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April 4th, 2013 (Part 5): Patisseries, Morocco, Pokemon, and the Aroma of Pizza
Just walking into the adorable little patisserie was nice. I enjoyed seeing the swarm of people who were all lined up to get some of that delicious French dessert.
Alex, Allie, and Julianna went over to get some food. Julianna was itching to try some of the chocolate mousse.
Everyone else browsed the cute little gift shop while waiting. We were still emotionally recovering from the United Kingdom so it was a nice place to rest.
Alex came back with a beautiful eclair! Om nom nom. She took a lovely picture of it. I hope to try the mousse the next time I’m there. Mmm!
Next, we headed over to Morocco to explore.
No one really knew what there was to do there other than shop and eat. I was seriously wondering where Aladdin and Jasmine did meet and greets but we never took the time to find their spot.
Therefore, exploring was the next best thing. Just look at how beautiful it is. So very under appreciated.
After finishing up there, we hopped on over to Japan! This was the pavilion that Lori was the most excited for. She LOVES Asian pop culture and people so much. She was pretty excited to meet some real Japanese people. Going into the Japan gift shop was like emptying her debit card.
The minute we walked through those doors, all three of the guys literally sprinted over to the giant wall of Pokemon merchandise. We got that on video. Priceless.
I love that store. It’s so cute. I just love how they have people from the actual countries working in the shops and whatnot. That makes everything that much more authentic.
Lori even met a friend that she could bond with over Japanese stuff. So cute.
After making our way through the home stretch of that large gift shop, we were out.
Allie, Lori, and Julianna were still in buying Japanese candy because apparently, it was to die for. Allie came out with an adorable little Japanese soda with the little marble thing and Julianna bought her candy.
While we were waiting outside, Alex and I decided to take some nice scenery shots of the pavilion because it’s beautiful.
On our way over to the America pavilion, we passed the beautiful arch that Japan is known for. It frames the Epcot ball perfectly and is one of the most popular IllumiNations viewing spots around World Showcase. One day, I hope to watch the show from there. But for now, pictures will have to do.
Onto America! It always feels a little odd going to America currently residing in America.
Though, the Voices of Liberty are seriously one of the best live performing groups on property. Heavenly, really. We didn’t go inside to hear them but that’s okay. We were short on time.
We DID pass Lotso, though and he actually smelled like strawberries. AHHHHHH. I think we all kind of freaked out inside, haha.
Onto Italy we went! Alex took this beautiful picture of World Showcase at sunset. After such a rainy and humid day, this was totally worth it. Sigh. Disney > all.
Now, Italy was a special country for us during this trip because we had a dear Italian foreign exchange student named Francesca back home that we thought of while there. Abe and I tweeted her to make sure she knew we were thinking of her.
We just looked around and took pictures. Normal touristy things. (PS: I adore Lady and the Tramp so much.)
We were almost to our destination of Norway! But first, we had to go and check out Germany and China!
April 4th, 2013 (Part 6): Concluding A Perfect Epcot Day
As we made our way over to Germany, we passed the topiary Snow White with her Seven Dwarfs. Jacob absolutely adores her. Shes his favorite princess so we HAD to take a picture, haha.
We also passed the large model train set area that went through the German village. So adorable.
Germany is such a unique pavilion. I mean, IT HAS A CUCKOO CLOCK STORE. Jacob ended up buying a sports jacket-esque thing from a gift shop and Julianna and Allie wanted food so we just hung out for a while.
Look at all of these adorable cuckoo clocks. I WANT ONE. They remind me to much of Pinocchio.
Next up came China. Jacob was looking for a new pair of sunglasses to buy because of what happened to his other pair in the UK. We stopped at a little hut and Abe put on the most manly pair there. What a stylish young lady.
I cant help but totally be biased (in favor) towards the China pavilion. I mean, MULAN GREETS THERE. THATS SO AWESOME. Its also breathtakingly beautiful at night. Just look at it. Gorgeous.
