Yeah! The very cool sounding
Aquatopia.
While Disney has been building and opening
the California Adventure park in Anaheim, the Oriental Land Company has
been working on a new Disney park clear on the other side of the world,
in Japan.
Like it's new California cousin,
Tokyo DisneySea park resides next door to the existing Disneyland park.
The similarity ends there however, because Tokyo DisneySea is not like
any park in California, or even the world. The Oriental Land Company has
broken the mold with a theme park full of detailing so incredible it can
easily be compared to -- if not surpass -- some of the most expensive
and richly themed hotels in Las Vegas, such as the Venetian and Bellagio.
MousePlanet is extremely pleased to
offer you the following photos, taken by Todd Meigan*, over a recent
weekend during a soft opening of the park. Todd is a regular contributor
to our MousePad discussion boards, and is our very own Tokyo insider. We
hope Todd's photos will give you an idea of the sheer wonderment and
amazement of the new park.
Part Nine: Port Discovery II
Text by Al Lutz
Last time we took a
look at Stormrider - now let's see what else is in Port Discovery.
(Again, a quick note
about the photos you will be looking at - a few of these shots were
taken at dusk, and were originally very dark. I've done some work on
them to lighten them up so you can see the details - but that may mean
that some of the colors could be a bit off from what the actual location
may look like.)
The DisneySea
Electric Railway has two stops, one here in Port Discovery, the other at
the American Waterfront. Note how the styling fits in well - it looks
modern yet retro enough for this area - and it fits right into the retro
detail of the American Waterfront area too. That's thoughtful design.
In the close-up
shot you can see the detailing in the cars and Mount Prometheus in the
background. As I understand it (and my memory may be faulty here)
there is some odd rule in Japan that any railway built that has more
than two stops has to be run or regulated by the government - so Disney
in both the Tokyo Disneyland park and here in DisneySea had to limit the
stations to two.
All right already -
I know you guys have been itching to get a closer look at the Aquatopia.
(Heck, even the name seems cool.) Below is the loading area...
A zoom into the
shot above shows us the ride vehicles - looking further into the
background you can see a waterfall. Again, every nook, every cranny, has
something to look at. You can also make out a cast member in the right
of the shot below - note the costuming.
Another close up in
another part of the photo shows the rest of the loading area - and the
distinctive seashell inspired roof treatments.
Now we get to see
this thing in action, from the other side.
