The Bare Necessities - Day 6 Monday 5th August 2019 AK, The Kitchen Sink, Epcot and Hoop Dee Doo

[Goldia]

Day 6 Animal Kingdom, Epcot World Showcase and Hoop Dee Doo Revue Monday 5th August 2019

Welcome to The Bare Necessities Trip Report. I’m Abby and I went to Orlando at the end of July 2019 with my husband David, our children Max (14) and Kate (12). We’ve been to Orlando before But this trip was different as we had my parents Jac and Tom with us, they will be referred to as Mum and Dad or Grandma and Grandad throughout the report. I was so excited to take them with us as this was their first time to WDW.

Day 6

Today we were visiting AK for EMH in the morning, then having a rest at the hotel pool and in the afternoon we were going to attempt the kitchen sink before mooching around World Showcase and heading over for dinner at Hoop Dee Doo Revue. So, a quiet day with just a little bit of eating!

It was our last EMH of the holiday, AK opened at 8am and I said that we should aim to be at the bus stop by 7.15am.

Dave and me did really well and got to the bus stop at 7.13am, Max and Kate were also ready and went to knock for Grandma and Grandad. There was already a bus at the bus stop for AK, but given only two of us were there we had to let it go and we didn’t get on it. I hoped that the next bus would be along soon. It wasn’t too bad as it turned up at 7.37am, just 24 minutes after the last one left so can’t really complain there as they advertise one every 20 minutes.

When we got to the park bag check was actually pretty good and we scanned our magic bands to show we were onsite guests at 8.06am so a speedy security, bag check and magic band scanner.

In my plan was for us to go on Na’vi River Journey as I’d prioritised booking FOP as our tier 1 FP. We went through to Pandora and the posted wait time for Na’vi was 20 minutes. We figured it was now or never and we went on through.

Most of the wait was just us walking through the queue and we only really paused when we got to the part of the line where FP merges with stand-by. In the end I guess it was around a 15 minute wait.

We enjoy the prettiness of the ride, if that makes sense, it’s lovely and colourful and the luminescence glow in the dark thing they have going on is nice, but really, what is the story? Is there a story? Or is it just a nice little boat ride. I’m not sure I’ll ever be booking a FP for it especially as at the moment it's at the expense of a FP for FOP.

After Na’vi we wandered back past the tree of life and into Dinoland.

We wanted to check out Primeval Whirl as we’d spotted it was closed when we went to AK in the evening after Discovery Cove. The cast members out front explained they were not sure when it would open and were thinking it would be closed for a few weeks. The kids love this ride as it throws you around a lot, so they were a bit disappointed .

We decided to walk on through to Asia and get an EMH ride in on Expedition Everest. Mum and Dad were happy to sit this one out, they didn’t fancy going on it again. None of us minded as it is fairly intense. As we approached the entrance the wait time went up from 10 minutes to 15 minutes.

It was only a 10 minute wait though.

I took lots of photos of the stand-by line as we usually FP so we don't get to see this.

I sat with Max and Kate was with Dave.

We met up with Mum and Dad afterwards and wandered round to Africa ready for our first FP of the day which was the Safari.

On the way the kids (and the big kids) played with the musical instruments.

Before doing the safari we decided to have some breakfast from Kusafari Bakery.

I ordered 2 colossal cinnamon Mickey shaped buns and 2 elephant ears pastries for sharing. Plus we had 3 vanilla iced coffees, a coke, an orange juice and an apple juice.

The cinnamon bun is so good, one ear is probably enough for a serving but of course we managed to finish the lot.

After breakfast we were within our FP slot for Kilimanjaro Safari.

We love this ride, I took absolutely loads of photos of all the animals, believe it or not this is just a small amount of the photos.

I also saw the rope bridges that you would have to go on if you book up the Wild Africa Trek, I would love to do one of these one day, but there's no way I could walk across those bridges.

We got fantastic views of the giraffe, with one walking across the road in front of us so we had to stop.

The elephants were also pretty active.

Then we managed to see the rhino’s too.

It was a great safari and we all enjoyed it.

As we came off the safari it was coming up for 10am so I suggested we walk through the Gorilla Falls trail.

I like the animal trails at AK and I’m pleased to say that both the kids like them too, so they don’t moan that they are missing out on going on big rides.

I gave my phone to Kate so that she could take interesting photos of the animals.

So, once again a lot of photos of the trail and the animals.

