A Once in Lifetime Adventure in Walt's Wonderful World-lots of pics-COMPLETE

[Disneygrl36]

You are SO making me want to take this trip! I love the artwork that you bought - those pins are too cool!

I wish a trip like this would interest my DH, but I don't call him the Disney Grump for nothin' Maybe when my oldest DS gets a little bit older he would like to go with me.............

It really is a great trip. I cannot recommend it highly enough. We had two mother/daughters & a mother/son. I think it would be a great trip to take with your child if they are a true Disney lover.

Wow! What a cool trip. It all sounds awesome, and I loved the pictures. I also enjoyed the Jonas Brothers anecdote.

Glad you are enjoying it. We had lots of cool little anecdotes like that.

Hey Melanie!!!

It's Sakina,
Hope all is well..I heard that you wrote trip reports, and I didn't really remember what site it was on, so I hopped on google and low and behold I found you!! It's great reading your trip report (as if I wasn't there to experience it as it ) but it's just something that's so memorable and unforgettable you cant help but WANT to relive!

You know the funniest thing, I have the same exact picture of that SAME billboard from when we were leaving Hollywood!!

>> this is where my picture was going to be, before I got denied since I haven't made >10 posts...grr <<


Looking forward to reading ((and reliving)) the rest of the trip!!

Oh! I'll stick around and promise not to break anything like the server or something, since apparently Daisy's break everything

Hey Sakina!!!!!!!!!!!! & so glad you found me. Google is a magical thing. Trip reports are a great way to relive the fun we had & I am having a great time writing this one. Keep posting & then you can add pictures to my trip report.
Yes, please don't break anything..............you silly Daisy you!!!!!!!!!

Whoo hoo! Sakina has joined in!

Woo hoo.......the reunion thread.

Woohoo! Sakina found us!


I had Sakina in front of me taking photos from our bus, yet I didn't know Melanie was doing the same thing behind me.

Yes, us crazy photo takers......snapping away. I am picture crazy. Wonder which one of us took the most out of all of us on the trip?

what can you say!
we were just being a bunch of tourist!

yay to finding the treasure (apparently this site) yay!!!

speaking of things to be found, that pirate never found && brought us that barrel of rum....

hehehehehe no rum but plenty of wine

I promise my Walt's chili update will be up tomorrow.

We went this afternoon to see my favorite non-Disney movie of all time at the Tennessee Theatre. Want to see some pictures of it???????????
If so I will include a little mini-report within a report. That makes 2 times we have been there to see a movie since we got back & I cannot help but feeling the El Cap vibe while we are there.

 

[Disneygrl36]

You're right, we never got our rum!

Why is the rum gone???????????

 

[CangriChika]

never trust a pirate!

and you should defiantly include a mini post of the movie in the Tennessee Theatre. Where is that anyway (as in where in Tenn, because I have been to the state but I don't ever remember seeing it...hmm)

since this is the reunion thread, whens the reunion trip??
:cough: orlando :cough:

 

[Aburns8]

Hey I am ready for the reunion trip. We should do the tours there as well.

 

[prettyprincessbelle]

Wow, the Imagineering part looks amazing! That pretty much seals the deal that I NEED to take this ABD trip. NEED TO!

Can't wait for more!

 

[CangriChika]

Hey I am ready for the reunion trip. We should do the tours there as well.

I'm absolutely qualified to be a tour guide...
i wish!
but I'm pretty darn close!

I can't get you backstage, but I can tell you all the useless knowledge you'd ever want to know!!

 

[travelmel]

Hey woman!

I've been outta town for a couple days and just got caught up

Great updates! I love the video's and extras you add it is really adds extra umphta to an already packed TR.

I really liked that cute pic of Donald on the train. We used to get to ride a train like that all the time in the small town where I went to college. It's amazing what kind of fun you can have when you look for it.
Train Mountain. Chiloquin, OR

I love seeing your happy face everywhere. The tour when you got to see all the great nostalgic buildings near Sunset Blvd looked really fun, too!

Will we get to see the pics of you falling down the rabbit hole?

 

[Jennifer48]

Melanie,

You're TR is so detailed, I feel like I'm on the tour with you even without the pictures! Thanks for remembering all that information to share with us that haven't done the tour, I love it!

