Disneyland
Disneyland
Started the day with a wakeup call from Mickey at 6 am – were leaving the room by 6:50 for a 7:00 meetup with the group. We all did a very good job of being on time for all the activities – it helps when you’re thrilled about whatever is coming up next! We walked as a group over to the park, where Steve welcomed us to the Plaza Inn - the front of the restaurant was actually taken from a LA area mansion that was being torn down about the time the park was being built. Many of our tourmates spent the whole walk down Main Street snapping photo after photo, as we were the only guests in the park that early in the morning!
 Sleeping Beauty's Castle |
 Following the sign to breakfast |
We sat in the Bird Cage room (Walt originally wanted live birds in the cages, but that doesn’t work so well in an area where food is served…) with Scott & Michael, our new best buds, as well as Alex and his mom, Haydee. Also a newcomer to Disneyland, Haydee had gotten an autograph book and was looking forward to meeting the characters. We had the restaurant to ourselves for about a half hour and got visits from Max, Dale & Chip (who got very annoyed at anyone who confused the two! ), Minnie, the Fairy Godmother, Brer Fox, Brer Bear and Eeyore – what a great collection of characters!
 Scott and Dale |
 Scott and Brer Bear |
This morning we had a guided tour through Disneyland on the schedule, spending quite a bit of time in backstage areas. About 8:20 we headed over to Adventureland and went backstage at Indiana Jones. We spent some time in the vehicle maintenance bay with Tony, who told us all about how the ride vehicles work. Matt, one of the teens in our group, was picked to go over to the control board for one of the vehicles and put it thru its paces. From actual ground level, the vehicles are every bit of six feet tall, even before the hydraulics get going! We then got backdoored onto the ride & had a great time!
Our next stop was the Big Thunder ranch area, where we met Courtney and Christa. They spoke for a little bit about the animals they have in this area – and then we had the opportunity to feed the goats – they were definitely ready for breakfast! This was quite a bit of fun – even the guides got in on it – Quinn later said it was one of his highlights of the day! We also met George the Giant Sheep (he’s a meat breed & they usually don’t live this long or get this large), as well as Maggie the Cow and Poncho the Donkey.
About 5 til 10, we walked over to the gate by it’s a small world to go backstage - cameras & cellphones were confiscated at this point. Bill welcomed us to the steam train roundhouse and spoke for a little bit about how Walt’s interest in trains was the genesis of Disneyland – there was some overlap of information from the folks at Walt’s Barn, but that was to be expected. They brought the Fred Gurley engine and one car out for us to see & get a group photo with. The temperatures were definitely starting to warm up – especially in the open, paved areas of backstage!
Our next stop about 10:30 was the parade float warehouse. We got to see the Toy Shoppe float from the Christmas parade up close & personal, while Steve (from Elkhart, Indiana!) talked with us about the parades – there are 3 warehouses total – the one here, which holds the daytime DL parade as well as the Christmas parade, while the 2 behind DCA hold their daytime parade and the Electrical Parade.
Steve also talked a little about the fireworks, as the main section of air launchers (about 250) was right behind the warehouse. He passed around replicas of the firework shells, cut in half so we could see how the bursts were loaded to form a double ring. The sample that would be launched via compressed air had a much smaller black powder load than the regular one – which makes for less residual smoke. He said that the entire Disneyland Fire Department staff is centered in that area every night the fireworks show is scheduled, with the main fire truck pulled in under the warehouse overhang.
Around quarter till 11, we made our way over to the Pope house and the Circle D Ranch, where we met Cortney again. Originally 10 acres, this area housed over 200 animals used at Disneyland – the pack mules for the mule ride, the stagecoach horses, the ponies used in the Frontierland shows, etc. Mr. and Mrs. Pope were horse trainers hired by Walt before the park opened – they actually lived on site for about seven years, later moving to Orlando and founding the Tri-Circle-D Ranch. As fewer animals were needed on the Disneyland property and more backstage space was needed by other departments, the size of the ranch diminished to the current 3 acres used by the petting farm animals and 24 horses.
These horses also pull the fantasy coach used in Disney weddings and can be ridden as well; in fact, one of them was going to appear in the new pre-parade show promoting the next Narnia film, Prince Caspian. On average, the horses live here for 5 years, working for 2-3 hours 3 days a week, with plenty of rest time inbetween. Speaking of rest time, we took a restroom and drink break, enjoying the peaceful, shaded backyard of the Pope House. Quinn was tired of carrying our cameras, so gave them back to us, but asked us not to take any photos until we returned back onstage.
