Marathon Monday

Our final full day at Disney World was spent at Epcot.  All marathon finishers were awarded a free ticket to one of the theme parks the next day.  Marathon Monday.  We left the park choice up to Caroline, even though she did not run a marathon and therefore did not receive a free ticket.  She chose Epcot.

I'm glad she did.





You had to present your finisher medal at the park entrance, so that is why Craig is wearing his medal.  I wore mine, too, but it clanked around a lot and bounced on my camera.  Both our medals ended up in my purse shortly after.

I wish I had a good reason why Caroline is wearing that fanny pack fitness belt.  Perhaps she likes looking like a tourist?  Thankfully, her Crocs stayed back in Virginia; for if she had those on, she'd really be treading on nerdy territory.

Our first stop was the big golf ball and the Spaceship Earth ride.

Then we went to The Land to secure our fast past tickets to Soarin'.  We then took a boat ride and saw how they grow fruits and vegetables hydroponically.  Nerd alert.

Have you ever eaten a pommelo?  I haven't.

We ate lunch in the land; my grilled vegetable sandwich (sandwich #5 for those who are keeping track... #4 was a post marathon veggie burger and fries) was made with vegetables grown right there at Epcot.  Talk about buying locally.

After lunch, we went to Test Track to put ourselves in the shoes of a crash test dummy.

And yes, I did sing that one song from the Crash Test Dummies that came out in the early 90s.  Mmm, mmm, mmm, mmm.  Oh, come on; you know that song.


Anyway, I only screamed once during the ride.

That's a record.


After Test Track, we toured the countries in the World Showcase.

Craig and I ran through the World Showcase at the end of the marathon; it was nice to enjoy the architecture without the running part.  By the last mile of a marathon, you're not really focused on the scenery around you; you're much too busy praying and hoping you don't throw up.

Canada

Jolly Old England

France

Italy

Germany

and then the sky looked like this

Nothing like a Florida afternoon thunderstorm.  We high tailed it back to The Land, stopping first to take shelter in another exhibit (Innoventions?).  Once the rain died down, we saw Soarin' which was so much fun and stopped for a snack before heading back to our hotel.

Surprisingly, Craig and I felt pretty good walking around Epcot the day after we had completed a marathon.  We were a little slow, and going down stairs was particularly painful, but all in all, we bounced back pretty quickly.

After a short rest and some knee icing, we went back to Downtown Disney one last time for dinner.  Are we creatures of habit, or what?

Bus stop hijinks.

We also needed to stop at the Christmas shop to get a souvenir ornament.  I picked out a silver Mickey ear ornament, which is hanging from the ornament tree on the table in the picture below.

I also let Caroline pick out an ornament for her stash; she chose the biggest, bluest, sparkliest, glitteriest ornament possible. 

I shouldn't be surprised. 

She was wearing a fanny pack, after all.  ;)

Sandwich #6:  the caprese from Earl of Sandwich.

I know, I know.  Boring repeats.  Of all the new places we could try, we went back for another sandwich.  I can't help it.  I'm in love with that sandwich. 

It's hard to find a restaurant where everyone is happy.  Sandwich places almost always fit that bill.

And with happy, sandwich filled bellies, we bid Disney a good night.