MAGIC KINGDOM (2 days)
Cinderella’s Castle Entrance
I love the mosaic scenes from Cinderella in the archway of the castle entrance.
BIG THUNDER MOUNTAIN RAILROAD – Good ride. It’s one of Barry’s favorites.
Liberty Square Riverboat and views while onboard.
SPLASH MOUNTAIN – MUST do if it is a hot day! This is going to be changed out from the current theme of Uncle Remus, and “Song of the South” with Briar Rabbit to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. I don’t believe the journey of the water log will change.
SPACE MOUNTAIN – Oh yeah! Great ride. I initially went on Space Mountain in 1976 when I was in college. It was the day of the Super Bowl (in FL). The park was on the chilly side with overcast skies and short periods of rain, so lines weren’t much of an issue that dayUnfortunately, since we breezed right through, we didn’t realize it was a roller coaster! That added to the thrill!! It was awesome! Still a favorite!
IT’S A SMALL WORLD – A Disney classic! I will always enjoy this attraction. If you go to DisneyLand 15 Nov -31 Dec, “It’s a Small World” has “Holiday Overlay”. I loved it when we experienced it there, and I was so excited to experience it here, but they don’t do it. 🙁 DisneyWorld keeps to a theme of global unity.
The Spanish dancer below caught my eye because I had a very similar Spanish dress that I got as a child when my family was in Spain. It had contrasting little heels that were red with white polka dots. I LOVED that outfit, and passed it on to Abby to use for Halloween and to play in.
Pirates of the Caribbean – Always a favorite!
I can remember when my dad first went on this ride–he was blown away with how realistic the pirates were – down to the hair on the one guy’s leg while sitting on an archway the boat went under. Also a ride that simply needs to be timed to get right on.
We had a unique experience when the ride stopped. Boats backed up. Next thing we knew a worker showed up through a “secret door”, lights came on. She didn’t hesitate to jump into the water. More workers showed up. Three workers were knee to thigh-high in the water. One by one each boat was pushed to the edge and people were helped out of the boat and ushered through the secret passage. We ended up outside in an area never seen by visitors. It was pretty cool. We were all issued a re-entry to be used once it was up and running later. Disney always takes care of its customers. (Sometimes too much when people really push unreasonable entitlement.)
Haunted Mansion – Always a fun ride. Different setting from Disneyland.
Love the names…
Monsters Inc – Laugh Floor (Tomorrow Land)
This was a pleasant surprise of laughs. Although I probably laughed more than Abby did! She was a great sport though when they selected her unexpectedly. 🙂
JUNGLE CRUISE (Adventureland)- A few pics. This ride totally freaked me out as a child. I thought the animals were real. I took the guide at his word that we were in danger of a hippopotamus tipping our boat over so he shot to scare it! I would not go on this ride for years. LOL We had time one evening to jump onboard, so we did. Nighttime cruise was cool but made it harder to get quality pictures.
The coolest part was the falls that we went behind/under.
Gold Statues celebrating Magic Kingdom’s 50th year were scattered throughout the parks. It was fun to spot them. Each plays a song or speaks when you have a Magic Band near it, although I usually only took time to take the picture.
Additional character sightings:
And a “character” who caught me totally by surprise here…
Susie McAllister from WA and during the winter with us at CVR in Yuma! LOL
Parades
We did not make seeing any parade a priority, but with three different parades each day in the Magic Kingdom, it was easy to catch enough of each one. I took pictures of my favorite Disney characters and ones I thought Isaac and Mona would like seeing.
Mickey’s 50th Celebration Parade in the Magic Kingdom: (The shortest parade) I loved the anniversary colors and the shimmery brocade was beautifully festive for the 50th Anniversary celebration.
Disney Adventure Friends Cavalcade Parade
FESTIVAL OF FANTASY PARADE (Magic Kingdom) This parade has several elaborate floats.
The three guys on the moving (swinging tools) parts I think had the most fun.
Coolest part of this parade…the fire-breathing dragon! You could feel the heat!
And of course Mickey appears at the end.
The parks transitioned during the night from Halloween/harvest decorations on Oct 31 to Christmas when they opened on Nov 1. We were lucky enough to be present for both. It’s most festive along Main Street in the Magic Kingdom.
Miguel Arribas – Glassblower
The encased glass blown castle (the one with color)was absolutely stunning. And so was the price tag!
Magic Kingdom’s 50th Celebration Light and Fireworks Show.
The “Happily Ever After” show was on pause during the 50th Celebration time.
No normal technology can capture the true immersive experience of all the lights, music and expanse of any of the Disney nighttime fireworks extravangas.
I thought it was so cool to see what looked to me like “Mickey Head” fireworks! And I think I captured them in the short video below. What do you think?
Here comes Tinkerbell!
One night we took the boat back to the parking lots. That was a nice relaxing change. This was along our way…
I had a blast sharing this time with Abby! She and I played games every day while waiting in lines. She is just fun to be with! So much laughter—the kind that makes you cry and about pee your pants!
