The Bear and the Bow: Christmas with the Mouses - Update 9/11

[duckylady]

YESSS TAKE YOUR PRIME. Just remember to take if off now and then! I can literally count on my fingers the number of times I took my prime off, which didn't always work. Prime shooting is just so much fun! I really want the 35mm or the 30mm for my next trip (and then end up renting a better zoom because there's no way i could afford both. Also I have far fewer opinions on zoom lenses and don't want to just buy one to have one, you know?).

I think I will!! My only problem with the prime is that it's a bit tight on my camera, so I usually have to back up a lot to get everything in frame. One of the ~perils of being too poor to afford a full-frame camera, I suppose. :c Did you ever have issues with that?

YESSS I love the look of the Sigma 30mm. From what I've seen, it has the ability to take AMAZING photos. Not too expensive, either! (...in photography standards, of course.)

 

[Merida]

I love your pictures from Buzz! I've never noticed the little details that don't have Z's on them either!

Thanks! I’m always SO competitive when playing that I just focus in on what I’m supposed to shooting at (not that that helps any…) and never really enjoy the ride. It was a nice change (plus there was like two other laser dots in addition to mine so I actually saw what I was shooting for once! Amazing! Not that it helped any, but it was a different experience ).

I don't understand why they changed the IASW queue either, it's weird, and I feel totally unnecessary!

I can't believe the pictures you got on that ride! They are so beautiful!

I LOVE Tomorrowland, I can never decide if Tomorrowland or Adventureland is my favorite MK land. I suppose it can be a tie, right? I do like Fantasyland, but it's not very much of a land to me right now, it's more a narrow pathway of rides. I'm hoping once all the construction walls are down I can appreciate it again, I'm starting to forget what the real Fantasyland looks like!

Your Buzz pictures are great too! I've only been on Buzz twice I think, maybe 3 times, and I'm awful at it. Seriously, how do you know where you're shooting? At least TSM makes sense, you can see where your little things are going, but on Buzz? Forget it. I always get the most pitiful score!

I really like the architecture in Adventureland but I’ve always found less to do there. I like Pirates and Jungle Cruise, but not as much as Buzz or Space Mountain. But I think part of that is because Adventureland is usually the stop right before lunch/leaving so I rush through it. Next time I will definitely spend more time in Adventureland!

I’m not super excited for the Fantasyland expansion (I really dislike virtual queues or whatever they call Dumbo's new line) but I really want to see the new castles (also less congestion in old Fantasyland = more rides on small world for me. Hurrah!)! The Little Mermaid one looks adorable.

Thanks! I’ve read a lot of comments that being behind a camera makes you miss a lot of the ~experience~ but I found the opposite. I definitely noticed a lot more when I was trying to take pictures!

I don’t knooow. And then people figure out the special targets somehow? Bear always manages to hit several of them and he doesn’t even read about them on the Internet!! How. But I do like Buzz’s set up better than TSMM just because I’m not a big virtual/screen/techie things fan. I feel like, that since you can't rely on TSMM-esque videos to make the ride interesting Imagineers have to be more creative about the backgrounds. Idk if that makes sense, especially since I’m not a TSMM expert!

Gah!! You can get beignets in DL?? In the New Orleans Square place I'm assuming? I'm taking my first trip to DLR (since 1997) in a few weeks, and literally feel like I know nothing about it! So excited!!!

Love the pictures of Buzz! They're awesome. I definitely didn't notice the dinosaur's ever before! I guess I've always been too distracted trying to hit the targets!

YES. There's some at a cart, I think, and then also in Cafe Orleans (I believe?). At Christmas (I think?) they have gingerbread ones! Lucky you for getting to go so soon – I can’t wait to finish up my master’s program. I never thought I’d say it, but I’m getting really tired of being in school! I just want to be able to take vacations.

Thanks! I think it’s awesome how much random stuff is hidden in Buzz. It is really hard to resist the blasters, though.

 

[Merida]

I think I will!! My only problem with the prime is that it's a bit tight on my camera, so I usually have to back up a lot to get everything in frame. One of the ~perils of being too poor to afford a full-frame camera, I suppose. :c Did you ever have issues with that?

YESSS I love the look of the Sigma 30mm. From what I've seen, it has the ability to take AMAZING photos. Not too expensive, either! (...in photography standards, of course.)

