4 Parks + 5 Staples in the Baby's Head = 9 Magical Days!! (9/17 The Last Hurrah!)

[LGH1946]

This is the BEST TR I have ever seen. The pictures are so incredible. I have never seen such good, clear pictures and they include EVERYTHING!!! I have been to WDW 20 times but I have seen more in your pictures.

Great! Such cute kids!!!

 

[jmskinner]

I'm glad you enjoyed Biergarten, it is one of our favorites. The you and DD dancing is just wonderful.

You really had a magical trip!

 

[Halloweenqueen]

Beirgarten is one of our favorites. We never get a good picture though. Good for you!

 

[mom2meiko]

i am fully caught up (all in one morning i might add) and have to say Thank You for taking the time to write such a great and detailed TR. our next trip is still a year away (due to my current pregnancy) but we can't wait to get back down to our 2nd home. can't wait to read the next installment!

 

[thecapells]

This is the BEST TR I have ever seen. The pictures are so incredible. I have never seen such good, clear pictures and they include EVERYTHING!!! I have been to WDW 20 times but I have seen more in your pictures.

Great! Such cute kids!!!

i am fully caught up (all in one morning i might add) and have to say Thank You for taking the time to write such a great and detailed TR. our next trip is still a year away (due to my current pregnancy) but we can't wait to get back down to our 2nd home. can't wait to read the next installment!

Welcome aboard both of you and thank you for the kind words.
I hope I can live up to your high praise for the rest of the report.
As for the amount of detail, I plan to save this report and show the kids once they grow up - yet another memento of the trip!
And I hope to get the next segment out tonite - stay tuned!

 

[thecapells]

It was now about 2:30 as we left the plaza of Italy en route to the good ol’ U.S.A.
We still had lots to get done before our 5:30 dinner ADR so at first I was annoyed when we stumbled into a crowd.
Then I realized the crowd was moving.
We were following some guys dressed up in colonial garb.

Ah yes - The Spirit of America Fife and Drum Corps from the American Adventure.
I figured we’d watch the parade for a minute as we passed quickly by.
I vaguely recalled they had some sort of flag ceremony.
With DD and DS in tow, I maneuvered towards the front of the mansion right when the Drum Corps turned to face us.

To my surprise, at that point it turned into a full-blown show.
I hadn’t actually planned to see these guys but it was really fun and we even sang along!
I quickly snapped some more pics:

And then the Drum Corps even broke into famous formations:

When the show was over, we found Mom pushing a sleeping X in the stroller covered in Mickey blankets.

Right next to the American pavilion was a gate leading into the “Pearville Fair.”
Yes, I said Pearville. What is Pearville you may ask? I did. So did the kids.
Apparently it’s a celebration of the American Pear. Ummmmmm, okay.

So what did we do?
Well, if you know me by now the answer is simple.
Why, we took pictures of course!!!

First, DD and DS were turned into pears by looking into the special mirror:

Now that we were pears, we had to decide which pears would best suit us.
First there was the Princess Pear (of course)

Followed by Sekel the Dragon Pear

And Bosc the Bear Pear

And lastly, Bartlett the Pirate Pear

And we could not forget to take pictures with the Pear Topiary

This was getting ridiculous but the kids were having a blast and giggling with delight.
DD even made me take a picture of her next to this random red pear

All the while X was dreaming of pears

On the way out we even got pear coins…

Next to Pearville was Kidcot so the kids calmed down and went to work.
I sat with the kids so they could stamp their passports and color their charms.
The CM’s wrote nice messages as usual

including Happy Birthday to DD:

And here’s DS’ colorful American rocking horse charm.
He colored both sides identically - here's one side.

I had already planned to skip the American Adventure show as my kids are a bit young for the history there.
And Voices of Liberty is also not their style (although Mom would’ve loved it).
So, after restroom stops, we set off from our homeland as we still had half the world left to conquer!
And conquer it we shall! Stay tuned!

 

[castmemberb4]

Love Love love your TR !
You're doing a fantastic writing job!

I have to tell you just so you have no ill feelings toward that Italian CM, there are no restrooms in Italy. The restrooms are in every other country (mostly)

Anyways really enjoyed the Biergarten with you and can't wait to see where you go next.

Lynn

 

[thecapells]

Love Love love your TR !
You're doing a fantastic writing job!

I have to tell you just so you have no ill feelings toward that Italian CM, there are no restrooms in Italy. The restrooms are in every other country (mostly)

Anyways really enjoyed the Biergarten with you and can't wait to see where you go next.

Lynn

Thanks for following along!
As for the restrooms, I figured there had to be some in Tutto Italia but I didn't want to stay and argue.
I know in France (as you'll see later), we were directed to the restrooms within Chefs de France.

 

[Lady Lallie]

Hmm. The Pear. It was a cute little set up though. I especially like the Princess Pear.

 

[All7OfUs]

'What a trip! Pears??!! Weird... I'm pretty sure we've used the restroom in Tutto, but maybe they don't want everyone to have access to it?

I have now put the fife and drum corps on my list of must-dos. Haven't seen then yet, nor Voices of Liberty. I wonder if you can get a CD of either of their music? Anyone know?

I'll check back tomorrow...

