RU42's WDW Trip - Photo Journal - MAGIC KINGDOM Update #03 - 5/29/06

[RU42]

Well, thus begins my second thread from my trip to WDW. This thread will focus on my Magic Kingdom pictures.

You can fond photo's from Animal Kingdom here

Now on with my show. First up ADVENTURELAND

Walt himself said that one of the advantages of the Florida Project was space. And this really shows in the Magic Kingdom; especially for those who are very familiar with Disneyland. Every Land at the Magic Kingdom is at least double the space of Disneyland. I think this difference is most noticable in Adventureland.

Disneyland's Adventureland is very tight. By mid day it is difficult to get from one end to the other. Now imagine if the Disneyland Adventureland was the size of Adventureland plus New Orleans added together.

At the WDW Adventureland you will find several shops, Dole Whips, and 5 key attractions:
Swiss Family Treehouse, Jungle Cruise, Aladdin Carpets (think Dumbo here), Enchanted Tiki Room Under New Management, and Pirates of the Caribbean. (SIDE NOTE: There are videos under development for all of these rides except the Carpets.)

In my Gallery there are 42 photos from AdventureLand. I will share a few with you but you will want to see the all - clik here to see all 42 photos

Adventureland Sign:



These shops are found near the Aladdin Magic Carpets, thus the Agrabah feel to the store fronts.



On those very hot Florida days it is nice to cool off. Of course you could sit in the Tiki Room, Country Bears, or Hall of Presidents. But another fun option is to play with these tikis. They shoot out water.




SWISS FAMILY TREEHOUSE
At Disneyland we have Tarzan's Treehouse. But before we got Tarzan it was the Swiss Family Treehouse. At the Magic Kingdom it is still the Swiss Treehouse. Here is one of the pictures you will find in the Gallery:



ENCHANTED TIKI ROOM - UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT
Well, while the name of this ride may sound familiar, the show itself will not be. You see, the Magic Kingdom version has new management; namely Zazu and Iago. The show is now a modern blend of music. You will have to watch the video to determine if you like it. This is the entryway to the show, the path inside is to the right of this sign.


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[RU42]

THE JUNGLE CRUISE
Of the rides that Disneyland and Magic Kingdom have in common in the Adventureland area, this ride is the one with the most simularities. However, if I had to pick one over the other I might choose the MK version only because they have a cool temple that you drive into. I have no stills from the ride, only video. But here is the picture of something you will see as you enter the queue:



THE PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
Ok, time for another comparison between 2 similar rides. By far the DLR version of this ride is superior. MK has a few items in it's favor. It is (at least until the new refurb is done) is still true to the original scripts (non-PC.) The queue is vastly superior to the DLR version. And the ending scene is very entertaining.

Here are 2 shots from the front of the building.




And here are a couple queue shots as well. The first one is in the final section of the queue before you hit the loading area. Think of the IJA queue, you go up the stairs, turn left over the ride, and then back down the stairs. This queue is like that. But throughout the queue you have great theming. The second picture is something that is behind you are you are waiting to get on your boat.





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[RU42]

And to end this section on Adventureland, a few on ride photos from Pirates.

We wants the red head



Shift your cargo deary



No cat in the barrel here. MK still has the damsel in distress. However, the script has already been changed here. As you can see, the pirate is holding a map with a big X on it. His dialog is now all about finding the treasure - which is a major part of the new refurb for both Pirates.



And this is the final scene from Pirates. You have 3 drunken pirates in the foreground and a couple guys tied up in the background.




So, there you have a few pictures from Adventureland. Remember, there are 42 pictures that can be found here. And in the near future you will find videos for Tiki Room, Swiss, Jungle Cruise, and Pirates.

Let me know what you think. Feel free to ask questions.

RU

[xfkirsten]

Woo! Love the Agrabah Bazaar shot - that was my old work area when I was a CP (perfect for me, no? ).

[sora_145]

I don't remember the man from pirates, thats surrounded by drunk pirates... I'll have to check that out next month when I go...

