Of the some 2,350 pictures I took during our trip to Disneyland in July 2022, I have only shared a small percentage over the past year. Looking back through all the images I captured, I don't know why I neglected to include some in the original posts for their respective lands! I had a lot of options to choose from, so I guess they just got lost in the shuffle. So as the final post in this lengthy Disneyland series, I'm shoving some leftovers at you, but most of them aren't bad
This was the first picture I took when we arrived. We were feet away from the turnstile, ready to begin our inaugural visit to Disneyland...
...only to find our tickets didn't work. My dad is laughing because he thinks the ticket taker is joking that we need to pay a $300 fee to make our tickets work. No jokes here.
But it really didn't make a difference because we were smiling on the fire truck in 20 minutes, and nothing else mattered! The driver took this picture for us.
I can't come up with super-original commentary for all of these photos, as many of them are just different angles of shots I've shared in other posts. Here's the venerable dedication plaque.
I spent about a half hour one day photographing all of the Main Street windows. The Claude Coats one is a favorite.
I wonder if these classic Main Street signs actually date back to 1955 or if their components have been replaced over the years?
Of course Wally Boag is offering "golden" vaudeville routines from his office above the Carnation Cafe.
I took this photo looking out of the Penny Arcade, giving a unique viewpoint of Main Street. 
Many Disney fans, myself included, have enjoyed the gorgeous attention to detail in Sam McKim's Fun Maps, so his window is especially appropriate.
It's easy to be distracted by the characters in the foreground, but I took this picture because I noticed the obviously modified roofline of the Candy Palace. I'm guessing this may be to hide spotlights for the nighttime shows?
I recently read the Dick Nunis biography that was published last year, and it was insightful yet written in the matter-of-fact way I expected. I would recommend it! The best detail in this window is "wave machines, specialty," which references Nunis' failed experiment to install a wave machine on an island in Walt Disney World's Seven Seas Lagoon for surfing.
I took a similar shot as I did in the Penny Arcade outside the Main Street Cinema, with the cartoons banner framing the street. (Who would win in a fight, the cigar store Indian or Dad wielding a stroller?)
I really like this early-morning picture of Fantasyland. It almost has a similar feeling as the famous picture of Walt Disney walking through Sleeping Beauty Castle.
This picture is kind of random, but I love this scene in Pinocchio's Daring Journey where you hear the cheery music of Pleasure Island as you approach these doors. Then they open up, and you're in the lively carnival itself.
Hedges trimmed this carefully must mean we are in Storybook Land!
It looks like I broke the "keep your arms inside the ride" rule to get this picture.
The top of the "I think I can" hill on Casey Jr. gives a good view of Fantasyland.
These two rides are just the best, that is all... I love how narrowly the Casey Jr. tracks and canal pass each other in this picture.
A back row ride on Casey Jr. might be the best seat on the train!
"All abroad, let's goooo"
And here's one photo from a canal boat of a distant Casey Jr. for good measure!
What's just as impressive as it's a small world itself is the attraction's gleaming turnstiles.
The first time I saw it's a small world was on the Railroad rather than approaching it from Fantasyland.
I'm sure you have seen a billion pictures of the clock parade, but it's still such a delight.
I love the layers of classic Disneyland in this photo, especially the immaculate landscaping.
Even though Galaxy's Edge is pretty visible from the Columbia and Mark Twain, you can still take some pictures that make the ships look like they are sailing into the wilderness.
This guy has a cool job and is loving it.
Meanwhile, the Fred Gurley flies into New Orleans Square Station at full speed!
Back on the river, the Columbia sits in Fowler's Harbor while a canoe begins its lap around Tom Sawyer Island.
Fowler's Harbor is a quiet escape from the busy crowds along the river. You can glimpse the scaffolding for the Adventureland Treehouse rising above the treetops. This area outside the River Belle Terrace is where lands converge!
The Mark Twain might be the greatest symbol of classic Disneyland. Its whistle is one of the best sounds in the park in my opinion.
How classic, right? (yeah I'm running out of things to say)
Here's the Mark Twain dock as seen from Tom Sawyer Island. I love that the park maintains the assortment of historic flags in front of the dock.
