We slept in a bit and got up around 8 am and made our way to Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM-Studios) by 10am. On the way we had a breakfast of pop tarts and granola bars. Disney's Hollywood Studios is not laid out as well as the other parks but is divided into different sections.
After getting our bearings, we made our way down Sunset Boulevard toward Rock N' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror. Beth got a fast pass at Rock N' Roller Coaster while I took pictures of the Tower of Terror. 
We met up and waited the 20 minutes to go on the Tower of Terror ride. While in line we adopted two small children; their mom couldn't go on the ride because she was pregnant. We were to keep an eye on the two girls. One was named Ally. Ally's mother quickly updated her request, we were only to watch Ally because Ally's sister freaking out about going on the ride. Ally's other and sister used the "chicken" exit and we were onl our way on the ride! All had a good time. We made our way back to the main hub and went behind the large Sorcerer Mickey hat to the replica of Mann's Chinese Theater to ride The Great Movie Ride. It was okay - nothing special when compared to the other rides.
After The Great Movie Ride, we split up. Beth used her fast pass on Rock N' Roller Coaster while I held her bag and meandered around in the park. I spotted Stitch taking pictures with guests but wasn't willing to wait in line, but I then realized it was 5:30 somewhere and found a large $6 beer and wandered over to Pixar Place to see if the new Toy Story Midway Mania ride would be having a "soft" opening today (it wasn't). I meandered some more before finally settling on a bench in the shade. I cooked up one of my schemes to fix some dining reservations and after talking with Beth made changes.
I then realized that I made a BIG mistake and needed to change it again. After spending a half-hour on the phone with Disney Dining I got everything figured out and all was right with the world for now. We were going to see the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular, but hunger kept us going elsewhere. We grabbed fast passes for Star Tours. While Beth grabbed a table near the Jedi Training Academy show; I got burger/fry/drink/cheesecake meals from Backlot Express. We watched little kids learn the way of the force and battle Darth Vader. So cute in a Jedi sort of way.
After the meal and the show, we used our fast passes on Star Tours which is a bumpy and jerky simulator ride. 
After the ride, Beth restrained me from buying any geeky Star Wars-related stuff. We then made our way over to the Muppet*Vision 3D. The show was cool and I cheered on the Swedish Chef while Beth shook her head disapprovingly. If Mike Shake asks, we rode the ride 12 times. After exiting the ride, I wandered over to the gift shop and bought a plush Swedish Chef that now resides either on my desk or in my car. I did a lot of wandering didn't I?
Rain and long waits forced us to bail out on Disney's Hollywood Studios and get on the bus for EPCOT around 3:00pm. At this point, it's about 90 degrees and 110% humidity; however, there was a nice breeze that kept us from dying out there. Needless to say, we made our way to the air-conditioned rides/areas with a quick step.
We arrived at EPCOT around 3:30 and picked up a map. EPCOT is divided into two distinct areas. Future World focuses on technology of the past, present and future in many different pavilions. World Showcase features 11 different country pavilions with their own architecture, food and culture around the large lagoon.
We first made our way to Club Cool for free Coca-Cola products from all over the world. I particularly enjoyed the "Smart Watermelon" beverage from China. We then made our way to the Land Pavilion to pick up fast passes for the ever popular Soarin' attraction. The time worked out as our fast passes were for 7:09 and our dinner seating wasat 7:30 at The Garden Grill in the Land Pavilion.
We then took a moment to walk on the Living with the Land ride which showed well...umm... hydroponics plants and the other gardens Disney keeps in the back. It was about as exciting as it sounds-Beth took a nap.
We then made our way over to the Seas with Nemo and friends. We were greeted by seagulls squabbling out "MINE!"
We walked onto the Nemo and Friends ride and boarded the "clam-mobiles." The ride was cute, but really short. We then walked over to Turtle Talk with Crush and got in almost right away. Turtle Talk was cute and all, but we don't have kids and our obsession with Nemo has waned somewhat in the past few years. We then wandered around and enjoyed the A/C before leaving the Seas Pavilion. Our new destination was Test Track.
But of course there was time for a detour at the Mouse Gears shop where we wandered a bit. We found an Xmas ornament and Bethcontinued her search for the perfect picture frame. We sent the ornament and the Swedish Chef back to the resort and then made our way toward Test Track.
