A Warm Welcome

Although it doesn't live up to the expectations of its sister park, Walt Disney Studios in Paris still has some fantastic details hidden in plain sight. With the addition of the Tower of Terror area, especially, the Studios is still a very enjoyable Disney Park.

I'm jumping ahead of myself here, though, as in future posts I will take you on a tour of the area themed on the early 20th Century Hollywood. Today I'm going to show you one of the first things guests see as they approach the Walt Disney Studios. The Earful Tower? No, not that. So, maybe it's the second thing guests see as they approach.

These are the beautiful gates that adorne the entrance to the Studios. And I have no doubt that all those who see this gates know what kind of experience awaits them in this Park - the experience of filmmaking and the movies.

Piazza Sergio Leone

Going back to Walt Disney Studios, Paris, I thought we should look at another of these fantastic streets which are named after those imperative to European film making.

Piazza Sergio Leone is situated in the Backlot Area of the park:

Italian filmmaker Leone created a new genre when he brought to the screen A Fistful of Dollars and its two sequels, the world's first "spaghetti western". These and other Leone widescreen operatic epics, such as Once Upon a Time In the West, have made an indelible mark on the movies.

World Showcase At Night...Mexico

I love taking photographs. I was known during my time as a Cast Member as the one always shouting 'Photo!' (or pronounced 'Fo'to in my Scottish accent), taking as many memories of everything as I could.

The other day I was sitting, having a look at some pictures from my last trip to Walt Disney World, and I came across some beautiful night photos I had been lucky enough to take. One of my favourites is of the Mexico Pavilion - and when I looked at it, and the architecture, I wanted to know a little bit more about it...

Let's have a look at what The Imagineering Field Guide to Epcot at Walt Disney World tells us about this beautiful Pavilion:

In attempting to capture the spirit of the Mexican people, Imagineers turned their attention to the origins of that spirit. The resulting pavilion is derived from elements of each of their major pre-Colombian civilizations - the Mayan, the Toltec and the Aztec - as well as from the Spanish influence that has shaped their architecture and design.

The pyramid you enter to visit Mexico is a composite of Mesoamerican motifs dating back to the 3rd century, emphasising the Aztec style. Once inside, you find yourself in a gallery showcasing Mexican arts and crafts. The Sun Stone - or Aztec calendar - marks the way to the Plaza de los Amigos (Plaza of the Friends), an open-air marketplace brimming with activity. This market and the adjoining restaurant are placed in a nighttime setting in order to be more authentic to the operating hours of a typical Mexican market.

Time for Some Cable Car Windows

Today's Main Street USA windows come to you direct from the Cable Car Bake Shop in Disneyland Paris.

Right above this Bake Shope entrance, you can see another kind of business - this one is actually a Society: the Society of Arts and Craftsmen.

Society of Arts and Craftsmen
Ron Esposito
Skip Lange
John Olsen

We'll Make Your Molehill a Mountain

Let's have a look at the names featured on this fantastic window.

Ron Eposito was an Imagineer working in Paris responsible for colour theming, amongst other things. He also worked on the Walt Disney Studios, acting as a leader and creating art direction for this new park.

Currently the Executive Production VP at Walt Disney Imagineering, Skip Lange has been involved in some major areas and attractions for the Walt Disney Company, including Hong Kong Disneyland and the Indiana Jones attraction at Disneyland, California. For Disneyland Paris, Skip was the field art director for all the five lands. He worked on the rock fabrication as well as show and set installation, and facade materials and creation.

Not as much is known about John Olsen, but I believe he worked in Imagineering and was based in France for about 18 months, working on, at the time, Euro Disney.

With my powers of deduction, it appears this window is dedicated to those men who worked hard creating the Parc Disneyland that we see today - the facades, the landscaping and the colours that help each land become, well, a land!

We Started So We'll Finish

Finishing off the posters of Coming Attractions as we enter Parc Disneyland, we will now have a look at a couple of posters from one of my favourite lands - Fantasyland. Enjoy!

We Scare Because...We Point?

It's not just Disneyland Parc that has some Photo Points over in Disneyland Paris. Walt Disney Studios also has some 'Point Photos', although they are more English with their terminology.

Here you can see the Point in Animation Courtyard - can you guess what, or who, you can see at this Point?

More Posters On Main Street

Continuing the series on posters from Parc Disneyland, Paris, let's have a look at some of the posters featuring favourite Frontierland attractions!

Monday Memories: Creating New Ones!

In approximately 7 and a half weeks, the Royal Family will be taking a trip to Disneyland in California, to prepare for some right-Royal-races!

And to prepare myself I got a couple of books solely on Disneyland. I haven't visited the Resort since 2006 and I imagine a lot will have changed!

Are there any other books I should get, or any tips you can give us to make the most of our trip? I am especially looking forward to reading the Disney's California Adventure Detective book! I just hope that we can still explore most of the Second Gate...

Lighting Up The Streets

It is not just Parc Disneyland that has reference to 'real' people, such as imagineers and inventors, on their windows or in the streets. The Walt Disney Studios in Paris, often overlooked as somewhere more tacky and with less imagination than it's sister park, has many references to those who have been important to filmmaking.

