Disneymoon Adventures: Animal Kingdom

Time for some more Disney pictures, folks!  Today, they're from Animal Kingdom.  We only visited Animal Kingdom once during the week- and only for half a day, at that- but we still got some pretty awesome photos and had a great time!  Enjoy!

You'll notice that, other than the macaws, there are no actual live animals in any of these pictures from Animal Kingdom.  We're not really safari people, so we opted for the shows and rides (and food!) instead of traipsing through the zoo.  We both agree that if we have animal-loving children, we'll definitely spend a long time with them oohing and aahing at the lions and giraffes.

As far as favorite moments are concerned, we both thoroughly enjoyed Expedition Everest and Dinosaur (which still makes me scream in terror), along with The Festival of the Lion King and Finding Nemo the Musical.  Animal Kingdom is one of the smallest parks, and as we got there during the morning extra magic hours it was nearly empty- no lines for anything (except to see characters, of course).  Overall Animal Kingdom was really beautiful and relaxing, and a perfect example of how Disney pays attention to every little detail- from the hoof prints in the ground as you walk up to Everest, to just how very real Everest looks, to the uneven bricks on the bridges that make them look ancient, to the actual museums you pass through as you wait in line for the rides.

What's your favorite thing about Animal Kingdom?

Much love,
The Geeks

*all photos personal*

Disneymoon Adventures: Magic Kingdom

Hey folks!  Did y'all enjoy the guest posts the last couple of weeks?  Well, now that we're home from the honeymoon and our cute little apartment is (mostly) clean and set up, it's time to start talking about our new Disney memories!

I gotta say, Disney was definitely not a relaxing honeymoon- but we knew that going in.  By the end of the week, we were definitely exhausted- and a little bit sick, boo- but it was honestly the most fun we've ever had, ever.  We really needed a week to just let loose, be silly, and have fun after a year of stressful wedding planning!  And I think we both agree that it was the best first week as a married couple, ever :)

I decided it might be boring (and cumbersome) to walk you through the honeymoon minute-by-minute, so instead I'm just going to share some highlights with you, and mostly just let the pictures do the talking.  We visited all the parks more than once during the week (except Animal Kingdom) and hit two parks a day almost every day (we gave ourselves a whole day in EPCOT to make sure we could explore all the little details unhindered).  Here are some of our favorite moments in Magic Kingdom throughout the week.

Some of our favorite experiences at Magic Kingdom include the Buzz Lightyear game/ride, Celebrate a Dream Come True (an amazing light show projected onto Cinderella's Castle), the Monsters, Inc Laugh Floor, and pausing for a moment at midnight just in front of the castle to dance slowly with Mr. Geek.  :)  We're such saps!  Oh, and who could forget dinner at Cinderella's Castle?  I'll cover that in another post :)

Looks like fun, doesn't it?  Oh how I want to go back...*sigh*  Mr. Geek and I have decided that for our anniversary every five years we're going to do something Disney- either one of the parks, or a cruise, or a place like Aulani (Disney's resort in Hawaii). 

What are your favorite things to do in Magic Kingdom?

Much love,
The Geeks

*all photos are personal*

Guest Post: Disneyland Love

It's the day before Thanksgiving, which means I'm busy cleaning house and getting ready to cook a huge meal tomorrow!  We're reliving our favorite memories from last week's trip, so we figured there's time for one more guest post- from the lovely Mrs. Genie!  And I've gotta say, I'm a little jealous of someone who lives close enough to The Mouse to visit him so often...

I do admit that I love Disneyland maybe a little more than the average person. I’m sure you’re
thinking, “Yeah, who doesn’t?” But, really, as a girl from Southern California, I have been really
lucky to enjoy going to Disneyland my whole life. And when I say that, I mean my whole life. My
parents first took me to Disneyland when I was 40 days old! They were having the World’s Fair
Exhibition. I’m not saying I remember that, but I’m thinking I was infused with the Disney magic
at a very young age. Now, I have an annual pass, and go twice a month, at least.

When I think of Disneyland, I think of my family and friends and all the memories I have of going there as a kid.  You see, my parents are both immigrants, and we have a lot of family all over the world. When we had visitors, at least once a year, we got to go to Disneyland with them. I got to share one of my favorite places and get to know family at the same time. When my cousin came from England for my wedding this summer, she asked if we could go to Disneyland. And I was so surprised! I told her I thought she wouldn’t want to go because it’s for kids, and she said, “No! Remember when we went as kids and met Minnie Mouse and played in her house? I thought that was so cool, and I’ll never forget it.” I nearly cried that she remembered her visit from over fifteen years ago. 

