One Year Later - 2011 Disney Trip Report - Day 5

I'll start today's post off like we started this day of our trip out with one word and one word only, KONA!



It's been somewhat of a tradition for our family to take a Magic Kingdom monorail loop at least once a trip, to visit the various resorts on the line. We started this today with our breakfast at Kona. Tonga Toast and press pot 100% Kona coffee is one of the best ways to start a morning in WDW hands down.



Needless to say, breakfast was outstanding, and from there we all split off to roam the rest of the Polynesian, me running around with my tripod to get as many good shots as possible. I'd have to say that out of all the Disney resorts, as beautiful as they all are, the Polynesian has to be my favorite. And the smell in the lobby from the lush greenery and fountain make it a real one of a kind.



The best part about doing these resort tours, is of course getting to ride the monorail so many times! Of course our next stop on the monorail line was the Grand Floridian.



We all felt just a bit out of place at this resort. It was very nice and very beautiful, it's just not the same "speed" as our family. The more upscale decor and environment of course didn't keep me from sitting on the floor in the middle of the lobby to shoot photos.



After spending some time walking the grounds taking photos, we met up with the rest of the group for the next stop.



I was very excited to get into the Contemporary and shoot. I probably could've stayed there twice as long as we did taking more photos, but I was happy with what I came away with. My favorite here was the laughs from my family I received in laying the floor in the middle of the concourse to capture the Mary Blair mural. This was a really fun morning that was very relaxing and nice spending time with the family.



Getting back to the Polynesian, we climbed back into the cars to head to Hollywood Studios.



After getting inside the gate, my nephew wanted to ride Tower of Terror and Rockin Roller Coaster. Since most of our party don't ride thrill rides too often, my brave and thrill seeking girlfriend Jenea went with him. Now what's a guy to do with 45 minutes on Sunset Blvd. Attach his 50mm f/1.8 prime and go shooting away that's what!



Up and down the street I went, getting some really fun photos with my nifty fifty. I met back up with everyone else where we made fun of my cousin Andy for munching on a Turkey Leg. Of course then Jenea and I took a bite at the same time, it was like Lady and the Tramp canivore style. We headed back to ride the Backlot Tour and then Jenea and I had to get back to the resort to change for our dinner ADR.

Jenea and I decided this trip that we wanted to go out to dinner just the two of us. We decided to do that at Jiko at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. We did this for three major reasons, 1) It's Jiko and it got nothing but rave reviews 2) We would get to see AKL at night and 3) We were on the dining plan which made it a good value. Even though it was two table service credits, it was still worth it for what we got. We started with the Taste of Africa appetizer which was just awesome. We both are huge meat eaters, so we both got the Filet Mignon for our entrees. This helped in making the dining plans two table service credits worth it. We both had a glass of wine with dinner. When ordering dessert, our waiter reminded us that we hadn't had our non alcoholic beverages yet, so Jenea had a cappuccino, while I had a cup of tea with our desserts. I can't remember exactly what we got for dessert, but is there such a thing as a bad dessert? All in all, the dinning plan saved us over $130 just in that one dinner, so I'd say it was worth it, especially for the near three hours that we were there.


After dinner, before we headed back to Epcot to watch Illuminations with the rest of the family, I just had to run up and grab a shot of the AKL lobby at night. Just stunning in everyway, day or night.

Be sure to check out the other parts of this trip report here:
One Year Later - 2011 Disney Trip Report - Day 1
One Year Later - 2011 Disney Trip Report - Day 2
One Year Later - 2011 Disney Trip Report - Day 3
One Year Later - 2011 Disney Trip Report - Day 4

ANNOUNCEMENT:
I have recently come into some promo codes for the Disney Photo a Day app that I've been instructed to give away. I figured with the rebranding of my blog and the focus around Tomorrowland, we would have a little trivia contest. I still have to put the questions together, but I'm thinking the way it will work is the first two people that email me with ALL of the correct answers, the promo code and subsequently the app, is yours! Stay tuned for a contest!