The streets around the Partners Statue are all named in honour of such people. Let's look at one of them today - Place de Freres Lumiere.

The inscription underneath the street name reads as follows (in French, as well as English):

Louis Lumiere (1864-1948)
Auguste Lumiere (1862-1954)

The Lumiere brothers helped give birth to the movies when they presented the world's first public screening of a motion picture in Paris on December 28, 1895. The Lumiere brothers' company created more than 1,000 films using their revolutionary invention, the cinematographe.

Apologies there are no accents in this - blogger wouldn't let me for some reason!

Adventure in Posters

I love sharing the posters from Parc Disneyland, Paris, with you all. So I have some more for you - this time, advertising the attractions that Adventureland has in store for us!

What I especially love about the posters for Adventureland is that they are all in French, not English (such as the Main Street USA posters).

Where Does This One Point?

Today's Point Photo comes direct to you from Fantasyland in Disneyland Paris. But can you guess what attraction it might be 'pointing' you towards?

[edit] If the picture doesn't enlarge, click here to see it in Flickr.

Taking A Moment...Caribbean Beach

One of things I love about Disney resorts throughout the world is the hotels. The theming, the decoration, the layout - the majority of them, I adore! And I have been very lucky to stay at a few throughout my life.

Today is Wednesday - hump day - and I thought as a nice way for us to get passed the midweek (and look towards the weekend) would be to have a look around one of my favourite resorts for layout and ambiance. Caribbean Beach Resort is part of the Epcot group of resorts, situated near Disney's Hollywood Studios and behind Epcot. It opened on October 1st 1988, and consists of 6 'villages' (or groups of rooms) which are: Jamaica, Martinique, Aruba, Barbados, Trinidad North, and Trinidad South. The main focal point of the Resort, where the shop and the food court is located, is called Old Port Royale.

So, now we have a brief description of the Resort, let's have a little look at some of my favourite views...

Many Things To Discover

Continuing from the posting a couple of days ago, looking at the posters at the Parc entrance (introducing you to the coming attractions of Main Street U.S.A.), I thought today we would have a look at another land. Perhaps one in which we will discover some amazing attractions?

That's right - let's have a look at the wonders of Discoveryland!

Monday Memories...

I don't like to turn this blog too personal, but today's memory is from only 5 years ago...back when I was a young Princess and ready to start my first proper job, working for the Mouse at Epcot, Walt Disney World.

Little did I know this is what I would look like on a daily basis:
After the 12 months finished, I didn't want to see that costume again - although we were one of the lucky participants in World Showcase with our costume (i.e. in the middle of summer, we didn't have to wear any wool!), it was still a sight to see. Although I didn't want to remember it, I also didn't want to forget it!

So what did I do? Well, I 'borrowed' something to always think about my days at the United Kingdom Pavilion...and that cumber-band which still gives me nightmares to this day!

Look Familiar?

Walking along Main Street U.S.A. in Parc Disneyland, I managed to come across the European offices of our beloved Main Street Gazette.
I don't think Ryan or the rest of the staff were around, but it was still nice to know where to go if I had found a breaking news story!

The World's A Stage

Have you ever noticed, when you walk under the train station into any of the Magic Kingdom parks, the posters on the walls? These posters present to us the Coming Attractions inside the Show that is the Magic Kingdom or, in this case, Parc Disneyland.
So today, let me introduce to you the first attractions we will come across in our Parc - Main Street U.S.A.!

Ye Olde Point Photo

I always like to mention the Disney Details found throughout the two parks and several hotels in Disneyland Paris - with the efforts that Imagineers go to, I think it's important to appreciate the finer things! Of course, there are many, many blogs who do appreciate and point out hundreds of Disney Details - not just here at DF'82!

And following on from my previous posts of the Kodak Photo Points in Disneyland Park, I have another fantastic one to show you. This one really highlights the Point Photo as being something that blends into the surrounding area.Situated in Frontierland, this Point shows you a fantastic image of Phantom Manor - you can just see it to the left of the photo. C'est fantastique!

Carry a Tune

Looking at the rest of the windows from yesterday's post, we have two very important and well-known names in Disney and corporate history. First, let us have a look at the window:

Top Brass

Band Instruments

Philippe Bourguignon

Steve Burke

Lessons and Fine Tuning

"And the Band Plays On"

Philippe Bourguignon was a very important name in the beginnings of Euro Disney. He joined the Walt Disney Company in 1990, first working in California and later moving to Paris. He became the Chairman and CEO of Euro Disney S.A, which is the parent company of Disneyland Paris. He also became the Executive Vice President of the Walt Disney Company (Europe) S.A., which included overseeing all of the Company's dealings and activities in Europe. He stayed with the company until 1997.

Steve Burke also played an important role in the Walt Disney Company, receiving tutoring from the legendary Frank Wells during the Eisner/Wells period. He joined the Company in 1986, and in 1992 he became the President and Chief Operating Officer of Euro Disney S.A. A quote from Burke which I thought very appropriate, reads, "I would rather be COO working for someone I respect in an industry I love than be CEO someplace else", speaking of his time working for the Walt Disney Company.

