A BICOASTAL SOLO Adventure: Nov&Dec2010 @ VGC & AKV... 2 UPDATES 3/6 Post #85 & 86

That's really cool to see a behind the scenes of the ride plan. Does Disney usually display the mock-ups of the rides like this? It's the first time that I've seen one. :thumbsup2
 
Somebody hand me a broom, I just walked into a big cobweb. :lmao:

Thanks for the update Stopher, look forward to being able to see the pictures after I get home from work. I wish that they'd build a Carsland in Disney World too, but maybe this will be what I need to finally get that first trip to the West Coast and more specifically Disneyland.
 
we are hoping to do Disneyland next yr as my daughters school band will be headed out there.I know where to go for any info I may need there:thumbsup2
 


Nice update Stopher. We were tossing around the idea of heading out there in 2012, but I think we'll push it back a year to make sure Carsland is open and some of the "newness" has worn off (and hopefully, the crowds aren't as bad?)
 
Nice pictures! It's amazing to see this park and see things that look so familiar, and yet completely different. And I'm with Mike--I've never seen them put out a model that gives you an idea of what the ride will be like. But I hope they do it more often!
 
Nice update. I haven't made it to Blue Sky Cellar in the long time (they still had WoC last time I was in there!) :lmao: Nice to see what the Ariel ride is going to become. We're there the few days before all the big openings, so hopefully they'll be doing soft openings in the days before.

To those who have never seen previews like shown here...they started doing this in the Blue Sky Cellar in DCA a couple years ago. When it originally opened, Mondavi sponsored the Winery and they showed a film about wine producing in California. After Mondavi pulled out it sat vacant for a long time. A couple years ago they started previewing upcoming projects at DLR, now that they have changed it to a preview center it is very popular and there is almost always a crowd enjoying the exhibits. It is constantly changing as new exhibits are in development.
 


Nice update. I haven't made it to Blue Sky Cellar in the long time (they still had WoC last time I was in there!) :lmao: Nice to see what the Ariel ride is going to become. We're there the few days before all the big openings, so hopefully they'll be doing soft openings in the days before.

To those who have never seen previews like shown here...they started doing this in the Blue Sky Cellar in DCA a couple years ago. When it originally opened, Mondavi sponsored the Winery and they showed a film about wine producing in California. After Mondavi pulled out it sat vacant for a long time. A couple years ago they started previewing upcoming projects at DLR, now that they have changed it to a preview center it is very popular and there is almost always a crowd enjoying the exhibits. It is constantly changing as new exhibits are in development.

Yeah, WOC was the last model I had seen in there as well. I read various websites each week, and always love seeing what is going on in the Cellar.


Disneyland has historically had numerous Preview Centers, with actual attraction models. This model in particular, while at DCA, instead of DL proper, is certainly more of an inside view than an outside view. Most of the models in the past have been the exteriors. Models have been a very important part of the imagineering process for many, many years. The earliest models weren't kept, sadly, but over time, they started to see the value of keeping them. Thank goodness for that, because there are some amazing models on display still in different places. One of the most fun I've ever seen (I have a photo somewhere), is of the inside of Space Mountain at DL - the single track version, not the tandem track of the MK. You could actually move around the platform it sat upon, and with your eyes, or your finger if you were a pointer (like me), follow the track from the station all the way up, down, around and through until you got back to the station. It was awesome.

When I worked there, the Preview Center was on the east corner of Main Street, USA (currently a shop), and it had the model for Splash Mountain. Actually, many of the models on display inside One Man's Dream in the Studios park in Florida were at one time on display in Disneyland. Prior to the Blue Sky Cellar, the last Preview Center was inside the exit area of Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, and hosted the preview art and models for Disney California Adventure park.

WDW had it's own preview center at least a couple of times. The first being for the initial resort construction itself. It was located on Hotel Plaza Blvd, in what is now the Athletic Association building (if you WDW vets are familiar with that area at all.). Later they had one inside the MK by the old Walt Disney Story attraction, inside what will soon be the new home for Mickey & Minnie - there in the Exhibition Hall. It hosted a preview model of Epcot back in the late '70s and very early '80s.
 
the last Preview Center was inside the exit area of Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, and hosted the preview art and models for Disney California Adventure park.

