Weekend Update: Electrical Parade; Luxo Jr. debut; Bok Tower; Tokyo Disneyland Signs
Welcome to another edition of the MiceChat Weekend Update. We have a crazy globe-hopping trip for you this week, courtesy of the Weekend Update crew. Hollywood1939 kept his promise and is back this week with Disneyland Resort photos. Then Denise Nbodyhome Preskitt shares photos and video of the debut of Luxo Jr. at Disney's Hollywood Studios. SummerInFL is back with the rest of her report on the Bok Tower Gardens which is followed by a new feature that TDLFAN has created for us, "The Signs of Tokyo Disneyland". Last up, sir clinksalot begins a multi-part series of photos based on the travels of his aunt and uncle.
We also have some great things in store for you in the coming weeks. We have added CaptPhoebus to the Weekend Update crew and he'll have some Pixie Hollow photos for us next week. Next week we'll also have a New York trip report from Mac Daddy and part two of TDLFAN's signs series. In the weeks to come, we'll have some more vintage post cards and other surprises. It's going to be a great summer at the Weekend Update.
Disneyland Resort
Anaheim, California
Hollywood1939 visited the Disneyland Resort recently and shares these sights with us including some views of the retooled Electrical Parade. I always enjoy seeing Disneyland through the lens of Hollywood1939, but I can tell that he is enjoying seeing Disneyland through the eyes of his girls. That last photo is priceless!
Sunday was a trip to the Park to see:
The sunset settings were purty
Bountiful Valley Farm had some nice details
Interesting sign
We sat under the Rotunda, it was like a private viewing area in between the pillars and I am getting geared up for this which was behind us
Mickey's Fun Wheel looked great at night (from our spot)
Time for the show! I really liked the Tinkerbell float
I love this float
These "lovely" ladies are always great characters in the parade.
Pan and Hook loom in the distance
He says hello to the people at home
Poor Smee
We dig, dig, dig...
Bashful being bashful
Yay! Pinocchio is back!
Elliot
This sign looks new, it's amazing
The end? No blue fairy? Oh well.
Overall the parade is still awesome. I do miss the circus floats though. The clowns are great and I missed the creepy Dumbo. Above all it was my twin daughters first viewing of the parade, what did one of them think? Well...
I think she's still processing it.
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Walt Disney World Resort
Orlando, Florida
Nbodyhome brings us some photos of the debut of Luxo Jr. This is one of those great little surprises that Disney does so well.
Disney's Hollywood Studios debuted the new Luxo Jr. on Monday. I was there for hours, getting photos and video. Luxo Jr. comes out on the quarter hour marks (15, 30, etc.) for a nearly 3 minute show. During the day it's dancing, he does have a routine at night that has him conducting the trees. I don't have photos of him from the night because I only had a chance to take video (he had a lot of glitches that day, so it took me 2 hours to see 2 shows at night). I have pictures and links to more videos here: www.mousesteps.com
And one of 5 videos I have up:
Bok Tower Gardens
Lake Wales, Florida
Here's part two of SummerInFL's trip to one of Florida's unique attractions.
The Bok Tower
Quote:
The Singing Tower is the centerpiece of the gardens. The tower was built at the highest elevation of the site, south of a reflection pool that allows the water to reflect its full image. A 60-bell carillon set within the 205-foot tall, Late Gothic Revival tower that was designed by architect Milton B. Medary. Construction on the tower began in 1927 and was completed for the dedication of the gardens in 1929, when it was dedicated by President Calvin Coolidge. The tower is 51 feet square at its base, changing form at 150 feet high to an octagon with 37 feet sides that include sculptures designed by Lee Lawrie. The tower is surrounded by a 15-foot moat that serves as a Koi pond. It is built of pink Etowah marble and gray Creole marble, mined in Tate, Georgia, and Florida native coquina stone, from Daytona Beach, Florida.
Unfortunately, the tower is not open to the public as I had hoped. However, I'm told if you become a member of the gardens, you can get into the first floor area.
The outside of the tower.
I can see why they wouldn't want anyone near the tower, with a front door like this would you?
The View
See, Florida does have hills!
We made our way back down to the visitor center to rest up and get some water at the cafe. It was incredibly hot and humid that day. Welcome to summertime in Florida!
We didn't have much time to rest as we were due to the only estate on property for a tour, the Pinewood Estate.
Quote:
8 acres of the Gardens include the Pinewood Estate, which features a twenty-room Mediterranean Revival mansion. This mansion was built between 1930-1932 by C. Austin Buck, vice-president of Bethlehem Steel Co. in Pennsylvania, as a winter residence. Its original name was "El Retiro". The sanctuary features several events at this mansion during the year.
It also contained many places to explore and get lost in.
Unfortunately this one had a mother protecting her eggs, so we left rather quickly.
Mr. Buck wanted it to be as unique and different as possible and that is reflected in all aspects of the estate. From the floors to the ceilings and even the doors!
There were many antiques through out the building, including this hutch from the 17th century.
The Butler's Pantry
The Dining Room
Mr. Buck's private office with the only telephone line available in the home.
The flooring was also designed to be different, the one below was laid to look like stairs. They said that Mr. Buck did this on purpose to confuse his inebriated guests.
To not give his guests the impression that they weren't welcome, Mr. Buck would frequently use this "escape route" from his living room to his upstairs bedroom.
The home can not be rented, you can only reserve a catered dinner using the $36,000 Italian dinner ware they have available. They do however, let dignitaries that come to visit stay in the home.
The youngest daughter's closet.