Keep up the great work

 

[Disneygrl36]

never trust a pirate!

and you should defiantly include a mini post of the movie in the Tennessee Theatre. Where is that anyway (as in where in Tenn, because I have been to the state but I don't ever remember seeing it...hmm)

since this is the reunion thread, whens the reunion trip??
:cough: orlando :cough:

I will work on a post about the Tennessee Theatre after I get my next one up. It is in Knoxville Sakina!!!!
Orlando would sure be closer for a reunion tour.

Hey I am ready for the reunion trip. We should do the tours there as well.

Yeah, we could do all the behind the scenes tours & make up our own Adventures by Disney.

Wow, the Imagineering part looks amazing! That pretty much seals the deal that I NEED to take this ABD trip. NEED TO!

Can't wait for more!

Glad you liked it. Imagineering was awesome!!!!!!!!!! There are so many things to come that will seal the deal even better I bet.

I'm absolutely qualified to be a tour guide...
i wish!
but I'm pretty darn close!

I can't get you backstage, but I can tell you all the useless knowledge you'd ever want to know!!

Oh what we could all do with the space in our brains filled up with useless knowledge. I have lots of it too!!!!

Hey woman!

I've been outta town for a couple days and just got caught up

Great updates! I love the video's and extras you add it is really adds extra umphta to an already packed TR.

I really liked that cute pic of Donald on the train. We used to get to ride a train like that all the time in the small town where I went to college. It's amazing what kind of fun you can have when you look for it.
Train Mountain. Chiloquin, OR

I love seeing your happy face everywhere. The tour when you got to see all the great nostalgic buildings near Sunset Blvd looked really fun, too!

Will we get to see the pics of you falling down the rabbit hole?

Hey Melissa. Glad to have you back. I am glad you are liking my extra's. I think that makes it more fun & gives more information. What a cute train. I love the little things in life that make us happy.
Alas no pictures of me falling down the rabbit hole as that was in Imagineering & we had no cameras allowed. I don't think the guide took a picture of it BUT we still don't have our photopass info yet, so maybe I will be surprised.

Melanie,

You're TR is so detailed, I feel like I'm on the tour with you even without the pictures! Thanks for remembering all that information to share with us that haven't done the tour, I love it!

Keep up the great work

Thanks Jenn. I wanted to make it really detailed for you guys especially in places where cameras weren't allowed. I like looking at lots of pictures in trip reports, so I was hoping that I could keep it not too boring with it being a bunch of words.

 

[wendylady36]

Thank you for sharing your trip with us! It all looks so awesome, and I so cannot wait for the day that I get to go...if I ever get that chance! It looks like you got to take very special memories home with you!

 

[Disneygrl36]

Last we left our adventurers, we were on a bus headed for Walt Disney Studios. We arrived pretty quickly & were given a ticket for lunch at the Commissary & off we headed. Following the ABD sign & our wonderful guide Diana of course to point us in the right direction.

We could have 1 entree, 1 side, 1 drink & 1 dessert. The commissary is like a food court.
They had several different sections you could choose from, but Eric & I had already decided that since Walt was so fond of chili & they always had it here for him that this would be our lunch. So we found the salad & soup section & found this sign.

There was a cold sandwich section, a grill, a Panda express......just lots to choose from and it was BUSY!!!!!!!! We got our food & then headed to a table to enjoy our lunch. We looked all around us for people we might recognize, but alas we didn't see anyone famous, just alot of really cool people with Disney nametags that have the jobs we all dream of every day. Lunch was great!!!!

Here are some old pictures in the commissary.

They even have cute stuff in the bathroom.

We had a few minutes left to shop at the store across the street.

So we popped over there & I got a couple of Disney Studios pins that you cannot get elsewhere & a magnet.

The pins were on the left side of the store & the right side of the store was more like a regular Disney store.

After our quick shopping spree, we met in front of the Mickey Mouse topiary which we found out was donated to the Studio from Walt Disney World for Mickey Mouse's 60th birthday in 1988.

Looking around there were 3 buildings that Walt had brought over from the old Hyperion studios.
This is the oldest building.

The other 2 are the building that houses the store & this building.

As we were standing in this area, I saw these very HEALTHY squirrels playing around. They were so cute & would come right up to you to see if you had anything for them-even though there were signs everywhere that said Do Not Feed the Squirels. We heard from 2 ladies that worked there that they see nuts spread across the grass for them regularly.

Also, of note was St Jospeh's Hospital which was visible right across the street from the Studio. This is where Walt Disney died. I think it's touching in a way that the Studio was so close to where he spent his last days.

Next we walked over to an area called Pluto's corner.
As we walked, I couldn't help feeling like I was stepping back in time. This place really does look like a college campus instead of a big time movie studio.

