Florida day 4 — the Magic Kingdom
Today’s playlist:
Yes, that's us in the very back row.
Our biggest disappointment of the day was not riding Jungle Cruise. We stood on line for over an hour, but had to bail out before we could ride, because we were afraid we'd miss our Fastpass for Big Thunder Mountain.
But we did get a taste of the humor that makes the Jungle Cruise so much fun when we had dinner at the Jungle Navigation Co. LTD. Skipper Canteen. Drew had the lamb chops, and I had the Thai noodles, sauce on the side (good decision, the sauced was very very spicy).
After dinner we rode the Haunted Mansion, then walked over to Main Street to find ourselves a spot for the fireworks.
Trying to get out of the Magic Kingdom after the fireworks is a nightmare....the crowds...some idiot ran over my foot with a stroller while I was on my way to the Monorail...
Fitbit says I walked 9 miles that day. Honestly it felt like more. A lot more.
Mickey Mouse Club Theme
When You Wish Upon a Star
Some Day My Prince Will Come
Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow
Although there are four theme parks, when people think of Disney World they think of the Magic Kingdom. It's the park modeled after Disneyland in California, it's the park Uncle Walt planned. You walk up Main Street to Cinderella's Castle, and then you can enjoy the delights of Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, Adventureland or Frontierland. You cannot see the whole park in one day. Don't even try.
We were supposed to start our day on the indoor roller coaster Space Mountain -- we had a Fastpass -- but the ride was down. We decided to stay in Tomorrowland and do a few other rides, in the hope that Space Mountain would come back on line.
We started with Carousel of Progress. This ride holds a lot of memories for both of us -- we're both old enough to remember this attraction from the 1964-1965 World's Fair.
As originally conceived by Walt Disney, the Carousel told the story of the average American family at the turn of the 20th Century, in the 1920's, the 1940's, and the 1960's, with an emphasis on the electrical appliances that made their lives easier. The audience rotated from scene to scene to a tune written by the Sherman Brothers, "Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow". (Drew tells me his mother actually got sick on this ride -- the motion of the theater rotating didn't agree with her.) The last scene, the one originally set in the 1960's, has been updated to make it more modern...but that makes the story feel a bit disjointed. If not for the nostalgia value....
Next up was the Peoplemover a/k/a the Tomorrowland Transit Authority, a gentle ride that gives you an overview of all of the activities in Tomorrowland. We got to see what Space Mountain looks like with the lights turned on.
Next we rode Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, a ride that is also an arcade game.
At this point the park was getting crowded -- the Magic Kingdom was the only park where crowds were really a problem -- but we didn't allow the crowds to ruin our good time.
We walked over to Fantasyland, where I took this photo of the Beast's Castle. Didn't wander over to the new Be Our Guest Restaurant, though.
And then we rode this:
I had heard that the new Seven Dwarfs ride was amazing. Sorry, but I was not impressed. Part dark ride and part "thrill" ride, there isn't enough of either aspect. The scenes from Snow White are amazing, and I would have liked to have seen more of them.
Then it was time to return to Tomorrowland and ride Space Mountain. Or rather, Drew rode Space Mountain. I chickened out -- though I had ridden the ride many times before, I just couldn't do it this time around....
We grabbed a hot dog for lunch, and shared a table with a lovely family from Syracuse, NY. The grandparents are snowbirds, with a winter home in Florida, and the son and daughter-in-law were visiting with their four year old; it was the little girl's first trip to Disney.
Walking through the Magic Kingdom, we saw many families with matching t-shirts. Several kids were wearing shirts that said "Best Day Ever", while a parent (usually a dad) was wearing a shirt that said "Most Expensive Day Ever". But even better were the shirts on one family -- the kids' shirts said "spoiled" and the dad's said "broke".
We spent our afternoon in Frontierland and Adventureland.
We rode Big Thunder Mountain (a roller coaster with a runaway train theme), and Splash Mountain. I'm amazed at the theming on Splash Mountain -- Song of the South is locked in the vault, you can't find a copy of that movie anywhere (due to the racist portrayal of Uncle Remus), yet one of the most successful rides in the Magic Kingdom is based on that movie (just the animal characters, of course). Nice log flume, a decent 50 foot drop.
Our favorite ride in Adventureland is Pirates of the Caribbean, a ride that begot a successful movie series. Captain Jack Sparrow was later incorporated into scenes throughout the ride.
"Dead men tell no tales". On a previous visit to Disney, we were stuck on this ride for 20 minutes due to a power failure, and heard the catchphrase more times than we could count....