Overall it's a lovely location, the tower is beautiful and the grounds provide many hours of enjoyment and leisure. It's located within 40 miles of the Orlando area and could easily provide a wonderful escape from the typical tourist scene. I highly recommend a visit should you have time available during your stay in Florida.
Theming is a most important element at the Disney parks, and TDL is no different. With that in mind... TDLFAN shares Part One of the "Signs of Tokyo Disneyland" photo collection.. No explanation needed..as the signs do the storytelling. This week: ATTRACTIONS, PART 1.
Next week: ATTRACTIONS, PART TWO.
Roatan Island, Honduras
Antigua, Guatemala
sir clinksalot is planning to bring us a series of photos from the world travels of his wife Belle's aunt and uncle. First up are photos of Roatan Island in Honduras and Antigua, Guatemala. (Deliciously ironic since I will be on Roatan Island in three weeks!)
Belle's aunt and uncle just spent the last 4 months travelling around the Caribbean, South America and the Mediterranean. Destinations include Honduras, Guatemala, Bonaire Island, Egypt, Jordan and Turkey. They were very excited to share pictures of their journey with everybody.
Our first destination is Honduras.
Roatan Island
Quote:
Originally Posted by source wikipedia
Roatán, located between the islands of Útila and Guanaja is the largest of Honduras Bay Islands. The island was formerly known as Ruatan and Rattan. It is approximately 60 kilometres (37 mi) long, and less than 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) wide at its widest point.
The island consists of two municipalities (out of a total of four in the department): Jose Santos Guardiola in east and Roatán (also including the Cayos Cochinos) further south in the west. The most populated town of the island is Coxen Hole, capital of Roatán municipality, located in the southwest. Other important towns include French Harbour, West End, and Oak Ridge, the capital of Jose Santos Guardiola municipality. The name Jose Santos Guardiola derives from former President of Honduras Jose Santos Guardiola, historically known for sending filibuster William Walker to the firing squad.
The island consists of two municipalities (out of a total of four in the department): Jose Santos Guardiola in east and Roatán (also including the Cayos Cochinos) further south in the west. The most populated town of the island is Coxen Hole, capital of Roatán municipality, located in the southwest. Other important towns include French Harbour, West End, and Oak Ridge, the capital of Jose Santos Guardiola municipality. The name Jose Santos Guardiola derives from former President of Honduras Jose Santos Guardiola, historically known for sending filibuster William Walker to the firing squad.
Quote:
It is really beautiful here, balmy temperature, good snorkeling out in front of our place, lots of pretty fish, good food - lobster, prawns, calamari - and a really nice guest house where we are staying. Banana, coconut, papaya trees everywhere plus lots of other jungly vegetation.
After a few weeks of snorkeling and relaxing, it was off to Guatemala.
Our first stop, the village of Antigua:
Quote:
Originally Posted by source wikipedia
La Antigua Guatemala (commonly referred to as just Antigua or La Antigua) is a city in the central highlands of Guatemala famous for its well-preserved Spanish Mudéjar-influenced Baroque architecture as well as a number of spectacular ruins of colonial churches. It has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Quote:
Hi We are in Guatemala now in a nice village, Antigua, which is about 40 miles west of Guatemala City. We´re enjoying our time here in this mountain town, it´s actually pretty chilly up here at night. There are 3 big volcanoes really close to town and one of them is smoking and glows at night. Antigua was the capital city of much of central America from about 1650 to 1775, when a major earthquake destroyed most of it, so they moved the capital to Guatemala City and started over again. There are ruins of several major cathedrals and government buildings, some of which they rebuilt in the 1800s.
Next week we will continue with more from Antigua (some of the actual village) and move on to Tikal and the Mayan Ruins.
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
PhotoMatt
Jack Hollywood 1939 Wixom
CaptPhoebus
A very special thank you to to my alterna-aunt and my alterna-uncle for sharing their vision with us.
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 9
Comments
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Great update! I always love Hollywood1939's pics. I also really love Summer's TR and pics from the Pinewood Mansion. I'd love to see it; I'm extremely fascinated by old homes. I toured both the Vizcaya mansion in Miami and the Biltmore estate in N.C. in my travels last year.
I can't believe the great condition the house is in, it looks like it's been fully restored. The mediterranean style also makes it look like it's in Southern California, L.A. is full of houses that looke like that!Posted 06-27-2009 at 12:41 AM by DOOM BGI
Updated 06-27-2009 at 12:54 AM by DOOM BGI -
Great!
I love all the great pictures and Luxo jr. was great!Posted 06-27-2009 at 05:01 AM by Kritter 
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Or the Mediterranean.Quote:Originally Posted by DOOM BGI
The mediterranean style also makes it look like it's in Southern CaliforniaPosted 06-27-2009 at 06:42 AM by pussnboots -
The signs of Tokyo Disneland were facinating. Love Luxo Jr! Always a great update! Thank you!Posted 06-27-2009 at 09:54 AM by Dustysage -
Fantastic!Posted 06-27-2009 at 02:47 PM by DisneyPro -
Great pictures everyone!Posted 06-28-2009 at 12:29 AM by WheresMickey - good picsPosted 06-28-2009 at 02:56 PM by anaheimrocker
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Awesome pics of the Electrical Parade. Although it is a little strange to see the parade passing by the construction walls. I have always been impressed with Disneys ability quietly update and build new rides without interupting the guest experience. Although this is clearly unavoidable with the massive renovation of DCA.Posted 06-28-2009 at 05:27 PM by Yensidm -
great pics. luv the tink one & electrical paradePosted 06-29-2009 at 01:55 PM by wdwnut4life
