2018 in Review

What’s up everyone?

We hope that you had a great Thanksgiving, at least for those that celebrate it.  For those that don’t I hope that you had a great week.  I know that we did.  It was good to see family that we haven’t seen in a long time.  For many of us, during this time of year, our minds turn to the many things that we are grateful for and I am no exception.  I am grateful for my family and friends and I am deeply grateful for all those that follow us.  We really enjoy sharing our adventures with you and hope to inspire you to seek out your own.  With the holiday season upon us, we here at the Adventure Diaries will be going on a small hiatus for the month of December.  Don’t worry though we’ll be back in January after all the hustle and bustle is over.

With that said I thought that we would take a minute to look back at the past year.  Even though it didn’t start off that way but our year turned out pretty crazy.  We had some big milestones that we celebrated and some major life changes.

This year our adventuring did really start until April when we visited two of Chicago’s landmarks: Adler Planetarium and Shedd Aquarium.  I had forgotten how much I used to be obsessed with outer space until we visited the Planetarium.  The many displays and artifacts that the Planetarium has will spark you interest as well.  My favorite part was the Astronomy in Culture Exhibit.  In it there are instruments that date back centuries showing that humans have always looked to the stars and wondered what was out there.

I just realized as I’m writing this that I had not done a post on Shedd Aquarium.  I was pretty sure that I had but can’t find anything on it.  I hadn’t been to a real aquarium in a long time.  We had a lot of fun there seeing the different sea critter and even the local once.

2018 is a big year for Erin and I.  This year we celebrated our 10 year anniversary and we wanted to do something special to celebrate.  We decided to relive our honeymoon and go back to Disney World.  This time we invited any of our family, from both sides, to come a long with us and the majority of them was able to make it.  It was the first time in a very long time that all of us were together in the same place at the same time.  We spent seven days in Disney and we enjoyed every minute of it.  Even the days that it rained on us.  It adds to the stories that we would later tell.

In June we found ourselves heading to Michigan to check out Warren Dunes State Park.  These were not the type of sand dunes that I am accustomed to.  Growing up in Utah, sand dunes existed because we lived in a desert with very little water.  The Warren Dunes sit on the edge of Lake Michigan.  I guess you can say they are more like an over exaggerated beach.  I’m not much of a water person so I really wasn’t too excited about visiting but it turned out to be really fun.  We walked up and down the lakeshore and enjoyed each others company.  It was too bad we didn’t pack a lunch.  We could of had a picnic on the beach.

July ended up being the busiest and craziest part of our year.  Near the end of June, we had started talking about how we no longer felt that Chicago was home and that we should move back to Utah.  There was a lot of things that we had to take care of before that was even possible.  As quickly as we decide, everything else fell into place.  The universe was definitely telling us to head home.

It was still the early July and we couldn’t leave till the end of July so we found some adventure to occupy our time.  Erin had heard that there was a Swedish Museum and had been trying to get me to go.  I finally said yes and off we went.  The Museum was small but it was really interesting to learn about the Swedish migration to the United States.  Just incase you didn’t know, there is a huge Swedish population in the Chicagoland area.

For our last hurrah in Chicagoland we went down to Chicagoland Speedway to see the Nascar Monster Energy Series.  It was a good and exciting race.  I didn’t like who won, I would have preferred anyone else but thats okay.

July came to an end quickly.  We found ourselves boxing up everything we owned and cramming it into a U-haul.  I’ve been on a few cross country trips but I don’t remember them ever being as bad as this one.  I think it was just me wanting to be back home that made it feel so maddening.  That and maybe being stuck in a U-haul all by myself and nobody else to talk to.  Two and a half days and 1300 miles we were back in Utah and ready for a new set of adventures.

September and October was really about us getting back to the swing of thinks in Utah.  Starting new jobs and getting used to our new co-workers.  It wasn’t all work though, there was plenty of play to be had.

The first stop we had was This is the Place Heritage Park.  This Is The Place Monument stands near the place were Brigham Young state “This is the right place.”  With these word  the Territory of Dessert, which would eventually become Utah and parts of other states, was founded.  The Heritage Park takes you back in time to see what it was like to live in Salt Lake City in its early years.

One thing that Erin was looking forward to was the 2018 Lantern Fest.  It was a pretty cool event.  People came from all over to participate in the releasing of the lanterns.  When we finally got the go ahead to release, the night sky was illuminated with hundreds of lanterns rising to the heavens and gently drifting along.  I will say that not all of us got our lanterns in the air but thats alright.

