The joy of Disneyland is that there’s magic everywhere: be it the overhead music that plays throughout the park or the smells of baked goods, it all takes you on a journey to another place. It’s not just the entertainment, rides, or fanciful food, the cast members play a big part in making sure every guest’s experience is magical.
Sometimes the merriment happens when you least expect it. Say you’re sitting on a bench, enjoying your churro when a custodian wanders by. While he quietly sweeps around you, what seems like light janitorial work is actually beautiful artwork in the making.
On any given day, Disneyland custodians use their water and brooms to create Disney characters on the walkways and streets of the parks. What starts out as Mickey’s face changes with the addition of eyelashes, and with a few strokes of the broom a polka-dotted bow is created, and suddenly Minnie Mouse’s sweet face is formed right before guests’ eyes. Onwards to the next area, a flick of the broom and a half moon instantly turns into the Cheshire Cat’s smile.
Once the custodians start, crowds catch on and follow them from spot to spot, watching closely as they magically create favorite Disney characters out of water. Just as they’re finished, these remarkable masterpieces immediately start evaporating, disappearing almost as quickly as they appeared.
Cast members practice their preferred characters and are skilled enough to create them quickly, taking just seconds to minutes. One day I sat and watched as a cast member took out his broom and created a full size Baymax on the ground, then he disappeared into the crowd as if nothing had happened. True Disney magic at work.
There’s no set time or place when these wondrous water paintings will appear, you just have to have a little faith, trust, and pixie dust on your side to catch them in the act.
Check out more Disneyland water painting photos in the gallery.
Have you spotted water painters at Disneyland? Let us know in the comments!
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IMAGES: Jenn Fujikawa
