Tag: Epcot

Eat to the Beat Lineup Announced

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Disney, family, family fun, Family Vacation, preschoolers, Toddler, Toddler Travel, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World

It is hard to believe that Fourth of July is almost here and plans are already in motion for the fall at Walt Disney World.

One of the highlights at Epcot during this time of year is the Eat to the Beat concert series that is included in the price of admission.

These concerts, running from Aug. 31-Nov. 13 often feature interesting acts that you might have to pay a pretty good price to see elsewhere.

If I lived down in the Florida I would be making frequent trips to check out a lot of these concerts.

This year’s concert series will feature 32 different acts who will take to the stage at 5:30, 6:45 and 8 p.m. each day.

This year’s festival includes:

Aug. 31-Sept. 1 — Delta Rae “Bottom of the River”

Sept. 2-3: The Hooters “And We Danced”

Sept. 4-5: Baha Men “Who Let the Dogs Out”

Sept. 6-7: Fuel “Shimmer”

Sept. 8-10: STARSHIP starring Mickey Thomas “We Built This City”

Sept. 11-12: Lauren Alaina “Road Less Traveled”

Sept. 13-15: Plain White T’s “Hey There Delilah”

Sept. 16-17: Sister Hazel “All For You”

Sept. 18-20: Air Supply “All Out of Love”

Sept. 21-22: David Cook “Light On”

Sept. 23-24: Everclear “Santa Monica”

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Everclear (Photo courtesy of Walt Disney World.) (As a side note, in my other life I had the chance to interview the lead singer of the band for my work. Really nice guy.)

Sept. 25-27: Sugar Ray “Every Morning”

Sept. 28-29: 38 Special “Hold on Loosely”

Sept. 30-Oct. 1: Mark Wills “19 Somethin”

Oct. 2-3: American Authors “Best Day of My Life”

Oct. 4-5: Christopher Cross “Sailing”

Oct. 6-8: Devon Allman “Ragged and Dirty”

Oct. 9-11: Dennis DeYoung: The Music of STYX “Come Sail Away”

Oct. 12-13: Taylor Dayne “Tell It to My Heart”

Oct. 14-15: Jeffrey Osborne “One the Wings of Love”

Oct. 16-17: Postmodern Jukebox Various Hits

Oct. 18-20: 10,000 Maniacs “Because the Night”

Oct. 21-22: Toad the West Sprocket “Walk on the Ocean”

Oct. 23-24: Kenny G “Songbird”

Oct. 25-26: Billy Ocean “Get Outta My Dreams”

Oct. 27-29: Tiffany “I Think We’re Alone Now”

Oct. 30-Nov. 1: Hanson “MMMBop”

Nov. 2-3: Blue October “Into the Ocean”

Nov. 4-5: Living Colour “Cult of Personality”

Nov. 6-8: Boyz II Men “End of the Road”

Nov. 9-11: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy “Go Daddy-O”

Nov. 12-13: Squeeze “Black Coffee in Bed”

If you want to make the concert a complete event there are also 15 popular Epcot restaurants that you can eat either breakfast, lunch or dinner at and will give you confirmed seating for a same day performance.

Which concert are you most interested in? Leave your comments below.

Happy April (No Foolin’)

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Disney, Disney Cruise Line, family, family fun, Family Vacation, Home, home organization, preschoolers, Toddler, Toddler Travel, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World

Happy April!

I feel like we have made it through the winter and we can finally celebrate spring.

In honor, here is a little desktop background that has a calendar for the month and an inspirational quote from Walt Disney that you can download and use on your computer.

Enjoy this wonderful day with spring in the air!

April1080

Musical Flower Power

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Books for Toddlers, Disney, family, Family Vacation, preschoolers, Toddler, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World
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Simple Plan March 17-18 (Photo courtesy of Walt Disney World Resort)

Next month Epcot will be alive with the sound of music as as the Garden Rocks Concert Series kicks off.

