The Key To the Kingdom

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Book: Read The Key To the Kingdom for Free Online
Authors: Jeff Dixon
the rest of the group.
    Hawk said, “Kiran, I’ve heard that Walt kept an apartment above the Fire Station on Main Street in Disneyland.”
    “You are correct,” she responded.
    “Did he have anything like that built into the plans for the Magic Kingdom?”
    “He certainly did.” She smiled. Pointing toward Cinderella Castle, she guided the group to a window that was indistinguishable from the others incorporated into the design of the castle. “Look at those three long windows right up there,” she instructed, allowing time for the entire group to get focused on the correct windows. “Behind those arched windows is an apartment that was originally designed for Walt and his family to use anytime they were here in the Magic Kingdom. The plans were changed after Walt’s death. The apartment was something that Roy didn’t seem interested in pursuing. Apparently even as the castle was designed it became a bit of a sacred subject and no other plans were ever put into motion to use that space effectively.”
    “I don’t understand. Why was it a sacred subject?” Hawk wondered.
    “Maybe sacred subject isn’t the best way to describe it.” She paused. “The designers and builders wanted to be sensitive to building what Walt wanted—after all, this was his big dream. Since he had planned to build an apartment, no one wanted to be the person to knock that out of the plan for the castle. As a result, they did nothing. They just built the space without ever finishing it. Depending on what year you might have been inside the castle, you could have seen it used as a big storage area, a large empty space, a housing area of material used in remodeling, or even a telephone switchboard, but it was never more than just an unfinished room. It wasn’t until the Year ofMillion Dreams celebration that it was finally finished and guests were allowed to stay there as a part of the event.”
    “Do we get to look at it now since it is finished?” Hawk asked.
    “No, that is not a part of our tour . . . sorry,” she replied. “But I will let you in on a secret. I have been in it and it is breathtaking!”
    “So there is no chance you can sneak us in as an added bonus to the tour?” Hawk kidded.
    “Afraid not.” She quickly changed the subject with a trivia question. “Does anyone know Cinderella’s last name?”
    The group chatted among themselves and offered no answers. Hawk’s attention was still on the window, trying to imagine what kind of view you would have of the Magic Kingdom, and what the park would look like from that vantage point. Almost as an afterthought he quietly answered the trivia question.
    “Tremaine,” he said, not intending for anyone in particular to hear him.
    “Correct again!” Kiran excitedly replied. This launched her into a follow-up question. “Now here is your bonus question. The restaurant in Cinderella Castle was originally called King Stefan’s Banquet Hall. What is one of the reasons it was changed to Cinderella’s Royal Table?”
    Hawk turned back from gazing at the castle toward Kiran and the group. He waited for someone else to answer. No one did and most of the group was staring at him waiting to hear what he had to say. Kiran was looking at him as well and he assumed that the question had been intended for him alone. He inclined his head.
    “King Stefan was actually Sleeping Beauty’s father. Cinderella’s father was not a part of her story since she lived with her stepmother and stepsisters. So I suppose it was the wrong king’s name in the wrong castle,” he surmised.
    Kiran’s face broke into a broad smile as she proclaimed to the group, “This gentleman knows his trivia.”
    There was a smattering of applause from the band of tour takers. One elderly gentleman patted him on the shoulder in a gesture of congratulations. The tour progressed and Hawk found himself going on his own tour of thoughts that were trampling through his brain. Hawk had now personally bought

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