Disney World Epilogue

I guess you just thought I was done with all my Disney posts. Sorry if you're tired of them, but I'm really writing them as a scrapbook for Matt and me to look back on and remember all the fun we had, so I have a few closing thoughts about our trip.

In summary, Disney World exceeded all my expectations. One of the best things about Disney World to me was how much effort they put in each attraction to make it come to life. From the moment we stepped in line for a particular attraction until we exited the gift shop at the end of the attraction, everything followed the theme of the ride. Everything from the decorations they had in the waiting area of the ride, to the background music, to the costumes of the workers, to the greetings by the workers, to the safety directions, to the cars/boats we rode in, to the greeting at the end of the ride and until we stepped outside the gift shop, everything followed the same theme. I've never been to an amusement park where the waiting area was so elaborate and well thought out. It was so much more than just a roller coaster or just a boat ride, it was a true experience that blended imagination and magic with reality.

Another thing that stands out to me about Disney was how well organized and well run the parks were. We were walking around one day, and Matt asked me if I had seen any trash on the ground. I looked around and couldn't see a single piece. I kept my eye out for the rest of the week and can never remember seeing a piece of trash on the ground or even an over flowing trash can. The parks were always immaculate, and the restrooms too which is so rare anywhere else we've been. The restaurants were the same way. We would sit down at a table as soon as the previous occupants left and immediately, a worker was there to clean it off. I've talked about the rope drop, but that's just one example of how organized the parks were. Every attraction ran like a well oiled machine, and there were so many workers that helped things run smoothly. There was always a person asking how many people we had in each attraction and directing us where to stand to wait. I was truly amazed at how many workers there were and how smoothly everything went during our entire stay.

On another note, I wanted to share a list of Matt and my top 10 must do's at Disney World. The guidebook I read gave a list of must do's at each park and the Disney World television station at our hotel had one as well, so here's our list of things we would recommend not missing at Disney World.
Okay, here's the problem though, Matt and I couldn't come up with just 10, so we added a couple of honorable mentions to our Must see list.

Honorable Mentions:

Expedition Everest (Animal Kingdom): Board a high-speed train and zip through the misty unknown. But beware of the fierce Yeti

Kilimanjaro Safari (Animal Kingdom): An open-air safari vehicle takes you on an exciting expedition through an African-style savannah where giraffes, gazelles, elephants, rhinos, and lions roam freely

Mission Space (Epcot): Tap into your inner astronaut as you blast into space without leaving Earth

Our Top 10 Must Do's:

10. Summit Plummet (Blizzard Beach): 120-foot vertical free-falling body slide

9. Finding Nemo, the Musical (Animal Kingdom): See this exciting, original stage show that brings Disney-Pixar's "Finding Nemo" to life right before your eyes through merging puppetry with live performances

8. Rock N Roller Coaster (Hollywood Studios): A "road trip" with twists, turns, and loops through Tinseltown

7. Crush N Gusher (Typhoon Lagoon): Prepare for uphill climbs and drops on this intense water coaster

6. Fantasmic (Hollywood Studios): Nighttime spectacular with lasers, lights, dancing fountains, and special effects.

5. Toy Story Mania (Hollywood Studios): Join your favorite "Toy Story" characters in a 4D midway style game-playing adventure

4. Tower of Terror (Hollywood Studios): Drop 13 stories, at random into another dimension

3. Splash Mountain (Magic Kingdom): Plunge 5 stories into Brer Rabbit's Laughin' Place

2. Wishes nighttime spectacular (Magic Kingdom): Evening fireworks show

1. Dinner Reservation at Cinderella's Royal Table (on your anniversary) (Magic Kingdom)

If we revisit Disney World again in the future, these are definitely all attractions that we won't miss.

Finally, I want to share a little bit about the reasons why Matt and I make an effort to go on vacations together. When we got married, we promised each other that we would try and take a vacation together every year. We choose to splurge on vacations rather than other things. We drive practical cars, go out to eat 2-3 times a month instead of 2-3 times a week and make other budgeting sacrifices throughout the year to afford to spend our money in this way. Other than the vacations being amazingly fun, there are other important reasons that we choose to spend our time and money in this way.

1. Stress relief: Although so far in our marriage the Lord has protected from a lot of stressors, our jobs and life in general can be stressful at times. Getting away from reality for a week and being able to leave our worries and stress at home is refreshing and allows us to cope with our stress in healthier ways when we get back.

2. Quality Time: My primary love language and Matt's secondary love language is quality time. Regardless of where we go, one of the things we most look forward to during vacations is just spending all day everyday together for a week. Hands down, I would prefer a weekend getaway or a summer vacation to elaborate gifts for birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays. We both always come home with full "love tanks" after a getaway together.

3. Memories: Some of the best memories we have in our marriage come from experiences we shared together on vacation. Some of these include climbing the waterfall in Jamaica, seeing Cirque Du Solei in Vegas, snorkeling in Cozumel, taking a carriage ride through Central Park, strolling along the beach at Montauk, and watching the fireworks at Cinderella's castle. I cherish the day to day memories we make as well, but the special vacation memories always bring a smile to my face.

4. Our Marriage: I am a firm believer that taking vacations together has strengthened our marriage. All of the above reasons I mentioned (stress relief, quality time, and making memories) contribute to a stronger marriage. We put a lot of effort in protecting our marriage from Satan and worldly influences. It's like we do things in our lives (date nights, attending church together, praying for each other, etc.) that add bricks to a wall surrounding our marriage that protects it from outside negative influences. Whenever we get back from a vacation, we bring back some extra bricks in our suitcase to add to our wall making it taller and stronger.

I pray that even when life gets stressful, busy, or finances are tight, we will still show each other that our marriage is a priority by taking time to vacation together.