Final Friday

Our last day. Cue a tear in the eye.

Since The Crystal Palace is a mutual favorite -- not everyone's personal favorite, necessarily, but a favorite of all as a group -- we had lunch scheduled there for one last get together.

That meant spend the morning, after two loads of laundry because Little Girl hadn't given me even one of her things yet, at the Magic Kingdom again. There is so much to see and do, and then do again!

Lunch was a delight as usual. At The Crystal Palace, Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet and Tigger come to each table to greet the diners, and it is such fun to watch the reactions of the small children as they get to greet their favorites come to life. My brother challenged #2 Son to pose for a picture with Eeyore, which he did, making a very silly face indeed.

Sweetie then went back to the hotel to rest for a bit and everyone else scattered to the winds. Sweetie and i would meet up again for a dinner for just the two of us as Kona, which is his personal favorite restaurant on site, at the Polynesian Resort. Meanwhile, i had time to myself. Some of that time i spent alone, just admiring the architecture and attention to detail for which Disney is famous. Every nook and cranny means something and is well maintained. Also i took a ride on the train, which i hadn't done yet this visit.

Dinner was a treat, as Kona and the Polynesian are both some of Disney's finest places. Yes, they serve real pressed pot Kona coffee, but it was evening so i couldn't have any. Their decaf is a Kona blend, though, thick and strong and delicious. After we ate, we wandered back to Epcot, and went Soarin' again. As it had been a long day, we didn't stay for the fireworks, which we had seen earlier in the week anyway. Travel days are difficult, so we wanted to get a little rest and called it a night.


Today is:

Curlew Day -- Umatilla National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon, US

Ember Day -- Western Catholic Christian (first Ember Day of Lent, a day for prayer and fasting)

Everything You Do is Right Day

Freedom of Information Day

Latvian Legion Day -- Latvia (no longer a formal national holiday, still celebrated by many in the region)

Liberalia -- Ancient Roman Empire (one of the Bacchanalian feasts, through tomorrow)

Lips Appreciation Day

National Artichoke Hearts Day

St. Heribert of Cologne's Day

St. Urho's Day -- Canadian and US Finnish communities (a made up saint, the Finns answer to St. Patrick)

Well-Elderly Day


Birthdays Today:

Kevin Tod Smith, 1963
Erik Estrada, 1949
Bernardo Bertolucci, 1940
Jerry Lewis, 1926
Mercedes McCambridge, 1916
Patricia Nixon, 1912
Henny Youngman, 1906
Georg Simon Ohm, 1787
James Madison, 1751


Today in History:

The Babylonians capture Jerusalem and replace Jehoiachin with Zedekiah as king, BC597
Caligula becomes Roman Emperor after the death of his great uncle, Tiberius, 37
The Jews of York England commit mass suicide rather than submit to baptism, 1190
Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan reaches Philippines, 1521
Samoset, a Mohegan, visits the settlers of Plymouth Colony and greets them, "Welcome, Englishmen! My name is Samoset," 1621
The US Army Corps of Engineers is established to found and operate the United States Military Academy at West Point, 1802
Prince Willem of the House of Orange-Nassau proclaims himself King of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, the first constitutional monarch in The Netherlands, 1815
New York Stock Exchange slowest day ever (31 shares traded), 1830
Susan Hayhurst becomes the first woman to graduate from a pharmacology college, 1830
Edward Clark became Governor of Texas, replacing Sam Houston, who was evicted from the office for refusing to take an oath of loyalty to the Confederacy, 1861
Joseph Lister's article outlining the discovery of antiseptic surgery is published in The Lancet, 1867
Hiram R Revels makes the first official speech by an African American in the US Senate, 1869
The Barnum and Bailey Circus debuts, 1881
Sir Arthur Evans discovers the ancient city of Knossus, 1900
Robert Goddard launches the first liquid-fueled rocket, at Auburn, Massachusetts, 1926
The Ford Motor Company produces its 50 millionth automobile, the Thunderbird, averaging almost a million cars a year since the company's founding, 1958
Gemini 8 is launched, the 12th manned American space flight and first space docking with the Agena Target Vehicle, 1968
General Motors produces its 100 millionth automobile, the Oldsmobile Toronado, 1968
Demolition of the radio tower Ismaning, the last wooden radio tower in Germany, 1983
Associated Press newsman Terry Anderson is taken hostage in Beirut; he will be held for 6 1/2 years, 1985
Pope John Paul II asks God for forgiveness for the inactivity and silence of some Roman Catholics during the Holocaust, 1998
Israel officially hands over Jericho to Palestinian control, 2005