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Old 3 Jul 12, 08:07 PM  
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LLKJDisney
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Moretons Magical Memories May 2012 - Day 7 Busch Gardens

The Entourage
Me – Kerry, 34 yr old Disney nutcase, head driver and Narrator. 9th visit
Lee – 33 yr old Florida Lover, 10th Visit, Reserve driver and map man
Jacob – 3 turning 4 (on this trip) yr old going on 40 yr old! 3rd visit (lucky boy) loves collecting autographs
Lucas – 5 month old – smiley in the day – grumpy at night (just like his Daddy)
Dick – 59 yr old – Grandad and Jacob’s best mate – loves the Sun and some roller coasters
Sue 57 yr old – Grandma – Chief tea maker – loves Sprite no Ice.


The Plan
Arrive 7th May – 4 Nights at Bahama Bay Resort
11th May move to Sunset Lakes – Shamu Sanctuary Villa
24th May come home

DAY 7 – BUSCH GARDENS – MONDAY 14th

Today we were off to Busch which Lee was very happy about (he loves a bit of Busch ) We didn’t visit Busch on our last visit and Sue and Dick were quite keen to go as they hadn’t been since their first ever visit. I myself am not a massive fan of the park. Although being a coaster lover the Kumba and the Montu here always make me feel rather icky, but I do like the animals, especially those beautiful white tigers and wanted to give cheetah hunt a try, I also love the Gwazi.

We left the villa at 8.20am and began the journey under cloudy skies. The journey passed without incident and in fact was quite boring.




The most entertaining bit was when Sue fell asleep and Lee took a picture but unfortunately I would be a dead women if I put the picture on here but lets just say ‘catching flies’. This song was played a lot on the radio, Lee loved this song and it became a holiday anthem, it was played a lot by the station


We pulled up in the parking lot at 9.30am, which was good as we found out that the park didn’t open until 10am, despite Lee saying 9am (but again not his fault). We were held at the entrance until bang on 10am. It was only actually 10 minutes wait by the time we had got out the car, on the tram thing and across the road. There were lots of school groups but we were confident that we wouldn’t have to queue for much today. While waiting to get in we planned which way we were going to go round the park. We decided to head left towards the Gwazi, as we figured most would head towards cheetah hunt and Kumba.

Dick decided he was going to give the Gwazi a go, so the 3 of us joined the Lion queue (tiger was closed). There was a 10-minute wait, mainly due to the amount of time people were taking to get in, this frustrated Lee. This ride is a boneshaker and throws you around a lot, despite this I think it’s brilliant and different to all the new roller coasters that tend to be around nowadays. Dick enjoyed his first go on the Gwazi, although I am not sure there will be a second go. We all came off with shaky legs and a banging headache, but for some strange reason we really enjoyed it!

Jacob then did the kids ride, Sandstorm, I think, that is next to Gwazi. A random kids ride just there on its own so I think it gets over looked. He was the only one on it but he didn’t mind.



The clouds had cleared and it was turning into another glorious day.
We moved on towards the sesame street area. Jacob loved it in here and it was virtually empty. He went on all the rides and then went on the rope bridges and tree house.




While Jacob was doing all this I took Lucas into the baby centre, which is also located in the Sesame Street play area. I have to say though; out of all the baby centres this was the worst one. It was so tiny and cramped and it was really dirty! I didn’t like it here at all. I quickly changed Lucas’s bum and left.



Jacob wanted to give the water area a try so he put his trunks on and off he went. However, He found the water bit a little boring though and wanted to go on more rides. So after about 10 minutes he was back in his clothes and riding more rides. We had spent quite a bit of time in this area so by the time we moved towards Sheikra it was 11:30am.

Sheikra is one of Lee’s favourites so he was keen to go on but I think I had sat in the sun for too long and had a headache so didn’t want to go on. Dick said there was no way on earth he was going to go on. This didn’t put Lee off though and off he went on his own. There was no wait, so he walked straight on, he was on the back row but wasn’t fussed as he had been on the front before. He said it was as good as ever and the view from the top was amazing. He tried to convince Dick to go on but he was having none of it. While we were waiting for Lee to finish riding Sheikra we sat underneath watching people get soaked by unknowingly walking into the soak zone from Sheikra, it was hilarious as they were just sauntering along enjoying the heat and then suddenly getting drowned as she swept by! Jacob was dying to get under it but as he had just got dry I tried my best to put him off.


Once Lee was back we decided to get the train all the way round the park so we could see the animals. The next one wasn’t due for another ½ hour so we waited which wasn’t the best experience I have ever had as both Lucas and Jacob were a bit tetchy, we continued to sit and laugh at the poor unfortunate souls that hadn’t noticed the splash zone, which I have to say was a highlight to my day! Eventually the train came and choo choo we were off.


We were all disappointed with the train ride, it took 30mins to do a complete circuit (they do tell you this before you get on) however we hardly saw any animals and none were close enough to photograph. It was extremely hot and sticky on those iron seats. I think a lot of the animals now have specialist enclosures its hard for them to leave that many animals to roam around. Jacob enjoyed the journey however and spotted lots of Zebra’s and Giraffes. When we got off we were all hungry, so we decided to walk to Jungala to grab a bite to eat.

On the way we stopped to look at the tigers. The white tigers are gorgeous and lovely to watch playing in their newly built area, they have always been Lee’s favourite and I think he would go to Busch just to see the white tigers.



