The Devil Went Down to Georgia...

I'm not usually one to sit and listen to bluegrass-country music, but that all changed this past Sunday while I was at Disneyland.

While meandering through Frontierland to get over to the Haunted Mansion, I heard loud music and commotion coming out of the Golden Horseshoe Saloon. I decided to take a peak inside to see what all the fuss was about and practically died laughing when I saw what looked like 4 inbred hillbillies playing their fiddles to a packed room.

They went on to introduce themselves as "Billy Hill and the Hillbillies." I decided I had to stay for the ENTIRE show because I was so enraptured with whether or not Billy Hill's teeth were real. He was someone in serious need of braces, or at least a dentist.

I was not disappointed. The show was very entertaining, and to top it off, they ended with one of my all time favorite fiddle-songs, The Devil Went Down to Georgia.

I have not once on any Disneyland trip stumbled upon what I now call my "new favorite bluegrass band," but it turns out that they have been performing there since 1986. After a four-year stint in Critter Country, they were relocated to The Golden Horseshoe.

I highly recommend stopping by on your next Disneyland trip, in the very least to find out the truth behind Billy Hill's teeth. I can't give away ALL of Disneyland's secrets on here. Personally, I am going to make it a point to catch a show everytime I go.

The Real Tink...

Although Tinkerbell bears a striking resemblance to Marilyn Monroe, with the curvy figure, blonde hair, and "sex appeal" (if it's possible for a cartoon to have "sex appeal), it may suprise you that the man who drew her did not take inspiration from Monroe when he put his pencil to the sketchpad.

Marc Davis, the animator of Tinkerbell, actually used an actress named Margaret Kerry as the basis for the hot-tempered fairy. Kerry, who had to audition for the "role," was asked to act out the different moods and movements of Tinkerbell in order to bring this fictional character to "life." Kerry was sometimes given large props to use while acting out different scenes that would later appear in Disney's cartoon version of Peter Pan.

It was very common for Disney animator's to have people act out scenes in Disney cartoons while they were drawing them out, and they often used the actors and actresses who did the voices for the characters themselves. Unfortunately for Kerry, Tinkerbell did not speak. However, they did use her again to act as the red-headed mermaid that is seen in the lagoon in Peter Pan.

Crocs: The Disney Statement Shoe

I am an avid reader of fashion magazines. You'll find my coffee table littered with Vogue, W, Vanity Fair, and Elle. It's safe to say I know a thing or two about fashion. What designers are calling the "statement shoe" has been an increasing trend over the past year. It seems that fashion is ALL about the shoes this season, and being a person with a heel "fetish" (my mom's words, not mine), I could not be happier.

So, you can imagine how much it pains me to go to Disneyland and see these

on the feet of men, women, and children.

Ok. Maybe the kids can get away with it. My little sister has a pair and I think she's cute enough to pull off anything. However, I gave my mom hell when I found out she bought a pair for her and yelled at her when she tried to buy a SECOND pair in front of me.

But I can not bear to look at full grown adults in these shoes. I am sorry if I offend, but why would you do that to your feet? What is wrong with good ol' fashioned tennis shoes or flip flops to trot around Disneyland in. Not only do they look extremely uncomfortable to walk around in all day, but they are just an eyesore for people like myself, who like to think of wearing shoes as an art form.

Not only do I see Crocs on a good 30 to 40 percent of the people at Disneyland, now they are selling Disney Crocs that have Mickey Mouse shaped holes in place of the boring old circles. Leave it to Disney to take Crocs to the "next level."

Please do everyone a favor.

Respect your feet. Respect fashion. Dump the Crocs.

Jambalaya, Crawfish Pie, Me Oh My Oh...

I am absolutely enthralled with the South. Ever since I was little I have had this complete fascintation with anything Southern. I've made my cousins cook gumbo with me while drinking mint juleps and listening to French creole music in the background. I even dressed as Scarlett O'Hara for Halloween when I was in 4th grade.

Therefore, it is no suprise that my favorite area in Disneyland is New Orlean's Square, which is home to the Pirates of the Carribean and the Haunted Mansion. The area is fashioned after 19th century New Orleans. The attention to detail that Disney's Imagineers put into creating the streets and building of New Orleans Square is enough to make you feel las if you've left Anaheim, CA and ended up in Louisiana.

Beside the beautiful architecture of the faux-homes that line the "streets" of New Orleans Square, visitors can take the Southern experience one step further by catching Mardi Gras beads thrown by Queenie and the Jambalaya Jazz Band. Keep your shirts on though, this is Disneyland after all.

To top it off, you can make reservations at the Blue Bayou Restaurant, which serves cajun-creole meals such as jambalaya and gumbo. The restaurant is located in the Pirates of the Carribean and feels as if you are dining by moonlight next to a southern bayou. The sound of a banjo, crickets, and frogs add to the ambience.

So while Disney's version of New Orleans may not be exactly what you'll find in the real city today, this is as close as a poor college student is going to get to living out my "Southern belle dream" for now.

The Things that Nightmares are Made of.

I am a huge fan of classic Disney cartoons. Let's face it, the cartoons that Disney cranks out these days are not quite the same caliber as the ones made 50 years ago. The films today seem to be missing something. On of those "things" is the dark undertones in the films of yore. Anybody remember the demon in Fantasia?



That's enough to give you nightmares. Or how about Sleeping Beauty's Maleficent. The villians in these classic Disney films don't have the goofy characteristics you see in today's villians. They are simply downright scary. Honestly, I'd much rather run into Hades from Hercules than the Queen/Witch in Snow White.

Just take a walk though Disneyland's Fantasyland, which is filled with rides based on the classics. My mom absolutely refused to let my three-year-old sister on a good majority of them for fear that she will incur permanent psychological scarring. Initially, I ridiculed my mom for being "dramatic" and "overprotective." Turns out, moms have this funny way of being right (most of the time).

On one Disneyland trip with my family a few months back, I suggested Mr. Toad's Wild Ride since the wait was only 20 minutes. My parents were hesitant but caved in. How scary can a 4 minute adventure with a frog be? Well, Mr. Toad's journey ends with him being sentenced to an eternity in hell by a judge that bears a striking resemblance to Satan. Who knew?

I wasn't allowed to pick out rides after that.

Afterwards, I decided to go on all the rides in Fantasyland at night after most of the kids had cleared out of the park. I learned that those of you with young children want to avoid the rides in Fantasyland that have the shortest lines (i.e., Snow White's Scary Adventure, Pinocchio's Daring Journey). Parents aren't taking their kids on these rides for a reason.