The Happiest Place on Earth Shows a Spooky Disney Side!

Disneyland Resort Celebrates Halloween Time 2014, Sept. 12 through Oct. 31

Separate-ticket Mickey’s Halloween Party Expands to 14 Nights With Trick-or-Treating, Special Fireworks in Disneyland Park

Halloween Time at the Disneyland Resort is a one-of-a-kind celebration of chilling, family friendly fun. From Friday, Sept. 12, through Friday, Oct. 31, guests will explore their spooky Disney Side with special Halloween transformations of Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain; encounter Disney villains conjured by a magic cauldron; dance to the Mad T Party band and meet Mickey Mouse and his friends in Halloween costumes.

An additional Halloween Time highlight is the separate-ticket, after-hours Mickey’s Halloween Party, where adults and children show their Disney Side by dressing in costumes, trick-or-treating at Disneyland Park and enjoying an array of special entertainment, including the exclusive “Halloween Screams” fireworks spectacular.

New to Halloween Time at Disneyland this year are the latest twists at Haunted Mansion Holiday and additional entertainment experiences at the Halloween Carnival at Big Thunder Ranch, with more mysterious fun joining the Astounding Cauldron of Magic.

Spooky Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy in Tomorrowland is one of the guest favorites during Halloween Time. The unique Halloween-themed experience begins as a typical Space Mountain adventure, but suddenly launches voyagers into a haunted section of the universe. Ghosts appear out of the starry darkness and swirling galaxies of Space Mountain, reaching out as if to grab guests as they speed through space. The exhilarating drops and curves are punctuated by piercing screams, creepy sound effects and haunting music.

Jack Skellington returns to Disneyland to take over the Haunted Mansion and brings Haunted Mansion Holiday back to New Orleans Square. Transformed with a mix of Halloween spookiness and Christmas cheer, Haunted Mansion Holiday is inspired by the classic animated film “Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas.”

Guests find new surprises within the Mansion every Halloween, including this year’s special gingerbread house, designed to resemble an “iron maiden” coffin with spikes (candy canes) and a hapless gingerbread zombie trapped inside. This is the 14th original gingerbread design since Haunted Mansion Holiday debuted in 2001. This one features opening and closing doors, lights and a very unhappy zombie struggling for his un-life.

In addition to Haunted Mansion Holiday and Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy:

• In Frontierland, guests discover an exciting, new magic show presented on the Halloween Carnival stage at Big Thunder Ranch. Nearby they also may conjure up a Disney Villain at the “Astounding Cauldron of Magic” sideshow tent at the Halloween Carnival. 
• Also at the Halloween Carnival in Big Thunder Ranch, guests encounter favorite Disney characters in Halloween costumes, pumpkin carvers showing their Disney Side with elaborate creations, Halloween décor and activities for youngsters. 
• Main Street, U.S.A. in Disneyland transforms to become the Pumpkin Festival, with hundreds of pumpkins on display, no two of them the same. 
• Guests age three and up show their Disney Side and live their pirate dreams as they learn the ways of the seven seas at The Pirates League. A part of the Halloween Carnival, The Pirates League offers a variety of pirate transformation options: Jake and the Never Land Pirates, Captain Hook, Ghosted Pirate, Black Beard, Black Eyed Jack, and Empress, created especially for pirate princesses. For The Pirates League reservations call 714-781-STYLE / 714-781-7895. 
• Frontierland observes Dia de los Muertos with a traditional skeleton display that will remain through Sunday, Nov. 2.

In Disney California Adventure Park, Halloween Time offers frightful fun for guests of all ages, with favorite attractions such as The Twilight Zone™ Tower of Terror, where a “supernatural” event happened on Halloween evening 1939, 75 years ago, forever haunting the building with spine-tingling fun. Also at Disney California Adventure, the nighttime Mad T Party in Hollywood Land gets some new Halloween spice. Tweedledee and Tweedledum welcome guests as the Mad Hatter offers some devilishly delicious All Hallows Eve fun featuring new Halloween music and a chilling new look for Mad T Party band.

