Day 7 - Return to EPCOT

Today we returned to EPCOT, hopefully to visit the anticipated Food and Wine Festival.  I had so looked forward to this special event, and had not had the chance to experience it.  Since our breakfast reservation wasn't until 10:50, we grabbed a quick bite to eat at the resort so that I could take my pills.  And then it was on to EPCOT. Rod and I decided to do the Character Spot while the kids were riding rides.  It was great.  Mickey kissed me after signing an autograph, and Minnie saw it.  So she grabbed Rod and kissed him.  And the PhotoPass photographer was shooting all the while.  We laughed along with the people in the line behind us.  And then it was on to breakfast.

Before being seated, you have your photo taken with Bell.  I opted out of this one, but was watching the various princesses parading all the little princes and princesses throughout the restaurant.  And suddenly, I began to cry.  Then it hit me -- I was homesick, homesick for my own little prince and princess.  A cast member standing nearby came to see if I was alright, and I assured her that I was just missing my other two grandkids.  She comforted me and said she would get me a special treat for them.  Later she returned with signature cards from Belle, one for Izzy and one for Jake.

Breakfast was wonderful. Your food is served family style, on platters like this.  In the upper right corner is a potato casserole, which most of my family loves.  Bubby would be happy with just the sausage links.  I love the scrambled eggs.  And to make my breakfast better, they have tomato juice.

In addition to the foods brought to your table, they have a breakfast buffet, complete with meats, cheeses, fruit, and specialty breads.  Who can resist the sliced ham, Jarlsburg cheese, and cinnamon rolls served here!!

We left Norway and headed toward the American Pavilion to see the Hall of Presidents. We were shown to the second floor by a cast member by way of an elevator, and arrived there in time to hear the Voices of Liberty.  They are always impressive, but this show they did a version of "A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes" that left some of us in tears.  If you want to hear them, search for the Voices of Liberty on YouTube.  Then we went in for the film, which briefly covers the history of our country, and ends with each of the presidents introducing himself.

It was nearing time for Mary and Jimmy to leave for the airport, but we had one last snack together - kaki gori in Japan.  This is a treat of shaved ice with fruit flavored syrups, and is quite a large serving.  Most of the gang chose the rainbow shown here.  I chose the tangerine with a sweet cream topping.  It was something like I'd never tasted before.  I guarantee that I will taste it again, however.  We returned to the front of the park for group photo in front of the dome, said our goodbyes and went our separate ways.

 I still hadn't found anything to bring back for my mom, and Rod assured me that we would find something. And find something, we did.  As we passed the Bead Outpost in Africa, some beads caught Rod's eye.  According to Jack Spence, a blogger for AllEars.net, "this entrepreneur arranges for old Disney guide books and other out-of-day Disney paper products to be sent to his family in Uganda. Here, the paper is hand rolled into beautifully colored beads which have been strung into necklaces and bracelets. The finished product is extremely durable and water resistant and makes a wonderful gift for yourself or a friend. You can actually wear a bit of recycled Walt Disney World with these pieces of jewelry." My mom loves beads, and we picked out a beautiful set of red and white beads, a necklace, bracelet and earrings. 

 Rod and I visited the Chinese Pavillion, and spent some time with the tomb soldiers before seeing the film.  I am so fascinated with these soldiers.  They are replicas of the original terracotta army of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emporer of China. This army was buried with the emperor in 210–209 BC. Their purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife, and to make sure that he had people to rule over.

We were to have dinner at Cape May with the twins, but we begged out since we hadn't had a chance to experience the Food and Wine Festival.  Rod announced "Let the eating begin", and we started to eat our way around the "World".  We started in Mexico where we sampled the Taco de Filete.  It featured beef tenderloin and a medium-spicy Cascabel Pepper Sauce and was delicious.  I ate both ends and Rod had the middle where the sauce was located.  We then moved onto Germany where we shared a piece of Apple Strudel (one of my favorite apple desserts).  With a Werther's caramel vanilla topping, it was yummy.  Continuing onto China, I had the pork pot stickers and Rod sampled the Mongolian beef in a steamed bun.  We were both very satisfied with our choices.  We continued to walk and stopped at the Polish booth for a sampling of Kielbassa and pierogis.  Not really anything to write home about, we can do this at home.  

It was clouding up again, and we moved onto Canada where I wanted to see Off Kilter.  These 5 kilted lads play Celtic-rock music and are from Ireland, Florida, Kentucky and Puerto Rico.  The rain started, I donned my poncho once again, and watched as they performed 4 songs.  While I was waiting for the show to begin, Rod disappeared and returned with a filet mignon from Le Cellier for me, and a beer for him.  As the group finished their set, it was raining harder and we headed for the exit. But we made a quick stop by France to sample the escargot.  I had promised Kristin that I would try them. and surprisingly I loved them. They were in a parsley/garlic sauce baked inside little brioche buns. By the time we got to the car, it was a downpour.  Rod ordered me into the car while he braved the weather to get my scooter into the trunk.  I am so blessed to have this man in my life.  Arriving back at the resort, we showered and began to pack.  We had so many souveniers that we weren't sure we would be able to get them all home.  We ended up using the tote bag we had bought for Kristin to use as a carry on  to pack some of the non-breakable items. Rod returned the Demon Scooter and the Keurig we had rented to Bell Services.  We were almost ready to leave.

Tomorrow - There's No Place Like Home.