Disney California Adventure

While I've spent a year covering the more famous park across the Esplanade on this blog, Disney California Adventure should by no means be known simply as the "other park" secondary to Disneyland. With some richly-designed pockets, DCA has developed into a quality theme park that must be a much worthier complement to Disneyland than it was in its original 2001 incarnation. Even so, we only spent one day at DCA out of our five in Anaheim. After all, DCA is home to some great rides, but it's hard to not be distracted by its 1955-built sister! 

I'm happy that I also took a few minutes to check out the Grand Californian Hotel, even if staying at a place as expensive as this was only a dream for our family!

Looking out one of the hotel's windows, I was able to see the Disneyland Hotel's DVC tower under construction.

The lobby of the Grand Californian was stunning, and it was fun walking around the top floors--up and down the staircases between them--while peering down and taking pictures, including of the lobby piano player.

Downtown Disney was home to some of the most elaborate floral displays I had ever seen! I didn't know what they were supposed to represent, but I can tell by just looking at them that someone put hundreds of hours into their design.

While Downtown Disney and the Grand Californian were two successful elements of the "Disneyland Resort" rebrand of the early 2000s, DCA certainly was not a success right off the bat. However, we are lucky that things have changed for the better many times over in the ensuing decades!

Buena Vista Street is a short and quaint tribute to Walt's legacy. It's easy to breeze through this area, but there are lots of nice details if you take the time to look.

This statue is a perfect counterpoint to the Partners statue a few hundred yards north, and it works because Walt Disney=California. (They should hire me as an Imagineer.)

When I arrived at the park at 8:00 AM (my family was still sleeping), I was surprised to find the walkways absolutely devoid of people. The lack of crowds continued as I made my way to Pixar Pier.

As a massive fan of classic amusement parks, I find this area fascinating: it's a 1990s-designed tribute to old parks that had its most anachronistic elements replaced by Pixar-inspired features, which are more subtly out-of-place. Overall, the Pixar overlay is effective and suits the area well.

I still have never ridden the Wonder Wheel at New York's Coney Island, so I have to content myself with having experienced this ride--the "Pixar Pal Around." That evening, I only caught a glimpse of the World of Color fountain show that is performed on the lagoon in front of the ride, but it looked spectacular.

Some of the park's E-Ticket attractions like Toy Story Midway Mania and Soarin' were only mildly interesting to me, as I had experienced them at other Disney parks. The Golden Zephyr, however, was an unexpected delight, and I'm not kidding! 

This ride is about as simple as a ride can be, yet despite being a modern recreation of an old design, it still holds historical significance. First known simply as the "Circle Swing" and invented by Travers Engineering (based out of Beaver Falls in Western Pennsylvania), every park--and I mean every park--had this ride beginning in the early 1900s. However, while there were once hundreds of Circle Swings, they have all been removed, leaving only this modern tribute.

The rockets' glide above the lagoon is relaxing and timeless, and I find it special that this is the last place you can have this experience, a mainstay of turn-of-the-century parks.

Although the Golden Zephyr may not be especially noteworthy to most guests, I could appreciate it on many levels.

A slightly less unique ride is the Silly Symphony Swings, a stock Wave Swinger.

Now we're up on the Ferris wheel! When I think of Southern California, this is the landscape I picture: a theme park, high-rises, and palm trees through the haze. 

The Incredicoaster is one of the longest roller coasters I have ever ridden, and it's a solid family ride that has the perfect first inversion for kids. I'm impressed that it has remained so smooth after 20 years of use, and the on-ride audio sounds great.

Pixar Pier and Cars Land were the two main areas that interested me, but the rest of the park is also worth more than a cursory glance!

The Spider-Man Web Slingers attraction in Avengers Campus was confusing, an inferior version of Toy Story Midway Mania that is redundant with that attraction. It wasn't really a ride for me, but it's hard not to enjoy its neighbor, Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout. Although it is an entirely different ride than the Tower of Terror it replaced, everyone smiles when the music starts to pump and you're surrounded by people who are screaming and having a great time.

I can see how Grizzly Peak was the best-received area of the original version of DCA, and although I didn't ride Grizzly River Run, it was the most beautiful and best-themed rapids ride I've ever seen. The adjacent Grizzly Peak Airfield and Redwood Creek Challenge Trail were both gorgeous as well, even if they didn't interest me much in regard to attractions.

By far my most anticipated part of DCA was Cars Land. I grew up with the original Cars movie, so it was surreal to walk around Radiator Springs for myself. Approaching the area from Pacific Wharf, a rockwork arch forms the perfect frame for perhaps the most incredible fake mountain range ever created.

Radiator Springs Racers was one of the all-around best rides I have ridden, and the rest of the land was delightful as well. I love American roadside culture. I love neon. I loved Cars. I love theme parks. It's a match made in heaven. ;-)

Cars Land might be the best place to be in the park at dusk, when all the neon flickers on to the tune of "Sh-Boom." And there's nary a burnt-out or broken tube to be seen, quite the refreshing change from so many neon signs across the country.