Mickey’s Halloween Party, a separate-ticket event* for trick-or-treating families, expands to 14 special, spooky nights in Disneyland. Highlights of Mickey’s Halloween Party include:

• “Villains Square.” Throughout the evening, the Disney villains arrive in Disneyland Town Square as the “Bad Apple Party Crashers,” riding a black horse-drawn carriage accompanied by thunder, fog and special lighting effects. Villains such as Cruella De Vil, the Queen of Hearts, Judge Frollo from “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and Lady Tremaine from “Cinderella” appear for photos and character greetings, and guests are invited to “Party Like a Villain.” 
• The opportunity to play in Disneyland for three hours before the party starts 
• Trick or Treating – candy and healthy treats ­- in the ultimate Disney neighborhood 
• The “Halloween Screams” fireworks spectacular, hosted by “Master of Scare-omonies” Jack Skellington (presented exclusively for guests of Mickey’s Halloween Party, weather permitting) 
• “Mickey’s Costume Party” cavalcade featuring some favorite characters, performed twice nightly and preceded by the new “Frozen” float with Elsa, Anna and Olaf from the blockbuster animated film 
• “Monsters U Dance Party” at Tomorrowland Terrace: Class time is over and the students of Monsters University join Halloween Time guests in a family-friendly frat party with the most popular students from Monsters U, Mike & Sulley. 
• The Cadaver Dans, a ghoulish quartet performing Halloween-themed tunes aboard a drifting graveyard-themed raft on the Rivers of America in New Orleans Square and Frontierland 
• Photo locations with popular Disney and Pixar Pals, plus Disney Villains 
• Nearly all the favorite Disneyland rides and attractions, plus Haunted Mansion Holiday and Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy 
• Complimentary parking for one standard-size vehicle

Tickets for Mickey’s Halloween Party may be purchased online and, for the first time, on mobile devices at Disneyland.com/party,as well as at the Disneyland Resort main gate and by phone at 714-781-4400. Guests may check for availability for 14 nights: Friday, Sept. 26; Tuesday, Sept. 30; Friday, Oct. 3; Monday, Oct. 6; Wednesday, Oct. 8; Friday, Oct. 10; Tuesday, Oct. 14; Friday, Oct. 17; Monday, Oct. 20; Wednesday, Oct. 22; Friday, Oct. 24; Monday, Oct. 27; Wednesday, Oct. 29; and Friday, Oct. 31. Online purchase is not available the day of the event.

Tickets purchased in advance are available at a discount on select nights. Tickets purchased on the day of the event are $70 each. All tickets to Mickey’s Halloween Party on Halloween Night, Friday, Oct. 31, are $77 each. Mickey’s Halloween Party is a non-smoking event. Smoking will be permitted only in the Esplanade outside the Disneyland Main Entrance.

For more information about Halloween Time at Disneyland Resort, see www.Disneyland.com/Halloween. This site will be updated with frightfully fun details.

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The Twilight Zone® is a registered trademark of CBS, Inc., and is used with permission pursuant to a license from CBS, Inc. ©Disney/CBS, Inc

About the Disneyland Resort
The Disneyland Resort features two spectacular theme parks – Disneyland (the original Disney theme park) and the newly reimagined Disney California Adventure Park – plus three hotels and the Downtown Disney District, comprised of unique dining, entertainment and shopping experiences. The Resort’s hotels are the luxurious, 948-room Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, which also features 50 two-bedroom equivalent Disney Vacation Club units; the magical 973-room Disneyland Hotel – both AAA Four Diamond properties – and the 481-room Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel with its “day-at-the-beach” fun. For information on attractions and vacations at the Disneyland Resort, visit www.disneyland.com, call (866) 43-DISNEY or contact local travel agents.

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*Space is limited, and tickets are available while supplies last. Online purchases unavailable on day of event. Limit eight (8) tickets per person, per event date. Each ticket is valid for admission to the event and parking for one (1) vehicle (larger vehicles may require an additional fee) on the specified event date. Tickets are nonrefundable and may not be sold or transferred for commercial use. Advance purchase savings available on select nights until one day prior to the event date. May not be combined with other discounts. Tickets are valid for admission to the designated party and to the Theme Park beginning at a specified time prior to party commencement. All costumes must adhere to any guidelines as determined solely by Disney. Please choose costumes that are not obstructive, offensive or violent. Guests’ eyes must be visible at all times. Offer and event information and activities are subject to restrictions and change without notice. Days and times of operation and all other elements including, but not limited to, operation of attractions, entertainment, services, stores and restaurants, and appearances of Disney Characters are subject to change without notice. Subject to capacity and other restrictions.
**Information and photos courtesy Disney

Happy Place Hodgepodge - Aug 19, 2014

As I said earlier in the week, Tuesday was a pretty big day for me! I've been on an "Annual Passholder blackout period" since the end of June, and it was the first day I could get back into Disneyland and see the sights!

I really enjoyed my first day of being able to go back, but since it had been so long, I ultimately decided to just sit back, relax, and enjoy what I was doing instead of snapping photos of everything I came across. That said, I did have my phone with me and managed to take a few here and there when the mood seized me just right, and those form the basis for this week's hodgepodge.

I hope that you enjoy!

We'll pretend it was a PERSONAL invitation welcoming me back to the magic!

I figured since it HAD been a few months maybe I should pop into Hollywood Land for a spot of T!

