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(reconstructed from memory)
In the wake of unloading, the following day was spent doing much more mundane things. I spent most of the afternoon and evening hanging out with Ben while Sara ran errands. Then in the evening Riff and I meandered around Downtown Disney and eventually went to a late showing of The Italian Job. Fun movie. Not the best caper movie ever, but certainly an entertaining diversion.
On Wednesday Riff and I spent pretty much the whole day at Disney MGM. He had lost his hat the night before, so we spent a bit of time tracking down another of the same type. For a bit it was looking like we would have to leave the park and go back to Downtown Disney to find one, but then it occurred to me that the shop next to the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular would likely carry the style he liked. Sure enough we found one there, and carried on with the day.
Tower of Terror 4 - wow. I mean really, wow. I had been on it before, but the new changes for v4 are just breathtaking. the random drops and lifts, the unbelievable airtime... this ride is truly a thing of beauty. Bravo.
Rock 'n Roller Coaster - Yet again, wow. It's a bit short, but the launch alone is worth the wait. Not as good as The Incredible Hulk, but for a Disney coaster this one is top-notch.
Muppet Vision 3-D - yay, it's really the muppets! This is just a fun, fun show. And they need to stop letting the Swedish Chef run the film projector.
Great Movie Ride - this has been completely rehabbed since the last time I rode it. They didn't change anything particularly, just dramatically improved the sound system and gave everything a fresh coat of paint. For any fan of the movies, this is a must-see ride.
Drew Carey's "Sounds Dangerous" - ah, the classic Drew Carey lowbrow humor. Over seven minutes of this show is spent in absolute darkness. Watch out for the elephant.
Backlot Tour - I have mixed feelings about the changes here. They have torn down Residential Street, which used to be a major part of the tour, and are breaking ground for a new attraction in 2005. I don't miss the houses per se, but they did serve to screen Catastrophe Canyon. Now you can plainly see it from the tram loading point, which kind of spoils that part of the tour. I suppose it will be screened off again once the new attraction is built. In any case, the tour now goes past quite a bit of the animation studios that it never did before. That was pretty cool.
Animation Tour - always fun to do. The opening movie with Robin Williams and Walter Cronkite is funny, the closing montage movie is perfect, and getting to see the working studio is way cool.
Dinner at the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater - this is an expensive resaurant, but worth every penny. Not only is the food surprisingly good for a theme park, but the theming is just fabulous. Our waitress was also a real treat, definitely someone who loves her job.
Fantasmic - lots of impressive puppetry, cool "lake of fire effects", and an interesting use of film rear projected onto water curtains. The whole Pocahontas thing drags on for a bit, but the big finale with the Maleficent dragon makes up for it.
All in all it was a good day.
In the wake of unloading, the following day was spent doing much more mundane things. I spent most of the afternoon and evening hanging out with Ben while Sara ran errands. Then in the evening Riff and I meandered around Downtown Disney and eventually went to a late showing of The Italian Job. Fun movie. Not the best caper movie ever, but certainly an entertaining diversion.
On Wednesday Riff and I spent pretty much the whole day at Disney MGM. He had lost his hat the night before, so we spent a bit of time tracking down another of the same type. For a bit it was looking like we would have to leave the park and go back to Downtown Disney to find one, but then it occurred to me that the shop next to the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular would likely carry the style he liked. Sure enough we found one there, and carried on with the day.
Tower of Terror 4 - wow. I mean really, wow. I had been on it before, but the new changes for v4 are just breathtaking. the random drops and lifts, the unbelievable airtime... this ride is truly a thing of beauty. Bravo.
Rock 'n Roller Coaster - Yet again, wow. It's a bit short, but the launch alone is worth the wait. Not as good as The Incredible Hulk, but for a Disney coaster this one is top-notch.
Muppet Vision 3-D - yay, it's really the muppets! This is just a fun, fun show. And they need to stop letting the Swedish Chef run the film projector.
Great Movie Ride - this has been completely rehabbed since the last time I rode it. They didn't change anything particularly, just dramatically improved the sound system and gave everything a fresh coat of paint. For any fan of the movies, this is a must-see ride.
Drew Carey's "Sounds Dangerous" - ah, the classic Drew Carey lowbrow humor. Over seven minutes of this show is spent in absolute darkness. Watch out for the elephant.
Backlot Tour - I have mixed feelings about the changes here. They have torn down Residential Street, which used to be a major part of the tour, and are breaking ground for a new attraction in 2005. I don't miss the houses per se, but they did serve to screen Catastrophe Canyon. Now you can plainly see it from the tram loading point, which kind of spoils that part of the tour. I suppose it will be screened off again once the new attraction is built. In any case, the tour now goes past quite a bit of the animation studios that it never did before. That was pretty cool.
Animation Tour - always fun to do. The opening movie with Robin Williams and Walter Cronkite is funny, the closing montage movie is perfect, and getting to see the working studio is way cool.
Dinner at the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater - this is an expensive resaurant, but worth every penny. Not only is the food surprisingly good for a theme park, but the theming is just fabulous. Our waitress was also a real treat, definitely someone who loves her job.
Fantasmic - lots of impressive puppetry, cool "lake of fire effects", and an interesting use of film rear projected onto water curtains. The whole Pocahontas thing drags on for a bit, but the big finale with the Maleficent dragon makes up for it.
All in all it was a good day.