Mississippi River in the Magic Kingdom

As you walk from Liberty Square, into Frontierland, just before the Diamond Horseshoe, there is a metal plate that goes across the entire width of the walkway. Under that plate, water runs to the lake.

Google Map view of the Mississippi Bridge.

This stream represents the Mississippi River. To the east is Liberty Square symbolizing the eastern part of the United States with its colonial architecture and early American theme.

To the west is the early American frontier of Frontierland. If you look at the pavement, it changes on either side of the "Mississippi" following the Magic Kingdom's design of changing the walkways as you move from one land to another.

Cinderella's Horse at the Prince Charming Regal Carrousel

There are two special horses on the Prince Charming Regal Carrousel ride at the Magic Kingdom. These two horses are:

• Cinderella???s Horse
• Prince Charming Horse

Finding Cinderella???s Horse

When you get on the Regal Carousel you want to look for the horse with a golden ribbon on the tail. That???s the easiest way to find the horse. You???ll find it just in front of one of the seating areas.

There are a couple of other distinctions about the horse. Such as the horse face and flowers, but the easiest way to find the horse is to look for the golden ribbon on the tail, as it???s the only horse that has one. Tip: It???s not any of the horses on the outside of the carousel. The horse is in the second row.

Since most people want to sit on the horses on the outside, you may have a shot at sitting on Cinderella???s horse.

I couldn???t find the special horse from any of the videos from the last time we went to Disney World. I was able to get a front view:

Notice how the flowers goes down the horse neck.

Prince Charming Horse

Once you find Cinderella???s, Prince Charming's horse is right next to it!

The Walt Disney World Photo Challenge

A few years ago the "This Disney Life" posted a list of photo opportunities to take a Disney World. The list contained the must-have photos for any trip.

Kyra include a point system as to indicate the difficulty of taking some of the shots.

I transcribed the list to an easy to use PDF document. In addition, I added a new "Expert Only" category where taking certain shots may involve some additional photographic expertise.

Click on image to download PDF document.

Some of the "Expert Only" shots include:

• Panoramic view of the 21 Century Room
• Fireworks from the Main Street Train Station
• Night Photo of the Partners Statue with the Castle out of Focus
• Chip and Dale Statue with the Castle blurred in the Background (Central Plaza)
• Mickey Mouse opening up the park

Let me know what shots you think are the most challenging to take at Disney World.

Disney Park Folder icons

We are getting things ready for our next big Disney adventure to the Disney World. I was backing up some of the photos that I have in my collection and started sorting things out by date.

I noticed that it was a bit hard to figure out what park we visited per day. I could have just named the folders by the park, but on this trip, we actually visited a couple of parks more than once.

So I decided to make some custom icons to make it easy to figure out which park we went to:

Click on image to download the Icons.

Macintosh users, please feel free to download and use these for your own folder collection.

Folder Icons Makes all the Difference

Having a good fold icon can make a huge difference, see the before and after:

The folders that didn't have icons are the off days when we didn't go in the park. On this particular trip my daughter was sick for a couple of days and we didn't go to the park.

Popular Disney Ride Height Requirements

My daughter just turned 6 and is now 44" tall. Looks like there are only a few rides that she can't go on:

Magic Kingdom(R) Park

• The Barnstormer at Goofy's Wiseacre Farm - 35"
• Splash Mountain(R) - 40"
• Big Thunder Mountain - 40"
• Stitch's Great Escape - 40"
• Space Mountain(R) - 44"
• Tomorrowland Indy Speedway - 52" to ride alone

Epcot(R)

• Test Track - 40"
• Soarin' - 40"
• Mission: SPACE(R) - 44"

Disney's Hollywood Studios(TM)

• The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror(TM) - 40"
• Star Tours - 40"
• Rock-n-Roller Coaster(R) Starring Aerosmith - 48"

Animal Kingdom(R) Theme Park

• Kali River Rapids(R) - 38"
• DINOSAUR - 40"
• Expedition Everest(TM) - 44"
• Primeval Whirl(R) - 48"

Interesting trivia from Livestrong.com:

Average Heights of Girls by Age. Like weight, heights vary by age. The average -- or 50th percentile -- height for a 3-year-old girl is 37 inches, while the average for a 4-year-old is 40 inches, and a 5-year-old is 42 inches. The average for a 6-year-old girl just 45 inches.