Yeah, especially with the parade/fireworks/MMY at MK at night. I was switching back and forth with cameras because my battery was dying but it was really frustrating with the t2i. Part of it was inexperience and not having a tripod along, so I think next time it will be go MUCH more smoothly now that I know what to expect. The only other place I really used the zoom over a prime was Animal Kingdom.

I told my boyfriend that for my birthday I just wanted some money to put towards the Sigma 30mm. He was all 'Oh no, I'll just get it for you' which is super sweet, but totally not realistic (and I don't have $500 to put towards a birthday gift for him ). I don't think he quite realized the price point for lenses!

 

[Merida]

I have to apologize for being a bit MIA lately; I have a pretty big presentation to give to my master’s committee next week and panicking about that has taken up all my time. Well, except for the 128723 (approximately) times I watched the new Brave clip. And all of the Scrubs episodes we’ve been marathoning. Or the time I’ve put in to trying to restore my iPhone after it got scrubbed during an update. There was also a good few hours on Words with Friends somewhere in the mix as well.

ANYWAY, since I’ve been panicking about the ~quality of my research~, I have become simply unable to throw out any photo I took whatsoever (they are all precious to me!!!). I know my updates are usually showcase a small snippet of my day but I’m pretty sure this is a new record for me: twenty pictures describing my walk through Cinderella’s Castle. You have been warned.

I rarely go around the sides of Cinderella’s Castle when I’m in MK. If I have to, I’ll cut through either Adventureland or Tomorrowland. There really is no substitute to the walk through the Castle, even now that they’ve taken out the gift shop.

Cinderella Castle


Cinderella Castle​

Apparently I’m one of very few people who make this a priority because most of the guests around me were unaware that it was a usable path (I eavesdrop a lot). Or that it was free to use? People are weird.

Cinderella Castle​

But it’s good for me, leaving one of my favorite spots practically empty any time it’s accessible. I love the quiet and the dark here; I find it very peaceful and a nice retreat from the tumult of the park proper.

Lion Rampant​

I hope that this is actually a lioness and it’s really Cinderella’s symbol. Like, after joining the castle she became took over pretty much everything: PR, educational outreach, and an elite group of female spies. And then everyone realized how boring the Prince was and unanimously decided to redo everything in her colors. And then she was super nice about it and the Prince decided he didn't really care and went along with everything. Then there was cake and tea for everyone!

Castle Village​

Architectural continuity is seriously one of my favorite things. They look the same! Like they could have come from the same place, where subjects enjoy emulating their royal family!

Bushes​

Bushes! Fun fact: this is as close as I’ve ever been to the Rose Garden (?), Swan Boat Landing, etc., etc. I really don’t go down here very much. Or even over by Rapunzel's meet'n'greet spot (which is super adorable).

Cinderella​

This is, no lie, one of my very favorite pictures from this trip. I love this mural. I have many, many edits of this picture tucked away, from whenever I’m bored or having photo-editing-block. I mean, how perfect a mosaic is it? Too perfect. that’s right.

Magic​

There’s just so much detail in it and – given that I’m not a mosaic maker – I’m sure it had to have taken ages. This was originally one of my outtakes but I think some judicious cropping makes it into an okay picture. I really would like to know who made the executive decision on the Fairy Godmother’s design, though.

Fairy Godmother​

See? Not very reminiscent of the Disney movie Fairy Godmother. I like both interpretations; this seems more traditionally Fairy-ish while the movie one focuses on the godmother aspect. I do like the mosaic Fairy Godmother’s fashion sense – that hat is freaking amazing and I want one just like it.

Saucy Horse​

My very favorite part of the mural is the dapple grey with the pink-y/purple-y blanket. I just love his expression, being all sassy and knowing he is totally better looking than Prince Charming’s horse. Because he is.

Glass Slipper​

When I finally came out of the Castle (really, I used to spend more time in there, back in the days of the Castle shop), I had the pleasant surprise of walking straight into the Cinderella fountain. I always forget the exact placement of this fountain. I want it to be on the other side of Fantasyland for some reason. Or on the side of the Castle? I’m not sure why!

Tremaines​

The Tremaines were out as well (there was one lady who was VERY excited by this that I cropped out). Their set was almost up so I had to be satisified with creeping around, trying to optimize the number of pictures featuring them but no park guests.

Tremaines​

This was about as close as I got, minus the lady who kept swinging her hand into my shot. I don’t know why! She had a very aggressive walking style and thus I will forever have a disembodied hand floating in the foreground. We could have had it all.

