During the brog’s layoff, one of the things that I did was what’s apparently been somewhat of an annual tradition in recent years, which was a trip down to Florida to visit Disney World as well as Universal Studio’s Halloween Horror Nights.
It’s something I enjoy greatly, because I enjoy Halloween-themed events, roller coasters, and ultimately most of the evenings result being spent in Epcot’s annual Food and Wine Festival, which is pretty much one of the greatest events in the world to me, since by the time I’m done with it, I can typically claim that I’ve eaten the entire world, and lots of the countries’ kiosks brings out some excellent quality grub and booze to begin with.
Except for South Korea, which is pretty much the biggest disappointment since like the 2007 New England Patriots. Seriously, just about every booth in the park has people indigenous, or at least of the ethnicity of the country’s booth they’re working for, except for South Korea’s. Furthermore, the food is about as good as one might expect from a place that says “Korea” but has a bunch of white people working it. When your options are the disappointing “Asian” pork taco from last year, and a “Kimchi Dog,” it’s like offering a Mexican person visiting from Mexico, Taco Bell or Del Taco.
Needless to say, due to the want for the little stamp in our communal Food and Wine passport, I bit the bullet and ate the Kimchi Dog. It was about as satisfying as settling for Wendy’s when you’re in the middle of Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival.
I just don’t get it either, they had real-life Korean people when I went two years ago; has Disney added Koreans to their list of demographics hated, along with the Jews?
Regardless, my peoples’ poor showing did little to deter the rest of my trip as a whole. Unlike the last two years, there are no pictures this year, because frankly, I didn’t want to bring my big clunky DSLR with me to Orlando this time, as I’ve always felt that it was somewhat of a pain in the ass to lug around, and have to check or have someone not ride something, so that it can be safely held. I have no regrets about this call, either.
As always, all the Disney parks were crowded as all hell, in spite of the fact that this time of year is considered somewhat of a “down” time, since schools all across the nation are back in session. One thing I heard as justification for such magnanimous crowds was that it was a race weekend, due to the two scheduled runs that were on the docket for the time in which I was there, but I think when the day is over, it’s simply just how Disney is, which is basically, always crowded.
One thing I enjoyed taking part of this weekend was that this year, I got to have a Disney MagicBand. They pretty much started rolling out just about a day after my friends and I had reserved all of our stuff last year, and we apparently just missed the opportunity to have them then, but that would be rectified this year.
Long story short, MagicBands are these chipped bracelets that can pretty much be synced up to everything, from hotel rooms, park tickets, personal information to credit cards, so that the convenience of simply pressing the embedded chip against special Disney sensors is all anyone might ever need while on Disney properties.
Needless to say, I was extra thrilled to have it, since it meant that I could keep my hands even emptier on a regular basis, despite the fact that even though I synced my credit card up to it, I still didn’t really use it, lest I go out of control and buy all of the food on the planet at Epcot, with a touch of a MagicBand.
Speaking of MagicBands, it’s apparently big business down at the Mouse, to advertise, tease and make available special MagicBands. Some of a limited release, some of varying themes, and sometimes both cases. Whether it’s a Frozen themed band, a limited edition Haunted Mansion band, or the one I really wanted, the seasonal Food and Wine Festival MagicBand, there’s a lot of money to be made in peddling these rubberized bracelets, that serve little additional purpose other than being metaphorical trophies to those who can get their hands on them. I made the comparison that they’re basically the equivalent of Xbox Achievements, since they don’t really matter, but we as people still fervently want them.
Overall, after three years of having done this more or less identical trip, I think I’ve gotten to the point of knowing what I really like and want, and what I’d like to consider for future trips. No doubt, it’s definitely a trip that I’d like to continue doing in future years, but maybe tweaked a little bit, to better suit my personal preferences and wants.
Basically, what I think I’m saying is that when the day is over, I really couldn’t care less about most of the Disney parks, aside from Epcot, because the Food and Wine Festival is thing that I simply enjoy the most. The crowds and lines at the Magic Kingdom are simply crippling, and the rides aren’t always worth the time it takes to get on them. Hollywood Studios, in my opinion, has the best rides out of them all with the Tower of Terror and Rockin’ Rollercoaster, but again, the lines are brutal, the rest of the park is kind of meh, and as I learned on this particular trip, there are means to get in and get the best of it with less of the drawbacks.
Animal Kingdom? Eeew.
Ideally, in a future trip, I think what I’d like to do is simply forego some of the more popular parks, and really save the time for Epcot. And Halloween Horror Nights, because I never get tired of wandering haunted houses, eating more crap food, and Universal’s rides are better than Disney’s anyway; except for Rip Ride Rockit, where they’re so anal retentive to making sure your pockets are empty, that they have people basically eyeing everyone’s genital areas to make sure pockets are empty. Fuck that.
I’d also actually like to perhaps enjoy the resort I stay on; this year was the Port Orleans resort, which despite their maze-like resort, I actually liked the sleepy and relaxed atmosphere, as opposed to staying in a colossal monument of a hotel tower, where there’s always the possibility of being saddled with obnoxious neighbors. I recall last year, enjoying simply laying by the poolside at the Wilderness Lodge, drinking mai tais, and reading a book, and I could very well see myself enjoying such lazy leisure again if I just gave myself the time to do so.
However, one thing that new that I experienced this year, that I’d definitely love to do again next year, was indulging in the Party for the Senses event, at Epcot. It’s basically an event within the Food and Wine Festival event, where sure, it’s a little costly, but is a classy and intimate shindig, where it’s an all-inclusive smorgasbord of high quality food, booze and other fantastic consumables. Not to sound cliché, but I had basically, a magical evening doing it, and I’d love to do it again next year.
