Trip Report, Pt. 2

Join me on my trip through the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, one of my very favorite dark rides at Disneyland. The Dream Suite looms over the queue, making me wish I could stay there in all its Imagineer-ed splendor!



I wonder how many people zipping through the queue stop to notice this very cool Anniversary Tribute fountain?



I love the peacefulness of the initial trip through the Bayou.





And the sighting of the Jolly Roger, preparing you for the riches ahead.



I never tire of seeing all the details in the Captain's Bar, Quarters, and Treasure Room:







The crossfire in this scene is always exciting, as blasts of water randomly hit guests in their boat.





My favorite scene still sparkles after all these years:







Stalking, pirate-style!



Although the hat-thief in the Minstrel/Burning City scene is missing, my favorite hairy-legged pirate was still overhead:



What a classic scene; eternal torment in prison.



More crossfire!



For some reason, even though there are plenty of props, this recently added scene leaves me flat.



Out in the light of day, the Court of Angels is always a great place for photos.





It should come as no surprise that my next stop was The Haunted Mansion; it was a Double Dark Ride Spectacular! I can practically hear the organ music now...



Talk about details...every place you turn (or crane your neck) there is something to appreciate.







"Of course, there's always my way!" Oh how I love me a little Frees-style creepy!



Ever notice the "faces" above these doors?



The dueling portraits are another fave for me in this attraction.



Zooming in to see what this one looks like:



More creepy...I love it! Simple though it may be, this little light effect is great!



So much to see here in the cemetery...you almost need infra-red glasses to catch it all!



Little Leota is the ultimate in cool. Ever since I was a little tot, this effect totally blew me away.



Enough of the dark...time for some shots in the daylight. The new Lego sculptures in Downtown Disney have finally been unveiled:









By this point, I had been joined by 2/3 of the Tours Departing Daily team. It's always a blast to hang with them, since they love shooting photos as much as I do. The three of us hadn't eaten much and The Jolly Holiday was the perfect spot to satisfy our hunger.



Need I say it again? The details make the difference!









Call me crazy (it wouldn't be the first time), but I'm a sucker for light fixtures and signage.





Let's see which way the wind is blowing...



Next up: Disneyland at Night! See more vintage & current Disneyland photos at my Disneyland website.

Trip Report, Pt. 1

Just a warning...this could be a long one. I'm still editing the 1,000 photos I took this weekend. Yikes! My trio of friends (aka the Gaggle of Gals) shacked up at the Grand California. I am still blown away by the beauty of this place whenever I see it. Just seeing the stained glass entry doors is enough to make me happy! There are so many cool things to view, that you can easily understand why I blew threw 1,000 photos. Did I mention that I took 1,000 photos?



As a great admirer of the Arts & Crafts style, this hotel is like dessert for me.



And the light fixtures...like manna from heaven.





Many hotels will spend a bundle on the lobby and common areas, but the rooms themselves are shortchanged; not so with the Grand Californian. The Arts & Crafts theme is tastefully done throughout the entire hotel.





One photo of the Gaggle of Gals and I was on my way!



As always, the Main Street Train Station was a welcoming site.



All aboard!



First up, I had to check out the revamped Penny Arcade & Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor. The Gibson Girl has been given more of an Art Nouveau styling. Looking lavishly detailed, I am sure many guests will love it.



Full of details (once again, the light fixtures!) that make the long waits much easier to take.



The charm of Disneyland's Main Street vs. its Orlando counterpart is that its vision of Main Street had a 1950's flair, vs. Orlando's 1970's gaudy version. With each remodel, Anaheim's Main Street seems to go more for the ornate and farther from the quaint. Just a matter of preference.





Some of the Penny Arcade machines can still be found, but with each remodel, there are more items to buy, and less items to marvel at.



This beautiful vintage Welte Band Organ is now a popcorn stand. Honestly, just how much money does Disney need? The Candy Palace's remodel has successfully crammed as much retail space as possible into what was once an attraction all by itself. The Penny Arcade has gotten the fuzzy end of the lollipop on this one. The worst part was the loss of seating at the Coke Corner. Just another semi-quiet spot that his bit the dust at the expense of squeezing out a few more dollars.

Before:



After:



Here are two 1960's photos of this very cool piece:





Mercifully, Esmeralda has survived.



I loved that they used the original Marc Davis Haunted Mansion stretching portrait images for the cards:



Strangely enough, I'd never noticed this detailing on the front of the machine.



Not so lucky was the Green Elephant. Sayonara—the pencil pushers need more money! Here is a shot from a few years back. So sorry that they chose to remove this great conversation-piece.



Next up: a trip to the Caribbean!

See more vintage & current Disneyland photos at my Disneyland website.