Daily Photo Tour - Inspiration at Closing Time

At the end of a long day at Disneyland I always love to sit back and reflect on the day. It's usually customary to find me sitting on a bench, just taking it all in (with some amazing beverage/food combination). Closing time is one of my favorite times to do this. Disneyland is a very thought provoking place. You can touch the sky with your hopes and dreams, and know that anything is possible. You can release all the worries of life and realize that whatever your heart desires is out there somewhere, just waiting for you to find it.

Have you ever wondered why Disneyland so inspiring, so magical? I'll tell you. It's the culmination of artists and dreamers that create. It's the people that have been inspired themselves that craft and design the inspiring places we visit when we go to Disneyland. The very fact that these people have a passion, and put there all into one thing, shows through at this amazing place. Disneyland has such an emotional affect on all of us because it is causing us to view things through the lens of passion. And without passion, life just doesn't feel the same. It can feel empty, and just down right depressing. That's because we were made to do something! Find your passion, whatever it might be, it will completely and utterly transform your life. I promise.

Daily Photo Tour - Last Dance

This is not a picture of the literal last dance at the Carnation Plaza Gardens Stage, which took place last night. This dance was one of the last from the weekend before, the last weekend for Stompy Jones. Watching Twitter last night, buzzing with twit pics and sentimental journeys down memory lane, I was struck at how deeply we grow attached to things. Jumping and jiving near Sleeping Beauty Castle has been a Disneyland staple since near its start. Big band legends have graced this stage. Walt himself danced on this floor with his wife Lillian. Tomorrow marks the beginning of the transition that the historic Carnation Plaza Gardens will make into the Princess Fantasy Faire. I feel it's important to state that Disney has said that the stage and the dance floor will not be changed, but rather the canopy to fit in with this new fantasy theme. This project, slated to open sometime next year, has displaced what may be the longest running swing dance event in the world to Downtown Disney. I have every confidence that swing dancing will return to this very stage and dance floor once construction has concluded and that it will do so with fervor and style.

The very nature of the Park promises change and at times change asks us to let go of some things we have enjoyed. This change seems to be asking us more to hold on than to let go. Hold on and see what the Imagineers have in store. I'm not a princess fan. I do have skepticism about an area dedicated to them. But I look at Buena Vista Street in awe. I marvel at Cars Land from a distance. Trader Sam's is the most enchanted bar I've ever seen. I'm thrilled with the progress and improvements that seem to be taking place all the time around the Disneyland Resort. All these developments tell me that Disney is making progress and moving in the right direction. Walt loved nostalgia and hoped we never lost some of the things of the past. He was also one of the most progressive men in history. Finding a balance between those two ideals of preserving the past and pressing firmly into the future has never been an easy task.

What stands out most for me about getting to observe some of the final dances here is the unity. The mutual appreciation between band and dancers, skilled and novice, experienced and young. I'm grateful to have witnessed such an event. I'm grateful that so many made it here for one last dance.

Daily Photo Tour - The Golden Glow Over the Gardens

It will be very sad when The Carnation Plaza Gardens goes away. I can't help but not think of that every time I pass by, take a picture, or hear the sweet sounds on Saturday nights. I was hoping for a large splash of golden light while we were in Disneyland for One More Disney Day, and was so excited when it finally made the crest over Tomorrowland and into Main Street and the Hub. The Carnation Plaza Gardens lit up with magic. It was seriously amazing to be in Disneyland so early. I almost don't even remember firing off this picture. When the light hit, it seemed like we were photographing the entire park in only a matter of minutes. But then again, time does seem to stop when the magic drops.