Our 3rd Annual Holiday Trip to DL in November - November 22nd - 25th, 2013 Post #3416

[mvf-m11c]

Oh Bret!! I love all of the POTC stuff!! Thank you so much!! What great fun to see it!!

Thank you Michele. It was neat to have all the POTC On Stanger Tides props and costumes out on the show room floor instead of being at the Archives.

Love the update!!

Thank you Kaitlin. I just saw your D23 thread and I am looking forward to your experience at the D23 Expo.


Now its time to get back to TR.

Day 4 – August 21, 2011 – Part 2​

After finishing up around POTC props and costume, I went around the show room floor and took more different pictures around the area.

The DLR had a MHP booth right by the POTC

Around the area, I head on over to the Disney Living pavilion which had a Lego Lightning McQueen.

There was a cupcake area and that was a lot of cupcakes.

Also around the Disney Living pavilion they had games to play and they were all free. You can win balloons or stuff Mickey characters.

After looking at the Disney Living pavilion, I walked back down towards the show room floor.

The Disney Store queue was already that long that morning and it didn’t get short the entire day.

Around the D23 Welcome Center & Lounge I got to see some props and vehicles used in the movies.

Mater

POTC ship model

I forgot what car this belongs too

Dharma Van

Right around the area, they had a display of Robert Olszewski model of DL

When it was around 10:10am, it was time to head on over to Stage 23 and get in the queue for the Cars Land presentation. Even though it starts at 1:30pm that Sunday afternoon, I want to get a seat for the presentation. So I head on the way up to the third floor at the ACC and to Stage 23. On the way up, I saw there was quite a long queue for the Disney Archives room which the line was already an hour wait.

When I got up to the third floor, it was way better themed then the 2nd floor. There was already another queue for Pixar Brave movie at 11:30am and interesting that Stage 23 had two queues instead of one. This is a big difference from the last one which it took quite awhile to get in the next presentation instead of waiting outside. But that will happen later.

I asked the staff which queue is for the Cars Land presentation and it was the far room. So I walked inside the Stage 23 queue and I called my DA to tell her that I am in the queue for the Cars Land presentation. She said that she will be there shortly. So I waited until she showed up. While I was waiting, I talked to a bunch of people right next to me about they enjoyed the D23 Expo

When my DA showed up around 10:30am and got in the queue with me, I saw HydroGuy who was a few people in front of me and I said hello to him. I was kind of surprise to see him again that morning. We talked for awhile about the Expo and he also enjoyed it very much. I asked him what he was planning on doing tonight and he was hoping to see WoC that night. After the D23 Expo, he was going to go over to DCA and get a FP for the later show. I told him that I am doing WoC picnic that night and was going to get my FP, I could use my AP to get him a FP for the show. He really was happy that I would get him a FP for WoC. He told me that there were reports that WoC FP tickets are only yellow and not blue and yellow in the past. I was hoping that the WoC FP was still blue, but I told him that I will find out when I get to WCT that afternoon.

When it got to 10:45am, I told my DA that I am going to DCA and get our WoC picnics. When my DA arrived at the queue for the Cars Land presentation and it got around 11am, I would head out to DCA and get our picnics. I told HydroGuy that will get a FP for him. I was hoping that I would be able to get him a same color FP so we can talk to each other that night. When I looked at Disneyland 1951 chart for getting FP at specific times, I have predicted that when I got DCA around 11:15am, I would get a yellow FP. I know that the blue FP will be gone by that time.

On the way out of the queue, I ran into Franandaj. They were way up in the queue that morning and asked how they enjoyed the D23 Expo. They had a good time and I was also surprise to see them in the queue like the rest of the regular guests. But after that I head on out of the queue and went straight out. On the way out, I got a nice pic of Marlin, Dory, and Bruce.

I walked all the way down from the third floor and exited the ACC.

That’s it for now and I will get back to you tomorrow when I went to DCA and picked up our picnics.

