The trip of many changes August 2017 - Day 2 Walmart and Seaworld

[jothp]

Index is here

Part one

As on our last trip I was the first to wake this morning at 3.30am so I pottered about unpacking the stuff we were going to need for the day. Evie was up next at 4.30 and the others were all awake by about 5.30. We were all ready by about 6.00 and feeling hungry. Breakfast wasn't available yet so we decided to get the Walmart shop out of the way.

As is always the case at home we only went for some bottled water and some snacks/drinks/breakfast bits to have in our room here and at Disney but managed to come away over an hour and a half later having spent $230!

Back at the hotel we hurriedly unpacked the shopping and headed to breakfast as by now the girls thought their throats had been cut. There was a small selection of hot food that changed very slightly each day - scrambled eggs, bacon, waffles, some sort of sausage or meat pattie and some sort of potato or biscuit. There was also croissants, pain au chocolat, bagels and a couple of bowls of fruit. The breakfast was included in the rate we had paid for the hotel.

Feeling much better for having eaten we headed out to Seaworld, arriving pretty much dead on 9.00. I remember feeling a bit grumpy that we hadn't arrived earlier especially given the early get up but my bad mood soon passed. The plan for this morning was to do a few things with short queues and then head back to the hotel for a nap before using the hotel quick queue tickets later on.

First up was Manta for the older two girls (neither Ollie nor I like big rides). Ollie took Evie in the aquarium while I waited by the exit. They were done by 9.25. Next we headed off to Antarctica. The queue was still very short and we were back outside by 9.50. I had asked for the mild ride but the lady loading us seemed quite inexperienced and we ended up with wild. It was fine though so no harm done. Evie loves penguins so she was especially thrilled with this ride but it was difficult to stay in the viewing area for more than a couple of minutes dressed for the heat outside.

Next up was Mako for the big two. It wasn't quite open yet but they joined the queue and were on and off by 10.10. We took a slow wander over towards Kraken stopping to try on some sunglasses and pull silly faces on the way.

I'd missed that you had to book a time to ride and tried now but the next available time was in the afternoon when we planned to be at the hotel. The girls and Ollie went to queue for Journey to Atlantis but it was experiencing technical difficulties. They waited about half an hour but it was showing no sign of reopening so they gave up waiting.
By now it was 11 and we wanted to see the 12.15 one ocean show so we started wandering in that direction. We had to stop on the way for the older girls to have a hotdog and a drink because once again they were so hungry they couldn't possibly wait!

One Ocean was very impressive but the early morning was catching up with me and I did have to fight to stay awake . We left as soon as the show had finished and despite the hotdogs the girls were hankering after lunch. Ollie had always wanted to try Taco Bell so we used google to direct us to one. I have to say that the girls and I all thought it was disgusting and I don't think we'll be in a hurry to visit again but it ticked something off Ollie's list.

We finally arrived back to our room just before 2.

[jothp]

Part 2

We tried to have a sleep - but the girls weren't having any of it. All they were interested in was getting in the pool. After much trying and both Ollie and I getting quite cross we gave up on the idea of sleep and took the girls to the pool. They had a good hour cooling off before we headed back to get ready to return to the park.

Given we hadn't managed any sleep this afternoon I think we would have been better off just having an early night but we soldiered on with the plan to go back to the park for the evening. We arrived about 6.30 and collected our once per ride quick queue that had come with our hotel stay. The older two used theirs on Manta and then rode again with mine and Ollie's. Journey to Atlantis was back up and running so Ollie went to take the girls off to do that but Evie decided at the last minute that she wasn't going so we looked in the aquarium and the shop while we waited. Next up it was off to turtle trek which we all enjoyed. We really didn't need quick queue here as we could have walked straight in without.

We took a few pictures and then decided to split up. The big girls really wanted to ride Mako again and Evie really wanted to go to Antarctica. As Ollie and I don't do big rides we let the older girls head off to Mako alone with strict instructions of where to meet us. I was a little nervous but it was fine and after all they take themselves on the train to school and back everyday with no problem and this was only walking across a theme park!

We met back up and were all feeling a bit weary so we headed off to find a seat in the stadium for Ignite. Evie fell asleep virtually as soon as her bottom hit the seat. I woke her just as the show was starting so she didn't miss out.

We headed straight back to the hotel after the show more than ready for our beds.

After today there are far more photos to make the days a bit more interesting

[collybird]

Those pictures from the end of the day definitely sum up first day jet lag very well! Love the girls' playsuits.

[jothp]

Originally Posted by collybird

Those pictures from the end of the day definitely sum up first day jet lag very well! Love the girls' playsuits.

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Thanks for reading - we were certainly all a bit exhausted by that point. Thanks for your kind comments about the girls playsuits - they were both from H&M.

[debsym62]

Good first day. We are planning walmart and sea world on our first day.

[jothp]

Originally Posted by debsym62

Good first day. We are planning walmart and sea world on our first day.

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Thanks for reading. We enjoyed our first day but I think it would have been wise to return for fireworks on a different day. The jet lag was getting the better of us by the end.

[Custancia]

I bet your older girls loved the independence of going across the park themselves. I don’t think I’d have managed to head out again without any afternoon nap!

[jothp]

Originally Posted by Custancia

I bet your older girls loved the independence of going across the park themselves. I don’t think I’d have managed to head out again without any afternoon nap!

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We let them have some independence quite a few times throughout the trip and it was great for them, we enjoyed not having to follow them to every ride too.

[Excitedx4]

You guys packed a lot into your first day! Love a Walmart shop!

[jothp]

Originally Posted by Excitedx4

You guys packed a lot into your first day! Love a Walmart shop!

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We did pack a lot in. I think with hindsight maybe we should have taken it a bit easier for the first few days to help us later on.