Vacation (Part Four)
Hey, I had to survive it--so do you.EPCOT
I have Chronic Theme Park Fatigue Syndrome.
We're all just prisoners here, of our own device.
Wildlife spotlight: Lighted Utility Truck.
This is the apex predator of American commercialism.
There are more LSU and New Orleans Saints jerseys than every other team combined.
Learning about other cultures via restaurants and gift shops.
Gordon Lightfoot is playing in the Canada section, right next to a tiny Niagra Falls.
I want to see a fleet of motorized scooters traveling in a V-wing formation.
I've had my fill of the mouse.
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Epcot was, by far, our favorite park, because it was less geared to 5-7 year olds. We went on a boat ride through the history of agriculture, then emerged in a greenhouse as ways of improving agricultural productivity were discussed (along with all the crops being grown). This, oddly, was fascinating and incredibly entertaining for all of us, mostly because it lasted longer than three minutes and wasn't frantic.
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There was a warning leading up to a ride that started this way: "If enclosed spaces frighten you..."
"Are you kidding me?" I asked Gloria. "I'm trying to get BACK to an enclosed, dark space."
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Eli almost got run over by a motorized scooter--literally, it was about three inches away from running over his foot--and it made me think about design and functionality. Seemingly, in a theme park, scooters would be designed to go no faster than a brisk walking pace (4 mph). These scooters, though, seemed to be capable of going nearly twice that fast, which was relatively disastrous at times in crowded areas as people floored their scooter to get into open spaces before they closes.
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We did do a ride that was "space mission training," where all three of us sat inside a mock spaceship and flipped various switches at various times in responde to verbal commands. It sounds mundane, but it was actually quite fun, and I still want to figure out a way to take Eli to Space Camp one summer, because he would love it.
***
After Epcot, we went back to Downtown Disney and stumbled on another highlight of the trip: a magic shop. Harry Kellar posters and everything, and there was one fellow in particular who had absolutely fantastic sleight-of-hand skills. Eli was mesmerized (since he's a fellow magician and has one paid show under his very small belt), they talked shop for a while, and Eli wound up buying a deck of marked cards.
***
I thought of a good way to rile up an Auburn fan: just yell "HE'S NOT ELIGIBLE!" Sadly, I didn't get a chance to try this out.
***
Once we got back to the hotel, we went to the arcade and had our best time of the day. Actually, the best time of every day was in the hotel arcade, and it was all because of this:
Yes, that's an air hockey table, and unlike any table I've ever seen, it has space behind the goals like a hockey rink. This changed the entire dynamic of the game to such a degree that we played it over and over again. As air hockey tables go, it was epic.
Of course, we had to pay for the arcade games. Leave it to us to go to Disney, spend a fortune on all-inclusive things, and find something we have to pay extra to play. Well done.
PHOTOS THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN INCLUDED EARLIER IN THE POST SEQUENCE:
That's Eli outside Mythos restaurant, and he's pointing a wand.
Here's my favorite picture of the entire trip (and Eli's):
Those people are feeding every creature in sight while sitting just in front of a sign that is telling them (in sizable letters) not to feed any animals. Well played, infrequent readers.
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