Epcot

Tuesday, September 19th

We knew that this would be great fun! Our girls are so science-oriented that they couldn't help but have fun.

The plan for the day was to spend all morning and into the afternoon at Epcot, go back to the hotel for a nap, and then go to Downtown Disney for the evening. We didn't do that. We were having so much fun at Epcot that we decided to spend the whole day there. We never even made it to the World Showcase -- just Futureworld.

We started with Spaceship Earth. It is a ride that is inside that huge golfball-shaped structure at the entrance to the park. The theme is communication, which sounds really boring, but the girls loved it so much we had to do it again before we left the park that evening. I thought the ride was pretty cool, because it took us through the history of communication -- through some cultures that we have already studied in our history lessons. I think that's one reason the girls liked it, too. Of course, it took us through the present day and then offered some potential communication capabilities for the future. Very cool!

We lunched at the Coral Seas restaurant -- a sit down lunch next to a HUGE aquarium. We had schools of fish, rays, and sharks swimming by. Lunch was good, and our table was right next to the aquarium. I tried to get some pictures, but they didn't turn out very well.

After lunch Cliff and the girls rode Soarin' -- a "hangliding" adventure above the landscape of California. They said it was really fun, but that's just not my kind of ride. I preferred the boat ride through The Land -- hydroponic gardening and other interesting research efforts to provide food for the future.

Cliff and the girls also rode Mission Space -- also not my kind of ride. They rode the "tame" version, and just listening to them made my stomach flip.

We all rode the Test Track. It was fun, but not nearly as thrilling as I expected. The premise is that the riders are test drivers for a car manufacturer, so the ride simulates several of the tests that vehicles must pass before making it to market. Mild disappointment on my part.

This was the one day that it rained on us in the afternoon. Considering that is usually a daily occurrence in Florida, I think we made out okay.