This series, which is part of the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival, features famous musicians every Friday through Monday starting March 3 through Memorial Day.

Having the artists perform every Monday is an addition to the festival this year.

The concerts, taking place at the outdoor America Garden Theatre that is located at the American pavilion in World Showcase, are at 5:30, 6:45 and 8 p.m.

This year’s performers cover a variety of music genera from oldies to 1990’s rock and pop.

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Berlin featuring Terri Nunn April 30-May 1 (Photo courtesy of Walt Disney World Resort)

The full line up includes:

March 3-4 John Secada “Just Another Day”

March 5-6 Dennis DeYoung: The music of STYX “Grand Illusion”

March 10-13 The Pointer Sisters “I’m So Excited”

March 17-18 Simple Plan “Welcome to My Life”

March 19-20 Plain White T’s “Hey There Delilah”

March 24-27 Night Ranger “Sister Christian”

March 31-April 3 Little River Band “Reminiscing”

April 7-10 Blood, Sweat & Tears featuring Bo Bice “Spinning Wheel”

April 14-17 Gin Blossoms “Hey Jealousy”

April 21-24 The Orchestra starring former members of ELO “Evil Woman”

April 28-29 Expose “Point of No Return”

April 30-May 1 Berlin featuring Terri Nunn “Take My Breath Away”

May 5-8 STARSHIP starring Mickey Thomas “We Built This City”

May 12-15 The Guess Who “American Woman”

May 19-22 Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone “I’m Henry VIII I Am”

May 26-29 The Spinners “Working My Way Back to You”

The concerts are included with the price of a park ticket.

Who would you be most excited to see? Leave your comments below.

If you are looking for more tips about taking your toddler to Walt Disney World like what to pack, how to get groceries delivered to your hotel room and what attractions will be a hit with your little one, pick up a copy of Mousekatots available as an e-book and paperback.

mousekatots

 

 

Challenge Accepted

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Books for Toddlers, Disney, family fun, Toddler, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World

It has been awhile!

Thank you for sticking around while the Mousekatot gang spent some time together as a family over the holidays.

We had a wonderful time. Santa was very good to us, we ate so much yummy food and we were able to slow down life a little to enjoy our time together.

Now, it is back to the real world and a new year.

To kick things off I thought I would share with you a fun challenge that I thought other Mousekatot families might be interested in participating.

Searching online I came across different reading challenges.

What they are is they are a list of different types of books that you challenge yourself to read throughout the year. They might be from different subjects that you normally don’t read from or from an author that you may have never thought about.

I came across two different lists, one for the little readers and one for us parents (which can be difficult to do when we have such little time to read.)

While this challenge is from 2016, it is still a great list that can also be used for 2017.

It comes from clarescontemplations.com and I think it offers a really great variety of books.

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Photo courtesy of clarescontemplations.com

This list offers a lot of unique options of books that would really open up a new world of opportunities that you might not have checked out otherwise.

The first book off this list that Lily and I read is “Interrupting Chicken” by David Ezra Stein.

interrupting-chicken

This falls into the “Read a Book that Funny” category.

This tells the story of a little chicken that keeps interrupting her father while he is trying to read her a bedtime story.

This will make parents laugh if they have a little chatterbox in their family and children will laugh along with the stories that the little chicken comes up with.

For those of us parents the reading challenge that I found comes from popsugar.com.

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Photo courtesy of Popsugar.com

There are a lot of books included, which will make completing the challenge, well, challenging. So, I am going to be happy if I can finish at least five of these books. However, I am going to strive for at least half of this list.

The first book that I am reading for the challenge is “The Epcot Explorer’s Encyclopedia: A Guide to Walt Disney World’s Greatest Theme Park” by R A Pedersen.

epcot-encyclopedia

This book is going to qualify for my “Something that has been on my TBR list for a long time.”

I received this as a Christmas gift this year and I have to say that I have enjoyed reading it so much.

It breaks down each attraction and country that is found in Epcot and shows the history and the current information at this park.

