Hooray for Hollywood!....Literally!

[jenseib]

Doctor is probably going to tell you to get off the foot and keep it elevated! But if you go to the doctor, at least you can tell the family "doctor's orders!"

True....but I won't even follow that rule..I got too much stuff to do.

 

[jenseib]

We pretty much had only eaten crap today. I looked at the app once and suggested some dining options that had openings but Claire wasn’t thrilled with the menus and if she wasn’t thrilled, I wasn’t going to spend big bucks for her to eat one piece of meat.


So then I had an idea!


arrival95 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Let’s have crap for dinner too!


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And they have the ORANGE ice-cream Dole Whip floats! My absolute favorite!!!!


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We were chatting and eating and just having a good time when we heard a loud noise and jumped.


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That bird over there would talk every so often, and it scared the heck out of that lady the first time she heard it. It was pretty funny.


We finished up our floats. Claire only ate about 2/3rds, which was fine. She actually wanted to share with me but I told her no, I wanted a whole one to myself, so she had no choice but to get a whole one for herself too.


We then headed over to the Jungle Cruise. Claire asked if it was the same as WDW and I said I thought so, but it was another one I did not ride last time.


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And it was similar and I enjoyed it and glad we made the time to ride it.


We headed over to Fantasyland now. I think the Fireworks show was starting now and most of Fantasyland didn’t have much of a wait. For the most part many rides were walk on.


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Claire never visited WDW when Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride was there, so it was a must.


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Her thoughts? Well that was creepy.


We also hit up Snow White…which Claire does not remember riding at WDW. Again…Wow that was creepy!


And then also Pinocchio. Claire wanted to know what Disney was thinking of when they made these rides. She couldn’t believe how dark and scary they were. And she is right. A lot of those rides are pretty creepy when you think about it.


We also went on Storybook Land Canal boats. This was another one I never made it on last time.


arrival131 by Jenseib, on Flickr


It’s not scary, but kind of dangerous. When getting on and off we felt like we could fall off or knock someone else off pretty easily. It was cute, but our boat driver talked in a monotone and Claire and I kept smirking at each other.


Because it was dark, I didn’t take pictures. I got a lot of good ones last time I visited in the daylight from Casey’s train.


arrival132 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Alice and Peter Pan had long lines so we skipped them. We didn’t bother with Dumbo since it is virtually the same ride as WDW.


Now this next picture…I can’t figure it out. I think it is from Star Tours….maybe I am wrong. I know we did ride it and we had a different scene than what we have ever seen at WDW.


arrival174 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I was losing steam fast. It had been a LONG day and my body and ankle were screaming and I had some nice blisters on my feet. We decided it was time to head out and get some sleep.


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That walk back to the hotel seemed pretty long now. I was so happy we were staying close and I will keep that in mind in the future. Late at night those walks are tiring!


There was a lot of begger’s and such on the way back. I had heard this was something that many people saw at DL. One guy on the corner had a cooler full of bottled waters….for a buck each. I bought 3. This was something I could support. I am not one to give people money who just sit there, but this guy was at least making an effort to have some kind of income. Those 3 bottles were cheaper than one in the park. I know he was making money as we all know a case of water doesn’t come out to be $1 a bottle, but that was fine. Let him make some money and we’ll get some reasonably priced water.

Claire then refused to drink it as she was sure he was poisoning us. They were sealed and I drank them over the next few days…and I am still alive!


Back at the hotel, Claire took a shower and we all got ready to crash. Skip proclaimed he wasn’t a fan of Disneyland. It’s too crowded and hot.

Then he asked what the plans were for the day tomorrow and acted like he was going to go to park opening with us. LOL.


Claire crashed on her pull out bed, which she said was not comfortable…and I napped on it another day and thought it was fine.

Our bed was a king and I thought it was pretty good and I am picky.


A fun and long day had been had and our trip was still just beginning!

 

[Greg Lembrich]

It was a ride we all enjoyed. And we could all compare it to Disney World. Now I know everyone loves the Disneyland version the best…I do like it…but WDW is still my favorite!