The White Rabbit DJ (DJ Missy B!) keeps the "between sets" times rocking and dropping for hours!

Alice and the Mad Hatter are the host-es with the most-es... straight from the charts to the bottom of our hearts!

I'd truly missed walking through these gates!

And what better way to end the evening that outside of Sleeping Beauty Castle...

Days in the Park is back... in The Parks!

It's a question I've heard many times over the past several weeks since my Annual Pass "blacked out" at the end of June and I've been forced to stay at home: "How do you stand it?" "It", of course, being the ability to go to Disneyland and do one of the things I love most in life.

I have all the right answers, of course, ranging from "I'm trying to save a little money", to "I have three kids who have all kinds of different interests now and football don't come cheap!", to my personal favorite, "It's no big deal. Really!" It's been difficult, and I've missed going, but now that I'm on the other side of the fence, so to speak, the time has come for me to re-assume my place inside the walls of The Parks and re-enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow and fantasy; the happiest place on earth!

Am I being overly dramatic? Perhaps. But anyone who knows me, really knows me, knows that in some small way it was killing me to not be able to go to Disneyland whenever I wanted to like I could before, and I suppose there's no use in pretending it wasn't. But at the end of the day, as an adult, with a wife and children, sometimes you just have to do what you have to do at the time. It's just going to make it that much sweeter walking in those gates this afternoon.

So if you're new to Days in the Park, or perhaps an old hat who's been following me for quite some time now (and there are some of this, which continues to puzzle and amaze me), I think I'm going to have some pretty great stuff for you in the near future. I'm going to be there today with bells and whistles on (or, if you prefer, my eyes open and my camera ready!), and I'm going to make the most of it. Feel free to check back over the next few days to see just some of what I'll be seeing today, or if you're not already, please (because it seems to be my achilles heel) follow along on my Instagram account @daysinthepark for live pictures from inside The Parks throughout The Day. By all means, please keep coming back for more pictures and all the information I have time to throw at you. I promise to, now that I can, go as often as I can and keep throwing them at you.

"To all who come to this happy place, welcome!"

Thank you Uncle Walt, I think I will...

Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys - A Field Guide to Disneyland Resort's Best Kept Secrets (4th Edition)

The following is a reprint of an article written and released last year on Days in the Park. It's being re-released for the newer 4th Edition of Disneyland's Hidden Mickey Field Guide which now includes Cars Land and Buena Vista Street

Most Disney fans the world over are very familiar with the old expression, "It all started with a mouse".  The phrase was coined by Walt Disney himself, and is something we've probably all heard in regards to pretty much anything Disney-related.

It bears saying that like so many other things in life, history has a tendency to repeat itself.  And while we're not even in the same solar system as Walt Disney in regards to what we do here, we can also say that what we do here began with a mouse.  Although there were definitely many variables that led to our beginning to blog about our adventures at Disneyland, the one that pushed us "over the edge" so to speak and actually led to our blog's creation was our love of Mickey Mouse, and more particularly, our love of Hidden Mickey Mouses.  We've enjoyed searching for these little gems ever since we began going to Disneyland, so of course we became very familiar early on with what we've dubbed the "Yellow Book of Hidden Mickeys" (we're pretty sure there's some intentionality there), Steven M. Barrett's Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys: A Field Guide to Disneyland Resort's Best Kept Secrets, currently in its 4th Edition.

For those who may be unfamiliar with the Hidden Mickey phenomena and what exactly that is, Hidden Mickeys are partial, or complete, likenesses of Mickey Mouse that are created by Imagineers and hidden (hence the name) all over the world among the different Disney properties including the Disney Parks, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Resorts.  And not content to only place Hidden Mickeys around, there are also Hidden Minnies, Goofys, etc.  By far the most popular and best known, however, are the Mickeys.  They can be in the "classic" form (round head and two ears which you'll see on this blog!), in the form of mouse ears, a side profile, silhouette, entire body, etc.  Even his initials can be fair game and used by the Imagineers to signify a Hidden Mickey.  While hunting ourselves, we've always tried to look for some type of Mickey form where there shouldn't typically be one, and go from there!

While hunting Mickeys for yourself can be loads of fun, like so many other things in life, sometimes you'd like a little something extra to help you along; a little nudge in the right direction, if you will, and that's where the Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys guide comes in handy.

One of the things that makes this book so great is that it gives you options!  Rather than just spelling out each and every Mickey and where they are located, Mr. Barrett arranges his book in basically the same layout as a type of scavenger hunt.  Who doesn't love a scavenger hunt?!  A big plus in this particular brand of scavenger hunt is that rather than your ordinary scavenger hunt which just tends to lead you from one destination to another, Mr. Barrett has assigned each Hidden Mickey a point value (according to "difficulty to spot/see") which can keep you playing throughout the day, ranging from one point to five points.  The book tells you exactly how many points each Hidden Mickey is worth, and even includes a little box at the end of each chapter to write in what you've scored and give you your grade accordingly.
 