Besides our trip to Disney the highlight of the year for me was our trip to Daniel’s Summit. We spent a weekend exploring the mountains of the Wasatch in our side by sides.  I’ve mentioned it many times and I sure I’ll mention it again.  I love getting into the mountains, I should say that I love getting out into the outdoors and exploring.  It doesn’t matter if it the first time or if we’ve been there many times.  The trails were fun and the fall colors were on full display.  You couldn’t ask for a better day.  For me its was more about the  quality time spent with friends and family than it was about exploring.

That was our year in a nutshell.  A lot of things have change for us but we want to continue bringing you entertaining adventures.  This time off will not be wasted though.  We are currently working on plans for this coming year.  So far there is only one trip set in stone and thats the Easter Jeep Safari.  The rest of the year is still in the air.  We did finally get our YouTube channel up and running and are working on bring you content about our adventures and more.

As always Thanks for stopping by.  Until next year.

Josh and Erin

Daniel's Summit

What’s up everybody?

I am super excited for this weeks post.  We finally had a chance to get out into the wilds of Utah.  If you follow us, then you should know that it is one of my favorite things to do and I really haven’t had the chance to do it in quite awhile.  That has all changed now, we have a better opportunity to explore than we did before but thats enough of that lets get into it.

It was special day in a different sense as well.  It was the maiden voyage for our latest adventure vehicle “Coco”.  There has been some debate over her name but I’m pretty sure it to late to change it now.  Coco is a charcoal and gold 2018 Polaris RZR 900 side by side.  She has a 50 inch wheel base so she is ready to tackle any trail that we through at her.  We have add a couple of extra already with a few more to add later.  We added a roof and a full windshield.  Come to find out, we would be glad that we did.

We arose early on Saturday morning.  We had to finish loading the side by sides on to the trailers.  Preferably we would have done it the night before but for one reason or another we couldn’t do it.  That okay though, it gave a chance to all meet at one locations and we could travel together as a group.  That and we wanted to get up to the Summit early so we had plenty of time to ride the trails.

Packed and on the the road by 8.  We made our way up the canyon towards Park City and then made our way to Heber.  If the drive up the canyon was any indication of what we would see on the trails then we were in for a treat.  The leaves on the trees had definitely reached their autumn peak.  The yellows, oranges, and reds shined vibrantly through the thin layer of clouds that had fallen upon the road.  We had lived in the Midwest for a time and had seen some beautiful fall foliage but nothing compared to this.  I wish I could describe it for you in better detail.  I might be a little bias but to me nothing compares to driving through the mountains in fall.  It was truly breath taking.

Our base of operation and home for the night would be Daniel’s Summit Lodge.  The lodge is about 35 miles from Salt Lake City.  It has all the amenities you could want: rooms with two queens all the way up to family suites, pool, hot tub, spa, general store and a restaurant, The Lodge Pole.  Besides the rooms in the lodge, you can also rent cabins.  For the adventurous type you can rent side by sides or snowmobiles.  The rooms are very clean and each one comes with their own fireplace and deck.  After a long day of playing it was nice to be able to sit on the deck and look up at the stars.

Only one of our rooms were ready when we got there, so we decided to head over to the The Lodge Pole to grab some breakfast before we hit the trail.  We have eaten there several times in the past and have yet to be disappoint with our orders.  I had the biscuits and gravy, served with eggs and hash browns.  It was good and hearty.  Everything that is need to keep me full for some time.

With our bellies full it was time to head out.  The skies was looking a little gloomy.  The weather was calling for rain for most of the day.  At the elevation that we were at there was a possibility for snow.  Luckily we came prepared for anything that could happen.  We had planned for colder weather, we brought plenty to bundle up with or at least some of us did.  Erin, as a precaution, picked up a warm little blanket from the general store.  You can never be too warmer.  As I had mentioned, only one of our rooms were ready so the girls gathered their stuff and went up to get ready.  While the rest of us unloaded the trailers.

With rain coming down we were on our way.  The trail was wet and muddy, with lots of puddles.  I tried my best to avoid them as best I could.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a problem driving straight through them, but when its already wet and cold its another story.  I will say that sometimes it a curse to be the driver.  The views around us were beautiful.  The foliage was definitely at its peak.  I would have loved to be able to sit there and take it all in.  Thats alright though, I stole some glance when I could and really enjoyed what I saw.

