I'm sure most of you have heard of Disneyland and Disney World. You may have even been to Disneyland Paris before!
1. Do you know where Disney World is located in the United States?
2. What about Disneyland?
They are two different places! We call fun places like this "theme parks" or "amusement parks"
1. Disney World is located in Florida (where I am from), while
2. Disneyland is located in California, where Jessi is from!
Did you know that Florida has other amusement parks too, and not just Disney World?
Where I lived, a city called Tampa, there is an amusement park called Busch Gardens. Busch Gardens is an Africa-themed animal theme park.
The park features attractions like rides, animal exhibits, shows, and even hosts different events and holiday parties throughout the year!
The overall geographic theme of the theme park is based on Africa, and different areas of the park are modeled after certain countries or regions of Africa. For example, there are sections of the park based on Morocco, the Congo, Nairobi (Kenya), and Egypt.
Morocco
In the Morocco section, there is a cafeteria called the Zagora cafe, where visitors can get small snacks or large meals, after spending a day in the hot Florida sun, riding rollercoasters or learning about the different animals that live there. There is also a theater, called the Moroccan Palace, where visitors can watch different shows, including an ice-skating show!
Egypt
Another section of the park is designed to look like it could be in an Egyptian marketplace. There are bedouin-style tents, crafts and art, and even buildings and statues modeled to appear Egyptian. There are also arcade-style games, where you can win prizes to bring home with you!
Rides!
One of the main attractions that Busch Gardens has to offer is the rides! The park is well known for its rollercoasters. Three of its most famous rollercoasters are called
Kumba
Montu and
Gwazi
Kumba
Kumba is a steel rollercoaster that has 7 inversions! When it first opened in 1993, it had the world's tallest vertical loop. The name "Kumba" comes from the translation of "Roar" in the African Kongo language
Montu
Montu is also a steel coaster. This one is inverted - the passengers are seated but their feet dangle below them and the cars they sit in attach to the underside of the track, instead of sitting on top of it!
When Montu opened in 1996, it was the tallest and fastest inverted roller coaster in the world.
Gwazi
Gwazi is another well-known roller coaster, but this one is made of wood instead of steel! It was built as a dueling roller coaster, with two separate tracks. When it opened in 1999, Gwazi was Florida's first wooden dueling roller coaster.
Today, Gwazi is under construction; it will be rebuilt as a hybrid coaster - this means the track will have both steel and wood parts. It is scheduled to be finished this year, and when it is, it will be the tallest, steepest, and fastest hybrid roller coaster in the world.
Animal Enclosures!
The city of Tampa has a very nice, large zoo called the Lowry Park Zoo, which is separate from Busch Gardens, but Busch Gardens also has many animal enclosures - it is actually Tampa's largest zoo, with more than 200 species of animals!
There is an Animal Care Center that lets guests at the park observe animals being cared for - including medical procedures like X-rays!
There is a section called "Walkabout Way", which features Australian animals like kangaroos and wallabies. Visitors to the park can purchase food and feed the kangaroos and wallabies enclosed there, or simply observe them interacting with the other animals.
There's also an aviary habitat called "Lory Landing" where guests can buy nectar and hand feed the lorikeets (birds) that live in the habitat.
In addition to the care center, Lory Landing, and Walkabout Way, there is an open section of habitat, the Serengeti Plain, which gives the animals a free-roaming environment. They have a huge area of land on which to live and interact, rather than being enclosed in small, closed off areas. Some of the animals which live there are zebras, antelopes, rhinos, giraffes and impalas.
Events!
Busch Garden also hosts different parties and events throughout the year! At Christmastime, they have extra attractions and shows, and of course decorations, to celebrate Christmas. The park's celebration is called Christmas Town.
At Halloween time, Busch Gardens has an event called Howl-O-Scream, to celebrate Halloween. The event includes haunted houses, scare zones, and Halloween-themed shows!
1. In what state in the US is Disney World located?
2. In what state in the US is Disneyland located?
3. In what city in Florida is Busch Gardens located?
4. What continent is the basis of the theme of Busch Gardens?
5. What are the three roller coasters I named?
6. Which roller coaster is currently under construction?
7. Which roller coaster is made of wood?
8. Which roller coaster opened in 1993?
9. Which roller coaster is inverted?
10. What is the name of the area where guests can feed kangaroos?
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