For Us, Tokyo DisneySea Draws to a Close

Well!!!!

It would seem that after we left Sinbad’s attraction, a little shopping and snacking was in order. Eric knew of the Chandu Tiger tails that were available near the attraction exit. Chandu is that cute, little tiger that joins Sinbad on his voyages. Did I mention how cute he is? The little snack is a chicken bun shaped into a tiger tail and is served again, in cute packaging! This might sound like an odd description, but the tail tasted like chicken noodle soup. Who doesn’t like that sort of soup? I feel all that enter this park needs to try a Chandu tail. (And, also buy a plush doll of him)

After wandering through the marketplace in Arabian Coast, we decided we needed to see the Magic Lamp 3D show. The theater is found inside a rather largely scaled structure. To be honest, all the buildings in this area are massive. The queue was a decent length, bearable. There are a few things I recall from our wait.

We were transferred to the queue within the courtyard. There was a Cast Member in there that seemed to be in charge of prepping guests with theater rules. Since the guests were spread out within the courtyard’s queue, she went to various spots to deliver an announcement. Each time she did this, she recited a well-rehearsed spiel. At the conclusion of this announcement she put her hands to her side and slowly bowed to the crowd. I saw her do this three times as we waited and was equally impressed each time. I love Japan!

The crowd was ushered into the lobby of the theater that also acted as the pre-show. Here an animated snake was filling in the crowd about the magical genie (all in Japanese, so this is an assumption). If my memory is correct, he of course added in references to Aladdin and his lamp. I assumed this was all preparation for the genie we would encounter once in the theater. Now during all of this, a baby/toddler was giving everyone the biggest headache ever. This baby was either not wanting to be in that building or was hungry because it was making the most high pitch noise I had heard from a kid. The Japanese are a considerate people, but clearly everyone was getting annoyed.

Eric and I were quite relieved when the theater entry doors opened. We made a beeline for the doors to get away from that kid! Everyone joined in that action. The show itself was also all in Japanese. From what we gathered, the assistant (a live actor) was there to get us ready to meet Genie himself from Aladdin. But, there was also another live actor present that tried to take over the show. He too had some sort of powers as he cast the Genie’s assistant away. While all this is taking place, the screen behind them interacted with them. The crowd was very excited as they enjoyed the mixture of live action and 3D screens. Somehow it all gets resolved. The Genie shows up to save the day. And, the assistant (in MC Hammer pants) assists the Genie to cast away the evil guy.

Generally that show gets a lot of bad reviews, but it was easier to follow than the Tiki Room at Disneyland. We didn’t know what was going in during that show. Maybe it was the over the top acting that helped us out in this show?

It was now just after 3:30 PM. We had mentioned to our other American travelers that if they were free, to meet us at the Teddy Roosevelt Lounge around 4 PM. Eric and I decided to head back to American Waterfront to maybe meet up with them. We took the path found across the water from the main Mermaid Lagoon structure. On that end of the water, it is still considered to be a part of Mermaid Lagoon.  Ariel’s meet and greet is found there. We weren’t going to be seeing Ariel, but found it interesting that this area was unified with that across the water. Suddenly, Eric grabbed my arm or shoulder and practically shouted for me to look down the walkway, past Ariel’s meet and greet entrance! I saw it! 

Eric had finally found the popcorn bucket that I wanted! I had put that on the “back burner”, as I figured the only place to find it would be the next day, at Disneyland’s AdventureLand. I don’t know if I can convey how excited I was to get this bucket. I had seen this bucket online prior to our visit and it was the one thing I knew that I had to have from Tokyo Disney. As you can see, the Cast Member that sold it to me was so cute and nice.

Just near that cart is a convenient path that cuts through Mysterious Island, so that we can get to American Waterfront. I tell you, we were so confused at the park layout on Day 1. Luckily, after a few wrong turns on that first day, we felt we had a better handle on the various paths.

Once onboard the ship Colombia, we didn’t see The Brickers or Selgas at the lounge’s entry queue. We went ahead and put ourselves down for a table for two. The wait wasn’t all that long. We were sat in the front area, the less interesting section in our opinion. But after we ordered out Manhattans we each wandered around to see the décor. 

