An APRIL Adventure in Autism: 2008 (8/8) Time to Say Good-Bye....

[kaysmommie]

I just read your update. The pics are great and it looks like Billy enjoyed watching Tricia and his dad playing power city. We didn't wait to play it last month but it looked fun. Mouse Gear is one of the best stores in Disney. Hard not to go crazy buying stuff in there. I saw all those car decals in WOD and now I wish I bought them. That link you posted made me cry that is just awful and sad. Looking forward to more .

 

[KathyRN137]

Good for Billy! Y'know, I'd just love to hear him laugh the way you describe it.

Thanks... his laugh is infectious, I love to think about all the smiles he gave other guests on our past trips!!

I just read your update. The pics are great and it looks like Billy enjoyed watching Tricia and his dad playing power city. We didn't wait to play it last month but it looked fun.

It was fun to watch them play... I like to give Tricia some extra attention when we can because usually we're so distracted by Billy's needs and behavior. She had a good time with her dad!


Kathy

 

[AmandaSparks730]

*is waiting for an update*



Oh, Kathy! Look at my TR for exciting news!

 

[KathyRN137]

Chapter 28: Coming to America

April 24, 2008

Epcot ~ World Showcase



After enjoying some fun in Future World, we had arrived once more at the entrance to World Showcase. Hmmm, we thought, now which way should we go first... toward Mexico or toward Canada? Well, it all depended on what we felt like having for dinner, so we followed our taste buds to….


...the right! Let’s travel to the U.K. and get us some yummy Fish & Chips!!


We pass through Canada and admired the carvings on the totem poles inspired by those of the Northwest Coastal Indian tribes... and gazed up at the forced perspective grandeur of the “Hotel du Canada.”

Hungry, we made our way quickly into the United Kingdom:

Tricia and I queued up to get a tray full of deep-fried deliciousness while the boys took off to scope out a table. This was much easier said than done! When we eventually joined them on the patio, they were still waiting for one to open up, even though it was relatively early (4:30pm). It was a bit difficult to wait because of Billy (“I want fries, pleeeese! Pleeeese, Mommy!!”), so we sat him down in an empty chair that was off to one side and the rest of us balanced our trays on the wall overlooking the Lagoon and began to nibble on our dinner while standing around him. At least we had a great view!

By and by, one of the umbrella-covered tables was vacated and we moved everything over (after thoroughly wiping it with wet wipes!) Once we were comfortably seated, we had a nice relaxing dinner by the waterside.

To my left was a view of the Lagoon:

To my right was a view of the footbridge into France from the United Kingdom:

Trivia Tidbit: This is a replica of the original Pont des Arts, a pedestrian bridge across the Seine, which was torn down and replaced in 1970.


It was a lovely place to stop and sit... I could see why so many wanted to linger here, whether they were eating or just resting. We sat and talked about what we wanted to do next and it seemed that the general consensus was that we should try to catch the American Adventure Show, which we had missed the previous year. With a history buff DH and a DS who loves anything with music and audio-animatronics, this was a definite must-do!


Other than that, we were content to simply wander through the countries, looking at all the Flower & Garden Festival displays. And so, that is what we set out to do.


Some “Fun Facts” about the 2008 F&GF, courtesy of AllEars:

300,000 bedding plants are installed for the festival.

Three butterfly topiaries are on display. Also, Doc, Grumpy and the rest of the seven dwarfs appear at the Germany showcase with intricate topiary detail that includes beards of palm fiber. Perfume bottle topiaries represent Guerlain perfumes in the Fragrance Garden at the France pavilion.

At least 25 different plants, grasses and mosses of various colors, including pink and red begonias, dusty miller, palm fiber, palm seeds, ficus and lichen, are used to create and define features of the festival topiaries. More color has been added to the topiaries than in any previous topiary presentation.

More than 15 floral, herbal and spice ingredients of 10 popular perfumes are revealed in the Fragrance Garden presented by Guerlain at the France pavilion. Guests can sniff the enduring fragrance Shalimar to discover botanical notes that include lemon, Arabian jasmine and vanilla. Some components of nine other Guerlain fragrances include mimosa, magnolia, rose, nutmeg and vetivergrass.

