Crystal's 2nd Solo Trip Report- Part 5

[WDW Poly Princess]

if you want the photos with the report, you can find them at www.lovemanythings.net/disney/2002index.html but you knew that by now, right?

Day 4- Friday, November 15, 2002

Did I say I had planned on getting up early today? Oops. I overslept, not waking up until 8:30. Apparently all of this Disneying was catching up with me! I turned on the Weather Channel to find that they were predicting sever storms for the weekend. Its not allowed to RAIN on my Disney vacation! I went down to Colonel’s Cottonmill for breakfast- I love their biscuits and gravy! The price on them has gone up from last year however. Still worth it, though

After breakfast, I decided that since I was already missing the opening of Epcot, I might as well take my time getting there, and decided to take some pictures of the resort, and then go over to PO-FQ to check it out. I had never been to FQ before, but I think it’s a really neat place! It’s a lot smaller than I had expected. I think I’d like to stay there sometime, but I still prefer Riverside.

Now it was time to officially go to Epcot! Just inside the gate, I met Karen the Photo CM, and decided to pose for some pics with SSE in the background. She had me pose with my hands out in front of me, and once as if I was holding something up, telling me that when the pictures came back, I would be holding something! I thanked her for taking them, and was on my way. (Just a note, every time I’ve been solo, photo people have never approached me like they do people in groups, I’ve always had to ask)

I had about twenty minutes to kill before WS opened, so I sat by Mouse Gears watching the fountain for a bit, and then went in to Innovations where I watched the Motorola movie that shows products we may be using in the future. It was interesting, but mostly just a big commercial for Motorolla.

As soon as the WS opened, I was inside, going off to the left this time. I took some time to explore the Mexican pavilion and rode El Rio De Tiempo, on which I found something new that I LOVE! In the scene towards the end that is a lot like Small World, there is a little guy doing a dance that is the cutest thing ever! (If anyone can get a picture of him for me, I will love you forever!) I had to recreate the little guy’s dance for my friends later in the trip, and it became a running joke. I love you, little dancing Mexican guy!

Next was Norway, which was the winner of last year’s quest with Nate to find the best looking man in the World Showcase. This year didn’t disappoint either, and I sneakily set myself up to take some photos of Good Looking Norwegian Guy. Yes, I am a bit pathetic, but its fun!

I rode the Malestorm for the first time, and really enjoyed it. I love the narrator’s accent- “Nor-vay!”

I also took a while to explore the stave church, which I’ve always passed up in the past. Most people don’t know you can go inside, but the display inside is pretty neat!

I knew I couldn’t be surrounded by all those good looking blonde-haired blue-eyed cm’s much longer without deciding to move to Norway, so it was off to China! My mission here was to purchase replacements for my old Lucky Cats, since you are supposed to retire them after a year. They were out of pink, but I did get a white one to replace my old white one. I stopped outside to say hi to Party Buddha, my favorite thing in all of Epcot. I couldn’t wait to meet up with Nate so that we could have a Party Buddha Club reunion. (We discovered him last year and think he’s just swell!)

My next stop was Morocco, where I had three missions. I had recently taken up belly dancing, so I wanted to buy a hip scarf- you know those ones with all the metal coins on them so that your bootie makes noise when you shake it? I found one for $15 that I absolutely adore! Next, I was off to get my henna tattoo. I’ve wanted one for ages, and really kicked myself for not getting one last time. They’re a bit pricey (Mine was $30), but its something I’ll splurge on again. I selected a beautiful design for my hand, and it took the artist about ten minutes to do. Luckily, just as she was finishing, Mo Rockin started playing, so I got to accomplish my third mission, which was to see the belly dancer! She is so much cooler than I will ever be!

My next stop was America to see the American Adventure- another show I had never seen! There was an acapella group performing in the waiting area that was fantastic! The best part was a little boy about 2 who was clapping and dancing enthusiastically throughout their whole show- they loved him!

The American Adventure show was really enjoyable, and particularly meaningful in these times. I stopped on the way out to see the WTC flag that was recovered from Ground Zero, and then watched the drum corps preform outside. They are fantastic!

Ok: Pop Quiz! If you find yourself on the far side of the lagoon, as far away from Future World as possible, what is bound to happen? Of course, you will need to be at the other side! Nate called me while I was in America to tell me that he and his sister were in the World Showcase, and that she wanted to go back to the resort to rest for a while, so he was wondering if I wanted to keep him company for some World Showcasing. Of course I did! So, I walked back to Mexico to meet up with him, and we discussed what we wanted to see. We decided that we were more in the mood for shopping, foreign men, and the street performers than anything else, so that was our focus. Checking the show schedule, we saw that the drum show in Japan was going to start soon, so we decided on Japan as our first destination. The Japanese drummers are incredible! Nate and I plopped down on the pavement to wait for the show to start, and soon other people were sitting down too. We’re such trendsetters! If you haven’t seen the drummers yet, do try to catch their show!

Next was Morocco to see Mo Rockin again. The belly dancing chick pulled two little girls up on stage to dance with her, and they were so cute! After they went back down, she brought NATE up to dance with her, and even put the skirt on him! I obviously took the opportunity to snap a LOT of photos! Such fun!

We stopped for a minute to watch the living statues in France, and then went over to China to visit Party Buddha. I bought a new gold party Buddha, but had been hoping to find a new glow in the dark one (no luck!). We found some nice folks to take our picture with the big party Buddha, and then went to watch the Chinese acrobats, which we never tire of. Some of the things those kids do is amazing, and they are so little!

Next it was off to Norway to check out some Norwegian men and ride the Malestorm again. Afterwards, it was getting a bit late, so we found a spot to watch Tapestry of Dreams from, and had a great time. I love this parade, and will really miss it! The music is incredible, and the puppet interaction is so much fun!

Nate called his sister, who said she was on her way to Epcot, hoping to make it in time for Illuminations. We found a bench and saved her a spot, deciding to just hang out until the show. Luckily, she made it just in time! There are no words to describe Illuminations- its such a great show! I’m so glad I got to watch it with friends instead of by myself!

e joined what I call the “Epcot Exodus”, the herd of 20,000 + people stampeding out of the park. I stopped in the photo shop to check out the photos that I'd had taken when I came in the park that morning. Remember when Karen said it would look like I was holding something? There in the picture, I was holding Figment! The photo people told me that you could have it changed so that you were holding a different character, but I wanted Figment, of course! I purchased a 5x7 for $12.95, and then it was off to our bus lines. The line for PO-R was LONG, and I expected to wait at least half an hour, but four busses came within five minutes, so I was on in practically no time at all! I stopped at Colonel’s cottonmill for a pizza, and couldn’t decide between cheesecake and chocolate cake for dessert, so I got both. I love vacation! My feet were SO sore that I barely made it back to my room! I decided to drop off my food and go to the hot tub for a soak, but it started raining before I even made it to the hot tub, so that plan didn’t quite work out!

I should mention here that I found out that while a pint of milk is something like $1.75 or $2 at the Cottonmill, its only a dollar in the gift shop, for the exact same thing! So, I began buying milk in the gift shop before going to the Cottonmill for food.

Rather worn out, I fell asleep in no time, hoping to wake up at a decent hour the next morning

 

[pumba]

you do most of what we do in World Showcase.....I too love the drummers in Japan....they are totally awesome.....I will miss the parade in Epcot .....but the illuminations still make the wait worthwhile......thanks so much for your report........we go in 18 days....so thanks for reminding me of all the great things

 

[pumba]

here it is

 

[Krissalee]

I have been really enjoying your trip report, but after reading this one, I am now going to try your link. I really want to see your photos! Such fun !