Being a huge Disneyland fan, I love making lists of my favorite things at the park. The following is the list of my top five favorite Pirates from my favorite attraction “Pirates of the Caribbean”.
5. The Pirate with the Hairy Leg
A Pirates Life For Me!
4. The Pirate Over the Bridge
Six Bottles of Rum!
3. The Pirate on the Canon
Yo Ho!
2. The Talking Skull
It Be Too Late to Alter Course Mateys!
1. The Auctioneer
It Be Gold I'm After!
This is the list of my favorite pirates as they currently appear. If we were talking about the original version of the attraction, it would be a totally different list. My favorite would be the guy sitting on the barrels in the arsenal scene followed closely by the Pooped Pirate.
My All Time Favorite Pirate!
The Original Pooped Pirate
So these are my favorite Pirates from “Pirates of the Caribbean”. Which pirate is your favorite?
And once again, a special thanks to Daveland for use of their pictures!
Hey everyone! Robert here. September 9, 2011 was a big day for us at Remain Seated Please. David got hitched! Yes, David married his beautiful bride, Suzi. After the wedding, what does a Disney fan do, but visit the Magic Kingdom of Disneyland!
Congratulations to David & Suzi!
We got to Disneyland around 3pm and visited one of my favorite attractions: Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. It is rare that I visit Lincoln as most of my friends find it boring. I am always fascinated with it. I am a huge fan of Lincoln and love learning everything about the man. But the real treat for me is the amazing lifelike animatronic of our 16th President. I can’t get over how wonderful his facial features are. Every syllable and breath is animated to great precision on this great audio animatronic.
The World has never had a good definition of the word 'Liberty'
After our visit with Honest Abe, we found a nice shady spot to view Mickey’s Soundsational Parade. A friend of mine just got a part in the parade as a dancer in the Little Mermaid section. While waiting for the parade to start, the Disneyland band entertained us and just by coincidence, some guests dressed in get ups right out of an old gangster movie passed by and started to dance. They were really great. They did some swing dancing, which was very fun to watch. The parade was very enjoyable and my friend Jessica did a great job. Her dance routine went perfectly! During the parade, King Louie appeared and he came right up to me and touched me! It was great, but scary at the same time! It was quite the thrill! I had a fun time watching the parade, but I wish there was a bigger climax. The final scene with Mary Poppins and the Chimney Sweeps is great, but it’s not the huge elaborate ending I would have predicted for a highly anticipated Disney parade.
The Random Dancers
Jessica in the Parade!
King Louie Close Up!
Our large group then met up at Sleeping Beauty Castle to take a photo. It was a beautiful day and that made the photo look even more amazing. Take a look below:
Our Disneyland Group
Since we had such a large group, we thought a perfect attraction for us to visit would be Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room. After getting our delicious Dole Whips, we entered the World of Enchantment and Maynard was once again our host. He did his usual wonderful introduction, full of various voices and goofy faces. He then tossed it over to Jose who took it from there. The Tiki Room looked and sounded great.
Jose!
It was then time for Star Tours! It was the first time for some people in our group and everyone loved it. We went Pod Racing and entered the Death Star. In between the two scenes, a hologram of Princess Leia appeared and talked to us. It was my first time seeing her and I was amazed! I couldn’t figure out if it was a great look alike or excellent CGI. I assume it was CGI because it looked exactly like the Carrie Fisher of 35 years ago. How did they do it so well? It was really one of those great Disney moments that makes you wonder.
We are her only hope!
After Star Tours, most of the group went and had dinner at Tortilla Joe’s in Downtown Disney, but I wasn’t hungry. So I stayed behind with my uncle and we rode the Disneyland Railroad. The T-Rex vs. Stegasaurus scene is back from refurbishment and it looks wonderful. It looks like they both got a new coat of paint. The rest of the Railroad was excellent. It is one of my favorite things at Disneyland, especially at night.
Nothing Better than the Disneyland Railroad at Night
We then headed over to Disney California Adventure, which has its new entrance. It was strange walking through the main gate and making an immediate right and actually entering the park near Soarin’ Over California. It’s something I will have to get used to for the next year. I noticed that the top of Carthay Circle Theatre was finished and boy does it look amazing. With Buena Vista Street under construction, you can really get close to the theatre and it’s huge! I am so excited to see it finished. It will really be a great icon for the park.
The Finished Top
The first ride we went to was The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. Again, it was the first time for some people and it was excellent. Everyone really loved it, including myself.
