Hong Kong Wanderlust 2 of 4

A new day has dawn for my companions and I in the land of "fragrant harbour," Hong Kong! After a day in Hong Kong Ocean Park, next on our itinerary was the Disneyland Hong Kong. I'm a child once again as we stepped into the park of Mickey Mouse and friends!

From where we're staying in Causeway Bay, we decided to tackle the Hong Kong's octopus network of trains to reach Disneyland. We started at the Island line and alighted at the Central station. We walked further (now we know why the Chinese are thin... they walk a lot!) and found the Tung Chung line which took us to the Sunny Bay station where the Disney Resort trains await. Even if we need to transfer from one train coach to another, it wasn't that hard to figure out which ones to use and we reached our destination in no time at all! (Such wonderful transpo system! Wish the Philippines has something like this!)

Welcome to Disneyland Hong Kong!

Wonderful Disney floral landscape.

And so I reached the land of magical realm and fantasies... and I was transformed into a giddy little girl who knows no life realities. What realities?! I'm sorry, I didn't hear you! Too busy getting a good look at the "Let It Snow" Christmas parade. With blaring Christmas songs and faux snow raining upon visitors, the parade is on! Surely, no one's gonna rain on this parade!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

The white dust you see might seem like dandruff, hehe, but they're fake snow raining upon us. It melts quickly once it settles so there's no residue left on the hair or clothes after the 'snowing'.

Snow White and Cinderella.

The princesses are not statues. They're real people who look like they came out of the fairly tale book. Such porcelain skin and dainty gowns. These are the stuff little girls' dreams are made of.

The Disney characters!

I love the winter blue costume! Very apt for the Christmas season.

Most of the performers on the parade were Filipinos! Some even came close to us, shook our hands and asked "Kamusta po?" Wow! Every day, they're entertaining people. What a job!

After watching the parade and before going to any rides, the train traveling around the entire Disneyland ground beckons with its soft whistle, just in time as the parade ended. It's a slow ride but it gives a glimpse of the entire magical world of Disney in the comfort of a wooden bench.

Choo choo train!

A walk into Main Street, USA proves to be very therapeutic. It feels like being transported in another place and time, probably on the old Hollywood era. The shops are beautifully decorated and the roads aptly cobble-stoned.

Main Street store.

Most stores carry souvenirs, candies, chocolates, and bread. There's also photo shops along the way.

The Disneyland map caught us off guard for a moment. There's just too many shows, rides, and shops to go to! Again, nakakalula! (Good luck naman kung Disneyland USA na ang pupuntahan ko davah?! *wishful thinking*) To help us facilitate our Disneyland experience, we browsed the map and planned our itinerary for the day.

The park is divided into three "lands". Come, and I'll tour you around (na parang akin ang Disneyland HK! Hehe!).

Welcome explorers!

There's Adventureland where nature and its tribes await. The should not be missed attractions include:

The Festival of the Lion King

This is the best (IMHO) music and dance presentation which depicts one of my fave Disney movies, The Lion King. The production and costume are all awesome. Also, the cast sings beautifully and dances oh-so gracefully.

The finale

Tarzan's Treehouse

There's a raft that takes visitors across the river to Tarzan's treehouse where an interactive playhouse lets kids (at-heart) conduct experiments and play instruments. I climbed the treehouse to have a picture with Tarzan! (Yun nga lang, estatwa lang sya eh, lol.)

Adventure seekers will be happy with Adventureland. Too bad we didn't have the time to ride the Jungle River Cruise but we're still happy dancing to the tune of the jungle rhythm emanating from the leaky tiki poles. Gusto kong mag-ati-atihan!

Jungle River Cruise

Up next is Tomorrowland where the futuristic rides and attractions are.

Welcome to the future!

