HONG KONG, Sept 12 (AP) -- When Derrick Johnson beat thousands of people and became one of the first two visitors to enter Hong Kong's brand new Disneyland, he was so elated that he dropped to his knees, raised his arms and bowed toward the Sleeping Beauty Castle.

Johnson, a 46-year-old fund-raiser from Placentia, California, the United States, sported a golden Mickey Mouse cap and a khaki vest covered with Disney pins.

He was among a group of hard-core fanatics who flew in for the new park's grand opening Monday.

"I love Disney," he said. "It's just something I do."

Among about 30 people who camped outside the park's entrance in a bid to be first inside was race track worker Steven W. Smith of Azusa, California.

"This is the fifth (Disney) opening I've been to," said Smith, 48. He boasted that he once waited 25 hours at the head of a line to get into one of the parks.

Robert Sher of New York City, and Thomas Taffinder of Orlando, Florida, came with sophisticated audiovisual gear to record the experience and a mental map of the park, memorized from the Internet.

"We're both very dedicated. We booked our Disney hotel rooms in March and we've waited for this for a very long time," said Sher, who said he used to work at a Disney store and visits the California park "every couple of weeks."

Taffinder said he is a security worker for the Disney park in Florida. Both men belong to a Disney fan club.

Also near the front of the line were Taiwanese fans Faye Tsai and a friend, who said they'd never been to a Disney park. In fact, the 24-year-old Tsai said they'd never before set foot outside of Taiwan.

"I like Disney cartoons and I'm really excited," Tsai said. "I know this park is small, but I've never been to any of the parks, so it doesn't matter."

What keeps these grown-ups hooked on Disney's cartoonish world?

"They keep on reinventing different things, unlike Universal or Six Flags," said Sher, referring to other theme parks. "The idea of Disney doing another foreign country, with the Chinese Communist government -- going for business like that is just amazing."

Dougie Robertson, a 35-year-old businessman from Edinburgh, Scotland, said his favorite thing about Disney is the cheerful park workers or "cast members" -- Disney lingo for all park employees, known for their enthusiasm for their jobs.

"The cast members make people smile. It takes people back to their childhood. Smiling is a big thing," he said. "I believe in the magic."

As for anti-Disney activists outside the park _ whose rallying cries against the company's alleged labor abuses briefly interrupted "the magic" -- Johnson had a few choice words: "Loosen up, people."