The 4F Trip Report - Day 13

[alan]

Trip Report Index is here

The 4F Trip Report

Day 13 - 09-Jul-2009 - EPCOT

Today was planned to be a late night, so we had a long lie and a leisurely breakfast at the hotel before going to EPCOT. This was a photography-lite day, since I had spent a serious session yesterday shooting the fireworks.

We started of with just the four of us going there - Marie, the kids and me. When we got to the park, the weather was of course:


So we went straight to the Land pavilion, grabbed a Fastpass for Soarin', and went for lunch. I do so like the Garden Grill - it offers about the healthiest food I've been able to find in the whole of Disneyworld!




I think that both the adults had Chinese food with noodles, though I rather let myself down by having a huge Key Lime Pie. So much for "healthy foods"!

We went on Soarin', and after that Cameron saw a tag-engraving machine. He wanted to get a tag to take home as a present for one of his friends, so we fed in our money and let the machine make the tag

By now the weather had improved a little, so we went out to go over to "The Seas". We posed for the obligatory photographs outside the Pavilion


before going indoors.

I was very impressed by the technical wizardry of the Nemo ride - how do they manage to have a very 3D-looking projection into an aquarium?

Then we had a look at the real fish

and took some photographs at the standard photo-op sites



before making our way back to the entrance of the park to meet Uncle John and the parents-in-law

On the way back I went for a pit-stop, and was rather bemused about the placement of this mailbox

 

[alan]

We met up, and went on to the World Showcase. I've had the good fortune to visit China a couple of times, and really love much of the place and its culture. So we ended up spending quite some time in the China Pavilion



A big scary monster, beside a marble... no, wait. I don't think I'll bother finishing that sentence



The Chinese garden


A nice one of Jenni


Then we had an interesting experience. Cast members blocked the pathway at a bridge, and the entire bridge lifted up to let the fireworks barges (and the Earth) through to the lagoon



After stopping for a coffee, we carried on around the lagoon, stopping at various places on the way

These trains really move fast on the model railway

and they have huge birds!

 

[alan]

Back to Futureworld, where the Parents-In-Law wanted to see Homey I Shrunk The Audience. I wandered around taking photographs while they waited in the queue (aargghh! does that make me a queue jumper?)





And then it was time for dinner. We had booked into the Rose and Crown in the UK, hoping that we would be able to sit outside and enjoy the fireworks. So when we arrived and were told that we would need to wait about half an hour, we asked if it would be possible to be seated outside.

The lady who was organising the reastaurant explained that she didn't have as many tables operational as she normally would have because of the weather, and that she wasn't really able to make any promises - we'd get what we'd get. So we went for a wander, waiting to see where we would end up.

We watched a Beatles tribute band playing for a little while, then the buzzer sounded and we went to eat. And to our delight we were outside, with a clear view of the lagoon!

We ordered and ate a delicious meal, washed down with a pint of real cider (well, Strongbow, but it was better than nothing).

After the main course, I was sent out to go to Canada and get the final "stamps" on the kids' Kidcot funny faces - we had run out of time earlier in the day - and when I returned one of the staff was chatting to my father-in-law. I thought no more about it as we ate our dessert.

Then, everything started to go quiet in preparation for the evening's fireworks display. A cast member came up to the table and asked if "Jenni" and "Cameron" were at the table. Of course, they were and they acknowledged that to the cast member.

"We've got a problem," he explained. "Mickey Mouse has been delayed on the monorail and can't start the fireworks. Would you be able to start them instead, please?"

The kids were delighted. The cast member brought two brightly-coloured light sabres, and encouraged the children to make a wish. At just the right moment he said "Wish now"; the kids wished and the fireworks started! They were absolutely delighted. He carried on through the show, getting them to bring the world in, start the song and so on.

By the end of it, Jenni was seeing through it. But Cameron asked us at the end if we might buy a newspaper tomorrow "because Mickey being late for the fireworks will be on the front page!".

Afterwards, the kids were presented with a certificate signed by all the cast members at the Rose and Crown
and believe me, they were much happier than they looked in the picture!

And then, it was time to make our way slowly home.

I didn't have the SLR with me, but I thought I'd have a quick try at a couple of long exposures of the fountains... NOt sure how well they came out



and then we grabbed a couple of shots on the new Spaceship Earth, which the kids love. The vista as you see the earth from space is just breathtaking, and they enjoyed the exhibits once you've completed the ride too.


And that was our penultimate day...

 

[wickesy]

Great 'magical moment' for the kids.

 

[jjk]

what a great day, how cool that Jenni and Cameron got to start the fireworks

 

[irongirlof12]

awww! what a fab thing for the kids to do! another fab day

 

[Pinky166]

How fab that they got to start the fireworks.

 

[suzycute]

Experiences like that is what makes WDW a truly magical place!

 

[wicket2005]

A lovely day.

 

[Cyrano]

Great that the kids got a magical moment in Rose & Crown

 

[tennisfan]

A great day, especially for Jenni & Cameron

 

[cap'njack.]

What a good day and how magical for Jenni and Cameron