 And now, as an adult, I love going to Disneyland with both my family and my friends. When I look at pictures from my trips to Disneyland over the years, I mostly smile because there are tons of different friends I go with and have memories with. I can’t choose just one, but I can’t bombard you with photos either. I’ll give you a couple. 

And, of course, I love going with my husband. He doesn’t go as often as I do, but when he does, he has fun.

 So, when I say I love Disneyland, I kind of mean it. I mean, sure, I hate the soaring prices and the over-marketing outside of Disneyland sometimes. But when I’m there, I love it, and when I leave, I can’t wait to come back.

Guest Post: Oh Mickey, You're So Fine

Technically we're home from the honeymoon now :(  But since we were traveling all weekend, I didn't have time to put together a post for you, and that means there's time for more Disney memories guest posts- this one is from the amazing Mrs. Giraffe!  She's here to share with us a story about her reaction to meeting The Mouse himself!

I’m so excited to guest post on Our Geeky Adventure today. Aside from being Mrs. Giraffe, I also go by Mad at my infrequently updated home blog, Sweet Townhome (Whoops - I should update that soon).

Now, what you should all know about me, is that I’m closet celebrity-obsessed. For realsies. I would like to think that being able to name every single one of the Jolie-Pitt children as well as the Affleck bunch is a serious hidden talent. My husband, Tris, might choose to disagree with me, but it is. It really is.

My celebrity obsession has led me to believe that I would be cool as a cucumber around celebs. I mean, I already feel like I know them, so wouldn’t it be just like meeting a friend?

Just like two winters ago when I saw Vince Vaughn shopping at the Disney store in Chicago. Was I excited? Yes. But was I all star struck? No. I thought it was super cool to see him, and I was relatively tempted to go say hi, but didn’t because he was being swamped by other folks with their cameras).

Either way, I was just as cool as I’d imagined. (FYI - The only exception to this thought is the man known as Ryan Reynolds. If I saw him, I’d throw myself all over him, wrap my arms around him, and never let go. Good luck prying me off, Blake Lively).

So, imagine my surprise, this past July on a family trip to Disney with my in-laws, that I got completely star struck meeting Mickey Mouse. My jaw dropped and I giggled too much to talk.

Seriously.

I am not joking.

And, it was Wizard Mickey. The coolest of all the Mickeys.

Don’t believe me? Well, lucky for you, I have photographic evidence. We purchased (in advance to save some dollars, yo!) all our Photopass photos so I have the moment etched on my harddrive for all time.

It was only a five minute wait, and as soon as I got up to Mickey, I was totally, utterly star struck. And giggly. And happy!

 
 

See? That face is proof! I was so excited to meet him. Yes, I’m a 25 year old (semi) adult, and yes, I was aware that it was someone in a suit, but it was so exciting!

 

My In-Laws have been to Disney like 13 times. I’d only been once 20 years ago so this trip all felt new for me. They’re not really into meeting characters, so I made it a priority for me and the Hubs. I don’t know how anyone couldn’t be star stuck in Mickey’s presence. It’d be impossible.

 
 

I also got Micky’s autograph for my scrapbook. That’s right. I thought that it might be strange for an adult to ask for an autograph, but everyone was really very nice about it (I’m talking to you, Snow White!).

This was seriously the highlight of my trip, and Mickey was great.

Oh? And meeting Mickey? It was second only to the fact that Tigger blew me kisses.

Best. Trip. Ever.

 

 

Guest Post: Ariel Obsession

It's time for another Disney memories guest post- this time it's from the lovely Miss Otter!  She's just a liiiiiiittle jealous that Mr. Geek and I are currently partying in the happiest place on earth...but then again, I suspect you are, too ;)  We'll say hi to Ariel for you!