The Attraction Poster
After our group finished their dinner at Tortilla Joe’s, we met up again at the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. It was a great ride and the drops felt wonderful. I noticed that the gift shop now has Halloween decorations, which I really like. I wish that the Tower did their Halloween overlay that they did a few years ago. It was really great. I also noticed that there is a television set now in the gift shop. It was on and nothing was playing. I was really curious as to why it was there. After doing some research online, I found out that it’s part of a Disney Scavenger Hunt that they are testing. I wonder what could possibly play on the TV. It would be neat if they played old Twilight Zone episodes! One other thing I noticed in the Tower was that the typewriter under your on ride photo has a different piece of paper sticking out of it. It usually says “Get out of here Finchley”, which is a reference to a Twilight Zone episode called “A Thing About Machines”. Now the paper is ripped on top and has a poem on it. I wonder if this is also part of the scavenger hunt…
Is There Meaning?
What Will Be Playing?
Tower Halloween Decorations in the Gift Shop
Since David and Suzi got married the day before, they celebrated by staying over night at the Grand Californian. We all went to hang out in the room after the Tower and it was wonderful. It was a nice big room and it has an excellent view of the monorail. The monorail passed right underneath the room! It was a unique sight! After relaxing and having some delicious cake, we headed back to Disneyland.
A Unique View of the Monorail
Now this is probably the first time I have ever been to Disneyland when Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion were both closed. It was tough for me. One thing that I must do every time I go to Disneyland is ride Pirates and it was so sad to see it closed. It doesn’t reopen until late November. I might go through Pirate withdrawals…
I Hate Seeing This...
We did walk over to the Haunted Mansion which is being re-dressed for its holiday overlay. It looks as though it is nearly complete from the outside. It all looks great and I’m very excited to see what’s in store this year.
It Will Be Here Soon!
Jack Skellington Came Here From Halloweentown
Pumpkin Scarecrow
And with that, we ended our night at the Disneyland Resort. Congratulations to David and Suzi on their marriage. They are in Hawaii right now and I hope they are having a wonderful time!
Oh! One more thing… As I was walking by Astro Orbiter, I noticed that a dog was going for a ride! How amazing is that!?!?!
Doggy Goes for a Ride!
Also a big thank you to Daveland for their help with pictures in this report!
Here’s another in our ongoing series, but first, where was last week’s photo taken?
Disney California Adventure: Paradise Pier - Ariel's Undersea Adventure
And a hearty congratulations to Sarah — She has won our very first contest! Thank you all to those that entered. We will be doing more contests in the future and they won’t be about guess where a floor is. Thanks for playing, Sarah and we look forward to seeing you at the world-famous Magic Castle soon!
And now for this week’s floor. Hint: We have posted several floors from this location but as it’s the 13th Floor Friday, we thought we would throw it in again!
This past weekend was the D23 Expo at the Anaheim Convention Center. Although lots and lots of people showed up, fun was still had. The Expo was full of Disney Magic in the form of films, television, parks, and resorts to just name a few. Since there is so much to see and do at the Expo, I obviously was not able to attend everything. The following is what I experienced.
Day 1:
D23 EXPO 2011
After waiting in a huge line to enter the Expo, we first made our way to the Carousel of Projects. This area displayed props, models, and artifacts from upcoming Walt Disney Imagineering attractions. When entering the area, you are treated to a nice little video projected on Semi-Circle 180! A montage of WDI’s past is shown and finally Tinker Bell finds our way out as she splits the screen open. Once the doors open, we are greeted by a huge replica of the Disney Cruise Line ship. As we walk past the giant vessel, its fog horn blasts a familiar tune. Try and guess what the tune is….
Carousel of Projects
All Aboard!
Inside the exhibit, we find things from the new Fantasyland coming to Walt Disney World, the new Seven Dwarfs mine ride, Cars Land and its attractions, DCA’s Buena Vista Street, and my favorite: The Amazing Destini! The Amazing Destini is the first animatronic to have 100% artificial intelligence. It was really amazing to see in person. The little fortune teller really interacts well with guests. We were treated to a look at the program running the animatronic and I must admit that it is kind of scary. It was like the Terminator come true. Destini’s program can sense your emotions and react with it. It also counts blinks, nods, smiles, and anything else that can give it clues as to what you are feeling. It was remarkable.
This Way to the Amazing Destini!
Here He Is!
Artificial Intelligence!
After our tour of the Carousel of Projects, we walked the floor for a bit and bought some collectibles. The amount of Disney things to buy was overwhelming. It is quite the site to see all the Disney geeks scrambling for their favorite Disney pin. I must admit that I was one of them.
