On The Road Again

Well, I'm off. I leave today for a week long trip to see Stephanie.

I'm flying into Washington D.C. for a quick meal with Stephanie's mom and Doug. Tomorrow, Stephanie's working so I'm going to hang around our nation's capital. Most likely, I'm going to the Smithsonian American History Museum. I'll join Stephanie for lunch then dinner plans are up in the air.

The 12th is our 4th anniversary. How are we celebrating? Road trip!

We'll be driving up to Rhode Island to visit her dad and Sue. Hopefully, we'll be able to get to the beach on Friday or Saturday.

There is somewhat of a debate about what to eat for our anniversary lunch. Dinner is kinda out of the question because we'll be with family, so it's all about lunch. Stephanie doesn't like stopping because she hates road trips. The plan is to get drive thru. Not even sit down. My theory is to sit down in a restuarant and give ourselves a break. Stephanie wants to get there. We'll see what happens.

We drive back on Sunday to D.C. and I fly back to Atlanta and go straight to work on Monday.

This should be a very nice trip. It's been quite a while since I've seen Stephanie so it will be a great chance to see her again.

As far as the blog goes, I've already written a few posts that will automatically show up later this week and into next week.

Welcome Back to the American Adventure (in Photos)

Stephanie is returning to America from her European trip. Finally!

I got a call from Stephanie this morning and she is scheduled to leave from the United Kingdom and arrive back around 6:00 tonight. Since calling from the international terminal might be difficult, she said she would only give a call back if those plans changed.

As of now, I haven't recieved that call.

So, to welcome her back and get her back in the red, white, and blue spirit, I give you the American Adventure from EPCOT's World Showcase.



There's not a whole lot to be honest. That grand structure is about six stories, but forced perspective is used to make it appear only three stories from a distance. The reason is because buildings in the revolutionary time were only two or three stories high, but this building needed to be as tall as everything else in the World Showcase.

As far as entertainment, if you are lucky; you can catch the Fife and Drum Corps.



You can also catch the American Adventure show staring Mark Twain and Ben Franklin. "America! Spread your golden wings!"

Get there early. You can catch the Voice of Liberty accepella group. They are wonderful. The museum there is small, but gives a nice slice of liberty.



Next door, you can get your all American cheeseburger or hot dog. Hanging on the wall are flags from the original thirteen colonies.



Here we see Virginia (for Stephanie)...



... and Georgia for most of the rest of us.



I am glad Stephanie is back. I will fill you in on her adventures later. Hope you enjoyed!

TTFN

The African Outpost from EPCOT in Pictures

Okay. This will be the shortest entry for pictures. Only five.



That's it!

They are most known for their refreshments and African sculptures. I never got a picture I liked of the sculptures.

There are several refridgerators in the area stocked with cokes. If you open them up, you get a cool burst of an icy breeze. You can also get my favorite snacks here. A Coke Float or a Frozen Coke. Love it love it love it!

I don't know why there's an African Outpost. It seems like there should be a country here. Egypt would be awesome. Greece too. Like where Stephanie currently is. Maybe Brazil. There's not a South American country represented in the World Showcase.

Oh well.

I will join you again soon. TTFN.

Message from Stephanie

Stephanie sent an email to a few folks today. I copied and pasted it here.

--

Hi everyone,

I'm sure everyone has been worried about me and Krista but we are hanging in there. We have been stuck in Paris and never made it to Rome or Athens. We managed to book a train up to London on Wednesday and are hoping to catch our original flight out of London back to the US. Sorry we haven't been in touch more but it is extremely difficult to find a phone and just getting on gmail has been a struggle. We have a new hotel now right next to the Eiffel Tower and it is really nice. We are safe but to be honest are kinda tired of Paris at this point. We have pretty much done it all and seen all the sights. I'm gonna get McDonald's in a little bit cuz I just want a burger and fries. No Mountain Dew here either...you know how much I am missing it! Donna--please let everyone at work know that we are safe and will hopefully make it back on Wednesday night. This might be our only email as this cyber cafe is not that close to our hotel. I hope everyone is doing well and we will see everyone soon! I swear I will kiss the ground of the USA when we get back!!