I’ve had better Manhattan’s at California Adventures Carthay Circle lounge, but we still ordered two! As we “lounged’ in the lounge, I started to get that odd feeling that someone was staring at or watching us. There were two ladies right near us, appeared to be in their late 20s, that kept glancing over. It was an odd feeling and something that I had been warned about before we left home. Maybe I was just creating a story in my head, but this wasn’t the last time we encountered this while on the trip. If my Japanese was excellent, I am sure I could’ve corrected or confirmed my assumption.

Taking a few silly photos and wandering the decks of the Colombia was next on our agenda. As we were on the top deck I heard someone ask, “How were your drinks?” It was Sarah! They were running behind and a fast pass of theirs overlapped, so they didn’t make the lounge with us. I’m glad we ran into them on the ship. Apparently Tom was off photographing the park. We didn’t ask because I didn’t want to seem too nosey (lol). 

                 Yes, that is the real ocean. 

We recruited Sarah to take a few shots of us on the boat. The sunset was taking place, but unfortunately the clouds were making it a hazy one. They invited us to join them at the nearby show called “A Table is Waiting”. This was to be another one of the more popular shows at the park.

The five of us sat down in some pretty decent seats, but soon after it started to lightly drizzle. We were all prepared for the rain, but what deterred us from waiting was that there was still another 40 minutes until show time. Although we were definitely interested in the show, we had assumed the start was about 15 minutes away. 

There were a few other stops they wanted to make and we were getting a little hungry. Sarah suggested we have the curry found in Arabian Coast. We kept in touch with the group during the rest of our time at Disney, but didn’t see each other again until we were in Tokyo.

Eric and I decided to take the long way to Arabian Coast to shoot more photos. We of course visited American Waterfront, walked in the rain to Lost River Delta, and ended up in Arabian Coast. Someone might wonder why we didn’t ride the attractions over and over again. The truth is that DisneySea is an amazing spectacle that is screaming out to be admired. We had such a great time going down the various paths and taking in the grandeur of the park’s design. 

At one point a lovely couple took our photo near the Indiana Jones attraction. Eric thanked them in Japanese and bowed. The female in that couple then informed us that they were from Taiwan. Oops!

During a light rain, Eric and I reached the Royal Tandor restaurant to have the curry that Sarah was raving about. After eating there, I heard from a few people that this food wasn’t all that impressive. We enjoyed it and thought it “hit the spot”. This dish of rice, chicken, naan bread, and curry isn’t something we normally eat. It even being outside our comfort zone, we still savored every last bite.

The rain let up while we dined. This was great because we wanted to see the New York Halloween Follies show that would take place in American Waterfront. People were waiting hours for a spot to see this, but Eric hoped we could snag a spot along the side lines. This was another show we had heard great things about on the TDRExplorer.com podcast. Would this show live up to the expectations set by that site? (So far that site had been a huge help, so I was confident it would)

                    Flapper Minnie and the back of Zoot Suit Mickey

From what I learned on that podcast, Follies showcases the current celebrities of park, the skeletons. The era is the 1920s and they’re all out for a Halloween party. The conflict in the show arises when Scrooge McDuck objects to the very existence of the skeletons. He even tried to get them taken away by Chip n Dale, dressed as gangsters. Through dance and music, Scrooge is shown how to get down and Charleston with the rest of the gang. In the end, Scrooge confesses he was not keen on the arrival of the skeletons because he was a little afraid of them. But, he was now happy and showed his happiness as he joined the skeleton friends in a large dancing finale that even included huge beach balls (because that fits the 1920s theme, right?). The cast of this show is huge! It was the one time we saw this many of the skeleton friends in one place at the same time! Our view was a little obstructed, but at times the performers came to our end, as well as driving past in a vehicle. When this ended, I may have wished we did get a chance to see this one more time.

