Originally Posted By avatarmickey115 why werent those fountains ever on for years? i swear they never turn fountains on anymore in the parks...except WOC....
Originally Posted By Dabob2 <"God, that made me want to barf!"> Actually, I don't think it's that bad. Yeah, some is a little "corporate speak-y," but read it again... and imagine if the park had actually HAD something that touched on each of those points in an interesting way. Some of it was there (Soarin' with the aviators, for instance) but other parts were not (e.g. the computer screen - I've always thought a Silicon Valley section could have worked nicely). It's actually not a bad set of "goals" for the park, if you will. Arguably more interesting than a Little Mermaid ride.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros That makes me feel so much better that it was there! I knew I had seen it, but there just didn't seem to be any pictures of it. It kind of makes some sense that it wasn't there right at opening (why would they make the plaque before the speech had been given?), but it is curious that it disappeared after a while. As for the speech itself, it just reminds me a lot of the Disneyland dedication speach. It's obviously patterend on the original, but modified to fit the park. I agree that it is a great set of goals, and it's kind of a shame that they never did (or will, with Carsland taking up the vast majority of the remaining expansion space). I had never noticed that there was no American flag in the park, which is quite interesting. I'm not sure about the international parks, but I believe all of the other US parks have at least one. It's also interesting that there is no California flag, since it's a park about California. Luckily, it seems like that will be fixed with the little square at the entrance of Buena Vista Street, but it is odd that it wasn't included in part of the original park.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "Disneyland obviously has its '55 plaque proudly displayed at the flag pole (so very appropriate!). Roy Disney's speech from '71 is on a plaque at WDW. Epcot has a nice plaque from '82 at the entrance. MGM Studios has on from Eisner in '89, and he did another one chiseled in granite for Animal Kingdom in '98. Tokyo, Paris and Hong Kong all have them too. But not DCA, so far as I can tell." Tomorrowland has a plaque too, but I don't think anyone at Disney has bothered to read it long long time.
Originally Posted By TP2000 Hans, don't get me started on Tomorrowland. There actually is a California flag in DCA. It's on the south end of Grizzly River Run, by the trail that leads under the lift hill just past the San Francisco bathrooms. There's no American flag on that pole, just a California one. But it's very hidden. I didn't notice that DCA was built without an American flag on display until the 9/11 attacks happened and things like the Flag retreat ceremony and patriotic holidays took on new significance. All of the patriotic stuff happens at Disneyland because there is no American flag to rally 'round at DCA. That was a really dumb move in my opinion. And it's something they are fixing with the Buena Vista Street project featuring an American flag pole prominently in the artwork and models.
Originally Posted By Bob Paris 1 TP - Just an interesting story backing up what you said - We arrived at DL(and the US)on the Friday before 9/11 for our holiday. On the Saturday afternoon we went to watch the flag retreat in TS and there might have been about six people watching. I was back in DL on the Friday afternoon following 9/11(after being stranded in San Francisco for three days due to no planes flying)and this time TS was FILLED with people.
Originally Posted By Yookeroo "I didn't notice that DCA was built without an American flag on display until the 9/11 attacks happened and things like the Flag retreat ceremony and patriotic holidays took on new significance. All of the patriotic stuff happens at Disneyland because there is no American flag to rally 'round at DCA. That was a really dumb move in my opinion." Meh. I don't see why DCA needs an American flag. California flag? Sure. But A U.S. flag? Not necessary. But then, Americans almost have a fetish for the U.S. flag.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt "But then, Americans almost have a fetish for the U.S. flag." American flags fly from quite a few buildings in downtown San Francisco. You can see them from the street, but the best vantage points are from the upper floors of high rises. I've had several European friends visit and ask what's up with all the American flags. They think it's weird because for them it appears very nationalistic, but for us it's just patriotism.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA "To all who believe in the power of dreams... welcome. Disney's California Adventure opens its golden gates to you. Here we pay tribute to the dreamers of the past... The native people, explorers, immigrants, aviators, entrepreneurs and entertainers who built the Golden State. And we salute a new generation of dreamers who are creating the wonders of tomorrow ... From the silver screen to the computer screen ... From the fertile farmlands to the far reaches of space. Disney's California Adventure celebrates the richness and the diversity of California ... Its land, its people, its spirit and, above all, the dreams that it continues to inspire." -Michael Eisner It's just a redux of Walt's dedication of Disneyland -- just fill in the blanks. I'm probably alone here, but I always felt that the intent for Disney's California Adventure was a good theme. If they had gone with more of the 'Golden Dreams' feel, it coulda been a contenda.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt Back on topic.... Scaffolding on Maliboomer: <a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v647/dustysage/FridayVisions/2010/09-20-10/P1013742.jpg" target="_blank">http://img.photobucket.com/alb...3742.jpg</a>
Originally Posted By CuriouserConstance Hans, what's with that photobucket crap? You're cheating on the disneygeek!?
Originally Posted By CuriouserConstance How can you get past all of the glitz and glamour of MiceAge? I go to that page and feel like I'm walking down the Vegas strip.
Originally Posted By TP2000 I enjoy many of the articles there, but I can't get a handle on their message boards. There's just so much going on, and so many people posting at record-pace, it's just too much for my old brain to keep up with.
Originally Posted By Bob Paris 1 I hate all the stupid avatars. Sometimes it is actually hard to read the messages because there's just so much happening in their avs and so many silly personal messages. It just all seems so juvenile. I actually really like the streamlined simplicity of these boards. It's just all about the message.
Originally Posted By Dr Hans Reinhardt I don't go to their message boards. Posting here is about the limit of Disneygeekness.
Originally Posted By tashajilek " enjoy many of the articles there, but I can't get a handle on their message boards. There's just so much going on, and so many people posting at record-pace, it's just too much for my old brain to keep up with. " Yup, it's a real pain. I have found LP to be the easiest Disney fan site to post and read messages.
Originally Posted By Britain I agree, except for the strange trip that is reading Spirit of 74's threads.
