AllEars® Newsletter
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an unofficial electronic newsletter about The Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, published weekly in conjunction with AllEars.Net, Deb's Unofficial Walt Disney World Information Guide
Established September 1999
Library of Congress ISSN:1533-0753
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Click here to start receiving AllEars®, the FREE weekly electronic newsletter with the most current, accurate and comprehensive information for folks interested in Walt Disney World. Each AllEars® is chock full of facts, helpful tips and, of course, the latest Walt Disney World news, as well as restaurant and resort reviews, previews, interviews, snippets of timely information and insightful guest columns.
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To get a taste of what AllEars® has to offer each and every week, click on the links below -- these tidbits are from our February 2012 "WDW Bits and Bites" issue:
STEP BACK IN TIME
RATE & REVIEW SPOTLIGHT
MAGICAL MOMENTS
STEP BACK IN TIME
EDITOR'S NOTE: Over the next few months, AllEars.Net will be highlighting exclusive excerpts from Sam Gennawey's book, Walt and the Promise of Progress City. The book explores the process through which meaningful and functional spaces were created by Walt Disney and his artists, as well as how guests understand and experience those spaces. It also takes a look at how Walt wanted to change the public's expectations about city life in the same way his earlier work had redefined what it meant to watch an animated film or visit an amusement park. In this month's excerpt, we learn about how the theme parks are spatially organized, and how the familiar "hub-and-spoke" layout came about.
Site Design
by Sam Gennawey
Make no mistake. The spaces within the park are not representative of reality but become a hyper-reality -- stylized and tightly edited versions of the real thing. The buildings are shrunk and edited to meet the needs of the story that binds everything together. However, Disneyland is a legible urban environment. As a result of the innovative site design plan for Disneyland, guests are provided with a comprehensible orientation and an environment that induces a change of mood. Key to this was Walt's decision to set his park within a strong boundary, with only a single entrance, and with a radial, or hub-and-spoke, circulation system. Walt picked Marvin Davis to be the master planner for Disneyland.
From the very beginning, Walt was clear about his intentions for Disneyland. He told Davis, "I just want it to look like nothing else in the world. And it should be surrounded by a train." He said he wanted the railroad tracks on the high ground so guests could preview all the wonderful things that would be inside the berm. Davis described the site design process for Disneyland, "I was working in what they call the Zorro building as the project designer for master planning of the Park at the time. This was before they even knew where the Park was going." Davis continues, "Before they bought the property—I guess I must have done, well I know I did 129 different schemes for the solution of the thing...different entryways...until finally it developed into the scheme that it is now with the single entrance and the walk for the avenue, which is Main Street, up to the center of the hub. Walt's idea was to have the whole thing as radials from that hub." In August 1953, Walt walked into Marvin Davis' office with the map of the property he just purchased in Anaheim. Walt took out a pencil and drew the exact placement of where he wanted his train. The drawing showed the railroad tracks running around the perimeter forming a triangular boundary. That basic outline still represents the boundaries of the park. Understanding that constraint, Davis knew what to do next...
Read the rest of this excerpt in the AllEars® Guest blog: http://land.allears.net/blogs/guestblog/2012/01/walt_and_the_promise_of_progre.html
Interested in Walt and the Promise of Progress City? Order it through the AllEars.Net Amazon store: http://astore.amazon.com/debsunoffiwaltdi/detail/0615540244
RATE AND REVIEW SPOTLIGHT
In this monthly featurette, we take a look at recent comments made in the AllEars.Net Rate & Review section about a particular restaurant, resort, event, etc. This month, we examine what AllEars® readers are saying about Raglan Road, located at Downtown Disney.
Raglan Road is a full-service pub serving lunch and dinner. It is recommended by 93% of reviewers and has an average rating of 8.3.
From recent reviews:
Food: "was excellent and very affordable"; "shepherd's pie...was just okay"; "was all very, very good"; "shepherd's pie is great"; "goat cheese salad is tasty"; "veggie oil that came with the bread was delicious"; "had the Shepherd's Pie and the Fish & Chips, both were very tasty and the price was right"; "we had short rib appetizer, Pie in the Sky and Bangers 'n Booze; everything was great"; "was excellent"; "vegetables were hard/woody"; "lamb shanks were extremely dry and lacking in sauce"; "food was excellent"; "brown bread served with the olive oil and Guinness dipping sauce is excellent"; "steak was cooked the exact way he liked".
Desserts: "creme brulee wasn't at all what I expected (it was served like a piece of cake) and was OK"; "son had the bread pudding which was very good"; "had the bread pudding for dessert, which was awesome"; "dessert was fantastic... Apple and Strawberry Crumble while my mom had the bread pudding"; "did not care for the dessert but loved the rest"; "had the famous bread pudding, it was so good and huge"; "the Danboury Kiss... was unusual but tasty".
Beverages: "did enjoy the Smithwick's on tap"; "Smithwick's on tap is good"; "specialty drinks from the bar are great".
