Trip Report Day Three: Hanging out at Pop Century!

Happy Monday, everyone!  I hope you have a great weekend.

When we last left the Trip Report, Noah and I were headed back to Pop Century to rest for a few hours.  We were meeting my friend Katie and her family for New Years Eve dinner and knew we were going to have a late night, so we headed back to rest a bit.

Noah went to the room to take a nap, and I decided to walk around a bit.

First stop: Everything Pop for a look around the store.

(I think about buying a watch nearly every trip....and then I remember I have about 5 watches I don't wear.   Hmm.)

Sweet treats!  You can use your dining plan Snack Credits for many of these, so be sure to keep a few extra credits!

Cute hair accessories (would ya judge me if I wore that big pink bow?!)

I've thought about getting these dolls for my nieces...aren't they adorable?!

Another Pop Christmas Tree!

I decided to walk a bit outside, since the sun had come out.  It wasn't terribly warm (it was in the low 70s, if I remember) but it was certainly warmer than home and the sun was out, so I wanted to be outside.

There are always fun pool-side activities going on.

Apparently the POP sign was getting a bit dingy, so it was time to paint!  They had the non-painted areas taped up pretty well - what a job!

I took a minute to look at one of the Vinylmations I bought at Animal Kingdom - this is titled "Tigger, Is That You?"  :)

I took the "scenic route" back to our room, and on the way I snapped some pictures of the Art of Animation rooms, across the water from Pop.  I am staying there for a night in March, and very excited to see it!

There are "normal" Little Mermaid theme rooms, and then there are Family Suites decorated in the Lion King, Finding Nemo and Cars.  It's one of Disney's newest resorts and looks just gorgeous.

On the paths at Pop, there are all sorts of signs giving fun pop-culture and historical events of the section you're in.  Since we were in the 1950s section, we saw one from 1955.

It was time to head back to the room and get ready to meet Katie and her family at Downtown Disney.  We wanted to meet up for a bit, before our dinner at OHana, so I made my way back to the room to get ready to head Downtown!

We were in the section right next to the jukebox. 

Also right next to one of the pools!

(Our room was right by the radio, thus the reason I took this picture.)

That's it for now, folks!  Next time, we talk about New Years Eve and OHana!  (Or, The Story of How Katie Messed Up Taking Really Cool Fireworks Pictures.)

See ya real soon!

Trip Report Day Three: Animal Kingdom - Finishing Up our Time at AK

Hello, everyone!!  It's FEBRUARY - can you believe it?!  There are some pretty exciting things coming up here on the blog in the next few months, so stay tuned!  (It's also nearly time for another contest, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for that as well!)

We had just left Tusker House after our delicious breakfast, and decided to wander around Animal Kingdom for a bit longer, before we left to go back to Pop Century.

I LOVE these beaded animal figurines; I have thought about getting one each time I go to Animal Kingdom!  Maybe next time...

Cute little stuffed animals! (I like the giraffe, myself.)

We decided to walk more of the nature trails in the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail.

There is so much gorgeous foliage and plants at Animal Kingdom!  Any green-thumbers know what these flowers are called?

There are so many neat details on this trail.

So many fish!

There is a young gorilla at Animal Kingdom, named Lilly.  She is so sweet and that day, she was in rare form.  I'm sure she knew she had an audience and so she proceeded to do flips, pound on the glass, and perform for her adoring public.  She is SO cute!

We then walked a bit to gorilla fields, to see more of the larger gorillas.

We exited the trail, and decided on our way out of the park, we would make a loop around the long way to the exit.

On the way, Noah played the drums.

We turned into Asia, and pretty soon saw Everest!

One of the neatest things about the Disney parks is the detail they've taken with every attraction.  Everest is sighted just *perfectly* in the park, and looks great from so many angles.

As we crossed the bridge into Dinoland, more flowers!

And we could also see the Tree of Life in the distance.

Dinoland is a fun collection of carnival type rides and games, and also has the Boneyard, a place where kids can run around and let off some steam.

Of course, no Dinoland would be complete with Dino merchandise!

We were nearing the exit - see you later, Dinoland!

I stopped into a store on the way out, as I wanted to pick up a few items to take home.  Here's just a sampling of what you can find at Animal Kingdom!

As we exited the park, I turned around to get one last shot of the entrance sign.  (As you can also see, the sun was beginning to come out - score!)

We found the bus for Pop, and went back to the resort.  We had some time before our New Years Eve dinner, and wanted to relax at the hotel for a bit.

See you next time!

We're Back!

Hi, everyone!  Last night, my friend and I got back from our AWESOME 3 night cruise on the Magic. It was an incredible cruise, we had such a great time!

As a sneak peek, here is a view from the porch of our cabana at Castaway Cay:

I will be back in the coming days to continue the December Disney World trip report.  In the meantime, I hope you and yours have a great day!