Wondering What's Next….

(When last we left our intrepid travelers, they were exploring the hallowed halls of Imagineering. Let’s see what trouble they can get into….)

Soon enough our group moved deeper within the Imagineering building, and came to a large room where the Imagineers were crafting huge models and replicas of animated  favorites seen in the Disney films. We saw huge items that will be placed on the new Disney cruise ship, modeled after the “Be Our Guest” theme from Beauty and the Beast”. We also saw an enormous model of the Fantasyland expansion, laid out to scale with areas marked for rides and attractions. I still get goose bumps thinking about it, because this was the actual epicenter of the design! One of the more fascinating aspects was that we were able to see that the mockup of Fantasyland is a little different than what was announced at D23 – and for the better, I think!

 It appears there will be less emphasis on the “princess” aspect of the park, and more inclusion of “boy-friendly” attractions!  Our guide even hinted that a guest favorite ride formerly of Disneyland may be making its way back to Fantasyland – anyone remember the Flying Saucers at Disneyland? Here is a low quality video:

After the visit in the Imagineering building, we traveled en masse to (cue the music!)  Mickey’s of Glendale.

We knew the shopping would be fabulous and herded like wildebeests waiting to enter the store (do wildebeests herd? I) The guides told us that they usually allow 30 minutes in the store, but since we were such a big group, we would have at least 45 minutes.

I am ashamed to say we laughed in their earnest faces and mocked them.

 You know the outlet stores that have great pricing on items like sippy cups with Bug’s Life characters and Christmas ornaments from 2007? Yeah, well that is the exact opposite of Mickey’s of Glendale.

This store was chock full of amazing high quality merchandise at extremely good prices. We bought jackets and backpacks and sweater (oh my!) Pins and pens, t-shirts, hats, and all manner of Mickey goodness.  There were exclusive Walt Disney Imagineering items, sold only in this location. The prices were AMAZING (a sweatshirt for $25? Get outta here!) I bought pins and shirts and backpacks and coffee mugs  (which I never buy, because they are heavy, and which were smashed into little bitty pieces in the wreck – sad face!) Each tour member received a coupon for 40% off one item in the store, and we made good use of them!

We actually spent the better part of two hours at the store, and walked out with bags and bags of goodies. One fellow in our group bought hundreds of pins along with plenty of other items, and ended up with some 5 or 6 bags!  A good time was definitely had by all!

After shopping, we headed to lunch boarded the bus and headed to Walt Disney Studios.

I love the film The Reluctant Dragon, which stars Robert Benchley as he toured the studio lot when the studio was brand new. It remains largely unchanged, keeping true to its origins in signage and environment.

When we first arrived, I noticed Providence Hospital just a few blocks away. It is poignant to think that Mr. Disney passed away so close to the Studio he created.

We hustled onto the Studio lot and went straight to Archives, as we had an appointment to meet the incomparable Disney Legend Dave Smith.

To our bitter disappointment, we learned that Mr. Smith had to leave earlier to catch a flight to attend a family wedding – darn that long shopping trip! I did snap a picture of his Disney Legends statue:

There was so much to see in the archives! I took pictures galore, including these of the first Ticket to Disneyland, the Press Pass and the Parking Pass:

Here was an amazing sight – this little wind-up bird is said to be the inspiration for animatronics:

We held an Oscar for posterity!

So many items in the glass cases! Early documents from Walt’s history included baby pictures:

Early passport photos:

Walt’s orders for his wartime position as ambulance driver:

The original script for Steamboat Willie:

Early Disney promotional items. It is interesting to note that in the early days of Disney studios, Roy and Walt had sold the merchandise rights away, and many of the items produced were off low quality. Later, the brothers bought back these rights and took control of the branding:

and more:

The Extraordinary Multiplane Camera! With this Camera Walt Disney set himself apart as an animator and brought the genre of animation into serious film. Cartoons were given a new dimension, and hand-drawn characters expressed emotions and drew the audience into their stories. I couldn’t help but tear up a little – it is easy for me to imagine that without this machine, the legend of Disney might have been written very differently.

After the visit to the archives, we stopped in the commissary to have lunch. I looked for Walt’s favorite lunch of chili and crackers, but because we were so late, slim pickings to be found.