There's More to the Deli Than Sandwiches

One of my favourite Disney Details in all the Main Street U.S.A's around the world, is the windows that roll the credits of some Imagineers and important figures in the Walt Disney Company and their theme parks. I have looked at these before, but I thought it is important to take some time to look at the other windows and the people that have played a roll in bringing the Happiest Place on Earth to France.

This window shows a beautiful main window, which reads:

We know how to let off steam

Euro Disneyland Railroad
Main Street U.S.A.

Orlando Ferrante
Wayne Jackson
Dave Spencer
Tim Kelley

Stokers, Brakemen & Engineers

Let's have a look at these individuals... Now, as there is very little literature on Disneyland Paris, apologies if anything is not 100% accurate.

Orlando Ferrante is a Disney Legend, inducted in 2003 as part of Imagineering, and was a former Vice President of Engineering, Design and Production. He helped relocate and recreate some of the attractions from the 1964-65 New York State Fair to Disneyland, as well as working during the construction of Walt Disney World. He moved to France in 1990, where he as appointed Vice President of Show/Ride Engineering, Production and Installation for Euro Disney.

Wayne Jackson also worked in Imagineering, and helped develop and build the figures for the Haunted Mansion in both Florida and California. This would later provide inspiration for the Phantom Manor at Disneyland Paris.

When researching for Dave Spencer, the only link to Disney I could find is with regards to Dave Spencer who invented the APT Process for animated films, debuting this process in The Black Cauldron in 1983. This allowed a better process for transferring animators' art onto film cells. He actually won an Oscar (Scientific/Technical) for this.

Finally, Tim Kelley was also an Imagineer, who - as a young Imagineer - worked on the Autopia at Disneyland, creating a prototype new MK VII car. He later worked on Test Track at Epcot in Walt Disney World as a Ride Mechanical Engineer.

Tomorrow we will have a look at the other window in greater detail.

More Popcorn?

Following on from our previous popcorn 'moments', can you guess where this cart comes from in Parc Disneyland, Paris? This one is a little easier for you, as I've left some of the surrounding area in the picture...

I realised that I didn't tell you all the answer to our last one! It was in fact Discoveryland, near the Buzz Lightyear attraction!

Monday Memories... 3D

Before I start with today's Monday Memory, I feel I must emphasise that I do not condone taking anything from Walt Disney World that you shouldn't take. That being said, over my year working and playing in the Parks, I gathered a collection of, well, um, glasses.

Yes, my aim was to obtain a pair of 3D glasses from every Disney attraction. Without causing offense, I also gathered some from Universal Studios (which are also included in the picture - sorry!). I have some very happy memories of all of these glasses. Whoever I was with, it was tradition to take a picture of us in our 3D glasses! No matter how often you wear them, it's still a funny picture, right?

So I thought that I would share this little 'memory' with you all. And I must say that this may be the last post you ever hear from me, once I am locked up in Mouse Jail...

A Look At...The United Kingdom Pavilion

With it being 4th of July weekend across the United States of America, I thought what better time than to talk about the United Kingdom Pavilion. After all, it is a weekend to celebrate ridding the British out of America!

Of course, I am from the UK and the Pavilion is a place I hold near and dear to my heart. I have talked about it many times before on this blog, but today I thought I would take you on a whistlestop tour of the place I called home for almost 12 months.

You start walking along High Street, passing the Rose and Crown pub on your left, but we're going to take a right turn into Tudor Lane, just when we reach the Tea Caddy.

As you walk along Tudor Lane into the heart of the Pavilion, the buildings you pass on either side represent different time frames of the United Kingdom. Predominantly illustrating English design, we pass by the Tea Caddy which is of Shakespearean Design, as well as the Sportsman Shoppe which is of Tudor and Victorian time-period.

As we travel toward the Toy Soldier - where you can usually meet Winnie the Pooh and friends - we reach a more Georgian design (if I am not mistaken). Why is the street, however, called Tudor Lane? Because it predominantly showcases Tudor architecture. For those of you unaware of it, the Tudors were a Dynasty that ruled the Kingdom of England from 1485 to 1603 (not just a television show!).

We follow the Lane round to Upper Regency Street and the Hyde Park Square. Upper Regent Street is a well-known street in London, which is where I believe the Imagineers got the idea of the Street from. The park is one of my favourite areas in the whole of Epcot's World Showcase, and you can see the popular Beatles tribute band, the British Invasion (or the BIPs as we used to call them!). There is also a beautiful, traditional British hedge maze that you can try your hand at. Just don't get lost!

One of the things I love in this area is the detail that has gone into the architecture. For example, have you noticed the brickwork on the chimney stacks on top of the Georgian buildings? I wonder if Bert can dance okay up there with the other chimney sweeps?

And don't forget to check out the Pavilion at night - just after Illuminations, the streets and the square get quieter and you can almost feel like you're in the United Kingdom...all we would need, would be some rain...