Our first 10-100 stop was interesting.  I guess I should explain what a 10-100 is for those that don’t know.  A 10-100 is code to denote a five minute break.  In our case it was a potty stop.  Our break went from a potty stop to a dance party as some of our group attempted to floss.  I will say that it was horrific.  I know that there are people that should floss and those that should not.  We were, for sure, the latter and had no right trying.  My Niece and Nephew knew what the were doing and tried to teach us but fail miserably.  Believe me, a bunch of “mature” people trying to floss in the middle of nowhere was ridiculous.  Luckily we were in the middle of nowhere and nobody could see us.  I know I can’t dance, no rhythm what so ever, so I don’t even know why I tried.  Why not?  I guess.  We were having fun and thats all that mattered.

For me, the best part of the day came after lunch.  With the constant drizzle of rain, the trail became more technical to drive.  Deep ruts, slick rocks and mud made wheel placement keen.  I consider myself more of a technical driver than a high performance driver.  I like the idea of being able to, on the fly, pick the best line to get me over an obstacle.

Our biggest challenge of the day was in front of us.  A big hill steep, rocky, and rutted out.  Momentum and quick wit would be our allies for this fight.  Knowing that the wrong wheel placement could spell out certain doom.  Momentum lead the charge as we raced up the mountain.  Our quick wits quickly took command as we turned this way and that, avoiding the debris on the trail.  We have reached the top.  Victory is ours!  It was a good fight.  I can’t lie, there was a few rocks that jumped up and bit us.  What can I say?  Not even the best of us can make every shot.

With the trail reaching its end, we had to decide if we want to continue and find another trail or turn back and head back to the lodge.  We elected to head back since the day was fading away.  We want to get back to the lodge before it got too dark.  Turing back meant one thing.  We got to do everything in reverse.  It was fun and we made really good time.  Once we made it back to the lodge, the rest of the group finished checking in and we head to our rooms to get cleaned up.

Showered and clean, we made our way down to the lobby to wait for the other.  We found a nice comfy spot in front of the fireplace and snacked on some cookies.  When our group finally all came down from their rooms, we once again found our way over to the Lodge Pole for some grub.  With our tummies full, some over full, we decide to check out the pool.  I did not join in but I did hang out with them as they played in the pool and soaked their weary bones in the hot tub.

With our goodnights said, we settled in for the night.  The following morning we would go our separate ways.  We had to get back home early, while the rest planned on hit the trails again.

Normally I would end our post there but the following morning we awoke to snow on the ground.  It was not a bad snow fall.  Maybe an inch or so but it lead to the first snowball fight of the season.  I can’t say who started it, probably me though, but eventually everyone was involved.  Nobody was hurt.  It was all in good fun.  It was definitely a good trip.  I can’t wait to do it again.

Thanks for stoping by.  Until next time.

Josh

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Lantern Fest 2018

What’s Up everybody?

OH MAN! has it been a cold week for us out here in Utah.  I know that it fall but it has felt more like winter.  In fact while I’m sitting here writing this post, I’m staring at our snow capped mountains.  Adventure doesn’t hibernate during the winter though.  No, it just heads south for warmer weather.  Just kidding.  Believe me, we’ve had plenty of winter adventures and I’m sure that we will add a few more to that list this year.

Ever since we moved back, our lives have been pretty hectic.  Whether it was unpacking, catching up with friends or just trying to get re-familiar with the area.  Needless to say, our weekends have been busy.  We have been looking forward to having a nice relaxing adventure that would take little to no effort.  That is what we found, for the most part but I’ll get to that later.  Before we left Chicago, Erin had found out that there would be a lantern festival coming and she really wanted to go.  Unfortunately we moved before we had the chance to go.  Luckily she found out that Utah was going to have one.  We packed up the car and headed out to Tooele for the 2018 Lantern Fest.

Tooele……Well, the Utah Motorsports Park, where the event was being held, is about 35 miles from Salt Lake City.  When we first arrived we were a little confused.  For as large of a event that Lantern Fest was supposed to be, there was nobody to be seen.  We drove around the facility thinking that maybe we missed the entrance.  We finally found some one that worked there and he informed us that it had been postponed do to high winds.  Understandably, I was irritated that they didn’t send us an email or something that would have informed us that it had been postponed.