But we again got detoured stopping off for a Coke Slurpee before entering the single rider line at Test Track. The regular line was 50 minutes and the Single rider line was 20 and seeing that we had done our own version of Test Track some years ago in my 1985 Chrysler LeBaron ragtop, we thought the single rider line would be a good choice. We only spent about 10 minutes in line and still got to ride in the same car. After exiting Test Track we made our way to the World Showcase.
We made our way to Mexico and Beth had to keep a close eye on me because we all know what I'm looking for...the extra large sombreros. And trust me no one wants to see me in a four-foot-wide sombrero - especially Beth. We made our way to the Cantina de San Angel where I grabbed two partially frozen Margaritas while Beth grabbed an order of Cantina Nachos. We then found a slightly shaded table overlooking the Lagoon and enjoyed the view and breeze. I got some bad news as a friend and subject from back in Elgin died a few days prior. I toasted Art, a purple-heart veteran of World War II and a good friend, and quietly reflected looking over the water for a few minutes.
After the nachos were gone and the margaritas were finished, we made our way to the boat launch to take us to Germany. Once we arrived in Germany, Beth made her way to the shops and I made a beeline right to the stand with the word "Bier" atop it.
I bought a souvenir mug of Spaten Optimator and found Beth. Maybe tipsy, maybe just very happy, I had Beth take a picture of me with the beer and sent out a mass picture message with the message: "Going to Germany via....Florida???"
If you don't get it, don't worry; it's an old joke from a long time ago. This really began my quest to drink around the world. The rules were simple. 11 countries, 11 alcoholic beverages that were distinct to that county. Although this quest is usually done in one day, I opted for a two-day three-eight country split just to be on the safe side.
We then made our way back to the boat to take us back to Mexico around 6:45. We wanted to show up at our fast pass for Soarin' right at 7:09. We walked in right on time and walked into a 20-minute fast pass line-or as we called it the not-so-fast pass. We got on Soarin' right at 7:30 and this time it got mixed reviews. I thought it was incredible and Beth thought it was cool but the fan/scent blower thing didn't work right and caused Beth to sneeze as we got the Orange scent as we glided over the Orange fields.
We ran upstairs to The Garden Grill and got seated fairly quickly even though our reservation could not be found. The restaurant is served family-style in an "All you care to Eat" way. It does have characters in farmer clothing and most importantly, according to Beth "It spins!" As it spins, one gets a look at the Land Pavilion and the ever-exciting Living with the Land ride (it was a boat ride through the hydroponic gardens in EPCOT - it was so exciting beth was fast asleep in under two minutes.)
So as we ate dinner characters came around and visited us. First the meal. It was good. The Honey-Orange Blossom butter on the biscuits and rolls was good. I thought the cornbread was very good. We both enjoyed the flank steak and turkey with cranberry relish, but we avoided the fried catfish. Yuck! The pastry dessert was quite enjoyable as well.
As for the characters - We were first visited by Chip (of Chip N' Dale) and chip tried to steal Beth away, but I, without even leaving the table, called out, " Go ahead and keep her, she can't cook anyways!"
Next Pluto came by and we had a dance with him. 
Beth thought the dancing was a little intense. 
Then Dale came by and we took some more pictures.
Finally Mickey came by and Beth took a picture of "her plaid boys." 
The characters kept coming by and waving to us as we finished our meals. After dessert, we booked out and tried to get a seat for EPCOT's nightly fireworks, Illuminations: Reflections of Earth.
Beth was in charge of finding a spot while I went to Canada and found a Canadian beer….eh? By the time I came back, he was none to happy with the spot Beth found because it was an obstructed view of the sky. So they walked back to near the connecting walkway between Future World and World Showcase. Ooooh ! Ahhhh! That's my favorite!
After the fireworks ended, we took a seat near the lagoon and rested. We also planned our next 24 hours.
We left EPCOT and found a taxi to take us to a Walgreen's just off property to get some medical supplies for Scott. $38 later we arrived back at the Pop Century resort around 10:45 p.m. Sore and tired we make our way to the room to shower. I realized he had one frame left on his roll of film and that he needed to shoot more
pictures. Went to bed around 11:40 p.m.