The different steps that Mr. Barrett has taken in setting up the book, and in helping you locate the Hidden Mickeys inside, is extremely well done in several areas, we think.  First, the Mickeys are arranged by Park, which makes it super easy to find ones in whichever setting you find yourself. The book itself is separated into Disneyland Park, Disney California Adventure Park, and Downtown Disney District and Hotel segments, and even includes a nice map of every area if you're unfamiliar with Disneyland, so that you know where to go.  Second, as you're flipping through the book you'll notice that within each area, words referring to the different "Lands" and attractions in the different Parks on all of the pages are bolded, so you always know immediately which attractions the Hidden Mickeys on that page are for; it makes it so easy to know exactly where something is located.  There's even a great index at the back of the book in which you can look up whatever Land or attraction you'd like and see if there are any Hidden Mickeys listed there; definitely a nice touch and it makes it super easy to find whatever it is you may be looking for.  Want to know if there are any Hidden Mickeys on Alice in Wonderland?  Look up Alice in the index and, well, you get the idea.  Which brings us to what we think is probably the coolest part of how the book is set up.  Mr. Barrett has taken the liberty of doing each Park's Hidden Mickeys in two different sections.  The first section offers very generic "clues" to point you in the general direction of a Hidden Mickey wherever you may be in The Park, and each clue is numbered so you know exactly what you are looking at.  But, if that's not enough to get you to where you need to be, each clue number matches up with a "Hint" number in the next section of the book, which provides the reader with a more in-depth pointer about exactly where the Hidden Mickey is.  We think it's a fantastic way to have set the book up!  We figure there are two types of people in this world: those that refuse to look for the direct answer and would like to at least try to discover things for themselves (with maybe just a slight hint), and they're covered here, and those who want to know exactly where something might be hidden and don't care in the slightest about making the discovery themselves, and they're covered as well!

Now that the technical aspects of the book are out of the way, we can get to the good stuff (it's all good!) and talk about just how much fun and entertaining Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys can be!  We recently took the book into Disneyland with us, again for the first time in quite a while, and what we noticed was that the entire day we never put the book down!  Every attraction we rode led to us perusing the book to see what we could find.  If it wasn't for the fact we had it, we would have completely missed many of the Hidden Mickeys that we had never seen before.  Not only that, but we found ourselves exclaiming all over again about Hidden Mickeys that we already knew about!  It's also amazing how much attention you get carrying that little yellow book around.  We don't mean by how viewing some of the Hidden Mickeys make you do crazy things like climb on the back of chairs either, but just by reading the book in plain sight of everyone else.  The color choice for the cover is just brilliant in that regard.  The bright yellow simply bursts out at you, and everyone else within 100 yards of you, making it really easy to find when looking for it in some of the stores, and making it really easy for others to spot you at Disneyland carrying it around.  It's a great conversation starter, and when we had it along and out with us we heard loads of people commenting on the book around us, before we even gotten off of the tram.  It's like a conversation magnet, and if you enjoy chatting it up with others around Disneyland, then bring this little baby along.

Anything, and we mean anything that will keep children entertained is more than okay by us, and this certainly does!  We handed one of our copies to two energetic kids, and were constantly amazed at how many times they would repeatedly ask us, "Did you know there's a Hidden mickey on this ride?!"  It was funny just to listen to them talk about how they were going to find every Hidden Mickey in the book, and how excited they actually got when they did spot one, which is the great thing!

And it's not like you're spending your money (if you buy the book) on a one time deal.  It takes multiple trips out to hunt down every Mickey in the book.  You could spend the whole day hunting down the infamous mouse, and you would barely scratch the surface of this book.  Not only that, but it's pretty common belief that there are still many Hidden Mickeys out there that are not in the book at all.  That's right! Not all the Hidden Mickeys are in the book.  Mr. Barrett even handles this little difficulty awesomely and with tons of grace and thanks to his readers.  There's a very good reason they're not all there too!  Expansion!  As The Resort grows, so does the Hidden Mickey count, and that's where we, the loyal Hidden Mickey hunters, come in.  Disney Imagineers don't like to tell guests where they have hidden Mickey (there's no official list), so when a hunter finds a new mouse, they can submit it to Steven M. Barrett on his website, Hidden Mickey Guy.com, and Mr. Barrett will personally hunt your Mickey and if he likes it, you even get your name in the book in his acknowledgements section!  Another great reason we love this book!  He gives credit to the finder as a "thank you" for their efforts; something he doesn't have to do, and no doubt something that many other people wouldn't.  Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys is currently in its fourth iteration (4th Edition), and as Mr. Barrett has continued to update his work with new additions as The Resort has expanded, and subtractions as Hidden Mickeys aren't permanent and are often removed during renovations or expansions.

