Muppets On The Rise

I guess there are two kinds of people in this world.  Those that like the Muppets and those that don't.  Count me as a fan.  The Muppets 3D attraction in Disney California Adventure presents a bit of a challenge.  I like it.  I like the humor, the whimsy, the understated jokes, the characters.  I like the queue area and I even like the Muppets 3D film itself, but there lies the problem.  Like a lot of the 3D efforts Disney has put in their parks, after so many viewings, the films get rather tiresome and in the case of the Muppets in DCA, even the exploding theater is now predictable.

On our last trip to Disneyland and DCA in March, Mrs. DisneylandTraveler and I had just gotten out of Aladdin or off Monters Inc. when I asked her if she wanted to go in and see the Muppets.  This had worked countless times before.  The Muppets 3D is a no effort attraction - never a long wait, never very crowded, and they get people in and out quickly.  But on this particular visit, Mrs. DLT said she had seen the Muppets enough and didn't really want to go in.  I can't blame her I suppose but it probably did break my streak of seeing the Muppets at least once on every single one of our trips.  It has gotten a bit long in the tooth but these are THE MUPPETS, personal friends.

There is hope.  Rumor has it that a new digital Muppets 3D movie is on the way.  Whether they'll update the old one or have a brand new film I don't know, but any update to the attraction would be appreciated by its scores of fans.  And coming to save America when America really needs it - on November 23rd, Disney releases a brand new Muppet movie to the theaters.  Here are a couple of trailers.

So Disney is resurrecting the Muppet franchise.  Disney bought the Muppets (the Kermit Muppets not the Muppets of Sesame Street) back in 2004 from the heirs of Jim Henson after many years of negotiation.  Let's hope Disney does these wonderful characters proud and gives them their proper due.

In 2011, Disney gave Muppet creator Jim Henson the honor of Disney Legend even though none of Jim's Muppet work was done under the Disney label.  The honor was presented to the family of Jim Henson who Disney well compensated when they sold the rights to the Muppets to the Walt Disney Company.  In reality, before he died unexpectedly in 1990 of a bacterial lung infection, Henson was trying to negotiate the Muppets distribution rights to Disney.  He wanted Disney to handle the business end while he could concentrate his efforts on the creative side.  The condition that caused Jim Henson's death was sadly treatable.  He avoided going to the hospital before it got to be too late because, as the story goes, "he didn't want to bother anyone." A family of Muppets lost their creator.  A generation of people lost a friend.  The picture below is from the "dreamers" collection that graces the Disneyland Opera House.

A Long Forgotten DCA Photograph

Superstar Limo Attraction in DCA - Oct 2002

I'm shocked I tell you, shocked!  So there I was rummaging through my collection of Disney pictures looking for photos of Muppets 3D in DCA, which will be featured in my next post, when there in the middle of the 2002 photos was this picture of the infamous SuperStar Limo attraction.  I had no idea I even had a picture of SSL.  By the time Mrs. DisneylandTraveler and I first visited Disney's California Adventure, the ride had already been shut down.  If it lasted a year, I'd be surprised.  I have another blog entry called Monsters Inc and the Creepy Superstar Limo from back in August that features a video ride through of the attraction that is out on YouTube.  Creepy is the right word alright. Anyway, I guess I just took this picture because it sat next to the Muppets 3D attraction. I'm surprised I had it at all.

Some Disneyland Dining Tips & Tricks

During our trips to Disneyland, Mrs. DisneylandTraveler and I have to budget our Disney spending pretty closely.  Some trips are a little more tightly funded than others.  Over the years we have come to learn a few things.  First of all, once we are in Disneyland or DCA, we generally do not like to leave the park to eat somewhere cheaper off property.  If we do leave the park during the course of a day to eat, we generally go to Downtown Disney.  Now this doesn't include running over to McDonald's for breakfast before we start our day or leaving the park early once or twice and going back to a room and ordering in a pizza. But generally once we are in Disney, we eat Disney.  Here are some lessons learned (mostly by trial and error).

