A Taste of Hollywood

After the spectacle of last night's Academy Awards, it felt appropriate that the next district of Disney California Adventure we should explore would be Hollywood Pictures Backlot. From the dramatic gateway entrance to the forced perspective scene at the end of the street, the land is a tongue-in-cheek tribute to Tinsel Town.

In previous articles, we've looked at the story conceit of Hollywood Pictures Backlot (it's actually intended to be a movie set of Hollywood Blvd., rather than the real thing). We've also appreciated some of the fun graphics and wordplay evident throughout the land, but there's always more to discover.

Step into this alcove just past the Disney Jr. - Live on Stage! theater, and you'll discover one of the most elaborate restroom facades in any Disney Park. An architectural treat, it was inspired by the Freeman House, a Mayan Revival-style home in the Hollywood Hills designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1923.

As we leave the Hollywood Blvd. set and step under the arch into the Hollywood Studios production area, we discover a movie shoot in progress for Monsters, Inc.: Mike & Sulley to the Rescue. The bright, cartoonish facade of the attraction lets us know we're leaving behind the more realistic surroundings of the backlot.

The light above the entrance door is active. Passing through, we suddenly find ourselves in Monstropolis and on the set of the latest Monsters, Inc. adventure. It's a madcap trip through the city, with turns into familiar settings from the Pixar film, including the Door Vault and Harryhausen's restaurant.

Monsters, Inc.: Mike & Sulley to the Rescue opened in January 2006, replacing original park attraction SuperStar Limo (you can read more about that short-lived attraction at theYesterland site). It made clever use of some leftover SuperStar Limo assets, while also bringing something new and original to the park.

Among the highlights of the new attraction are the figures of Randall Boggs and Roz encountered near the end of the ride. Using advanced projection technology, Randall (a chameleon-like character in the film) appears to change colors and patterns with each whack on the head he receives from Boo. Around a corner, our taxicab vehicles pause briefly in front of Roz, who then seems to address us directly. Pay attention to her comments the next time you ride. You'll notice they're customized for each group of guests.

Fly, Spin, Splash, Crash & Chew

The Flik's Fun Fair section of a bug's land at Disney California Adventure is like a spectacular county fair for insects, complete with carnival rides inspired by the stars of Pixar's a bug's life and seemingly cobbled together by the bugs themselves.

Clockwise from the entrance, we first come to Flik's Flyers. Leave it to the inventive Flik to have come up with a contraption that allows average bugs (and us!) to fly. The details here are about as fun as they come, from the straws and No. 2 pencils to the sticks lashed together to form fences. The marquee is my favorite. It's a paper airplane, but I especially love details like the torn edge of the notebook paper, the graphic drawn in pen and the crumpled nose of the plane where it landed hard in the ground.

The ride itself is no less elaborate. Although you may have seen rides similar to this in other parks, it goes to show there's no such thing as "off the shelf" here. Guests fly around in makeshift balloons fashioned from leaves and sticks, with baskets of cookie boxes, packs of raisins and Chinese take-out containers. The center of the mechanism is even dressed out to look like a tub of whipped topping and an aluminum pie plate.

The rides at Flik's Fun Fair are certainly designed to be enjoyed by small children, but adults are missing out if they don't choose to try them out, too. Flik's Flyers is really fun, as is the next attraction around the bend, Francis' Ladybug Boogie. The marquee here is actually an old, cracked 45 RPM record. Those of the generation that would remember such things also get a kick out of the added detail of the plastic insert that allowed 45s to fit on the pin of a 33 RPM player.

Close observers may also notice that "Ladybug Boogie," the title of the ride, is listed as the song on the record, but it's the B side. Step into the queue for the attraction, and you'll find the A side track, entitled "He's No Lady." The ride itself takes guests on a spinning, figure 8 course in little cabs designed to resemble the ride's namesake, Francis.

A leaky garden hose and spigot sticking up in the middle of the land form the centerpiece for Princess Dot's Puddle Park. Fans of the film will recall Princess Dot as a spunky little kid, just the sort who would enjoy splashing around and cooling off in this water play area.

Under the giant umbrella that forms P.T. Flea's big top, guests can ride and speak gibberish along with those acrobatic pill bugs on Tuck and Roll's Drive 'Em Buggies.

A string of Christmas lights illuminates the underside of the umbrella, with crayons and chewed-through leaves pointing drivers in the right direction as a fleet of little bugs crawl, creep and crash their way around the course.

