The Electrical Parade (Dream Lights) in Tokyo Disneyland

My family loves Disneyland a lot. We've been to 3 Disneyland parks already: Hongkong Disneyland, Disneyland Paris and last December 2013, in Tokyo Disneyland. In all those occasions, we've seen the parades but the one in Tokyo Disneyland was more special and spectacular for us because it was Christmas season.  The parade was sparkly, colorful, electrifying and bright!

The parade in Tokyo Disneyland we have seen was called Electrical Parade: Dream Lights. It started around 7:30 p.m. (if my memory serves me right!). It's a nighttime event given the theme of the parade - full of colorful light display which were very nice to be see during night time, against the dark background of the whole Disney park. We found a very comfortably place to watch the parade half an hour before the it started. There were park attendants all over to inform the people to remain in their place and to instill order during the whole show. The park lights around the whole of Disney where switched off except for the restaurants and shops and the castle. Then suddenly, the music began playing and we saw the float coming out from one side of the park. One by one, the beautiful floats came out, decked with lights and some dancers and famous Disney characters were also on the floats. The shapes of objects were highlighted because of the colorful lights. There were dancers on the street with colorful and brightly lit costumes.

If you will count the lights all over the parade and the floats and even on the dancers, it must be a million!

These are some photos I captured from the parade. It was really beautiful. It's like a rain of lights, and sparkles. We all had a wonderful time in Tokyo Disneyland. We hope to be back this Christmas!

More floats...

and more!!!

and the last one...

Verruckt - The Highest Water Slide In The World

Verruckt what? I thought so too. Verruckt is German for insanity and when you see this Verruckt Water Slide in Schlitterbahn Water Park in Kansas City,  you're really insane to try it.

What makes this water slide an "insane" ride? For one, it's very high. It's higher than the Niagara Falls and it's so steep. It is a whooping 168 foot 7 inch and 607 feet long structure! You get to strap yourself along with 2-3 more people in a raft that will slide down on this very steep water slide. I'm not a physicist but just by looking at the steep angle of the slide, makes me wonder how the raft, along with its riders will remain "in" the slide and not go airborne. Upon further investigation and research, I found a video from The Travel Channel where "half the real Verruckt" was made for testing in Texas by Jeff Henry, the Wizard of Water as he is famously known. He's also the inventor of the insane water slide and son/co-owner of the Schlitterbahn Water Park. Watch it and you be the judge.




 



If you're having trouble watching the video, here is the link to the video: http://www.travelchannel.com/video/worlds-tallest-waterslide

I do hope they keep an overhead net all throughout the slide, just for extra precaution.


Here are some pictures of the Verruckt Water Slide. All photos, except for the first one are from travelchannel.com.

(the link: http://www.travelchannel.com/tv-shows/xtreme-waterparks/photos/making-of-verruckt-waterslide-pictures)

Photo from theverruckt.com

Model of Verruckt being constructed in Texas

It's still not open. It was slated to open last May and further moved to June 29. I haven't heard about it's actual opening date again after its postponement. If you have news about and if you're one of the insane, er I meant "brave" ones to have tried it, please share your experience. I'm all ears.

Tennis Events In Dubai To Watch

When you hear Dubai, you think of the magnificent infrastructures lining up the cosmopolitan are of Sheik Zayed Road, the huge and lavish malls burgeoning in the city, the well-manicured street plants adorning the pavements and islands, the man-made residential village called The Palm and the vast sandy desert that changes in color when you travel to the other Emirates. Surely, Dubai is very famous for those things but did you know that aside from those mega-infrastructure this place boasts of, it also hosts the biggest and well-known sporting events in the tennis world. 

One of the famous and well-celebrated tennis competitions is being held in Dubai annually. The Dubai Tennis Championships or now known as the Dubai Duty Free Men's and Women's Open attract a huge number of spectators from all over the world to watch their favorite tennis legends.

This tennis event is an open court competition held at the Dubai Tennis Stadium next to the Aviation Club. Tennis enthusiasts all over the world come to Dubai to enjoy the sporting event. Since this event falls during the winter season, watching it al fresco surely adds to the convivial spirit of the sports fans.

The world's famous tennis players like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Serena and Venus Williams, Martina Hingis, Maria Sharapova, Andre Agassi, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Justin Hardenne and to name a few,  have all graced the sporting event and more powerhouse will join this tennis open next year.

Sports enthusiasts who wish to visit Dubai may plan their trip ahead since the Dubai Duty Free Open happens during the Dubai Shopping Festival that sees millions of travelers around the world. It falls during end of February to first week of March. Flights and hotel accommodations may be hard to obtain if you plan last minute. Also, do not worry about not bringing your tennis racket when you have the urge to let that sporty persona come to light. There are plenty of sporting goods in Dubai where you can find tennis rackets for perfect holidays situation.

Sporty travelers will surely find this tennis event experience a check on their bucket list!