Disney Animal Kingdom Orlando

Disney World Animal Kingdom Orlando

Disney's Animal Kingdom in Orlando is a theme park where the main theme is animal conservation.Spread over 500 acres ,Animal Kingdom is the largest of all Disney Theme Parks ever built.The  Animal Kingdom consists of  seven themed areas and it is impossible to cover the entire park in a single visit.

Kilimanjaro Safari

The Kilimanjaro Safari tour begins in the Harambe Wildlife Reserve, across the river from Discovery Island. The ride on the rugged open-sided safari vehicle is an exciting expedition through the 100 acre Savannah style wildlife preserve. The ride can be a bit bumpy as it crosses rickety bridges, rocky hills and rivers but we were rewarded with spectacular African animal sightings the kind we normally see on Discovery or Animal Planet Channels.We saw Giraffe, Zebra ,Flamingoes ,Ostrich and a Lion family which looked like toys until one of them suddenly raised its head to look at us.

The ride concluded when suddenly our tour guide received word that poachers had taken a baby elephant from its mother.. Our truck took off on a chase to help save the infant animal from harm.There was high drama with walkie talkie sets crackling and lot of shouting and yelling.

The Wildlife Express Train

The Wildlife Express Train is a one way trip that ends at Rafiki’s Planet watch. The ride took about seven minutes to complete and upon arrival we exited on to a ststion set in 1926 Africa.The coaches were open on one side and we could have a good look at the behind the scenes operations of Animal Kingdom and where and how the animals spent their nights.The engine, coaches, platform, station were quite authentically set in Africa of the early1900s.Standing was just not allowed.

Tigers In The Anandapur Royal Forest in Animal Kingdom Orlando

Maharajah Jungle Trek is a self-guided adventurous walking tour of native Asian wildlife in Anandapur Royal Forest, a tropical paradise full of plants and trees, rushing waterfalls and wild animals. in Animal kingdom at Orlando.

Maharajah Jungle Trek features beautiful murals, crumbling ruins and colorful pennants representing the cultures of northern Asia. The flowery scents and the  fascinating assortment of unique animals, created  a colorful and  alluring environment.

Tigers, the Lords of the Asian Jungle, were a special draw for the crowds and were housed in enclosures made of glass. 

Forbidden Mountain with Roller Coaster in Animal Kingdom Orlando

Expedition Everest in the Asia area of  Disney Animal Kingdom is a high-altitude, high-speed, roller coaster train ride for bigger kids  and adults to the "Roof of the World," which is the  home of the inhospitable snarling beast, the abominable snowman living at mountain's peak.

We climbed aboard a railway car for a full-steam-ahead adventure bound for Mount Everest. Our trek across the treacherous terrain of the towering Forbidden Mountain began with a few scenic twists and turns and then set out on a climb towards the summit.From this panoramic point with amazing views across Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park, we plunged into darkness. Returning to the light,  the tracks had been twisted into a dead end. While careening in the darkness we got glimpses of the Yeti. The fast   hairpin turns hurled us forward and down sudden drops on the mountain slopes in a race to escape from the abominable snowman Yeti.

Festival Of The Lion King at Animal Kingdom, Orlando

Festival of the Lion King brings the familiar characters of the Disney animated classic film The Lion King from the movie screen to an action-packed stage at Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park. This half an hour long  live show combines the pageantry of a parade with a tribal celebration.It is in no way less than any Broadway performance.Through the original film music , vigourous dances, fire juggling etc the characters like Simba, Timon etc and a traveling band of African tribal performers  tell the tale of a lion cub who can't wait to be king.

Festival of the Lion King is performed in an air-conditioned theater with stadium seating.During the Festival of the Lion King show, we were encouraged to be part of the action. Each of the 4 sections around the stage takes turns acting like a giraffe, a warthog, a lion or an elephant. Did you know giraffes make the same sound as sheep: bleeet!We were siting in the giraffe section and people all around us bleeeted and participated merrily with our animal guide teaching us all along about the  "Circle of Life".

