The Ultimate New Years Eve Party, Pt. 3

Photo courtesy of Glenn Payne

Whaaaa??? What time is it??? January 1st, 2000. I lifted my head, turned on the TV, and once my eyes adjusted, saw that the Florida Citrus Bowl was well underway. I fumbled for the display button...... Saturday, 1/1/00 1:52 p.m. OH. MY. GOD. Susan, get up, we've wasted away New Years Day. The champagne Susan brought for us to ring in the new year was now sitting in a bucket of lukewarm water. We'd planned to drink mimosas that morning, take it easy and possibly go to Universal Studios Florida to see Twister and Terminator 2, then meet up with Jeff and Champagne Steve at Epcot around 6:00. WARNING: Anyone planning to spend eighteen hours in an amusement park might as well open up the window and toss any plans for the following day right out the window. We got up around 2:30 and decided to blow off the rest of the afternoon. Cindy called around 3:00 and admitted to sleeping the day away, too, so I didn't feel so bad. We all decided to go out for a nice early dinner, then head over to Epcot at 6:00. After a nice barbeque dinner at Tony Roma's on International Drive, we went to Epcot. Neither Susan nor I had ever been there before, and to be honest I've never had any real burning desire to go. We had only two reasons for going: to ride Test Track and see Illuminations. I entered Epcot without any real knowledge of the place - it's layout, rides or purpose. After our visit I'm still not clear about the purpose. Cindy said it was all about education and corporate advertising, but it seems to promote a higher purpose. "Leave a Legacy" signs are everywhere, and I picked up on a distinctly humanitarian vibe throughout the place. For some reason I thought Epcot would be very small. It's not! I still don't understand the layout but there's no mistaking the size of this place. Epcot is HUGE. But I never had any real sense of the park or where I was. The Spaceship Earth entrance was grand and high tech, but just inside, around the fountain plaza, it felt like I was in a fancy food court. Within that plaza there seemed to be several offshoot areas. One, near Journey to Your Imagination, was very nice, but it reminded me of a college campus. And the whole World Showcase area felt like a completely different park! I don't know, it all seemed very schizophrenic to me. On top of that I'm still trying to figure out if it's a park, a world's fair, an educational center, a showcase for corporate advertising, or one giant leap for mankind! We met Jeff, Jeff's friend, Jim Rhodes and Champagne Steve at the entrance. Jeff and Jim were starving so they went off to get something to eat while the rest of us went inside Spaceship Earth. I really loved this ride. Cynical Cindy said it was nothing but a front for AT&T to get you to buy their products, but I felt like Jodie Foster in "Contact" riding up through the sphere in that pod. The whole history of communication concept was presented in a very entertaining way, and I *really liked going backwards down the sphere! I also thought the "Cinema" presentation was very well done and should have been the format for Disney to follow on The Great Movie Ride over at MGM. I loved Spaceship Earth - it was my favorite ride in the park and showed history presented in a very entertaining way! We skipped the obviously corporate plugs at the ride's exit and entered the fountain plaza. At first the fountain was dormant but as the music overhead began, so did the water show. We were nearly passed, but it drew me in and I had to stop and watch. I am a fountain *freak* (which some have noted from watching Coastered!), and this is as good a water dance as I've seen. The lights and movement of the water is perfectly timed to the music, and suprisingly you can watch it up close without getting wet. Cindy said she'd never tried Beverly, and Champagne Steve managed to get permission for us to enter the now closed Coca-Cola shop. Cindy tried her best to cover her reaction, but Beverly lingers on the tongue for so long it's just impossible! We met Jeff and Jim and headed over to Test Track. The wait was 2 1/2 hours! Opting for the singles line, it only took 20 minutes before we were entering the pre-show room. Test Track is fun. It isn't a great ride. I wouldn't even call it a super high-tech ride. But it's fun. You sit in a test car with front and back, three-across seating. You then go through a series of tests - terrain, heat, cold, corrosion, brakes, speed, etc. Some of it seemed silly, like the corrosion, which was obviously mist. But it was fun going outside and barrelling down the straightaway track and seeing your speed posted on the board overhead. Ours showed 58 mph. Test Track is not a ride that will impress danger bunnies and coaster enthusiasts. It's a fun thrill ride the entire family can enjoy. Jeff wanted to watch some Improissants du Francais, so he and Jim headed one way while the four of us took a Journey Into Your Imagination. This ride was alot of fun, too. I think I need to ride it again because Eric Idle is a little difficult for a Midwesterner to fully understand the first time. But the visuals were great. Again, this didn't strike me as a technologically revolutionary ride, but it was presented very well and I liked it alot. Finally it was time to enter the World Showcase and make our way to our designated meeting spot - the bridge between England and France. Jeff said it would be a good place to see Iluminations. What Jeff *didn't* say was that we would have to work our way through the Tapestry of Nations parade, now making its way through, you guessed it, Canada, England and France. A pox upon you, Jeff. May you never get moist again. Okay, now I'm really getting mad. No, not because we're having to fight our way through the hundreds of thousands of people watching this parade. I'm getting mad because I'm *not* one of the hundreds of thousands of people watching this parade! This thing is AWESOME! Oh my God, beautiful, exotic looking puppets that look like sculptures are held high above the crowd, with long, dexterous arms that swoop down, enveloping the dancing crowd. And the music!!! This doesn't sound anything like Disney! This music is exotic, worldly, percussion heavy and very very danceable. This is a parade not for children, but for everyone. Nearly every person we passed was either clapping, waving their arms or outright dancing. Cheers erupted whenever one of the puppeteers performed a little shimmy for the crowd or if one of the drum corps performed an especially nifty move. When we finally found a position to stop and watch, the parade was nearly over. I would seriously love to come back and watch it again! After we were allowed onto the bridge, we found a perfect spot to watch Illuminations. It was a terrace that jutted out from the bridge. We were able to get a prime position along the edge of the lagoon, where we waited maybe fifteen minutes before the show. I was sorry that Jeff wasn't there to share the experience with us because I had a knew he was looking forward to it as much as I was. Whenever somebody goes off to do their own thing, chances are you won't get to see them again, particularly if the crowd is as large as Epcot's. Illuminations. I can't say enough about this show. I also won't say anything about this show, because I wouldn't want to ruin it for anyone who may be planing to visit. But I will say it is absolutely not to be missed. Don't go expecting a long show because it's not. But it doesn't matter, because the images have been with me ever since I got home. It was spectacular, it was thrilling, it was deeply moving, and I'll admit I cried at one point. Cindy also admitted to being choked up. Illuminations is unforgettable. As much as the parade and Illuminations thrilled me, I must admit I wasn't all that impressed with Epcot. I just didn't get it. I didn't get it's design or it's purpose. It was nice and I liked it, but I wouldn't want to spend $45 to visit again. I think it's the kind of park that is perfectly suited for a park hopper pass. When we go back we will definitely return to Epcot at night, but only after first visiting Animal Kingdom or MGM earlier in the same day. We found Jeff on the bridge as we headed out of the park. After setting up our meeting time for the following day, we went to Katanga. No, not to ride, silly! We were too exhausted and broke! Besides, I'll never get on that thing again. No, it was here that we said our goodbyes to Champagne Steve, sending him off with his nice, put-upon parents who thanklessly cart him all over Florida just so he can indulge in his passion for coasters and enjoy the company of his friends. So long, Champagne Steve, it was alot of fun! Up Next: Disney's Magic Kingdom