If you are a fan of learning more about unique Epcot, attractions long gone and a look at the dreams that Walt had for this park, then this book is for you.

My plan for this challenge is to share our progress with you and let you know about the different books that we have discovered.

If you have any book suggestions for us to check out, please leave them in the comments below.

Also, let me insert a plug for Mousekatots.

If you, or someone you know, is planning on visiting Walt Disney World with a toddler, or any child as a matter of fact, you will want to check out Mousekatots.

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The book offers tips and tricks on how to make your trip to the Mouse House more enjoyable including what to pack, how to prepare for either road or air travel, what attractions are best for kids, where you can find macaroni and cheese in the Magic Kingdom (you know you need to know this information) and much more!

The book is available through the link above.

Huge Discount on WDW Park Tickets

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Disney, family fun, Family Vacation, Toddler, Toddler Travel, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World

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This is a pretty big deal!

Disney just announced Thursday that they are going to be offering a huge discount on park tickets for certain days.

The “4 Park Magic Ticket” allows guests one admission to each of the four theme parks on four separate days for only $70 per day plus tax.

The window to use the ticket is now through May 26, 2017. Block out days are Dec. 17-Jan. 2 and April 10-21.

This is an amazing deal considering tickets are well over $100 and their isn’t an upcharge for the Magic Kingdom.

It also sounds like these tickets will be available during the RunDisney Marathon weekend in January and the Princess Half Marathon weekend in February.

If you can pair this with a room discount, you can really have a great bargain on your hands.

The “4 Park Magic Ticket” is on sale now and can be purchased at Disneyworld.com/tickets or by calling 407-939-5277.

Does this low ticket price entice you to visit Walt Disney World toward the beginning of 2017? Leave your comments below.

Prepare to Let Your Belly Shake Like a Bowl Full of Jelly

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Disney, family fun, Family Vacation, Toddler, Toddler Travel, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World

The imaginers at Walt Disney World are smart.

They know that people go nuts during the annual Food and Wine Festival in Epcot.

When we were there last week it was so hard to move because the booths were jam packed with people waiting in line to savor international food and beverages.

So how can Disney bring more magic to the resort’s holiday season?  By adding international themed food booths to Epcot’s Holidays Around the World.

 

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Photo courtesy of Walt Disney World
Joining the various seasonal activitites that have been a long standing tradition at Epcot during the holiday season will be these food booths.

The Disney Food Blog has an awesome entry about all the various booths, complete with photos of some of the holiday themed delacasies that have been offered in the past.

Germany

Called Proust! The German themed holiday pavilion has been a staple of the holiday festivitites for awhile. But, this year their offerings are expanded to include an artisan cheese plate, Sauerbraten with red cabbage and spätzle, Williams Punch, the Carmel Kiss and Gluwein.

If the spätzle is anything like the kind that is served in the German restaurant, it should be delicious.

America

Disney decided to stick to the holiday traditions when it came time to create the menu for the American booth.

This year, guests can enjoy roasted turkey with stuffing, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce, pork tenderloin with green bean casserole, roasted  sweet potato wedges and a champagne Demi-Glace.

Don’t forget the alcoholic beverages such as Firenog, Shipyard Eggnog White Porter Aged on Bourbon, and more.

Switzerland

While this country doesn’t have a perminant presence in Epcot, they will be represented this holiday season with a booth situated between France and Morocco.

Food selections including duck confit, dumplings and roasted Brussels sprouts with a fig reduction.

My personal favorite offering at this booth would be the cheese fondue in a bread bowl.

Sachertorte will be prepared with chocolate cake, apricot jam and dark chocolate glaze in addition to other tasty temptations.

American South

The holidays are all about comfort food. That is why comfort foods are going to shine at a booth dedicated to this region of the United States.

Hoppin’ John (a traditional treat for New Year’s Eve with black eyed peas, ham hocks and kale over rice with cornbread crumbles), blackened catfish with white cheddar grits and okra, tomato and onion stew and a chocolate pecan tart will be available.

