Efteling ~ World of Wonders

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

A Wicked Good Spin...

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Guests wind into a path that simulates heading into the witch’s hut, where we encounter her brewing and casting spells together with her majestic talking cauldron. The cauldron’s inside glows eerily green and a mysterious mist emerges from it. From time to time, a small blast of light comes out and the witch will invite Guests to step inside her cauldron as part of her newest potion brewing experiment. For her last ingredient she needs humans who feel love. That’s why often times she’ll threateningly points at Guests while the cauldron grumbles. At other stations in the queue, they’ll be invited to cast spells or test their witch knowledge in interactive games, where they can brew potions of their own, find the hidden black cat along the route or light the way for a witch on her broom. They are then slowly led to the cauldron room, which is bricked in with large stone walls around it. In the room giant statues of ancient witches hold up the ceiling and torches are lit on the walls. Piles or rather towers of cauldrons are spread across the room. Guests will be boarding their very own cauldron very soon from this point.

‘’There once was a wicked old witch that had a magical talking cauldron. Or...well, talk... Rather, grumble was what the cauldron did. He did very much have a reason to grumble though as the witch treated the cauldron with little respect. Often times she snubbed at the cauldron or she blamed him for if a potion or brew had failed. If the witch would then again throw her ingredients into the cauldron, he already began to boil and heave a sigh... 'O, o, it's happening again... What kind of stink soup will she make of me again now... O, no! She's not adding those nasty toad legs, right? Of course, she is... Bleh!' The witch believed it to be cozy such a grumpy cauldron in her house. On one sunny spring day she had found a recipe in one of her old spell books, for a love potion. 'Hihihahaaa! This is funny,' the witch laughed. The cauldron felt the dark clouds ahead. That laugh he had known too well by now. 'Here we go again,' he sighed. Not much later the witch lit the fire under the cauldron again. After that she threw in some rat tales, snake slime and a bunch of other nasty things. It didn't take much longer until the love potion begain to simmer. It looked like a thick, poison ivy green soup. For the witch it appeared extremely delicious. She scooped up quite a jug full and drank it whole in one gulp. 'Mmm, delicious,' said the witch. 'Now I'm curious to see if it will work.' She waited and waited, but after 15 minutes and she still hadn’t felt anything, she became extremely angry. 'What a worthless recipe!' yelled the witch. 'That stuff doesn't work!' 'O,o' said the cauldron, 'then I will have to pay for it again probably.' And of course, the witch turned so angry that she kicked the cauldron over with one powerful kick.

The love potion spilled all over the floor, out of the door. And because the witch's hut was on top of a hill, the green soup descended down the side like a poison green runlet. Two toads who said there each took a sip. Immediately they started kissing one another. Two snails were compeletely flooded by the potion. In a heartfelt embrace they nearly melted together as one. And everywhere the green stuff came, the most beautiful flowers grew from the ground. Bees and butterflies frolicked through the sky and birds began to chirp. The witch walked outside and she saw it all happening. ‘How useless,’ she grumbled as she followed the green stream down the hill. ‘I feel nothing!’ She grumbled as she reached the foot of the hill and walked into the woods. ‘Klipperdeeklipperdeeklap!’, it sounded all of a sudden. Perched atop a beautiful white horse, a handsome young prince was galloping towards the witch, followed by a servant. The prince wore a white velvet cloak and had long dark hair. As he neared her, she saw how handsome his face was. The riders stopped and the prince, who did not know who the witch was, politely said, ‘Good day, my lady. Isn’t it a lovely spring day?’ The witch did not reply. She had completely lost it. With a red-ish blush on her cheeks, she stared silently at the prince. And what was very special, was the fact that her black dress had magically turned fiery red. ‘Well, we’ll be on our way again,’ said the prince when he realized that the old woman was not going to say anything. ‘Blessed day, my lady.’ The servant and him gave their horses orders to ride away, stared after by the witch in her red dress. She had become madly in love with the prince. And as soon as he was out of sight, she spontaneously started to skip around! As a freshly born lamb, she frolicked over the green moss. With that, she sang a love song: ‘How dearly does the spring sun shine, on my red hat. I saw the prince and now I don’t know, where I have to look for it!’

The days after, the life of the witch’s cauldron turned a lot more pleasant. There was no more snobbing or grumbling. No, the witch was now really the joyful energy in the house. That took about a week or so, until she turned extremely sad. She stared out of her window and sighed, ‘O, how I’d love to marry that handsome prince. Oh well, such a prince would not wait for such an old lady like me.’ The cauldron felt sorry for the witch and said, ‘That prince should actually drink some of that potion too…’ The witch looked up and a smile appeared on her face. ‘Dear cauldron of mine, you are amazing!’, she shouted and she kissed him spontaneously on his edge. ‘Yikes’, said the cauldron, but the witch couldn’t hear him anymore. She snatched her old recipe book of the shelve and ran down the slope, in the direction of the royal palace. Once at the castle, the servant asked if she maybe could work in the castle kitchens. ‘By chance, we actually have a job free for you,’ said the servant as he took her to the kitchen. ‘Can you cook well?’ ‘I’m the best, you might say!’ the witch replied. ‘I have about a 100 years of experience, you know!’ ‘That’s quite long’, said the other confusedly. ‘We are immediately given you a chance. What’s on the menu?’ ‘I wanted to start of with some delicious green soup,’ said the witch. That night, the witch brewed her love potion in the castle kitchens. But the prince looked disgustingly at what he got served. ‘That looks gross!’ he yelled shocked. ‘Who made this?’ ‘The old woman from the woods, your Majesty,’ the servant replied. ‘Oh, not that shy woman with that funny red hat perched on her head?’ the prince laughed. ‘Oh, she is so shy, it’s cute. Bring her here.’ Not much later, the witch stood eye-to-eye with the man of her dreams. She fell in love even more than she did the first time. ‘Dear cook’, said the prince, ‘what is this dish actually?’ The witch said nothing. ‘I don’t think it smells nice,’ said the prince. The witch said nothing. ‘You know what?’ the prince continued, who felt sympathy for the shy woman. ‘To do you a favor, I will try a little.’ The witch again said nothing, but her eyes started to sparkle.

Would he do it? Yes, he would. He slurped a little sip. Quickly he wiped off his mouth and said: ‘I’m sorry, but cooking is not your strongest talent. We will look for another job for you. Follow me, please.’ The witch was dancing in the clouds… She walked next to her prince charming through the hallways of a castle! Oh, how beautiful he was. They reached the courtyard, where a young girl with blonde curls was herding geese. She smiled at the prince. He immediately stopped and his face became fiery red. The witch saw how he stared at the young goose herder. She also saw how his white clothes changed color. They turned into the same red as had happened with the witch. Although? She looked at her dress and was shocked. It was as black as it was before she drank the potion! Then she felt everything change inside her as well. ‘Don’t just stand there staring at that maid so stupidly’, she snapped at the prince. ‘You’re such an idiot! I don’t understand how I ever fell for you!’ But the prince couldn’t even hear her anymore. He only had eyes for the goose herder. Angrily, the witch walked away, out of the castle gates, back home. The love potion had stopped working. ‘O,o’, said the cauldron, who saw the witch walking back in the distance. ‘From the black dress I can tell that the fun is over.’ And so it was. From that day, the cauldron often had to pay for it again. For the prince it all turned out differently. He lived happily ever after with the goose herder, who was now a real princess.’’
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The track holds up to a total of 16 cars with space for four Guests (two rows of two), of which only twelve drive at the same time. Two people start forward, two backward. At a certain point on the route, the carriages start to rotate. The cauldrons are not shot down horizontally or pulled up with a classic lift hill, but are brought to a height of around 17m with a vertical elevator, dressed as a fireplace on which the cauldron is heated. The fire will then turn ominously green as the cauldron is lifted into the air and we hear mysterious witch chants. Once we reach the top, the cauldrons are tilted forward so that the lift rail has contact with the main line and the wagons can enter the first drop directly, on which the entire vehicle is photographed by two different cameras at the front and rear. The cauldron drives through a large S-curve through the middle of the Witch town on the left side and then races down a steep and deep descent and thus picks up a little speed.

Within Witch Town, Guests would witness among other things, blowing black cats and loud screeching ravens, but the space is mainly inhabited by witches; playing cards at the table, casting spells at one another, brewing potions or sitting on a flying broomstick, bat or pig. Then it goes over the camelback, a high airtime hill with an intense feeling of weightlessness. The turning mechanism is only released shortly before the beginning of the coming driving element. Then the unpredictable rotation of the vehicle on its own axis starts. Now, they drive through the so-called mouse curves. In the curves that are bent over 180 degrees, Guests will be pushed outwards and you will have the feeling of being carried out of the track. These impulses increase the torque of the vehicles again. We then witness a figure of witch wearing a green dress and a red hat. She raises her arms and fire emerges behind her. Then the cauldron goes down a helix right in the center of the tree, a spiral 360 degrees curve around the central root. Here you have a wonderful view of the whole of the Witch Town, if you even still have the overview after all that rotating…

After the many curves, you will experience so-called bunny hops. These are flat airtime hills that give you several short moments of weightlessness. The second bunny hop is unexpectedly deeper than the first and thus provides another special surprise as a witch laughs when she flies by on her broom and nearly crashes into us. The cauldron then drives towards the vertical lift again. However, the vehicle changes its direction through an Immelmann turn, an almost vertical 180 degree curve. Here you are laying across in the air. The spinning coaster will then drive into the longer dark area of the attraction. Here the turning mechanism of the vehicles are locked again. In the middle of the dark, the vehicles suddenly stop and are tilted to the side with a folding rail, where we see the witch taking her potion, but finding out that it has failed. She angrily turns at the Guests. They are then released again until they come to a halt and are tilted forward by a seesaw rail. The witch sits tumbled in her own talking cauldron, dazed and confused. Seems like her anger got the worst out of her… They are then turning freely again before they are locked again. The final driving element is a free-fall rail. The vehicle sags vertically downwards again and you experience a final tingling sensation in your stomach (while hearing the witch’s laugh in the background) before our cauldron reaches the station again.

Located nearby is a windmill covered in thorn thickets and ivy. Witch’s cauldrons hang on the wicks of the windmill. Inside we find ‘De Heksenkelder’, a dark, shabby pub and inn for witches, located near a small stream and surrounded by a few willow trees. It offers great, yet strange food and drink options including enchanted tapas, small dishes that are both familiar as wickedly weird(some dishes will boil, mist will be emerging from others and is that, no, it can’t be right?). Additionally Guests will be able to try different witch brews and potions in the form of signature drinks that glow in various colors and will be both alcoholic as non-alcoholic. These will be prepared behind a large bar above which a moving ram’s head hangs on the wall. On the main floor, the inn has a bar and a large dining room. On the upper floor a wooden deck looks down over the restaurant.

