Day #5 - Epcot!

We had a fantastic day in Epcot!

We started off being there just before the turnstiles opened at 8:45 am.  Thy didn't do a rope drop, but I ran ahead to get fastpasses for Soarin'.  Test Track is currently down!  We first did a baby swap for Soarin', and John & Kat took Jackson on Living with the Land boat ride.  Soarin' was amazing, as usual.  Dad & Nancy really enjoyed it.  John and Kat rode with Jacob next and the rest of us did the Living with the Land boat tour.  I think it's neat to see greenhouses.  It's a nice diversion while everyone else does Soarin'!  Dad and Nancy wanted to ride again with fastpass, so they went with John & Kat.  Jacob wanted to do Living with the Land, so I took him again (trip #2 for me.)  By this point, it was 10:30 am, so Jeff and I skipped doing another round of Soarin', which was taking about 30 minutes "round-trip."  We scooted over to the Seas Pavilion and didn't have to wait very long for Turtle Talk with Crush.  We all enjoyed the show with Crush.  Jackson especially seemed to like it.  It's a good show!

It was almost 11 am by that point.  We decided to head to the World Showcase.  We had lunch plans for Biergarten at 12:30 am.  We meandered through England, and France and did a little shopping.  In France, I had a glass of dry Rose, that was quite good.  We also went into the pastry shop in France and I bought a Chocolate Croissant and a Apple Tart for later. :)  We skipped over Morocco.  Dad & Nancy had a beer in Japan.  We enjoyed some of the topiaries left over from the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival that ended last weekend in the American Pavilion.  In Italy, we sort of glanced around, but decided to move along to Germany since it was already 12:15 pm.

We then noticed that just after the American Pavilion there was a little alcove and Eeyore and Pluto were there! Further down the alcove, was the one and only Mickey Mouse!  There was pretty much NO wait for these three!  There was not even a Photopass photographer around. Jackson was so excited to see Mickey Mouse!  I was worried about whether or not he would like the characters since we had an episode about a week and a half ago where he was literally shaking at the sight of the Chick Fil A cow who was standing 8-10 feet away.  When it was our turn, Jackson immediately hugged Mickey. Then, we got a GREAT picture of Jacob & Jackson with Mickey.  We moved along to Pluto, but Jackson was not quite so sure about him.  He posed, but he kept giving him side-glances and he wouldn't smile.  He did seem to warm a little more to Eeyore, and smiled for a picture with him. The entire thing was one of those magical Disney moments!  I was so pleased!!

Shortly thereafter, we arrived a Biergarten with our party of 8 and didn't want too long for a table.  Since we had 8, we filled one table.  We ordered a round of half-liters (and a liter for my brother :) ).  I had a Schofferhofer, a hefeweizen style beer, that was really good.  We got Jackson situated and fed a little, and hit the buffet.  The food was really good.  We all enjoyed it.  We took our time eating and at 1:15 pm, the German band started.  They were also very entertaining.  Jackson loved them!  He was dancing in his seat and finally I took him down to the dance floor. He and Jacob enjoyed dancing on the dance floor and we got some good pics and video of them.  We got another Oktoberfest beer with a souvenir glass on the way out of Germany.  It fit perfectly in the stroller cupholder. :)

We moved along to China and glanced around.  Dad & Nancy got a Chinese beer.  Next, we went to Maelstrom.  Jackson fell asleep after lunch, so Kat sat with him while we all got in line for Maelstrom. We waited about 15 minutes in line - probably one of the longer lines, for one of the shorter rides, but it's sorta fun!  After Maelstrom, we looked around Norway a little and then headed onto Mexico.  In Mexico, you just have to get a Fiesta Margarita, which is a frozen layered strawberry, lime and mango margarita.  SOOO good!  Just after we got our Margarita, we noticed Fiesta Donald Duck in an alcove near Mexico, so we stopped to take a few pictures with him.   Jackson got a Donald Duck stuffed animal yesterday at Target, which he has been attached to, but he was a little cautious around this Donald.  Perhaps it was the giant sombrero that through him off.  He did take a picture with him though.  We got some pictures of Dad & Nancy with Donald as well.

Then, we headed off to Mission Space. My brother works at HP, and HP sponsors Mission Space.  So, HP has a private suite in Mission Space for its employees and guests.  It's a really nice place to sit, relax, have a soft drink, use a nice restroom, print a photo or two.  They also had a 3-D computer that was really cool.  You can see into the Mission Space ride, and when you are ready to ride Mission Space, you have priority over even Fast Pass riders!! Jeff, Dad, and Nancy rode the "green" side of the ride that does not spin.  John rode full "orange" version.  Kat, Jackson, Jacob and I went to the waiting area of Mission Space where there are some neat games, etc.

After Mission Space, we rode Spaceship Earth, which is actually a pretty neat ride.  Then, we headed out of the park.

Later on, Grandma Elsa arrived and we had steaks for dinner!  Great day!