 

[kaoden39]

"Fishes are friends not food."


I think Bruce is my favorite character from Finding Nemo.

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Loved the update.

 

[Lil' Grumpy]

...like always~~great presentations!


"talking with others", is a great past time & you never
know what you might learn or share! there's something to gain
from good company!

fyi~ once upon a time when i first started posting, i wrote a
trip report. my goodness, many thought it was just something
made up. , in reality - { my profession interests },
every part was true. but it made me realized how many limited
their choices whenever doing disney trips. now i don't like
"working" on vacation but the "range" of characters, one meet-
can covers every type imaginable.

however, in generally, i think because disney vacations ( all) cost
so much , the majority are trying to be on their best behavior.

as i mentioned before, "pay attention" because sometimes the
neatest opportunities for a great encounter can pass one by.
"people" makes the magic work.

after our first wonder cruise~99, we had some great experiences
with the crew & professional actors. i wrote the company ,
encouraging them to permit them to interact with the passengers.
this has a double bonus for the guests but also those starting
out....on developing their "people skills". i am so glad they do this.
2008, we wanted to get our whole family atrium picture but how?
one of the actor saw what we were trying to do and offered to
take our picture. it's always make me smile, every time i see that
picture..because it was taken by "the official peter pan!" just a
little thing but still special to us.

i noticed you are excellent in capturing the lil'things many are
missing! ( liked the crowd pictures showing the atmosphere &
excitement of the expo. )

 

[mvf-m11c]

"Fishes are friends not food."


I think Bruce is my favorite character from Finding Nemo.

I remember those words from the movie. It was neat to see the Finding Nemo display at the D23 Expo. I believe this was from the Pixar Studios in California I believe.

Loved the update.

Thank you Kaitlin.

...like always~~great presentations!


"talking with others", is a great past time & you never
know what you might learn or share! there's something to gain
from good company!

fyi~ once upon a time when i first started posting, i wrote a
trip report. my goodness, many thought it was just something
made up. , in reality - { my profession interests },
every part was true. but it made me realized how many limited
their choices whenever doing disney trips. now i don't like
"working" on vacation but the "range" of characters, one meet-
can covers every type imaginable.

however, in generally, i think because disney vacations ( all) cost
so much , the majority are trying to be on their best behavior.

as i mentioned before, "pay attention" because sometimes the
neatest opportunities for a great encounter can pass one by.
"people" makes the magic work.

after our first wonder cruise~99, we had some great experiences
with the crew & professional actors. i wrote the company ,
encouraging them to permit them to interact with the passengers.
this has a double bonus for the guests but also those starting
out....on developing their "people skills". i am so glad they do this.
2008, we wanted to get our whole family atrium picture but how?
one of the actor saw what we were trying to do and offered to
take our picture. it's always make me smile, every time i see that
picture..because it was taken by "the official peter pan!" just a
little thing but still special to us.

i noticed you are excellent in capturing the lil'things many are
missing! ( liked the crowd pictures showing the atmosphere &
excitement of the expo. )

Thank you Lil' Grumpy.

Your tips are very helpful.

A lot of times, we never see pictures with the crowds in them, just the characters, buildings, rides, etc. and I always like to show those kind of things to tell you and everyone what it looked like at these places.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 4 – August 21, 2011 – Part 3​

After leaving the ACC while my DA and I were waiting in the Cars Land presentation queue, I head on over to DCA and get our WoC picnics. On the way, I went through the east side of the DLR instead of going towards the west side where I usually go. The reason is that I was hoping this would be faster, but it turned out to be farther in my opinion then going through the west side and through the GCH.

Walking down Katella and righ by the Alpine Inn

Around 11:15am, I got to the DLR on the east side and it did take quite awhile to get over to the DLR entrance.

Between the two parks, it was a nice quiet afternoon with most of the people at the parks right now and it made it easy for me to enter DCA.

