Weekend Update: Characters in Flight, Tokyo Disneyland, Busch Animals, Candy Factory
Up, up and away we go on the Weekend Update! Denise nbodyhome Preskitt shares photos and a video taken while actually in flight on Walt Disney World's new Characters in Flight attraction! TDLFAN logged quite a few miles flying to Tokyo Disneyland so he could bring us part two of his 25th anniversary retrospective. SummerInFL brings you some pretty darn cute animal photos taken at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. Then MickeyMaxx finishes things up this week by taking us to a modern day version of Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.
Walt Disney World
Orlando, Florida
The Balloon Rises
This week, Denise nbodyhome Preskitt managed to catch a ride upward. 400 feet upward on Florida's Downtown Disney's latest attraction, Characters in Flight. Fun? That depends on your tolerance of floaty, extremely high, devices!
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I was able to ride Characters in Flight this past week at Downtown Disney. Unfortunately, the balloon seems to be down more than it is up so far.
Going up in the air:
Looking down:
The Bay Lake Tower with my zoom:
Flying above Fultons:
At night:
Even with my fear of heights, I enjoyed Characters in Flight. If you can catch it on a non-windy day (when flying), the price is $16.00 for adults and $10.00 for children - including tax. Here is a 3 minute video from when I flew:
There's no way I'm going up in that thing! How about you? - [Editor]
The upcoming Paradiso 37 restaurant from the water at Downtown Disney:
Fultons:
A pelican at Epcot:
Italy:
This guy had a totally cool wheelchair! Mickey Mouse and LED's:
To see more of Denise's photos and videos of this and other subjects, visit mousesteps.com.
Tokyo Disneyland Resort
Tokyo, Japan
Here is the second and last installment of TDLFAN's year in review report for Tokyo Disneyland's 25th anniversary celebration.
4TH STAGE: TDL's Christmas Fantasy, TDS' Harborside Christmas
Welcome to Christmas Fantasy at TDL!
Special decor for this anniversary event.
The Official 25th anniversary Xmas tree.
Castle Stage hosted "Mickey's Jolly Snow Time" show
Show Finale.
TDL also hosted "It's A Small World's Xmas Around the World"
Meanwhile.. over at TDS..
Xmas at TDS
Xmas in NYC
TDS hosted "Candlelight Reflections" on Mediterranean Harbor.
5th Stage: GRAND FINALE... "The Dream Goes on!"
Dream goes on at TDL..
Tulips take over the park!
Castle Stage hosted "Dreams Within". Here, Alice holds a magical tea party!
"Dreams Within" .. Follow your heart and make your dreams come true!
Meanwhile at TDS.. the dream goes on as well.
TDS hosted "Mickey's Dream Company" at the Waterfront Park Stage.
"Mickey's Dream Company" tells the story of a young gal who dreams of being in show business...and making her dream come true, in elegant TDS fashion of course!
Disney Resort's 25th anniversary celebration comes to an end, and the entire year of spectacular entertainment, decor, menus, merchandise becomes a memory to cherish for a lifetime. May Tokyo Disney Resort be successful for yet another magical 25 years and beyond. May the Magic Continues....
So, on this week may I be the first one to say..."Happy 26th Tokyo Disney Resort!!! WE LOVE YOU!!
Busch Gardens
Tampa Bay, Florida
SummerInFl spent some time at Busch Gardens Tampa and brings us a few shots of their beautiful and in the case of the first creature, very personable animal residents.
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This blue macaw below held an entire conversation with me, and she wouldn't let me leave. She kept going, "Come here!" and making funny noises at me. I got her to go, "LALALALALALA" it was the cutest thing ever!
And some animals of the human variety, kind of.
Official site: BuschGardens.com.
Ethel M Chocolate Factory
Las Vegas, Nevada
MickeyMaxx has more from Las Vegas this week. Who would have expected a premium chocolate factory in the middle of this desert?
The Ethel M Factory Tour
We talk a lot about theme around here, so when we heard about Ethel M, it didn't quite fit our thoughts about what one would expect to be connected with Las Vegas. Of course 20 years ago, one could say the same about the Statue of Liberty, the Eiffel Tower, Gondolas being piloted a few yards from the Strip, or a working Monorail. So, chocolate = good, premium chocolate = gooder, we are fans, let's go!