We needed to go in the gift shop so I could buy some things for my mom and younger sister. I bought my mom a beautiful hand painted butterfly ornament and I bought Hannah a nice decorated hair clip with flowers and stuff on it.
Abe of course found something to play with. He'd make a fabulous bride. He'll bring honor to us all. Hahaha. Sigh.
Lori had Alex take a picture of her with Buddha because you know, Asian culture.
Once we headed out of the gift shop, we wanted to look for an IllumiNations spot out in front of Norway (which was next door) so we could save them and get food. Lori was really hungry because she hadnt eaten since lunch so she and Allie went to go get Chinese food at the quick service restaurant. It smelled delicious.
Before we got to Norway though, we passed these ADORABLE topiary pandas. Theyre so cute. Awwwww.
This is our phenomenal IllumiNations viewing spot. We claimed it front row and sat there for about forty five minutes until the show started.
Abe went to look for food along with a few others. I just ate in the hotel room afterwards.
Sitting there looking at World Showcase all lit up and peaceful was one of the most perfect Disney moments I can recall from any of my trips. Everyone was at peace and satisfied with their day. I had my friends surrounding me in the place I call home. Nothing could beat that.
This is what happened when I took a picture of WS with my DSLR camera. I actually think it looks pretty cool, haha.
Soon enough, the torches went out one by one and IllumiNations started.
I teared up at the end because you know, I hadnt seen this show in four years. Crazy. (Disclaimer: I teared up at most shows, parades, etc.) I definitely missed my family that night.
Alex took a beautiful picture of the Mexico building on our way out.
Sadly, our group didnt get to explore much of Norway or Mexico at all. I love The Maelstrom and The Three Caballeros but we didnt get to them this trip.
We were all heading out and saw this fantastic Lion King topiary set. Love love love.
Alex took a picture of the Fountain of Nations for her mum because she loves its little water show.
The Epcot ball is seriously one of the most beautiful nighttime icons on property. It changes color just like Cinderella Castle and looks so angular and defined at night.
We finally made our way onto the bus again and everyone was exhausted but happy. Back in the hotel room, we all got ready to go to bed.
We got out Apples to Apples and continued the tradition of playing it every night before bed.
Once we finished, Autumn and Allie got comfortable in bed and Alex and I decided to map out our course of action for the next day.
Tomorrow was going to be perfect. Magic Kingdom was officially planned out and we went to bed tired and ready for a magical day at my favorite park.
Once again, a lovely installment of your trip report. Love the pictures. Calling the Canada phone booth sounds like it was tons of fun. The picture of the Fountain of Nations for Alex's mom made my eyes leak. Looking forward to the next installation.
April 5th, 2013 (Part 1): Through The Gates of The Place Where Dreams Come True
When my room woke up, we all took note that it was indeed rainy and humid outside. Ew, right? But no worries, being the people we are, Alex and I decided to find an immediate silver lining: short lines!
Before we could actually confirm that hope, we had to make our way on down to breakfast. Look at that ‘beautiful’ hotel lobby. Mmm.
In the hallway, I took a nice picture of the girls in our group for the day in their adorable Minnie ears.
When we were walking to the food area, someone had Alex’s camera and took some nice pictures of the two of us from behind. Adorable.
This ‘Restaurant’ area is where we got our food at a breakfast buffet. I’m not a big breakfast person but they had plenty of food for people like Abe to stock up on. Fact: He would get up and go down to get food earlier than the rest of his room. Foodie 5eva.
After that, Erling (our tour guide guy) gave us the usual speech about what was going on that day. We would be exploring Magic Kingdom until about noon or quarter to. Then, we’d go to our nice music clinic that was a part of the Disney Performing Arts program. Afterwards, the clinic would be finished around three thirty or four o’clock and we’d head back to the park to play for the rest of the day. It sounded like a fabulous plan, if you ask me.
We had to get all of our instruments in order to put on the bus in prep for the clinic. After that was taken care of, we were finally off!