Love,

Stephanie and Krista

--

So to sum up her trip,

Monday, April 12
Left from the United States



Tuesday, April 13
Arrived in London



Wednesday, April 14
Arrived in Paris



Thursday, April 15
Paris



Friday, April 16
Paris



Saturday, April 17
Paris



Sunday, April 18
Paris



Monday, April 19
Paris



Tuesday, April 20
Paris (expected)



Wednesday, April 21
Hopefully they will be on their way home.

I sure do miss her and I hope she gets home safe. We did talk today and said the McDonalds was the best meal she's had since being over there. The Sprite was weird, the fries were a little off, but the double cheeseburger was perfect and delicious.

I'll keep everyone updated as much as possible. I hope you will all keep Stephanie and Krista in your thoughts and prayers.

Thanks!

TTFN

Italy Pictures

Stephanie never made it to Italy. She was going to go by train, but those plans were canceled. So, she's staying in France and will go by Chunnel back to London on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Who knows if she will get her flight out on Wednesday back to the United States.

I already did the post about Italy, so I'm going to post it, even if Stephanie isn't going there.

I really miss her. She's smart, her friend Krista is tough, so I'm not worried about them.

But I'm worried about them.

This has been the longest time I have not spoken with her since we met and it's driving me insane! Just due to the time difference and the Braves schedule, it is difficult. She is calling her mom who is emailing me, so I do have an idea of what's going on. Thank you Brenda!

I've got to think about something else. Braves. Braves. Braves.

And EPCOT's Italy.

Here is the original post...

-----

EPCOT's Italy in the World Showcase is very small. Germany type small. Not exactly huge. But stunning.

Let's take a look around at the statues and beautiful buildings.



Italy certainly has a lot of masks. I've always been fascinated by masks.



There is also an angel statue. I was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of this magnificent statue in the early morning as the sun hit behind it just right...



There is also a statue of the Neptune, God of the Sea. If you toss a coin behind your back into the fountain, it's said to be good luck.



Finally, I leave you with Sergio the Italian clown.

I've told the story before. Read the story here.

Once you read this post, you can clearly see why Stephanie and I both do not exactly like Sergio. He is not our friend.



Tomorrow, we venture to the African Outpost.

TTFN

Stephanie versus the Volcano

In case you haven't heard, there is a volcano that erupted in Iceland. The ash is covering everything in Europe and the air travel has been halted.

It's the greatest impact in that part of the world since Sept 11, 2001.

I talked with her this morning, but she doesn't know what is going to happen. She is suppose to go to Germany for a layover in route to Italy today, but she may need to stay in Paris for a while.

I'll keep you informed as I get more information.

She is doing fine and said she's taken a lot of pictures.

TTFN

Stephanie is Across the Pond...(UK Pictures)

My beloved Stephanie is currently on a trip with her friend Krista. They are traveling around Europe.

What better way to honor her than by showing the different countries she's visiting in an Epcot sort of way?

They are starting in the United Kingdom, home of Winnie the Pooh and his friends from the Hidden Acre Woods. Stephanie has already met them, so she will probably not be meeting with this group again. And no, I don't know what Stephanie is looking at. Maybe honey because Pooh is looking the same way.



Let's have a stroll around some of the streets of the United Kingdom.



There's plenty of mail boxes, telephone booths, and gardens with some nice designs. Even a garden maze. Of course, I'm taller than the bushes, so the maze isn't all that difficult.



There are some fun places in the United Kingdom. The Rose and Crown Pub is one. This was so named in EPCOT because Disney researchers found the two most common words in English pub names were Crown and Rose. So, naturally... We can also see part of a favorite store of mine.



Let's go in the shoppe...



As you can see from the blocks, Mary Poppins also lives in Jolly Old England. I mean, United Kingdom. Great Britian. I don't know the difference. I do know the difference between these ladies and bears and tiggers. Alice from Alice and Wonderland, the practically perfect in every way Mary Poppins, and a solo visit with Pooh and Tigger. Eeyore was absent. He lost his tail and was trying to find it.



To borrow from my pal Tigger, TTFN! Where will Stephanie go next? We shall see. Here's a hint. She's traveling to five different countries (including U.K.). All but one are countries in EPCOT's World Showcase. The only one that is not is Greece, her last country. I will substitute another country in its place. Any suggestions? I'll get to them all, but if there's something yall want to see before hand, I'll happily accomidate.