 How
many of you have ever gone to Disneyland and saw the notorious penny
press machines at work at thought to yourself, "Hey that's cool.
I think I will get one". Then after you received the flattened
penny, with the Disney character pressed into it, you wonder to yourself,
"Now what am I going to do with this." Like most penny press
coins, they are long forgotten. Their fate is either the garbage can,
or like other loose change, the ground beneath a ride.
Well on my last Disneyland trip on August 3rd, I have discovered
that Disneyland has answered the prayers of all the penny press
fans. While browsing the Pieces of Eight store, a little blue folded
book/wallet near the register caught my eye. As I reached for it
I thought to myself that it was another autograph book for kids
to capture the signatures of their favorite character.  When
I picked it up and opened it up from the back I noticed there were
little thin slots on each side as you unfolded the wallet. Finally
I flipped it over to read "Penny Press Collection". I
had never seen this item before. Looking that the wallet was only
five dollars, I went ahead and purchased it. Now I have never been
a big fan of the penny press souvenir. So as I left the store I
thought to myself - now what. Then I remembered that there are two
penny press machines inside the Pieces of Eight store. So I made
my way to the back of the store as I dug into my pockets for the
necessary fifty-one cents needed for a penny press. Since Pirates
of the Caribbean is my favorite ride I decided to try that as my
first penny press. As I inserted the still warm penny into the collector's
wallet I thought to myself, "Hey this is actually kind of cool".
Well needless to say this started my journey through Disneyland
for penny press machines. A journey I had never even thought of
embarking on before.
 The
penny press collector's wallet is a great souvenir for anybody.
For children, it can be a cheap reminder of their trip to the happiest
place on earth. For the more mature audience it will take you on
a hunt through the Disneyland park, often into stores that you have
never been into. It can be a great way to see the park and get away
from the lines and crowds.
 I
have tried to put together a list of all the stores in the park
that have penny press machines located in them. As much as I tried
to find all the penny press machines, the appeal of the rides and
attractions sidetracked me and I failed. Here are the stores or
arcades that I know of that have the penny press machines:
- Pieces of Eight - New Orleans Square
- Penny Arcade - Main Street USA
- Bonanza Outfitters - Frontierland
- Pioneer Mercantile - Frontierland
- Teddi Barra's Swingin' Arcade - Critter Country
- It's A Small World Toy Shop - Fantasyland
- Starcade - Tomorrowland
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