Negeri Paman Sam: Disney Characters Meet & Greet

Good day to you, readers!

Alas, I am back after a few weeks of hiatus. For those who are wondering, I was on a trip to the United States. I went to Washington DC and Orlando, Florida, and ate lots of food. American food were great, but I constantly found myself battling with myself about what to eat and not to eat. Most of the food I ate were fast food, and of course everybody knows what fast food cause to one's body. Nonetheless, they were great and not disappointing. Now, we will get to that story later because this post is specifically about Disney. Yes, Disney! Pretty odd to found a post like this in a food blog, is it not? Don't worry, it is still food-related, so you can sit back and relax, scroll down and enjoy the story.

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I went to Disney World as a part of my quick getaway in Orlando, Florida. Anything can happen in Disney World, including meeting your favorite Disney characters. Yes, you didn't read that wrong. You can meet your most favored Disney characters in the flesh! I met some of them and, as a foodie and curious gastronomer, I asked them questions not far about food.

The first one that I met was Merida, the first born descendant of clan DunBroch from the movie Brave. I had to wait half-an-hour in line to meet Merida because she had a village of fans dying to have her autographs and take portraits with her. As soon as my turn is up to meet her, I took out my camera and shot her some questions. 

The main questions I asked them Disney characters are about their favorite food and their ability to cook. Merida, being a free-spirited princess that she is, fancy apples. She straightly said, "Apples" by the time I finished asking her what her favorite food is. Her cooking skill is not that great as she told me the story of how she baked a cake once and turned her mother into a bear. But, she claimed that she likes to help her Mom cook haggis sometime. It is a savory pudding made out of a sheep's pluck. 

Then, I bumped into Gaston. You know Gaston, right, readers? The narcissistic self-obsessed antagonist from Beauty and the Beast. Gaston is a tall buff man with pony tail who smiles seductively most of the time. He told me that his favorite food is egg and that he eats it five dozens a day. Now you know where he get all of his muscles from. 

Gaston's favorite drink would be LeFou's brew. He claimed it to be his brew and that LeFou stole the credit, because he is the one who tasted the drink samples before it made out to the tavern. He did not say anything about his cooking skill, but he told me that what he likes the most about himself is his muscle, his smile, and his hair. "Have you seen me in a mirror," he said whilst grinning. 

Snow White was whom I met afterwards. She has milky-white skin and a very bright smile. Her black hair was perfectly decorated with a big red bow, which matched her lipstick color that emphasizes her dazzling skin. 

Snow White is a young beautiful maiden who excels in cooking and baking. She stated that her favorite food is Gooseberry Pie and that she sometimes has porridge in the morning. When I asked her whether she can cook or not, she immediately replied me with an, "Of course I can!". Other than just cooking, she sometimes teach her friends who cannot cook well. "Well, I like to make Gooseberry Pie, Apple Dumpling, and sometimes Apple Pie," she said. It seems to me that she does not have any dislikes towards apple, despite the fact that the evil queen gave her a poisoned apple once. 

The thing about characters meet and greet in Disney World is that you have to wait in line before you can actually get a hug and have a chat with them. I was very lucky to be able to interviewed Aladdin and Princess Jasmine without having to queue. I was actually a bit late to line up because their Meet & Greet was over at that time. Luckily, they strolled around the area before the went through the door that has "Cast Members Only" written on it. I quickly took out my camera when they were at a particular Arabic-themed jewelry shop and asked them my questions. 

Aladdin most favored food is apple, same like Merida. Princess Jasmine said that she usually bakes Apple Pie for Aladdin, continued with a lip-licking from the prince and a great comment about the princess' baking skill. The Genie is the one who usually cooks, especially when they have an upcoming party. But, despite all that, it turned out that Aladdin is also handy with cooking utensil. He usually bake some Gooseberry Pie, with the help from his princess. 

I only had a quick chat with the Arabian Prince and Princess because they had to find Abu, who was not with them at that time. "Bye, it was nice meeting you," said Jasmine running off with Aladdin.  

I get to meet Princess Aurora as well. She was very pink at that time as her pink dress was emphasized by the pink lighting above her. Her voice was squeaky and soft, and she talked a bit fast too, but I managed to capture her mentioning that she "like so many foods". Berries would be the food that she loves so much. "I pick them in my Enchanted Forest almost every morning," she added. 

Once, she had her good fairy, Fauna, taught her how to bake cakes. But, she told me that she prefer to bake things with her berries. Blueberry Pies, Blueberry Muffins, and Blueberry Pancakes are some examples of baked goods that she generally make. The princess thinks that her cooking skill is slightly better than the fairies, even though they used magic and she didn't. 

Last, but not least, is the Native American princess, Pocahontas. I met her at Disney's Animal Kingdom. It was very difficult to miss her with her signature aqua necklace and long jet-black hair flown by the wind. People were lining up to meet her, and I was very lucky to be able to join the party. 

As a Native American, Pocahontas does not have burgers in her village. The people in her village plant their own food. Corn would be her favorite food, while Meeko's is biscuits that he got from Joh Smith. Pocahontas does not cook, but she has the ability to. The ladies in the village usually do the cooking for her because she is the princess. 

And there you have it, folks, a quick story of my quest at Disney World. None of this would not have make it without the help from my parents of course, who brought me to Orlando and who were very patient in accompanying me queueing for the meet and greet sessions. I was very happy to be able to meet these performers! They were very friendly. They smiled a lot. And they were very generous in giving hugs and wise words. It was a very challenging job to wait in line to interview them, but it was fun while it last! 

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Would you care for a video of my interview? 

Looks fun, does it not? Well, what are you waiting for? Go, pack up and go to Disney World as soon as possible! I wish you a magical journey on a magic carpet ride. 

Regards,

Kinan L. Wirastani