We all had fun putting our hands inside the imprint of the gorilla’s hands.

By now I suspect she was getting a little bit bored...

I'm not sure why this wall warranted a photo with her hand on but, well I thought you'd want to see it.

Last few photos of the trail now.

As we came out of the trail we were all feeling a little bit hot, which was great news as our next FP was open and that was for Kali River Rapids! We were going to get to cool down

As we were walking past the Up Bird Show theatre out came Kevin, this was fun to see as she was looking over the shoulder of a couple and as they were facing the other way they hadn’t realised she had come along and were taken by surprise.

We put all our bits and bobs in the lockers before going on Kali.

Me, mum, dad and Kate all got absolutely soaked…Dave and Max laughed at us . It was pretty funny though and we didn’t mind as it was now gone 11am and warming up a lot.

Our last FP was FOP. We wandered back through Africa and around the river to Pandora. We showed mum and dad the point on the bridge where we’d seen a cast member holding up the 300 minute end of the stand-by line sign last year. They agreed that while FOP is great they would never want to wait 300 minutes.

We’ve already shared what we thought about FOP and it was awesome once again. We all loved it. There’s not much more to say really.

As we came off the ride and were walking down the slope towards the gift shop there was a snake on the path. Everyone was giving it a pretty wide berth and walking right on the edge of the path. Max decided to bend down and get a closer look , which I was not too happy about as I had no idea what sort of snake it was, it would have served him right if the snake had bit him on the nose! I’m sure it was just a grass snake, but as I had no idea I told him to not be so stupid and keep walking.

We decided to head back to the hotel. Ok, so we were always going to head back to the hotel at this point, but I like to give the others the illusion of having a choice, and they did well to make the right choice .

We’d had a pretty laid back morning, we’d done the three FP and had our EMH rides on Na’vi and Expedition Everest. I was happy that we’d had a chance to do one of the trails and as everyone had enjoyed it I thought I’d look at our other AK slot and see if I could fit in the tiger trail.

We were really lucky as there was a bus waiting at the bus stop so no hanging around to get home . We were back in the hotel room by 12.55 and we agreed to have a 2 hour break before we needed to catch the bus to Epcot so we could walk through to Beaches and Cream.

I had tried in vain to change the time slot of this ADR. This was booked on the last day B&C was due to be open before the refurb. Then there was a small reprieve and an extra 3 weeks was added before they started the refurbishment but I could not find a slot for a table for 6 that was before 10pm on a Friday night and I knew there was no way I wanted to be eating all that ice cream so late at night.

So, while it wasn’t ideal that we do the kitchen sink before going over to Hoop Dee Doo it was the one thing that Max really wanted to do this trip with Grandad as he felt like we would have a good chance of finishing the whole lot this year. We had attempted the kitchen sink last year just the 4 of us, but stupidly we ate a full meal before it. This year we had two extra helpers and we weren't going to make the same mistake twice…

Well, the kids decided they absolutely must have a proper lunch, in spite of the fact we were due to go out for ice cream in a couple of hours, so we hit the foodcourt. Max had a bacon cheeseburger.

Kate also had one, but she shared hers with me and Dave!

So, 2 QS used here. For the drinks we got a beer and a margarita.

Dave decided to have a bowl of gumbo as he’d enjoyed it so much yesterday. No photo – it’s the same as yesterday.

Mum went back to the room for a lie down, so Dad had some beignets for a snack credit. They seem to be his staple lunch.

Rather than going to the pool we chilled out in the room and met up at the bus stop at 3pm. Our ADR was 4pm so I figured this was enough time to get through Epcot and out World Showcase.

The bus was waiting for us, we had done well today for buses. At Epcot I decided we had enough time to get our photo taken in front of Spaceship Earth.

We’d missed out in Figment last week so as it was a 10 minute wait we went over there and rode it.

Me and Kate were doing a lot of singing along. Everyone had fun in the imagination room at the end of the ride.

We could see some very ominous looking clouds, we hadn’t had any rain today, yet… I hurried everyone up as it was 10 minutes until our ADR and we knew it was about to pour down. We just made it to Yacht and Beach just ahead of the clouds.

As we made our way around to the restaurant the heavens opened.

There were quite a lot of people camped out who had been turfed out of the pool.