Service: "Waiter couldn't have been better"; "server was very attentive"; "server was great"; "service was superb"; "waited 20 minutes past our ADR time of 5:45 despite the fact there were plenty of tables available"; "service was excellent"; "was busy but he answered all our questions and gave suggestions on what to order".
Atmosphere: "nice break from the theme parks"; "meal was eaten with Irish band playing and dancers performing, so the atmosphere was great"; "we love eating here especially on a beautiful sunny early fall day while sitting on the patio"; "were seated away from the entertainment area to the side of the main room, which had no atmosphere or ambiance"; "very noisy, especially when the Irish dancers were on stage".
Entertainment: "enjoyed listening to the music"; "If you like Irish folk music & dancing, this is a must-stop while visiting"; "sat in front of the band, they were excellent but loud"; "(dancers) were fun to watch but we couldn't see them from our table".
Overall: "I'll wait a while before I go back here again"; "will DEFINITELY be back"; "Loved it!"; "just a great dining experience"; "Always one of our favorite restaurants!"; "Always look forward to going to Raglan Road"; "Probably wouldn't go back, but it was a nice change of scenery"; "husband is from Northern Ireland and he felt like he was back home again"; "had an enjoyable time and will return".
If you have recently dined at Raglan Road, we'd love to have your review!
http://land.allears.net/reviewpost/showproduct.php?product=138&cat=40
MAGICAL MOMENTS
Each month we share reports of guests at Walt Disney World and Disneyland experiencing special Magic, which we call "Magical Moments":
Holly: Our son was celebrating his 5th birthday. He wore his birthday pin every day and was treated to some very nice surprises. Besides getting a balloon, a few free cupcakes and dozens of "Happy Birthdays", he got a phone call from Goofy, a private meeting with Chip and Dale, and we were selected as Family of the Day at the Fort Wilderness Campfire program. But his favorite memory happened when we were just walking to the parking lot in Downtown Disney. He was chatting with the couple behind us about their stroller (it was the same as ours) and they noticed his birthday button. Before I knew it, they had given him $5: "One for each year". I was amazed! Nowhere else other than Disney can the magic spread like that, not just the cast members, but to the other vacationers as well. (I did pay it forward and gave our arcade tokens to a family on the day we were leaving.) I don't know how I'll ever top my son's first trip to Disney -- it really was an awesome time.
Joyce A. Deen: My husband and I had a magical experience while visiting the Magic Kingdom during Christmas season. It was unseasonably frigid that year, and by the time we decided to have our evening meal, we were cold and tired and slightly dispirited. While waiting in line at one of the counter service restaurants, a young man came out and asked for someone to 'taste test' his cocoa. Everyone standing in line just looked at him, so he asked again. Since I was standing right at the counter, I raised my hand and said, "Sure, I like cocoa!" I was expecting just a few sips in a small cup, but oh no! -- he gave me a large cup of the most delicious cocoa I think I've ever had, and then, as a reward for 'helping' him out, he gave me two warm and chewy cookies! There's a special kind of generosity among some of Disney's cast members, and that young man had a stockingful!
Mickderb: My  5-year-old grandson, being small for his age, was not tall enough for Mission: Space. So while the others experienced that attraction, we headed over to Test Track to take his mind off the disappointment. When we reached Test Track, he excitedly ran up to a sign, saying, "Grandma, how much time to wait?" It not being the wait-time clock, I told him we had to check another, however, the wait time in the standby line was rather lengthy. Meanwhile, a cast member who witnessed the interaction asked if there were just two of us, which there were. He handed us two Fast Passes that allowed us to merely walk on the ride. My grandson was so excited because he was able to get an extra ride on one of his favorite rides.
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We just bet you have a story to tell about an unforgettable moment during your Disney vacation! Please send your favorite memory for inclusion in a future AllEars® to: allearsnet@yahoo.com
Thank you all for sharing!
We've also compiled a collection of photos from readers sharing their Magical Moments via digital images in the latest Wandering the World: Magic Kingdom Edition.
To see more photos, visit this month's Wandering the World:
http://allears.net/tp/wander/wander.htm
ARCHIVES
Feature Archives
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Tips Archives
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©1999-2012, All Rights Reserved. RYI Enterprises, LLC.
RYI Enterprises, LLC owns and operates AllEars.Net, which comprises Deb's Unofficial Walt Disney World Information Guide and the AllEars® weekly newsletter (allears.net), and the Ears to Ears™ moderated forum on yahoogroups (email earstoears-subscribe@yahoogroups.com to subscribe). AllEars.Net and AllEars® are not affiliated with, authorized or endorsed by, or in any way officially connected with, The Walt Disney Company, Disney Enterprises, Inc., or any of their affiliates. For official Disney information, visit http://www.disney.com
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AllEars® Senior Editor is Debra Martin Koma.
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Editor's Note: This story/information was accurate when it was published. Please be sure to confirm all current rates, information and other details before planning your trip.
