My A to Z of windows reached F and I included Freiburg in Germany and that reminded me of a sequence of posts from 2012 that very few people read.
Posted in Arts and Crafts, Cathedrals, Europe, Germany, History, Literature, Natural Environment, Postcards, Travel, World Heritage
Tagged Culture, Disneyland, EPCOT, Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Life, Photography, World Showcase
Most of you will have spotted that yesterday’s Travel Challenge picture was Paris and of course you were right but it may not have been the Paris that you were thinking of because this is Paris at the Walt Disney World’s EPCOT theme park in Florida USA.
I visited World Showcase in May 1990.
This, it has to be said, is an odd place – at the same time both intriguing and disappointing. In the beginning it was the vision of Walt Disney himself – to build a new city of the future but after he died the Disney Corporation accountants gained control, declared it self indulgent, too expensive and not commercial enough and everything was downsized until it became nothing more than an add-on theme park to Magic Kingdom without any of the Magic.
World Showcase consists of eleven countries from around the World. The French Pavilion had a boring film about how wonderful the place is and some external sets representing Paris with an elusive Eiffel Tower seen in the distance from every angle and authenticity provided by men in striped shirts and berets and playing the accordion.
For people who imagine that Paris is full of men in berets, black and white hooped shirts, a string of onions around their necks, playing the accordion and speaking like Peter Sellers in the ‘Pink Panther’ films then EPCOT is wonderfully accurate but actually I think I have to say that it is probably one of the worst representations of all in World Showcase.
There were the obligatory French restaurants, a patisserie and an ice cream parlour and a stroll along the Seine lined with shops and hand carts. My only recollection is that I was seriously underwhelmed. I had only recently been to real Paris and that had been far more satisfying.
That’s because I believe that the only way to see Paris is to do it properly as I did when I visited the French capital in 2002 and rather like EPCOT, where you can see a whole country in just a few minutes, I saw the major sites in a foot-slogging, energy-sapping half a day and invented what my son subsequently called ‘speed-sightseeing’!
Posted in Cathedrals, Europe, France, History, Travel, USA, Wordpress
Tagged Disney World, EPCOT, Florida, France, Life, Paris, World Showcase
While the current travel restrictions are in place I have no new stories to post so what I thought that I would do is to go through my picture archives and see where I was on this day at any time in the last few travelling years.
On 20th May 1990 I was in Florida in the USA on a family holiday to Disney World. The first of three. The memory of these visits has mostly disappeared into a blur of credit card debt, white knuckle rides, the quicksand of commercialism and the exploitation by the Disney machine but one experience that I do remember was a visit to the World Showcase at EPCOT.
Click on an image to scroll through the Gallery…
Posted in Age of Innocence, Cathedrals, Europe, History, Natural Environment, Norway, Postcards, Travel, USA, World Heritage
Tagged Disney World, EPCOT, Florida, France EPCOT, Italy EPCOT, Life, Mexico EPCOT, Morocco, Norway EPCOT, UK, World Showcase
“When you grow up in America you are inculcated from the earliest age that America is the richest and most powerful nation on earth because God likes us best. It has the most perfect form of government, the most exciting sporting events, the tastiest food and the amplest portions, the largest cars, the most abundant natural resources, the most productive farms and the friendliest, most decent and most patriotic folk on earth” – Bill Bryson, ‘The Lost Continent’
Some time ago I wrote a post about a visit to Florida and a day at Walt Disney Epcot and an hour or two in the World Showcase. I called it “Around the World in Eighty Minutes” and I took a look at the eleven countries represented there – USA, China, Japan, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Norway, France and Morocco.
In the course of writing, dragging up memories and doing some research I started to think more deeply about World Showcase and became intrigued by the rationale behind the concept, design and construction and in particular the reasons why these eleven countries in particular were chosen for inclusion in the park.
This is partly explained by the fact that at the time of construction the Walt Disney Corporation was at a watershed moment. Walt Disney had recently died and with him passed the inspirational concept of the whole park. The accountants had taken over and with mounting costs of construction and seriously strapped for cash, tried to find sponsors for the showcased countries and failed in all but one attempt – Morocco.
The bottom line is that selection and inclusion was based on simple economics.
This also explains why some of the Pavilions are so disappointing, the absence of rides and attractions and the over reliance on shops and restaurants all designed to get visitors to part with their money.
But the failure to attract government sponsorship or private sector investment still leaves us with almost a dozen countries and no explanation why these eleven so I have been giving the matter some thought and whilst at first the inclusion appears to be rather random I think there is a credible reason for almost all of them.
