Tragedy & Triumph: Beth’s Trip Report – Day11: Gabrielle & A Moment of Silence About This Page:

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Friday, September 14th

Wake up around 6 (it’s EE day at Epcot) to find a note under our door which reads:

Dear Disney’s Wilderness Lodge Guest:

The possibility exists later today at the WALT DISNEY WORLD ® Resort and vicinity may be under tropical storm conditions. You are advised to closely monitor the weather conditions and advisories.

Please contact the Front Desk if you have any questions or need assistance.

We had never gotten a note like that before, and we had been here last September when a hurricane skirted by. But bad weather certainly hasn’t stopped us thus far.

So we head out to the bus stop for Epcot. The rain is coming down so hard and it is so windy that Steve gives in and buys a new poncho, seeing how the umbrella he’s been using, might not be so good on a day like today. As soon as the gift shop opens in the hotel, he goes in and buys one (it is slightly different than mine as it has 100 Years of Magic on the back and mine just has plain old Mickey. His also seems to be thicker than mine. The ponchos don’t seem to hold up that well and next time I will buy several ponchos before we leave, even though we have ponchos. That way, when they rip or fall apart, we will have news ones ready).

When we arrive the gates are already open. It is raining so hard that we immediately get on SE. Not that we wouldn’t ride it again any way (since we love it), but our sole purpose for getting on was to get out of the weather. I don’t even know if there was anyone on the ride with us. All the cars that I could see were empty.

It’s still blowing and raining when we get off. The information board says that the only other attraction open at this time is the Universe of Energy. There’s no question that we’re heading there! The new Universe of Energy sign is finally up and I would have taken a photo, but the rain is really coming down. We walk in quickly and see about 15 other wet people there. The film has just started. (I love how Ellen always compliments me on my hair! [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] ).

Inside, we take the vehicle on the left handed side (as last time we did the right). The CM in charge makes a slight addendum to the usual spiel saying something about you’re all here because this is the only other attraction, aren’t you? Well sit wherever you want. I don’t think there was anyone else in the whole section with us. Most sat in the center section with a few on the right.

After Ellen’s Energy Adventure, it’s nearly 9 AM and the other attractions are supposed to be opening up. However, I am getting hungry and so is Steve, so we decide to walk over to The Land. Again, the place is practically deserted and I suggest that we try the Garden Grille. So after we get our ponchos off and use the restrooms (mostly to try and get ourselves back together) we go over to the podium and ask if they can take us. I have no idea how many people/groups this restaurant can accommodate, but I’d say there were maybe 10-15 other parties there at this time (peak breakfast time). They have no problem seating us right away and I make sure that they know I need to speak to the chef.

I have to admit, that this chef was one of 2 that I encountered that didn’t really “get it” So I managed to just ask for and get some cereal and toast along with the fruit that is part of the regular meal. Steve, of course, had the regular meal and seemed to enjoy it.

The draw here, however, in my opinion, is not the food, but the character and the scenery (after all you are rotating around part of “Living With The Land&#8221 [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]. And since attendance must have been at an all time low, the characters were even more interactive than ever. Pluto, Mickey, Chip & Dale must have been to our table at least 4 times during our meal (which lasted about 90 minutes or more).

During the meal, we decided that it would be impossible to try to get to Disney’s West Side for the memorial service, especially with the weather. We were both in a bit of a somber mood (at least that’s what my Passporter Notes say). The weather, the situation, the uncertainty of it all. I don’t know about other guests, but I really NEEDED the character interaction that I got that morning. Sure I’ve hugged Mickey before, but this time it really meant something (heck I’m getting teary just writing this). Yes, Mickey’s a corporate symbol, but he’s always an American symbol of success. And the hugs that I got that morning from all of the characters that morning, were needed and appreciated. Maybe they did know how I felt because Dale was always tickling me (in the weirdest way). And Chip was walking around with a paper towel napkin (from one of the tables) around his front that said “Feed The Animals” (the E’s were backwards. I took a photo of it). It was really quite funny and some how comforting. Pluto and Dale even got into a “mock fight” in our area, after which one of the wait staff made them make up. It just seemed to me that the characters were going out of their way to try and make even the adults smile. Or maybe they were just bored (If the restaurant served 60 people that whole morning I would be surprised). I mean, we’ve all heard of low attendance, but this was ridiculous. Or maybe it was a combination of both. I know I kept trying to tell all of them (when I was getting a photo or yet another hug) how much of a great job they were doing. I even asked the person at the podium to mention it to the staff. They were all doing such a wonderful job at such a horrible time. And I had never needed Mickey Mouse quite so much in my life.

