retro EPCOT

Up the Waterfall The EPCOT Center Episodes – Part 4

20 October 2019 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

Happy Sunday! Another Up the Waterfall episode is up to listen to or watch! We are wrapping up our EPCOT Center series with the remainder of the World Showcase countries, and some nighttime entertainment options as well.

If you haven’t been following along, be sure to listen to/watch the Up the Waterfall

EPCOT Episode Part 1: we discussed the original Future World east, including Spaceship Earth, Universe of Energy, World of Motion, and Horizons, along with a bit of CommuniCore East.

EPCOT Part 2: we share our thoughts and memories of The Land, The Living Seas, and of course Journey into Imagination. We also head back over to the east side and bring up the Wonders of Life pavilion.

EPCOT Part 3: we finish up Future World with CommuniCore discussion, and make it from Mexico to Equatorial Africa.

The EPCOT Center Series Part 4: we finish our loop around World Showcase, including a round up of all the nighttime shows as well. In next week’s episode, we’ll round out what has turned into EPCOT Month with our thoughts on the future of EPCOT, and a bonus episode with our promised Show and Tell from Scott showcasing all of his original EPCOT Center books and ephemera. Whew!

Whether you are an original EPCOT Center visitor like us, or a fan, or new to Disney parks, we hope you’ll listen in and get a feel for what it was like Growing Up EPCOT. We thank you for listening in or watching, and hope you enjoy our little corner of the Disney podcasting world. As always, we encourage you to subscribe to our podcast wherever you normally listen, rate us (5 stars would be amazing!) and even comment so hopefully more people can discover us too.

You can also watch us on YouTube to see all of our silly facial expressions, and the books we reference in each episode. We’d love to hear from you, let us know what you think of the podcast, your favorite EPCOT Center memories, what you want to hear us discuss, just say hi, we welcome all feedback!

For these episodes, we wanted to give a guide of sorts to where you can learn more about the original EPCOT Center we describe, if you didn’t get a chance to experience it yourself, or if you’d just like to take a stroll down memory lane.

Zannaland’s Love Letter to EPCOT

Zannaland’s 1983 EPCOT Trip Diary

ProgressCityUSA’s Examining Epcot: The Germany Showcase

Martin’s Vids – Martin Smith has been chronicling Disney parks for decades, and compiling incredibly detailed complete history tributes to extinct attractions. We’re linking to his entire EPCOT Future World playlist, where you can experience EPCOT Center as it once was.

Here are some of the books we discussed, since they are out of print, these are all from 3rd party Marketplace sellers on amazon, but still, some good options and prices are out there. I’m just linking one of the Pictorial Souvenirs, but all of the ones from the 80’s are great fun to flip through. We’ll be doing a little EPCOT Books guide soon, so stay tuned for that as well. Click the photos below to get to the amazon^* page for these books.

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Up the Waterfall – The EPCOT Center Episodes Part 3

13 October 2019 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

It’s Sunday, so another Up the Waterfall episode is up to listen to or watch. We hope you listened to/watched the Up the Waterfall EPCOT Episode Part 1 and EPCOT Part 2. In Part 1 we discussed the original Future World east, including Spaceship Earth, Universe of Energy, World of Motion, and Horizons, along with a bit of Communicore East. In Part 2, we share our thoughts and memories of The Land, The Living Seas, and of course Journey into Imagination. We also head back over to the east side and bring up the Wonders of Life pavilion.

This brings us to Part 3 (video version at bottom of post), where we thought we’d finish up Future World and make it at least halfway round the World Showcase, but alas, we made it to Equatorial Africa, and had to stop there. But never fear, Part 4 will wrap up World Showcase, including a round up of all the World Showcase nighttime shows as well. We’ll then round out what has turned into EPCOT Month with our thoughts on the future of EPCOT, and a bonus episode with our promised Show and Tell from Scott showcasing all of his original EPCOT Center books and ephemera. Whew!

zanna Mexico EPCOT 1984 — My sister, me, and my brother in the Mexico pavilion, in I believe 1984.

Whether you are an original EPCOT visitor like us, or a fan, or new to Disney parks, we hope you’ll listen in and get a feel for what it was like Growing Up EPCOT. We thank you for listening in or watching, and hope you enjoy our little corner of the Disney podcasting world. As always, we encourage you to subscribe to our podcast wherever you normally listen, rate us (5 stars would be amazing!) and even comment so hopefully more people can discover us too. You can also watch us on YouTube to see all of our silly facial expressions, and the books we reference in each episode. We’d love to hear from you, let us know what you think of the podcast, your favorite EPCOT Center memories, what you want to hear us discuss, just say hi, we welcome all feedback!