This is a favorite image that I somehow haven't shared before now, though the Mark Twain is probably one of the most photographed things in Disneyland!
The golden afternoon slowly turns into the evening as rays of sunlight strike the front of Toad Hall.
I like how the sunlight illuminates the east side of Main Street in these pictures. 
Why can't I buy an organ here anymore? #disappointed
The decorations inside Coke Corner are still lovely, and I hope Disney never sees a reason to change this interior.
The Golden Horseshoe is a small piece of Main Street razzle-dazzle in Frontierland after dark.
I caught the moon in this picture, but I wish my camera wouldn't always wash it out!
King Arthur Carrousel becomes even more of a centerpiece of Fantasyland once the sun goes down.
I wish I hadn't used an "art filter" on my camera for this picture, but it could be worse.
The view down Main Street after dark is a beautiful sight as well as one that can bring sadness over the day coming to a close.
With its red and white chaser lights, Coke Corner feels like it's just as much from the 1950s as the early 1900s period it's meant to evoke.
I love how the Crystal Arcade sign suggests something far grander than the little shops behind the facade.
I took this photo of a nearly empty Town Square while I was waiting for the Main Street Electrical Parade to start.
And it's a great parade. And I somehow teleported to the Hub after taking the last picture.
Not the clearest image, but I doubt many people have taken a photo like this either.
You pass Main Street Station in the morning completely excited, then walk under it tired and content at the end of the day, so it's only fitting that I leave a final picture of it here at the end of the post.
I hope you have enjoyed every post I've made since August 2022 about Disneyland and were able to put up with this disjointed trip through the park! The captions are slightly wacky because I didn't have much to say about some of these pictures. More trip reports are to come in the future, but none of them will have anything close to the wonderful atmosphere of Disneyland. Where else can you see a circus train skirting a flower-covered hillside from a boat gliding through placid waters?
21 comments:
Andrew: all the metal can lights on Disneyland’s Main Street were completely replace with new everything leading up to the park’s 50th in 2005. Many had been replaced over the previous decades already…and they were from various periods of time. But today none are older than early 2000’s.
In 1985 most of Main Street’s wood and plaster moulding details were replaced with weather resistance FRP ( fiberglass reinforced plastic) with master mounds made from pieces of the originals wood and plaster pieces. Hong Kong Disneyland’s Main Street USA at opening was made using the Anaheim molds created in 1985. In fact Hong Kong Disneyland’s Main Street at opening looked more like original Anaheim’s Main Street than the 2005 Anaheim Main Street !!
Andrew: what was the deal with the tickets you had!?? Were they fraudulent?
More wonderful photos! There is something about your first photo that I really like. However, I can imagine the frustration you must have felt at that moment, after not being allowed through the turnstiles with your tickets.
That's a great family shot of everyone aboard the Main Street Fire Engine!
I'm not 100% sure, but I don't believe the added walls along the tops of the Main Street buildings were done to hide the spotlights. They already had some newer lights that popped up for parades and folded back down afterwards. I believe the added height was a safety thing (maybe even a forced thing by OSHA?). I think they were added for extra protection for any worker who might be on those rooftops. I believe the extra "lip" or ledge on top of Space Mountain was added for the same reason. Hopefully Mike will come back, and give us confirmation on all of this.
I really like the two pics you took looking out, from inside the Main Street buildings. And with your shot looking out from inside the Penny Arcade, you caught something that is rarely photographed. The "backside" of Esmeralda! Or at least, her cabinet!
Storybook Land is so beautiful, and your photos really show off that beauty. Let's hope that management doesn't decide to do away with it for a lame coaster, or shop, or meet 'n greet, or bar that serves alcohol......or any combination thereof.
Is that a white butterfly on the ground, in you first It's A Small World pic? (I know I capitalized the name, when it isn't supposed to be.....oh, well! Now I will call it a "ride," just to anger some people!)
Did you stand on, or at least walk over those wooden grates on the deck of the Columbia? I hope so!
I wonder how many people who currently work in the Disney Showcase, know that they ever sold organs within that space? Zero? And they should know these things, since they are very important historical facts! They need to teach these things in new employee orientation. And yes, I know I called them employees!
Thanks for sharing one last batch of pics from your DL trip, Andrew!
