On Wednesday I had the opportunity to stop in at the park for a short visit around noon time. I almost believed some of the hype over at Miceage about the epic sized crowds and stayed away. Well, I'm glad I didn't buy the hype, the park was not over crowded by any means, I'd say it was under half of its capacity or less.
Once again the weather was amazing. It seems when I only have a short time to visit the magic Disney weather machine kicks into full gear. It was about 70, light breeze and clear. I overheard several guests comment on how nice it was.
Here's my not so good attempt at a "now" photo to compare with Wednesday's "Town Square - 1962" post (link). They must have taken their shot from a crane or maybe the roof of the bank?
Even plain flowers are pretty at Disneyland.
All of the Main Street Vehicles were out and running in fine fashion.
Let's take it up on the 5 North.
Disneyland "Resort" Bah.....
One of these day's I'm going to ride the trolley, I don't think I've ever done it.
These are fun to ride in, a bit cozy however.
This looks just like my back yard, minus the weeds and dog poop.
Hello, where's the castle? What will I "celebrate"? I'll celebrate when I can see the castle from the flag pole again...
Where's the crushing crowds? I guess it's not technically summer yet, check back in a couple weeks for wall-to-wall guests.
The Main street vehicles were really moving people around briskly, its neat to see them actually be able to move without beeping their horns constantly.
This trolley photo was taken just moments after the one in Town Square, hey, that's a horse of a different color!
This would be the first time I've seen both trolleys cross on Main Street. What are those huge cranes for? Must be new DCA stuff?
The Fire Truck is ready for its next trip. An interesting look back stage, what are those windows?
Let's listen to the Fire Engine idle for a few seconds.
Obligatory Castle shot.
Its something missing here?
Please tell me they just added these swan bush things? Or have I walked by them a hundred times and never noticed?
I'm not a "flower" type of guy, but heck these will make anyone smile.
The mighty Matterhorn had a rather mighty line!
The Anaheim River.
Three Fences is doing very well.
Well, well, well.... Look where the Gullywhumper ended up. I'm convinced its the same hull as before (that's my story and I'm sticking to it) the deck has obviously been redone and while it looks nothing like the original attraction, it does look pretty darn authentic to the period.
Mike Fink has moved into the burning cabin! Handy that it comes with a parking space for his keel boat! I wonder if he was able to get fire insurance?
Where's the old Mine Train? Someone said it might be at the Disney Archives? Do they have room for something like that?
Time is starting to run short so lets head down Main Street and get to the "Day One" exhibit. But First - Fresh Buttered Peanut Brittle was being made at the candy shop.
I saw someone as the nice man making the candy if they could get a fresh batch, he of course gave them one!
Here's a fun little hidden mail box at the Canned Goods and Spices store on Main Street.
This little hallway isn't marked with any signs or window dedications so most folks walk right by.
Wow, standing up by the door my head almost touches the ceiling - now that's forced perspective!
What a cute little mail box. Someone made a hanger out of a paper clip, that's cute too! I wonder what's inside, looks like a show/parade guide!
A quick stop over at Tilly's booth, she is looking nice. The booth and the entire Main Street Cinema are looking absolutely stellar, Walt would be pleased.
As part of Disneyland 55th anniversary, "Day One" Disneyland is an exhibit in the old Bank of America building that pays tribute to Disneyland's opening day or "Day One". I highly recommend this exhibit for anyone who reads this blog. There is some amazing stuff on display that's pure gold to Disneyland geeks like us.
There is a lot of Globe Paper in this exhibit - Nice touch, I love globe safety paper, I want my house wallpapered in it. Not to be picky, but I don't think they were using the standard "Globe Safety Paper" on "Day One" It came a few months after day one, but the first couple months just had the stub style tickets, although they were made by Globe.
Basically the exhibit is a room full of concept art. At first I thought, "I bet I've seen all this online and in books" well, I was wrong. There is a lot of amazing stuff I've never seen before.
A cast member told me these are "Duplicates" of the originals and were duplicated and restored recently just for this exhibit. These look so much better in person, my silly camera had trouble with the lighting but you can get a good idea what's in the exhibit.
I'll let you take a self guided tour from here, I'll just chime in on my favorite one.
My absolute favorite - I want a copy of this, do you think I can sneak in my flatbed scanner?
Scratch the surface and what do you find? Vintage Disneyland!
Time to go...