Zannaland’s Love Letter to EPCOT

Zannaland’s 1983 EPCOT Trip Diary

We didn’t mention this by name, but LostEpcot.com is a great place to see some original photos and details about the original EPCOT Center as well.

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Up the Waterfall – The EPCOT Center Episode – Part 2

6 October 2019 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

We hope you listened to/watched the Up the Waterfall EPCOT Episode Part 1, where we discussed the original Future World east, including Spaceship Earth, Universe of Energy, World of Motion, and Horizons, along with a bit of Communicore East. In this next episode, Part 2, we share our thoughts and memories of The Land, The Living Seas, and of course Journey into Imagination. We also head back over to the east side and bring up the Wonders of Life pavilion.

I really thought I’d fill an entire episode with my thoughts on Journey into Imagination, but I managed to keep it under an hour for that part. What we did realize is that we needed yet another episode to properly cover the entire original EPCOT Center experience. Watch for Part 3, where we will discuss the remainder of Future World, and head into World Showcase. If you have any EPCOT memories you’d like to share, comment below, or on any of our channels below to share your thoughts with us too! Below we’ll include more links and info discussed in the podcast as well as places to subscribe and listen or watch.

Whether you are an original EPCOT visitor like us, or a fan, or new to Disney parks, we hope you’ll listen in and get a feel for what it was like Growing Up EPCOT. We thank you for listening in or watching, and hope you enjoy our little corner of the Disney podcasting world. As always, we encourage you to subscribe to our podcast wherever you normally listen, rate us (5 stars would be amazing!) and even comment so hopefully more people can discover us too. You can also watch us on YouTube to see all of our silly facial expressions, and the books we reference in this episode. We’d love to hear from you, let us know what you think of the podcast, your favorite EPCOT Center memories, what you want to hear us discuss, just say hi, we welcome all feedback!

Dreamfinder and Figment EPCOT Center — Dreamfinder and Figment with me around 1984 when we first moved to Florida. Fun fact, this photo was used in the “Dreamfinders” fan made documentary that came out a few years ago without my permission or credit so…yay? 😛

Zannaland’s Love Letter to EPCOT

Zannaland’s 1983 EPCOT Trip Diary

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Up the Waterfall – The EPCOT Center Episode – Part 1

29 September 2019 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

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journey into imagination 1983 — Zanna with the original Figment topiary and mini jumping waters

When we talked about actually creating a podcast for the past 5 years, I knew that one of the main things I’d want to discuss is the original EPCOT Center. I knew that for me personally, that was where my love of Disney parks originated, and the effect that EPCOT Center had had on me growing up. I also knew that my husband, Scott, had an equally passionate love for the original EPCOT, and that we could both probably talk about it for hours on end. And boy did we.

I initially thought we’d maybe have 2 parts to this episode, Future World and World Showcase, but it soon became apparent that we’d need at least 3 episodes to properly discuss and share all of our EPCOT memories. In this first episode, Scott and I talk about how we first heard about EPCOT, and our first visits, and made it around to most of Future World east. We discuss the attractions in that section, the music and atmosphere of the original EPCOT Center, and of course, what we miss about that.

Whether you are an original EPCOT visitor like us, or a fan, or new to Disney parks, we hope you’ll listen in and get a feel for what it was like Growing Up EPCOT. We thank you for listening in or watching, and hope you enjoy our little corner of the Disney podcasting world. As always, we encourage you to subscribe to our podcast wherever you normally listen, rate us (5 stars would be amazing!) and even comment so hopefully more people can discover us too. You can also watch us on YouTube to see all of our silly facial expressions, and the books we reference in this episode. We’d love to hear from you, let us know what you think of the podcast, your favorite EPCOT Center memories, what you want to hear us discuss, just say hi, we welcome all feedback!

Journey into Imagination 1984 — This is a terrible quality picture, but I referenced this in the episode. I’m the one clinging to my dad’s arm because I don’t want the ride to be over… 🙁

For this particular episode, we wanted to give a guide of sorts to where you can learn more about the original EPCOT Center we describe, if you didn’t get a chance to experience it yourself, or if you’d just like to take a stroll down memory lane.