I completely agree. I know that we are in the minority on this one, but I prefer the Magic Kingdom Pirates. The DL version seems overlong to me, without telling as crisp and coherent a story as its Florida counterpart.

I love Space Mountain at Disneyland! It is so much smoother than the one at WDW. It’s such a fun ride.

I agree here too. DL definitely has the superior Space Mountain. The music is better, the ride is smoother, and the seats are more comfortable.

My daughter and I had a lot of fun on our trip comparing each of the DL and DCA rides to their WDW counterparts.

 

[Timon]

I'm doing it for you babe!!!!!!

Hahah! Well ya better hurry up, I have already started packing

It was annoying, but my whole body hurt this trip. I need to really lose weight and get in shape because I really felt my age this trip.

Ugh! I hear you there! This is exactly why I planned 8 nights! I am looking forward to everything but I want to slow down a bit this time.

It rained the day Fantasmic was on (our last day). I don't remember if it got cancelled or not, but at times raining hard. I think we just gave up and went to bed.

Oh yeah! That's right! We figured it would be canceled and indeed, it was!

It wasn’t long and Claire realized they had Disney Characters intermingled in here. Oh yeah….I forgot to tell you that.

Best part of this ride, love it!

I was still sad that the castle was under construction, but I guess now we will have to plan another trip sometime so Claire can see it.

Yeah, super sad about this too

As we got to the front, Claire says “Look, Goofy is walking away with that girl and I don’t see any parents….I think that is creepy Goofy.”

LOL! Creepy Goofy!

Back to the Fairfield!

I know you said at night that walk back felt long but when you weren't super tired and sore, how was the walk compared to Disneyland Hotel? I keep thinking, we would be fine at a hotel on Harbor, as long as it was close-ish but I always cave in and book onsite because of early entry and the whole Disney bubble thing.

I told everyone which drawers I put their cubes in…both getting 2 drawers and neither listened or remembered each day….I have no shirts…I have no pants. Um…LOOK! For the 15th time….these TWO drawers are yours!

HAHAHA! Poor Jen! I feel bad for you reading this trip report, you sound very stressed

You (and by "you", I mean "me" ) need a girls trip.

I think Claire would have loved it and she would have loved to have seen the inside of his apartment.

Every time I pass that window, I think of how lucky I am that I got to see it twice! When we went together, they roped everything off, we could only stand there in that middle part, in front of the kitchen. When I went back last year, there were no ropes, we got pics right beside his lamp, we could look out onto the park and even got to see the bathroom! BUT, they only did group shots, not individual ones, so guess I lucked out there.

I would totally do that again! I didn't book it for the three of us because of Kira's age but I would definitely do it again!

Now that Claire is getting older, she is starting to realize some of these dark rides and their theming is just a little dark or bizarre.

Especially that crazy Mr. Toad

Let’s have crap for dinner too!

HAHAHA! I love it! That's what vacations are for

That bird over there would talk every so often, and it scared the heck out of that lady the first time she heard it. It was pretty funny.

Ooohh Rosita! I love that they put her there! Now we know where Rosita went after the Tiki Birds

She was down for refurb a week ago, but I think she's back, so we are going to sit next to her

And then also Pinocchio. Claire wanted to know what Disney was thinking of when they made these rides. She couldn’t believe how dark and scary they were. And she is right. A lot of those rides are pretty creepy when you think about it.

Totally! Kids must have been tougher in the '50's and '60's

Now this next picture…I can’t figure it out. I think it is from Star Tours….maybe I am wrong. I know we did ride it and we had a different scene than what we have ever seen at WDW.

Yup, Star Tours! That's the row number on the outside door as you wait to go into your starspeeder


Waiting for the next day...impatiently

 

[jenseib]

I completely agree. I know that we are in the minority on this one, but I prefer the Magic Kingdom Pirates. The DL version seems overlong to me, without telling as crisp and coherent a story as its Florida counterpart.

Yes!

I agree here too. DL definitely has the superior Space Mountain. The music is better, the ride is smoother, and the seats are more comfortable.

It's just so much better. I dread riding it at WDW because it's so rough but this is a delight!

