Welcome to the Animal Kingdom Fan Site Blog!

Jambo!

Welcome to the Animal Kingdom Fan Site blog. This blog is devoted to sharing news, reviews, praise, critical opinions, history, speculation, and commentary about all things related to Disney’s Animal Kingdom and its surrounding resorts, Animal Kingdom Lodge/Villas (Jambo House and Kidani Village).

Like many blogs, this one will build over time, but it is always important to know who your guide is for the tour before things get started.

My name is Julia, and I’m a work-at-home mom and editor. In the past decade and a half in the publishing field, I’ve written/ghostwritten a variety of books in the travel and tourism industry for attractions such as Forever Florida, Descanso Gardens, Sea Life Park Hawaii, the Don CeSar Hotel, and Norfolk Botanical Garden. Over the past few years, I’ve taken time away from writing to focus on my editing career and family with my husband and daughter. Lately, I’ve gotten the writing bug and decided to make the foray into regular blogging, and want to spend some time exploring the unique aspects of Walt Disney World’s most recent theme park, Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Seriously…you can blog about anything and you chose Animal Kingdom?

As an avid Disney fan who networks with other Disney fans, I have been told time and time again that the idea that anyone would be a fan of Animal Kingdom is unusual to say the least. From jokes about Animal Kingdom being a half-day park to the constant snickers about “Disco Yeti” to the eyerolling about Dinoland to the polarizing views about the Avatar expansion, it seems that everyone has a complaint about Animal Kingdom, but few people are as generous with their compliments.  For that reason, I don’t know of any other blog dedicated exclusively to Animal Kingdom and its resorts (although the resorts themselves get a lot of love from the online world). In writing, when you see a niche to fill, and you have a passion for the subject, it is a wise choice to jump in with both feet. Thus, I am willingly choosing to blog about Animal Kingdom, yes.

So, WHY Animal Kingdom?

Legend has it that when asked why he would want to climb Mount Everest, Sir George Mallory stated, “Because it’s there.” And although I have no intention of sneaking into Animal Kingdom at night to scale that version of Everest, I think the “Because it’s there” is a good starting reason for why one would write about Animal Kingdom. Besides, surprisingly enough, I really do like Animal Kingdom! Some of the best vacation days I’ve had in Florida have been in that park because of the unique opportunities it provides that the other three Walt Disney World theme parks do not.

You can’t be serious that you think Animal Kingdom is the BEST of the four Walt Disney World theme parks, right?

Defining what is the “best”, in addition to being a completely subjective decision, what makes a park “the best” really depends on what you are looking for. If I’m looking for “the best” park for thrill rides, Epcot (which is a favorite park of many, including myself) comes in dead last. If I’m looking for “the best” park for food, Magic Kingdom (another fan favorite) comes in dead last. Throughout the course of this blog, I hope to shed some light in the ways that I do think Animal Kingdom is the best of the four theme parks—for filling certain needs. Is it “the best” overall? I don’t know as there is one park that is “the best” for everyone and everything. I think it is in the top four without question, however. ;)

How often will this blog be updated?

Ah, the age-old question of the blogging world. Ideally, I’m hoping to get 2-3 posts out per week. A lot will depend on “paying work” obligations, family considerations, and inspiration. I know I have enough material that I could easily write a couple blog posts a week for several years and not run out of ideas. Energy and time? We’ll see how those go. I do promise that should I need to “blog fade”, I will post an update about the need to step away for a while and give an estimated time for return.

How can I contact you?

In addition to leaving comments here on the blog, I can be reached via e-mail at akfansite [at] gmail.com. Feel free to send any questions, comments, criticisms, praise, or ideas for future blog posts. I will do my best to respond to every e-mail I receive either directly or through a blog post.

So…seriously…Animal Kingdom?

Yes. Seriously. Animal Kingdom.

Asante sana! Thank you so much for reading this blog!