Hours Awake: about 15 hours
After getting our bearings, we made our way down Sunset Boulevard toward Rock N' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror. Beth got a fast pass at Rock N' Roller Coaster while I took pictures of the Tower of Terror. 
We met up and waited the 20 minutes to go on the Tower of Terror ride. While in line we adopted two small children; their mom couldn't go on the ride because she was pregnant. We were to keep an eye on the two girls. One was named Ally. Ally's mother quickly updated her request, we were only to watch Ally because Ally's sister freaking out about going on the ride. Ally's other and sister used the "chicken" exit and we were onl our way on the ride! All had a good time. We made our way back to the main hub and went behind the large Sorcerer Mickey hat to the replica of Mann's Chinese Theater to ride The Great Movie Ride. It was okay - nothing special when compared to the other rides.After The Great Movie Ride, we split up. Beth used her fast pass on Rock N' Roller Coaster while I held her bag and meandered around in the park. I spotted Stitch taking pictures with guests but wasn't willing to wait in line, but I then realized it was 5:30 somewhere and found a large $6 beer and wandered over to Pixar Place to see if the new Toy Story Midway Mania ride would be having a "soft" opening today (it wasn't). I meandered some more before finally settling on a bench in the shade. I cooked up one of my schemes to fix some dining reservations and after talking with Beth made changes.
I then realized that I made a BIG mistake and needed to change it again. After spending a half-hour on the phone with Disney Dining I got everything figured out and all was right with the world for now. We were going to see the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular, but hunger kept us going elsewhere. We grabbed fast passes for Star Tours. While Beth grabbed a table near the Jedi Training Academy show; I got burger/fry/drink/cheesecake meals from Backlot Express. We watched little kids learn the way of the force and battle Darth Vader. So cute in a Jedi sort of way.
After the meal and the show, we used our fast passes on Star Tours which is a bumpy and jerky simulator ride. 
After the ride, Beth restrained me from buying any geeky Star Wars-related stuff. We then made our way over to the Muppet*Vision 3D. The show was cool and I cheered on the Swedish Chef while Beth shook her head disapprovingly. If Mike Shake asks, we rode the ride 12 times. After exiting the ride, I wandered over to the gift shop and bought a plush Swedish Chef that now resides either on my desk or in my car. I did a lot of wandering didn't I?Rain and long waits forced us to bail out on Disney's Hollywood Studios and get on the bus for EPCOT around 3:00pm. At this point, it's about 90 degrees and 110% humidity; however, there was a nice breeze that kept us from dying out there. Needless to say, we made our way to the air-conditioned rides/areas with a quick step.
We arrived at EPCOT around 3:30 and picked up a map. EPCOT is divided into two distinct areas. Future World focuses on technology of the past, present and future in many different pavilions. World Showcase features 11 different country pavilions with their own architecture, food and culture around the large lagoon.
We first made our way to Club Cool for free Coca-Cola products from all over the world. I particularly enjoyed the "Smart Watermelon" beverage from China. We then made our way to the Land Pavilion to pick up fast passes for the ever popular Soarin' attraction. The time worked out as our fast passes were for 7:09 and our dinner seating wasat 7:30 at The Garden Grill in the Land Pavilion.We then took a moment to walk on the Living with the Land ride which showed well...umm... hydroponics plants and the other gardens Disney keeps in the back. It was about as exciting as it sounds-Beth took a nap.
We then made our way over to the Seas with Nemo and friends. We were greeted by seagulls squabbling out "MINE!"
We walked onto the Nemo and Friends ride and boarded the "clam-mobiles." The ride was cute, but really short. We then walked over to Turtle Talk with Crush and got in almost right away. Turtle Talk was cute and all, but we don't have kids and our obsession with Nemo has waned somewhat in the past few years. We then wandered around and enjoyed the A/C before leaving the Seas Pavilion. Our new destination was Test Track.But of course there was time for a detour at the Mouse Gears shop where we wandered a bit. We found an Xmas ornament and Bethcontinued her search for the perfect picture frame. We sent the ornament and the Swedish Chef back to the resort and then made our way toward Test Track.
