The Highland Schneiders: March 2013

Hollywood Studios entrance

Main Street - Magic Kingdom

Whew! What a trip! It was worth every penny. Everything was ... well, let's just say it Disney-style ... Magical!

Even getting up at 3:30 a.m. to leave and walking through a biting wind did not dampen our spirits. Our flight and ride to the hotel were smooth and on time.

We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge - Jambo House which has an African safari theme. We all highly recommend it. We had a "savanna" view which meant we could see the African wildlife from our balcony. There was no shortage of it. From the moment we arrived, there were giraffes, zebras, african cranes, wildebeests, antelope etc. in plain view. There were times they were as close as the fencing would permit (75 feet away or so). Cindy and I never tired of it.

The pool was a mere 11,000 square feet with a bar and waterslide, naturally. Obviously, that was popular with all of us. And it was heated to just the right temperature.

The weather was perfect. The first two mornings were a bit nippy by Florida standards but we lost the sweatshirts and hoodies by lunch time. The remainder of the trip was summertime weather but not oppressive at all. It was even better knowing we were missing a snowstorm back at home.

Cindy at her best in the Animal Kingdom Park - Day 1

The boys in their ol' Chevy while we waited to eat at the Sci-Fi Diner. It was an indoor drive in.

We hit Animal Kingdom shortly after arriving as it was the closest of the four parks to our hotel. We did not cover the entire park but we all rode Dinosaur! which was downright amazing with its life like dino-robots and whatnot. Jack and I also rode Expedition Everest, a serious freakin' coaster (photo below). I was worried Jack was going to melt down but he loved it. We enjoyed a walk through the open air aviary with birds from southeast Asia. But as much fun as this was, the boys felt this was their least enjoyable park.

The boys cooling off in the mist - Adventureland - Magic Kingdom

My princess and her castle

A carefree moment during our last night

Day two brought pure joy to Jack as he and I went to the Magic Kingdom while Quinn and Cindy went to EPCOT. Jack and I covered plenty of ground, riding Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Pirates of the (continued below)

Caribbean, Haunted Mansion and some crazy Buzz Lightyear game which was a life size shooting gallery. We were entertained by a talking and dancing trash can, too. We went to see the Country Bear Jamboree and rode the Carousel of Progress.

Meanwhile, Quinn and Cindy were touring the "world" with their stomachs. They particularly enjoyed Morocco and Italy. Quinn added baklava to his list of favorite desserts while Cindy drank wine and ate asparagus and lobster in some nifty sauce. Quinn had his name written in Arabic on a pendant he bought with a chain. They saved their tour of the Futureworld for when we were altogether with the exception of riding Soarin' which to put it mildy is one hell of an attraction (calling it a ride does not do it justice).

All four of us enjoyed Pirates and Haunted Mansion at Magic Kingdom along with the fantastic nightly "Celebrations" and "Wishes" fireworks / castle magic production during our last night. Quinn wanted me to film it but honestly, I just wanted to enjoy it without the cameras. It is too good to miss.

Hollywood Studios presented us with the Tower of Terror which Cindy really liked (ha ha!) with its drops - and ups! - over 13 stories or so. I woke up early one morning to enjoy the "magic hour" available only to guests of the Disneyworld resorts. No outsiders can ride anything during that hour which meant I could walk onto one of the busiest attractions at the park, the Rockin' Rollercoaster or whatever. It is an indoor coaster with 3 inverted loops as you supposedly whip through L.A. traffic in an Aerosmith limo. Certainly woke me up at 8:15 a.m.

When we went back to Hollywood together, we watched the Indiana Jones and Extreme Stunt shows. Highly entertaining and borderline unreal at times. The shows alternated between action sequences and time spent with your hosts (directors, stunt coordinators etc) breaking down the scenes and some tricks of the movie making trade. All I can say is go see them if and when you make it down there yourselves.

Letting the boys play hooky for a week was a great idea. The crowds were definitely nowhere near capacity but there were days wait times and lines for the biggest attractions were crazy. The "Fast Pass" ride option, however, is ingenious. It gives you the ability to essentially make a reservation for the ride / attraction you want which are usually the ones everyone wants. You don't have to wait in line if you don't want to. Disney, Inc. deserves much credit for the creative ways they cater to everyone and focus on every detail.

I will sift through the rest when I can and throw a few more photos up when I can. I will conclude by saying that there were many times Cindy and I saw pure joy and smiles in our boys' eyes and that made the whole thing worth it.

"Hey Grandpa! I rode Space Mountain twice and loved it!"

Thunder Mountain

An in flight photo of Jack and Dad .... and our long lost cousin Earl Gristleweed from Ricochet, Oklahoma* (* this guy may not be named Earl Gristleweed and he may not be from Ricochet.)