Lovely Sunday at EPCOT -- Another Disney Adventure

After the 9 AM- Midnight day, I slept in a bit. Great -- sunshine at last. I was ready for a change from cloudy, rainy weather. Took the bus to EPCOT.

The Future World area is arranged with a center area surrounded by three pavilions on each side. To get from side to the other one walks through the Innoventions area.

 I found an exhibit called Think to be very interesting.

What are the tall pillars?

They are tablet computers. What a cool idea! I could envision how these would be very helpful particularly with preschool and elementary age students.

My next stop was the Imagine building.

One thing that often puzzles children is how this waterfall runs backward.

I did the ride there and enjoyed watching kids make music as they ran around.

Next I went to the Land pavilion.

 

I was on a hunt for breakfast and the food service area in this pavilion is quite good. I ended up with Greek yogurt and croissant berry pudding -- a version of bread pudding. Enjoyed this for breakfast very much. 

Then I did the ride. This ride is about careful use of the land and food production. 

 I was puzzled about why so many people were in the pavilion and then I remembered the Soaring ride is here. I went over to get a Fast Pass -- it was for 2:00 - 3:00 PM. 

I headed to the Seas, only to find the ride was down. Decided to head then to the World Showcase. 

 I took the boat across the lagoon.

France was looking lovely in the sunshine.

Went to the film, Impressions of France. This is one of my very favorites. It shows beautiful scenes of France underscored by music from French composers.

Scene from the movie

It was obvious the crowds are gone. On my previous visit to EPCOT, the line for the French bakery was at least 30 people deep outside the door. Today it was a walk-in.

I wandered around the various pavilions and ended up at China.

 The film shown here about China history and culture is also very interesting and beautiful.

I continued wandering around until is was time for my Fast Pass ride on Soarin', back at the Land pavilion. Can't take photos on this ride. Everything must be stowed below the seat.  One feels as if you are taking a plane ride over California. It is a version of an IMAX film with enhancements. When in a forest, one smells pine trees. Around the orange trees, one can smell the blossoms, and when flying over a river watching the rafters, you are sure your feet will be wet.

Once this was done I wandered back to Canada and watched an Off Kilter performance again.

I then took the boat over to the Boardwalk, still thinking about eat at Kouzzina, after I found myself too late for breakfast there earlier in my stay.

I found dinner started at 5:00, so I wandered around Boardwalk a bit and then went to the restaurant. Oh, the food is wonderful.

Not a very photo -- sorry. My entree was a pastitso, sort of a Greek lasagne, but unlike anything I've ever had before. The meat sauce has cinnamon flavor and the sauce is Bechamal! I asked for a wine from Crete since I have a friend there. Unfortunately, that wine was not available, but what I got was very good too. Because there was no wine that evening from Crete, I was served olive oil from Crete to go with the wonderful bread. Just a great meal! Got me thinking about going to Greece so I could eat like this for two weeks!

It was nearly dark when I left the restaurant. The Dance Hall was looking lovely.

The dolphin behind and above the Dance Hall is on the top of the Dolphin Hotel.

I took a bus to Downtown Disney and then did a short walk to the Lego store. On my first evening I had taken a night photo of the Lego sea serpent, but somehow deleted it. So the walk was to replace the photo.  I'm going to use some of these photos to teach English in Romania and Poland during the coming months.

Got the bus back to Saratoga Springs and then explored the TV a bit to find the public television station. My goal was to see the start of the third season of Downton Abbey. When my waitress at the restaurant asked me about the rest of the evening, I told her about this. She said, "Never heard of it, " so apparently Downton Abbey isn't bit in Florida!

I found a program that highlighted various things about the Orlando area, then a program about Highclere Castle which I really enjoyed, because I had read the book about the real family. Then enjoyed the first two hours of Downton Abbey.

A very nice Sunday!

Part 2 of 9 AM-Midnight -- Another Disney Adventure

After a 2 hour nap I felt renewed and so took off for the bus stop and then went onward to the Magic Kingdom. I got there right about 7 PM. Many people were already sitting curb side waiting for the 8 PM parade.

Obviously by this time of the evening it was dark and Main Street was beautiful with all the lights.

I rounded the corner and there was the Crystal Palace all lit up with hundreds of strollers parked all around.

Into Adventureland.

Went first to Tiki Room and enjoyed the show very much. The script has been changed a bit. For awhile the bird routine was a bit confrontational, but now it's back to just being fun!

