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Wednesday, August 2nd.

Today is the last full day of the conference. Tomorrow we only have morning sessions, so I will be done by noon. I plan on going to Epcot after the morning sessions are over. As for PI, which I still haven't done, I think I'll end up doing that tomorrow night after Epcot. I love Epcot at night, but the truth is that the ToN and RoE have made World Showcase almost impassable at night. With the crowds here know I'm sure it will be a real mess. So I'll probably leave Epcot about 8:00 then head over to PI.

As for tonight, as I mentioned earlier there is a conference special event at AK that I'm going to. I found out that, as I suspected, all the animal attractions will be closed. That's kind of a drag but totally understandable.

Anyway, I slept in until almost 8:00 this morning. I didn't do my power walk. Instead I ordered room service breakfast and worked on the TR from yesterday. BTW, I apologize to anyone who read my report from yesterday for all the typos near the end. As I mentioned, I was in a hurry when I wrote the last parts.

The merchandise I ordered, as well as the TZToT baseball, were at the concierge and I picked them up. Very convenient. Needless to say, I left a large tip for the young lady (Christina, I think) who got the baseball for me.

At lunch I was talking to some folks about touring the parks, and was able to impart some of the useful information I've garnered reading RADP. As an example, one guy said he was thinking about going to MK on Thursday, but he was concerned about crowds. I told him that Thursday would probably be real busy. I asked him if he was here alone and he said he was. I asked him if he likes thrill rides and he said he did. So, I suggested MGM instead. I explained that, usually, Thursday would be a good day for MGM, and they have RnRC and TZToT. I told him it would probably still be crowded, but less so than MK.

It is now 6:30. Here we are an hour before the special AK event, and the rain, which we've avoided so far, is coming down in sheets. Being Florida, it could easily be clear in an hour. No biggie, I've decided to drive to AM instead of taking the busses they provide so I can come and go as I please. Hopefully it will clear up in time for the event.

I walked down to the lobby and went to Juan & Only's. I wasn't sure what they would have for food at the event, so I had a quesadilla and a margarita (of course.) After I ate I changed into a T-shirt and swim trunks, put on a rain parka (my own, not a Disney one) and headed out to Animal Kingdom. When I arrived it was still raining, but now lightly.

Once we got inside they gave use these little cards with a map and schedule on them. It turns out the event was a bit more structured than I thought it would be. Initially only Dinoland was open. Walking to Dinoland, one of the first things we ran into was a cart full of free beer. This event was already a success They had tables and various food stations with sausage, burgers and paste set up all over Dinoland. They also had games & activities. It was very cool. I headed right over to Dinosaur (Countdown to Extinction) , first and walked right on. I then had sauted sausage with peppers foe supper (which I really didn't need.)

Jenn, not one to miss an opportunity to point out a typo, commented:

Mmmmmm, shades of kindergarten! I can't wait to check out the paste cart when I get to WDW in September!

Great report John!!!

The event included 2 showings of Tarzan Rocks, one at 8:15 and one at 9:30. We didn't see Tarzan Rocks when we were here in March, so I decided to watch it. All I can say is, I do not understand the mediocre reviews this show has received on the net. My favorite WDW show has been Hunchback of Notre Dame for several years - no more. Tarzan Rocks is awesome! It is, essentially a concert with dancers, acrobats and stunt roller skaters. It has similar elements to Festival of the Lion King, a show that liked but am not nearly as enthusiastic about. The reason is simple. I've always been pretty blasé about The Lion King in general and the music specifically. The music from Tarzan, on the other hand, I really enjoy. Tarzan Rocks is just a terrific show that mixes great theatrics with great music.

After Tarzan Rocks I rode Dinosaur again. I then headed over to Asia to ride Kali River Rapids. By this time it was totally dark. I really enjoyed seeing AK at night - a time that it usually isn't seen. The Tree of Life is even more impressive at night. Not surprisingly, AK isn't very well lit, but as a result it's very moody. Pretty cool.

KRR actually had a bit of a line. I was surprised, being that it was night time, that the line was so long. It wasn't too bad, though, and took about 15 minutes to get through. I think this will go down as the most fun ride of the trip. The folks on the ride (most of whom, like me, I'm sure had more than a few of those free beers) were really having fun. Also, KRR is a much better ride at night. Large sections of it have nearly no lighting at all, so you really don't see what's coming up. It was just a blast. I still have the complaint, as many do, that it's too short.

After KRR I went to watch It's Tough to be a Bug, but it was closed for the night be the time I got there. Instead I went ahead and left. There was a special showing of Festival of the Lion King - or at least highlights from the show - in the parking lot scheduled for 10:30. Since it was going to be mostly musical highlights from a show that I'm not real crazy about the music, I decided to skip it. I drove back to my room and finished this report.

Tomorrow I only have morning sessions, and the conference will be officially over at about noon. After the morning session I plan on going to Epcot until about 8:00 or so. Then, yes, I really do think I will go to Pleasure Island. I had better, it will be my last chance.

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