Now that I’ve been vindicated for the infamous “Patootie Incident”, I suggest we move along to the rest of our Epcot adventure. Thank you to all my expert witnesses who testified on my behalf.
After my unfounded accusation by Bunny at Soarin’, we managed to enjoy the ride again, despite my outburst of foul language.
By the time we finished our Soarin’ adventure, it was nearly time for our ADR at the Garden Grill for lunch. We were quickly seated on the inner tier, which still afforded us a reasonably good view of the Land beyond.
Many readers are familiar with the Garden Grill, which is a rotating restaurant, which provides changing views of The Land attraction. But for those less seasoned Dis-ers and family members that I have coerced into reading my trip report, you will note that the Garden Grill does not spin so quickly as to mess with one’s equilibrium. You can safely dine there without “revisiting” your meal, if you know what I mean.
The movement is so very slow and subtle that it is barely noticeable, but rather entertaining when one looks up after a prolonged period of either chowing down or conversing with one’s dining companions and realizes that the scenery has changed.
Equally entertaining, and considerably more dizzying are the antics of Mickey (dressed appropriately in farmer attire), Chip & Dale, and Pluto. To Bunny’s great delight, these friends practically dined with us, they were spent so much time at our table! Mickey even sat down with us at one point, and “told” us (via pantomime and writing) that we could get a variety of ensembles in which to dress our Pal Mickey at the “Build a Bear” store. Wonder if Mickey gets a kick-back on those outfits?
We had great fun with Chip and Dale, complimenting them on the delicious garden vegetables that accompanied our meal, and watching as each tried to take all the credit for the gardening and cooking.
The food itself was quite good, served on a platter for all at the table to share. All being Nana and me. Bunny actually got her own servings of kids’ fare: chicken tenders, macaroni and cheese and such. We encouraged her to sample from the main platter as well, and she happily did.
The adult’s platter included a flank steak with mushroom sauce, catfish, and turkey. Sides included stuffing, cranberry relish, and biscuits. It was all quite good, but we especially enjoyed the catfish. Dessert was a sampler that included brownies, lemon bar, and cheesecake bits, also good, if not outstanding.
We had an interesting “conversation” with Mickey, who told us his age (52), and his favorite ride at Epcot (Mission Space), though Mickey cautioned Bunny that it was probably too intense for younger guests. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with Mickey, who was very generous with his time.
When I had phoned about six months ago for our ADR’s, the CM asked me if we were celebrating any special events during our stay, and I mentioned that we would be celebrating Bunny’s birthday a few days early while we were there. They must have noted this on our reservation, because to our surprise, Chip and Dale appeared with a full-sized birthday cake at the end of our meal! And to sweeten the deal, a birthday card signed by the whole gang.
After Bunny’s cake appeared, they also brought out the dessert that was included with her meal: a cupcake with frosting and sprinkles to decorate herself. A big hit!
The most fun part though, was when Chip and Dale snuck up, and dipped their paws into the frosting and then wiped it on Bunny’s nose. Then they ran off and laughed behind their paws about it, pointing appreciatively at their handiwork. Bunny loved it!
They boxed up the rest of the cake for us to take back to our room, since that’s where we were headed, although being on the dining plan, I can’t imagine when we thought we’d be hungry enough to actually sample any more of it. It was a surprisingly tasty birthday cake, especially considering it was free!
After finishing lunch and securing all the necessary “odergraphs”, we headed out of Epcot toward the buses to go back to our room for an afternoon rest. We planned to dine in the World Showcase later that night, and to watch Illuminations after, which would make it a late night by Bunny’s internal clock, especially, so the afternoon break was a must.
On our way to the buses, we ran across another Photo Pass photographer, and stopped to have him take a few pictures of us. I guess Bunny was a little hyped up from the sugar or something. She could NOT listen to the instructions from the photographer about how to pose, and she could barely keep from running off from us.
Finally, when we finished getting the pictures taken, we reached down to retrieve our bags. Bunny was attempting a masterful escape, while I did my best to corral her. You see, I have neglected to mention until now, that Bunny had developed a very annoying habit of insisting that she knew which way to go to reach any location, anywhere, in any park.
“It’s THIS way, come on!!” she’d shout with authority.
Stopping dead in my tracks, I’d look at her incredulously, “And just HOW do you know that?” I’d ask.
“I just KNOW!!!” she’d reply, tugging on my hand and yanking my arm out of joint at the elbow.
“Oh, hold on, hold on,” I tried to reason with her. (My first mistake.) “Have YOU even looked at a map of Epcot?” I challenged her.
“NO!”
“Did YOU spend countless hours obsessing over the plan for today, planning every detail?”
“NO!!”
“Do you have any idea where we even want to go next?”
“NO!!” (She is clearly quite annoyed with me at this point.)
In desperation, I ask, “Then how could you possibly know which way to go??!”
She looks at me with a heart-warming mixture of annoyance and pity.
“I just KNOW!!!” she repeats.
(Why do I even bother to try to reason with five-year old logic?)
Somehow, in all the fancy footwork that ensued, Bunny planted her little pink and white sneaker squarely in the middle of that delicious birthday cake, which we were forced to dump unceremoniously in the nearest trash can on the way back to the room.
Clearly, it is nap time. And very well-earned indeed by all members of our party that afternoon.
Coming up next: Moroccan spaghetti, bellydancing, and Berber Passion. (Are you intrigued yet?)