Frustrated, I thanked the guy and we went on our way.  It wasn’t until we were on our way home that we received a texted say that the date had changed.  I guess they were have issues with their system or something.  What a waste of a day, if we would have been notified earlier we could have planned something much better.  I guess its dinner and a movie for us.  We saw Small Foot by the way.  It was a cute, fun movie.  I think it was worth seeing.

Fast forward two weeks and we are back at it again.  Packed up our car and headed back out to Tooele.  This time when we got there, everything looked right.  The parking lots were full of cars, there was people waiting in lines, and tents had been set up.  Luckily for us, we purchased our tickets online so we could skip the line and head right in.  We made our way to the tent that had our care packages.  Inside of them was one lantern, a marker to decorate and a s’more kit.  With our kits in hand , all we had left was to find a place to sit and enjoy.

Now I will have to say this.  If you have a large group you should probably get there early so that you can all sit together at a fire pit.  The fire pits are not assigned and there is only so many of them.  We arrived a little later in the day and ended up sharing a pit with a few strangers.  It turned out that Gabe, Alanna, Sarah, and Hasam ( sorry if I misspelled it) were very friendly and we quickly meshed with them.  Come to find out, none of us had been to Lantern Fest before.  We would be losing our Lantern Fest virginity together.  How exciting!   I’ll be honest, I’m not a huge fan of being stuck with people that I don’t know but it was really fun to talk with them and to here their stories.

Around 8 o’clock, we got the OK to light up our lanterns.  You know the scene from Tangled were they let the lanterns go and they float into the air and fly away.  That is what it looked like.  Well for some of us.  I will admit that I pictured it like this.  We would light the lanterns and they would graceful lift out of our hands and float away.  That didn’t happen for us.  Instead.  As we were waiting for the lanterns to fill up with hot air, a wind gust came through and flung them away from us.  Like fools we chased after them with the hope that we would get a chance to get them into the air.  It didn’t happen for us but for many they went without a hitch.  We learned some valuable lesson for next time we go.

I have always associated lantern festivals with Asian culture and traditions.  For good reasons too.  The Chinese have been doing it since the Western Han Dynasty dating back to 206 BCE.  Better known as the Spring Festival, it was held on the 15th day of the first month of the Chinese Lunar Calendar (February / March) to celebrate the New Year.  The lanterns would be plain or simply decorated.  Nothing too flashy, unless you were of Nobility and you could afford to have a more ornate one.  The releasing of the lanterns had different meanings for everyone, but for many it was to symbolize the letting go of the past self to make way for the new self.

For us modern day celebrators, our lanterns were simple and plain.  Made out of biodegradable materials because we are more environmentally friendly than our friends from the past.  We all took a moment to decorate our lanterns with the marker that was provided.  As with the past, everyone had their own reason to release the lanterns.  Some wrote messages of hope and inspiration.  Others for love and lets face it some because they could.  For us, it was to celebrate the ending of one chapter of our book of life and starting a new one.

My message was a simple one.  To those who came before and to those who come after.  Let the adventure continue.  I stand by these words.  It took many to get us to where we are today.  For those that come after us, they will live our legacy and continue to move forward to build their own.

I hope that you get a chance to attend Lantern Fest.  We had an amazing time and met some great people.

Until next time.  Thanks for stopping by.

Josh

This is the Place Heritage Park

What’s up everybody?

Well we have finally settled into our new digs and you know what that means.  IT’S ADVENTURE TIME!  Thats right, we finally feel like we can get out and start exploring once again.  To honor our new found freedom we are starting a new series call the Tour of Utah.  In this series we are going to take you to the places that make Utah unique.  To kick off this series we are going to the place that started it all.  This is the Place Heritage Park.

Over the winter of 1885-86, hostilities towards the LDS people, in the town of Nauvoo Illinois, had reached its breaking point.  Thousands of them were forced to flee their homes.  Only taking with them what they could carry in a oxcart or wagon.  Leaving everything else behind.  Ferrying across the mighty Mississippi River would begin their 1300 mile trek across the plains to their final destination, the Salt Lake Valley.  With difficult terrain and unpredictable weather, it to them a year and then some.  I have driven from Chicago to Salt Lake, which is about the same in milage.  It took us two and a half days in a U-haul and that was enough for me.  I can imagine how trying it was to do it in a oxcart or walking for that matter.

After they enter the Salt Lake Valley Brigham Young, the President of the LDS Church ant the time, stated “This is the right place.  Drive on!”.  With these words Utah began to grow and prosper.  To honor this, in 1912 a humble white cross was erected to signify the spot.  The cross would soon be replaced by a white monolith, which can still be found there today.