The Queen​

My fountain! I always forget that I really like Cinderella until I come face-to-face with themed art. Or various novel rewrites (my favorite has to be the Mercedes Lackey one, but it’s a LONG list). Even though I can’t remember its location, I’m pretty sure it loves me too.

Cinderella's Mice


Cinderelly​

See? It’s so nicely photogenic with really lovely details at practically every angle. And it’s not crowded back here, giving me plenty of time to figure out exactly what I want to shoot (not that I took the time wisely, since another guest was soon to come out)…

Fairy Godmother​

Fairy Godmother! Slightly more popular than the Tremaines, there was a whole bunch of little girls dressed as Cinderella waiting for her. It is really hard to photograph characters without anyone else in the shot. I like watching them interact with children but I don’t want children in my picture! And it seems weird to stand in line just to ask to take their picture.

Choices, Choices​

I loitered by the gift shop windows, oohing and aahing over the pretty dresses displayed. Is this even a real shop behind the fountain? I figured it had to be, given that pretty much every piece of available space is a dump shop for something. I don't go into that many gift shops (we were never a souvenir family so it's habit to skip them) so I can't recognize the (very well done) windows. Even when they turn out a bit coloring-book-y.

Cinderella's Castle​

I finally managed to sneak a few shots of Fairy Godmother (children not included) and took one final Castle picture. It was time to actually head into Fantasyland proper once more.

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

I love all of your castle detail shots!!! It looks like it was an absolutely gorgeous day!

Good luck on your presentation!!!

 

[Merida]

Thanks! It did clear up for a little bit there and it was so nice! Nice and warm too.

Funny story about the presentation: you know how when you're a kid and there's a big test the next day and you spend the whole night before wishing and hoping for a huge snowstorm or a stomachache/ear infection? And then the next day it's 75 and sunny or your mom says you're just fine, go to school? Well, I've finally beaten the odds! My lower wisdom teeth got infected so I'm getting them removed when I should be giving my presentation. It's a tough call if it's worth going through seven days of pain, thirteen hundred dollars, major oral surgery, and taking five million medications for a delay (and an excuse to subsist on pudding cups for a week), but my fingers are crossed!

 

[marDgreen88]

Oh my goodness, your pictures are so gorgeous! ALL OF THEM.

 

[__disneygirl]

Yay, i'm all caught up now! First of all, I am in LOVE with all your pictures. It's nice to see some different angles! Beautiful!!!!!

Your Salem idea is awesome! I always wished the Haunted Mansion area were bigger, like as if you were arriving to someones multi-acre estate. It would be cool if the build up to actually get in the mansion were longer and creepier.

I am a huge fan of Small World as well. I know a lot of people are annoyed by the song, but I don't mind it. It reminds me of being a child and coming to Disney. Anything classic that Walt had his actual hands in is A+ in my book. And I was confused with the new queue as well!

"Fantasyland is a very close second but there are just so many strollers." LMAO.

I don't remember ever noticing the pterodactyl on Buzz before. I find them to be funny creatures in general but SPACE pterodactyls? Forget it.

Again, your pictures are stunning... I love all the different angles you see on the sides/behind the castle. That is one of the most beautiful areas.

 

[Merida]

I’m finally in that sweet spot of ‘not asleep’, ‘not in pain’, and ‘not loopy on pain meds (I think)’, so I’m going to try and catch up on some stuff. I’ve been being lazy and reading back entries of preppy style blogs (it’s the loafers. I just can’t resist a good pair of loafers) and rewatching Avatar: The Last Airbender with Bear (there’s nothing like well plotted parallel narratives to make a girl feel better. Especially the run between the finale of Season 1 and maybe episode 10 of season 2). I wish I was one of those people who could just get up and do everything normally even though they’re sick but I’m totally not! I get really short-tempered and prone to taking naps in the middle of the day. Silly wisdom teeth! I’m glad they’re coming out tomorrow.

By the time I had left Cinderella’s Fountain, I was starting to get bored. I only had one FastPass mission left (Peter Pan) and then I was stuck until Bear got back. In theory, a solo photography-centered trip is a good idea… but not riding on rides is terrible. Especially when pretty much every ride is a walk-on.

