Epcot- Saturday, July 16, 2011

Yesterday, when the heat and exhaustion had gotten to us, we considered having the Anna and Emma stay at the house with Grandpa and Grandma while we went to Epcot. When Emma heard that, she threw up her arms and excitedly yelled, “MERRY CHRISTMAS! MERRY CHRISTMAS!” It seems that it may be possible to have TOO much Disney, but we didn’t expect that. Still, we wanted Anna to come because there was so much to see that we liked before, and we had been talking all along about how Emma was going to see “Soarin’” and the China pavilion. In the end, we made a deal with the girls. If they came, we’d talk Grandpa and Grandma into coming. They would probably leave early, and the girls could go back to the house and go swimming with them if they chose to. We also had to take a stroller that was in the garage so that Emma could ride most of the time.

When we visited Disney as kids, it seems like we started a park by the entrance and worked our way around, either clockwise or counterclockwise, and saw the attractions as we came to them. One thing that Disney’s Fast Pass system seems to do is force you to strategize more. You plot which attractions you want to see most, which you can skip for this time, and what route you’ll take to zig-zag across the park in order to maximize your time. As we entered Epcot, we were early enough to see Mickey and friends countdown to the opening of the gates in Future World. Once it was open, Julie went left to get a Fast Pass for “Test Track,” while Grandpa and Grandma Wright and the rest of us went right to get ready to see “Soaring” in the Land Pavilion.

We really wanted to see Emma’s reaction to “Soarin’.” Julie, Scott, and Anna had ridden it before, either here or in California, but this is the first time that Emma would be tall enough to ride. We’ve loved the ride, which makes it feel like you are flying over California sites and landmarks, and we knew she’d love it too. However, once we got in line, we were much more interested in Grandma Wright’s reaction. Her fear of heights was kicking in. She was fun to watch.

From “Soarin’,” we crossed to the opposite side of Future World to “Test Track.” It’s not exactly new, but it’s one we hadn’t seen before. Somehow, it never seemed like it would be worth the long lines just to see a presentation about how cars are tested. It didn’t seem very “Epcotish” to us. However, it seemed natural to see it with the Wrights, even though it was sponsored by GM, not Ford. The ride itself bumps you around and eventually accelerates you to 65 MPH. After the ride, Grandpa Wright sat in a Camero in the GM showroom, and Anna thought it was funny to get a picture of him in a Chevy.

This was the Wright’s second day at Epcot, since they’d come here earlier in the week with John’s family. We were able to do a number of things that they had missed the first time. Our next stop was to see “Ellen’s Energy Adventure” at what was originally, “The Universe of Energy.” Grandma wanted to see the dinosaurs, which seems to be the attraction’s main purpose, in spite of trying to prop up a lesson about fuel sources around them. The addition of Bill Nye makes sense, and Ellen Degeneres is entertaining enough, but she seems to take you out of the moment when you’re with the dinosaurs. From there, we went to the recently redone “Spaceship Earth,” which is housed in the huge iconic sphere at the park’s entrance. Much of the presentation is similar to what it was before, with an emphasis on the theme of communication throughout history. There have been tweaks to the ride up, but the ride down has the biggest change. It used to be rather unremarkable, but now the riders are asked a series of questions on a panel in front of them. A short animation is then shown, using pictures of the riders themselves, and what their life might be like in the future. Emma said her world was “cool.” By then it was time for lunch at the Electric Umbrella in what used to be Communi-Core. We then went to “Imagination”, which features Julie’s favorite, Figment the purple dragon. It, too, has changed from when it originally opened. Eric Idle now interacts with Figment. We’ve seen this presentation before, but Julie is still glad to see that Figment is back, after being gone for a number of years. Michael Jackson’s “Captain Eo” is back too, but we chose to skip him again.

The crowds seemed smaller today, but it may be that way because Epcot is so spread out. Epcot really does seem like it should be two separate parks, and you could easily spend a day in each half of it. We had spent the morning in Future World, and had certainly seen the highlights and our favorite parts, but there was a lot that we skipped. Now, though, it was time to start our way around the World Showcase lagoon. In many ways, that’s Julie and Scott’s favorite part. Even so, it seemed rushed this time, and there was a lot of browsing and shopping that we didn’t get to do.

