|
|
|
|
 |
|
EPCOT,
the second oldest of Disney's Floridian theme parks was opened in
1982, and will probably need two days if you want to see and do
everything within the park, (One day in Future World, and one day
around the World Showcase, however many may find it less interesting
than The Magic Kingdom or the Disney MGM Studios.
EPCOT, or the Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow was Walt
Disney's visionary idea comprising a huge transparent dome containing
an entire city of harmony and progress, however with Walt's death in
1966, many of the original ideas for EPCOT were lost, and the
resulting EPCOT Centre built by the Disney imagineers is a compromise
between the parts of the dream laid out by Walt, and what could be
achieved in practice. It is subdivided into two main sections, Future
World, and The World Showcase.
Future World
Future World which opens (and closes) earlier than the World Showcase,
pretty much covers the area between the main entrance to EPCOT, and
the large lagoon. It is themed into distinct pavilions, and is
dominated by Spaceship Earth, a large 180ft geodesic sphere made from
white aluminum. As well as providing a focus for the park, Spaceship
Earth contains a slow ride, which winds its way along a track through
the dome itself, tracing the history of human communication from cave
drawings through satellite and television.
Behind Spaceship Earth is the Showcase Plaza with the EPCOT fountain,
and flanked on either side by a curved "Innoventions" building,
containing examples of "technology from tomorrow", though in reality
almost everything on display has been with us for a few years in one
form or another.
In The Living Seas, you can explore a large man-made coral reef,
teeming with tropical fish, or view sharks and manatees
The Land features The Circle of Life, and environmental fable with the
characters from The Lion King, whilst Living with The Land is a sedate
boat ride and walk with an agricultural theme, demonstrating examples
of soil-free gardening, plant biotechnology, fish farming, and pest
management.
The Journey into Imagination pavilion houses the Honey I Shrunk the
Audience 3-D theatre presentation, located in the Imagination
Institute.
The World Showcase
The World Showcase covers the area around the lagoon at EPCOT, and it
provides a view of the cultural heritage of 11 varied nations
including Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, America, Japan,
Morocco, France, The United Kingdom and Canada, though each should be
taken with a large pinch of salt!
Each individual pavilion houses various attractions, including
restaurants, rides, cinema presentations, live shows, and shops
selling articles from the country concerned. The Rose & Crown Pub in
the United Kingdom for example sells a range of typical British Beers
(Bass, Guinness, Harp) in a traditional British Pub environment at
very untraditionally high prices ("Innit Guvnor, Cor Blimey Mate!"),
whilst in The American Adventure an audio-animatronic show depicting
America's "incredible struggles and triumphs" can be seen.
 |
|
|
|