So last we left our travelers we were getting ready to go back stage after our fun time with the reindeer at Big Thunder Ranch.
We walked over toward It's a Small World & went behind the scenes via this gate-this picture was taken later in the trip at night, but this shows you how we got backstage.
On our way to our first stop, we saw Minnie Mouse & Pluto walking towards on-stage & we all waved excitedly to them!!!!!
Our first stop was the round house where they get the trains ready & store them. Above where the trains are stored is where they store the monorails. They had a train that they had to take apart to see what was wrong with it-they had let the water get too low-& it was cut away so you could see the inner workings. Then, they brought out a train so we could see it up close. It was the Ward Kimball which is the newest train they have & is named after one of Walt's 9 Old Men who shared Walt's love of trains & also had his own backyard train set up. The unique thing about this engine is that it has Jiminy Cricket painted on the lamp up front because that is one of the characters that Ward animated. The engineer & his assistant (who was fairly new & very enthusiastic about working on the train) told us abit about running the train. They demonstarted a "blow down" for us which is when they let off excess steam. When they first start the train in the morning, they have to do this very often & then as the day goes on they do it at least once an hour. If I remember correctly, it takes about 150 gallons of water daily to run the train. It burns biodiesel now as well to be more friendly to the enivronment. There are 5 trains in total & they were bringing the Ward on line as train #3 so far that day. It depends on attendance how many they have running. We had quite a few train buffs in our group & you could tell they really loved this part. They asked some great questions-including one about whether they had the sand spreaders like other trains. Did you know trains have a pipe like thing that can spray out sand in case they need to get more traction if the tracks are wet, icy etc? Well they do & we know that thanks to one of our fellow adventurers.
This is a photo of a picture taken by the guides of us with the train.
After our time with the trains, we walked further back stage. We ran into a pirate who offered us "free purse cleanings" & who also offered to take my gold necklace for me because it looked to heavy for me to carry around all day. He was great!!!! We passed a big yellow building which is an administrative building & apparently where you go if you are looking for a job at Disneyland. Another building was dedicated to school groups that come in to perform at Disneyland & there was a group of children there getting ready to do some kind of performance. How cool is that?
We went back to the fireworks area where we learned all about the nightly fireworks presentations.
The area is fenced in & has a bunch of black tubes sticking straight up in the air with walkways between them. We were able to go up on the walkways & each tube has a label for the kind of firework that goes down in it. We found the Mickey Head canister on the row we looked at. They have about 360 of these canisters & it several people about 3 hours to set up the show. They have a very small control room that we got to take a peak into. The board has a picture of Tinekrbell on it. They do a test every day called a "zoom-zoom test" to check the cannons. One of our group got to initiate this test & it was really cool to hear all the cannons testing in rapid succession. Very interesting & it really shows how much work goes into those beautiful fireworks we see.
We were close to the parade float storage facility as well. They had brought out a float from the Christmas parade so we could look at it & the guides were able to take our picture with it as well. It was Mrs Claus' float. The doors were open to the storage facility & you could look back through & see all kinds of floats. I could spot the Gepetto float & the Alice float from the regular parade & I wish we would have had time to walk back through there to see some of those floats up close.
Next we made our way over to the Circle D Ranch. This area was much bigger than I had imagined it to be. We were able to go into the Pope House which still has original furniture there in the front room. The Pope's were a family that Walt Disney met that worked with horses. He offered them a job at Disneyland managing the animals & they moved this house, which was one of the original houses on the property when it was bought, onto the ranch area for them to live in. So they actually lived at Disneyland. How cool is that? We saw one of the old stagecoaches that was used in the original Frontierland that was built by Mr Pope. We got to meet one of the Disneyland cats that hangs out at the ranch so he is much tamer than the cats that are sometimes spotted out in the park. His name was Larry & he was very friendly & liked coming over to us for attention. They have a several different corral areas-one had a cow in it, one had goats & donkeys & then a huge one for the horses. The horses were out playing with handlers. They were running & chasing balls around. It was amazing to think this was all within Disneyland. We went over to pet the goats which are usually at Big Thunder Ranch but were having a bit of a break now while the reindeer are there. They were really cute & friendly. This area was really fun to get to see. I have decided if there is reincarnation, I would like to come back as a Disneyland horse. They are big draft type horses-I think she said there were 3 different breeds. They work 3hour shifts 3 days a week for 5 years & then they retire. We saw one horse, all ready to go to work on Main Street & can you believe it-they don't walk to work, they put them in a trailer & drive them to work. What a life!!!!!
After our time at the ranch, it was getting to be lunch time. We headed over to New Orleans Square for lunch at Cafe Orleans.
We had a set menu to order off of & I chose a salad & monte cristo sandwich. Eric had gumbo & a chicken sandwich.
My montecristo.......so very yummy but I could only each 2 1/2 of the 4 pieces.
