Day 2!

My sister and I were running late. Again.  Shocking?  Not really. As girls we were always fighting for bathroom time, fighting over clothes, disagreeing over who was taking the longest and arguing over who’s turn it was to let the dog out. But the wee fights didn’t really get much worse then that. This past weekend, as I looked across at the double sink and caught my sister brushing her teeth in sync with me, I started to giggle. Here we were together again. Just like those two little girls, but all grown up, sharing a bathroom getting ready to head out for the afternoon, only this time we had no idea what laid ahead.

It was day two of our Disney adventure and we had just competed our registration for Disney Social Media Moms.  We were all checked into our second hotel for our stay, at the very sleek Contemporary Resort, and were about to tear ourselves away from the gorgeous pool on site and head out to the Disney Parks!

The question was, where to begin!  We had time, just the two of us with no kids, to visit any Disney Park we wanted?  It was almost overwhelming.  Here was our plan of attack.  Jump the monorail to the transportation centre and then catch the bus to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.  My SassySis had never been before and I was just a wee bit excited to be able to show her the magic.  Animal Kingdom is one of my all time favourite parks, there is simply something for everyone!

As you enter the centrepiece of the entire park you are drawn into the staggering Tree of Life.  Standing at 145 ft.  tall and more then 50 ft. wide there are 300 incredible depiction’s of animals carved into the trunk and roots.  Housed inside is the fabulous and funny “It’s Tough to be a Bug” show!  If you are travelling with little one’s it’s a production you don’t want to miss.  (Note: some really little one’s may not appreciate that some parts of the show that are very dark.  My girls liked it best after about age 4 or 5 depending on the temperament of each girl)

After trekking past the Tree of Life and snapping the obligatory pics, we made a bee line to the Kilimanjaro Safaris® tour, an experience like no other! (and my favourite experience at the Animal Kingdom)  You are loaded onto the “jeeps” and transported into the wilds of Africa.

We saw lions and gators and elephants oh my!!  What is truly amazing, it feels as if a little bit of Africa and it’s eco system have been re-created right there at Disney.  The animals, although at a safe distance from the guests, seem to be within in arms reach!

After a ride full of ohhs, awes we were off to explore the rest of the park.  I personally find Animal Kingdom to be a relaxed and easy park to navigate, and for one who is directionally challenged, this is saying a lot!  You can easily explore the entire thing, taking in a couple of Broadway worthy shows like Festival of the Lion King, and Finding Nemo – The Musical all in one day!  Some must sees for the Sassy Sis and I?  Splash Mountain.  (got soaked),   Pangani Forest Exploration Trail (where we were amazed by the power of Gorillas) and of course Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain ,where we screamed, and looked like this:

One ride that we did not get on this year but that I absolutely love, is Kali River Rapids. I will warn you all now, the Rapids ride is a ton of fun, but you will get wet!

After a couple of sun filled hours beep bopping around the park we decided to make a quick hop over to the Magic Kingdom!  Why not!  Have I mentioned yet how fast you can travel when you are only looking after yourself?  (and no one is whining that they are hungry, thirsty or has to pee! Well beside me! )   It was a quick trip between the two parks.   This was my first day using the Disney Transportation system and I was amazed that it was so efficient and easy to use!

After our quick bus trip, we arrived at the Magic Kingdom.  Call me sentimental, but there is still something incredible about the first glimpse of that castle.  With or without children, the Magic Kingdom remains my all time favourite park in the world!

Since we had thoroughly explored the Animal Kingdom we didn’t have much time for the Magic Kingdom today.  In the short time we were there we did get to pose for  a few pictures, jump on a couple of rides (thank goodness for the fast pass!) and giggle like a couple of school girls.  Two sisters living it up foot loose and fancy free in the happiest place on earth?  This was going to be a VERY good week!

With huge smiles on our faces and in our hearts we soon realized it was time to head back to the Contemporary and prepare for the evening ahead.  The first official Disney Social Media Moms Welcome Reception at Epcot followed by a TryIt Family Dinner and Fireworks show!  So much fun packed into one day!

Hope you will come back next Tuesday to hear all about the rest of our adventures!