In the restaurant we find tricks like a talking mirror and windows that change view of other locations in the park. The pub serves as a gathering place to the wickedest witches of witch territory. The inn is owned by Madam Grobelia, the cozy witch who apparently crashed her broomstick into a tree in the Fairy Tale Forest, but then got launched into Tough Realm, where she started an inn to get money for a new broom. She grew to love the inn and decided she wouldn’t need a broom. She is accompanied by Samson the black cat with red eyes, who sleeps at the large fireplace which sits in the centre of the restaurant. A large enchanted portrait comes to life above the fireplace activating several magical effects around the restaurant, even making the fire in the fireplace dance! Guests will be surprised to meet some of the park’s most famed witches roaming around the restaurant...

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

Surprise! This extra post will reveal something that I wanted to save for somewhere in the project, the addition of an extra realm to the park(which btw will not be the only new realm to this version of the park). Hope you'll enjoy!

Hurtle up and down aboard a cursed construction lift...

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With our visit to Heksenketel and Heksenkelder, we conclude our tour of Tough Realm, for now at least… From here we travel towards ‘De Siervijver’ (The Ornamental Pond), a large water feature on the east side of the Efteling Park. Attractions and hiking trails are located around the pond, in the middle an inaccessible island. It is covered with trees and shrubs and is home to waterfowl that live in the pond. A waterfall has been built of natural stone on the west side. Although normally, we find little excitement adjacent to Symbolica, next to Tough Realm, I would like to surprise you all with a completely new Realm for the Efteling Park, which will find its entrance on this space. This area stretches from the former location of D’oude Tuffers to the strip of land next to the Efteling Hotel and will be known as ‘Het Vergeten Rijk’ (The Forgotten Realm). This future expansion of the park is an area dedicated to stories, legends and myths related to the theme of being forgotten, lost or mysteriously disappeared. Just as every other area in the park, it offers a collection of loose stories under a branched theme. However, something that is quite interesting to this area is the fact that most of its attractions find its origins in Dutch folklore.

With its living drifting sand, De Loonse en Drunense Duinen is a unique nature reserve, both in the Dutch province of Brabant, as well as the whole of Europe, which is rightly cherished in 2020. At the same time, there is something ironic about this. The dunes are also the remnants of an environmental disaster that took place in the Late Middle Ages. The consequences of this were also experienced at the time by the residents of Westloon, forerunner of today’s Loon op Zand. When a group of archaeologists in Loon op Zand (municipality that also includes Kaatsheuvel) excavated on a meadow in the Loonse en Drunense Duinen in the 1950s, they came across a gruesome find: human bones were found under the sand. Now it was this meadow where the former village of Westloon was located, but the archaeologists had expected that the skeletons moved with them when the populations left the village in 1391. Then the Westloners founded the Southwestern Westloon op ‘t Zand a few hundred meters away, later corrupted into Loon op Zand. They built a new church here, but the counts of Westloon did not move to this church. In fact, the old church of Westloon remained standing for centuries…

The big question is whether the drifting sand was the reason why the inhabitants of Westloon fled their village. The legend of the ‘Ses Boogscheuten Weeghs’ says so. Threatened by the drifting sand, the Westloners would have fired six arrows to determine where their new church, that of present Loon op Zand should be built. However, the legend does not reveal anything about the fact that the Westloners did indeed go into combat with the drifting sand. The dune, which is now located on the far side of the meadow, is the wall that the Westloners erected at the time to protect their village against the drifting sand. There were more such ramparts in the Loonse en Drunense Duinen, they were often planted with oaks. Now in terms of the Efteling, this is how their story developed.

Westloon is the predecessor of the village of Loon op Zand, but it was west of where Loon op Zand is now. This was a hamlet or village and at some point it completely disappeared from the map and probably completely submerged in shifting sand, but mysteriously little can be found about how that hamlet of Westloon actually disappeared. In that hamlet there was a church, the church of Saint Willibrord, which overshadowed the entire village. Guests arrive at an area that has been themed into a dune area, similar in style to the nearby Loonse and Drunense Duinen. Here we see a lot of shifting sand with high drifting dunes and pine trees. And what happens to be going on here? The Efteling would like to build an attraction here in this area. While they are digging and making way for the attraction, they come across the church of Westloon under the drifting sand. We as visitors have no choice but to move towards the protruding church tower standing tall at 183 feet.

Here we see that the church tower is still half hidden under the shifting sand and we are actually looking at the back of the church, so let's say the nave of the church. Further on is the church tower itself. The sand has definitely taken its toll on the church as can be seen by the cracked walls and shattered windows – suggesting a tortured past. It is an old church from 1269, styled in early Gothic features and quite austere. As a reference, you can think of some tougher and more robust churches that can be found in Brabant, such as the one in Oosterhout, but on the other hand it is very dilapidated after all the hundreds of years under the shifting sand. The building itself is still somewhat covered in sand. It turns out that archaeological excavations are underway in preparation for the new Efteling attraction and to everyone's surprise, the village of Westloon has come up with it. This is where the meandering towards the church begins and in that meandering that runs there, you can see that hard work is being done to uncover the remains of the old village of Westloon. So here you see some explicit storytelling and there are some ruins popping up everywhere among the dune landscape. Archaeologists are at it, we're seeing some map material and some deposits, so it looks like real hard work is being done to excavate that village that has so weirdly disappeared.

We are lucky because we can go and have a look inside the church. So through double doors, we enter the nave of the church. Inside we see that it is still partly covered in drifting sand on the inside, with whole piles of sand scattered around the room, causing us to be on about half the height of what the church would normally be. There is a very strange atmosphere in that church. Here, you walk over the sand on wooden planks through this very dusty and very musty hall. There are some work lights here and there that pulse slightly. The stained glass windows are cracked, some religious artifacts can be found among the piles of sand and there are countless cobwebs. Here and there are still some archaeologists and historians who are busy with research. As we wait here, we can already feel some mysterious wind now and then, the lights flicker a little dimly and if you listen very carefully you can hear some ominous cries that want us to turn around from the church.

However, we do not care about this and continue with our visit in a pre-show room themed to a briefing room where Guests will be informed about their ascend. Lights dim and we are informed by a briefing video set up by the archeologists, revealing parts of the backstory about Westloon. They have given us the privilege of entering the tower of the church. They have now been able to remove the sand completely, so we are really looking into a deep well there. Scaffolding has been set up in that tower with a number of construction lifts, because the church must of course be examined, but first it must be cleared by means of those scaffolding. We as guests are allowed to go with those construction lifts to view the church tower from the inside. However, the video gets interrupted, a dread wind blows and the lights start to flicker on their own. Projection effects bring the room to uncanny life. Drifting sand dances on the walls and reveals the legend of Westloon as the backstory is told on the video. Near the end, faces are formed in the sand, presumably of the lost Westloners, who shout ‘Leave us Alone!’ and Guests are plunged into darkness.

Guests continue, fearfully into a maze of hallways on the construction site. The sounds of equipment constantly reverberate. Lights flicker under ghostly influence. At last the path leads to an elevator door. Dare we continue? We all take a seat inside one of the construction lifts and the stirrups close, reversing into darkness. At first there is nothing wrong; we just take the elevator up to see what beauty has been discovered in the church tower. Then suddenly an ominous wind picks up, the lighting starts flashing violently and then you notice that the construction elevator is snagging in front of a stained-glass window that cracks violently. A ghostly red smoke invades the tower, distorting Guests’ reflections into phantasmagorical otherworldly silhouettes. The elevator descends one floor, as the tower starts to rumble due to the heavy winds that howl within. A long hallway shakes – the elevator shakes too. Doors fall from their frames. Marble statues of angels holding up the ceiling both crumble in a projection mapping effect. Drifting sand floats inside and forms into the shape of ghostly figures that seem to pursue us. They all turn and face the riders, slowly and with substantial menace. The ghosts all thrust out their ghostly hands in accusation of crossing their church territory. Soon we hear some horrifying sounds and screams. And then we shoot up out of nowhere, we fall down and special effects happens around us, caused by the old residents of Westloon. Drops and ascents are randomized. The elevator falls faster than gravity, pulled downwards by powerful cables, as seen in Disney’s Tower of Terror attractions and Mission: Breakout!

Occassionally, randomly, the elevator will pause within the shaft for incredible brief show scenes such as crumbling walls, gusts of dust and sand flying around the tower or the ghostly faces appearing within the sand. The highlight of any drop sequence is the whole-tower drop. The elevator pauses at the tower’s highest point – a disintegrating wall reveals panoramic views of The Forgotten Realm. Then a faux-drop… then the elevator hurtles down. Fortunately, we eventually come to a stop again, but then again at the bottom of the church tower in a deep well. Guests all catch their breath as lights turn on. Guests exit via hallways formed of lath-and-plaster drywall interiors. On-ride photo display within a series of wall-mounted picture frames belonging to the archeological team can be seen next in a ‘temporary’ excavation tent. And just before we exit, we hear a few snippets of voices saying, ‘Leave us alone!’.

 

[Suchomimus]

Surprise! This extra post will reveal something that I wanted to save for somewhere in the project, the addition of an extra realm to the park(which btw will not be the only new realm to this version of the park).

Will some existing attractions be moved into those realms; depending on the theme; and will you be revealing the emblems of each realm when you get to them all? The Anderrijk, Reizerijk, and possibly the Ruigrijk would definitely need new emblems in this version.

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

Will some existing attractions be moved into those realms; depending on the theme; and will you be revealing the emblems of each realm when you get to them all? The Anderrijk, Reizerijk, and possibly the Ruigrijk would definitely need new emblems in this version.

Het Vergeten Rijk will not be featuring attractions from elsewhere in the park, but instead filled with new original attraction concepts(though there may be some hints or easter eggs related to the rest of the park and its attractions). The other new realm will however be based on several existing attractions, next to which new attractions will also appear.

When it comes to the emblems, I'm still working on them actually so they'll be revealed later on.

 

[Suchomimus]

When it comes to the emblems, I'm still working on them actually so they'll be revealed later on.

Whatever the final products may be, and given what you've put out so far, I know they're bound to be well thought out.

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

Set Sail on a Cursed Voyage in Search of Legends...

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In another corner more to the north of Westloon lies a mysterious fishers village and farmland, characteristically known by its Zeeland-style in architecture. Here an attraction called ‘Vloekgolf’ (Curse Wave) will re-tell the legends of ‘Het Verdronken Land van Saeftinghe’ which originates on Dutch and Belgian territory in the Zeeuws Vlaanderen region. The Drowned Land of Saeftinghe is one of the most important and largest salt marshes of the Netherlands. It’s location on the edge of the Westerschelde estuary means that salty water from the North Sea mixes with the salt marsh channels turning them brackisch. The further inward you go, the fresher the water becomes. Saeftinghe is special because of its size and its varied flora and fauna, but it also provides a good idea of the prehistoric Zeelandic landscape. It has mudflats, shallows and salt marshes crisscrossed with water channels, which is exactly how the Delta landscape was once formed. In the late Middle Ages, the Land of Saeftinghe was a thriving area.

