Room with a view

Our room in Vancouver during the next 3 nights before the Disney cruise. Not bad at all!

Greetings from Vancouver!

We have arrived, and about to get onto the SkyTrain.

After we get to our hotel, we will go hunt for a Japadog! Food!

Zz.

Sent from my iPhone

At airport

We are at the airport, bright and early, for our flight to Vancouver. Everything is on time, and I just finished breakfast.

See you in Vancouver!

Zz.

The Wonder of Alaskan Cruise 2018

We are less than a day away from flying off to Vancouver, CA, and doing our Alaskan cruise on the Wonder. We will be spending he weekend in Vancouver to do some sight-seeing, and then on Monday, we will hop the Disney cruise ship to begin our cruise. This is the first that that I will be on one of the smaller Disney ship. So far, I've only been on the Dream and Fantasy.

Here is our itinerary:

We have excursions at every stop, including a zipline through the canopy in Ketchikan. So this should be fun.

And yes, Donald is all set and ready to go. He has his cold weather gear just in case.

I'll try to post reports from where I will be whenever we have wifi or cellular services.

Zz.

Guy Fieri's "Chicken Guy!" To Open At Disney Springs This August

Add another restaurant to the list of the many, MANY restaurants at Disney Springs (at some point, isn't this way too many already?). Food Network star Guy Fiery is to open "Chicken Guy!" this August, and the emphasis is on chicken tenders and the sauces, with the food being served being under $8. I wonder how long that price will last?

Since Fieri is a huge fan of sauces, like his signature Donkey Sauce, there will be 22 sauces for dipping, slathering and smothering — take that, Chick-fil-A! Fieri's Donkey Sauce recipe (made with mayo, roasted garlic, mustard and lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce —or "Washashasahshashasha" as Fieri calls it) is actually really delicious, so hopefully the other sauces will be just as tasty.

Not only will the restaurant have almost two dozen sauces, but there will also be a designated "sauce slinger" who will wear a holster with the sauces and walk around the restaurant, presumably to squirt and sauce up any customers' orders.

I'm not averse to checking it out when we go there this December, so maybe I'll report back. So far, our only dining experience at a celebrity chef joint in Disney Springs was at Rick Bayless's Frontera Cucchina, and it was a winner.  I'm not a fan of chicken tenders, but I'll give this one a try.

Zz.

Christmas 2018 Merchandise at WDW

Here are the upcoming 2018 Christmas merchandise at Walt Disney World.



Oh, my poor, poor credit cards!

Zz.

Hallmark's 2018 Disney Singing Ornaments

This is this year's (2018) Disney's singing ornaments from Hallmark. This was released this past weekend (July 14, 2018). They come separately, or in a limited-edition boxed set. The box set has a commemorative art print, and the lamp posts are green, as opposed to the brown posts in the video of the individual pieces.

Here is the boxed set:

And here they are in action at a Hallmark store:



Zz.

Hallmark ornaments

Ornament pickup today. Lots of Disney stuff.

Donald, The Tomato Guardian

Donald is guarding over his tomato, and also my heirloom tomato that is growing next to him, from those two rascals Chip and Dale.

Zz.

4th of July Disney Vest

This is the vest I'll be wearing today. Happy 4th of July to everyone celebrating it!

Zz.

This Is Halloween - Lego Stop Motion Movie

I know this is almost a year late, and I know that it is only the beginning of July, but hey, if the Hallmark channel can start showing Christmas movies already, I can definitely highlight this video that I've only recently found.

It is a good one.



Zz.

Play Disney Park App

On June 30, 2018, Disney will debut the Play Disney Park app on Android and iOS platform.

Disney theme parks like never before with the Play Disney Parks mobile app, a transformative new digital entertainment offering that will make its official debut on June 30 at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and Disneyland Resort in California.

The Play Disney Parks app will bring to life unique interactive experiences that enable guests of all ages to access a wide range of activities including themed games, Disney trivia, digital achievements, music and so much more – whether they are playing on Main Street, U.S.A. or waiting in line at beloved attractions.

Let's see if this new app is as slow and sluggish as the MyDisneyExperience app!

Zz.

Why "Bao" Is More Profound Than You May Think

The Pixar short, "Bao", that was shown before "Incredibles 2" has elicited quite a reaction, especially among Asian immigrants.

During the pivotal moment of “Bao,” I started to sob in the theater. 

