Spirited News, Observations & Thoughts IV

[ford91exploder]

Oh, so very spot on! Forget about teh boring tech stuff, you should look into a career in sociology!


And what's up with that gothfest in DL anyway?

It's the LA area what can one say???

 

[The Empress Lilly]

No... one of the advantages of being the big bully in the world is.. the smaller countries still consume western media/products and learn to speak our language I only know enough Norweigan to try to read between the words and get the general idea. The other cheat in my favor is... in the technology fields.. most languages just use the english word for things

Tell me about it...

 

[GiveMeTheMusic]

And what's up with that gothfest in DL anyway?

It's the LA area what can one say???

Bats Day is actually one of the nicer days to visit the parks at DLR - the vast majority are very well behaved and incredibly dressed adults, not raving teens or anything nuts. Dapper Days are also good ones; both events bring out a lot of great people.

Most DLR guests don't bat an eye (no pun intended).

 

[Goofyernmost]

Hrmm.. eastern europeans... and this talk about montreal earlier.. filling my mind with very non-Disney thoughts.

Can I take this opportunity to clarify. My upset with Montreal and how I was treated was in the early 70's. The last time I was there and for many times before, Montreal was a class act. Socially more dynamic but economically a little slower then before. It's a great place to visit and that is without the benefit of being given a gift card or a free dinner, but I am open to offers.

 

[nytimez]

I haven't been to Montreal in about 20 years but I loved it there, especially the drink that I understood to be called Coffee Ole. (I don't know how to type the accent thingie; it's the Ole! you might hear at a bullfight).

It wasn't until about 5 or so years later - maybe more - that I realized this was cafe au lait.

 

[janoimagine]

I haven't been to Montreal in about 20 years but I loved it there, especially the drink that I understood to be called Coffee Ole. (I don't know how to type the accent thingie; it's the Ole! you might hear at a bullfight).

It wasn't until about 5 or so years later - maybe more - that I realized this was cafe au lait.

It's been about 12 years for me ... what do I remember? ... how beautiful the women were in Montreal. Looking back I am glad I was single at the time.

 

[flynnibus]

It's been about 12 years for me ... what do I remember? ... how beautiful the women were in Montreal. Looking back I am glad I was single at the time.

The only reason to be there

 

[Mr Bill]

It would appear that Disney's media event for MNSSHP and their Parks Blog Meetup have been merged together. All part of the same event, two separate lists of invitees. That would explain why a number of names were missing from the Blog meetup.

 

[ford91exploder]

So the thinking would be they spend billions of dollars to get more money from guests (MM+), and then do away with two of those revenue generating parks?

The magic bands tracking feature is really useful for Vegas gaming, In some of the Casino Hotel complexes in Vegas there are portable gaming terminals, As I understand it in Vegas only certain areas are legal for gaming with these terminals if you walk out of the 'approved area' the terminal shuts down. Now if all the patrons have these unique bands and gaming terminals well the applications are obvious.

And recall no one is really sure WHERE Disney got the open ended funding for this project, My personal opinion is it was R&D for other entities with the bleating masses at disney thought to be too stupid to do anything about it. I can't even imagine trying MM- at DL the natives would have torn the park management limb from limb.

And since there is no investment in DHS/EPCOT its just running the clock on when parks will be permanently 'Closed for Renovation' I know the current Figment gets no love, But that and captain Eo are slated to go offline early next year bad as it is compared to its prior incarnation is a shuttered building better than at least having SOMETHING.

Most of Innoventions is closed for maintenance, So effectively all you have left is the LAND, SSE Mission Space, TT and Energy adventure.

The less SHOW the fewer visitors, the fewer visitors the more justification to permanently shutter the park, Once the park is closed Disney will buy a slate of Pro gambling legislators and happily build the worlds largest Casino and Hotel Conference Center which they will finish in under a year.

Remember Iger does not WANT to be in the P&R business, The rent seeking on the cable networks is much more his style it basically requires no investment and the money is steady and grows organically without the need for constant CAPEX to keep the product current.

 

[ford91exploder]

It's been about 12 years for me ... what do I remember? ... how beautiful the women were in Montreal. Looking back I am glad I was single at the time.

They STILL are,

As opposed to many in Northern New England, Which Maine humorist Tim Sample described thusly 'Warm in wintah, Shade in Summah' I'm now crawling into a hole and pulling it in after me pOp!

 

[nor'easter]

They STILL are,

As opposed to many in Northern New England, Which Maine humorist Tim Sample described thusly 'Warm in wintah, Shade in Summah' I'm now crawling into a hole and pulling it in after me pOp!

Montreal...la plus belle ville en amerique du nord. Et les femmes...oh la la!

 

[ford91exploder]

Brilliant again! He's on a roll!
It is not unsettling what the extremes do. It is what counts as normal that is truly frightening. California - well LA, the Bay Area has an entirely different vibe - has some peculiar 'normal'. Not unpleasant, but certainly....different.

Then again, I'm from a different continent altogether so very much in America has a different normal. Some of it feels like a breath of fresh air, and some of it...well let's say it lessens the pain of flying back home.

Being in the Bay area at least one week per month, It's just different.... Is all I can say in a family venue

 

[lazyboy97o]

And recall no one is really sure WHERE Disney got the open ended funding for this project, My personal opinion is it was R&D for other entities with the bleating masses at disney thought to be too stupid to do anything about it.

The Walt Disney Company is a multibillion dollar, multinational entertainment conglomerate. Where did the get the funding for their other projects?

 

[ford91exploder]

The Walt Disney Company is a multibillion dollar, multinational entertainment conglomerate. Where did the get the funding for their other projects?