The United States is of course obvious and requires no explanation for its inclusion or for the fact that it occupies the prime position on the World Showcase Lagoon and is the biggest and the most lavish and expensive of all the Pavilions.
Canada and Mexico are also easily explained. It would be rude I suppose not to have your nearest neighbours ( it would be like EPCOT World Showcase in England without Wales and Scotland) but there are some important statistics that reveal that it is not just about being neighbourly.
In terms of tourism by international visitors these two countries make up over half of all travellers visiting the United States and according to official data Canada with almost twenty-three million visitors provided 33% of all international visitors and Mexico with seventeen and a half million contributed 24%. Way behind in third place was United Kingdom with only 5%.
The inclusion of Mexico is even more easily explained by looking at population statistics that reveal that the second highest number of foreign born residents in the United States (by a very long way) is Mexican.
It is easy to see therefore that the inclusion of these two countries makes obvious commercial sense. Strange however, and this is just a personal view, that the two Pavilions provide the contrast between the best (Mexico) and one of the worst (Canada).
And so we move on to Europe with five of the eleven Pavilions coming from the second smallest continent – but why these five? Why not Spain or Greece, Poland or Sweden and once again I am rather easily convinced that it is based on US ethnic heritage and visitor numbers.
In terms of ancestry the top ten European nationalities (in this order) are Germany, Ireland, England, Italy, Poland, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Scotland and Sweden. Germany (at 17%) genuinely surprised me and explained immediately why it is at World Showcase but (at almost 11%) why no Ireland? Why Norway and not Sweden? I suppose Poland, at the time of construction, was part of the Warsaw Pact alliance and that might have ruled it out but why not Holland because surely all of those windmills and canals would have made a great attraction.
Visitor numbers also explain why these countries are here because four of the five (but not Norway) are in the top ten of international visitors to the United States.
Japan and China must surely also be explained by visitor numbers. After Canada, Mexico and the United Kingdom Japan contributes the fourth most visitors to the United States and China is also firmly in the top ten. Conversely, in the top ten but not represented at EPCOT are Brazil, India and Australia.
Of all the countries at the EPCOT World Showcase I suppose the easiest to explain is Morocco and this is in part due to the fact that the Pavilion was the only one in which the country’s government aided in the construction and they did this so that they could retain some measure of Islamist control over the design of the mosaics and to ensure that everything was as authentic as possible in the representation of the Muslim faith. So authentic in fact that there is a story that it was deliberately constructed with deliberate errors because Muslims believe that only God is perfect (might be true, might not).
So who is missing? Well, there is nothing from South America but the United Kingdom itself provides more visitors to the USA than the whole of Latin America combined so perhaps there is a clue there? Apart from state funded Morocco there is nothing from Africa which might be considered surprising when 13% of the US population are of African descent but (and here is the crucial commercial factor) visitor numbers from the African continent are the smallest of all at only three hundred and twenty-seven thousand in 2014.
There is a small African Trading Post and Disney excuses the omission by pointing out that there is an entire African themed park at the nearby Animal Kingdom.
Finally, I have been giving some consideration to an alternative World Showcase and here are my suggestions:
First, Australia with an IMAX film narrated by Mel Gibson and Kylie Minogue and a ride based on the theme of the World’s deadliest snakes.
Then Russia because now the Cold War is ended there must surely be space for Red Square and the Kremlin and a Moscow Metro ride.
Next, Brazil, with a ride based on the Rio Carnival and then Peru because Machu Picchu would be a good replacement for the Mexico Aztec pyramid.
After that, Egypt with a Nile Cruise ride; India and a train journey ride to visit the Taj Mahal and the Golden Temple of Amritsar and perhaps Equatorial Africa, which was once suggested but abandoned.
And from Europe: Greece with a visit to Mount Olympus to meet the mythical gods in an animatronic show, each one popping up in turn to introduce themselves; Spain and the legend of El Cid and the Conquistadors and the Netherlands with a cruise of the Amsterdam canals (leaving out the red light district as not being entirely appropriate for children).
And finally, wouldn’t it be fun to include the World’s smallest sovereign state – The Vatican where Disney cast members would be dressed as priests and nuns and with a roller coaster ride around St Peter’s Basilica!
Whoops, Sorry, I nearly forgot Ireland, lets have twelve countries (it’s my list and my rules) and let’s have a visit to the Cliffs of Moher and the Giant’s Causeway (sponsored by Guinness).
