Howdy! I spent most of my morning exploring Disney’s Animal Kingdom, where I saw a ton of different animals, including the new baby Bakso and his parents. I then found a few new items in World of Disney in Disney Springs in the afternoon.
Good Morning from Disney’s Animal Kingdom
In the parking lot, I parked behind someone with a Nana decal on their car. We love Nana. For those who don’t know, that is our hard-working reporter manager here at WDWNT. You will likely find her meeting characters, reviewing corn dogs, or seeing Fantasmic unless she’s at Buccee’s. Be sure to check out her photo reports, too!
Good morning from a very happy and beautiful Animal Kingdom. The Custodial Cast Members always make my morning when they wave and welcome guests to the park first thing in the morning. There is something electric to that rope drop announcement and music in each park.
Sorcerer Mickey Throw Pillow – $44.99
In Riverside Depot, I found a new Sorerer Mickey pillow that lights up available for $44.99. I love that the light-up area looks good, lit or not. The back features an embroidered “The Most Magical Place On Earth Walt Disney World.”
I also found this pillow in the World of Disney at Disney Springs.
Disney Villain Pins – $14.99 each
I found these new villain pins in Riverside Depot as well. Each pin is available for $14.99, or yellow, as Disney likes to tag it for easy price changes. My favorite detail of this new collection is the framing choices for each villain.
There is a pin featuring Captain Hook and Smee from ‘Peter Pan’. The next pin features the Evil Queen and the Magic Mirror from ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’. There is a pin featuring Cruella and her henchmen, Jasper and Horace, from ‘101 Dalmatians.’ Finally, the last villain pin I found was of Dr. Facilier and Lawrence from ‘Princess and the Frog’.
Dinoland Destruction and Mickey and Minnie Mouse
Recently, the Adventurers Outpost, where Mickey and Minnie meet, closed for scheduled maintenance of the building. For now, you can meet Mickey and Minnie where Goofy used to meet in Dinoland just before the Dinosaur attraction.
Maharajah Jungle Trek
Consider yourself warned; the majority of this photo report will be mostly animals, so be sure to put your best Wilderness Explorer hat on because adventure is out there and some really exotic and interesting animals.
Komodo Dragon
This living dinosaur is the first animal you may spot in the Maharajah Jungle Trek. This is a Komodo Dragon, the largest living lizard species. What you may not know is that there have been cases of these big lizards eating humans, so they are certainly not a pet.
This Komodo Dragon is precious and posed for pictures as the morning crowd shuffled in. Lately, the Dragon hasn’t been out in the morning because it’s been so cold.
Reptilian Start
The next exhibit would normally feature these two and bats, but the bat exhibit is currently closed for refurbishment. For now, please enjoy the always lively and charismatic Black Tree Monitor as he ran for my camera like it was breakfast. If the Monitor is a bit too lively, then the Prehensile-Tailed Skink may be your favorite. Look how sweet the little angel is, toasty under the heat lamp fast asleep.
Tiger Family and WATER BUFFALO
Mom and baby were mostly resting this morning. Baby Bakso is getting so big. You can barely see him hiding behind the pole on the far right while mom Sohni lies to the far left. Dad was having a rough start and was doing small mews, which on a Sumatran Tiger sounds like a deep rumble, until he finally collapsed in the back corner to fall back asleep.
I grew up watching Veggie Tales as a child and there is a segment of that children’s program that’s called Silly Songs with Larry, one of the main vegetables in the show. Larry once sang a song called, “The Water Buffalo Song,” and now forever and always will I hear that song in my head and get excited just seeing a water buffalo.
Bird Watching
The birds were having a meeting over breakfast today, and it was fine until they all looked over at me and the other guests watching in unison like we were just caught, and they were just talking about us. The other birds in the sanctuary were chill, though. Remember the number one rule of the bird house: KEEP YOUR MOUTH CLOSED.
Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail
I went into the Gorilla Falls Trail and found that the hippo was still resting peacefully underwater, which is why no one is seeing the hippo on the Safari currently. It’s a very sweet sleeping hippo, though.
I then got to see Gino, the head gorilla of the family, eating a snack. Later on in the trail I saw Gino’s daughter, Lilly, posing for pictures like a pro.
HA – Crow Comedy
When I was leaving the Africa area of Animal Kingdom, I noticed this little guy having a snack. There is something in the way the crow is looking directly in the camera, beak full of food, knowing they aren’t supposed to be so close to merchandise. Crows aren’t stupid, but neither am I, and I am not looking to mess up this crow’s morning.
Cotton-Top Tamarin is Missing
My stomach sank to the ground when I saw that the Cotton-Top Tamarin exhibit sign was missing and there were no signs of the little creatures inside the enclosure. Luckily, after a visit to Guest Relations, I was informed that this is not a permanent change. The little guys are having their check-ups, and the team is running diagnostics on how they are doing in general.
Be sure to stay up to date on when these guys return on our website. It was only last year that Animal Kingdom welcomed more babies.
Abdim Storks Are Well
The Abdim Storks remain tucked behind the Tree of Life, but overall, the pair seem happy in their new space, even if they lost their tortoise roommate. Maybe they prefer that?
Unfortunately, they still do not have an informational sign, which is sad because I feel like a lot of guests miss them because they are so tucked away and small. This would be a prime spot with Pocahontas meeting nearby.
World of Disney Finds
At the World of Disney I was a little surprised to not find very many new items. I did find the already popular Monorail salt and pepper shakers available for $24.99. I also found a tiny, Wonderland-themed ceramic teacup available for $14.99. I’m not sure if this is a shot glass, espresso glass, or tooth pick holder. Let me know what you would use it for in the comments below.
Finally, my favorite find was another Disney Little Golden Book. I ate these books up as a child and would have loved these Disney park themed stories. Walt Disney’s Little Man of Disneyland is available for $5.99.
I hope you enjoyed our day in Disney’s Animal Kingdom and our brief shopping spree in World of Disney at Disney Springs. My favorite part of the day was exploring the different animal exhibits in Animal Kingdom, but the crow eating popcorn was the star of the day.
Let me know which animal sighting was your favorite from today in the comments below.
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