With Disney and other theme parks closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are using their imaginations to create great escapes-something I think Walt Disney would be proud of since he inspired so many people to dream big. Now some Disney fans enthusiastically showcase their unique stay-at-home moments and talents on social media: the parody by a young couple on a pretend visit to Disney World, and the Texas family that created a livingroom version of the EPCOT attraction Soar’n. Maybe the next best thing to being there?
Then there are the Disney culinary delights conjured in the kitchen. Mickey waffles, anyone? Perhaps a churro? Somehow, someway, the faithful are making their brand of magic. I planned to visit EPCOT at Walt Disney World this month (May 2020) for the International Flower and Garden Festival. I am an avid gardener, and the festival is such a wonderful opportunity to get some fresh new ideas, chat with garden experts, and marvel at the wonderful, elegant, and humorous topiaries on display.
My last festival visit was many years ago at this time of year and I longed to return, but a busy life just got in the way. I was committed to being there in 2020. May is also a great time to visit Disney World because it is considered a gap month between the spring break and summer seasons when crowds swell. I pouted internally like a 12-year-old at missing, yet again, this year’s opportunity to go. (A man of a certain age should never pout openly to the rest of the family. Be strong, I told myself.) So, instead of driving to Orlando, I did the next best thing: I pretended with childlike imagination at home. I have a Mickey statue and he’s made in the form of a gardener. It was gifted to me several years ago. So, I placed Mickey at several different locations in my garden and snapped a few photos with my iPhone. I retouched the photos a bit in an app called Snapseed to give Mickey a little visual makeover. It was a sunny mid-morning and the air was cool, a rare comfortable day in May by Florida standards. My garden is bursting with color this time of year so the setting was perfect, just like you’d expect at the International Flower and Garden Festival but at a much lesser scale, of course. I placed Mickey next to the window boxes of impatiens. That was such an obvious location. I then moved around the garden looking for the best spots, just like a fashion photographer seeking to showcase their most prized model. Only my model is made of plastic and didn’t talk, didn’t move. A perfect cooperative subject! Was all this silly? Yes! Fun? Absolutely! It was my great escape for just a few minutes. I hope to see the real thing in 2021. Be well, be safe.
Click on the photos to see Mickey in the Mellow Wanderer Garden.
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Once it’s safe to travel again and visit the Orlando theme parks, check out the resources below that helped me plan previous visits. NOTE: Mellow Wanderer did not receive compensation or endorsements. Suggestions, thoughts, and opinions are my own.
The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World guidebook series.
The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World with Kids series.
Touringplans.com has real-time attraction wait times, crowd calendars, and more.