We checked in and they said it shouldn’t be long to wait. While we were standing there the most almighty clap of thunder shook the walls and everyone jumped. It was so close to us. I hadn’t seen the lightning that accompanied it but really it must have been close. Mum filmed the rain, it was really coming down now – the torrential Florida rain we are all used to. While she was filming there was another crash of thunder. In the end the ladies at the podium who checked us in were right we only waited about 10 minutes before being called in.

We had a quick look at the menu.

But we’d already agreed that we were getting the Kitchen Sink, this was basically an amuse bouche for dinner! I know it’s not the standard fare you expect of an amuse bouche but we didn’t need more food. Plus this was being paid for OOP not with dining plan credits.

The kids ordered cokes, the adults water. Dad tried to take a clever photo of us in the mirror.

Our waitress kindly took our photo before the Kitchen Sink came out.

There was the usual fanfare which accompanies it. Again, the waitress took a photo for us with the sink this time.

While we were in there 3 other tables tried it, one was just a couple and that was after they had eaten a normal meal, they didn’t come anywhere near finishing it.

So, how did we get on? Well, I was rubbish as I only had 1 and half bowls, Kate had 2 and a half, David 5 bowls, but he did manage a blob of peanut butter sauce donated by Max, Grandma and Grandad managed 3 bowls each. Max ate 7 bowlfuls!

We did it

No credits here, it was paid for OOP. It's $34 for the sink. We were in the restaurant about 45 minutes and luckily by the time we came out the rain had stopped.

So, we slowly made our way back to Epcot and then we slowly waddled around World Showcase. We turned right, looking around France and then Morocco.

We also had a good look around Japan and spent some time in the shop.

The kids enjoy the Studio Ghibli movies (actually so me and Dave) and there were quite a lot of souvenirs representing those characters.

In USA Dave and me treated ourselves to a cocktail.

The Galaxy Juice, which had orange, pineapple and lime juice with Grenadine and Red Stag Black Cherry Bourbon. This was yummy!

It was so good we didn’t even mind it had started raining again! This time it was a drizzle though and not a torrent.

Mum was less impressed with the rain and invested in a poncho in Italy.

We carried on to Germany, we always like looking for the most expensive items in the crystals shop.

This Dumbo would only set you back $9500.

Onwards to the China pavilion.

Where we were lucky to catch the last half of the acrobats show. This still goes on when it rains, but they do it inside. I tried to take some photos, but they are pretty poor.

The lady who catches the bowls on her head was fab, if she missed one she just started again, didn’t give up and kept on trying. The audience were really encouraging and when she finally did all of them there was a great round of applause.

Then onwards to Norway.

Earlier in the day after we’d used our FP on FOP I’d checked MDE and seen there was a FP for Frozen that fitted in with our timings. There was a very long line for Frozen though and Kate and Dad weren’t convinced it was the FP line, but it was and it moved pretty quickly as we were on the ride within 5 minutes of joining the queue.

Of course in the shop after the ride the kids and Dad couldn’t resist trying on some silly hats.

Or poking their finger up the nose of the troll!

After doing the ride, it felt only right and proper to go and meet the ladies themselves.

There was absolutely no wait at all for this.

We were straight through and into one of the meeting rooms.

Our final stop was Mexico where of course we had a little mooch around the shop and rode the Gran Fiesta Tour.

Our slow walk around World Showcase had been really enjoyable, it had fitted in with our plans well and I’m glad we had the time to really enjoy all the shops and some of the shows.

It was now time to make our way over to Fort Wilderness. We’ve not been to this resort before so I asked at the exit of Epcot if it was better to wait for a bus direct to FW or to get the monorail to MK and then get a boat over to FW. We were told it was best to get the bus, which is what I’d thought, but it seemed worth checking as the monorail is fairly frequent between Epcot and MK.

There was already a bus at the stop, so it was definitely the right decision to get a bus, we had been really lucky with the buses today.

At FW you have to get off at the front of the resort and then wait for the internal bus to go up to the restaurant. You can take a purple, yellow or orange bus to Pioneer Hall.

Our Hoop Dee Doo ADR was for the 8.30pm show, this was first for us and we really enjoyed it. It’s 2 credits on the DDP and at the 8.30pm show you can use your credits for the category 1 seating. If you want to go to either of the earlier shows and use credits to pay then you can’t book a category 1 table. If you don't like audience participation then maybe this isn't for you, to minimise the risk of being selected then you are much better off booking a table on the 2nd floor, so no need to get category 1 seating. While it’s a 2 credit meal it does include the gratuity, like CRT, so we had nothing to pay for this, plus the food and drinks are ‘all you care to enjoy’ meaning it’s a bottomless family style meal and our server was great at regularly checking if we had enough of everything or if we needed any top ups.

