Day 3: The Magic of Magic Kingdom

Ok, isn't this castle gorgeous? It's Cinderella's castle, and there's a restaurant in there, and if you're rich you can stay in the fancy room they have up there now. It's funny, cause we took pictures of the castle, but it's just not the same as seeing it in person. It's like the lens can't fully capture it's beauty or something. Anyway, we did so much stuff here. We went to Magic Kingdom in the evening of Day 2, and we pretty much covered Adventureland, which has the Swiss Family Treehouse, a Jungle Cruise, and Pirates of the Caribbean. We did the treehouse cause there was no wait, you just walk through the place. I didn't realize there were so many stairs, so with each level I got slower and slower and Josh got farther away from me :). The Jungle Cruise was good--we had to wait a little for that one, and the river guides were real corny, but they were supposed to be. I liked the Pirates ride. Of course it's a classic, and it was air conditioned, and we didn't have to wait in line at all. Jack Sparrow shows up three times throughout the ride, so that was cool. Oh, there's a point where it's all dark and you feel the boat going down and you freak out, cause you can't see how far you're gonna go. But it was like a three foot drop or something. I got all scared for nothing :)

Oh yeah, one of the first things we did at the end of Day 2 was the Hall of Presidents. We took Josh's picture with his favorite president, Ronald Reagan. And the show we saw was pretty cool. They had animatronic versions of all the presidents, even our current one! They went through all their names, and it was cool because each person looked in the direction of the next one. Then some gave speeches, like George Washington, Abe Lincoln, and George Bush.



That evening we saw the Wishes Fireworks. They were so beautiful as they exploded near the castle. We had good seats, and it was worth it. I wouldn't say they were as spectacular as the ones at Epcot, but they were more magical, for lack of a better word. I mean, Jiminy Cricket is talking to you, and Tinkerbell flies from the castle, and throughout the display they have quotes from the different movies. Oh yeah, and the castle is lit up in different colors the whole time, and they project images onto it too. It was a beautiful show, and Josh got some video of the beginning. It got even better after that. I must be a sap, or maybe it's the pregnancy, but when I watch the video, it makes me cry a little. It brings back the memory of being there, and it reminds me that my husband was so wonderful to take me to one of the best places on earth.

The next morning (day 3) we were back at Magic Kingdom for some more fun. We did the classic Dumbo ride, It's a Small World, the Carousel, took a ride on the railroad, did the Tiki Room, to name a few. But don't worry, there's more. The Haunted Mansion was closed, but Josh got to do Splash Mountain and Thunder Mountain Railroad. Let's see, we did Peter Pan's flight, and you ride in a sailboat like from the movie and you fly over the whole story of Peter Pan. Snow White's Scary Adventures was similar to that, meaning you traveled in something and went through the story. At the end it was kinda scary, cause they make it look like the evil ugly witch is going to drop the boulder on you!

Oh yeah, and we got to meet some very significant characters. They don't really need a long introduction, so I'll just show you the pictures and tell you that we didn't have to have wait very long to see any of them.

This is me and Princess Aurora, from Sleeping Beauty, for those of you who don't know. She was the friendliest princess I met.



I was so excited to meet Cinderella! By the way, it was her idea to hold hands, not mine. Must be a princess thing.



Belle asked me if Josh was my Beast, and of course I said yes :)



And we can't forget the big cheese himself, Mickey Mouse! He's much shorter in person than I imagined.



We saw another parade at this park, the Disney Dreams Come True Parade. They really like parades in FL. Anyway, I was gonna post parade pictures, but we were kinda far away, so we didn't get wonderful shots. And besides, if you've seen one parade, you've seen 'em all. They had Jiminy, Donald, Pluto, Ariel and Eric, Cinderella and Prince Charming, Beauty and the Beast, Pinnochio, oh yeah, and a guy ("Walt Disney") drawing Mickey Mouse.


We spent a lot of time in Tomorrowland, the futuristic section of the park. Josh rode Space Mountain while we were there, and I went shopping. No wait, I think I found a shaded table and dozed off for a bit. Anyway, we did Stitch's Great Escape, but you really don't do anything, you are just part of the fiasco. We were cadets in training, but then Stitch gets loose and the lights go out cause he's in the system. They have him spit on us, which was just water of course, and then they talk abut him going around and messin' with us. Just then, something pats our heads lightly. It was so cool! I thought I'd be freaked out, cause I didn't know what was touching my head, but I wasn't, cause it was only Stitch, and he's so cute :). We did Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor, and that was an interactive show like Turtle Talk with Crush. The audience had to laugh so they could get enough power. They kept putting one guy on screen and picking on him, saying he was ugly, and "there's a mask for Halloween". It was a lot of fun. Oh, and we did Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin. They have Buzz talk to you while you wait in line, and then when you get in the cab, you have a gun that you use to shoot the aliens. They keep track of your score, which was a bummer, cause Josh beat me every time :(. But it was still fun.