Never order a burger at DL or DCA.  They tend to be overcooked and dry and this probably has more to do with health and safety than anything else. A juicy medium rare burger in Disneyland is non-existent. Now Disney has tried to cover this in recent years by topping their burgers - chili and bacon at the Hungry Bear, and pastrami of all things at the Village Haus.  Many people have said that adding additional toppings to the burgers have improved them.  I haven't had the desire to try one and find out after several disappointments.

Most of the dining places that offer burgers also offer a chicken sandwich. Go with the chicken, they generally are better.

Disney has been trying to upscale and diversify their menu options.  A lot of research goes into adding something new and different to a menu.  If you go to a dining facility that offers something new on their menu, try it.  At least Disney thinks they have hit on something people might like - fried green tomato sandwich at the Hungry Bear, flat bread pizza at the Village Haus, stuffed baked potatoes at the Troupador Tavern.

Large portions served at the French Market and Plaza Inn may be worth splitting.  Generally these two places serve up very good quick service food.

Just because it's a table service restaurant does not mean the price is outrageous.  You can have a reasonably priced meal at the Carnation Cafe, Cafe Orleans, and the Wine Country Trattoria over in DCA.  The overall price would not be that much more than one of the better quick service dining places.

The Big Thunder BBQ is expensive running 20 bucks for lunch and 25 for dinner - fixed menu at a fixed price.  The thing about Big Thunder is the food is quite good and it is "all you can eat."

The Blue Bayou is expensive but dinner runs about 5 bucks more than lunch so you can save a bit by going during the lunch time hours.  If you have never been to the Blue Bayou - go, at least once.  It's about as much about the dining experience as it is about the food.  Both deliver.  I have heard of people going to the Blue Bayou just for desserts.  Don't think I would do this. You can also split a plate, but it is costly.

The Riverbelle Terrace serves up great carved sandwiches but they are very expensive at about $13 each.  If we go there Mrs. DLT and I will generally split a sandwich.

For quick meals, there is the infamous corn dog - greasy and good and big enough to split. There is also the skewers at the Bengal BBQ - I love the bacon wrapped asparagus.  There are hot dogs around but they tend to be overpriced, same with slices of pizza.  There are better options.  We also avoid the grab and go turkey legs and chimichangas.

We tend to avoid the greasy deep fried food served at the Golden Horseshoe and adjoining Stage Door Cafe. You mostly end up tasting grease.

Both DL and DCA have Mexican dining places - I think the DCA place is better as long as you stay away from the beef which again, tends to be overcooked and dry.  I like the chicken tamales myself.

Soup in bread bowls is a popular choice because it is filling and fairly reasonably priced.  My issue has always been that the soups are kind of mediocre in taste and generally not served hot enough.  The Boudin bread though is very good.  Over at the Pacific Wharf in DCA, they serve salads in a bread bowl.  My sister loves these, especially the bay shrimp salad.

Disney bakers make some excellent baked goods and treats, same with the candy makers. Some of these goodies are pretty reasonably priced, some are not.  Always worth taking a look though.

If you are a coffee drinker, get a cup at the Market House.  Free refills all day with receipt.

Meals in Downtown Disney can be pricey as well but several of the restaurants have adjoining walk-up dining service for reasonable prices.  This is a pretty nice option.

Well, that's a few thoughts on food.  Make a dining plan when you go on a trip.  A website like allears.net has all the menus online.  With a little planning, your dining at Disneyland can be an enjoyable experience and not a "rip-off" as some people tend to believe.

Disneyland Time Lapse Video

As you may have seen from my previous blog entries, I am a huge fan of the Disneyland videos that were shot by Asianjma123 and uploaded to YouTube.  Visually and artistically, these are excellent and are the very thing I  wish I were able to take on my trips to Disneyland.  A few days ago he uploaded a very well produced time lapse video which I am re-posting here.  Definitely worth checking out.

