I hesitate to write this because it’s called the Magic Kingdom for a reason.  Sleeping Beauty’s castle is real, Mickey Mouse will join you for breakfast, Chip and Dale will compete for your affection, and broomsticks dance.

It is also a walk into an optical illusion and forced perception.

Main Street is alive with music, dance, and characters when you arrive. There is a  view of the castle at the end; and it’s a long walk down Main Street to get there, or is it?   A stop and turn-around just before the castle brings the realization that the distance isn’t quite what it seemed to be.  It is an architectural genius done by making the buildings shorter on one size.   The purpose? To linger on the way in, taking in all the sights, sounds, and smells. In the evening, the walk doesn’t feel quite so far after spending 12 or 15 hours in the park.

The height of the buildings is an illusion too.  They are built using the same philosophy as the street view, and this time the illusion is skyward.  Larger bricks are used at eye level and smaller bricks are on top giving a heightened appearance.

I thought it was interesting, but it’s still magical, right?

It is real in the face of a four-year old girl who meets Cinderella, an autistic boy who will ONLY talk to Crush the turtle, or to the mom who gets to dance with Pinnochio.  It is real to walk through lands you thought were only in the theater.  That’s the magic.

So, yes, it’s magic, but what if I told your there really are dead people in the Haunted Mansion.  Would you believe me?

That’s for another day.

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Illusion