Although there are four theme parks, when people think of Disney World they think of the Magic Kingdom. It's the park modeled after Disneyland in California, it's the park Uncle Walt planned. You walk up Main Street to Cinderella's Castle, and then you can enjoy the delights of Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, Adventureland or Frontierland. You cannot see the whole park in one day. Don't even try.
We were supposed to start our day on the indoor roller coaster Space Mountain -- we had a Fastpass -- but the ride was down. We decided to stay in Tomorrowland and do a few other rides, in the hope that Space Mountain would come back on line.
We started with Carousel of Progress. This ride holds a lot of memories for both of us -- we're both old enough to remember this attraction from the 1964-1965 World's Fair.
As originally conceived by Walt Disney, the Carousel told the story of the average American family at the turn of the 20th Century, in the 1920's, the 1940's, and the 1960's, with an emphasis on the electrical appliances that made their lives easier. The audience rotated from scene to scene to a tune written by the Sherman Brothers, "Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow". (Drew tells me his mother actually got sick on this ride -- the motion of the theater rotating didn't agree with her.) The last scene, the one originally set in the 1960's, has been updated to make it more modern...but that makes the story feel a bit disjointed. If not for the nostalgia value....
Next up was the Peoplemover a/k/a the Tomorrowland Transit Authority, a gentle ride that gives you an overview of all of the activities in Tomorrowland. We got to see what Space Mountain looks like with the lights turned on.
Next we rode Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, a ride that is also an arcade game.
At this point the park was getting crowded -- the Magic Kingdom was the only park where crowds were really a problem -- but we didn't allow the crowds to ruin our good time.
We walked over to Fantasyland, where I took this photo of the Beast's Castle. Didn't wander over to the new Be Our Guest Restaurant, though.
And then we rode this:
I had heard that the new Seven Dwarfs ride was amazing. Sorry, but I was not impressed. Part dark ride and part "thrill" ride, there isn't enough of either aspect. The scenes from Snow White are amazing, and I would have liked to have seen more of them.
Then it was time to return to Tomorrowland and ride Space Mountain. Or rather, Drew rode Space Mountain. I chickened out -- though I had ridden the ride many times before, I just couldn't do it this time around....
We grabbed a hot dog for lunch, and shared a table with a lovely family from Syracuse, NY. The grandparents are snowbirds, with a winter home in Florida, and the son and daughter-in-law were visiting with their four year old; it was the little girl's first trip to Disney.
Walking through the Magic Kingdom, we saw many families with matching t-shirts. Several kids were wearing shirts that said "Best Day Ever", while a parent (usually a dad) was wearing a shirt that said "Most Expensive Day Ever". But even better were the shirts on one family -- the kids' shirts said "spoiled" and the dad's said "broke".
We spent our afternoon in Frontierland and Adventureland.
We rode Big Thunder Mountain (a roller coaster with a runaway train theme), and Splash Mountain. I'm amazed at the theming on Splash Mountain -- Song of the South is locked in the vault, you can't find a copy of that movie anywhere (due to the racist portrayal of Uncle Remus), yet one of the most successful rides in the Magic Kingdom is based on that movie (just the animal characters, of course). Nice log flume, a decent 50 foot drop.
"Dead men tell no tales". On a previous visit to Disney, we were stuck on this ride for 20 minutes due to a power failure, and heard the catchphrase more times than we could count....
Yes, that's us in the very back row.
Our biggest disappointment of the day was not riding Jungle Cruise. We stood on line for over an hour, but had to bail out before we could ride, because we were afraid we'd miss our Fastpass for Big Thunder Mountain.
But we did get a taste of the humor that makes the Jungle Cruise so much fun when we had dinner at the Jungle Navigation Co. LTD. Skipper Canteen. Drew had the lamb chops, and I had the Thai noodles, sauce on the side (good decision, the sauced was very very spicy).
After dinner we rode the Haunted Mansion, then walked over to Main Street to find ourselves a spot for the fireworks.
Trying to get out of the Magic Kingdom after the fireworks is a nightmare....the crowds...some idiot ran over my foot with a stroller while I was on my way to the Monorail...
Fitbit says I walked 9 miles that day. Honestly it felt like more. A lot more.
Haunted Mansion is my favorite ride. (At Disneyland, though.) I don't do roller coasters. My parents forced me on Big Thunder Mountain when I was about 8. I hated it.
ReplyDeleteMy son was big fan of buzz light year. He even had one.
ReplyDeleteCoffee is on