I went to the podium to check us in and saw that our table had already been allocated on the ticket we collected at check in so we settled in on the rockers outside Trails End rather than join the scrum to enter on the dot of 8.30pm

There were pony rides going on and it was lovely sitting on the rocking chairs.

If we’d been 10 minutes earlier we’d have grabbed a cocktail from the walk up window behind us. But we didn’t really have time to get a drink.

We saw that the doors had been opened as everyone had moved to line up outside so they could be seated. We joined the end of the queue and were pleased to find our table was the third row from the front and so had a really good view of the show.

I described it to the others as sort of like panto I didn't know any other way of explaining what would be going on and this seemed close enough.

The salad and corn bread were already on the table when we arrived.

The others complained as apparently I took nearly all of the tomatoes, it was a tasty salad.

We chose red wine and beer. The wine was not good, but never mind.

The kids had cokes.

The performers here were great and really good fun, they come out into the audience and perform amongst the tables.

The food was good, but completely different to the food at other signatures, we’d done CRT the night before and it really was a contrast. We had fried chicken, ribs, corn, baked beans, mashed potato.

It was all very tasty and worth the 2 credits but you have to accept it's not gourmet.

We joined in with the waving of our napkins

Of course Dad was irresistible to the performers and got selected to be part of the show (picked on).

He was serenaded by one of the female performers.

I don't think Dave has ever been more relieved than when she stepped past him and settled on Dad. She sang a whole song to Dad. I’m pretty sure that Dad would rather not have received all this attention as she ran her fingers through his hair, but all he really had to do is sit there while she sang to him.

Pudding is a strawberry shortcake which we were way to full for, but we forced down a few small bowlfuls.

Unfortunately, Dad’s ladyfriend wasn’t finished with him and came back for some more lovin' poor Dad

The kids joined in with the instruments at the end.

A thoroughly fun time was had. We all enjoyed ourselves, the food was great and while I think this is a once and done for us, it was great fun and I'm glad we did it as a group, safety in numbers

As you leave the dinner show there are lots of cast members explaining how to get where you want to go. There is a boat dock for people who want to use the boat to get to MK, or you can take the bus back to the front of the resort and then get a bus to Disney Springs or a park to then catch a bus back to your hotel.

We chose the bus option, this was very well organised, the buses were lining up behind each other. I suppose it helps that they know when the show will start and finish so they know exactly when the buses will be needed. We made it back to the hotel without too much of a fuss and without having to hang around waiting for a long time.

So, today had seen more successes with the bus waits as 3 of our journey’s today there were buses waiting for us at the bus stops. We had a laid back morning at AK and then the stroll around World Showcase, I think finding time to do the trail at AK and not rush around World Showcase helped us all to relax today. Sometimes it's nice to do the smaller things and just take it all in, there really is such a lot to see and it doesn't all have to be rides. We didn’t rush anywhere, we did still manage to do a fair few attractions. Ok, so Figment and Gran Fiesta are hardly top priorities for everyone, but we didn’t have to wait for either of them and they are fun in their own way. The dinner was a real experience and one which was new to all of us. I’d been wanting to see the show for a while so I was really pleased with the day, we’d all had fun and Dad had survived his second day in a row of being included as part of the show.

Statistics
Steps 28,638 - our biggest step count by far, but not a surprise really with doing the trail at AK and then all of World Showcase.
Attractions 8

Coming Soon
Next up tomorrow we finally make it to a water park – Max’s favourite. We had no ADR booked as I’d planned for us to go to AK in the evening and the QS and snacks there is really good. It was a much needed rest day, with a lie in and then a fair amount of lazing around at Typhoon Lagoon.

[caitlinsmummy]

Considering your later bus you still made it in good time and managed to get a few rides done.

I'm with you about Na'vi river, in fact I don't even think we'll bother next time as the kid's enjoy the thrill rides much more

Love the kitchen sink pics, I knew you would all do it! Well done!

You got so much done in Epcot too you've done well with the attractions/shows today.

We were thrown by FW, the whole getting a bus to the main area had me so stressed it is a beautiful resort though.