In the 14th and 16th centuries, large areas of reclaimed land were lost to stormy seas and during the Eighty Years’ War, dikes were breached in order to protect the city of Antwerp. After that point in history, the area could rightfully be called The Drowned Land of Saeftinghe. Yet from the 17th Century onwards, the area was reclaimed from the sea again. Then in 1907, the last art of the drowned land was reclaimed creating the Duchess of Hedwig Polder bordering the south-eastern part of Saeftinghe . The theme is set in this 16th Century fishers village surrounded by a dock, forests and farmland during the Eighty Year War between Spain and The Netherlands. The village contains a dining option, the entrance to Vloekgolf and a gift shop. In this town a legend of Saeftinghe attributes the All Saint’s Flood of 1570 which happened on November 1, on the Dutch and German coast. Affected cities include Egmond, Bergen op Zoom and Saeftinghe. This caused the region to be cursed by the merman, and led to the flood that destroyed the towns of Sint, Laureins, Namen and Casuwele, killing all inhabitants. The legend holds that a tower bell calls for help from the sunken town another Saeftinghe legend holds the belief that visitors of the area and inhabitants of the nearby village of Emmadorp sometimes see ‘ghosts’ in the fog. According to the legend the ghosts are the spirits of the inhabitants of the three towns killed in the flood.

‘’The legend of The Drowned Land of Saeftinghe:

The land there on the Scheldt was clean and fertile. It contained many lovely villages, of which Saeftinghe, which had a castle and two churches, was by far the most important. The wealth of the inhabitants was great. But it had made them vain and proud, so vain and proud that they walked in silk. As if that wasn't enough, they also had their horses studded with silver horseshoes and the sidewalks in front of their houses were made of gold. Poor people, who came to ask for alms, chased them away with sticks and sent their dogs after them. That couldn't last; that was God to atone for vengeance. In all their wickedness, moreover, they were blind and deaf to the miraculous omens and to the threat of coming punishments. Once a fisherman caught a mermaid. Her merman swam behind the ship and he begged to get his wife back, but the skipper laughed at him and shouted all sorts of swear words at him. The merman became terribly angry about this and he cried out loudly: 'The Land of Saeftinghe will perish! Only the towers will remain!' The inhabitants, however, did not care about this menacing language, they continued their dalliance and did not even take the time to maintain the seawalls(dykes). One morning a maid came to draw water from the well, to her great surprise, sea fish were swimming in her field. This taught the poor girl that the waters of the sea had already seriously undermined the whole region. She had the good sense to leave the farm where she worked at once and so she was spared the coming disaster. On All Saints Day in the year 1570, the rich polders were inundated by a terrible tidal wave and Saeftinghe was swallowed by the sea with all the houses and the people who inhabited them. Only the towers rose above the water for some time, until they, too, sank into the waves. Sometimes, however, their bells can still be heard ringing for the warning of all of us.’’​

When we arrive at the attraction we begin our journey by entering an old Dutch farm landscape in the year 1570. This is formed in meadows, some cows, some cute farms and a lot of ditches. Typical Dutch rowing boats sail in a number of these ditches and that is also the transport system of the attraction. The attraction takes place outdoors and indoors between the farm and the fishers village, where visitors will be in rowboats and will be led through a LED projected, water and wind effect-enhanced experience. The garden in front of the farm is filled with large boulders, espaliers, a vegetable garden and there are a cat and a dog laying around on the porch. The boarding station is located inside this peaceful farm, a bit like a typical farm/homestead, in this landscape. This homestead consists of a courtyard surrounded by farm buildings. This is therefore a nice place for an outdoor meandering. So you get in at the boarding station, which also looks like a farm on the inside with lots of wooden beams, hay and straw, and even some farm animals like chickens, pigs and goats. Here we get into our rowing boat and then you first sail a quiet bit through the various ditches in the polder landscape with a pollard willow here and there.

A farmer is standing in the meadow with a fork in his hand and he is shouting something in the flat local dialect. At a certain point we turn the corner here and then we actually disappear from view of what visitors can see from the front of the attraction and into an old fort, belonging to the town of Saeftinghe. A tower can be found in and along the fortress, the tower of Namen. As villagers we have been invited to go on a fishing trip. We are send off to sail towards the sea, where we eventually encounter a merman and a mermaid. We see how a ship is able to catch the latter. It is quite a fierce fight that causes the boats to split. The merman puts a curse on us for refusing to release the mermaid, pride and vain. Now the boats sail in a circle and we make our way to the first drop. The atmosphere soon becomes more ominous; the wind is blowing hard, you see dikes that are about to burst, the water is seeping through and people are standing in the water on wooden clogs with forks and spades who are gesturing and shouting violently.

We soon notice that something is not right here. The water begins to rise, and the current begins to speed up. It waves and it swirls in the ditches where we sit in our rowing boats. We go up and down and sometimes even get a bit wet. Finally, the dike suddenly breaks, which becomes the fantastic effect of this attraction, causing a huge tidal wave. This scene could be compared in scale to Catastrophe Canyon previously seen in Hollywood Studios Tram Tour and today in Cars Route 66 Roadtrip at Walt Disney Studios Parc Paris. Our boat is picked up and we are thrown into a barn. This is then the first significant drop of the attraction, making visitors soaking wet. Here we end up in a show building, hidden under the farmland where we were before. It's dark there; we are in the night. There is a strong icy wind blowing and suddenly it is a few hours later.

We sail through a completely flooded landscape. The water is high and we see the roofs of farms, of churches, and people who take shelter on the roofs. There is screaming, stuff floating around and even a cat bobbing around on a small wooden plank meows for help. People are panicking. Our rowing boat swirls in all directions and fills up with water every time. It's very stormy. During the cruise in the show building we make another splash. The mermaid is released here anyway by a girl living on the homestead, granting her survival from the terror ahead and a tidal wave brings us to a plain with gullies. Gradually as we sail towards the end of the show building, the water becomes calmer again and it also sinks a bit. We see the harbor again and just before leaving the boats, where the remains of the same village that once disappeared due to the flood are immediately shown. The sun slowly rises as we pass by a field where in the mist ghostly figures, presumably the spirits of the drowned inhabitants, wander and we sail into a barn again. Here is also the exit station of the attraction and from here the boats are hoisted up again and in this way we also return to the polder landscape where peace has returned.

This area immerses guests in to a legendary world with local lore in The Netherlands. The land features a mix of architectural styles known from the area, along with two giant ships as if right from the 16th Century, a restaurant and a fun water play area. At 'Meerminnendijk' (Mermaid's Dike) young Guests are invited to have fun with water. In the town we can enjoy the delights at ''T Zeeuwse Meisje' (The Zeelandic Girl). This delicate restaurant serves dishes that are characteristic for the Zeeland province in the southwest of The Netherlands. Here Guests will be able to try mussels prepared in their traditional way or salmon nuggets (including a vegetarian salmon nugget option). Besides that Guests can try an aspargus meal that traditionally consists of cooked asparagus with ham and egg but is also available in other variations, including vegan and vegetarian options. For dessert there's the option for great apple pie, a Zeeuwse bolus or boterbabbelaars. The restaurant itself is set on the edge of the town in a shack-like tavern set in what looks to be a farmer-like building. Here the Guests are invited in a Pieck-ish version of late medieval Zeeland. Inside we find hints to the legend of Saeftinghe and the sightings of mermaids in nearby waters. We especially learn about the girl that eventually survives and starts a restaurant of her own. Guests are now invited to enjoy these traditional dishes all while learning of the lore of the region. Lastly there will also be a gift shop that will be called 'De Vergulden Hoef' (The Gild Hoof). This is set inside a horse blacksmith barn in the farm side area of the attraction. The barn is set to be home to the blacksmith who helps the inhabitants to ceil their horses hooves with silver. It is also where Guests are now invited to explore the various corners of the building to find a perfect souvenir of the attraction and its theme, including some other more general merchandise items characteristic of the park.

 

[Suchomimus]

Something I realized on Spookslot; and this goes to the original too, the witch Visculamia cursed the gardener for capturing and turning her in, the three judges for their condemnation, and the viscount in revenge, but she seems to have forgotten about the executioner who burned her at the stake.

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

Something I realized on Spookslot; and this goes to the original too, the witch Visculamia cursed the gardener for capturing and turning her in, the three judges for their condemnation, and the viscount in revenge, but she seems to have forgotten about the executioner who burned her at the stake.

Never really thought of the executioner. I guess because they are never mentioned within the story, but it could definitely be interesting to incorporate in some way or another.

 

[Suchomimus]

University got you busy?

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

University got you busy?

Unfortunately yes... but I just finished midterms so I'm hoping to get a bit of air and some time to updatr this thread again soon!

 

[Suchomimus]

What do you think about the recent banners?

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

What do you think about the recent banners?

I honestly think they're really well done. They give Guests a good hint of what's ahead of them.


Be sure to check out some of the earlier posts in this thread to see an update on the Grand Hotel coming to the entrance of the park in a few years time.

Dodge, Dive and Duck in This Miniature Quest for a Lost King...

​

It is remarkable that almost every Dutch person can describe in great detail what exactly a gnome is. The ideas on this are also quite similar. Is there perhaps a hard historical core in old, passed down from generation to generation, gnome stories? The answer to that question turns out to be quite surprising: "Leprechauns have existed. They disappeared from the scene in the course of the eighth century under the influence of Frankish imperialism". Gert Frens and his co-researchers claim that there is a connection between the localized gnome stories (in Flanders, Brabant, Limburg, and Westphalia) and the historical data about that region in the early Middle Ages. That gnomes really did exist was their (rather improbable) working hypothesis. But that turned out to be well substantiated with archaeological, historical, and literary arguments.

Old leprechaun stories handed down provided an explanation for why all gnomes have disappeared nowadays for a long time; At one point they left Hoogeloon, Bergeijk, Cuyk aan de Maas, and many other places to the north. Because their king Kyria was murdered. From the text of that surviving saga, it can be argued when that king Kyria must have lived, where he lived, and why he was killed. Archeology sheds light on what happened in those places at the time. In this way, the researchers even traced the economic basis for the power of King Kyria. So the hard facts say that someone must have played their historical role at some point. In other words: once a gnome king Kyrie really lived and worked! Then the murder of King Kyria must also have been a historic event that made a deep impression at the time. Such things are the subject of traditional folk tales such as this. The analysis of the tradition shows that King Kyria and his gnomes belonged to a losing party at the time. Together with the Frisian king Redbad and the Saxon duke Widukind, they lost out in the course of the seventh century to Charles Martel, Pippin, and finally Charlemagne himself. He has incorporated the land and people of King Kyrie into his realm and after that the memories of the leprechaun age have faded.

