The DisGeek Podcast

Your Guide to the Happiest Place on Earth

Wednesday Photo Challenge 11-2-11

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Every Wednesday I will post a photo and issue a challenge for our readers to answer a question about it.

This Wednesday’s Challenge is this:

This waterfall is part of the decor for what attraction? 

By now, you may have noticed I have a fondness for waterfalls.

If you know the answer to this one, or think you know the answer, drop me a line.

You can do this by:

Leaving a comment here (certanly the simplest way)

Send me a direct message on Twitter (@disgeekpaul)

or drop me an e-mail: paul@disgeek.com.

I’ll keep your answers hidden so that more people can guess, therefore YOU will be able to see your answer, but no one else will. I need to keep it going as long as I can and give everyone a fair shot at it.

Tomorrow morning I’ll post the names of players who guessed correctly and reveal a new photo with the correct answer.

Have a great wonderful, wandering Wednesday!

New Disneyland Resort Ticket and Hotel Deals

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New Disneyland Resort Ticket and Hotel Deals are now available. Straight from the Disney Parks Blog:

Now is the time to plan your Disneyland Resort getaway – we’ve got some great new offers available for purchase and booking today!

First, starting today you can get a 3-Day Park Hopper ticket for just $199! The ticket is valid for 13 days after the first day of use beginning January 4 through May 28, 2012, and must be purchased prior to arrival. Visit Disneyland.com/3dayPH for more information, including restrictions and blockout dates. Plus – this special 3-Day Park Hopper ticket also allows you one Magic Morning admission, so be sure to check the daily park hours and restrictions prior to arriving.

And while you’re planning your stay here at the Disneyland Resort, take advantage of these two special hotel offers:

  • Save up to 35%* on stays for most Sunday through Thursday nights at a Disneyland Resort hotel for travel between January 2 through February 29, when booked before February 29. More information here.
  • Save up to $500 on a 4-day, 4-night Disneyland Resort vacation! ** Package includes four-night stay at a Disneyland Resort hotel and 4-Day Park Hopper ticket. Offer available for arrivals between January 2 through February 26, when booked before February 26. Click here for offer details.

 

Also, stay at any Disneyland Resort hotel from January 4 to February 29 and receive 2 Disney’s FASTPASS tickets for each person in your party (ages 3 and older)!*** Valid theme park tickets are required, of course.

So many great deals! Will we be seeing you at the Disneyland Resort soon?
*Savings based on the non-discounted price for the same room at the same hotel. The number of rooms allocated for this offer is limited. Subject to restrictions and change without notice.

**Savings based on the nondiscounted price for the same Walt Disney Travel Co. package of a standard room for four (4) nights for a family of four (3 adults and 1 child [age 3-9]) at a Disneyland Resort hotel with 4-Day Disneyland Resort Park Hopper Bonus Tickets for each person. Subject to availability as the number of rooms allocated for this offer is limited. Subject to restrictions and change without notice. Walt Disney Travel Company CST: 1022229-50.

*** Each Disney’s FASTPASS ticket will allow a guest one (1) entrance to the FASTPASS return line of any Disney’s FASTPASS attraction at the Disneyland Resort Theme Parks (except “World of Color“). Tickets expire seven (7) days from check-in or 3/7/2012, whichever occurs first. Disney’s FASTPASS attractions and return lines may not operate daily and Disney’s FASTPASS tickets are subject to attraction changes, closures and capacity. No cash value; no substitutions. Tickets may not be sold, copied or transferred for commercial purposes and will not be replaced if lost or stolen. Subject to restrictions and change without notice.

 

An ‘Inside’ Look at Buena Vista Street at Disney California Adventure Park

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On the heels of our last episode entitled, “Pump House!” where we discussed Buena Vista Street.  The Disney Parks Blog today posted an article about some of the Interiors of Buena Vista Street.  Enjoy…

Here on the Disney Parks Blog, we’ve talked about rooftops, storefronts and bridges on Buena Vista Street at Disney California Adventure park, but now it’s time to take a peek inside a few of the doors. I recently chatted with Lynne Itamura, Senior Principal Interior Designer at Walt Disney Imagineering, to find out how colors, materials and design are bringing the whole experience to life – inside and out.
Lynne told me that her team worked very closely with WDI creative directors to make sure that the environment which envelops guests on the exterior of Buena Vista Street translates to the interior spaces as well. They also focused on making the design elements fit the time period of the area – the 1920s through ‘30s. Even the patterns and glazing used for the tile will be typical of the time.

