GERMANY
Ich bin da! There was apparently no ride or attractions in Germany. We just went into the shop and Vivia tried a sample of ham, cheese, and bratwurst for a small, snack-like portion, for only $5.00. The meal wash't a part of the festival though, but still, $5.00 for an authentic German dish was worth it.
Before we left for another pavilion, we bumped into German ladies dressing up in their traditional dresses (I assumed so) right outside the gift shop. It was Vivia's idea to take a picture with them and they didn't seem to mind (though I believe they were only staff or guides). When I took a picture of Vivia and the ladies, I said "Eins, zwei, drei." and one of the ladies complimented me.
"Sehr gut!"
Finally, two years of studying German in high school finally paid off by saying only "Eins, zwei, drew" to native Germans. I decided to take a picture with them too. They were so nice. Vivia and I said "Danke schon." and they smiled in reply.
ITALY
Italy was coming up next. We dropped by into the gift shop once again. One part of the store was full of fancy Venetian mask. Vivia had fun taking pictures of the mask and apparently, a guy was sitting behind one table full of newly-completed masks.
As expected, he was working painstakingly on one of the masks. Vivia hesitatingly took a picture of the artist - who seemed to be so immersed in his creation - from upclose, before apologizing since she was worried she would distract the artist.
THE AMERICAN ADVENTURES
I went to the American Adventures for lunch three years ago. The restaurant was hella crowded so there was no way I wanted to get inside to get something to it. However, we entered the main hall of the pavilion, where people packed around a vocal group who was performing old American songs. Those songs probably dated back to the 19th or 18th centuries. One of them, they said, was actually an Irish song. At one of the songs, one guy stepped forward and took the role of the lead singer while the other singers accompanied the singing. I seriously got extreme chill just by listening to his close-to-tenor-deep vibrato voice.
The last song they presented was of course, the national anthem of USA. Again, another performance that just brought chills not to just me but to 30-40 people who were silently watching.
JAPAN
Japan Pavilion has always been the most impressive one for me, especially since three years ago, Elda, Aymee, and I spent roughly an hour exploring the Mitsukoshi Japanese store.
The store has literally everything of Japan, just like what the stores in other pavilions do. Elda, Aymee, and I had always been familiar with the japanese culture, so seeing Totoro plush and Sailor Moon merchandise, which none of those were of Disney, in a Disney Park, were quite a rare sight.
MOROCCO
I've always loved what the Imagineers did for Morocco Pavilion, which is clearly more distinct than the other pavilions. Morocco pavilion featured a narrow, winding pathway that almost gave an impression that you're walking into a real marketplace in Morocco. The smell of the gift store reminded of those strong-scented oils my dad often wears (those of my dad were from Saudi Arabia). We had fun trying on the belly dancing accessories and almost took a picture with Aladdin and Jasmine. However, when we got there, the cast member closed the line and told us they would be back in half an hour.
It was almost four and we got plenty of places to explore. We haven't even touched the rides and attractions in the Future World and we got about five hours before Illumination started.
FRANCE
Next stop was France. We were initially going straight to an attraction called Impressions de France, where we got to see a 360 movie about France, but the movie started in 18 minutes and there was plenty of things to do here in the pavilion. So Vivia and I went out of the theatre waiting room, got ourselves a pistachio ice cream and chocolate macaroon. However, apparently we couldn't eat in the theatre, so we went outside again and missed the next show. We didn't give up though. We waited until we finished up our ice cream and macaroon and then took a walk around the pavilion's store. 18 minutes later, we got inside the theatre to catch the next showing.
The movies okay. I was expecting the seats to be able to move as well, but apparently, the theatre resembled like any movie theatre, except the fact that they had 5 separate screens that formed not even 360, but 180 degree-wide screen. The visuals are nice though. The movie didn't only take us to the oh-so-famous-touristy-fashionista Paris, but it took us to the Alps and to the rurals of France. Will someone just give me a ticket to France already??
Before we left for the next pavilion, I spotted Aurora was having a meet-and-greet session. I couldn't help but blasted through the crowd and got in the line with 5 or 4 year-old kids. Aurora was sooooo pretty, and by saying this, I'm talking about the actress/model who portrayed her. She made a perfect Aurora.
Oh and Vivia and I had Boeuf Bourguignon and Escargot from the France Booth of Food and Wine Festival. I'd been dying to try Boeuf Bourguignon ever since I saw Julie and Julia.
ENGLAND
It started to get dark when we reached the England Pavilion. It was around 6 already. I was tad worried that we wouldn't have enough time to catch all the rides in the Future World. Two more pavilions and we'd be done with the World Showcase. I realized that we had been dropping by from one pavilion to another and spent quite some time in each of its gift stores and corners, so that was what took us a while. However, this was a good chance for me to experience something that I barely did three years ago. I haven't been to some of the pavilion's gift stores. Elda, Aymee, and I only went through them in a flash and we even skipped some of them.
