We’re just over half-way through our 2nd (and
last for now) stay at Walt Disney World’s Fort Wilderness. We’ve eaten at all our favorite restaurants
once so far and are planning return visits.
Jiko in the Animal Kingdom lodge has the most interesting flavors
blending African, Indian and other exotics tastes. California Grill at the top of the
Contemporary Hotel has floor to ceiling windows for viewing the fireworks,
fresh, seasonal dishes, a wine list we like and lots of glitz. Flying Fish at the Boardwalk is probably our
favorite with really good food, good wine list, semi-open kitchen so you can
watch the action. It's the most interesting to watch as cooks, servers,
bartenders and hosts or hostesses weave seamlessly around each other providing
an outstanding experience. A well-oiled
machine is the term that comes to mind.
Do we do anything besides eat at Disney? Sure, sometimes. Tuesday was the warmest day so far, in the
low 70s, so we donned our swimming suits and headed for Typhoon Lagoon. This water park has a long, lazy river for
relaxed floating and a great water roller coaster called the Crusher
Gusher. We got two circuits around the
lazy river and one run down the Crusher Gusher before the rain came and we came
home wet and happy. Then we went to
eat…but you knew that.
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| Floating down that lazy river |
Wednesday was probably the highlight for me so far. We got up at the crack of dawn and went to
the Animal Kingdom for a 3 hour behind the scenes (backstage in Disney-speak) tour of the
animal areas. It was another cool day
which meant some of the animals were inside until it warmed up. The
elephants were all in their night barn and we watched as the
trainers worked with the young baby elephant (2 yrs old, 2000 lbs)
teaching him to present his ears and feet for examination and to lay down on
command, all the while using clicker training and positive reinforcement (sweet
potato chunks) to model the behavior.
Meanwhile the rest herd watched the training and us. We met a young rhino who was getting
introduced to the herd but in the meantime was very interested in, again, watching us . The animal keepers were all
passionate about their animals and conservation efforts that go along with
Disney’s animal program. We walked
through the veterinary hospital and ended with a “skip the long line and get on
your own personal vehicle” ride through the African attraction. Very fun.
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| Entering the African safari ride |
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| Sable antelope |
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| A muddle of hippos with vultures. No, the hippos aren't dead, the vultures are just optimistic |
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| Which way did he go? |
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| No butts about it! White rhinos, social animals |
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| Addax antelope. For more on this rare, desert dwelling critter, check out Addax info |
Yesterday we ended up doing some repairs on rig stuff and
shopped for cat food. Given the sheer
vastness of Disney World, all ordinary shopping takes a bit of hike to get to so 2
trips to the hardware store and a long ride to a pet supermarket ate up most of
the day. However, we still have 3 days
so we’re planning the rest of the fun.
Stay tuned.
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| Last animal photo for now. Florida native Roseate Spoonbill |
Your commentary and especially the pictures magic carpeted me with you. There's something special being with animals in their own way of life. Their relaxing, eating, and frolicking take us to a part of ourselves that's wonderful to peek at even if we can't go back there.
ReplyDeleteWonderful pictures! Is that one hippo getting a sun burn?
ReplyDeleteIt's below-zero again, up here. If you're smart (which are you are), you'll spend the rest of January and all of February on the lazy river, with intermittent breaks for more delicious eating.
-M