The evening show for tonight was the SpectroMagic Parade, which was done so well, just like everything else at Disney World. Josh got a nice picture of the Walt and Mickey statue, and here's a shot of the fabulous castle in the dark. They had it lit up in blue at this point (duh).




We were tired at this point, so we got a little silly. Josh wanted to get a picture of me squishing Walt Disney, so I gave in. Then when I tried to get a pic of him squishing his head, I kept laughing and couldn't focus the camera. I finally got it though.








And now, we finally come to the event of the evening, the SpectraMagic Parade. They used so many lights, and it looked so pretty in the dark. Mickey was one of the first ones in the parade, and they timed it with the music and his whole float lit up. The whole audience cheered, including me :)





Here's Chip 'n' Dale tickling the ivories. It's cool how you can see their reflections in the mirror. And then there was this gorgeous peacock.





Here's one of the fairy godmothers from Sleeping Beauty. They each had their own float. And then the next picture with the huge pumpkin has Cinderella and her prince in it.





This was another one of those things were you had to be there to really take in the excitement and the brightness. These pictures don't do justice at all. I think I'll end with two classic characters, Donald and Minnie!

Day 2: Three Parks in One Day!

Yeah, it's true. We went to three parks in one day. Sound crazy? Just trying to get our money's worth :) We spent the morning at Animal Kingdom. We got there a little early, so we had to wait with everyone until they officially opened the park. When they let us through, everyone was rushing in one direction--towards the new roller coaster. But the majority of the park was still blocked off. Apparently it was only 8:55. So we waited impatiently in the sun with all the other park-goers. I think that park was hotter than the rest, but maybe it's from all the extra foliage they have--it definitely felt like jungle heat. So finally the moment came, and Mickey, Minnie, and Pluto drove in front of us on a bus! They had this checklist that they went over with us, to make sure we had sunscreen and water and a map. Then they rolled down this sign and we all said together "Let the adventure begin!"

And so began the stampede to the new ride. Some people started running, and the Disney workers told them to slow down. I mean, there were parents with strollers and little kids--it would be a shame if one of them got trampled. We were gonna get Josh a fastpass, but the wait time was only 10 minutes, so he hoppped in line. I went to the gift shop area, which was where he'd come out at the end of the ride. Oh yeah, I got so mad, cause I saw people ducking under the ropes and cutting a bunch of people in line! People, it's just a ride--wait your turn!! Anyway, it was called Expedition Everest, and Josh said it was a pretty cool roller coaster. They tell you all about the legend of the Yeti, and then when you're on the ride, you find that a part of the tracks are completely destroyed by the monster! So they shoot you backwards through the mountain. It was a pretty realistic-looking mountain. We wished the snow on it was real :)



The next event was a safari through the jungle. Waiting in this line was a little long, but it wasn't bad. The lines are never air conditioned, but they had ceiling fans along the way and open windows, so it was bearable. At one point Josh switched with me so I could stand underneath a fan and feel the breeze from the window (he's so sweet). And then a couple minutes later, this guy behind me says, "Excuse me, but can you step forward so I can feel some air?" I'm naturally non-confrontational, so I automatically stepped forward. But as I thought about it, "Hey, that was rude of him. I should have told him I was pregnant!" I told Josh about it later, and he said, "What a jerk." He really was, cause when we got further up in line, there was a place where we split into two sides, and he and his wife and son managed to cut a bunch of people in line. As you can tell on this day, my pregnancy hormones left me little patience with rude people :) We saw lots of animals, and here are some pictures!

This zebra was so close to the safari bus! And I think this is a gazelle, maybe?

A cute baby elephant and a cute baby rhino with their mommies!
This giraffe was shy and here's Simba's wife taking a nap.

Warthogs - gross!
Our favorite event at Animal Kingdom was Finding Nemo--The Musical. It was a thirty minute Broadway-style show, and they did such a professional job. The people held puppets of the character they were portraying, and they dressed to blend in with the background. They could move the eyes and mouths of their character, and the puppets were made of a lighter material in the back. So when they would swim around, you really believed they were in water. Josh snapped tons of pictures of this, so I'll just put out a bunch for you :)

Here am I waiting in line and this was the sign near the entrance

Here's Nemo! The star of the show. And here he is again with his dad.

This is Nemo's class and teacher and we can't forget about crazy Dory!

Fish are friends not food! These are Nemo's fish tank friends.

The seagull was as tall as the stage! And here is Nemo with Gill.

Dude! Jellies! Crush and his posse.

In the afternoon, we headed over to MGM studios for some more fun. First things first though, we had to have lunch :). We ate at Toy Story's Pizza Planet, and as we walked away from there, we saw Woody and Buzz posing for pictures. Josh got his picture taken with Woody, but the line for Buzz closed before we got over there. Oh well! Oh yeah, we also did the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. I thought I knew how it would all go, cause they've showed it on Full House, but they only show the first part. The second half they show you more stunts and act out some scenes from the Indy movies. It really was neat to watch.