After breakfast we went to see The Circle of Life film (again maybe 20 people), then Living With The Land and finally Food Rocks.

Back out into the rain. Actually the rain wasn’t quite so bad at that point, but the wind was incredible. Steve and I headed over to the Imagination Pavilion. First thing I wanted to do, knowing how low attendance was, was to go to Image Works and send email. Yes, you can send email photos from other locations, but here I could actually type out a pretty long message and send it to 3 people at once. This was I was able to get photos (of us in yellow ponchos – how attractive) and messages out to 9 people in just a few minutes. There were a couple of people who I really hadn’t had a chance to speak with and let them know our situation. This email was the perfect way.

I had brought nine rolls of film with me which should have been more than enough, but now I was on my last roll. So I needed to buy more. Was going to do it there, but they only had 3 or 4 packs of film (that I could see). SO I decided I would get some later.

Steve & I head up towards HiStA. The CM at the door stops us and says they won’t be allowing any more people in until after the Minute of Silence. I hadn’t realized it was so close to noon. I look down at my watch and see that it’s about 11:45. If there’s going to be a nation-wide minute of silence and I’m in Epcot, than the American Adventure Pavilion is where I want to be.

Steve and I walk briskly over to the American Adventure. There are certainly no crowds in our way, although walking against the wind at times can be challenging. We move quickly through the pathway lined with Roses and into WS. Through Canada and the United Kingdom. What people we do see (and there are maybe 10 people was pass – this includes Cast Members) seem to be heading toward the park entrance.

We make it to the American Adventure with a minute or two to spare. We go inside the rotunda. There are about 10 other guests there. We are asked to go outside to the covered entrance to the building. There were a few cast members there. Some from the attraction, some from I don’t know where (they weren’t in Disney attire) and I believe there were 2 or 3 people from American Vibe, the group that sings at the American Adventure. They were not wearing name tags, but I thought I recognized them (and I later saw one of them go “backstage&#8221 [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]. By noon there are about 30 of us standing there when an announcement comes over the loudspeaker asking for a minute of silence. It is very quiet, but there are plenty of people crying; guests and cast members alike. Men and women had tears running down their cheeks.

After the minute had passed, another announcement was made asking us to join in singing, “America The Beautiful” which we did. Very solemn to be standing there on such a stormy day singing. After we had finished singing, we headed in to the building. Two cast members at the door had a box of tissues. Everyone needed at least one.

I was hoping that one of the groups (either the Voices of Liberty or American Vibe) would sing before the show. That’s what I had really come for. To hear them sing. But there was no singing. The group was lead upstairs and into the theatre. I had never seen the theatre so empty.

It was a tough show to watch that afternoon. But I can’t think of a better thing to do after a minute of silence. The show certainly encompasses some rough times that America has endured. I always cry when I see this and of course, I cried that afternoon too. “Golden Dream” always gets me choked up.

However, as the show was coming to the last scene (the end of “Golden Dream” into the pan around NYC and Ben and Sam on the torch at the Statue of Liberty) the show stopped. As the camera panned around NYC and went to the starry sky, no Statue’s arm came up with Ben and Sam. The curtain came down. We could still hear the dialogue, but a CM made an announcement that due to technical difficulties, they would not be able to show us the last scene. I have to wonder if it was just all too painful to show that NYC at that time. When we exited the building, I noticed that there were no scheduled times for the show that day.

While Steve went to the restroom, I popped into the fast food restaurant there (don’t recall the name) because I could hear the fife and drum corp. playing. This also seemed appropriate to stand and watch.

I took some photos of the building (not great because they were doing some re-habbing around the fountain in front), I wanted to take a photo of the flag on top of the building which was at half mast.

We walked the rest of the way around the WS. I don’t think we saw another person as we walked. I know that’s hard to believe. Maybe we did see one or two, I honestly can’t recall. Actually when we got to Italy, I noticed that the scrim that covered the scaffolding on the building was gone (which makes it look like Italy from afar, only when do you get up close do you realize that the building is undergoing some renovation and what you are seeing is a screen). Also in the little courtyard there, some CMs seemed to be doing something. I think they were tying stuff down. I said it was windy.

The other odd thing that is that while we were walking we could hear ambulance sirens go by (obviously backstage somewhere). Since we have never heard any backstage type noise while we were anywhere “onstage” it was kind of disturbing.

