Did You Know...

 that there have been two babies born within the Disneyland Resort; the first was in 1979 and the second in 2002. These two lucky newborns were given LIFE TIME PASSES but don't get any ideas ladies. Disneyland is no longer giving these passes out. I guess there are enough crazy people out there that want to give birth to their precious bundles of joy at the Happiest Place on Earth. Don't get me wrong, it would be AWESOME but I'm all for the pain killers at the Hospital that Mickey just doesn't have on hand.



Just a Few Facts

*Main Street was built to reflect the year 1910

*Prior to opening day, Walt visited a few of the local churches and invited a handful of the best behaved children from the Sunday School classes to attend the opening day.  Hidden Mickey

* The Tiki room was originally going to be a restaurant that's why it was designed with restrooms.

Splash Mountain

Are any of you out there old enough to remember the snoring bear Rufus from Bear Country? As you entered Bear Country you could look above and see a rocky cave. If you listened closely you could hear Rufus snoring away. Below is a picture of the rocks and entrance to Bear Country I found on Yesterland.com.

On July 18, 1989 that mountain reopened as Splash Mountain! As I have mentioned in previous posts Disneyland is wonderful about keeping the past preserved in the new attractions. When Splash Mountain first opened you could still hear Rufus snoring as you floated by his cave with a labeled mail box. It is located right before the first drop. Unfortunately they didn't feel that Rufus fit in with the theme of Splash Mountain so the mail box now reads Brer Bear but the snoring remains.

startedbyamouse.com

Monorail

The Monorail is another ride at Disneyland with a little secret. Sometimes you are allowed to sit up front with the driver. I know this because on one of our previous trips to Disneyland we were asked if we wanted to sit up front! At the time I didn't even realize you could sit up there and the Disneyland cast member explained to me that its not mentioned because people tend to fight over it! Go Figure!

On the day we visited the park we were lucky enough to be offered the special seat. I have also heard that you are not always able to sit up in the front. I have read that people have asked and were told no. I guess it just depends on who you ask but its worth a shot!

UPDATE: My friend Lisa spoke with a monorail operator and found out why you aren't always allowed to sit in the front seat. She said "if there is an emergency and the monorail had to stop they cant open the door and there are no windows. If there was a lack of power they would not be able to keep it ventilated well enough. They driver told me to that when the temperature gets up to a certain point they stop allowing people up there."(3-23-11)

Welcome Foolish Mortals

Are there real Ghosts that haunt the Mansion and parts of Disneyland? I'm not saying there are ,I'll let you be the judge.



Happy Birthday Pirate's of The Caribbean

In 1967 The Piartes of The Caribbean opened its doors at Disneyland! It is a Disney classic and one of my favorite rides. It was also known to be Walt Disney's favorite before he died.

For those of you who love looking for the Hidden Mickeys on each Disney ride here is the one on Pirates. This picture was taken by Finding Mickey  It's an awesome site with tons of Disney information.

A Ride On The Lilly Belle

Another magical attraction is the Lilly Belle train car. Walt named this car after his wife in 1948. If you stop by the Main Street station you can reserve a seat to ride in this special car. I was told that there are only two times they allow people to ride throughout the day and its a full circle trip so go first thing in the morning to make reservations. We plan on getting them the next time we go!  Also while I was searching for pictures I found this website.  The Story of The Lilly Belle They give a little back ground about the train cart and about their wedding. They actually had their wedding ceremony on the train!

Tokyo Disney

There was a statment released on the Disney Parks Blog today regarding the 8.9 earthquake off the coast of Japan. They did feel the quake at the park. "Our thoughts and sympathy go out to our guests, fellow Disney cast members and all of the people in Japan affected by the earthquake." ~ Disney Parks Blog   Here is the link to read what they have to say.   

Disney Parks Blog

The Mark Twain

Did you know that you can ask to drive the Mark Twain River Boat? Well you can, you can even sign in the log book and ring the bell! It is awesome! When the boat arrives at the dock you need to find one of the Steam Boat cast members and ask if you are able to drive the boat. They can only take a certain number of people so you want to ask before someone else does. If you are lucky and they say yes you will climb up to the top deck where they will let you onto the Captains deck (which is amazing) on the very top of the boat. I circled it below in this picture.

This is the ships log

and the steering wheel.

We were very lucky on our last trip to Disneyland and got to

 drive the boat for the first time!  Here is my son signing the log book, he is trying to draw the Yeti from the Matterhorn.

and of course here we are driving the Mark Twain around Tom Sawyers Island.

It really is a special moment you can share with your family and friends at Disneyland. One of those things that make Disneyland Magical!!!

Tunnels

Angie, another friend of mine wants to know if the rumors of tunnels running under Disneyland are true? From what I know there are no tunnels that run under Disneyland in Anaheim. My Disney source however says that there is one tunnel near the Hotel for cast access. I have read that it is mostly used for trash removal and it smells. (Correct me if I'm wrong Kristie) I do know though that there is a tunnel system under the Magic Kingdom in Florida if you go to Active Rain they have a map and a ton of information on the tunnels there.

Sleeping Beauty's Castle

I was also told on my recent trip to Disneyland about an interesting fact regarding the castle. Court, the conductor of the Train told me that the top half of the castle is actually on backwards.  Below I have circled the top half of the castle which should have actually been turned around facing the Carousel. These are really the windows to the castle bedrooms.

In this famous picture Walt himself is walking threw the Castle.

This was suppose to be the front of the castle which faces toward Main Street. This is also mentioned in the short film that Steve Martin narrates, The First Fifty Magical Years.

Fluffy

Another ride attraction that the cast members have given a nickname to is the very large snake on Indiana Jones. It's name is Fluffy!

I added this picture just because I think Harrison Ford was a cutie back in his day!

Disney Castles Around the World

I had a friend of mine ask me a question the other day about the Castles at all of the Disneyland Parks around the world. Her question was "...I've heard that there is a different princess castle at each Disneyland/Disney World around the world...could you tell me who's castle is where?" I love answering questions about Disneyland so if you have a question like my friend just leave me a comment and I will post about it! So to answer her question Disney only uses two Princesses Castles, they all look a little different but Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella are the only two castles in the parks.
Disneyland – Sleeping Beauty Castle

Magic Kingdom – Cinderella Castle

Tokyo Japan – Cinderella Castle

Disneyland Paris – Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant (literally “the Castle of Sleeping Beauty”)

Hong Kong Disneyland – Sleeping Beauty Castle

I found these pictures on Disney Frontier this website has a ton of fun information if you want to go check it out.

Harold

I learned on my recent trip to Disneyland that the cast members have given the Yeti on the Matterhorn a nickname. Meet Harold everyone!