But never in different countries.
After spending Friday and Saturday at Universal Studios Singapore, I hopped on a Singapore Airlines red-eye flight and slept while flying to Tokyo's Narita Airport. (A neck pillow is a must, I've found, to sleep on an airplane.) With literally less than a minute to spare, I cleared immigration and caught the 8am bus from Narita to Tokyo Disney Resort, where I spent Sunday at Tokyo Disneyland.
I'll have a week's worth of in-depth looks at the lands of Tokyo Disneyland later in December, but for now, I'll say this: Visiting Tokyo Disneyland is like being at Disneyland and Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom at the same time: You see Cinderella's Castle. And New Orleans Square. The Magic Kingdom-style Haunted Mansion. With the Haunted Mansion Holiday overlay. Pirates starts with the Blue Bayou. And ends with the exit before the lift ramp. It goes on, and on, the ways that Tokyo Disneyland blends elements from both parks.
Visiting here also is like going back in time, to visit a Magic Kingdom before maintenance labor cutbacks. Fort Sam Clemens is open! So are the canoes. At every attraction, not only are there still cast members working greeter and queue positions, often you'll find three or more. At Mansion, I counted nine cast members working greeter! Popcorn couldn't fall to the ground before someone snatched it up and threw it away.
Oh, and popcorn. People are obsessed with that here. Again, I'll have more detail to post later, but for now, it's time to head over to Tokyo DisneySea!
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[Relax, James. Deep breaths... breathe in... breathe out... ahhh... better.]
I am very much looking forward to details on all your adventures!
It is a damning indictment of the cheapness of the Disney Corporation when TLC can build an awesome park like DisneySea, and Universal can build an incredible park like Islands of Adventure and then improve it with the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and Disney builds half day parks like California Adventure and Animal Kingdom.
Hopefully the Iger regime can continue with their efforts to upgrade and improve all of the Disney parks and remedy the mistakes of the Eisner era.
And, as I mentioned on Twitter yesterday, visiting DisneySea left me awed, then a bit mad. You mean we could have had that park in Long Beach? (Screams)
One is that an American Figure Skater fell during her routine in the '72 Olympics. She was on the ice but still had a smile and threw up the "V" or Peace Sign before she got up. This persistence and diligence made her popular with the Japanese youth.
Another is that according to Japanese youth, the Peace Sign makes your face seem smaller. Or that it signifies being ready for a photo.
By now, culturally, it has just become the norm.
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