Not from the banks they have a very small credit line which is mostly untouched, and I don't see the capital expenses broken out, So the assumption is this is a 'off the balance sheet project' which is funded from external sources

 

[culturenthrills]

The problem with Tangled was that the music really missed he mark. Everything else was fantastic, but the music wasn't anywhere near the same ballpark as the 90s flicks.

"I See the Light" is pretty amazing. Hands down one of the most beautiful scenes of song and animation ever seen on film. My jaw was on the floor after that sequence. It is just so beautiful and this man tears up every time.

 

[MattM]

The magic bands tracking feature is really useful for Vegas gaming, In some of the Casino Hotel complexes in Vegas there are portable gaming terminals, As I understand it in Vegas only certain areas are legal for gaming with these terminals if you walk out of the 'approved area' the terminal shuts down. Now if all the patrons have these unique bands and gaming terminals well the applications are obvious.

And recall no one is really sure WHERE Disney got the open ended funding for this project, My personal opinion is it was R&D for other entities with the bleating masses at disney thought to be too stupid to do anything about it. I can't even imagine trying MM- at DL the natives would have torn the park management limb from limb.

And since there is no investment in DHS/EPCOT its just running the clock on when parks will be permanently 'Closed for Renovation' I know the current Figment gets no love, But that and captain Eo are slated to go offline early next year bad as it is compared to its prior incarnation is a shuttered building better than at least having SOMETHING.

Most of Innoventions is closed for maintenance, So effectively all you have left is the LAND, SSE Mission Space, TT and Energy adventure.

The less SHOW the fewer visitors, the fewer visitors the more justification to permanently shutter the park, Once the park is closed Disney will buy a slate of Pro gambling legislators and happily build the worlds largest Casino and Hotel Conference Center which they will finish in under a year.

Remember Iger does not WANT to be in the P&R business, The rent seeking on the cable networks is much more his style it basically requires no investment and the money is steady and grows organically without the need for constant CAPEX to keep the product current.

So we would have to assume that none of the other companies...Wynn, MGM Intl, Las Vegas Sands, etc (actual hotel/gaming corps)...would have thought of this before? It was only a media & entertainment conglomerate who first thought of the concept with funding help from the government?

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly...where is Disney going to find, or buy, a slate of pro gaming legislators in the State of Florida?

 

[lazyboy97o]

Not from the banks they have a very small credit line which is mostly untouched, and I don't see the capital expenses broken out, So the assumption is this is a 'off the balance sheet project' which is funded from external sources

Were the projects at Disney's California Adventure broken out?

 

[culturenthrills]

Thanks for the clarification.

My 8 year old adored it as well. In fact (and this should be noted) it was the ONE place she wanted to go to this summer...not Disneyworld, not Universal, not a Disney Cruise.

She wanted to go to LEGOLAND!

Myself...outside of Miniland and the very well done (I think) inclusions of lego into the Gardens and overall park...did not enjoy it so much. Actually, if I can suggest an immediate improvement, that would be the food service / offerings.

And yes, it was dirty. They could do with a good high pressure hose or a low powered pressure wash every now and then. The cleanliness is obviously there, but it's limited to certain "new" areas. Miniland, for example, was nasty. So was much of the standing water. That being said, the food service places were immaculate as were the gift shops. I could go on, but I won't.

Would I go back? Yes. No question. We had fun, and the park overall is enjoyable.

Would I say it's awesome (even Six Flags level?)...no....

I left thinking I hoped that Lego keeps pumping money into it, because you can tell the attractions they are "keeping alive" vs the "new things"...

I won't get too far into it, because you are right, this isn't the thread, but, I hope it does well. Overall, not a bad experience. Worth a day of my Disney trip.

Having been to both the Florida one and the Cali one. The Florida one pales in comparison.They have cut corners on the Florida one. I think that has to do with the risk they had with the location of the Florida one. However, they are doing good and are slowly improving the experience.

 

[englanddg]

Having been to both the Florida one and the Cali one. The Florida one pales in comparison.They have cut corners on the Florida one. I think that has to do with the risk they had with the location of the Florida one. However, they are doing good and are slowly improving the experience.

Considering they took over a financially failing property...it's a smart way to go. You can certainly tell the "newer" parts of the park. Also, the location in FL offers some...different maintenance requirements than Cali.

Like Disney, they are basically built on a swamp. Water will go tepid quickly, plants / scum and local animals will take residence, etc...not to mention rains.

It's a challenge for them to figure all this out. From what I saw, I was impressed. Would I call it an amazing experience? No. But it was fun, and I found value in the trip.

The only thing that worried me was how desolate it was. The longest wait we had was still under 5 minutes. While this improves the experience for guests attending the parks now, it makes me concerned about the financial future of the park. We went there when it was still during summer season (though not peak)...

 

[MattM]

Considering they took over a financially failing property...it's a smart way to go. You can certainly tell the "newer" parts of the park. Also, the location in FL offers some...different maintenance requirements than Cali.

Like Disney, they are basically built on a swamp. Water will go tepid quickly, plants / scum and local animals will take residence, etc...not to mention rains.

It's a challenge for them to figure all this out. From what I saw, I was impressed. Would I call it an amazing experience? No. But it was fun, and I found value in the trip.

The only thing that worried me was how desolate it was. The longest wait we had was still under 5 minutes. While this improves the experience for guests attending the parks now, it makes me concerned about the financial future of the park. We went there when it was still during summer season (though not peak)...

It's really more just lake front than legitimate swampland, like Walt Disney World.

But I can tell you that Adrian and co are more than satisfied with the attendance numbers they are pulling. There's always room for improvements, but some of the recent additions and scheduled additions are moving faster than originally forecasted.