My daughter and I had a lot of fun on our trip comparing each of the DL and DCA rides to their WDW counterparts.

We did too. It's fun to experience similar but different rides.

Hahah! Well ya better hurry up, I have already started packing

Well you probably started packing back in March!

Ugh! I hear you there! This is exactly why I planned 8 nights! I am looking forward to everything but I want to slow down a bit this time.

I would have loved to have stayed longer. But you know, Skip would never have done it. Did you get an AP for this trip then? Or do you not plan on going to the parks every day? If I stayed longer, I probably would look into an AP just so I could go over in the evenings or in the mornings for a bit if I wanted to.

Oh yeah! That's right! We figured it would be canceled and indeed, it was!

One of these days I will see that show!

Best part of this ride, love it!

It is really neat and it was fun looking for each character.

Yeah, super sad about this too

Hopefully we can get back in the next few years so Claire can see the actual castle.

LOL! Creepy Goofy!

We kept laughing about it and making jokes.

I know you said at night that walk back felt long but when you weren't super tired and sore, how was the walk compared to Disneyland Hotel? I keep thinking, we would be fine at a hotel on Harbor, as long as it was close-ish but I always cave in and book onsite because of early entry and the whole Disney bubble thing.

I actually googled mapped it before we left as I was curious. They are literally about the same distance. I did the walking version to about the middle of the Esplanade and both came up at 1/2 mile. I kind of forget how long Downtown Disney is till you walk that whole way through.
I would stay at Fairfield again or one of the others that are closer. I would probably still look at the split stay so I could have the early entry to both parks. But the cost of the Fairfield was actually not bad.

HAHAHA! Poor Jen! I feel bad for you reading this trip report, you sound very stressed

Yep! I was stressed a lot. Especially the first few days.

You (and by "you", I mean "me" ) need a girls trip.

Oh yes! I would love to do something. This month is crazy with birthday's, Claire graduating from 8th Grade, and Skip has a surgery and I have been watching Ella and Gracie a few times a week as Paige's MIL is healing from a surgery, so it's been crazy here.

Every time I pass that window, I think of how lucky I am that I got to see it twice! When we went together, they roped everything off, we could only stand there in that middle part, in front of the kitchen. When I went back last year, there were no ropes, we got pics right beside his lamp, we could look out onto the park and even got to see the bathroom! BUT, they only did group shots, not individual ones, so guess I lucked out there.

You are lucky! I do remember you saying that now. Kind of a trade off but still cool both ways. I bet they realized it takes forever to take all those single pictures. I have heard other tours got to see more of the apartment than we did too.

I would totally do that again! I didn't book it for the three of us because of Kira's age but I would definitely do it again!

It states on the website "all ages" but I think not many younger ones would appreciate it.
I've been waiting for Claire to get old enough to do the Keys to the Kingdom tour at MK. I have wanted to do it for so long!

Especially that crazy Mr. Toad

If I remember right, isn't the story that he is going to Hell?

HAHAHA! I love it! That's what vacations are for

Heck yeah! We ate crap all week!

Ooohh Rosita! I love that they put her there! Now we know where Rosita went after the Tiki Birds

I have never been knowledgeable about the Tiki Birds, so good to know the name.

She was down for refurb a week ago, but I think she's back, so we are going to sit next to her

She screeches just randomly and it would scare the heck out of you. You will have to not tell Kira and video her reaction.

Totally! Kids must have been tougher in the '50's and '60's

I guess. of course kids weren't required to be in car seats back then either. Just lay that baby on the seat and go!

Yup, Star Tours! That's the row number on the outside door as you wait to go into your starspeeder

That's what I figured, and the weird written language under the number, I figured it had to be Star Tours.

Waiting for the next day...impatiently

What??? You are popcorning me again!

 

[jenseib]

Monday, March 18, 2019, California Adventure and Disneyland


I love California time. Claire got up without an argument…because it is 3 hours later than home! She was born with an internal Clock that syncs with California!


fair1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We got up and ready. See our room was already a wild place and we had been here less than 24 hours.


fair2 by Jenseib, on Flickr


fair3 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Skip was not making it clear if he was coming and of course when we were ready to go he stated he was coming, so we did get there a little later than I wanted, but still early.


ca1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


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We ALWAYS pick the line behind the slow people or people who just have no clue what they are doing. ALWAYS!