Love how Dad got picked on at the show bless him

Another great day, I love how relaxed your days are, yet you always seem to fit so much in, I need some tips Abby! xx

[Th1nkT1nk]

Wow! You got so much done! I’m definitely going do some little planner cards like yours for our trip next year... so much more practical than trying to absorb details from a spreadsheet each day!
Loved reading this so much, it sounds like my kind of day! AK is one of our faves and I love the fact it’s not all just focused on rides!
We absolutely loved Hoop de doo when we did it too... your poor dad

[MrsSilverStar]

What a lovely day - I agree with Kelly, it’s relaxed and yet also packed! You’ve clearly got the Disney magic down to a fine art!

Kate’s photos were fun, we’ve bought Heath an instant camera for our trip, dread to think what kind of shots we’ll get

Bet Max was thrilled he finally conquered the Kitchen Sink! Glad that your dad wasn’t too embarrassed by his starring role at the show...we always get picked on too, must be making the mistake of making eye contact!

Really enjoyed reading this Abby, I needed to read about a fun, calm day because my nerves keep building now our turn is so close!

[Goldia]

Originally Posted by caitlinsmummy

Considering your later bus you still made it in good time and managed to get a few rides done.

I'm with you about Na'vi river, in fact I don't even think we'll bother next time as the kid's enjoy the thrill rides much more

Love the kitchen sink pics, I knew you would all do it! Well done!

You got so much done in Epcot too you've done well with the attractions/shows today.

We were thrown by FW, the whole getting a bus to the main area had me so stressed it is a beautiful resort though.

Love how Dad got picked on at the show bless him

Another great day, I love how relaxed your days are, yet you always seem to fit so much in, I need some tips Abby! xx

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The kitchen sink was a fun experience, it somehow doesn't look as big or intimidating in the photos. But Max was pretty pleased with himself for eating so many bowls.

Poor Dad with being picked on. I don't think he enjoyed the attention at all, but we found it hilarious.

This was a relaxed day, you're right, even though we walked miles and miles. I suppose because we weren't rushing or worrying about getting to a FP so it just felt more laid back.

I know it reads like I was all chilled and everything, but at the time I was really worrying we weren't actually doing enough I kept thinking we should be fitting more in and yet when I typed up this day it was so fun and a lovely day. I'm so sad I didn't appreciate it at the time

Originally Posted by Th1nkT1nk

Wow! You got so much done! I’m definitely going do some little planner cards like yours for our trip next year... so much more practical than trying to absorb details from a spreadsheet each day!
Loved reading this so much, it sounds like my kind of day! AK is one of our faves and I love the fact it’s not all just focused on rides!
We absolutely loved Hoop de doo when we did it too... your poor dad

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I like the cards as they meant I wasn't permanently attached to my phone, often on the back were snack reminders! You know things you really wanted to eat from vlogs or food reports. Plus I'd put the times of shows I wanted to try and fit in as a reminder. They were only small cards, about the size of a credit card. But I found them really helpful.

Originally Posted by MrsSilverStar

What a lovely day - I agree with Kelly, it’s relaxed and yet also packed! You’ve clearly got the Disney magic down to a fine art!

Kate’s photos were fun, we’ve bought Heath an instant camera for our trip, dread to think what kind of shots we’ll get

Bet Max was thrilled he finally conquered the Kitchen Sink! Glad that your dad wasn’t too embarrassed by his starring role at the show...we always get picked on too, must be making the mistake of making eye contact!

Really enjoyed reading this Abby, I needed to read about a fun, calm day because my nerves keep building now our turn is so close!

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Oh I really hope you manage to include some of Heath's photos in your report. I'm just going to assume there will be one. It's a lovely idea to keep him looking around and being involved in it all. He'll love having the camera.

Max was happy, he was really looking forward to this day. My dad has a very sweet tooth. The kids know where his stash of chocolate and biscuits is in the kitchen and are always helping themselves to a treat. So, Max was fairly confident that with Grandad on the team the sink would be conquered, and it was!

Way back when the kids were very small, maybe 5 and 3, we went to Gran Canaria and Dave was picked on by the cabaret singer on our first night. They still recall how she serenaded him with the Bonnie Tyler classic Holding Out for a Hero...anyway, there's obviously something about us that makes us look keen too! I figure you're better off just sucking it up and faking that you're enjoying than protesting.

