Busy Last Day at the Disneyland Resort

We packed a lot into today, trying to squeeze in everything we wanted to do before our time here in Anaheim runs out. We started today with a monorail ride into Disneyland. While walking through Downtown Disney to get to the monorail station, we were overtaken by four people, two men and two women, dressed entirely in black, the women carrying black parasols. You see all types here, so we didn't think that much of it, although these folks certainly looked about as un-Disney as anyone possibly could. When we got to Disneyland, there were more goth-types walking around, most of them in groups, and later we saw more at DCA. Turns out that this is the 11th annual Bats Day in the Fun Parks Weekend, the "premiere Dark Alternative Subculture event on the West Coast."

We did a couple of rides in Fantasyland and then decided to say goodbye to Disneyland. It was getting very crowded and we had plans to tour the Grand Californian to learn about the Arts and Crafts influences in the architecture and decor of the hotel. The one-hour tour was fascinating and lots of design details we had overlooked were pointed out to us by our guide Sierra. Several artists were commissioned to work on various elements of the hotel, like the tiles used on the front of the registration desk and the stunningly beautiful stained glass doors at the hotel's entrance. I took a lot of photos which are all posted on Flickr.

After that tour, we were picked up by a representative of the Disney Vacation Club and taken to their building about a block away to learn about DVC membership. We (mostly I) have been tossing around the idea of joining DVC since we take so many Disney vacations, but what we had pretty much figured out on or own was verified by the DVC rep - renting points from DVC members rather than buying our own membership is a better way to go for us. We were shown a model of the DVC units that are currently under construction here at the Grand Californian and they are stunning, but we don't visit Disney parks often enough, or take long enough vacations, to ever break even on this large an investment.

After the DVC tour, we went back to DCA to see the Aladdin show one more time and use the FastPasses we received for taking the DVC tour. The park was mobbed, so after riding Soarin', we came back to the hotel and had a nice last dinner in the Storyteller's Cafe. Now we're packing. Right below us in Downtown Disney, a flamenco guitarist is performing. During our days here we have seen a violinist, dulcimer player, and a percussionist performing outside at night. Downtown Disney is a great venue for adults and we have really enjoyed staying here, right next to all it has to offer. And for a fitting finale, we are watching the Disneyland fireworks from our balcony.

This has been a great trip. We feel that now we have really "done" Disneyland and will look forward to coming back sometime if the circumstances are right.

All the photos from this trip are posted on Flickr.

Food and Wine Festival

Last night we decided to go back to DCA to do the Wines of the World "walk". They had four stations set up, each representing a different country or region, with a choice of three wines at each. I was given a "passport" containing a brief description of wine making in each country, that was stamped at each station. I didn't write down the names of the wines I sampled, but I remember that I tried Trumpeter, a white wine from Argentina, a Pinot Noir from New Zealand, and two other reds - one from Italy and one from the "Old World". The samples were thimball sized, but it was fun to walk through and hear a little about each of the wines.

Before going back to Disneyland for the fireworks, we decided to have a full-sized drink and something to eat in the lounge at the Napa Rose, the "fancy" restaurant at the Grand Californian. We ordered the Sizzling Beach Stone appetizer, which included shrimp, beef ribs, and chicken, garnishes and dipping sauces, and was artistically presented in a wooden box.

We walked to the monorail station in Downtown Disney to ride into Disneyland for the fireworks. I love the Disneyland monorail. It has been recently refurbished with shiny new trains and it carries you past DCA and right into Disneyland after making several loops over Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. We rode a couple of rides and then decided to make a full circuit of the park on the Disneyland Railroad before the fireworks. We were held for about 20 minutes between the New Orleans Square and Mickey's Toontown stations at the rear of the park because there was a mechanical problem with the train in front of us. When we finally arrived at the Toontown station we were told we'd be held there another 10 minutes, so we got off and started to walk, but we didn't make it back to Main Street before the fireworks started, and by then we were caught in the crowd couldn't find anywhere to stop where we could see, so we just left and went back to the hotel.

Today we spent the whole day enjoying DCA and the Food and Wine Festival. We started with Soarin', a glider ride over California - exactly the same as the ride at Walt Disney World, but still wonderful. We improved our scores over yesterday's on Toy Story Midway Mania. The park was not as crowded as I thought it would be for a Saturday during the Food and Wine Festival. I took lots of photos of the flower arrangements and landscaping in the Golden State area. They have a lot of beautiful container arrangements set up for the Festival and it looks really nice. We managed to catch several of the street performances today, including High School Musical 3, Drawn to the Magic (a musical tribute to Disney animators), and the Miner Forty-Niners, a hillbilly band.

