Who needs the hassle of a passport and jet lag when you can travel the world right here at Walt Disney World? World Showcase, one of two themed sections of Epcot, comprises 11 countries arranged around a lagoon. Watch belly dancing in Morocco, eat pizza in Italy and buy personally engraved bottles of perfume in France, before settling down to watch fireworks about world peace and harmony. Disney was right. It truly is a small world after all.
Sure, this is quite a sanitized stereotypical vision of the world, but so what? This is, after all, a theme park. And who knows, an afternoon here might just inspire you to hop a plane and check out the real thing, and it certainly is a fun way to show kids a little something about the world.
The best way to experience the World Showcase is to simply wander as the mood moves you, poking through stores and restaurants, and catching what amounts to Bureau of Tourism promotional films and gentle rides through some of the countries. Donald Duck and his comrades take you through Mexico in Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros ; Norway's rather odd boat-ride Maelstrom meanders past Vikings, trolls and waterfalls; and the American Adventure show features audio-animatonic figures presenting a simplified interpretation of US history. The featured countries from left to right around the water are Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, the USA (The American Adventure), Japan, Morocco, France, the UK and Canada.