The crowds in Fantasyland were starting to pick up; I was still outside the time limit for the next set of Fastpasses and there wasn’t really much to do besides dodging other people with cameras and taking crooked pictures. Even the Philharmagic (Small World?) gift shop wasn’t really doing it for me (given my otherwise pro-gift shop attitude, I can understand everyone’s surprise ).

The Crocodile​

I was tempted to give up the Peter Pan fastpasses just to be able to go do something, but this sassy GQ of a crocodile convinced me to wait it out (truly the best character in that whole story. TEAM CROCODILE).

Peter Pan's Flight (without Jon)​

The front of Peter Pan is really one of my favorite ride fronts (queue not included). It’s just so innocent and fun. It’s certainly not the most technical or difficult or extravagant, but it fits the ride perfectly. The whole idea of Fantasyland of a marketplace, just with different rides to explore instead of shops, really works for me. I like the consistency.

Peter Pan's Flight (with Jon)​

Even with the weird perspective making the children as large as Big Ben, it’s adorable. Look how happy they are! I’m slightly biased because the ‘You Can Fly!’ scene is my favorite out of the entire movie so course any reconstruction will be very dear to me, but I’m pretty sure everyone can agree on their innate adorableness, right?

Peter Pan's Flight (with Jon)​

And it’s certainly the front that fits best thematically with the ride (you aren’t fooling anyone Mickey, PhilharMagic is about Donald!!). I couldn’t care less about the miniatures (okay, lie) in Peter Pan’s Flight, but the flying pirate ship really completes it.

Pinocchio Village Haus​

Even after thoroughly documenting the exterior of Peter Pan’s Flight (seriously, I have more) there was still a few more minutes left (by Disney’s clock; my collection of ‘This is Not a FastPass’ fastpasses was steadily increasing thanks to my clock) to take a crooked picture of Pinocchio’s Village Haus. I think I wanted to eat there? Most of my decisions in life can be traced back to food (or it’s a small world, both of which are applicable) so it’s a pretty safe bet.

No, we never returned here, probably because of the lack of Figaro fries.

Fantasyland​

Look at all those people! For the most part, this is a good representation of the average crowd level (minus things like the Christmas party and that one awful day in MGM). It was wonderful. Both really empty and really packed parks scare me (for opposite reasons), so our week was a nice balance between the extremes.

Crowds​

I love those guys with the maps; so intent on navigating the twists and turns of Fantasyland (isn’t everything pretty much on a single path here?). And the little girl with the awesome pink pants.

Cinderella's Castle


The PhilharMagic


PhilharMagical​

I finally grabbed the actual fastpasses for Peter Pan (and PhilharMagic; I still have those, I think) and headed back out into Fantasyland. What to do next? We typically don’t do Jungle Cruise FastPasses and Bear loves Haunted Mansion, so there would be no sneaky extra rides on that.

Bird​

(This bird was not helpful in any way, shape or form in making my decision, I just thought he (she?) was cute.) After learning (thanks to a very vociferous gentleman’s conversation with a cast member) that the Castle was closed for a show, I headed off towards Liberty Square. I had a vague idea of checking out the Christmas store before heading up to Guest Services to pick up our party tickets.

Tinkerbell​

The Christmas store was nicer than I had anticipated, not very crowded with lots of cast members. Cast Members who weren’t very eager to talk to you, thank goodness.

Alices​

It was a nice ten-minute break, plenty to make up for the fact that no one wanted to go in the DTD Christmas store with me the night before.

Cinderella's Castle


Water Castle​

I couldn’t exactly remember what the schedule was for Castle events, but took my chances and headed off to the Liberty Square bridge. I was in luck – everything had finished up a few minutes prior and the crowds were already gone. Even the bridge was fairly empty. So (of course), I took more Castle pictures. Why waste a perfectly good view?

 

[Nermel9]

Your updates make me never want to take pictures in the parks again. They're just so good.

I LOVE Peter Pan's Flight. I love "You Can Fly"!!! I mean, who doesn't, if you don't like that song or that scene, there's something wrong with you!

I love the Christmas shop, I could spend hours in there, I love Disney Christmas ornaments more than like, anything.

 

[Merida]

Your updates make me never want to take pictures in the parks again. They're just so good.

I LOVE Peter Pan's Flight. I love "You Can Fly"!!! I mean, who doesn't, if you don't like that song or that scene, there's something wrong with you!

I love the Christmas shop, I could spend hours in there, I love Disney Christmas ornaments more than like, anything.