Today we were very lucky as the tigers were very lively they were jumping in and out of the water, running across the bridge that connects the enclosures and fighting/playing with each other. We stood for ages watching them. They must have been good as it made Lee forget he was hungry and not much does that! Then just as we were leaving we stopped to look at another tiger that was roaming in the open part (not the enclosed glass bit) when he came quite close to the fencing and sprayed through the fence! Unfortunately Jacob was standing right where he sprayed Jacob immediately shouted ‘mummy the tiger wee’d on me’. I couldn't stop laughing He is still telling people the story. I actually found it funny – bad mummy moment!

My pictures don’t do them justice but they are lovely animals.


We ended up at the Jungala bistro where we had a mixture of cheeseburgers and deli subs, my notes say very pricey for what you got but I guess that applies to all theme park food. I remember I had a turkey sandwich, which was massive.



We then headed towards Timbuktu where Jacob, Lucas, Sue and I went on the carousel. Jacob then followed this up by going on the red aeroplane ride.


Lee and me looked at the pirate ship that goes all the way round and said to each other ‘don’t fancy that’ – we must be getting old. It was then time for the obligatory ice cream. It was now very hot, as it always seems to be when we visit Busch. Either really hot or raining! All cooled down, we moved on…

In a matter of moments we had gone from Timbuktu to the Edge of Africa. We watched the Elephant presentation and listened to a lady give a talk on them and explain their behaviour, it was actually quite interesting. We continued our walk through Africa in search of more animals; we gave Rhino Rally a miss, as with out the water part it’s just not very good even if there was no queue. We arrived at the Lion enclosure to find they weren’t there, to be fair it looked as if some work was being done on their enclosure. The Hyenas were there but only just visible.
We then got to Grandads and Jacob’s favourites the Meerkats,

closely followed up by the Giraffes.

We wanted to see the Gorilla’s and Chimps as well as go on Cheetah Hunt but it was getting towards 3pm and Jacob was wilting. We knew we weren’t coming back to Busch so we had to make the most of it (Lee always says that’s one of his motto’s)

Sue looked after the boys while the 3 of us went on Cheetah Hunt. This was a first for all of us. We had looked at the ride throughout the day, as the track seems to cover a lot of the park. The main thing we noticed was how quiet and smooth it was even when it went past your head you could barely hear it. After a 10minute wait we were on. It was excellent, very fast and had some good twists and turns. It was the total opposite to our first ride of the day (Gwazi). I was surprised it had no shoulder restraint even though you do go upside down; I thought you had to have these if you did? Even if it was a split second.

We then walked through the Myombe Reserve, which we were a little disappointed with but only because none of the primates were very energetic (a bit like ourselves) we decided to call it a day and after looking at all the alligators near the exit we were off. A quick browse in the shop for Jacob to dent his pocket money savings a bit more. Here he bought a plastic giraffe head on a stick with a trigger at the bottom that you pulled to move its mouth! And a Busch Gardens rugby ball. We pulled out of Busch just after 4.30pm. We had all had a nice day, but were all shattered. There is something for everyone there and I would say that it is now that big that it is almost impossible to see everything in one day, especially if you are in a party with different interests (i.e. Coasters, Kiddie Rides, Animals, Shows).

one of the only pictures i have of Jacob in the stroller we bought him

I didn’t think we had enough fuel to get home, although Lee was sure we did. There was no way I was risking it and I pulled off at Exit 19 on the I-4 to fill up.

Now I have been to Busch at least 4 times and every time I have been it has been a red-hot day but on the way back the clouds have always gathered and there has been a massive storm and downpour. So it was no surprise to me that when we were half way home it decided to tip it down. The only time I don’t enjoy driving in Florida is when there is a heavy rainstorm. We made it home around 5.45pm, without any dramas but the rain was still coming down as hard as ever. It was that bad we had to sit in the car for 10mins on the driveway until it stopped as I couldn’t get Lucas out the car, we only had to go 5 yards but we would have been drenched.

Eventually we got in and had a very welcome cup of tea (made by Susan!) and Lee put some washing on (he does have some uses) No one really had the energy to go out and eat so we decided on a take away. Pizza Hut was the choice with Sue opting for KFC. Lee and I drove out to pick it up and were back at the Villa by 7.30pm.

Grandma and her boys

We were all shattered and didn’t really do a lot for the rest of the evening, watched a few adverts which occasionally were interrupted by some actual television programs. My notes say in bed by 9.30pm – how rock and roll are we!


TOMORROW MY FAVOURITE PARK HOLLYWOOD STUDIO’S
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Old 3 Jul 12, 08:28 PM  
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Milner
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Great day at BG we really enjoyed it in 2009.
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Old 3 Jul 12, 08:56 PM  
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TiggerD
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Fab

Love the tigers as well will be seeing them in a few weeks
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Old 3 Jul 12, 10:56 PM  
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anniebee65
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Wow, I can actually feel the heat emanating from your report! Great day at Busch tho
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Old 3 Jul 12, 11:54 PM  
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Another great report, we all loved Busch Gardens and hope to go there again in 764 days!
The kids loved Sesame Street land and probably would have stayed there all day!



Can't wait for next instalment as Hollywood Studios is my fave as well
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Old 4 Jul 12, 11:45 AM  
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orlandosgr8
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We love Busch Gardens too, as you say there is something for everyone. Glad it's not just me that ends up having the occasional early night too on holiday
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Old 4 Jul 12, 02:59 PM  
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mrsd08/10
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enjoyed reading your day..
haven't been to busch yet and won't get there on this trip.. maybe in 2015...
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Old 4 Jul 12, 10:52 PM  
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A great day and a bit for everyone, fab photo's, looking forward to reading more
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Old 5 Jul 12, 08:23 PM  
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Enjoying the trip reports. Waiting patiently for day 8...
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Old 6 Jul 12, 10:39 PM  
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another great day
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