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And as soon as our tickets were scanned I went in the app and got us Radiator Racer fastpasses and I headed off to get World of Color fastpasses too. All set!

I went ahead of the 2 of them and told them they didn’t need to keep up with me, but they didn’t seem to understand that concept.


Claire wanted to ride the Incredicoaster, so we headed that way.


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Skip found a spot to sit as he had no desire to ride.


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The line wasn’t too bad and moved pretty fast.


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a0d5f8d4-251b-42a1-b3d2-93477a77561a by Jenseib, on Flickr


Last time I rode this, it was Screamin’, but it is pretty much the same ride with new theming. We LOVED it! I remember liking it last time, but this time seemed so much better. Claire and I rode this several times over the course of our trip and I think it’s one of our favorites.


I think we rode it twice this morning in a row.


We got off and looked for Skip.


He was still looking for us to ride….he didn’t realize we were done already.


ca8 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We walked over to Toy Story but the line was long already so we skipped it.


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We headed back around.


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[jenseib]

We decided on Little Mermaid next, which was walk on. Skip has not been to WDW since they opened it there, so this was a first for him.


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I let Claire ride with him since she was all about a “family vacation”. Hahaha. Skip is not brave anymore, so the rides he will ride are pretty limited.


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Claire looks thrilled, doesn’t she? I guess an important message must have come through for her!


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We next headed towards CarsLand!


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Skip and I were ready for some breakfast, and I had just the spot in mind.


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Flo’s!


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I had eaten here once with Cass last visit for dinner. The food was OK, nothing fabulous, but it is fun theming. Skip and I selected some breakfast options and I went with a kid’s meal. Claire rarely eats breakfast, so she passed on ordering anything.


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The line was actually pretty long, but they seem to be good at keeping it moving.


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I got the waffles. I did try Skip’s potatoes and they were good.


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I thought all the food was good. Skip had fruit with his plate too and we offered it to Claire, but she just took a bite and that was it. She just sat and sipped her drink.


I now had a plan! Our fastpass for Radiator Racer’s wasn’t for a while yet, but I had told the family that the single rider line usually moves pretty fast and we can go get in that line now and then come back for the fastpass later.


ca5 by Jenseib, on Flickr


The line went fast and soon we were all racing! After I got off I went to look for our pictures but the only one I saw was Claire’s.


7aba03f3-89ab-49fc-9ae5-c63a3af49bd1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Claire was off before me and she said saw mine…I heard other people saying they were displaying them wonky and it was all messed up. Oh well. I really was OK not getting all the pics. I kept forgetting to get the numbers half the time anyways during the trip.


They loved it as I knew they would. It was a big favorite for Skip.


We moseyed around the area.


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We never did make it back to ride Luigi’s.






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And we rode Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree. Of course it broke down right before we were to ride so we waited a little bit for it to be fixed and then finally had our turn.

 

[littlenellbell]

The Fairfield looks nice and I love the location. We were down the road at the Hilton. I got a great deal and used points, but I was really wishing we were a little closer. It was walkable, but sometimes we took the bus or Uber. After a long park day it was a killer.

Love the Incredicoaster! Carson rode it 9 times the day we were there. LOL The theming for Carsland was amazing!

 

[jenseib]

The Fairfield looks nice and I love the location. We were down the road at the Hilton. I got a great deal and used points, but I was really wishing we were a little closer. It was walkable, but sometimes we took the bus or Uber. After a long park day it was a killer.

It sure is a killer at night. I don't think I would want to stay any further away than where we were if possible. It was about 1/2 mile away and though that isn't far at all, at night after miles in the parks it felt so far at times.

Love the Incredicoaster! Carson rode it 9 times the day we were there. LOL The theming for Carsland was amazing!

Good for him. We just loved that ride!