The final attraction in Flik's Fun Fair is Heimlich's Chew Chew Train, inspired by the caterpillar who loves to eat tasty treats. Even the sign for the attraction is tasty: A partially-eaten cupcake on a plastic fork, complete with a little paper decoration of Heimlich himself.

Here, we ride along with Heimlich on his quest for more of his favorite food, candy corns. Along the way, he chomps through an apple and a watermelon, where passengers even get squirted by the juice and can smell the aroma of the melon.

A trip through a box of Casey Jr. Animal Cookies brings even more delicious smells, but at the point of the box Heimlich is also presented with a choice. Signs point the way to either Candy Valley or Brussels Sprouts. Hmmmm. Which way do you think he turns?

Even though the Brussels Sprouts come with "gooey sauce" and are from Eat 'Em Up Yum brand, Heimlich can't resist the temptation of Candy Valley. Sure enough, that where he discovers delicious candy corn, and our journey with him comes to an end.

It's Fun to be a Bug

Ever since Walt's day, Disney Parks leaders and Imagineers have been listening to their guests to help determine what should be added to or changed in the theme parks. One of the early comments from guests at Disney California Adventure was they felt there wasn't as much for young children. The answer came in fall 2002 with the addition of a bug's land.

Inspired by the Pixar film a bug's life, a bug's land grew upon the foundation of original park attractions Bountiful Valley Farm (now gone, although you can revisit it at this link) and "It's Tough to be a Bug," a 3-D spectacular originally created for Disney's Animal Kingdom. In that park, the film is presented in the Tree of Life Theater, under the roots of the massive park icon. Here, guests enter the "back 40," a plot of farmland that hasn't been developed or plowed due to a dry wash that cuts through the property. As we continue along the dry wash, it becomes a canyon, and we find ourselves shrunk to bug-size proportions before entering an underground theater at the base of Ant Island.

The third and newest part of a bug's land is Flik's Fun Fair, a sort of bug carnival. An overturned box of Cowboy Crunchies cereal (a nod to Toy Story; notice Woody's hand holding the cereal spoon) serves as the entrance portal to the fair. This particular package of Cowboy Crunchies apparently came with an "instant win" opportunity to earn a trip to the fair. Not only are we winners, but we also get some fun cut-out-and-color stand up figures of favorite characters from a bug's life!

In Flik's Fun Fair, everything is oversize. Towering above us are 75 giant clovers (one of them even has four leaves). Along with natural landscaping of enormous proportions, they create a sense that we are truly seeing the world from a bug's perspective.

Throughout a bug's land, the Imagineers have cleverly designed even the most mundane of theme park staples in a way that makes them blend seamlessly into the story of Flik's Fun Fair. Here, restrooms are built into an overturned box of tissues (a new "sneezy-to-open" box no less!). The Kodak-sponsored Picture Spot (for Shutterbugs, of course) is identified by a sign that looks like a corner of envelope held up by a paperclip. See the postmark? The letter was sent from Anaheim.

In a bug's land, benches are made of used Popsicle sticks, area lighting is provided by fireflies and No. 2 pencils provide fence posts and ground lighting. A juice box turned on its side becomes a stand for selling drinks, and a giant box of churros is peeled open, so we can get to the yummy cinnamon treats inside.

Even The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, added nearby in 2004, works from this angle, as if we bugs were gazing up from the grounds of the Hollywood Tower Hotel.

There's so much to see and appreciate in the design of a bug's land, you could easily spend an hour exploring here... and that doesn't include enjoying the rides. Shrink back with us tomorrow for a look at the attractions the bugs have set up for Flik's Fun Fair.

Attractions with Real History

The core concept for the Disney California Adventure park has its origins in two other abandoned theme park concepts, Disney's America and The Workplace. Disney's America in Virginia was intended as a "home base" for people visiting the nation's capital. The park would bring the story of America to life, inspiring guests to venture out and visit the real thing. Developed during the same period in the early-90s, The Workplace was a proposed concept for Walt Disney World, combining Walt Disney's idea of an industrial park on the property with "edutainment" and tours of working factories.

While neither of those parks came to fruition, some of the concepts developed for them eventually bore fruit at Disney California Adventure. Two direct descendants are the factory tours in the Pacific Wharf district.

