Woohoo!!! I'm finally taking him to Disney World!!

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Disney Trivia of the Day


Dinoland, U.S.A.


The Dino Institute was founded when the mother lode of dinosaur fossils reared its flattened and petrified head. It is a place of higher learning and deeply devoted to the science of dinosaurs.

The story of Dinoland is that there are grad students who are enrolled in classes at the Dino Institute. They leave their mark all over town through pranks and jokes. Some of the pranks they play are:

The addition of “osaurus” to any word, which evidently constitutes an improvement to any word.

Note the lawn chairs on the roof of Restaurantosaurus, and the plunger arrows stuck on the side of the adjacent water tower.

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Guess what I went and picked up today!!! My Mickey Mail!! I had to go to AAA and pick it up since I booked through them and used a TA but it's still here!!


My Magical Express Packet and luggage tags!!

The actual luggage tags. We are so definitely using these!!

And our packet with all of our vouchers and the stuff we got because we booked with AAA!!

And it all came in this cute little envelope thing. Very nice because now I can put all of my paperwork that I want to bring with me into it!!

 

[deslynnpatterson]

Guess what I went and picked up today!!! My Mickey Mail!! I had to go to AAA and pick it up since I booked through them and used a TA but it's still here!!


My Magical Express Packet and luggage tags!!

The actual luggage tags. We are so definitely using these!!

And our packet with all of our vouchers and the stuff we got because we booked with AAA!!

And it all came in this cute little envelope thing. Very nice because now I can put all of my paperwork that I want to bring with me into it!!

i love mickey mail!!! how exciting!!! what a great feeling to know your trip is so close I have about 10 more days and i will be paying my trip off in full!! then my mickey mail will come soon after that I love the little case all your documents came in!! its perfect for all your travel documents!! We used to book through AAA but i was so nutts about having all my plans perfect that i starting booking with disney. do you book with AAA each year? do you take advantage of the AAA lounge they have in MK? i heard it has free drinks? and a place to take a nice little rest

 

[MinnieNurse]

Yay for Mickey Mail!!!

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

i love mickey mail!!! how exciting!!! what a great feeling to know your trip is so close I have about 10 more days and i will be paying my trip off in full!! then my mickey mail will come soon after that I love the little case all your documents came in!! its perfect for all your travel documents!! We used to book through AAA but i was so nutts about having all my plans perfect that i starting booking with disney. do you book with AAA each year? do you take advantage of the AAA lounge they have in MK? i heard it has free drinks? and a place to take a nice little rest

Yay, Mickey mail!! Ooo, it feels so good to have your trip payed off!! That's exactly what I was thinking of doing with that little case!! I've never booked with AAA, usually we just do things on our own but my parents are much more used to booking it than I am, first time I'm going without them so I figured it would just be easier for this time to have someone else do it for me. I have to say though I love our TA, she's very helpful and always dealt with my many relentless questions. I'm also nutts about my plans and I emailed her A LOT!!!! I did make my ADR by myself though, that I had to do on my own!! I actually have no idea where that lounge is, hmm I think I'll have to check that out!!

Yay for Mickey Mail!!!

Woohoo!!

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Disney Trivia of the Day


Hollywood Boulevard/Sunset Boulevard


Sid Cahuenga’s One-of-a-Kind pays homage to the residents of Hollywood, nicknamed Cahuengas after the Treaty of Cahuenga, which ended the Mexican-American war in California. The name is derived from the village of Mocahuenga, located near a pass carved between Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley, and Cahuengas were the final hold-outs who would not sell their homes when Hollywood was becoming commercialized.

As you make you way down Hollywood Boulevard, you’ll notice Magic Kingdom isn’t the only park with a reason to peek in the windows. Remember to glance at the upper-story windows along Hollywood Boulevard and Sunset Boulevard to see who is advertising their services.

When you reach the junction of Hollywood Boulevard and Sunset Boulevard, stand in front of the Tip Board and look down at the half-oval plate in the pavement. It is marked Est. 1928, the year Mickey Mouse was first featured in the cartoon short, Steamboat Willy.

Now turn around and look behind you at the building across the road from the Tip Board. It has the 1928 reference too at the top of its rather bland façade. Most of the shops and facades in Hollywood Studios are based on real buildings and this one takes its inspiration from the Culver City Ivy Substation in Culver City, California, a former train station that found its second life as a live-performance theater.

On Sunset Boulevard there are contractor’s stamps at various points along the boulevard with the logo Mortimer Bros. Construction Co. 1928 (and of course you all know who Mortimer was!!)