Abe looks so attractive in all of the pictures I took of him, obviously. The prettiest princess in the castle.
Because our hotel was literally right down the road from WDW property, we got to go through the gate every day and I swear, every time I got the chills.
We went through the Magic Kingdom road gate and that gave me the chills, too. They changed the color scheme from purple and pink to blue and yellow. So cute.
Now, as most on the DIS know, Magic Kingdom is all special and isolated so we were dropped off in the parking lot by bus and made our way to the monorail. On our way there, I was already really excited.
Something special that I’ve done every trip since I can remember is take a picture of the spinning Mickey and Minnie topiaries when I arrive and when I’m leaving. Thanks to Alex for getting Mickey on the way in.
We walked up the monorail ramp and were anticipating everything the ride would entail because we had two or three monorail newbies with us. They had never before experienced the perfection that is a Disney World monorail.
The entire concept of monorails just makes me really happy. I took the opportunity and got a good picture of the tracks while they were empty.
And then, what do you know? A red striped monorail pulled up just as w were going up the ramp and it matched the monorail sign. Too perfect, haha.
Between the time where we walked up the ramp and got on an actual monorail, a cast member had given Julianna a Mickey sticker. They’re quite popular everywhere you go in Disney World park-wise.
Jacob was especially excited because this was his favorite park kind of tied with Epcot. What a nice smile. He was pretty pumped.
When our monorail finally arrived, we kind of freaked out because it was the Iron Man 3 monorail. The coolest of them all. I mean, Iron man was just flying on the side of it so when we moved, it looked like he was flying with the monorail. Clever.
It was lovely to see resorts and property as we traveled along the highway in the sky. We got to go through the Contemporary Resort and see its new addition, Bay Lake Tower! AHHHHHHH. I must visit that resort in August.
As we approached the actual park, you could slowly see the treeline receding and see the peaks of buildings and the castle. Yeah. Internally, I was just having a mini freak out because this is my absolute favorite park.
Seeing Main Street U.S.A. and the castle from the monorail after all of that slow unveiling made everything that much better.
We went through and scanned our tickets, got our bags checked, etc. After that, we made our way in. It’s crazy.
The sensation of emotions one can experience just from entering a place like the Magic Kingdom is insane. Starting off with the music that’s playing when you first arrive. I remember it was the score from Be Our Guest that was playing when we got off our monorail.
The first thing you see before you even make it onto Main Street is this small sign. It means a lot to me and I made sure Alex got a good picture of it because it basically embodies all that Disney is within a few words.
Once you make it through those little tunnels, you’re overwhelmed with the scents, sounds, and sights of everything that IS Main Street U.S.A.
You see characters, smell popcorn and candy, hear the old timey street music, and see the castle standing at the epicenter of it all. A sight to be seen, really.
Someone took Alex’s camera and got some really good pictures of us three eleven-timers together down Main Street. Sigh.
The excitement was just so overwhelming. But in a good way. According to our mapped out plan, we were to head to Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain first to see which one had a longer wait time. Off to the wild, wild, West we went!
April 5th, 2013 (Part 2): E'rybody Has A Laughin' Place!
Before we could head over to Frontierland, Autumn and Allie announced that they indeed had to go and use the restroom. We were still on Main Street near the flagpole where Pluto and Marie the cat meet and greet.
The rest of us wanted to get going in the case of a long line at both Splash Mountain AND Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, so Autumn and Allie let the rest of us go on. They said theyd meet us over near the mountains when they were done. In my mind, I figured they would get lost but as an accumulative group, we had faith in their sense of navigation, haha.
Off we went to Frontierland! We took the route through Liberty Square and passed Country Bear Jamboree. That attraction holds a VERY special place in mine and Alexs hearts. So a picture has been placed to honor it. THERES NOTHIN LIKE THE GREAT OUTDOORS TO EASE YOUR SOUUUUUUUUL.