The landscape has changed since its humbling beginnings.  A new and much grander monument has been built.  The new monument towers into the air.  It not only depicts the LDS pioneer but Native Americans, fur trappers, Spanish explorers and many others that helped to build and expand the West.

There are plenty of other statures built around the grounds.  Each one has its own story telling you about the migration West.  There is one that is very near and dear to my heart.  Its a statue that is dedicated to people that travelled to Utah by handcarts.  This is special to me because my family was part of these handcart companies.  My family boarded a ship in England and set sail across the seas.  Once they landed in the U.S. they joined up with the Willie - Martin Handcart Company and made their way West.  The company suffered many loses on the journey to the Salt Lake Valley but they will be forever remembered by those that gaze upon the statue.

There is still more to see then just the Monument and statues.  After paying your entrance fee, you are granted access to the Heritage Park.  Once you pass underneath the Eagle Gate, you are teleported back in time when Salt Lake was in its infancy.  The Heritage Park is modeled after the Downtown area of Salt Lake City.  The building have been moved from their original location and rebuilt at the Park.  Not all the building are from the Valley but come from all over the state.

A good portion of building are open for you to explore.  I would suggest stopping by the Blacksmith Shop, Deseret News Print Shop or the Dinwoodey Cabinet and Chair shop.  Each have friendly people ready to demonstrate their craft.  Be sure to ask them question for the are very knowledgable and eager to answer them.

There are plenty of interactive areas in the Park.  For some furry friendship, head over to the Petting Corral.  Here you can get up close to all kinds of barn yard animals.  They have recently had a baby goat named Ghost, since he is all white.  He is very curious about his surrounding and what is happening within his pen.

Tucked up in the back of the park is The Treasure House and Native American Village.  The Native American Village is composed of two hogan built in the Navajo tradition, a male and a female.  They are set upon the red rocks of Southern Utah.  Just up aways from the hogans sits a teepee.  The teepee is actually a auditorium that visitors can see different demonstrations.  The day that we were there, they were doing a show that talked about the different Native Tribes of Utah and some of their traditions.  Incase you were wondering there are five Tribes in Utah: Paiute, Shoshone, Goshute, Ute, and Navajo.  We had the opportunity to see several dances and the meaning behind them.  I found it very interesting and informative.  If you have the chance you should check it out.

The Treasure House is a fun little place to play around.  It is mostly designed for the little ones but the big kids can have some fun to.  Inside the House is a shop with a small mining display.  You can purchase a geo and crack it open yourself.  Outside is where the fun really is.  Underneath the House is a pit where you can dig for gemstones.  Unfortunately, there is no rubies or sapphires but it is still fun digging in the dirt trying to find something of interest.  If digging in the dirt doesn’t fit your fancy, step over to the river and pan for gold.  You are guaranteed to find some Fool’s Gold.  Pyrite that is.  At least you can learn the techniques that the old miners used to use for panning, so you can go out and search for real gold on your own.

This is the right place.  These simple words have become a mantra for so many that have come to live in the state of Utah.  With the beautiful mountains in the North to the red rocks in the South, Utah is truly the right place.

Thanks for stopping by.  Until next time.

Josh

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A Day at the Natural History Museum of Utah

What’s up everybody?

Well, we had a little impromptu adventure this week.  I should say that I had one, since Erin had to work and wasn’t able to join me.  To be honest, she didn’t even know that I had went.  I guess that I should have told her but like I said it was an impromptu adventure and I didn’t even know that I was going.  I had some time off of work and had nothing better to do and I had recently heard a radio advertisement for the Natural History Museum of Utah.  I hadn’t been there in a very long time, so I jumped in the car and was on my way.

The Natural History Museum of Utah is housed in the Rio Tinto Center on, or just off of, the University of Utah Campus.  301 Wakara Way Salt Lake City Utah, 84108 if you want the exact address.  If you are familiar with the area it is right next door to Red Butte Garden.

The History Museum first opened in 1969.  At that time it was housed in the George Thomas Building located on the U of U campus.  If my memory serves me correctly, I believe it was off of Presidents Circle.  Like I said, it has been awhile since I was there.  The idea behind the museum was to consolidate the artifacts that had been placed throughout the University.  Over the years the collection has grown.  It now contain over 1.6 million artifacts.