Carthay Circle Theater gift shop on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Highland, just before the Theater of the Stars, is a replica of the real Carthay Circle Theater where Walt Disney’s Snow White and the seven Dwarfs, his first full-length animated feature film debuted. (The original Carthay Circle Theater was located in Carthay, California, a residential district of Los Angeles, until it was torn down in 1970. Another famous film, Gone with the Wind, debuted there and it was one of the only two theaters in the United States that featured Fantasound, the sound system pioneered by Walt Disney for the animated film, Fantasia.

The shop to the right of Villains in Vogue was the intricate artwork at the top is s nearly exact replica of the 35er, the only bar in the Old Town area of Pasadena, California.

As you make your way toward the end of the street, look at the red trolley parked in front of Sunset Market Ranch. The trolley has a clever hidden date on the front and the side. Sunset Boulevard opened on June 2, 1994. This opening date is commemorated as the trolley’s umber, 694.

Notice the patches of red brick with trolley track showing through the pavement along Sunset Boulevard, just before you reach Tower of Terror and Rock n’ Roller Coaster, an area provisionally called Tinseltown Street was slated to open along Sunset Boulevard in the early 1990s with a Toontown Trolley ride, Baby Herman’s Runaway Buggy Ride, and Benny the Cab ride. Unfortunately, Tinseltown Street never made it past the concept stages. All that is left of the brilliant idea is trolley tracks, paved over and going nowhere.

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Disney Trivia of the Day


Tower of Terror


Immediately after you enter the lobby, look at the wall directly to the right of the concierge desk. The Hollywood Tower Hotel has been awarded the AAA (American Automobile Association) 13-Diamond award, but AAA’s real rating system only goes up to five diamonds.

As you walk through the lobby notice a pair of glasses on the concierge table in the lobby. If you look closely you’ll see their lenses are broken. In the Twilight Zone television show’s episode, “Time enough at last” Henry Bemis finally has time to read the books he loves because he is the lone survivor of a nuclear attack. Just as he gathers his books around him, his glasses fall from the table and the lenses shatter, leaving him nearly blind and unable to pursue his selfish pastime. Sometimes the glasses here mysteriously move to the library so look for them there if you do not find them in the library.

Once inside the library where Rod Serling tells you the story of the tower (some of his own voice was painstakingly pieced together in part from the Twilight Zone Episode “It’s a Good Life”) you may recognize props representing various show episodes. Above the bookcase next to the TV in the library you’ll see the demonic popup device from “The Nick of Time” episode; the metal robot from “The Invaders” sits on the ledge above you; an envelope with the name Mary on the front from the episode “A World of His Own”; and the book from the “To Serve Man” episode (during which the townspeople were horrified to discover the alien’s benevolent-looking book was actually a cookbook!), rests on a table opposite and diagonal to the television monitor. The trumpet sitting on top of a page of sheet music in the library recalls the episode titled “A Passage for Trumpet” in which Joey Crown, convinced he will never amount to anything throws himself in front of a truck after selling his beloved trumpet to a pawn shop. He ends up in limbo and has to make a decision between life and death.

The Mickey plush the child star is holding during the preshow is an original Mickey Mouse plush.

When the pre-show ends, allow other guests to exit the library ahead of you so that you can walk through the rest of the queue at a slower pace. Just after you exit the library notice the fuse boxes on the left hand wall. Take a moment to give the handle a pull, you may get a surprise!!

Just after you enter the ride elevator look for the safety inspection certificate signed by Mr. Caldwallader indicating the elevator is in good working condition. The certificate is dated October 31, 1939, the day the Tower Hotel opened. The certificate commemorates an episode titled “Escape Clause” in which Caldwallader disguise as the devil grants immortality to Walter Bedeker in exchange for his soul if he chooses later not to live. The inspection certificate is number 10259 for October 2, 1959 and is the date the first Twilight Zone episode aired.

If you see a CM with gold epaulets you’ve found an original TOT CM. They have been working at the TOT since it opened!

 

[Vallie]

holy moly! i cant believe u got all your stuffffff! u must be sooooo excited!!
hows the boyfriend? is he super excited yet or what!

 

[shordiebecka]

Woohoo for Mickey Mail! Isn't it so exciting when you get it! It makes me want to get out my suitcase and pack and put those lovely yellow luggage tags on!!!

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

holy moly! i cant believe u got all your stuffffff! u must be sooooo excited!!
hows the boyfriend? is he super excited yet or what!

I know, I'm so excited!! He's good!! I really do think he's getting excited, we're almost done with our Disney movie marathons and we've finished Kingdom Hearts and are about half way through Kingdom Hearts 2, I think it's really getting him in the mood. He's excited to be going to Disney, to be going to Florida with it's warm weather (the weather here has been aweful, wayyyy too cold!!), and to be off of work for a week!! He's thinking of taking the friday off before we go, just to get a little more relaxed before we go!! haha!!

