Bird of Paradise

Close up of a Bird of Paradise.

Star Wars Weekends - Anakin Skywalker

Here in his pre-Darth-Vader-still-a-Jedi, Anakin Skywalker.

Star Wars Weekends - Tuskan Raider

As I said previously, there are some characters that roam around. Here is a Tuskan Raider meeting a soon-to-be Star Wars fan.

A Good Day for Fishing

Enjoying a day on the lake.

Norway Pavilion Details

Out of the legends and lore of Norway are trolls. Around the stave church in the Norway Pavilion at Epcot, you will find some of them!

Middle of Nowhere?

This is a very common sight throughout Orlando. Part urban sprawl, part sub-tropical climate, part design/planning, you find many parcels of land that are undeveloped. They are overgrown wooded areas that sometimes make you feel you are in the middle of nowhere.

Tropical House Gecko

This little guy, like so many of us here, is not native to Florida. His ancestors originally come from Africa. Different sources theorize that they may have arrived here from South America or the Caribbean. During the day, they appear dark and usually blend in with the bark of trees. At night, they turn this ghostly pale color. They tend to hang out around lights waiting for the bugs to come.

Star Wars Weekends - Han Solo

There are always some cool props from the Star Wars movies at this event. Here is Han Solo in carbonite from The Empire Strikes Back.

Star Wars Weekends - Jango Fett

Jango Fett is menacing. As menacing as you can be, with tourists posing with you.

Fish Fear Me

Allow me to indulge. This is my brother. He lives in Alabama. Today is his birthday. He didn't go fishing today, but I am sure there is a trip planned for Saturday!
Miss ya!! Hope it's the fish that are biting, and not the mosquitos!

Thundercloud

While at the Loop shopping center south of Hunter's Creek, I watched as these clouds passed by. We have had rain every day, as we are well into the wet season. I was trying to capture lightning strikes. That is next to impossible with an automatic digital camera. Still, it was a beautiful sight.

Hawk on a Hot Slate Roof

Hawks are plentiful on Central Florida. This young one found a brief roost on our roof. The mocking birds were not too thrilled with this. They tried to get him to move on by squawking and diving at him. Still, they did not get too close.

Pointe Orlando Fountain

All that is missing are happy splashing kids!

Star Wars Weekends - Chewbacca

Chewbacca is the second most popular character at Star Wars Weekends, judging by the size of his line. With the Endor scene and speeder bike behind him, I expected to see some Ewoks!

Star Wars Weekends - Clone Trooper

While you will stand in line a long time to have a photo opportunity with a character or too, there are a few different characters roaming the areas. Here, near where you can get a picture with some Jedis, a clone trooper is keeping order. Star Wars Weekends runs each Friday, Saturday and Sunday during the month of June at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

Looking at You Looking at Me

This little guy had no problem with me taking his picture. He stopped, posed, then went back to eating. He was out with his friends enjoying a late afternoon nibble. The cool part is that he and his friends (some seven that were out and visible) eat and live at Epcot. They were on the grounds near Test Track. They knew just how close to get and still be safe, too.

Reflections

Going for a more artistic photo for this week's Theme Park Thursday. Here, Spaceship Earth reflected on the window of the Art of Disney shop at Epcot.

Scary Mannequins

I found these while passing a store at Pointe Orlando.

Morning Float

This mother duck and her chicks were out on a lake this morning. She kept an eye on me as I took this. I made sure to get the picture quickly and not to disturb them further.

Star Wars Weekends - Darth Vader

Darth Vader is undeniably the biggest draw for Star Wars Weekends at Disney's Hollywood Studios. His line was probably three times longer than any other character. Each person or group spends 2 or 3 minutes with the character, getting autographs and a couple of photos. That means you will wait in line about an hour, maybe longer, for this opportunity.
Now, it is hot in Central Florida in June. And humid. It is usually in the low 90's each day. The lady pictured here is how most will dress to come to the theme parks. The less you are wearing, the less hot you tend to feel. The person wearing the Vader suit must be the second most insane person in the world! The most insane person is down the way, dressed as Chewbacca!!

Star Wars Weekends

During the month of June, Disney's Hollywood Studios is overrun by tourists from all over this world. And several other worlds, too! Each weekend this month, Star Wars takes center stage. You will encounter dozens of characters from the six movies. You can get your picture taken with Chewbacca and Darth Vader, as well as several others. Tusken Raiders and troopers meander the streets. For the kids, there is the Jedi Training Academy and the Padawan Mind Challenge. Many of the actors come here, too! They are honored at the Legends of the Force parade. Then they give behind-the-scenes stories from their time making the movies. For much more information, check out the official site - Star Wars Weekends.
This is actually from last year's first weekend. There was a momentary lull in the crowd, so I got the best shot of Star Tours that I could. Trust me - the park was (and always will be) packed for this event! Most of the events happen around here. But the characters are at spots all around the park. And there are lines to each of them!

Surrounded!

Looking up through the palms at a beautiful, hot afternoon sky. The clouds moved in soon after this, followed by some cooling rain. Just another day in paradise.

Heron on the Rock

For this Theme Park Thursday, I had to show you this guy. He was sitting in the middle of the pond in the China pavilion at Epcot. He is a Lesser Blue Heron. I think he was enjoying watching the people watching him!

Wonderworks View

A side view shot of Wonderworks, a virtual theme park on International Drive. Here is the front view. This was taken from Pointe Orlando, a sort of mall and restaurant area near the Orange County Convention Center.

Fountains

A view across one fountain to the Centennial Fountain in Lake Eola.

Monthly Theme Day - Local Corner Shop

One of my favorite things at Walt Disney World. This is the Christmas shop at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The windows read, "It's a Wonderful Shop"! And while Disney magic keeps the snow from melting, the items inside will warm your heart.

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There are over 170 Daily City Photo Blogs participating in this month's theme day:
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