Walt and Me
I just came back from a vacation to Walt Disney World (WDW for short) and my first Disney Cruise (eek!!) and was inspired to write about Disney, which has had a profound effect on my life.
I was born in 1983, merely a few months after EPCOT opened. I have a photo of my mom holding me in her arms, I think before I could even walk, meeting Mickey Mouse outside of Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom (MK). When I was 3 we moved to an Orlando suburb (I’m looking at you Casselberry, FL). I have a few vague memories of the 2 years we spent down there, but importantly I have a few memories of one of my childhood obsessions, Figment. God how I loved that little purple dragon. Still do if I’m honest.
We left FL in 1988 and didn’t go back until 1994 when I was 11. On that trip we did not go to MK (sadly) but we did go to EPCOT and Disney/MGM Studios (current-day Hollywood Studios). I remember the backlot ride at MGM Studios, which was a blast and is greatly missed, and the Muppetvision attraction. I actually have vivid memories of that attraction. I also remember how miserable I was at EPCOT, but I digress.
Of course, being the typical American child in the 90s, you couldn’t go to the cinema without seeing the latest Disney animated film. I saw them all. Owned them all. Sang them all. For several months I think I believed I actually was Ariel as I “swam” in my bathtub.
I didn’t go back to Disney until 2017 at the age of 34 for one long, intense, magical day. I was in Florida for a wedding and decided to spend one day at Universal and one day at Disney. I wanted to go to Magic Kingdom and see the castle. It just so happened that I was staying at Contemporary resort and it was May of that year. Just one month prior was the opening of Pandora in Animal Kingdom, which I had never been to, and I had extra-extra magic hours for Pandora alone. I rode Flight of Passage twice with nearly no wait-time while guests that day had waited a max of 6 hours before they had to cut the line off. The nostalgia and whimsy of Magic Kingdom mixed with the other-worldly splendor of Pandora had me hooked.
I became a Disney Adult.
I flew home the next morning but went to Disneyland in October 2019. I’d never been to California let alone Disneyland. It was fantastic. It reminded me a lot of Magic Kingdom but was smaller in a lot of ways and felt more accessible because of that. It also had Galaxy’s Edge built in, which opened in WDW just 2 months prior and was in an entirely separate park. I’m not sure why but I have vivid memories of Disneyland, of the layout of the park. I still go to Magic Kingdom and expect to find New Orleans Square with Pirates and Mansion next to each other only to find that they are world’s apart in MK.
I had a truly magical trip to LA and Disneyland that year, and went back to WDW in December 2021. I’d never seen the parks at Christmas, one of my absolute favorite holidays, so I had to go. At the time it was the 50th anniversary celebration of MK so I have yet to see Cinderella’s castle lit with glistening icicles. I hope they bring it back though I suspect they won’t. I’m considering a trip to DL at Christmas just to see the icicle lights.
Just two weeks ago to the day I took another trip to WDW but this time I also went on a Disney Cruise. The Wish, sailing out of Port Canaveral, is Disney’s newest and largest cruise ship. It was beautiful. Truly. Beautiful. I didn’t have enough time to do just the events on the ship that I wanted to and will definitely go again.
Now I’m home surrounded by Disney merch and trying to hold onto some of that magic that the parks can bring. There have been some crazy stories that have come out of the parks this week. In an effort to keep some of that Disney spirit alive in me, I want to keep up with the info from the parks, and share it with you.
I’m thinking of calling it “This week in Disney…” or “Magical Mondays with Mickey” or something like that. I’m workshopping it.
For now I’m already considering another trip, another cruise, another YouTube video, another playlist, any way to feel the Magic.
I hope you’ll stay tuned!