Disneyland
  When people from different countries think about the United States of America, they think about the grand New York and the rich California. Disneyland is an amusement park that is a huge of tourism in California. People from all over the world come to seek the thrill of an amusement park. Disneyland was a huge part of my childhood. In the two contradicting articles, “12 Reasons Why Disneyland is the Happiest Place on Earth” and “Why Disneyland isn’t the Happiest Place on Earth”, they talk about the traces both material and non-material and why those traces are good and bad. So is Disneyland a rip off? Or is it a great place to live some of your childhood?
      Disneyland is located around some of the richest and most fun-filled parts of California. There is so much to do in Los Angeles, Burbank and Anaheim thus making Disneyland’s location a prime spot to stop in for a day or so and have fun. In the blog “12 Reasons Why Disneyland is the Happiest Place on Earth”, it informs us on a few reasons why Disneyland is flawless and essential to childhood memories. Some of the reasons include, because you get to forget about life for a while, you can feel like a kid again, the rides, the nostalgia, etc. Most of these are considered non-material traces of Disneyland. Non-material traces are traces that link you to a place that can change, such as your emotion toward a place or certain annual events. The nostalgia of Disneyland and the ways the park makes you forget about life for a while and be a kid again are non-material traces. The rides, the parade, the buildings in the theme park are all material traces. Material traces are traces that link you to a place that cannot change, such as the landscape of Disneyland. In this blog, it also explains just how free people who go there feel. It is a chance for grown-ups to be kids again or to watch their kids enjoy the rides as much as they did.
      Overall, this blog sums up 12 of the reasons you should experience Disneyland at least a couple times, some when you are a kid and some when you have kids of your own. The women who wrote this goes to Disneyland a lot, so this information is very opinionated which may affect a person’s experience that is not be the same as hers. At the end of this blog, it does say one negative thing about Disneyland. The prices for just about anything at Disneyland are outrageous. This leads us into the discussion about if Disneyland is a rip off.
      In the article “Why Disneyland Isn’t the Happiest Place on Earth”, it explains a few reasons why Disneyland is not so great. But the main reason is one word, prices. A slice of pizza is 15 dollars. It is about 100 dollars just to get into the park alone. Most merchandise is no less than 60$. The prices are outrageous! Not only are the prices bad but the lines for rides are crazy also, this article explains the three to five hour long waits for a 30 second ride. It almost makes the experience not worth it. You are paying hundreds of dollars to stand in lines. This article may be a little biased because it was published by the LA-times which is near Disneyland itself. It makes a great amount of money but may be the biggest competitor of other places in the Anaheim and Los Angeles area.
      So why are people paying these outrageous prices to wait in line? Maybe it’s what links them back to this place, the non-material traces of the events that go on annually at Disneyland or maybe the way it brings them back to a special place in their life. Maybe, just maybe the price is worth paying to feel the way people do when they think about and go to Disneyland. It could also be the material traces such as the sweatshirts you bring back and wear to school to show off to your friends you went to the happiest place on earth.
      In the article “Disneyland and Walt Disney World: Traditional Values in Futuristic Form” by Margret King, it explains that Disneyland is very important to American life. King has researched Disneyland is throws in facts about it being the biggest attraction in the United States since opening in 1955. Since she is throwing it facts, that can change someone’s opinion about Disneyland because she puts in the hard truth. It is an essential part of a person’s childhood and adulthood to experience the magic of Disneyland. Also, since these two historic, wonderful and magical places have been so popular, they have been given the short end of the stick a lot of the time. Not everyone is satisfied with the Disney franchise because it is expensive, but as King explains, the experience, the nostalgia when you go back, the wonderful merchandise that you can get to always remember you were there is worth it all.
      You were there when the magic was happening, you were a part of the Disney evolution. Disneyland is a material trace in itself, it is a part of one of the grandest places in this country, California. You helped make Disneyland was it was and still is today. You are a part of those material and non-material traces. That is what makes Disneyland worthwhile. Yes, the prices are outrageous and I have only gone twice in my life. But I know all of this personally from those two, short, magical trips.
      It is ultimately up to you, it is your money and your experiences that you need to take into consideration when deciding if Disneyland is worth the time and money. This blog is to show you the good and the bad of Disneyland and why and how geography and traces play a role in deciding whether or not Disneyland is the happiest place on earth or just another theme park in America.
  Photo by Allen J. Schaben | LA-Times 2015
“It’s a Small World Ride”
Photo by Steph | Beauty Lust 2015
“Disneyfied”
  -Blog by Karly Greno
               Bibliography
Blumenthal, Rayne. "Why Disneyland Isn't the Happiest Place on Earth." - The State Press. October 05, 2015. Accessed May 01, 2016. http://www.statepress.com/article/2015/10/disneyland-happiest-place-on-earth-not-expensive-time.
King, Mararget J. "Disneyland and Walt Disney World: Traditional Values in Futuristic Form." Online Library Wiley. December 02, 2001. Accessed May 01, 2016. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.0022-3840.1981.00116.x/epdf.
 Steph. "12 Reasons Why Disneyland Is the Happiest Place On Earth - Beauty Lust NZ." Beauty Lust NZ. July 15, 2015. Accessed May 01, 2016. http://www.beautylust.co.nz/12-reasons-why-disneyland-is-the-happiest-place-on-earth.
 t":443k���N`�
