EPCOT News & Reviews Archives - Page 3 of 3

New Figment Game in Imageworks!!!

Last week I tweeted out a picture of the opening of some computer stations in Imageworks, so I returned yesterday to find that they had opened more stations.

015 — There is still a large area walled off where the Kodak demonstration area was located at the exit of the ride.

016 — A look at the computer station area...

At each computer station, you have the opportunity to “Compose Your Own Figment” who can either be a boy or a girl.

Here is what it looks like if you choose the “Boy” Figment without emailing it home…

And here is what it looks like if you choose the “Girl” Figment with the email home option…

I thought that it was a super cute addition to the games that are still in Imageworks, but I thought that getting to make Figment a boy or a girl was a little odd.

What do you think?

Today’s Walk Around EPCOT

Another Week…another walk around EPCOT.

There is a lot going on….So let’s get to it…

001 — One of these things is STILL not like the other...

003 — Or Two? I can't believe that they haven't painted this side yet.

004 — Still lots of work going on in front of Fountain of Nations

007 — You can also get a good look at all the different colors of concrete that are in the area now,

008 — The Whirlygigs are still...well still.

010 — I think I like the little green box!!! 🙂

011 — The Character Spot entrance is still behind walls, too.

012 — A closer look at the concrete work going on.

013 — Genie and Marie were meeting and greeting sans handlers near Club Cool.

Then I headed into World Showcase. And while you can tell that efforts are ramping up in preparation for Flower and Garden, there is a lot of action going on in China these days…

056 — The Duffy location in China has been moved while Yong Feng Shangdian Department Store is being refurbished.

057 — Walled off Yong Feng Shangdian Department Store.

058 — And the entrance to the Yong Feng Shangdian Department Store.

059 — The Duffy spot is now located in the Tomb Warriors exhibit near the Temple.

And in all seriousness, what would a walk around EPCOT be without a peek at some new merchandise?!?!?!?

2011 St. Pat's Ears — 2011 St. Patrick's Day Ears

Duffy 1st Visit Outfit — Be still my beating heart! A new Duffy outfit!!!

New Duffy Spinner — And the kids will all love the new Duffy Spinner!!!

And to offset all the Duffy hate, I thought I would share with you my favorite spot in ALL of EPCOT….

SSE Mural — But my favorite spot in all of EPCOT, will always be this!

A Quick Walk Around EPCOT’s Future World…

With all the hubbub around the activity in EPCOT’s Future World, I decided to scoot over and take some pictures.

These bad boys are hanging from all the lamp posts near EPCOT's entrances.

And this guy was over the turnstile. I love em!!!

One of these things is not like the other...

I am totally not a fan of the whirlygigs, and I was super excited to see them stopped!

The front of the Fountain of Nations is all walled off.

The entrance to the Character Spot is closed, but the Character Spot itself is still open for business.

The entrance for the Character Spot is now located near Club Cool.

The smaller whirlygigs are still moving...boo!

The birds are still talking, but there is no water or waves. It is pretty sad...

Again the smaller whirlygigs are moving...still boo!

I love the 40 retro merch!!! This is part 1 of Mousegear's window display.

Part 2 of the 40th Anniversary Mousegear Window. I MUST have that cute plaid skirt!!!

Look who I found at the kiosk near Captain EO!!!!!

Ringing in 2011 in Epcot

Preparations for New Year’s Eve at Epcot are well under way!

Here are some pictures that I took around World Showcase today….

Holiday Brewer's Collection - Germany - Menu

Precious Moments Doll Kiosk at EPCOT

There is a new Precious Moments doll kiosk set up in EPCOT which is located right outside of The American Adventure in World Showcase.

(Can you tell that I have shopping on the brain???)

While I have seen the little figurines before, I have never seen the dolls in person! They are sooo cute!!!

The individual dolls are $40 each (except for Ariel in her shell which is $36), and come in their “normal” outfits and in “Enchanted” outfits that are more festive for the holidays.

Tiana, Snow White, Mary Poppins, and Peter Pan where my favorites!!!!

Also available are two sets of dolls. The first is a holiday set of a girl and boy doll wearing Ear Hats with a Christmas tree that comes in a red satin Mickey shaped box for $75. But there is a green velvet shaped box reading “2nd Star to the Right” that contains Peter, Wendy, and Tink dolls, also $75, that stole my heart!!!

I was a little worried about finding doll stands for them, but the kiosk has the individual doll stands for $4.

I’m not sure which one of these (and if it will be only one) that I’ll get for Zoe, but I can’t wait to go back and take another look to decide!

“BeadforLife” – Bringing new opportunities near and far

As I was walking through World Showcase in EPCOT yesterday, I stumbled upon a new kiosk at the African Outpost.

Disney has partnered with “BeadforLife”, http://www.beadforlife.org, to give new life to older Walt Disney World Resort Maps, books, and pamphlets while providing job opportunities for women in Uganda.

The Walt Disney World pamphlets and other outdated materials are sent to Uganda, where the women measure, cut, roll them into beads, and then seal them for extra protection. These beads are then sent back to Florida in the same container, to be strung into necklaces, bracelets, and earrings.

The BEST thing is that you can either purchase a piece of jewelry that has already been assembled or you can design your own there on the spot!!!

They are also really reasonable!!!

I can’t wait to design my own necklace!!!

DSCI0448 — A look at one of the necklaces!

See ya later!

So I posted this pic earlier on Twitter (from @shelleycaran)…

And while usually change is a good thing, when it comes to the Imagination Pavilion change makes me feel like Forest Gump. You never know what you are going to get, especially when it comes to the future of an unsponsored pavilion. *coughwondersoflifecough*

My first trip to EPCOT Center was in 1986. The Imagination Pavilion was AMAZING! The ride was captivating, and I remember wanting to ride it over and over again! It was an experience, and then when you went upstairs you really got to explore and connect with the subject at hand…Imagination.

Fast forward to today, and you have a tired ride that has no staying power. Besides the cuteness of Figment, which no one can deny, I find that my take away is bleak. Rather than exploring what Imagination is and can be we get shown how much imagination is fought, misunderstood, and held captive at times.

Kodak’s exit after 28 years of sponsorship is bittersweet, but with their departure I find hope that one day we’ll be “Makin Memories” and find the “One Little Spark” we have all been hoping for!

Duffy, It’s what makes the world go round!

Love him or hate him Duffy has arrived to the Walt Disney World Resort! If you missed today’s arrival, I have a ton of info and pictures in my twitter stream (@shelleycaran).

I am a Duffy fan. There I said it! But it appears as if I am not the only one, because as of noon they were sold out of several costumes and tonight all I could find were a handful of the baseball & sailor outfits.

Now while I am a Duffy fan, there is one thing that is REALLY bothering me…

The world showcase masks, tags, and stamps have all been Duff-ified!!!!

The masks have been replaced with a picture of the lovable bear, and the stamps have also had a makeover to resemble the bear of the hour.

However, the most heinous crime has been committed…the tags for each country are GONE! It makes it all so super vanilla now!!! Most of the cast members manning the spots all said that they are getting a number of complaints from guests about the loss of the tags, so I am keeping my fingers crossed for their return!

I only had the chance to visit a few of the countries tonight, but it was definitely a lot of fun. We got stamps in Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Morocco, France, and the United Kingdom.

We are really excited to go back to the World Showcase to get all of the stamps and to visit with Duffy!

If you love Duffy, these are good times in deed. If you are not a fan, prepared to be Duffy-rolled!!! 😀

I hope that you enjoy the pics!!!