Well, here I am, writing a blog post in Indiana about my Ariel obsession while some people (I won't even name names... but I think we all know who I'm talking about) are actually in Disney World... in Florida. Life can be so unfair. ;)  

  I've been a Disney lovin' girl for as long as I can remember, but I've always loved Ariel the most. So imagine my elation when I realized upon entering high school that I would get to go to Disney World my senior year - yes, there were screams and some hopping around. Only four years away, no big deal!   But let me explain: you see, I was very involved in a ton of different school activities. Most notably, cheerleading and band. What some might call a walking contradiction - which actually happened a few times, since at football games, I'd march at halftime wearing my cheerleading uniform. Cute, I know! Anyway, being in band gave me the privilege of going on two trips in high school. The first was supposed to be to NOLA, but unfortunately Katrina hit, so our trip plans changed. The second was the most coveted Disney trip. Hooray! I, of course, was most excited to meet Ariel.  

I even rode down with my Ariel blanket, of course.

This bus ride was no feat short of incredible. First of all, I get car sick in the worst way possible, so the whole driving thing was kind of a nightmare. Also, they had a rule that whenever the bus stopped, everyone had to get off. So every single time that the bus needed gas, or it was time for a bathroom break, they would wake us all up and force us off the bus. This was, by far, the most unpleasant of experiences. Between the frequent wake ups and the cramped bus, we were all THRILLED to arrive at our hotel. So imagine my excited nerd run straight to the pool:  

  I read up online. I knew where to go to find what I was looking for. Ariel, it was. Thankfully, I also had accommodating friends who understood that under absolutely ZERO circumstance would I be leaving the Magic Kingdom without meeting Ariel. Unfortunately, this forced us to wait in line for what seemed like FOREVER while she took her lunch break. I mean, I get it - a girl's gotta eat. But hurry up, mermaid!    Finally, it was the moment that I had dreamed of since I was eight years old (aka: the last time I was at Disney) -  

Oh, no big deal, just me and ARIEL!

We also stopped at every display I saw:  

  And made sure to see the live show, where I almost got kicked out for taking photos..... oops!  

  Oh, and by the way, we did actually do that thing we went down there for. ;)  

I'm in this, but I'm not pointing myself out!

Now if only I were writing this from Florida... then all would be perfect. ;) Come and say hello when you have time, I'd love to see some new faces around the blog!

Guest Post: The Journey to Toy Story Mania

 Time for another Disney memory!  This one is from Mrs. Scepter!  I don't know about you, but I would totally run like mad to make it to Toy Story Mania before the rest of the crazed crowd...

 

When I first met my husband, I was absolutely shocked that he had never been to Disney World.  How do you grow up as an only child and never take a trip to the happiest place on earth?  I was determined to get him to experience the amazingness that is Disney World, so I planned a trip for us to go a few weeks after our college graduation.  Being the super type A person that I am, I bought guidebook, researched restaurants, and planned almost every minute of our trip.  

We had five full days at Disney World, so I planned to spend one day at each park and spend the fifth day letting Eric golf on one of Disney's golf courses. Epcot, Magic Kingdom, and Animal Kingdom all went according to plan.  We did the popular rides early in the morning (before they had a long wait) and scheduled out our fast passes like a pro.  (Side Note:  If you do go to Disney World use the fast passes!  They are ingenious!)  Our third day was our trip to the Hollywood Studios park, and as a surprise bonus it just happened to be one of their Star Wars weeks.

Here's Eric with Chewbacca and an ewok

At the time Toy Story Mania was one of Hollywood Studios' newest and most popular attractions.  We both really wanted to ride it, but the first time we walked past it the wait time was 90 minutes so we decided we would come back to it.  (In retrospect this was a large mistake.)  By the time we made our way back to the ride the wait was 120 minutes and all the fast passes were sold out for the day.  Epic Fail.  While I was trying to figure out a way to ride Toy Story Mania, a huge rainstorm began and we decided to go back to our hotel for a few hours.    

After a two hour nap and a shower, we boarded one of the Disney buses and headed back to Hollywood Studios.  We were hoping that if we went to ride close to the parks closing time the line would be shorter. Luckily, we were right!  When we made our way back over to Toy Story Mania the wait time was only 30 minutes.  We could definitely handle 30 minutes.  The line moved fairly quickly, plus Disney had a very detailed design for your to marvel over as you waited.

Waiting in line to ride Toy Story

We had about five minutes left in our wait time when the line suddenly stopped moving.  We kept waiting, but with the parks closing time fast approaching we weren't sure what was going.  After waiting for another 20 minutes an announcement came on over the PA system and let us know that the ride was having technical issues and they were going to have to shut it down for the night.  NOOOOO!!!! 

