January 21st
 

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Sunday, January 21st, 2024              

Today Grandma Terry, Uncle Steve, Jayden, and I headed off to Epcot with the primary goal of aquiring the new Figment Premium Popcorn Bucket from the Imagination Station. Before leaving I had attempted to get in the virtual queue for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, but I didn't make it in despite trying right when the clock turned to 7:00am. There's always the 1:00pm slot!

Once we arrived at Epcot, we strolled through Gateway Gifts while on our way to Guest Services so that we could reenroll for Steve's Disability Access Pass (DAS). While at Guest Services, we signed up for a return time to Soarin'. I also ordered the popcorn bucket so that I could get a return time to pick it up. With a little bit of time to kill before we could complete either task, we headed over to the Land. We went on the Living with the Land ride first, enjoying the slow moving ride through the greenhouse. It was then time for us to get in line at Soarin', where we saw the Soarin' over California version of the ride (I still like the world version better, as the transitions between scenes help with the illusion, and I don't like that the California version ends at a Disneyland decorated or Christmas).

After our rides, we headed across the park to the Imagination Station to pick up our popcorn bucket. By this point we were pretty hungry, so we were searching for something to eat. We finally settled on eating lunch at the Royal Eagle Smokehouse at the American pavilion. This was my first time here, and I opted for a cheeseburger that came on a garlic toast bun, which resulted in one of the better burgers that I've had at a quick service restaurant in the parks. Just wish it had bacon! After eating we headed over to the restroom to clean up Steven, who had been carrying a funk with him since using the restroom at our house this morning before departure, likely due to a lack of proper clean-up when he was done. So frustrating...

Speaking of frustrating - while we were waiting at the restrooms I got a notice stating that Remy's Ratatouille Adventure was temporarily closed and that I needed to select a new ride to utilize Steve's DAS pass. While dealing with this issue, Jayden asked me how it was going with the queue, and while she meant the Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind virtual queue that we had discussed trying for at 1:00pm during lunch, I misunderstood and thought she was talking about the DAS and ended up completely missing any opportunity for the virtual queue. Sometimes I'm such a dumba... well, you get the point.

With the Guardians out the equation, we continued our trek around the World Showcase. We made a stop at the Tangierine Café: Flavors of the Medina in the Morocco pavilion so that Grandma Terry and Jay (and of course, Steve, as he would never say no to food!) could sample the Chocolate Cake with Pomegranate Mousse and Pomegranate Whipped Cream. Continuing our walk, we next stopped at the France pavilion to show off Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie to Grandma Terry. We decided to sample a few treats, including a baguette along with a macaron lime raspberry for Jayden, a framboise for me to try, and a bicuit chocolat (chocolate chip cookie) for Steve, although we all shared and tasted things.

We decided that we were pretty much done at Epcot for the day, so we wrapped out walk around the World Showcase. We did stop at the Expression Section paint-by-numbers, which is located along one of the walkways from the Imagination Pavilion to World Showcase. Jayden wanted to participate in doing her part to contribute to the art display. Once she finished up with the paint she was given, we headed out to wrap up our day at Disney's Magic Kingdom!

 

Epcot


 

Steven and Rodney (with Jayden peeking through the background) bundled up near the park entrance.

 
 

The new statue of Walt Disney that is located in Epcot, titled "Walt the Dreamer".

 
 

One of the waterfalls during the introductory part of the Living with the Land ride.

 
 

Some of the vegetation...

 
     
 

...and scenery...

 
     
 

...and "wildlife" that we saw on Living with the Land.

 
 

A tank full of tillapia.

 
 

An easy to spot Hidden Mickey made out of garden hose.

 
 

A Mickey Mouse topiary...

 
 

...as well as a couple of Mickey's made from lettuce...

 
     
 

The Biotechnology Lab on Living with the Land.

 
 

A couple of workers keeping things operational.

 
 

Rodney on the Living with the Land boat...

 
 

...and a picture of Uncle Steve as well.

 
 

Steve was double forking while we sampled the chocolate cake (with pomegranate mousse and pomegranate whipped cream) at the Morocco pavilion.

 
 

There was quite a crowd at the Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie...

 
 

...in the Paris pavilion.

 
 

A look at a few of the treats that we got from the Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie, which included a full Baguette in addition to...

 
 

...Jayden's favorite, the macaron lime raspberry...

 
 

...and this framboise that we tried for the first time (highly recommended!)...

 
 

...and of course, the bicuit chocolat (chocolate chip cookie).

 
 

Rod, Jay, and Grandma Terry enjoying their treats.

 
 

Jayden participating in The Expression Section Paint By Numbers...

 
 

...with the pale purple color that she was given.

 

 

The primary reason for our visit today, the Figment Premium Popcorn Bucket!

 

After leaving Epcot we drove to the Transportation and Ticket Center to ride the boat to Disney's Magic Kingdom. We had a single purpose for the trip to this park today, and that was to attempt to exchange the ornament that Rose got for Christmas that was broken. Unfortunately, a direct replacement wasn't available, so we instead had to settle for credit. We didn't enjoy any rides or shows during this visit, as it was all business. I did take a few photos of the sights while we were there, though, so please enjoy!

As is tradition, we did make a stop at Chili's for dinner before completing the drive home. Until next time!

 

Disney's Magic Kingdom


 

A look at the Disney Vacation Club tower rising behind the Polynesian Resort bungalows.

 
 

I had never noticed this little cutout area on one of the islands in the Seven Seas Lagoon between the Transportation and Ticket Center and the Magic Kingdom.

 
 

The Dapper Dans performing on Main Street, U.S.A.

 
 

The empty flume at Tiana's Bayou Adventure.

 
 

A few looks at the construction on Tiana's Bayou Adventure...

 
     
     
 

We found Jayden's car in the parking lot!

 


 

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