Some of the other fantastic sections in his book include a chapter at the beginning entitled "Hidden Mickey Mania" where Mr. Barrett goes into some detail about the entire Hidden Mickey phenomenon and its history, provides hints and tips on how to hunt for Hidden Mickeys and how best to utilize his book to do so, gives you the low down as to what actually makes a Hidden Mickey (versus a "decorative" one), and explains a little bit about his own selection process and how he chooses what he accepts as a Hidden Mickey and what he does not; pretty interesting stuff.  And at the end, he even dedicates a couple of couple of quick sections to his "Top Ten" Favorite Hidden Mickeys and Honorable Mentions from all over Disneyland.  It's awesome to be able to see which ones the "Hidden Mickey guru" (our loving label) enjoys seeing himself; too cool!

Ultimately, Steven M. Barret's Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys is just a fun book to take along with you into Disneyland.  Here at Days in the Park, we harp on the "little details" all around Disneyland all the time, and encourage people to slow down and take it all in.  Part of those little details hidden all over the place are our favorite little Mickey Mouses, and this book is an excellent resource, and just plain fun tool, to help you along the way in discovering some of them for yourself.  After all, who doesn't love Mickey Mouse?  And these little beauties definitely deserve at least a cursory glance by everyone who enters The Gates; just our opinion.  And who knows, if you've never been exposed to the phenomenon yourself, it just might make a Hidden Mickey hunter out of you.

If you're interested in picking up a copy of Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys for yourself, you can find it for a great price!

And because it's Christmas, we're going to give one of you the opportunity to get in touch with your inner-Hidden Mickey hunter by giving away a brand new copy of Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys - 4th Edition for your own enjoyment! And all you have to do to enter is follow the instructions in the little Rafflecopter widget. Simple!

You'll receive one entry each for following us on FaceBook and Twitter (both are mandatory), and extra entries for leaving comments here on our blog telling us your favorite Hidden Mickey and for tweeting about our contest to others! The contest begins as soon as this article posts, and will run until midnight (Pacific Standard Time) on January 3rd, so you have plenty of time to enter!  At the close, one winner will be selected via Rafflecopter and emailed to claim their prize. Let's make this giveaway sing!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Steven M. Barret's Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys: A Field Guide to Disneyland Resort's Best Kept Secrets - 4th Edition is published by The Intrepid Traveler, and is available in bookstores nationwide, from online bookstores (such as Amazon.com), or by visiting The Intrepid Traveler website.

A review copy of Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys was provided to Days in the Park, courtesy of The Intrepid Traveler, for the purposes of this review.  All opinions contained herein are solely ours.


A "giveaway" copy of Disneyland's Hidden Mickeys was provided to Days in the Park, courtesy of The Intrepid Traveler, for the purposes of this giveaway.

Mad T Mondays! - Mad T Party from 12/8/13

It's that time of the week again; it's Monday! So in keeping with my current theme on Mondays, I did go to the Mad T party at Disney California Adventure Park again last night.

Since it's a Monday, the first day of the week, and people are getting back in to work, I don't want to make people read too much. So with that in mind, I present to you my favorite eight pictures from the T Party last night. As always, I hope that you enjoy seeing them as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Everyone have a great, and Mad, Monday!

PS - For anyone asking why I chose the number eight, it was completely arbitrary; and now you know!

Throwback Thursday: Walt's 111th Birthday

First, before anything else is said, I would be completely remiss if I didn't start off today's article by wishing a very happy birthday to the man who, without his vision, whimsy, imagination, and business saavy, none of us would be blogging about what we are: Walt Disney. Today, had he lived, and he may just have if cancer hadn't taken him too early, would have been his 112th birthday, and not a trip to Disneyland goes by where I don't take a moment to just stand in one spot, close my eyes, maybe even turn in a circle, and just imagine myself in the same spot he probably stood in at one point. It's surreal and from the bottom of so many of our childhood hearts, we thank you Uncle Walt. When I first created and started blogging at Days in the Park, one of my dreams was to one day (I've said this before) set foot inside what was to be one of Walt's very special places, Club 33. I've long since been blessed enough to have done that, and blessed even more to have been now on several occasions. Each time is special and full of new memories and times, and tonight I will have the honor (and to me, that's exactly what it is) of dining at The Club for the seventh time. Perhaps the most memorable so far though was being invited to spend Walt's 111th birthday, last December, in a private party celebrating his life and legacy at The Club. Tonight I will be celebrating his 112th with many of the same people, making new memories which I'll no doubt treasure forever.

