Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios

It Ain’t Over until Mickey Mouse Wins!

What an absolutely fantastic day!  We started in the Animal Kingdom where we took an African Safari to see the Hippos, Giraffes, Lions, Elephants and more.  It was then on to find out that It’s Tough to be a Bug in the theater under the “Tree of Life”.  Several ventured into Dino Land to help bring back the dinosaur Egg on DINOSAUR, and then on to conquer Mt. Everest, and the Yeti!  Many, found Nemo, to be an outstanding theater production, and the Festival of the Lion King was a favorite of those who attended.

After much exploration in the Animal Kingdom, we were off to Hollywood Studios.  “Light’s, Motor, Action!” was an amazing car stunt show featuring fast cars, motorcycles and many other stunts that go into making an action movie.  Others went on to see Indiana Jones stunt show to see the secrets behind the stunts, and some even took in a 30 minute production of Beauty and the Beast.

Most of those in attendance dared to challenge the elevator in the Hollywood Tower of Terror, and then be launched to 60 mile an hour while listening to Aerosmith on the Rock N Roller Coaster.  Star Wars gave an eventful motion base simulation, but the most fun ride of the day for those that dared wait through the line was “Toy Story Mania”.  Riders were trapped in Andy’s 3D toy world and played arcade like games as they spun and laughed.  (so far I haven’t found anyone that beat my score of 162000.)

Rounding out the evening was the production FANTASMIC, where Mickey confronts his nightmares and dreams as he defeats the villains, and dreams about the Prince’s & Princesses of Disney!  This all came to life in water, fire, video and live action as Mickey took control!

It has been an absolute wonderful trip.  The students have been wonderful, and the sponsors too! We’ve shared a lot of great experiences and will never forget the many memories we have made this past week.  Hopefully it’s sparked the desire to travel and see many new things that are out there. While the event is only in the moment, the friends, and memories will live forever. 

I hoped you’ve enjoyed this week of blogs and photos.  It’s been my pleasure to share.  I will take a few more photos tomorrow as we prepare to head home, but they won’t be posted for a while.  I’ve got to sort through nearly 1000 photos to throw some out completely, and edit some for clarity!

Thanks to everyone who helped make this trip possible for the music students of Conway Springs. You have no idea how you have touched their lives!

BEACH DAY!

Monday! Sirata Beach Resort on St. Pete’s Beach!

What an absolute beautiful day to spend on the #1 beach in America St. Pete’s Beach! The Air temperature was around 83, Water temperature around 78, White Sand beaches, and not a cloud in the sky. What does that say for the day! SUNBURN!!!!! Even with lots of sunscreen the best of us got a little burned.  The kids had a great time playing in the warm gulf waters. Several rented pedal boats, kayaks, and even a few went parasailing! The noon meal was fabulous, and the fun in the water and sun was indescribable! Unfortunately there are several that are uncomfortable tonight because of the very intense sunburns.  Most of them followed the instructions and put sunscreen on.  What didn’t happen we guess, is reapplying it after swimming, and about every two hours. Even with all of that everyone had an incredible day!  I took over 400 photos so I’m going to pick some of the best to post tonight!

I hope everyone has enjoyed living our trip vicariously through my blog and photos.  It’s been fun trying to keep everyone up to date with what is happening.  Tomorrow we go to Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios to finish out our Disney Adventure!

Universal Islands of Adventure

SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY!

OK, not quite as good as Al Roker, but at least you get the point.  It was a short night for many as the bus for church rolled out at 6:30, yes that is a.m. Reported to me, it was a wonderful service, and our group was recognized and helped with offering.  They even invited them to sing if they wanted to.

Everyone finally met together at Universal City Walk, and reported to the NASCAR café for a buffet breakfast!  As you will see from the pictures everyone had a great time and enjoyed the game room with some free play cards given to them by our host Allison.  After Breakfast, it didn’t take long for everyone to disperse as the words for the day seemed to be “Thrill Rides”.  Universal’s “Islands of Adventure” is a collection of islands (not really surrounded by water) that have some very high tech multi-sensory rides.  The most anticipated was the Castle Adventure in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Dr. Suess World, The Lost Continent, Harry Potter, Jurassic Park, Comic Strip Corner, Marvel Heroes make up the areas with some pretty spectacular rides.  Without a doubt, the best ride of the day was inside Hogwarts castle.  Difficult to describe, you take a multisensory ride with Harry & Ron as you run from the dragon, avoid the spiders, play some quittich and fly away from the dementors, and you never leave your seat on the bench. Suffice it to say that everyone enjoyed this one. (Except for Ann O. but someone told her it wouldn’t make her sick.) J

Of course the Islands have 3 of the best roller coasters in Florida, The Dragon’s challenge, featuring the Red and Blue dragons, and The Hulk, 0-60 in 3.2 seconds! Less than anticipated crowds allowed the kids to ride most everything they wanted, multiple times! Jurassic Park was home to the River Adventure where you come face to face with a T-Rex, and then plunge down the hillside into a splash of H2O. Yes, you will get wet on this ride!