Zannaland’s Love Letter to EPCOT

Zannaland’s 1983 EPCOT Trip Diary

FOLLOW THE ZANNALAND TEAM ON SOCIAL MEDIA, WATCH OUR VIDEOS, VLOGS AND PODCAST TOO:

Twitter: @zannaland, @otisney, @tikibirdz
Instagram: @zannaland, @otisney, @tikibirdz
Zannaland’s facebook page
Zannaland on YouTube
Listen to Up the Waterfall podcast

We thank you for your support and for sharing the love!

Click to download.

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

Dreamfinders Do Come True-Meeting Ron Schneider

5 October 2011 by Suzannah Otis 41 Comments

Dreamfinder 1985 — Dreamfinder, Figment & me in 1985

Most little girls have a favorite princess, and while I’m pretty sure I grew up being most attached to Princess Aurora, I was never really fanatical about princesses. I was more a Barbie and Strawberry Shortcake girl anyway. Until my 1983 trip to EPCOT Center of course. You’ve heard me wax poetic on that magical trip before. While I cannot find a photo of Dreamfinder and I from that first trip, I can assure you, his impact was felt for decades to come.

Princesses were prim and proper and always said the right thing, while Dreamfinder was a bit of a jokester and would react to the guests around him accordingly. Unlike many rides of the time, where you rode passively through them, Dreamfinder spoke directly to you in Journey into Imagination. “Oh, hello there, so glad you could come along. I am the Dreamfinder!” (I still have that entire spiel memorized in my head.) As an impressionable young child, I felt that Dreamfinder and Figment really were bringing me along for the ride to the Dream Port and that imagination was a powerful force within us all. And just as I cried through my entire last ride through Journey into Imagination on that last day of my first trip, I was all the more excited to see Dreamfinder after we moved to Florida when I was 10.

Dreamfinder 1986 — Dreamfinder, Figment and me in 1986

I wouldn’t always stop to take a photo with Dreamfinder and Figment, but any time he was out there, I always said hello – and of course, riding Journey into Imagination multiple times was a given. I consider myself particularly fortunate to have had EPCOT Center as my playground during that time in my life. It wasn’t an easy transition, moving from a small New England town, close to family and surrounded by friends, to a really tiny central Florida town where I had a three cousins but not much else. EPCOT Center and Journey into Imagination (and Horizons) became my happy place, my refuge from the trials and tribulations of a tween existence, before that age group even had a name. And just as the sweet scent of l’oranges signaled Horizons, Dreamfinder was synonymous with Journey into Imagination. In summary; I liked him.

Fast forward 28 years from that first encounter and I am still as in love with Journey into Imagination and Dreamfinder as I ever was. I walk up to the Imagination pavilion and am flooded with happy memories of joking with Figment, getting soaked with the jumping fountains, the scent of roses, the beautiful white room inside the ride and countless hours playing in the Image Works. I am of course saddened by the changes made to Tony Baxter’s masterpiece, but I hold my version of the attraction within my heart. If you did not get the chance to experience the original attraction, check out Martin Smith‘s video tributes: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

Attending D23’s Destination D in Florida back in May, I was brought to tears when Dreamfinder and Figment made a surprise appearance for a sing-a-long with Richard Sherman. My love and appreciation for Disney was renewed that magical night.

Destination D Dreamfinder — Destination D's very special guests

In a random turn of events, I happened to be reading the comments of an old post here. Within the comments, I saw one from a “Ron” that went as follows:

Zanna — It’s a funny thing… Figment & I posed for a million photographs back then but I’ve seen precious few of them. Thanks for posting this one!

I was shocked and amazed that THE Dreamfinder had commented on my silly little blog. Then I realized the comment was a year ago and was disappointed I hadn’t seen it prior to now! I replied to the comment and was filled with such joy and validation, as if little 10 year old me had come full circle in life. Or so I thought.

Enter Lou Mongello, well-known Disney fan, expert, and Podfather who runs the WDW Radio podcast and live news show. Lou writes and records audio guides, trivia books and more, has conducted interviews with amazing Disney legends, and given back through fundraising efforts for the Make a Wish foundation. In addition, he is a great friend. During the past weekend Lou and his WDW Radio team were engaging in a 40-hour LIVE web broadcast to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Walt Disney World and raise funds for Make a Wish. (They raised close to $18,000 that weekend alone!) When, on last week’s live show, Lou announced a “Special Guest” would be appearing on Sunday, October 2, my mind immediately went to Ron Schneider. Before I discovered Ron’s comment on my blog, I never would’ve guessed, but I just had that on the brain and something told me it was a good possibility. After a series of meet-ups on Sunday, I ventured over to the Imagination building, where I heard the WDWRadio crew would be. Sure enough, there was Ron Schneider, in his Imagination symbol shirt (which I almost wore that day!). I stood close and listened to the tales Ron shared of his time as Dreamfinder and with the Disney company. One of the funniest was the story of how Ron had recorded several takes for the exit safety spiel, including his favorite, “Your ride vehicle and the moving platform are traveling at 5000 miles per hour! Good luck!” They never used that take. I can’t imagine why?

