After school last Wednesday, my host family and I made our way to the Columbus Airport to take a plane to Orlando. I am sure there are lots of good places in Orlando to go visit, but I think you all know where I am going with this. Disney World, the happiest place on earth. YES, I went to Disney, and YES, it was awesome, and NO, I am not too old to get autographs from the characters (and hugs). Two days at EPCOT and one day at Magic Kingdom, three days filled with fun rides and lots to see, and lots of T-shirts to buy.

    BUT, before you plan a Disney trip, you should know that Disney is work. This is not a vacation. I repeat, this is not a vacation. If you are travelling south in search of beaches and relaxation, Disney World is not the place you’re looking for. It takes a whole lot of planning (thank you host mom), and your “vacation” is on a tight schedule between Fastpasses (it lets you cut to the front of the line). And YES, for some rides Fastpasses are essential unless standing in line for two hours sounds like something you would like to do.  

    When we were at EPCOT, we visited “Norway” to see if it would pass my legitimacy test, as I am a true Norwegian. It turned out to be pretty accurate, and I got to speak Norwegian with the cast members/staff (because Disney is too happy of a place to have employees). Somebody even told me that I should get a job in “Norway.”

    A food and wine festival was going on when we were at EPCOT, and I swear there were more people there than in the actual country of Norway. By “Germany” we got stuck in a traffic jam. The lines for the snack stops were so long; one line started in “Germany” and ended in “Japan.  ” There’s so many people in the U.S. that people seem okay with waiting in line that long, for most things. But when it comes to food, Americans get impatient after five minutes.  All in all, it was an awesome “vacation” with some awesome people. Now I can cross that off my bucket list!