We then got in line to enter the Arena where we would see a presentation on Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Tom Staggs hosted the event and although we were treated to great pieces of concept art, most of the information was already made public by the Disney Parks blog. There were two things that really excited me however. The first was a piece of concept art that showed the E Ticket Cars Land attraction. The art showed that there will be a scene inside of a cavern called Taillight Caverns. The stalagmites will be glowing red and resemble different tail lights of classic cars. I for one love Disney caves and I’m sure this will be a welcomed addition. The other exciting piece of news was the Castle coming to Shanghai Disneyland. The Castle will represent all the different Disney princesses and it will have a restaurant inside. What was most exciting was that an attraction would be inside the Castle! There will be a boat ride beginning in Fantasyland and it will make its way underneath the Castle where you will disembark. The concept art of this attraction looked amazing even though it was just one scene. I can’t wait to see what this turns out to be! They also announced that the Carnation Plaza Gardens will soon be leaving Disneyland and replaced with a little extension of Fantasyland which will house some Disney princesses. I’m sure it will look neat, but I’m going to miss the Gardens…
Walt Disney Parks & Resorts... And Drumming Mickey!
Shanghai's Castle
Inside the Castle
The Ride Which Will End Inside the Castle!
We then made our way to the last Panel Discussion for the day: Voices of the Parks. There we met Disney’s best vocal talents and they showed off their pipes. It was amazing to see how many of them love Disneyland and how talented they all really are. The panel had many vocal talents including the voice of Disneyland Bill Rogers, Mark Silverman who does the voice of Rod Serling in the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, and Corey Burton who is our Ghost Host in the Haunted Mansion Holiday. It was really the most entertaining part of the entire Expo. We heard everyone do some of their Disney voices live! If you closed your eyes, it felt like you were at the park.
The Voice of Disneyland
The Voice of Rod Serling in The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
The Voice of our Ghost Host in the Haunted Mansion Holiday
Day 2:
We began the day with visiting the things being auctioned off in the silent auction. In that room, they had the Hitchhiking Ghosts from Walt Disney World’s Haunted Mansion. These were the ghosts that appeared in the mirrors. It was amazing to see them up close. It was so strange to see them that close and under house lighting. There was something really special about viewing these masterpieces of Walt Disney Imagineering. Some other neat things that we saw being auctioned off included a canon from Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean and a replica of the barker bird from Walt Disney World’s Pirates.
Phineas
Ezra
Gus
Pirates Canon
Barker Bird
After the auction, we visited the Archive Treasures Museum. We saw incredible props, wardrobe, and pieces of art from classic Disney productions. The highlights included the Sleeping Beauty Storybook, maquettes from “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?”, wardrobe from the Pirates films, a Mickey animatronic from Walt Disney World, and fan art from “101 Dalmatians”. It was a great display that was a must see.
Once Upon a Time...
Where's Roger?
Pirates Props
Animatronic Mickey
Take Me to Disneyland!
After our tour through the treasures, we got in line for the presentation on Buena Vista Street. It was great seeing the concept art for DCA’s new main street. I really loved that amount of detail that will be represented. Carthay Circle Theatre looks great and I love the fountain which is being built out front. But the biggest reveal was the new Partners statue coming to DCA. It depicts Walt in 1923 along with his suitcase and Mickey Mouse on top. It is a great sculpt that really shows in detail what Walt looked like early in life. Imagineers decided to place the statue on the ground and not on a pedestal for an important reason. In 1923, Walt was just like us. He had dreams. He worked hard for those dreams to come true. So since Buena Vista street is supposed to take place in the 1920s when Walt was pursuing his dream, Imagineers decided that he should not be above the crowd, but within the crowd. Any one of us can have our dreams come true if we work hard for it. I thought it was a great idea.
Buena Vista Street Concept Art
Maquette of the new Statue
Day 3:
The final day we just looked around the main show floor. Some highlights included people dressed up in costumes including an amazing Red Head from Pirates, a wonderful Tinker Bell, and The Bride, Caretaker, Hatbox Ghost, and Tightrope Girl from the Haunted Mansion. Everyone did a great job with the detail in their costumes. Also on the floor were some neat props including a Zebra from the Jungle Cruise, Walt Disney’s Limo, an Autopia car, and a goose from It’s a Small World, just to name a few. We decided not to go to any presentations that day as the lines were incredibly long. To view a presentation, you had to get in line about 3 hours ahead of time. It was ridiculous. So many people showed up for the D23 Expo, but it just goes to show you how much people love Disney. The next Disney Expo will be held in 2013. I’m already looking forward to it.