We re-entered the park right by Big Thunder Ranch – while on our way back, a couple of members of our group saw Snow White in a bathrobe, chatting on her cell phone – when she saw us, she hurried back inside! We followed the Rivers of America back to New Orleans Square – took a group photo on the stairs leading to the Dream Suite (Michael’s idea) … we threatened to storm the gate separating us from the apartment .. Scott ducked down behind the railing and gave Quinn a bit of a start when he couldn't see Scott!
We had lunch at Café Orleans out on the patio – most of us were shaded under the overhang or umbrellas – poor Jim was right between the two in full sun! We had several choices – I had the crab salad sandwich and Scott had the three-cheese Monte Cristo … I’d already had my quota of fried cheesy goodness! (tho I did have a few bites of his leftovers). We also had a choice of salad or gumbo as a starter & beignets for dessert. Scott and I got another Magical Moment – a heart-shaped plate (decorated with raspberry drizzles and whipped cream) with two Mickey-shaped beignets (one had a raspberry-bow for Minnie) – we also got a card signed by the Café Orleans staff – very nice!
Before and during the meal – we had a visit from one of the pirates – TK (TimeKeeper) – he wears an hourglass on his belt as a reminder of his terrible curse: during a battle he was stabbed & said he’d sell his soul for a little more time .. he got 3 minutes and must turn the hourglass over each time to stay alive. We’d actually seen this character in the Bootstrapper band earlier in the week and Scott remembers seeing him twirl something on his belt – now we know the whole story! I got his autograph (tho he claimed he couldn’t write very well); about ten til 1, TK led us over to Pirates of the Caribbean where we were backdoored onto the attraction.
 TK Looks for rum |
 Our heart-shaped plate of Mickey beignets |
We took a short bathroom break after that, then by about 1:15 were heading down Main Street for our next activity. This time we were actually split into 3 groups – Mickey and Minnie and Goofy, led by Jim. Scott and I joined the Goofy group (of course!) as did Michael & Scott, Alex and Haydee, Ken and Sharon and Lucille and Ray. While the other two groups headed for Walt’s Apartment and a ride on the Lilly Belle train car, we went over to the Main Street Cinema to watch some of the early Mickey Mouse short subjects: “Plane Crazy” and “Steamboat Willie” were the two I definitely recognized, tho I found myself watching “Mickey’s Polo Team” which featured a game between famous Hollywood caricatures and Mickey and friends. As polo was one of Walt’s favorite sports, I got a kick out of watching it. I also enjoyed the air conditioning, as it was getting quite warm outside by this time!
We were next up for Walt’s Apartment at 1:50. We met Cindy, one of only about 20 Guest Relation CM’s who have been trained as docents for the apartment. We found ourselves speaking in hushed tones once we arrived, and I saw many misty eyes, including my own. Cindy did an outstanding job of telling us all about the apartment and showing us around. The apartment itself is pretty small; but the state-of-the art (for the 1950’s) bathroom was surprisingly large! She also pointed out where the fireman’s pole would have been & how it was sealed off after one very enterprising guest climbed his way up the pole into the apartment one evening! I later found out from another group that we could have sat on one of the couches (the only one visitors are allowed to use), but it somehow seemed more proper to remain standing. We posed for a group photo before we left.
About 10 after 2, we headed over to the Main Street Station and met with Garett. He’s the area lead for Main Street & Adventureland and was one of the CM’s backstage at the Indy attraction this morning. He spoke with us for a little bit about the railroad in general and the Lilly Belle in particular before the C.K. Holliday arrived. This was Walt’s favorite engine and therefore the only one to pull the Lilly Belle. Garett passed out our special train tickets and as we boarded, Jerry the conductor, punched them with a special locomotive-shaped punch.
We made a full round-trip excursion while Jerry shared stories about the car’s history. Walt had wanted a private car in which to entertain his guests; however, after his passing, the car was rarely used and fell into disrepair. It was refurbished for the 50th anniversary of the park and is still used for VIP occasions. All the furnishings are antiques, as is the paneling and all but one of the stained-glass portals in the roof. He passed around a guest book, which we all signed – I looked to see if I recognized any names, but it only went back to the beginning of the month. Jerry also told us that the Lilly Belle never leaves the roundhouse without a conductor on board; in fact, they’ve all signed their names on the back of one of the panels, so they’re always with her.
