Where Dreams Come True

The first time I went to Orlando, it was because I was the only one in the office who had the time (and knowledge) to visit a potential customer - Disney World. Though it was a long 8 hours spent mostly troubleshooting, what I got out of it was a friendship with one of the nicest people I've ever met. As he walked me out of the building, my point of contact offered to take me to Disney World since he had overheard that I was a Disney fan. We spent the next few hours running around the Magic Kingdom, and bonded over the mutual Disney freak in both of us.

We've kept in touch over the years, and three trips to Orlando later, Brad always offers to get me into the Parks for free. Today, he convinced me that a trip to the Animal Kingdom was absolutely necessary, and would not leave me smelling like animals. I have to admit that it is one cool park, though very different from the Magic Kingdom or Epcot. There are some rides and attractions, but the coolest part is going through the trails and seeing the animals that they have roaming around. There's even a mini animal reserve that you can go through via safari (think Jungle Cruise, but with real animals). Almost as satisfying is when Brad and I passed by a food station and pointed out the device we worked on. It's kind of cool knowing that part of me is in the parks, albeit in a very geeky way. Despite the fact that I complain about having to go to Orlando, being able to get into Disney World for free (and hang out with a friend) is a pretty sweet deal.