The gnomes were known in North Brabant as lads who liked to fix up someone else's work, provided they were given a little something instead (such as some food, a pipe of tobacco, or borrowing pots and pans, etc.). In special cases, they even wanted to help for free. Normally the gnomes preferred to work unseen: if they peeked, then a punishment followed. The gnomes, the sagas say, were very easily offended. The moment they were not taken seriously, they packed their bags, with the result that things got a lot worse. That was usually punishment enough. Yet it is also said that spies had their eyes gouged out or blown out, or that the gnomes mutilated a workhorse in revenge. They could mean a lot to you, but if you made them angry (unconsciously), you had a problem. This is the image of the gnome that is sketched in the many North Brabant gnome saga. Most of these legends are set in the vicinity of the Noordbrabantse Kempen (an area south of Eindhoven and west of the De Peel nature reserve). The gnomes from this area are said to have been an organized group led by King Kyria. The last insult to these proud little men has been the murder of their king. The story, summarized, goes as follows:

​

‘’One day a hunter shot at a gnome on the moor near Riethoven, not far from the Duivelsberg, and fatally struck him. The gnome was just able to drag himself to the Devil's Mountain, from which shortly after came the sad message: "Kyria is dead!". The message spread quickly. A carter saw on the road from Riethoven to Keersop a little man who said sadly: "Kyrie is dead!" At Adriaan Konings in Keersop the carter told the story he had heard and hardly had his story ended when a gnome jumped out from under the table and cried: "Ah, is Kyrie dead?". The message was heard all over the Kempen. A farmer from Veldhoven decided to watch the retreat of the goblins. He hid in a dry ditch that runs along Goorstraat. At midnight he saw a large cloud of dust approaching. He hid in fear under a small bridge, over which the gnomes passed by the thousands. Since then, the goblins have disappeared. According to the stories, most of the Kempen gnomes lived in burial mounds. The two best known are the Kabouterberg in Hoogeloon (Bladel), where Kyria lived and was buried according to the sources, and the Duivelsberg in Riethoven (Bergeijk), where Kyrie was killed. The farmer from Veldhoven watches the retreat of the gnomes in the Goorstraat towards Duizel (Eersel), on the way to the funeral of their king in Hoogeloon. Leprechaun King Kyria is most often mentioned in the context of his own death. Occasionally he turns up alive: Erdmennekes were sitting on the Moosdijk. They were called Aria and Kyria and at night helped the people with the churning and other work. Jaon van Guste met a gnome on his way home. The little man said good evening kindly and asked him for a pipe of tobacco. "You can get a hundred," said Jaon, with a pleasant smile, to which the gnome replied, "No, I'll do with one. The other ninety-nine is for you." Before their paths parted, the gnome, pointing to the Dizzy tower, cried out, "Say, friend, the die-caster will withstand the blow [blow, blow], for I built it myself with my men! say! I am Kyria, the king of the Gnomes. When the tower was finished, I married my wife in it!" then he was gone. In the evening Jaon could buy a hundred pipes of tobacco from his tobacco pouch! In the second half of the 19th-century people started to show an interest in the Dutch folktale.''

‘De Koning van Kyrie’ (The King of Kyria) is one of several attractions within the Kingdom of Kyria-themed area, which spans 3500 square meters, beneath a 15-meter-tall dome that is themed to the hillside landscape of the Eastern provinces of the Netherlands and Eastern North Brabant. Once, Guests enter through what seems to be a Rabbit Hole opening in the hillside, they find themselves in a proportionately oversized themed surrounding, such that Guests feel like they are the size of a critter. They find themselves in an underground village home to the many gnomes that were believed to have disappeared. Other attractions within the area include 'Paddenjacht'(Toad Hunt), a Jump Around spinner attraction by Zamperla in which Guests are supposed to catch flies for their toads by using nets, 'D'n Nevenschapstoren' (Tower of Friendship), a 10-meter family drop tower by Zierer and a playground with slides, tunnels, hidden passages and so much more. The area also features food, beverage, and retail outlets. Go to the ‘De Kleine Knaap’(The Little Lad) for freshly baked bread goods and cookies. The smells will lure you right into this cozy Gnome bakery where squirrels, badgers, and rabbits help along in the kitchen.

The main attraction itself can already be seen from the outside section as it winds in and out of the area’s show building. This inverted-spinning dark ride roller coaster would remind Guests of a somewhat modern version of Droomvlucht which can be found on the other side of the park in ‘Marerijk’. The ride system itself has riders suspended beneath a steel roller coaster track in one of nine, 12-person vehicles and takes you on a 550-meter long journey. Unlike most roller coasters, King of Kyria does not require gravity for movement but is instead powered by motors within the trains themselves. Aside from physical effects, Guests will also be immersed in HD screens and encounter water, wind, and scent effects to enhance the experience. In one of the buildings inside, up to the back wall facing the Rabbit Hole-like entrance we see the entrance to the attraction, dressed in one of the more regal Gnome houses within the complex. From time to time, a gnome opens the doors upstairs as he runs out in a hurry to call for helpers in search of their king. Something serious must be going on. Before we even know it, the stressed gnome runs back inside, leaving Guests curious to see what the problem is. We wander off into the gnome residence, which is an underground but cozy little place filled with little furniture. The queue then continues into a secret passageway that leads into dark and shady tunnels. Signs direct Guests to the ancient vaults of the gnomes where they will supposedly be trained and geared up for their journey.

Throughout the queue, Guests will pass stations that will test their strength, intelligence, speed, and creativity in order to see if they’re trustworthy Gnome guards. These stations are hosted by century-old Gnome runes, which are carved rocks with faces in them, presumably of ancient gnome kings. These glowing faces will provide lessons and advice for Guests. We then wander off into the underground roots of overground hollow trees. Its inner vines seem to be glowing and we are taught that these are a source of energy to the Gnomes, as is the rest of nature actually. Following this source of energy, we will eventually be brought to the Grand Loading Dock. Here, minecarts race around overhead from one tunnel into the other. Floating white and blue cocoons seem to be holding young gnomes, ready to be born. A large treadmill downstairs provides Guests with easy access to the vehicles, which are decorated in Green leaves and branches. Above the tunnel to which the vehicles are headed hangs a large map of the surrounding area. Projections show the presumed journey that Guests might have to take in search of their king.

Once boarded, they’ll pass under the map and fly into the first large projection screen, that shows us how we exit the Gnome Kingdom and rise out over a flowery field. They will then bump into a gnome that greets us and gives us our mission to search for the King of Kyria. Next to him, oversized props of flowers, grass, rocks, and even an enormous dragonfly set off a gust of wind into Guests' faces. In the background, we see the human house where we might just find our king. Other Gnomes pop up from the scenery, curious to see who is joining them. The vehicles turn and bump into a buzzing bumblebee that seems to be heading in our direction but luckily dodges us. The vehicles rush on into a tunnel. Once we get out we see that some gnomes are helping others get out of a trap. They seem to be breaking acorns that triggered a cage holding a few scared Gnomes hostage within. On the other end, a Gnome warns us as we hear the noises of a growling cat, whose head is revealed as the vehicles turn towards it. The cat looks confusedly at us and then puts out its paw, spinning our vehicles around as we are sent into the next scene.

We rush up to another tunnel and find ourselves in the exterior section. The vehicles wind around for a bit over the other Guests and the landscaping, but we quickly head into what seems to be the side of a house(as far as it is revealed(the rest is hidden behind greenery so it doesn’t expose that there is no full-sized house)). Inside we find ourselves in a large pantry, where Gnomes have started to snack on the human food. The Gnome that we met at first yells at the others that it’s not time for a break, but instead, it’s time to move on. We then move in front of our next screen where we are guided through the human house, carefully floating around the oversized scenery. We then fly into a physical study room where humans seem to have been curious about Gnome life in the region. Images, objects, drawings, and more are scattered around. This draws away from the attention, that just as the vehicles turn we fly above a snoring old man, maybe the one who has caused the King to vanish mysteriously. Suddenly another Gnome that hasn’t seen a human yet races past in a similar vehicle like ours. He yells at us saying that it’s so weird that humans are so obsessed with Gnomes. This causes the man to slowly wake up and his eyes open with a shock. The vehicles quickly race out, before the man gets up from his chair.

Guests escape through the vent in the walls which is almost wrecked by the human who quickly attempts to grab the Guests through the venting grids but gets caught up in a rat trap. We turn a few other corners and race past a gigantic rat with red glowing eyes. Maybe it’s glad we took out the trap? Maybe a little too glad to see us too… Let’s quickly head out! Out of another crack, we find ourselves in a nursery, where a little(or well.. not so little now) girl is playing with her toys. But… wait! What’s that?! It’s the King! He’s playing with the little girl as well. Our vehicles zoom past and even though the girl curiously looks at us, she doesn’t mean any harm. The King explains that he was not kidnapped at all, but instead was captured by accident by the little girl. Her father and the King have since grown a good friendship and are now trying to better the bond between humans and Gnomes. Joyfully, the vehicles fly out of the house, where they will be winding through another zigzag outside. The beautiful landscaping will amaze Guests and they’ll even fly over a small piece of the river that flows through the area, nearly soaking their feet. As they race past, water splashes to the sides. They then zoom back into the show-building of the Gnome Kingdom where they tour around the sides of the inner hall. The last show scene features the King back on his throne as he thanks the Guests for their help. Other Gnomes are celebrating with dance, food, and music. The smells and sounds invite Guests to join, but before we can we are sent back to the Loading Dock, where they’ll be able to explore the rest of the area.

In ‘De Kabouterzaal’ (The Gnome Hall), Guests are invited to dine inside the royal Gnome dining hall, which is located within the King’s Underground Palace. Take your seat in this brilliant and classic medieval dining hall and fill up on food fit for a gnome king. They will be seated at long tables going from the front to the back of the Hall or will be seated at a table on the overhead terraces winding around the sides of the room. The walls have been decorated with painted murals re-telling the stories of the gnomes and their interaction with nature and humans. In the center of the room sits a statue of the King of Kyria, which is similar to the actual statue that can be found in the town of Hoogeloon. At ‘De Grote Verzameling’ (The Big Collection), Guests are able to find themselves souvenirs. The shop is themed to the Gnomes collecting woodland goods like acorns, twigs, fruits, and other natural products that they can use. A large stack of these goods wiggling as if it’s going to tip over any second can be found in the center of the shop.

 

[Suchomimus]

I honestly think they're really well done. They give Guests a good hint of what's ahead of them.


Be sure to check out some of the earlier posts in this thread to see an update on the Grand Hotel coming to the entrance of the park in a few years time.

