Epcot

Once again we are awake early - Anita having the first bath. Unfortunately there is no bread for breakfast - so we have to make do without brekkie.

Today is the day that we are going to EPCOT - probably my favourite WDW Park. Well it was the first we ever went to. Epcot stands for Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow, which I was told on our first trip - but always manage to forget. Often people have asked what it means and I struggle. I'm hoping that having written it down it will stick.

As we pull into the car park, we can see the giant silver ball reflecting the sunlight. Even at 10 am it is fairly hot! We park the car, in Imagination, but don't actually make a note of the number of the row! We might come to rue this later........ Once again the park is very busy, but I guess we are getting used to that.

Epcot is made up of two main parts - Future World - and the World Showcase. You have to start in Future world, but there are a lot of new rides - and some old favourites to take on. Unfortunately one of the favourites is closed. There is a ride actually in the giant silver ball - called Spaceship Earth, but it is being refurbished to bring it more up to date. A disappointment to start our day! :-(

 

 

There is a brand new ride that we fancy doing called Mission: Space, and there are two separate ways of taking the ride - green and orange. Green is the normal ride and orange is the more intense. Lauren and Stef go green (surely Anita should have...... lol) and Anita, Andy and I go orange. We wait about ten minutes then get into a space ship. We are strapped in (well a chest guard comes down and locks in place - quite tightly I might say). A forth person joins us to complete the team of four. We are each given two tasks (basically you have to push two buttons!) We begin our take off - and I can honestly say I began to feel sick. Thank god we hadn't eaten brekkie.... My chest gets very very tight - and it really feels like you are under immense g-force, the same as you might get on a real take-off. (I can't believe that it can really be that much - but it sure makes me think twice about astronauts!) I am by now feeling very light headed, and nauseous. The mission ends thankfully before I pass out - but I must be looking a touch grey around the gills. Andy is really enthused about this ride - he can't stop talking about it...

We go back and do the Universe of Energy ride with Ellen Degeneris, which is not as good as I remembered - and is starting to look a bit aged. Maybe they will update this ride next!

We all want to go and do Test-track - which is where the unsuspecting victims, sorry visitors, become crash test dummies. We did this in 2000 - and loved the ride. We have to queue for about 45 minutes but it is well worth the wait. Basically you are in a car that is put through its paces, bumpy roads, heat and cold, stops and starts - and then you are shot out - and travel around the outside of the building really fast. Very exhilarating, and another opportunity for Walt to take your picture.....

We decide to go and try to get on Soarin' - but the wait time is 90 minutes - so we grab a fast pass and come back later. A fast pass is where you are given a time to return, and you "jump" the queue - at least a bit of it. Our time was three hours ahead - so we had plenty of time - and decide to explore the World Showcase.

Off we go – and its lunch time – and no one has eaten so decision is food. Walk towards the restaurant in Canada – and the menu looks very appetising. Then comes the bombshell – totally booked all day – no chance of a meal there today! With the mouth still watering at thought of a big juicy steak which obviously is not going to occur we continue on.

The UK is the next stop – and from previous times here we know that the area isn't great – but when we approach the pub – "the Rose and Crown" – we note there is no queue and loads of empty tables. We enquire as to the waiting – and are told about 15 minutes. As we are not sure about any of the other eateries around the park we say what the heck and make the reservation. We walk across the road to go look at the Pringle shop only for the bleeper to go off. We return and a table is ready for us. A very quick 15 minutes – more like one and a half minutes!

We look at the menu - good news is there is loads that Lauren will eat – and not overly expensive. Fish and chips and Bangers and mash are the order of the day! Nice but not the best meal ever. Lauren has a kiddies drink which comes with a flashing badge – the first has Tinkerbell, and her second is Captain Hook! I consume a pint of Harp lager – must admit I'm not so sure that it is still in production – but it is cold – on this hot day! Another thing I'm sure that it is Irish – Southern Irish which if I remember correctly is not part of the UK! lol

After we have finished and paid the check – we go over to the Pringle shop which seems full of Liverpool and Manchester United shirts – oh and LA Galaxy ones! Can't understand that – Los Angeles is in the US isn't it??? The rest of the area is probably every possible preconceived idea about the UK that America has ever had. Still could have been worse – might have been Spurs shirts!

We continue round the Showcase, through France – loads of perfumes and wine, Morocco – fine clothes and hats, and drums, and fantastic cooking smells, Japan – cartoon characters, fine silks, and kimonos. We arrive at America and start to go and watch a show there about the revolution and the start of the US of A – but the kids don't want to. Even though it would have been cooler in there they want to carry on.

Into Italy we march, and round past Germany. Then we have to stop – as they are taking the launches out, filled to the brim with fireworks – ready for the display tonight. We have seen the display on a couple of occasions and they sure know how to throw a firework party! Four or five barges go through - - most of the drivers are good – but one almost hits the bridge.

The walkway is reopened and we continue on round, China with fantastic silks, and into Norway. There is a ride here called the Maelstrom, which is a water ride in a Viking long-ship. The wait time is about 30 mins – but its well worth the wait, although Stef is looking very worried - keeps asking about the ride. She sees the signs advising who should an shouldn't ride – and almost panics – until we calm her down. Once on the ride she loves it – as do we, and all too soon it is over. We should wait for a film show about Norway – but fortunately when the doors open to let us in - we can walk right the way through – and out!

Further onto Mexico – and the river ride with the Three Caballeros, taking you through the restaurant, which looks lovely, and into a shop, where we see lots of wooden animals and bugs that we had seen when we went to Tijuana – but that's another story!.

Back round to the Showcase plaza – and we have "walked around the world", and returned ready for our trip on Soarin'.

We go to the ride, and only have to queue for ten minutes – and we are in – and pointed towards the seats. Stef takes one look at it – and refuses to ride – walking back the way we had come! One of the members of staff shouts "excuse me miss not that way” – and points her down and out of the ride. We sit on the seats, the head restraint comes down, and we are off. The whole of the audience takes off – and we are viewing a wide screen film, of a trip across California, soaring into the skies. It was magical – as you pass over the pine forests you can smell pine, and oranges in the orange groves. Stef has missed a really good ride!

All too soon once again we have finished – go and find Stef look for something else to do, as we await the fireworks. We go and visit Nemo – and enjoy a ride that has been renamed to reflect a newer film! We then go into Turtle Talk with Crush – Andy doesn't want to go in – but is given no choice. We sit in a long row – and the screen comes to life – and it is indeed Crush from finding Nemo. It is another interactive show – where Crush takes questions from some of the kids. It is really funny, and we all enjoy it – even Andy!

As we leave the auditorium the sun is beginning to set, so we head around to see the fireworks, which as mentioned before is very good – so much better than anything we do at home – and they do it everynight. Must cost them a fortune!

The music stops as the last firework dies, and everyone is herded off – this time we go back by the monorail, in a cabin with a group of younger adults. One girl is very large and loud, and as she sits beside Stef and Andy they find out very smelly too!

We arrive back at the carpark fairly quickly (not quick enough for Andy and Stef's noses) and go and try to remember where we put the car. It is now quite dark – and all the cars look the same! We decide to split up – and the car is found after a reasonable lengthysearch. Back to the Fountains – and a quick snack, and then bed.