[TRAVELS] The Anti-Q [Part 1]
April 12 was sunny and warm, a perfect day to spend at Disney Sea. That's what the other half billion people in the park thought too. OK, to be fair, it was more like 350 million at Disneyland and 150 million at the Sea. Still, it was the first time in about 20 years that I can honestly say I had a good time over there at the old landfill. Best. Disney. Experience. Ever.
On the eve of the trip, I will admit to being a little hesitant to hand over yet more money to the Disney and Oriental Land empire. I have tried to like the place, both Land and Sea, on the four occasions I've visited in the last half-year. In fact, in the space of a mere five weeks, we visited Maihama in a wide variety of every permutation possible: solo visit to Land; wife and kids at Land; all family members (humans, that is) at Land; and me and wife at Sea. Unfortunately, we've always felt empty, broke and disappointed after every visit (but at least the kids' smiles made it almost worth it on those two particular occasions).
But I decided to try again anyway. For one thing, I figured that it would be my last real chance to hit a park before the 12-day work weeks returned with regularity, and my parkhopping partner-in-crime was about to re-enter dance boot camp as well. Besides, I had a few lingering memories of the last time I felt like I wasn't bleeding money to Iger, which was when I timed a visit to Disney Sea to coincide with the arrival of a typhoon. (That time, the storm kept the people at bay for a precious few hours, during which I nabbed multiple rides on everything that remained open. Then the typhoon subsided enough to embolden the masses, which forced us to take refuge with the expensive, not terribly tasty lunch at a Hotel Miracosta restaurant.)
I was going to try to do it the right way this time. I resolved to pay full fare and arrive before the park opening. This wasn't the easiest thing to do on four hours' sleep and a slight hangover, but I was determined to get my money's worth. But once I got to Maihama, and then to the monorail, I started to feel that dark, pithy feeling in my tummy. The crowds everywhere. The faces of frustrated parents and grandparents at 8:30 AM. That "I hate Disneyland" feeling.
Of course, "hate" is going much too overboard but it flows off the tongue better than "dislike." I'm not 100% sure why I dislike Disneyland. Yes, cleanliness, efficiency, and orchestration are all good things. But perhaps it's the same reason I don't like even the best of the Spielberg films. Needless to say, I marvel at his witchcraft and ability to create total immersion, but in general I prefer art to leave me a little breathing room. (Not to say that I'm immune to oppressive pure intensity, though. After all, I think of Richter as the greatest pianist in recorded memory.)
At least the Disney Sea lines weren't a third as bad as the Land lines. At 8:45 or so we were a couple of hundred people deep in one of maybe a dozen lines, waiting for the 9:00 AM opening. We didn't clear the front gates until a good ten minutes past 9, and then I took off with both of our tickets, heading for the Tower of Terror fastpass shack.
I sprinted in the precious few areas where there was enough room to do so, but otherwise had to resort to a poor Barry Sanders impression. At any rate, under no condition was I going to allow myself to come to a walking pace anywhere. I caught a few looks and comments at the edges of my vision and hearing, all conveying some sort of "There's no running at Disneyland" sentiment. Well, I needed some way to get a little exercise at the park to compensate for the ubiquitous junk food, so I'm afraid I didn't have much choice. Besides, I hadn't done any running since a short 3-mile session on the prior Tuesday.
Just as I neared the fastpass shanty, I caught sight of another sprinter trying to overtake me on my right from a different angle. Fat chance, so I accelerated and blocked him out as necessitated by the rules of engagement. Meanwhile, Kayo did her job and had completed her more comfortably paced jog to the regular queue. This was her first Tower of Terror experience. (No point in describing the rides, I guess.) We hit Journey to the Center of the Earth next, then walked back to Tower of Terror to exercise the fastpasses. And finally the fun part of the day began.
On the eve of the trip, I will admit to being a little hesitant to hand over yet more money to the Disney and Oriental Land empire. I have tried to like the place, both Land and Sea, on the four occasions I've visited in the last half-year. In fact, in the space of a mere five weeks, we visited Maihama in a wide variety of every permutation possible: solo visit to Land; wife and kids at Land; all family members (humans, that is) at Land; and me and wife at Sea. Unfortunately, we've always felt empty, broke and disappointed after every visit (but at least the kids' smiles made it almost worth it on those two particular occasions).
But I decided to try again anyway. For one thing, I figured that it would be my last real chance to hit a park before the 12-day work weeks returned with regularity, and my parkhopping partner-in-crime was about to re-enter dance boot camp as well. Besides, I had a few lingering memories of the last time I felt like I wasn't bleeding money to Iger, which was when I timed a visit to Disney Sea to coincide with the arrival of a typhoon. (That time, the storm kept the people at bay for a precious few hours, during which I nabbed multiple rides on everything that remained open. Then the typhoon subsided enough to embolden the masses, which forced us to take refuge with the expensive, not terribly tasty lunch at a Hotel Miracosta restaurant.)
I was going to try to do it the right way this time. I resolved to pay full fare and arrive before the park opening. This wasn't the easiest thing to do on four hours' sleep and a slight hangover, but I was determined to get my money's worth. But once I got to Maihama, and then to the monorail, I started to feel that dark, pithy feeling in my tummy. The crowds everywhere. The faces of frustrated parents and grandparents at 8:30 AM. That "I hate Disneyland" feeling.
Of course, "hate" is going much too overboard but it flows off the tongue better than "dislike." I'm not 100% sure why I dislike Disneyland. Yes, cleanliness, efficiency, and orchestration are all good things. But perhaps it's the same reason I don't like even the best of the Spielberg films. Needless to say, I marvel at his witchcraft and ability to create total immersion, but in general I prefer art to leave me a little breathing room. (Not to say that I'm immune to oppressive pure intensity, though. After all, I think of Richter as the greatest pianist in recorded memory.)
At least the Disney Sea lines weren't a third as bad as the Land lines. At 8:45 or so we were a couple of hundred people deep in one of maybe a dozen lines, waiting for the 9:00 AM opening. We didn't clear the front gates until a good ten minutes past 9, and then I took off with both of our tickets, heading for the Tower of Terror fastpass shack.
I sprinted in the precious few areas where there was enough room to do so, but otherwise had to resort to a poor Barry Sanders impression. At any rate, under no condition was I going to allow myself to come to a walking pace anywhere. I caught a few looks and comments at the edges of my vision and hearing, all conveying some sort of "There's no running at Disneyland" sentiment. Well, I needed some way to get a little exercise at the park to compensate for the ubiquitous junk food, so I'm afraid I didn't have much choice. Besides, I hadn't done any running since a short 3-mile session on the prior Tuesday.
Just as I neared the fastpass shanty, I caught sight of another sprinter trying to overtake me on my right from a different angle. Fat chance, so I accelerated and blocked him out as necessitated by the rules of engagement. Meanwhile, Kayo did her job and had completed her more comfortably paced jog to the regular queue. This was her first Tower of Terror experience. (No point in describing the rides, I guess.) We hit Journey to the Center of the Earth next, then walked back to Tower of Terror to exercise the fastpasses. And finally the fun part of the day began.
posted by hamu86 at 10:39 PM
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