 

[jenseib]

When we got off we looked at the app for wait times and the Monsters Inc didn’t look too bad so we decided to head over in that direction.


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The Food and Wine Festival was going on. I will admit, I am not a big fan. It always has strange offerings in my opinion. Over the course of the trip we would walk by and look at what they had and really nothing looked good to us. The only option I would have tried was the cheesecake, but I never did. I know a lot of people love the Food and Wine, but we could care less.


We spotted Goofy…today he wasn’t quite so creepy!


ca10 by Jenseib, on Flickr


By the time we got over to Monsters Inc the wait was more than 40 minutes. We hem hawed a bit and decided that we didn’t want to wait that long and we did have our Radiator Racer’s fastpass in a bit too.


I stopped off for a churro. They had a chocolate and peanut butter one and those are one of my favorite combinations.


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It was ok, but nothing great, unfortunately.


Claire wanted a smoothie or something, so her and Skip got into line for that. I went off to find something and told them I would meet up with them for the fastpass. Claire was going to sit and drink her drink for a bit.


They texted me to say where to meet, which meant I would have to travel almost all the way back to where they were and then all walk together to Radiator Racers. Um…I have a sore ankle and though I was walking miles each day, I really didn’t want to walk any extra if I had to. I replied to them to meet me at the entrance to Carsland. I headed in the back way.


I found these “eggs” on my way. I think they were real…but maybe it was just Disney magic.


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I love watching the cars come up over the hill.


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I headed off to find the family. Claire said that Skip grumbled that they had to meet me here instead of me coming to them. Why? He hadn’t gotten a good lay of the land and he for some reason thought I was making them walk further….which makes no sense at all. We all were going to end up here for our fastpass, so why would it matter if I walked with them here or met them here.


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Look who we ran into.


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We got in the fastpass line and waited our turn.


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Skip didn’t ride many rides, but this was probably his favorite. He could have probably road this one over and over.


99737996-2145-4f85-8ac3-e5968d46ce8a by Jenseib, on Flickr


We decided to head over to Disneyland now. Skip debated on going back to the hotel and we talked about what we planned to do in DL and he said if we rode Haunted Mansion, he would come for that. I also made a fastpass for Big Thunder Mountain for all 3 of us, but he said he would probably skip that one.


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So we headed up front and out and across the way to Disneyland. It is just so easy to go back and forth!


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And here we are!


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Hello Walt!


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Skip was hungry for a treat, so we made a stop for some ice-cream.


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And then we got in line for Haunted Mansion, which was really long, but was constantly moving.


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We enjoyed the ride and they enjoyed seeing the differences here verses WDW.


Skip then said his good byes and headed back to the hotel. It was getting hot again and he was done for the day. I was glad we had a fairly close hotel so that he could easily go back…though if you asked him, it was far! Hahah.

Claire and I walked around a bit and then got in line for Big Thunder with our fastpasses. Claire was having issues again scanning it and the CM told her to just go through.


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Looking at the app, it didn’t take her fastpass. I could not make another fastpass unless we cancelled that one out or used it…..and I had Skip’s fastpass for this ride too. I suggested we ride it a second time after we get off since she still had one, but she was afraid the CM would recognize her and she would get in trouble. I told her no worries, they change CM’s out all the time.


We could see Galaxy’s Edge from the top of the hill.

And then we exited and walked right back into the fastpass line. I used Skip’s fastpass and we got Claire’s to scan this time…and it was different CM’s this time too. This time in line there was a couple in front of us. The girl was wearing one of those extremely short skirts and a lacy bra with a jacket over it…except that she always has the jacket hanging off of her. Claire and I were snickering….Um did she forget her shirt? She definitely thought she was something special and hung all over her guy.

I held my tongue, but I love to be sarcastic and I really wanted to tell her that we could see her TaTa’s through her lacy bra.


We rode a second time and had a lot of fun! I think I like this version better than WDW, but both are great. Oh…and this was another ride that was down for refurbishment when I was here last time.


As we got off, Claire wanted me to take a picture of Miss Lacy Bra. I didn’t get the front and they were walking fast, but this is her from behind.


caday37 by Jenseib, on Flickr


See her jacket? That’s how she had it in line. The front of the bra is all lacy…and see through.