But, this would be our last evening at Tokyo DisneySea. What does one do when you have an hour or two left at the number one theme park in the world? It was a tough decision, but we did head over and ride our favorite attraction there, Journey to the Center of the Earth. This was the one time that we actually waited in the standby queue. There we were reading every inscription and plaque that we found. We learned about the drilling machine that Nemo created and how it led him to the depths of the earth. It also allowed him to find a hidden passage of water that was of use to explore the ocean waters (20,000 Leagues Under the Sea).

A cool touch that people are catching onto is the lava, mentioned in the previous post, even made its way into the queue. Here we can see where the lava even overtook a drinking fountain!

After riding, Eric and I were dragging our feet back the park’s main entrance. We were mindful that we needed to catch our bus back to our apartment, but also sad to leave the park behind. Gee, I am even getting a little sentimental as I type this sentence (nearly four months later).

But, not all was lost at all. We still had another Disneyland day to look forward to! And, guess what? The next day it was forecasted to be so clear that there wouldn’t be a cloud in the sky. I’ll give you one hint about that, it made all the difference in what we saw there! Join us next time at Tokyo Disneyland when we finally see the parades as they were meant to be performed!

Shows, Food, and Skinless Characters at Tokyo DisneySea

Being that it still wasn't Noon, it felt really early to us. I think our bodies were also a little confused with the time too. Even if our bodies were telling us to stop and take a breather we kept going.

We had heard and read a lot about the fortress in the park, and it's accompanying vessel. They are both found at the base of the volcano. Shortly we will see how the volcanic eruptions have affected that edifice. I'm looking on the park map now and it appears to only go by the name "Fortress Explorations" (interactive fun at the fortress and galleon). I really thought there was a more interesting name for this attraction. I am sure there isn't a connection at all, but the main dome reminds me of The Dome of the Rock from Jerusalem, Israel.

It's very easy to get lost inside this structure as all the twist and turns appear the same. Eric had a pretty good idea what he wanted to see and do in there. I was mostly following him and enjoying myself.

We came across some interesting designs that could've been right out of the Italian Renaissance. I'm sure that was the point.

As we had our look around, there was a show going on across the bay. I believe it was called 'Welcome Skeleton Friends". We didn't ever watch it, but it was a show where the skeletons show up on a barge, disembark and dance around with Mickey and Friends. Like in most places, the guest of Tokyo love their stage shows.

In a few areas throughout the park we could see the story of how the volcano overtook a few areas. I guess this fortress wasn't strong enough to keep out the lava.

Having obtained Fast Passes for it, we needed to head back to American Waterfront, we spent a lot of time there, to ride Tower of Terror. This time around we grabbed a few more shots inside. I think taking photos was against the rules, but we sneaked a few here and there, and stayed away from flash.

The Fast Pass return queue was a tad backed up, but that was ok. We were able to take our time while visually taking in some of the story (and grabbing the photos I mentioned). The owner of this hotel had obtained relics from around the world (as explored in a previous post). But, we could now see in murals around the lobby that yes, those previous owners were glad to rid themselves of them. It was also cool to notice that various finds were from themed lands that looked very similar to the park's ports of call. Check it out! We even found a Crystal Skull near the loading area.

Take a look in the back row!

Although the thrills are far better at the American parks, I still wouldn't tell anyone to skip this attraction. A friend of ours, he runs TDRExplorer.com, doesn't care for this one very much. I think he would see there isn't too much to be stressed about. We must have had some energetic fun on this attraction because we were getting hungry by the attraction's end.

The New York Deli is down the city street from Tower of Terror. Since it was around lunch time now, we thought we would get that meal in prior to queueing for the Big Band Beat Show. We had to walk past the theater where it would play. Although the show was nearly an hour away, a crowd awaiting the opening of the doors filled the queue. Why was I not surprised? We didn't know a lot about the show and decided to be surprised by what we would see. 

This park tricks your mind into thinking that you are really not in Japan. There is a sense that it is around 1920/1930s and New York city is your home. From the ads on the street, to the cheeses being aged in shop windows (which we have seen for ourselves in NYC's Little Italy) the hustle of the city enveloped us.