Woohoo for Mickey Mail! Isn't it so exciting when you get it! It makes me want to get out my suitcase and pack and put those lovely yellow luggage tags on!!!

Haha I know, I want to pack already!! I already have all my outfits picked out and have most of our other stuff bought except for the stuff that we can't buy until right before we go. Of course we still haven't gotten Ian's luggage yet!! He has a duffle bag he was going to use but it'll be hard to carry and clumsy, plus it's way to big for what he needs. My mom found a sale at Boscov's for a rolling duffle bag for like $20 so I think I'm going to pick that up tomorrow and it'll be much easier for him to carry and not so big!!

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Disney Trivia of the Day


Rock n' Roller Coaster


Listen for the various names being paged over the intercom as you work your way toward the sound stage; they are the names of the Imagineers instrumental in creating the attraction.

Concert posters line the walls, adding to the atmosphere as you queue, but some aspects of concert culture are not considered appropriate for a family theme park. The placement of the smaller American Flag on the MC5 poster is a bit odd, given that it is not originally part of the poster but instead has been placed there to cover up a marijuana leaf. If you look closely you will see it through the flag.

Check out the license plates as the limos pull up for takeoff. You might see UGOBABE, 1 QKLIMO, H8TRFFC, and 2FAST4U.

That intercom you heard before you reached Studio C is still trying to track people down. If you listen for one name in particular as you approach the boarding area, you may hear someone on the intercom say, “Phone call for Jude on line one. Hey, Jude! Pick up line one!” It is a clever reference to the Beatles song, “Hey Jude.”

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Here's some pics from our August 1999 trip!!


Don't know why, I just really like this pic, it's cute!!

And of course another Mickey pic!!

 

[shordiebecka]

I love old Disney pictures!!! DBF actually said to me.. "well, we can just share one suitcase right?"
Def get him his own duffle bag..the ones that roll are real awesome! i prefer suitcases though.

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

I love old Disney pictures!!! DBF actually said to me.. "well, we can just share one suitcase right?"
Def get him his own duffle bag..the ones that roll are real awesome! i prefer suitcases though.

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahha!!!!! Just share one!! That's just craziness!! Yeah he has a huge cumbersome duffle bag but I think this one will just be easier. I pefere suitcases too but they're just too expensive and we don't use them enough to justify spending like $60 on a suitcase so this will work for him. I'm going to pick it up tomorrow and if for some reason I see an actual suitcase I like that's not too expensive perhaps I'll get that instead but the duffle bag will work fine. I love looking at old Disney pics, it was so muc fun going through them picking out my favorite ones. My favorite one is coming up in my last old picture post but you'll have to wait for that one!!

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Disney Trivia of the Day


Courtyard at Hollywood Studios


The courtyard area of HS is home to Hollywood’s Brown Derby restaurant which, in its original incarnation, played host to the best and brightest during Tinsel Town’s heyday. HS’s version also pays tribute to the stars whose portraits covered the walls of the landmark restaurant. The portraits in black frames are laser copies of originals; those in gold actually are the authentic portraits. Although the California-based restaurant no longer exits, it has been faithfully recreated here, looking just as it would have looked in 1946, with one exception: this Brown Derby has tables to accommodate a large number of guests while the California version only had booths, allowing for more privacy. Before you enter the main dining area, take a look at the guest book in the entry area. It has signatures of all the stars who have eaten in HS’s Brown Derby.


Mann’s Chinese Theater is a replica of Grauman’s Chinese Theater which opened in 1927. Sig Grauman, original owner of Grauman’s Chinese Theater in California, came up with the idea of casting stars’ footprints in cement, starting with Mary Pickford, Norma Talmadge, and Douglas Fairbanks. He also created the idea of the ultraglamorous Hollywood movie premiere. Look for actor Charlton Heston’s signature. Mr. Heston was interrupted as he was signing his name; when his focus returned to his work, he’d accidentally skipped the letter “l” in his first name. Hence, he is forever immortalized in cement as Charton Heston.

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

Ok I cannot go shopping by myself!! Ok ya know how I said I was going to Boscov's to get Ian a rolling duffle bag for his suitcase for vacation and the fact that it was only $20 was the main reason we were getting it well once again I cannot shop by myself ever again!! Oh I looked at that duffle bag and the amazing price of $20 but it was also next to the other luggage. ::sigh:: well the amazingly priced duffle bag went back on the shelf and this thing came home with me...

