The Miscellaneous Thought Thread

[mickEblu]

Walked by Splash Mountain/ Critter Country for the first time since it closed and that was depressing as hell between all the scaffolding and music being gone. An area that used to bring so much joy felt so lifeless and dead. Feels like Disneyland is missing one of its major organs. If I’m not mistaken, they weren’t playing any music at all. Splash was a big part of what made Disneyland Disneyland for me. Not just the ride experience it offered but because the end product was a culmination of the best of what WDI has to offer. The quintessential Disney attraction. Up there with POTC and HM but more fun.

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

^^^ It IS missing one of its major organs.

 

[mickEblu]

^^^ It IS missing one of its major organs.

Right. But I was going for something deeper. It’s not just that the park is missing a major E ticket. It’s that Disneyland is just not the same now for me. It’s missing a main ingredient of the recipe.

I didn’t even ride Splash on every visit for multiple reasons including young kids and how soaked you would get in recent years but its removal leaves me cold and changes my perception of Disneyland. It anchored that part of the park so it not being there affects more than just riders. For example you could shut down Space Mountain, keep the structure in tact and that would affect nobody but the people who intended to ride that day. With Splash you have the music throughout the land and the kinetic energy/energy from seeing the logs Splash down and hearing the screams/ laughter. Splash Mountain checked every box.

To your point (or at least the one I think you were making) If you get rid of a richly themed E ticket thrill ride AA extravaganza with arguably the best ride soundtrack ever created its removal will be felt. However, the experience was not only Grand but also the most unique ride at DLR if you think about it. There are no other indoor/ outdoor 10 minute log rides with dozens of AAs in a highly themed setting etc. You could say that about a few rides at DLR but you have multiple boat rides, multiple flat rides, multiple mega dark rides contained in show buildings, multiple coasters, multiple small dark rides etc.. We’ll see how much Tiana’s Bayou Adventure fills the void but I grow more pessimistic with every parks blog.

 

[Phroobar]

^^^ It IS missing one of its major organs.

Well it is a log going into an hole making the riders happy....

 

[EPCOTCenterLover]

Well it is a log going into an hole making the riders happy....

I don't get it. Sorry I'm not following you. What's your point?

 

[Phroobar]

I don't get it. Sorry I'm not following you. What's your point?

I assume that is never happen to you.

 

[Rich T]

Right. But I was going for something deeper. It’s not just that the park is missing a major E ticket. It’s that Disneyland is just not the same now for me. It’s missing a main ingredient of the recipe.

I didn’t even ride Splash on every visit for multiple reasons including young kids and how soaked you would get in recent years but its removal leaves me cold and changes my perception of Disneyland. It anchored that part of the park so it not being there affects more than just riders. For example you could shut down Space Mountain, keep the structure in tact and that would affect nobody but the people who intended to ride that day. With Splash you have the music throughout the land and the kinetic energy/energy from seeing the logs Splash down and hearing the screams/ laughter. Splash Mountain checked every box.

To your point (or at least the one I think you were making) If you get rid of an E ticket thrill ride AA extravaganza with arguably the best ride soundtrack ever created its removal will be felt. However, the experience was not only Grand but also the most unique ride at DLR if you think about it. There are no other indoor/ outdoor 10 minute log rides with dozens of AAs in a highly themed setting etc. You could say that about a few rides at DLR but you have multiple boat rides, multiple flat rides, multiple mega dark rides contained in show buildings, multiple coasters, multiple small dark rides etc.. We’ll see how much Tiana’s Bayou Adventure fills the void but I grow more pessimistic with every parks blog.

Disneyland hasn’t been the same for me since Mine Train Thru Nature’s Wonderland was torn down. Disney as a company hasn’t been the same for me since the purchases of Marvel and Star Wars. Things change. At least, in this case, the flume ride will reopen refreshed and once again full of (hopefully good) music and fun characters.