Spain/Latin America

 

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Photo courtesy of Walt Disney World

In honor of the Feast of the Three Kings a special booth has been erected that will offer a variety of foods from this region. Offerings include a shredded beef tamale with avocado creama, roasted pork with mashed yucca and pickled green bananas.

Of course traditional Three Kings Bread will be available for purchase.

Beverages will include Coquito (coconut milk) and for the adults, a rum floater.

There will also be plenty of holiday offerings throughout the parks including Mickey Santa Hat Cupcake, gingerbread ice cream, panettone and more.

What holiday treats sound most tempting to you? Leave your comments below.

 

 

Restaurant Spotlight: Tangerine Café

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Disney, family fun, Family Vacation, Toddler, Toddler Travel, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World

 

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Photo courtesy of Walt Disney World

When people think of going to one of Disney’s many quick service restaurants, the thoughts of fatty burgers and fries might fill their head.

But, just like with everything else with Walt Disney World, you can set the bar higher and treat you and your family to better tasting food that is rich in flavor and nutrition and will help fuel you for the rest of your day.

Enter Epcot’s Tangerine Café, situated in the Morocco pavilion.

It offers a variety of options that help give guests a taste of Africa without compromising flavor and authenticity.

Open for both lunch and dinner it offers a variety of entrees, sides, kids meals and desserts.

Entrées include Mediterranean Chicken Wrap, Mediterranean Falafel Wrap, Shawarma Chicken Platter, Vegetarian Platter, Mediterranean Sliders Combo, Mediterranean Lamb Wrap, Shawarma Chicken and Lamb Platter, Shawarma Lamb Platter and Moroccan Kefta Sandwich. Sides include Hummus, Tangerine Couscous Salad, Lentil Salad, Tabouleh, Marinated Olives and French Fries. Kids’ Meals include a Hamburger and Chicken Tenders.

There are a variety of tasty desserts and beverages that can also be purchased at Tangerine Café.

 

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Photo courtesy of Walt Disney World

The average cost of an Entrée is $10.

The café is included on the Disney Dining Plan and will count as a quick service credit.

Will you add Tangerine Café to your list of must try restaurants on your next trip? Leave your comments below.

For more tips and a complete list of menu items for the various restaurants in Walt Disney World, pick up your copy of Mousekatots.

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Making Memories Easier

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Disney, family fun, Family Vacation, Toddler, Toddler Travel, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World
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Photo courtesy of Attractions Magazine

It never fails.

You want to try and capture as many memories of your family’s visit to Walt Disney World.

Unfortunately, one person always ends up being the unofficial family vacation photographer.

When you look back at the photos many years from now, you will wonder if you actually went on that vacation because there isn’t a record of you talking with Mickey or eating a giant turkey leg.

Luckily, Disney found a solution that is the Memory Maker.

Memory Maker is an add on to your Walt Disney World package that allows you unlimited downloads of photos taken by Disney Photopass photographers, ride photos/videos and any restaurant photos.

There are hundreds of locations where you can have a photo taken with memory maker.

Some locations that you won’t want to miss include Main Street U.S.A. in front of Cinderella’s Castle, meeting Anna and Elsa at Princess Fairytale Hall, the bridge near International Gateway with the France pavilion in the background at Epcot, Overlooking the Hollywood Hotel at Hollywood Studios and around the Tree of Life at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

You will also want to ask some photographers about magic shots.

These shots add a little bit of pixie dust to your photos.

For example, at Animal Kingdom you can have a photo of you holding a baby Simba. This is done by adding a cartoon image of Simba in post-production.

Or, if you are near Princess Tiana’s meet and greet you can ask about kissing a frog.

You also don’t want to forget to link your attraction photos to your Memory Maker package.

After you get off an attraction that takes your photo, you will see a bank of screens displaying the ride photos off to the side. You will want to go up to the sales center kiosk and link the photo to your MagicBand or card that is linked to your Memory Maker account.