So now we are getting hungry. We sat down and looked at the app. I thought since it was just the 2 of us now, maybe we could fine a sit down meal. I went through the options, read the menus and Claire was like no, or I would eat 1 thing. UGH! I am not paying for a buffet if she isn’t going to eat anything.

We had talked with Skip before he left about going over to Grand California for nachos. Cass and I had them last visit and they were so good. Skip decided on riding Haunted Mansion and skipping food at that point. Claire now said she would be willing to eat that.

Ok! We are making progress now!

So back to the front of the park we went and headed towards Downtown Disney.


caday4 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Again, Claire was amazed at how close everything is.


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This table was set up for Jehovah’s Witness and it really surprised me that Disney would allow a set up like that and let them try to get people. We saw them there another day too, so they must be allowed. I will say they only talked to people who engaged them first, but it still surprised me. I would have thought that Disney wouldn’t allow any religious solicitation.


caday6 by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

[Timon]

Best ride photo of you ever!!!

I held my tongue, but I love to be sarcastic and I really wanted to tell her that we could see her TaTa’s through her lacy bra.

Oh.... she knows you could see her TaTa's!!!

I don't even like my bra straps showing

We rode a second time and had a lot of fun! I think I like this version better than WDW, but both are great. Oh…and this was another ride that was down for refurbishment when I was here last time.

HM in WDW is where I have so many amazing memories, riding it with my parents as a kid, Kira falling asleep on Rob's shoulder on her first journey through at 10 months old BUT I love DL's version for the nostalgia of it and the Hat Box Ghost!!!

It's my all-time fave so I love any version!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

So loving your trip report. Glad you were able to get your do over from the cruise.

 

[bcwife76]

Gah, not getting notifications any longer and now I'm behind

Now that we've finally done MK at WDW I like to do the comparisons of the same rides at both parks; sorry, gotta say POTC is better at DL teehee. I way prefer Big Thunder at DL as well, but lots of the others are quite similar for sure! It's a good thing there are parks on both coasts to compare and contrast

Flo's is great! I find it very underrated both in terms of food quality and prices, we've never had a bad meal there. I love that all 3 of you love RSR!!! The BEST ride

It definitely gets a bit nippy in SoCal once the sun goes down. Funny right? It can be 90F and blistering hot but as soon as it's dark BAM, it's chilly! More desert like climate than Florida I guess It's actually the same all the way up the west coast I find. Here in Vancouver if we have a hot summer day, as soon as that sun sets it dips down and you need a light jacket or hoodie most of the time.

 

[mickeystoontown]

I am finally caught up again. Heaven help us if we ever put John and Skip together. John loves watching videos on his phone and I have to beg him to wear earphones. Once he had a slot machine game on his phone. UGH! Make sure you never let Skip download that game to his phone. It's so loud!

I know that I have read your Disneyland reports before but I am still like Claire and am amazed at how close the parks and Disney Springs are to one another. I am sure that it makes it much much easier to get around.

 

[jenseib]

Best ride photo of you ever!!!

hahaha. I was trying to do different things each time I knew where the camera was, but I always just looked stupid.

Oh.... she knows you could see her TaTa's!!!

I don't even like my bra straps showing

I used to not want the bra straps showing, but now I don't care. And I am sure she knew...I was more like I want to make sure she knows we find it disgusting. hahaha. Our laughing had to give her a clue.

HM in WDW is where I have so many amazing memories, riding it with my parents as a kid, Kira falling asleep on Rob's shoulder on her first journey through at 10 months old BUT I love DL's version for the nostalgia of it and the Hat Box Ghost!!!

I remember riding it at WDW with my parents. It was in 74. The ghosts sitting with us was just so cool in my eyes! Claire was petrified of it for years, so I would have to force her on it.

So loving your trip report. Glad you were able to get your do over from the cruise.

Me too! It really worked in our favor that he cancelled.

Gah, not getting notifications any longer and now I'm behind

I have that happen every so often too.

