Postby KeithS » Tue Oct 26, 2010 4:35 pm
I'm slowly recovering from the trip. As I mentioned early on, I caught Della's cold and it has been with me for two weeks - only today does it feel like I'm getting over it! It made the flight home very interesting...
I've downloaded my camera's photos to my PC and tomorrow I'll grab all of Della's photos. I'll then start sorting through them all and pick out a bunch for you guys. I took over 2000 shots on my DSLR in the three days I took it to the parks!
Some of the highlights from this year's trip were:
The Tokyo Bay Hilton Hotel (again!). We stayed there in 2008 and got a newly renovated Happy Magic Room. This time, we got a newly renovated normal room on the top floor of the hotel and it was even better than 2008. We loved this room!
Mysterious Masquerade - this is a stage show in Disneysea that you need to win the lottery to view and is only on during Halloween. We won tickets both times we entered (lucky!), the first time our seats were dead centre to the stage and just a couple of rows back. The show is MASSIVE, featuring a big cast, moving stage sets, awesome music and lighting. This alone was worth the entrance fee. I can't believe the scale of this production for a six week run - if it was in Anaheim, they'd milk it continuously for three years...
Everything else in Disneysea - this park still blows me away for it level of detail. Whilst Disneyland in Anaheim will always sentimentally be the best park, Disneysea is without doubt my favourite park to visit... From the quality of the shows like Mythica, Braviseamo, and Big Band Beat, to the level of theming all around (from the volcano to the SS Columbia and Arabian Coast), and the awesome rides like Journey to the Center of the Earth - this park really does have it all.
Duffy madness - yes, it began to affect me too - this little bear is huge in Japan now - much bigger than when we were there in 2008.
Pooh's Hunny Hunt - still one of the best attractions out there - I had forgotten how beautiful it was until I rode it again - I wish they had built it elsewhere.
Disney on Classic concert - performed all over Japan every October-December. The concert is in two parts with this year's part one featuring music scores from the Fantillusion Parade, Mickey's Philharmagic, and Stormrider suite, followed by songs from Mulan, Lady and the Tramp, The Hunchback of Notre Dame; and finishing with an arrangement of the main themes from Prince of Persia. After the intermission, they then performed the entire soundtrack of Beauty and the Beast, followed by a number of encores - it was a brilliant night a Disney music performed by a top orchestra with excellent singers from New York.
Harajuku - I didn't know what to expect heading over to Harajuku, but I found a fun and lively part of Tokyo that was probably let down by the influx of big fashion names (Swarovski, Gucci, LV etc). Away from the main shopping area, you find Yoyogi Park, which is home to a number of Tokyo sub-cultures including the 1950's greasers gangs keeping the big 50's hair dos and fashions alive in gang-rivalry dance offs (I couldn't believe what I was seeing!). The park was home to musicians of all types from harpists, bongo drummers, guitarists etc; we saw a skateboarding dog and a group of young guys playing a sport that required a small bean bag to be kept off the ground just using their feet. Of course, Harajuku is also home to the Harajuku fashion girls (google search if you need to) and cosplayers - so there is something for everyone here - and it is all family-friendly too.
Tokyo trains - still unbelievably efficient! And the subway museum was a great place to visit.
Little shops in Tokyo - sure, there are plenty of big name international brands, but take a look at a lot of the little independent retailers - they just well weird stuff that I won't even bother describing as I have no idea what it is - but is cool to look at. The toy stores we visited were brilliant!
The people - the Japanese are great and everyone was looking to help us. Whenever I pulled out a map, people asked if I needed help. One night at a subway station, I was going through my wallet looking for the right money when a lady asked if I needed help. A girl at the Disney on Classic concert came up to me after the show and asked if I needed assistance getting back to my hotel. A businessman I sat beside on the train gave me a tin a Japanese sardines from his grocery shopping - telling me they were his favourite and hoped I enjoyed my stay in Tokyo (can you imagine giving a Japanese tourist something from your grocery bag while sitting on a train?!)
There is obviously heaps more to talk about, but I'll wait for the photos.
Keith
Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015