Disney World After Dark: Canada

We now come to Canada, the last country on our evening stroll around Epcot's World Showcase. Like some of its counterparts along the Promenade, Canada gives us so much of the flavor of this country in such a small space.

"Canada is the last pavilion in the World Showcase, combining the several traditions and geographic regions of the country into a setting that is at once startling in its diversity and inviting in its verticality. Towering above is the distinctive French Gothic architecture of the Hotel du Canada (modeled on Ottawa's Chateau Laurier). Alongside and beneath the chateau is EPCOT Center's Canadian Rocky Mountain, which houses a Circle-Vision theater. The Northwest Coast atmosphere is heightened by enormous totem poles and a native log house. There is also a miniature replica of the famed Butchart Gardens, a 30-foot waterfall, a restaurant, and the woodsman's haven of Salmon Island."

From Since the World Began, by Jeff Kurtti, page 114

Honestly, Canada is not one of my favorite pavilions, but it is near the top of the list. What strikes is the grandeur of the area. And this, from Disney's exquisite use of forced perspective. The Hotel du Canada, and the Rockies, appear to be so tall from a distance. It is only once you are in the pavilion that you realize just how much you have been taken in by the illusion. For me it represents the art of perspective at its finest.

I hope you have enjoyed our nocturnal visit to the World Showcase. Disney After Dark takes on a whole different magic and I hope these photos give you just a taste of it. Next week we will stay in Epcot and visit a few sites in Future World. Until then, enjoy this view of Canada.

Where In The World: The Rest of the Composite Challenge

It is time to bring The Composite Challenge to a close and say thank you to those who participated. In my last Where In The World I noted that all but four of the photos had been correctly identified. But those four were somewhat perplexing. So that we can close the chapter on this challenge and move onto other Where In the World subjects, I offer you the answers to pictures 5, 6, 7, and 10.

Photo number 5 takes us to China in the World Showcase to visit a dragon. The area used in the challange is the "Eye of the Dragon".

Norway, actually, the shingles on the roof of the outdoor dining area at the Kringla Bakeri Og Kafe in Norway provides us with the subject in photo number 6.

You have to look up and over Mrs. Doc's right shoulder to see where we drew inspiration for photo number 7. My lovely bride is posed in front of the wall fountain in the Cantina De San Angel.

And photo number 10 will take you bayside at Downtown Disney Marketplace. If you decide to take a moment to rest and perhaps in engage in a little people watching, you may also notice Mickey in the tables and chairs.

Again, many thanks to those of you who picked up the gauntlet. Other challenges are not far off. So, in the words of Sherlock Holmes, "The game is afoot."

How Do You Do!

Mighty glad to meet ya. It seems as though I have been away for so long. While I had the opportunity to check other favorites blogs from time to time, I was hard pressed to actually do anything on The Disney Obsession. I hope that I haven't lost many of you during my time away.

What have I been up to you ask? Well, quite a bit actually. And too, I have had ongoing trouble with my computer and our household network; which makes one wonder how did we ever manage just ten short years ago. But that is another thesis entirely.

But February has been eventful in that I have been waging a war against a cold or flu for over two weeks now. Not much fun there. During this time and for the month or so leading up getting sick, I was involved in a local production of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

What does this have to do with Disney? Nothing actually. Well, the film version did star a certain pirate that we have all become familiar with. Oh, and the director of the film is currently working on a version of Alice in Wonderland for Disney. So I suppose there is a small connection.

At any rate, thank you for coming back and visiting the Obsession. And for your viewing curiousity, I offer you a photograph from Sweeney Todd. Yours truly is on the left in the role of Judge Turpin. On the right is Dan McGeachy in the title role.

Sweeney closed last Sunday, but the cast has been called back for an encore performance this coming Tuesday. So, once more into that good night.

Where In The World - "The Composite Challenge"

If you remember, the composite originated during the planning of Doc's "Fifty In Disney" birthday celebration. These 12 pieces of photographs was one of the ways I shared my excitement for the visit with my family and friends.

It has been a few weeks since I placed the last Where In The World on The Disney Obsession. And there a few who took up the gauntlet of what I now look upon as The Composite Challenge.

Here is what we know right now.

1. Innoventions Plaza Awnings (Ryan, aka Main Street Gazette)
2. Neon Pluto on Hollywood Blvd. (1983horizons1, aka Progressland)
3. Zip A Dee Lady in Splash Mountain (Ryan)
4. Prayer flags in Asia, specifically on the Maharajah Jungle Trek (Ryan)
5.
6.
7.
8. Tomatoes in Mickey's Garden (Ryan)
9. Outpost in Epcot World Showcase (Ryan)
10.
11. Dinosaur across from Chester and Hester's (1983)
12. Astro Orbitor (1983)

So, we still need to determine what in the world are numbers 5, 6, 7, and 10. Well, here are few clues. Numbers 5, 6, and 7 are in a park, the same park in fact. Number 11, well, it is not in a park, but you can do a great deal of shopping at the shops in this area. I do anyway.

Alright, there you are. Take another stab at it!

