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riday, August 7, 1998 - Trip Down
I hate traffic. We left for DC after dropping my son off at my
parents' house. He's a camp counselor and he will also be going on his own trip, to
participate in the Maccabi games in Detroit the week of the 16th. After last minute
instructions, we hit the road at 6:00pm. Traffic snarls on the New Jersey Turnpike and a
two hour back up heading into the Capital Beltway, had us arriving at the Comfort Inn in
Lorton at 1:00am (including a stop for dinner.) For folks driving to Disney, I
Suggest picking up I-295 out of Baltimore (exit 52) to avoid the backup.
Saturday, August 8, 1998 - Trip
Down
Check out was at 11:00, so to kill time we drove down to Potomac Mills Mall. Btw, this
mall has a Disney Outlet Store in it. We checked into the auto train by 1:00. The
train left on time, maybe even a little early. We got to Richmond and stopped for about an
hour to fix a burned out cable between cars. We were lucky that we took the 5:00 dinner
seating, since the following seating was delayed due to lack of power. After the cable was
fixed and power was restored, we watched "Conspiracy Theory" on our little TV,
then turned in for the night. We woke up at 7 and ate breakfast at 8. We arrived in
Sanford at 9:30 and an hour and a half later we were on our way.
Sunday, August 9, 1998 - Day 1
| We arrived at The Boardwalk at 11:45. We only had to
wait on line for a few minutes before we were directed to Guest Services to handle the
overflow. A new CM was being trained, so check-in took a little longer, but we were in no
rush. Plus, we were able to get our tickets and E-ride tickets at the same time. Our room
wasn't ready initially, but as we were finishing up, it became ready. I didn't get the
boardwalk view I requested, but we did get a perfect view of the Luna Pool - room 5066.
The studio is roomier than the studios at OKW, or maybe it's the fold out couch in place
of one bed. Judy's only complaint is that there isn't enough drawer space. The kitchen
area is definitely bigger. It was lunchtime, as our stomachs told us, so we grabbed
a bite at the ESPN Club. Not knowing what to |
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expect, we were pleasantly surprised
by the non-meat choices. I had the veggie burger and was allowed to substitute fruit for
the french fries. Judy had the Home Court Salad w/o the chicken or shrimp that could be
added for an extra $3.00. Judy had asked for the dressing on the side and when it came
with it mixed in, our server happily brought it back for another. We both enjoyed our
meals immensely.
We then drove to the Publix on Rte. 192 to stock up and were back in
the room by 3:30. Even though my Metrostars were on TV, I made the ultimate sacrifice in
order to see AK for the first time. |
| Before I describe our afternoon at AK, I have to thank
Kathy and everyone else who said to go in the afternoon. They were right, as you will soon
see. The bus came within 5 minutes of getting to the stop and it was nearly empty, which
to me was a good sign. Our first sight of AK was the top of the Tree of Life, from the
road. It towered over everything. As we entered through the gate, a CM told us we wouldn't
make the 4:30 showing of the Festival of the Lion King, so we went to see the Tree and
It's Tough To Be A Bug. We walked (and walked and walked and walked through the line. The
queue is obviously structured to contain a lot of people.) right into the show, just as it
was about to begin. I must say, that while I enjoyed it, for 3D shows in WDW, I like the
lightheartedness of HISTA and MuppetVision 3D better. This show is darker and more
intense. There were more than a few scared kids in the audience. I also must have been
sitting wrong, since I missed some of the "surprises." |
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From ITTBAB, we got on line for Lion King, 45 minutes before
showtime. We were let in 30 minutes later. This was a lively crowd. They even started a
wave while waiting for the show to begin. The show was brilliant, a superb production, and
I may try to see it a second time. After it was over we headed to Africa and grabbed a
bite at the Tusker House. For a "fast food" restaurant, the food was good. I had
the half rotisserie chicken with green beans and mashed potatoes and Judy had the kids mac
and cheese and a bean salad.
Next was the Kilimanjaro Safaris. It was late enough in the day and there were plenty of
animals out. I agree with others who have expressed the sentiment that it could do without
the poacher bit. It was 7:30 when we exited and a CM told us a major storm was moving in.
Since Judy wasn't going to ride it anyway, I left her at the protection (from the rain,
not our charge cards :) of Outfitters and headed over to Countdown to Extinction. I got
there before the skies opened. The wait was only 25 minutes from arrival to boarding a
car. Very intense. Very rough. Very Cool. By the time I got out, it was just drizzling.
I met up with Judy and we headed back to the BW. We got back to the room in time to
watch the fireworks coming from MGM.
 
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