Weekend Update – Tokyo Trip Report, Contest, Disneyland Turns 58

I started out the last weekend Update Weekend with a photo of the Magic Kingdom’s “Celebrate America” fireworks during the Fourth of July Week Limited Time Magic at Walt Disney World. This week, we’re starting out with a photo Sarah captured at Disney’s Hollywood Studios shot from the end of Sunset Boulevard on the Fourth of July. Recently, Sarah has been sticking mostly to iPhoneography (and sometimes her Sony RX-100), but since we had no photos of the Disney’s Hollywood Studios fireworks before this year, I bribed her into setting up a tripod and using our new Nikon D3200 and Rokinon 8mm fisheye lens to photograph the show, while I shot it from Echo Lake. Truth be told, I like her shots better!

We still have some dining reviews and a review of Saratoga Springs from that trip, as well as a number of fireworks photos, and more from Monstrous Summer at Disneyland in the coming weeks, so stay tuned. In addition to presenting news, announcements, etc., in these Weekend Update blog posts, I’ll try to share a few new photos each week in them.

Contest!

As mentioned last week, Undercover Tourist, which we highly recommend here, has provided us with 2 Walt Disney World 5-Day Park Hopper Tickets for giveaway!

Tonight is your last chance to enter the contest, which you can do by signing-up for our newsletter. If you are already signed up for the newsletter, you’re already entered to win. We will select one random winner to receive both tickets, and announce that winner in our July Newsletter! We reserve the right to disqualify from the contest anyone who signs up for the mailing list with multiple email addresses. If you don’t win the tickets, don’t worry–we have other contests lined up in the near future!

Tokyo Trip Report

The big news on the blog last week was the Tokyo Disney Resort Trip Report, which is currently in progress. Click here to read the report!

So far, we’ve posted our first night in Tokyo DisneySea and the mad dash the next morning. This includes our first impressions of Tower of Terror, Journey to the Center of the Earth, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull. We’ve also posted our thoughts on some of the “interesting” snacks we’ve tried and lunch in Venice (…the Venice in DisneySea). This week comes the rest of our first day in DisneySea and our first day in Tokyo Disneyland!

Other Blog Updates

Not much else new on the blog this week besides our D23 Expo predictions, but he have had a number of new readers thanks to being interviewed in the Wall Street Journal’s “MarketWatch.” If you’re one of these new readers, make sure to check out our 101 Great Walt Disney World Tips and our 101 Great Disneyland Tips articles. We also have a selection of Disney restaurant reviews to help you choose where (and where not) to dine on vacation.

Finally, if you or someone you know is going to Walt Disney World for the first time, share our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide with them! Same goes for our Disneyland Trip Planning Guide and Disneyland Paris Trip Planning Guide.

News & Stuff

The big news this week was Disneyland’s 58th Anniversary. It’s hard for me to fathom that Disneyland has been an American institution for 58 consecutive years. How many elements of our culture can that be said for–let alone physical locations? I can think of a few brands, but no other physical locations that are not now relics of the past or are based in nature.

Regardless of what we may think of the individual decisions made by Disney management over the course of Disneyland’s history, or what its “best years” have been, I think it’s hard to argue that it has done an excellent job staying relevant to generations of Americans. Although I know it will look radically different at its 75th or 100th anniversary, I look forward to seeing what the future holds. Although we didn’t have a chance to be in Disneyland for its 58th Anniversary, Disneyland Live shares photos from Disneyland’s special day!

No other significant news this week. Disney announced their Christmas in July Limited Time Magic, but that’s more like a joke than it is “news.” Here are some of our favorite posts from around the web this week…

Our favorite article this week was Disney & More’s Kingdom Keepers-like overnight stay in Disneyland Paris.

Epcot Explorer gave us a look at some Tony Baxter projects. This post was more depressing than it was anything, as it contained concept art of the unbuilt Discovery Bay.

easyWDW offered reviews of just about everything in Mexico at Epcot’s World Showcase. We’re hoping for a follow-up where he live-blogs the Three Caballeros ride.

DisneyFoodBlog shared an awesome “crawl” consisting of one of our favorite Disney foods and the cornerstone of any nutritious breakfast: milkshakes.

TouringPlans presents a first-hand account of MyMagic+ testing.

That’s it for this update! To follow our adventures, find us on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, and Flickr!

Your Thoughts…

Have any comments about this update? Thoughts on all of the big rumors about things coming to the Disney theme parks in the near future? Any article suggestions? Share in the comments!

10 Responses to “Weekend Update – Tokyo Trip Report, Contest, Disneyland Turns 58”
  1. Dave Adams July 24, 2013
  2. Andrea July 21, 2013
  3. Jacky July 21, 2013
  4. Bridgette July 21, 2013
    • Tom Bricker July 22, 2013
  5. Tyler July 21, 2013
    • Tom Bricker July 22, 2013
  6. Jim July 21, 2013
    • Andrea July 21, 2013
    • Tom Bricker July 22, 2013

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *