Well, we didn't make it to the Cape yesterday. A combination of heavy traffic, poor planning, and desire to see Disney did us in, and we ended up going to the Animal Kingdom instead. Although I was disappointed that we didn't get to see the launch, everyone was well-rested and cheerful by the time we got to the park. We saw Minnie at the entrance, and things got better from there.

There's a neat jungle safari that takes you on what amounts to a motorized tour of the zoo-- there were a wide range of birds and animals, including black and white rhinos, giraffes, and African elephants (as distinct from Asian elephants, which have smaller ears).

Disney's engineers are pretty proficient; this movie featured some pretty good 3-D effects, targeted air blasts, an acid-spitting termite that showered us with water, and a surprise twist at the end (hint: it involves having roaches running over your seats). The boys agreed that this was their favorite part of the Animal Kingdom. We wandered around a bit more, then went to go see the character autograph area. Some pictures:

Arlene helping David write his name in his autograph book

The boys meet two of their favorites

Everyone all together. After waiting in line, now I know why they wear those plastic smiles.