In 2011 the Museum moved to the state-of-the-art Rio Tinto Center.  I will have to tell you, it is a really cool building.  I’m not big on architecture, but its quite a site to behold.  The building is made to blend in with the surrounding hills.  It is easily recognizable by its 42,000 square foot copper roof.  The intricate pattern of horizontal bar of varying sizes are made resemble the layered rock formation that are found throughout Utah.  The copper is mined from Utah’s very own Kennecott Copper Mine.

I Don’t know about you, but for me when I think about history I think about human history.  I often forget about the natural side of history that makes up our planet.  Humans are only a small part of the picture. We have made an impact but there is so much more to our planet than just us.  Natural History Museums give us a chance to get more in-depth than what we are used to.

The NHMU has plenty of permanent exhibits to explore but they also have an area that is dedicated to rotating exhibits.  At the that I was there, they had an exhibition on animal movement.  If you think of it, animals are incredible and highly adapted to the world around them.  In this exhibit we get to look at muscle and bone structure and how its adaptation help animal in their daily routines of survival.  I found the display about birds wings fascinating.  I’ve never really took the time to look closely at them.  Even though they seem like they would all be built the same way, they are actually all very different in the way they work.  I wish I could explain it a little better than I am but oh well.  Unfortunately this exhibition is no long there.  It was in it last week while I was there.  I’m sure that it has been replaced by something that is just as interesting.

Maybe its the kid in me, but my favorite part of the whole museum was the Past Worlds exhibit.  It also happens to be the first exhibit that you encounter as you enter the museum.  I will admit that I did spend the majority of my time here.  Past Worlds is filled with dinosaur fossils found through out Utah and the surrounding areas.

Most of the fossils came from the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry, located in central Utah.  The Quarry itself is surrounded by mystery.  It has the densest concentration of Jurassic animal fossils ever to be found in one place.  Most of them came from the fearsome Allosaurus.  There are currently three major hypothesis on what caused this high density, but nobody really knows the truth of what happened.

At the end of this exhibit is a display that shows the waterline of Lake Bonneville.  You may or may not have heard of Lake Bonneville, it is a ancient lake that used to cover a large portion of Utah.  It was over a thousand feet deep and stretched high in to the mountains.  It lasted until about 15,000 years ago when the lake finally broke through to the Snake River and drained a large portion of it.  Changing temperatures would eventually dry up the remnants of the lake.  All that remains of the ancient lake is: the Great Salt Lake, Utah Lake, and Sevier Lake.  The shorelines can still be seen in the mountain surrounding the city.  Its hard to believe that the Salt Lake Valley used to be covered by a thousand feet of water.

I don’t want give away all the secrets of the museum.  There is still plenty for you to explore if you choose to visit the Natural History Museum of Utah.  I had a lot of fun learning about the history of what is now Utah and I hope you will to.

Thanks for stopping by.  Until next.

Josh

Epcot

What’s up everyone?

Well we have finally reach the last stop in our Disney World adventure and of course thats Epcot.  I will have to admit that I really wasn’t looking forward to going here.  The first time that we were there I was a little disappointed with it.  In fact, we ended up leaving the park early and spending the rest of the day hanging out at our hotel.  A shame really, that we didn’t give it the chance that it deserved.  This time around it became one of my favorite stops.  I think the problem, the first time, was that we had burned ourselves out at the other parks.  We didn’t know what to expect, since we had never been there.  Plus, it was in August.  It was hot and humid.  We just went too hard for too long and wore ourselves out.

Epcot feels different than the other parks.  Even though Epcot has some intense rides, as a whole the park has a very laid back and an easy going feel to it.  It is only divided into two areas: Future World and the World Showcase.

Once you enter the main gate, you are greeted by the giant golfball, better known as Spaceship Earth.  As you approach Spaceship Earth, you enter into Leave a Legacy Plaza.  This is actually a pretty cool area.  In the Plaza you will find several megaliths ranging in sizes.  If you look closely at them, you will discover names and images of park guest from around the world.  The Leave a Legacy program was started in the fall 1999 during Disney’s Millennium Celebration.  They wanted guest to have “the opportunity to leave a little piece of themselves at one of their favorite places”. (disneyworld.com)  Unfortunately, they shut the program down in 2007.

