WDW Weekend
Saturday, January 14, 2006
We were up around 7 and it is in the 50's with strong winds and COLD!  When we left for the Animal Kingdom, the wind was so strong in the corridor to the bus zone that the automatic doors wouldn't open.  We took a bus to the Animal Kingdom, arriving minutes after opening.  We first took in the Festival of The Lion King, and followed it with the Pocahontas show. Our next stop was It's Tough Being A Bug and then we finished with the Kilimanjaro Safari. We walked over near the Expedition Everest and the back to the park entrance.  The wait for a table at  Rainforest Cafe was too long, so we returned to the hotel and had onion soup and a glass of wine in the Concourse Steakhouse.  Later, two lengthy bus trips took us to the Animal Kingdom Lodge and Jiko's for dinner.  Jiko's ranks with the California Grill for dinner. We met Anette Gray, the Chef de Cuisine for The Animal Kingdom Lodge and we will begin a correspondence with her.  In the evening, Jimi, of the concierge desk, e-mailed me the background for Expedition Everest.  He says tomorrow will be a high of 64, clear, with no mention of wind.

Animal Kingdom
The Animal Kingdom Park is the most recent of the Disney Parks and is an animal reserve as well as an amusement park.  Rides and attractions seek to protect wild life and to provide entertainment.
The entry sign The Kilimanjaro Safari is a somewhat wild ride through the Harumbe Animal Preserve. Various animals are portrayed in their normal biomes. Pocahontas talks with animals Under the Tree of Life, It's Tough Being a Bug is a 4D attraction. In addition to the polarized glasses, guests sit on seats that are a bit active. On the way out we encountered a white gorilla Lyd loves frogs, so this one outside the Rainforest Cafe caught our interest

Lion King
This is a high-energy live-action show inspired by the movie and Broadway show.  It features acrobats, a flaming-baton twirler and lots of music from the show.  Unfortunately, the show does not provide a good environment for photography.

Expedition Everest
This ride is not yet open and was being previewed (tested?) by the families of the crew that built it. It is a high-speed roller coaster inside Mt. Everest. It goes forward and backward and your train is attacked by a Yeti.  I rode the Matterhorn attraction at Disneyland many years ago and was told that this one is faster. It is unlikely that we'll ride it!
From a few hundred yards it appears to be hundreds of miles in the distance From 20-30 yards it still appears to be miles away A description of the project. This is a desktop wallpaper written by Jimi Clark.

Jiko's
Jiko's, the Cooking Place, is the featured restaurant in the Animal Kingdom Lodge.  It features cuisine from various parts of Africa. We like to sit at "The Cooking Place," the counter at the stage kitchen which produces all of the starters.
We split an order of Lamb "Patis" (Pulled Lamb rolled in Phyllo with with Mint-Cilantro Chutney $9)  We also split the Cucumber, Tomato, and Red Onion Salad (with organic arugula, cottage cheese, and watermelon vinaigrette $8) We couldn't resist Warwick Old Bush Vines, Stellenbosch '03 Pinotage. (Pinotage is a uniquely South African variety which was born and raised in our valley.  Pinotage is particularly concentrated and full bodied when grown on 'Old bush vines'....$50) Lyd's Tamarind-braised Beef Short Ribs (with Idaho and Sweet Potato Gratin and Onion-Garlic Sauce $26) Tom's Berbere-braised Lamb Shank (with Toasted Couscous, Baby Spinach, and Bergere Sauce $27) The staff of The Cooking Place (Katrina is on the right and Chef de Cuisine, Anette, is in the middle)

Contemporary Hotel: 10th Floor Concierge Staff
The new Tower Rooms sport a Concierge staff and lots of amenities for the guests, including breakfast in the morning, snacks during the day and desserts and cordials in the evenings.

Jimi and Auristela