In addition to photos, a lot of attractions include really cute videos. Check out the Tower of Terror’s and Seven Dwarf’s Mine Train videos online.

You only have a 30 day window, that starts when the first photo is taken, to sign into your account and began to download pictures.

If you pre-purchase the package before you go, then the program is $149. If you wait until you get to Disney, the cost goes up about $20.

Also, there is a three day window if you purchase when you arrive at Walt Disney World. During this three day period you will have to pay for each photo individually.

You can also link the photos that are taken of other people in your party with the Memory Maker.

The number one tip is to always have your MagicBand, you would anyway, to easily add the photos on to your account.

The biggest thing for you to consider is would this be something that is important to your family given the hefty price tag that is attached.

Do you think this is something that would be beneficial to your family?

Leave a comment below.

Tot Five: Drink Around the World

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Disney, Family Vacation, Toddler Travel, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World

food and wine

This week kicked off the 2016 Food &Wine Festival at Epcot.

While the Mousekatot’s have Mickey’s Not so Scary Halloween Party, we parents have the food and wine festival.

Instead of candy lines and costumes, we have food from around the world and exotic libations.

There are a lot of things to try at this year’s festival and one could spend all day eating or drinking around the world.

But to save you from a stomach ache or even worse a day at the amusement park with a pounding headache and dark sunglasses, here are my Tot Five drinks to experience around the world at this year’s festival.

1. Strawberry Plum Wine Cooler with Takara Plum Wine (China)

This is a personal favorite of mine. I can remember a few years ago, the hubby and I had this on one of our anniversary trips. I will admit that I got a little tipsy off of just one of these. We sat on the bench and just people watched while we giggled to ourselves as the plum wine kicked in.

$7

2. Stella Artois Hard Cidre (Belgium)

 

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Photo courtesy of Stella Artois.

 

 

There is nothing better than a frosty Stella in my opinion. Now if you throw in the flavor of apples to give it a more seasonable taste, you have a match made in heaven.

$4

3. Twinings Pumpkin Chai Tea Frozen Cocktail with Carmel Vodka (Ireland)

It is fall. So that can mean only one thing: pumpkin spice everything! So it only makes sense that Twinings, a big name when it comes to teas and who already has a strong presence at the UK pavilion, would combine the tea with vodka.

$9.50

4. Two Henrys Blueberry Vanilla American Wheat Ale, Plant City, Florida (Craft Beers)

 

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Photo courtesy of Daily Beer Review

 

One of my favorite beers is Seadog Blueberry Ale. It has a slight fruity taste without being overly sweet. I think that this would taste really good and have a nice flavor that is a little different that what you can usually find.

$4

5. Pineapple Dole Whip Soft-Sever Ice Cream with Bacardi Coconut Rum (Refreshment Port)

Dole Whip with alcohol. Take a wonderful, iconic Disney treat and alcohol. Nuff said.

$10

Anything on this list that you would be interested in trying this year? Leave a comment below.

 

 

 

Getting to Know Me: Disney Edition

by disneywonderlandgazette, posted in Disney, family fun, Family Vacation, Uncategorized, Walt Disney World

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In a little change of pace, I thought it would be fun to do a little Disney quiz to get to know me a little better, when it comes to Disney and Walt Disney World.

So here are my 53 Disney questions and answers:

1. All Time Favorite Disney Movie: “The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh” (currently; this changes all the time.)

2. Top Five Disney Movies: “The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh” “The Little Mermaid” “The Lion King” “Peter Pan” “Bedknobs and Broomsticks”

3. Favorite Princess: Tiana

4. Favorite Prince: Eugene (if he counts as a prince)

5. Favorite Couple: Eglantine Price and Dr. Emelius Brown

6. Favorite Villain: Ursula

7. Favorite Heroine: Tiana

8. Favorite Hero: Aladdin

9. Favorite Sidekick: Mushu

10. Disneyland or Disney World: I have only been to Walt Disney World, so I will choice that one.

11. Favorite Attraction: Splash Mountain

12: Favorite Park inside the Resort (ie EPCOT): Magic Kingdom. To me that is the epitome of Walt Disney World.