Nearly 40 varieties of trees, plants and flowers are featured in this year's Key to Outdoor Living garden, an upscale outdoor living area presented by Dupont Garden Systems with the laid-back ambiance of Key West near the Morocco pavilion, including an innovative kids play zone.

Forty-five "flower towers" of impatiens line Innoventions Plaza.

100 floating mini-gardens of multi-hued impatiens, each three feet in diameter, provide splashes of color on two ponds that border the walkway between Future World and World Showcase.

750 container gardens of flowers, herbs, plants and vegetables in clay pots, barrels and urns enhance the landscape throughout Epcot.

300 Walt Disney World horticulturists are needed to install the festival landscape, topiaries and many exhibits; 100 Epcot horticulturists maintain topiaries and other festival displays.

It takes one full year to prepare for the annual festival.



It was just amazing to think of all the work that had gone into transforming the park for the festival, and we wandered through World Showcase pavilions just drinking it all in with our eyes and enjoying the relaxed pace we had set for ourselves…



The "Teacups" garden in England:

The prettiest flower there (IMHO!)

We did a bit of window shopping, but didn't go inside any of the shops...

After looking at all the gardens in the U.K. we took a slight detour to the International Gateway area to use the restrooms. From there we drifted over to France...

We did wander a bit through the perfume gardens... I guess I was getting a bit lazy with my photographer duties and didn't get a whole lot of pictures. Just walked around and smelled the flowers along with everyone else, I suppose!!


Drifting now into Morocco...

Then transitioning into Japan...

This shot would've been better if I had waited for this couple to move, but Ed was getting impatient to get to the AA Show, so I just took it "as is"....

Oh well... still pretty!

Now, on to America!!

Uh-Oh... Pin Kiosk Alert!! You-know-who has just got to stop and take a look....

Now, I honestly cannot remember if Tricia bought something or traded with a CM, or what, but I do know that she came away with something from this kiosk!! Ed herded us all into the American Pavilion for the show... ahhhh! air conditioning!! So cool and comfortable in there!!

Getting some hugs while waiting in line...

Too bad we had no time to examine these statues of American icons more closely... we were immediately directed to take our seats. "Move all the way to the end of the aisle, please!"

Remembering how w-i-d-e the screens are in this show, we opted for a row in the middle and settled in to enjoy Ben Franklin and Mark Twain as they took us through a series of events in American History recreated with both film and audio-animatronic presentations. It's easy to overlook how carefully the Imagineers planned every single detail of this presentation...


In order to maintain the story integrity, no subject matter predating the invention of the camera is presented in (staged) photography or film. These time periods are shown only in artwork or dimensional scenes using Audio-Animatronics.

- The Imagineering Field Guide to Epcot​

I hadn't remembered seeing the Martin Luther King Jr. audio-animatronic before... was I forgetting, or was this a newer addition?? Anyway, we enjoyed the production so much that the half-hour seemed to fly by.


We exited the theater and decided to set out in search of....


DESSERT!!


Kathy

 

[KathyRN137]

*is waiting for an update*

I must've read your mind!!


Kathy

 

[mommytothreeboys]

Awesome World Showcase pictures! The F&G festival is truly impressive! Thanks for all the fun facts!

We saw the American Adventure for the first time this trip. It was amazingly well done. My DH doesn't usually go for the "flag-waving" patriotic stuff, but he really enjoyed it as well.

Cute brother-sister moment you captured!!

 

[AmandaSparks730]

We've never gone during the F&GF but it looks wonderful!

We've gone during Christmas twice, and during Halloween once (unfortunately, there was a tornado during the night we had tickets to MSSHP! A tornado! In Florida!).

Definately love going during end of November-early December. No lines, Christmas decorations!

 

[thegreggersmom]

Great update, Kathy. Makes me want to go for the Flower Fest. Love the pic of the happy sibs!

 

[KathyRN137]

Awesome World Showcase pictures! The F&G festival is truly impressive! Thanks for all the fun facts!

Cute brother-sister moment you captured!!