With Buena Vista Street in front and Cars Land in back, DCA brings together two of my favorite architectural styles: Art-Deco and Mid-Century Modern.

When it comes to modern recreations of classic Art-Deco, you can't get much better than this fountain surrounded by trees filled with twinkle lights.

I mostly avoided the problematic Hollywood Land, but like Cars Land, that area's neon shines bright after dark.

Paradise Pier is also stunning at night, including the hundreds of lights on the Golden Zephyr. With lights attached to the cables of the ride vehicles, it's even lit in the same style as the classic ride it replicates.

While each area of DCA has its own unique lighting, it's hard to beat the neon of Cars Land. It's a Route 66 fantasy come to life.

Not to mention the dramatic spotlights shining on the Cadillac-inspired mountain range!

I was amazed by how spot-on the land's designers were in replicating the signs of the movie, right down to the animation. Purchasing this much neon had to cost at least a million dollars alone.

I didn't ride Luigi's Rollicking Roadsters, but this trackless ride looks amazing after dark, with the strings of popcorn lights hanging above.

Radiator Springs Racers has all the aspects of a great Disney attraction, aside from perhaps emotional appeal. But the competitive feature of racing another ride vehicle during the speedy finale is hard to beat among Disney's thrill rides.

The detail put into the area's rockwork is impressive considering how little time you have to study it while flying by on Radiator Springs Racers.

This is the last picture of Luigi's, I promise! I guess I was just enraptured with this facade.

Flo's V-8 Cafe might take the cake as the most stunningly lit building in the land. I love the neon "spark plugs" reflecting on the overhang.

Thanks to Disney, we have a perfect real-life neon wonderland of the American roadside that everyone can (and should) visit today.

I love this shot of the Carthway Circle, a beautifully lit example of Art-Deco that again, thanks to Disney, lives on today.

A stroll through a quiet and moody Buena Vista Street is a great way to end your day at DCA... except it's more like you're wading through a crowd of screaming guests wielding strollers. Ah, Disney...

We may have swept through an entire park in one post, but DCA surprised me with its delightful examples of design work and especially its wonderful lighting. Like the rest of the Anaheim resort, I'd love to return someday. And although it's now been over a year since we visited Disneyland, there is still one more post to come!

EPCOT 2023

Day two of our orchestra trip brought us to the recently-renamed EPCOT, formerly Epcot and née EPCOT Center. I like to start my trip reports out in confusing ways, see? ;-) We only had a half-day at one of the world's unique theme parks due to an orchestra workshop, but it was probably the best day to do it, as I didn't feel the need to spend 12 hours at the park.

I have always been obsessed with the original EPCOT Center, but with so little remaining from the park's original attractions, there is a disconnect between the ideal EPCOT in my head and what we actually have today. That doesn't mean that I wasn't able to enjoy the park, but it meant there were many moments during the day when I paused and felt sad when I remembered what used to be in that location.

One thing that never disappoints at EPCOT is Spaceship Earth. Nothing against the castles, but Spaceship Earth is the best opening statement to any theme park I've visited.

I was excited to see the improvements made to the park since the last time I visited in 2018, and the refurbished entrance is wonderful. The pylon fountain (I don't know if there's an official name) is a great tribute to the EPCOT of the past that is still strikingly futuristic today.

I am thrilled that Imagineering decided to revive some of the park's original iconography and create new symbols for the rest of the pavilions. However, while the refreshed landscaping, fountain, and flags are all really nice, I was disappointed that so little progress had been made on the center of the park since 2018. I knew it would be closed ahead of time, but it was still disheartening to see the site of the once beautiful Fountain of Nations, removed in 2019, as a dirt plot surrounded by construction walls.

I figured that since we hadn't arrived close to rope drop, a ride on Spaceship Earth would be a good way to start our visit. It was posted as a 15-minute wait, which is long for this attraction. (One of my teachers saw me in line and said, "fifteen minutes, you can't beat that!!") When we were almost at the front of the line, though, I got a call from my sister that I had somehow used her ticket to get into the park and that she was unable to enter! I had gotten our tickets mixed up when I linked them to the app. Being a great brother, I returned to the entrance and cleared up the misunderstanding, though I was tempted to tell her to suck it up and hop on a bus to tour beautiful Lake Buena Vista. Or something.

I returned to ride Spaceship Earth later, and it makes me happy that there is still one mostly original EPCOT dark ride left. Luckily the ride's original mural remains untouched.

The winding ride up through the sphere past so many animatronics is one-of-a-kind, and the ride path is pretty steep at points. The descent is quite underwhelming, with the designers attempting to distract you with a touch screen on the Omnimover vehicle. If you pay attention to that, though, you'll miss all the painted-over remnants from old versions of the attraction around you.

Here are those ubiquitous construction walls. I would hope that after five years of work, the center of the park is nothing short of amazing. But I also know not to expect that.

