*Disclaimer* I added reviews and comments on my experiences.
I'M GOING TO DISNEYLAND!!
My trip began at 3:30am to make it to the airport for my 6am flight to the Sunshine State. I had my autograph book, my diy Minnie ears, so I was set. My flight arrived at 8:45am at John Wayne Airport, and I was on my way to transportation. I rode a shuttle van to my hotel (Super Shuttle, has great service); there was a whole family also on the shuttle, lol. I was jealous as they were staying at the Grand Californian, but I was ready to drop off my bag and begin my long day at Downtown Disney. Joe and his kids were driving up from Utah, so they were going to meet me there.
It was about a 10 minute walk to get to Downtown Disney from the Howard-Johnson. Security was probably longer, but I had a lot of time to spare, so I wasn't rushed. I had a wish list of things I wanted to purchase at the World of Disney store. *Downtown Disney is relatively small compared to Disney Springs (Walt Disney World), but still quaint.* I probably went into the stores about 2-3 times. I walked all over and even to the Disneyland Hotel. I also checked out the Grand Californian and the Paradise Pier hotel. The Grand Californian is beautiful (well the lobby anyways). My phone died, so I camped out at both hotels to bring my phone back to life.
Me being me, can only read this in the monorail announcer's voice.
"When will my reflection show, who I am inside?"
Downtown Disney had some cool Snapchat filters for the 60th
^Fact The Disneyland Hotel opened in 1955 (the same year as Disneyland Park), but was not owned by the Disney Company till the late 1980s.
Joe's family arrived in the late afternoon, and we headed straight to the pool. *The Howard-Johnson has a water playground for all ages. I didn't care much for it as I am older and a bit too big for the playground. But they do provide a pool at a different location near the playground.*
That evening, we ate dinner at Goofy's Kitchen which is located at the Disneyland Hotel. It's a buffet/character dining. We met quite a few of Goofy's friends (such as Chip, Pluto, etc.) and ate a lot of food. *Definitely fun for the kids. I did enjoy, but not as much because I was so tired.* After dinner we stopped at the Lego store and looked for pins. Joe is an avid collector, but usually doesn't do the trading. I don't collect, I just find pins that I like (such as ride or character) and hoard them. We made it back in time to watch the Disneyland 60th Forever Firework show from our hotel balcony. We couldn't hear the music and there was a tree blocking the view, but other then that it was fun. I was too tired to notice much though. Oh, our balcony faced the Matterhorn.
DISNEY CALIFORNIA ADVENTURES
These signs are posted all over the place in California
You may not be able to tell from our faces how excited we were, but we were really excited!!
I don't remember what time the park opened, but we were that right when it opened. Overall, it wasn't super crowded, but I did rub shoulders with a few people.
1.Me with Walt & Mickey statue (as you can tell I Disneybound as Minnie)
2.Hyperion Theater 3.Bear Mountain at Grizzly River Run
The first ride of the day was Midway Mania. *Make sure this is your first ride when you arrive. It fills up fast, and there is no fast pass. We got there right when it opened and got to do it twice.* *While your waiting in line, look for hidden Mickeys. We found this one on the wall*
We began the morning at Paradise Pier. Home to California Screamin' Midway Mania, and Corndog Castle. After Midway Mania, Tiffy, Caleb, and I went to California Screamin'. The line was about 15 minutes long, but I needed that much time to anticipate everything and let the adrenaline rush in. *They do have a single passenger line if you don't mind being split up from your group.* I screamed the whole time! It was exhilarating!
Next stop, Cars Land! I was beyond over excited to enter the world of one of Pixar's films. It literally felt like I was stepping into the movie of Cars. It was not disappointing.
The first ride we enjoyed was Radiator Springs Racers *This does have a fast pass, so make sure it is the first one you get. Believe me, these fast passes will be gone quickly* We enjoyed watching a little bird taking a bath in the water fountain.
