Shanghai and Hong Kong Disneyland March 17 – Day 7 Complete in Hong Kong Proper; 12/04

[PrincessInOz]

Day 6: Our Third and Last Full Day in Shanghai Disneyland



It’s The Promise of a Sunny Day




Our third and last full day in Shanghai Disneyland!

I woke up early to take a look out the window.






I was mightily excited by what I didn’t see. No Rain!!!!



I had hoped for some sunrise colour…..






….sadly, there was nothing.






Still. There was the promise of a golden sunny day ahead.






There would be no sleep-in for me, so I got ready for the day. With the clear skies, I was looking forward to spending the day - dry - in the park.








(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

Rolling with Breakfast (Bread Talk Products)



Last night when we were looking around Disneytown, we stopped by a store by the name of Bread Talk. There were signs up in the store about no photography, so I didn’t take any. As the name suggests, it was filled with bread.


My DM and I decided that we would grab a few of the items there for breakfast this morning. For anyone staying at the resorts, Bread Talk products are a really good option if you’re after a quick snack in your room. It is opened from 8 am in the morning; so if you wanted to get an early start in Disneytown and not eat in your room, it's also a good alternative.


The croissants are standard size; not like the mini ones you’ll find at Starbucks. From memory, each croissant was about 9 or 10 Yuan.






There are a whole bunch of very cute products in Bread Talk. It was a shame that photography isn’t allowed in the shop because it would have been cool to share some of them here.

But we did purchase one of these cute bread rolls to share. The bread rolls do cost a bit more; but there were too cute to resist.






I did feel very guilty biting into the bread bear!




(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

The No Worries Oasis



I was ready to go before my DM was and decided to head down to check out the resort grounds.


There was a savannah themed playground to one side of the hotel. I’d been wanting to check it out for a couple of days now.





Speaking of checking things out…..I know there are some Dis-sers out there that have a Disney trash can fetish. This was the design at the Resort.





The Hakuna Matata Oasis was just so cute.





It’s designed for the under 7 age group. Aside from the water jets and some not-so-hidden details, there really isn’t any real ‘playground’ equipment here.





For me…….there was lots to look at.





I had to meander along the paths to find the various displays. The plants bordering the paths were just a little too tall to cut across.





It’s definitely a very peaceful and zen sort of garden.....without kids!






Here Comes the Sun!






(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

When You Ferry across Wishing Star Lake




My DM caught up with me whilst I was outside in the Hakuna Matata Oasis and we made our way out the resort back entrance.






From this side of the Shanghai Disneyland Resort, you can either walk to the park or catch a ferry across Wishing Star Lake.






My DM had been keen to get on the ferry and we had decided that this was going to be our transportation across this morning. The ferry was incredibly shiny and clean!






I believe the ferry service starts at 8 am in the morning. It will take roughly 7 – 10 minutes to cross the lake. For anyone that has been on any of the ferry services at WDW, the Shanghai service travels at the same rate of knots. Slow.






Nevertheless, it’s a great view all the way across the lake.





At park-side, you’ll disembark near the Shanghai Metro train station.








(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

It’s Such a Different Park in the Sun (Down Mickey Avenue)



Our 3rd day at Shanghai Disneyland and this is the first time I’ve paid attention to any snack cart or souvenir booth! I liked the Mickey design on the snack cart.





In the bright sunshine, there was a feeling of spring in the air. If nothing else, the rain had washed everything away and I'm guessing that the air quality in Shanghai on this day was fresh and good. It's amazing what a bit of sunshine does to your mood.






I think we got to the gates at about 8.30 am. Judging by the size of the non-crowd, we might be in for a cracker of a day today! At least I hoped so.





As was the trend for the 3 days we were there, the gates opened at least 20 minutes before the 9 am schedule park opening hour.

Given the weather, I definitely made time to stay around the entrance.





Afterall, on this trip, it was very rare for us to see blue skies at the Mickey Topiary. The park looked completely different!






I also took my time walking under the faux railway station.





Because………







…….the view was breathtaking!






You better believe that I was completely celebrating about the blue sky weather we had been blessed with today!






The walk down Mickey Avenue was very pleasant this morning. Very pleasant indeed.





First time in 3 mornings!





I don’t believe that there had been an opening ceremony on the other 2 mornings.





Duffy is very popular in the Asian parks.






We got to the end of Mickey Avenue. It's a short avenue; and the early birds had already grabbed spots in line for the various meet and greet locations. We just kept going.






