Splash Mountain Splash (the latest Disney
news bites)
Captain EO returns to Disneyland February 23rd for a limited
engagement (whatever that means). More interesting is what will
be put in Tomorrowland's Magic Eye Theater once the good Captain
leaves. Captain EO last appeared in Disneyland in 1997 and left for good
reason. Seen it about a half dozen times - its not very good.
Get ready...Fall 2010, the Epic Mickey video game
makes its debut. No more Mr. Nice Guy as Mickey hits the
steampunk world. The game is slated for the Nintendo Wii but
with that gaming console losing popularity the latest rumors has the
game coming to the PS3 and Xbox 360 as well.
We were going to make a
trip to Walt Disney World awhile back but these uncertain economic
times put that trip on hold. It is a daunting task to plan a
trip to Disney world when you live 3000 miles away. Below are
pages that were created in preparation for the trip.
But click HERE
to go to our Walt Disney World Trip pages...
Refurbishment, Closure, and Construction: Information & Updates
Disclaimer: The following information is gleaned from various
sources on the Internet. While they are pretty accurate, 100%
accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Always check with the
Disneyland Resort for current information - rides and attractions are
subject to close without notice.
Disneyland
Thunder Mountain Railroad
closes 4/26/10 - 5/16/10 for refurbishment
Monorail
closes 4/19 and 4/20 for refurbishment
Thunder Mountain Railroad
closes 5/8/10 - 5/16/10 for refurbishment
Corn Dog Wagon closes 1/4/10 - 5/4/10 for
refurbishment (4 months? Huh? It's a wagon!)
Tomorrowland Terrace
closes 1/4/10- 5/4/10 to put in a new kitchen (Jedi
Training Academy and other Tomorrowland Terrace
stage entertainment continues to perform)
Rivers of America
closes 1/4/10 - 5/6/10 for drainage and refurbishment.
This refurbishment will also halt all ROA attractions -
Mark Twain, Columbia, Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes,
Pirates Lair on Tom Sawyer's Island, and Fantasmic
Matterhorn Bobsleds closed through - 3/11/10 for
refurbishment . Also closes 4/12/10 - 4/16/10 and
4/19/10 - 4/23/10
Star
Tours closes permanently October 2010 to be
replaced by an updated 3D Start Tours sometime in 2011.
-
Disney's California Adventure
Award Wieners
closed through 4/16/10 for Red Trolley track
construction
Golden Zephyrclosed through 4/2/10 for
refurbishment
Silly Symphony Swingsscheduled to open 4/28/10.
World of Color debuts late April 2010.
Silly Symphony Swings Under Construction
World of Color Testing with synced audio
Buena Vista Street (DCA's version of Disneyland's Main Street)
scheduled to begin construction January 2010. I believe this
construction project will push the front gate turn styles out
several feet - probably somewhere around where the letters that
spell out "CALIFORNIA" now sit. The Timon parking lot (the last remnant of
the original Disneyland parking lot) is now officially closed and
is being converted into a portion of the massive new
Cars Land (scheduled to open in 2012)
Paradise Garden Grill
(replacement for the defunct Burger Invasion) and Boardwalk
Pasta & Pizza
(which will replace the current Pizza Oom Mow Mow) open May 2010.
To make room for additional dining seating, the adjacent S.S.
Rustworthy will be removed.
Other
The Disneyland Hotelcurrently under a
3 year renovation (approx. 1 tower per year beginning in 2010). The
big change is removal of the fake balconies and windows that open
with a slick new blue solid window plus flat screen TVs, amenities
for business travelers, and a new modern interior.
The Disney Vacation Club Villas have now opened
(9/23) at the Grand Californian. From studios to a two story 3
bedroom suite with an upstairs lounging area with a pool table and
view of the DCA park, these units look very nice. Yes, they are
timeshares.
Here
is a map of the Disney's California Adventure makeover. Be sure to stop by the Blue Sky Cellars exhibit
to see what's in store for the new and improved Disney's California
Adventure.