Disney World After Dark: United Kingdom

Passing by the International Gateway we descend the gentle hill into the United Kingdom; the tenth country on our around the world showcase tour. Perhaps you are bit thirsty, or you simply need something to refresh your palette and replace the lingering taste of the Merlot you enjoyed in France. At the foot of hill you see the beckoning sign of the Rose & Crown Pub and you decide to take a pint. But, be sure to behave yourself. The motto of the Rose & Crown is Otium cum Dignitate, Latin for Leisure with Dignity.

“The pavilion is a cornucopia of re-created British architecture. High Street features Elizabethan, Tudor and Victorian buildings. A replica of Henry VIII’s Hampton Court Palace, complete with cartouche, houses a toy store. Elegant Belgrave Square row houses, formal gardens, a hedge maze, Hyde Park, Yorkshire and Regency buildings, even a Shakespearean cottage – all are part of the architectural tour. The mélange of styles is made all the more fascinating by the ease with which the Imagineers have blended the diverse styles into a romantic fantasy of the United Kingdom.”

From Since the World Began, by Jeff Kurtti, page 114

The U.K. pavilion is like a home away from home for me. Mrs. Doc and I lived in England during the last few years on the 20th Century. We lived in the county of Warwickshire, also known as Shakespeare Country. Our weekends included shopping at the village market day and walks along portions of the green paths where, yes, we would occasionally happen upon a canal-side pub and stop in for a pint. As often as possible we would take short holidays to places like Stratford-upon-Avon, Oxford, and the West Country. And we would find ourselves in London a regular basis. So when we look at the various architectural styles presented in the Disney version, we can do so with a certain amount of familiarity and nostalgia too.

On one particularly memorable visit during the Millennium Celebration, the Rose & Crown carried my favorite ale, Caffrey’s Irish Ale. Perhaps not the best ale in the Bass family of beers, but it is my favorite. It was once rumored that you could fly from one island to another in the Outer Hebrides in less time than it takes for the head to form on a pint of Caffrey’s. On the wall behind the bar at O’Neill’s on New Row in London was a plaque that showed the various stages in the beer’s head formation. But, I digress. Suffice to say I enjoyed a “few” pints on that visit. Also, suffice to say, I was disappointed when I returned in 2001 and found that Caffrey’s had been pulled from the R&C bill of fare. Since then I have had to suffer a Boddington’s, the Pride of Manchester.

So next time you find yourself in the United Kingdom, drop by the Rose & Crown, order your favorite beverage and raise a glass to absent bloggers, er, friends.

Cheers!

Disney World After Dark: France - Part Deux

During my last “research” visit to Walt Disney World I focused primarily on photography. Specifically I wanted to come away with nighttime photographs and detailed photographs that I would reference for my pen and ink drawings. I am also toying with an idea for book so I was on the lookout for things related to that possibility too.

I had just completed a wonderful meal in Les Chefs de France and was walking around looking for interesting shots. There was a beautiful moon overhead which prompted me to look up. That is when I noticed a little detail of Imagineering. On the level above Les Vins de France as you enter Le Petit Rue is a window. The window is draped with a light muslin material and inside you see the faint flicker of a light. For me it conjures images Puccini’s La Bohème. It was not hard for me to imagine Rodolfo and Mimi happily sharing a meager meal in this garret.

Sadly, my photograph does not totally capture the atmosphere of the scene. But for me, it takes me to a time shortly after my first visit to Paris. I came home desirous of quick return and a bohemian lifestyle. Oh, the dreams of our romantic youth.

Vive le Imagineers!

Disney World After Dark: France

We now come to perhaps my favorite country on the World Showcase – France.

“Paris is clearly the key influence for the France pavilion. The mansard roofs, casement windows, and chimney stacks are très parisien, recalling the designs of city planner Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann. The looming ironwork of the Eiffel Tower evokes the City of Light. A sidewalk café, the rich smell of a boulangerie, a fine bistro, a park inspired by Georges Seurat’s painting A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, even an arcade designed after Hector Guimard’s Art Nouveau entry arch for the Métro, add to the evocation of romance, charm, and elegance.”

from Since the World Began, Jeff Kurtti, page 113

There was a time when I could say that I had been to Paris more than I had been to Walt Disney World. Like London, it became a city that I visited often enough to have those things that must be done on every trip; a certain bookstore just down from a certain bistro, a small café near Opera, and so on. I always considered Paris to be the most beautiful filthy city on earth.

Disney’s representation of France captures some of the flavor of the country. True, it is not like being there, and it shouldn’t be. It is postcard version of the real thing. But it is a postcard I can appreciate when I am unable to appreciate the real thing.

The highlight of the pavilion is the film, Impressions de France. My spirit soars listening to the score from this wonderful experience. It is a highlight of my day in Epcot when I hear the finale of Camille Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3 in C Minor; the “Organ Symphony.” The other composers and the additional scoring by Buddy Baker are also inspiring.

I was moved when I walked into this World Showcase pavilion in 1989 and when I first saw the film. This portrayal of France continues to move me today.

Bienvenue à la France!