December 7, 2010. Hong Kong Disneyland family guide, Part 1.
Canon EOS 500D 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 + Speedlite YN468
Continuing from the previous post, "Hong Kong Disneyland Family Trip - Day 1 Hong Kong Night View & A Symphony of Lights," today we officially began our day-and-a-half park challenge.
But we had walked too much yesterday while shopping...so we could not get up in the morning, and the whole family slept until 10:00 before waking naturally @.@'"
That is the good thing about independent travel...you can sleep as late as you want ^.^
Meeting Santa Before The Park
After the kids changed clothes, I brought them to the lobby to wait for their mom. Unexpectedly, there was a Santa Claus sitting under the tree taking photos with everyone.
While Belle was still half scared to death, Lisa had already rushed over ^.^
That is how traveling with kids works. The official itinerary had not even started yet, but the children had already found their own surprise.
Entering The Park
Once we entered the resort area, this was the spot that online guides said you could reach at 9:30 for photos before waiting for the park to open at 10:00.
A short walk farther in was the bag check and ticket gate.
The bag check was not very detailed. It seemed mainly to check for dangerous items, not to see whether anyone had brought food in.
As soon as we entered the park, there were indeed many cartoon characters in Christmas outfits taking photos with visitors.
The most popular ones were still Mickey and Minnie in the pavilion. My guess was that it would take at least an hour in line to get a turn.
So taking photos with Goofy and Pluto first was not bad either.
After walking through Sleeping Beauty Castle, the day's activities officially began~~~
Fantasyland: Starting With Winnie The Pooh
Our first stop was The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh in Fantasyland.
Look at these two girls. They were no different from little monkeys, even though they call themselves Mermaid Melody princesses every day ~.~'"
Across from The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh was Fantasy Gardens, where many cute animals were kept for photos with visitors ^.^
We spent about an hour in the cute-animal area. When we came out, it was just about time for the parade.
We hurried to Main Street, U.S.A. and found a spot out of the sun.
The parade is one of the easiest moments for kids to get into the park mood. No line, no complicated plan, just standing by the street and watching floats and characters come closer.
Festival Of The Lion King
We opened the park schedule and calculated that we could probably make the 4:30 Festival of the Lion King in Adventureland.
"Raise your hand, check the time, then immediately occupy the next target..." From this relaxed schedule, you can tell that our strategy for conquering the park was very casual and highly mobile.
After entering the theater, the announcement in Mandarin, English, and Cantonese told visitors not to use flash photography or record video.
The announcement had barely finished when the opposite side started flashing away nonstop...I really give up @.@'"
Your humble author spent a huge amount of money to buy a divine weapon, a DSLR camera, to serve the wide reading public. I am not asking for donations or kisses from all you virtuous readers.
If you are satisfied with today's live field report after reading the travel notes, please leave your encouragement in the comments below...I would be deeply grateful ^.^
Waiting For Dusk At Jungle River Cruise
While doing homework before the trip, I had seen people say that Jungle River Cruise in Adventureland feels best around sunset.
While waiting for nightfall, we bought two ears of corn by the roadside for the girls as a snack.
Unexpectedly, the two of them peeled off the kernels one by one and fed them to the sparrows.
Look how focused they were. If only they could study this seriously in the future ~.~'"
At Jungle River Cruise, there were three entrances, with narration in Mandarin, English, and Cantonese.
Do not choose the wrong line...otherwise it would be no different from going to Disneyland in Japan, where you cannot understand what they are saying.
We deliberately chose the Mandarin queue. After lining up forever, we still could not understand the boat captain's "Cantonese Mandarin."
I take back my earlier advice about choosing the right language line...just pick the one with the fewest people >.<
Still, Jungle River Cruise really does feel best in the evening.
Especially the fire-on-water part near the end. We had already done it last time, but this time it still startled me @.@'"
Racing To The Golden Mickeys
Next, we had to cross from Adventureland through Fantasyland to the Storybook Theater within 15 minutes to catch the day's last Golden Mickeys show.
If anyone complained at that moment that Hong Kong Disneyland was too small...they would definitely be considered strange ~.~'"
The Golden Mickeys musical was genuinely interesting. It used scenes from many Disney animated films as the stage background, paired with foreground sets and familiar movie theme songs, creating a clever sense of being inside the stories ^.^
Although the host spoke Cantonese the whole time, there were simplified Chinese subtitles beside the stage, so it was still easy to enjoy.
Leaving the Storybook Theater happened to put us on the path toward it's a small world, saving us a separate trip back there ^.^
It's A Small World And A Childlike Heart
You really need a childlike heart when riding it's a small world.
Otherwise, after spending the whole day conquering the park, the light and familiar melody will very quickly make you collapse asleep on the boat @.@'"
The Main Show At Night: Fireworks
Ladies and gentlemen...next up is Hong Kong Disneyland's most spectacular fire~works~show~~~
Dun..dun..dun~~~~
Whoosh~~~boom~~~
Wah~ah~~~
Whoosh~~whoosh~~~
Boom~~
Boom~~boom~~boom!!
Why did it start to look more and more like allied forces bombing the castle...fires everywhere...the whole castle filled with smoke @.@'"
Hmm...this absolutely was not because my photography was bad. Something must have happened inside the castle...maybe a coup or a fight for power ~.~
If you do not believe me, look. Right after the fireworks ended, the city immediately fell into flames....
(That glow was actually just the carousel lights...hahaha~~~)
That said, even on a weekday, the fireworks show at Hong Kong Disneyland was many times more impressive than Tokyo Disneyland's.
Last year at Tokyo Disneyland, because I had not timed things properly, I hurried to take out the camera when I saw the fireworks. In the end, after only a couple of shots, it was over...really no endurance @.@'"
After The Fireworks, A Slow Walk Back
After the fireworks show ended, no exaggeration...within ten minutes, the crowd scattered like birds and beasts.
And we took photos all the way back to the hotel ^.^
Hong Kong Disneyland family trip - Itinerary Planning
Hong Kong Disneyland family trip - Day 1 A Symphony of Lights
Hong Kong Disneyland family trip - Day 2 Hong Kong Disneyland Family Guide, Part 1
Hong Kong Disneyland family trip - Day 3 Hong Kong Disneyland Family Guide, Part 2
Hong Kong travel notes - 2012 Hong Kong Ocean Park Half-Day Visit
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