had8ley
Engineer
Didn't really know where to post this so maybe a mod will move it.
My 13 year old grand-daughter and I agreed to drive down to New Orleans to see the Disney Train "A Christmas Carol." As soon as we got off the Interstate we were driving down Carrollton Avenue and spotted a motorman closing all the windows on his street car at the last stop. We didn't make two blocks when it looked like Katrina had come back for a second lick. The Disney train was parked next to the Mississippi River levee next to New Orleans Public Belt RR tracks and opposite the beautiful Audubon Park and zoo. I looked in the back of the Jeep and found an old rain slicker I used to wear at work and an umbrella for the muchkin. We raced across a well trimmed soccer field down the levee to the train. It was raining so hard that people were abandoning strollers and baby carriages and picking their children up and running for cover.
What we saw was a large canopy tent with Amtrak Engine #71 coupled up to the five car train nose first. There was an auxiliary generator on the ground linked to the engine. There was so much electrical equipment inside the train that the generator probably couldn't produce enough energy to keep the train running. We looked back on the levee only to see a huge tent that was showing scenes from "A Christmas Carol" collapse. A Disney employee came down to where we were in line and said the theater was closed and the train would close as soon as we went through.
The cars were coated with HP Sci-Tex and whoever did it was a perfectionist. The inside of the train was so interesting I could have stayed all day. They had original writings of Charles Dickens on one hand but the modernistic way the movie was created was fabulous. Each actor wore what looked like a Batman outfit with cameras attached to their outfits.Each actor had over 100 (yes one hundred) cameras trained on them while filming. There were what looked like felt tip marks all over their faces. We were told that computers would superimpose Scrooge and all the other characters on the faces of the actors. It was quite impressive and very professionally done. In the last car, a converted baggage car there are stalls where you can actually pick a Dickens character and take a picture of yourself. The computer mixes your face with the character you have chosen~ you should have heard some of the childrens' re-actions! The last car was a heavyweight business car for the crew that traveled with the train. They did not cover the entire car and I could see maroon paint between cars. It even had an observation platform and triple axle trucks.
I HIGHLY recommend this rolling ad for "A Christmas Carol" if it hasn't been to your city yet. Enjoy it for all it is worth; it is indeed a once in a life time experience !
My 13 year old grand-daughter and I agreed to drive down to New Orleans to see the Disney Train "A Christmas Carol." As soon as we got off the Interstate we were driving down Carrollton Avenue and spotted a motorman closing all the windows on his street car at the last stop. We didn't make two blocks when it looked like Katrina had come back for a second lick. The Disney train was parked next to the Mississippi River levee next to New Orleans Public Belt RR tracks and opposite the beautiful Audubon Park and zoo. I looked in the back of the Jeep and found an old rain slicker I used to wear at work and an umbrella for the muchkin. We raced across a well trimmed soccer field down the levee to the train. It was raining so hard that people were abandoning strollers and baby carriages and picking their children up and running for cover.
What we saw was a large canopy tent with Amtrak Engine #71 coupled up to the five car train nose first. There was an auxiliary generator on the ground linked to the engine. There was so much electrical equipment inside the train that the generator probably couldn't produce enough energy to keep the train running. We looked back on the levee only to see a huge tent that was showing scenes from "A Christmas Carol" collapse. A Disney employee came down to where we were in line and said the theater was closed and the train would close as soon as we went through.
The cars were coated with HP Sci-Tex and whoever did it was a perfectionist. The inside of the train was so interesting I could have stayed all day. They had original writings of Charles Dickens on one hand but the modernistic way the movie was created was fabulous. Each actor wore what looked like a Batman outfit with cameras attached to their outfits.Each actor had over 100 (yes one hundred) cameras trained on them while filming. There were what looked like felt tip marks all over their faces. We were told that computers would superimpose Scrooge and all the other characters on the faces of the actors. It was quite impressive and very professionally done. In the last car, a converted baggage car there are stalls where you can actually pick a Dickens character and take a picture of yourself. The computer mixes your face with the character you have chosen~ you should have heard some of the childrens' re-actions! The last car was a heavyweight business car for the crew that traveled with the train. They did not cover the entire car and I could see maroon paint between cars. It even had an observation platform and triple axle trucks.
I HIGHLY recommend this rolling ad for "A Christmas Carol" if it hasn't been to your city yet. Enjoy it for all it is worth; it is indeed a once in a life time experience !