Right outside was Magic Carpet Ride with a fairly short line.

 From there I went to Pirates of the Caribbean. Some may think this ride is about the movie, but actually it's the reverse. The movie is about the ride. This ride was both at Disney Land and Walt Disney World for at least 20 years before the making of the Pirates movies.

By now I was a bit hungry and so picked up a chicken wrap sandwich from Pecos Bill. This proved to be about the only thing I've had to eat here that was dissatisfying. I ate the filling and put the tortilla in the trash.

By now it was getting time for the fireworks. I went into a place in the Liberty Square area that has always been good, but alas the trees have grown and blocked the fireworks. I did see Tinker Belle fly before the fireworks and also enjoyed seeing the castle change colors.

Next I did Small World and Haunted Mansion. Neither of these rides led themselves well to photos. Magic Kingdom, around 9:30 was still quite busy. I probably waited in line for Small World about 15 minutes. Often this ride is a walk-on.

Now it was time for the 10:00 version of the Electric Parade.

One day on a bus I heard a Florida native say her family always did the rides during the parades because the lines were shorter. However recently they had watched the parade for the very first time. She went on to say, "It's a really nice parade." I was amused at her surprise.

Here is a video of the Cinderella part of the parade.

After the parade I decided to try Buzz Lightyear one more time.

This time I hit something right at the beginning and ended up with a much better score.

At some point in a ride like this one's picture is taken. At the end of the ride there is an opportunity to buy a copy of this picture. With the advent of digital cameras and cell phone cameras, I notice most people simply find their picture on the wall and then take a photo of the photo. Here's mine.

I look fairly intent!

By now I was getting tired. It had been a long day and I had done a lot of walking, even though the day was interrupted with a nice nap. I headed for the bus stop and then back to the resort.

Part 1 of From 9 AM - Midnight -- Another Disney Adventure

I was still reading a book until nearly 2 AM on Saturday morning. The time got away from me and finally I fell asleep. I woke up about 7 and decided the sun would shine this day so it was time to get going.

Set off for breakfast at the resort restaurant and discovered it would be a golf tournament day. Saratoga Springs sits next to and in the Lake Buena Vista Golf course.

I was surprised, too, at a line for airline check in so early in the morning.

I got to Animal Kingdom just after it opened. My first goal is always to go to Africa and do something about the safari ride.

No need to get a Fast Pass, the wait time was only 10 minutes. Soon we were on our way. Saw lots of animals, but hard to photograph as the truck continues to move, the animals move, and they are hidden in the forest.

As we crossed some water we got a good view of the hippos. In the picture below a hippo looks like a log floating in the water in about the 2:00 position.

Below is a bit of video as we traveled through the savanna area. Here is becomes easier to see animals for they are out in the open and bigger than the horned animals.

My personal favorite are giraffes. I always like to see them.

The next time I come there should be even more. Six of the females are expecting babies. Learned a female giraffe is pregnant for 16 months!

And speaking of motherhood, elephants must be the best.

A female elephant is pregnant for nearly 2 years and then the calf nurses until about the age of 4 years! Went looking on the web to verify I had heard right about the length of gestation and found an interesting report on the BBC web site. It reports a study of elephants that says the lengthy gestation is needed to support high level brain development, so that the calf is able to immediately become part of a group and understand communication among the members.

The guide explained that elephants operate on a matriarchal basis, no males allowed with the group. One 9 year old male calf will soon be leaving the group, for he will reach maturity and no longer lives and travels with the group.

After the safari I wandered down the walking trail as well to see animals. This is always a good place to see gorillas.

And a good view of a wart hog.

Next I took the train to Conservation Station.

Found not much happening there on a Saturday morning. This often is a good place to watch vet procedures, but all was quiet during my visit.

Returned back to Harambe and found some good musicians. (Sorry very short video.)

I next walked through Asia. Spent some time with a man from Indonesia exploring a musical instrument made of bamboo rods that one shakes to make music. I ended being able to play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and he recognized it. He told me when I go to Indonesia I could arrange to take lessons on this instrument!
 
Here are some scenes from the Asia part of the park.

There is a roller-coaster ride inside the mountain. I don't do this ride and here's one reason why.

 From here I went into Dinoland and rode Primeval Whirl.

From there I headed to the Lion King show. I just missed entry seating for the 12:30 show and rather than take standing room, I found myself a bench and put my feet up for awhile.

