Pocahontas at the Parks

We slept in again today. Three nights of fireworks will make one tired! Today’s first stop was the Animal Kingdom. It was a very hot day. Marina was dressed as Pocahontas, but she wanted a hat. So we picked up one as we entered the park. She also bought herself some binoculars. She certainly looked ready to see some animals. Our first stop was the Kilmanjaro Safari. This year they let Marina sit next to the window. She was happy about that. We got a good look at quite a few animals including hippos, elephants and giraffes. It was as good as we remembered from last year. The train to Rafiki’s Planet Watch was near Africa, so we went ahead and took it. We met with Pocahontas and Jiminy Cricket while we were there.

We were both hungry, so we stopped at the Yak and Yeti and had honey chicken for lunch. We had a hard time finding a place to sit, but a nice newlywed couple from Georgia offered to let us share their table. The food was really good and perked us both up. We headed deeper into Asia and went to the Kali River Rapids ride. It looked like river ride at our local amusement park but, as it turns out, you get much wetter on the Kali River Rapids. Marina was not pleased about how soaked she was. When we talked about the ride, she said, “I hated it!” Then we walked the Maharajah Jungle Trek where we saw a tiger playing in a fountain. She kept roaring. The guide said she was calling to her sisters to come play. We also saw bats, birds and snakes on the Trek.

We decided to Park Hop today and went over to Hollywood Studios. We found out that the unscheduled character visits still happen at the same time, so we were at the right place to see that. Marina got to meet Stitch, Goofy and the Queen of Hearts. But the best part was, Pocahontas and Meeko were there. So Marina had her picture taken with her again. It was fun for all of them.

We went over to the Streets of America to meet Phineas and Ferb. She loves that show and they are new to Hollywood Studios. It was a long wait, but we were entertained by songs from the show while we waited. Lightning McQueen and Mater were just around the corner, so we stopped to see them as well.

After dinner, we watched The Voyage of the Little Mermaid show. Then we went to the stadium to watch Fantasmic. We missed this show last year – it was canceled due to technical difficulties. This year it was delayed by weather, but it finally started. It was an amazing show. Marina loved it – especially since it featured Pocahontas. She definitely wore the right costume today.

Rainy Day at EPCOT

Marina and I slept in a bit, but we got ourselves going for a day at EPCOT. Marina wore her Jasmine costume today. When we arrived, Daisy Duck and Stitch were near the entrance. So we took the time to meet them. Then we went over to The Land - a building we missed completely last year. We got Fast Passes for Soarin', then looked at the Living With the Land and Circle of Life attractions.

The Seas was next for us. We rode the Finding Nemo ride. Then we went to Bruce's Shark World and Turtle Talk With Krush. Marina remembered all of that from last year.

We entered the World Showcase and took the ferry to Morocco so we could meet Aladdin and Jasmine. We had lunch at the boulangerie in France and looked at the model trains in Germany. We went to China to meet Mulan, but before we did that, Marina wanted to change into her Mulan costume. As we waited to meet Mulan, the rain started. We hung around the China pavillion for a while, but Marina wanted to move on. So, we put on our ponchos, and headed out.

We went over to France where we managed to find Sleeping Beauty, Belle and the Beast in the French theater. Then we walked over to the UK where we found Mary Poppins, Alice in Wonderland and Winnie the Pooh and Tigger in a toy store.

We went back to Future World and rode Soarin' which Marina loved. We learned where we could meet Snow White and Marie the Aristocat despite the rain, so went over to see them. Marina also wanted to see Mickey Mouse again, so we caught him as well as Minnie, Pluto, Donald Duck and Goofy.

By then, it was time for the IllumiNations show. So we watched that before heading back to the hotel. It was another full day.

Disney World - Day Two

Today's plan was to see the Animal Kingdom. We were fortunate that Marina's grandparents were able to drive up from the Miami area to join us today. Marina hadn't see them in two years, so they made the day extra special.

Marina wore her Pocahontas costume today. People called her "Princess" and "Pocahontas" all day long. She loved telling everyone it was just a costume and she wasn't the real Pocahontas.

We started off in Africa with some breakfast. There weren't many places to sit, but Marina found a spot for herself and Grandma.

