Greetings from Florida

Several times over the years, we've contemplated a family trip to Walt Disney World, but we've always put it off; it's always been just a bit out of our reach. This year is our 10th anniversary, and when we thought of things to do - something grand to celebrate 10 years - we decided that of all the things we could do, Walt Disney World seemed to be the most affordable. In addition, we just couldn't stand parting with our kids for too long, so we figured this would be a place they could enjoy with us.

Amy worked the numbers, bought the books, made the calls, pulled the strings, and got us some great deals. After 7 months of planning, we're finally here!

We're staying at the Port Orleans Riverside resort, which is moderately priced, but really very nice. It's laid out as several lodges bordering a river. The atmosphere is reminiscent of what - I imagine - a small, Southern town on the Mississippi looked like in the 19th century. The grounds have that sort of Bayou feel to them, and the central lodge has a huge water-wheel that fascinates Ben's mechanical mind.

We spent Saturday at Epcot. I remembered, as a kid, that Epcot has a lot to offer, and that we could have spent more time there. We've split Epcot into two days: one day to visit the "Future World," portion (which we visited on Saturday), and the second day to visit the "World Showcase" (tomorrow). We enjoyed Future World. I had to take the obligatory shot of the family in front of the giant golf ball as soon as we got into the park. That was the first I'd used the camera since we'd gotten to Florida, and the humidity fogged the lens, adding a nice, magical aura to the photo. (Joseph was camera shy and stood by my side as I took the photo)


The boys - I think - thoroughly enjoyed Epcot. Epcot has a nice little program called "Kidcot" that gives the children an opportunity to visit various stations throughout the park, collecting little cut-outs that they color, and then turn in at guest relations to get a poster autographed by Goofy.

Amy hooked us up with lunch at the Garden Grille in the Lands pavillion. We had some time to kill when we got there initially, so we rode the Lands ride (I can't remember the official name). It's sort of overlooked, but definitely worth the visit. Besides having a short line (always welcome), it get to look at some of the work that Disney does in farming research. Really cool stuff. The boys will always remember it for this joke told by one of the cast members as we disembarked from the ride:

Two muffins were baking in an oven. The first muffin turned to the second muffin and said, "it sure is hot in here!" The second muffin turned to the first and screamed, "augh! A talking muffin!"

Only, I heard the build-up as "two lobsters were baking in an oven," etc. And then the punchline, "augh! A talking muffin!" It didn't make any sense, and I couldn't figure out why the boys thought it was so funny, but then, they think that knock-knock jokes where people end up with chocolate on their heads are funny; who am I to judge humor? Thankfully, Amy corrected me, and the joke made a lot more sense after that.

Lunch at the Garden Grille was a character lunch, with Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale attending. Somewhere along the line, I crossed Chip and Dale, and they wouldn't let me live it down. Dale kept giving me the fisheye. No! Seriously! Ask Amy. He kept signalling that he was watching me. Pointing to one of his eyes with one of his three big, fat fingers, and then slowly turning it out to point at me. He snuck up behind me to frighten me, too. He was in a real mood. He stole Joseph's hat, and then chased him around the table (Joseph loved it, I mean, c'mon, how often do you get to play keep away with a personified cartoon chipmunk the size of an ape?).Eventually, Dale gave the hat back and then stole Joseph's seat (and started playing with his dessert). Man, Joseph was in heaven. He had a blast.

Chip was a bit more subdued and posed with me, too; hang on to your hats, it's not often I'm caught on film, let alone in the arms of a chipmunk.Doesn't he look like he's getting ready to take a bite out of my neck? I guess I should stop wearing that "Eau d'Acorne" calogne.

We pretty much cleared out all of the attractions (that the boys were willing to go on) in Future World, and we still had a few hours left before park closing, so we headed into the World Showcase to hit a few countries and get some dinner. BTW, if you visit Disney World, get one of the dining plans: totally worth it. We started in Mexico, because the boys were aching to go on a ride, and Mexico is one of the few Showcase Pavillions with a ride. I love the pavillion just because I think they've done such an awesome job making it feel like you're outdoors in Mexico on a summer evening, standing in a market, overlooking a distant Aztec temple and a steaming volcano.

The ride was educational. We chased the Three Caballeros (do kids even remember the Three Caballeros anymore?) around Mexico, and I learned that (a) Mexico is one giant, constant fiesta, (b) mariachi singers show up in more places than Waldo, and (c) one of the past times at fiestas is for little Mexican ninos to beat little ninas with sticks. For serious. They had this morbid scene in their little fiesta scene ala "It's a Small World" with a little blindfolded boy standing on a small platform swinging a stick at a poor little girl standing on the other side of the platform. Okay, sure, there was a pinata involved, but that was totally just a cover.

The boys had to get a little shopping in afterward, or they were going to crack. These boys can shop like they were born in the Valley (one of them was). To be fair, they weren't *really* interested until Alejandra showed up. Joseph was eyeballing some maracas, and Alajandra stepped up to try to entice him to shake them. He wasn't too interested, but she didn't give up. Before long, not only Joseph, but Josh and Ben, too, were following Alejandra from stand to stand, trying to find something to take home. Ben ended up with a Jacob's ladder, and Josh and Joseph ended up with small pinatas.

Frankly, I think this is one of the coolest things about Walt Disney World: it's international. It's not just the World Showcase; attractions throughout the resort are run by young people from all over the world. The World Showcase, in particular, has young "ambassadors" running each of the Pavillions, so you get an opportunity to learn about cultures first-hand, and that makes it a really neat experience.

Speaking of international, today we went to the Animal Kingdom. This is a newer attraction, built long after I visited Walt Disney World in the 80's. It's hard to put into words how awesome it is. It's a zoo, an amusement park, an international pavillion, and a safari all rolled into one. In particular, we began the day in "Africa," and actually ended up spending most of the day there.

The work that the Imagineers put into this place is unbelievable. Suffice it to say that I, who generally have not been that interested in Africa in the past, could have spent the entire day there and been content. They just did such a good job.


The Asia section was also stunning, and focused on the Indian subcontinent. Combined with the humid air, it was really easy to feel as though I had been transported across the globe.

In Africa, we rode the Kilimanjaro Safari. It's a 15 minute or so ride through Disney's nature compound, and it is - of course - really well done. They've set the park up in such a way as to keep the guests safe, and allow the animals to roam (largely) freely around the area. They've got all the classics: rhinos, lions, elephants, giraffes, ostriches, and gazelle. They've added a little storyline and some subtle ride elements to give the ride a little extra touch of excitement. Frankly, the four primates to my right were the most exciting.

We had lunch in Africa, too, and then headed to the Asia section, where we wandered through the jungle to look at lions and apes, before making our way to Mt. Everest for an expedition. To ensure good luck on our expedition, we had the boys make prayer offerings at this altar near the mountain. This didn't stop our expedition from being derailed by a yeti. That made for an exciting ride up and back down Everest (it's true! The Expedition Everest coaster is exciting. Get yourselves some fast passes and go).

By this time, it was close to park closing. We hit a few attractions in Dinoland U.S.A. (avoid the "Dinosaur" attraction if you have small, easily frightened children), and finally headed back to the hotel, where I've stayed up much too late writing this blog post.