Puns, a Fun Run and 1901 - Our first trip to Disneyland! Updated 8.29.2014x2!

[AshClan]

Okay, first of all, I'm sorry for this, but GO SOX! Enjoy your game, but I hope you lose.

Via Napoli may be our #1 favorite WDW restaurant, and I didn't realize that Naples was the same company. Now I'm going to have to figure out how to squeeze in a meal there too! Thanks for the heads up.

Love the animation academy stuff, and I hope we can find the time for it. We are definitely planning to hit Aladdin, hopefully on our first night. Aladdin is my husband's ALL TIME favorite Disney movie, so I'm sure we'll love it.

 

[arbolita]

Hello everyone, I'm back! I had to take a short break for schoolwork and for my recent WDW trip (which was FABULOUS, thanks for asking!), but I have returned so I can continue with this trip report! How are my 5 readers doing out there?

Chapter 15: Duffy? Is that you?

After Scott kicked my butt again on Buzz Lightyear, we crossed through the castle to Fantasyland!

Since we had skipped Mr Toad’s Wild Ride earlier, I was more than ready to ride it now!

As with the submarines, this was another attraction I hadn’t ridden since 1990 – over 23 years ago! I wasn’t sure if it would seem familiar or completely new.

Unsurprisingly, it was a little of both! There were a couple seems that really jumped out at me as feeling familiar, and (since this was a different version than the one I’d ridden) a couple things that I didn’t recognize.

I’m sure it will surprise nobody though that I absolutely loved it! There’s just something special about attractions that have ties to your childhood that new rides can never entirely capture.

One of the things that I really loved about Disneyland’s Fantasyland were all the details in the exterior buildings surrounding each attraction.

It hadn’t been 23 years since my last ride on Snow White’s Scary Adventures (closer to a year and a half), but I was still excited to ride it again since it has closed at Walt Disney World! I loved this fashionable skull hanging out near the operating console.

I loved the forest scene! It was something that wasn’t a part of the WDW version of the ride, and was really cool! Although the ending seemed really abrupt, as though there wasn’t an actual ending.

We stood in the line for Peter Pan for a couple minutes, but it didn’t seem like it was moving at all, so we decided to find something else. However while we were standing near the building, I noticed something…

Duffy? Is that you?

One of the experiences I’d heard a lot about leading up to this trip was the Sleepy Beauty Castle Walkthrough, and this seemed like a great time to check it out! After simply passing through Cinderella Castle so many times in WDW, I was really excited to actually get to enter the castle!

The scenes throughout the castle were simply gorgeous, and there was some pretty neat effects!

One of my favorite special effects was the occasional appearance of Maleficent’s shadow on the wall. Here’s the scene as you approach:

But every so often….

Scott didn’t see it at first, so I made him wait around for it a second time, haha. There are also some other fun surprises along the way, so I won’t spoil them all for you here!

Continued in next chapter
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[BebopAngel88]

I don't think I've ever seen the Maleficent shadow before! Is that more in the middle??

 

[thornton0511]

Hey Teresa! I'm still here and following along!! Disneyland at night looks so magical and happy love that the castle has a walk through! We had to move our trip up a bit from mid July to mid June which means we leave in a little over 2 weeks Going to hit a few more ride closures by doing this but who cares? We are going to Disneyland!! So are you going to do another TR for your recent WDW trip cause I would be happy to follow along with that too

 

[arbolita]

I don't think I've ever seen the Maleficent shadow before! Is that more in the middle??

It's actually almost at the very end of the castle, just before you walk over to the storybook with the pages turned to The End. Definitely wait a couple extra seconds if you're there next time so you can try to catch it!

Hey Teresa! I'm still here and following along!! Disneyland at night looks so magical and happy love that the castle has a walk through! We had to move our trip up a bit from mid July to mid June which means we leave in a little over 2 weeks Going to hit a few more ride closures by doing this but who cares? We are going to Disneyland!! So are you going to do another TR for your recent WDW trip cause I would be happy to follow along with that too

Thanks for commenting! I actually wasn't sure if anyone was still reading, hence the last of updates, haha. Well, also combined with things picking up at work and school. That's so exciting that your trip is SO CLOSE!! The plus side to there being some ride closures is that it doesn't put as much pressure on you to try and get everything done while you're there - not to mention it just gives you a reason to go back!!