 

[Consumer]

Walked by Splash Mountain/ Critter Country for the first time since it closed and that was depressing as hell between all the scaffolding and music being gone. An area that used to bring so much joy felt so lifeless and dead. Feels like Disneyland is missing one of its major organs. If I’m not mistaken, they weren’t playing any music at all. Splash was a big part of what made Disneyland Disneyland for me. Not just the ride experience it offered but because the end product was a culmination of the best of what WDI has to offer. The quintessential Disney attraction. Up there with POTC and HM but more fun.

The music of Splash Mountain and Critter Country is definitely some of the most Disneyland defining music I can think of it, right along with "Yo Ho," and "It's a Small World." Princess and the Frog has fine music, but I'll never be able to associate it with Disneyland in that same way. Thankfully music can be perfectly preserved on YouTube and can easily be listened to at home. Heck, you could even put in some earbuds and listen to the Critter Country area loop while walking through that part of the park.

 

[waltography]

So I've pretty much ended Day 1 at WDW and on the whole I'm having a fantastic time so far (heat notwithstanding!). A few notes:

• Since pretty much everything was new to me, I decided I'd go ahead and spend money on everything wherever possible to reduce my wait/guarantee a ride. That meant buying Genie+ and ILL wherever needed; for every ride I mention, I either reserved a LL through G+ or bought an ILL.
• The next few days are actual work days so no parks for me, but I'll probably have one more park day on Friday so this'll likely get a Part 2. Didn't want to start a thread though because that's no fun (plus I figured it'd be harder to put this on the DL side of the forums haha).
• MagicBand makes so much sense here compared to Disneyland. Like I *get* it here and love it, it's something that simply didn't click for me when I first tried them in DL.

Day 0
Landed in MCO yesterday around 3pm and took an Uber to Coronado Springs (where I'm staying for the first part of this trip); by the time I settled into my room, I found I actually had enough time to go to MK to spend the evening there. I got into MK at around 5pm. The resort bus system is pretty efficient, all things considered. Security screening without taking anything out was weird but cool. Wild we don't have them here at Disneyland.

• TRON
  • Preshow is so cool, the ride going down for 30 minutes while in line was less cool. The ride itself is an interesting experience but probably one & done for me. It just wasn't a comfortable ride - the way you straddle the light cycle means your neck/back are strained when you look up to see the Grid. Hated it (but the photo/video you get afterwards was worth it).
• Space Mountain
  • Let me tell you, I was terrified. I knew it was gonna be more like Matterhorn, but I really didn't expect just how rough and chaotic that feeling would be in the dark. Vastly prefer our version.
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
• Small World
• Haunted Mansion
  • I think overall the additional scenes are fantastic. The staircases are a really cool effect. Shame when they add the Hatbox Ghost to the endless hallway though.
• Happily Ever After
  • Incredible. As the blueprint for Wondrous Journeys, it really shone with the big shells and projections. I'm a fan.

Day 1
Today was my first formal full day. I planned to ropedrop DAK then park hop to MK to ride whatever I missed yesterday.

• Flight of Passage
  • I have no words. What a ride. I'm sure this feeling decreases after riding multiple times, but it was genuinely exhilarating for me and I was moved. The straddle here was way more comfy than TRON, and the haptics in the chair are genuinely so cool. Still thinking about the smell of the air. (Could do without all the hokey bits in the preshow though.)
• Navi River Journey
  • It's a wonderful ride after FoP; probably would've been disappointed had I waited longer than 20-30 minutes, but it's also just as moving as FoP for me in terms of conveying Pandora.
• Kilimanjaro Safaris
• Festival of the Lion King
• Expedition Everest
• Dinosaur
  • I forgot this was an Indy clone until I got to the loading area and was viscerally reminded. It was almost like an out-of-body experience, haha. Not a bad ride by any means, but just not nearly as memorable as Indy. I love the meteor shower effects though.
• Big Thunder
• Hall of Presidents
• Winnie the Pooh
• Peoplemover
• Carousel of Progress
• Jungle Cruise

 

[mickEblu]

New Bookcase is coming along nicely. I’ll probably have to add some shelves to the wall for some of my Haunted Mansion stuff.