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The Magic Kingdom

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Cinderella castle at Fantasy land in Magic Kingdom, Orlando

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Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in Orlando is the ultimate theme park and quite a hit with the kids,their parents and the grandparents too. It is 107 acres of pure fun and adventure.It is not possible to visit the entire Kingdom in one day and therefore there are Flexi Tickets which allow multiple entries over a number of days.If somebody  gets tired ,they can head back to their hotel rooms,recharge the batteries and be back again,ready to enjoy the charm of the magic Kingdom.

Ferry To Magic Kingdom

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The best way to get to The Magic Kingdom ,after parking the car is to take the disney world ferry across the lake.There is a mono rail also, but the thrill of travelling in a 19th century style boat is more fun.

Orlando Lake Ferry Crossing The Seven Seas Lagoon

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There are 3 boats which can carry 600 guests and cover the mile long ride in about 5 minuteswith the pasengers wondering how did the  Disney Seven Seas Lagoon construction take place.

Inside the Magic Kingdom there are  seven lands which represent different concepts of Walt Disney World. The original plan was to have only 5 but finally the number increased to 7.

Main Street, Inside The Magic Kingdom, Orlando

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1.Main Street U.S.A.-Takes you back to the Main Street of Nineteenth century American towns complete with Rail Road Stations, Barber Shop, Horse  Drawn Trolleys running on rails, Town hall  for meting and greeting etc along with the food outlets.Immediately after entering the Magic Kingdom you are on the main Street.At nightime there is a special Magic Kingdom Main Street Electrical Parade with radio controlled LED lighting effects and electronically synthesised musical sounds.

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2. Fantasyland -This is the land of Walt Disney Characters , Mickey, Donald, Goofy etc., created and popularised initially through comics, then videos and I believe there are interactive games now. Cinderella castle which is just at the beginning  of fantasyland is the most photographed place in magic Kingdom. 

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3.Tomorrow land-It is conceived  on Walt Disney's imagination of the future based on science fiction writings in the 1920s and 30s.It depicts a future that never came. But the flashing strobe lights, shining glass and gleaming metal along with futuristic rides make tomorrow land enjoyable for the parents and grandparents of the kids busy in Fantasy land. The queue  for the Space Mountain in tomorrow land is the longest.The ride took away our breath literally and it took 45 minutes to recover at the tomorrow land magic kingdom restaurant. The ride simulates a rocket blasting off  into space and the acceleration, twists and turns, in full darkness with blinding strobe flashes was the ultimate in getting blasted.After that I have not sat on any ride again.

4.Liberty Square Magic Kingdom is reminiscent of colonial America. The buildings and get up transports you to the time when independence  was being declared and there is an original replica of the original Liberty Bell. Yes, it is correct, and there is a long story behind it which can be enjoyed on wikipedia etc. The steamboat, Liberty Belle takes visitors on a tour of the seven rivers of America.The Haunted House is not to be missed and despite knowing that the whole thing is for fun, at some point the heart does skip a beat. The Hall of Presidents has robotic presidents of the USA. 

5. Magic Kingdom Adventure land represents the mystery of exploring foreign lands. It is themed to resemble the remote jungles in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, South America and the South Pacific, with an extension resembling a Caribbean town square. Adventure land contains classic rides such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Disney Jungle Cruise.At boarding point for the disney jungle cruise(called silly jungle cruise) there were cages having all kinds of African and Asian animals-some of them quite fierce. The best was a six inch by six inch cage containing a Tarantula Spider with red lighted eyes and moving legs.It did look quite sinister.The jungle cruise started in Africa and finished in Thailand .

