Category Archives: Travel

Pandora and the World of Avatar

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Welcome to the World of Avatar

The World of Avatar

What kind of world is Disney’s Avatar? It’s the newest addition to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. There’s been quite a buzz about it’s opening so I guess I’m getting an early look at the park. Its only been open since May 27.  Its based on the movie Avatar which I’ve never seen . I know the movie featured a lot of blue people called Na’vi.  My interest was piqued when I saw a Disney presentation about it’s newest attraction. It looks quite beautiful in Disney’s presentation.

A Veil of WaterIs this Land Worthy of Disney?

Does Pandora live up to the hype? Well, it’s the largest addition in over a decade. Most of what I heard seemed to indicate that land was geared to nighttime visits. The flowers and trees were lit by “bio-luminescence”. That’s the kind of thing you see on the ocean at night when little tiny creatures called plankton become excited and emit light. I’ve see it and it’s quite beautiful but would Disney really be able to pull that off? They certainly gave it their best shot combining colored lighting, fiber optics and that old standby, black lights.

My first Glimpse

JR had plans for the evening so my first exposure to Pandora was in daylight. I expected it to be dull without the artificial lighting but I found the “world” to be charming with multiple water features and waterfalls. The artfully sculpted alien plants had vibrant colors even in the bright sunlight which tends to wash out color. The floating mountains made me think of a Doctor Seuss land with all the towering twists and turns.

 Floating Mountains

The Rides of Pandora

We weren’t able to get on either of the rides. The wait times were well over an hour for each ride. The Flight of Passage had wait times up to 95 minutes! The Na’vi River Journey was almost as long. There are other things to do rather than spend time in line. We decided to return on Sunday evening for the night experience and bid farewell to Pandora for this first visit.

What’s a Visit to Orlando without A Mouse?

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Disney World, Orlando

Who goes to Orlando without at least one visit to Mickey Mouse? Even when Hurricane Irma blew through Orlando, the Walt JR on the job at DisneyDisney World Parks only closed for a couple of days. After spending a day with the manatees I only had 2 more days in Orlando so I hooked up with my BFF, JR. He works for Disney so he knows all of the shortcuts and tricks to a great visit. He’s also a Disney Photographer so he gets me to places where I can get great shots of my own.

Entering Disney

Don’t try this yourself. It’s illegal!

(Disney Tip) If you are one of those people who love photos of your vacation and plan to buy the photos the Disney Photographers take of you and your family, The Disney Photo Pass is the way to go.  It sounds expensive but it will save you money in the end.

Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom Entrance

Disney is always adding and subtracting attractions and parks so it’s always changing. Through all of this “newness” I still love Animal Kingdom the best. I picked JR up at his work location. That was an adventure all by itself. Apparently GPS doesn’t work too well  in Disney’s back stage area. I wound up at the entrance to Magic Kingdom.The cast member at the entrance allowed me to turn around. A call to JR for directions soon had me pulling up to his work location. With JR to navigate I found the Animal Kingdom entrance with no problem.

Kali River RapidsFast Pass and the World of Pandora

Fast Pass is the best way to reserve your favorite rides. The Kali River Rapids is my favorite  ride but prepare to get wet. It wasn’t running when we first arrived. The crews were still repairing damages from the hurricane. Once it reopened we weren’t prepared with a change of clothes so we skipped it this time. My focus this trip was to see the new Pandora – The World of Avatar. Its been featured in a Disney Special on TV and it looks amazing. I have to see for myself! There were no Fast Passes for Pandora rides but we wandered over to check out the newest “land” in Animal Kingdom anyway.

Rainforest of Pandora

Air Boats and Alligators

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Tom & Jerry’s Air Boat rides

The last part of the Florida Adventure tour is a 30 minute air boat ride. We had a 45 minute bus ride from Crystal River to Lake Panasoffkee for a 30 minute boat ride. I’ve been on air boats before but not on Lake Panasoffkee. Upon arrival the group was split in two. Only one air boat was operational. Or maybe it was because there was only one captain available.

Cruising the Lake

airboats and alligator

My group followed the Captain Jerry down the dock where we boarded a medium sized air boat. There were plenty of earmuffs on each bench seat. You really need to use them because the roar of the huge fan that drives the board is deafening. We started out slowly but soon Captain Jerry kicked up the speed. A great blue heron took off as we roared past. Captain Jerry slowed the boat and pointed it out. He said it was the first bird he’d seen since the hurricane. Usually the lake was teeming with birds.