I’m not the only one who was deeply touched by this short. Before I even saw “Bao,” I had a Chinese friend message me from the theater about the emotional punch. Other friends tweeted about how they teared up in the movie theatre. People across social media shared their own experiences and how the short resonated with them. 

Of course, there are those who don't get it, based on the Twitter reaction that was described in the article.  But the writer makes a very good point here:

Just as a pocket of the internet can summon ire over the supposed homogeneity of animation, another can implicitly fear the diversification of characters and traditions brought to life by the medium. Not understanding media — be it literature, film, art, or music — is not a bad thing. But the employment of a white, mostly male perspective throughout most of American movie history means audiences have been weaned to expect one set of values for years. When something outside that demographic crosses moviegoers’ paths, so often people react like a mistake’s been made, like they’ve been provoked. Then they bypass Google for Twitter.

Pixar's shorts have always had a lot more "life" and story in it than many people realize or give them credit. This is another one such example.

Zz.

Incredicoaster At Pixar Pier

This is the new Incredicoaster at Pixar Pier in Disney's California Adventure. It is, of course, the old California Screamin', with The Incredibles embellishments.



Zz.

Why Are There No Mosquitoes At Disney World?

A very good question indeed, considering that if you look all around the Orlando area, most houses have outdoor areas that are covered with screens. And if you've been out and about, you'll realize that you can get eaten alive by these mosquitoes. So how come we get very little mosquitoes attack while we're on the Walt Disney World grounds?

As usual, if you have a question, you'll eventually find someone who offers you the possible answer, as in this video.



Zz.

Incredibles 2 - A Review

***SPOILER ALERT*** This review contains crucial parts of the story. If you do not wish to know, stop reading now.

Let's get this out of the way, you should go see Disney/Pixar's latest "Incredibles 2". It is a load of fun, and Jack-Jack certainly stole the movie. The best part about the entire movie is the dynamics between the Parr family members, especially in how Bob has to be the "Mr. Mom" of the family.

As fun and exciting the movie is, I can't help feel a bit disappointed in the tired, old, familiar storyline. First of all, I correctly guessed who the villain (or the brain of the operations) was almost at the very beginning. To me, it was way too obvious.

But here lies my major complaint: this is a familiar storyline as not only with many other movies, but also with the first "Incredibles" movie! In that first movie, the antagonist was Buddy Pine, who turned into a bad guy because he was dismissed by Bob to be his sidekick. So he was a spurned fan.

In "Incredibles 2", it was a sister who somehow blamed the superheroes for the death of her father. And even that isn't convincing either. The father tried calling his superheroes when someone broke into his house. But the superheroes couldn't answer because, by then, they have already been outlawed. So it wasn't their fault in the first place that they didn't come to the rescue of the father. So not only is the premise a recycle of the first movie, it was also rather weak!

We have seen way too many movies in which one disgruntled person somehow managed to cause mayhem of such magnitude. It is a tired story. That is why I was disappointed that "Incredibles 2" dipped into this well once more, especially considering that they went there with the first movie.

It should not diminish your enjoyment of it. But considering that this was from Pixar, I was expecting a lot more.

2 1/2 out of 4 stars.

Zz.

Squirrel Caught Stealing At MK Store

A squirrel was caught on video stealing peanuts M&M at a store in the Magic Kingdom.

Where was Disney security? I'd say they ban that squirrel ("SQUIRREL!!!!") for life from the theme park.

Zz.

Location of New Star Wars Hotel

Orlando Sentinel has reported the location of the Star Wars hotel that will be built at WDW, to open in late 2019.

Where will the Star Wars hotel be located at Walt Disney World? The company now says it’s “under development” just east of World Drive, on the south side of Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park.

“This location will allow the experience to be seamlessly connected to the highly-anticipated Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, enabling guests to fully immerse themselves in the story of “Star Wars,” a new post on the official Disney Parks Blog states.

I did a Google Map to look at the sight, and this is what I found:

I circled the location mentioned in the new article. This looks like it might have a direct access to Galaxy Edge, since the location butted against the new land being built at Studios. But will the guests of the hotel, who will be allowed to dress in Star Wars costumes, be allowed into the park wearing their costumes? Hum?

Zz.

Maleficent Dragon Caught Fire

The fire-breathing dragon caught fire during the afternoon parade at the Magic Kingdom. So that's the biggest news out of Disney yesterday.



Ouch! I hope they will repair or rebuild it, because this was the highlight of that parade!

Zz.

Donald's Dino-Bash

Donald's Dino-Bash coming to Disney's Animal Kingdom near you.



Zz.