 

[smooch]

I am back home safe and sound from Maui, was there during the fires with family and were stuck sheltered in place for 3 days with nearly no food (at least no real substantial food just eating bread and goldfish and crackers) and no power / cell service / etc. My parents were 10 minutes away from being caught in the Lahaina fire on Tuesday, they were the last ones to check out at the grocery store before it burnt down and subsequently spread across the street and blew up the gas station. Could look out my hotel room door and see the fire and smoke from Lahaina since we were 3 miles away. We were finally able to leave Friday and made it home that late afternoon / early evening. I almost skipped the family trip this year, too. As a diabetic being stranded / isolated somewhere with no supplies / etc. has always been my biggest nightmare and I had to live through that during the shelter in place. I'm most sad about the locals who have lost homes / family, haven't heard from loved ones, and the history of Lahaina being eviscerated.

And the hotel didn't tell us anything, they didn't even tell us a state of emergency was ever declared or the true statuses of the fires, I had to use the short bursts of cell service I was able to find to call my girlfriend who would look up the news and read it to me and look up flights to get back home because by the time we left they admitted the hotel wouldn't have power for 3-4 weeks and FEMA funds were allocated to the disaster.

Just happy my family all got home safe and that I'm back home with my friends and seeing how worried they were for me. I've been having trouble sleeping but hope that gets better with time, I've had insomnia / sleep problems my whole life already but I finally got better about it this year, at least til now.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

I am back home safe and sound from Maui, was there during the fires with family and were stuck sheltered in place for 3 days with nearly no food (at least no real substantial food just eating bread and goldfish and crackers) and no power / cell service / etc. My parents were 10 minutes away from being caught in the Lahaina fire on Tuesday, they were the last ones to check out at the grocery store before it burnt down and subsequently spread across the street and blew up the gas station. Could look out my hotel room door and see the fire and smoke from Lahaina since we were 3 miles away. We were finally able to leave Friday and made it home that late afternoon / early evening. I almost skipped the family trip this year, too. As a diabetic being stranded / isolated somewhere with no supplies / etc. has always been my biggest nightmare and I had to live through that during the shelter in place. I'm most sad about the locals who have lost homes / family, haven't heard from loved ones, and the history of Lahaina being eviscerated.

And the hotel didn't tell us anything, they didn't even tell us a state of emergency was ever declared or the true statuses of the fires, I had to use the short bursts of cell service I was able to find to call my girlfriend who would look up the news and read it to me and look up flights to get back home because by the time we left they admitted the hotel wouldn't have power for 3-4 weeks and FEMA funds were allocated to the disaster.

Just happy my family all got home safe and that I'm back home with my friends and seeing how worried they were for me. I've been having trouble sleeping but hope that gets better with time, I've had insomnia / sleep problems my whole life already but I finally got better about it this year, at least til now.

Wow, glad you are safe. That would have very scary indeed. As a diabetic as well, I would be very scared about supplies, it is good lesson to always be a little extra prepared. So sad for all impacted.

 

[smooch]

Wow, glad you are safe. That would have very scary indeed. As a diabetic as well, I would be very scared about supplies, it is good lesson to always be a little extra prepared. So sad for all impacted.

I had enough insulin to last a few more weeks but I was more worried about the food. My body did not like surviving off of pure carbs and sugar with little to no protein for essentially the whole week. I met some other diabetics at the hotel while we were sheltering so we were prepared to share supplies and food if needed. I would have ran out of OmniPod changes before running out of insulin, will pack even more in the future for sure.