At Pluto's corner, there is a fire hydrant & 3 paw prints-not four bet you can guess why.

They did this to honor Pluto for a birthday, but I cannot remember which.

This is also the area where the famous sign with Mickey & Dopey is. This was actually a movie prop made for "The Reluctant Dragon" but they liked it so much they kept it. This movie was a live action/animation combo that heavily featured the Walt Disney Studio's lot as a backdrop for the story.

We went over to the area between the theatre & the old Animation building.
Diana talked to us about the Old Legends Plaza where people famous in Disney history left their hand prints & signatures.

This was later more formalized in the new Legends Plaza, but this older one was very charming.
Here are some of my favorites-Some of Walt's 9 Old Men

Mary Poppins & Peter Ellenshaw a wonderful painter who was responsible for all those beautiful backgrounds from Mary Poppins.

And who could forget Miss Price from Bedknobs & Broomsticks more lately known as Ms Potts

Continued in next post.....

 

[Disneygrl36]

Next we were able to walk through the old Animation building-Animation has a brand new building so this is no longer the spot where the magic takes place, but this building has so much history as all our favorite Disney classics were animated right here.

I found this directory interesting.....Marty Skylar's office is in here!!!!!

They had a nice etching of Walt.

And this plaque about Animation.

Along the corridor were priceless examples of all the wonderful work done here over the years.
An example of rough & then cleaned up animation.

An example of the front & back of a cel.

Artwork from Cinderella

What I looked like falling down the Rabbit hole........if I was as cute as Alice

The Ballroom sequence from Beauty & the Beast

I could have stayed in this hallway for hours & I will have to admit that this was one of the only times where I felt really rushed.
They had this great homage to Steamboat Willie on the floor.

we found out there were tunnels between this building & others so that the freshly painted cels could be protected from the weather.
Walt Disney's office was in the Animation buildings & it was in that right upper corner.

Next we wound up in Legends Plaza & saw the Team Disney Building which gives a special tribute to Snow White by having the dwarfs holding up the building because that movie gave them the money to fund the new studios.

The famous water tower

This building is part of the studios as well & is cute-but I am not sure what it is used for.

In this plaza area, you can get up close & personal with the Partners Statue & also the statue of Minnie & Roy.

Here is where you can find the plaques with handprints of people that have been named Disney Legends & given the Disney Legend statue to honor their contribution to Disney history.

Richard & Robert Sherman who wrote so much wonderful Disney music including "Feed the Birds" from Mary Poppins which was Walt's favorite.
Me trying my hands in Frank Thomas' hands--now if only a little of his artistic talent could have rubbed off on me.

Bill Justice whom I had met as a child & who drew my picture of Snow White that I treasure.

It is fascinating to see all the different disciplines represented-artists, actors, musicians & even business people. Really cool.
This is the Legends Statue. The individual parts stand for different things.
The spiral stands for imagination, the power of an idea.
The hand holds the gifts of skill, discipline and craftsmanship.
The wand and the star represent magic: the spark that is ignited when imagination and skill combine to create a new idea.

I found a cute little hidden Gus-Gus here thanks to tips from Sleepless Knight.

Getting close to my image limit again......continued again in next post

 

[Disneygrl36]

So after our time in Legend's Plaza, we walked back up towards the commissary..I couldn't help but think to myself Walt Disney actually walked here & this was another of those places where I could feel his spirit. It is just a beautiful place & it has to be an inspiring place to work.

We were met by a nice lady who showed us around the soundstages.
We went inside Soundstage #4 where a show called Eli Stone was being filmed. It was very cool to go inside a working soundstage & see the sets. This is a 2 story set of an attorney's office & it looked very realistic down to sticky pads & personal photos on the desks. We could not take pictures in there as it was set up for an actual production.
We also went inside Soundstage #2 which is very famous & was the Features soundstage.

Of particular interest to me as a huge Mary Poppins fan, this is where that was filmed. Cherry Tree Lane was built right inside there by Tony Walton. Did you know that he was Julie Andrews husband at the time & was a brilliant set decorator which Walt found out when Julie came out to California to discuss Mary Poppins & Walt hired him? When Julie Andrews came back to film scenes for Princess Diaries here, they dedicated the Soundstage to her.