Built into the old sardine canning plant, the Mission Tortilla Factory tells the story of tortillas, a staple of the Hispanic diet for centuries and an important part of California cuisine. The story begins with a series of murals and a pair of facades, one representing the Mission period and the other from the 1920s. Looking through portals within the facades reveals magical, "living" dioramas which demonstrate the labor-intensive process once used to make tortillas.

From there, we move into a modern, state-of-the-art Mission Foods production facility. Corn tortillas are being produced on one side, flour tortillas on the other. Sections of the machines have been cut away, so we can get an up close look at the fascinating mechanisms used to create these tasty treats. Best of all, if you time your visit right, you'll get to sample a warm tortilla hot off the line!

The cannery building across the way is now home to a sourdough French bread bakery, operated by the Boudin family.

Just inside is a gathering area where our tour begins. Take a moment to appreciate the photographs on the wall. They represent the history and heritage of the Boudins, a real family who have been producing their famous sourdough bread in California since 1849. Their facility in San Francisco is the oldest operating sourdough bread bakery in the state.

We're soon joined on screen by the hosts for our bakery tour, Rosie O'Donnell and Colin Mochrie. Through humor and history, they tell the story of the Boudins and the process of making their sourdough bread.

Every batch begins with a portion of the "mother dough" mixture originally developed by Isidore Boudin. The Boudins' bread making process, using this starter, has continued uninterrupted for more than 150 years.

The tour continues along a glass-walled corridor, as our guides take us through the "mixing and make-up" area and finally on to the ovens.

In the end, our on-screen guides turn things over to a demonstration baker in the actual facility, who is available to answer our questions, offer a small sample or even craft a special loaf in a familiar shape.

If a quick taste on each of these tours has whetted your appetite, the nearby restaurants of Pacific Wharf can satisfy that deeper craving. Cocina Cucamonga ("cocina" means kitchen; Cucamonga is a reference to Mission Foods' primary facility in Rancho Cucamonga, California) offers a selection of tortilla-based Mexican cuisine. Located at the end of the Boudin Bakery Tour, Pacific Wharf Cafe has fresh-baked loafs of sourdough for sale, along with delicious sandwiches and hearty soups.

History & Diversity on Pacific Wharf

According to Disney legend, the district known as Pacific Wharf was originally constructed in the 1920s and 30s to support California's fishing industry. After the collapse of that industry from overfishing in the 50s, the buildings sat abandoned for decades. The area has since been reborn by a local entrepreneur who has refurbished the site and attracted a variety of new businesses.

Pacific Wharf is comprised of a collection of weathered buildings which once served as facilities for processing, canning and packaging the catch brought in each day by local fishermen. (An interesting side note: The body of water that sits alongside Pacific Wharf only looks like an extension of nearby Paradise Bay. It's actually the reservoir for the Grizzly River Run attraction. On occasions when the attraction is not operating, the water runs downhill, raising the level here at the wharf.)

The "history" of Pacific Wharf can be seen in the outline of old foundations, patched sections of pavement, original tanning vats and water towers, fading paint and ghosted graphics left from operations long gone. In their place are newer signs that point to current businesses, while carrying on the heritage of the area.

In a nod to that heritage, many of the old signs and ads have been left in place, indicating a canning company, sardine packager and more. In the graphic below, "pescadaro" is the Spanish word for fisherman.

In this district, you'll also discover a small exhibit honoring California's fishing history, with nods to the famous Cannery Row in Monterey, once one of the most productive fisheries in the world.

With the new life that's been brought to the district, Pacific Wharf has become a showcase of California's ethnic diversity. Ever since the Gold Rush lured people here in the 1800s, the state's limitless opportunities have attracted African Americans, Mexicans, Chinese, Spanish, French, German, Japanese and other people from around the world.

From German beer at the Karl Strauss Biergarten truck to Mexican tamales from Cocina Cucamonga, the culinary choices in this area are rich and diverse.

Lucky Fortune Cookery offers Asian specialties. At one time (back before this operation and Cocina Cucamonga swapped locations), you could even watch through the window as a fortune cookie machine processed and folded the popular treats. While fortune cookies are typically associated with Chinese restaurants, they're actually an American invention first cooked up in California (although historians differ on whether they originated in San Francisco or Los Angeles).

The fortune cookie machine may be no more, but visitors to Pacific Wharf can still see food products being made. Check back tomorrow as we tour two of the area's factories.