Even from a distance, the excitement for Splash Mountain was totally building inside all of us. We had four people in our group who were Splash Mountain first timers so this was very exciting. Just look at that majestic mountain range. Beautiful.
Because we were waiting for Autumn and Allie, we had some photo opportunities. Of course us eleven-timers had to pose for a picture with one of our favorite rides. Adorable.
We were starting to wonder where Autumn and Allie were. Jacob decided to call them. Hes a feisty little ginger so his temper was already getting the best of him. But this picture accurately depicts the difference between the two gingers in our group. Tyler is much more carefree. Their faces = too priceless.
And then...youve got Alex over there who was just like, ew. I dont know what she was so disgusted with but her face was obviously executing her feelings like a pro.
We can give these beautiful candid props to Abe. He wasnt a big fan of posed pictures. His vision was for all natural pictures. No cheesy smiles in sight! Youll see more from him throughout the rest of the report, haha. You can tell that the enthusiasm was just seeping out of him the entire time.
Now once we actually saw the wait time for Splash Mountain compared to Thunder Mountain, us Disney veterans seriously geeked out. THERE WAS A FIVE MINUTE WAIT FOR SPLASH MOUNTAIN. THAT NEVER HAPPENS. EVER. THATS SHORTER THAN HAVING A FASTPASS. FLASDJKFLKSDA;JFSL;DAKFJAL;DKFJ The wait for Thunder was about forty five minutes so obviously, our choice was determined.
Autumn and Allie eventually found their way to us. They at first told us all to just go on the ride without them but they were our Disney ohana! And ohana means family and family means that no one gets left behind.
Alright. Lilo and Stitch references aside, we all rushed onto Splash. IT WAS BASICALLY WALK ON. Im still not over the whole short wait thing. The lack of people was obviously because of the light drizzle that was occurring at the time, but who cares? Going on a water ride while its raining makes sense. Youre gonna get wet either way!
The WDW train went by us while we were hiking up to the loading area. While we were walking up, the speaker came on and basically said that Disney was not responsible for people getting wet during the ride with the weather and everything. Sigh. It's like they thought we actually cared about getting wet.
I really love Brer Bear. I think hes adorable. LOOK AT THAT EMPTY QUEUE AREA.
I also thoroughly appreciate the several signs used to psych people out. LAST CHANCE TO EXIT. OH NO.
Tyler decided to be a little creepy and pose with this lovely Last Chance poster. He was ready for the thrill.
Yeah. This sign is such an understatement. We all got pretty much soaked.
I can never give enough props to Alex for getting this picture. Its one of my favorites. Were all pretty cute. Just look at us for a few seconds and appreciate the Disney magic at work.
We got up to the CM directing ride vehicles and I said that Jacob and I wanted to be in the very front and they gave us the front row. PERFECT.
I was in charge of video because I had my waterproof camera on my person. Alex had her camera out until the big drop so she could take pictures of the actual ride inside. She took this precious dry photo so we could compare it to when we were all soaked afterwards.
Fact: Alex and Tyler are neighbors. So obviously, a dry neighbor selfie was in order.
I absolutely love the animatronics and the story that they tell throughout the rides first eight or nine minutes. The time totally passes like no other.
We finally got up to the top and I had my camera still rolling on video. I got these next two pictures from screen capturing framees from the video footage I had. Yay for fancy editing software!
The intense light at the end of the tunnel slowly became larger by the second and then BAM. We were hit with a face full of hidden Mickey Mouse! Look! You can see his nose and face and even a little bit of his ears! I personally was just awestruck with the view from the top. Absolutely phenomenal.
And then came the drop. That ever so dreaded drop. Our group of four had all been on Splash Mountain before though so it wasnt as terrifying as it would have been for a first timer. Those thorns spook me every time, though!
Here are our wet pictures that Alex took. As you can tell, both Jacob and I got soaked. Tyler was also satisfied with his share of drenching, haha.
