Eleven Years Without Cancer!
October 23rd is a special day of the year. It is the day we first found out Sue had lung cancer so on the 1st anniversary of her recovery, we went to Disneyland and bought annual passes. Today was our 11th anniversary of being cancer free. We are indeed blessed and we so spend it at Disneyland... The Happiest Place On Earth!
We Start With Eating At The Rainforest Cafe
We ate breakfast among trumpeting elephants and chest-pounding gorillas in the most realistic indoor rainforest in the world. We heard the erupting volcano and then ventured into the wilds of this exotic restaurant for a dazzling experience. We feasted on a spicy breakfast pizza while being is a sudden rain storms (don't worry, we didn't get wet)!
The Off To California Adventure And Candy Corn Acres
Wow! Only at Disneyland!
One Must Fly Over California
The attraction takes 87 guests at a time on a simulated hang glider tour of the Golden State, flying over San Francisco, Redwood Creek, Napa Valley, Monterey, Lake Tahoe, Yosemite National Park, Palm Springs (actually shot in nearby La Quinta over the golf course at PGA West), Camarillo, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, San Diego, Malibu and Los Angeles. The ride ends with a flight over Disneyland at Christmas, with a Christmas parade traveling down Main Street, U.S.A., decorations on Sleeping Beauty Castle, and fireworks.
We are ready to fly!
The vehicle (called a carriage) consists of three rows of seats under a wing-like canopy. After guests have been safely restrained in the vehicle (using standard lap seat belts), the canopy descends and a cantilever system lifts the chairs forward and into the air with the guests' feet dangling free. The vehicle is lifted forward so that guests look into a large, concave movie screen onto which scenes of California are projected. Since the vehicle is moved forward into the dome, the effect is such that guests can only see the images projected on the screen and are given the sensation of flight. The attraction features two theaters, each with three carriages.
To enhance the illusion of flight, subtle vertical movements of the seats are synchronized to the film. According to cast members who operate this attraction, the carriages do not move horizontally. Sensations of horizontal motion are created using a combination of vertical carriage movement and the turning image on the screen. In addition, scents complementing the various scenes are injected into the air streams blowing on riders. In the Ventura orange field scene, for example, guests are treated to the scent of orange blossoms. The mountain scenes are accompanied by the aroma of evergreens. The Monterey and Malibu scenes have the scent of a sea breeze while the Palm Springs and Anza-Borrego scenes feature the fragrance of sagebrush. The ride also features golfing, snow skiing, river rafting, kayaking, horseback riding, hot air ballooning, and the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds.
The ride system is a Walt Disney Imagineering-developed motion-based technology, based on a conceptual Erector Set model created by Imagineer Mark Sumner. One million pounds of steel provide the ride structure and 37 tons are lifted during each ride cycle.
The scenes were shot on high-definition film displayed with OmniMax projectors running at 48 frames per second, twice the speed of traditional motion pictures.
Notice the San Francisco area is gone... Now going to be "Cars Land"
Filled with a sense of enchantment and optimism, Disneyland is the standard-bearer for all theme parks. By comparison, the smaller Disney's California Adventure, which opened in 2001, seems more like a collection of attractions (some of which are quite spectacular) rather than a cohesive theme park experience. And there aren't all that many attractions. That will be changing over the next five years, however, as Disney announced in October 2007 that it has ambitious plans to transform the underperforming park. According to the Wall Street Journal, the company is planning to spend a whopping $1.1 billion on the project. That's more than it cost to build the original park.
The overarching theme that will give DCA the magic spark it's been missing will be none other than Walt Disney. The iconic founder of the company that bears his name resonates deeply with generations of fans, and the focus on Walt at DCA will allow the Mouse House to celebrate a legacy that is uniquely theirs. Instead of a generic California adventure, the emphasis will be on Disney's California adventure.
He was pretty funny talking to the crowds!
Handsome devil he is!
Colors everywhere!
One Last Pass Through Candy Corn Acres
Over To Disneyland Proper
Walt Disney developed a love of trains at an early age. When he was a young adult, he built a half-mile scale model railway in his backyard that he called the "Carolwood Pacific Railroad." At Disneyland, a railroad was one of the first attractions he planned. Later, when he began the design for what is now known as Walt Disney World Resort, Walt made sure that the train station was located near the entrance to the park.
Because of this, the Magic Kingdom has featured vintage, steam-powered trains since its opening in 1971. One of the first things visitors to the Magic Kingdom see as they approach the park is the Main Street Railroad Station -- and one of the first sounds they hear is likely a train's steam whistle.
