Day 7: Epcot

Epcot Pictures

   This was to be our second day in Epcot and our last day of the trip. Mom and Dad decided to take the day off and rest. Dad wasn't feeling well and we had done quite a bit over the past six days, so I can't say I blame them. We finally dressed the girls up in their outfits (Ari wanted Rapunzel and Lily was Minnie Mouse) and headed to the park.
   Our focus for this day was World Showcase, so we didn't get there really early. I did want to hit the new Test Track though since this was the first full day of operation. Since my parents weren't there, we decided that I would go in the single rider line and Amanda would watch the kids. I was never really a fan of the original Test Track and usually skipped it unless there wasn't a line and there usually was one. I love this version. They tweaked it enough (they took out the Belgian block and most of the other features that I disliked) that I liked it muck better from a pure ride perspective and I love the updates that they made visually. I spent years working on vehicle simulators so I can see what they were going for. I realize that's not what a simulator has to look like, but I like the choice they went with. So basically, Test Track has now been put on my must do list, which brings the total for that side of World Showcase up to one ride. Ellen's Energy Adventure is a "might do" if we have the time, which we really didn't. And really, I only like it once we get into the dinosaur section. I've seen the Jeopardy portion more than enough times. Just get me to the animatronics.
   We headed back to World Showcase after Test Track and started with Mexico which is our usual way of doing things. We had already stopped in this pavilion earlier in the week, but the Grand Fiesta Tour boat ride is relaxing and fun. Plus the girls loved it the first time and we took them on again today. Norway was next and both the girls were big enough to ride the Maelstrom. Again they both loved it. Boat rides were an overall hit throughout the week. Most of Ari's favorite rides were boat rides, other than Under the Sea with the Little Mermaid, which is still water themed. This would be our last boat ride of the week and after watching the ending of the Norway movie, we headed out and over towards China.
   We wandered around China but chose to skip the movie. We didn't have a lot of time before lunch and we   wanted to get Ari's face painted as we had been promising her that she could get it dome all week. We did get a little time to relax in the gardens before moving on.
   We headed over to the African Outpost and Ari wanted to play with the drums for a little while. We let her do that while we took a look at the face painting. They didn't have any pirate princess options but we saw a few we thought she would like. When we brought her over she chose a fairy makeover and she loved every minute.
   Afterwards we headed over to Germany where we met up with Snow White. Ari loved all her meetings with the princesses. She was definitely looking forward to Snow White. Not as much as Ariel, but still quite a lot.
   Lunch was in the Beirgarten. Great as usual. The kids lived the show, which had quite a bit of Christmas music added. They had all my favorites and I left there thankful that there were no more rides to hit. I wouldn't have been up for one for a while.
   After taking a few shots of the model railroad setup, we made our way to the American pavilion. We stopped by and saw Santa, which we ended up using for our Christmas cards. Mrs. Claus was there too. We got in to see the American Adventure as well. I love this show but usually only get to see it once every few trips.
   Next up was France. We were killing time at this point. We had reserved seats at the Candlelight Processional and wanted to get in a few things in before it started. We met up with Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) in France and headed over to see the show.
   The show was wonderful but the kids got bored part way through. They tell the Christmas story with songs being sung between verses. They get celebrity narrators to read from the Bible and a huge choir and orchestra. Beautiful and it really puts you in the Christmas mood.
   The rest of the day was spent killing time before Illuminations. We wandered around looking for meet and greets and stopping by the remaining countries (Morroco, UK) that we had yet to hit. The kids were tired and if I remember at least one was asleep. We had a reserved viewing area for Illuminations (part of the Candlelight Processional package) and I hadn't seen the Christmas version in years. Amanda (and of course the kids) had never seen it, so we made it to showtime. It was definitely worth the wait and was a good way to end the trip. Afterwards, we headed to the gate and back to the van. We made our way back to the hotel for the last time.
   The next day consisted of a confusing, crowded trip through the Orlando airport. I'll have to think about traveling to a different airport next time. It was the worst experience I've ever had at an airport and I've been to more than my share. I've been through LAX more times that I care to remember and as bad as that airport is, it was never this bad. After getting on the plane, we had a good trip back and made it home without any more issues. Mom and Dad went home and we got all of our stuff in the house and started taking it all in.