I remember that too. Since we get to DL much more often than WDW we do get to wander around the park and see what is going on. We need to remember to head out and check out DCA as well!
 
Leaving DCA and crossing the esplanade over to the entrance to Disneyland, these color banners advertising WOC were everywhere.

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One of my favorite sights...

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And my all time favorite sign...

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The park was getting ready for the annual Candlelight Processional the next weekend. Too bad I was going to miss it at Disneyland - but - I would be seeing it at Epcot in just a few days, so I wasn't too disappointed. At Disneyland it is still performed on just a single weekend each December, and is still in Town Square (even though they took it and moved it for a few years back in the '90's) unlike the cash cow it's become at Epcot, being performed 2 or 3 times nightly for the entire month of December. Gotta get those dinner reservations to ensure a seat...

At Disneyland the seating is found throughout Town Square, with standing room behind the various chairs set up. The orchestra is right down on Main Street itself. I haven't attended at Candlelight at DL in at least a dozen years now, so I cannot say for certain if it is still done this way or not - but in the past when I have seen it - and participated in it - one of the best parts was the processional itself, where the mass choir would actually process down Main Street. That was always phenomenal to see. The other really cool part I love is to see the trumpeters up on the roof of the Train Station... it's all just so magical. A must-do for any Candlelight lover, at least once, IMO.

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I still remember singing near the middle of that tree platform back in the day... such fun it was. I have it on DVD (transferred from video) - and enjoy watching it each Christmas season. The first year I was in it, it was broadcast on the still-relatively new Disney Channel and we taped it. How fun was that? I still have my sheet music too!


One of my favorite attractions at Disneyland. Oh how I wish they would use these more at WDW. I love the hustle and bustle of the parks, but it sure is nice to just sit back, relax, and go that whopping 2 miles per hour every once in a while.

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I took the above shot from the upper level of another of my favorite attractions at DL - the Omnibus. I love that double decker bus. Another great way to get aroud.


As we approach the castle

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After going UP Main Street, USA - I went back DOWN Main Street, this time on the Trolley.

"Bert" was on duty that day. He was a good boy, really, except for not stopping on his mark and overshooting the stop by about 5 feet. Our driver said he'd be retiring in about a year.

The Trolley stops right across from this lovely little home. I wonder who lives here? Oh that's right - it's Sleeping Beauty! And this must be her "Winter Castle". Like WDW, DL now drapes out the castle with all kind of lights that look lovely by night - but very gaudy by day. The snow detail on the turrets and roof make it look so very neat though.

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Here are a couple of images from the trip back down Main Street.

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Still showing cartoons

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So similar, set soooo different from the only Magic Kingdom I've ever known/seen. Thanks for the trolley tour!

I pretty sure you're going to be biased to your roots of Disneyland, but I'm going to ask anyway - which castle is your favorite? Having never seen Sleeping Beauty's in person, it seems so small compared to Cinderella's. Certainly, building techniques improved in the 20 or so years between them being built, allowing for a much larger and taller castle in Florida, but I'd like to hear your opinion...
 
I pretty sure you're going to be biased to your roots of Disneyland, but I'm going to ask anyway - which castle is your favorite? Having never seen Sleeping Beauty's in person, it seems so small compared to Cinderella's. Certainly, building techniques improved in the 20 or so years between them being built, allowing for a much larger and taller castle in Florida, but I'd like to hear your opinion...


You are correct in your assumption Barry, Disneyland's castle is my favorite - of the castles I've experienced, however - there are certainly aspects of the Magic Kingdom's that I love as well. Heck yeah - I love that you can see it from a mile away at the TTC. It was designed that way on purpose - to build the anticipation of crossing that Seven Seas Lagoon - or going all the way around it on the Monorail. That was a very important and intentional design feature by the imagineers. Conversely, Walt wanted the scale of the castle at Disneyland to be diminuitive, keeping with the scale of the rest of the park. He didn't want it to be imposing and overbearing.

