The Disney vacation

We're back, we're settled in. The laundry is mostly done, we've actually prepared and eaten two home-cooked meals, and Calvin has already finished two sections in math and thoroughly explored the Mayas. Obviously the last thing to return to normal is my journaling here. More on our exploration of the Mayas later.

First, a bit of trip closure. It was fabulous. We had sun every day (except the morning we drove to Vero, but who needs sun for driving?), and the unseasonably warm weather was pure joy. We stayed in a Disney resort and let the Disney crew take care of our every need: we were picked up from the airport, our luggage delivered directly to our rooms, and our meals were covered by a dining plan that we were able to cash in for some surprisingly nice meals in a lot of different places (they force you to eat the desserts). The resort had cafeteria style eating, and a bar by the pool, and the great Disney bus system got us to and from the parks every day. The place is like a city unto itself, with friendly staff (they refer to all workers as cast members), good food, clean grounds, and bright, open spaces (plus they know how to move the crowds through smoothly). When we left the parks we transferred (by rental car) to the Disney resort at Vero Beach, and things there were very much the same. There is no service quite like Disney service, and I can see why so many of my friends have mentioned taking frequent, even yearly, trips.

Plus Disney really does try to create that magic they promise in every ad. Calvin's favorite part was meeting the characters, riding the rides, and especially riding the Figment ride and Spaceship Earth. Jon's favorite part was the firework show at Magic Kingdom. Mom loved the Animal Kingdom African safari ride and the fireworks, and dad loved "the margarita ride" (i.e., drinks at Epcot's Mexico pavilion, plus beer in Germany, sparkling wine in Italy, and wine in France). My favorite part? Maybe everything, but I really loved that the cast members in the World Showcase were actually from those countries. Listening to them talk to each other in their native languages was really fun.

And the characters. There's just something about that mouse. You see? They've even got me doing it, because something else Disney does really well is create a sense of belonging and nostalgia in visitors. It makes people buy things, after all, like ears, or pins, stuffies, and shirts. We got away pretty easy on those counts (we've practiced immunity for years), but while Calvin had no attachment to any Disney character before we left (no real knowledge of any Disney character actually—even Pooh he knew most through Milne), while we were there he developed an admiration for several of the characters (the ones worn by humans), especially Figment and Mickey. Mostly Mickey. And how could he not? There really is something about that mouse.

Yes, it's obvious how infectious the Disney machine can be, and yes that's something I've always avoided, but I don't feel like our values were encroached upon in any way. Being at the park didn't force us to change the way we approach things, and our avoidance approach to pop-culture didn't at all get in the way of our enjoyment. And that character attachment? He fell in love with a live character he met on a magical trip, much like falling in love with a panda at the zoo (or a penguin), and I hope Calvin will always have this happy love for the two characters he met there—two happy memories, souvenirs from a really magical trip.

I'm a little in love with them myself. What a great, great trip.

Notes to self (or anyone else who might appreciate them):

1. Staying in the park in the Disney resort (and using their bus system) saved a lot of time.

2. The Disney photo cards are great. I assumed the photographers set up around every corner were offering to sell photos, but actually they give you a free photo card that you use everywhere in the parks, then you access your shots online (for free) and decide then if you want to buy anything. Great idea. PLUS, they were all more than happy to take a shot with my camera, too. Awesome!

3. The fast pass really did come in handy a couple of times (probably would even more so at a busier time), but for it to work really well you have to plan ahead.

4. Kidcot...I wish we'd known about it the first day we were there—it's a great way to get kids more involved in the World Showcase tour. At each of the eleven countries in the Showcase there is a table where kids can collect country stamps on a (free) bear picture that they color. Or, for $10 we bought Calvin a passport from a gift shop that cast members at each country stamped and wrote messages for him in their native languages. Then he spent much of dinner carefully placing the stickers (six for each country) on the appropriate pages. He's very attached to it.

5. The Kimpossible missions in Epcot were way more fun than I had anticipated.

From Disney's Vero Beach resort

Vero Beach holds a very special place in my heart. My grandparents lived here later in years and visiting my Grammie was always a time of great joy, comfort, and renewal for me. We relaxed, we talked, we basked in the sun, we visited the town, the beach, the manatees. Going back then was a bit of a mixed event. There is always sadness when a loved one is gone, and yet there is joy in revisiting the places that bring the memories to life.

We didn't do exactly the same things in Vero that we did when my grandparents were there, but we did similar things. Although we didn't stop, we did drive through the little town. And though we didn't stop to walk along the beach in Vero, we did walk along the beach back at our resort, collecting shells, looking for crabs, and counting birds. We didn't find any manatees at the power plant where we used to stop at least once a day to view them, but we did go to the manatee education center in Fort Pierce and saw them (wild ones, too) drinking fresh water from a drain. And we had a great seafood dinner at the Lobster Shanty (where Jon had his first taste of seafood ten years ago). One thing completely new was the afternoon spent at the resort pool, swimming and sliding to the tunes the DJ was spinning. Thankfully he left before we did.