This right here is one of my favorite scenes in the entire ride. Our group sang along to Zip-a-dee-doo-dah at the top of our lungs. I may or may not have shed a few tears due to the crazy amount of feels I had at the time. That was one of the most precious Disney moments I have ever experienced.
Sadly, the ride was coming to an end and we couldnt just stay on forever. But thats okay! We had a great experience and isnt that all people ever want?
While we were waiting to get off, I took out my blue camera and used its last bit of battery to take this group wet selfie. Too good. Jacobs face is smudged from a huge droplet of water, haha.
Here are the ride photos from both groups. Lets just take a moment to appreciate all of our faces. Jacob is having the time of his life, Alex is going insane, Im freaking out because my camera was getting video and it almost fell out of my hands, and Tyler was just being himself. I also enjoy the man behind Alex and his child. Their faces are amazing as well.
Next is the other half of our group. Trevor was pretty terrified while also taking video, haha. Abe was attempting to replicate the Thinker pose, I believe? Allie was pretty solid, but Autumn and Julianna werent, haha. Autumn hates big drops and Julianna just happened to be the person sitting next to her.
We all met up at the exit area and got reactions from first timers. They all had a blast, haha.
As you can tell by the people wearing ponchos and the shiny pavement, it was quite rainy that morning. But we werent going to let some water bring our mood down! No siree! That just meant that the lines were going to be shorter!
We all decided as a group that Pirates of the Caribbean would be a good next ride. So, onto Adventureland we went!
April 5th, 2013 (Part 3): The Back Side of Water, Captain Jack Sparrow, and 999 Happy Haunts
As we made our way over to Pirates of the Caribbean, the rain was coming down harder. We finally got there and found out that sadly, the ride wasnt up and operating at the time. Bummer. BUT no worries, we planned on coming back.
We decided that Jungle Cruise was a good ride to go on to pass the time. As we turned to make our way over there, we came across the best surprise ever. PETER PAN! He was seriously just standing under an overhang to avoid the rain with like two people in line. PERFECTION. See? Silver lining in everything.
Of course, our group had to stop and meet him. He was so great. Absolutely charming. According to him, gingers cant count. Its a known fact. He made Julianna laugh, haha. And Alex absolutely adores Peter Pan so she was in her happy place. After that, we got a nice group picture. He was just the best, really.
We continued on to Jungle Cruise and had a short wait time. Not even twelve minutes! What a good morning so far.
In the queue, there was a barrell labeled Ginger. Of course, a picture was taken to honor the two gingers we had with us.
I got this nice picture of Jacob as well.
This tarantula actually moved. yeah. I put my hand by it and it scared the crap out of me, haha.
This is our skipper, Cody. Jungle Cruise skippers are basically there to drive the boat, give you a tour of the jungle, and make absolutely terrible jokes and puns the entire time. Shout out to Danger Bob! Our skipper did a fabulous job through and through.
He showed us these lions protecting the sleeping zebra. Ahahaha.
Watch out for Ginger, she snaps!
This adorable little elephant thats popular all over the internet because people think that its real. Its not.
I think my favorite joke was when we were going behind a waterfall and Cody was like, Get your cameras ready, folks! This is the eighth wonder of the world, the BACKSIDE OF WATER! Or as I like to call it, O2H. hahaha.
After a wonderful journey through the jungles of the world, we decided to head back to Pirates and see if it was up and running again. It was! So on we went. Such a good ride with like a five minute wait.
Hey look! Its Captain Jack Sparrow!
After the ride, we browsed the gift shop because Jacob wanted to find a Jack Skellington piece of merchandise for his brother. Sadly, his brother owned everything that was in the store related to Jack so Jacob came up empty handed, haha.
Julianna was cute as ever with her lanyard full of pins.
Those pirate ears on Jacob were great, haha.
We headed over to the Haunted Mansion and the wait was about fifteen minutes. Did we dare take the risk of becoming the 1,000th happy haunt? Of course! So on we went.
Abe, Alex, and I had a blast in our Doom Buggy pointing out similarities in the ride to Harry Potter, haha.