Radiator Springs Racers is much like Test Track in Disney World. You enjoy lovely scenery of Radiator Springs and also get to race a fellow car. My car sadly did not win, but it was still fun!
1.The majestic waterfall that emulates the one from Cars. 2.Lightning McQueen and Mater congratulating you one your race.
For breakfast, we ate at Flo's Cafe. Again, they got her cafe down to the gas station out in front. *There are many delicious items to choose from their breakfast menu. I wasn't really hungry, so I got the kid's meal waffles. They are also opened for lunch and dinner*
Okay, I don't care that you want to see all the sites in Cars Land, but you have to do Luigi's Rollickin' Roadsters. It literally is the most ADORABLE ride ever! It actually is a new ride; it replaced Luigi's Flying Tires. They had so many issues with that ride, that they needed something new. Again, you have to do it. All you do is sit in a car (one of Luigi's cousins) and all the cars are synchronized to do a two minute dance. *Perfect for all ages. And a MUST DO.* Don't believe me, watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUCKF4VCSJo
1.The Leaning Tower of Tires in front of Luigi's shop. 2.The Rollickin' Roadsters
3.Tiffy & I on the ride.
After visiting Cars Land, we made our way to Grizzly River Run to cool down. I got soaked!! It felt amazing to be wet. We also had fast passes to Soarin' Around the World. I was actually bummed that we weren't flying over California, but this was 20 times better. *They have at least 10-12 places you fly over; you experience sight and scent while flying over the world. And you end in Disneyland.* Disney World also changed Soarin', so I wonder if you end in Disney World....
Through out the day we met many different characters. *Meeting characters is a great time waster. But make sure you know how long you are going to be waiting in line for characters (info on that below) Also, make sure you have an autograph book. Great memorabilia!*
Oh my giggles!! I met Captain America (no, it was not Chris Evans). He was so nice! I asked him how Bucky was doing, #bffgoals. I almost cried! My face expresses exactly how I felt when meeting him. He even gave me hug <3
Also met Spiderman, Olaf, Mickey Mouse, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and Nick Wilde & Judy Hopps.
The Disney Company must've heard that I love Disney so much, that they included my last name at the arcade.
The last ride of the day was Tower of Terror. ^Fact: They are replacing Tower of Terror with a Galaxy of the Guardians ride, that is going to promote the second movie. Many people disagree with the Disney Company to take out the ride. But I got to ride it for my first and last time in DCA. I have a love/hate relationship with this ride. I don't like the feeling of dropping, but I love all the adrenaline! As you can tell by my face, I only scream on this ride.
Joe took Adam back to the hotel to put him to bed. Tiffy, Caleb, and I stayed to watch The World of Color. *You can view it without a fast pass, but the fast pass can get you a better spot to view the show. We viewed the show to the front-left of the Fun Wheel. Make sure you stay in your spot because people will take your spot just to be in front. Cast members show you to your spot 15-20 minutes before the show begins.* ^Fact:10 minutes before the show begins, they provide an interactive memory game that you can play on your phone. You watch the colors on the Fun Wheel make a pattern and you enter those same colors on the game.
I have videos of The World of Color, but I can't rotate them to view. So enjoy the pictures that I took (1. View from where we were standing 2. After the show)! I highly recommend watching it! It really showcases all of Walt's dreams and goals he wanted and did accomplish. And the music is synchronized to water fountains and lights...it's phenomenal! I really want them to come out with a soundtrack for the show, but they haven't. Favorite song from the show is "Forever Young" by Christina Perri. It was a perfect way to end the night!
DISNEYLAND
The Sleeping Beauty Castle in an array of 60th Anniversary decor.
^Fact: The top-front of the castle was actually supposed to be in the back.