There were a few people around Storytellers; and I noticed that the PP photographers here were looking a little under-appreciated.






They might as well be put to work, right?


For anyone who wants a picture at Storytellers and the castle in the background. I would HIGHLY recommend you get the PP togs to do a bit of hooman-hounding. The two togs that were there were YELLING and marshalling everyone else out of the frame. They really worked to get a clear shot of us.





I nearly felt sorry for the other people around. Nearly. But I’m so glad to have gotten this shot out of the PP collection.







With our pictures taken, it was time to take the right fork into the park today.








(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

Are You Chinese or What????? (Garden of Twelve Friends Part 1)




Okay. Time to fess up and rat myself out.





At times, I am a very unobservant soul. You could even go as far as to say that I could be very dense…….sometimes.


The Garden of the Twelve Friends was one of the attractions of Shanghai Disneyland we were yet to explore due to the rain.





I have to admit it was pig-headed of me…..






…because I know I should have been galloping….er…..walking very fast…..





……towards one of the headline magic carpet rides.





But I do like seeing pretty mosaics. So, we headed to the 12 Friends section in the Gardens of Imagination.





There I was.....springing along the wall.





Enjoying the mosaics but not being particularly observant about what I was seeing or capturing with my mind or camera.





Although….for the life of me, I couldn’t work out why there were such obscure characters depicted in the mosaics!






Sure….there were some more famous ones.





But there were quite a few minor and obscure characters.






I made a remark of the sort to my DM.....and she had to THUMP me round a little.






“Are You Chinese or what?????”





This IS the Garden of TWELVE friends.








Twelve CHINESE friends.



I did eventually catch on to her meaning. D'oh!


And that meant……I had to head back and re-do all my shots!!!!







(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

The Chinese Zodiac – The Race to the Finish (Garden of Twelve Friends Part 2)



The Chinese zodiac consists of twelve animals that first appeared in the Zhan Guo period [5th century B.C.]. No one knows the exact date as of when the zodiac was essentially created, but they were officially identified during the Han Dynasty [206 B.C.–9 A.D.], which was over 2000 years ago. Myths say that Emperor Huangdi, the first Chinese emperor, in 2637 B.C. invented the Chinese lunar calendar, which follows the cycles of the moon.

The lunar calendar paved the sequence of the Chinese zodiac animals. This calendar can be traced back to the 14th century B.C. The zodiac is calculated by a cycle of sixty years in which each animal signifies a different year.


But what of the animals?


There are many varieties of this story. Some say that the Jade Emperor called a race of animals on his birthday to create the Chinese zodiac. Others say that it was in fact, the Buddha who did. According to my DM, it was Buddha.

Nevertheless, both stories are essentially the same, excluding some minor details. According to myths, the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac were selected through a race. This race is meant to create a time measurement for the people. There could only be twelve winners and in order to win, the animals had to cross a rapid current river and reach the finish line on the shore.

Originally, there was a cat and a rat, who hated each other with a passion. It’s hard to believe that they were once friends. These two were the worst swimmers in the animal kingdom, but they were both smart. They discovered that the fastest way to the river is to hop on top of the ox. The generous ox agreed to carry them across the river. However, the rat was so eager to win that he pushed the cat into the water; thus the cat never forgave the rat, and wasn't included in the race. Other variations of the story say that the rat just never told the cat about the race and did not even compete at all.

Afterwards the ox and the rat made it to shore. The rat jumped in front of the ox and came first in the race.





The ox came in second……





……and the tiger finished in third.





All of a sudden, a loud thumping sound came: it was the rabbit. It jumped from one stone to another and was doing well until it slipped. Fortunately, there was a log floating by and it grabbed onto that log and floated to the finish line earning the fourth place in the race.





In fifth place was the dragon, but everyone thought that it would come in first because it could fly. It told Jade Emperor that it had to stop a couple of times to help some villagers. And on its way to the finish line, it saw a little rabbit on a log and decided to give a little puff of air to help it get to shore.





After the dragon, the horse came galloping towards the finish line. The sneaky snake was hidden behind the horse’s foot. It suddenly appeared and the horse was scared. The snake took advantage of this and landed itself in sixth place…….






…….and the horse landed in seventh.





