Our third day at Disney was bright and early at Animal Kingdom, and we were ready for the adventure :).  

We started off our morning on Kilimanjaro Safari (since Expedition Everest was closed for technical issues), and I am so glad we did.  Going early in the day, a lot of the animals were more active.  Actually, we also went later in the afternoon, and it was so cool, because it was a completely different experience, with different animals out and active.

One of the amazing things about the safari, is how most of the animals are just out and wandering around, like these rhinos that were just on the road and to the side of the road.  This one was nice enough to pose over Arthur’s shoulder – he he!

We saw a male and a female lion (one on the first safari, and one on the second), hippos, a cheetah, an ostrich, and all sorts of other animals.

The giraffes were one of the coolest parts about our second safari especially, since they were walking around right next to the truck or in the road.  I love how in the picture I took of Arthur, it looks like the giraffe is kissing him on the head.

On our first safari, we didn’t see a single elephant, but the second one more than made up for it.  We not only saw a whole herd of elephants, but a mama and her baby.  Oh my goodness, that baby was cute, especially because it was running ahead of her mom like a silly toddler.

One of the other places we visited more than once was Pandora.  We got to ride our favorite ride, Flight of Passage three different times throughout the day, as well as the Nalli River Journey (although that one is a bit boring – it is nice and cool, however).

Throughout the day, both Arthur and Derek were doing the Wilderness Guides.  There were stations all throughout the park where they would learn things and then get badges in their books.  It was awesome, and the only ones they didn’t earn were the ones you had to go on the train for.

Another thing we really love about Animal Kingdom, is the different trails with animal exhibits – it is like the most amazing zoo.

Another fun adventure was riding Kali River Rapids, on which Arthur and I got really wet.  Good times!  It was super fun.

One of Derek’s all time favorite things at Animal Kingdom is watching the Festival of the Lion King.  It is a really cool performance with singing and acrobats, with these fantastic floats.

All day, we kept checking back to see if Expedition Everest had finally opened, and by some miracle, it finally did.  We had so much fun, and were able to ride it twice, once with Derek and Arthur in the very front row.

Throughout the day, we made time for treats, and I finally got my favorite drink in Pandora – the Night Blossom.  It is so good!!

Every single time we have come here, we have eaten lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue.  They have such good food.  As we were sitting down to eat, I noticed this bird coming up to our table, so I started taking pictures.  I wish I had taken a video instead, because of what happened next.  That bird came up and grabbed a chunk of pulled pork off my plate!!  And then it proceeded to go to the pond, rinse the BBQ sauce off the meat, and then eat it!!  What?!  After that, I didn’t trust any other birds.  And wow, that bird sure look satisfied with himself afterward.

Speaking of birds, one of our last activities was to watch the bird show, which was actually really cool.  It also meant getting to sit down and rest.

One of my favorite parts of the day, was as we were walking around and saw the bird, Kevin, from the movie “Up.”  I couldn’t resist getting a picture of my Kevin with Kevin.

One of our last activities of the day was to watch “Finding Nemo: The Musical,” but unfortunately, they canceled the show at the last second.  Instead, we decided to go and ride the ride, Dinosaur.  Kevin and I hadn’t ridden it since Lily was three, and thought we could give it another chance.  I am glad we did, because Derek and Arthur loved it.

It was the perfect way to end a very fun day.  And luckily for us, it was a day we were able to get back to the hotel earlier, because Animal Kingdom closes at 6pm.  And man, we were tired.  We crisscrossed that park so many times, we were definitely ready for an early night so that we could be ready for Saturday, our last day at Disney.