While wandering the World this past week, My family and I were disappointed to see the Jungle Cruise down for rehab. In fact, it's not just the Cruise, but the entire lower level that includes Shrunken Ned's Junior Jungle Boats as well. I spoke to a Cast Member who said it would be down for another 10-15 days or so, as Disney was in the process of removing and replacing the entire dock (actually a pair-a-docks) in the queue, as well as for Shrunken Ned's. The entire area was walled off, and the following sign was placed in a number of locations:

Cast Members were also stationed at both the ramp by the Swiss Family Treehouse and the stairs by the Jungle Cruise queue to explain to Guests why the attractions were down. 

Of course, me being the intrepid young (or not-so-young) explorer, I had to see what was going on behind the curtains (which honestly isn't all that exciting, but here you go):

As I said, the docs are being replaced, and I also understand that there may be some minor changes to the queue area, as well as freshening up the helms of the Junion Jungle Boats.

Wouldn't it be great, though, to see the old Oasis snack bar open again? 

As rumored on my WDW Radio Show a while back, it looks like we very well might be seeing a walk (roll)-around WALL-E character coming to the Walt Disney World theme parks (Disney's Hollywood Studios sounds like the logical choice to me) very soon.

A /Film reader captured footage of him (it?), in action on the streets of Los Angeles.

Check this out:

VERY cool! It's interesting to see how the character can express emotions without saying a word, or by articulating a mouth or eyes.

I not only want to see him up close, but I think I may want one for myself at home! You can also click here to view the WALL-E trailer

Although Star Wars Weekends doesn't "officially" start until June 6 (yes, I'll be there... and in full Jedi - I mean Jawa - regalia), I have learned that the new Disney-Star Wars figures are already available for sale. It seems that Tatooine Traders is already selling mini versions of Donald Duck as Darth Maul, Goofy as Jar Jar Binks, Mickey as Anakin Skywalker, Minnie as Queen Amidala, and Stitch as Yoda, although the "big figs" are not yet available. 

Something tells me that the Donald Darth Maul is going to be quite popular. You can also start to buy character sketches as custom, personalized watches with these characters on them at Sunset Club Couture... and yes, they are VERY cool. (Be sure and say hi to Jason, the incredibly talented watch artist if you stop by!)

And remember - Size matters not. Judge me by my size, do you? 

Today I had the opportunity to ride for the very first time (of many more to come I assure you) Toy Story Mania at Disney's Hollywood Studios at the Press Event held earlier this morning. And while I'll save my full review for the show, Let me just say that it was spectacular, and even better than I could have anticipated.

I'll have many more photos to share in the coming days and weeks, as there are SO many incredible details in just the queue alone!

But before heading to bed (yes, I know... it's only 11:00 and for me this is like the middle of the day, but it's been a very long couple of days and I have a monster headache, so please give me a pass on this one), I wanted to shasre with you a photo of something that I think you'll likley never see again (or at least not for many years, and only at odd times). Based on the reactions of every person that came off the attraction today (read that as smiling from ear to ear), this is something that I don't expect to see very often:

Can you see it? Do you know what I'm referring to? It's the Stand By wait time. 5 minutes? Trust me... that is a number that I can easily see going into the 100's very very soon. And would that wait be worth it?

You bet!!

And oh, about some of those VERY cool details in the queue? Here's one for you:

Remeber the old balsa wood planes we could buy for a quarter or so when we were kids? OK. So I'm showing my age, but you get my point. Anyway, notice the brand name of this particular plane? Blue Sky. A nice play on words, and reference to the "Blue Sky" part of the process at Imagineering, when early conceptualization takes place. It is the start of the creative process, when ideas are "flown" and attractions and shows begin to take shape. Clearly the process in this case led to not just an amazing attraction, but some fun details and an amazing story. 

Thank you, Imagineering, for the next "E-Ticket" attraction!