DAY 12 - SUN 27th SEPT
After our late night
we sleep in until 9:00. The mornings are getting later as
the nights get later.
We are going to Blizzard Beach but as it doesn't open
until 10:00 we drop in on the Coronado Springs Resort for
a look round.
This place is BIG. The swimming area is very nice but if
I were staying at a moderate then I think I would prefer
Port Orleans.
At Blizzard Beach we base ourselves by Tikes Peak and the
girls have a play on the slides.
After letting them play for a while (and having a bit of
relaxation time ourselves) we head off for a go on some
of the slides.
The girls and I go up on the chair lift but Tammy walks
up as she has a bit of a thing about heights. The view
from the top is quite spectacular and, if you look
carefully, you can see the centrepiece of all 4 parks.
We come down on the Teamboat Springs raft ride which is
longer, faster and better than the Typhoon Lagoon family
raft ride.
After a slow drift round Cross Country Creek, trying to
avoid the occasional icy drenching, we head across to
Runoff Rapids. I am not sure whether Georgia will be able
to do this but she rides with me in a double tube and has
a great time. We all do the left and right open sides and
then take turns to do the centre enclosed dark tube run.
This is fast and fun. They only allow single tubes on
here so Georgia has a little sulk as she cannot ride.
Lunch at Lottawatta Lodge is next. The girls share fries
(what else?) and onion rings while Tammy and I split a
tuna roll with potato salad and meatballs, linguine,
garlic stick and Caesar salad. This is fine for the
money.
After lunch we get the customary mid-afternoon moaning
session from Georgia. First she wants an ice cream, then,
after she has been given the one she asked for, she wants
the one that India has got. When she can't have this she
says she doesn't want hers because it is too cold! If
anyone out there can provide Disney with a recipe for hot
ice cream, Georgia would be most appreciative.
It has been sunny most of the morning but the clouds
begin to bubble up around midday.
Back to the hotel, shower and off to Epcot at 5:00. This
is going to be an evening for just wandering around World
Showcase, looking, drinking and snacking on the way.
Mexico is first. We get a childs meal of nachos, burrito
and churro, a beer for me and a margarita for Tammy.
Georgia is asleep in the stroller so Tammy goes into the
pavilion to buy a present for her mother while I get a
table by the waters edge.
It is at this point that I have one of those Disney
moments. Just sat there quietly staring across World
Showcase Lagoon and watching the world go by, beer in
hand.
Amid all the hustle and bustle of the attractions and
shows some of my most memorable times have just been
sitting back, relaxing and enjoying the sights, smells,
sounds and atmosphere of Walt Disney World. It is
something that you can't really make happen, it just sort
of sneaks up on you and you suddenly feel warm, content
and above all, happy.
Tammy returns and sits with Georgia while I take India on
to the River of Time ride before we move on to China.
A beer and the child's meal of sweet and sour chicken are
taken here. The chicken is very good, we are thoroughly
enjoying our trip around the 'world'.
India buys a fan and some little nodding turtles, at
which point Georgia wakes up and has to have a fan as
well. There are some beautiful shops, with some beautiful
price tags as well, although the girls have spent their
money very wisely overall.
In Italy the girls get their passports stamped and are
busy making spaghetti and meatballs from wool and paper
plates so I back track to Germany to pick up a Beck's
beer.
We are aiming to get around to the UK and Canada to watch
the bands and so we have to get a bit of a move on from
here.
As we pass France we pause to watch the Living Statues.
They certainly are very lifelike (should that be
non-lifelike?) and one seems to fall in love with a
watching lady. You could practically hear his stone heart
cracking.
On to the UK and the only disappointment of the night, it
is Sunday and the British Invasion are not playing. Never
mind, it means we get to watch Off Kilter twice.
I try to get a beer in the UK and the girl asks me for
ID. Yes! Tammy bet me that I wouldn't be asked this time
as I have passed 40. I return with Tammy and she agrees
that perhaps I am old enough after all and tells me that
many British people resent being asked. I tell her that,
far from being resentful, I take it as a compliment, in
fact it has made my night!
On to Canada for the first Off Kilter show. If you like
to have a good time then make sure you see these boys.
They really look like they enjoy what they are doing, but
then again who wouldn't? Doing something you love in a
place like WDW. Yeah, I can think of worse things in
life.
We fit in the Oh, Canada show, mainly because Tammy
really likes the music, before the second Off Kilter
show.
A beer in Canada for me is accompanied by a beaver tail
for Tammy.
By the way, Julian sent me an e-mail and suggested I try
a beer in Canada that is 8% alcohol. All I can say that
is that at the end of a trek around the 'world' it is
probably just as well that I stuck to the Moosehead.
Some people may feel that this particular evening
involved too much drinking but I prefer to look upon it
as a cultural experience where we sampled the fine brews
from across the globe. In fact it would be almost
impolite not to take up the opportunity. (Hic!)
The hour or so that she slept in the stroller has done
Georgia the world of good and she is raring to go. India
is happy 95% of the time anyway. The exception to this is
Illuminations. We watch from the steps in front of Canada
and poor India is not happy again. Two minutes after she
is back to normal and skipping about.
She asks if she will have to see it again and I tell her
just once more when we meet Ronnie on our last night. She
is afraid that Ronnie will think she is silly for being
scared, so I explain that everyone is scared of something
and not to be worried. I know this is true because the
end of the holiday is approaching and I am pretty
flippin' scared about that!
Now I don't want to alarm you good people but it did not
rain once today. Not a drop. The two days we were
supposed to get the worst weather have been the best of
the whole trip, so far. Don't you just hate weather
forecasters?
A near perfect Disney day.
Oh yes, a last thought.
I'm not stupid (no, really I'm not) and I fully
understand that all this is artificial, created, but I
don't care. If there is anywhere more beautiful than the
Disney parks at night then I have not found it yet.
Mind you, I am biased.
