Flashback Sunday: Epcot- Day 3

 Disclaimer: This happened over a year ago.  But I still want to finish what I started with describing our trip! 
The third day was Justin's family's last day in the World. They only were able to stay til about noon, so did not really get to enjoy the world's portion. 2 1/2 days in Disney is really hard to fit everything in, but I must say that I thought we did a very good job getting them to see most of Disney. We were fortunate because the crowds were crazily low for Easter (our bus driver told us it was the economy), and we did go at a breakneck speed (getting there before opening and staying until closing with no breaks). I would not suggest going quite that quickly with kids when you have more time, but our kids were troopers. We were fortunate to see almost everything at Hollywood Studies and Magic Kingdom, and the family got to do most things at Epcot's front portion, but just none of the other Worlds. We also skipped Animal Kingdom, simply because if you only have 2 1/2 days, it is not high priority in my opinion! 

We started off with Soarin' and I LOVED it!  It was so awesome.  I will say, we were spoiled by being in the front row and when we went back later with our fastpasses I was really annoyed by seeing the dangling feet.  I will always wait for the front row from now on.  We also went on Test Track (not my fave but Justin loved it!) and Mission Space.  I was really freaked out by all the warnings about Mission Space and at first opted to not do the intense version.   But somehow, I got in the intense line anyhow and man, am I glad I did!  It was awesome!!! I found that if you keep your eyes focused on the screen it wasn't bad at all.  We rode it twice!

We loved the Under the Seas portion of Epcot with the Finding Nemo ride.  It is a nice kid-friendly addition to what is such an "adult" park.  We also loved Turtle Talk.  How cute!  Next time, I hope we have more time to linger at the acquarium.  I really loved watching the manatees.  On the kid friendly front, I also highly suggest the character greeting spot in Epcot.  The line can get long BUT you can see all of the "major" characters (Minnie, Mickey, Goofy, Donald Duck..) in one spot.  Stand in line once, see them all!  That's a pretty good deal in my opinion.

 A surprise favorite was the living with the land boat ride.  We weren't expecting too much from it, but it turned out to be really cool!  Definitely something I will do again.  Another thing I LOVED about Epcot was it was during the Flower Festival (that's not its real name but it is escaping me right now).  Anyway, the topiaries and flower gardens were amazing.  I hope to go back in April and May again next time so we can enjoy this more.  It really is worth it!

After we did the front part of Epcot, Justin's family had to head home, so they dropped us off at our hotel for the next 2 days: Pop Century!  Now, let me say that I LOVED Pop Century.  It was perfect for what we needed, which was basically a place to lay our heads.  It was pretty loud because we had a poolside room and next time we definitely will request NOT to be by the pool, but other than that it was great.  The Disney Transportation is so convenient and to me it is so much more relaxing to not have to drive yourself places.  Plus Pop has a dedicated bus service (and will continue to from what I understand...even with the Art of Animation opening) so we never had to wait on a bus long at all.  After we got settled in our room, we headed back to Epcot to tour the countries, just the two of us!

Sometimes the most fun experiences are the unplanned ones!  We had a great time watching these little ones with their momma!

This is one part of our trip we wish we had more time for.  Next trip we plan to dedicate a day and a half to Epcot because we really enjoyed looking at the countries and just didn't have enough time.  We rode the Viking ride in Norway, but that is really the only attraction we experienced.  Next time I want to see some of the movies and other attractions in this area.  We ended up eating in Japan at the habachi place.  Unfortunately, we have been spoiled by Little Tokyo and were not hugely impressed, but it was still a fun experience!  We staked out a spot for the fireworks on the water and then Justin treated us to Crepes from France while we waited.  It was a very lovely and romantic first night as a couple in the World! 

He put on a great show and we enjoyed getting to know our tablemates, but no rice only noodles!  We missed Little Tokyo bigtime!

Ready for the fireworks!

 Since nothing happens in Epcot after Illuminations, everybody just rushed to the front entrance to leave.  So Justin and I took this opportunity to take some night photographs and chill in the parks while we waited for the craziness to pass. 

Goodbye Disney!  See you next time!

It was a wonderful trip! I have never been a Disney enthusiast until this trip.  It was ridiculous how much fun I had!  We are so grateful for Justin's Dad letting us tag along and for the extra funds for a few days of a couple's getaway!