On October 10 we took a day trip to Epcot at Walt Disney World for my wife's birthday. It was the Food and Wine Festival, which meant a lot of eating.
We had a great time, and it made for a pretty good story.
The Train
We didn't drive or stay overnight. We took the Brightline up to Orlando in the morning, about two hours, and rode it back that night. Normally you'd drive two and a half hours and stay at a hotel.
Brightline gets called America's version of a high speed train. It's nowhere near as fast as a real one. Still, the ride up was quiet. The ride back was full of people heading down to Miami to party. We got off about halfway, in West Palm.
A Little Epcot History
I actually did a report on Epcot in school. The name stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, and it was meant to be a real city where people would live and shop. But, of course, it became a theme park.
Along the way the idea morphed into featuring the world. There's a big lagoon ringed by landmarks from different countries. Every fall the Food and Wine Festival brings in food, wine and booze from all of them. The idea is to fill a slow time of year in a low attendance park, and it transformed how EPCOT is seen.
People come and spend a stupid amount of money. Some try to drink around the world, more than 20 stops. I don't drink around the world anymore. We just eat around the world.
Sneaking In the Back
We skipped the main entrance. There are Disney hotels near the France area, and you can walk in from there and start at the end. First thing in the morning, the main entrance is thousands of people. Our way, there were maybe 12 of us.
The plan was to walk straight onto Ratatouille, which normally has an hour-plus wait, before the food started at 11. The ride was down. We said forget it and got some crepes in France.
Soarin' and The Land
My wife really loves Soarin'. It has a new theme for America's 250th birthday, so now it's Soarin' Across America instead of Soarin' Around the World. Fun fact: Soarin' started off at California Adventure as Soarin' Over California. Then it became the world. Now we're back to America. We waited about an hour.
Then we rode The Land. I hated it as a kid, and my mom always wanted to go on it. It's a slow boat ride about gardening. Not exactly thrilling for a kid. Now that I'm old and I garden, I love seeing their experimental growing techniques. It was my grandson's turn to be bored. Epcot even has a flower and garden festival in the spring now.
Two and a Half Hours in Line
After we ate, Ratatouille was working again, so we rode it. It was fun, but way too long waiting in line.
The cool ride is Guardians of the Galaxy, with about a two hour wait all day. My grandson didn't think it was worth it. I pointed out that other than eating and drinking, and he's 13, so he's not drinking, there isn't much else to do. He said that made sense.
We waited about two and a half hours. We got almost to the end, and the ride broke down. Technical difficulties. People slowly drifted off until only a few of us were left in the room.
By then it was six o'clock, and we had to leave by about 7:45 for the train. So we left the line and never got on. A bummer.
Super Cola in Japan
The big thing my grandson wanted to see was Japan. He's really into manga and anime, and the store there has anime clothes and toys. We'd planned to buy at the end of the night so we didn't carry it all day, so we hoofed it back, with a stop in Mexico for churros.
We also got a bag of Japanese candy I remember from middle school: Super Cola, from the same line as Super Lemon and Super Apple. My mom bought them at the Asian food store, and I sold them out of my locker for a quarter a piece.
My wife doesn't go on rides, so she'd gone the other way around the lagoon with the kids. We met back in France, grabbed a few more bites and headed for the train. My son-in-law is super fit and barely ate all day. I can't say the same.
Sandhill Cranes
Funny enough, Japan and China have lots of crane imagery. We have our own in Florida. Sandhill cranes are about four feet tall and really beautiful. They mate for life, so you often see them in pairs. We like birds, and I got a picture of three near our house in Palm Beach Gardens: a pair with a juvenile. Babies look like big puffballs before they grow into smaller versions of the adults.
Next Up
It was a fun day, and a full one. I'm also working on building a shed, which is less impressive. Check back soon for more family adventures, like our recent trip to Alaska.