I ended up stopping at Village Traders (at the Outpost section) to buy the film I needed (they had 2 packs – the 2 packs here cost me more than the 10 rolls I had bought at Costco!). And while the CM was keying me into the register, she said something about tornado warnings in the area, so maybe that is why we heard the sirens.

I stopped and took a photo in China. There are no people in the photo. How strange. It must have been about 1 pm on a Friday afternoon in WS and I have a photo of China with no one there.

We continued on, stopping in the stave church in Norway. Some how it just seemed appropriate.

I took some more photos of the WS. It was just amazing how deserted the place was and how dark and threatening the clouds were.

We walked over to Mouse Gears where I took a serious look at stuffed Mickeys. I had never considered purchasing one before, but this time I seriously wanted Mickey to comfort me. The problem was, I really wanted a big one and they were: a. expensive and b. big enough to make is difficult to travel with. I kept picking up a variety of sizes and seeing how they “fit” in my arms. In the end, I only purchased socks for myself (I had run out and I figured it would get cold on the train).

After shopping, we sat on a bench outside the store to try and decide what to do. Steve didn’t feel like doing much. I couldn’t blame him, but at the same time, I can’t stand being in Epcot and NOT doing something. And as much as I liked the Wilderness Lodge, I felt we had spent way too much time in our room. So after some debate we decided to go back over to the Imagination Pavilion. I stopped in the middle of Future World to take a photo of Spaceship Earth (would have loved it if the fountain was going, but it wasn’t. However, the construction around it was gone). Again, there are no people in this photo. Just a shot of SE. Because it is so dark out, you might think it is early evening and the park was closed, but the park was very open, just more deserted than anyone could have ever imagined.

We went into JIYI (probably the last time as it is supposed to undergo rehab) and one final viewing of HiStA (The “True Colors” in the pre-show always gets to me!).

It was after 3 by then and raining quite a bit again. Steve pointed out that we had been in the park for about 8 hours and most of that time it had been pouring. He wanted to go back to the hotel. As much as I hate to leave Epcot (ever, not just on this day), I had to agree. Although we did briefly stop in what used to be the back dining area of Pasta Piazza (which is now considered part of Heritage Hall) where Aladdin, Donald and Pooh and Eeyore were. I insisted on going in and getting my photo with Pooh and Eeyore (especially since I was covered in a yellow poncho). There were a few families in here, but not that many and certainly not at all the type of crowd you would usually see, even during “low season”.

By the time we got back to the hotel it was after 4. I had made PS at Tony’s Town Square that night (originally we were supposed to have dinner there on Tuesday) as the guide map of MK said that there would be a performance of Spectro Magic that night. However, on the event board in the lobby of the Wilderness Lodge has nothing scheduled. We go over to Guest Relations to see what is what. Turns out there is no Spectro scheduled for that night (even though it says it on the guide map!) and that due to the rough weather, boat service to the MK has been stopped. That would make getting to MK a bit more difficult (bus to TTC and then monorail it over?).

Once back in the room (and after a call to mom and dad. I had heard that one of the people they were looking for had stayed at a motel in Seaside Heights, which is just too close to my parents home for comfort. It was good to hear their voices), I call Disney Dining and reschedule our dinner for tomorrow night at 7;30 (it was the best time I could get).

I took another one of my wonderful hot showers (after being out in the rain all day, it’s exactly what I need. I know it makes no sense, but it made me a happier camper). We decide to have dinner at the Roaring Forks. Only this time I insist that we actually eat there, rather than just bring it back to our room. We’ve been spending way too much time in our room watching the news this trip (of course it’s understandable, but it’s hardly Disney).

I spend the rest of the night starting to pack up my things. Leaving out only the stuff that I will need for the next two days. It’s amazing how much stuff I have accumulated (and how many hand and body lotions I have in my bag to take home to friends who love the stuff. Our mousekeeper has been leaving us extra. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] She’s really looking out for me!).

Tomorrow will be our last day in the parks (our Aps expire) and I want to make the most of it and do EE in MK.

[Janet 46]

Beth, you did it again! I started crying when you described the moment of silence and singing America the Beautiful.

It sounds so eerie to know how deserted WS was that day - I guess you can attribute it to the weather in part. I hope the weather and your spirits pick up after this.

[mikki]

Beth, another moving report. As one of the people you sent an email to in your fetching yellow ponchos you know how much I appreciated hearing from you.