Delightfully Soggy Walkabout Magic Days 3-4

After yesterday’s monumental post I think I can get through the remainder of our epic Disneyworld trek in less time and effort. The second two parks definitely did not live up to the first two but provided some memorable moments and since we were all together, fun was inevitable. We missed out on a full day at the Animal Kingdom since Hurricane Nicole blew through the area overnight. Again, I wasn’t that impressed as there have been Nor’easters around here with a lot more punch. Disney delayed opening the parks until the afternoon so I watched the news coverage on the local channels from the condo. In an all too normal trend the TV “journalists” were trying to make the storm seem more potent than it turned out to be. The ole “if it bleeds it leads” precept. I was watching a live feed from a Fox reporter on a supposedly flooded street where you could still see the pavement and he was telling everyone how dangerous it was. He was hilariously interrupted by a car smoothly driving through the supposedly dangerous area.

FBR and Parental Units in Animal Kingdom

The FBR had stayed overnight with us and picked up on her lifelong habit of stealing bacon from my breakfast plate. The grandmothers decided to stay home for the day so the team was down to four for the Animal Kingdom, a park I’d never visited before. It will probably be the last time. The park opened at 1pm and while there are always lines to enter the parks this was the longest we encountered, because everyone came at once. Despite the still close hurricane/tropical storm we didn’t run into any rain, just a sustained mist. Our first stop was Dino Land where we spent an epic time travel ride through the age of, you guessed it, dinosaurs. Only mild yelping was required but it was a good stat for the day.

FBR Guiding me Through the Day

Wingman and I Providing the Needed Swing Posts

On Safari with the FBR

Everest Waiting Line

FBR Consumed

Our next stop, Expedition Everest, turned out to be the highlight of the day. A truly great rollercoaster ride haunted by several Yetis. The FBR was truly in her element.  Although the first ride required a fairly long wait, we were all hooked on it coming out. It’s a very tall rollercoaster that comes to a stop at the very top of the mountain as the Yetis have torn up the track. You’re then propelled, very fast, backwards and into the dark. It scared the hell out of me and I loved it. So did everyone else and the ever-resourceful Wingman secured a later, second ride through the lightning lane. The FBR requested to sit with me this time and required that I keep my arms raised throughout the ride, which added to the nervousness of careening through dark tunnels, backwards.

Everest Ride in the Distance

Entering Animal Kingdom

Very Happy FBR

Channeling her Inner Yeti

Boundless Energy

Entering Pandora

Our next stop was the moon of Pandora, for the Avatar ride. The ride was okay, fairly sedate after our Yeti encounter. I was truly impressed with the transformation of the location to the wild landscape of Pandora, to include the floating rock islands. We tried the Gorilla Falls walk but didn’t find any apes so it was back to Expedition Everest for the aforementioned second ride. The sun was starting to fade and we were told that was the best time to hit the Kilimanjaro Safari which featured a ride through the African savannah with the accompanying animals. The FBR loved seeing all the animals, especially the cheetahs. We ended the day at Tough to be a Bug, one of those Disney education can be fun events. We were sitting in theater seats as a progression of bugs talked about their lives, emceed by an ant. It featured an extremely cool climax when the seats moved under your butt simulating crawling insects. I only wish my Favorite Panamanian had been along to see her reaction to that.

Floating Rock Islands of Pandora

FBR Directing us Back to Everest

On Safari

Still Looking for Gorillas

Except for the one ride I wasn’t impressed with the Animal Kingdom. Its design has you constantly walking between islands and there seemed to be a lot more emphasis on restaurants than attractions for kids. We ended our half day by swinging by the condo to pick up the grandmothers and heading out for dinner at a nearby Logan’s Roadhouse. We were treated once again to the very slow service that seems to be the standard in the greater Orlando area outside of Disney. In a weird trend all the waitresses there were under five feet tall. I mentioned this to my Favorite Panamanian who said I am under orders to stop noticing these things. Failing that, I’m not supposed to voice these observations either. I guess I’ve failed.

FBR Pointing the Way to Epcot

FBR, Always Ready

Very Happy Grandpa

Looking for Nemo

Friday was Epcot Day but more importantly it was also the FBR’s official birthday as well as Veterans Day (thanks to the many people who sent me well wishes). It also marked the first full day of sunshine we enjoyed in the sunshine state. We actually drove to Epcot three different times throughout the day which was possible because of the short distances between events that Wingman had set up so well. We got off to a very slow start after walking under the signature dome at the entrance to Epcot. Our first attempted ride was a Chevrolet sponsored test track. We were in the line for nearly an hour and the ride broke down twice. After the second breakdown we declared a mistrial and left for rides that worked. It wasn’t a sterling advertisement for Chevrolet and I know Chevy owners are nodding sagely at that last remark. So, we set off in search of Nemo which was quaint but dated. There was an attached Aquarium where we saw manatees being fed.