Soon after, the monkey, the rooster, and the sheep landed onto shore. Unlike some of the previous animals, these three actually helped each other to get to the finish line. The rooster found a raft, and the monkey and sheep hopped on. Working hard together through the water currents and the weeds, they reached shore.

The sheep came in eighth place……






……the monkey in ninth place……





…….and the rooster in tenth place.






In eleventh place was the dog. Even though it was a great swimmer, it was late. It told the emperor that it needed a bath, and the fresh water from the river was too tempting.





Right when the emperor was going to close the race, an “oink” sound was heard: it was the pig. “Lazy little pig” originated from this story. The pig felt hungry in the middle of the race, so it stopped, ate something, and then fell asleep. After it awoke, it finished the race in twelfth place and became the last animal to arrive.






The order of the Chinese Zodiac and lunar calendar follows the outcome of the race, where the rat is the first animal to start the sequence, and the pig is the last. After the pig, the sequence starts over again.


In any case, after I went back to re-shoot the 12 Friends, this time with a bit more respect for the subject, I think I redeemed myself where my DM is concerned!


Disney has done an AMAZING job with the mosaics and making them fit in with Chinese mythology. This spot is most definitely Disney but distinctively Chinese.

 

[tiggrbaby]

Yay for sunny skies!

The baked goods looked yummy! How nice to be able to take the ferry and get some good shots.

The pics in front of the castle are adorable!

Oh my goodness!! Those mosaics are incredible!

 

[darrenf67]

I spent quite a while in the gardens - such a lovely area

 

[PrincessInOz]

Yay for sunny skies!

It really put the whole group in a much better frame of mind.

The baked goods looked yummy!

We have a bakery chain in Australia called Bread Top. It's filled with Asian style bread goodies very similar to Bread Talk. Although.....they don't have the cute animal products. At least I can't remember if I've seen them or not.
I understand that Bread Talk is a Singapore based chain. Do you have something similar where you are?

How nice to be able to take the ferry and get some good shots.

The pics in front of the castle are adorable!

Oh my goodness!! Those mosaics are incredible!

Oh gosh, yes!!! I think the reason I was so whiny by the end of the second day of rain was because my camera and fingers were super twitchy at not being able to get the outdoor pictures of Shanghai DL.

I was just so happy to see the sunshine!

I spent quite a while in the gardens - such a lovely area

Next time I head back, I hope for less rain so that I can spend more time in the gardens area. It does look pretty and we really didn't have enough non-rain periods to do it any justice.

 

[franandaj]

That's odd that the bakery didn't allow photography, the things you ordered looked cute. I need more protein in the morning, but Fran would like that sort of stuff.

You're right, the park looks totally different in the sunshine than in the rain.

You got some very nice pictures with the castle and on Mickey Avenue.

After you said 12 Chinese Friends, I had to Google. Then I went on to your last post only to find you explained it all for us! I would have had no idea as well. Nice redeeming yourself in your mother's eyes!

 

[zanzibar138]

Lovely sunrise shots despite the lack of colour.

I never really made it to Disney Town again this time around. Sounds like I missed out - those pastries sound so cute!

I can't believe you didn't realise what the Garden of the 12 Friends was about! I would have given you a heads up if I'd known! Thanks for the history lesson, and you got some great shots

I'm so glad this day turned out to be beautiful and sunny for us Looks like you've done a great job of catching up on picture taking so far!

 

[mvf-m11c]

Finally caught up with all your updates. I just got back a few days from the DLR and rode the new Guardians of the Galaxy Mission: Breakout ride.

As always, you got great pictures of the rides and walking around the park when it was raining. The Pirate ride looks fun to go on.

Your time at Disneytown looked fun to go to those shops and have dinner.

You got a very nice spot for Ignite the Dream fireworks. Sorry to hear about not to be able to use the trash can that night for the firework trails. I thought you would use the green pod on a railing but I might not put my camera on the railing with the green pod since it can tip over. You did got a lot of nice pictures that night.

Nice to see that the third day at the park was clear of the rain. Very nice picture with the castle in the background.

The Garden of Twelve Friends was very interesting and to see what characters they had of the Chinese zodiac.

 

[PrincessInOz]

That's odd that the bakery didn't allow photography, the things you ordered looked cute. I need more protein in the morning, but Fran would like that sort of stuff.

For the US, it's practically unheard of. For Asia and to some extents...Australia, it's not that odd. A lot of the stall owners at local markets where there are 'homemade' stuff don't like having pictures taken of their wares. I think they are concerned someone else might steal their idea.