We started the World Showcase in Canada because the Wrights had seen the other countries with John’s family. Canada’s movie used to be one of Scott’s favorites, but once again the people of Epcot have tried to update the attraction by the addition of a celebrity. This time, they added Martin Short, who at best is a bit of a goofball and at worst can be annoying. We’re not sure if the running time of the movie is actually shorter, but it does seem that they cut out a lot of content to make room for him. Scott lamented the loss of the music of Stan Rogers, which was a highlight of the movie for him before he even knew who Stan Rogers was. The Bluenose is still shown, but with much less footage, and with Martin Short babbling instead of Stan’s great baritone singing his memorable song. The new woman that they have singing “Canada, My Canada” at the end has a nice voice, but the harmony of the man and woman singing together is gone.

After Canada, we went to the United Kingdom, where the girls got to get autographs and pictures from Pooh, Tigger, and Mary Poppins. Alice, from Wonderland, mischievously stuck her tongue out at Pooh and Tigger for some reason. The movie in France came next. In both Canada and France, it was fun to watch for places that we’ve seen in person since our last visit, like Quebec City and Mount St. Michel. Grandpa snored loudly in the French movie, though. We went through the Morocco and Japan pavilions rather quickly, but in each place we visited, Anna and Emma stopped at the Kidcot fun stop.

We temporarily skipped America, Italy and Germany in order to get to China. Grandpa and Grandma Wright were getting ready to leave with the girls, but we really wanted to see Emma’s reaction to the China pavilion. Scott and Julie both remember when we visited here one year, and we were having a conversation about adopting again. We saw Mulan in the gardens out front, but like the other times we’ve been here, she was just leaving. Like Canada, China’s movie is in the round, and surrounds the viewer. Like France, it has not been “improved” since the opening of the park, and it is probably a better presentation for it. When we came out of the movie, we saw one of the cast members from China demonstrating some of the Chinese toys that were for sale. When she heard that Emma was from Hubei, she exclaimed, “Oh! A spicy girl!” It must be a very common phrase in China, because it’s not the first time we’ve heard it. Emma did enjoy the China pavilion. She has said before that China is a magnificent place. Both girls were ready to leave with the grandparents when it was over, though. [Later, when we were leaving Florida, Anna composed an e-mail to the Disney people to suggest that they add Russia to the countries in Epcot, so she seems to have been impressed by the other things we saw during the day.]

For our dinner, we went to Germany, where we had our favorite buffet. The food there is great, and once again, Scott ate his fill of sausages. The band didn’t start playing until after we had been there a while, but they were fun when they did, and the atmosphere inside is fabulous. It’s like you’re in a little village square in Germany. We ate alongside a family from Indiana who were very friendly. From there we backtracked to the “American Adventure.” It’s a little too bad that Anna and Emma didn’t get to see this one, because the animatronics are amazing, as always, but the subject matter of a sweeping look at American history probably is meant for an older audience. Ben Franklin and Mark Twain still host, like they did when Epcot opened, and there have been very few changes to the program except for the very end where some images have been changed during the song.

We made a brief stop in Italy to remember our trip to Venice, and we really wanted to do more shopping, but Epcot closes too early, at only 9 PM. Once again, Scott was attempting to play “Beers Around the World.” The rules are simple—you sample a beer from each country in Epcot’s World Showcase. There usually are a couple of people we meet who are playing the game too. Scott had done it before one year and had a great time. This time, however, he admitted defeat before completing the task. With three countries left to go (China, Norway, and Mexico) and only a little more than an hour to do them, he decided to call it quits and enjoy the time exploring the shops and rides in those countries instead.

We rode the “Maelstrom” in Norway, and then went to the similar boat ride in Mexico. Unfortunately for Mexico, someone got their hands on the ride and “updated” it. They added the Three Caballeros- Donald Duck, Panchito, and José Carioca. The change really cheapened the experience. Instead of having a serious look at the culture of Mexico, starting with the native Aztec influence, the ride is now a series of cartoon characters mugging at the camera while following a weak story of “looking for Donald.” I wonder how many people may actually be insulted by the change. After all, José Carioca is not from Mexico. His character is supposed to be from Brazil. Didn’t anyone notice that? Maybe Disney doesn’t get many visitors from Brazil. [Sarcasm.]

By then, we decided to head to the parking lot. The rain was threatening to start and the fireworks were beginning. It was a nice day, and in spite of it all, we really wished we had more time here at Epcot. It is our favorite park.