We also attended a seminar about wines from the Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite). Tables for the seminar participants were set up on a patio at the Golden Vine Winery, with three samples for each of us to try. The Rothschild representative described each wine and the vineyard where it was produced. We were given a booklet with detailed information about the wines and the history of each vineyard. We tasted a white bordeaux (Reserve Speciale Bordeaux Blanc 2007), and two reds, Blason d'Aussieres AOC Corbieres 2006, and Amancaya Cabernet Sauvignon/Malbec 2007. After the seminar I got a glass of Hill Family Merlot (Napa Valley) to sip while we strolled around the park and watched the entertainers. We saw celebrity chef Cat Cora doing a cooking demonstration in Sunshine Plaza. The more time I spend at DCA, the more I like this park, particularly the Golden State and Hollywood Pictures Backlot areas. With all the changes planned, DCA should be even better in the next few years.

We had dinner reservations at the Blue Bayou Restaurant in New Orleans Square, so after a break in our room, we walked through Downtown Disney and into Disneyland. The Blue Bayou overlooks part of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride (which unfortunately, has not been running so far this trip) and simulates an outdoor, lantern-lit patio. We both ordered the Jambalaya, which was good and spicy. We shared a sampler plate of three creme brulees for dessert (good, but SO sweet and rich). After dinner we rode the Haunted Mansion, watched the Swing Dance Party for a while, and browsed the shops on Main Street until it was time to stake out a spot in the middle of the street for the "Remember...Dreams Come True" fireworks - a great show highlighting many of the attractions in the park.

Tomorrow is our last day at Disneyland. We'll probably spend some time in both parks and we've also signed up for the "Art of the Craft" tour of the Grand Californian.

Click here for more photos.

California Adventure

What I love about staying at the Grand Californian is its proximity to so many places. We have our own entrance into Disney's California Adventure (DCA), we can walk right into Downtown Disney and take the monorail into Disneyland, or, if we prefer, it's an easy walk, and we are close to the other Disneyland resort hotels, Paradise Pier and the Disneyland Hotel.


We spent the early part of today at DCA, starting in the Paradise Pier section and making a counter-clockwise circuit of the park. There is a lot of construction going on right now as they build an area for a new "nighttime spectacular" - World of Color - that looks like it will be like a cross between IllumiNations and Fantasmic.

There is a long range plan to transform DCA into a more Disney-esque park. There is even an exhibit in the Blue Sky Cellar, where you can see a preview of some of the plans for the future. They have already changed the Sunwheel into Mickey's Fun Wheel, with a giant Mickey head replacing the central sun and given it a red and yellow color scheme, and Games of the Boardwalk, Disney's version of carnival games, have opened. We rode a couple of the tamer Paradise Pier rides, Mulholland Madness and Jumpin' Jellyfish, and then joined the queue for Toy Story Midway Mania. This interactive ride-through virtual arcade is really fun. Mr. Potato Head greets riders as they enter the queue and today he noticed me. Commenting on the sunglasses I had on top of my head, he said, "That woman's hair must be famous, it's wearing sunglasses."

After that we left the hustle-bustle of the Pier behind and strolled through the much more laid-back Golden State area. The Food and Wine Festival is in progress and there are places to participate in Wine or Beer "Walks" where you can sample a variety of these, and there are special Festival items on most menus. We checked out the offerings in the Pacific Wharf area, and decided on table service at the Wine Country Trattoria. We had a nice quiet meal there overlooking the wharf.

After lunch we wandered through "a bug's land" and Flick's Fun Fair just to see what they were like - and they're very cute. There are some very pretty flower gardens in this area too. Then we went over to Hollywood Pictures Backlot to check out the Disney Animation building, where we watched the zoetrope in the Character Close-Up room, had our voices (singing Hi Ho, Hi Ho) stolen by Ursula in the Sorcerer's Workshop, and were amused, as usual, by Crush in Turtle Talk. There was a chef's demo going on in Sunshine Plaza, but it was full and in progress, so we didn't stop. I picked up a Food and Wine Festival t-shirt and then we decided to go see Aladdin again before heading back to the hotel.

We have adopted the Hearthstone Lounge at "The Grand" as our place to relax, and have a light meal or snacks. We picked up a cafe au lait and a latte there for a mid-afternoon break in our room. We'll go back to Disneyland later tonight for the fireworks. The park is open until midnight, so I'll probably include my comments about that in tomorrow's post. I have added all of today's photos so far to Flickr.

