Magic Kingdom - The Happiest Place on Earth

Well, all right, so it's not the happiest place on Earth.  It's probably not even in the top five.  I'd be willing to bet that in August it could probably rank as one of the circles of hell.  But in November, when the weather was pleasant and the park is beautifully decorated for Christmas - well, it's pretty darn happy.

Magic Kingdom is the original park at Disney World, and is dominated by Cinderella's castle.  It is absolutely geared to families, especially those with younger children, and Matt was tall enough for every ride there.  And we rode almost all of them.

We were all thrilled to discover that Matt was tall enough for the big rides - Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, and Big Thunder Railroad.  Big Thunder was hands down his (and our) favorite.  It's a rickety feeling mine car themed coaster that shakes you to death while zooming through curves at what feels like sixty miles an hour.  Pure awesome.  I lost count of how many times we rode this, but it was a lot.  On our first time through, Matt and Charles were seated in the first car, which is usually the scariest/best place to ride.  As we slowly climbed the first hill, Matt looked at Charles, looked at the drop ahead, threw his little arms up into the air and grinned.  He loved it.  Splash Mountain, a giant log flume featuring a five story drop over a waterfall at the end, and Space Mountain, which blasts you through space mostly in complete darkness, were also popular.

50 foot drop at Splash Mountain = awesome

With glow necklaces, ready to brave Space Mountain

We also hit all the classics: Dumbo, Peter Pan, Mad Hatter's Tea Cups, It's a Small World, and of course Pirates of the Caribbean. 

While the boy didn't enjoy the parades, I enjoyed the spectacle and pageantry - Disney knows how to do a parade.
 
                             

The coasters were certainly the highlight of the park, but we enjoyed all of it.  The castle was lit for Christmas, with fireworks every night on Main Street.  The Magic Kingdom is what you think of when you think "Disney World," and there's a good reason for that.  The sights, the rides, the sheer scope of the park - it really is a magical experience.

Castle at night

Beautiful lights

Stay tuned for more of our adventures in Florida, including an encounter with a yeti, Lego nirvana, and our time at Kennedy Space Center...