Cirque du Soleil – Crystal, according to its own billing, is a breakthrough ice experience. That’s right. They billed an ice-skating show as breakthrough. Bob and I enjoyed it as part of our 43^rd anniversary celebration last week. Well, we enjoyed most of it. There was a little show in the audience that was a bit much for us. I was ready for somebody to fall through the ice. But I’ll get to that in a minute after I deliver some fascinating facts for your entertainment and education.

This is a traveling show, unlike La Nouba, which in December ended its long run in Disney Springs. As a side note, if you haven’t been to Orlando in the last couple of years, you may be asking yourself – What is Disney Springs? Quite honestly, I live here and I often ask myself that same question.

Disney Springs is the shopping/entertainment complex formerly known as Downtown Disney, which was formerly known as Disney Village Marketplace, which was formerly known as Walt Disney World Village, which was originally known as Lake Buena Vista Shopping Village. I still tend to call the area Lake Buena Vista, much to the confusion of anyone under 30.

Anyway, family-friendly Crystal was performed at the Amway Center in Downtown Orlando, so we didn’t have to try to remember what to call Downtown Disney, I mean Disney Springs.

For those of you who have seen La Nouba, Crystal is similar, but not as much of a sensory overload of amazement as the permanent La Nouba (which of course wasn’t so permanent since it closed). I guess that makes sense, but Crystal does deliver. It is more like Ice Capades meets Cirque du Soleil meets Alice in Wonderland.

But the show has moved on and so must I, but not before telling you about the couple who was sitting directly in front of Bob and me.  Now when I say directly in front, I mean really close. The seats in the Amway Center allow you to reach out and touch the person in front of you without even having to lean forward.

Bob and I arrived first so we witnessed their arrival. From all appearances they were free-spirited hippies, probably around fifty years old. Long hair for the pair of them, though his was a tad bit longer. We know this because they flipped their hair – a lot. Enough that I was wondering if we should check our jeans for lice. Not that they appeared to be dirty, but it’s strange to have someone’s hair dance across your knees.

But that wasn’t the worst part. The worst part was their inability to keep their hands off of each other, which was displayed by frequent make-out sessions throughout the night. You may think that since we were celebrating our anniversary, we would welcome viewing romance and simply channel that into our own celebration. Well, you’d be wrong.

This was not romantic. It was gross. I see nothing wrong with a little kiss between couples, but these two were going at it like the plane was going down. When they weren’t making my stomach turn, they were often talking. So much so that the people in front of them moved. That emboldened me.

Me: Do you want to move back a row?

Bob: Why?

Me: Seriously? You haven’t noticed these two going at it?

Bob: You mean them tossing their hair to and fro?

Me: No! I mean the sloppy make-out session going on an arm’s length away. I could put up with a little hair toing and froing, but this is ridiculous. How could you not notice?

Bob: I’m watching the show.

Of course he was watching the show. But I opened his eyes to another, more disgusting show, so we moved.

From our new seats we looked over their heads of tossing hair, and my evening was no longer hampered by their seriously inappropriate PDAs. The only thing we noticed from them from our new point of view was their finger snapping as opposed to applauding. I felt like I was in a poetry reading.

Cheers!

So, there you have it. Another anniversary with my wonderful husband. Another example of how we look at the world differently. Another story to laugh about. Another couple to avoid. I can’t wait to see what next year brings.