I have to admit I hadn't given it any thought but in
reading a Disneyland website forum the other day, the topic was put out
there "Do you have any superstitions or traditions that you follow on a
trip to Disneyland?" I was amazed at the amount of responses with
things like "always enter the park from the left side tunnel" to "look
up at the light above the firehouse and say 'good-night & thank you" to
Walt" to "always stopping at the Main St. Cinema to see a few minutes of
Steamboat Mickey" to "making Peter Pan's Flight the first ride of every
visit". It really was quite a list. And then I thought about
whether I have any traditions or superstitions. I guess the answer
would be "no" but its never to late to start making some.
And while I don't have any traditions or
superstitions, I guess (or I should say "we" for Lisa and me in many
cases) there are some very definite tendencies we have that could be
formed into actual traditions. Generally speaking, while we tend
to enter the park through the tunnel closest to the turnstile we enter
in, I think we almost always exit the park from the right hand side
tunnel closest to the city hall and the firehouse. I would like to
think its because, especially if its after dark, it gives me the chance
to look up at light above the firehouse when it can really be seen.
When we first enter Disneyland on the first day of a
trip we almost always walk up Main St., make the left hand turn and head
for New Orleans Square (or we'll take the train over there) and make a
ride on Pirates our first ride (it could be second if there's no wait
for Indy). And if Pirates is the first ride, we almost always make
the short walk over to the Haunted Mansion and make that our second.
This seems right since they are the two most elaborate rides the Walt
Disney actually had a hand in creating.
Speaking of train rides, we always make at least one
complete full circle trip on the Disneyland Railroad (though Lisa
cringes every times she goes through the primeval world diorama - hasn't
changed in 50 years - and it looks it).
As for the rest of the rides, we always go on the
Jungle Cruise, Mark Twain, it's a small world, and Buzz Lightyear.
While we have other favorites, almost everything else is optional
depending upon the weather and how long the line is. At our age,
"riding all the rides" isn't really a priority anymore.
As far as the other attractions, we will always go
into the Enchanted Tiki Room to see the birds (and enjoy a pineapple
float beforehand though the quality of those treats may have
deteriorated through the years). At least once each trip we will
stop into the Golden Horseshoe to see an always fun performance by Billy
Hill and the Hillbillies. When it re-opens in December, we will
make a visit to the Disneyland Opera House to see Great Moments with Mr.
Lincoln on each trip, Hmmm....Tiki Room, Golden Horseshoe, and
Lincoln....3 places I've been in with my parents and I'm in my middle
50's. Outside of Buzz, you could probably throw in all of the
above though I'm not sure if mom and dad made it to the Haunted Mansion.
I guess there is something to tradition after all.
For food, I will always get a safari skewer
(bacon-wrapped asparagus) from the Bengal Barbeque, eat a frozen banana
and at least split a churro with someone. Since we've made three
trips to Disneyland over the last year we have had a chance to sample
other dining places and the Carnation Cafe, French Market, and Blue
Ribbon Bakery all have a chance to become dining traditions.
Its hard to have traditions over at Disney's
California since the park is not even 10 years old and still not fully
developed but we always go see Aladdin (though my understanding this
elaborate stage play is renewed on a year by year basis and may not run
forever). Unless the weather is ridiculously cold, we will make it
though the Grizzly River Run and we love the Pixar Play Parade along
with with Turtle Talk with Crush. Even though we've seen the shows
plenty of times, It's Tough to be a Bug and Muppets 3D generally will be
seen on every trip. But a must add to the traditions list is Toy
Story Midway Mania, one of the best rides in either park. We don't
have any dining traditions over at DCA but I think we both enjoyed our
meal at the Wine Country Trattoria and enjoy the chicken sandwiches from
the Taste Pilot's Grill.
So that's it for now. Before we make our next
trip, I plan to sit down and come up with some real traditions if not
outright superstitions. What could be better than to touch this or
pick up that from Disneyland on every single visit?
If you see any problems
or see something you would like changed you can use the email link below
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please pass it on and share.
Dave Anderson:
Web Design & Authoring, Technical Support
Lisa Anderson:
Text Editor, Principal Photographer
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