Now that we've finally done MK at WDW I like to do the comparisons of the same rides at both parks; sorry, gotta say POTC is better at DL teehee. I way prefer Big Thunder at DL as well, but lots of the others are quite similar for sure! It's a good thing there are parks on both coasts to compare and contrast

I think I just am so used to Pirates at MK and it is my favorite ride, so it's hard to give that up for another version. Both are good, but I still like WDW better. Big Thunder just seemed like so much more fun at DL. I don't know why?
I do know Claire really enjoyed seeing all the rides and comparing them. She would definitely visit DL again in a heart beat.

Flo's is great! I find it very underrated both in terms of food quality and prices, we've never had a bad meal there.

The first time we ate there (Cass and I) my food was fine, but just not great. The breakfast was so good. And it was decently priced for me since I got the kids meal. Skip wondered why I was getting one and I said because it's a lot cheaper and enough food for me.

I love that all 3 of you love RSR!!! The BEST ride

it is a great ride. One of Skip's favorite rides is Test Track and it is sort of similar to that.

It definitely gets a bit nippy in SoCal once the sun goes down. Funny right? It can be 90F and blistering hot but as soon as it's dark BAM, it's chilly! More desert like climate than Florida I guess It's actually the same all the way up the west coast I find. Here in Vancouver if we have a hot summer day, as soon as that sun sets it dips down and you need a light jacket or hoodie most of the time.

In Ohio in the summer, the sun goes down and we go from 95 with 100% humidity to 89 with 100% humidity. hahaha.

Heaven help us if we ever put John and Skip together. John loves watching videos on his phone and I have to beg him to wear earphones. Once he had a slot machine game on his phone. UGH! Make sure you never let Skip download that game to his phone. It's so loud!

I don't even let Skip know there is an option for games! He does the videos all the time now. I was working in the basement yesterday and heard a loud noise....it was him watching videos upstairs. So I guess I should add not only does he keep the sound on, he blares it as loud as it can go...yet he is always saying I laugh too loud and it hurts his ears.

I know that I have read your Disneyland reports before but I am still like Claire and am amazed at how close the parks and Disney Springs are to one another. I am sure that it makes it much much easier to get around.

They are so close! I hope you get the chance to get out there someday. The set up is great for hopping and I would never recommend NOT hopping. It's just so easy to do.

 

[jenseib]

We made our way to the Grand Californian entrance and it was further down than I remembered.


caday7 by Jenseib, on Flickr


caday9 by Jenseib, on Flickr


As we walked in, I pointed out things to Claire. I sadly did not take any pictures in here.


We walked over to White Water Snacks and looked over the menu and Claire told me what she didn’t want on the nachos and we ordered and took a seat. It felt so good to sit down!

It wasn’t too long and our order was ready.


caday43 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Claire immediately wanted to know what the “white stuff” on the nachos were. Oh shoot. I bet its sour cream, which she thinks she doesn’t like. I told her probably white cheese and she did not believe me at all.


caday38 by Jenseib, on Flickr


She tried to eat around it, but she would complain the whole time. I seriously couldn’t even barely taste it, so I know she couldn’t.


The nachos were awesome! Better than last time. My friend Cass and I loved them last time and she said they changed them up a bit and I think they are better now.


It was a huge order and we made a pretty good dent in them.


caday39 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We packed the rest up and decided to head back to the hotel for a rest and cool down.

It seemed like a long walk, but it really isn’t bad. My body and legs were just sore and tired.


We handed the nachos off to Skip who said he didn’t want them right then and would eat them later. I asked him later if he liked them and he said they were soggy. Well I guess he should have eaten them when I handed them to him!


Claire laid in the bed and I laid on her pull out couch and took a little snooze to recharge.


Claire and I then headed back over to Disneyland.


caday44 by Jenseib, on Flickr


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I think tonight is the night we got fastpasses for the Matterhorn.


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I warned her it was super rough.


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And we had a blast and it wasn’t bad at all. Nothing like last time…so either I had a bad car last time or they did something to make it better.


We then headed over towards Toontown because Claire wanted to look in all the houses.