When comparing the two - I personally say that Sleeping Beauty Castle is intimate and charming, while Cinderella Castle is regal and grand. Both have wonderful qualities. I love the restuarant aspect inside Cinderella's - and I love the Walk-Thru Diorama inside Sleeping Beauty's.

Sleeping Beauty Castle was made of wood - pretty much standard stick construction. Cinderella Castle is steel and fiberglass. Both have their pros and cons.

Cinderella Castle was designed to have both the restaurant and a Disney family apartment way up overhead - Sleeping Beauty Castle was designed as an empty shell. The Diorama wasn't added until about 4 years after the park opened and had to be shoe-horned in to the empty, feral cat & flea infested insides.

And you certainly cannot beat the myriad photo opportunities that Cinderella Castle provides. The placement and the overall shape and design allowed for so many wonderful shots that Sleeping Beauty Castle just doesn't allow for. However - you can get much closer to Sleeping Beauty's and get the entire thing in a horizontal frame than you can Cinderella's - and I definitely like that. I don't always want a vertical shot with the castle background - but unfortunately to do that at WDW - you simply cut off most of the castle - or stand way down in Town Square.

But both actually, are second in beauty, in my mind, to what was created for Disneyland Paris. That castle is one I really want to see - especially the dragon's lair that was built down underneath.
 
great pics stopher!!! do they still keep the lamp on in the second floor of the firehouse?
 
Awesome pictures, and it felt like I was really taking a tour of Main St. USA. Thanks for showing the plaque as you enter Disneyland as well--what a great quote.
 
Stopher
I'm so Loving your TR of DL
It seems to me that DL is far more intimate and personal more people sized.
I can really picture Walt taking his daughters there on a Sunday afternoon. princess:
Looks like I need to start doing some serious trip planning for a combo DL and Aulani visit maybe 2012

What time of year would you suggest to go? (I would love to see Small World at Christmas but DH couldn't get two weeks off together in Dec.)

Looking forward to More :surfweb:
 
great pics stopher!!! do they still keep the lamp on in the second floor of the firehouse?

Yes, they do.


Stopher
I'm so Loving your TR of DL
It seems to me that DL is far more intimate and personal more people sized.
I can really picture Walt taking his daughters there on a Sunday afternoon. princess:
Looks like I need to start doing some serious trip planning for a combo DL and Aulani visit maybe 2012

What time of year would you suggest to go? (I would love to see Small World at Christmas but DH couldn't get two weeks off together in Dec.)

Looking forward to More :surfweb:


:) Thanks tea pot.

Disneyland definitely IS a lot more intimate. One of the things that the Imagineers tasked with designing the Magic Kingdom in the late '60's that they felt was a flaw of DL, and then "fixed", was to widen the walkways, make the buildings taller, and make everything more spread out. You definitely lost the charm of the original that way.

A DL / Aulani trek sounds like a great trip to me. We're actually planning that for mid-2013 ourselves.

Southern California really is such a different market than Florida. It's not quite as clear-cut as to when you might go. With 36 million +/- people considered locals - and over 1 million annual passholders alone... tons of different school systems (some of which are on year-round tracks), it's kind of hard to actually make a recommendation. Anything that I say would be disputed by someone else. I will say that they don't have the same seasonal events like WDW has, nor are the points "seasons" the same. Personally I love going in the spring, or fall. So. Cal does not have the same humidity issues that Florida does, so summer time is okay, but it can be very hot. Winter is also very nice. So Cal has great weather throughout the year, really, and each season makes for a nice DL visit.

One other thing to add - the park has been there for 56 years. Many of the trees are original plantings from when the park was being constructed (moved there from elsewhere) - so there is a LOT of shade; especially given the smaller nature of the park, and the closer proximity between attractions and entire lands. Even though there are way more outdoor queues than you find at WDW, there is not the humidity factor - so don't let the uber vegetation scare you. It seems to make the park HOTTER at AK, but not at DL. Like WDW, of course all of the buildings puff out the a/c with their open doors, etc, but there are often cool breezes that blow through off the ocean (only about 20 minutes away). Plus, even in the hottest days of summer, evenings can and do often cool down. When we lived just 10 minutes away from DL and would go each week - there were many a day that my DW would want to put on a sweatshirt once the sun went down, even in the midst of summer.
 