This is perfect for the thrill-seekers. Unfortunately, my companions and I are not this type of people so we only rode one:

Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters

This is such a fun game! We were seated on carts, laser guns in hand, and journeying on a track that is filled with Buzz's enemies. We aim at targets and shoots! The cart even swivels for a more accurate shot. It was so action-packed I didn't have time to take a photo inside. Not that I wanted to let go of the gun anyway! Need to shoot the enemies! (A perfect stress-buster!) ;)

Space Mountain, one of the most popular rides in Disneyland is found on Tomorrowland. It's a thrilling rollercoaster journey that will take you to the far reaches of the universe! (O diba, may ganyang effect!). Tomorrowland also features Stitch Encounter, Orbitron, UFO Zone, and Autopia- all of which we're too coward to try.

The last one, and definitely the most magical is Fantasyland.

Welcome to your dreams!

It features Disneyland's major landmark - the Sleeping Beauty Castle. Walking through this portal is a dream come true. After all, I was also a little girl who dreamt of becoming a princess one day. ;)

Most of the not-to-be-missed shows are here. So just a tip, always be mindful of the shows' time. I tell you, you cannot afford to not watch these:

"It's A Small World Christmas"

The boat ride 'around the world' is worth the wait! This is a journey that took us through the regions of the world and see how they (and the 38 Disney characters) celebrate Christmas. The displays were marvelous! Every detail was carefully planned and placed. Everything was just colorful and ah-may-zhing! (I didn't get to find all Disney characters but I did find Santa!)

Amazing set design!
Dolls representing various countries. Indeed, this is a small world!
(Particularly love this set because it's pink, lol!)
They rep Pinas! The dolls are wearing baro't saya. Their umbrellas are twirling. Cute!
The amazing, colorful displays never cease.
Love winter! Para s'yang cake noh?!

Sorry, I have no photos of the following shows because I'm too busy enjoying myself. Hehe. Mickey's PhilharMagic. Watching Disney characters in 3D is such a treat. We definitely felt like members of the cast ourselves just by merely looking through our cool 3D glasses. With flying musical instruments and saucers flying at us, gawd, the experience was surreal. There's also water splashing and wind blowing on our faces. It's so real! Love, love this! It definitely beats Rialto! The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. This storybook journey is a little bit boring for the "adults" but your little ones will surely enjoy this. We were in a cart traveling in Pooh's Hundred Acre Wood. We got to meet Tigger and Piglet! This is such a short but quite nice ride. Perfect for Pooh lovers!

The Golden Mickeys

This musical is an award's night of sorts for the best of Disney. The production numbers were very nostalgic. I particularly love the "romance" part where Beauty and Beast sang and danced to my fave Disney songs "Something There."

Tale as old as time, true as it can be...

Fantasyland rides include Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Cinderella Carousel, and Mad Hatter Tea Cups. There's also the Fantasy Gardens where a meet and greet with the Disney characters happen. Of course, we did not fail to take a picture with Mickey Mouse.

During the night, the Festival of Lights happen. A magical procession illuminates the street lights and the Sleeping Beauty Castle. This is how the castle looks like before the lighting:


And here's how it looks like after (plus fireworks):

All-lit! All sparkling!

Of course, there's also the much-awaited fireworks display in the evening!

A fountain of sky light.
The fireworks dazzled everyone!
(Nagka-stiff neck yata ako pero worth it pa rin!)

The huge Christmas tree was also put up in time for the holidays.

After this, the park comes to a close although souvenir stores are still open for those who want to bring home a piece of the magic of Disneyland Hong Kong.

Souvenirs galore

I'm contented to bring home a huge marshmallow lollipop! What, I'm a little girl eh! Haha!

We never got bored in Disneyland Hong Kong. There are just so many activities. Restaurants with different themes also abound and for light snacks, food carts are around to offer coffee and hot chocolate (apt for the cold weather) and cookies. And for the lost, information/guest relations centers are open to help. This park is very people-friendly. Everyone is well taken cared of. A one-day ticket costs HKD350 (PHP2,450).

If you're in Hong Kong, I'm sure you don't need persuasion to visit Disneyland. After all, this is prolly your main objective in going. Just leave your stress behind and enjoy the magical moments.

More Hong Kong tourist spots on the next installment. See yah!