George Washington Beer Mug

Inside the Walt Disney's Hall of Presidents are several artifacts that are loaned to the Walt Disney Company. Many of these are from Presidents libraries.

Once such items are the Original Beer Mug that was once own by President George Washington. The sign reads:

George Washington was President from April 30, 1789 - March 4, 1797. Which means that this mug was most likely used while he was the first President of the United States. You can find the mug by white bookcase to the right as you walk in.

Ride Closure Notice

The Hall of Presidents will be closed will be closed for refurbishment from January 17 through June 29, 2017. During this period they will add a new Donald Trump animatronic to the hall.

Longest Ride in the Kingdom

I was wondering what are the longest rides at the three major parks in Disney World. (I intentionally excluded the Animal Kingdom as we won't be going there on our next trip.)

Criteria:
These are actual rides and not shows or entertainment areas such as Tom Sawyer Island. Most shows last roughly 25 minutes. Entertainment area times may vary depend on the interest in the area.

Interesting Discovery

The Astros Orbiter and Dumbo the Flying Elephant have the same ride duration. (1.5 Minutes) Which is kind of interesting because they are basically the same type of ride, they have a different outer shell.

Pirates Caribbean

The Pirate of the Caribbean is a fun ride where users get on a boat and enjoy a voyage back in time when pirates would rule the seas.

The "surprise" part of the ride is the two waterfalls in the beginning of the ride. The drop is done in complete darkness. You may get wet depending on how many people are in the boat.

Warning: Do not place bags on the floor in the boar, the bag will most likely get wet.

Popular sites you will encounter include:

• Pirates Grotto
• The Fort
• Town Square
• Burning City
• The Dungeon

Pirates of the Caribbean Ride Fun Facts

• Open in Disney World on December 15, 1973. (806 Days after the park opened)
• The boat cruise last 9-minutes long.
• The waterfalls on Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland and Disney World are slight. There are waterfalls on both rides. However, the waterfall at Disneyland is longer and therefore broken into two consecutive drops.
• The drop at Disneyland is necessary as most of the ride is located on the other side of the railroad tracks that surround the park.
• The fog that drifts out from behind the boat in the "Battle" area. It is the Mee Fog effect. Water is shot through a pin size hole at 1000PSI. The force of the water is so fast that the water condenses - just like real fog.
• The effect of the cannon ball splashing the water is done with the air cannon. Basically, it's compressed air under the water.
• Pirates was the first ride in the world to end with an exit directly into a gift shop. Many rides now end this way.
• The Pirate Ship that you see after the drop is called the "Wicked Wench."
• The Pirate that you see selling things at the auction, was at one time Abe Lincoln.
• The Mellowmen is the group that sings the "Yo Ho (Pirates Life for Me)." You can download the song on iTunes.
• Mellowmen also sang Haunted Mansion's Grim Grinning Ghost, The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room
• The fire on Pirates is made by shining lights onto a special, moving cloth.
• Near the end of the ride the white hair prisoner in a replica of a long time janitor that worked at Walt Disney Productions.
• The Cocker Spaniel dog that is holding the key by the jail is Walt Disney's Dog. You'll see the same dog as the Caretaker dog in the Haunted Mansion, Small World and on one of the Murals in the Cinderella's Castle

George the Pirates of the Caribbean Ghost

At the Pirates of the Caribbean in Disney World, there is "resident ghost" named George. He was an Imagineer that built many of the tracks for the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney World. He died on the ride when a beam collapsed on him.

Cast Members at Disney World have confirmed the story of George the Ghost. Over the years Cast Member have blamed him for various ride failures.

George is allegedly a friendly ghost. When you are on the ride, make sure to say Hi to George.

Hidden Mickeys

From As you pass the ship where the captain is brandishing his sword and firing cannonballs over your head, his shadow is thrown up on the mainsail. As the captain turns, his shadow turns into you-know-who. Especially blatant at Disneyland it's also effective at Walt Disney World. Although it's not a really clear Mickey when seen from the front. The "ears" are more like tall skinny humps on top of a roughly round shadow. At one point in the sequence, the humps get a little wider and the whole thing looks reasonably like a Mickey. The Mickey is much clearer when you look at the other side of the sail. As you go past the sail continue watching and the elongated shapes that are somewhat suspect in the original shadow become a well formed Mickey head on the reverse side of the sail. Timing is key. The pirate is a moving figure, so his shadow only makes a hidden Mickey when he turns the right way.