The safari had a short wait, so we went on that first. Marina was disappointed she wasn't allowed to sit near the window, but she really liked looking at the animals. She got especially excited to see the giraffes and the baby elephant. We went on a jungle trek after that. Grandma and grandpa got a chance to tell her about the animals they know about.

We were all really hot, so we took the Wilderness Train to Rafiki's Planet Watch which was air conditioned. There we go a chance to meet Pocahontas. Marina was excited about that. The cast member with Pocahontas acted confused that there were two Pocahontases. Marina did her best to explain it. We also met Rafiki (who played hide and seek with Marina) and Jiminy Cricket.


We had lunch and then went to Camp Mickie-Minnie to see The Festival of the Lion King. It was a wonderful show of music from the movie and acrobatics. We all enjoyed it.

By then, Marina was wanting to ride some rides. So, we headed to Dinoland USA. We all tried out the TriceraSpin. It was much like the Dumbo ride at the Magic Kingdom. She loved it. We also rode the Dinosaur ride. It was much more intense than I had expected. Marina didn't like it at all. There weren't many more rides, but Marina got her face painted and she was happy with that.

We went to see Finding Nemo - the Musical. It was a great show that we all loved. The puppets were very clever and the effects impressive. Once the show was over, Marina's grandparents decided to go back to the hotel. Marina wanted to stay a little while longer. As we were eating dinner it started to rain. We ducked into a store until it lightened up. Then we went back to Camp Mickie-Minnie. The line to meet Mickey and Minnie Mouse was not long, so we got to see them in their safari gear. There was no line for Goofy and Donald Duck, so we stopped to see them as well.

The park was getting ready to close, so we left. Marina wanted to go swimming when we got to the hotel. She's loved having a pool at the hotel.

Disneyland - Day Two

After yesterday, I expected Marina to be worn out, but she was ready to go to Disneyland again. She dressed as Snow White today. We started Day Two, much like Day One. We got on the train and went to Fantasyland. The line at the Disney Princess Faire was short and we found out that Jasmine and Mulan were visiting. Since Marina calls Mulan her "sister" we had to meet her! Unfortunately, after a half hour wait, Mulan was not there. We did meet Jasmine (who was gorgeous), Ariel and Belle. We also saw Tyler, the page. He had helped Belle remember that she had already met Marina yesterday. Marina was disappointed at not meeting Mulan. She actually cried. So I suggested we see Mulan in "It's a Small World." That perked her up.


We looked into Toon Town next. We visited the houses of Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Marina was excited to meet each one of them. We checked out the homes of Donald Duck and Goofy as well. Toon Town had a small roller coaster, so we tried that out. Marina didn't like it. That told me some of the wilder rides were out of the question on this trip! After lunch we ran into Pluto, who licked her, and Goofy, who twirled her around a few times then bowed to her. When he did, he hit her on the head with his hat. She got a bit fussy, so I decided it was time for lunch.


Since Toon Town hadn't been a big hit, we headed back to Fantasyland. We tried out the Alice in Wonderland ride (which she didn't like) and the Teacups (which she loved). We also found Pixie Hollow where we got to meet Tinkerbell and her friend Silvermist (Marina knew who she was, I didn't). In the Pixie Hollow gift shop, Marina had a complete meltdown until I let her buy a Tinkerbell doll. Aunt Ann had given her some money to spend on our trip, so I let her use that.


We were both tired, so we went back to the hotel for a while. After lying down for a while and having a snack, we went back to Disneyland. This time, we checked out Adventureland. We started at the Enchanted Tiki Room. I had no idea what we were in for, but we both enjoyed it. I was unsure how Marina would react to the Jungle Cruise, but she seemed to like it. We took a ride on the Mark Twain steam boat. That might have been the dullest 15 minutes I've spent at an amusement park.

After watching a bit of the Celebration Parade, we went back to Fantasyland. We got our first chance to try the Dumbo ride. I let her take the control which she had fun with. Marina didn't want to ride the Storybook Boats because it starts by going into a whale's mouth. But once we were past that part, she loved it. Fantasyland started to shut down for the fireworks, so we found a spot to watch them from with a pretzel to watch. We couldn't see the fireworks well, but we could see Tinkerbell fly over Sleeping Beauty's castle. That was cool.

It took a while to get back to the hotel. Marina fell asleep quickly once we did. We did so much today, it's hard to imagine what we'll do tomorrow.