You're right, the park looks totally different in the sunshine than in the rain.
You got some very nice pictures with the castle and on Mickey Avenue.

Thanks.

I'm glad I got to see the park in both rain and sunshine. I would have just preferred to have 1 day rain and 2 days sunshine.

After you said 12 Chinese Friends, I had to Google. Then I went on to your last post only to find you explained it all for us! I would have had no idea as well. Nice redeeming yourself in your mother's eyes!

Like I said. I was particularly dense this morning.

Lovely sunrise shots despite the lack of colour.

Thanks. Yes, I was pleased with them as well. That room with a view was definitely the right room for me and my DM.

I never really made it to Disney Town again this time around. Sounds like I missed out - those pastries sound so cute!

The pastries at Bread Talk were very cute. Maybe next trip.

I can't believe you didn't realise what the Garden of the 12 Friends was about! I would have given you a heads up if I'd known! Thanks for the history lesson, and you got some great shots

I didn't do any research on Gardens of Imagination before I left. And if I had drunk more caffeine, I might have twigged about the Chinese Zodiac. But I was really feeling dense that morning.

I'm so glad this day turned out to be beautiful and sunny for us Looks like you've done a great job of catching up on picture taking so far!

Me too. Thanks.

Finally caught up with all your updates. I just got back a few days from the DLR and rode the new Guardians of the Galaxy Mission: Breakout ride.

Welcome back! I've been reading your update on the GotG. I don't like drop rides but for Guardians, I may well have to make an exception next time I'm in DLR.

As always, you got great pictures of the rides and walking around the park when it was raining. The Pirate ride looks fun to go on.

Thanks! We can't control the weather.....we can only just not let bad weather get in the way.
Pirates and Tron are really great at Shanghai.

You got a very nice spot for Ignite the Dream fireworks. Sorry to hear about not to be able to use the trash can that night for the firework trails. I thought you would use the green pod on a railing but I might not put my camera on the railing with the green pod since it can tip over. You did got a lot of nice pictures that night.

It's a round/circular railing at that spot. With the rain, I was afraid that the green pod would slip off.
I did see some flat surfaces but there was usually a pole in the way and didn't bother.

Nice to see that the third day at the park was clear of the rain. Very nice picture with the castle in the background.

The Garden of Twelve Friends was very interesting and to see what characters they had of the Chinese zodiac.

Thanks.

Hope you've been well! Regards to your family.

 

[PrincessInOz]

I Owe! I Owe! So It’s off to Work I Go (Seven Dwarfs Mine Train)



My last trip to WDW was in 2013. Then……the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train was still under construction and I didn’t have the chance to experience it.

I’ve spent the last 4 years enviously lurking and looking at other people’s Trip Reports and pictures taken of the dwarves and the mine and the ride.


4 years is a long time to be sitting on the sidelines. It’s left me with the feeling that I owe a debt to quite a few people for letting me vicariously enjoy this ride from their pictures.


So…..today, it was my turn to head off to work and payback some of what I owe. The standby time was not even posted when got to the work site.







It did eventually come up as 10 minute but there was the single worker…er…..rider side that I could enter by. This side was walk-on.





You’ll appreciate that catching the train to work can be a bit tedious…..





….especially when you have to cram in the compartment with other people.





But…..I am really conscious of the debt I owe.





So, I sat through the twists and turns of that work train.






Afterall, life is all about ups……






….. and downs, right?





I hope you’ll appreciate how diligent I was on this work day. I had to get on that work train 4 times in a row to repay that debt.

I was really working hard. Really I was.












There was no sleeping on the job for me.














And I wasn’t even being dopey on the job either.













Believe it or not. I wasn’t even feeling grumpy about having to go round 4 times to repay my debt.





Yeah. I really might need to see a doctor about my “I owe, I owe. It’s off the work I go” condition.














The 4th time?

Okay. I admit that I slacked off a lot. I figured that my debt was just about repaid so I put the camera away. It was a sweet feeling of pure pleasure at being debt-free! Especially on a sunny day.







(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

In the Maze of Underland (Alice in Wonderland Maze)




One of the attractions in Fantasyland is a wonderful maze. It's modelled after the Tim Burton Alice in Wonderland/Underland movie.





Down the rabbit warren I go!





Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo. One of these doors will open.






