Sam must have been the first person to tell me that a Hong Kong Disneyland existed. Up until then, I was happily convinced that there were only 3 Disneylands - LA, Paris, and Tokyo - and one Disneyworld - Florida. Apparently, there are more, though, folks. Well, technically only one more at the moment - Hong Kong - and one more to come likely next year - Shanghai, which the Chinese are determined to make the biggest ever, obviously. My point being: I am here to test them out for you (3 down, 2 to go)!
Disneyland subway cars (genius!) and subway station right in front of Main Street
The first fun thing about Hong Kong Disneyland that you need to know is that it's wee! It's like a cute little playsize Disneyland squeezed on to a small island where they weren't sure what else to do with the space. There is very likely a parking garage, but everybody arrives there with the subway, as did we. The best part about that is that, once on the island of Lantau, you switch lines at a station to the Disneyland-specific train line with special Disney cars that have Mickey Mouse windows, seat fabric, and holders! Basically, an eight-year-old's ride to heaven.
The main advantage to Hong Kong Disneyland is the price. We had debated going for a while, since Disneyland is notoriously expensive and we weren't sure if it would fit in our budget, but as soon as I found out it only cost 450 HK dollars (45€), we were sold (well, I was sold, Micha was by default and cuz he likes to make me happy). We even managed to get another 15% off on the tickets by buying a tourist pass day ticket for the subway - which saved us quite a bit on our transport to and from Disneyland, too - and paying with credit card. Yippee!
Even gnomey got to join in on the Disney fun!
Ahhh, the comforting site of Tomorrowland
This mini-Disneyland is laid out almost just like LA Disneyland: you walk in through Main Street with cute little shops and room for parades, in front of you is the (wee) castle, to your right is Tomorrowland, up ahead and on the right is Fantasyland, up and to the left is the newer kiddie area, Toy Storyland (instead of Toon Town in LA), and on your far left is then the Adventureland-style area called Grizzly Gulch. (Micha's Hong Kong post shows a map here.)
Yup, that's the entirety of the Space Mountain start area. Precious, no?
Hehehe, check out the chicks in the back row!
On the way, we stopped for lunch and were never more glad to have thought in advance to bring some bread, spready cheese, and fruit with us, as the offerings of Hong Kong Disneyland catered primarily to their Chinese visitors, who don't seem to mind spending 8€ on an MSG-filled cup of noodles and 3€ on a small water bottle.
In line for a ride in Toy Storyland, we experienced the epic clash of cultures that you hear about between Hong Kong Chinese and mainland Chinese. It was roughly 800 degrees and 100% humidity, and the 45-minute line slowly turned into a 90-minute line, weaving it's way back and forth across a very small section of cement covered with a roof and lined with not nearly enough fans. The mainland Chinese, we learned in the weeks before, have very little concept of what a line is or what its purpose serves and prefer instead to push and shove their way forwards until they reach their goal. The Hong Kong Chinese love their queues (as many a British backpacker emphatically related to us during our China travels). As the temperatures rose and waiting times lengthened, people pushed closer and closer together, both attempting to cut their way to the front and just stand as near as humanly possible to the person in front of them (a joy, as you can imagine). Just as I was starting to get severely grumpy from the lack of my personal space bubble, a loudspeaker announcement came on reminding everyone (in 3 languages) to please keep in mind that it is an extremely hot day and best to keep a reasonable distance from the people around you to prevent any discomfort. Half of the line breathed a sigh of relief. Half just look around in confusion as to what discomfort they could possibly be speaking of.
Toy Storyland is beyond precious and that ride on the right was ah-ma-zing
Failed, but ridiculous, self picture attempt
We went on the Grizzly Gulch rollercoaster, which was basically Splash Mountain without the splash, and then realized we were pretty much out of rollercoasters. It came down to either the Jungle Cruise (meh), It's a Small World (yay! but Micha despises it), or Space Mountain again. (And again.) Clearly, Space Mountain was the winner - since we had fast passes again - and since the after-effects of Micha's spill over a very large and all-too-high chain at the Big Buddha the day before were starting to plague him (bruised shins and a sore chest; we're pretty sure he pulled some rib muscles when he fell, poor guy!), I got to brave the ride all by my lonesome. Via the fast pass lane. Twice! So, I did what any rightminded person would do on my last ride of the day - requested the front row, put my arms up, and screamed like a teenybopper as we whipped around corners at "warp speed" in the dark. Space Mountain hasn't felt that good in years.
Before we left, though - and rest assured, a half day at Hong Kong Disneyland is plenty, I can now confirm - we did wait long enough to enjoy the midday water parade that made its merry way through the park hosing down sweaty, tired spectators until they were all giggling like schoolchildren. Disney, you never fail me!
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