Birds and Hurricanes Great Blue heron

Captain Jerry explained that the birds get into the eye of the storm and are carried far off their normal flight paths. It takes them awhile to get orientated and begin to return. He was very happy to see the Great Blue. A bit further on Captain Jerry again slowed the boat. This time so we could see a smaller bird. It was a heron too. This one was the tricolor Heron.

Where are all the Gators?

We finally spotted one alligator. Captain Jerry said he thought most of the gators were way back in the brush. The lake is usually about 6 ft deep at its deepest. With all the water from the hurricane it was more like 12 feet and still rising. It made for a beautiful blue lake but the marsh grass and Lilly pads were all underwater now. Alligators like to be able to hide. With the deeper water they felt exposed so were way back in the brushy area.

Want to hold the Alligator?

Baby Alligator

Back at the dock the 2nd half of our group headed out. One of the other employees brought out a small alligator to let us hold and take pictures. The really little gators were in an aquarium in the gift shop. Captain Jerry may have been disappointed that he couldn’t show us more gator’s but I didn’t hear any of us complaining. We had a great time all day!

 

 

 

 

Crystal River Archaeological State Park

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Crystal River has more to offer than Manatees

Next stop, Crystal River Archaeological State Park. My fellow tourists turned in their rented wet suits and settled back on the bus. Madelyn handed out our “picnic” lunches so we could eat on the way to the park. The original tour was supposed to take us to Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park but it was flooded from Hurricane Irma. Instead we were going to Crystal River Archaeological State Park.

Crystal River Archaeological State Park

Temple Mound

A National Historic Landmark, this 61-acre, pre-Columbian, Native American site has burial mounds, temple/platform mounds, a plaza area and a substantial midden. The six-mound complex is one of the longest continuously occupied sites in Florida. For 1,600 years the site served as an imposing ceremonial center for Native Americans. People traveled to the complex from great distances to bury their dead and conduct trade. It is estimated that as many as 7,500 Native Americans may have visited the complex every year. Although primarily an archaeological site, the park sits on the edge of an expansive coastal marsh. Anglers may catch saltwater and freshwater fish. As part of the Great Florida Birding Trail, the park offers bird-watchers the chance to observe a variety of birds.

The temperature was tipping 95 degrees so I chose to stay in the air conditioned museum. In addition to the artifacts on display there was a short educational movie. When my bus-mates returned they were really sweating. They said it was great scenery but really hot out there. I’ll save my exploration for another trip when it’s cooler out.

Crystal River Arch museum

One more stop

Part 3 of our tour is a 30 minute air boat tour of Lake Panasoffkee. Its about a 45 minute ride from Crystal River. Madelyn popped in the video from this morning. I think everyone was getting tired because the ride was very quiet. I was watching for hurricane damage but aside from a few trees and a lot of mangled bill boards the area we drove through seemed to be in pretty good shape. 

On The Road to Crystal River

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The Road to Crystal River is a long one

Manatee in the Wild

 Crystal River  is about an hour and a half north of Orlando. It gave us a chance to see what Hurricane Irma had done in Central Florida. A few trees here and there and a lot of mangled billboards.  Our tour guide had brought along video tapes to entertain us as well.  She popped in Night at the Museum, Secret of the Tomb. That certainly helped to pass the time.

Get Ready to Get WetMy snorkel buddies

Once in the town of Crystal River we stopped at a small shop to pick up our wet suits. They are $10.00 per suit. I wasn’t sure they would have them to fit me so I brought my own from home. It’s brand new and I was going to christen it with this trip. As Madeline gave instructions for trying on the suits I was really glad I brought my own. She was talking about trying suits on without a bathing suit. Maybe they do that in Florida but we never did that in the cold New England waters. It made me question the hygiene of a rental suit.

Our Dive boat

Pontoon Boats and Manatees

Once we had our wet suits on it was off to the marina. I really lucked out as most of my group was on a large pontoon boat. My boat only took 5 people and I was #5. That meant we pulled out first and got to the first location ahead of the other boats. We spotted one Manatee and the scramble to get  in the water began.

 

Manatee Ahoy

 

getting into the waterWe were given a mask, snorkel and a “noodle”, a long, cylindrical piece of polyethylene foam that makes floating easy. The wet suit also makes you more buoyant. The tricky part is not kicking and using your feet. Splashing and flailing around spooks the manatees. You have to float quietly and move slowly. We were given a long list of do’s and don’ts but I shouldn’t have worried.

 

Manatee swims under the snorkelers

 

The manatees broke the rules right away.  They swam right up to us!