So yes I did in fact get Ian a suitcase and it is in fact an actual suitcase not a duffle bag but it did cost $20 more than I was going to pay for it. ::sigh:: I CANNOT go shopping by myself!! I end up spending more money than I anticipate!! Although I called my mom while I was there and she did not help matters at all!! Oh well he'll be able to use it again and I feel much more comfortable with an actual suitcase, probably isn't any safer but I feel like it is. So Ian now has luggage and now I'm out 20 bucks. Oh and I'm going out shopping with my friend in about 2 minutes and guess what she wants to buy? SHOES!!! Oh god maybe I should just leave my wallet at home!

 

[Vallie]

i liek the luggage! I hear u about the leaving the wallet at home thing.... im HORRIBLE with shopping :S my weakness is clothing and scrapbooking stuff! I need help!

Thats a nice luggage tho for... if I did my math right... 40 bucks!? We definitly cant get luggage like that for 40 bucks here in good old canada!

 

[deslynnpatterson]

i am loving the new suitcase i like it because its different and looks like it would stand out at the baggage area so your bf can recognize his luggage!! So you are going shopping for shoes?? I love shoes I love shopping too!!! i have problems when i go shopping with my mom and friends because i will try something on and they will be like ohh you have to get that--with myself i might be better LOL!! If you get some shoes you will have to let us know Did you ever get your amika? Also i love you trip pics that you posted from 1999 that are so cute the first time i ever went to disney was 1998 for band in high school-- and i loved it- and then went back in 2004 for my honeymoon and since then ever year i go and have become a obsessed addict LOL and my mom is the same way so its great i have someone to share the obession with-- Josh loves it too-- but it can't compare to my obsession LOL

 

[DisneyFaeriePrincess]

i liek the luggage! I hear u about the leaving the wallet at home thing.... im HORRIBLE with shopping :S my weakness is clothing and scrapbooking stuff! I need help!

Thats a nice luggage tho for... if I did my math right... 40 bucks!? We definitly cant get luggage like that for 40 bucks here in good old canada!

Thanks!! Yes you did your math right, I mean it's not that much but I was going in there planning on spending only $20 but I must say even though it's more than I want to spend, I'm glad I got it. It seems like it'll last longer and I just like suitcases better! Ugh my weakness is definitely shoes, I seriously can't walk by shoes without at least looking, kinda the same way with purses too. I need a new one. My friend and I are going to a local picnic this friday and they have a stand with, as they call it, "gently used" vera bradley stuff and supposedly they're very cheap so I'm hoping to find something there!!

i am loving the new suitcase i like it because its different and looks like it would stand out at the baggage area so your bf can recognize his luggage!! So you are going shopping for shoes?? I love shoes I love shopping too!!! i have problems when i go shopping with my mom and friends because i will try something on and they will be like ohh you have to get that--with myself i might be better LOL!! If you get some shoes you will have to let us know Did you ever get your amika? Also i love you trip pics that you posted from 1999 that are so cute the first time i ever went to disney was 1998 for band in high school-- and i loved it- and then went back in 2004 for my honeymoon and since then ever year i go and have become a obsessed addict LOL and my mom is the same way so its great i have someone to share the obession with-- Josh loves it too-- but it can't compare to my obsession LOL

Yeah I'm definitely glad it's different, it's why I chose that one instead of the other $40 one, that one was just black and not very distinct. Ian likes it too. I sent him a message with the pic in it and he likes it so that's good!! Well I did not get any shoes, in fact it was a very uneventful trip. My friend got some stuff she needed for this wedding she's in but we were looking for shoes she needs. They need to be champagne colored so she was looking for a place that would dye them but seriously we couldn't find anywhere. Payless does it but they don't have wides, which she needs. It's good that I didn't spend any money. Unfortunately we're going out again tomorrow so there's still temptation. We're hoping to find a place that will dye her shoes!! Ugh didn't a lot of places used to do that, what happened to them!? I have not yet gotten the amika, I've been trying to find it in stores but I think I'm out of luck. I'll have to order it online, guess I should do that soon, huh. Haha! Oh I am so obsessed with Disney. My first trip was in 1995 and we've been back every year since!! Haha, my dad is my fellow disney addict. We love talking about disney together! I'm hoping Ian will love disney too!! My pics get really dorky for a while but hey that's me so I will post dorky pics anyway!! Then they get really cute, I'm not conceited or anything but I was one darn cute kid!!

 

[shordiebecka]

I always overspend too! But atleast now you will be more comfortable and don't have to worry about the duffle bag situation. It looks nice though! not bad for a nice piece of luggage!