The Way of the Mouse
I returned today from a week in Orlando, Florida for the holidays.
I gave my blog a rest as the only internet service was at the local Kinkos. They charged $12 an hour, about $10 too much in my opinion.
Some impressions:
Could airport lounges be any more uncomfortable? Even the TV volume is too soft and stuck on CNN. The customer service on United Airline's TED was better than most of the planes I've been on recently.
The bright colors of the southwest soon changed to periwinkle and steel tones when we landed in Chicago, just before the arrival of a blizzard. The pilot checked the de-icing of the wings before we left as snow eddied on the tarmac. We encountered grinding turbulance from 150 mile per hour winds.
The balcony of our condo is screened to prevent the loss of loved ones or things.
Black geckos or skinks infest the gardens. But they are timid and harmless. The lizards hang upside down on the railing of the pool to nibble the aphids.
A black and gold macaw in the lobby greeted me as many Floridians do-- first by saying "hello" and then secondly by screaming at me.
I'm impressed by Disney's polish and perfection and trying to "plus it" where ever possible. At the Animal Kingdom, the Everest Expedition is a must see. They set up the ride by mixing fact and fable in a faux museum to the Yeti, a giant hairy ape-like creature that likes to rip up roller coaster tracks. It was my first time to the Animal Kingdom. I also liked the zoo of real animals with its tigers and tapirs.
I'm amazed at how Disney strives for verisimilitude in recreating foreign locales, right down to the weathered bricks and fading wall posters. But they draw the line at taking the last step-- authentic smells. Having grown up in Asia, I can testify that the Asian exhibits lacks odiferous authenticity-- that uniquely wafting blend of curry, rubber, urine, and dung. Also screened out were the cries of beggers and the honking of the taxis. But they nailed the crowds.
We went to a timeshare presentation with "Gupta". An hour a half later, we ended up none the poorer but with two tickets to Universal Studios.
The Church of Disney is as ritualized as a high mass at St. Patricks and it is scheduled down to the second. MGM and the Magic Kingdom is much like I remember it from more than a decade ago, except for the retirement of some shows (where is Michael Jackson?) and the extra ring of security at ticketing. Some of the "cast members"-- what Disney calls all their employees-- have forgotten the magic as there were a few surly and harried souls who had grown tired of appeasing the Disney customer-- this coiling, shape-shifting beast with 200,000 eyes, 50,000 camcorders, and 10,000 screaming brats. It would be more than I could take. But Disney is a world-class expert in crowd control.
The best ride at MGM is The Tower of Terror, a twelve story high "Hollywood Tower Hotel", which, so the backstory as narrated by the Twilight Zone's Rod Serling goes, was built in 1917 and struck by lightning two decades later, transporting five guests into the beyond. The building we stayed in at the Cypress Pointe Resort looked a bit like The Tower of Terror-- the same verticle lines. But our habitat was one third the height and had no ghosts that I'm aware off.
Our Home
My boy lobbed a tennis ball over two fences into a neighboring wooded lot. The resort wanted to charge us two dollars for the lost ball, so I went jungle bashing and found three balls. Money is money.
Splash Mountain, which features a fifty foot drop on a river roller coaster, was also a lot of fun, especially at night in the dark. I heard my neck crack in the first few seconds on the Aerosmith ride, named after the musical group. The best ride at Epcot was Mars Mission, although it made me green around the gills after my second trip into outer space.
Be sure to look for the hidden Mickey on the golf ball on "Soarin" .
I drove a Sedgeway, a two wheeler powered by a lithium battery and gravity, for the first time at Epcot. But I wasn't impressed with Epcot's home of the future, which seemed overly-digitized and stark. The tankless toilet and the biometric door lock were interesting. Most of the kitchen appliances came from Siemens and Kohler.
At the United States section, a robot Lincoln gave the same speach that I first heard in the 1968 New York World Fair. Some people applauded Bush when he spoke. Unlike all the other presidents, Bush's arms hung away from his body almost chimp like. My boy told me the android was smarter than our real president.
Since it was the holiday season, there was wall to wall people, with many families from overseas, no doubt taking advantage of the favorable exchange rate. However, there are ways to get around the crowds, by riding the most popular rides before ten am or after nine pm and by using fast passes. Some of the rides had waits for more than two hours, about an hour and forty-five minutes more than I can endure.
Would it be so hard for Disney to have more benches in their parks?
One thing that Disney doesn't do well is food. The food at most of their parks is basic and bad. The exception is at Epcot at some of the countries. The German buffet at the Biergarten Restaurant was wonderful.
Spectacular also was the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom and the holiday lighting of Cinderella's Castle in sparkling shades of blue, silver, and mauve. The parades that bisect the park can be annoying if you want to get to another part of the park during that time.
Also impressive was the Candlelight Processional and Massed Choir. The actress Marlee Matlin signed the Christmas story. The orchestra's rendition of "Silent Night" was the most beautiful that I've heard. The program ended with Handel's Hallelujah Chorus.
I gave my blog a rest as the only internet service was at the local Kinkos. They charged $12 an hour, about $10 too much in my opinion.
Some impressions:
Could airport lounges be any more uncomfortable? Even the TV volume is too soft and stuck on CNN. The customer service on United Airline's TED was better than most of the planes I've been on recently.
The bright colors of the southwest soon changed to periwinkle and steel tones when we landed in Chicago, just before the arrival of a blizzard. The pilot checked the de-icing of the wings before we left as snow eddied on the tarmac. We encountered grinding turbulance from 150 mile per hour winds.
The balcony of our condo is screened to prevent the loss of loved ones or things.
Black geckos or skinks infest the gardens. But they are timid and harmless. The lizards hang upside down on the railing of the pool to nibble the aphids.
A black and gold macaw in the lobby greeted me as many Floridians do-- first by saying "hello" and then secondly by screaming at me.
I'm impressed by Disney's polish and perfection and trying to "plus it" where ever possible. At the Animal Kingdom, the Everest Expedition is a must see. They set up the ride by mixing fact and fable in a faux museum to the Yeti, a giant hairy ape-like creature that likes to rip up roller coaster tracks. It was my first time to the Animal Kingdom. I also liked the zoo of real animals with its tigers and tapirs.
I'm amazed at how Disney strives for verisimilitude in recreating foreign locales, right down to the weathered bricks and fading wall posters. But they draw the line at taking the last step-- authentic smells. Having grown up in Asia, I can testify that the Asian exhibits lacks odiferous authenticity-- that uniquely wafting blend of curry, rubber, urine, and dung. Also screened out were the cries of beggers and the honking of the taxis. But they nailed the crowds.
We went to a timeshare presentation with "Gupta". An hour a half later, we ended up none the poorer but with two tickets to Universal Studios.
The Church of Disney is as ritualized as a high mass at St. Patricks and it is scheduled down to the second. MGM and the Magic Kingdom is much like I remember it from more than a decade ago, except for the retirement of some shows (where is Michael Jackson?) and the extra ring of security at ticketing. Some of the "cast members"-- what Disney calls all their employees-- have forgotten the magic as there were a few surly and harried souls who had grown tired of appeasing the Disney customer-- this coiling, shape-shifting beast with 200,000 eyes, 50,000 camcorders, and 10,000 screaming brats. It would be more than I could take. But Disney is a world-class expert in crowd control.
The best ride at MGM is The Tower of Terror, a twelve story high "Hollywood Tower Hotel", which, so the backstory as narrated by the Twilight Zone's Rod Serling goes, was built in 1917 and struck by lightning two decades later, transporting five guests into the beyond. The building we stayed in at the Cypress Pointe Resort looked a bit like The Tower of Terror-- the same verticle lines. But our habitat was one third the height and had no ghosts that I'm aware off.
Their Home
Our Home
My boy lobbed a tennis ball over two fences into a neighboring wooded lot. The resort wanted to charge us two dollars for the lost ball, so I went jungle bashing and found three balls. Money is money.
Splash Mountain, which features a fifty foot drop on a river roller coaster, was also a lot of fun, especially at night in the dark. I heard my neck crack in the first few seconds on the Aerosmith ride, named after the musical group. The best ride at Epcot was Mars Mission, although it made me green around the gills after my second trip into outer space.
Be sure to look for the hidden Mickey on the golf ball on "Soarin" .
I drove a Sedgeway, a two wheeler powered by a lithium battery and gravity, for the first time at Epcot. But I wasn't impressed with Epcot's home of the future, which seemed overly-digitized and stark. The tankless toilet and the biometric door lock were interesting. Most of the kitchen appliances came from Siemens and Kohler.
At the United States section, a robot Lincoln gave the same speach that I first heard in the 1968 New York World Fair. Some people applauded Bush when he spoke. Unlike all the other presidents, Bush's arms hung away from his body almost chimp like. My boy told me the android was smarter than our real president.
Since it was the holiday season, there was wall to wall people, with many families from overseas, no doubt taking advantage of the favorable exchange rate. However, there are ways to get around the crowds, by riding the most popular rides before ten am or after nine pm and by using fast passes. Some of the rides had waits for more than two hours, about an hour and forty-five minutes more than I can endure.
Would it be so hard for Disney to have more benches in their parks?
One thing that Disney doesn't do well is food. The food at most of their parks is basic and bad. The exception is at Epcot at some of the countries. The German buffet at the Biergarten Restaurant was wonderful.
Spectacular also was the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom and the holiday lighting of Cinderella's Castle in sparkling shades of blue, silver, and mauve. The parades that bisect the park can be annoying if you want to get to another part of the park during that time.
Also impressive was the Candlelight Processional and Massed Choir. The actress Marlee Matlin signed the Christmas story. The orchestra's rendition of "Silent Night" was the most beautiful that I've heard. The program ended with Handel's Hallelujah Chorus.
This holiday vacation was interesting and fun. But there's no place like home and it's good to be home again.
Labels: holidays
posted by My Mall & News at
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