Let the Memories Begin sign is still out there

Now it was time to enter DCA and through the BVS turnstile entrance

The BVS is still under construction when I was there the other night

Just like everyone, I still can’t walk to PP from the old route since the construction is still going on, so I am heading on over to Condor Flats and to see Soarin. The wait time for Soarin was around 30 minutes at that time, so it wasn’t that bad as I thought. It is not like at EPCOT where the wait time could be as long as 1 to 2 hours.

Monorail Mark VII Orange just passed by Soarin and heading inside the GCH

Then I head on over to GRR and get my FP for WoC. Actually, it was for HydroGuy instead of me. Since I know that I will get a yellow FP at that time when I got to GRR. When I got my FP, the CM told me about the details about the show and it was usual to hear a CM talk about WoC. I had no problem helping out HydroGuy that day since I know that we will get the same show and color.

When I got my FP, I head on over to PP and the first thing I did was head on over to the Gold Vine Winery right by the WCT. When I walked around the LMAUA, there were quite a number of people sitting down by that area and I could tell that the Phineas and Ferb parade was going to be in that area

After passing the parade viewing area, I went on over to Gold Vine Winery to get my WoC picnic.

When I got to the Winery, it wasn’t 11am and I couldn’t get the picnic, so I just waited until it was 11:30am. While I waited, I watch a little bit of the Phineas and Ferb parade.

After seeing the parade, I went over to the PP viewing area and looked at my spots where my DA and I will watch the 9pm WoC show.

This spot is where my DA and I watch WoC that Sunday night. But I will talk about that later during that night. This spot was in Disneyland 1951 chart of where it is a good spot to watch. I was kind of excited to try this spot that night since I have never done the yellow section before. I did get FP for the yellow and red section, but it wasn't necessary since I seen it the other nights. I just like to be in the blue area all the time. It was nice to try something new. The spot was nice and I knew that I couldn't get the whole show from this side since it was half way towards the viewing area.

MFW is always great to take a picture from the viewing area

When it was around 11:30am, I head on over to the Golden Vine Winery and got my WoC picnics.

I got my picnics that day along with my FPs. As expected, when I asked the CMs about the FP tickets and they said that it is only for the yellow section. I asked when did they changed it and they said it was this summer. I would guess it was around last month since the sections for the color has changed from Disneyland 1951 chart. Both my DA and I got the Cold fried chicken that day. Since I have to carry both lunches back to the ACC and the staff won’t let me bring in outside food, I brought my Disney Volunteers bag that I got at the show room floor on Sunday and put all the food in there. This made it easier for me to bring the food in without being suspicious.

That’s it for now and I will get back to you tomorrow.

 

[Wonder2008]

That Lego Lightning McQueen car is amazing!

The picture of the black car near the Welcome Center is Walt Disney's limo.

Robert

 

[mvf-m11c]

That Lego Lightning McQueen car is amazing!

The picture of the black car near the Welcome Center is Walt Disney's limo.

Robert

Thank you Robert.

I had a hunch that it was WD limo.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 4 – August 21, 2011 – Part 4​

After I got the picnics, I head on back to the ACC. On the way, the Phineas and Ferb parade was happening right by the LMAUA. I didn’t want to stay since I had to get on over back to the Expo for the Cars Land presentation.

I left DCA through the GCH and it took me just about 20 minutes to get from the exit of DCA to the ACC.

I got back to the ACC and up to Stage 23 around noon. It didn’t take a long time as I expected with the food. When I got back to the queue, I gave my DA her lunch and she really like it so much for being a cold lunch. After I was finished, I talked to HydroGuy and gave him the yellow FP that I picked up at DCA. He was happy that he got his FP for WoC that night. We talked until it was time to head on in Stage 23.

It was around 1:15pm when the queue started to move.