I hope you have an absolute blast on your trip Tara, I hope it's all you imagined it would be and more. I hope your boys both enjoy it all as much as you and I hope they are a little bit brave on the big boy rides! There really isn't anything too bad at Disney apart from R&R and TOT, but you've experienced them at DLP. I also hope you love Figment I ended up watching the new Epcot Forever fireworks show last week, I'd been planning on saving it for real life rather than watching it on you tube first, but resistance was futile. Well, they include the figment imagination song a few times and it was so lovely I'm going to be a balling, crying, mess when I see it for the first time. I hope you enjoy it.

Right that's me off! Sorry to go on and on, but you must be used to that by now.

[walt4it]

What an incredible amount of photos for today
Wish we had still been at the Y&B Club today , just to watch the Kitchen Sink being devoured! Impressive effort by Max there
As for the photos amid an empty Kitchen sink and nose picking of the troll - I love the look on Kate's face of the norsemen
Legend status continues for your dad at Hoop dee Doo Can even sense Dave's relief in your words too
A day that really will be remembered due to your fab planning and ensuring it went smoothly too x

[jothp]

Another lovely day with so much done. Your parents really seem to be enjoying themselves. I can just imagine my dad getting the beignets for lunch too if he thought my mum wasn't around!

I love the idea of the wild Africa trek but don't think I'd do well with those bridges either.

[Goldia]

Originally Posted by walt4it

What an incredible amount of photos for today
Wish we had still been at the Y&B Club today , just to watch the Kitchen Sink being devoured! Impressive effort by Max there
As for the photos amid an empty Kitchen sink and nose picking of the troll - I love the look on Kate's face of the norsemen
Legend status continues for your dad at Hoop dee Doo Can even sense Dave's relief in your words too
A day that really will be remembered due to your fab planning and ensuring it went smoothly too x

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It would have been a spectacle to watch

I think Kate's face is brilliant in that photo as well, eye rolling aplenty

Poor Dad, Dave was so relieved. He said that when the cast member looked out from the stage he felt like she was looking at him so when she walked past him he breathed a sigh of relief.

Originally Posted by jothp

Another lovely day with so much done. Your parents really seem to be enjoying themselves. I can just imagine my dad getting the beignets for lunch too if he thought my mum wasn't around!

I love the idea of the wild Africa trek but don't think I'd do well with those bridges either.

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Donuts for lunch, this was not the first time, and I think it wasn't the last time either! I'll have to remind myself if he had them for lunch when mum was around, maybe he did.

I think Mum and Dad did throw themselves into it all and were keen to see everything they could. It really did feel like a once in a lifetime trip for them. I haven't dared to ask if they'd ever go back.

[Fuellady]

Another brilliant day gone to plan . Those huge Mickey cinnamon buns look like a great way to start the day.

Fab morning at AK, really relaxed pace but with loads done. We haven't done any of the trails, but it looks good so maybe next time. Nice wander around the World Showcase, I think I'd be terrified I bumped into anything in the glass shop at those prices .

Well done on finishing the Kitchen Sink, especially Max - 7 bowls, wow! Does it get a bit messy by the end with all of the different flavours mixing together? I think that would put me off a bit.

Oh, your poor Dad at Hoop Dee Doo. That's absolutely my worst nightmare at these "join in" type of shows. I think you're right though, that it's better just to pretend it's fine rather than making a fuss and possibly bringing further attention. Still, it sounds like you all had a lovely evening.

[Goldia]

Originally Posted by Fuellady

Another brilliant day gone to plan . Those huge Mickey cinnamon buns look like a great way to start the day.

Fab morning at AK, really relaxed pace but with loads done. We haven't done any of the trails, but it looks good so maybe next time. Nice wander around the World Showcase, I think I'd be terrified I bumped into anything in the glass shop at those prices .

Well done on finishing the Kitchen Sink, especially Max - 7 bowls, wow! Does it get a bit messy by the end with all of the different flavours mixing together? I think that would put me off a bit.

Oh, your poor Dad at Hoop Dee Doo. That's absolutely my worst nightmare at these "join in" type of shows. I think you're right though, that it's better just to pretend it's fine rather than making a fuss and possibly bringing further attention. Still, it sounds like you all had a lovely evening.

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The trails are lovely and are a nice break from the fast pace of the parks. It feels like you can stroll along rather than race along.

There's a reason why I only managed 1 bowl of the sink it does get a bit messy plus of course all the ice cream starts to melt. One bowl is all I can stomach.

It really was a lovely evening, lots of memories there.