Sparkle Amid the Rubble: Tokyo Disneyland to Reopen Friday

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Getty Images / Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP

Disney characters Mickey and Minnie Mouse, accompanied by Tokyo Disney Resort ambassador Tomoko Baba on January 1, 2011

Tokyo’s Disneyland park announced plans to reopen this Friday, only a month after a deadly tsunami destroyed the country.

The theme park, located in the town of Urayasu, has been closed since the 9.0-magnitude earthquake hit March 11, leaving guests stranded at Disneyland and the adjacent Tokyo DisneySea park.

(More on TIME.com: A Disney theme park has been planned in Shanghai)

Starting Friday, Disneyland plans to open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. everyday. During regular operating times the park stays open until 10 p.m, but in light of local energy shortages abbreviated hours were scheduled. DisneySea will remain closed until April 28.

Last week, the Washington Post reported that the town was still in ruins and described “severely warped streets and fences, tilted houses and police booths.” Disneyland’s parking lot had “rippled and buckled.”

But despite the damage, some understand that a little bit of fairy dust may be just what Tokyo needs.

(More on TIME.com: See the world according to Mickey)