Please let me know your suggestions, I would be interested in your suggestions…
Posted in Africa, Athens, Childhood, Eire, El Cid, Europe, France, Germany, Greece, History, Ireland, Italy, Morocco, Norway, Russia, Spain, The Netherlands, Travel, United Kingdom, USA, World Heritage
Tagged Culture, Disney World, EPCOT, Epcot and ethnicity, Florida, Life, US visitor statistics, Walt Disney, World Showcase
Whilst it is true to say that I almost certainly wouldn’t go back again, twenty-five years ago I did enjoy three trips to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida in the USA. The memory of these visits has mostly disappeared into a blur of credit card debt, white knuckle rides, the quicksand of commercialism and the exploitation by the Disney machine but one experience that I do remember was a visit to the World Showcase at EPCOT.
The Disney Web Site introduces Morocco like this: “A realistic Koutoubia Minaret leads the way into this faraway land of traditional belly dancers, intricate Moroccan architecture and swirling mosaics made by native craftsmen. The Morocco Pavilion has 2 fascinating sections: the Ville Nouvelle (new city) and the Medina (old city). Discover a bustling plaza with a variety of shops and be on the lookout for some familiar Arabian Disney friends throughout the day.”
Well, one thing that I can confirm is that they have certainly got the shopping bit completely right because Disneyland and the Souks of Marrakech certainly have a lot in common when it comes to trying to part visitors from their money as I found out when taking a guided tour of the Fez souk…
At EPCOT the Norway Maelstrom ride is on water with the occasional splashes that leave a few damp patches on your summer clothes but Norway in January in the driving rain and penetrating drizzle is a much more authentic getting wet experience I can tell you!
We joined a handful of intrepid local people in brightly coloured ‘North Face’ kagools and sturdy hiking boots who were wandering along the coast line cinder path stopping occasionally for no apparent reason to stop and stare out into the grey nothingness of the North Sea as though searching the horizon for long lost Viking ancestors returning from a raiding expedition.
So, that’s it, I started off with a simple recollection post about EPCOT World Showcase at Disney World, Florida and then I took off around the World to compare Disney with the real places that I have visited.
I have taken a look at the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, France, Norway andMorocco but I can’t post about Canada, Mexico, China or Japan because I haven’t been to those countries yet.
In the course of writing, dragging up memories and doing some research I started to think more deeply about World Showcase and became intrigued by the rationale behind the concept, design and construction and in particular the reasons why these eleven countries in particular were chosen for inclusion in the park.
This is partly explained by the fact that the Walt Disney Corporation, strapped for cash, tried to find sponsors for the showcased countries and failed in all but one attempt – Morocco. This in turn explains why some of the Pavilions are so disappointing, the absence of rides and attractions and the over reliance on shops and restaurants all designed to get visitors to part with their money.
But the failure to attract government sponsorship or private sector investment still leaves us with almost a dozen countries and no explanation why these eleven so I have been giving the matter some thought and whilst at first the inclusion appears to be rather random I think there is a credible reason for almost all of them.
The United States is of course obvious and requires no explanation for its inclusion or for the fact that it occupies the prime position on the World Showcase Lagoon and is the biggest and the most lavish and expensive of all the Pavilions.
Canada and Mexico are easily explained. It would be rude I suppose not to have your nearest neighbours ( it would be like EPCOT World Showcase in England without Wales and Scotland) but there are some important statistics that reveal that it is not just about being neighbourly. In terms of tourism by international visitors these two countries make up over half of all travellers visiting the United States and according to official data in 2013* Canada with over twenty-three and a half million visitors provided 34% of all international visitors and Mexico with fourteen and a half million contributed 21%. Way behind in third place was United Kingdom with 5.5%.
The inclusion of Mexico is even more easily explained by looking at population statistics that reveal that the second highest number of foreign born residents in the United States (by a very long way) is Mexican.
It is easy to see therefore that the inclusion of these two countries makes obvious commercial sense. Strange however, and this is just a personal view, that the two Pavilions provide the contrast between the best (Mexico) and one of the worst (Canada).
And so we move on to Europe with five of the eleven Pavilions coming from the second smallest continent – but why these five, why not Spain or Greece, Poland or Sweden and once again I am rather easily convinced that it is based on US ethnic ancestry and visitor numbers.
In terms of ancestry the top ten European nationalities (in this order) are Germany, Ireland, England, Italy, Poland, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Scotland and Sweden. Germany (at 17%) genuinely surprised me and explained immediately why it is at World Showcase but (at almost 11%) why no Ireland? Why Norway and not Sweden? I suppose Poland, at the time of construction, was part of the Warsaw Pact alliance and that might have ruled it out but why not Holland because surely all of those windmills and canals would have made a great attraction.
Visitor numbers also explain why these countries are here because four of the five (but not Norway) are in the top ten of international visitors to the United States.