About a 10-15 minute drive from the strip, you'll come upon a nondescript complex that you could easily drive right by, had you not carefully planned your route. There are perhaps 4 cars in the parking lot, alongside a tour bus. By the time we finish our tour, there are more busses unloading their passengers with their florescent name tags. One group was British, another Japanese, the rest domestic stock, all driven by the same thing we were . . . at the end of a factory tour, there be samples and a chance to buy even more.
The tour is standard issue. Large signs along the way attempt to add a dash of the educational and the cultural responsibility. The right side of this one reminds us a little of the happiest voyage that ever sailed.
The "tour" consists of a straight path that leads you by large windows looking into the plant, with signs explaining the production of chocolate.
The plant was not in production while we were there. Everything was tidy and clean.
Wait, I spy lots of chocolate in this mixer thingie.
There were some employees packing candy for Easter.
Also along the tour corridor, there were chocolate sculptures and a demonstration kitchen, which was also unmanned.
This is their take on a caramel apple which goes for $12 a pop.
On a scale of 1-10, the tour was a strong 2, but were we looking forward to an intense factory experience? No, just like the tortillas and the bread on Pacific Wharf, we really wanted to see the end product.
Looks like we've arrived!
Their retail space puts Marcelline's Candy shop to royal shame. There was a vast array of choices in a very large space, complete with a man forcing samples on the large crowd, and very attentive employees.
The strawberry lady.
And, if only the following were true!
If you are tempted, the link below will tell you how to get Ethel to send some straight to your home. You'll also find the complete story of Ethel M (as in Mars candy fame) and how a company best known for M&Ms came to produce a world class candy and open candy lounges where folks can sit on comfy couches while working their way through the hundreds of varieties of confections.
Looking for up-to-date reports from Disneyland
including photos, gossip, park schedules and more?
including photos, gossip, park schedules and more?
Visit these MiceChat columns each week:
Andy Castro's Dateline Disneyland
David DarkBeer Michael's In the Parks
And that brings us to the end of another week. Our photographers have just enough time to reload their cameras before we see you all again next weekend. Thank you to all of our wonderful readers, and as always, a huge thank you to our amazing team of global photographers, spies, and gossips:
TDLFAN
Denise nbodyhome Preskitt (mousesteps.com)
SummerInFl (wdwfanpics.com)
sir clinksalot
MickeyMaxx
BigPigletFan
Abominable Snowman
"Postcard Junkie" darkfairycthulu (postcardjunkie.blogspot.com)
Fishbulb
Ian Parkinson
PhotoMatt
Jack Hollywood 1939 Wixom
Your Editor - Rixter
Where have YOU been recently? We invite you to share your photos of theme parks or any other destination that may be of interest to our readers. Please feel free to contact me via MiceChat Private Message (screen name Rixter)
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Total Comments 23
Comments
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Thanks for the update!
The Characters in Flight looks exciting, and I'm glad it brings a little bit of vitality to Pleasure Island.Posted 04-18-2009 at 09:50 AM by MarkTwain
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Loved the update today. I'd just like to say that I would be pooping my pants if I had to go up in that balloon. It looks neat and the pictures from up there are amazing, but I just couldn't do it.
Great pictures of the animals at Busch Gardens, Tokyo Disneyland is ALWAYS amazing, and what's not to love about chocolate?
The perfect update.
Thank you all,
DustyPosted 04-18-2009 at 12:08 PM by Dustysage 
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Spectacular job guys. Although I really really want that Hyacinth Macaw. They are the sweetest things.Posted 04-18-2009 at 12:23 PM by Fishbulb -
Wonderful update. I'm with Dusty, though. I'd have to be sedated to go up in that balloon thing. It looks shaky. I barely make it through the moving gondolas of the Sun Wheel, and that seems much sturdier.
Ethel M. chocolates make me think of airports. Free samples!
Thanks, all! Well done!Posted 04-18-2009 at 01:05 PM by Wanda Woman - The Ethel M factory tour is definitely a simple one, as is the marshmallow factory around the corner. But around Christmas, their cactus garden has an amazing light display.Posted 04-18-2009 at 01:53 PM by DVkid07
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The chocolate looks wonderful!Posted 04-18-2009 at 02:29 PM by nbodyhome -
The Ethel M tour would best be taken if you call ahead and see when the kitchen will be in full swing.