I'm still in the process of editing my WDW photos - I'm not sure if I'll do a traditional trip report for it, but I do have something in mind, and I'll definitely share the link here once it's ready!

 

[arbolita]

Chapter 16

We couldn’t leave the park without taking another ride on pirates – the Disneyland version has easily become one of my top attractions on both coasts.

Between the start in the bayou, the added scenes and the amazing rockwork on the ceiling, it just feels so much more immersive than the Walt Disney World version (which is still a classic in its own right).

I was eager to spend as much time in New Orleans Square as possible, so naturally after exiting Pirates it was time for another ride on the Haunted Mansion to see if they’d allow us to join the other 999 happy haunts!

Kind of a blurry shot, but this was the first time I was ever able to time it right to get a picture during the lightning flash!

This is one of those details that has always surprised me that it’s lasted so long in the Disney Parks – I guess since it appears so quickly, most people don’t even realize that it’s there.

With the vehicles in Haunted Mansion so close to the show scenes in rides like Haunted Mansion, you really get a much better look at all of the props and details they’ve placed in the attic. I know Walt Disney World occasionally offers tours to cast members where they walk them around the attraction and give additional backstory to some of the design choices they’ve made. I can only hope they’ll offer that to non CMs one day, because I would love to take advantage of it!

The Roastie-Toastie at the New Orleans Square popcorn vendors is themed to the Haunted Mansion.

These next two pictures make me feel a little wistful. As most of you know, Disneyland is currently doing an expansion to Club 33, which has involved some changes and construction within New Orleans Square – primarily the Court of Angels.

As part of the changes, the Court of Angels will no longer be open to the public and instead will become the new entryway for Club 33 – only members and their guests will be allowed to enter this area. This was one of those nice, quiet, secluded areas tucked away in one of the most visited places in the world. I feel very fortunate that I got to visit it at least once and spend some time photographing it – although I would have done a lot more had I known it was possibly the last time I’d get a chance to see the Court in its current form.

But enough rambling. Here’s a pirate!

I seriously love walking through the empty parks. It’s pretty cool, feeling like you have the entire place to yourself (even if you can’t go on any rides). I know I could spend hours just exploring and looking at all the details I might miss on a busy day.

Of course we have to end the night with some shots of the Castle and Main Street!

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[marDgreen88]

Theresa!!! I think I must have gotten behind at some point, but I caught myself up and can safely say I want to go to Disneyland now more than ever! I hope you finish this!

 

[MinniesCupCake]

awesome!

 

[petals]

LOVE all your photos. Carsland looks AMAZING! I cannot wait to see it

 

[arbolita]

Theresa!!! I think I must have gotten behind at some point, but I caught myself up and can safely say I want to go to Disneyland now more than ever! I hope you finish this!

Marissa!! You know how behind I always get with everyone's trip reports, haha. I GUESS SINCE YOU ASKED SO NICELY I CAN CONSIDER MAKING ANOTHER POST.

awesome!

Glad you're enjoying it!

LOVE all your photos. Carsland looks AMAZING! I cannot wait to see it

It really is impressive. I'd heard so many positive comments from those who had experienced Carsland before I did, but they still didn't do it justice. Hope it's not too long before I'm able to go back!

 

[arbolita]

Chapter 17: Saving Our Magic for Lunch


Thursday, August 8, 2013

Our second full day at Disneyland! We had the option this morning to utilize the Magic Morning, allowing us into Disneyland at 7 AM rather than 8 AM, but decided against it after waking up that morning. My allergies were starting to bother me immensely; I'm assuming that is due to the fact that days earlier I was in pollution-free Sedona, and being in a big city was causing a shock to my system. I happily embraced a little extra rest, and we arrived in Disneyland shortly after 8 AM - plenty of time to enjoy a full morning before some extra special lunch plans!

Since we arrived on our first day during a performance of Soundsational and started our previous morning in Disney's California Adventure, I was very eager to take some time walking down a much less crowded Main Street, particularly to gaze at some of the windows with familiar names on them!

Marc and Alice Davis!

The Sherman Brothers!

Walt's door! I learned later from a friend that this is not officially considered to be Walt's window in Disneyland - his is actually located in Mickey's ToonTown (and spoiler alert - you'll see a picture of it later).