And we’re in the Wonderland Garden! I had bumped into Aussie Wendy and her DD on one of my 7DMT rounds. I think I was supposed to catch up with them in here but given how many times I rode 7D, they had moved on. My DM waited for me here. I think she had been waiting a while!!!





There was growling coming from this direction.






Sadly for me, the Bandersnatch didn’t lick my finger. Guess he didn’t like me.






I could feel eyes on me.





There were eyes everywhere!





You might say I was stalking the eyes.





Or is that …… they were stalking me?





It’s a wonderful section of the garden. I really loved the creatures in here.






There was a flower in here I didn’t recognise. If anyone knows what species this is, please let me know!





I would have liked to have spent more time in here. But as the sun was rising higher in the sky, I had to keep going.






We walked through a ‘tunnel’ area. In my rush to keep going, I gather I missed the Cheshire cat in here. D’oh!

Guess I need to be on my guard a bit more.






The tunnel opens up into the Red Queen’s Garden.





There are Hearts everywhere!









What else would you expect?





She IS the Queen of Hearts, afterall.





There is a real hedge maze in here.





I took the left fork each time.





All roads lead to the Tea Party.






I know this area is modelled after the Tim Burton 2010 movie version of Alice. But with this colour palette, all I could think about was Mary Blair.





I did eventually find that Cheshire cat.





My DM really liked this section of the Maze.





I liked the quirkiness.





For an area without thrill rides, I was surprised at how much fun I had in here.

I gather that there is a similar garden in the Paris Disneyland. If I ever make it there, it will be on my to-do list.



(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

I Don’t Know How I Got to Neverland (Peter Pan's Flight)





When we left the Wonderland Maze, my DM put in a request. I was happy to comply and we headed in that general direction.



This wasn't her request and I really don’t know how we ended up in the Darling nursery.






Actually……I do know how we got in here. Standby was 5 minutes and we couldn't resist. So, we walked right up to the boarding area.

Yes. You read that right. We walked all the way in to the boarding area and got on the ride vehicle without stopping.






It didn’t take us long to be flying over London.





It was another turn and we were in Neverland.





I seem to be running in Mary Blair colour palettes today.






In any case, I’m always happy to add to my photo collection.





Without having to queue to get on this ride, we were in and out within 5 minutes.






Yes, I know. I’ve just made some of you turn green with envy!








(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

The Longest Wait of the Morning (Voyage of the Crystal Grotto)




Now.....where were we again before we got diverted to Neverland?


Oh that's right. My DM put in a request and we were heading in that direction.


This morning, my DM requested a re-do of the Crystal Grotto and I was happy to go with the flow. She rarely asked for anything on this trip so when she put in that one request, I was happy to comply.


It turned out that this was where the Shanghai crowd were this morning.





The stand-by times indicated that we would be waiting 15 minutes to board. It lied. We waited 30 minutes. We even saw them putting on 3 extra boats to cope with the crowd.





I did contemplate ditching the queue and heading towards the Castle a few times. But I knew my DM really wanted to get on this again, so we stayed in line.

Besides, it gave me the chance to re-shoot the fountains.





Second time round, I found the displays to be even more charming.






And if I looked past the water fountains, the views were spectacular.





With the blue skies, this was downright colourful!





More of the displays.









I even found the Magical Golden Flower. It was gleaming and glowing in the sunshine.





I still think the Mulan section is my favourite.





This has ended up being my favourite picture from this attraction.





Although….this Little Mermaid snap comes a close second.





This time, I knew what to expect when we headed under the castle into the grotto section.





More water fountains…...






…..and Mushu projections on the wall.









It’s not called the Voyage of the Crystal Grotto for nothing. There really are crystals in the grotto.






I would have liked to have stayed to take more pictures in this area. But the longer than expected wait time had made us a little late for an important date.

 

[shushh]

Took a while to go through 10 pages...but I did it. Never going to let myself get behind ever again!!! My excuse is that our 180 day mark is coming AKA crazy dining planning time. I have to admit I somewhat cheated as I've seen most of the photos on facebook...

2 comments - you ran out of space on your memory card!!!
You should always be blessed with good weather so we can benefit... Absolutely love the creative shots on the last day!

 

[mvf-m11c]

Nice to see that you were able to ride the 7DMT at Shanghai. The mine scene shots were very nice.

There are quite a lot of interesting pictures at Alice in Wonderland Maze.

The Voyage of the Crystal Grotto was something that I wanted to try if I go to Shanghai Disneyland.