But we again got detoured stopping off for a Coke Slurpee before entering the single rider line at Test Track. The regular line was 50 minutes and the Single rider line was 20 and seeing that we had done our own version of Test Track some years ago in my 1985 Chrysler LeBaron ragtop, we thought the single rider line would be a good choice. We only spent about 10 minutes in line and still got to ride in the same car. After exiting Test Track we made our way to the World Showcase.
We made our way to Mexico and Beth had to keep a close eye on me because we all know what I'm looking for...the extra large sombreros. And trust me no one wants to see me in a four-foot-wide sombrero - especially Beth. We made our way to the Cantina de San Angel where I grabbed two partially frozen Margaritas while Beth grabbed an order of Cantina Nachos. We then found a slightly shaded table overlooking the Lagoon and enjoyed the view and breeze. I got some bad news as a friend and subject from back in Elgin died a few days prior. I toasted Art, a purple-heart veteran of World War II and a good friend, and quietly reflected looking over the water for a few minutes.
After the nachos were gone and the margaritas were finished, we made our way to the boat launch to take us to Germany. Once we arrived in Germany, Beth made her way to the shops and I made a beeline right to the stand with the word "Bier" atop it.
I bought a souvenir mug of Spaten Optimator and found Beth. Maybe tipsy, maybe just very happy, I had Beth take a picture of me with the beer and sent out a mass picture message with the message: "Going to Germany via....Florida???"If you don't get it, don't worry; it's an old joke from a long time ago. This really began my quest to drink around the world. The rules were simple. 11 countries, 11 alcoholic beverages that were distinct to that county. Although this quest is usually done in one day, I opted for a two-day three-eight country split just to be on the safe side.
We then made our way back to the boat to take us back to Mexico around 6:45. We wanted to show up at our fast pass for Soarin' right at 7:09. We walked in right on time and walked into a 20-minute fast pass line-or as we called it the not-so-fast pass. We got on Soarin' right at 7:30 and this time it got mixed reviews. I thought it was incredible and Beth thought it was cool but the fan/scent blower thing didn't work right and caused Beth to sneeze as we got the Orange scent as we glided over the Orange fields.
We ran upstairs to The Garden Grill and got seated fairly quickly even though our reservation could not be found. The restaurant is served family-style in an "All you care to Eat" way. It does have characters in farmer clothing and most importantly, according to Beth "It spins!" As it spins, one gets a look at the Land Pavilion and the ever-exciting Living with the Land ride (it was a boat ride through the hydroponic gardens in EPCOT - it was so exciting beth was fast asleep in under two minutes.)
So as we ate dinner characters came around and visited us. First the meal. It was good. The Honey-Orange Blossom butter on the biscuits and rolls was good. I thought the cornbread was very good. We both enjoyed the flank steak and turkey with cranberry relish, but we avoided the fried catfish. Yuck! The pastry dessert was quite enjoyable as well.
As for the characters - We were first visited by Chip (of Chip N' Dale) and chip tried to steal Beth away, but I, without even leaving the table, called out, " Go ahead and keep her, she can't cook anyways!"
Next Pluto came by and we had a dance with him. 
Beth thought the dancing was a little intense. 
Then Dale came by and we took some more pictures.
Finally Mickey came by and Beth took a picture of "her plaid boys." 
The characters kept coming by and waving to us as we finished our meals. After dessert, we booked out and tried to get a seat for EPCOT's nightly fireworks, Illuminations: Reflections of Earth.Beth was in charge of finding a spot while I went to Canada and found a Canadian beer….eh? By the time I came back, he was none to happy with the spot Beth found because it was an obstructed view of the sky. So they walked back to near the connecting walkway between Future World and World Showcase. Ooooh ! Ahhhh! That's my favorite!
After the fireworks ended, we took a seat near the lagoon and rested. We also planned our next 24 hours.We left EPCOT and found a taxi to take us to a Walgreen's just off property to get some medical supplies for Scott. $38 later we arrived back at the Pop Century resort around 10:45 p.m. Sore and tired we make our way to the room to shower. I realized he had one frame left on his roll of film and that he needed to shoot more
pictures. Went to bed around 11:40 p.m.
Hours Awake: about 15 hours
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