Our visit occurred during the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, and seeing the park awash in flowers was definitely the highlight of the visit for me. Oh, aside from the Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind coaster, which I somehow neglected to photograph! It was my favorite ride of the trip and probably my favorite Disney coaster I have ridden. As far as achieving EPCOT's lofty goals to inspire and educate, it doesn't amount to much more than a tricked-out version of Space Mountain, but it does what it set out to do extremely well. There's even a guitar cover of the old Universe of Energy theme in a room that is very reminiscent of one of the old ride's theaters. That made me smile.

Having so little time at the park meant we skipped both Soarin' and Living with the Land. I was especially sad to miss the latter, even though I had ridden it before. Yes, it's just a boat ride through a greenhouse, but for some reason, it's really enjoyable for people like me who love old-school EPCOT!

We did Journey Into Imagination with Figment for some reason, and it was just as painful as I remembered it. I find it so frustrating that Disney has allowed this confused replacement for the original Journey Into Imagination to run for twenty-plus years, subjecting thousands of guests to repulsive skunk scent. At least the Figment topiary is nice.

From a distance, Test Track looks like it could still be World of Motion. Even though I wish I could have ridden the original dark ride in this spot, Test Track is fun as a thrill ride, and while not exactly inspirational, it fits in better with the rest of the park than the majority of the other recent additions.

Seeing this quilt of flowers was absolutely stunning, especially with the floating flower baskets in the foreground. And I loved the gorgeous clouds backing the classic EPCOT architecture and Monorail!

We had to leave the park in the middle of the day for our workshop, taking four separate bus rides (to and from the park, stopping at the hotel for instruments going both ways). The "Disney Imagination Campus" workshop was not what I was expecting it to be, but it was still enjoyable. We played "Grim Grinning Ghosts" and other songs, but we spent the most time on "Finale" from "Carnival of the Animals." At the end, they spliced our recording into the animated sequence from Fantasia 2000 that goes along with the music. Strictly no photos or videos were allowed.

Back at EPCOT, it was time to tackle World Showcase. The majority of our time was spent admiring the architecture and aimlessly wandering around looking for places to spend our dining gift cards, but that's what World Showcase is all about I think!

The majority of the Flower and Garden topiaries are in World Showcase, like the dragon in Japan...

...and pandas in China!

I found it strange that there was still an exhibit about Shanghai Disneyland in the China pavilion, obviously from before the park opened in 2016. I was separated from my friends while they were getting something to eat, and I couldn't get into the Temple of Heaven because there were tables set up inside for a special event. So I wandered into this exhibit by myself. 

Although they're placed smack-dab in the middle of the Italy pavilion, the Lady and the Tramp topiaries might be my favorites. Italy was pretty nice, but after seeing that there was no Papa John's pizza available, we moved on to the next pavilion...

America.

Just like at the China pavilion, they were using the American Adventure lobby for a special event, so we weren't able to go inside the rotunda. Luckily, the show was still running, but you had to enter through the exit hallway. I loved the American Adventure in 2018, and it was just as good as I remembered. The rest of the audience did not seem to agree with that sentiment, however, as the exit doors opened four or five separate times during the performance as people got bored, bringing light into the auditorium.

Scenes like this Depression-era porch are so well-staged and engagingly scripted that I don't know how you could get up and leave in the middle of it! 

After that lengthy show, night was starting to fall. Our day was capped off by the EPCOT Forever fireworks show, which was a great treat for me, but I'm sure it was a head-scratcher for many. I'm sure that most people are completely clueless as to what songs like "Veggie Veggie Fruit Fruit" are from, and while "Magic Journeys" has a beautiful melody, it's from an early 80s 3D movie that was at the park for all of four years! The conclusion to your day at Epcot should leave you hopeful and optimistic, and Illuminations definitely accomplished that goal in a way EPCOT Forever does not. I loved the show, but at the end of the day, it basically amounts to trotting out an old EPCOT Center cassette tape and launching a few fireworks, failing to connect with the majority of its audience.

Before the fireworks, we were lucky enough to see one of the only other untouched pieces of EPCOT Center remaining, Impressions De France. It only runs for thirty minutes at the beginning of the day (what is that, like two showings?) and a couple of hours at the end of the night. The rest of the day, the theater is home to a Beauty and the Beast sing-along.

The film had been remastered in 4K since I had last seen it, which was a real treat. I had forgotten that the "Finale" from "Carnival of the Animals" is featured in the film, which I found amusing considering that we had performed it earlier in the day!

The new lights on Spaceship Earth might be the most brilliant feature added for the fiftieth anniversary of WDW. Combined with the spotlights hitting the sphere, the overall effect is dazzling.

I love how the fountain pylons are lit as well. Even though the park will never again be the way it was in the 80s, it is some consolation that this symbol has returned. Here I am, waxing nostalgic, and I never visited EPCOT before 2014!

I may have enjoyed the other parks more, but we still had an amazing time. I got lots of comments on my Horizons T-shirt, and like the rest of the trip, it was very special to visit one of my favorite places with all my friends in orchestra. It may be a while before I return, but I can rest easy knowing that in some small ways, the 80s are still alive at a place where the 21st century truly did begin early... on October 1, 1982.