Teapot,
I'll make a reccomendation that could be disputed by others. I would suggest May, most of the rehabs that they started in January will be complete, it's not totally overly hot like in the summertime. Lots of the local kids will still be in school. I wouldn't travel in September or October because it can still be very hot. However, as Christopher pointed out, CA doesn't have the humidity of FL, and almost any time of the year the weather is pleasant.

It's a fabulous place to visit, you should definitely plan to stop through and stay a while.
 
The first iron coaster in the world - the Matterhorn Boblseds.

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Heading in to Frontierland. I love the decorations throughout the park at Disneyland

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The Petrified Tree that Walt gave his wife Lillian as an anniversary present in 1955 for their wedding anniversary... she quickly found a nice place for it in the park and had it set up there.

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Even all these years later, I still miss the original Golden Horseshoe Revue. The show closed in 1986, but it is still fondly remembered

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About to board the Mark Twain

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On board the Mark Twain, looking out over New Orleans Square - hands down my favorite land in any Disney park. Pirates of the Caribbean first opened in this land in 1967 and still delights and draws large crowds. It's in the left side of this photo - the cupola with the flag on top is the portion of the building where the entrance is. Just to the right, the green wrought iron draped balcony, is what was to be Walt's apartment for entertaining VIP's and guests - above the entrance to POTC. Sadly he died before ever using it. It became the home of the Disney Gallery in 1987, and then in 2008 was transformed in to the "Dreams Suite" for that silly "Year of a Million Dreams" promotion. Since the Gallery was booted from that coveted space, it later found a home in early 2010 in the former Bank of Main Street space on Town Square. It's a nice space, but nothing as special as its former home, to say the least. The Bank of Main Street was actually a working Bank of America branch, for many, many years - and the only BofA branch open on a Sunday in all of Southern California when it was an actual operating bank. I don't remember the year it shut down operations, sometime in the early 2000's, and then it became the AP processing center for several years.

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Here's a view inside the apartment, of the Living Room, after it was converted to the Dreams Suite.

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And the view from the balcony, looking out over the Rivers of America

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Passing the Sailing Ship Columbia, docked and not in use that day

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Coming up to and then passing the Haunted Mansion (my all-time favorite attraction), all decked out for Haunted Mansion Holiday - or as I affectionately say - taken over by that wierdo Jack Skellington and his Nightmare Before Christmas pals. (I know that many, many, many people love that overlay... but I don't. IMO they should have left that classic alone - BUT - it draws huge crowds, so there you go).

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A replica of the first American ship to circumnavigate the globe - and also used at night as Captain Hook's ship in the Peter Pan sequence of Fantasmic! - the Columbia is a very cool ship indeed. You can even go down inside and see what life was like on a ship in the 1790's. I've always loved that ship.

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Some nice moosy friends along the banks of the Rivers of America, as you continue the journey around Tom Sawyer Island.

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wow, nice pics stopher. i have to get to dl one day. i didnt know about the tree that walt gave lilian.it has allmost the same same shape as mad. mtn. do they to a tour at dl like the keys to the kingdom at wdw? i also like how the entire place is decorated. wdw mainly just decorates main street and thats it.
 
wow, nice pics stopher. i have to get to dl one day. i didnt know about the tree that walt gave lilian.it has allmost the same same shape as mad. mtn. do they to a tour at dl like the keys to the kingdom at wdw? i also like how the entire place is decorated. wdw mainly just decorates main street and thats it.

There some various tours offered, yes.

I really like the seasonal decorating at Disneyland, because yeah, they do tend to get into the season in each land, and customize the decorations appropriately. It's quite nice. New Orleans Square actually is my favorite for decorations (as well as my favorite land), because they tend to just over the top with it and it's really cool - though 2010, was slightly diminshed over 2009... kind of like what's been happening at WDW each of the past several years.
 

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