11/19/2014
Our first day in Magic Kingdom. Now Angel can't believe we're here. We started the day with a mad dash for the park's newest ride: the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. It opened in May of this year, and online, people were saying how long the lines were cuz it's really popular.
I seriously feel so lucky cuz the one time we're actually in Orlando, not only has Harry Potter/Diagon Alley opened up just in time for our trip, but the New Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom (and the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train) has opened up in time as well. This was pure luck, as I had no idea there were new attractions opening up at all; I'd originally wanted to go to Disney World because it was 1.) a free stopover on our free airplane tickets, 2.) I had free hotel vouchers that could only be used in Orlando or resorts near Mexico's beaches and I don't know what I'd do on beaches, and 3.) to get Angel to quit whining about wanting to go to Disneyland. I thought if she went to Disney World, her thirst for Disney would slake and I wouldn't have to hear any more complaints about wanting to go to Disneyland.
I was wrong.
This has only whetted her appetite and now she wants to go to Disneyland next year. :T Sigh. Major backfire on me, I know.
This is supposed to be off-season, but by the time we got to the Seven Dwarfs ride--winding through the whole park; naturally the ride has to be at the back of the park--the line was already 1 hour long. Damn. I thought this was supposed to be the slowest week of the year?
Like Universal, Disney's designed the line to be fun...although in Disney's case, it's fun if you're a 5-year-old. They cater more to the kiddies here at Disney, which Universal employees have no end of snarky comments about. In a lot of the shows we saw at Universal, the hosts would poke fun at Disney, saying stuff like, "We're not Disney," or "We don't have to be G (rated)." At first, I was like, Awwww, they're making fun of Disney. That's not nice!
But by the end of the week, I could get what they were saying.
Disney caters waaaay too much to kids (though I guess kids make up the bulk of its revenue, doesn't it?). Sometimes you wanna tell off the parents because their kids are being way too bratty, running around and screaming. Like the parents would ever listen. These kind of indulgent parents will let their kids get away with murder, I swear. Not all parents are like that, but a lot. Just saying.
Props to the parents who yell at their kids to get in line and behave. We overheard a mom telling her son if he didn't start behaving, she'd take him back to the hotel and he could stay there for the rest of the vacation. Thank you! I could kiss her!
And I gotta give mad props to the parents who've somehow managed to teach their kids to say "Yes, sir" and "No, sir." I've never heard this before from Californian kids, but it seems a lot of the kids from the South are taught to have respect for others.
Anyway, the line at the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train had a lot of interactive games for kids to play while waiting in line, including this contraption where you run your fingers underneath the little animals and water comes spurting out:
And the buckets of jewels that kids can turn and turn, and images on the ceiling will pop out:
The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is a roller coaster designed for kids, so it was fun, nostalgic, and very suitable for Angel. She didn't get motion sickness. Though to be fair, had the Harry Potter and Forbidden Journey ride been rebranded as a Disney roller coaster, we'll see if she gets motion sickness or not. It's like her allergy to grass. Funny enough she never gets an allergic reaction while traipsing through the green green grassy hills of the English countryside.
In line waiting for the Pooh ride, kids can pump a see-saw and the little gophers pop up:
New Fantasyland opened up September 2013 with a lot of new additions to Fantasyland (as the name implies). It features attractions and buildings from Tangled, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid among other Disney tales. I was super excited to learn of the new construction, as I'd be stepping into Belle's village! ^.^ How cool is that?
Rapunzel's tower from Tangled:
Yet the only thing they've managed to do with Tangled is TO MAKE IT INTO A BATHROOM. Seriously. WTF.
One of my favorite Disney movies and they turn it into a BATHROOM. Oh, the horror.
In this little gate area, you can meet Cinderella's stepsisters and her stepmother:
 |
| ...or you can meet Angel. Muahaha. |
 |
| Chippy! |
In New Fantasyland, they've added a restaurant called Be Our Guest, a tribute to Beauty and the Beast. Reservations are notoriously hard to come by. We passed by the restaurant and overheard people trying to nab the canceled reservations, to no luck. Reservations open up 60 days in advance and your finger has to be basically ready to hit your mouse, or so I'm told.
Oddly enough, I was able to get a reservation. For a Sunday. At 6:30pm. Prime dining time. I couldn't believe my luck when I saw my computer screen, so I hurried to click "reserve." I can only guess that someone had just canceled their reservation right before I checked or I don't think I would've managed to get it so easily.
Beast's Castle:
Gaston's Tavern, which features--very prominently--the very vain Gaston:
Gaston! You can meet him outside his tavern. They got a really good lookalike; he even talks like Gaston! He also towers over everybody--I think he's like 6'4" or 6'5".
His tavern cannot be complete with his statue, of course:
Which says, "Tribute to Gaston. An Extravagantly Generous Gift to the humble people of My Village. From Me, Gaston."
With role models like him, it's no wonder Angel turned out the way she did. :T
*cough cough* Pompous arse.
We caught the afternoon parade, which was very lovely with the bright, sunny weather:
Oh, and Angel's favorite. Merryweather:
"Cinderella not go to the ball?"
"What? Not go? What did you say?"
"You'll see. They fix her."
"Hey! We can do it!"
At night, the castle lights up with thousands of Christmas lights during a Frozen performance:
Beast's Castle:
Gaston's Tavern, which features--very prominently--the very vain Gaston:
Gaston! You can meet him outside his tavern. They got a really good lookalike; he even talks like Gaston! He also towers over everybody--I think he's like 6'4" or 6'5".
His tavern cannot be complete with his statue, of course:
Which says, "Tribute to Gaston. An Extravagantly Generous Gift to the humble people of My Village. From Me, Gaston."
With role models like him, it's no wonder Angel turned out the way she did. :T
*cough cough* Pompous arse.
Take a ride thru the new Little Mermaid ride:
 |
| Sleeping Beauty's Dress. "Make it pink." "Blue!" "PINK!" |
 |
| Jack Sparrow! |
Prince Eric's Castle (can't really place what country he's from based on architecture. Can you?):
We caught the afternoon parade, which was very lovely with the bright, sunny weather:
 |
| Beauty and the Beast |
 |
| Cinderella |
 |
| Frozen! |
 |
| Anna, Elsa and Olaf |
 |
| The Mime from Tangled |
 |
| Rapunzel herself |
 |
| The Little Mermaid |
 |
| I'll get you, Pan, if it's the last thing I do! |
 |
| Celtic dancers from Brave |
 |
| Merida from Brave--the actress was really good at doing Merida's gestures |
Oh, and Angel's favorite. Merryweather:
I still maintain Merryweather's at fault for why the crow discovered their little cottage.
 |
| Prince Phillip |
 |
| Maleficent |
 |
| Disney, Mickey...and Angel? |
Baby was super excited at seeing Cinderella's dress, and the pattern book alongside it:
"Cinderella not go to the ball?"
"What? Not go? What did you say?"
"You'll see. They fix her."
"Hey! We can do it!"
At night, the castle lights up with thousands of Christmas lights during a Frozen performance:
 |
| Mickey's Wishes Celebration |
No comments:
Post a Comment