Lets face it, if someone mentions Epcot your mind immediately pictures Spaceship Earth.  It has become the symbol of the park and it would influence the tone of the rest of the park for years to come.  The ride takes you on an adventure throughs mans evolution of communication.  Starting from the earliest cave paintings to the moon landing and beyond.  It is a easy going ride, narrated by the one and only Judi Dench.  Once you exit the ride, you enter into Project Tomorrow: Inventing the Wonders of the Future.  Project Tomorrow is an interactive area for the young and old.  Games and exhibits are awaiting for you to discover what the future can hold.

My favorite ride in the Epcot is the Test Track.  It has had a whole new make over since the last time we were there.  Before you get on the ride, you are given a chance to design a car to test.  Throughout the ride your car is used to calculate its performance in the different tests.  Each test earns you point towards the total outcome of your cars performance.  Over all the cars we designed faired pretty well.  Mostly above average but nowhere near the days top performers but thats ok.

The ride itself goes through a series of tests that you would find on an actual car test track.  Brake check, skid control and so on.  The best part is when the car goes outside.  It speeds up to about 65 mile per hour and throws you into a corner before slowing down for the exit.

Mission: Space is based on authentic NASA astronaut training.  On this ride you experience what it would feel like to fly in a shuttle.  Four people can ride at a time.  Each person is assigned a crew position to operate the shuttle efficiently.  Each crew member will have a specific task that they will need to perform throughout the mission to return back to Earth safely.  There are two levels of intensity that you can choose from before getting on the ride.  Green which is easier of the two and Orange which is really intense, from what I hear.  We had just ate and we weren’t sure if our stomachs could take too much, so we chose Green.  Maybe next time we’ll do the Orange one.  Either way it was really fun.

There are a lot of other cool rides within the park but I do have to mention Journey Into Imagination With Figment.  On this ride you take a tour of the Imagination Institute.  You encounter Figment, a purple dragon.  He takes over the tour of the institute and madness ensues.  It was a fun little ride.  Nothing too spectacular in my opinion, but thats not what made it special to me.  It was the only ride in the park that my nephew really wanted to ride.  We was wait very patiently to get his chance to ride it.  It was starting to get later in the day and I didn’t want him to miss out.  I did what any other responsible Uncle would do, I kidnapped him and took him to the ride.  We have been living in different states for a long time now, so we don’t get to see or do as much with each as we used to.  Being able to hangout just the two of us was special to me and I hope it was for him as well.

There is more to Epcot than just the rides.  As I mentioned before Epcot is divided into two areas and the second one is the World Showcase.  The World Showcase is a loop around one of the many lakes that can be found throughout the Disney World Resorts.  As you traverse the loop you will be transported to different countries.  Eleven of them to be exact:  Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, the American Adventure (United States), Japan, Morocco, France, United Kingdom, and our neighbors to the North Canada.  Each of these eleven areas are designed to mimic the architecture and culture of the actual country it represents.  You can virtually travel the world in the matter of a day.  If only it was that easy.

There are only two rides in the World Showcase:  Gran Fiesta Tour starring the Three Caballeros and Frozen Ever after.  Gran Fiesta can be found in Mexico.  It is a gentle boat ride that take you through the sites of Mexico.  Frozen Ever After is found in Norway.  As you can probably guess, it is based on the movie Frozen.  I would say skip the rides and see the many live performance and shows that are put on.  We saw a drum battle in Japan and it was amazing.  I would have liked to seen the Chinese acrobats.  I have heard that it is an awesome show.  Maybe next time.

Lets face it,  you’re not in the Showcase for the rides.  You are there to experience other cultures that you may never actually be able to go to.  The World Showcase is a foodies paradise.  All types of food can be found here.  Candies, drinks, pastries, meals and even fancy restaurants.  If you can think of it, you can find it.  I know we had our share, and probably the next person share.  I’m pretty sure we sample something from every country and over did it in France.  Dang them and their fancy deserts!

Like most Disney Parks, Epcot has a firework show when the sun goes down, IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth.  In my opinion, this is not the most spectacular show of the parks but it cool none the less.  It takes place in the lake surrounded by the World Showcase.  In fact, it uses the buildings from the Showcase as part of the show.  Boats shoot off fireworks and jets of water as the travel around the lake.  They use the smoke from the fireworks to create a laser show.  All this is happening while a lighted globe of the Earth spins in the center.

This is our last stop in our Disney World adventure.  We had a lot of fun and can’t wait to go back.  I can’t say that it will be anytime soon but we’ll get there again.

Thank you for join us.  Until next time.

Josh and Erin