Ron Schneider with Lou Mongello, while Lou's beautiful children look on. Scott Otis holds the laptop broadcasting the show live.

I had prepared my phone in hopes of getting a chance to show Ron the photo about which he commented, in person. When Lou asked if there were questions from the audience, I patiently waited for others to ask Ron to describe favorite memories or parts of his work experiences. Then I raised my hand and let him know that I didn’t have a question, but rather a photo to show him, which I did (the photo at the top of this post). He was tickled to see it and remarked again about how rare photos of him as Dreamfinder were. He portrayed the Dreamfinder from 1982 – 1987. I thanked him for the wonderful memories he gave me as a child and how I grew up with EPCOT Center. Tears began to flow as I remembered little 10 year-old me and the lifetime of experiences that has passed between then and now. Hearing my voice break, Ron said, “Oh, come here and give me a hug.” So I did. I hugged the Dreamfinder, without the blue suit and top hat, without that little purple dragon, but the man that gave life to both was all that mattered. It was perfect.

Dreamfinder 2011 — Dreamfinder - Ron Schneider and me, 2011 ♥

While storm clouds may gather…and stars may collide, nothing can take those amazing moments that Disney and Dreamfinder provided. I truly had come full circle. It’s not often you can thank your childhood influences in person, much less hug them. I was so very grateful for the special chance to do so. My oldest son was standing behind me as I was speaking (and crying) to Dreamfinder. I think it was a special moment for him as well, to see that his mom is human, and was once a child full of wonder too. Perhaps he has a bit more understanding as to why Disney is so special to me and such a part of my life. So thank you to Mr. Schneider for taking the time out of your weekend to be there last weekend, and for being a part of childhood memories I hold most dear. Also many thanks to Lou Mongello for making this meeting possible and giving back to Disney fans in so many ways.

Imagination is something that belongs to all of us…and every sparkling new idea can lead to even more! – The Dreamfinder

Throwback Thursday: The Rainbow Corridor

15 September 2011 by Suzannah Otis 8 Comments

In honor of Walt Disney World’s upcoming 40th anniversary, I thought I’d post a photo each week of me or my family from our past visits. I have posted in the past my earliest photo from around 1979 but here’s one from one of my favorite places ever – the Rainbow Corridor at Image Works upstairs from Journey into Imagination. That attraction, and the Image Works play-area hold my tiny, unicorn-filled childhood heart. I spent hours in there playing with the different colored tables full of ‘pins’, painting Figment on a touch screen, stomping on the colored lights to make music, and Dreamfinder’s School of Drama (green screen at its finest – AND, Dreamfinder was played by none other than Imagineer extraordinaire, Joe Rohde – thanks to Scott Otis [Disney expert and friend extraordinaire] for that tidbit!). I would give just about anything to go there again.

Me, in my 80's finest - EPCOT Center cap, Esprit shirt, short shorts, my shirt tucked in?!...inside the greatest tunnel ever made. I think this must be around 1984. Special thanks to Scott Otis for reminding me of the Rainbow Corridor's actual name, I'd forgotten the corridor part!

Inside the VIP Lounge at The Living Seas

2 November 2010 by Suzannah Otis 6 Comments

Last month, most of the Walt Disney World Moms Panel joined together for an informal reunion, just because we love an excuse to get together and what better place to do that than the Walt Disney World Resort, right? Our Pink Princess was kind enough to have a luncheon put together for us by the allied partners responsible for the Innoventions attractions. We were lucky enough to be treated to that lunch inside the second story of the Seas pavilion, in the former VIP Lounge area from back when United Technologies sponsored The Living Seas.

Unfortunately, I did not have my real camera and my cell phone pics are not the best, but I wanted to share the inside with you just the same. Hopefully I’ll get another chance to visit. I know the D23 Sip and Stroll attendees were able to experience both this lounge and the one for Spaceship Earth, so who knows what future events may take place here.

living seas vip lounge — This sign as you enter was enough to make my visit worthwhile.