[wdwmickeyfan]

It's too bad the Magic Kingdom doesn't have Indiana Jones. Then again, it makes Disneyland's Adventureland unique.

One thing I noticed while I visited last year was that it didn't have the quaint charm and atmosphere of Disneyland. After visiting Disneyland, I felt the Magic Kingdom to be lacking and bland (you don't find little details like you do at Disneyland). And I'm not even a local...this is just my opinion after visiting almost every Disney park except DLHK. Be lucky that you live near Disneyland because it's by far the best theme park.

[Ratty12345]

Cool update! Looking at those POTC pictures makes me want to check it out myself!

[k_peek_2000]

Wow, I am somewhat dissappointed with WDW's Adventureland. Even though It is much bigger than DLR it just seems to spacy. So when are you going to post some of you WDW videos RU?

[RU42]

Comparing MK to DL is a very tough comparison. I like the extra space. A lot of it is personal feelings I guess.

kpeek - soon, very soon.

RU

[k_peek_2000]

Hmm. I am not sure how I feel about the Enchanted Tiki Room Under New Management. I think its a perfect way to kill a classic show because when I watched a video of I was like. OMG they didnt. But they did.

[PeoplemoverMatt]

^ It's far worse when you're actually there. *shudder*

-- PMM

[k_peek_2000]

Well I'll be sure to ignore it when I go lol.

[disneyguy]

Great pics a normal RU!

- DG

[RU42]

Well, here goes update #2 - Frontierland. This update, in my Gallery, contains 54 pictures. You wont want to miss them. Here are a fwe for you to enjoy along with a little commentary.

In case you want to go straight to the picture; GO HERE!

Well, how can I describe Frontierland. Huge is one way. Again, let me draw a comparison to DLR. Imagine our Frontierland starting back by Thunder Ranch and extending all the way to the Hungry Bear Restaurant. Along this long stretch one side would be the Rivers of America and the other side of the path is many shops, eateries, and Country Bear Jamboree. The MK Frontierland is anchored on one end with Liberty Belle (MK version of the Mark Twain) and on the other end is anchored with Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain.

Let's look at a few pictures:

Here is a shot from the end nearest Liberty Square and the Hub. In this picture, moving from left to right, you see white railings. This is a nice sit down place on Tom's island. That brink building you see above it is the Haunted Mansion. The buildings you see on the right side are part of Libert Square and between them is where you would enter the queue for the HM.




Here is a slightly different angle:
On the left is Harpers Mill, kinda like our Fantasmic stage area. On the right is the loading dock for the Liberty Belle. (Side note, the LIberty Belle is technically a Liberty Square attraction.)




I now turn around and look toward the other end of Frontierland. You can clearly see Big Thunder Mountain. Behind the tall trees on the left side of the picture would be Splash Mountain. (BTMRR and SplMtn are next to each other.)




POOF: I am now on the other side of Frontierland. Almost dead center of the picture below is where the above 3 pictures were shot. I am very near to Big Thunder when I took this shot. This stroll along the river would probably be DLR the equivelant of walking from the Fry Cart near the BTMRR exit all the way to Hungry Bear.



Same spot but twisting to my right a little. If you walked through Frontierland towards BTMRR/SM you would hit this bridge. If you walked toward me then you would head to BTMRR, it you bypassed the bridge then you would end up at Splash Mtn.




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[RU42]

Here is a few shots of BTMRR and Splash Mtn:


Thunder Mountain is pretty much Thunder Mountain. The ride is configured a little different and the scenery is a little different. But overall I would say it is a tie.










Let me talk about Splash Mountain a little bit here. This ride at WDW is superior to the DLR version. The ride itself has more elements; some the same, some way better.

But the end, oh the end is awesome. OK, at DLR you might get wet, a little. Rarely do I get REALLY wet at DLR. Not so at the MK. You WILL get wet. I rode in the front several times and each time I got drenched. I created a bag system to protect the camera so I could hold it up when the wave came. The footage should be great.








Please see the Gallery for more picture of BTMRR and SM.

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