In the Treasure room right as you are exiting the room there are a lot of pearl necklaces on the ground on the left. If you are riding the ride, it may just seem like a clump of pearls. If you raise your head a little, some of the Pearls are in a Mickey. It is right as you are about to go into the exit area for the ride.

In the Pirate ship scene right before the drop. If you look at the background behind the ship you'll see a set of clouds that resemble the famous Mickey Mouse symbol

Tomorrowland Speedway

The Tomorrowland Speedway is the opportunity for kids to show that they can drive a car. You can experience the glory of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as you drive your own Indy 500-type race car on a guided track to the victory flag.

Guests need to be 32" to be a rider on the Speedway, and 54" to be able to reach the pedal. Children under the age of 12 months should not ride. Expectant mothers should not ride.

Tomorrowland Speedway Fast Facts

• Opened: October 1, 1971 (Walt Disney World Opening Day)
• Ride length: 4 minutes, 45 seconds
• Track Length: 2,112 feet ( 644 Meters) about 7 football fields long!
• Max Speed: 7 Miles per Hour (11 Kilometers per hour)
• Typical Ride Wait time: 20 - 30 minutes
• Inclement Weather: First ride to close at any sign of rain.

Fun Facts

• The Speedway is not a bumper car ride.
• Each car has a spring front and rear bumper to prevent damages to the cars
• The line for the speedway snakes across a pedestrian bridge to the ride???s loading areas. For a shorter wait, turn right on the bridge and head to the first loading area rather than continuing to the second one.
• There are six cars lined up on each side of the loading area.
• The Victory Circle is the left of the pit area. You'll see a red car in the circle. Car #22 is the winning car.
• There are 33 cars on the Speedway
• There are five turns and one overpass on the Speedway.
• After you go under the tunnel if you look to the left you can see Cinderella Castle.
• You'll see a mirror on the left as you exit the tunnel. It's to help the cast member on the bridge see what's going on in the tunnel.
• The half-way point is just before you go over the bridge, you'll see a cast member there.
• The announcer voice you hear is Tom Carnegie - a longtime announcer at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
• Disney doesn't want users to bump cars with large yellow signs and repeated messages just before the finish line.

Pop Century All Star Resort

On our next trip to DisneyWorld we will be staying at the Pop Century All Star resort. This will be our first time staying at this popular resort. In 2015, we did stay at the nearby Art of Animation Resort.

A brief description of Pop Century Resort From Disney's Website:

Here's some things that I learned about the resort.

A map of where Pop Century is on the Disney Property:

Some Fun Facts about the Pop Century Resort

First opened December 14, 2003.

Food Court name is "Everything Pop"

There are three pools for guest to select from: Hippy Dippy Pool, Bowling Pool and Computer Pool

Guest should bring their own towels to the pool as towels are not available at the pools.

Petals Pool Bar is available at the Hippy Dippy Pool for Mix drinks, beer, wine, and soda.

From late October 2016 through early January 2017 the Computer Pool at Disney's Pop Century Resort will be closed for refurbishment. Beginning early January, the Hippy Dippy Pool will be unavailable. The Bowling Pool will remain open for your enjoyment. The Computer Pool will reopen on January 3, 2017.

Resort rooms will undergo a "hard goods" refurbishment starting October 16; the refurbishment will run through much of 2017. (It don't hurt to ask for a quiet room when checking in!)

Pool Gallon Facts

Disney Bus Transportation Times

On Average the bus runs about every 20 minutes.

Hidden Mickey's from the AllEars Newsletter

Inside the Pop Century gift shop, near the exit to the bus stop, check the wall behind the cash registers to spot round gift boxes that form a classic Mickey. The image appears twice in faux package-locker windows. One image is in the second window from the top of the second column of windows from the right side. The other is in the third window from the left on the top row.

Two black classic Mickeys are on the keyboard of the huge computer outside near the Computer Pool. Both are on the lower row of keys. One is the second key from the left and the other is the second key from the right. (More obvious decorative classic Mickeys are in the computer monitor's screensaver.)

Subscribe to the AllEars Newsletter to learn all the latest disney news.