Back to the Future-Memories of My 1983 Trip to EPCOT

18 August 2010 by Suzannah Otis 11 Comments

It’s no secret that I am a proud child of the 80’s. Also no secret that the reason I fell in love with Walt Disney World was my 1983 visit to EPCOT Center, when we stayed at the Lake Buena Vista Vacation Villas. I’m sure part of what made that visit so special is that my parents actually drove us down from Massachusetts. We stopped at historical sites on the way over and back, breaking up the 1300 mile drive, but the ultimate destination was Disney and this all new park we’d read about in Birnbaum’s Official Guide – EPCOT Center. I’ve explained how a little purple dragon and his dream-finding friend are what really sparked (pun intended) my love of Disney but I wanted to go back to the 9 year-old me and see what she thought of things, as they happened.

Since I still can’t locate my flux capacitor, I have the next best thing – my actual travel diary from that 1983 trip. I remember that blank journal so well; my mom had bought it for me in a sticker shop along with my latest Lisa Frank obsessions to add to my sticker books (I still have my sticker album which would be another awesome entry for my fellow 80’s kids). It had a shiny silver cover with a rainbow on the front. The pages were then different colors of the rainbow, so if you looked at it on the side, it was complete rainbow perfection. Sadly, I didn’t save the whole journal for some reason. We’ve moved so many times I probably just thought I’d pull out the pages I wrote on and save them. I know I used it to record our next trip when we flew down with my siblings and also stayed in the Villas, but I do not have those pages any more. What I do have, is just hysterical.

First, it is written in some sort of 9 year-old short hand and most definitely from a 9 year-old’s perspective as to what the important parts of the trip were. Well, let me just show you…

The first page is from the first leg of our drive, from Sharon, Massachusetts to Savannah Georgia. Unfortunately I did not date my entries, but I’m pretty sure it was the end of the summer in 1983, since school started pretty soon afterward and I remember presenting my trip souvenirs (match books, drink stirrers, guide maps…) to my 5th grade class a few weeks later. Everything below is as I wrote it, including the things in parentheses. The things in brackets, however, are my notes today. Most of the pictures are from 1983, but a few are from our trip the next year.

“We arrived at 1:45. It took 7½ hours. Got settled at the Quality Inn. [This was in Washington, DC.] I got a surprise visit to the zoo! [Pandas were really big back then and I wanted nothing more than to see them at the National Zoo!] Then we took a ride to see the memorials and monument, Capitol and White House. We ate at the Inn of the Eight Immortals (a szechuan Chinese food place) [no longer there it seems]. Then we saw the hospital I was born in and the house we lived in then.

-Wednesday-

We got a tour of the Capitol and had lunch at the Senate Dining Room [I have no idea whether or not this was a big deal back then or if it’s the same now, that you are allowed to dine there if they have room. When I was first born, my father worked as the Maitre D’ of the Capitol Hill Club, so I’m not sure if he still knew people there or not]. We went to half of the Smithsonian. Then we swam a little and finally we had dinner at Farrell’s ice cream parlor [this was in Tyson’s Corner and has been closed for a while]. Then we go home and sleep.

dad and me smithsonian — My dad and I outside the Smithsonian – I was caught mid-blink 😛

-Thursday-

We arrived in Georgia about 4:30. We swim for a long time then we eat dinner at the Pirate’s House. That was excellent. I was scared to look at some of the pirate figures they had set up and I almost walked into the boys bathroom! We come back late and read or whatever. Then we finally get to sleep. (Daddy snores all the time.)

[There is then a gigantic arrow letting anyone reading to know to turn the page. :P]

-Friday- [I apologize for the run-on format to follow!]

At 6:00 am we get up and get ready to go. We find a cockroach (gross!) and then start driving to Florida. We have breakfast at McDonald’s. We do every day practically! We came to EPCOT at 10:15! Daddy makes dinner reservations at Germany [I remember this, it was in the original area underneath Spaceship Earth where you could make video reservations with guest relations. That was one of THE coolest things ever.] We call Nana and off to the Land. We see a nature film [Symbiosis] it was SO loud! Then a boat ride with lots of veggies then see dancing veggies – Kitchen Karoba (sp?) [Obviously Kitchen Kabaret made an impact on me haha]. Then my all-time favorite: Journey into Imagination! Awesome. Then we go to the Image Works same place) – Rainbow tunnel, stepping on notes etc. Then awesome 3-D movie [Magic Journeys]. I admit I did grab for some objects coming out! Then home to an awesome motel – 2 bedrooms, fold out sofa – bath, kitchen. [This, my friends, was my 9 year-old impression of the Vacation Villas. Oh well. I appreciate it now!]

lake buena vista villas — My mom and I posing in ultra early 80’s luxury at the Lake Buena Vista Vacation Villas.

