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View Full Version : Mini-trip report 4-29



jennia
04-30-2005, 07:14 AM
We got to the park early afternoon. It was a beautiful day!!! My first stop was World of Disney to see if I was going to be able to bet my AP Mousepad. Someone online said they were out, so I was jazzed when they were not out. I grabbed Tinkerbell, resisted the new 50th anniversary ears and dashed over to meet DH and DS by the ticket gates.

Next stop the Tour area. I asked if they had a brochure on the 50th anniversary tour, the answer was not yet. The CM told me about the tour but basically everything she said has already been reported here.

Then Guest Services, while there I asked if they had a list of the 50 hidden 50's but again came up with a no.

We went on over to Indy. On the way in we peeked at the walled off Jungle Cruise. We spotted *water* back in the attraction and heard one of the boats rumble by- what a sweet sound!! I did get a picture but it was walled off so well that the only thing you can see is a *small* area of water and the baby elelphant. But we did get a lot of attention while DS was up on DH's shoulders with the digital camera!! :D DS was really excited that he got to take spy pictures and asked if we could post them online!

We saw a new to use hidden 50, a big banner in New Orleans Square. (I'll post pics later.) We skipped Splash Mountain, I wasn't up to that hike so no updates. Next Big Thunder and then a walk through Frontierland. We saw the refurbished Shooting Arcade, it looks very nice.

Then we headed off to Fantasyland. In the Castle courtyard area the princess seemed to be out for photos in full force. I also noticed an interesting thing that looked like a pyrotechnic device but neither of the 2 towers for the curtain drop were in place.

We did all the Fantasyland rides that were open (something we rarely do.) We really enjoyed the rides and the CMs all seemed to go out of their way to talk to Ds and say something witty as they sent us off!

OK that isn't all we did but I have to dash off to an appointment. I'll come back finish up and post pics.

jennia
04-30-2005, 04:45 PM
Let me back track for a second.... while we were waiting for Indy we talked toa really nice CM. DS was asking about the 50 hidden 50s. The CM said something to the effect that he didn't know they were hidden. I explained the DLR marketing was calling them 50 hidden 50s, that was news to him. It was the "hidden" part that was news to him, he said they all looked pretty obvious to him and that he'd seen them popping up all over the park. Later in the day another CM seemed to be unfamiliar with the hidden 50 game as well. Interesting that it is a part of the marketing we are hearing as guests but they aren't being told much about it as CMs (it would appear by the various responses I heard.)

In Fantasyland I got a quick picture of DH and DS in Mr. Toad's Golden ride vehicle. I had seen it in pictures already but was still rather suprised to see it out and not covered. I wonder why they have it out? The Dumbo golden photo op vehicle is right where the old one used to be, adjoining the ride. However, the Golden Tea Cup is in a different location than the old photo op cup used to be. The (still covered) cup is in front of the Mad Hatters, they took out a little vegetable garden (giant carrots) and installed the cup. I didn't see any signs of the Autopia Golden vehicle photo op car.

We hopped on Matterhorn and rode the Fantasyland side track. We always ride the same side. For the last few weeks they've had 2 or 3 Abominable Snowmen functioning in the ride (one head only and then 1 or 2 full body.) Yesterday they had all three lit up but the first one was silent and the strobe effect on the last one wasn't running. I guess they probably have things all over DLR that are being fine tuned for the 50th.

<have a phone call will continue in a bit>

Disney Vault
04-30-2005, 05:00 PM
But we did get a lot of attention while DS was up on DH's shoulders with the digital camera!! :D DS was really excited that he got to take spy pictures and asked if we could post them online!
That's my favorite part. :D That would be a funny sight to see.

And I am surprised all the CMs don't know about the 50 "hidden" 50's. They were told about it at cast blast.

And so are all the towers down near the castle? Some people on another board said the idea to drop a curtain has been canceled. I guess they did a test run one night and it didn't go to well.

jennia
04-30-2005, 06:50 PM
I saw the buzz online too that the curtain drop had been cancelled. I guess there's no way to know if the towers were taken down for cosmetic reasons until the celebration or if the idea has been shelved...... only time will tell! :D

So the next stop after the Matterhorn was Tomorrowland. First off was a ride on the Monorail. I don't remember DS ever being so excited to ride but he's been enjoying all the pics online of the empty lagoon so he was anxious to go see what could be seen over there. He thoroughly enjoyed peeking through the flaps in the barricades around the lagoon and seeing everything for himself. He has been on the ride but he was young so I'm not sure he remembers it very well. We are all amazed at the size of the lagoon. The water looked so shallow when the lagoon was full. There were 2 wheelchairs ahead of us so we had to wait a bit for our ride and we took full advantage of the time by checking out the lagoon and taking a few pics. During the ride we saw (some of) the limos from the old Superstar Limo ride out in back of the building in a lot. I didn't grab the camera fast enough but it was interesting to see them there outside. It also appeared that Indy's exterior paint was damaged, like something had scraped the paint off in a circular pattern in several places.