Soundstage 2 was also where all the Pirates movies were filmed. There was new insulation in there which was white instead of faded & that was due to some of the crew that were working on sculpting on the set forgot to use flame retardant glue & the set caught fire & burned up some of that area including insulation & roof trusses.
It was empty now & getting ready to be set up to film scenes for a new Sandra Bullock movie.
They only have the 4 soundstages so they do only their own productions there whereas some of the other studios have such huge lots with many soundstages that they are able to rent them out to other studios.
Saw this along the way & thought it was really funny. They had bicycles all over the lot for people to use, but this one was special.

That finished our tour of the studios. It was like walking in history. I remember standing outside on the sidewalk back in 2001 & so wanting to go in. Now I had been there & walked down the streets & in the buildings where Walt & his team had created so much magic. It felt wonderful to have been somewhere where I had always dreamed of going!!!!!!

Now it was time to head back on the bus......but not before me getting Eric to beg for another bathroom break. That would be my only complaint of the touring set up--not enough time out for necessities . After being granted our break, we headed back to the bus to go to Disneyland. They played Disney music on the way there & most people just relaxed as we had been going strong since meeting at 7am.
We passed this scene of downtown LA on the way. Thank goodness we asked for the break, as it took us over an hour in traffic to get there.

Up next............Hello Disneyland!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Disneygrl36]

Thank you for sharing your trip with us! It all looks so awesome, and I so cannot wait for the day that I get to go...if I ever get that chance! It looks like you got to take very special memories home with you!

Thanks Wendy!!!! Glad to still have you around. I have memories of this trip that will last me a lifetime.

 

[Disneygrl36]

Here's the mini update on the Tennessee Theatre. It was built in 1928 in Knoxville Tennessee. Like the El Capitan it sat empty for awhile in the 1970's
but has been restored in grand fashion in the 2000's. It is on the national register of historic places & has been named the official state theatre of Tennessee. It is a wonderful place to see a film or a live production.

Inside in the main lobby

From the balcony

The mighty Wurtlizer organ

Us happy to be at the Tennessee

And the reason we were there.....my favorite non-Disney movie

 

[jacksparrowfan]

Last we left our adventurers, we were on a bus headed for Walt Disney Studios. We arrived pretty quickly & were given a ticket for lunch at the Commissary & off we headed. Following the ABD sign & our wonderful guide Diana of course to point us in the right direction.

Yay, Diana!!! She is so wonderful!


Ok, where was the hidden Gus-Gus? I will have to look for it next time.

 

[MA pigletfan]

HOLY MOLEY GUACAMOLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is WONDERFUL!!!!!!!! Melanie..thank you so much ( again ) for sharing..i can't believe Walt's Barn..I NEED to go there someday...what an amazing trip so far!

 

[beansf]

I can't wait to read the Disneyland portion of your trip report. Stupid L.A. traffic - always getting in the way!

 

[Disneygrl36]

Last we left our adventurers, we were on a bus headed for Walt Disney Studios. We arrived pretty quickly & were given a ticket for lunch at the Commissary & off we headed. Following the ABD sign & our wonderful guide Diana of course to point us in the right direction.

Yay, Diana!!! She is so wonderful!


Ok, where was the hidden Gus-Gus? I will have to look for it next time.

Yeah for Diana I wish I had gotten her & Kristin's email addresses. I can be such a dope sometimes.
Gus-Gus is in the scroll on the Legends statue. Just get around the back of it & look in there & there his cute little self will be.
This picture shows the scroll better.

I have been thinking about you going back & thinking of all the questions I wished I had asked but didn't. If I were you, I would be making myself out a list.

HOLY MOLEY GUACAMOLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is WONDERFUL!!!!!!!! Melanie..thank you so much ( again ) for sharing..i can't believe Walt's Barn..I NEED to go there someday...what an amazing trip so far!

Wow thanks. You guys are making me feel all warm & fuzzy since you seem to be liking my trip report so much. Walt's Barn is an incredible place & a must DO for real Disney lovers if you get to the area.

I can't wait to read the Disneyland portion of your trip report. Stupid L.A. traffic - always getting in the way!

We are almost there!!!!!!!!! We were all tired by that time, but so excited to be on our way to Disneyland.

 

[prettyprincessbelle]

YAY! Amazing amazing amazing!!!!!! Did I say amazing? AMAZING!

Yeah, so Sound of Music is my favorite Non-Disney movie too.

I was just watching some thing on TCM about Disney live action movies and the Sherman brothers were on talking about how much Walt loved "Feed the Birds". I think just Richard was on, I don't remember Robert talking, I need to go back and re-watch it.

But anyways, wonderful! I just love love love this TR!