{"id":22221,"date":"2012-04-25T16:01:04","date_gmt":"2012-04-25T21:01:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/?p=22221"},"modified":"2018-03-06T14:15:58","modified_gmt":"2018-03-06T20:15:58","slug":"disney-vacations-flower-power-epcot-in-full-bloom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/2012\/04\/disney-vacations-flower-power-epcot-in-full-bloom\/","title":{"rendered":"Flower power: Epcot in full bloom"},"content":{"rendered":"
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At the Epcot International Flower and Garden Show, landscapers fashioned Disney characters into topiaries.<\/p><\/div>\n

By Deborah Bowen<\/em><\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t recall the last time you literally stopped to smell the roses, there\u2019s a whole botanical wonderland waiting at the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival. These aren\u2019t your garden, ahem, variety topiaries, unless you, too, were planning to prune Cinderella and her prince from your backyard shrubs.<\/p>\n

On display through May 20, the event has also bloomed into a force for environmental awareness. While you\u2019re buying gardening tools and outdoor d\u00e9cor, pick up ideas for outdoor projects and introduce youngsters to concepts like conservation, recycling and composting. You’ll have a captive audience once your little one sees the \u201ctow-piary\u201d of Mater from Disney Pixar\u2019s “Cars 2” in World Showcase, or while a butterfly perches on a nose in Bambi\u2019s butterfly garden.<\/p>\n

At the Land Pavilion\u2019s Living with the Land exhibit in Future World, look for 9-pound lemons in a working aquaculture and catch the eco flick, \u201cThe Circle of Life,\u201d starring favorites from Disney\u2019s \u201cThe Lion King.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the family gets hungry, it\u2019s all about farm-to-table fare. Dine on organic sustainable dishes \u2013 served family-style \u2013 at The Garden Grill, and feel extra good that all ingredients grew in gardens and greenhouses at Epcot and Disney.<\/p>\n

Finish your foray into Mother Nature with Soarin, a\u00a0simulated hang-glider ride over the many topographies of California, with some recognizable landmarks thrown in for context (the Golden Gate Bridge and Disneyland). Filmed with specialized technology that projects onto curved screens, the scenery pops to life with a glorious, evocative score by composer Jerry Goldsmith.<\/p>\n

And you thought you\u2019d be stuck in a nursery all day \u2026<\/p>\n

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