Throwback Thursday: ElecTRONica!

It seems that more and more frequently lately (or maybe I'm just noticing it more) I'm seeing the question, "Which do you prefer; ElecTRONica or Mad T Party?".  I'm not even going to attempt to answer the question myself or turn this into some sort of debate, other than to say that I did enjoy ElecTRONica, but I love the Mad T Party.

However, it did make me nostalgic for ElecTRONica to a certain degree, so I thought it would make a great Throwback Thursday picture.  So I went back through my pictures from 2010 and found this picture taken at the entrance to The Grid from one of the very first (if not the first) nights I ever went to ElecTRONica.

Hope you all enjoy!

Sorcerer Radio is Covering 'The Lone Ranger' Premiere...

... and yours truly got the gig! I'll be heading out into the wilds of the media within the next hour or so to cover all the happenings all around Disney California Adventure Park, so keep your eyes peeled here or on my Twitter account for LIVE pictures and my own personal sights and sounds.

You can follow me here in the cute little widget I have set up below, or follow on Twitter @daysinthepark or @srsounds for this, what's sure to be awesome, event! Let the show begin!
  Tweets by @DaysInThePark

Mad T Party Band - Summer 2013 "Britney Spears Mashup"

It should really need no introduction!

The Mad T Party Band has unleashed the full fury of their Summer selection on us, and this is just one of the ones played for the first time last weekend. Like Britney Spears or not, you can't deny the crowd went absolutely bonkers about it, and having Alice sneak up on stage like that was a real treat.

Enjoy!

"Domino" by Jessie J - covered by the Mad T Party Band (Disney Californi...

This week's video from the Mad T Party at Disney California Adventure Park is of our favorite characters covering the popular song "Domino" by singer Jessie J. As one of the songs that debuted early during the Spring Break season, we thought it would make an excellent addition to the blog, so please enjoy!


If you like what you see, please consider subscribing to our YouTube Channel! We have all kinds of goodies from the Happiest Place on Earth.
You can find us at www.youtube.com/daysintheparkYT
Hope to see you there!

Girl on Fire - cover by Mad T Party Band

I really could listen to the Mad T Party Band sing this over and over again. Her vocal range is absolutely amazing, and it's so much fun to play off of her in the crowd.

What do you think of this cover? Good? Bad? If you say bad, we'll disown you though.

Enjoy!

My Favorite Disneyland Attraction Vehicle

Welcome to those of you joining me from "Disney Babies Blog" and those of you just hopping aboard. I am the 3rd stop on our Magical Blogorail.

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Welcome back!

So this month we've been charged with talking about our favorite Attraction Vehicle in the Disney Parks. I gave it quite a bit of thought, and of course came up with the standard answers: the Autopia cars, the logs on Splash Mountain, the Doom Buggies on The Haunted Mansion. But really, what's the fun of thinking inside the box? So I decided I'd show you instead of tell you this time.

Because when you really get down to brass tacks, there's simply nothing like being suspended hundreds of feet in the air with nothing between you and Paradise Pier but a silly cage.

Enjoy!


Thank you for joining me today. Your next stop on the Magical Blogorail Loop is "Pursuing the Magic".

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Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail should you happen to have to make a stop along the way and want to reboard:
1st Stop ~ The CanaDisney Blog
2nd Stop ~ Disney Babies Blog
3rd Stop ~ Days in the Park
Final Stop ~ Pursuing the Magic

December to Remember: Naughty or Nice!

We know that we've missed a few days (doggone you life for your interference!) but we're finally back on the wagon and trundling along with our "December to Remember" posts hosted by The Disney Sisters!

When we saw today's theme, it was definitely something we could get behind. Naughty or Nice? How about both?!

Wayne and Lanny invade the Muppet*Vision 3D Theater in Disney California Adventure Park

If you haven't yet had a chance to see either of the 'Prep & Landing's, they're really amazing little short films! Produced by Disney, they tell the stories of two of Santa's Elves (Wayne and Lanny) and the different adventures they have when Lanny comes on board as Santa's newest elf. And what better way to introduce these two to the masses than at The Park in the Muppet*Vision 3D theater in a 4D format?! We haven't had the chance to see it yet ourselves (it seems to break down every time we try) but you can bet before the holiday season is over, we will!

Hope you enjoyed today's little festive look! Be sure and check back in the coming Days for more of the magic. We love sharing our pictures with you!

December to Remember: Ornament!