Disneyland Urban Renewal

When Disney announced at the D23 Expo last month that its major upcoming project was the moving of the Princess Fantasy Faire to the front of the Castle plus building a new nearby bakery, it was met by the masses with "Huh?  That's it?  What gives?".  Meet & greets and bakeries do not exactly get the excitement juices flowing.  Disneyland fans want something more, something bigger because lord knows, the park could use another jolt of anticipated excitement (even given the recent massive success of the revamped Star Tours). Disneyland Park fans always point to 3 major areas of improvement.

Tomorrowland has degraded to a mess of mish-mash attractions and themes.  I have to admit, it never really bothered me but most park fans start right at the Tomorrowland entrance and say that the Astro Orbitor has got to go.  In the place it is currently located, it is an unsightly intrusion on Main St., is a traffic blocker for people entering Tomorrowland, and just looked cooler when it sat up on that elevated platform in front of Space Mountain. Points well taken.  The dated Captain EO has got to go and have the Magic Eye Theater put to better use.  Something also needs to be done with the old People Mover track - either rebuild it or remove it. And finally, do something, anything with Innoventions.  Real critical park thinkers even take shots at the popular Autopia, Finding Nemo Subs, and Buzz Lightyear - what do any of these attractions have to do with "tomorrow"?

While Tomorrowland is a prime target for those who want some Disneyland urban renewal, others point to Frontierland.  Largely stagnant for years, and in need of a new attraction or two of some kind.  There is room for building in Frontierland with the largely unused Festival Arena area and the adjacent Big Thunder BBQ, a place Mrs. DisneylandTraveler both enjoy but hasn't seemed to quite caught on with the masses.

And the other target is something we'll address in another blog entry at some point - the question of whether or not to demolish ToonTown and replace it with something else.

So Disneyland has room for change and improvement just like Walt said it would many years ago.  With all the attention going to Disney California Adventure, let's not lose sight of the original.

Before We Roll On....

Just a quick word before we roll on.  The Disneyland Traveler Blog is a little over three months old.  I don't know who takes the time to read this stuff, but let me say once again how appreciative I am of each and every person who takes the time to read about my love for Disneyland along with a few of my criticisms.  It's been fun for me over the summer and we'll be sure to carry on.  I don't know who reads this but Google (the creator of this blogging platform) does give numbers on how many people visit The Disneyland Traveler.  So we started our first full month in June with 363 readers, then moved on to July going up about 100 to 468 readers. In August, 802 people read this blog.  So to each of you, the Disneyland Traveler says "Thank You!".

If you have any comments, questions, suggestions, or any random thoughts about Disneyland at all, you can email me at disneylandtraveler@gmail.com.

Now on to more fun.....

September in Disneyland

Entrance to Pirates of the Caribbean during 2006 refurbishment

So we've rolled right into September, summer ends and fall begins.  After this Labor Day weekend, Disneyland goes into a transitional mode.  The Halloween decorations will appear, rides go down for overlays.  Some rides go down for major refurbishment.

My friend Mike's birthday is Sept 11 (sad when your birthday is now associated with a tragic day of infamy). He plans to go down to Disneyland next Friday.  So I gave him the rundown. Haunted Mansion closed while the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay is installed.  Space Mountain closed to install the Ghost Galaxy overlay.  California Screamin' closes until sometime in October for refurbishment.  And finally, Pirates of the Caribbean (along with the Blue Bayou restaurant) closed until Thanksgiving day for its major refurbishment. "Wow, those are some of my favorites" he exclaimed.  Yep, a lot of people's favorites.  I told him to look at the bright side next weekend, as at least it will probably help to keep the crowd levels down (maybe).  I wouldn't feel too bad for Mike though.  He has lunch next Friday at Club 33 (he has friends who are members).

Anyway, over the next two weeks at Disneyland a lot will be done to prepare for the Halloweentime at the Disneyland Resort.  I think that's the official name they give to that time of year now.  I suppose Halloween will be a key feature in my blogs over the next several weeks.  Mrs DisneylandTraveler and myself were actually at Disneyland during last year's Halloweentime in September, so we have all kinds of pictures and remembrances of our time down there.  Something to look forward to I suppose but since I'm not really big on Halloween, there may be an editorial slant - be forewarned.