Of Mice and Magic

This installation is about your FIRST trip to Disneyworld!

We took a vacation this week and boy, was it a big one! We flew to Disneyworld to spend three days playing around in Downtown Disney and two of the parks.

Our flight was on Delta (your favorite airline) and you weren’t disappointed when the flight attendant gave you extra mini-pretzels. Once we landed, we were off to Port Orleans Riverside on the Magic Express. Our room was pretty far away from everything, so we got our exercise going to a from the restaurant, pool and busses.

— DAY ONE —

On the very first hour of our first day you ran and skinned your knee. Fortunately, it didn’t bother you for more than about 10 seconds. You were up and running again after a nice concierge gave us a band-aid with some neosporin. We tried to take a dip in the pool, but for some reason you weren’t terribly fond of it (Not to say you were afraid, but after about ten minutes you clung to Daddy and repeatedly said, “All done”).

Mommy wanted to see the Disney Boardwalk, so we decided to start there. It was so hot, we decided maybe that was a bad idea. We ate at the ESPN restaurant and later, you got a little ice cream scoop. That made it better. You also wore a floppy hat that Daddy got for you in the gift shop, so you weren’t roasting.

We decided that a day walking around Downtown Disney might be more fun and we were right. When we arrived, you stomped around on a fountain that narrowly drenched you at every step. Then we went to a place that lets you make your own t-shirt. You got one that Daddy put together; a skull and crossbones with the phrase, “Adorable, but still dangerous”.  We bounced from shop to shop. You were particularly fond of T-Rex cafe (didn’t eat there, but did get a dinosaur), the Lego store and you f0und butterflies at the Rainforest Cafe. Most importantly we got you the classic set of Mouskateer Ears with your name on the back.

After a short meltdown before your nap, we took a boat ride back home to let you cool off a bit. It was a good idea, because when you woke up we went back to Downtown Disney and ate at Raglan Road. There were Irish dancers there and you turned on your “Campbell charm” and got to join them for a jig. Not that you danced much, but you did make an impression.

Later, we learned about Hidden Mickeys (Mickey faces tucked away in some less than obvious places). Mommy found one on the shelf and YOU found one in the drawer pulls that looked like keys. Your keen eye continues to astound us.

— DAY TWO —

The next day, it was off to the Magic Kingdom where you got to wear your new floppy hat and use your Disney Magicband (you loved it all day long). We got there very early, since Mommy and Daddy heard we could enter the park an hour ahead of non-resorts guests. However, that information was wrong so we had to wait in front of the hot gates. You were a little antsy, but once we got in we went straight for Adventureland where we boarded the Jungle Cruise. From that moment on it was a BLUR.

We rode the Aladdin’s Flying Carpet (probably your favorite ride of the day), went to the Tiki Room (where you weren’t very impressed), walked through the pirates area, but Pirates of the Caribbean was closed. So Mommy went for a ride on Splash Mountain while you and Daddy went to Brer Rabbit’s house.

After that we went to see Ariel in the new Little Mermaid’s “Under the Sea Adventure”.  It was such a mellow ride, we made our way to “Storybook Circus” to swoosh around in a plane with Goofy. This was your very FIRST roller coaster and while you screamed a little on the first hill, you seemed to be enjoying it with a wide grin (later however, you told us it scared you just a little bit). Once around Storybook Circus, it was back to the Haunted Mansion which didn’t seem to bother you at all.

Finally, it was time for LUNCH! We had a great Italian meal at Tony’s (the restaurant where Lady met the Tramp). Almost immediately you were ready to go, go, go. So went we did to Tomorrowland. You were all adrenaline when we got to Buzz Lightyear’s “Space Rangers”. Buttons, aliens, buzzing noises and a huge prop sketch tool kept you completely engaged. You loved the ability to control the spin of our car. We needed a little break after all that action, so we took a breather on the People Mover. Even though we thought it was low key, you had a blast as we toured Tomorrowland from above. Just after that we got a laugh with Mike Wazowski on the “Laugh Floor”, where you started to get a little tired.

