Everyone got around fairly easy this morning. The girls always take forever getting ready for the day, but they found enough spare time to help their mom with her hair.
7am sunrise over the vacant Hippie Dippie Pool. We always pass through the '60s section of the resort on our way to the Skyliner.
We had to take the Skyliner to Epcot this morning, which opened about the same time as Magic Kingdom.
We were a little farther back in the line this morning, but not too bad.
I had stopped off at the cafeteria on the way to the Skyliner in order to pick up a few sugar-free energy drinks for the girls (per their request.)
The big thing to do while waiting in line for the Skyliner for the girls was scan the seaweed in the water for giant-ass turtles (there were a bunch down there.)
The Skyliner was a super chill way to get from the resort to Epcot and Hollywood Studios (for the other parks and Disney Springs we had to rely on the shuttle buses.)
Flyin' through the air towards our third park of the trip.
We took the Skyliner from Pop Century to a hub where we got off and jumped onto another line that went straight on to Epcot.
The Three Stooges
Weather was supposed to be pretty decent today - no rain in the forecast, but hot as all hell.
Descending into Epcot.
Seriously. How did we do Disney for so long without these MagicBands?
The Skyliner entrance to Epcot comes in right between England and France in The World Showcase.
The park wasn't open yet - we had successfully made it to Rope Drop, pretty close to the front of the line, which was good news. Erik and I both had to pee, but I was willing to hold it - Erik decided to walk back out of the admission gate and hit up the nearby men's room.
On his way back through the admission gate, his band wasn't working and they wouldn't let him back through. Turns out he had to wait ten minutes for the band to work again (something about not being able to scan it twice within a certain window of time. . . or something.)
Eventually, they opened up Epcot and Erik was finally able to pass through the gate. Courtney suggested we do the new-ish Guardians of the Galaxy: Classic Rewind ride as our 'rope drop' ride for the day, but Erik felt it'd be quicker to do Remy's Ratatouille Adventure in nearby France, then hit up Guardians.
Right out of the gate, we chose poorly. Kris and I were indifferent but Erik convinced Courtney and the girls do head to France, and soon we were in line for Ratatouille. We waited in line for about, oh, ten minutes before a woman came on over the speaker and told the assembled masses - in the thickest French accent I've ever heard - that the ride was closed until further notice.
Courtney was nice enough to forego any 'I told you so's,' and we power-walked out of France towards the absolute far end of the park.
Passing through England on our way out of the World Showcase.
Spaceship Earth, behind a monorail track.
One of those interactive golden statues (that work with your MagicBand), of Figment.
Kris and the girls split off from here and veered right in order to get in line for the ride. The Johnsons and I didn't have any interest in doing a ride as intense as Guardians so early in the morning (I've heard a lot of people have puked coming off this one.)
Erik and I ran into this random dude at one point.
Meanwhile, Kris and the girls got in line for Cosmic Rewind, where there was a 40-minute wait time. Sounds like a lot but this ride usually has some of the longest wait times in all of Disney World - 40 minutes for this one was pretty damn good.
One of our kids took a pic of some type of spaceship from the movies while waiting in the queue.
Back by the giant golf ball, Courtney was snuggling up to some old guy on a bench.
Spaceship Earth only had a five-minute wait, so the Johnsons and I decided to hop in line and check this box while we were waiting for Kris and the girls.
We probably could have ridden Spaceship Earth a few times waiting for the them, though - they were gonna be in line for awhile.
Another shot of the golf ball.
I've always liked the vintage mural outside the entrance to this ride.
Spaceship Earth
As we were taking off back in time up into that giant-ass golf ball, Kris and the girls were now in the inside section of the Guardians queue.
Some kinda space crap.
After our trip through time was done, Kris and the girls were still in line for the ride, and me and the Johnsons had more time to kill. Erik and I figured we might as well default to our usual way to kill time, and ventured back into World Showcase to grab a beer.
The Margarita stand outside Mexico wasn't open yet, so we figured we'd just pick up drinks in neighboring Norway.
More 0.5x fish-eye pics, courtesy of the Cannonball. Whatever it takes to keep the kids occupied waiting in line.
Norway (not the real one.)
Erik always has to get a pic with this Norse statue every time he's at Epcot.
There's a bakery inside the previously-shown building where they sell various types of Scandinavian pastries, breads, and - for whatever reason - a couple different varieties of booze.