Dodge, Dive and Duck in This Miniature Quest for a Lost King...
View attachment 637266
​

It is remarkable that almost every Dutch person can describe in great detail what exactly a gnome is. The ideas on this are also quite similar. Is there perhaps a hard historical core in old, passed down from generation to generation, gnome stories? The answer to that question turns out to be quite surprising: "Leprechauns have existed. They disappeared from the scene in the course of the eighth century under the influence of Frankish imperialism". Gert Frens and his co-researchers claim that there is a connection between the localized gnome stories (in Flanders, Brabant, Limburg, and Westphalia) and the historical data about that region in the early Middle Ages. That gnomes really did exist was their (rather improbable) working hypothesis. But that turned out to be well substantiated with archaeological, historical, and literary arguments.

View attachment 637278​

Old leprechaun stories handed down provided an explanation for why all gnomes have disappeared nowadays for a long time; At one point they left Hoogeloon, Bergeijk, Cuyk aan de Maas, and many other places to the north. Because their king Kyria was murdered. From the text of that surviving saga, it can be argued when that king Kyria must have lived, where he lived, and why he was killed. Archeology sheds light on what happened in those places at the time. In this way, the researchers even traced the economic basis for the power of King Kyria. So the hard facts say that someone must have played their historical role at some point. In other words: once a gnome king Kyrie really lived and worked! Then the murder of King Kyria must also have been a historic event that made a deep impression at the time. Such things are the subject of traditional folk tales such as this. The analysis of the tradition shows that King Kyria and his gnomes belonged to a losing party at the time. Together with the Frisian king Redbad and the Saxon duke Widukind, they lost out in the course of the seventh century to Charles Martel, Pippin, and finally Charlemagne himself. He has incorporated the land and people of King Kyrie into his realm and after that the memories of the leprechaun age have faded.

View attachment 637272​

The gnomes were known in North Brabant as lads who liked to fix up someone else's work, provided they were given a little something instead (such as some food, a pipe of tobacco, or borrowing pots and pans, etc.). In special cases, they even wanted to help for free. Normally the gnomes preferred to work unseen: if they peeked, then a punishment followed. The gnomes, the sagas say, were very easily offended. The moment they were not taken seriously, they packed their bags, with the result that things got a lot worse. That was usually punishment enough. Yet it is also said that spies had their eyes gouged out or blown out, or that the gnomes mutilated a workhorse in revenge. They could mean a lot to you, but if you made them angry (unconsciously), you had a problem. This is the image of the gnome that is sketched in the many North Brabant gnome saga. Most of these legends are set in the vicinity of the Noordbrabantse Kempen (an area south of Eindhoven and west of the De Peel nature reserve). The gnomes from this area are said to have been an organized group led by King Kyria. The last insult to these proud little men has been the murder of their king. The story, summarized, goes as follows:

​

‘’One day a hunter shot at a gnome on the moor near Riethoven, not far from the Duivelsberg, and fatally struck him. The gnome was just able to drag himself to the Devil's Mountain, from which shortly after came the sad message: "Kyria is dead!". The message spread quickly. A carter saw on the road from Riethoven to Keersop a little man who said sadly: "Kyrie is dead!" At Adriaan Konings in Keersop the carter told the story he had heard and hardly had his story ended when a gnome jumped out from under the table and cried: "Ah, is Kyrie dead?". The message was heard all over the Kempen. A farmer from Veldhoven decided to watch the retreat of the goblins. He hid in a dry ditch that runs along Goorstraat. At midnight he saw a large cloud of dust approaching. He hid in fear under a small bridge, over which the gnomes passed by the thousands. Since then, the goblins have disappeared. According to the stories, most of the Kempen gnomes lived in burial mounds. The two best known are the Kabouterberg in Hoogeloon (Bladel), where Kyria lived and was buried according to the sources, and the Duivelsberg in Riethoven (Bergeijk), where Kyrie was killed. The farmer from Veldhoven watches the retreat of the gnomes in the Goorstraat towards Duizel (Eersel), on the way to the funeral of their king in Hoogeloon. Leprechaun King Kyria is most often mentioned in the context of his own death. Occasionally he turns up alive: Erdmennekes were sitting on the Moosdijk. They were called Aria and Kyria and at night helped the people with the churning and other work. Jaon van Guste met a gnome on his way home. The little man said good evening kindly and asked him for a pipe of tobacco. "You can get a hundred," said Jaon, with a pleasant smile, to which the gnome replied, "No, I'll do with one. The other ninety-nine is for you." Before their paths parted, the gnome, pointing to the Dizzy tower, cried out, "Say, friend, the die-caster will withstand the blow [blow, blow], for I built it myself with my men! say! I am Kyria, the king of the Gnomes. When the tower was finished, I married my wife in it!" then he was gone. In the evening Jaon could buy a hundred pipes of tobacco from his tobacco pouch! In the second half of the 19th-century people started to show an interest in the Dutch folktale.''

View attachment 637270​

‘De Koning van Kyrie’ (The King of Kyria) is one of several attractions within the Kingdom of Kyria-themed area, which spans 3500 square meters, beneath a 15-meter-tall dome that is themed to the hillside landscape of the Eastern provinces of the Netherlands and Eastern North Brabant. Once, Guests enter through what seems to be a Rabbit Hole opening in the hillside, they find themselves in a proportionately oversized themed surrounding, such that Guests feel like they are the size of a critter. They find themselves in an underground village home to the many gnomes that were believed to have disappeared. Other attractions within the area include 'Paddenjacht'(Toad Hunt), a Jump Around spinner attraction by Zamperla in which Guests are supposed to catch flies for their toads by using nets, 'D'n Nevenschapstoren' (Tower of Friendship), a 10-meter family drop tower by Zierer and a playground with slides, tunnels, hidden passages and so much more. The area also features food, beverage, and retail outlets. Go to the ‘De Kleine Knaap’(The Little Lad) for freshly baked bread goods and cookies. The smells will lure you right into this cozy Gnome bakery where squirrels, badgers, and rabbits help along in the kitchen.

View attachment 637271​

The main attraction itself can already be seen from the outside section as it winds in and out of the area’s show building. This inverted-spinning dark ride roller coaster would remind Guests of a somewhat modern version of Droomvlucht which can be found on the other side of the park in ‘Marerijk’. The ride system itself has riders suspended beneath a steel roller coaster track in one of nine, 12-person vehicles and takes you on a 550-meter long journey. Unlike most roller coasters, King of Kyria does not require gravity for movement but is instead powered by motors within the trains themselves. Aside from physical effects, Guests will also be immersed in HD screens and encounter water, wind, and scent effects to enhance the experience. In one of the buildings inside, up to the back wall facing the Rabbit Hole-like entrance we see the entrance to the attraction, dressed in one of the more regal Gnome houses within the complex. From time to time, a gnome opens the doors upstairs as he runs out in a hurry to call for helpers in search of their king. Something serious must be going on. Before we even know it, the stressed gnome runs back inside, leaving Guests curious to see what the problem is. We wander off into the gnome residence, which is an underground but cozy little place filled with little furniture. The queue then continues into a secret passageway that leads into dark and shady tunnels. Signs direct Guests to the ancient vaults of the gnomes where they will supposedly be trained and geared up for their journey.

View attachment 637273​

Throughout the queue, Guests will pass stations that will test their strength, intelligence, speed, and creativity in order to see if they’re trustworthy Gnome guards. These stations are hosted by century-old Gnome runes, which are carved rocks with faces in them, presumably of ancient gnome kings. These glowing faces will provide lessons and advice for Guests. We then wander off into the underground roots of overground hollow trees. Its inner vines seem to be glowing and we are taught that these are a source of energy to the Gnomes, as is the rest of nature actually. Following this source of energy, we will eventually be brought to the Grand Loading Dock. Here, minecarts race around overhead from one tunnel into the other. Floating white and blue cocoons seem to be holding young gnomes, ready to be born. A large treadmill downstairs provides Guests with easy access to the vehicles, which are decorated in Green leaves and branches. Above the tunnel to which the vehicles are headed hangs a large map of the surrounding area. Projections show the presumed journey that Guests might have to take in search of their king.

View attachment 637274​

Once boarded, they’ll pass under the map and fly into the first large projection screen, that shows us how we exit the Gnome Kingdom and rise out over a flowery field. They will then bump into a gnome that greets us and gives us our mission to search for the King of Kyria. Next to him, oversized props of flowers, grass, rocks, and even an enormous dragonfly set off a gust of wind into Guests' faces. In the background, we see the human house where we might just find our king. Other Gnomes pop up from the scenery, curious to see who is joining them. The vehicles turn and bump into a buzzing bumblebee that seems to be heading in our direction but luckily dodges us. The vehicles rush on into a tunnel. Once we get out we see that some gnomes are helping others get out of a trap. They seem to be breaking acorns that triggered a cage holding a few scared Gnomes hostage within. On the other end, a Gnome warns us as we hear the noises of a growling cat, whose head is revealed as the vehicles turn towards it. The cat looks confusedly at us and then puts out its paw, spinning our vehicles around as we are sent into the next scene.

View attachment 637275​

We rush up to another tunnel and find ourselves in the exterior section. The vehicles wind around for a bit over the other Guests and the landscaping, but we quickly head into what seems to be the side of a house(as far as it is revealed(the rest is hidden behind greenery so it doesn’t expose that there is no full-sized house)). Inside we find ourselves in a large pantry, where Gnomes have started to snack on the human food. The Gnome that we met at first yells at the others that it’s not time for a break, but instead, it’s time to move on. We then move in front of our next screen where we are guided through the human house, carefully floating around the oversized scenery. We then fly into a physical study room where humans seem to have been curious about Gnome life in the region. Images, objects, drawings, and more are scattered around. This draws away from the attention, that just as the vehicles turn we fly above a snoring old man, maybe the one who has caused the King to vanish mysteriously. Suddenly another Gnome that hasn’t seen a human yet races past in a similar vehicle like ours. He yells at us saying that it’s so weird that humans are so obsessed with Gnomes. This causes the man to slowly wake up and his eyes open with a shock. The vehicles quickly race out, before the man gets up from his chair.