Great update, Kathy. Makes me want to go for the Flower Fest. Love the pic of the happy sibs!

This was such a relaxed trip compared to the last one... we really enjoyed just being together as a family!

We've never gone during the F&GF but it looks wonderful!

This was our first visit during the Spring and F&GF time. It was a nice change, I only wish it would have been a longer trip! I was pleasantly surprised... I expected the parks to be jammed!

Right now, "Jersey Week" is our best option!


Kathy

 

[jcc0621]

I can't believe you never saw American Adventure. It's one of our favs. Can't wait to hear how you all liked it!

 

[KathyRN137]

I can't believe you never saw American Adventure. It's one of our favs. Can't wait to hear how you all liked it!

Oh, I'm sorry... I guess I wasn't clear... We had seen it previously, just not on our last trip with Aunt Rae.

I'm still not sure about the MLK Audio-Animatronic... that did seem new to me!! (Maybe I had dozed off or something!!)

We all loved it; especially Billy!!

For the past three days he's been somewhat obsessed with listing the 3D movies at the theme parks and has been talking about them a lot! I don't mind seeing any of them again, especially Mickey's Philharmagic, but I cannot say the same for HISTA at Epcot!! That one I could miss...


Kathy

 

[AmandaSparks730]

Too bad they don't have "RI Week".

Oh, and a *brief* TR update. It's mostly pics, but I couldn't resist!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Mmmmm, there is nothing like the fish and chips!!!

You have such beautiful photos from World Showcase, but my absolute favorite is the one of Tricia and Billy hugging! Too cute!

 

[KathyRN137]

Too bad they don't have "RI Week".

We could always share!!

Mmmmm, there is nothing like the fish and chips!!!

You have such beautiful photos from World Showcase, but my absolute favorite is the one of Tricia and Billy hugging! Too cute!

Thanks, Jackie! Billy is a very huggy boy... intellectually, I know that's mostly because he craves deep pressure, but I don't care!! I'll take all the hugs I can get!!


Kathy

 

[wvdislover]

Nice update! My mouth was watering when you were talking about the fish & chips (we still haven't had our big meal today...just snacks). Love the picture of Tricia and Billy hugging. Sarah, too, enjoys hugs sometimes, but not too hard, b/c she "can't breathe." She has problems giving "real hugs" back...not enough upper body strength, I guess. We haven't done the AA in YEARS! We'll have to check that out this year, especially since Sarah and I studied colonial American history this year. Besides, it's air-conditioned

 

[AGPrincess]

Great update! Loved the photos...made me feel like I was back at WS, touring through the countries. MMmmm -- dessert? Can't wait to hear about that!

 

[KathyRN137]

We haven't done the AA in YEARS! We'll have to check that out this year, especially since Sarah and I studied colonial American history this year. Besides, it's air-conditioned

That's right... you're going in September!!

AA is fun with older kids because it does stimulate conversation about American history... although its pretty hard to cover everything in half an hour!! All things considering, I think the Imagineers did a great job!


Kathy

 

[KathyRN137]

Great update! Loved the photos...made me feel like I was back at WS, touring through the countries. MMmmm -- dessert? Can't wait to hear about that!

Oh, Emma, if you like photos, you're not going to want to miss the ones I took during dessert!!

Kathy

 

[irish dancer]

Love the pics. We've caught the tail end of the F&G festival and it is simply beautiful. I just love all the flowers, topiaries and butterfly garden. We were there last week and it looked so plain without all the extra flowers and such.

Can't wait to hear/see about dessert, my favorite topic!


Oh and my Daniel is a huge hugger too. It was actually part of his IEP to try and get him to hug less and to use it appropriately (ask first, etc).

 

[KathyRN137]

Oh and my Daniel is a huge hugger too. It was actually part of his IEP to try and get him to hug less and to use it appropriately (ask first, etc).

Ah yes... "personal space" issues!! I'm very familiar with them.

We try to warn all the characters about Billy so they aren't startled... most of them are used to getting hugged by children, but I'm sure its a bit unsettling to get "sniffed" unless you're used to it!!

Dessert post, coming right up!


Kathy