Mike, thanks for confirming that all of the Main Street fixtures aren’t older than the 2000s. When I wrote that sentence in the post, I knew you would have the answer! Since we bought our tickets in early 2020, we couldn’t just walk up to the gate and use them, but we didn’t realize that. So the fee was to make up for the price difference over the past two years!
Budblade, thank you! That is the best compliment I could ask for.
TokyoMagic!, I’m glad you enjoyed the pictures! It was slightly frustrating that we couldn’t walk right into the park, but we didn’t get there near rope drop, so it didn’t really make a difference. Oh yeah, I bet the added walls on the Main Street roofs are for OSHA fall protection.
I didn’t realize I caught Esmeralda’s cabinet in that picture! :-) Maybe they can replace Story Book Land with a meet ‘n greet that has an alcohol-serving bar at its end, with a roller coaster running above guests' heads. I’m sure you can see the “butterfly” in the small world picture is just an arrow, but let’s pretend it’s a butterfly.
I can’t remember if I stood on the wooden grates on the Columbia deck! Is that a life-changing experience? I love that you think “very important historical facts” MUST be taught during "employee" orientation. They need to be ready for people who barge into the store just to quiz them on random facts.
Those grates are cargo hatches … as in “BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES”
I believe most of the Main Street USA extended cornices and roof lines were added when NITE MAGIC was performed - I thought it was to hide all the extra show lighting that was needed to perform that show- but it’s possible it was because they needed to protect crew members working up there during the parades. Hong Kong Disneyland has a duplicate of Anaheim’s Main Street USA and they perform parades but their Main Street has the original 1955 roof lines.
Because of FANTASMUCK …. Disneyland’s original New Orleans Square roofline was MUCKED UP … big time to add all the control rooms and lighting equipment - destroying so much of what Walt and his imagineers worked so hard to create .
Yeah you heard me: FANTASMUCK.
I can’t remember if I stood on the wooden grates on the Columbia deck! Is that a life-changing experience?
I guess it just gives me a little bit of suspense, wondering if the grates could possibly break. But I know if that was a possibility, then they wouldn't have it open to guests like that. Or would they?
I like your idea for a coaster with a bar below. Throw in a shop, and it's a trifecta! Hey, why not let the guests drink alcohol WHILE they are riding the coaster!
I love that you think “very important historical facts” MUST be taught during "employee" orientation.
Now I'm wondering just how much history they do teach the "new hires" during orientation? I'm assuming they don't tell them about the Wurlitzer shop....or the Wizard of Bras shop? But way back in the day, I had a regular park orientation (in the Disneyland University, over in the Administration Building), and also a separate parade dept. orientation (in the old Fantasyland Theater), and I remember them talking about early park history and showing old photos. Maybe today, there is no longer a review of park history or any talk about Walt, and they only get the employee rules and regulations read to them, along with a plea from their trainers, asking them to "just try not to look TOO miserable" out there! ;-)
Mike, I like your nickname for Fantasmic. :) Some parts of New Orleans Square you can really see how the roofs are wonky, and we all know who the culprit is. I would really like to see how Hong Kong Disneyland's Main Street compares myself, but I doubt I ever will.
TokyoMagic!, you are hilarious. I love that they went into park history for your orientation. If I was in charge of that, every employee would receive a copy of Chris Strodder's Disneyland Encyclopedia and be required to pass a 100-question exam before they could start work. Kennywood told us about three facts and that was it, but really the plea you mentioned was the only thing that was important. :-)
I forgot to mention that Knott's Berry Farm went into a lot of history, during their employee orientation....the history of the Knott Family, their farm, the boysenberry, Cordelia's Chicken Dinner Restaurant, Ghost Town, etc. I wonder how much of that (if any) is still gone over today? In the not-so-distant future, the employees might be getting a revised history, about Mr. and Mrs. "Flag" and their "Six" children. ;-)
In the dedication plaque photo, the Castle looks quite close... and small. I think it's those big trees behind the Castle that makes it look that way. That, and, well, it really IS close and small.
I like the Pinocchio doorway shot; colorful, but moody. Let's go inside, drink booze, smoke, gamble, and smash things up! Pay no attention to the happy, frantic, scared donkey above the door. I'm sure it means nothing.