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6.Frontierland-  Disneyworld frontierland transports visitors to the time of the American Wild West when Cowboys, Indians and Outlaws called the shots. The Frontierland Big Thunder Mountain Rairoad is a roller coaster inside an abandoned mine which appears to be crumbling and there are some  special audio effects. Splash Mountain is another attraction where if you sit in the front you can have the pleasure of getting soaked.


7.Mickey Toon Town Fair is for very small kids and we did not have the time and strength(after spending 8 hours walking around the Magic Kingdom) to visit.


Magic Kingdom is indeed an excellent experience. If somtimes the queues are long at any particular ride ,one can take a ticket which says what time to come,maybe 2 hours later,but you can legally jump the queue.It is a good arrangement ,otherwise you would spend the whole day waiting for just one ride.


Among the best places to travel to in United States,,Magic Kingdom is among the  top family holiday destinations and one of the most enjoyable tourist places in Orlando. 
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San Francisco-Cable Cars, Alcatraz and The Golden Gate Bridge

The triad of Cable Car System, Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz have made San Francisco one of the best places to travel in the world with tourists from all over the world coming to personally experience and see the tourist places. San Francisco is also referred to by the name Frisco.

San Francisco Cable Car

The Cable Car System of San Francisco is the only surviving  manually operated Cable Car System in the world. The sight of Cable Cars gliding on steel tracks in the middle of the streets  without any electrical overhead cables or engine noise and smoke makes one curiously wonder as to how the thing moves.Early models had 2 carriages,one having the grip and the brakes and the trailor for passengers.They were built by companies familiar with horse drawn carriages and the front car replaced the horse.

Frisco Cable Car , San Francisco

 The cable cars are used to a certain extent by commuters but, their small service area and premium fares  make them more of a tourist attraction.It is the only transportation system listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the only moving National Monument. Cable Car system is one of the most popular tourist attraction in San Francisco, which is the third most visited city of the US.

San Francisco Cable Car Tracks and Cable, San Francisco

The Cable cars which are built on 4 wheel trucks run on 2 steel tracks in the middle of the streets and in the middle of the tracks runs a steel cable below the ground surface.Every cable car is pulled along it's hilly track by the underground cable. The cable is gripped with a vise-like mechanism that is operated via the grip lever in the front of the car.The operator  called Gripman needs a lot of upper body strength to operate the grip and brakes. Also acute coordination is needed to navigate over crossing cables and the traffic , and only about 25% of the applicants actually make it to be Gripmen. There have been a couple of Gripwomen also. 

Hilly Tracks of the Cable Cars, San Francisco

San Francisco is located on the San Andreas fault which is responsible for the earthquakes and also which created the hills. The creator of the cable car system saw five horses struggle up a hilly track  with a heavy load, slip and get dragged down to the bottom and to their deaths.Even when the electric trolleys came ,The Cable car system was the only one which could work on the really steep hills.The diesel buses could  of course take care of all steep hills  and but for the determined efforts of the citizens, the cable cars would have disappeared by now. The two main tracks end at the Fisherman's wharf but at 2 different points.

Eateries At the Fisherman's Wharf ,San Francisco

The Fisherman's Wharf was so named because of the resident fishing fleet which used to go out into the bay to get fish and crabs.The opening of the fishing season was an festive affair and  was marked with a lot of religious processions and priestly blessings. San Francisco is famous for its  Dungeness crab.The eateries at the Fisherman's Wharf still serve the same dishes like Clam Chowder and Crab Meat Cocktails in paper cups as they did three generations ago.

Franciscan Crab Restaurant, San Francisco

Sea food is the flavour in San Francisco all around, from the cluster of small eateries to the  fine dining restaurants like the Franciscan Crab Restaurant.

Ferry To Alcatraz, San Francisco

 The ferry to Alcatraz-The Rock- leaves from Pier 33 at the Fisherman's Wharf. Alcatraz is an island 1.5 Km into the ocean and can be reached only by Boat.It was till 1963 a prison, but is now a highly developed recreational area. A Hollywood movie by the name The Rock ,starring Sean Connery is set in Alcatraz and San Francisco in which the cable cars are also involved in a particular carnage scene. An Indian Bollywood movie Qayamat,set in Mumbai -starring Ajay Devgan-is based on the same premise,but with a few twists in the plot.