On Wednesday, we went to Disneyland! The first ride of the day was Peter Pan's Flight. It is one of Disneyland's most popular rides, so get in line first (you got it, no fast passes). I do like this flight better then Disney World's because it is the original. After Peter Pan's Flight we went to the neighboring ride, Mr Toad's Wild Ride. *All of the Fantasyland rides are very kid friendly. Most of the rides make you immersed in the story.*
We headed over to Tomorrowland to go on the new Hyperspace Mountain (Space Mountain with a Star Wars theme). It was so awesome!! I believe we went on it one other time. *I don't know if it is/was a seasonal thing* We also did Star Tours. It's the same in Disney World, but I always enjoy it because it's Star Wars.
1.Entering Tomorrowland. 2.Passengers exiting/entering Hyperspace Mountain 3.C3-PO greeting you in line on Star Tours 4.New Stormtrooper uniforms (The Force Awakens) at the exit of Star ToursWe ate brunch at the Plaza Inn at Main Street U.S.A. *It's buffet/character style. It was the best character dining interaction I have ever had. We met at least 10-12 different characters. There was a wide variety of food from continental, to kid friendly, to basics.*
Pictured with 1.Tigger 2.Rafiki 3.Dale 4.Winnie the Pooh 5.Cpt. Hook 6.Fairy Godmother
7.Minnie Mouse 8.Chip 9.Suzy 10.Pinocchio
(Outfit theme was Star Wars; my Chewbacca ears were diy. Also the lovely fashion accessory called my knee brace)
We finished the day early by going on Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters and the Matterhorn Bobsleds. I got to ride in the front on the bobsleds; of course I screamed. As we left the park, we got a cool, refreshing pickle. Yummiest snack ever! We chose to go back to the hotel to take afternoon naps because we were going to be in the park till after midnight. Best 3 hours of my life!
We came back to the park early evening to do more rides and meet characters.
Story time: I didn't know you could meet Dr. Facilier/The Shadowman at Disneyland, so we had to take the opportunity. Since he is a villian, he is very sly. He asked us how our day was going and noticed Tiffy's Disney themed charm bracelet. He asked her about each of the charms. He slipped one off without her noticing (if you notice, that is what he is holding above her head in the picture). As we were leaving, Shadowman commented that he thought a charm was missing from her charm bracelet. Don't worry he gave back the charm. Like I said, very sly.
Okay, I'm not a big fan of turkey, but these turkey legs are good! *They cost about $7, but are a perfect for sharing* It is literally the size of my face. Tiffy and I shared one; only issue is that they are sticky! So don't forget to bring baby wipes.
You cannot go to a Disney Park without riding It's A Small World, and you have to sing a long the whole time! You obviously know all the words, might as well sing a long. I of course stayed in the middle of the boat because of Kingdom Keepers. This is the original small world. It's fabulous because it includes Disney characters in the different countries. And there is a purple hippopotamus with luscious lashes.
That evening, we spent it in Adventureland. We went on a cruise in the jungle. Guess what?! I saw the backside of the water! It is the eighth wonder of the world. Ask any Jungle Cruise skipper.
Story time: I was eager to ride POTC at Disneyland because I was told it was better then Disney World's ride. It started off great! I noticed things that weren't included in Disney World's version. It is a longer ride, and passengers pass by the Blue Bayou restaurant. At the end of the ride, you go up a steep hill in your boat. As we got to the top of this hill, everything went black. All the power went out on the ride and in the restaurant. Thank goodness it was a quick two-second power glitch, but we were stuck on the ride for 20 minutes. We got off the hill and just sat in our unstable boats, as we were 30 feet from the exit. I don't know exactly what happened, but I was happy to be on steady ground. We checked the time as we got off and noticed all the restaurants were closed. Pushing a side the feeling of a bottomless pit, we wanted to ride the Haunted Mansion. The Haunted Mansion was affected by the same power glitch (my Kingdom Keepers mind ventured off to blame the Overtakers). So we ended the night by getting McDees for dinner.
BOTH PARKS
Thursday was the last day we were going to the parks. We got a park hopper which offered a Magic Hour (you can get into the park one hour before it opens to the public). Magic Hour started at 7am, so I have a video of us standing in line.