View attachment 637277​

Guests escape through the vent in the walls which is almost wrecked by the human who quickly attempts to grab the Guests through the venting grids but gets caught up in a rat trap. We turn a few other corners and race past a gigantic rat with red glowing eyes. Maybe it’s glad we took out the trap? Maybe a little too glad to see us too… Let’s quickly head out! Out of another crack, we find ourselves in a nursery, where a little(or well.. not so little now) girl is playing with her toys. But… wait! What’s that?! It’s the King! He’s playing with the little girl as well. Our vehicles zoom past and even though the girl curiously looks at us, she doesn’t mean any harm. The King explains that he was not kidnapped at all, but instead was captured by accident by the little girl. Her father and the King have since grown a good friendship and are now trying to better the bond between humans and Gnomes. Joyfully, the vehicles fly out of the house, where they will be winding through another zigzag outside. The beautiful landscaping will amaze Guests and they’ll even fly over a small piece of the river that flows through the area, nearly soaking their feet. As they race past, water splashes to the sides. They then zoom back into the show-building of the Gnome Kingdom where they tour around the sides of the inner hall. The last show scene features the King back on his throne as he thanks the Guests for their help. Other Gnomes are celebrating with dance, food, and music. The smells and sounds invite Guests to join, but before we can we are sent back to the Loading Dock, where they’ll be able to explore the rest of the area.

View attachment 637267​

In ‘De Kabouterzaal’ (The Gnome Hall), Guests are invited to dine inside the royal Gnome dining hall, which is located within the King’s Underground Palace. Take your seat in this brilliant and classic medieval dining hall and fill up on food fit for a gnome king. They will be seated at long tables going from the front to the back of the Hall or will be seated at a table on the overhead terraces winding around the sides of the room. The walls have been decorated with painted murals re-telling the stories of the gnomes and their interaction with nature and humans. In the center of the room sits a statue of the King of Kyria, which is similar to the actual statue that can be found in the town of Hoogeloon. At ‘De Grote Verzameling’ (The Big Collection), Guests are able to find themselves souvenirs. The shop is themed to the Gnomes collecting woodland goods like acorns, twigs, fruits, and other natural products that they can use. A large stack of these goods wiggling as if it’s going to tip over any second can be found in the center of the shop.

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

I'm so sorry for the long delay. I guess life can be a rollercoaster itself sometimes, but trying to get a bit more active again these coming months

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

Embark on an Enchanting Voyage and Find the Mysterious Swan Knight...

​

In medieval times, the legendary saga of a mysterious rescuer who comes in a swan-drawn boat to defend a damsel spread around real quick. It was said that this knight was from an enchanted forest and that he was cursed by an ancient witch. His only condition would be that must never be asked about his background or origin. The story was told and re-told in various forms, but usually, he ends up marrying the damsel and they have children, but eventually, she does ask about his origin, making him leave his life behind. There are many versions of the story all over Europe, the earliest of which is related to a common fairy tale: the Swan Children, about a man who marries a woman who can shapeshift into a swan. She gives birth to septuplets: six boys and a girl, but they are secretly taken away and abandoned due to the evil machinations of the man’s mother. Different versions of the Swan Children story reunite the children with their parents in different ways, but all of them involve the children being able to shapeshift into swans and the boys being trapped in swan form when magical necklaces they wear are stolen. All but one are then rescued by their sister, who can still take on human form, but the remaining brother remains trapped as a swan and goes on to be the swan that drew the knight’s boat. This might remind people of Efteling’s The Six Swans in the Fairy Tale Forest and could actually pose as an interesting background story connection made between attractions within the park.

‘’ Once the giants dug out the Meuse in the woods between France and Nijmegen and a giantess teased them, saying that a magpie was flying. Twelve years later, the giant looks up and says that the giantess is a magpie herself but the giantess continues to tease. Twelve years later, the giant says he will get the witch, but she jumps away. He throws sand after her which creates many hills in the landscaping. The giantess picks up clumps of earth and puddles form in the ‘Oostrumse Vennen’. There are watermen who grab children and no one knows how deep these pits are. The giant makes the Oostrum sandbanks on the Meelderseweg, with gravel from the Meuse in it. It is the spoiled ground where only heather wants to grow, but then a knight comes from a far country and goes in search of a princess.

A boy had eaten with the king and the king’s daughter hears his tales of precious stones and gold. She likes the man, but her father is against it. The boy and the princess disappear and the king sends his best knight to find her. For years he travels from country to country and he arrives in France. He meets a large swan and wants to shoot it. He follows the animal to a castle in Nijmegen, where the princess lives. The knight gets current milk, rice pudding with sugar, fried sausage, and wine, but the princess does not want to go home. By now, she is raising her children and the beans have to be canned, besides the woman is married now.

The knight is sent away and has to give greetings to the parents of the woman and has to tell them to come by after All Saints’ Day. The knight does not know the way back and does not see the swan anywhere. As punishment for his attempt to shoot it, the swan has flown away. The knight gets lost in the forest of the giants and the king of the giants wants him to pay his toll. The toll does not consist of money, but of human feet and hands. The giant attacks with an ax, but the knight has a spike and stabs the giant king against a wall. The other giants flee and are never seen again. However, the giantess returns and in revenge for his cruelty towards the giant curses the knight. He would never be allowed to be asked of his heraldry and origin, or he would have to leave the people he loved behind. The knight continued to live in the land of the giants, known now as the Swan Knight.

At the beginning of the eighth century, there lived a count of Cleves, who was called Diederik. He ruled not only over the land of Cleves, to which Nijmegen belonged at the time but also over Loen in Westphalia and Teisterbant, which lay between Tiel and Vlaardingen. He died in the year 713, leaving only a daughter to succeed him. That daughter’s name was Beatrix. Beatrix immediately had a hard time, because those were turbulent times. Her neighbors were all eager to enlarge their territory and they did not shy away from doing much injustice and committing acts of violence. The only one who could have helped her, and perhaps wished to do so, was Pepijn van Herstal, Duke of Brabant, a powerful man at the court of the Frankish king. However shortly after she lost her father, Pepijn was also called away by death. Thus, Beatrix stood alone. And the eagerness for her land and her possessions soon emerged.

Such men easily and quickly find a reason to declare war on the innocent. In the second year after her father’s death, Beatrix was attacked from all sides by her enemies. She took refuge in the castle she had in Nijmegen. Here she wanted to defend herself till the end. Her enemies closed in on the fortress, no one could get in or out. Soon it became battle after battle. But Beatrix’s warriors stood their ground. Each time the attackers had to flinch with bloodied heads. Each time, however, they also came back again. They knew well that the resistance within the fortress would gradually diminish. Food became scarce, and the number of warriors decreased. There would come a day when the fortress had to fall.

And there came a day… no, then the castle did not fall yet, because the besiegers did not attack, but Beatrix was well aware that that day could be the last of her freedom. The food had been distributed in dribs and drabs for several weeks, there was only water left for a drink, and it was soggy and foul-smelling; her few men were no longer the formidable warriors of old, their strength had dwindled, though their courage was the same. If the enemy were to launch an attack, their resistance would be in vain.

Beatrix climbed the spiral staircase in her highest tower with difficulty that morning. For the last time, she wanted to cast her eyes over her land. Once more she wanted to see with her own eyes whether the enemy was planning something special. Standing on the tin of the tower, she looked out over the land. Her gaze went over her beautiful Nijmegen country. It lay there so peacefully and familiarly. The sky was blue above it. A bronze spring glow lay over the oak forest. Some puffs of smoke rose above the trees, straight up.

Did soldiers fire there? Ahead, an army group moved toward the forest. Did it take off? The posts along the river seemed to have been lifted. Did they give up the siege? Beatrix shook her head with a wistful smile. No, no she was not to entertain a hope that would not be realized anyway! Those men may have left now, they’ll return later, or others will take their place. There was no outcome. Her enemies, eager for possessions, would surely not yield. There was no outcome for her. Maybe in her dreams, but the reality was different. The reality was just as cruel as those men there in that camp. And her dreams…? The dream is of the night, the dream is deception. Deceit was also the dream she had this night: there was a fierce fire, the whole fortress was ablaze, the flames roared, and heavy smoke drifted menacingly over the land. Then, in desperate need, a knight came; wherefrom she did not know. She can still see his face clearly. He appeared in the midst of smoke and flames, flames that instantly went out, that miraculously went out. The fire set itself, extinguished by the knight’s might, she no longer knows how.

She was saved. There was a solution! But the dream is of the night, the dream is deception, and the reality is different! Over the battlements, she looked east now. From there came the river. She lay in the landscape like a silver band. The silver shone in the sun. this is how her life once shined. But her father died and the greedy harassed her and all the radiance of life was fogged up. Only in her dream did it become light again, the reality was gray. Below her men walked like shadows, weakened by wounds and on unsteady legs. Soon the enemy entered and all the glory would be gone. It was so hard, so soon, to have to bear this fate.

Only… the river, yes, it still shone! And the sun shone in a cloudless sky. Did it shine for her too? The river came from far, unknown places and flowed up and flowed by and on, carrying the light of the sun with it. That light sparkled. Also for her. That light sparkled in thousands of sparks. It hit the river, leaving spots dry. Hell, hell! The light flashed! That one place… it seemed like snow as white… as in a dream so light and so clear… that pace slipped! How could that be? That light came closer… it was two lights… the one in front, white as snow… the one behind it, a little more like the actual matter, … like silver … did the sun cast a spell on the river?

Beatrix blinked. Was she dreaming? Wasn’t reality gray everywhere? This… this… was this to be believed? They weren’t spots of light. There was a swan swimming! In white splendor, he glided over the water, and a small boat followed in silvery white. In it stood a man, a knight to be exact. Beatrix put her hands to her mouth, in astonishment; her eyes held the strange craft and the man standing in it in a grip. She moaned softly, but her ears didn’t hear it. ‘Knight!’, she whispered. ‘Knight!’

The bird and man quickly approached there on the river. Standing straight and motionless, she saw. He carried a sword that shone like gold in the sun. he had a silver shield at his feet, which bore a double gold cross. He wore a hunting horn on a velvet strap over his shoulder. From a beautiful ring on his finger, the light bounced back on a large diamond. She saw the swan swim to the shore and the knight came ashore as well. She now discerned his features and recognized the knight from her dream. Happiness ran dizzyingly through her veins. ‘Knight!’, she gasped. ‘Knight!’. Then she rushed downstairs. In the darkness of the spiral staircase she heard how suddenly a great rumor broke out around the fortress she quickened her steps. Did they take the last storm? She heard the cries of her men. Weapons clattered. She looked out through a window. The enemy pushed on.

‘To arms!’ she cried shrilly. ‘To arms!’ Immediately there was a resounding blast of a horn. The knight blew his horn. She saw him throw himself into a fight with a furious rage. The swan flew ahead of him, above the surging battle did the swan lead him? She saw the flicker of his sword. She heard the pounding of iron on iron. She saw men fall, knights, high and proud, tumble and die. The courage of her men rose. They risked a lunge. She fired at them fiercely. She saw the enemy give way and flee. The horn blared again. The castle was saved! The enemy retreated in confusion. She rushed into the forecourt.

