Life Is Such A Sweet Insanity.

Here is a shot of Earl and me from the same set of stairs at Disney’s Hollywood Studios as the shot on the front page of jpnearl.com. This photo on the main page was taken in 2005, this shot was taken on Monday.

I tried to snap a few photos at “Fantasmic!” but without a tripod and the unwillingness of the audience member in front of me to tolerate my using his head as a steadying stand, the long shutter speed proved to be a bit of a challenge. These photos were taken with my Canon Rebel.

Daylight shots are so much easier. Here’s Earl, Jamie and Scott waiting for me to take a photo. We don’t know the woman in pink.

I have been using my iPhone for photography more than anything other purpose on this trip and this has contributed to the feeling of relaxation that I am enjoying this week. I hear that it’s just as warm at home as it is here in Florida. Quite a contrast to a few incidents of our return home in previous years, where we couldn’t get into the driveway due to the amount of snow we received.

Yesterday was spent at the Magic Kingdom where we enjoyed the entire park, ending the night at Tomorrowland. I would share the photos from that adventure but the Photo Stream syncing thing that Steve talked about last year doesn’t work as well as one would expect. The photos are sitting on my iPhone waiting to be shared with my other devices when they’re not just on the same wifi, but apparently on the same better wifi.

I think Tomorrowland is best enjoyed at night. Space Mountain is a great ride to enjoy right before going to sleep. I’ll have to share the photos when the wifis are speaking to each other.

Today we are headed to Epcot, Part 1. I love Epcot. We choose to divide Epcot into a two day adventure; today we’ll enjoy the front half and then tomorrow we’ll enjoy the World Showcase Pavilion (or something like that).

I often wonder what life would be like if Disney had gone forward with Walt’s vision of Epcot as a real community. I think it would have been awesome.

– Proudly posted using BlogPress from my first generation iPad

I love people watching. I simply adore the sport and quite frankly I could spend hours and hours in my own little place of a busy space and watch the people go by going through their routine, wherever it may be. Whether it be a busy airport, a restaurant, the shopping mall; these are all wonderful places to do some pretty good people watching. Walt Disney World is no exception.

One of the things I find fascinating about Disneyworld is the mixture of cultures that is found here, both from folks from different parts of the country and from folks around the world. This morning I watched a family come trodding through the bushes to the bus stop, wearing what looked like Hefty bags for rain gear instead of the Disney-branded rain ponchos just spontaneously start conversing with a family that was wearing high-end foul weather gear that had arrived in a decked out Escalade. Forced to sit next to each other on the bus, it was only a few moments where the matronly woman of the Hefty bag set was talking to the Grand Dame of the Escalade set and before you know it they were talking like they were long lost friends. The southern accent and the New England lack of “r”s were contrasting in the conversation, but they found a common ground and seemed to be getting along really well.

I find this fascinating.

I watched a couple that appeared to be my age play on the bus with their two children. He looked like the business type, she looked like the well groom mother of the 00s type and they had two daughters that appeared to be adopted as they were both from differing ethnicities. That made my heart warm. No worries about color or the like, just lots of love.

Wonderful.

A waiter at one of the restaurants today commented on my moustache and how he used to have one until he moved to the states, where at 21 or 22 years old (quite a while ago) he shaved it off to fit in better. His father was dismayed as he felt that a man should always have a moustache, at least where he is from. I didn’t know that there was that much importance on moustaches elsewhere in the world.

You learn something everyday.

The weather has been soggy for most of the day. It’s the only day of our vacation where the weather forecast indicates rain and the showers have been right on cue. Watching how people find ways to still enjoy themselves in the rain has been interesting to me. Some choose to just wear their regular clothes and go all out wet, others make it a wet t-shirt contest and the majority of park guests don the ponchos and still stand in lines to see the attractions. It’s good to be in an atmosphere where the spirits are high.

My heart and mind are soaring.

– Proudly posted using BlogPress from my first generation iPad

Well we are settled in safe and sound at Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa at Walt Disney World. This was after about 22 hours of driving. I found the drive enjoyable.

We made a side trip to visit my godparents for a little bit on our way to Orlando. They live about 40 minutes outside of the city and have become Upstate New York snowbirds. These are the folks that find a place to retire to during the more harsher months of the year back home. They found a quaint little trailer in a small retirement community. The visit was enjoyable; we had not seen them since before the holidays. It’s always good to visit with the relatives from time to time.

Upon our arrival at the room, we freshened ourselves up (I had been wearing the same clothes for three days) and headed over to the Magic Kingdom. This is a tradition in our family; we always spend the first night at Tomorrowland at Magic Kingdom. The first ride is on the PeopleMover.

We made our way around Tomorrowland, enjoying the Carousel of Progress, Space Mountain and the Buzz Lightyear attraction before calling it a night.

Now we are just waiting for our groceries to be delivered so we can pop some corn before hitting the hay.

– Proudly posted using BlogPress from my first generation iPad

Tonight we have stopped at the brand new Hampton Inn in beautiful midtown Savannah, Ga. We have done little more than drive and eat. States passed through include Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.

Interstate 81 is more congested with trucks in Virginia than I like. The trucks like to get side by side and climb hills together. The problem is that they like to take the challenge slowly, which backs up traffic behind the coupled trucks. This does not make for a pleasant driving experience for the rest of the motoring public.

We thought we had a reservation at the Hampton Inn at Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport but we did not. A few quick fingers on an iPad and we had the last room at the next closest Hampton Inn. Apparently it was the last room, period, for the entire city of Savannah because Bike Week is gearing up and people are staying in this area on their way down to Florida. I-95 should be a hoot tomorrow.

I’m going to get some rest.

Well we are settled in at the Top of the 80s for the night. We have stayed at this Hampton Inn before, it seems to be a popular stop for our drives. We are going to get up bright and early and keep heading south tomorrow. I’m hoping to make it to Savannah or even farther.

I have hopes.

As usual, it’s raining in Pennsylvania as we make our way along our vacation route. It would not be a vacation unless it was raining through this part of Pennsylvania. It doesn’t rain when we go to Philly, but it rains in Scranton, Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton. It’s just the way it is. I’m without complaint. I know it doesn’t sound like I’m without complaint, but I just make observations. That’s the way it is.

As promised, I am using nothing but my first gen iPad as my computing device of choice for this vacation. I’m excited by the challenge. And based on the number of messages I received since blogging this afternoon, I may really get the “I’m a first gen iPad owner!” t-shirts printed up with a retro Apple logo on them. I could make a mint.

– Proudly posted using BlogPress from my first generation iPad