We worked our way back to Adventureland where you took a nap and Daddy watched a show with Jack Sparrow. Mommy took a well earned rest too. Since we hadn’t really seen Frontierland, we leisurely strolled around while you napped and ended up back in Fantasyland. When you awoke, we had a quick snack near Gaston’s Tavern (a new part of Fantasyland) and tried to queue up for Dumbo. Sadly, rain clouds were bearing down, so it closed. That seemed like a great time to see “It’s A Small World” and you enjoyed the shapes and slow pace of the boat ride, since you were still just sort of getting back into the groove.

The rain came down hard and made it difficult for us to do much more, so we scooted over to Pooh’s ride. You had a great time in line, since you could play with beehives, smash screens that looked like honey and you laughed at how Pooh spelled it (HUNNY). The rain didn’t stop. It got worse and worse, so we skittered back to Tomorrowland which had better cover. We also tried to have a quick veggie burger, but the restaurant was so packed people were sitting on the floor.

Mommy and I had a clever plan. We ran back across to Buzz Lightyear to dry off a little and you got to push buttons again. As we rode it a second time, your new found power of cart spinning was in high gear. You almost made us all dizzy.

Finally there was a break in the rain and we had that veggie burger, but the stormclouds made it difficult to ride some of the things we’d planned. It was such a full day, we headed back to the resort wet and tired but thoroughly entertained.

— DAY THREE —

So this was the day we thought would be mostly for Mommy (she’d never been to Epcot before either). What a surprise when we found there was SO MUCH for you to do. We started by having a leisurely breakfast, as going early did us no good the previous day. You and Mommy had Mickey waffles which you gobbled up with glee. And we boarded the bus at a more reasonable hour with a less pushy crowd. Good thing, because when we got there, most of the guests had poured into the park. Within moments, we were in line for Spaceship Earth and on the ride in five minutes. The mixture of animatronics and color kept you engrossed, so we knew it was going to be a pretty good day.

The ride changed QUITE a bit since Daddy last saw it, and when you descended from time and space, the screens in front of you asked what sort of world you wanted to live in (Mommy answered for you both). Once we made all our selections, it showed YOUR faces on people in the future. Surprisingly, when we got OFF the ride, there you were on the globe in the main area! It was filled with futuristic games and you almost didn’t want to leave.

It was a special Garden Month at Epcot, so there were topiaries galore. What made it even more fun for you was the abundance of BUTTERFLIES everywhere. We saw Goofy, Minnie, Donald and Daisy, each with some sort of butterfly. When we got close enough to “The Land” attraction, we decided to ride. Mommy loved how it talked about soil and conservation, you enjoyed the rows and rows of hydroponic plants, because you read every one to us.  You also found a couple of hidden Mickeys on this ride!

From here we made our way to “The Seas” where we saw Crush talk to all the kids (a REALLY fun event, but we think you might have been too young to enjoy it). Mommy even got called out by Crush and he called her “Blondie”. He taught us how to speak turtle (Duuuuuuuude)and talked to us about other creatures of the sea.

Good timing, since we went to eat lunch early at the Coral Reef, which provided us a full wall sized view of an aquarium, We even saw a HUGE sea turtle as we ate. They prepared an AMAZING quinoa dish especially for your vegetarian need. We asked to speak to the chef (because we were so impressed) and as we complimented him, he complimented YOU on your sophisticated taste buds. You also amazed us by writing EPCOT. It was your first discernible written word.

Off then to see Nemo; We followed his getting lost, him being found, then swimming with the REAL fish in the tank. Pretty amazing stuff. We spent even MORE time in the aquarium now that your interest in fish was piqued. You saw sea cows, a dolphin, manta rays, more sea turtles and a whole host of fish. We probably could have stayed there all day, but there was so much more to see.