Soon it was time to line up for the 1:30 show. A bus driver said this show is rated as the #2 attraction based on rankings for all Disney properties. I surely can't figure out what might be #1. Lion King is a great show.

Here's a bit of high energy and talent.

After Lion King I walked back to Pizzafari restaurant for some lunch and then back to the bus to the hotel. My short night between 2:00 - 7:00 AM was catching up with me.

A 2 hour nap got me ready for the next adventure which is reported in Part 2 of 9 AM to Midnight.

Cold and Crowded at Disney World

On Friday morning I took off for Hollywood Studios. I wandered around a bit and then decided to do the Movie Ride. That is usually easy to do because the line moves quickly. The ride is housed in a building that resembles Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood.

Well, I had to wait a bit. Things are really crowded at all the parks, more than I expected.

In the line for the ride one sees movie memorabilia.  And then one gets into a large room where bits of old movies are being shown to keep one entertained while winding a way through the queues.

Here is a view from Mary Poppins. And then finally I was off for the ride.

After this I decided to find my way back to the Comedy Warehouse again for another show. The cast was a bit different, but indeed they are doing improvisation for while the "acts" were the same, the content was different. This time the cast had to quickly make up a story song that used the phrase, Happy Christmas.

After the show I went looking for lunch. No luck -- every place had long lines. By the this time the combination of cold with some light rain as well as the crowds made me decided to leave the park and go to Boardwalk for lunch. One does that by taking a boat.

Much to my surprise almost every restaurant there is closed for lunch. I ended up at Big River Grille and had a sandwich. Then I took the boat to EPCOT.

EPCOT was crowded too and the rainy weather did not make it a good afternoon for taking photos.

I tried to get a photo that showed the rain drops glistening on the cabbages in the gardens.

I went to the film in the Canadian pavilion and found to my surprise about half of the shops in that pavilion to be closed.

The music group that plays here, Off Kilter, is one of my favorites.

I was delighted to find myself in the right place for a performance, but oh, another surprise. The combination of musicians has changed and the type of music has also changed. Perhaps if I had encountered the group for the first time I would have been delighted, but I was looking for the "old act." Glad to have CDs at home, so I can continue to hear the music.

I had in mind to do some jewelry shopping at Italy where there is Murano. I was delighted to find a necklace that has a stone that matches ear rings I purchased here another time.

I stopped at the restaurant in the American pavilion for a bit of supper. While there darkness arrived. I continued to walk around the World Showcase and decided to enter the Mexican pavilion, for it's always night there anyway. The markets were really crowded, but the line for the boat ride wasn't too bad.

Then I headed for Spaceship Earth for that is usually a walk on after 10 AM in the morning. Boy, was I wrong, I waited in line for 20 minutes. (On Sunday at 10 AM when I walked by, no one in line!)

After this I headed back to my room, hoping the sun would return tomorrow.

Osborne Lights Adventure

There are two holiday activities still showing at Hollywood Studios so I headed there.

The first is Comedy Warehouse, an improvisation show.

The cast members here are super talented. For example, they asked for someone to shout a word associated with the holidays. One person yelled, "Cookies." Then they asked for someone to put that into a sentence. A guy said, "My sister gave me stale cookies for Christmas." For that sentence they concocted a whole song in rhyming verse about Lyle, the poor guy, whose sister lands on him while she is getting a divorce. Finally after two months he tells her to get a job and she goes to work for Nabisco. At Christmas she shows her gratitude by buying him cookies at the day-old shop! Hence stale cookies for Christmas. Maybe this is one of those -- you have to be there to enjoy it-- things, but oh, the whole show was funny and amazing. I may go back again, because each will be different. I'd like to see how they do a show with a whole new set of words and characters from the audience.

My other goal was to see the Osborne Lights and wondered how I would find them. Well, it was easy. Here's what I saw walking out of the theater.

 

 This display is called Osborne Lights because it is named after a family in Arkansas who had this light display at their home until it became way too much for the neighborhood. Somehow it got donated to Disney for continued display. I saw it the first time 12 years ago. Then we walked along figures and buildings all decorated, somewhat like one might do in a neighborhood.

Here are some still photographs.

In the photo above you can see a carousel about at top center. Behind is appears a suspended Christmas tree. The narration said the carousels used to be in the Osbornes' driveway. One of the Christmas tree was suspended over the kitchen!

Here is the feature that greeted me. 

 A major feature this year is Dancing Lights.