As to the balloon ride, I'll bet there are a bunch of BASE Jumpers going "Oooooooooohhh!" Probably why there's an attendant up there with you. (Can't really call him a Pilot when it's tethered...)Posted 04-18-2009 at 03:00 PM by Bruce Bergman -
amazing update!
I always enjoy seeing what is going on around the world!Posted 04-18-2009 at 03:18 PM by Kritter -
One word to describe Ethel M's mmmmmmmmchocolate!Posted 04-18-2009 at 04:15 PM by hadesthecat -
This is an absolutely fabulous update. The photos are amazing. I love the weekend updates. Thanks for sharing your travels!Posted 04-18-2009 at 04:50 PM by xalesa - One of my best friends works at the Ethel's chocolate factory, I'm a little disappointed that she wasn't captured in any of your photos. (she works in the retail shop)
But, as some people echoed, a great time to go is during the holidays. It's really beautiful in the cactus gardens.
As for the hot air balloon: uh, no thanks. But it would be a nice addition for DLR, at those heights you'd even be able to easily spot Knott's. Not to mention the spectacular overhead view of both Disney parks.Posted 04-18-2009 at 05:42 PM by goldenstate5 -
Great update!!!! The balloon ride looks awesome!! It would be so much fun! The view is amazing.
And the chocolate factory...in one word...yum!Posted 04-18-2009 at 07:07 PM by Ms. Daisy Duck -
Characters in Flight is my worst nightmare come true!!! I watched that video while repeatedly saying, "Oh, hell no!!!" There's one thing I won't be doing in my lifetime.
Great Weekend UpdatePosted 04-18-2009 at 10:49 PM by disneymademoiselle -
Great update! ...but...
'Disneyland! Disneyland! We want Disneyland!'
Posted 04-18-2009 at 11:11 PM by dl_appurtenant -
Quote:Great update! ...but...
'Disneyland! Disneyland! We want Disneyland!'Looking for up-to-date reports from Disneyland
including photos, gossip, park schedules and more?
Visit these MiceChat columns each week:
Andy Castro's Dateline Disneyland
David DarkBeer Michael's In the ParksPosted 04-18-2009 at 11:53 PM by Rixter -
They could not pay me enough to go on that balloon ride at DTD.
Memo to me: time to visit Busch Gardens again sometime soon.Posted 04-19-2009 at 12:21 PM by TDLFAN -
If the cables go or if the balloon pops on Characters in Flight, I would not want to be in it when it happens. The thing is tethered by ONE single cable! I don't care if that cable could hold an oil tanker by its hull, it's not enough for me. And as for a giant helium balloon... I know it could be worse (it could've been hydrogen filled 100 years ago) but I just don't trust my life on a buoyant inert gas. I need something that makes noise or gives me a reassuring feeling that *something* is keeping me up.Posted 04-19-2009 at 01:28 PM by Athlonacon -
That balloon looks and sounds MUCH more peaceful than any hot air balloon would ever hope to be. That's why I would definitely go up in it! Thanks for the report on it.Posted 04-19-2009 at 03:52 PM by disney-fan-reborn - About the balloon. There's a similar one at the Great Park in Irvine (not far from Disneyland).
Call me paranoid, but I have to ask what would happen if the cable broke? (The cable that anchors the balloon to the ground, that is.)
Murphy's law says that if anything can go wrong, it eventually will. So, is there any backup rescue plan? Or are they simply resigned to the fact that the balloon would continue to rise until its occupants expired some horrible fashion?
I'm not afraid of heights, but I'm not crazy about dying...Posted 04-19-2009 at 06:38 PM by FredSimmons -
I'm actually dissapointed that the balloon has been placed where it has. We've had the balloon at Disneyland Paris for many years now and because of its placing you get an amazing view of both of the parks and all the iconic rides like Tower of Terror, Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Small World etc not to mention the castle itself. It's a great way of looking down on the parks themselves; seems like in this location even though I'm sure there are good views, they don't capture the parks so much.Posted 04-20-2009 at 12:27 AM by StrongStyle