Back in Tomorrowland we rode Autopia and DS won another Sparky car. We asked the CM if they had another car and were told the only ones that they had (at this time) were Sparky. Funny now that DS has won twice in the last few visits and DH and I haven't won. I wonder if the CMs make sure that kids get the winning licenses?? DS gets so excited when he wins, much more so than DH or I would!! :D

We noticed some new banners up on the Innoventions building. That building is really looking nice since its paint job and now with the banners of old rides. I have pics of the banners to post as soon as I get to that point. We went into Innoventions and DS got to talk to Stitch on the phone. What a cool attraction that is!! I wonder how on earth they get that degree of interactivity!! I think DS was a bit overwhelmed by the fact that it wasn't a "canned" conversation that it was really interactive.

As we headed farther into Tomorrowland we saw another hidden 50 on the Innoventions ride that we hadn't seen before in person or online. We looked for PUSH but weren't successful in locating him. We tried to see the Space Mountain/ Rockit Mountain sign but it was dark. I did walk over and snap a picture of the entrance to Space Mountain. It was interesting to observe several people run up to the entrance and then realize it was closed. Even before I entered the beginning stages of obsession, before we left the HOUSE I knew if Space Mountain was open or not!!! :D :D

Then a quick ride on Buzz and Star Tours. At Star Tours we saw a man and woman drag their 5 or 6 year old over the chains and try to hop on a Star Speeder that was just ending the automated boarding cycle. They then tried to convince the CM that they had been *told* to do that by another CM. Ah, yea, convincing story..... :rolleyes:

By the time we left the park DS had spotted 18 of the hidden 50s himself and was quite happy with that accomplishment. We also stopped and viewed many of the Happiest Faces murals. I had seen the pics online but in person they are even cooler than the pics online.

We headed out of the park to grab a bite to eat. When we returned at 7PM there was a long line at the garage. Lines for the check point were quite long and the crowd was very pushy. Another long line was present for DCA. The AP line was not open like the last time we had visited. To be fair the lines went fairly quickly but the crowds were larger than we expected.

We made a quick stop to peek at the Monsters, Inc ride on our way to TOT. We noticed a blue "M" painted on the ride but I had left my camera in the car so I don't have a pic of it. The exterior is shaping up quite nicely though, I'm sure it will be impressive for the announcement this coming week.

When we arrived at TOT (shortly after 7PM) the standby line was 95 minutes according to the sign. We entered the Fast Pass line and exited the ride at 7:45PM. We had a great CM load us onto the elevator part of the attraction. He had quite a collection of witty dialog as we boarded and got our instructions. After the ride we dashed out of the park as the Electrical Parade was ending so we could beat the crowds at the gate. We had an early appointment this AM so it was nice to be able to sneek out while everyone watched the parade.

That wraps up our visit and observations for the day when I get the pics online I'll post a link to them. The park sure is looking nice with all the refurbishment.

jennia
04-30-2005, 07:18 PM
I just remembered one more thing.... I dashed back to the AP center and looked to see if they had any of the new 50th anniversary merchandise yet. I didn't wait through the line so I didn't get really close up but I couldn't spot any 50th anniversary AP mechandise from where I was standing, just the regular AP merchandise so far.

MartyLuvsTigger
04-30-2005, 08:38 PM
Sorry we missed ya! We were there all day. :)

jennia
05-01-2005, 10:39 AM
We need to all wear Mouse Pad Tshirts!!

OK here are the pics I promised here (http://dbamom.com/disneypics.htm) just ignore the website in general. It is a hobby site of mine that is sadly neglected. Mostly there are pics of the park one of DS on Dumbo and one of DH and DS on the Mr.Toad Golden vehicle in front of the Mr. Toad ride. Sorry it took so long but many of the pics needed to be color adjusted before posting.

Disney Vault
05-01-2005, 10:48 AM
We need to all wear Mouse Pad Tshirts!!

OK here are the pics I promised here (http://dbamom.com/disneypics.htm) just ignore the website in general. It is a hobby site of mine that is sadly neglected. Mostly there are pics of the park one of DS on Dumbo and one of DH and DS on the Mr.Toad Golden vehicle in front of the Mr. Toad ride. Sorry it took so long but many of the pics needed to be color adjusted before posting.
Thats the first I've seen anyone post a picture of a hidden 50 hanging above NOS.

jennia
05-01-2005, 11:00 AM
Thats the first I've seen anyone post a picture of a hidden 50 hanging above NOS.

Yeah!!! I'm partway to attaining Disney geekdom!!! :D :D :D :D :D :D

Hakuna Makarla
05-01-2005, 11:32 AM
THanks jennia I loved it!! By the way you have the same last name as me!!
nice pictures!!

jennia
05-01-2005, 11:43 AM
We must be distant cousins then!!! :D :D :D :D :D

Hakuna Makarla
05-01-2005, 11:46 AM
So cool!!
Now next time you go, do not forget your cousin Karla :D