Japan and China must be explained by visitor numbers. After Canada, Mexico and the United Kingdom Japan contributes the fourth most visitors to the United States and China is also firmly in the top ten. Conversely, in the top ten but not represented at EPCOT are Brazil, South Korea and Australia.
Of all the countries at the EPCOT World Showcase I suppose the easiest to explain is Morocco and this is in part due to the fact that the Pavilion was the only one in which the country’s government aided in the construction and they did this so that they could retain some measure of Islamist control over the design of the mosaics and to ensure that everything was as authentic as possible in the representation of the Muslim faith.
I cynically conclude that any country could potentially be included if the government of that country was prepared to stump up the cash.
So who is missing? Well, there is nothing from South America but the United Kingdom itself provides more visitors to the USA than the whole of Latin America combined so perhaps there is a clue there? And apart from state funded Morocco there is nothing from Africa which might be considered surprising when 13% of the US population are of African descent but (and here is the crucial commercial factor) visitor numbers from the African continent are the smallest of all at only three hundred and twenty-seven thousand in 2013.
There is a small African Trading Post and Disney excuses the omission by pointing out that there is an entire African themed park at the nearby Animal Kingdom.
Finally, I have been giving some consideration to an alternative World Showcase and here are my suggestions:
First, Australia with an IMAX film narrated by Mel Gibson and Kylie Minogue and a ride based on the theme of the World’s deadliest snakes. Then Russia because now the Cold War is ended there must surely be space for Red Square and the Kremlin and a Moscow Metro ride. Next, Brazil, with a ride based on the Rio Carnival and then Peru because Machu Picchu would be a good replacement for the Mexico Aztec pyramid. After that, Egypt with a Nile Cruise ride; India and a train journey ride to visit the Taj Mahal and the Golden Temple of Amritsar; Equatorial Africa, which was once suggested but abandoned. And from Europe: Greece with a visit to Mount Olympus to meet the mythical gods in an animatronic show; Spain and the legend of El Cid and the Conquistadors and the Netherlands with a cruise of the Amsterdam canals (leaving out the red light district as not being entirely appropriate for children).
And finally, wouldn’t it be fun to include the World’s smallest sovereign state – The Vatican – with a roller coaster ride around St Peter’s Basilica!
Whoops, Sorry, I nearly forgot Ireland, lets have twelve countries (it’s my list and my rules) and let’s have a visit to the Cliffs of Moher (sponsored by Guinness).
Please let me know your suggestions, I would be interested in your views…
* US National Travel and Tourism Office.
Posted in Africa, Athens, Europe, Germany, Greece, History, Ireland, Italy, Morocco, Norway, Poland, Russia, Spain, The Netherlands, Travel, Wales, World Heritage
Tagged Culture, Disney World, EPCOT, Florida, Life, Walt Disney, World Showcase
“The true iconic Epcot experience comes in taking your time to wander through the 11 countries in the World Showcase, stopping to shop for Japanese etchings or Mexican folk art, going for a boat ride in the Mexico pavilion, watching a circle-vision panoramic adventure film in O’Canada, strolling through souks designed to resemble the real ones in Marrakech and Fes in the Morocco pavilion, watching nimble acrobats in China…and on and on.” Terry Ward (a man of obviously limited travel ambition) – USA Today (2014)
EPCOT, it has to be said, is an odd place – at the same time both intriguing and disappointing. It was the vision of Walt Disney himself to build a new twentieth century city but after he died the Disney Corporation accountants gained control, declared it too expensive and everything was downsized until it became nothing more than an add-on theme park to Magic Kingdom without any of the Magic.
Posted in Europe, Food, France, Germany, History, Italy, Morocco, Norway, Travel, United Kingdom, World Heritage
Tagged Disney World, EPCOT, Florida, Life, Terry Ward USA Today, USA Today, World Showcase
“There are palaces to see everywhere, and precious churches, and bridges, and pictures by the thousand, and all the criss-cross pattern of antiquity that is picturesque Venice, mocked by the materialists, sentimentalised by the Romantics, but still by any standards an astonishing phenomenon.” Jan Morris – ‘Venice
For those people who have never been fortunate enough to visit Italy, to go to Rome, Florence, Palermo, to Verona, Pisa or Milan and have relied instead upon a visit to EPCOT to see the country then they might be forgiven if they believe that it all looks like the Venetian lagoon and is permanently under-water. To be fair however World Showcase does a pretty good job of recreating St Mark’s Square and the Doge’s Palace – you can buy Italian ice cream and pizza and someone will be singing the inevitable ‘O Sole Mio‘ for sure.
