Where children's dreams come true

We all still remember the heroes of our childhood well. I bet there is at least one character created by Walt Disney among these heroes. Mickey, Pluto, Donald Duck and Alice were joined over the decades by Moana, Elsa, Madrigal, Ariel, Simba and many more.

The enthusiastic fan base, which by no means only includes children, finds the holy Disney grail in Disneyworld.

After Walt Disney reached his spatial limits with his Disneyland in Anaheim, California at the end of the 1950s, he looked for an alternative to California and found what he was looking for in the area around what was then the military city of Orlando. The property prices were low, the climate was optimal and there was enough space to install huge entertainment machines. On October 1, 1971, Disneyworld Orlando opened its doors. The Magic Kingdom was soon followed by Epcot, Disneyworld Discovery, Disney's Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom.

A visit to Orlando wouldn't be complete without visiting at least one of these parks. Since our granddaughter is only 3 years old, we chose the Magic Kingdom for our visit.

Well prepared with Minnie ears, Mickey baseball caps and T-shirts that identify me as Grandma and my husband as Grandpa, we leave our house. Of course our granddaughter has put on her princess robe, Disneyworld here we come.

The journey is pleasantly short. That's the advantage of living in the Orlando area. Of course, the $176 ticket price does not include parking. It would be really presumptuous to ask for that. And so we dutifully pay our parking fee of $55 and the Disney experience can begin. At the entrance, our little princess is greeted by a security guard with a court curtsy and "Welcome princess." It's cute how everyone plays along here. Yes, the Americans are just in a good mood. I'm just imagining a German police officer and his reaction when a princess and her grandma with Minnie Mouse ears walk past him.

First stop, Mickey invites you to a photo opportunity. Our Leni is extremely excited. Of course, other visitors also have an audience with the cult figure and so there is waiting and queuing. Then finally the time has come. Mickey also bows to our little princess and then wraps her in his arms.

You can literally see Leni's feeling of happiness and everyone's hearts feel warm. A quick group photo is taken and the appointment is over. On our way outside we run into Snow White, who of course is happy to have her photo taken with us. We stroll through the streets of Disneyworld and take various photo opportunities with Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Daisy and Minnie. Our granddaughter is completely excited and accepts the waiting times with only minimal fuss.

Even though we brought plenty of food and drink, we couldn't say no to caramel apples and ice cream. The motto is sweet, sweeter the sweetest. An expensive pleasure, but you only live once.

There are plenty of carousels at Disneyworld. From Dumbo to mini roller coasters to a trip to the Hundred Acre Forest, we take everything with us that we are allowed to do with Leni, because there are strict size limits for the rides here in the park.

Of course, we also see the famous parade, where the Disney stars show off to the enthusiastic fans. I wave at Minnie and Sleeping Beauty like a little child. I let myself be infected by the euphoria and am happy.

Disney, where adults become children. Peter Pan waves from his parade float and you want to be like him.

We spend 9 hours in the park. Today Disney closes at 6 p.m. because the big Christmas party starts at 7 p.m. Most of the visitors who leave Disneyworld with us do not go to the ferry that takes guests to the parking lot. No, they will return to the entrance immediately.

Since admission to the Christmas party is the same price as the day ticket, each of these adults will spend $352 on admissions that day to get the full experience. Children receive a monstrous discount of 4 euros. These are prices that the serious and thrifty German would never be willing to spend in his life. But I'm a little jealous of the decadent Americans.

While I still felt like a 5-year-old child at Disney World, on the way to the parking lot I am brought back down to earth with 55-year-old facts. My feet burn, my knees hurt and my back hurts. They're back, the old age infirmities. The adrenaline of joy has left the body.

Our granddaughter is so tired that she falls asleep on the way home in the middle of a sentence she begins.

She's definitely dreaming of Mickey, Minnie and their castle at Disney World and maybe I'm dreaming the same dream. Who knows.