We had a bright beautiful sun right up until evening, and unseasonably warm weather to make the outdoor play more fun. The wind was even calm right up until the clouds blew in around dinner time, which is when we were done with the water play anyhow. It was a beautiful last day—almost as though we planned it that way—and today we drove north up the coast and then west to the airport, boarded a plane, and landed back at home where a light dusting of snow awaited us. Perfection. Final thoughts on a Disney vacation to follow.

Manatee Education Center

Manatees in the wild

Back at the resort

From Mexico to Canada by way of Japan

One final day in the parks. Bright, sunny, and warm, we spent our final day at Epcot, starting with a revisit to Spaceship Earth, the ride through the iconic dome, then finishing with a tour through all the countries the park has to offer. When we were there on Monday we toured Mexico (with margaritas) then Norway. Today we got Calvin an Epcot passport and set out to see all of them.

Beer, brats, and pretzels in Germany...plus Steiff and cuckoo clocks

Pickle tree in German Christmas store

Passport in hand, Calvin's job was to collect stamps and greetings from each of the Epcot countries. Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, The United States, Japan, Morocco, France, The United Kingdom, and Canada, each country had a welcome center where kids checked in. We were amazed to find that workers in each "country" were actually natives of that area. Standing in line for our brats and beer we listened to servers chatting in their native German, and it was the same in each of the countries. Brats and beer in Germany, sparkling wines in Italy, and another birthday dinner with wine in France. We saw drumming in Japan, belly dancing in Morocco, and kilt wearing rockers with bagpipes in the space between the U.K. and Canada.

China

Italy

The United States

Japan

Vacation photographer portraits. This is what dad looked like about 5% of the time...

and this is what I looked like about 75% of the time.

In Morocco

We closed the evening with one more character visit, something Calvin requested, then said goodbye to the park, boarding the bus as the fireworks hit the air, and collapsed into bed with sore feet and full hearts. I was skeptical before we got here, but we have enjoyed a truly magical four days in the Disney parks.

In the United Kingdom

In Canada. Really.

And France

Plus Disney really knows how to stretch a birthday...

Tomorrow, on to the ocean.

The magic

We made today Magic Kingdom day. A quick bus trip from our resort and we were soon entering the front gates the park built on nostalgia. I have loving memories of Epcot from my own childhood visit, but fewer memories of Magic Kingdom, and walking into the iconic park was actually more breath taking than I had imagined, or that may have had something to do with the street parade and party that we ran into on Main Street just minutes after our arrival. Calvin loved the music and dancing. We also took in the sights of Tomorrowland, from the Astro Orbiter to the People Mover and the Carousel of Progress. All enjoyable.

Lunch with Pooh and friends was a real treat. Great food on a buffet, and because our park reservation had been flagged, they knew we were celebrating my birthday so they decorated our table with confetti and brought me a birthday card signed by Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, and Eeyore.

Then Splash Mountain (Calvin's first thrill ride) in Frontierland, and in Adventureland a jungle cruise and Aladin's Magic Carpet Ride, complete with Camels—watch out, they spit, which I think was Calvin's favorite part.

Fantasyland is a mess of construction right now, but Calvin did get to try his hand at the Sword in the Stone (great since he's been on a King Arthur kick lately), and we rode Pooh's honey pot ride and the mad hatter's tea cups.

Meeting Mickey and Minnie was a high point in Calvin's day, somewhat strange since he doesn't know them as characters all that well, but he was thrilled with them anyhow, and the actors did a great job with him. Adorable, really.

Then, exhausted and foot sore, we picked up Chicago Dogs and staked out a spot on the Main Street bridge to view the fireworks over the castle in a show that really was quite magical and well worth the wait.

Tomorrow, Epcot one last time.

The Himalayas from Africa

There is nothing like spending a birthday at Disney to make you feel young again. A quick check-in at guest services procured for me a birthday pin, complete with my name in large letters, so that everywhere I went Disney staff, and sometimes others, were wishing me a happy birthday. So how old am I today? Maybe five.

We spent the day at Animal Kingdom. Calvin enjoyed the flying triceratops carnival ride, but not so much the Dinosaur thrill ride, and we all enjoyed the Kilimanjaro Safari through Africa from which we spotted giraffes, elephants, lions, and cheetahs as well as a variety of grazing ungulates. We ate ice cream for lunch (gasp) and lest we forget that this is the place of dreams and memory making, we snapped a quick picture of the family with the Himalayas in the background...from the bridge in Kenya (or wherever we were in Africa).

The Tree of Life really is beautiful, carved with many species so as to be eye pleasing and thoroughly engrossing. We skipped the line at the runaway train (in the Himalayas) and fell in love with the tigers, the golden pheasants, and especially the flying foxes in Asia.

Home again, home again (or resort again, resort again) to enjoy the snack bar (and regular bar) and the pool, before heading back to Downtown Disney for a birthday dinner—crab legs and whole lobsters for five, plus wine, plus a surprise birthday cake at the end. We topped it off with Irish coffee before catching the bus back to our hotel, and with Calvin and the grandparents all in bed Jon and I capped the evening with a stroll on the resort pond, and a stop at the tiki bar.