[Escapade] Vintage Visitors: Disney Derby ~ La-Li-Lu-Le-Lo

Guess who has their annual pass unblocked? This cat! After several weeks in the summer, living vicariously through friends’ selfies, photo passes, anecdotes of Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout, missing out on Disneyland is Your Land Day, etc…at last, I’ve come back to take on the parks once again. This time around, I decided to kick it with Vintage Visitors at the parks. Vintage Visitors is a group of Disney park fans who can’t get enough of Dapper Day and have decided to do vintage themed outings to the parks. Hats were a theme to this event – I went with my favorite hat.

Additionally, I’ll also be covering new attractions and the return of beloved attractions in this post as well.

The Outfit

It’s summer and I wanted to wear something classy, but appropriate for the estimated 90+ degree weather. I didn’t feel like bounding. I just wanted to wear something cute. I was thinking about wearing my short curly wig, but the weather wouldn’t be good for another layer on my head. The blouse is from Collectif Clothing. The skirt is from Pinup Girl Clothing (yay for clearance sales!). The hat is from Kidsyoyo’s 2010 line, but you can find some similar berets at Lolita Collective. The shades and the bunny pin are from Pipstar Pop.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout

Let me say that I am still a fan of the Tower of Terror. You can read my full OpEd on the closure and why DCA’s Hollywoodland needs serious revitalization. Without lamenting the loss of one of my favorite themed attractions, let’s take a look into Mission Breakout.

I nicknamed Mission Breakout “The Hangover: The Ride” because you’re assisting Bradley Cooper to get to the roof set to a memorable soundtrack. The queue for Mission Breakout is pretty much the same layout as Tower. However, there are details showing Rocket Raccoon’s break into the Tivan building.

Upon entering the Tivan building, there are quite a few Marvel related memorabilia. I felt sorry for the mayor dog, Cosmo, on display. I was like, “Did they taxidermy-ed the pup?!” There were a few Easter eggs here for Marvel fans. While the spiel on the guardians was in the background, I was much more focused to see what references I could pick up. It was very hard not to compare this area of the queue to the creepy opulence that is the Hollywood Tower lobby. We were placed in Tivan’s study wherein we got to see Rocket give the us backstory to the rescue.

Terminator head?

More Easter eggs in the warehouse part of the queue. Harold, the Matterhorn snowman, isn’t hard to spot. However, I do like that the line moves fast and that there were all six lifts operations. Even when Tower was closing, at most, I’d see 3-4 lifts operational while there was a 90+ minute wait outside.

Now, I’ve done this attraction twice as of this writing – once with “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” and “Born to be Wild.” With the former, everyone was rockin’ out to Pat Benatar – trying to dance with what little movement they had and everyone was having fun. No attention to what was going on in the attraction story, but just a good time. With the former, maybe because I was up front, I had more attention to the story and dialogue. I do know there are a few different sequences per song. However, nitpicking and overthinking aside, this might not be the Tower of Terror, but it is the most fun I’ve had at a Disney park attraction in the longest time. I do miss my Tower, and I could use a trip to the other Disney parks, but I’ve accepted Guardians’ stay and I welcome our Marvel overlords.

But where’s my Stan Lee cameo?

Disneyland Railroad: The Grand Circle Tour into Nature’s Wonderland

Another change over the summer was the long awaited, highly anticipated Disneyland Railroad. I always enjoyed going on the Disneyland Railroad if I was tired from walking and need a breather. Usually, there are no long lines for the train ride. However, because this opened back up again, I must have waited about 40 minutes at the Main Street station entrance for the grand circle tour – longer than my 20 minute wait for Guardians!

While most of the attraction is still the same, the biggest changes were from the route from New Orleans Square to Toontown to make way for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. The route was a throwback to the old Nature’s Wonderland attraction wherein guests can board a train and view various desert wildlife native to the Americas. The Native American Village was moved and is still a part of the Rivers of America. The best part was going through the bridge over the water. The feel of this section really does echo a lot of what Frontierland is all about.

The next major section that received a facelift was the Grand Canyon and dinosaur section. There were added effects to lighting and background visuals. Otherwise, I’m very happy that a park classic of the class of ’55 is back!

Mark Twain

And after exploring the Rivers of America by train, it’s time to board the Mark Twain once again. After being docked for a few years, the Mark Twain weighs its anchors once again! I’ve always loved the Mark Twain, like the Disneyland Railroad, it’s one of those attractions you go on to chill for a while. While the ride length does feel shorter, it’s still a nice 360 view of the Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island. There’s new narration. I do miss Thurl “No Dogs Allowed” Ravenscroft’s narration. This new narration feels like Barry White smoothly talking about the sights and sounds of Rivers of America. I can’t complain really. However, I am bummed that the third level of the Mark Twain is closed off to guests. Only guests can board on the first and second floor.