The EPCOT Thing & Pictures

It's hard to believe it has almost been a week since The EPCOT Thing. If you haven't already listened to the podcast at http://www.magicaldefinition.com/, Today I'll be talking all about the wonderful weekend I had at WDW.








Like I said in my previous entry, I got to WDW last sunday and did my thing at The Magic Kingdom for a little while before checking into my hotel. Nathan, Linda and Tim picked me up around 6:00pm to head over to Raglan Road to start setting up for the Shandy Gathering. We had the whole music room to ourselves for the meet. The three of us grabbed a bite to eat before people started to arrive. I had a really yummy portobello mushroom sandwich. Soon after eating, people began to arrive. We met so many wonderful people. It didn't get too hectic luckily, so we had the chance to really chat with some of the listeners and friends of the show. I hope everyone had a wonderful time, I know I did. Afterwards, April, Jon, Tim, Kate and I went to The Adventurers Club. We had a great time (which isn't out of the ordinary).

Since Tim, Kate and I stayed at The Adventurers Club for quite some time, I only got about 4 hours of sleep until I had to get up the next morning for the Coffee Meet at the Boardwalk. Unfortunately, I didn't make it to the coffee meet. Mainly because I had to pack everything up and load it into my car that morning, so I met everyone at the back entrance of EPCOT. As soon as they dropped the rope, we made a mad dash to the Fountain of Nations. It was about 9:00am and it was already sweltering out. It might have felt that way because I was running around like a mad woman, I'm not quite sure. April, Jon and I went to get some coffee and breakfast. By the time we came back, the park was filling up. Shortly after we returned, the Ceremony began. What a tear jerker. It was an amazing site to see. Being able to see Marty Sklar in person was something I will never forget. Here is a man who embodies all that Walt Disney wanted and dreamed and he wasn't even 100' away from me. The ceremony was wonderful and was a great tribute to the park and Walt's vision.

After the ceremony, everyone went on their separate ways for a little while. April, Jon and I walked around the World Showcase and sampled some of the food and wine snacks. Around 12:00pm, we headed to Club Cool to prep for Beverlyfest. This was so exciting! I'm so glad Nathan kept those 25 shots down because I would've cried if he didn't. For those of you who don't already know, Beverlyfest was a battle between my co-host of MDP, Nathan and his friend Robert, to see who could get 25 shots of the digusting italian apertif, Beverly, down first. The janitors seemed to be anticipating the worst, but all was well in the end. Robert beat Nathan. Luckily, there were no "reversals" in this competition. For beverlyfest footage, click this link. Afterwards, a couple other individuals decided to take it upon themselves to partake in their own Beverlyfest. Why they wanted to do this, I will never know. Regardless, it was thoroughly entertaining.

After Beverlyfest, we all headed to Spaceship Earth for a guided tour of EPCOT's Past hosted by Jim Hill, Jeff Lange and the original Dreamfinder, Ron Schneider. After a brief interview with Ron, the tour began. We started under Spaceship Earth and ended at the American Pavilion. What an awesome tour of the park. I found out so many interesting facts about EPCOT. Though it was just a tad warm out, it was worth it to hear some of the things these guys knew. For instance, did you know right behind the Imagination Pavilion, you can see Figment's name written in cement? Or, that the cast that filmed Impressions de France can be seen in the film itself?

After the tour, some of us went on The American Adventure and some individuals went to do their own thing for a little while. Boy, do I wish I was following behind Tim at this point. He got an interview with Marty Sklar!! After The American Adventure, we headed to our dining destination, Rose & Crown. We all had another wonderful chance to mingle and chat during dinner. The only downfall to the meal? The sudden downpour following it! We were all very worried at this point that they wouldn't launch the 25th anniversary fireworks, but we kept on truckin'. We all collected inside one of England's giftshops and then headed over to the American Pavilion to get a spot for the fireworks. Despite another sudden downpour, the fireworks went on as scheduled. I have no words to describe these fireworks. They showed illuminations, of course, but immediately after, they had a 25th anniversary fireworks spectacular. I was amazed at how beautiful this show was. Talk about a dedication, this was one for the record books and I was so glad to be there. Despite the fact that I had to head home, staying late was well worth it!

I had a blast and I'm really looking forward to the NEXT MDP gathering on the evening of the Tower of Terror Run at the end of this month. Thanks again to everyone who contributed to this event and those of you who attended. You truly made our day that much more special! Until next time... Take care!


-Jackie O.

*EDIT* Look for a more recent post with the link to the flickr album!