There the knight bowed to her in a courtly salute. ‘Madame, I am Elias’, he said. ‘I have come to protect you.’ She nods in thanks. ‘I already know you, she said softly. ‘Your coming was announced to me.’ – ‘Welcome’. Soon after there was a wedding in the castle. Marriage to Elias opened a new and shining path for Beatrix. He was a valiant hero and an affable man. He began a fierce battle against the enemies that Beatrix had left. He defeated them all and raised the House of Cleves in power and prestige. The king of Frankia raised him to the rank of kingdom’s prince. Thus there were only four in all his lands combined.

Elias stipulated one condition for the marriage, which he concluded with Beatrix. ‘Never ask me about my heraldry and my origin’, he said. ‘For if you ever did this, I would have to leave immediately, however, it grieves me.’ She looked at him for a long time with serious, dark eyes at this question. Then they took on the glow of her own eyes and she nodded. ‘As you are now, you are enough for me’, she said with a laugh, ‘I don’t need your past.’ That’s how the years went by. They were filled with joy. They had three children: Diederik, Godfried, and the youngest, a girl named Dorien. They grew up well. They became sturdy, decent people. In them, the father’s sober seriousness was united with the mother’s joyful confidence.

However, there was a turning point. The secret of Elias’ heraldry began to weigh heavily on Beatrix. Every day more serious and every day more urgent the question arose: whence comes the father of my children? She didn’t ask Elias, however. She pushed the demand back by force. Yet it kept coming up again and again. It became like a battle with a dark coercive force. Beatrix became silent. The smile from her eyes disappeared, a wrinkle erected in her forehead and never disappeared. In the middle of a conversation, her mind would sometimes wander far, and her gaze would follow after. Elias noticed this and understood. ‘I hope she doesn’t ask me about the secret,’ he thought. And he prayed that she might receive the strength to not do so, for to impart it to her he had not the power to do so, any more than he had the power to abide with her any longer after that fateful question.

Yet she asked the question in a confidential moment. ‘Would you…?’ she started. He put his hand on her mouth, startled, and she was silent. She squeezed her thumbs into her firsts in her struggle. But the question compelled. The next evening she put her head down on his chest and caressed his hair. ‘Couldn’t you tell our children where their father came from?’ she asked in a whisper, faltering. Suddenly she lost sight of it. Elias was gone. ‘Elias! Elias!’ she cried. An irresistible force drove her toward the window. She looked out in despair. In the evening light, the river glided through the familiar landscape like a softly gleaming band. ‘Elias!’ she saw two spots of light far away on the stream. ‘Elias!’

But the spots of light moved on. One spot, the front one, was as white as snow… the one behind it, a bit more matter… like silver. Deeply sad, she covered her face with her hands. Sobbing, she called out the name of the man she loved so much. When she looked up again, her tear-obscured gaze saw nothing but the rapidly fading water. She stood there in bitter remorse until night took over. Since then, the light was gone from her life for good. Elias never turned, nor was he ever heard from again. Beatrix went to live in a tower that stood close to Cleves on the river. Many times she climbed up and gazed out over the water to see if her husband had already returned: a silver boat, a snow-white swan. It was in vain. The years flew by. Repentance and longing tormented her. She got gray hair. Her beauty melted away, and her powers quickly diminished. Once more a rumor reached her that Elias had fought with Charles Martel against the Moors. Her hopes flickered once more. In vain. Then it was a night for good. She died, not yet old of age.

Afterward, it was said that she went around the tower at night and looked out from the battlements over the water. The people there did not dare to look up and spoke of the White Woman of the Swan Tower. The sons and daughters of Elias and Beatrix were highly regarded. Diederik succeeded his father in the country van Kleef. The golden sword and the silver shield belonged to his inheritance. Godfried became Count of Loen, he inherited the hunting horn, while Dorien, the youngest became the ancestor of the Landgraves of Hesse. She was given the ring, in which the beautiful diamond sparkled. There are still stories about Elias’ further life in circulation, but the truth is not known about them; The swan knight disappeared as he had come.’’​

Forgotten Realm’s general layout will be mysterious woodland with streams of water flowing throughout. The attractions and their specific themed surroundings are connected by bridges crossing over these streams of water. Throughout the land, Guests will uncover mysterious unknown ruins, as if the entire land is revealing secrets of the past. If you look closely, you will notice that these streams are actually channels that carry forth medieval wooden gondolas decorated in ornate carvings and shapes. These belong to ‘De Zwanenridder’ (The Knight of Swan) attraction whose station building is located in the southeast of the themed area. The station building is a wooden construction and functions as a boathouse. On the first floor, there is a decorated room with an animatronic and a moving painting in which the origins of the Swan Knight will be revealed. The control room is located on the ground floor. The boats cross over the various channels towards the other attractions. Throughout the cruise, guests will pass by scenes related to the sage of the Knight of Swan.

In the first scene, the gondolas will follow a mysterious swan that seems to be guiding our path onward into the enchanted woodlands. Before we know it, it mysteriously wanders off again, leaving our boat to sail off into the unknown. The swan itself will be white as snow and will signal at the boats to catch Guests' attention. Guests are led into a tunnel, where various smells, mist, and odor effects create the idea that the boat is sailing straight ahead, however, the boat turns right and sails out past a pond in the center of the themed area. On the edge of the water lies the Swan Tower, around which out of nowhere a thick mist is formed. The agonizing song of the White Woman of Swan Tower fills the air with suspense. If you look closely, you can see the manifestation of the White Woman herself, eerily still and staring off into the distance, dreaming of her husband to return one day.

The boats then continue to pass by the realm’s beautiful scenery. Trees seem to be wading their roots in the water, woodland creatures curiously look out on the by-passing boats and flowers color the river banks with bright tones. The boat then reaches a hidden out open water, which will be somewhat reminiscent of regional fen areas. As the boat passes through, the water starts to bubble mysteriously on various spots. At night, these spots even start to glow a mysterious blue and white light. Glowing red eyes slowly emerge as the Watermen rise from the water and let out their ominous shrills. As soon as they duck out, they quickly dive back in. Sometimes they jump up and it appears as if they are ready to drag someone down with them, but luckily our boat is protected from their evil-doing.

The boat turns right again and sail into another secret cave-opening: The Room of Wisdom. In this room, you can smell the odour of a fireplace and all kinds of objects fly through the room such as books and a birdcage, with a magpie within. Inside, the giantess that cursed the Swan Knight is visible in animatronic form and lists various ingredients. As soon as she notices the boat passing by, the giantess is angered and lets out blasts of smoke. A curtain of fire is formed on the water and guides us towards a stone wall that magically opens up a passage outside again. Guests are now in the land of Giants. The area is decorated with woodland scenery and old ruins scattered around. In the scene, various Giants are visible laying around the banks of the stream, surrounded by fog and various scent and light effects. It seems as if they are just about to wake u and who knows with what rage these giants might act if they would notice humans in their land. Luckily, we manage to manoeuvre past them without being noticed, but not for too long.

One of the larger giants, presumably one of their leaders. Stands above the water, holding up an axe. We pass under his legs and see how he angrily growls and swings his weapon at us. Just before we are hit by the gigantic menace however, a mysterious light shines out on the giant and on Guests. The sounds of the swan return, but this time a mysterious knight-like figure appears behind him. His golden sword shines out a light that freezes the giant, giving Guests free passage. After leaving this section, boats slowly return back to the boathouse in open air, but first pass by the knight again who bows in respect of his Guests. Behind him the remains of an enchanting castle shine proudly within the scenery. Before we know it, the knight has suddenly disappeared from the scene, as mysteriously as he came, he also disappears. Guests will then disembark in the wooden boathouse and explore the rest of the Forgotten Realm.

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

Chug along typically Dutch landscapes past barns and windmills in your very own pedal locomotive...

​

‘Reizenrijk’ (Travel Realm) is our next destination in Efteling Park. It is located in the northeast and is indicated on maps and signposts by the color yellow. The name Travel Realm seems mainly based on the presence of Carnival Festival. Although many other attractions have an exotic theme or have a means of transport. In favor of a more cohesive area, Travel Realm will mainly focus on that theme of transport and stories about traveling, while Other Realm transports us to otherworldly or exotic locales such as Ancient Greece and the Forbidden City of 1001 Arabian Nights. Travel Realm will however be one of the lands with most of its shifts, also due to the large expansion towards the back of where currently Bird Roc and Carnival Festival can be found. This means that the staff entrance and parking lot will be removed and placed elsewhere. Besides that Sirocco, Archipel, and Bird Roc are re-located near Fata Morgana, Travel Realm will undergo a major metamorphosis.

Take the path next to the central ‘Siervijver’ (Ornate Pond), which leads you into Travel Realm. Here, the first attraction that Guests will find is ‘Het Kinderspoor’ (The Children’s Track) or ‘De Traptreintjes’ (The Pedal Trains) which make their rounds in a ‘Zaanse Schans’-type landscape, designed by Ton van de Ven. ‘De Zaanse Schans’ is an area in Zaandam where a large number of historic buildings from the Zaan region were collected and placed in the 1970s. characteristic of this is the white/green-painted wood, with which new farms were also built, one of which has a windmill on the roof, which you can drive through by train. The original agricultural theme is also reflected here, with archaic agricultural implements scattered here and there and live sheep grazing the landscape.

The attraction in which children up to 12 years old, seated two by two in a small metal vehicle in the form of a locomotive with two pairs of pedals, have to move on Guests their own power on a course through a landscape with farms, fields and a mill. Anton Pieck designed a simple station building with signs with sayings, including a tower with a clock, and, very appropriately, gave the station a bird name: ‘De Blauwe Reiger’ (The Blue Heron). One of Pieck’s drawings, the traveler, was elaborated three-dimensionally into a sculpture on the square next to the attraction. After the traveler, the female traveler was also transformed into a sculptured statue. She got a spot right in front of her male variant. In the building, the rules of the track are told by the voice of Theo Hochwald:

‘’Per coupe mogen slechts twee kinderen mee. Stoppen en botsen is verboden. Rijdt u de tweede keer, het station laaaang-zaam binnen.’’

(Only two children are allowed in each compartment. Stopping and colliding are prohibited. The second time, enter the station slowly.)​

Pieck also designed the station restaurant, ‘Stationskoffyhuis’ (Station Coffee House), and various elements for the lively landscape. The train track is embedded in a landscape setting containing a castle ruin, a tunnel, a bridge, a well, a stork in its nest, a windmill, and several farms and fields. The locomotives have a characteristic white-blue color with a black ‘chimney pipe’. The initials ES are on the front and the name of the train can be read on a ribbon on the side. All trains are named after well-known bird species: Arend (Eagle), Gans (Goose), Gier (Vulture), Koekoek (Cuckoo), Lijster (Thrush), Mees (Titmouse), Meeuw (Gull), Mus (Sparrow), Pelikaan (Pelican), Reiger (Heron), Uil (Owl), Valk (Falcon), Zwaan (Swan), Zwaluw (Swallow), Eend (Duck), Kip (Chicken), Kraai (Crow), Merel (Blackbird), Pauw (Peacock), Specht (Woodpecker) and Sperwer (Sparrowhawk), which brings the total number of trains in use to 21. The names were coined by Anton Pieck, who was probably inspired by the very first locomotive in the Netherlands, ‘De Arend’ (The Eagle).