13: Favorite land inside of the resort (ie Adventureland): This is a tie either Tomorrowland at night or Frontieerland at night. I love the Magic Kingdom at night. It seems more magical.

14: Favorite Disney Snack: Dole Whip Float

15: Favorite Disney Restaurant: Boma. It is a buffet, so you get to try a bunch of different things; it has many exotic foods that I can’t get at home; and the atmosphere is so beautiful.

16: Favorite attraction/show: Muppet Vision 3D

17: If you had the chance to stay anywhere overnight in the park, where would you stay: The Cinderella Suite in the castle in Magic Kingdom

18: Favorite Character to Interact With: Tiana or Ariel

19: Which character’s handwriting do you wish you had: Tinkerbell’s

20: Which character are you afraid of approaching: No one really

21: Favorite Disney Hotel: Port Orleans French Quarter. The smallest resort means that you are closer to everything. Plus the walk along the river to the sister resort, Port Orleans Riverside is beautiful in the morning.

22: Describe a Typical Day at Disney for You: Get up in the morning, have breakfast. Head to our park of choice, go back to the resort for naps or swimming, have a nice dinner and end the night in the park with late night magic hours.

23: Snow White or Cinderella: Snow White

24: Ariel or Belle? Belle, I love books.

25: Pocahontas or Mulan: Pocahontas

26: Aurora or Rapunzel: Rapunzel. I see a lot of myself in her.

27: Tiana or Jasmin: Tiana

28: Meg or Kida: Meg

29: Stitch or Pooh: Pooh

30: Eugene Fitzherbert or Prince Eric: I gotta go with Gene. Prince Eric is a little too dense for me.

31: Prince Charming or Prince Ferdinand: Who the heck is Ferdinand?

32: Li Shang or John Smith: John Smith. Common Li Shang, you didn’t know he was a woman?

33: Prince Philip or Prince Adam/The Beast: The Beast. Come on, he gave her a library.

34: Prince Naveen or Aladdin: Aladdin. He was brave and bold

35: Genie or Mushu: Genie. He is the absolute favorite of our Mousekatot

36: Hercules or Milo: I gotta go for Milo. I love a guy who uses his brain!

37: Two Characters that Would be Great Friends: Ariel and Kida

38: All Time Favorite Song: This is so tough. I will go with what I am feeling now, which is “At Last I see the Light”

39: Favorite Wardrobe: Tiana’s. Just because of the Lily pad gown at the end.

40: Outfit you wish you had: See above

41: What food from a Disney Movie do you want to try in real life: The rock cakes and bubbling beverage from Return to Oz

42: Character You Look Like: This is tough. Probably Ursula. hahahaha IDK.

43:Whose voice do you wish you had (singing and speaking): Ariel

44: What Disney movie cheers you up: Pirates of the Caribbean or Cars 2

45: What Disney Movie Makes You Sad: Inside Out or Toy Story 3. I refuse to watch these again.

46: What is the Most Underrated Disney Movie: Cars 2. People hate this movie, and I don’t know why. It is funny and isn’t sad at all.

47: Favorite Pixar Movie: Up. This is our movie.

48: Favorite Quote: There are so many, but if I am picking one: “Adventure is Out There” from Up

49: Favorite non-animated Disney Movie: Bedknobs and Broomsticks

50: Best Soundtrack: The Lion King….”Baaaaaahhhhhh zimbwaya!”

51: Last Disney Movie You Watched: The Many Adventures of Winne the Pooh

52: Two Characters Who Would be Enemies: Merida and Jafar because of how he treats women.

53: Two Characters that Should Be Paired Up But Aren’t: Merida and Eugene. They would got on so many adventures together!

Now your turn for some fun: answer your three favorite questions down in the comments below, so we can get to know you.

Thanks to Reillysinneverland for the questions.