Brave New World

This weekend, I travelled to Florida for my Grandmother's 90th birthday celebration. On Sunday, my family and I wanted to find a place to wander before we went to the airport. My Aunt suggested we go to Celebration and walk around for a while.

This is by far the most creepy place I've ever visited. When we first arrived, we were greeted by the sound of chirping birds along the street. Except that we couldn't really SEE any birds. We were convinced that the sounds were being piped into the town. In fact, they are. They also pipe in fake leaves in the fall and fake snow in the winter.

The architecture is interesting. At least, the above picture of the post office designed by Michael Graves was different. Some of the other buildings were interesting as well. It's difficult to believe that people actually LIVE here, with all the houses looking the same, and apparently very strict rules regarding lawn maintanence and decor.

It's not a suprise that Celebration was built by the Disney corporation to be their ideal living community. It looks and feels like the Truman Show. I was expecting to be kidnapped by a Stepford Wive at any moment and turned into an animatronic robot.

I suggest, if you're planning on a visit to Celebration, don't let your guard down and keep away from the drinking water.