The biggest surprise in the process was the switch in the station. Those who returned to the station building after a circle through the landscape discovered that the points had been moved. Via another route, one could then pedal through the landscape again. The track makes two circles, one large and one small which thus form two loops. An iconic element in the landscape is a windmill, a small blue-painted post mill with a thatched roof and a ladder at the back. The nearby miller’s cottage could be recognized by the millstones that stand against its façade. The logic of the landscape has been thought out, for example, the corn that would be ground in the mill grows in the fields around it. Two boats are moored at a jetty, with inscriptions EFT-01 and EFT-02.

Also special is a level-crossing where a figure in a top hat automatically closes the barriers when trains approach by turning a crank. For this addition in 1955, Pieck inspired himself by the level-crossing guards at the end of the nineteenth century, who wore a similar costume including a cape and top hat. In those days, this task was often performed by women during the day, while men took care of the night shift. The story goes that the face is modeled after that of Peter Reijnders, which is striking because the body is clearly that of a woman. In addition to the many visual set-pieces along the track, Guests may recognize some new features from the old track as well as from original concept art, including the old castle ruins that Guests pass under and hear mysterious noises come from. As Guests return to the station and before they disembark, they notice another sign that reads:

‘’Geen postkoets en geen trekschuit meer.

De spoortrein voert ons heen en weer’’

(No more stagecoaches and pull barges.

The railway takes us back and forth. )​

‘Het Koffyhuis’ (The Coffee House) is constructed as a white building with a very wide awning supported by cast-iron decorated supports, which serve as a shelter for visitors. Arched windows can be found under the canopy and on top of the rim is an oval sign with a steam train with a driver and the year 1843, which may refer to the important railway milestone of the opening of the ‘Rhijnspoorweg’ between Amsterdam and Utrecht. In addition to the function as a shelter awning, a sales point was also established. The Station Coffee House has an assortment consisting of coffee, typical regional 'worstenbrood' (sausage rolls), and other snacks. There is also an indoor space with vending machines, accessible through the gate in the left sidewall.

 

[spacemt354]

I'm so sorry for the long delay. I guess life can be a rollercoaster itself sometimes, but trying to get a bit more active again these coming months

Glad to see you back - great stuff here!

 

[Suchomimus]

I thought there would be a B&M Flying Coaster like what is seen on the attachment for Westloon.

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

I thought there would be a B&M Flying Coaster like what is seen on the attachment for Westloon.

There will be a few posts for after I finish the full round of the park in which I will discuss a number of optional expansions, which is where the flying B&M will come in to play. There's a few rides for Other Realm and Tough Realm for example too that haven't been mentioned yet but are somewhat written out for my plans already.

 

[TheSorcerersApprentice]

Step into a classic train station in the East and grab a bite before your journey...

​

Behind the area which currently hosts Archipel and Sirocco will become the new home of the Travel Realm Station, which faces Carnival Festival Square, as well as the Ornate Pond in a specific angle. This Travel Realm train station will be part of the new Asiatic ‘East Timor’ themed area that is moved over from today’s Tough Realm. ‘Station de Oost’ (Station the East) is built in colonial style, as if it were a settlement in the Dutch East Indies. The building has a substantial appearance, especially in comparison with its surroundings, where more modern steampunk-ish or joyful and colorful buildings dominate. In front of the building is an expansive terrace with umbrellas, sturdy benches and framing walls. In the square is a fountain that some monkeys have taken possession of.

The building itself has a long façade with arched windows, as we know from traditional train stations. In the middle is a large clock with two bell-ringing figures on either side that become active every quarter of an hour. The upper floor departs from the center back in two quarter circles towards the corners at the front. In addition to the name of the complex, the front façade also bears the translation ‘Stasion Timur’. Entering the building through the central doors we enter a large, high hall with chandeliers. In the middle is an octagonal wooden baggage counter containing a Zoetrope. On it are indications ‘Bagage’, ‘Gepäck’ and ‘Luggage’, clarifying the baggage counter theme for the Efteling Stoomtrein Maatschappij. The company’s monogram ES can be found on the windows. A monkey can be found on the kiosk, as they adorn the Monkey Fountain in front of the Station. The kiosk is connected to the wall of the hall by a thick rope, which serves as a power supply. The kiosk has classic advertisements for Coca-Cola, which match the turn-of-the-century image of the rest of the station complex. Around it are piles of old suitcases. A bell has been mounted on the counter of the kiosk with which the Zoetrope can be set in motion.

When after pressing the bell, the lighting in the Zoetrope comes on, a cone-shaped structure full of colorful objects and figures can be seen. There is an uncorked soft drink bottle, a steam whistle and a steam train that sets in motion. The zoetrope starts spinning and after the whistling of a train a cheerful music starts to play. At that point, the normal zeotropic lighting dims and a strobe begins to flash, allowing us to admire the animation. Under the music we hear a steam train driving and steam whistles sounding. The whole scene lasts about one minute from start to finish. The Zoetrope shows a puffing steam locomotive one above the other, a running traveler with luggage (based on the Traveler at Kinderspoor), a monkey climbing into a station clock (which we also hear in the soundtrack), a waving and coke drinking female traveler (also known from Kinderspoor), a monkey in a pile of suitcases, and a Coca-Cola air balloon. The whole revolves around a snow mountain peak.

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After the music, the light dims and the Zoetrope comes to a stop. The seating areas are situated on either side of the central hall, which have a much lower arched ceiling. There are tiles everywhere, but on the left is a slightly more luxurious corner with parquet and its own bar, ‘Wachtruimte 1e Klas’ (1st Class Waiting Room/ Ruang Tunggu Kelas Satu). Behind the decorated wooden bar is a back wall with mirrors in arches and in between are classical wooden pilasters with fluting. Above the bar covered with black granite hang spherical lamps that have the appearance of old gas lighting. Above the bar are two signs and a large clock. The menu boards on the walls have a large ES of the ‘Efteling Stoomtrein Maatschappij’ (Efteling Steam Train Company). The tables that belong to the bar are somewhat shielded from the large central middle part of the Station by a number of arches with fixed, upholstered benches with low tables in between.

The floor of the Waiting Room is also made of wood instead of tiles like the rest of the station. Behind the bar, we find small black tiles on the floor. Of course, Guests of the bar can also take a seat elsewhere in the station, just like the other way around. To structure the row at the bar a little, a low partition has been placed. The windows of the waiting area give a view of the platform and, from time to time, of the steam train. Between the windows are panels with sepia photos of the three locomotives, from left to right Aagje, Moortje and Trijntje. In the back is a small corner with two panels advertising the range here. A very large toilet group is located on the left side of the building. There are two large rooms for ladies and gentlemen, in addition two changing rooms for babies and finally a separate pumping / nursing room. The toilets are accessible via a separate entrance on the side of the building, but also via a long corridor that leads from the "Waiting room 1st Class" to the toilets.

Office space is located in the semicircle that forms the first floor of the station complex. This is accessible via two stairwells: one between ‘De Brutale Aap’ (The Mischievous Monkey) and ‘De Verse Oogst’ (The Fresh Harvest), the other between the central hall and ‘De Wachtruimte 1e Klas’. The railway runs along the rear of the building. The platform can be reached through doors at the end of the central entrance hall, which lead to the slightly higher platform. You can wait for the train on the ramp on the right, which is separated from the platform by a fence. A low roof has been made above the platform, so that the whole remains somewhat in proportion to the dimensions of the Efteling Miniature Steam Train Company. An informative broadcaster, voiced by Jeroen Verheij, can regularly be heard on the platform. The mentioned ride frequency and time of the last ride vary according to the number of trains running and opening times of the park:

‘’Welkom op Station de Oost in het Reizenrijk. Vandaag vertrekt er iedere _ minuten een trein vanaf dit station. De volgende halte is Station Marerijk. De rolstoel kan mee in de trein; hiervoor is een speciale plek gereserveerd. Ook de buggy kan mee; plaats deze ingeklapt onder de bank. De laatste trein vertrekt vandaag vanaf dit station om _. De Efteling Stoomtrein Maatschappij wenst u een goede reis.’’

(Welcome to Station the East in Travel Realm. Today a train departs from this station every _ minutes. The next stop is Saga Realm. The wheelchair can be taken on the train; a special place has been reserved for this. The buggy can also be taken along; place it folded under the seats. The last train leaves from this station today at _. The Efteling Steam Train Company wishes you a safe and pleasant journey.)​

In terms of catering, a food court principle has been chosen, whereby various small outlets each sell their own products that can be consumed in a central, shared seating area. Different members of a group can thus shop at the various points of sale and all make their own choice from the offerings, and still eat it together. ‘De Hongerige Machinist/Orang Mesin Yang Lapar’ (The Hungry Machinist) is a catering point in Station the East that is located in the left part of the station. It offers a range of fries, snacks and cold drinks. The catering point consists out of four distribution hatches, one inside and three outside. The outside distribution is located under a covered gallery: two at the front of the building, one on the left side. Inside, there is also a typically Dutch automatic snack wall next to the distribution hatch.

‘De Verse Oogst’ is a catering point located immediately to the right of the central station concourse. Fresh fruit, fresh juices, panini and other freshly filled sandwiches are available here. You can walk halfway into the point of sale, where the decoration is dominated by the white and blue tiles, to pick up your own products here. On the right is a refrigerator, in the middle a large rounded bar with readily prepared sandwiches. On the far left in the corner, a coffee machine and the cash register to pay for all those goodies. As the name suggest, the catering point focuses on fresh and healthy food. A specialty is a curved bun on which exactly fits a banana; the monkey sandwich. At ‘De Brutale Aap’ you can enjoy Turkish pizza, doner kebab sandwiches and various drinks. It has an Arabic interior, with lots of dark, engraved woodwork, tiles and Oriental hanging lamps, and staff wear fezzes.

Lastly, ‘De Rustende Reiziger/Musafir Istirahatkan’ (The Resting Traveler) is the catering point on the right-hand side of the façade in Station the East where you can go for small snacks and hot and cold drinks. It is somewhat the Grand Café of the station. Coffee is the most important offering of the selection range here, supplemented by tea and beer (Kopi – bir – teh). In the elongated catering point, there is a bar halfway through the space, from behind which the coffee is prepared and sold. Around it are some high seats. A collection of coffee cups and pitchers hangs on the left wall; coffee grinders and coffee-related photos hang in the corner by the door. Burlap sacks with coffee beans are scattered here and there. The water that is currently near the train crossover will be re-used for a new attraction that connects with Station de Oost.

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