Day 4: Animals, Yetis, Breakdowns and Tons of Food!

It’s Day 4 already! It seemed fast while we were there, but it seems even faster now that I’m recounting it all for you! 

Animal Kingdom!

Today, we were headed to Animal Kingdom! We had breakfast reservations at Tusker House at 9:30 and the park didn’t open until 9, so we took a little more time in the morning to get ready and prepare for the day ahead of us. It was also “date night” so E and Z would be heading to Epcot for dinner, and Hubby and I were headed to the Magic Kingdom around the same time.

The Tree of Life

When we arrived at the park, we managed to get the furthest bus stop from the front of the park (this was happening at virtually every single park, so we were getting used to it). We hoofed it to the entrance, and made our way to “Africa” so we could make our reservation on time. We did, and were quickly ushered around the corner for a “Magical Memory”. Turned out, Donald (in safari regalia) was greeting guests that morning right outside the entrance for the folks that were staying on Disney property. We had our photos taken (it was a really good one!) and were escorted to our table by our host.

Africa!

Z ,E, Donald, Me and Hubby

If you’ve never been to Tusker House before (and I hadn’t), it really is something to behold. They do such awesome theming in Animal Kingdom, and Tusker is no different. There were beautiful tapestries on the ceiling, wires along the tops of the walls, making it look as if they were running into different bedrooms within the “hotel” atmosphere. The food was amazing, as was the Jungle Juice. I’ll write more during my review, but this was a really neat experience and well worth it! 

The ceiling above the buffet at Tusker House

Goofy dropped by to say hello!

Mmmmm...Jungle Juice!

After dinner, we were only a few steps away from the Kilimanjaro Safaris, so it made perfect sense to head that way. We again used the GAC (AWESOME!) and boarded the next truck that came up. Hubby had never been on the safaris before, so I was really interested to see what he thought. Of course, it was awesome, and because it was earlier in the day, we were able to see the lesser-seen animals like the cheetahs, a lion and a warthog (even if they were all sleeping at the time.) We were even held up an ostrich blocked another car and decided it wasn’t going to move for awhile! All in all, it was as awesome as I remembered and hubby really enjoyed himself!

White Rhino..chillin.

E's favorite...Hippos!

Buzzard thing sitting on a post

Crocs sunning themselves

Baby Elephant!

Cheetahs

The ostrich that caused the pile up

Next we headed over to Asia and hit up Kali River Rapids. It was super hot out, so we were all looking forward to the water at this point. We happened to be in a boat with 5 French high school students, and a father and son. For whatever reason, one of the students decided to sit at the front of the boat, making the rest of us literally climb over her. (On a side note, this is one of my biggest pet peeves at Disney. When someone says “move all the way across”…move all the way across. There are plenty of people with and without mobility disorders that would really rather not stumble over your greedy butt to get to their seats. Rude.) It was a great ride, and E and Z ended up getting absolutely drenched. The fire wasn’t there anymore (anyone know why?) but we managed to have a great time. We were able to communicate with the French kids through the laughter too, which is pretty cool. 

The beautiful prayer flags above Kali River Rapids

We figured we had already been through the rinse cycle, why not go through the “dry” cycle and head to Expedition Everest! It was Z and E’s first time, and it’s a favorite of Hubby and I’s, so we happily went further into Asia and went through the FastPass lane. We were doing pretty well (I thought), then right as we were heading back into the mountain to see Betty the Yeti, we came to a stop. And not like a ‘Disney stop’. We were stuck. Still about 2 stories up on the tracks between the 2 mountains. There we sat for about 10-15 minutes. Poor Z was NOT doing well and I had forgotten just how disorienting the backwards part could be. Finally some cast members came up and helped us out of the train. Of course, this meant going inside the mountain and walking down 8 flights of stairs. As if you hadn’t already figured it out, stairs and I don’t get along. I’m already in a knee brace and trying to keep myself from a wheelchair. I had been doing okay this particular day, until the stairs and I met. I made it down and we got to see the inside of the ride. It’s absolutely amazing what goes on inside of it, and in some ways it’s both less and more magical than what’s going on on the outside. We got free FastPasses to come back whenever we’d like, but since Z was turning all shades of green, we figured we would likely sit it out. Either way, Betty the Yeti had a little too much fun that day!

Stuck.

We went over to Dinoland USA and contemplated what our next move should be. Z really wasn’t feeling well, my knee was killing me, and E and Hubs were pretty exhausted. So, we decided we should head back to the resort, take naps and refuel for date night. We wished E and Z a great night, went to the room to change, then head out to the Magic Kingdom. 

I took another picture of the gibbons on the way out!

I had worn what I thought was a cute little shirt for date night, but it turned out to be much colder than we had expected. We had barely gotten into the park when I began shivering like you wouldn’t believe. I guess my Wisconsin blood thinned quickly! So, we hit up the Emporium where I got a sweatshirt. We immediately head toward Adventureland so Hubby could grab a Pirates sweatshirt as well. Once we had done that, we decided to go back on Pirates since we were there anyway. Afterward we headed to the Haunted Mansion for another ride before our Dinner reservations at the Liberty Tree Tavern. 

Back at the Magic Kingdom

OH. My. God. This place was AWESOME. We had the absolute BEST server (Craig) who made the experience that much more magical. The food here does not end. It’s family style, all you care to eat. It was like a giant, never-ending Thanksgiving meal! We had salad and honey butter rolls, then a main course of turkey, beef tenderloin, and pork. The sides were macaroni and cheese (which was AMAZING), stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy and garlic and butter green beans. It was all so delicious! Again, I’ll wait for the details during my review, but seriously, it was delicious.

After dinner, we rode Haunted Mansion again, then went to Fantasyland for the staples like Peter Pan and Snow White. I was glad we got a chance to do Snow White since it’ll be closing May!

Bye bye, Snow White!

After all of that, we were ready to sit for a bit. It worked out perfectly since the Magic, Memories and You show was about to begin. By some insane stroke of luck, we were able to find a bench on the bridge between Liberty Square and the Hub. We had a great seat to watch the show, which was AMAZING. I cried all over again. They did such an amazing job on that show, and the Tangled portion where the lanterns floated up the castle was seriously breathtaking. For anyone who isn’t familiar with the show, check out the video below (this wasn’t from our trip.) They project the PhotoPass and Disney photographer photos from throughout the day onto the castle, essentially making you a part of all of the magic. It’s a great show and for sentimental people like me, it’s just the best.

Shortly after the show, Wishes started and we were able to watch comfortably from our seat on the bridge. It was incredibly romantic to be somewhat secluded from the hoards of people standing in front of Cinderella’s Castle and be watching Wishes with the Hubby. It did puzzle me though why so many people completely forget the bridges are there and clump together in front of the castle and down Main Street USA. I wasn’t about to complain though!

We also hit up the Hall of Presidents and a few other attractions on our way out. By that point, I was ready for bed. We headed back to the resort with Illuminations lighting our way. We were headed to Disney’s Hollywood Studios tomorrow, so sleep would be important tonight! As I listened to Stacy repeat the Disney “Must-Do’s” in the background, I just smiled knowing this had already been one of the best vacations of my life!