Next was the Imagination Institute, where we rode through a demonstration of sight, sound, taste, touch and smell. Of course, our ride was hijacked by a little purple dragon called Figment who changed everything. In fact, when we went to the smell chamber, he made the smell of a  skunk and he generally tricked us until the end. The ride dumped us out to the Imagineworks floor where you got to play musical instruments just by moving your hands, run around a lot, and saw tricks of light and color.

Once outside again, we found a butterfly tent filled with bright flowers, butterfly sculptures and of course, butterflies. It was VERY warm, so we didn’t stay there as long as you might have liked. But again, so much to see!

It was getting late in the day, so we moved on to the International Pavilions; a group of tiny “worlds” dedicated to several different countries. Mommy had also started a collection of pressed pennies earlier in the day and it swelled as we walked through these realms.

We skipped Mexico because we had a fast pass to ride the Maelstrom. It was a ride in a Viking ship from the Norwegian Pavilion. Daddy thought it would scare you, but you seemed to take the trolls, polar bears and storm through the North Sea all in stride.

We backtracked to Mexico where we took another boat ride, albeit much calmer, guided through Mexico’s sights by the Three Caballeros. You seemed to like the bright colors of fiesta and found several wheels.

From there it was off to China, but since there was no ride, we move through quickly. We did stop long enough to buy you a Chinese lantern which now hangs in your room. The weather started to look foul, so we donned our ponchos from the previous day (we bought them at the Pooh ride) and moved on.

Around the bend was a trading post of sorts, but we skipped it. We all paused briefly in Germany as Mommy walked through a wine store. Then continued towards Italy. Along the way we saw a really neat model train and we took the time to see it. Again though, the clouds welled up in the distance and we saw rain, so we sought shelter.

Our journey stopped for a bit in Italy, where we sat under a canopy expecting the rain that never came. You and Mommy shared an Italian ice (that you let Daddy have a little taste of and it was VERY, very good).

We moved past America and into Japan, where we saw an art exhibit, but you seemed pretty bored and were getting tired. It had started to rain only slightly, so we continued our trek.  Morocco was next and since we had dinner reservations there, we didn’t want to get TOO far, but the momentum was great, so we pushed on to France.

There, you finally fell asleep and Mommy and Daddy tried some French wine. It was very good, as was Mommy’s French accent. The fellow at the counter wasn’t sure if she was French or Canadian! (She’s neither, but her accent is just that good). Mommy did a little shopping as Daddy rested his feet, then off to the United Kingdom.

There, Daddy popped into the Rose and Crown for a pint, where he met a few people (Daddy does that everywhere he goes). When Mommy joined, she had a pint too and just in time. The rain came POURING down. You slept through all the noise and conversations. Finally, when there was a break in the rain, we all ran out to do some souvenir shopping. We bought a Union Flag for our basement, some uniquely British things and we practically stumbled on Christopher Robbin’s bedroom. Who was there? Winnie the Pooh and Tigger too! Just in time for your nap to end and you woke up moderately confused to be hugged by the pair.

We braved another small rain shower and went to Canada where we spent most of the time in the gift shop talking to the Canadian girls that worked there. Then quickly back to Morocco where we ate at the Marakech. You LOVED the restaurant. The couscous was good, the music was great and there was a belly dancer. It gave the weather JUST enough time to calm down and after dinner the night was clear and cool.

When we left the restaurant twilight was setting in and there were numerous flames lit around the lake.

We got a PRIME spot to watch the final lightshow for the evening and you stayed up WAY past your bedtime. But the look on your face when you saw that first big BOOM of flame and fireworks was worth it. Satisfied that we’d done everything that we could, we trudged back to the resort tired, happy and amazed by all we’d done.

It was, all in all, an epic vacation. And of course, we’re looking for the opportunity to do it again as soon as we can afford the time.

Things that made us laugh:

• You called Epcot “EpicCot”.
• When asked on your way home what your favorite ride was you said, “the BUS!”
• We suffered BAD turbulence coming home. You gleefully decreed “It’s like the Aladin ride” and was thrilled.