Thank you! I really want to go back and take more because it's addicting. I'm a truly terrible artist in pretty much every other way (drawing, painting, sculpting, etc.) so it's an interesting experience to have photographs turn out (somewhat) similar to how I'd pictured them in my head!

I know! I always thought that the flying around London was way cooler than the Neverland parts. Flying would totally be the superpower I'd pick to have (close second: telepathy. Or, you know, ]all of the superpowers ).

Christmas ornaments are the best things ever. They're just so pretty! And they only come out once a year so they're special.

 

[Merida]

Oh my goodness, your pictures are so gorgeous! ALL OF THEM.

Thank you!

Yay, i'm all caught up now! First of all, I am in LOVE with all your pictures. It's nice to see some different angles! Beautiful!!!!!

Your Salem idea is awesome! I always wished the Haunted Mansion area were bigger, like as if you were arriving to someones multi-acre estate. It would be cool if the build up to actually get in the mansion were longer and creepier.

YES. Or maybe a tie-in to Hocus Pocus (I don't care if no one watches that movie anymore IT IS CINEMATIC GENIUS)? Honestly, I don't think very many people ~understand Liberty Square (good effort, Imagineers!) and I think Salem would be a theme that's easier to grasp (and if Disneyland can have New Orleans Square, I should be able to have Salem!) as a theme park guest walks quickly from Big Thunder to Peter Pan.

I am a huge fan of Small World as well. I know a lot of people are annoyed by the song, but I don't mind it. It reminds me of being a child and coming to Disney. Anything classic that Walt had his actual hands in is A+ in my book. And I was confused with the new queue as well!

"Fantasyland is a very close second but there are just so many strollers." LMAO.

I'm pretty sure it's officially become cool to like small world! VICTORY. The song isn't that annoying. And PhilharMagic is right across the street to cleanse your musical palate!

I don't remember ever noticing the pterodactyl on Buzz before. I find them to be funny creatures in general but SPACE pterodactyls? Forget it.

Again, your pictures are stunning... I love all the different angles you see on the sides/behind the castle. That is one of the most beautiful areas.

I know everything is better in space (truth; space operas are totally better than normal operas), but the Buzz Lightyear dinosaur thing is verging into Ancient Aliens territory. Like, all the dinosaurs didn't really die off, they just signaled the aliens that they were ready to go home. Or... maybe they were hyperintelligent beings that had their own spaceships and left one buried under the Pyramids at Giza!! Oh, to be a talking head on Ancient Aliens... I truly missed my calling.

 

[Stringbean&Wingnut]

Your castle pictures are truly gorgeous!!! (I especially love the reflection one in the water!)

PPF is one of my favorites too - I love the "You Can Fly" scene too! Just so classic Disney!

 

[marDgreen88]

Honestly I'm kinda inspired now to take cooler pictures. I can't even handle how awesome some of your shots are. This will probably be all I say for the rest of time haha.

Although before I go taking fancy pictures of the Peter Pan's Flight building, I should probably actually ride it.

 

[Merida]

I’m back to posting – but as a changed person. I now have four less teeth. I know! Soon I’ll start updating quickly and breezing through parks – I may actually skip MGM. WHO KNOWS??

And I updated the table of contents. WHOOO. I was going to leave that as my update (I’m on a lot of pain meds right now!! It’s like that scene in Legally Blonde when Elle is describing why the client didn’t kill her husband, because exercise gives you endorphins and endorphins make you happy! But instead of exercise, I take prescription strength pain medication. Tomato, tohmahto) but then I realized I had the next batch of pictures ready. So why not??

Liberty Square​

See? I actually was in Liberty Square! Just in case anyone didn’t believe me and not because I forgot to put this in the last update.
‘

Crystal Palace Lawn


Main Street​

I headed down Main Street, eager to grab our party passes ahead of time (and also I had nothing else to do). I figured Bear would be back shortly, so it was better to be close to the entrance so I could get him as quickly as possible instead of wasting time hiking down from Frontierland.

The Trolley Show​

The trolley show was just finishing up so Main Street was packed. The CMs do a good job of clearing a footpath and making sure that people don’t stand there (thank you CMs! I know people complain, but really, I appreciate it!).

Skirts​

I fought my way down, stopping every so often for a glimpse in between people’s heads. I finally gave it (too many tall people) up and started looking around Main Street.

