Disney - Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom was a super-pleasant surprise. We had low expectations (at least lower than the know commodities, Magic Kingdom and Epcot), but it was really terrific. Another big perk is that the people working at Animal Kingdom don't say "Have a magical day!" and are in fact the friendliest of all the park employees!

We had a great time on the Safari, got to see a team of veterans operating on a lion (!), all went on Everest (a forwards and backwards loop de loop roller coaster), got drenched (twice) on the Kali River Rafting Ride, saw an awesome Lion King show, took in a great (Lion King on Broadway themed) parade, and enjoyed exploring the many animals and birds.

It was also nice to leave a park at a decent hour, not carrying dead-weight children!

Some observations:

• Disney Dining Plan - totally worth it; good healthy choices; great sit-down dinners
• It's so nice to meet people from all over the US and all over the world
• Jacob and 3D movies don't mix. We learned this after trying out the Honey I Shrunk the Audience Movie in Epcot and the 3D Bug's Life Movie in Animal Kingdom. He is scarred for life.
• We acquired a "golden ticket" Fast Pass for seven of us, as a gift for supposedly sub-par service at a restaurant. (It really wasn't too bad!) The ticket was supposed you get all of us to the front of the line of one ride. We used it on the Safari, but they forgot to collect it. So we used it again on Everest. Between that, and our own Fast Passes, we zipped to the front of many a line.