The Many Hats of Disney (by Griffin)

Griffin is not a big fan of thrill rides, but he found one thing that he really loved while we were in Disney World. He made it his mission to find a hat in every country's gift shop in Epcot. He got really serious about this project, and even carried it on over into the other parks.  He was very frustrated that we couldn't find a hat in several of the countries.  And here he is...

Mexico

China

America

France (he really started getting into Character after France)

Japan

Morocco

UK

Germany

Africa

Norway

Frontierland

Pirates of the Carribbean

Star Tours

Indiana Jones

Random gift shop hat

And finally...modeling his new t-shirt with his old hat and goofy grin

Disney World Vacation 2013 - Part 5

On Wednesday we spent the day in Hollywood Studios.  We did our favorite ride, Toy Story Midway Mania two times.  It is such a fun ride!  We watched a lot of shows, and did several other rides today.

We learned how to draw Dopey from an animation instructor at the Animation Academy.  It was something we all enjoyed, and it was definitely one of the highlights of our trip!

We had a delicious dinner at the 50's Prime Time Cafe.  Richie and the kids LOVED the fried chicken and mashed potatoes here.

We let everyone pick out a dessert after dinner.  Richie's carrot cake cookie was wonderful.  Griffin had a chocolate chip cookie (the size of his head), Margaret had an iced Mickey cookie, Mamie had turkey leg-shaped rice krispie treat and I had a candy corn- shaped rice krispie treat.

Our family's must-do attractions at Hollywood Studios:

1. Toy Story Midway Mania
2. The Animation Academy
3. Star Tours
4. Voyage of the Little Mermaid
5. Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular
6. Walt Disney: One Man's Dream
7. Muppet Vision 3D
8. Beauty and the Beast: Live on Stage (but we missed the show this time)
9. Rockin' Roller Coaster (Richie and I love this, but we couldn't get the kids to ride it)
10. The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (I am the only one who likes this, but I am putting it on the list anyway!)
11. Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show (Griffin really liked this, the girls were moderately interested)

On Thursday we headed back over to Epcot. We went to Soarin' first, which is a family favorite. Next we went through the Seas pavilion and did the attractions and got to watch the manatees, fish, sharks, sea turtles and stingrays during feeding time, and that was really cool.

We had lunch at Beaches and Cream at The Beach Club resort.  The kids loved picking songs for the jukebox, and the burgers, sandwiches and sundaes were delicious!

After an afternoon rest, we continued exploring, watching entertainment and snacking our way through World Showcase for dinner.  We went to Canada, UK, France, Morocco and Japan.

Sushi in Japan

Matsuriza - Japanese drummers

Miyuki - a candy artist in Japan

She made a penguin for Margaret and a tiger for Griffin.

Chicken Shawarma, Hummus, Tabouleh, Falafel, Lentil Salad, Olives and Couscous in Morocco

Mo'Rockin band and dancer in Morocco

She asked for volunteers, and look who volunteered...

Chocolate Eclair, Citron Tarte and Napoleon in France

Fish and Chips in the UK

We stayed late to watch Illuminations, the fireworks show.


Our family's must-do attractions from our second day at Epcot:

1.  Soarin'
2.  Turtle Talk with Crush
3.  The Seas aquariums
4.  The films, food and entertainment in World Showcase
5.  Illuminations
6.  Club Cool (you can taste soft drinks from other countries around the world)

We headed back home on Friday after a swim and lunch at our hotel. It was such a good family trip filled with so many great memories. All three of the kids cried about leaving at some point on Thursday or Friday. I think that is a good indicator of what a fabulous time we had. Griffin tells me almost daily how much he wants to go back already.


Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4