Disney Freak Discusses Disneyness

There was an article in my AllEars Newsletter this week regarding “Disney Hooks.” Things that keep you going back to Disney and also let you know that you have arrived in the most Magical World on the planet. To me those are two completely different things, so I will cover that more, later. I have been asked and teased so many times about my persistence in going back to Walt Disney World somewhat obsessively every year that I finally feel the need to try to justify my vacation planning redundancy. And also, who am I kidding, I love a chance to discuss all things Mickey.

There are first and foremost those moments where I realize that all my planning, packing and dreaming is at an end and I am actually, physically in Walt Disney World. I will flat out admit that before a Disney vacation I have recurring nightmares that I can’t find my tickets, or my favorite rides are all closed, or the entire park has been mysteriously removed by a giant alien’s laser gun. So once I arrive and I realize that every thing is as it should be and the forecast is not monsoons for the entire week then I feel utterly relieved and ecstatic.

One of the first of these moments I experience every trip is the sighting of whatever large landmark comes across my field of vision first. This will cause me to gasp dramatically and shout “Look it’s the Insert giant Icon here!!!” Tower of Terror, Swan and Dolphin Hotel, Castle, Ball (as Epcot’s Spaceship Earth will always be nicknamed) all evoke the same reaction.

Another right of passage into a Disney Vacation is your first interaction with a Disney Cast Member. Always happy, knowing exactly what to say to make me smile, they are trained to be aware that at any time they could be someone’s first interaction and first impression of their vacation in The World. Whatever Happy Pills those people take, I want some to take home with me. It could possibly aid with the post-Mickey tantrums. One vacation I was tearing up, shoulders slumped over as I dragged my sad little luggage down the hallway. A cast member recognized the body language and gently reminded me that there will always be time for more Disney Vacations and she would look forward to seeing me again. I looked up at her, tears pouring out of my eyes and ordered her not to be so nice to me since it only made it harder to leave!

Speaking of the resorts, that leads me to another heart pounding “I have finally arrived moment.” Ever since we were kids, my Brother and Sister and I loved arriving at new hotel rooms. Perhaps it is because we had 30 new hotel rooms per 2 week vacation sometimes, but now when I arrive in a room that will be my home for a whole week I feel like I am moving into a new apartment. No matter how many times I have looked up the pictures online of my Disney Hotel’s accommodations, I will still feel that familiar pounding in my chest and the grin on my face as I “Insert Key Card Here” and woosh the door open to see my Disney digs. I usually rush to turn on the TV and watch the Disney Vacation Club or Disney Resort Welcome channels which seem to annoy everyone else but make me giggle inside.

At the end of a long day at Disney, sometimes a good time for the vacation to sink in is the bus ride back to the hotel. Sore feet, tired, full of yummy food and new Disney memories; I usually tuck a purchase under my feet and reflect on why I love this place so much. Usually there is a kid who by some miracle is still awake rather than draped lifeless across their parent’s lap and I ask them what their favorite thing was. One little girl told me that it used to be the Pirates however she enlightened me that Pirates are in actuality thieves so she had decided they weren’t cool anymore. Pulling into the hotel, the announcer will ask me to enjoy the rest of my stay at Walt Disney World and bid me “welcome home” to my resort.

And that leads me to the magical moments I experience on vacation that fill my heart every year and keep me coming back to visit the Mouse. There are too many to list (have I mentioned that I love this freakin’ place) but I have narrowed down a few of my favorites.

My all time favorite ride is Peter Pan’s Flight in the Magic Kingdom’s Fantasy Land. I love it for a million reasons including the fact that it is my favorite Disney movie, I adore the characters, the ride has been the same since I was a little girl and I love the feeling of flying over London and then Never Never Land. The moment when I arrive at the point in line when only a few other guests and the Disney Cast Member stand between me and the moving walkway, I always count people to try to figure out what color ship will carry me on my flight with Peter Pan this time. It is a ritual I have performed countless times and I feel just as I did when I was 8 years old.

A few steps away into the Liberty Square area of Magic Kingdom sits the Haunted Mansion. I simply can never get enough of this ride. They recently added a whole new room and when I found that out I felt as though someone told me my condo was getting another whole floor. Although if it did it wouldn’t have ghostly footsteps on the ceiling or moving staircases so it still wouldn’t be quite as exciting. When I am standing in the stretching room at the beginning of this ride while the “Ghost Host” attempts to scare the little ones and adults suffering from claustrophobia; that is a moment when I stand in the dark and can’t fight the huge smile that inevitably follows. I probably look like a creepy haunted freak, now that I think about it…

My favorite night time show at Disney World is by far Illuminations at Epcot. They start warning people to move to their selected viewing location early on in order to avoid people tromping all over each other in the dark. The best thing to do is to find a spot close to a beer cart, preferably in England’s outside beer garden, and plop down early to await the show. The beer combined with the Disney Magic start to build the excitement, and then when the lights finally dim, the fiery torches light and the announcer’s booming yet comforting voice waves over the entire park:

"Good evening, and welcome.We've gathered here tonight, around the fire, as people of all lands have gathered for thousands and thousandsof years before us, to share the light and to share a story an amazing story, as old as time itselfbut still being written.”

Ok, so maybe it sounds cheesy but it is pure Disney awesomeness. Seriously I want to meet the dude that does the voice for this announcement and tell him he is a huge part of my Disney experience.

There is a sweet girl named Cristy who will be drug by her hair, ok maybe just by her arm cause her hair is too short, all over Disney World and I will apologize before hand for all of the useless Disney information that she will ingest. However I absolutely love sharing this special place with people who are special to me, and I guarantee she will be forced to giggle many times when she sees me hug characters and wave my Mickey Ice Cream around like a 5 year old.

Well, either I have inspired you to drop what you are doing, call the travel agent, and book a Disney Vacation as soon as the funds are available, or you have simply used this blog to confirm what you already knew, that I am a huge Cartoon loving, Parade Character waving, Mouse hugging, Firework crying, child in an adults body, Disney Freak. Either way, I will be back there in April, come hell or Alien Laser (and I will have nightmares about both beginning weeks before hand.)