Enjoy a full photo gallery from the Expo:
Tinkerbell
Hatbox Ghost and Tight Rope Girl
The Red Head
Bride
Bride and Caretaker
Small World Goose
Jungle Cruise Zebra
Take Me to Disneyland!
Fan Art
TRON
LOST Stuff
Pirates Props
Animatronic Mickey
Judge Doom Maquette
Benny Maquette
Roger Maquette
Maroon Cartoons
Where’s Roger?
Once Upon a Time…
Pirates Canon
Bird
Barker Bird
Portrait of Gus
Portrait of Ezra
Portrait of Phineas
Gus
Ezra
Phineas
Maquette of the new Statue
Buena Vista Street Concept Art
The Voice of our Ghost Host in the Haunted Mansion Holiday
The Voice of Rod Serling in The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
You have until midnight next Friday morning (August 19, 2011) to submit your answers in the comments below. We will tally all of the correct answers and you will be entered into a drawing and the winner will be announce the following week.
Okay everyone! We are proud to announce that we have our first contest FAST approaching! Next Friday, we will, as always, have a ‘Floor Friday’ but it will be our 10th in that series. We want to make it fun for everyone by having a contest but because there is a prize involved, it will be more difficult than the previous entries. CLICK HERE to study up on the previous entries!
How to enter? Just play the game! At midnight on Friday morning (August 12, 2011), we will post the floor for that week and you will have ONE WEEK to answer in the comment section below the post. PLEASE DO NOT POST YOUR ANSWERS TO OUR FACEBOOK OR TWITTER PAGES. Your entry will only be valid if included in the comments of the 10th ‘Floor Fridays’ post. At midnight on the following Friday (August 19, 2011), the contest will end and we will take all of the correct answers and enter those names into a drawing. Robert and I will then conduct a drawing the following week and the winner will be announced with the 12th edition of the ‘Floor Friday’ series on August 26, 2011. We will also send the winner an email with instructions on how to claim the prize.
The prize, you might ask? I happen to be a member of the Magic Castle in Hollywood. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s like Club 33 — with magic! Super exclusive, members-only, and a strict dress code, the Magic Castle was founded in 1963 by Milt Larsen (a huge Walt Disney fan and personal friend and collaborator with the Sherman brothers) and now hosts the world’s best and brightest magicians performing for each other as well as members and their guests. The winner will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take a party of 2 (him or her-self and a guest) to the castle on any evening of their choosing!
The recommendation is to go on a week night as there are less crowds, much like Disneyland, and you have a higher chance of seeing all of the performers of the night (as many as 10) in close and intimate settings. THE MAGIC CASTLE IS A 21+ CLUB SO PLEASE KEEP THAT IN MIND WHEN ENTERINGANDCHOOSING A GUEST.
To find out more about the Magic Castle, click here! Again, there is a strict cocktail attire dress code so only enter if you own such attire or plan on purchasing or renting said attire. Men are required to wear jackets and ties and women are required to wear evening cocktail dresses or pant suits with a matching blazer. Formal shoes, as well.
This is very exciting for us here at ‘Remain Seated, Please’ and we look forward to seeing all of the entries as they come in and meeting up with the winner and his or her guest. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below and we will read and answer any and all of your questions as best we can. Let’s make this fun and exciting for everyone!
We made an unusual weekday trip to Disneyland on Wednesday for a special occasion. A friend of ours is moving to England and we had a going away party at Club 33! What could be a better send off?
When we got to the park, we realized we had time for one ride on this very busy day. So we waited 20 minutes for the World Famous Jungle Cruise! It was a great ride through the rivers of adventure. A while ago, I posted a video about how Disney airlifted the elephant’s mother in law out of the park. Well she is still on her extended leave unfortunately. I will have to give her a big hello when she comes home.
The Elephant
And His Missing Mother in Law!
After the Jungle Cruise, we headed to Club 33. It was incredible. I am not going to go into detail about Club 33 right now as we are still working on our original Club 33 review. This trip’s visit to the Club will be included in that post as well. Look for it soon!
Club 33!
After the Club, we went over to the Haunted Mansion. It was another amazing ride and everything looked great. Madame Leota was floating again. I’m glad she seems to be doing that more often these days. I did notice that a couple of the singing busts in the graveyard scene were out of sync. I hope Disney realizes this soon and fixes it. It’s really upsetting when that happens. But even with the out of sync Mellowmen, the Haunted Mansion is still the best.