We only had about forty five minutes left after the Haunted Mansion before we had to take off for our clinic. It was time for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad!
I understand. Writing them was quite emotionally taxing. BUT TOTALLY WORTH IT, haha. I'm taking my time with the Magic Kingdom installments because it was my favorite day. I don't want it to be over so soon!
April 5th, 2013 (Part 4): The Wildest Ride in Wilderness, You're Instrumental, and Returning to the Magic Kingdom
Onto the “wildest ride in the wilderness!” My grandma used to call it “Rocky Horror” due to the room where all of the rocks are shaking like they’re going to fall, haha. We had Fastpasses for this ride so we didn’t get to see the new interactive queue. But we didn’t have much time before we had to head out for our clinic.
Trevor and Tyler were pretty excited and on an energy high from running through the rain, haha.
Allie and Julianna really just wanted some food because it was almost lunch time! They didn’t care what we did as long as they had time to grab lunch before we left the park.
This picture basically explains the entire group dynamic in one frame. No big deal.
Abe and I had already decided in advance that we would ride BTMR together. I had no idea what I was in for. He screamed like a little girl in a horror movie almost the entire time. DOING THAT IS WHY I COULDN’T TALK IN THE FIRST PLACE. Why he wanted to have a sore throat, I have no idea. But it was definitely a ride I won’t be forgetting anytime soon, haha.
Look at that beautiful Disney mountain range being all majestic and such. We were pretty lucky to have ridden it when we did because another bout of rain was heading our way.
Hey look! Julianna and Allie got their lunch! A classic staple of Disney Parks food, right there. A turkey leg. I’ve always wanted to try one but have never had the guts to actually do so. One day.
On our way out, we passed Crystal Palace. Intense Disney trip foreshadowing. Oooooooh. How? I made an ADR for this amazing restaurant on August 29th for my dear friend, McKenna. Pooh’s her favorite, haha.
As we were leaving, Alex got a beautiful distance shot of the castle and the looming rain.
The Up theme, Married Life was playing over the speakers and I couldn’t help but maybe tear up a tiny bit because I love Up with a deep passion.
A nice shot of the WDW Train Station to commemorate our perfect morning.
Just as we were leaving the actual park, we saw Snow White in her Town Square meet and greet spot. She is Jacob’s absolute favorite princess (as mentioned previously in this report). He wanted to meet her so very much but we were on an intense time crunch. NEXT TIME.
Autumn had previously broken my white sunglasses so she bought me a new pair at the gift shop right outside of the Magic Kingdom entrance.
Jacob was in there with us looking for a pair of ears because none of the guys had gotten theirs yet. What slackers.
While waiting for the monorail to take us back to our bus, we were given a pleasant surprise. WE GOT THE IRON MAN 3 MONORAIL AGAIN! Like it was meant to be, really.
I extremely enjoy this picture because of Allie’s illustrious gaze towards her turkey leg. Like, “Oh I really want to finish eating this...but I’m so full...but it was so good...”
We made it back to the bus on time. Whoo!
We had to take this nice little eleven-timers selfie because we’re cool like that.
Then, Alex and I got to talking and she told me that she had Mickey Mouse Band-Aids in her bag. PERFECTION.
It was time for a nice satisfactory selfie in my new sunglasses.
And then, a selfie with Alex in our sunglasses and ears because we’re adorable.
We went to the You’re Instrumental Workshop for the Disney Performing Arts Program. It was amazing. We played Poor Unfortunate Souls from The Little Mermaid, Stay Awake from Mary Poppins, Trashin’ The Camp from Tarzan, and Stampede from the Lion King. Our conductor was from our home state so that was awesome. He was a phenomenal trumpet player and plays daily in the Main Street Marching Band.
Our clinic couldn’t have been more perfectly placed because we were there from about one o’clock to three o’clock during the time it rained. So, when we finally finished up, the sun was out, the sky was blue, and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect.