Turkish Baths​

I have to say it was poor planning to put Turkish baths on the second floor of what is a seemingly wood building. What if something breaks, like a pipe or a bath? You’ve just gone and ruined a whole floor of merchandise and your bathhouse in one fell swoop.

Duffy​

Duffy! It’s okay buddy, I love you.

Figuring it couldn’t be any more crowded inside the Emporium, I ducked inside to try and shake off some of the post-trolley-show crowds.

Woman with Presents​

Yeah, I was wrong, so I decided to stare very intently at this display in the entrance to one of the Emporium shops. I couldn’t make it much further into the store and still have enough room to breathe, so I had to pretend this lady was very interesting.

Frightening Woman with Presents​

Too bad she was also very scary, which is probably why she has so many Christmas presents. I wish I could scare people into giving me whatever I want. It must be a very useful skill.

Trolley Dancers​

As Main Street emptied out, I ran out to get a place on the sidewalk with very few people around me. Unfortunately, the trolley show started up again and everyone decided that I had an excellent viewpoint. Foiled again!

Hello!​

I’m actually a big fan of the trolley show; Meet Me in St. Louis ranks high on my list of favorite Judy Garland films (hint: all of them are on this list) and I like the Trolley Song. It’s not quite as good as when Judy (or Rufus Wainwright) sings it, but it’s a cute adaptation.

Skirts​

NICE BUTT.

Trolley Flags​

The costumes are adorable too. I love circle skirts but never wear them because I feel like I’m drowning in them. And hats! Hats are devious pieces of clothing. They always look cute and perky on other people (Exhibits 1 and 2: The boater and excellent red hat) but I try them on and disaster. They just never work on me.

Trolley Dancers​

I don’t envy these people’s job, though. They have to be so perky and lip-sync-y. Maybe if there was more Wizard of Oz involved I would do it (my Judy Garland and Wizard of Oz loves are a chicken-and-the-egg scenario. I don’t know which came first but they’re both wonderful! Except now I tend to get lots of Oz knick knacks for Christmas ever since people figured out I like them. I’d rather get more copies of the books, but it’s nice that people remember?).

Also I feel bad now making butt jokes when the gentleman in question is actually quite dapper and has on a spiffy waistcoat.

And Scene​

I left right before the trolley show, swimming upstream to get to Guest Relations. It wasn’t so bad at first, given that everyone else was standing still, but it was soon necessary to take a break to study the Emporium displays.

Mickey's Christmas Carol​

I love how shocked (shocked!!) Scrooge is here that Goofy is the Marley ghost. I mean, I would be too. When has Goofy ever done anything malicious or selfish? Yeah, not the sharpest crayon in the box, but never mean or cruel. Odd casting choice there, Disney.

Tin Soldier​

Did you know I almost died by way of tin soldier once? Oh wait, that happens later. Um, foreshadowing?

It took about three seconds to grab our tickets, even with all my extra forms of ID and credit cards the poor cast member had to sort through unnecessarily. At least she didn’t have to explain over and over that there absolutely were no tickets left for any of the parties like her coworker!

Main Street​

That done, I headed back outside and ‘people-watched’ (stalked) various other guests as I kept phoning Bear. (One favorite was Fanny Pack Guy, who is in the doorway. He was very easy to spot in a crowd). Bear kept not picking up, and from the time stamps on my pictures I may have sat down and taken a nap? At least, I didn’t do anything for a good twenty minutes.

Bear finally called back and – surprise, surprise – he was on the ferry.

Wait, ferry?

Disney ferry?

YES.

I may have run over a few small children (and one or two larger ones) in my haste to get out to the ticket turnstiles. I still had a good five minutes to wait as he disembarked and tried to follow my directions to where I was standing (is ‘in front of the big memories sign by the trash can’ really that confusing?).

But he was there, I gave back his tickets, and together – at last – we entered Main Street.

Main Street USA​

Only to see this giant mass of people. But I had a camera bag full of FastPasses and a thousand and one stories to catch Bear up on. We were good to go!

 

[Merida]

Your castle pictures are truly gorgeous!!! (I especially love the reflection one in the water!)

PPF is one of my favorites too - I love the "You Can Fly" scene too! Just so classic Disney!

Thanks! I was determined to do a castle-water shot after seeing some other ones. Mine isn't quite as cool (since the water was all ripply) but I like the idea!

It really is. It's what sets the Disney version apart from all the other adaptations, I think.