Anyway, we got to explore the gift shop, and last but not least, we met with Tiger and Pooh!
CANADA
Like any other pavilions, of course we wouldn't miss this one - since it was the last one before the World Showcase ended. Canada Pavilion were a lot quieter than the previous pavilions. The stores are a lot darker too since they took a more underground, cave theme to it. Vivia and I got to take pictures of the exterior of Canada, which was apparently beautiful, just before the sun set. So it was a good thing to catch a glimpse of all these beautiful exteriors before it got completely dark.
Last but not least, we saw another short movie just like we did in France, called O Canada. Unlike in France Pavilion, the movie screen completely formed a 360 angle, so we were literally surrounded five to eight separate screens. Plus, we didn't get to sit down. The 10 minute movie was wittily hosted by Martin Short as he took us from the Niagara Falls to many other corners of Canada.
- - - -
So Canada concluded the end of the World Showcase! It was almost 7 now as we were heading back to the Future World. Finally. We went onto Soarin' as our very first ride in the Future World. I've always loved Soarin' considering how mild and thrilling at the same time the ride is. I went on this ride too three years ago and I never got enough of it. The line was longer back in the day since I went there with Aymee and Elda on Christmas day (I think it took about one to one and a half hour for the line), but I was glad that the line was much shorter this time that the next thing Vivia and I knew, we were already at the front line in just twenty minutes and that was even without the fast pass.
Soarin' also gives a very realistic impression of how it feels like to fly. I just realized that as we "flew" over California, various natural scents ranging from orange to leaves were sprayed onto the riders, giving a more authentic and realistic effect to the ride.
It was 8.15 PM as the ride was over. We rushed to Test Track and figured out that the wait line was 60 minutes. It would be impossible to wait that long as we were to catch Illumination show at 9pm. Based on my experience going to EPCOT three years ago, getting a good spot to see the show was so hard. I ended up having Ardy, Aymee's boyfriend, to piggyback me (thanks to me being short), so I could see the show clearly, and even that still didn't allow me to see the entire show, let alone seeing the majestic globe opening itself towards the end of the show. So, based on my previous experience, it might be best to find a spot for the show before 9, when the show would start.
Anyway, we arrived at Test Track. There was no way we could wait for 60 minutes in the regular line because that means we would miss the show. Fast Pass wouldn't work either because we might have to come back later and we would also eventually miss the show. However, I luckily spotted the Single Rider line with the wait of only 10 minutes. We didn't care the fact that we would be separated but at least we would still be able to get on the ride no matter we were separate or together.
The Single Rider line took us shortly the front of the line. Vivia got on the ride first with her group and I got on later with mine.
Test Track apparently got a redesign soon after my visit three years ago. Now that it had been refurbished, the ride experience bears a strong Tron-like theme with heavy techno HUD style. It was more modern and somewhat more thrilling than before. I might not be a roller coaster but I loved the feeling when the car started to speed up towards the end, reaching the speed of 60 mph - a speed equivalent to the speed in an actual freeway.
After Test Track, we still had 20 minutes left before Illumination started. We quickly rushed to Spaceship Earth, the ride we were about to get in the moment we entered EPCOT hours before. Thankfully, the line for Spaceship Earth was only 5 minutes. The ride lasted shortly and I just realized that since the ride was located inside the giant golfball - that became an icon to EPCOT - the ride spiraled its way up to the top of the golfball structure (that resembled a dome projected with stars at the top) before it descended down backwards.
When we exited, fireworks were seen being shot into the sky from the lake that divides the Future World and the World Showcase. Illumination had started. Spaceship Earth was located at the very front side of the park, close to the entrance. To get a closer look of the show, we had to squeeze our way in the crowd to the edge of the lake. I didn't want to see none of the globe this time. We were so lucky to find a spot very close to the lake with a very clear view of the pyrotechnic being launched from the pillars near the lake, and of course, the globe itself, unlike three years ago.
The fireworks were launched right above us, not in front of us, so the sound of it became ridiculously loud.
Shortly after the show ended, we made our way to the exit, but not without taking some pictures of Epcot and the Spaceship Earth at night.
I talked to Elda briefly over the phone on our way to our car in the parking lot and she asked why I sounded a lot more cheerful than ever. Then she figured out the reason shortly as I told her I just visited one of the Disney World parks. Then Vivia and I made our way out of the Disney World Resort and started our an-hour drive back to Melbourne. We made it back home at 11pm. Work awaited us 8 hours later :(
I really didn't want this day to be over, honestly. There were some great rides that we missed that day, like Mission Space, Nemo and Friends, and Ellen's Universe of Energy (I tried this one before and it was AWESOME. The idea of combining a 360 theatre with a surprise ride at the end was just superb). However, we had a blast in EPCOT. Squeezing a time to go to the happiest place on earth amidst the busy internship schedule had been a relief. I was pleased with the overall experience and of course, I'm totally looking forward to another visit and even visits to the rest of the parks!
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