We headed back to the bus and made our way back to the Magic Kingdom.
Alex got this nice picture of Autumn and I in our matching Minnie Mouse sunglasses right after we got off the bus.
We then made our way over to the transportation area.
I love the gates with the character silhouettes on them because as a child, I was the same height as them and counting how many characters there were made me really happy. See? Look at how adorable Eeyore is.
We finally made it up to the monorail loading dock and guess what? WE GOT THE IRON MAN 3 MONORAIL YET AGAIN. And hence, it became our group’s monorail. Haha. We plan to eventually move into it and never leave Disney ever again. Good plan? Good plan.
The anticipation was yet again insurmountable because I just love the Magic Kingdom so much. Seeing the train station and the castle peeking up behind was just too much for me to handle. The gorgeous weather made things five hundred times better, as well.
We hopped off the monorail and Once Upon A Dream from Sleeping Beauty was playing over the station. That’s one of my favorite princess songs. THIS WAS ALREADY SUCH A PERFECT DISNEY DAY.
On our way to the gates, we got a nice shadow shot of the members of our room. Allie, Me, Autumn, and Alex (from left to right). Ears and all.
We had finally made it to the front entrance and I knew that a great second half of the day awaited us.
I just didn’t quite realize how amazing it would really turn out to be.
April 5th, 2013 (Part 5): Walkin' Right Down the Middle of Main Street U.S.A. To Fantasyland!
Here we are, being cool kids and not remembering to center our group. So you know, the sign is just kinda... Let... and nothing else. Haha. We were all just really excited to play in the park again, okay?!
Heres a close up of our uncentered group. I love how we automatically arranged ourselves guys in back, girls in front. Sigh. Gotta love those ears. *cough GUYS STILL NEEDED TO GET THEIRS cough*
I would just like to take the time to appreciate how awesome the train station is, because I love it so much. THE POPULATION IS SIX HUNDRED MILLION PEOPLE. WOAAAAH.
We went through those amazing tunnels again and under my favorite sign(s). Just look at the beautiful change in weather. Everything was so much more magical with blue skies and sunshine (subtle reference to Princess and the Frog right there).
Alex and I have a very special appreciation for the windows on Main Street U.S.A. because, you know, they have the names of important/honorary/legendary Imagineers and employees in the Walt Disney Company.
*Insert stereotype/necessary Main Street Cinderella Castle shot here.*
When I was little, I thought that this marquee was legitimately showing a movie called the Art of Disney...and then I realized it was just the shop, haha. Props to Abe for ruining the picture with his abnormally large head. We still love you regardless.
Heres a balloon shot that really makes me want a balloon. Thats still a very sensitive subject with Alex and I. Youll understand in later updates, haha.
Main Street itself is just so gorgeous. Heres a nice building picture, enjoy.
Dream Along With Mickey was just ending one of its afternoon sets as we were entering the park. Alex and I literally speed skipped down Main Street to see if we could catch the end of it. As you can see, we didnt make it on time. We were very heartbroken but at least she got a picture of the fireworks.
A classic picture of the Partners statue. Every tourist MUST have one, haha. This foreshadows later events regarding our perfect Magic Kingdom day.
I really love the plaque the statue has, its just really feely and makes me appreciate the bigger picture that is Disney.
Heres a nice shot of just Walt and the castle. So iconic.
We werent allowed to go under the castle because they were still taking down DAWM things, so we got to go around! We went left and passed the Liberty Square/Adventureland entrances. The castle is honestly beautiful from all angles, hence pictures from all angles, haha.
Look at that absolutely enchanting moat/lagoon. ITS JUST....AHHH. DISNEY.
Close up angled castle picture. Basically, Cinderella Castle is the focus for thousands of photo shoots everyday. This being just another one of those.
I really love this little Cinderella fountain because if you take the picture at the right angle, the crown on the wall looks like its sitting on her head. YES.