The original Multi-sensory ride, Spiderman, was just reopened a week ago after being updated with HD 3D video technology, and some better special effects.  No one was disappointed, especially when Spidey saves the day catching the car in a net after a 40 story freefall!

Everyone is tired, but seems to be having a great time!  The kids have been absolutely fantastic, and we receive compliments everywhere on their behavior. They have been following directions so well, we have left on time every time, and have not had to wait on anyone!

Wands, seemed to be the souvenir of the day. Whether they were fans of Griffendor or Slithering it didn’t seem to matter, they each had their favorite wand. Many will be sporting their house colors as well.

The cuisine was a matter of selection today, including Hard Rock Café, Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, Margaritaville, and the NBA café! I don’t think that anyone was disappointed with their selections.  Some even decided they wanted to eat at “Three Broomsticks” in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

As a quick side note, the “Wossa Motta U” picture is because I made a joke in telling the kids that they might see Bullwinkle and that he graduated from there.  The kids didn’t understand, so if you do, have a good laugh and know that I’m having as much fun as the kids!

Stay tuned for more tomorrow, the weather sounds great, and it’s Beach Day!

St. Patricks Day! Performance Day! Magic Kingdom!

Saturday, Performance Day!!!!!

It was a wonderfully lazy morning to prepare for our performances, and our day at the Magic Kingdom. The choirs caught a quick review in the parking lot at the hotel and we loaded to head to Downtown Disney for our Disney Performing Arts presentation.  Our Disney hosts, Stephanie and Mindi helped us prepare for our performance, and made everyone honorary cast members for the day! The concerts were fantastic, and the crowds were very appreciative. Completion of our performances gave us an opportunity for 1 backstage photo of the student group in front of the Disney Performing Arts sign!

Off to the Magic Kingdom where everyone’s dreams can come true!  The Move It! Shake It! Celebrate It! Street Party met us shortly after entrance to the park where everyone was invited to celebrate, (which was pretty easy for some since it was St. Patrick’s day). Others went on to Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear’s Spin, It’s a Small World, The Haunted Mansion, Splash Mountain, and of course Pirates of the Caribbean.  If you wanted to see Disney robotics at its best, the Hall of Presidents featured, all of the Presidents of the United States with special speeches by Barrack Obama, George Washington, and the famous Gettysburg address by Abraham Lincoln. 

Closing out the evening were incredible presentations at the Castle.  The Magic the Memories and You! Presented photos taken by visitors during the day in an amazing multimedia production, projected on Cinderella’s castle. That was followed by the amazing Wishes firework show, closing with Disney’s Electric Light Parade!

Everyone was extremely tired but satisfied with the accomplishments of the day. Sunday holds an early wake up for church, (sleep fast), and Universal Studios with the wizarding world of Harry Potter!

Late Night

Saturday's pictures are posted, but the blog will be put up tomorrow morning.  It's tooooooo late tonight.

Friday the 16th EPCOT

Friday March 16^th is almost behind us, but the activities of the day will remain with us for a long time. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, and the crowds weren’t super bad today either.

There were so many things to experience for the kids at Epcot.  Spaceship earth took the riders on tour of the history of communication, and allowed them to make some choices about how they would live in the future.  Mission Space took some on an adventure to Mars with a simulated space shuttle launch that some NASA astronauts have said was very close to the real thing! Test Track allowed them to experience the car testing program for GM, and many got up close and personal with Nemo and Friends with a special meeting with CRUSH and turtle talk!  The highlights of Future world were the two newest rides “Sum of All Thrills”, and Soarin’.  The first allowed the rider to design their own roller coaster, and then experience the ride through a motion simulator.  However Soarin’ took a 100 minute wait time, or a fast pass to experience hang gliding over California, complete with the wind in your face, and the smell of oranges and Pine as you crossed the California countryside.

After experiencing Future world the many countries of the World Showcase awaited.  Each country was ready to show off its finest in Music and talents through amazing performances.  Of course you can’t go around the world without experiencing the food!  Italian, Mexican, Chinese, Moroccan, Japanese, French, and of course Fish & Chips from the UK were just a few of the fares to be had.  And no Disney experience is complete without Characters.  Many of the kids found time to have their picture with their favorite Disney Character.  (and some sponsors also).

HGTV’s Flower and Garden Festival was in “Full Bloom” with beautiful flower gardens, and amazing topiary’s throughout the Epcot complex. The concert series for the show featured “Starship” performing this week.  The kids had no idea who it was, but many of the sponsors new the songs!

Nobody does Fireworks like Disney, and the show in Epcot is second to none! Fire, Water fountains, Fireworks, and a globe shaped LED screen centerpiece ended out Epcot experience with a “bang”!

Tomorrow is performance day.  We get a little later start, but the day will be jam packed with action as Disney’s Magic Kingdom waits. It will be a late night, so don’t expect the blog to be posted in time to read before midnight!

As always your link to today’s photos can be found on the right hand side!  I hope you are enjoying the updates.  I’m taking as many pictures as I can, but in the big parks, I don’t always see all of the kids.  I’ll keep trying!