You can board the Walt Disney World Railroad at any of its three stations: the main station on Main Street, U.S.A.; the station in Frontierland; and the one in Mickey’s Toontown Fair. You can also depart at any of these stations, or stay on board for the full 1.5-mile grand-circle tour, which takes about 20 minutes. A recorded narration describes the sights you're seeing as you make the circuit around the park at a leisurely, 10-12 mph pace.
Going To Africa Is A Necessity!
The jungle boat is always fun!
Ready For A Ride On The Mighty Mississippi?
Thunder Mountain
We go on Big Thunder Mountain in memory of Sue's Mom who loved this ride.
What a ride
Arts And Crafts We On Parade
Eleven Years Without Cancer And We Plan To Continue
We enjoy Disneyland as it refreshes our soul and readies us for another year being cancer free!
Time To Rest Before The Adventure Continues
Which One Is Which??
Watch those two, they are card sharks!
The decorations were great!
One Must Go On The Storybook Ride
Storybook Land, inside Fantasyland, is one of Disneyland's finest examples of the Disney magic in artistry and the creation of unique and entertaining attractions. A kingdom in miniature, Storybook Land presents life-like re-creations of villages, castles, houses and other buildings from the pages of fabled stories-scene after scene of painstakingly detailed settings. If you've ever wanted to actually see from close up Gepetto's Village high in the snow covered Alps, Kensington Gardens from the story of Peter Pan, the straw, stick and brick houses of the Three Little Pigs and the Crazy Quilt Country from Wynken, Blinken and Nod, they're all there-along with many more-in Storybook Land. Gaily painted, picturesque European canal boats take visitors through the mouth of Monstro the Whale into this wonderful world. The Storybook Land attraction opened exactly at noon on June 18, 1956, roughly 11 months after the opening of Disneyland.
Some might argue that the attraction actually opened July 17, 1955 with Disneyland since the attraction began as the Canal Boats of the World. The souvenir guide of the time to Disneyland described it as "Boats of Holland, France, England and America travel through canals which pass the fabulous sights of Fantasyland."
In actuality, this was one of the rides that didn't work on opening day, breaking down and having to be towed back to the boarding area by disgruntled cast members in the water like Volga boatmen.
The eight original Canal Boats of the World were named Nellie Bly,Lady Katrina, Lady of Shallot, Annie Oakley, Gretel, Bold Lochinvar, Lady of the Lake, and Lady Guinivere.
The Storybook Land boats were named Cinderella, Daisy,Aurora, Alice, Faline, Flora, Fauna,Merryweather, Flower, Katrina, Wendy, Snow White and Tinker Bell. In later years, Belle andAriel joined the fleet. The boats are almost 16 feet long and move along a submerged guide rail very similar to the one used in the Jungle Cruise.
Sue Wanted To Ride The Submarine... Discovering Nemo
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is an attraction located in the Tomorrowland area of Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, which opened on June 11, 2007. Based on the characters and settings of the 2003 Disney/Pixar film, Finding Nemo, the attraction is a re-theming of the classic Submarine Voyage attraction, which closed in 1998.
The original submarine voyage, inspired by the movie 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, opened on June 6, 1959 and closed on September 7, 1998. The Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage uses the same track and the same 8 submarines, though they have been modified. Modifications include the addition of one additional seat and porthole on each side and conversion of the power source from diesel to electric engines.
The Disneyland submarine fleet is the 8th largest in the world. The names of the submarines are: Explorer, Scout, Voyager, Mariner, Seafarer, Nautilus, Neptune and Argonaut.
New projection technology developed by Walt Disney Imagineering allows Nemo and Friends to appear exactly as they do in the movie, but in a 3-D underwater setting.
To maintain the vibrancy of the bright colors of the coral and rockwork in the California sun, Imagineers developed a new "paint" made with recycled glass. There are more than 40 colors with names like Mango Mud, Phantom, Yamber, and Peritwinkle.
The lagoon holds approxmiately 6.3 million gallons of water.
Some references to the original Submarine Voyage exist in the new dialog - like the "sonar hydrophones", and the captain's comment about seeing sea serpents and mermaids.
The Day Is Slipping Away So We Slipped Into Catal For Dinner
Sue should become Mayor Of Disneyland!
Our 11th "Life Day" is complete and we head towards Catal, our favorite Disneyland resturant where we mee the staff for a great dinner.