We finally got around to original Fantasyland! Whoooo! Look at that regal carousel. Sigh. Im sad we never went on it, haha. Thats not weird, right?
We made our way to our destination of choice, its a small world! Aka Abes favorite ride. Jacob has a special emotional attachment to this ride because its his moms favorite. He promised that he would call her while we were riding it so she could hear the song. Therefore, we decided to go on it first.
I love the theme of Fantasyland. So precious.
WOAH. ITS THE TANGLED TOWER OFF IN THE DISTANCE. Rapunzel is Alexs favorite princess so to say she was excited to see this is an understatement of great proportions.
This is our nice view from the queue of small world. It wasnt too long of a wait time but we were all in a pretty good mood anyway.
I adore this sign because of the whole, serenaded by costumed children from around the world. thing. I just love how casual it all is, like No big deal! I love costumed children in the masses! Not creepy at all!
Heres a nice view of the inside once we finally made it. Not that long of a line considering the attraction, haha.
A nice picture of the CM booth where they start and stop the ride vehicles. I just really love how they always wave to you from above before you embark on your journey around the world.
We had more waiting to do but we were ALMOSTTTT THEREEE (Princess and the Frog reference. Just too tempting to resist).
April 5th, 2013 (Part 6): Being "Serenaded by costumed children from around the world."
As you can see, the it’s a small world queue is pretty...complex. If that’s what you wanna call it. It winds around, in and out, up and down but eventually, you do get to your ride vehicle, haha. But it’s beautifully decorated because what else are you going to stare at while you wait?
Not only does the scenery give you the time (ie. a giant clock) but it also foreshadows. The back wall is made up of world landmarks (some being the seven wonders) which is foreshadowing to all of the different ethnicities and cultures you’ll see displayed on the ride.
This here is an example of how awkwardly arranged the queue can be, haha.
We got the point where you choose to go down to the left or to the right and we chose left. Of course, that ended up being the slower side but that was just our luck ,haha.
Here’s a nice view of how close we kind of were. If only we were entering through the exit...
Don’t let that commonplace wall fool you, it’s what is inside that counts (Aladdin reference haha) because we had to go behind that wall before we could even get close to the loading area.
Sigh. Kind of almost there!
Ladies and gentlemen, Behind the Wall! It’s really a party back there. We were finally getting close!
Whew. I was worried we’d never get on, haha.
One last shot from the loading area and we were on! And we were off!
Of course, we waved to the Cast Member up in the little tower as tradition calls.
Look at those lucky people eating by the window up in Pinocchio’s Village Haus.
Now come the actual attraction photos. All of these were taken by Alex because all of my pictures turned out a little something like this:
So many things all at once. IT’S JUST SO MUCH TO TAKE IN.
Obviously a picture of the Indian area was necessary to honor Jasmine and Aladdin. They even have a magic flying carpet!
Yay for Japan because you know, that’s like Lori’s dream country.
HIDDEN MICKEY ALERT. HIDDEN MICKEY ALERT. Right in front of the giraffe = Hidden Mickey leaves. The best.
Whenever I see this platform, the song Arabian Nights from Aladdin pops into my brain because of the camel, haha.
The sun is probably my favorite part of the ride. Which is weird to say, but true.
If anyone’s familiar with the Kingdom Keeper book series by Ridley Pearson, they’d think about wearing their 3-D Glasses onto the ride just so see if the sun really does give away a secret code/message thing, haha.
Okay in person, this waterfall looks so realistic that it makes me wanna reach out and touch it, haha.
These little guys are my favorite animals on the ride because I love platypi. Shout out to Agent P from Phineas and Ferb!
Once our boat was pulling back into the loading area, Alex saw one silver/grey string of hair or something sticking straight up on the top of this lady’s head but she couldn’t capture it on camera. We were all kind of fascinated with this her head after that, haha. It was a little weird.
Now that it’s a small world was over and Jacob had managed to call his mom so she could hear her favorite ride, where to next?
Mickey’s Philharmagic!
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