The Fish Basin

When you think of a merchandise shop, you rarely think art gallery at the same time. But China's store features trinkets for sale as well as beautiful pieces that are there simply to view. The latter includes the fish basin, located at the doors on the far end of the shop (nearest the outdoor market area). The basin is lovely just to look at, but a framed sign on the wall reveals historic information and invites the guest to actually interact with the piece. 

Tall Tales

In honor of Melody Time's 60th Anniversary, celebrated today, it seemed appropriate to share some details found in Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe. Namely, the tin pot worn as a hat by Johnny Appleseed, one of Melody Time's starring characters.


In addition to Johnny's tribute, a similar display can be found for the Lone Ranger's mask and silver bullet, frontiersman Kit Carson's map and navigational tools, and Davy Crockett's bag and powder horn.

Choose Wisely

With tonight's midnight premiere of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, it seemed only fitting to share some images of the well-designed FastPass machines at Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular. The machines are made up of gas tanks, trunks, crates, and other various items fitting of an archaeological dig. The pieces are well detailed, even down to the stenciled address of "Prof. Jones, Marshall College."

Liquid Sunshine

Local citrus growers donated their personal juice labels to decorate the walls of Disney's Vero Beach Resort. Of particular interest are the Donald Duck orange and grapefruit juice labels on display. This brand was created by Citrus World in 1940 through a licensing agreement with the Walt Disney Company. The wonderful vintage designs (one label carries a copyright from 1942) are a perfect addition to the resort, combing local culture and Disney magic.

Hall of Fame

The County Bounty store in Mickey's Toontown Fair shares its location with the Fair's Hall of Fame. The merchandise fixtures display some of the important winners from the Fair, in true toon fashion.

Evil Monkey

Across the walkway from the brand new Toy Story Midway Mania, it looks like one of the monkeys has taken a leaf out of Sid's book and strapped one of his unsuspecting buddies to a rocket. With match in hand, the blue monkey prepares to send his red friend into outer space.

And it would not be a proper new attraction at Disney without a new trash can to go along with it:

Citrus Mickey

Hidden amongst the orange trees in the lobby of Disney's Vero Beach Resort are these familiar Mickey-shaped fruits.

Down the Stretch They Come

The pool area at the Grandstands section of Saratoga Springs is perhaps one of Disney's most clever designs. That is, if you are a fan of horse racing.

The details begin as soon as you approach the pool area, where the gate features a white metal design of horses running on a race track.

The kids play area is designed to look like the Saratoga starting gate, complete with "horses" breaking from the gate that spray water.

Large planters take on the shape of horseshoes...

...while the pool itself is wonderfully shaped like a race track, complete with furlong markers and finish line.

The bar, laundry, and bathroom area is designed to take on the appearance of the backstretch, the area where the horses are stabled. From the name of the bar itself, to the elegant horse designs in the corners of the hallway, even the "stalls" of the bathrooms are made to look like, well, horse stalls.

As anyone who has been to Saratoga would notice, the predominant use of red and white is a tribute to the colors found at the actual track. As a final touch, posters displaying past races at "The Spa" can be found inside the laundry room. As you can see, the Imagineers went to great "lengths" to ensure the authenticity of this particular area.

Sawtooth

A special delivery to Acme Taxidermy got a little jostled during the typhoon and ended up revealing its contents: a large sawtooth shark. This suspended crate provides a nice comedic touch before guests don snorkels and experience the Shark Reef attraction at Typhoon Lagoon.

The Want Ads

The ceiling of the Screen Door General Store at the BoardWalk is papered with antique advertisements, giving you a chance to shop while looking upwards.