This past June, Marcel and I took a summer break, celebrating Marcel's graduation from Cal State L.A. with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology. This being his second degree in higher education, and a culmination of lots of hard work, we decided a little magic and partying was in order. Above: Dinner at Benihana's in our hotel, The Hilton at the Walt Disney World Resorts.
Disney's MGM Studios
We hit the ground running after our red eye flight Wednesday night with only three hours sleep and went immediately to MGM Studios for our first day of Disney parks.
Amongst the attractions were fasauds of various locations around the world including most notably New York and London. A photo above shows the New York "skyline" which is actually a perspective facade. A typical London street complete with red phone booth and umbrella shop seemed to allude to the popular Brit T.V. show, "The Avengers." Of course, we had a moment of reflection when we came across the fasaud used in the '80s hit, "The Golden Girls," our favorite late night show. My one photo above shows the lush gardens in front of our favorite attraction that day, the smart and frightening "Towers of Terror," that featured the vintage Hollywood Hotel from the Twilight Zone show, a ghost story, and a surprising 13 story drop.
Disney's Epcot Center
Our next day was a homecoming to Disney's Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (Epcot) Center for me. Last time I was there in 1990, I don't think I appreciated the complexity and beauty of this park, but this time with Marcel was just perfect.
Epcot Center was another highlight of our week-end, where we spent most of the time in the "Showcase of the World" which featured small recreations of various countries around the world including China, Japan, Germany, Norway, England, Italy, France, Canada and Morocco. We lunched in China just as a downpour started and by the time our meal was finished, a bright sun peered out over the lush gardens for our enjoyment. We had to quickly breeze past the enticing aromas of Germany's confections and desserts and hopped onto a boat at Norway's "Maelstrom" where the handsome blonde ride attendant engaged us ("Looking for hidden Mickey's?") before saluting us goodbye. Italy's Venetian replica was uncannily accurate and our cup of spiced coffee from Morocco had us swimming in contentedness.
Disney's MGM Studios