 

[mickEblu]

I am back home safe and sound from Maui, was there during the fires with family and were stuck sheltered in place for 3 days with nearly no food (at least no real substantial food just eating bread and goldfish and crackers) and no power / cell service / etc. My parents were 10 minutes away from being caught in the Lahaina fire on Tuesday, they were the last ones to check out at the grocery store before it burnt down and subsequently spread across the street and blew up the gas station. Could look out my hotel room door and see the fire and smoke from Lahaina since we were 3 miles away. We were finally able to leave Friday and made it home that late afternoon / early evening. I almost skipped the family trip this year, too. As a diabetic being stranded / isolated somewhere with no supplies / etc. has always been my biggest nightmare and I had to live through that during the shelter in place. I'm most sad about the locals who have lost homes / family, haven't heard from loved ones, and the history of Lahaina being eviscerated.

And the hotel didn't tell us anything, they didn't even tell us a state of emergency was ever declared or the true statuses of the fires, I had to use the short bursts of cell service I was able to find to call my girlfriend who would look up the news and read it to me and look up flights to get back home because by the time we left they admitted the hotel wouldn't have power for 3-4 weeks and FEMA funds were allocated to the disaster.

Just happy my family all got home safe and that I'm back home with my friends and seeing how worried they were for me. I've been having trouble sleeping but hope that gets better with time, I've had insomnia / sleep problems my whole life already but I finally got better about it this year, at least til now.

Wow glad you and your family made it out of there safe! That sounds like a real nightmare!!

 

[Californian Elitist]

I am back home safe and sound from Maui, was there during the fires with family and were stuck sheltered in place for 3 days with nearly no food (at least no real substantial food just eating bread and goldfish and crackers) and no power / cell service / etc. My parents were 10 minutes away from being caught in the Lahaina fire on Tuesday, they were the last ones to check out at the grocery store before it burnt down and subsequently spread across the street and blew up the gas station. Could look out my hotel room door and see the fire and smoke from Lahaina since we were 3 miles away. We were finally able to leave Friday and made it home that late afternoon / early evening. I almost skipped the family trip this year, too. As a diabetic being stranded / isolated somewhere with no supplies / etc. has always been my biggest nightmare and I had to live through that during the shelter in place. I'm most sad about the locals who have lost homes / family, haven't heard from loved ones, and the history of Lahaina being eviscerated.

And the hotel didn't tell us anything, they didn't even tell us a state of emergency was ever declared or the true statuses of the fires, I had to use the short bursts of cell service I was able to find to call my girlfriend who would look up the news and read it to me and look up flights to get back home because by the time we left they admitted the hotel wouldn't have power for 3-4 weeks and FEMA funds were allocated to the disaster.

Just happy my family all got home safe and that I'm back home with my friends and seeing how worried they were for me. I've been having trouble sleeping but hope that gets better with time, I've had insomnia / sleep problems my whole life already but I finally got better about it this year, at least til now.

Thank God you’re back home, safe! What a horrible situation to be in, especially given that you are a diabetic. I hope your sleep improves over the next few days!

 

[StarWarsGirl]

I am back home safe and sound from Maui, was there during the fires with family and were stuck sheltered in place for 3 days with nearly no food (at least no real substantial food just eating bread and goldfish and crackers) and no power / cell service / etc. My parents were 10 minutes away from being caught in the Lahaina fire on Tuesday, they were the last ones to check out at the grocery store before it burnt down and subsequently spread across the street and blew up the gas station. Could look out my hotel room door and see the fire and smoke from Lahaina since we were 3 miles away. We were finally able to leave Friday and made it home that late afternoon / early evening. I almost skipped the family trip this year, too. As a diabetic being stranded / isolated somewhere with no supplies / etc. has always been my biggest nightmare and I had to live through that during the shelter in place. I'm most sad about the locals who have lost homes / family, haven't heard from loved ones, and the history of Lahaina being eviscerated.

And the hotel didn't tell us anything, they didn't even tell us a state of emergency was ever declared or the true statuses of the fires, I had to use the short bursts of cell service I was able to find to call my girlfriend who would look up the news and read it to me and look up flights to get back home because by the time we left they admitted the hotel wouldn't have power for 3-4 weeks and FEMA funds were allocated to the disaster.