We went to an audio show with Drew Carey, and you wore headphones the whole time. We were in complete darkness for 7 minutes, so all you had to go by were the sounds. We liked that one, especially cause it was air conditioned. I remember when the lights went out that some kid was getting scared, even though her dad was right next to her. Right when we came out of that, they were setting up for the Disney Stars and Motor Cars Parade. It was perfect timing, so we had a good view of the characters. The temperature dropped extremely during the parade, and the wind started blowing. It felt great, but we knew that meant a storm was coming. They still did the whole parade though--we only got a few drops. Here are some shots Josh took.

You've got a friend in me! Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!!!

This is Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. Here's Mulan.

Mike and Sully (Kitty!). Hades from "Hercules".

Lilo and Stich. And the Little Mermaid.

After the parade, hmm, I don't remember what exactly we did. We caught some of the High School Musical Pep Rally. We actually heard it a couple times when we went back to MGM the last day, so the songs kept getting into our heads :). For dinner I had made reservations at the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theatre Restaurant. It was a really neat atmosphere. I tried to take pictures inside, but it was too dark for any of them to come out good. We sat in a classic car, and everyone faced a big screen that showed black and white segments of "thrillers." There was this one movie about an attack of a fifty-foot woman--scary! (yeah right). They also showed some old cartoons, so it was fun. Josh got a more regular-sized meal, but nothing looked good to me. I opted for a bowl of soup, and a strawberry shake. Hey, I was in a 50s car--I had to get a classic beverage :)

Whew! I haven't even talked about Magic Kingdom yet. We went there next, but we only did a couple things, since we had a few hours, so I think I'll save that for the next installment. Until then!

Day 1: Epcot Extravaganza

My awesome husband took me on the greatest vacation ever! I went to Disney World for the first time in my life!! It was long days and sweaty clothes, but we had a terrific time. Of course since I was pregnant I had to avoid roller coasters and similar rides, but there was still so much to do beyond that. Needless to say, I was not bored. Our flight was Monday, and we got in around dinner time. Since vacation had officially started, we didn't want to just bum around the hotel, so we ate at TGIF and walked around the outlet mall nearby. There was a Disney store in there that had T-shirts at half the price of what we saw at the parks, so when it came to souvenir T-shirts, we stopped by there to pick some up at the end of the week. The outlet trip was short, since most of the stores were for the "rich," so we headed to Downtown Disney. There's no rides there, just shopping and clubs, so we window shopped and took some pictures.

On Tuesday, the real fun began. We spent the whole day at Epcot, getting there right after it opened and staying until it closed. The front section was called Future World, and that was the only part open for a couple hours in the morning. We did almost every attraction while we were there. Josh did this Mission: Space ride, and I waited for him in the Advanced Training Lab. Sounds all fancy and official, doesn't it?


There was a section called The Land, and there was a lot to do there. We took a boat tour through Disney's greenhouses and fish farms. I'll tell you what, these veggies were huge! And they said they use them to feed us at the park. I believe them too, cause whenever we got a salad, the tomatoes were so sweet and fresh. Josh really liked this tour--I don't know why we didn't snap any pictures. Also in The Land, there was a ride called Soarin', and it was really cool. We sat in this huge parasail-type structure, and we were suspended in front of a huge screen that changed scenery. We went over the ocean, a golf course, Disney World, a forest, and an orange grove. They kept having warnings about motion sickness, but it was a relazing ride. Oh yeah, have you ever been on a scented ride? When we went over the forest, you could smell the pine trees, and the orange grove smelled like oranges! Disney really knows how to make your experiences memorable.
If you look closely you can see a little pregnant belly on me :)
There was also an aquarium section, where we took a Nemo ride. There was a show called Turtle Talk with Crush, and he was so funny as he interacted with the audience. One of the first things he said was, "Whoa, look at all the humans in the human tank." After that, we got to look around at the aquarium, where we saw Nemos, Doreys, sea turtles, and a big ugly squid.

And that was just in the morning. Epcot is famous for their world showcase, so we spent the afternoon walking around there. There wasn't a lot of rides here, so the fun was the different atmospheres. There was Germany, Norway, China, France, and Canada, to name a few. We ate dinner in Mexico, and we met Aladdin and Jasmine in Morocco. Below is a picture of one of the Moroccan buildings.

When we walked through the American section, there was a short parade going on with men dressed up in old uniforms. It was really cool.

The evening show they do is called IllumiNations, and it was a beautiful fireworks display over the water. The globe pictured below is also in the show. It lights up, shows pictures, and even opens up at the end. We had great seats for it, and I'm glad we did. It was so cool!

Boy, just writing about this day makes me exhausted all over again! Stay tuned for more days and more Disney fun!!