We got in Stage 23 around 1:20pm and were in the middle of the room. While we were waiting for the presentation, I saw that franandaj were on our left hand side while I saw HydroGuy was on the right side. I believe they were on the sides so they can see the presentation easier then the middle.

The presentation didn’t start until 1:35 and then, Dave Fisher, Kathy Mangum, John Lasseter, Jennifer Mok, Kevin Rafferty and Roger Gould made their way onto Stage 23 for the Radiator Springs Reality presentation. Most of my pictures when they approached the stage were blurry. (I need to upgrade my DSLR camera one day) John Lasseter was wearing his hard hat during the ground breaking of Cars Land a few years ago. It was really neat to see him wear his hard hat at the beginning.

This picture of the truck was from the movie Cars 2 and it was name John Lassetire.

First John Lasseter opened the presentation first about Cars Land. He talked about that DCA needed a theme land just like at DL and this is where Cars Land to DCA.

A nice picture of John and his brother and sister in the back part of the car

After John was finished talking about his love for Cars and the upcoming Cars Land at DCA, Kevin Rafferty was now up.

Kevin talked about these posters which on the left was one of the original posters for DCA when it opened. The other one was a Car Club poster that was at DL back in 1959.

Kevin talked more about DCA was lacking characters and more Disney themed rides when it opened back in 2001. He kept showing more concepts of Cars Land back in the early stages.

Early concept art of Radiator Springs Racers

Road Trip USA which is suppose to be a ride across the country of California.

Seeing the icons of Cal on a road trip

During the trip, it goes in a cave which is something like the Nature Wonderland ride at DL

That’s it for now and I will get back to you tonight.

 

[tksbaskets]

Great updates I'm so looking forward to Cars Land.

I wanted to let you know I was 'watching' an iPad2 cover like you purchased at D23. It closed today for $150.52 Can you believe it? So glad you purchased yours at the expo!

TK

 

[mvf-m11c]

Great updates I'm so looking forward to Cars Land.

I wanted to let you know I was 'watching' an iPad2 cover like you purchased at D23. It closed today for $150.52 Can you believe it? So glad you purchased yours at the expo!

TK

Thank you TK.

I just saw the D23 Expo iPad case on eBay just awhile ago and I was kind of surprise to see it go for that price. Interesting that all the iPad cases are for the iPad 2 and not the first generation iPad. Not too many people bought those iPad cases during those three days, but I am happy that I got the case instead of the lithograph. I wanted to get the lithograph, but is very nice for the iPad if I want to change my old case for my iPad.

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Love the update!! I love the Phineas and Ferb parade. At that point, I was getting ready to get in that long line for the Shake It Up Meet and Greet

 

[mvf-m11c]

Love the update!! I love the Phineas and Ferb parade. At that point, I was getting ready to get in that long line for the Shake It Up Meet and Greet

Thank you Kaitlin. It was neat to see the Phineas and Ferb parade while I was waiting to get my picnic. How was it to meet the cast of Shake It Up that afternoon when I was waiting for the Radiator Springs Reality presentation?


Now its time to get back to the TR.

Day 4 – August 21, 2011 – Part 5​

More early concept arts of Cars Land

Cars Land map. This map you can see is right by the Blue Sky Cellar

Flo’s V8 Café, Fillmore’s Taste-In and the Cozy Cone Motel will be food and drink places at Cars Land

Lizzie’s Curios and Ramone’s House of Body Art will be shops at Cars Land

After that John talked about the rides at Cars Land and he first talked about the Flying Saucers which was a ride at DL back in the 60s. He talked about it and it was one of his favorite rides back at DL.

The Flying Saucers at DL in the 60s

Next were the concept arts of Luigi’s Flying Tires

John and Kevin testing Luigi’s Flying Tires vehicle

Next was Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree. John talked about that this ride has the same ride technology as Francis's Ladybug Boogie which the ride vehicles go on another part of the spinning circle.

