A Mi11ion Dreams = 2018 - Day 14- Gecko, Florida Mall and alternative Epcot.

[walt4it]

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Day 13 - which involved a lot of me being grumpy is here


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Welcome to Day 14


Wednesday 8th August 2018

We set the alarm for 8 and the first job was to release the gecko that had spooked Josh yesterday!

It made a dash across the living room carpet again today and then to the door to the pool - now when he mentioned it yesterday we did have doubts as to the reality of this but this morning, we had to admit he was right- which was possibly a good thing, as we were lining up the gecko jokes for him today!

He has previous !

Stepping on a gecko has always given him the song Gecko killer - to the fantastic Talking Heads song Psycho Killer !

This time an environmentally friendly solution was found and I remain sure that the Gecko was still less afraid of the whole experience than the boys

We released it and then plugged a little gap in the double glazed doors that invited the little fella in - that is the Gecko not Josh!

We were soon out and on the road and having filled the car up with $40 of petrol it was filled to the brim – I can only wish I had a car in the UK that I could make that announcement!

We drove up to the Florida Mall and then waited for them to open the doors of JC Penney. It wasn’t 10 am yet. Yep we were keen!

It didn’t take us much longer though to spend 120 dollars, yet still laugh when the till receipt shows that we saved $294.

I got three shirts that when I wear them to work I am always reminded of being in Florida- when someone remarks on the shirt, I try to avoid mentioning they cost just $15 after tax!

We had a quick walk around the mall and apart from Joe finding a top in Abercrombie for just $10 we didn’t buy anything else.

We headed to Boardwalk for a cup refill and a bit of a mooch before FP time was upon us.

We decided that ESPN bar was not the best option for lunch and so decided to head to the Boulangerie in Epcot for a quick sandwich.
Food photos are rubbish this morning

It was busy in here and standing room only for eating.

We then headed to Norway for a bit of Frozen Maelstrom.


We were right at the second fast pass swipe station when we once more encountered a large party who were clueless- they asked the CM if this was the fast pass line then the mother and two of the kids disappeared.

This was a relief in more ways than one- their restroom visit meant we were no longer continually finding their children climbing all over everyone in the queue and my experience was not as bad as others who were patiently waiting for some of the stand by line to be moved towards the ride that had waited around 45 minutes to ride.

We had an added bonus as we were loaded as two twos rather than us being all in one row- the biggest difference was that Joe ended up wetter than Splash Mountain- this brought a load of giggles and that was good as he had forgotten his sunglasses and hat today and also chose to wear black- don’t think he will do any of the above again! He recognised just how much wearing black absorbs the heat – he was regretting his choice of clothing and also noting it for the future.

We dropped into the Mexico pavilion which has seen a rather big Coco retheming since last year, we also did our usual Donald Duck 3 caballeros visit- love this ride for no other reason than it is true to the spirit of Donald.

The whole afternoon was meant to be an alternative Epcot afternoon, all the things we walked past last week amid Test Track and Soarin’

So our next ride was Living with the Land , it is a particular favourite and I still wish they had the original music to end the ride – Listen to The Land.

We rode The Seas with Nemo and then spotted a short wait time at the Character Spot- our first proper character meet this year -but the party of 9 in front of us, all of whom were adults went for every option known to mankind- individuals, pairs, family, half group and the finale of all 9 of them- by the time they were half way through with Mickey , Goofy and Minnie were stood around filling in time.

We had some lovely photos although as stated previously, I am not a fan of the backgrounds that each character has. For those who have read before our last experience here was a poor one with the multi room not being totally secure and a visit to guest services to share my concerns.

Today’s experience was spot on and when the group in front finished with Minnie, brandished their card that contained around 90 photos their last words to the photographer were -“ so where do we view these pictures?”

And there was me thinking they had the greatest photopass share ever!

We stopped off at the Electric Umbrella for a drink before heading to Spaceship Earth.


The fast pass queue was growing and the CM was in danger of losing it completely- she was insisting a family in front of us return to rescan their bands, a family behind us had snuck through a gap and not scanned and amid the chaos she started shouting at the queue and then at individuals too- she really had lost it.

By the time we snaked in the line back to the proper start of the walk up to the ride, she had been moved on for a break, with a team of 2 or 3 CM’s drafted in to sort out what was happening. Quick and decisive move from those watching on CCTV I think.

Can’t recall a time when a queue had really been lost like this and never seen a cast member totally lose the plot !

There was a reassuring air of calm when Dame Judy Dench uttered her immortal opening line...