We had spent our entire day trying to ride Toy Story Mania, and we still hadn't managed to make it on to the ride. At that point we had sunk so much time into the ride we were determined to make it happen.  We had planned to go to Magic Kingdom first thing in the morning, but we decided we would go to Hollywood Studios the minute it opened, ride Toy Story Mania, and then take a bus or the tram over to Magic Kingdom.  (The Disney transportation system is amazing.)  

The next morning we were at Hollywood Studios by 8:45.  Even though we were there 15 minutes early, Disney does not allow people to access the majority of the park before the official opening time.  We started inching our way towards the Toy Story area of the park, but we began to get the feeling that everyone else had the same idea we had.  As the clock got closer to 9 am more and more people started showing up and pushing each other towards the rope.  Even though I am fairly positive that the crowded madness is a daily occurrence, even the Disney workers started to look nervous.  At ten seconds to go a countdown came over the PA system and I began to get oddly nervous.  The crowd actually started chanting with the PA System.  10...9...8...the guy behind me pushed past...7...6...the man next to me grabbed his kid and swung him onto his shoulder...5...4...3...I looked at Eric and we exchanged confused looks...2...people actually started elbowing each other our of the way...1!!  The Disney worker opened the rope and the crowd was set free.  (To this day I wish I would have videotaped what happened next.)  

For the first few seconds the crowd tried to keep it classy, and fast-pace walk to their destination, but once one father started a light jog everyone else did as well.  Within a matter of seconds the entire crowd was running.  Not fast walking, not jogging...they were in an all out sprint.  So what did we do?  We joined the freak show we were standing in the middle of and started running.  I blame mob mentality.  On the path to the ride, I saw a man hurdle over a three-year-old girl, watched another man try and jump a chain fence, (he ended up getting his foot tangled in it) saw a woman carry two kids on her back like they were sacks of potatoes, and watched my own boyfriend (now husband) make it to the very front of the line. 

Success!

After three attempts, two days, and one running of the bulls-esque event we had made it onto the Toy Story Mania ride.  Was it worth it?  Without a doubt. 

Guest Post: Yeti

It's time for another guest post about Disney memories!  This one is from Mrs. Pony, and she talks about a ride we're super excited about- Expedition Everest!

 

My first trip to the happiest place on Earth was in 1995, when my whole extended family visited Walt Disney World.  I was ten at the time, which meant I was old enough to ride everything, but I wasn’t so old that the magic of Disney was lost on me.

Childhood friend L, me, and my brother with Disco/Space Minnie

I’ve been back to Disney World a few times since that first visit, twice with my family and last year with my husband on our honeymoon.  Since I recapped our Disneymoon on the ‘bee already, I figured I would share a story from a trip I took with my first partner in crime, Jenny.

Jenny and I both love all things Disney and joked throughout college that we would visit together after we graduated.  As we got closer to graduation, we stopped joking and decided to make it a reality.  My mom and aunt decided to join us, and thus, our post graduation Disney extravaganza was born. 

Our group outside the Magic Kingdom

 Jenny had only been to Disney once when she was very young and couldn’t remember anything from the trip, so we made sure to show her everything.  Although I had been to Disney, I was excited to see some new attractions that had been added since my last visit, including Expedition Everest in Animal Kingdom.  

I am not a huge fan of roller coasters, but my mom, who had been on the ride before, assured me it was not as bad as it looked.  Now, if you haven’t been on this ride, I’m going to share a spoiler here in a second. 

We were riding along when we got to where the Yeti has demolished the track.  The ride stops briefly before it starts going backwards.  I can deal with roller coasters, but roller coasters going backwards terrify me.  I started yelling at my mom. “You didn’t tell me it goes BACKWARDS!”  Naturally, she just laughed at me.  Thanks, mom.

After that, Jenny decided that I was actually a Yeti.  So, it became a running joke during our trip that whenever she said “YETI” I would morph into my Yeti alter ego:

 

 I have so many stories and memories from this trip, it will always be one of my favorite visits to Disney World.  It also made me want to vacation with friends far more often than I do, because we really had the best time ever.

Thanks for reading my silly Disney memories, now I can’t wait to go back!  If you want to read more about my life, feel free to visit my personal blog, Express the Jess. 

Thanks for having me!