For dessert they brought out Mickey beignets for us.......oh my goodness was that heaven on a plate. I made a hidden Mickey with the sauce.
We had a special visit from a pirate.
I believe his name was Latham. I missed alot of this because I went to the ladies room & when I came back we were heading over to Pirates to ride being lead by the pirate. We went into the exit & got right on & rode Pirates together.
Dead Men Tell No Tales
I really loved pirates at Disneyland. I loved the 2 drops & it just seemed more detailed to me. I tried looking for the pirate that is supposed to have Walt's face (which I had asked our Imagineer Dave at WDI about earlier in the week & which he would not really answer me about-he said something to the effect that it was an interesting myth) but I never did see it.
We walked back towards Main Street & they split us up into our two groups again at this point. We were standing in front of the fire station & there was a band there playing.
Our group stayed in the area there which I knew meant we were going to Walt's apartment first. We were met right there by our guide Cindy, who took us through the door & backstage. It was a really tight small backstage area there with the steps leading up to the apartment to our left & trees in front of us. She told us that Walt's grandchildren used to come down out of the apartment & hide in the trees there & scare people riding the Jungle Cruise. Pretty cool to be his grandchild & have Disneyland as your big play ground. I have to admit that I was feeling misty just knowing we were getting ready to go up to the apartment. This was something that I had been looking very forward to seeing & is one of the reasons that I booked this trip. We walked up the stairs & went into the apartment which is really just one big room. It is VERY Victorian which is a style that Lillian loved. Walt was spending alot of time there while Disneyland was being built & so Lillian finally decided that she was going to have it decorated & make it comfortable so she could stay with him. She used Emile Kurie who had been the set decorator on Mary Poppins. It is done in deep reds & greens with velvets & lace. The carpet is a floral pattern. There are knick knacks on all the tables. There are 2 red velvet couches,one on each side of the room, that made into beds. They had a photo of Walt over one & Lillian over the other to indicate which one slept in which, but those family photos have been replaced by mostly photos of Walt. Cindy talked about all the different photos around the room & their significance. Some of the things in the room were Walt's presents to Lillian-a beautiful Baldwin music box & a phonograph. The lamp was not in front of the window because at Christmas they put a small Christmas tree there to light the window instead. The lamp was on a side table instead. The tradition of the lamp being on goes back to when Walt used to stay in the apartment. The cast members would look up & see the lamp on & know that Walt was there. So when Walt died they decided that the lamp would always be left on to symbolize that Walt was always there. My eyes welled up with tears just walking into the apartment, because I knew this was a place where Walt had spent alot of time. I went over as Cindy was talking & looked out that same window overlooking Main Street just as I know Walt did many times & I started to cry (not just well up but really cry). I was overwhelmed with emotion & I just couldn't hold it back. I felt his presence very strongly & it really touched me to know that I was somewhere that had meant so much to him. Eric saw how affected I was & he came over to pat me on the shoulder.
I tried to calm down & listen. I didn't want to miss anything. Cindy talked about the little kitchenette area which has the original small refridgerator still. On the counter was a press that Walt used to make his favorite grilled cheese sandwiches & which he also used to heat up his favorite cans of chili. There was a set that said "Tom & Jerry" sitting out as well. Someone asked about it since Tom & Jerry certainly aren't Disney characters. It was a set used for a drink called the Tom & Jerry that she said was a mix between egg nog & a hot toddy. There is a small bathroom in the apartment as well that has a shower with 4 shower heads which was really swanky at the time, probably to help soothe Walt's polo injuries. I went back over & looked out the window again before we left & was overwhelmed again. We spent quite a bit of time there & our guide Cindy was wonderful & her love of talking about Walt & the apartment was evident & I think she was touched at how respectful & in awe of what we were seeing that we all were. It was a very special experience & one that I will treasure all my life.
This is the picture that Diana was able to take of us in the apartment-you can see how red my nose & face is from all that boo hooing I did.
Cindy gave us each a pin in honor of our visit to Walt's apartment. It is a lamp that has a small light that you can turn on in it. You can see it in the photo.
So next we had a little break to go to the restroom. These are the pictures I took during that time as I was trying to calm myself down as I was still feeling very misty & very touched about what I had just experienced.
Inside the firestation.
The fire pole used to go up into the apartment but they had to close it off as some over zealous visitors would try to climb up it to get into the apartment.
And one of our horse friends from earlier at work.
Next up..........riding the Disneyland railroad in style & a Christmas parade.
I'm so excited - I can't wait to see WDW all dressed up for the holiday! Now, I just have a year to wait............
for going backstage, I can't wait!
Oh well, guess maybe I'll get it Friday.
I wish I could work for Disney in some capacity.
to the trippie. Glad you are enjoying it. We did do alot in a day so no wonder we were tired!!!!!!!! Thanks for patting my shoulder in the apartment & understanding my emotions. You are the bestest husband ever.