Honestly I'm kinda inspired now to take cooler pictures. I can't even handle how awesome some of your shots are. This will probably be all I say for the rest of time haha.

Although before I go taking fancy pictures of the Peter Pan's Flight building, I should probably actually ride it.

Do it! There's really not much to the ride except the whole flying boats part but... flying pirate ships. HOW COOL.

 

[__disneygirl]

People totally still watch Hocus Pocus!!! And by people, I mean me. Flawless movie. I love it so! That's a great idea, btw.

Ancient Aliens. OMG. That show has most definitely messed with my mom's head. I can't tell you how often she points out "UFOs" in the sky to me. I mean, I believe there has to be life out there somewhere but there is no way UFOs frequent our house. LOL anyway onto your update!

haha I was going to ask if you were in pain but it seems as though the pain meds are doing well!

I don't recall seeing a trolley show since like 1995. It looks so adorable! Guess I'll have to hang out on Main Street for awhile until one comes along.

"Too bad she was also very scary, which is probably why she has so many Christmas presents." LOL

I envy that everyone gets you Wizard of Oz stuff. My family doesn't seem to appreciate my Disney obsession. Every single year people ask me what I want and every single year I say "Disney gift cards, even if it's just a small amount, it count towards my next trip" and I never receive them. Sure, get me a sweater from Kohl's, that's the same.

OMG!! I can't believe the Mickey's Christmas Carol window display!!! I absolutely love that cartoon and I didn't even notice that! I hope you don't mind, that is so going in my scrapbook.

Yay, Bear is finally back, sans friend!! Now you can finally go on all the rides. Can't wait for more

 

[Nermel9]

OMG I love Hocus Pocus! I bought it a few years ago at Best Buy for like, $10 and I was SO excited! It made me want to live in Salem when I saw it. Actually, I still kind of want to live there. I love that town, it's so cute, I haven't been there in a few years, I need to go back!

Awww, the trolley show! I love watching that, and my DH thinks it's ridiculous!

I love the Mickey's Christmas Carol window! How did I miss that??? You're right, Goofy as Marley is really strange...I really love that cartoon.

Finally Bear is back! I feel like you were wandering around the park forever alone!

 

[marDgreen88]

Well that lady IS interesting... but yeah... I'm scared of her.

Once again YOUR PICTURES. Just stop it.

YES! BEAR HAS RETURNED! Goodness, he's been gone for weeks.

 

[Merida]

Happy Daylight Savings Day (aka, the worst day of the entire year)!! I almost didn’t post this because I was feeling incredibly lazy and didn’t want to edit pictures. And it felt weirdly out-of-place to do a ‘here’s our next vacation plans!!’ post because I feel like those lend themselves to a PTR link and there’s no way I could keep up both of them!

So I dug out my notebook and realized I took approximately no pictures (for me) for the first hour or so after my boyfriend got back. And I’m going home for spring break so my mother will want to see pictures and as I’m not even halfway through day 2, I should probably pick up the pace! So voila, an update appears!


Bear didn’t get back until around 11:30 (if my notebook is correct; this is the first time I dug it out to check, but I’m going to assume Past Me is pretty good with a watch). That was the time he reached Magic Kingom.

It seemed to take an eternity for him to find me, then find a working turnstile, then a turnstile without a huge line, and then finally get through the turnstile (I was closely shadowing him on the other side).

After practically throttling him in my excitement (I am a very exuberant hugger), I stepped back to let him breathe and tell his story.

“It was fun! We went on the monorail, it was the gold one. Then we drove to the airport and there was more traffic than I expected. You should go on the boat, it’s really fun.”

…okay.

We’d maybe reached the little overpass where the maps are before reaching Main Street by the time he’d finished. Bear then made the mistake of asking what I’d been doing.

If you’d like a quick summary, I’d scroll up and reread because that’s pretty much what I told him, only minus the pictures so I don’t think it made very much sense.

We ended up on the path to Tomorrowland, the one that is opposite the really awesome shrubbery sea serpent without me really knowing what was going on. I hadn’t asked for a plan yet, and hadn’t given a summary of what fastpasses I had available. But Tomorrowland seemed like a great idea! I’d been in the park three hours without riding Space Mountain – what a smart idea! We headed into Tomorrowland and I asked Bear what he wanted to do first as I grabbed a couple quick ~atmospheric pictures.

