I thought this would be good spot to post our Epcot experiences on our last even though I'm from Calgary, Canada.
My wife and I love Epcot so we decided to try drinking around the world on our last visit. Our kids went back to MK with thier Grandmother and we headed for World Showcase. Since we're from Canada and it's pavilion is at the edge of WS, we had planned to start there. It began to rain really heavily on our way to the park, and once we got to Canada, the beer stand and the the Beavertails hut had been closed due to the weather. We were shocked that a little bad weather would shut down beer sales and decided this was not a very accurate reflection of Canadian culture (I've stood outside beer tents in rain, snow, sleet, hail, chinook winds and even the occasinal pleasant day). We quicky revised our plan and decided that starting our crawl in the UK would be much more appropriate given the weather (the only time I've been to England it rained about 18 out 20 days). We entered to Rose & Crown and the place was packed from everyone trying to escape the rain. I wasn't sure what I wanted to drink as I wasn't familiar with some the brew on tap. The fellow next to us heard my wife and trying to decide what we wanted and suggested a Scottish ale that he thought I might like based on my comments. I ordered a half yard (wanted a souvenier glass) and left the bartended a tip of about $2. The same fellow next to us them gave a half shocked/half distressed look and informed me that I was in an English bar and was being charged crazy prices by a moody bartender so my tip was far to generous and perhaps entirely inappropriate given these circumstance. We had a laugh and introduced ourselves and wives to each other. The couple was from England and we chatted about many of the issues that both Canada and the UK were dealing with at the time. As it turned out, this couple was just finishing their own drinking around the world trip and had a few good tips for us. When my wife and I had first entered the Rose & Crown we were planning to stop in for just a few minutes, but ended up staying for about 1 1/2 hours. We gave the these friendly people our address and info in case they were ever in western Canada and headed on to France. Let me tell you, after getting comfortable in the UK pavilion and feeling warm and welcome, France was a huge let down. We had our wine and moved on without speaking more that 5 words to anyone in the area. As we continued, we found hospitality again in Japan (we always do) and laughs snacks and really odd drinks at the other countries. Eventually we found ourselves back in Canada (many hours later) and everything but Le Cellier and the shops were closed. We had almost completed our "Drinking aroung the world" trip except for that elusive Canadian beverage. Focued on our goal, we approached the host at the doors to Le Cellier and ansked how long it would be to get a seat. He told us there was a 90 minute wait, so we explained our situation and asked if we could order a drink and take it to go or stand anywhere inside. He took great offense to our idea, which seemed odd to us, as we had goofy grins plastered onto our faces and thought we were being very polite (The ten drinks we had already consumed may have begun to skew our perspective). As it became apparent that we would not be able to buy a drink in Canada, my wife and I quicky came to the decision that as members of the Commonwealth and having English and Scottish ancestry, it would be acceptible to drink in the UK twice to replace Canada. We walked back into the Rose & Crown and walked back up the croner of the bar. No sooner had I ordered our drinks, than I turned around to find my wife had met another English couple finishing their evening at the pub. Again, we exchange stories about our homes and had a great time, often having other British folks join our conversations. Before we knew it, it was closing time and had completed a mission with few expectation but wonderful results. We plan on doing this again the next time we're in WDW, and again we'll skip Canada to visit UK twice.
My wife and I love Epcot so we decided to try drinking around the world on our last visit. Our kids went back to MK with thier Grandmother and we headed for World Showcase. Since we're from Canada and it's pavilion is at the edge of WS, we had planned to start there. It began to rain really heavily on our way to the park, and once we got to Canada, the beer stand and the the Beavertails hut had been closed due to the weather. We were shocked that a little bad weather would shut down beer sales and decided this was not a very accurate reflection of Canadian culture (I've stood outside beer tents in rain, snow, sleet, hail, chinook winds and even the occasinal pleasant day). We quicky revised our plan and decided that starting our crawl in the UK would be much more appropriate given the weather (the only time I've been to England it rained about 18 out 20 days). We entered to Rose & Crown and the place was packed from everyone trying to escape the rain. I wasn't sure what I wanted to drink as I wasn't familiar with some the brew on tap. The fellow next to us heard my wife and trying to decide what we wanted and suggested a Scottish ale that he thought I might like based on my comments. I ordered a half yard (wanted a souvenier glass) and left the bartended a tip of about $2. The same fellow next to us them gave a half shocked/half distressed look and informed me that I was in an English bar and was being charged crazy prices by a moody bartender so my tip was far to generous and perhaps entirely inappropriate given these circumstance. We had a laugh and introduced ourselves and wives to each other. The couple was from England and we chatted about many of the issues that both Canada and the UK were dealing with at the time. As it turned out, this couple was just finishing their own drinking around the world trip and had a few good tips for us. When my wife and I had first entered the Rose & Crown we were planning to stop in for just a few minutes, but ended up staying for about 1 1/2 hours. We gave the these friendly people our address and info in case they were ever in western Canada and headed on to France. Let me tell you, after getting comfortable in the UK pavilion and feeling warm and welcome, France was a huge let down. We had our wine and moved on without speaking more that 5 words to anyone in the area. As we continued, we found hospitality again in Japan (we always do) and laughs snacks and really odd drinks at the other countries. Eventually we found ourselves back in Canada (many hours later) and everything but Le Cellier and the shops were closed. We had almost completed our "Drinking aroung the world" trip except for that elusive Canadian beverage. Focued on our goal, we approached the host at the doors to Le Cellier and ansked how long it would be to get a seat. He told us there was a 90 minute wait, so we explained our situation and asked if we could order a drink and take it to go or stand anywhere inside. He took great offense to our idea, which seemed odd to us, as we had goofy grins plastered onto our faces and thought we were being very polite (The ten drinks we had already consumed may have begun to skew our perspective). As it became apparent that we would not be able to buy a drink in Canada, my wife and I quicky came to the decision that as members of the Commonwealth and having English and Scottish ancestry, it would be acceptible to drink in the UK twice to replace Canada. We walked back into the Rose & Crown and walked back up the croner of the bar. No sooner had I ordered our drinks, than I turned around to find my wife had met another English couple finishing their evening at the pub. Again, we exchange stories about our homes and had a great time, often having other British folks join our conversations. Before we knew it, it was closing time and had completed a mission with few expectation but wonderful results. We plan on doing this again the next time we're in WDW, and again we'll skip Canada to visit UK twice.
Thanks for your generous comments about how your new British friends were
