EPCOT
We woke up bright and early and it looked to be another gorgeous day. We ate breakfast in our room and got ready for our day at the park. My parents, who were right next door, had also eaten in the room and were dressed and ready to go. I went toto the concierge desk with them to help them buy park ticket and put them on their Magic Bands. It was cheeper to buy the single day ticket for Epcot than a two day ticket since we were planning on going to Hollywood Studios the next day. The reason it was cheeper is because a two day ticket includes a Magic Kingdom entry which is more expensive. So it was more affordable to buy a single day ticket for each day.
Once we had our tickets, I was able to add Fast Passes for them using my phone. I got them all the same FastPasses as us except for Test Track which I knew would be unavailable at such late time. We then headed to the bus stop.
My dad was a little worried on how he would get onto the bus with his scooter since there was already a large crowd at the bus stop, but Disney is well equipped for people in need of assistance. Even with the crowds, my dad was able to drive his scooter right onto the bus before the regular passengers boarded. The bus driver then indicated us to follow him on the bus so as not to be separated. It all went very smoothly.
We arrived at Epcot around 9:00 am and made our way to the front gate. Security check went fairly quickly despite the large crowds. Epcot was hosting the Flower And Garden Festival so right at the entrance of Epcot we could already admire the beautiful topiaries welcoming the guests.
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| Topiary at entrance |
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| Donald with Huey, Dewey and Louie |
As we made our way inside the park, my oldest, the lil' photographer, took some pretty impressive shots. Check it out:
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| Say cheese grandma! |
We decided to try Mission Space first since my dad and the boys are big space fans. I knew not to event attempt the "orange side" which has the centrifuge (spinning) motion as I have heard horror stories about people crawling out of there on their hands and knees from motion sickness. We instead chose the "green side".My dad was able to drive his scooter right into the building.
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| Mission Space |
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| Pretty cool sculpture of Earth |
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| On our way into the ride. |
The ride itself was pretty cool. It feels like a real space launch and the kids had a blast pretending they were driving the shuttle. Definitely a must do for anyone who is fan of outer space.
After the ride we were able to play some interactive games. My dad was having a blast showing his his grandsons how to play.
As we walked out we noticed a cool topiary of Buzz Lightyear . With Mission Space in the background I thought it made a great Photo Op!
It was now time for our first FastPass of the day: The Seas with Neemo and Friends. This ride is short but oh so sweet! One of my family's favourites. My parents liked it too. It is so cool how the characters look like they are swimming among the real fish in the aquarium.
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| Looks like they are really in the aquarium |
We then explored all the aquariums found in the pavilion. The species of fish and aquatic life found in the aquarium is spectacular. My family could have spent our whole day in there, watching the fish, sharks and dolphin swim by. It was so fun. Like a day at the aquarium but in Disney World. Double the pleasure!
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| Look Dad, a school of fish! |
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| Electric eels |
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| A real life star fish! |
After an hour or so in the aquarium it was time to head to our next FP for Test Track. My parents decided that they would walk around and enjoy the Flower and Garden Festival while we went on our ride. It was actually my first experience riding Test Track. I have had just bad luck on this ride since it opened. I have tried to ride it three times in the past, and every time, it broke down just as I was getting into the ride. Bad luck, like I said, so I was a little apprehensive of what would happen this time around. However it all went well and we got to build our own vehicles and got to ride it with no hitches. The ride is amazingly fun and the boys had such a blast. My youngest, Jonah was raving about how much fun he had as he was exiting the ride, and don't you know it, a friendly CM saw his enthusiasm and asked us if we wanted to ride again. Of course, my boys happily said yes and she brought us around and we got to ride it a second time. YAY!
It was now time for lunch so we found my parents and started to make our way towards the World Pavilion, but not before taking some amazing shots of some of the beautiful flowers and topiaries we found along the way.
The view is especially spectacular on the bridge from Future World to The World Showcase. The floral tapestry created for the Flower and Garden Festival is just breathtaking and it hard to walk away without taking a million pictures.
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| A "not-so-hidden" Mickey head |
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| A breathtaking tapestry of flowers |
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| Mom with a beautiful backdrop |
We decided to try some of the food at one of the many F&G festival food carts. The first one we fell upon was "La Isla Fresca" and since we were all starving my Mom ordered a couple of difference plates so we could try a bit of everything. She ordered one servings of Jerk-spice grouper and two servings of Jerk-spice Chicken with mango salsa and a green papaya slaw. She also ordered two servings of Jamaican braised beef with pea rice and cilantro. It was all delicious and the meats and fish were cooked perfectly. The seasoning was not too spicy which I was great for the kids who don't like it too hot.
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| Jerk-spice chicken |
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| Jerk-spiced grouper |
I, unfortunately, stayed away from all this amazingly tasty foods because of my severe allergy to certain spices, so instead I went to get myself some fish and chips at "The Yorkshire Country Fish Shop" in "fake" England. decided to walk around I have to say that the fish and chips were amazingly good. There were large pieces of fresh haddock dipped in super light batter and the fries were thick cut and scorching hot. I was not able to finish my dish so my dad helped me polish it off and he agreed that my fish and chips were some of the best he'd ever eaten! (Sorry no pics this time)
We decided to spend the rest of the day walking around the World Showcase and visiting each country's pavilion. We started with Mexico. I love the temple with its small mexican market set under a nightime sky. The kids loved looking around and trying on some of those fun sombrero hats.