Oh look! We came upon another one of the Skeleton friends. I had heard of 'The Artist", but it wasn't until now that we saw him. He was drawing a portrait of a fellow guest (remember, he was also on vacation). I think he did a pretty good job of it and the crowd loved the drawing too.

Our lunch was pretty basic, sandwiches and french fries. I enjoy the wrappings that all the food is wrapped inside of. Although we were given wet naps with most of our meals, the wrapper is a nice addition for cleanliness. Throughout Tokyo, if something is served to you, a piece of waxed paper is handed to you so that you may hold your food. I am one that hates getting any sauces or oils on my hand, so I loved this. 

The theater announcements for Big Band Beat were very detailed in that absolutely no photography of any kind was allowed. We followed the rule and took in the show. I don't think we wanted to be "those Americans" that broke all the rules for our own sake. 

The show was filled with swing music, live, and a lot of dancing. The singers had some great talent to back up the live band. The look of the show was right out of the 1940s, full of nods to Art Deco and Art Nouveau. At the finale, Mickey came out and tap danced so rapidly that I thought he was going to fall over! This was a moment in the show I wish I had recorded. I bet I can find it on YouTube somewhere. Big Band Beat had some entertaining moments, no question, but there was something it lacked. I can't even suggest what to change. I think it felt very rehearsed, and though professional, seemed very systematic. It wasn't until that final tap number did I feel there was heart and soul imbedded into what they were doing. Other than the parades, the entertainment wasn't delivering the Wow Factor I had heard about. 

When exiting the show, we decided we wanted take their boat ride around the park. We loaded from the same dock area where Duffy greets guests. Apparently Oswald was also nearby, but we didn’t catch a glimpse of him the entire trip. I think we were hoping for the boat to leave us at the Lost River Delta area. The park would have a Halloween cavalcade in that area, but the boat didn’t stop there. Instead, the boat made a full circle around the park as it passed Lost Rover Delta and the Arabian Coast. It headed back and left us right where we started. We felt a little silly as we thought we knew what we were doing.

 

During our tour we see a fun effect where it appears that the water from the Tokyo Bay is breaking through. 

Since we had to go on foot, we took the route through the Cape Cod area. There was a popcorn stand there that we hadn’t tried yet. They sold the Milk Tea flavored popcorn. Our friend Miley said this was her favorite one, so we had to make time for that! As it turned out, this would be our favorite too! I don’t even think I could describe it, but believe me when I say it had a wonderful and unique flavor.

As I had read in a post on Tom Bricker’s blog, the snacking at these two parks is endless! Soon after we finished our popcorn, we continued to seek a spot for the Skeletons Cavalcade, in Port Discovery. Right near where we would wait to watch, we came across a Tiramasu ice cream sandwich that I just had to have! Again, the packaging on this was so adorable! (Even with all the walking we did this trip, I still don’t see how I lost five pounds that week.)

The Skeleton Cavalcade had a fun little beat going, with a Latin feel. After all, we were in an area themed to South America/Mexico/Puerto Rico. I couldn’t really pin down what country exactly, but it conveyed a nice hybrid of them all. However; the costumes they used in this little parade felt right out of Mexico as they danced in the Folklorico style.

The Tokyo parks love to feature the Clarice character from that one Chip n Dale cartoon! We don’t really see her at the parks in the U.S. but she is everywhere here! In this photo, Eric and I like to pretend that she is shouting out, “HEY Gurrrrrrrrrrrrrl!!!”

After the show we continued on through the land to check out more of their Halloween decorations.

 

As we reached the end of Lost River Delta, staring at us in the face is Sinbad’s Storybook Voyage. There is no way were going to pass up riding that again! We have been home over three months now and I am still whistling that soundtrack!

Coming up soon (I hope sooner than the last post) you will see me get a really nice surprise. Also, Eric and I take in the Teddy Roosevelt Lounge and explore the decks of the park’s ship, the U.S.S. Colombia! There is still plenty more we did on this Day 2 of Tokyo Disneysea!