The Merchant of Venus


Star Traders​

“I was thinking we could try Carousel of Progress. Look how short the line is!”

“Great, I have fast-“ Wait, what? I didn’t even have time to dig out the Space Mountain Fastpasses before Bear was dragging me over. Nothing against Carousel of Progress, but it wasn’t really the ride I was looking forward to! “Are you sure you don’t want to do Space Mountain? Or Buzz?”

Bear shrugged. “We can do them later, this is starting right now!”

Yeah, because there’s ever a line for Carousel of Progress.

Please Wait for Assistance​

There was only maybe a three minute wait before we (and a whole ten other people) were ushered into the auditorium.

CoP Dog​

Our trip through history went smoothly, once it started. Apparently something had broken down in a different theater and people were trying to escape. Not that I blame them (Space Mountain had a short line too!), but I really wanted our show to start. I’ve only ever seen video and I was actually pretty excited to see the real thing.

We all managed to sit in our seats and away we went – all the way to that glorious time in 2000 when ovens were on voice command (poor Carousel of Progress, ‘the future that never was’ theme doesn’t really work, does it?).

Buzz Lightyear was a quick stop on our way out of Tomorrowland. Bear prefers not to remember this time, because I managed to eke out a win (a whole 65k to 63k!), so we will pretend that this didn’t actually happen (there’s no photographic evidence, so maybe it didn’t.

The Haunted Mansion​

I don’t remember why we decided to go up to Haunted Mansion; we both love the ride, but there’s no way to get to Liberty Square without passing a bunch of other great attractions. I like the grounds better than the actual ride (the graveyard scene gets me every time).

Miss Scarlet in the Conservatory​

Seriously, it is perfect. I love this building, with its conservatory and fake lightning effects. We decided against the extended queue, which cut the posted 20 minute wait in half. Really, the shorter queue gives you the better views of the house and that’s my preferred view.

Requiescat in Pace​

And the punny headstones! I like the combination of truly awful and irreverent humor with the grim nature of Haunted Mansion. I think it would be easy for an attraction like Haunted Mansion to veer into the depressing; it’s really hard to make a graveyard into a good hang-out place, you know? It’s just enough themeing to ease in from the rest of the park to the more macabre nature of the ride.

Scary Adventures​

After leaving the 999 Happy Haunts to their haunting, we continued our completely rational touring style by hitting up Snow White’s Scary Adventures. I wanted to go on this not because I particularly enjoy Snow White, but because I was leaving.

I hated Snow White growing up; we lived in a rather woodsy area and I was convinced the forest scene was real (nowadays I’m like 80% positive it’s a metaphor for Snow White’s mental state at the time. Is that right? Or is it really a magic forest?) and that our trees were going to attack me.

The witch wasn’t a big deal because hey, she only tried to kill Snow White once! There wasn’t any stays or hair combs to deal with in the Disney version, so she obviously wasn’t very smart OR trying very hard. I was pretty sure if it ever came to it, I could outsmart or outrun a witch.

Mine Equipment​

But the ride – and this lovely themeing on the side of the Mine shop – is (did?) leaving forever so we had to go on. There were little children coming out the exit, completely happy (I checked). Surely it wasn’t that bad.

Snow White​

Best part of the whole movie right here. Even though her outfit never made sense; the skirt + shoes go together, but not the top part. It’s so fancy and teacher-y that I’m not sure where Snow White got it.

Evil Queen​

Blurry witch! Way less scary than the woods part (during which I averted my eyes by hiding behind Bear so the trees wouldn’t eat my soul).

Love's First Kiss​

But we all survived (I was kind of hoping that something – maybe a big rockfall? – would happen to the car in front of us. It was my first experience with line cutters and I didn’t care about not getting on the ride faster, it’s the principle of being bested by an overly tanned man in a white track suit. Unfortunately, they made it out as well).

Goodbye Now!​

Bye Dopey! I hope you’re glad to be out of the horribly unflattering pink light.

Happily Ever After​

I don’t dislike Snow White’s Scary Adventure, but I think the mine train (and additional meet’n’greet location, I have a weakness for the sets) will be better. Snow White will exist elsewhere and an old C ticket ride isn’t that important to me. I like the idea of a new, unique attraction much more. But I’m really into having each of the five parks being a different experience, so my priority is diversity and not so much park history (which is fascinating, but there’s a reason that some of it is relegated to history) or ‘classic’ experiences.