home. Once in the room, my first task was to check the savanna. I was not disappointed as several animals were in sight. I may not have gotten any giraffe photos on KS, but I was rewarded with two right outside our balcony.
We had about an hour to rest before heading out for dinner at The Boathouse in Disney Springs. I used that time to type up some of the highlights of the day, and Luke napped. Around 4:00 we headed out to the bus stop, giving us an hour to arrive at the restaurant. We didn’t wait long for a bus, which would drop us off about 20 minutes later at the Market Place bus stop. We had already decided any shopping we did would be after dinner, so we walked directly to The Boathouse, fully anticipating a great meal.
I almost always peruse the menus for everywhere we will be eating, and usually have an idea of what I will be ordering ahead of time. First, I ordered a Lost Angel wine (at least that is what is on the receipt – I was thinking it was a Moscato.) while Luke got a diet Coke. You will see my wine in the photo and the best I can say is it was white. For an appetizer, we shared a Caesar salad with traditional anchovy, egg, and parmesan dressing. I had no idea that traditional Caesar dressing had anchovies. Interesting! In fact, this may have been the best Caesar salad I have ever had.
I don't think he wanted his picture taken.
For my entrée, I chose the Filet Mignon Sliders (two sliders) with Maitre d' Butter and served with fresh cut fries. I love Filet Mignon. Remember that’s what I had at Outback for my Mother’s Day dinner. These were so delicious, and I’ll be back just to have those again.
Luke selected the Gibsons "Sandwich King" Award Winning Burger, which was covered in crisp cherry peppers, jalapeno Havarti, and spiced mayo along with fresh cut fries. He cleaned his entire plate, so he definitely enjoyed his dinner.
Now I know some of you are thinking they went to a seafood restaurant and ate beef. :wow: Luke enjoys seafood more than me; I’m pretty pick about fish and seafood. I love shrimp, but when I saw filet mignon I veered from shrimp. For Luke, he enjoys his meals best when they are spicy, and this burger was definitely spicy enough for him. We will return, but I’ll make no promises that next time we’ll order seafood.
Once our plates were clean, we were ready for some shopping. I remember we checked out several shops near The Boathouse area, including Apex by Sunglass Hut, Sanuk and The Ganachery, but we didn’t make any purchases in these.
In our wanderings we came up an idle PhotoPass photographer who was quite excited when we asked for photos. In fact, she took us over several spots and even over to the newly opened Springs. The shopping area itself was not open but the walls were now down in front of Morimoto Asia, giving a view of the Springs for the first time.
And now the Springs.
This Zootopia sign wasn't far from the Lego Store.
We moved on to Lego in hopes of finding some of the Lego Disney Mini-Figures. That was a bust. So off to World of Disney where after an extensive search in which I picked up a light sweatshirt that I had seen the day before in the Emporium, but not in my size, we finally found some folks feeling little bags. We knew where the mini-figs were now. We even attempted to feel these for a while, hoping to get ten different ones. With the sweatshirt and mini-figs in hand, we proceeded to check out. Instead of getting one of the plastic bags, I picked up a reusable bag as we made our way through the checkout queue. By the way, the World of Disney has undergone an extensive reorganization, and now has one large area set up just for checking out.
We ended up with 8 different figures out of our purchase of 10.
I’m pretty certain we also went inside Once Upon a Toy before deciding to call it an evening.
I had looked at the Shop Parks app while we were in The Boathouse and discovered that Vera Bradley’s Plum’s Up had a matching id case and the only place it was currently available was at none other than Zawadi, right at our home resort. So on our way back home, we got off at Jambo House, and entered through Zawadi. Luke and I quickly found the Vera Bradley display, but no Plum’s Up id cases. I called it up on the app and then asked a CM for help. The first CM thought if it wasn’t out then there were none, but another CM came up and said she’d check in the back. A few moments later she came back with two, one for the display and one for me. Cool!
Carrying our newest purchases, we made the short five minute walk back to Kidani Village and went straight to our room. I did not bother writing what we did once back at the room, but I probably typed up a few more notes while we watched reruns of The Big Bang Theory. This sort of became our nighttime routine. We did need to be up fairly early for our first day at Epcot for the Flower & Garden Festival and because we were meeting my sister Pam and niece Charlotte there. So lights were out around 10:30.
Day 3 Summary
Fitbit Stats Steps = 22,189 (This will rank #1 for this trip.) Miles = 9.11 (Again this ranks #1 for the trip.) Calories = 2,363
Seemed like a good time in the AK and especially with the appearance of the Macaws! That was quite something. One thing you forgot to mention is whether you enjoyed your dinner at The Boathouse as you said what you and Luke had but not whether you liked it or not!
Give us a nice concise review of your meal as I'm considering The Boathouse for October!
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October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
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Dinner looked good and those fries looked delicious!
Is that mystery plaque kind of near The Ganachery?
Loved the okapi butt--if I had a striped bum, I'd flaunt it, too!
I love love love the photo of the rubber duck at The Boathouse (what a great shot to capture the essence of the atmosphere!)
Alright, let's discuss shopping. Granted, I haven't really been shopping at Disney Springs in a good while (with parking being a bit of a mess and the general construction, we've avoided it) but since you have, and you did some Vera Bradley shopping, allow me to pick your brain for a moment. Our anniversary was today and we went to Epcot and I wanted to purchase a new Vera Bradley backpack as my anniversary gift. Mousegears just had nothing...I mean, a couple of large totes and cross bodies but that's it. Did you find a decent selection at WWOD? I'm taking the kids to MK on Wednesday for a couple of hours and will definitely look there but I'm thinking of bopping over to Disney Springs if it sounds like they had a good selection when you were there. Funny, I also took a look at the Pandora bangle at Mousegears and they also had very limited size selections- both items I had my eye on were way picked through! It made me think of you today though since that was another item you shopped for in your TR (and you know, I love the shopping parts!)
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
I saw those macaws taking off but I wasn't close enough to get a good picture. I loved it! I had a bit better luck with something on Pangani Trail than you did. That's how it goes though. Your pictures at Disney Springs are amazing! And your dinner looks delicious!
I guess the animals on the Pangani trail were feeling groovy too. The picture of the gorilla sitting on the bucket was pretty funny.
Looks like a nice dinner at the Boathouse. As I'm not a seafood fan, the Boathouse has not really been on my radar but I would have enjoyed what you had.
Too funny about everyone squeezing the bags that the Lego mini figures came in. Glad it's not just me! I found a small display at my local Walmart (maybe a dozen bags) and I spent time squeezing the bags before I selected 3. I got Buzz, Stitch and Ursula but honestly, I can't say that the bags felt much different from one another.
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Honestly, he looked like he was sitting on the toilet. One of the baby boys was out, but kept hiding. I would get a glimpse of his head and then he would be gone. Finally, he stayed out long enough that I got one good photo. 
I didn’t have my camera up, but I don’t know if I would have caught them anyway as they came in fast. They alighted on a stand where several CMs were soon feeding them, and another CM was speaking to us about these beautiful birds. At one point a couple macaws flew off the stand and over our heads. The CM told us this usually is a sign that the birds do not feel entirely safe. She also let us know that in just a few seconds she would be giving the command the birds to return to their home. So if we wanted photos of them in flight, it was time to get ready. We were also cautioned not to duck as that only makes the birds fly lower. I did not duck, and as a result I got to feel the flap of wings as they soared by me and one macaw even touched the top of my head. 
I was in awe and squealing like a little girl. So exciting! 
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