Small World looks so pretty all lit up.


caday46 by Jenseib, on Flickr


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My pictures are terrible as my point and shoot does an awful job in the dark and my phone camera isn’t a whole lot better.


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The houses are not the same design as the ones that WDW used to have.


caday11 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We mainly just walked around and took quick looks.


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On to Mickey’s house.


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Chip and Dale’s place was teeny tiny.


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Basically nothing. We went up the steps expecting to see something…Nope!


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On my way up, I was following Claire and this Mom and her little boy were right on my heels. Like they were trying to get me to go faster. Sorry but it’s tight and cramped and I am following someone. They were super annoying to me and so loud too. We stood off to the side and let them go around us when we could.


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[mickeystoontown]

It's my namesake! Mickey's Toontown!

 

[Timon]

Hello, beautiful!!

This will be my first meal there tomorrow!!!

I'm a little worried that they won't be as good as before but it's a chance I'm willing to take

Sounds like your feet and legs were hurting, I hope it gets better for you! Hard not to do a million miles at Disney


Guess I will have to read the rest when I get back, thanks for the speedy report

 

[jenseib]

It's my namesake! Mickey's Toontown!

yes and I thought of you!

Hello, beautiful!!

This will be my first meal there tomorrow!!!

MMMM! I can't believe you are already going. now you better posts pictures because I am going to be stalking you. (your travel page)

I'm a little worried that they won't be as good as before but it's a chance I'm willing to take

They were better than I remembered them. But that doesn't mean you will like them better. But I thought the meat tasted better this time around.

Sounds like your feet and legs were hurting, I hope it gets better for you! Hard not to do a million miles at Disney

It was probably my most painful trip body wise. I guess 50 is catching up to me.

Guess I will have to read the rest when I get back, thanks for the speedy report

I got another post yet today...so maybe you'll be able to read that yet

 

[jenseib]

We walked slowly over to Donald’s.


caday22 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And guess who got behind us again! What the heck? We were trying to get away and how did they end up making it over here slower than us? And on my heels once again.


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So we hung back a bit to let them go around us again and waited till they left and then moved on after a bit and headed to Goofy’s.


caday32 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And as we walked in…we were now BEHIND them and they were so slow moving.


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Then we moved outside to get away from them, but they followed and the kid kept jumping in front of me. I guess I am a magnet.


caday33 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We then left and headed over to California Adventure.


Skip was meeting us here and we kept calling and calling and calling and he would not answer. Then he called and we told him we would stand by Little Mermaid and wait for him….Except he was in the park already, but over by the Ferris Wheel and he told us to come to him!


ca81 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We told him no and he wanted to know why not. We explained that we were right by where we would go in for our fastpass and he thought he was already in the spot to view it. UGH!!!!

Earlier today when we were all over by the Incredicoaster and this area was basically empty, I had pointed out how this was the viewing area for World of Color. Your fastpass would designate where you entered and where you would watch from. I pointed out how the Ferris Wheel would be in the background of the show. Evidently all he heard was Ferris Wheel.


So we waited.


And waited……


And waited………


And he didn’t show up. So we started calling again, over and over and he did not answer. They had been letting people in now and I was getting annoyed. I wanted to go in. We decided that is exactly what we would do. We headed in and told them that my husband was coming and they said when he arrived to just tell them and they would let me go get him.


ca82 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Finally Skip called and said he was in the area and I ran out and got him. I showed him where we set up camp and he didn’t like the area and walked off. Claire and I sat on the ground and waited.


ca83 by Jenseib, on Flickr


The CM’s kept coming around saying how this was a standing show and we would have to stand about 10-15 minutes before the show. I know I know….But I am tired and not standing for 30 plus minutes!


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Skip came back around and told us to go where he was as he could see better. Well I wasn’t sure how he would know since the show hadn’t started and he was in the “could get wet zone” and it was definitely getting cold out tonight.


The show started…and yep, we had a sucky view.


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When we were all sitting down, you couldn’t tell how tall people were, but when we stood up we sure could.


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And we couldn’t take it anymore and decided to go to the wet zone. We found Skip and he was right, his view was much better.


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