They had a covered patio out behind the building where we hunkered down for about twenty minutes or so. Courtney bought some kinda fancy, iced, Norse coffee, and Erik and I drank our beers out of these Disney Day Drinkers Club coozies he brought with him (D3 is this site that sells merch, and you sign up as a member and by flashing said merch - challenge coins, shirts, pins, etc. - to vendors in the parks, you can get access to 'secret' drink options.)
Guardians of the Galaxy: Classic Rewind
After a bit Kris texted us that they were done with the ride, having loved it, so we made our way back up to the center of the park.
We found another professional photographer about the same time as Kris and the girls met back up with us, and after a few full-group pics (including ones like this where they photo-impose animated bullshit into the picture), we got some family ones done. . .
The Houghs
The Johnsons
The Houghs and Johnsons, making fun of some South American homeless person.
I don't remember what the name of this ride is - I haven't been on it in years - but it's the one that's got that obnoxious, purple dragon, Figment.
Since it was close by, and had a five-minute wait, our group walked past quite possibly the largest, stroller corral in existence, and straight on into The Seas with Nemo.
The Seas (with Nemo)
The Nemo ride is edge-of-your-seat excitement. . . if you're three years old. If you're an adult (or a teenager), it's a slow, boring slog through 'the seas.' But, you know, it is air-conditioned.
Checking out giant aquariums full of fish and what not as we exited off the 'ride.'
Manatees. The most depressing beasts in the animal kingdom.
Abby took this. I have no idea what I'm looking at, here.
Since we had just finished up TheSeas, it made sense to jump next door and see how things were doing on The Land.
A modest but lengthy-for-what-it-is line awaited us for The Land. Probably 10 minutes or so, which is crazy because this ride is mind-numbingly boring.
Nevertheless, this is Courtney's favorite ride at Epcot (she was even wearing her The Land shirt.) I have no idea, folks.
They say that they grow all the fruits and vegetables consumed at Epcot right there in The Land greenhouses, which can't be true. I call bullshit.
These tilapia are crammed in this small-ass tank. That can't be fun.
Living with the Land (fun fact: this YouTube vid was filmed like eight days before we ourselves were there.)
High off the non-stop thrills of. . . The Land. . . Kris and the girls next wanted to do the Mission: Space (the hardcore Orange version of the ride, which slams you with authentic G-force and makes you wanna die.) The Johnsons and I wanted no part of that nonsense, so we ducked into the nearby Connections souvenir store to kill the 10-15 minutes that was the ride's wait time (pretty decent fo mid-morning, honestly.
There was a quick-service restaurant right next door to the store, which we ducked into to hit up the bathrooms first. Along the way I spotted this weird cake that's apparently all the rage in Germany.
Mission Space (though Kris and the girls did the Orange one, which is substantially more hardcore.)
Courtney bought a couple things in the store, but Erik and I didn't see anything worth picking up. Kris came off the ride as we were leaving the store and let us know the girls jumped back in the line - which was only 5 minutes now - to do it a second time real quick. We wandered next door to one of those Coca-Cola stores where you can try free samples of different pops from around the world (some tasted awesome, others tasted like medicine.) The floors are always sticky as shit in these places.
Our old Florida (and college) friends, The Voigts, showed up as we were waiting for the girls to get off the ride. They were fresh off of a European vacation and a little funned out with theme parks, having done Disneyland Paris the week before, but were willing to walk around with us and have some drinks and snacks.
When the girls found us, we set off back towards The World Showcase to start our trek 'around the world.'
This time around we veered into the Aztec/Mayan/whatever pyramid in Mexico in order to hit up that Three Caballeros ride (it had a ten-minute wait, so it was kind of a no--brainer.)
Like we saw last time we were at Epcot, most of the 'countries' that are featured here have been taken over by Disney franchises from said culture. So there was lots of Tangled stuff in Germany, Winnie the Pooh stuff in England, and, here in Mexico, lots of Coco crap. I am not a fan of this change.
ICE would have a field day in here.
Three singing birds.
Pumped for a ride through Mexico.
Gran Fiesta Tour (Starring the Three Caballeros)
Kids were ready for some food after we wrapped up things in Mexico. We had really been looking forward to some blended margaritas, seeing how it was closing in on 1pm and it was brutally hot out, but everyone in Disney World apparently had the same ideas as us - the line was wrapped around the fancy margarita joint - so we had press on. Next stop: China.