Disney describes the visit like this:
“Enter this beautiful pavilion filled with architecture reminiscent of the city of Venice and feel the allure and romance of this remarkable locale. Find true attention to detail in the bridges, gondolas, colourful barber poles, the Neptune fountain in the central Plaza del Teatro and a stunning 83-foot version of the bell tower, Campanile of St. Mark’s Square. Buon giorno!”
But Disney, I have to tell you, cannot possibly be compared to the real thing:
The original concept for the Italy Pavilion was to have a rather obvious gondola ride through the canals of Venice but when the money dried up during the construction phase this idea was abandoned so the only place to take a gondola ride remains the real city of Venice – except perhaps for the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas!
EPCOT gondolas and the real thing:
In October 2012 I visited Venice with the main objective being to take a gondola ride so after breakfast we made our way to the railway station for a second train ride to the city and after arriving there plotted a walking course around the northern loop of the Grand Canal in the general direction of Ponte Di Rialto.
The plan was to choose a gondola in San Marco but after a while the girls became impatient and spotting a handsome gondolier in his trademark black and white hooped shirt and straw hat with dangling red silk ribbons and after some sales talk and a little negotiation we had agreed to take the ride earlier than originally planned.
At €80 for forty minutes it was still ridiculously expensive of course but it was something that had to be done, there were six of us to share the fare and to be fair to the gondoliers, they invest a great deal in their boats, about €20,000 for a traditional hand-built wooden gondola with a life expectancy of about twenty years.
The handsome gondolier in the black and white hooped shirt and straw hat with dangling red silk ribbons then passed us on to a colleague who was not so handsome, wore a black fleece and didn’t have a straw hat with dangling red silk ribbons and the man who had done the deal went about finding more gullible customers.
The substitute gondolier led us to a sleek black boat (actually like a Ford Model T they are all black) with elaborate paintings on the interior and black velvet seats with crimson brocade and after we had settled into our seats we set off into the labyrinth of tiny canals slipping quietly through the water, boring into the network of waterways as he expertly paddled his way through the pea green water, barely wrinkling the surface as we slipped through.
Rather like a London taxi driver not just anyone can become a gondolier and the profession is controlled by a guild which issues a limited number of licenses granted after a long period of training and apprenticeship and a comprehensive exam which tests knowledge of Venetian history and landmarks, foreign language skills as well as the practical skills of handling the gondola necessary in the tight spaces of Venetian canals.
On a visit to Venice Mark Twain wrote: “I am afraid that I study the gondolier’s marvellous skill more than I do the sculptured palaces we glide among” and I like to think that I understood that as our gondolier navigated tight corners and narrow bridges, slipping past brick walls within barely a hairs-breadth (which in a collision could strip the varnish down to the wood), skilfully avoiding other boats and never making a mistake as he rocked the paddle back and forth and from side to side in its intricate wooden cradle.
Our friendly guide took us first through some narrow back canals heading for the Grand Canal that without pavements or people were curiously quiet as we passed by the back doors and water garages of mansions, shops and restaurants but the main canals were busier, lined with cafés and restaurants and with crowds of people crossing the narrow bridges every few metres or so.
At water level there was a completely different perspective to the buildings and down here we could see the exposed brickwork and the crumbling pastel coloured stucco, sun blistered and frost picked and giving in to the constant assault of the waters of the lagoon as it gnaws and gouges its relentless way into the fabric of the buildings.
Our boat was in perfect condition and lovingly cared for from aft to stern. Gondolas are hand made using eight different types of wood, fir, oak, cherry, walnut, elm, mahogany, larch and lime and are composed of two hundred and eighty pieces. The oars are made of beech wood. The left side of the gondola is made longer than the right side and this asymmetry causes the gondola to resist the tendency to turn toward the left at the forward stroke from the right hand side of the boat.
From the busy Rio di Noale we emerged into the Grand Canal where the gondolier had to have his wits about him as he competed for space with the Vaporetto the motor boat taxis and dozens more gondola each one full of gaping wide eyed tourists admiring the elaborate mansions and palaces that make this Venice’s most exclusive area.
The ride continued past rows of gaily coloured mooring poles and almost to the famous Rialto bridge but we weren’t going that far so we had to make do with only a look before he turned the gondola into the calmer waters of Rio dei Santi Apostoli and we began a new journey into the back canals of Venice which after twenty minutes or so returned us to the bridge where we had started.
From the Disney Web Site:
FUN FACTS: To say “hello” in Italian, say “buon giornio” (boo-on JOR-no)
Posted in Cathedrals, Europe, History, Hotels, Italy, Natural Environment, Travel, USA, World Heritage
Tagged Culture, Disney World, EPCOT, Gondolas, Life, Venice, World Showcase
Have Bag, Will Travel 