Submarine USS Pampanito, San Francisco

A WWII Submarine is also anchored at Fisherman's wharf ,which the tourists can enter to see and experience the Submariner's world and life.

Submarine Torpedo Room, San Francisco

The yellow and black cylindrical object is the torpedo.It was a relief  to know there  was no amatol-explosive-in the torpedo.

Submarine Antiaircraft Gun,San Francisco

The Boy Scouts were going to spend the whole night that day locked up inside the submarine for 12 hours so that they could have some feel of being a submariner.

The Rainforest Cafe, San Francisco

Dinner at the The Rain Forest Cafe at the Fisherman's Wharf was quite an adventurous affair and the restaurant chain is quite popular among children. The retaurant has green plants with colorful flowers ,water sprinklers, flashing lights, robotic animals and insects, a large aquarium, ceiling  having optical illusions of a rain forest with a thunderstorm coming every thirty minutes accompanied by a lot of sudden commotion.

Aquarium at Rainforest Cafe, San Francisco

The food served ranges from Beef,Chicken, Fish but the most favoured  is the Crab Dip.The most popular dessert at the Rainforest Cafe is the Sparkling Volcano Dessert.

Sparkling Volcano Sundae Dessert,Rainforest Cafe, Frisco

The Sparkling Volcano Sundae  Dessert makes a very dramatic entry with sparks flying from a sparkler and the staff yelling Volcano-Volcano. I believe this is a tradition.

Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco

The Golden Gate is the opening of the San Francisco Bay and the bridge over the opening is called the Golden Gate Bridge. It has been the symbol of San Francisco from the time it has been built. It is also the most visitd and most photgraphed bridge in the world. The roadway is hung from two cables that pass through the two gigantic main towers and are fixed in concrete at each end. Each cable is made of 28000 strands of wire and each wire was stung starnd by strand using a bicycle type of contraption  being ridden by an operator at the top most height of the bridge.

Exit of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco

The Golden Gate Bridge is acclaimed as one of the  most beautiful bridges. With its gigantic towers, sweeping main cables, and great span, it is a feast for the eyes featuring color, sound, and light. Besides the daily commuter traffic more than nine million visitors come to have a look at the bridge annually i.e average of 25000 tourists per day. 

Pylon Anchoring,Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco

The photograph shows the procedure adopted for anchoring the ends of the suspension cables.The toal load is finally transmitted to the concrete structure shown here. The Fog and the Wind are integral to the Golden Gate and were one of the biggest obstacles in the design and construction of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Matters Seem More Serious Then They Actually Are.,Golden gate,Frisco

 There are more suicides at Golden Gate Bridge than at any other place in the world. The annual number is about 1500 ,approx 4 per day. The police is able to prevent about 700 suicides every year by catching and the person in the nick of time and subsequent counselling. 

San Francisco From The Top Of  a Hill

San Francisco has several hills, most of them very steep, but  only seven  of them are original and popular among tourists e.g Telegraph Hill, Rincon Hill, Twin peaks, Mount Sutro and Nob Hill (sometimes called Snob Hill, beause of its affluent  resident's attitude). One hill has  Lombard  Street  ,which with its 8 hairpin turns is known as the crooked street. Vermont Street is much more steep,has 7 hairpin turns, and is known as the crookedest in the world.
In the evening a short train ride took us to the Berkeley University and after exploring the campus, rounded it off with dinner at China Village, a Chinese food restaurant with some strict regulations and rules, and  a take it or leave it attitude. The food was better than excellent.
All the above attractions make San Francisco the top destination for tourism and ranks 3rd amongst the tourist places of the US interms of numbers.