Originally Posted By dagobert >>>I hope that the character "topiaries" look better once the flowers grow in, since they look especially fake right now with their bright colors contrasting against the dull dirt below them. Disney has used these types of sculptures before (DL's 50th floral Mickey, HKDL Stitch event), and I've never been a huge fan of them, but perhaps the European audience will like them better<<< You are right, until now the topiaries look fake, but I honestly like the idea and I hope it will be a success for DLP. The park needs more of these "events".
Originally Posted By dagobert It's really annoying that the beautiful windows of MS Station aren't visible anymore. <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.dlrptoday.com/2014/04/03/main-street-station-becomes-blank-canvas-for-swing-into-spring-overlay/">http://www.dlrptoday.com/2014/...overlay/</a>
Originally Posted By dagobert Here are more pictures of the Swing Into Spring Festival. <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://disneyandmore.blogspot.com/2014/04/disneyland-paris-swing-into-spring.html">http://disneyandmore.blogspot....ing.html</a>
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "It's really annoying that the beautiful windows of MS Station aren't visible anymore." Disney seems to constantly be at war with itself. Is it in the business of providing high quality inspired family entertainment or just pimping out its endless stream of cartoon characters that appeal mostly to preschoolers?
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>Disney seems to constantly be at war with itself. Is it in the business of providing high quality inspired family entertainment or just pimping out its endless stream of cartoon characters that appeal mostly to preschoolers?<< The sad thing is that most people don't care about these little details, like the windows. Especially in Europe it's all about the characters.
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance This is probably a dumb question because I know next to nothing about DL Paris, but why is the castle so non-symmetrical when comparing the left and right sides?
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>This is probably a dumb question because I know next to nothing about DL Paris, but why is the castle so non-symmetrical when comparing the left and right sides? <<< Honestly I don't have an answer to that, but unlike other Disney castles, DLP's Sleeping Beauty Castle is based on fairy tale castles instead of real European castles. Tom Morris, the Imagineer responsible for Fantasyland, said, that Europe is full of beautiful and real castles, so that they chose to create a castle based on fairy tales. <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Ch%C3%A2teau_de_la_Belle_au_Bois_Dormant">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L..._Dormant</a>
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance Interesting, I thought there was probably some elaborate story to go along with why the right side looks like it's built right into the cliff side.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>Interesting, I thought there was probably some elaborate story to go along with why the right side looks like it's built right into the cliff side.<<< Under the cliff lies the Dragon in its cave. It's an animatronic masterpiece of WDI and a must see.
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance Cool! See I know almost nothing about those parks. If I ever do go to a foreign Disney park, I'm sure it'll be Paris. My husband would love to go to France.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>Cool! See I know almost nothing about those parks. If I ever do go to a foreign Disney park, I'm sure it'll be Paris. My husband would love to go to France.<<< France is beautiful and so is Paris. Definitely worth a visit, but I know that it is a long journey from the US. DLP is Disney's most beautiful Magic Kingdom style park, despite its maintenance problems due to its financial situation. WDSP has some good attractions, but it's Disney's worst themepark.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros I agree that the characters on the train station are a bit over-the-top, but I think the rest of it actually looks pretty nice. For a new temporary promotion, they seem to have really done a lot. Now here's hoping that the station can revert to its old colors and signage (DL's castle still sports its 50th paint job, nearly a decade later) And I agree that DLP is definitely the prettiest of all the castle parks, even with the maintenance issues. WDSP is forgettable-at-best, but it has a couple neat and unique attractions. And as long as you're in the neighborhood, you should try to check out some of the rest of Europe; there really is some great stuff to see out in the real world too! : )
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "This is probably a dumb question because I know next to nothing about DL Paris, but why is the castle so non-symmetrical when comparing the left and right sides?" The shape of the castle and surrounding landscape was directly inspired by Eyvind Earle's art direction for the animated film Sleeping Beauty: <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://365daysofmagic.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/sleepingbeauty.jpg">http://365daysofmagic.com/wp-c...auty.jpg</a> <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/88/Sleeping_Beauty_Castle,_Disneyland,_Paris.jpg">http://upload.wikimedia.org/wi...aris.jpg</a>
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt Wait until you see it in person. In addition to the dragon beneath the castle there's also explore the Gaudi inspired interior where there are stained glass windows that tell the story of Sleeping Beauty. <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3670/10380543834_ce365315d7.jpg">http://farm4.static.flickr.com...15d7.jpg</a>
Originally Posted By FerretAfros And if we're just talking about the general shape of the castle, DLP's is almost identical to the massing of Cinderella Castle at MK and TDL. It's been thinned out some for the "fairy tale" touch, and has the hill sticking out of the lower portion on one side, but the overall placement of large features is surprisingly similar (even DL's castle follows the same general form, though it's much more compressed and squat-looking) <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Magic_Kingdom_-_Cinderella_Castle_-_by_cdharrison.jpg">http://upload.wikimedia.org/wi...ison.jpg</a> <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://eswalls.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/castle1-1.jpg">http://eswalls.com/wp-content/...e1-1.jpg</a>
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt Yep, they basically gave it a more "fairy tale" look since there are real castles all over Europe.
Originally Posted By CuriousConstance Must be my OCD that deperately wants it to be symmetrical on both sides!
Originally Posted By FerretAfros ^^Do the other castles bug you too? None of them are especially symmetrical I'd like to get your opinion on some other Disney landmarks, like Splash Mountain, Main Street Station, or Grizzly Peak. Or perhaps something in the real world, like the Sears Tower or LA Union Station?