After lunch we toured the grounds of the studio, and I truly felt like I was walking in Walt’s footsteps. The grounds seemed very familiar from all of the pictures and movies through the years. I could imagine Saturday mornings and his daughters riding their bikes on the grounds, along the very streets we walked.

Recognize this water tower? this one is full size:

This signpost has been seen in several pictures and television shows:

Inside the animation building:

An engraving of Walt Disney:

The building that Snow White (the film) built:

These dwarfs are huge!

We ended the tour by visiting the Legend Plaza, a unique remembrance of Disney legends founded by Walt’s wife Lillian and his sister Edna. There we saw the Legends commemorated with bronze handprints, and saw the full size Legend statue, and both the statue of Walt and Mickey pointing, and Roy and Minnie on the bench.

Dedication plaque:

Ward Kimball’s plaque (notice the 6 fingers!  no, he did not have 6 fingers, just a quirky sense of humor):

Partner’s statue:

Roy and Minnie:

The Legends statue:

After lunch we stopped by the studio store – very small and not nearly as much fun as Mickey’s of Glendale – I think I bought only a couple of pins.

Following the final shopping stop, we boarded the bus to head to Disneyland, and the Grand California!

Inside the lobby of the Grand Californian

View from our room:

We were also surprised with a change in dinner plans – rather than going to the traditional Hooke’s Point, we were having dinner at Steakhouse 55!

Unfortunately, I was battling a bit of a sinus infection, and between the long ride on the bus through LA traffic, and the heavy smog, I was not feeling very well for the dinner that evening.

We met in the lobby of the Grand Floridian – and it is truly gorgeous! It is done in the Craftsman style, and understated but elegant.

We walked over as a group to the Disneyland Hotel, and entered the lobby.Just in front of restaurant, the Disney folks had set up a beautiful pre-dinner reception. We had a lovely wine tasting (I just wish I felt better!).

Cocktail hour!

A nice spread:

Dinner was very nice, and I am glad I was able to experience it. They had a set menu from which we could pick our entrée – I chose New York steak.  Mine was very good, but some of my tablemates had trouble getting their steaks prepared to their satisfaction. (And this was not just whining – it was the difference between rare and medium.) We chalked it up to the kitchen being rushed with all of our orders at the same time. Dinner was a gorgeous apple tart ala mode.

After dinner we walked through Downtown Disney to the front of Disneyland. It was beginning to get dark, and the lights were on and Disney magic was alive and well! You’ll notice this picture is a little out of focus….. I would like to post the picture where we all posed and smiled on Main Street, but there was no posing and smiling. We were practically jogging down Main Street to try and get all the way down to the Haunted Mansion, apparently on a schedule.

As we were walking up to the Haunted Mansion, the fireworks began and I had chills standing in that park after such an amazing day.

The advantage of an ABD tour was displayed again as our group was escorted into the Mansion for a private ride. I took plenty of pictures, but no flash!  So the quality isn’t as nice as I would like.

….. to find a way out!!

After we all disembarked our doom buggies, the guides had another surprise – a private ride of Nemo’s Submarine Voyage! Our entire group trooped down those narrow stairs and sat together on the narrow benches. We joked and laughed, but as we started to move the sub scraped bottom and stopped – apparently we were too heavy! This made us all laugh harder….

The ride is really well done, and I am glad I finally did it. It is notorious for being so slow to load, and below is just as small and cramped as you might imagine. I was really more excited to be on the ride because of the historic uses of that pool. Back in the 60’s there used to be quite a bit of competition for young ladies auditioning to be real life mermaids – wouldn’t that have been something to see! Apparently the program was discontinued in part because there was trouble with some eager young men hopping the fence, wooed by the mermaids…

Following the underwater tour, we broke into groups to explore the park. I went with others straight to Space Mountain.

Another shot:

Disneyland’s Space Mountain is really well done, and benefitted tremendously from its extended refurbishment. The whole track is smoother and less jerky, and the seats are a bit easier to get enter. They sit two abreast, and have speakers in each headrest playing an updated soundtrack. I find the whole ride more exciting, and could ride this one repeatedly!

After Space Mountain, I was starting to fade. Because I knew that ABD boot camp would begin early in the morning, I went back with some other adventurers, to unpack and prepare for another big day.