The tractor cows will pull cars attach to them while the ride is moving.

Then they showed a demonstration of what the ride will be like so John and Roger used a tractor and have a car at the end of it and moved left and right which was neat.

Next was the biggest E-ticket ride Disney has ever done which is Radiator Springs Racers. John also said during that part was that Cars Land was 12 acres and Radiator Springs Racers will be 6 acres and is the biggest ride Disney has ever built. Test Track at EPCOT was the concept for the ride.

One of the original concept arts of Radiator Springs Racers

The ride starts off with a ride with Sally and takes you into town

So you come into town the sheriff slows you down and he tells Mater to escort him into town. But Mater wants to take you to do tractor tipping first and then Frank the harvester comes and you drive very fast and you come back into town. Then you get met by the town folks. Then your ride will go into Luigi’s Flying Tires store to get new tires or go to Ramone’s House of Body Art for the race. When you come out you are side to side with the other vehicle that went the other way. Doc will give you pointers and then Luigi and Guido and say go. The car can top up to 40 mph. The interesting part is that you don’t know who will win the race with the other car.

Interesting to see that the racer vehicles are almost similar to the ones at Test Track expect for the design. They carry 6 people in each car just like Test Track.

That’s it for now and I will get back to you tomorrow.

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Thank you Kaitlin. It was neat to see the Phineas and Ferb parade while I was waiting to get my picnic. How was it to meet the cast of Shake It Up that afternoon when I was waiting for the Radiator Springs Reality presentation?

Not exactly. I went to the arena but then I realized that I needed to get in line if I wanted to meet them.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Not exactly. I went to the arena but then I realized that I needed to get in line if I wanted to meet them.

I see. You got in the line for the Disney Channel Red Carpet Arrival and than the Disney Channel presentation at the arena.

 

[kaoden39]

Bret, thank you so much for sharing all these pictures. I think that all of the D23 events are so cool.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Bret, thank you so much for sharing all these pictures. I think that all of the D23 events are so cool.

Your welcome Michele. I have only participated in three D23 events since D23 began back in 2009 (D23 Expo twice and the Walt Disney Museum opening for the D23 members) they are all amazing and excited. I hope that one day I could go see the Disney Archives Studios one day.


Now is time to get back to the TR and more from Radiator Spring Reality presentation.

Day 4 – August 21, 2011 – Part 6​

During the presentation, John talked about the racer vehicle and it almost looks identical to the Test Track Cars at EPCOT. The only difference is the front of the car which has that character face.

For the car designs John said that there are two car style vehicles which are close to a Ferrari type and a convertible type. There were 8 different colors also have different mouths and eye colors. One of them could be a male or female car. Each of these car vehicles will have a different personality.

Tom Staggs and John Lasseter on the test track for Radiator Springs Racers last summer

Model of Cadillac Range for Radiator Springs Racers

Next up with Kathy Mangum who is in charge of the construction site of Cars Land

She talked about that they broke ground on Cars Land almost two years ago. The opening date is the summer of 2012 and right now there was no official opening date for Cars Land next year. So we have to keep checking the updates and see when it will open.

A picture of John in a scooper in which he was the first to broke ground on Cars Land a few years ago.

Now they showed the video of Cars Land when it was the Lion King parking lot and now it is half way done for the newest land at DCA. During the fast forward, you get to see the Cadillac Range taking shape along with the tracks. Also you get to see Luigi’s Flying Tires platform taking shape as well as the other buildings around the area.

I will get back to you tomorrow.

 

[kaoden39]

Oh wow!! That was fun!! I scrolled through the pictures quickly after I read it and it was fun to look at it like that!!

 

[Wonder2008]

Those pictures are amazing! Thank you for taking the time to take them all during the presentation and for posting them here too. I liked seeing all of the mountains coming out of the ground. You could make a flip book of those pictures!

Robert

 

[WDWJonasGirl]

Those pictures look cool!!