Just happy my family all got home safe and that I'm back home with my friends and seeing how worried they were for me. I've been having trouble sleeping but hope that gets better with time, I've had insomnia / sleep problems my whole life already but I finally got better about it this year, at least til now.

So glad you are home safe! I have asthma and I don't have a thyroid, so I always over pack medications. People think I'm nuts, but it's also my worst nightmare being stuck someplace without meds. It's just crazy and sad what is happening on Maui.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

MagicBand makes so much sense here compared to Disneyland. Like I *get* it here and love it, it's something that simply didn't click for me when I first tried them in DL.

This is one of my biggest complaints about DL. Like, there's so much more potential with MBs, and they've reduced them to expensive toys. In WDW, I really cannot function without one.

The resort bus system is pretty efficient, all things considered

This definitely varies by resort. The resorts are the ones that order the buses. Value resorts tend to be the most efficient. AKL is the worst one. That being said, if you're waiting more than 20 minutes for a bus with no ETA of one, go ahead and call an Uber/Lyft (I use Lyft since their WDW's official ride share service) and then go complain to the front desk and ask for reimbursement for the ride.

Security screening without taking anything out was weird but cool. Wild we don't have them here at Disneyland.

Ah, you have hit my second DL pet peeve. We've had these scanners for YEARS at WDW, not to mention we also have them at my local amusement park and at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. DL not having them or permanent security structures is sad. In fact, the entire entry process at DL could use a revamp; it is so slow compared to WDW.

Incredible. As the blueprint for Wondrous Journeys, it really shone with the big shells and projections. I'm a fan.

Glad you enjoyed HEA, it's my favorite fireworks show.

Dinosaur

• I forgot this was an Indy clone until I got to the loading area and was viscerally reminded. It was almost like an out-of-body experience, haha. Not a bad ride by any means, but just not nearly as memorable as Indy. I love the meteor shower effects though

Indy is definitely a better ride.

 

[Consumer]

This is one of my biggest complaints about DL. Like, there's so much more potential with MBs, and they've reduced them to expensive toys. In WDW, I really cannot function without one.

Sounds more like the complaint should be at WDW. Who wants to pay extra just to enjoy their day at the parks?

Anyway, sad news. Pickwick Bowling in Burbank, CA has closed. "Who cares?" some may say. Other than going to birthday parties there as a child, the ghost atop the chandelier in the Haunted Mansion is named Pickwick after the bowling alley.

 

[mickEblu]

Sounds more like the complaint should be at WDW. Who wants to pay extra just to enjoy their day at the parks?

Anyway, sad news. Pickwick Bowling in Burbank, CA has closed. "Who cares?" some may say. Other than going to birthday parties there as a child, the ghost atop the chandelier in the Haunted Mansion is named Pickwick after the bowling alley.

View attachment 737715

No way! I didn’t know that. It’s so close to the Disney studios so I’m sure Imagineer/ artist went there with his family and…

Sad news. Went there for a few birthday parties myself when I was a kid. Went on a 5th grade ice skating field trip there too. We used to go horseback riding right down the street from there.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

Sounds more like the complaint should be at WDW. Who wants to pay extra just to enjoy their day at the parks?

Nope, definitely a DL complaint.

Not just the fact that MBs are essentially accessories, but that there's no RFID technology in general. It clogs up the LLs when you have to scan everyone's ticket instead of tapping with your phone/card/MB. Same with the main entry. And then you also have to manually type in a code for your photos. At WDW, they link through your MB or you just tap your card.

Plus the base MBs are a lot cheaper. I wanna say they're $10 a piece if you prepay with your resort stay or AP. They go up if you want the MB+ or various designs.

I also don't get why WDW MBs don't work at WDW when they work at Aulani and Hilton Head Island.

And also you don't have to use them. But they are super convenient, especially when you're coming back to your room late at night and all you have to do is tap your wrist to the door to get in.