2006-10-Day

Walt Disney World

Symposium 2006

Orlando, Florida

October 07-15, 2006

This was the first full day of the conference, and I went to a lot of sessions today. By dinner time, I was ravenous, and eager to get into Epcot. I stopped in Canada, and went to the Food & Wine Festival kiosk there, where I got the famous cheese soup and the maple glazed salmon on a bed of arugula, with roasted corn. Every time someone ordered the cheese soup there, the CM selling it would announce to his colleagues, "Another cheese soup!" and they would all yell out a good, hearty Canadian "ay!". The whole thing was served with a glass of Mission Hill Chardonnay, which I really liked. While dining on these delights, I took in the lovely sounds and definitely intriguing sight of some men in kilts! They are the Scotch-Canadian band known as Off Kilter, and they're fabulous musicians, in addition to having quite nice gams.

Near Canada, there was a kiosk representing Greece, and I ordered the walnut honey baklava with a glass of Boutan Samos. Both were MUCH too sweet for me, and I was disappointed. I needed to console myself, so I walked clear over to Mexico to get myself a mango margarita. Parked my butt on a bench in Norway, chatting and sipping away with a couple from Bonita Springs, having emigrated from Noo Joisey. Then along came a couple from London to join in the chatter, and they had all sorts of questions about living in Florida, what sort of occupations do well here, etc. I think they are planning to relocate here.

In any event, it was soon time for Illuminations, and I sauntered over to the lagoon, not really caring whether I had a great spot or not. Except for a low hanging tree branch, I had a pretty good view. For some reason, as many times as I've seen Illuminations, I'm not accustomed to seeing the Earth being born from my left - I'm usually on the other side of the lagoon, I guess, and so I'm used to seeing it born from the right. The part where they show man's first bare footsteps on the Earth and the cave drawings is really my favorite, I think. The music becomes lively. It's the dawning of humankind coming into their own here on this planet.

After the show was over, I considered myself fortunate, because I was so far away from the International Gateway, and therefore my exit from the park could be delayed. I sauntered, I sat, I hummed along to the "way-lah! oh way-lah, way-lah!" song, and I stalked the geosphere as I made my leisurely way toward the resort.

And when I arrived back at my room, I found that I'd been paid a visit by the Conference Spam Fairy. Let the games begin!