Rahul Isaac

I am a rising senior and a Mathematics and Computing and Applied Mathematics double major. I grew up and went to school in the city of Kochi, near the southern tip of India. Rather than continue my education in India, I decided that I wanted to attend a small liberal arts college in the US. I believed that this would give me the opportunity to learn by being personally engaged in interesting projects, rather than by simply spending all of my time in a classroom. Furman University has definitely not disappointed: since the summer of my freshman year, I've been involved in research projects ranging from exploring the fractal properties of number series to working with the city of Greenville to optimizing parking using mathematics. So when my professors mentioned the possibility of a MayX to Disney World, there were obvious academic reasons for me to be interested.

Of course, there was also the slight little bonus that this was going to happen in Disney World. Now I don't know anyone who would turn down a trip to Disney, but I'm a self admitted nerd: this is my dream vacation. Disney has been present pretty constantly in my life, from Micky Mouse to Pirates of the Caribbean to the Lion King. I still have my (very poor) Buzz Lightyear costume from a year or two ago. And Disney's recent acquisition of Star Wars means that they have a stake in a large part of my childhood. So fair to say, I'm pretty pumped for the trip. Having never been to Disney, it is hard to decide exactly what parts I'm most excited about. But from the stories I've heard from all of my friends, I've come up with a short list of things I'd like to do this May.

Food:

Literally everyone I've talked to about Disney has told me that I absolutely must eat at the World Showcase in Epicot. In particular, the “countries” of Japan and France have been recommended. I've always enjoyed eating food from different countries, so I think it's a safe bet that I'm going to love the food there. On a sweeter note, I also want to eat at... well, I don't know what it is called, but it sells Dole Whip, which is apparently pure magical deliciousness in a cup. I'm trying to keep my expectations low because it just sounds like pineapple flavored ice cream but it's definitely something I'm going to try. Finally, in a parallel universe where I'm independently wealthy, I will go to the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant. Being a Star Wars geek, it sounds incredible then so does the price tag.

Rides:

We're scheduled to go on all three of the rides I've picked out. First there is Dr. Hutson's favorite Tower of Terror, which actually sounds very much my style. It's based off the Twilight Zone television series, which fits nicely into my love of Sci-Fi. Continuing along the same theme, Star Tours sounds fun. Finally, there is the Pirates of the Caribbean. All of my information about this ride comes from a “Special Features” section on a Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, but it was the first Disney ride I knew about by about a decade, so I have a soft spot for it.