In the Storybook Land photo, where you broke the "arms inside" rule (Do you still have both your arms?), there is a hatch in the backside of the Italian Alps above Geppetto's Village. Wonder what that is?
In the Cinderella Castle shots, the Pumpkin Coach is especially visible. I wonder if they made the Coach bigger over the years?
Beautiful night pics, especially the Carousel.
"More trip reports are to come in the future"
Oh wow! I am SO looking forward to your 36 photo post showcasing the "Giant Ball of String"! ;-D
Great pictures, as always, Andrew!
Wonderful pics and memories. It makes me look forward to creating more of my own.
TokyoMagic!, all I can think of is the always-creepy Mr. Six Who cares about the history of the boysenberry when we can dance to "We Like to Party?"
JB, you're right, that photo shows the intimate scale of Main Street well. The Pleasure Island scene in Pinocchio gave me nightmares when I was younger, and I'm not surprised looking back on it! Good eye on the trap door in the back of the Alps. Maybe that is where they hide some gardening supplies for the horticulture team? I'm glad you enjoyed the post! Believe me, I would happily do a 36-photo post on a random roadside attraction like the world's largest twine ball, but even I have my limits. :-)
Geek Goddess, thank you!
Andrew, I forgot all about "Mr. Six"! I wonder why they stopped using him?
All good things must come to an end, but I am grateful for all of your amazing trip reports. Part of the fun is reading the reactions from somebody who is experiencing it all for the first time.
So what the heck happened with the tickets anyway? Your dad seems to be taking it all way better than I would have! But your poor little sister looks mournful.
That’s a great family portrait (in the firetruck)!
Another fun thing about your photos is that you are aware of the history and significance of many things that most folks don’t even consider, so the windows on Main Street or the dedication plaque have meaning to you.
Love the photo from inside the Penny Arcade.
A friend just gave me his copy of the Dick Nunis biography, but I haven’t cracked the spine yet. Soon? My friend was a little disappointed in the book, but I think he was hoping for more Disneyland-related stuff.
It sure seems like crowds were low during your visit, some of the photos are practically devoid of any other people. How often does that happen?
I feel your pain regarding finding something to say about a photo of the Mark Twain or It’s a Small World! I’ve posted many hundreds of photos of the Twain at this point, and it gets to be a real challenge.
So many of your photos are really nice, much better than anything I ever take. And I love the interior of the Coke Corner. Again, where are the crowds??
The night shots are beauties, and the Electrical Parade is my favorite Disneyland parade of all time.
Thanks, Andrew!
Major, I’m glad you have enjoyed all the trip reports. I’ll have to return to some of my local parks for future posts, but I hope you’ll be able to enjoy that too. Since the tickets were two years old, my dad just had to choke up the fee to make them work. He wasn't too upset because we were just so happy to finally be there, and we originally purchased the tickets at a steeply discounted rate anyway. I tried to explain why things like the dedication plaque were important to my family, but they seemed mildly interested at best.
I went into the Dick Nunis book expecting a straightforward story, and that’s what I got. His personality definitely comes through in the writing style. When we were at the park, there was one really crowded day, one dead day, and the rest of the days had medium-level crowds. I consider that a lucky outcome. The pictures with hardly anyone in them must have been taken on the dead day. Thanks for the comment!
TokyoMagic!, maybe it's a good thing they stopped using "Mr. Six!"
Great family picture on the fire truck.
Wow - so many wonderful shots! I think my favorites, today, are all the Storybook Land and Casey Jr. ones. And your Rivers of America ones, too. And inside Coke Corner. And the nighttime Carrousel. And the "Lou Perry" parade-viewing area from the train station. I love 'em all.
Andrew, if you took 2,350 pictures of Disneyland, then you have a LOT more posts to do. We want to see ALL of them.
Thank you, Andrew, for a wonderful day in Disneyland.
Sue, you know I put that family picture in just for you! :-) Thanks to Lou’s pictures, I knew that the train station would be a great vantage point for the parade. I would love to share every picture I took at the park, but I am going to take a break for other topics at least for the next few months. But I may return to these pictures in the future! I’m glad you enjoy them that much. :-D
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