Letterboxing - Epcot - 6 for 15

Today we were at Epcot and I had clues for 15 boxes. One set of clues was for a series of 11 boxes, one was a series of two and the other two were single boxes. We started by looking for the series of 11 boxes which is called The World Showcase. Each of the boxes was placed in a different country. The other boxes were in various countries so I marked which ones were in which country and we headed out. In between seeing shows and looking around we searched for boxes.

We ended up going in the opposite direction than the clues only because we entered the World Showcase in that area. We entered into Canada first and looked for the box there - it took a little patience but in the end we found it - this was a box from the World Showcase series. And while I was stamping in Thomas noticed a woman reading a paper and looking around so he asked her if she was letterboxing and she responded with a hesitant "Maybe!". They introduced themselves as The Treasure Seekers from Ohio. We talked for a bit and then Thomas and I left them to stamp in and we moved on. In Great Britian there were two boxes to look for - one from the World Showcase and one from another series called A Christmas Carol. We didn't find either box. They were both in the same area which had a bandstand, a small hedge maze and some sitting areas. There weren't too many people but it wasn't empty either. Both boxes were placed near these large columns that were part of a decorative wrought iron fence. You had to reach in between the decorative wrought iron and find the box. Neither Thomas nor I could get our arms in enough to actually search for the Great Britian box for the World Showcase series and the box from A Christmas Carol series was in an area that was blocked off with Christmas decorations and a set up for Father Christmas - so no boxes found in Great Britian. Moving on we looked for two boxes in France. Both were in the same area - one from the World Showcase Series and a single one. We found the France box for the World Showcase Series and sat on a bench to stamp in - then I put the box back in place and read the clues for the second box. But I wasn't able to look for it because Cinderella showed up and the area was packed with people right where I needed to look. So we just skipped that box. Next stop in Morocco for another of the World Showcase boxes. I sat on a bench in the area where the box was suppose to be and read the clues and found the spot I needed to look in and just as I was heading to the spot a couple came and sat down in the area. I waited a little while but they didn't seem to be leaving so I took my things and went and sat right next to the area and casually reached in and searched for the box. I was looking in the opposite direction so I only had feel to go on. I didn't find the box and I didn't want to be too obvious so we just left and went on to the next one. We were now in Japan. We followed the clues and hit a road block - literally. They had blocked the path (in three places) with large wooden walls that were braced and held in place with cinder blocks so we couldn't even get close enough to look for the box.

So we continued on. The next stop was the United States. We found the first landmark and then from there just looked for the next landmarks. We spotted the what we thought was the right area but there was no way to get to it. There were strollers (two deep) lined up along the fence we needed to get to where the boulder was that hid the box. There was also a cast member who was dealing with the strollers so we had no chance at this one. Next was Italy. The area was really crowded because there was this little show going on - which in the end helped us because people were watching the show and not us. Fortunately for this box we were able to sit right near the spot and reach behind the fence and grab the box without being noticed. I stamped in right there and then replaced the box before moving on - this was one of the World Showcase series boxes. Now we were in Germany. There was one box for the World Showcase series, one for the A Christmas Carol series and a single one. The first one we looked for was the single box - I found a landmark that fitted the clues but there was no box there so we continued around the building looking for that same landmark and we found it but we weren't able to get to it because there was a large group of people waiting in line to take pictures with Snow White (too bad the evil queen didn't succeed with that poison apple) - so no box found there. Then we looked for and found the box from the A Christmas Carol series - thankfully this was in a quiet area with hardly anyone around and it was kind of hidden out of the way. After stamping in and replacing the box we went in search of the World Showcase box. We found that one as well even though it was in a more open area but it was also kind of hidden so I didn't have too much trouble retrieving and rehiding the box. Before we left Germany we checked to see if Snow White was gone but she wasn't so we decided it wasn't worth the wait so we made our way to China. There was an acrobatic show going on in the pavilion so we had to wait a few minutes before we could look for World Showcase box here. When we finally got the chance to look for the box we came up empty handed. We had two more boxes to look for from the World Showcase series. Now we were in Norway and we followed the clues and found the spot. I sat down next to the landmark and reached in (all the way to my elbow) but did not find the box. By this time it was dark and it did me no good to look into the spot - all I can say is thankfully nothing bit me. One last box in Mexico. We found the first landmark, then the second and then the third. I had to wait a few seconds for the area to clear and then I quickly reached in and found the box. I took it to some steps out of the way to stamp in and then replaced it.

So we only found six out of 15 boxes. It is really hard to be stealthy in Walt Disney World so we had to forgo looking for a few of the boxes and I am sure that some of the ones we looked for were missing due to the busyness of the area and the large amount of people present. Anyway, I can now saw that I have found letterboxes in Florida - the 34th state that I have found boxes in.