It never gets old for me….not the attraction, not the dolls, not even the song. To me, there is just something about It’s a Small World that is just inherently happy. And hopeful. That someday, somehow, the beautiful scene at the end of the ride where children of all lands just play together in harmony….may actually happen one day. This ride always makes me smile….as does the hope that one day this may actually happen. Disney’s all about magic, right?
Most people probably find Cinderella’s Castle in the Magic Kingdom to be the lovely symbol of all that is beautiful and magical about Walt Disney World. Seeing the Castle by night however, adds one more adjective to the description: breathtaking.
There is something about this sculpture of Roy O. Disney….Walt’s brother….and Minnie, that always, ALWAYS, makes me smile. The “unknown” brother who worked in Walt’s enormous shadow, Roy was, nevertheless, the force that made much of Walt’s magic actually happen. Walt dreamed it, but Roy figured out how to make it happen. Not as glamorous…but still necessary. Even after Walt’s death, Roy was still figuring out how to make it happen, and is the reason that Walt Disney World exists. Walt’s “Partners” sculpture with Mickey stands prominently, at the end of Main Street USA, in front of Cinderella’s Castle….but he points to the other end of Main Street where Roy sits contentedly with Minnie…..”Sharing the Magic”…..because the person making the magic happen is just as important as the person who dreams of the magic.
There is something about Walt Disney World at night that is just breathtaking. Take Spaceship Earth for example. Imposing, striking, and amazing by day, but at nighttime, it is simply…….magical.
Pretty much everyone who comes to visit Disney’s Animal Kingdom stops, at some point, for a picture in front of the Tree of Life. This Disney icon, representing what Animal Kingdom is all about, is pretty hard to miss. But how many people stop at some point during their trip to actually walk around and LOOK at all the intricate carvings? The artwork on this Tree is amazing….and while I think that the attention to detail is clearly something that Disney excels at…..I do think that with these carvings, the Imagineers take “detail” to a whole new level.