Main Street, U.S.A.
Main Street - actually, the entire parade route - is taken over twice a day with the Party Gras parade, touted in television advertisements as being “Disneyland Big�?. Six giant inflatable floats depict various Disney characters – Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, Pluto, and Roger Rabbit. Yes, Roger Rabbit – if his top billing and merchandising are any indication, he's the new Mickey Mouse. Roger Rabbit is everywhere!

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The company is fond of using inflatables in promotions and entertainment these days. These floats are so tall – 45 feet - they get too close to the Disneyland Skyway, which has to be stopped during the parade. Part of the music for the parade includes Buster Poindexter’s “Hot, Hot, Hot�?. There are calypso, reggae, and salsa influences. It is all very colorful, energetic, and…"festive."

Prominently featured is Ariel, as “The Little Mermaid�? has proven to be a huge hit at the box office, hailing the return of good times for Disney feature animation. Hey, with Michael Eisner and Frank Wells in charge of the Walt Disney Company, Jeffrey Katzenberg overseeing the Studio, and Dick Nunis overseeing the theme parks, what could go wrong? The Disney-MGM Studios recently opened in Walt Disney World, EuroDisneyland is being built in Paris, and things are looking up. In fact, this is the start of the Disney Decade… but more on that later.

Let's get back to the Party Gras parade.

The parade is actually a street show that stops along the parade route to perform. As the name implies, it is very loosely based on Mardi Gras celebrations. People are taken out of the audience to be in conga lines. Wow! How different is that? Guests are actually taken out into the show! For about half of the year, the show culminates in a confetti shower, but then during the second half of the year, money is saved on cleanup by cutting out the confetti and only using streamers.

Some collecting-minded guests are happy to get their hands on beads and Party Gras coins.

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Entertaining guests on the parade route before Party Gras are men dressed in very loud costumes with funny hats that look like armadillos. They are the Extremely Secret Royal Eternal Fraternal Order of the Armadillos. One of them looks suspiciously like Buford, previously known to hang around Splash Mountain entertaining the guests waiting in the long queue.

The first building on the east side of Town Square is the Bank of America, open daily (yes, weekends too), 9am to 4pm. Next door, at the Main Street Opera House, is "The Walt Disney Story Featuring Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln". After browsing Walt's offices and memorabilia in the lobby and seeing a brief history of the Lincoln show, guests watch a multimedia presentation about President Lincoln, complete with a speech delivered by an audio-animatronic version of the President.

In the exit area of the Opera House is the place where some of the Main Entrance prizes can be redeemed.

Near the parade step-off point is the Town Square Café, a place to sit down and enjoy table-service breakfast or lunch on busier days. Next to that, on the corner is the new Disney Showcase shop. Until recently, it was a place to preview offerings from Disney. For example, the detailed Splash Mountain model had been on display there. Now, it features merchandise from the latest Disney films.

Across the street, the Emporium is being expanded, taking advantage of the space freed up with the recent move the rental lockers and Lost & Found to a spot on the east side of Main Street, halfway down the street. It sure is convenient having Lost & Found there, and having the cast members there at all times in case there is a problem with a locker.

However, I'm getting ahead of the group. The "cigar store Indian" on the street marks the site of the Tobacconist. Sure, you can buy cigarettes in various stores around the park, but this is THE place to go for all of your tobacco smoking needs. Much to the dismay of smokers and hard-line traditionalists, the store is being closed and will later reopen as "Patented Pastimes", featuring some of the best in collectible toys.

Ah, but the smokers need not worry. Like I said, they can buy cigarettes (hidden behind the counter) and various shops on the park. Smoking is prohibited in attractions and waiting areas, but is otherwise okay. Themed ash trays adorn attraction entrances to emphasize this restriction.

Further up Main Street on the east side is the Camera Center. There's no line for the place and the cast member there, in addition to selling cameras and film, can usually explain and fix your camera. You can buy film and batteries, too. There's also Fototoons, where you can get a professional picture with the entire family in a cartoon setting. This is your only chance to get a professional picture in the park, as there are no cast members spread about offering to take your picture in front of the Sleeping Beauty Castle or anywhere else, and none of the attractions have systems that take purchasable pics.

Down at the end of the east side of Main Street is Carefree Corner, where we can get some information and sign ours name in the Disneyland Guest Book.

On the west side of Main Street, the Penny Arcade has nothing but penny machines and some modern-day arcade video games. The Sunkist Citrus House, just south of the Penny Arcade, has been replaced by the new Blue Ribbon Bakery, and the Carnation Ice Cream Parlor and Restaurant is just south of that, taking up the corner of the building and the patio area.