There was light rain during my time with lights, but that didn't prove to be bothering at all. It was just so much fun to see the lights and hear the music.

A great evening at Hollywood Studios!

Disney Adventure 2

My first night here -- not very restful. Woke up around 4:30 am and just gave up. I wrote the blog below and made some coffee in my room - discovering it wasn't very good coffee.

When the daylight appeared I discovered it was a very foggy morning.

With daylight, I took the time to get my bearings better. My landmark is the kiddy pool area.

I turn here and walk to the bird house and turn left and I'm almost to my room. To get the bus stop for the Grandstand area in which my room is located I walk behind the area. Hey! not lost anymore.

I went to the restaurant area and had a wonderful omelet for breakfast.

I was walking into the Magic Kingdom a bit past 8 AM.

Main Street is still showing some Christmas garland, but decorations are definitely disappearing around Disney. Yesterday there was a tree in the lobby of my resort, this morning it was gone.

I wandered to my favorite ride, Buzz Lightyear. I got a Fast Pass.

Then I had time to enjoy the People Mover ride.

My next stop was the Carousel of Progress show. The show opened originally at the New York World Fair in 1964. Then it was brought to Disney World where it has been playing every since, but has received an update on the end. It presents the same family showing the technology changes over the 20th century.

Here's the opening, right at the turn of the century -- the turn of the 20th century that is. (Note: Preview shows that none of the videos are exactly hi-def, but I hope you enjoy anyway.)

Each scene is based around a holiday. The final scene is modern Christmas.

Even by 21st century standards, the animations in this show are outstanding.

Back to Buzz, where I got another Fast Past and then did a ride.

 In this ride, one shoots the X icon on batteries to earn points.

While on the People Mover I noticed the line for the Speedway was rather short. I have not tried that for years.

Fun by myself -- and maybe this is the first time I've done it alone without a little one who wants to drive.

Back to Buzz again.

My score wasn't very good-- only enough to make me a Ranger 1st Class.

After this ride, I walked over to Fantasyland, by the Mad Tea Cups.

Coffee or maybe lunch was on my mind but the new Fantasyland is just that -- new. I decided to hop on the train and eventually take myself for the Fort Wilderness area to search for some groceries for my room -- the shop at Saratoga is actually not very helpful for this.

The train is real. Walt Disney loved trains and that was one thing he was determined to have at Disney World. If I remember the story right, the old locomotives were found somewhere in South America and excellently  restored. 

Did a whole loop on the train and then got off at Main Street and walked over to the boat area. Took a boat to Wilderness Lodge.

There I found some instant coffee and had lunch in Roaring Forks cafe.

My lack of sleep was bothering me, so I took a bus to Hollywood Studios and from there got a bus back to my resort hotel. Took a nap and felt like a new person! Back then again to Hollywood Studios, but that's a story for another blog post.

Disney Adventure 1

The New Year finds me in Orlando at Disney World. It has been 3 years since I've been here. I'm staying at the Saratogo Springs Resort. This resort is designed as if an upstate New York hotel at the turn of the 20th century. The major theme is horses.

Shortly after checking in I found my way to the boat landing and took the boat to Downtown Disney. It was now 4:30 pm and after a day of travel I was interested in finding something to eat.

The views were interesting at this time.

The theater for Cirque de Soleil stood out against the winter sky.

The shops and restaurants were glowing.

 

I ended up at the House of Blues for an appetizer size meal sounded perfect. The pulled pork slider sandwiches have delicious cole slaw on the top. Yum! Perfect size. And the cucumbers made me think of Poland for some reason. But they had a bite of cayenne pepper, not usually associated with Central European food!

The lights in the restaurant made photography just a bit challenging, but oh my! the food is good.

My next goal was to check out some of the resorts along the monorail to see if any holiday decorations were still in place. I tried to find the bus stop on the West Side, but no luck. Ended up way over in the Marketplace where I knew I could find the bus stop. Glad I had the extra walk. Otherwise I would have missed this unusual music.

The long horn like instrument appeared to have been made out of plant material of some kind. I've never seen anything quite like it before.

Well, after riding buses and the monorail around to the Contemporary, the Polynesian, and Grand Floridian resorts I can say Christmas has disappeared in the resorts. However I was able to catch some music from the jazz band at the Grand Floridian.

Got lost after getting back to the resort. It is always so hard to find one's way around the first day or so in a new resort, particularly when it's dark. Oh, well, walking around in wrong places is still exercise!