Even though we had IMPORTANT LUNCH PLANS, Scott and I still thought it would be a good idea to grab something to eat to help us power through the morning. We checked out the Jolly Holiday Cafe, but decided not to stop there. Of course, I still had to take a picture of it.

We made our way through Adventureland...

and found ourselves at the River Belle Terrace!

It was pretty empty when we arrived, so we received our food quickly. Scott and I decided to split the Steamboat breakfast.

We sat near a window that faced out towards Adventureland, enjoying some people-watching along with our breakfast.

After eating, Scott decided he really wanted to take a ride on Star Tours. We passed back through Adventureland on our way to Tomorrowland - I was really struck by how similar it was to the Adventureland in Walt Disney World, but there were still some touches that I had never noticed in Florida. It made me interested to find out if I had just overlooked them during my previous trips to WDW, or if there are different details on each coast.

I'm pretty sure I've seen the face in the picture posted above, but this monkey was new to me. I'll have to keep an eye out for him next time I'm in the Magic Kingdom

Before we reached Tomorrowland, I found another Roastie-Toastie near the hub - I would have been a little more excited about this one if it hadn't been a clown, haha.

During our last trip to Walt Disney World a couple months earlier, we rode Star Tours 3 times and received the SAME. SEQUENCE. EACH. TIME. I was keeping my fingers crossed that by switching to the west coast, we'd finally visit a different location!

AND WE WERE SUCCESSFUL!!! Instead of visiting Kashyyyk and the Death Star, we were taken to Tatooine and Coruscant - the latter of which I had never been to on any of my rides before. It was pretty exciting to have a completely new-to-me scene on this ride after so much repetition previously!

Speaking of things which were completely new to me, I decided this would be a good time to try and attraction that I had never gone on EVER, in Disneyland or Walt Disney World. It was time for the Astro Orbiter!

I typically avoid rides like this because sometimes attractions where you simply go in circles can give me motion sickness, but I had watched some videos on it on YouTube and it didn't seem like it would be too bad. Luckily, I was right and had no issues feeling sick throughout the ride. I loved the views that it provided of Disneyland!

Poor former PeopleMover/Rocket Rods track. It will be interesting to see if this track becomes utilized with all of the rumors of additional Star Wars attractions in the parks, or for a different attraction. Personally, I think they should just bring back the PeopleMover!





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[arbolita]

Chapter 18: Saving Our Magic for Lunch - Part 2

The above picture is quite possibly my favorite one from Disneyland. It's definitely strengthening my desire to try and return next year for the 60th anniversary.

Scott and I were eager to take another ride on Indiana Jones Adventure, especially after passing by it earlier that morning. In addition to being an amazing attraction, Indy also has one of the best queues in Disneyland or Walt Disney World.

It's pretty impressive to think about how big the show building must be to house all of this (plus the ride itself!) inside.

Just like the day before, after finishing Indy, we booked ourselves a trip on the Jungle Cruise!

There was no yelling at passengers to get off the boat on this voyage, but instead of having us marvel at the backside of water, our Skipper was very excited to show us the front side of limestone!

I'm a PA-RAH-NAH!

Scott and I wanted to get back to the hotel to get ready before our lunch reservations, so we decided this would be a good time to head out of the park. On the way, we walked through the candy shop and stopped to watch them making some tasty treats.

At first I didn't understand why the girl in the above picture would be looking annoyed ("YOU LIVE IN DISNEYLAND!!!"), but if I had to spend all my time watching people down below while I was stuck up in a loft, I'd be irritated too. You have my sympathies, chica!

Just before we exited the park, Conductor Mickey decided he wanted to host a very special performance with the Disneyland Band.

The found a young girl in the crowd to help him conduct, and it was adorable - a really nice moment to end our morning in the park.

Coming up next - a VERY SPECIAL LUNCH that you could say was 33 kinds of awesome.




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[marDgreen88]

This is my third attempt at commenting so... here's hoping this one sticks!

Did you remember to look for the details in May? Were you ever in Adventureland when it wasn't raining so you could actually look for said details?

To go from Adventureland to Star Tours without switching parks would throw me off in so many ways, hahaha. Disneyland is magic!!!

OMG, 33 kinds of awesome! I need to prepare myself for this. Hahahah. Can't wait to read about it! So glad you updated!