Not many of the rides were working that morning. So we didn't spend a lot of time in Disneyland. We jumped over to DCA to ride a few more. Most of the rides there were not working either. (It must have been an off day or something) But we ate at the *Cozy Cone in Radiator Springs. Instead of it being a place to stay, you can get food there. I got the chili cone. It was sooooo good! And the cone is edible* We also ate a lot churros. Rides that we did do at DCA was Mickey's Fun Wheel, Ariel's Undersea Adventure, Grizzly River Run, and Radiator Springs (we won that race:). We headed back to the hotel for naps again because it was going to be another late night.
Chili cone:P
After the naps, Joe and the kids went swimming. I stayed behind to try to look decent for my last day in Disneyland. I didn't do a themed outfit, but I had to show off my diy floral ears.
Walt Disney's words he spoke at the opening of Disneyland in 1955
The light in the Disney's apartment window above the fire station
The Casting Agency located in Main Street U.S.A.
The infamous Club 33
New Orleans Square
Joe made my dreams come true by taking us to Blue Bayou. Story time: ShayCarl [from the Shaytards] took a trip to Disneyland with his family. They were on POTC (which goes by Blue Bayou) and told a guy in the restaurant to throw him a piece of bread. He almost got kicked out of the park. It influenced me to do the same thing, but I wasn't close enough to the water front-_- The restaurant experience was still great! I got my mint julep! *We did the Paint the Night dinner package which included a full meal, and a reserved spot for Paint the Night parade. Because it is so dark in the restaurant, they had to light up the menus. I got the filet mignon; it was absolutely delicious! I also tried Tiffy's salmon (really good) and Joe's lobster (eh). The service was pretty good, but not much elbow room.*
1.Menu 2.Tiffy & I with our mint juleps 3.Dessert
After dinner, we finally did the Haunted Mansion. The theme and the execution of the Haunted Mansion is amazing!
That evening we got to experience Paint the Night parade! We were dancing and singing a long. I took a lot of pictures, so enjoy! (Sorry for the quality of some of them, it's a parade) *Our dinner package had us next to the flag pole. Not a bad view, but that is at the end of the parade route.*
The Disneyland Forever firework show takes place above the castle. We didn't have time to move, so we turned around so we could face the castle. I wish we were closer, but the firework show was still amazing. I also want Disney to make it into a soundtrack; but I found the music on Youtube without the fireworks.
After the firework show, the park was going to be open for another two hours, so we tried doing as many rides as we could. It took us almost 20 minutes to get to Adventureland. We went on Splash Mountain, but waited forever to get on. No worries, we did the wave in line. We got it going pretty far in line. And the last ride of my Disneyland trip was Indiana Jones ride.
One last glance behind as I leave this magical land.
FAREWELL DISNEYLAND
On Friday, we spent our morning at Downtown Disney (my flight left that afternoon and Joe was driving back to Utah). I got myself classic Mickey ears with my name on it! Oh and this delicious Minnie cake pop.
This was a great trip to Disneyland! I enjoyed it better cause I didn't have chicken-pocks or was confined to a stroller and I got to experience the magic in a way I didn't know I could. Joe and his kids made it worth while! I believe everyone should go to Disneyland at least once. I will return to Disneyland, but not for awhile. A 3-day park hopper was perfect; I don't believe you need to go for more then 3 days. I hope you enjoyed reading and looking at my adventures in Disneyland!
Note:
Disneyland app (In app store)-It tells you wait times for characters and rides in both parks. Also it has a map of both parks.
The Ultimate Disney Parks Scavenger Hunt Volume 1:Disneyland by Shelby Pickett-We used this book all the time to spot different aspects in the park.
The Hidden Secrets & Stories of Disneyland by Mike Fox-Has a lot of trivia and facts about the park.
The Hidden Mickeys of Disneyland by Bill Scollon-We found so many hidden Mickeys; some were harder to find then others. Also we found hidden Mickeys that weren't in the book.
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