Tag: fireworks
365 Adventures in 2011: Day 365 – The Final Adventure
A second story balcony near our house gave me and Michelle our final adventure for the year. We watched the Magic Kingdom’s New Year’s Eve fireworks show from around 15 minutes away from the park, staying away from the crazy crowds and instead enjoying them completely by ourselves. From that vantage point, we not only saw that show, but at least 10 other small local displays from people shooting off fireworks in their yards. It was a great way to end the year and to conclude these 365 Adventures in 2011.
Happy New Year!
And a video of the finale too:
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365 Adventures in 2011: Day 185 – July 4th on a lake
I accompanied Michelle to her cousin’s house about 40 minutes away for a July 4th party and fireworks extravaganza that rivals most local theme parks. The show was spectacular, equivalent to a 15-minute grand finale, with almost non-stop bursts of color in the sky. The individual shells fired off weren’t as big as the ones Disney shoots off, but the sheer number of them was incredible, especially for a private home show. And we didn’t have to fight any crowds for a prime spot. We just sat down in the middle of the lakeside lawn and enjoyed the show!
Check out just some of the fireworks that were set up in the photo below. Happy 4th of July!
Summer Nightastic at Walt Disney World to bring the Electrical Parade back to Main Street and more
I remember the last time I saw the Main Street Electrical Parade actually ON Main Street at the Magic Kingdom. It was announced that on April 1, 2001, the popular nighttime Disney parade would be finishing its run at Walt Disney World.
Now, at the time, I didn’t realize that Disney parades hopped coasts and came and went every few years. I wasn’t frequenting Disney fan web sites to find out all the latest news as I do today. And there were no podcasts to deliver the news either. So I was under the impression that when Disney was giving the Electrical Parade a farewell, they meant for good.
I made sure to not miss it, so I made one last trip to the Magic Kingdom to see it before it went away. This was before I moved to Orlando, so it was a great vacation and a chance to see my favorite parade one last time.
Of course, since then, I have seen the Electrical Parade at Disney’s California Adventure in Anaheim many times, but it’s just not the same as seeing it on Main Street. So I was thrilled to hear the announcement last night at the “What’s New, What’s Next” media presentation that the Main Street Electrical Parade would, indeed, be returning to Orlando and will be shown nightly on Main Street throughout the summer of 2010.
In addition, Disney announced that an all-new fireworks show would be performed each night throughout the summer, as part of their new Walt Disney World Summer Nightastic, a name borrowed from last summer’s event at Disneyland in California. Disney also hinted at new effects and enhancements being added to the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, one of my favorite rides.
Here’s a video of the announcement and an interview with Walt Disney World Marketing Director Carrie Matson:
While at the media presentation, I also had a chance to speak with Walt Disney Imagineer Diego Parras about the now-ongoing Fantasyland expansion at the Magic Kingdom:
There’s plenty of excitement to be found at the Magic Kingdom in the coming months/years and I can only imagine that this is all part of Disney’s plan to drive at least *some* attention away from the Wizarding World of Harry Potter opening in a couple of months at the Universal Orlando Resort. I doubt any Potter fans will pass up the Wizarding World to see the Electrical Parade and a new fireworks show, but they will almost certainly now add a visit to the Magic Kingdom into their vacation plans.
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