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| Speedy Gonzales: Arriba, Arriba, Andale, Andale! |
We then rode the "Three Caballeros" which is a fun, educational boat ride that take us through the cities of Mexico with our favourite Duck: Donald.
Next was China, but the pavilion was closed for refurbishments so we skipped it.
There were more topiaries along the way so we stooped to take some pics.
In Germany we got to watch the trains chug by the miniature hillside village. The kids were fascinated. They even dressed up the village for the F&G festival. So pretty.
Mom and I even got to get our picture taken with Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Although they were a little more green than usual!
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| Another picture taken by Kheo. |
At this point my dad was starting to have trouble with his scooter. It was flashing red warning him that he was almost out of juice. This was completely absurd since he had charged it all nigh and we were not even half way through our day and it was going to die. So he asked the closest CM where he could charge it and they sent him on a wild goose chase to find a charging outlet. My dad quickly disappeared without warning and we spent the rest of the afternoon wondering where he had gone to. My mom was quite displeased with him when we did find him a few hours later.
After my dad's disappearance, the boys wanted some dessert, so my Mom got them a soft serve ice cream at "Fife and Drum" in the American pavilion. My little one wanted a slush so the girl suggested he get the "American Dream" with is soft serve ice cream topped with strawberry and blubbery slush. Jonah was ecstatic about his new concoction. Kheo on the other hand wanted a straight up vanilla chocolate swirl.
After the boys finished their ice cream it was time for the grown ups to have a little treat. We walked over to "France" were we ordered some
Grey Goose Slushies . Yup, you read right,
Grey Goose Vodka in slush form. It's kind of like an adult version of frozen lemonade and it so good! We sat on a bench next to the the beautiful water fountain in front of "les Chefs de France" and enjoyed our frozen drinks. While we savoured our drinks, the boys were distracted playing with the the fountain water.
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| This is the life! |
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| Mom with the boys in front of the fountain |
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| Too much fun playing with the water |
I have to say that French pavilion is my favourite area in the park. I just find this pavilion especially charming and oh so romantic. Since it was the garden festival, I also got to admire the amazing topiary of "Beauty and the Beast " which I though was pretty spectacular. The best topiary yet, although, I have to admit that I am a huge Beauty and the Beast fan so I am a little partial.
As we walked over the bridge to the English pavilion we met my dad who was looking for us. Apparently it had taken him a while to find a plug to charge his scooter and he seemed pretty flustered by it. He did finally end up finding one and had let his scooter charge for a couple of hours. Hopefully it was going to last through the evening until we got back to the resort.
We checked out the shops in England and got to see a folk band playing for the crowds. They were really good. I loved the beautiful gardens in the English pavilion. There was also topiaries of Captain Hook and Tic Toc Croc located in this area.
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| Beautiful english garden |
Don't forget the classic red Phone boot shot!:
We then headed to the Canadian pavilion. It was fun to see how we "Canadians" were represented. I think they made sure to express the different Canadian regions but he theming was a little too stereotyped for my taste. I especially found it funny to see the Canadian shop selling "Whippets" which are cookies sold in Quebec stuffed with marshmallow dipped in chocolate. It would the equivalent of finding a box of "Twinkies" in a store representing the U.S.A. Kind of a funny thing to be representing Canada if you ask me!?
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| Representation of "Le Chateau Frontenac" with the "Rockies" and a Totem pole |
As we walked back towards the entrance of the World Showcase we were able to get some great shots of Epcot. I guess this is a popular spot because near by there was a photopass photographer who insisted to take a family shot. She was a little pushy on how we had to stand so our shot ended up feeling a little stiff and contrived.
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We were actually laughing because the photographer was yelling at us to stand in these rigid positions.
My Dad refused to do as he was told. |
We finally ended up back at the entrance of the World Showcase and I did a little hat shopping:
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| The classic Mickey hat |
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| Minnie mouse ears |
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| Sparkly Minnie Mouse ears |
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| The princess hat! |
None really looked that good on me so I decided to continue my trip hatless! It was now getting close to our dinner reservation at "La Hacienda De San Angel" and so we went to see if they would let us in 15 min. earlier. They had room so we were seated quickly. The restaurant decor is so pretty with its star shaped lights and beautiful tiled walls and the big windows looking over the lagoon. We ordered margaritas and wine and munched on some complimentary nachos and salsa while we waited for the chef to note our allergies/intolerance. My mom, husband and I all ordered the shrimp tacos while my dad had the chicken tacos. The boys ordered the quesedillas and the fish taco. The food overall was ok but not as good as I remembered and the prices a little high. Everyone still enjoyed the meal but personally, I was disappointed with it and would not return here next time. The drinks however were fabulous!
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| Our drinks |
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| Yummy nachos and salsa |
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| Fish Taco with rice |
We decided to skip "Illuminations" since we were all tired and did not want to fight the crowds later. We just slowly made our way back to the entrance of the park but not before taking a few amazing night shots of Epcot .
We caught a bus, went back to the resort and called it a night. We were all pretty tired, and tomorrow had a big day planned at Hollywood Studios.
Up Next, day 4: Hollywood Studios.
Read about the rest of my trip here:
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