We have a snack and off to Germany. First we went on Spaceship Earth – no line. Went straight up and straight down backwards! Then Germany. Show, dancers, singers, horn players, etc. etc. German shops then go to Italy just in time for the Teatro di Bologna – very funny! Then the France movie and Mom and I wait in a line of 500,000 it seemed for yummy pastry. We buy a Figment. [I still have him, broken neck and all…]

-Saturday-

Up at 7am. Coffee for Mummy and Daddy. We walk in the super World of Motion after Daddy makes reservations for Japan, then onto the Universe of Energy. Scary dinosaurs but great moving theater – dull movie at end. [Sorry UoE, I’ll still always love you, even tho I was petrified of the dinosaurs!] Journey into Imagination again. Still awesome. Then the Land for a danish breakfast, back to monorail and a ferry to the Magic Kingdom. Took a fire engine to Cinderella Castle. We walk into Small World then Carousel ride and on to the Magic Kingdom railroad, Haunted house and Pirates of Caribbean [no, I didn’t spell it right back then :P]. A hot dog for lunch and then Tiki Birds, a swirl ice at Orange Bird stand [*cry*] and shops, then take the ferry back to EPCOT and car and motel. [I love how I keep calling it a motel.] Daddy and I take a quick dip in the pool then off to dinner in Japanese Manor [not sure why I called it that?!]. Really good. I learned the trick of chopsticks. Then shops, UK shops and Renaissance play – Romeo and Juliet! The Canada round movie. Back to EPCOT and World of Motion, Imagination again. Time for Image Works and DDD movie [I was so funny har har]. We get popsicles then home to bed.

dad and me outside journey into imagination — My Daddy, cigarette and all, and me. 😉 Look at those cool trees in the background!

-Sunday-

Up at 6:30, coffee and cereal time. Off to Mass at the Polynesian [I spelled it Poloneasayn haha] resort – flowers, birds and buggies. Back to EPCOT on monorail. Then breakfast at Good Turn restaurant. We eat and see Land boat ride as we eat! Off to American stage for World Showcase dancers – great – we talk to a dancer [I remember exactly what she looked like. My mom being a former professional ballerina, she loved this show and loved getting to talk to this dancer] and then Mom and Daddy see French movie. I see marionette show Hansel and Gretel [I have absolutely zero memory of this show OR my parents letting me watch it alone!] Then World dancers again. I dance with one – neat – off to the motel. McD’s for lunch then pool. [ick, McD’s for lunch, really?!] Back to EPCOT for dinner in Mexico. Really neat! It’s like a town square in Mexico. Mom and Daddy ate cactus! I tried a little turnip, interesting! Went on the boat ride – neat. Then Magic Kingdom for Electric parade and fireworks. Great! The Wings of Man [my name for If You Had Wings? Ah hA! Just looked it up – that was Eastern airline’s slogan at the time.], G.E. Carousel of Progress, People Mover then back on monorail for home. We’re pooped!

world showcase dancer and zanna — I guess that’s why I remember what she looked like – we had a picture!

-Monday-

Up for EPCOT, sad day – last day. We ate breakfast in Good Turn, went on rides and started driving for Maryland. Drove and drove and drove. When Mom drove we went 90 miles an hour – no ticket. Later Daddy went 76 and got a ticket! Arrived in MD at a good time, went to D.C. first. Went to a French restaurant [La Nicoise, sadly now closed as well] where the waiters were all on roller skates! Then to Maryland, we went to an absolutely awesome aquarium and to the shops. I get stickers and a painters cap with Suzy written on it. Ate at Phillip’s Crab House then drove home.”

And that’s it. An uneventful end to a journey back to such an amazing time. I think I’ve rambled enough about all that this trip meant to me back then, and I know for a fact I’ll discuss it again, as it is my hope to post my Love Letter to EPCOT sometime soon…so I’ll just end this here. Thank you for reading and letting me indulge a bit of the childhood me. If you’d told the excited little me back then what my love of Disney would turn into today…I just might have believed you. After all, Dreamfinder told me imagination belongs to all of us.