It's that time of day again! Well, actually it's not since we're posting this a day later than it should have been, but we were celebrating Walt Disney's birthday at Disneyland so hopefully we can be forgiven that little slight.

Today the Disney Sisters were asking us to share our favorite Disney ornaments from our own Christmas trees. However, my tree isn't up yet. Gasp!!! So, instead of using an ornament from mine, I've taken one of my favorites from the tree that resides in Paradise Pier at Disney California Adventure Park. I'm hoping you can guess why it's my favorite without too much effort. And although it's not on my tree per se, you can bet your bottom dollar if my tree was up it would have a Mickey on it.

And that's all she wrote for today! At least it is until a little later in the day when we'll actually post the picture meant to be for today. We hope you're having a lot of fun with our photos because we're sure enjoying doing it! Keep coming back for more! We're always happy to see you.

"Fantastically Fun" Foto Fridays!

Two things by way of a preface before I even begin!

• This is by no means meant to start an iPhone vs. DROID debate!
• I love alliteration; if you don't, the title of my segment might just annoy the heck out of you

Okay, now that the business is taken care of, let's get to the good stuff!

People who have been reading Days in the Park are probably already familiar with our "Almost" Wordless Wednesday concept. We stroll around, take some random photos of anything we think might be remotely interesting, and post them. We take it a step further though and only use our cell phones to capture these weekly photos. I have a DSLR, but to be honest, I've never really enjoyed lugging it around. I'd rather channel my inner-superhero, "Unencumbered Man" when I'm at The Park, and it's always been more fun for me to just run around without nothing but a jacket on, whipping out my cell phone at a gunslinger's pace snapping photo after photo. Not to mention I'm still a little bit chubby, and having that thing bounce off my belly for hours on end ain't all it's cracked up to be.

But therein lied my conundrum recently. My old camera was crap. Now don't get me wrong, I loved my DROID Incredible from the word "go". I've toted it around Disneyland for almost three years now, and it had only just started going a bit wonky on me, but let's be honest, I've never been overly impressed with the camera on it. The shutter speed on it was slower than the line to get on Splash Mountain on a 110º day in the middle of summer. This, of course, made it desperately difficult (alliteration - hah!) to get pictures of any value, especially at night. And if I tried to use the flash? I hope you like your pictures completely white with nothing else at all in them.

So when the time came to upgrade last month, it honestly was a decision about the camera for me. Personally, I can live with either a DROID or an iPhone; I'm techy enough to be able to appreciate both. So it came down to price, and when Verizon offered the 4S for $70 I jumped all over it. And I couldn't be happier that I did! OS aside (iOS v. Jellybean, or whatever tasty treat DROID is calling their OS these days), I've been so in love with the camera since I got it. Flash? Who needs it? And this shutter is fast! I mean, Toy Story Midway Mania line at 11:55PM fast. I can shoot standing still. I can shoot in motion. I can shoot in the dark. Shoot, shoot, shoot! Fun word, isn't it? The first weekend I took it to The Park, heck, the first day I took it, I took ~300 photos. Have I mentioned I love my camera yet?

Which brings me to today's post! We absolutely love our Wednesday segments because we can just have fun with them, so I've decided to expound on that a bit and bring some of it over to Friday. In the course of all our shuttering, some pictures are obviously better than others; that's just the nature of the game, in spite of whatever camera you have, iPhone or DROID. But there's always that one picture that just stands out to me in some way, and so that's what we'll be highlighting from now on on Fridays. With weekly trips happening again, there's always plenty to pick from, so you, our loyal readers, can look forward to seeing what we think is the "best of our best" on a weekly basis. Sound cool?

 I've lately become completely obsessed with the Mad T Party over at Disney California Adventure Park. I blame Amy completely for that. But be that as it may, as such, I've been taking oodles of pictures there over the course of the last few weeks. I take pictures of other things of course, but the last two weeks they've definitely been the bulk of what I've snapped off, and judging by my Instagram account, people seem to love them. So it only made sense to make this week's very first Foto something from said Party.

I was especially proud of this one when I took it. The picture came out clear as a bell in its original form, so I decided to take it a step further and zoom in a bit and use just a portion of it. I chose to cut off the Dormouse at his really cool boots strumming away on his axe, but the centerpiece of the picture is obviously Alice, as played by my favorite Cast Member in the role, Dani Kerry. It still looked pretty clear to me, so after a little foodling in my Camera+ app, what you see is what I got. The purple hues and white shining off the front of the stage contrasted with each other nicely, and something about the picture just stood out to me. The "Hazy Shade of Winter" ('Bangles' reference FTW!) thing it's got going on just sealed the deal; as the first one that jumped out at me and made me literally say out loud, "That's a good shot!", I present it here for you all.