Surprisingly, we were able to find seating pretty easily, considering it was during peak lunch hours.
2/3 of Virgil Q's Dixieland Kazoo Revue. Aging like fine wine.
With some snacks and drinks in our system, the kids wanted to check out the gift shop (some countries have cooler stores than others, and China usually has some cool ethnic stuff to check out (not being consumed by some random franchise yet.)
Folks who wear hats like this are naturally pre-disposed to peeing themselves if they hear 'Fortunate Son' approaching in the distance.
I have dozens of pics of Adam with this golden Buddha over the years. And yes, most of them are inappropriate.
What's going on with this dude's hands? How does he wipe his ass, do the cats just, like, lick his crack or what?
Saw this shirt from across the store and was taken aback 'cause at first glance I thought it was a Black Flag band shirt (the four bars are nearly identical to their logo.)
What's the story behind giving this statue loose change? Is it for good luck, or is more of a 'leaving cookies for Santa' sorta thing?
Lots of random stuff to check out in a place like this, but no one ended up buying anything this time around.
Basically twins.
Bumped into another Disney photographer outside, after we got bored with the shopping, and had them take some pics of the girls (might as well, we paid for the PhotoPass package and their pics always turn out awesome.)
As a dad, I'm legally obligated to hold kids' crap whenever the need arises.
Seriously - dude didn't see we were getting a picture taken? Situational awareness, buddy.
Leaving China, we took a hard left and passed through this mini-'attraction' that is Africa.
Africa, of course, is a continent with 45 countries, so it makes total sense that they'd just make it a small craft stand an a drink shack. Nothing racist about that at all.
Taking a short break in the shade as kids buy some frozen treats at the African joint.
Next up: Nazi Germany
We were entering the hottest stretch of the day - super sunny and hot out, almost unbearably so.
Adam, Erik and I jumped into this long line for another round of beers. There were a ton of college-aged younger adults in The World Showcase this year - way more than we had ever seen before - and that got real old real fast. Bachelor parties, bachelorette parties, lots of younger drunk people. . . and they seemed to all be congested in Germany, Italy, and the U.S. If I was at a college bar I wouldn't care, but with my family at Disney World? Definitely annoying.
Courtney and a well (her maiden name is Wells, so that's the joke.)
(I don't speak German, I don't know what this says.)
A pic for the rest of the Kings of the Hill, back home in Midland.
Abby takes pics like this a lot. Not sure if that's a Gen Z thing or what.
After finally getting our beers - I made a mistake and selected a dark, heavy ale that would have been better suited for the fall, I'm an idiot - we moved on to Italy.
Not sure why this had a large covering over it - looks to be under construction or something. I've seen the real version of this in Venice, over a decade ago.
The womenfolk disappeared somewhere, so Adam, Erik, and Adam's son, Jackson, had to wait for them to find us again.
Some naked dude and his pet fish.
Not much going on in Italy besides fine dining (duh), so we moved on to America, where Erik convinced everyone to check out Voices of America (something we had never done before.)
It's an a capella group that performs inside this classic rotunda. They do multiple shows throughout each day, and are obligated to wear these ridiculous outfits.
They used to do traditional, American folk tunes - which would make a hell of a lot more sense, since they're in America in the World Showcase - but now they just do a medley of Disney songs.
They were good singers, buuuuut do I really wanna hear 'Hakuna Matata' a capella? Not so much.
After the twenty-minute show, we came back outside and went in to a dining hall so the kids could get some snacks (and we could cool off a bit in some A/C.) Oddly enough, we didn't have any pics during this hour-long period of time - I think we were all too sweaty to think aboout it.
After we were through with America, and everyone's needs were met, it was on to Japan. . .
This is a required picture whenever one comes to Epcot. It's a rule.
Then this douchebag crashed my picture-taking.
Houghs and Voigts
The kids had ventured into the store, which, like China, is filled with actual culture-relevant items. All the countries used to be like that, it sucks that they're not anymore.
The girls always stock up on Japanese candy and snacks when they're in here. They're good with spending habits like that.
They wanted $35 for this cheap, dollar-store quality Godzilla toy. That's comically bad.
After the shopping spree was wrapped up, the Johnsons took the girls back over to Germany to shop a bit more and Kris and I hung back in Japan to catch up and await their return.
Adam inspects the castle's outer defenses (I assume.)
