Not really a hockey fan so again let's stay on topic please.Ok...I think "project S" stands for "stanley"...as in cups...as in multiple
(You had that one coming )
Not really a hockey fan so again let's stay on topic please.Ok...I think "project S" stands for "stanley"...as in cups...as in multiple
(You had that one coming )
Not really a hockey fan so again let's stay on topic please.
As someone who is half Norwegian and has been to the REAL Norway (Have you?), I'm a little put off by your remarks. First, Norway is a country, it is not made up of countries. Also, the Norway Pavilion is a perfect representation of Old Norway. You have Bergen (west coast), a Stave Church (found all over the country), and Akershus Fortress, which is in Olso on the Eastern side of the country. I always love visiting the pavilion because I recognize the surroundings it and it feels real.
I agree with the others that adding Frozen to the pavilion does nothing to support the idea of Norway. I can also add I was very upset when the removed Maelstrom. I like the Frozen movie, and would probably like FEA, but I don't feel it belongs in EPCOT. It'd be like putting Aladdin's Flying Carpets in Morocco.... doesn't quite jive with the idea of learning about a REAL country.
Anna and elsa made their way to norway due to closing of malestrom which was due to norway not supporting the country, financially, any more (2002 was the last time that the ACTUAL country of Norway donated money). The idea of frozen is like nails on a chalk board because the idea of learning about norway (the spirit of Norway *in my best viking accent*). is gone and therefore it defeats the purpose that was intended for Epcot.
Siemens, GM, Chase sponsors things at Food and Wine. That's all I got.Can someone list all of the sponsors that still exist in Epcot? Just a few now and as far as I know Morocco is the only country. Norway was destroyed pretty much but I suspect that they are just the first.
Project S then... Anything else known about it?
Siemens, GM, Chase sponsors things at Food and Wine. That's all I got.
I looked Nestle up it appears Nestle pulled out around 2009. HP sponsored Mission Space until a couple years ago too. GM is still going strong.Right...at one time everything on that side of the lake was sponsored and some things in the countries as well.
It shows that model is broke and explains why they've kinda run the place into the ground.
Big names too: nestle (might still sponsor the land?), coke, Amex, Kodak, GM, Exxon, MetLife, sylvania, united technologies...
I looked Nestle up it appears Nestle pulled out around 2009. HP sponsored Mission Space until a couple years ago too. GM is still going strong.
Yes yes yes!!!!
My DH found EPCOT World Showcase very peculiar. All he would elaborate was, "I lived in most of these countries... this isn't their culture... this is kitschy "what-Americans-without-passports-think-Europe-is-like." I was like,"fair point. Nobody prepares Kazakhstani food like the Kazakhstani people. well, yeah, let's NOT visit the Canada pavilion then... " We DID enjoy the Japan area though, as we haven't been able to visit in person. SO MUCH SHOPPING.
I knew Ellen's Energy was outdated and painful with no exit, so we didn't even walk over there. Okay, truth be told, if I went anywhere near the former World of Life pavilion, I was going to howl and cry like a professional Egyptian mourner. MY 2ND FAV PLACE and they've killed it too.... oh Figment...
So yeah PLEASE make EPCOT fun and wonderful again - do not let me see the attractions falling apart!!! Anymore than they already are....
I have to say...I enjoyed this. And not - as I'm always pigeonholed as - because it's "anti-management"...but because it uses actual real facts/experiences and perceptions from a different point of view. So thank you.
The standard criticism of Epcot that has been used to justify the IP dump is that "it's not real anyway"...as in its fanaticized representations. That is of course true...Deutsch don't wear lederhosen everyday and Canadians go out in things other than flannel. But what showcase does do is create a familiarity/emotional tie to places by being lighthearted and still managing to give hint of real culture and education. Remember it was built very much during the Cold War.
For those of us that saw that in the pre digital/internet era...it was great experience that has lasted and is why it will always be my favorite park.
But sadly...your very valid critique is falling on some deaf ears here...because many can't mentally handle the idea that disney has or will make big mistakes in their parks...because that tarnishes their "happy place" and any valid criticism is too big of a mental hurdle to jump. All warm and fuzzies...no thought in this case.
No way in hell a valid argument can be made that Norway didn't fit the theme/intent of Epcot as constructed or that frozen "sorta fits"...it doesn't.
They could have stuck with the meet and greet just like the other pavilions and not permenantly altered the overall concept/theme. But it was quick and brash and not meant for the longterm. That's your current management.
I'll agree to a certain extent.
But on the other hand, all the remnants I've seen of "old Epcot" are about as educational as a 4th grade country report. The food "sort of" resembles the country's food. The history is from a pre- Cold War set of encyclopedias that the kid's grandma owns. The "artifacts" resemble souvenirs that someone brought back from a family trip. As in, no real German would be caught dead in that particular lederhosen. I haven't been to Norway but I've been to the U.K. and Germany. At no point did I feel like I was in those countries. It's like being on a really cute movie set.