Wife and I at Epcot

At the Ratatouille Ride

FBR and Parents in Front of Epcot Lake

Epcot is designed around a huge lake which makes getting around a serious walking effort. My daughter counted more than 25,000 steps by the end of our day. Our next stop was at the other end of the lake in the French section where a Ratatouille ride was the target. We got there to be confronted by another broken ride notice which was fixed but still called for a hour long wait. My Favorite Panamanian and I decided to stroll around instead of waiting only to be urgently summoned back when Wingman had finagled us into the lightning lane once again. He was my hero all week. The ride was very cool, featuring the sliding cars that made the Rise of the Resistance so memorable. The last screen was broken but the rest of the ride was a lot of fun. Confronted with yet more walking under he sizzling sun, Wingman dangled the prospect of time at the hotel Water Park in front of the FBR who promptly snatched at the bait.

Back at the Hotel

The Hotel Water Park

In the Pool with Grandparents

FBR Finishing a Slide

Grandpa Wins a Race

In the Lazy River

We spent a glorious afternoon at the water park which featured a number of pools, a lazy river, and some impressive water slides. The FBR said earlier in the week she was too scared to go on the tallest slides and said she would wait for her dad and grandpa to show her how it was done. Pressure. I loved the slides but the climb up was not as much fun. Still, it was hard to deny the FBR anything and she wanted a companion to start out with. Eventually she granted the adults a reprieve and repeatedly tackled the slides on her own. We spent a lot of time circling around the lazy river which had a very potent current. An altogether fantastic afternoon hanging around the pool with the family.

At Guardians Ride

FBR and Parents

Outside Guardians Ride

Our second trip back to Epcot was made because we (Wingman) had heard the Guardians of the Galaxy ride was not to be missed. Wingman, first thing in the morning, had gotten us into something called a Virtual Que with an appointed late afternoon time at the ride. As with the Rise of the Resistance, all the machinations we went through to get there were redeemed by the ride itself which was incredible. Individual roller-coaster cars careened through the space story spinning and going backwards in the dark (again) and being way too much fun. For me the experience on this ride saved Epcot which had really not impressed me at all. After we disembarked, we rounded up the grandmothers and headed to our reservation at Disney Springs.

Miniature Star Lord

Daughter and FBR Walking into Disney Springs

Birthday Dinner

I’d never been to this place but it’s another Disney property that features a very lively set of restaurants and entertainment opportunities geared more towards adults. Wingman had arranged reservations at an Italian restaurant for the FBR’s birthday dinner. We were on a tight timetable with the long walk through the masses from the parking garage. The food was awesome with a very lively Italian waiter that my wife wanted to bring home with her. The wait staff sang happy birthday to the FBR in Italian and she was thrilled. Disney Springs also featured something I didn’t think Disneyworld was capable of – free parking. It just didn’t seem right that we weren’t required to pay for something.

During the Happy Birthday Singing

She Loved It

Our day wasn’t finished though as we headed back to Epcot for the third and final time so we could get the FBR on the Frozen ride which she was very excited about. Of course, it was on the other side of the vast lake and required speed walking through the massive crowds in the very poorly lit park. I was surprised by the lack of effective lighting which caused several near collisions as people hurrying to other rides crossed out paths. The Frozen ride was worth the effort and I got the added benefit of a wet seat from the climactic plunge which made the walk back kind of squishy. We stopped by one last ride with Journey Into Imagination, which is really dated but offered a sedate culmination after all the rushing around on this very busy Friday. Epcot is kind of magical (that word again) place at night as the dome constantly changes colors. As we were leaving, we tried to get a group shot in front of the dome.

Lego Chewbacca Encounter

Nighttime Epcot

Trying to Get that Final Shot

Wingman Comes Through

FBR With her Hero

I dropped off everyone but Wingman and my daughter at the condo and then drove them into central Orlando to once again link up with friends for a night on the town. Back at the condo the FBR insisted on waiting up for me because it was Friday, her birthday, and well she’s the FBR. She conked out almost immediately after her very busy week. Saturday’s planned redeployment went exactly as planned, another tribute to Wingman. We arrived back at LaGuardia facing another ride through the maelstrom of NYC traffic but Saturday was much easier than a Monday morning. As soon as we got back to New Jersey with one unplanned diversion (damned GPS) we reluctantly bid farewell to our Disney group and hit the road back home. I didn’t want to face Sunday traffic of a three-day weekend so a Saturday evening on the road was called for. Nothing could diminish the week I’d just been through though. While Disney always delivers the fun, it was made so much more special seeing it vicariously through the eyes of the FBR. Once again Wingman was the star of the trip with his adroit managing of all the arrangement as well as the blessed lightning lanes. In the end though, hanging around with these people is what made the week so special. It was a true acid test for my knee though. I was really glad I brought a knee brace along. It was practically worn out by the end of the week and my balky knee is still barking at me a bit three days later. Totally worth it.

Intrepid Traveler Heading Home with her Spoils

Only one movie fell in my A-Z effort, a definite keeper, CHiPs (Michael Pena is so good in everything he does – great raunchy, comedic actor as well).

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RECURRING CHARACTERS:                                     

ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete - my daughter in law; BR3 – Blog Reader #3 – granddaughter #3; BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Connecticut Riverboat Captain – another close friend from high school, renowned sailor of the big river; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter; First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd Musquetera (musketeer); Namesake Nephew – son of Great Aunt and Soxfather named after me; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member; PanaGals – female relatives /friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; Pittsburgh College Roommate– high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; Soxfather - my brother in law; Tia Loca – wife’s younger sister; Wingman – my son in law; Wingmom – Wingman’s mom, of course