The Haunted Mansion
We then headed over to DCA and the first thing I noticed is that the Golden Gate Bridge is gone! Take a look below:
Gone and soon to be rethemed!
Then we got in line for Soarin’ Over California. It has been a couple of years since I have been on Soarin’. Now don’t get me wrong. I love the ride. I just can’t stand the Soarin’ queue. There is not much to it and it lasts forever. This time I had to do it though since we were with people that don’t go very often. So I waited 60 minutes to get in my hang glider. It was a great ride that is very magical. I love so many things about it from the corny preshow video with our chief flight attendant, Patrick Warburton to the smell of orange groves in the California country side. The only problem I have with the ride is a personal issue where I get a bit dizzy in the Downtown Los Angeles section. Other than that, it is one of Disney’s best!
Soarin' Over California!
Nice Work, Pal!
Then we went over to the Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. It was a great ride once again. It did stop a few times on this particular trip, most likely to accomidate handicapped people. Other than that, everything seemed the same and I loved it.
Under the Sea
We then walked through A Bug’s Land to make our way to the Hollywood Tower Hotel or as it’s more commonly known: The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. We went with a couple of people who had never experienced the ride before and they ended up loving it. I love seeing my favorite attractions through new eyeballs. The mirror ghost effect wasn’t working this time. Instead of our reflected bodies turning into ghosts, a blue blob just appeared. Even when that effect isn’t working, it still is an amazing attraction.
A Beacon for the Show Business Elite.
We then headed over to Disneyland and while walking on Main Street, I saw Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum. It was great seeing them as it’s rare when I do. I love seeing minor characters from Disney animated features. There is something really special about it.
Dee Dum
We then rode one final attraction, which also happens to be my favorite. If you have been reading our trip reports, then you won’t be surprised to hear that the attraction I am talking about is Pirates of the Caribbean. When we arrived to New Orleans Square, the ride had just closed. We saw security escorting someone out of the attraction in a wheel chair, so I assume someone fell. We waited for about a half hour for Pirates to reopen and when it finally did, I was ecstatic! I ran to the entrance like a little boy running down the stairs on Christmas morning. We ended up getting the first row, which I always love. The guy waiting to be dunked is still missing and I also noticed something else on this trip. In the burning city scene, there is a singing trio with a dog. Well the guy all the way to the right usually has a bushy goatee, but it looks like he had a shave. He only had a little patch of beard under his chin. No mustache at all! I know I’m crazy writing about animatronic facial hair, but that is why I love Pirates and Disneyland. It’s all about the details!
Yo Ho
This is the fella before his shave.
After Pirates, we caught the climax of Fantasmic! and saw the amazing Dragon scene. That is really one of the best things Disney has ever done. I get chills when that Dragon comes out!
It's Fire Breathing!
Then we made our way to the Mickey & Friends Tram and Disneyland was soon behind us. We will be back soon!
When an attraction breaks down it can be a total bummer, especially if you’ve been waiting in line for a ride like Peter Pan or Roger Rabbit, but sometimes it can be the coolest thing ever, like when you find cash in your jeans after doing laundry. I have always dreamed of being on a ride like Splash Mountain when it breaks down, where the lights would magically turn on revealing the dusty miniature details of imagineering genius, and I would be escorted through Disney’s painted visualization of Joel Chandler Harris’s impossible read. A nerd can dream can’t he?
If anyone goes to the Magic Kingdom enough a ride breakdown is inevitable, so it is with great pleasure that I present to you a walk through of Snow White’s Scary Adventures. The best part about the ride breakdown experience was that one of the carts was blocking the exit. I welcomed this unwanted obstacle and while people climbed and squeeze through, I relished the opportunity to be an honorary dwarf for a day. It’s no Splash Mountain, but then again there’s always next time.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Elz1s9ZpEg]
I only like the Matterhorn. I dont love it, I dont hate it. It is in dire need of a refresher/refurbishment. I can hapily report that I have on good authority that there are some exciting new updates coming to this mountain off the 5 freeway.
I’ll post what I know when I can but how exciting is that?
Disney Legend, Wally Boag, died this past weekend at the age of 90. Wally was famous for his great characterizations in Disneyland’s Golden Horseshoe and as the voice of Jose in “Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room”. So Long Wally… You will be missed.
Wally as Pecos Bill in the Golden Horseshoe RevueWally's Feathered Alter Ego
A Big thank you goes out to Daveland for use of their wonderful pictures! Visit the wonderful site full of vintage and new Disneyland pictures!
