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In Disneyland last month, the shops in Adventureland
were stocked up with the Indiana Jones fedoras—several types were
available from the more elegant dark brown velvety felt textured
ones to the more rugged variations, in all sizes. I tried on a
few but apparently they didn’t suit me quite like a pirate’s
tricorn would. Admittedly, the bullwhips they had on sale
quickly caught my eye and looked quite inviting—if only they came
with lessons on how to crack it properly, I’d be in business.
The In-dominatrix Jones School for Disciplining Wayward Boys, but I
digress.
It’s been 19 years since the
exploits of the beloved archaeologist, world traveler and adventurer
Indiana Jones hit the silver screen (Indiana Jones and the Last
Crusade with the late River Phoenix and Sean Connery). Today
celebrates the worldwide release of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of
the Crystal Skull.
All along, I thought The Indiana
Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye attraction I saw at Disney
in April was a fairly new ride—apparently it’s been around for
13 years. Bad fangirl, didn’t do her research. Disney
does much to keep you amused during the wait to ride a wild
careening jeep through the sights and sounds of the temple.
There’s much to see and the old school short black and white
picture show narrated by Sallah (John Rhys-Davies, aka Gimli of The
Lord of the Rings) tells the would-be visitors what to expect.
The Temple of the Forbidden Eye
is a shrine built for the Goddess Mara who is capable of granting
her humble worshippers either earthly riches, eternal youth or the
ability to see the future. But whatever you do, do not look her in
the eye. I actually made a wish but as these things go, someone on
my jeep upset the goddess. (There goes my private island in the
Caribbean.)
Temple of the Forbidden Eye
supposedly showcases 1,995 skulls to mark the year it opened (even
a pirate like me didn’t have all day to count them, so I’ll be
taking their word for it) and you get your share of rats,
spiders and, of course, the requisite snakes, including one very big
one. And you can just about hear the classic line, “Snakes? I hate
snakes.”
And what would an Indy ride be
without a boulder rolling straight at you in a cave or a couple of
animatronic Indies hollering out to you? And not only do you get an
angry goddess; you get an angry tribe coming at you with blow darts.
Slam bang fun, albeit over too soon.
Hopefully, Indiana Jones and the
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull delivers its share of excitement for
fans new and old. In the meantime, I hope I won’t have to
wait 19 years for a Pirates of the Caribbean sequel.
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