She also explained how different design elements can help create separate spaces – for example, the different spaces within Elias & Co., which will be the main merchandise location for the area. Separated into four areas, it will be built to resemble a classic department store. The main space, inspired by some of the older department stores along L.A.’s Wilshire Blvd., will make a grand statement with lots of stone – especially lighter-toned, pinkish-hued marble as seen in the rendering above. By contrast, the kids’ “department,” which will be the toy location, will be colored with a brighter, more playful palette.
“Color is a very important design element,” Lynne said. “It creates mood and volume.”

The accessories space, pictured in the rendering above, will feature more earth tones, while the jewelry location – at the end of the street – will shine and sparkle as if you’re inside a jewelry box. When choosing colors, Lynne’s team looked at historical color palettes from the time period.
“Because of the range of that time period, we had a lot to choose from,” she said.

For Trolley Treats and Clarabelle’s Hand-Scooped Ice Cream, the team looked for colors and materials that would showcase the candy and ice cream treats that would be available in those locations. Tiles on the wall of Trolley Treats will look like NECCO Wafers and the colors on the walls of the ice cream shop will be reminiscent of neapolitan ice cream.
“We had a great time talking about what would make this place say ‘ice cream,’” Lynne told me, adding that guests will find the decor very “lickable.”
“Although we really don’t encourage that,” she said.

Wednesday Photo Challenge Answer: Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage

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Every Wednesday we test your DLR knowledge with a photograph taken somewhere in the Disneyland Resort.  Here it is:

Does this really look like a waterfall from The Jungle Cruise? That’s what the bulk of you thought. Another handfull thought it was that big waterfall around Grizzly River Run in DCA, but alas, no.

We had a lot of good guesses, but surprisingly only three correct ones. What I found even more funny was the number of you who scoffed and told me to actually challenge you on this one.

LMAO! Looks like the joke’s on YOU! 😉

Most of us have taken photographs  and gotten very close to this waterfall. Submarines from Finding Nemo’s Submarine Voyage pass through it constantly.

The original Submarine Voyage thru Liquid Space attraction was built as part of the “new” Tomorrowland in 1959, and closed on September 9, 1998. At that time, Paul Pressler promised us that the attraction would re-open with a new theme by 2003.

One of the first attempts to resurrect the subs was banked on the success of the 2001 Disney animated film, “Atlantis: The Lost Empire”. However, when Atlantis flopped at the box office, plans of re-theming based on the film were shelved and the attraction remained untouched.

Later, the entire lagoon became a scenic viewpoint. The submarines were stored inside the show building without maintenance. Pressler left, and the attraction’s announced 2003 return date passed without action.

When Matt Ouimet became the President of Disneyland Resort in 2003, there was new activity in the Submarine Lagoon.

Rumors spread quickly over the Internet, saying that an attraction based on the Disney/Pixar animated film Finding Nemo was going to finally replace Submarine Voyage. After months of speculation, on July 15, 2005, two days before the 50th Anniversary of Disneyland, the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage was officially announced.

The attraction was a huge success with fans when it opened, queue line times for boarding stretched to nearly four hours.

In 2010, line times fell around 50 minutes and is now about 45 minutes (give or take) thanks to the reopening of Star Tours..

So those of you who answered Finding Nemo’s Submarine Voyage were correct!

To those of you who answered “Jungle Cruise” (and there were plenty of you) were not even close! HA!

Here is the list of this week’s winners:

Teresa Hale

“LilLeopard” (Twitter)

Elizabeth Tsuzaki

And to those who gave it a shot, thank you so much for participating!

We’ll have a new one for you next week, so when you’re in the Disneyland Resort (Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, Downtown Disney and all of the Disney hotels), keep your eyes peeled and take in everything.