 Tracey and Scott in the Lilly Belle |
 The Lilly Belle pulls away |
Just before 2:00, the tour regrouped for a few announcements. For those who wanted to see Fantasmic! that evening, we were to meet back at 8 on the bridge to Frontierland. Our Guides also told us that they had about 20 reserved seats for the afternoon parade for us in front of the Main Street station; about 2/3 of the group took them up on the offer (including the two of us), while the rest headed out to enjoy the park. It was unseasonably hot & sunny that afternoon, and only about half of the seating area was in the shade! I found myself wishing that I’d worn shorts instead of jeans that day. We sat & chatted with some of our tourmates while we waited. I believe this was the first day for the Prince Caspian pre-parade show – basically the Prince on horseback with a couple of courtiers, walking the parade route. Scott took lots of great pictures and we got some extra waves from the characters as they passed by.
 Belle and the Beast in the Parade of Dreams |
 Mickey and Minnie in the Parade of Dreams |
After the parade, the 4 of us (Scott & I, Michael & Scott) took an ice cream break, then headed over to Critter Country. We’d received another set of FastPasses from our Guides earlier in the day and were itching to use them! The park was kind of busy, and we were happy to avoid the 60-minute standby at Splash Mountain. I sat in front with Scott right behind me, and the guys behind him… Scott and I got absolutely SOAKED! While the camera bag has a waterproof cover, we weren’t smart enough to put our paperwork in it – so my notebook, the storybook/itinerary and a couple of other souvenirs got quite wet. At least the high temps didn’t feel quite so oppressive anymore! The 4 of us decided to give Big Thunder Mountain Railroad a whirl & used another FastPass for it – very fun! I was a bit uncomfortable in sopping wet jeans, so Scott and I headed back to the room about 5 to change clothes and take a bit of a break.
We headed back to the park about 6:30 – we discovered once we returned to the room that water had gotten into our lanyard pouches and stuck the tickets to the plastic; when we tried to take them out, the barcodes peeled off. I called Diana to see what we should do; she said to stop by Guest Relations over by DCA & she’d let them know what happened. We had no problems at all getting our tickets replaced; in fact, James had worked with Quinn previously and was asking us all sorts of questions about the tour. He was thrilled that there was finally something available for guests who wanted to take some sort of backstage tour!
Our tummies were a bit grumbly by this time, so we stopped by the Refreshment Corner for some hot dogs – not quite as good as Casey’s (no fixins bar), but still pretty yummy. I got the kid’s meal, which had some really cute artwork on the box of various characters on the attractions. We headed over to Tomorrowland, and ran into Scott & Michael at Buzz Lightyear’s AstroBlasters (using another FP), then headed over to the meeting place for Fantasmic. We had reserved seating on the second tier up from the water’s edge, right next to the control booth. Chatted some with Beci and Michelle, Brad and Quinn as we waited. I think we had a slightly better view this time, as we were elevated; but both shows were just… well… fantasmic!
 Peter Pan section of Fantasmic! |
 The Old Crone |
Mickey Mouse at the End of Fantasmic!
We decided to stick around and watch the fireworks from this vantage point, instead of trying to fight the crowds in the 5-10 min between the two events, since Diana & Quinn had told us we had better reserved seating for the fireworks the following night. In an effort to keep the crowds from swarming to the Hub, Disney has added some effects on the Island – fog rolls out across the river during the Haunted Mansion segment, and the Fantasmic lasers are also used during the Tomorrowland segment.
About 10:00 – a group of us (9 total – the two of us, Michael & Scott, Beci & Michelle, Brent & Brock and Brad) decided to take in a Jungle Cruise – Skipper Cota put on a very good show, tho he seemed a bit over-caffienated at times! Skipper Jay was still our favorite skipper from this visit, but Cota was right up there - we were also getting kind of silly by this time as well. The group decided to get one more ride on Space Mountain in – we kept getting the giggles - Michele made a comment about wanting to use her FastPass in line at a refreshment cart - that set both Scott and Michelle off ... they were nearly in tears they laughed so hard!
Our group still had a couple of extra FastPasses between us, so decided to cap off the night with a good deed and pass them along to other guests. We got some good responses – including one family telling us we were “awesome!” The two of us headed back to the room a little after 11 & pretty much fell right into bed after that!
Mileage: 21,631 steps = 8.53 miles… whew!
Attraction count: 18 – including character breakfast, the stops backstage, the parade, Fantasmic! and fireworks. A very busy and fun-filled day!
See the more of our pictures from Backstage Magic Day4: Walt's World