Of course, things like this are pretty subjective anyway, and one man's favorite picture may be another man's toilet paper, but we plan on having fun with this regardless.

So! Let us know what you think! We'll be sorting through our pictures on a weekly basis and choosing one, just one, to feature on a weekly basis, and it will something different than what's included in our Wednesday posts, so be sure to check back both days for our picture posts.

What'd you think of this week's photo? Good choice? Nice as we think?

We'd love to hear from you!

"Almost" Wordless Wednesday - A Little Bit of This...

It's that time of the week again! Time when we like to get all crazy around here and throw a bunch of random photos from around The Parks your way. This is honestly our favorite day of the week around here because, hopefully, you get let in on just a little bit of the fun (and sometimes insanity) we get into on our weekly trips. We always have so much fun, and hope that comes through in all of our pictures. As always, enjoy the magic, and sometimes "magical" photos!

Just what I needed... another crush! I heart Vanellope!

Oh yeah, that's really mature...

The gang hanging out at Club 33 with one Mr. Steven Barrett (and wife Vicki!) - and yes, it's THAT Hidden Mickey Guy and Gal! ºoº

We're all purply pink!

Doc Hudson's getting us ready with a pre-race pep talk!

Mad T Party FTW!

I spy with my little Cheshire eye...

Just Got Happier!

editor's note: During this past summer, Disney California Adventure Park reopened to the masses with an entirely new theme and fantastic showplaces in the new Buena Vista Street entrance and an entirely new Land based on the Disney*Pixar hit, 'Cars'. At the time, the Days staff was on a self-induced vacation, and didn't attend the Grand reOpening on June 15th, or so we thought. Amy snuck this little ditty by us and I discovered it just the other day while getting some ideas of my own in order. While it is a few months old at this month, it still seems completely apropos for many reasons. Truth be told, the magic and feeling in this article is something I STILL feel each and every time I walk into the new envisionment of my Park. Since its opening, when I've spent time at The Parks, most of it HAS in fact been at the new Disney California Adventure Park. Amy did an absolutely fantastic job of capturing the feel of being there for the very first time and how it made her feel, which is something that's as strong in ME now as it was the first time I went and stood in the middle of Route 66 in Cars Land in complete and total awe. Hopefully, it's a feeling I'll never lose, and I'd be willing to bet many of you feel the same way yourselves still. In spite of the crowds, if you ever get to enjoy one of these opening Days for yourself, we hope this article will convince you to do so. So without further ado... Enjoy!

The Disneyland Resort has been buzzing with summer excitement as Disney California Adventure Park relaunched itself with a new image with the addition of Cars Land and Buena Vista Street, and Disneyland Park reopened the Matterhorn Bobsleds with all new sleds for the first time in decades and all new expanded seating at one of Disneyland's most popular restaurants, Carnation Cafe.

June 15th was the big day, and as much as I said I wasn't going to go anywhere near The Resort that day, I just couldn't stay away. That Friday night I met my dad for dinner at the Fullerton Best Buy Truck Squad (best food trucks on the planet, I kid you not), and decided that I was just going to "swing by" to see what things looked like. I knew full well that it was going to be a chaotic mess, but I couldn't not go! So off I went...

...and it was awesome!

From the moment I walked through the turnstiles, I couldn't stop smiling. There was a huge, permanent grin across my face the entire time. As I made my way down Buena Vista Street, just taking everything in, I couldn't help but think about how beautiful every little detail was. I was there alone, so I didn't have anyone to process things with, and in an effort to "live in the moment" and enjoy my first time there, I didn't bring a camera (maybe for the first time in history!). I didn't even use my cell phone except to snap one photo of a friend that I saw performing on Buena Vista Street. The only thing I could do was wander and smile!

I eventually made my way from Buena Vista Street towards Route 66 and my timing could not have been more perfect. As I anticipated, the street was packed with a wall of people but I made my way through the masses and looked at everything as I made my way to the middle of Cars Land. It was in that magical moment (do we expect nothing less?) that 'Sha-boom' started playing throughout the street, and slowly, one by one, the neon signs turned on from one end of Route 66 to the other, just like in the movie! It was absolutely perfect; the glow of the neon warmed my heart that night. Have I mentioned yet that I could not stop smiling?

I've been in Disney California Adventure Park many times since then (and with cameras this time!), and it's just as magical now as it was then, but I'd be lying if I said there wasn't a little something extra about that first time; I think my Days in the Park cohorts would agree with me there (even though they were pansies and stayed away on Day 1). If you haven't had a chance to experience it for yourself, what are you waiting for? A whole new world is calling; the all-new Disney California Adventure Park is ready for you. Just be prepared to work those cheek muscles the entire time you're there!