Since I just got back from Orlando (with just a small sunburn, thank you very much) ...
Disney's Line Management technology continues to improve by leaps and bounds. I wonder if it's trademarked or otherwise protected from IP, since so many people could learn from it. Even if you don't have the resources of Disney, some simple ideas should proliferate. I'm looking at the TSA here.
Overheard in Epcoyt — "I didn't think the Amish would come to Disneyworld." "That's a cast member in a period americana costume." "Oh."
The most powerful concept in Judaism is Afikomen. I'm glad that the Jewish Media Cabal lets Disney use this power for good ... the KimPossible missions in Epcoyt makes going through the World Showcase possible with small children.
Favorite attention to detail moment — Epcoyt has a game where kids recycle (and otherwise save the earth). It's funded by Waste Management, so you have kid-sized garbage trucks to push around from station to station. If you pull the truck to back up, it beeps.
Verdict on Animal Kingdom — Meh. The Safari is good. Everest Expedition (Rollercoaster) is good. Tree of Life is vaguely neat. Finding Nemo show (ala Lion King broadway, but only 30 minutes long) was ok if you like that kind of thing.
The Land (at Epcoyt) has three attractions (apart from shops/restaurants). One is a hang-gliding simulation. One is a boat ride. One is a preachy video about conservation. Actual land gets screwed pretty hard, if you ask me.
That video is the most bizarre thing I saw at Disney. Timon and Poomba destroy the African Plains by damming up a river .... to build a theme park. I spent the entire latter half slack jawed in amazement. It was like an addict's cry for help. "Please, for the love of God, don't waste valuable energy/land/resources on Disneyworld!" was the message throughout. And I'm completely convinced that they took 7 minutes of footage from Koyaanasqatsi and just replaced Philip Glass's soundtrack with excerpts from the Lion King.
How come Mr. Toad's Wild Ride is gone but the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse endures? That's the saddest place in the happiest place on earth.
The closing show in Hollywood Studios (Fantasmic!) has one of the most stunning effects I've ever seen, but blows it in the first few minutes. I spent the rest of the show waiting for it to be topped. And (Spoiler Alert!) Mickey beats the villains. Seriously, the Harlem Globetrotters would kill for that streak.
Epcoyt and Tomorrowland prove that Disney should stick to the past. At some point they fixed spaceship earth (the big ball thing) so that it did history instead of predictions. Good call. Ride still sucks, but much less now.
The "Interactive cartoon" technologies (used in the Monster Inc Laugh Floor and Turtle Talk with Crush) works pretty well. (A voice actor talks with the audience, and the lips move roughly in time with his speech, and he presumably directs the animation somewhat). Thank the maker Imagineers used this technology to add a fart joke for the children.
And according to the Juxtapositional humor on the laugh floor, I was supposed to bring churros for 200 guests.
Ah Mulan. Banished to the Chinese Pavilion at Epcoyt.
The Haunted Mansion still rocks. Now with addtional M.C. Escher!
EPCOYT stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Yesterday's Tomorrow.
(My wife insists that was an actual Amish person).
The kids favorite ride was Søren, a ride through the dismal philosophy of Kierkegaard.
Most shocking moment — The lost and found got the hat J lost.
I liked all the rollercoasters (that I got to ride), but the Orange ride of Mission:Space made throwing up seem like a pretty reasonable option. I was never in any serious danger, but I was queasy for a good two hours afterwards.
I always remember too late that Space Mountain sets of primal "You are going to hit your head" warnings deep in the lizard brain. (Probably from not being able to judge distances/heights of all those girders in the dark).
Update: Oh, one last thought -- Norway has a Viking Ride, China has acrobats and replica Terra Cotta Warriors, and Canada has ... Martin Short. Ye gods.