Some kinda fish pond. Koi, right? Aren't the Japanese really into koi fish?
This bamboo contraption kept filling up with water, then tipping over to dump it, then it'd self-correct and get filled up again. It did that over and over and over again. I'm not sure what the point of this is.
The Voigt children - Ella and Jackson - probably thinking the same thing.
The Johnsons and the others were going to meet us in England, so we headed off that way. . . which meant passing through Morocco first.
(We didn't stop at any of these shops this time around.)
Two trips ago, I took a crap-load of pics in Morocco (the design here is one of my favorites), but a lot of the cooler-looking stuff is far in the back of the attraction.
Pressing on towards England, we skipped France (there isn't much there.)
The girls split off from the Johnsons and got in line - which was up to an hour wait at this point - for that Ratatouille ride. They were bored with The World Showcase and this was really the only decent ride remaining that they hadn't done yet.
Remy's Ratatouille Adventure
Back in England, Adam and I ducked into the Crowne & Thorn (or Rose & Thorn, I forget) - the main pub in England - to pick up a round of drinks for us and Erik.
Erik requested I grab him something called a 'Prim Cup.' I have no idea what's in it.
What's the point of this ship?
Back outside, I didn't see any of the rest of the people - they had found tables nearby but I couldn't see them from where I was - so I had to text the thread.
I eventually found Kris, Adam and Erik sitting in the shade on the other side of the pub. Lindsey and taken their kids to get some food, the girls were still in line for their ride, and Courtney was. . . getting a snack somewhere else.
Those beers went down amazing - it was still hot as the depths of hell out (you can see how sweaty I am here.)
After enjoying a drink in the shade, we reconnected with everyone (minus the girls, who were still on the ride), and said some temporary goodbyes to the Voigts (they'd be popping over for a visit to our resort tomorrow.)
Soarin' - one of the big rides that we hadn't done yet - only had a 15-minute wait this far into the evening, so us and the Johnsons went over to do that one while the girls, whose ride was now over, took the Skyliner back to the resort.
Soarin' Around the World
We were pretty exhausted by this time, and were ready to grab some dinner back at Pop Century. We started off on our final walk through Epcot, back towards the Skyliner in World Showcase.
(Didn't stop at Canada this year. It's the lamest of all the countries here.)
Back in England.
Kris nabs another group selfie.
Ahh, there it is - the Rose & Crown. Not sure where I was getting 'thorn' from earlier. . .
Kinda wanted to pry this emblem off this trash can we passed by. I'm sure someone would've seen me doing this and I would've gotten in trouble, but still. . . .
Leaving Epcot at long last.
We're adorable.
Barely any lines to speak of, most folks were still in the park.
Had to get one on the Skyliner itself.
When we came back to the rooms, we dumped our stuff, gathered up the girls (who were lying in bed watching TV, on their phones. . . as expected), and headed down to the '60s area for dinner.
The Hippie Dippie Pool
Some dude was firing off all these bubbles as you walked into the cafeteria. Like, an obscene amount of bubbles. Chill out guy, we're on vacation. Don't wanna be bothered by frickin' bubbles.
Went with the nachos this evening - they were awesome.
Abby and Ella on the walk back to the room, afterwards.
Back up in the room, the girls put on Hamilton (the play about the guy who got shot because he couldn't shoot straight) and were otherwise occupied (and exhausted.) So us adults, not quite ready for bed yet, headed on down to the Hippie Dippie Pool with a few drinks.
Having some drinks and listening to our Hough & Johnson Amazon playlist (comprised of all of our previous song pics from past Brocations and Momcations) down at the Hippie Dippie Pool.
We ended up staying down there until about 10:30pm, but were starting to fall asleep in our chairs, so we meandered back up to our rooms and turned in for the night. So ends our third amusement park day down here in Florida. Tomorrow we're mixing it up a bit and foregoing any parks for the day. Instead, we'll hang out in the resort - especially the pool - for most of the morning and afternoon, then we'll head out to Disney Springs for dinner and some shopping. Should hopefully be a much chiller day.
~2.jpg)
~2.jpg)
~2.jpg)
~5.jpg)
~2.jpg)
~2.jpg)
~2.jpg)
~2.jpg)
~2.jpg)
~2.JPG)
~2.jpg)
~3.jpg)
~2.jpg)
~4.jpg)
~3.jpg)
~2.jpg)
.jpg)
No comments:
Post a Comment