I love Epcot. I had my picture taken in front of the Norway troll. But I tend to laugh at the idea that people ever went to it for the educational aspect, or that it was ever meant to be purely educational. Because if people want to be educated about space travel, they could go to the smithsonian or Kennedy space center. If they want to drink grapefruit beer and watch astronaut Mickey dance, they could go to Epcot.
Hey...it was never "cultural immersion"...no argument there.
But if you assume that it was a "soft" take on the stated concept of "a permenant worlds fair"...then there is a sort of uniform accomplishment. Touristy things - like world fairs - were always gonna be cheeky. You let yourself accept the magic kingdom...why can't we let ourselves accept the world we would wish for in Epcot. It worked on me and still could...that is a timeless appeal. To let go and not feel dumbed down for doing it.
Some...like the mexico and Canada pavilions...is pretty much cheese. The American adventure is trapped in time in a lifelong battle against the soviets...
But...the quaint attempt to recreate the Parisian streets and the elegance of parts of Impressions De France...the gardens off the little streets in the U.K...the piazza where some (cough) have gotten married in the Italian pavilion...the courtyard in the German Pavilion...
...there can be charm there. A singing snowman honestly would wipe any of that charm away.
I'm not disagreeing with the Frozen location haters. I would prefer maelstrom- mostly because I don't actually like Frozen. There are actually a quite a few references to Norwegian culture/landscape in the film- I just don't like the film. I'd prefer Maelstrom...even though I doubt that was much more culturally accurate.
I was just pointing out that there isn't a lot of basis for the "introduction of characters/rides will ruin the educational aspect" argument. A soft take on world's fairs is exactly what it was designed to be. I agree, I am charmed by it. But it's "educational" like magic kingdom is "magical". It's make believe either way.
Yes yes yes!!!!
Okay, truth be told, if I went anywhere near the former World of Life pavilion, I was going to howl and cry like a professional Egyptian mourner. MY 2ND FAV PLACE and they've killed it too.... oh Figment...
So yeah PLEASE make EPCOT fun and wonderful again - do not let me see the attractions falling apart!!! Anymore than they already are....
I'll agree to a certain extent.
But on the other hand, all the remnants I've seen of "old Epcot" are about as educational as a 4th grade country report. The food "sort of" resembles the country's food. The history is from a pre- Cold War set of encyclopedias that the kid's grandma owns. The "artifacts" resemble souvenirs that someone brought back from a family trip. As in, no real German would be caught dead in that particular lederhosen. I haven't been to Norway but I've been to the U.K. and Germany. At no point did I feel like I was in those countries. It's like being on a really cute movie set.
I love Epcot. I had my picture taken in front of the Norway troll. But I tend to laugh at the idea that people ever went to it for the educational aspect, or that it was ever meant to be purely educational. Because if people want to be educated about space travel, they could go to the smithsonian or Kennedy space center. If they want to drink grapefruit beer and watch astronaut Mickey dance, they could go to Epcot.
I agree with this. To me, the beauty of Epcot is not that it teaches you anything, but that it inspires you to learn more. That's why I am actually ok with the changes in Norway. It doesn't matter if Arendelle is a fictional city if it inspires people to learn more about the real Norway. Same for any of the countries in the WS. I studied German in college and spent some time in the country, partially inspired by my first visit as a young person to the "fake" Germany in WS. After my dad, an avid gardener, visited the "fake"Japan at the WS, he went back home and read and learned about Japanese gardens and built his own Japanese garden in our back yard. He even went to Japan for a year through an exchange program with the college where he taught. He had been inspired by his visit to Epcot.
Neither Spaceship Earth nor The Land teach us that much, but they certainly inspire me to read and learn more about history and farming and space because the rides make those things seem fascinating.
That's really how I view WDW as a whole: Inspirational. I can't say that I have learned a lot visiting the parks, but my visits there have inspired me to read and learn more and to be excited about things I may never have been previously excited about. That is one of the biggest challenges in education is getting people excited about learning. I think Epcot does that. At least, it does for me.
I agree with this. To me, the beauty of Epcot is not that it teaches you anything, but that it inspires you to learn more. That's why I am actually ok with the changes in Norway. It doesn't matter if Arendelle is a fictional city if it inspires people to learn more about the real Norway. Same for any of the countries in the WS. I studied German in college and spent some time in the country, partially inspired by my first visit as a young person to the "fake" Germany in WS. After my dad, an avid gardener, visited the "fake"Japan at the WS, he went back home and read and learned about Japanese gardens and built his own Japanese garden in our back yard. He even went to Japan for a year through an exchange program with the college where he taught. He had been inspired by his visit to Epcot.
Neither Spaceship Earth nor The Land teach us that much, but they certainly inspire me to read and learn more about history and farming and space because the rides make those things seem fascinating.
That's really how I view WDW as a whole: Inspirational. I can't say that I have learned a lot visiting the parks, but my visits there have inspired me to read and learn more and to be excited about things I may never have been previously excited about. That is one of the biggest challenges in education is getting people excited about learning. I think Epcot does that. At least, it does for me.