 

[jmskinner]

Wow, you guys did so much during your trip. I have to add the fife and drum corps to the list of things to do in Epcot. I need to grab a note pad and go all the way through your TR and take notes.

The Pear Fair photos are great.

 

[thecapells]

BTW, I forgot to mention.
Check out the Drum Corps drums for Hidden Mickeys.
The kids found them while we were watching and I forgot to point them out in the TR.

 

[thecapells]

Wow, you guys did so much during your trip. I have to add the fife and drum corps to the list of things to do in Epcot. I need to grab a note pad and go all the way through your TR and take notes.

Yeah, my spreadsheet was pretty packed with all the little things to do.
I think it just made the countries (and everything else) that much more interesting for the kids!
So get those notebooks out and ready to go - there's lots more to come!!

 

[castmemberb4]

Thanks for following along!
As for the restrooms, I figured there had to be some in Tutto Italia but I didn't want to stay and argue.
I know in France (as you'll see later), we were directed to the restrooms within Chefs de France.

It amuses/amazes me how the rules have changed since I was there. (It's been almost 15 years since I was a castmember) we weren't allowed to direct anybody into the restaurants for the restrooms. I think they kept them more exclusive that way. Don't even get me started on the grooming rule changes !
Can't wait for more report especially since it's been pretty cold here, I'm loving seeing you guys in your shorts and Disney shirts.
Lynn

 

[OhMari]

What day of the month are you at Epcot.
I was there at the same time and I was watching
the Drum and Fife Show.
I was at Epcot Nov. 9th.

 

[thecapells]

What day of the month are you at Epcot.
I was there at the same time and I was watching
the Drum and Fife Show.
I was at Epcot Nov. 9th.

Just missed ya.
We were there on Wed, Nov 5th.
That would've been funny though!

 

[thecapells]

Crossing the Pacific after our American Adventure and run-in with some pears, we arrived at the Land of the Rising Sun.
A friendly Photopass photographer was there waiting and introduced us to the “magic spot.”
I hadn’t heard of this spot, but apparently in Japan, there is a "magic" photopass spot.
They take pictures of you, rotate, take more pictures, rotate, and take more pictures.
The result is that you get pictures in front of the Japanese temple, the pavilion, and the Torii arch.
All without really moving. It was pretty cool.
Unfortunately X was still sleeping. But that didn’t stop our photographer as he proceeded to snap X in his stroller.

Then he made us gather together at the “magic spot.”
First up was the shot of the lagoon with the Torii in the background.

We then rotated for a shot of the Japanese temple.
DD was making silly faces but it was still a decent shot.

Lastly, we rotated to get a family shot with the Japanese pavilion in the background.
Unfortunately, DS was still putting his glasses in his pocket at the time.

The pics weren’t great but it’s a neat idea – one spot, 3 shots.
After our photography session, I made an executive decision based on timing.
We had 5:30 reservations for dinner back here in Japan but still had more countries to go.
Rather than get to Canada and trek all the way back for dinner, I thought we should press on now.
That way we could finish Morocco and France,and then come back before we get too far. So, off we went.
But first I had to snap a shot of Spaceship Earth framed by the Torii

And the kids wanted to pose as well:

As we neared Morocco, I spotted Aladdin by the stand across from the pavilion and immediately got in line.
They announced that Aladdin was going to leave in several minutes but would return with his friends Jasmine and the Genie!
I was psyched because group shots are sooo much more fun. So we decided to wait.
It was about 3:00 and the Matsuriza Drummers started playing back in Japan.
I lifted the kids onto a table so they could see. Don't tell anyone.

And we watched the show while in line for the characters.

Drums in Africa, America, and now Japan – Disney apparently has a “thing” for drums.
Anyway, after the show, DD caught sight of some of the Friendship Boats and wanted a picture:

And Mom wanted to squish Spaceship Earth.
This is always a fun picture:

By now Genie had returned but we were awaiting Aladdin and Jasmine.
Since X was still sleeping, Mom suggested we explore the Morocco Pavillion on our own. So we did…

 

[ktmetke]

I love the pic of your wife "holding" onto Spaceship Earth!

 

[All7OfUs]

Love the secret of the "magic" place in Japan. Will definitely use that one in the future! I like what mskinner says... add all these fun little things to my notebook to keep in mind! Glad I have your TR in my favorites so I can keep it for a while to look back to. So many details you have included! Thanks!

A while back you talked about the "magic" spot in China. Can you explain that a little better?? I definitely want to find that, but I'm not sure what to do or look for. Thanks!

 

[thecapells]

A while back you talked about the "magic" spot in China. Can you explain that a little better?? I definitely want to find that, but I'm not sure what to do or look for. Thanks!

Sure - it's pretty simple.
Just inside the doorway to the Temple of Heaven is a large circular room.
The floor is made up of square tiles that form rows of circles with one circle in the middle.
Stand in the room and shout "Hello". It sounds fairly normal with a slight echo.
Now stand in the circle in the middle of the room and try it again.
The acoustics of the temple allow you to hear your own voice.
It's a pretty neat sound as the echo is perfect from that sole point in the room.
Comparatively, the echo is much louder and has more reverb from that spot.
Ask a CM and they will gladly help you find the effect.