Day 25: Disney's Typhoon Lagoon

Another early morning -- this time so we could hit Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park for the day. 

Disney World has two water parks -- Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach -- and we had presented the choice to the kids. After some cursory Internet research they leaned toward Blizzard Beach, with its extreme water slides (including Summit Plummet, a 12-story sheer drop on which riders reach speeds of 60 mph) that seem to be geared toward older children. But we also read that, true to is name, Blizzard Beach is designed to look like it just got blasted with three feet of snow -- and the PA system plays Christmas tunes all day. Sheesh. We survived a bitch of a winter that finally ended only about four weeks ago, and facing another polar vortex is not on our summer vacation to-do list.  

So we settled on Typhoon Lagoon, a tropical-themed park near Downtown Disney that features several different water slides, chutes and tube-rides centered around a 2.75 million-gallon wave pool that generates swells up to six-feet-tall. The pool is skirted by acres of sandy beaches and shady palm groves that are furnished with hundreds and hundreds of lounge chairs, so it was easy to find a spot to cop a squat for the day. We didn’t really have a chance to sit and relax, though; there was too much to do.

 

Snorkeling in a saltwater shark tank. 

The Crush 'n' Gusher water coaster

We left the park in the late afternoon, without any protest from the three children, who are exhausted. After getting cleaned up back at the cabin, we headed back out to Downtown Disney for a Cirque du Soliel show.

I had seen a Cirque show -- “LOVE” -- in Las Vegas about two years ago, and I was excited to share the experience with the kids. This show, “La Nouba,” was equally exquisite. There were no words (in English), and the dark, dreamlike vibe deliberately evoked a kind of a creepy carnival side show, so I wondered if the kids were going to, you know, get it, or if they would be disturbed by the weirdly surreal spectacle of it all. But they were transfixed by the amazing feats of balance, strength and agility as well as the Euro-strange clowns that filled in between scenes for comic relief. At one point, I put my arm around Clare, and found that every muscle in her body was clenched in suspense as she focused intently on an acrobat mounting a teetering tower of wobbly props; she was so engrossed, so mesmerized, that she didn't even notice my touch. Cirque du Soliel was a hit -- the perfect ending to a fantastic four days at Disney World.