“ Like a grand and miraculous spaceship… ”

We took a peek into the art of Disney on our exit - there is so much in here you would love to buy.
With the £ now trading today at $1.28 it was probably best to keep moving!


We picked up a FP that started in just two minutes for Figment and as we walked towards there we saw that the Pixar films were just 6 mins away- we sat glued to the screen through Get a Horse, Piper and the dog one.

Loved every minute and especially the return of the 4d effects in the theatre- none of us could recall this from past visits and it did add a bit more. This is such a hidden gem within Epcot and if they could rotate the films it would bring about multiple visits in any trip.

Figment followed and I could not resist the musical ending to video – I will avoid adding the music , otherwise it will be in your head for the rest of the week!

From there we checked the Baymax line but it again proved too long for our liking so Mission. Space it was then- orange. Now if all the rides in the whole of WDW, this is where Alison never joins us. It was nigh on walk on despite the 20 min advertised time and we were soon together and just taking stock of the time.

Having crammed so much in, the thought of a single rider test track was tempting yet was against everything we were in Epcot to enjoy. We did not succumb to temptation and chose to walk through Mousegear instead, note the walking not buying!

Especially with the new Halloween options too! August 8th?

We had soaked up Epcot and really enjoyed our time

We decided to keep walking and head back to the car amid a huge crowd of people who were entering Epcot from the Yacht and Beach Club.

They were on a work conference type thing and the number of them possibly shows why it can be so hard to get a room in each of these hotels during August.

We chose to eat at Millers tonight and were quickly seated and sorted with food.

It was our first off site meal and the final bill of $58 for four adult meals put into perspective our dining plan experience - we tipped well as we always need to at Millers, the service is spot on.

As we finished and got back in the car, the weather closed in.
We had neither seen nor experienced a proper storm for over a week- tonight was a return to typical Florida August weather, no pool tonight so a chill out watching the Tampa Bay Rays on TV. It was needed and we just had a chilled out evening.

A few emails sorted with Dibb golf and football predictions done.

Once again I’m typing this up late and with everyone asleep I headed to bed at ten past one.

Another great day and Epcot without Soarin’ and TT was a great way to spend some great time in the Park.

Day 15 is just a click here away

[Palm trees]

What a fantastic day starting with your bargain shirts! I love a chilled day at Epcot and reading your report has just ramped up my excitement for our upcoming trip (we've got Epcot on our first day, I'm beyond excited now!)

[mick]

Another great day and sounds like you picked up some bargains

Joan

[sandshal]

Another great read, sorry I don't comment on every day but I can assure you I'm super pleased to see the next one posted.

Thank you for all your time and effort you've put into these over the years.

Sharon

[Goldia]

I would not have wanted to deal with the gecko in the morning! It sounds like he shot off like a rocket.

Some fab bargains, and I know what you mean about having little reminders during a normal day. It's lovely that even at work you've got your Florida shirts to remind you why you're there.

A fab day at Epcot even without test track or Soarin. I don't think I've ever seen anyone get that wet on frozen, it seems like it was a hot day though and so I'm sure he dried off pretty quickly.

Dinner for $58 for the four of you is great, especially if I've read that receipt correctly and it included a pitcher!

[walt4it]

Originally Posted by Palm trees

What a fantastic day starting with your bargain shirts! I love a chilled day at Epcot and reading your report has just ramped up my excitement for our upcoming trip (we've got Epcot on our first day, I'm beyond excited now!)

See more...

Delighted that I have ramped up the excitement levels - what a great looking countdown.
Days such as this in Epcot really show that the slower you try to soak it up , the more you see and the more you enjoy what is there.

Have a fantastic holiday

[walt4it]

Originally Posted by mick

Another great day and sounds like you picked up some bargains

Joan

See more...

Thanks Joan

Was a great day and the biggest bargain was the food at Millers, after all the DDP days , it shows just how much value you get off site for a lot of delicious food.

[walt4it]

Originally Posted by sandshal

Another great read, sorry I don't comment on every day but I can assure you I'm super pleased to see the next one posted.

Thank you for all your time and effort you've put into these over the years.

Sharon

See more...

Thanks Sharon - appreciate your very kind words too. Glad you still look forward to each new day and all the time and effort typing them up is a perfect record for the boys as they grow up and a memory that will stay with us all.
Be assured that, as always , we will be finished this one in plenty of time before the next adventure begins

[walt4it]

Day 15 is added too

Click here to read

[summersun]

great day x