On our way over to the parks today we encountered a group of protestors that were indicating that Disney discriminated against black carpenters. I haven’t heard any news stories about this, but my initial impression is that this company lost the bid for the construction work in the California Adventure expansion. Assuming that’s the case, I’d say the protest was a bit too dramatic. A chorus of “We shall overcome!” may not be the best approach. If there truly was discriminatory practices I would welcome more information to be posted on the comments section of this post.
Now on with the day. We started out with a quick ride on Soarin’ Over California over at Disney California Adventure before heading over to Disneyland. A point of note, we noticed others asking to be in the top row of Soarin’ Over California so we followed suit and were front row center. I wonder if this will work in Florida as well.
I neglected to mention yesterday that we glanced in the Main Street Magic Shop. While I didn’t purchase any thing, I’m glad that they brought this back as it was a favorite store in Disney World’s Magic Kingdom when I was growing up. Another thing I neglected to mention yesterday was our Tower of Terror bellhop was very good. Upon our return, he held us all in our seats while he counted us to make sure we all made it back.
After another trip on Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters where I lost to Marie, we had our mind’s blown by seeing Captain EO. If George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola were commissioned to make a movie that looked like a cheesy 80s movie, it would be Captain EO.
Lunch at Café Orleans was fantastic. Disney World needs a restaurant that serves a Monte Cristo, perhaps a table service restaurant at The American Adventure that would serve up food from around the United States. In addition to the Monte Cristo (which of course I didn’t finish), we also order Pommes Frites (French Fries) that were covered in Parmesan and Garlic; they were also delicious.
Over at Pirates of the Caribbean there were some subtle differences between the Disneyland and Disney World attractions. While it is well known that the Disneyland version is substantially longer and has two drops, it also has names for each of the boats, and the boats themselves are given a weathered look. In addition, in the scene where the Dog has the keys to the jail cell, the audio for the dialogue is much better in Disneyland. Another point of note, I never really think of Pirates of the Caribbean as an attraction with a substantial amount of rockwork, but they really do use quite a bit.
A significant difference between California and Florida is the weather. While Florida typically gets rain every day during the summer, California has shipped all of its rain up to Seattle. As a result, many of the dark rides begin outside, and enter the indoor show building via an outdoor track. Alice in Wonderland, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and “it’s a small world” all begin outside. Speaking of The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, its presence in Disneyland’s Critter Country helps showcase the need for more attractions in Fantasyland. Simply put, attractions in Fantasyland generate longer waits than if the same attraction (or same quality attraction) was elsewhere in the park. I’ve made the point about The Seas with Nemo and Friends (Epcot) that if it were in Fantasyland it would be the most popular ride there. Similarly, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh isn’t located in Fantasyland in Disneyland. As a result we walked onto the ride midday, whereas such a thing would be unheard of in Disney World’s Magic Kingdom.
We took advantage of our hotel’s proximity to the parks to take a late afternoon break. After relaxing for an hour and a half, we returned to Disneyland to hit several attractions before the park closed at 10:00. We wound up getting stuck behind the Celebrate! A Street Party parade in our attempts to visit “it’s a small world” and Roger Rabbit’s CarToon Spin. Additionally, our attempts to get dinner in Fantasyland and Toontown were thwarted by early closings to their restaurants.
Over at the Matterhorn we experienced what it was like to have Yetis that move. We also saw some exposed steel/wire framework where it seems that a certain area wasn’t lit properly. Of course we were also reminded why we only ride the Matterhorn once a trip, it’s an uncomfortable ride. Here’s hoping that the new bobsleds that have been tested recently will result in a smoother ride.
While I enjoy the America Tributes better in Disney World (The American Adventure, Hall of Presidents), I enjoyed touring the gallery adjacent to Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. We went in to see the show close to park closing time so we will likely return to see all of the exhibits about the early years of Disneyland.
That’s it for today. You can see the list of attractions that we visited below. I have also added this to yesterday’s post as well.
Attractions Visited
Disneyland
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters (2x)
Captain EO
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln
Haunted Mansion
Indiana Jones Adventure
“it’s a small world”
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Matterhorn
Pirates of the Caribbean
Roger Rabbit’s CarToon Spin
Space Mountain
Tiki Room
California Adventure
Grizzly River Run
Soarin’ Over California
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