A Walk in Walt's Footsteps Tour

Today we participated in a private guided tour through Disneyland with 3 other couples. A Walk in Walt's Footsteps is full of facts and trivia about the creation of Disneyland, including recordings of Walt's comments about the building of the park. We were given a peek into the lobby of the exclusive members-only Club 33 (where Gerri and I had dinner during the ALA conference last June), lunch, and a collectible pin. We visited several attractions, among them, the Jungle Cruise and the Tiki Room, and heard about several others, like it's a small world and the Matterhorn. Did you know that then-vice president Richard Nixon participated in the opening of that ride?

The tour began before the park was open, so we had Adventureland and Frontierland to ourselves before anyone else was allowed in. These areas were deserted except for a few cast members.

Having grown up hearing Walt Disney talk about his plans for Disneyland on his TV program every Sunday night, I was a little nostalgic learning how the dreams of this talented and creative man came to fruition.

After our tour and lunch with the rest of our group, we walked over to California Adventure to see Aladdin. This 45-minute show, in its own theatre built especially for this production, is full of costumes, puppets, amazing special effects, great singing and dancing, and lots of humor, most notably from the genie. We went on a couple of other rides in DCA before leaving the park for a break. Later, we returned to Disneyland to see the new parade, Celebrate! A Street Party, followed by a few more rides until the park closed.

We had planned to have something to eat at the bar in the Disneyland hotel, but after walking over there, we found out it was closing time, so we returned to the Grand Californian's Hearthstone Lounge where we had some good pub grub.

We're going to take it slow and easy tomorrow because the time difference between the two coasts has caught up with us.

Don't forget to check out all our photos on Flickr.

Celebrating in Disneyland

We're at Disneyland in California to celebrate our birthdays. Rick's is today, mine (a new decade) is in August. Since the big Disney park theme right now is Celebrate Today! we figured, what better place to do it?

Our flight got us here in time to spend a few hours in Disneyland, so we got Rick his birthday button and went inside to wander around a little. Crowds are very light so we had no problem getting right onto any rides we wanted. When we got hungry we decided to try out the new Celebration Roundup and Barbecue at Big Thunder Ranch in Frontierland. We had our photos taken with Jesse (Woody's girlfriend from Toy Story) and were entertained by Woody, a cowgirl singer, and a honky-tonk piano player while we waited for our food. It was pretty good - the usual barbecue fare - ribs, chicken, cornbread, beans, cole slaw - and for dessert, cupcakes made to look like ice cream cones, brought out in this big colorful metal ribbony-looking contraption (see photo above). Even though the show is geared toward kids, it was something new to see and we enjoyed it, although I doubt we would bother to go back again.

We're staying at the Grand Californian this trip. Our room looks into a tree-filled courtyard that the monorail runs through. We're also right adjacent to Downtown Disney. Our balcony is just above and to the right of the World of Disney sign in the photo above. This resort is decorated in arts and crafts style right down to the bedspreads and light fixtures. It's a luxurious, but very comfortable and relaxed place, with a tuxedoed pianist playing in the lobby throughout the afternoon and evening and always a fire burning in the giant fireplace. After our time in the park we had a drink in the Hearthstone Lounge before calling it a night.

These are just a few photos from today. The rest are on Flickr. I'll update them, and this blog, daily for the rest of the trip.

Day 7: End of Our Anaheim Fun

See all our Fun in Anaheim photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/msla/sets/72157605829097639/

Sandy and Valerie have departed - Sandy for a week of sightseeing in California with her daughter and Valerie home to get ready to go to Maine. So it was just three of us today.

After we got our blogging done, Gerri, Linda and I went over to Downtown Disney for lunch and some shopping. I really like the California version of Downtown Disney. It seems much more adult-oriented than the one in Florida and I like the layout better. We were there during the evening a couple of times and it's nice and relaxing strolling around listening to the live musicians. Today we had lunch at the La Brea Bakery Cafe. We each had a salad and a cold drink. Then we went to World of Disney and all of us parted with more than a few dollars.

After storing our loot in a locker at Disney's California Adventure, we headed straight to Soarin' Over California for FastPasses. We planned to see the last performance of the day of the Aladdin stage show later, but it turned out our FastPasses conflicted with that. We decided to get in the standby line and, although the sign showed a 30-minute wait, were on the ride in about 15 minutes. Coming out of the Soarin', we gave away our unneeded FastPasses and beelined it over to the Aladdin queue - pausing briefly while the Pixar Play Parade passed by - only to find out that Tuesday is Aladdin's day off. Bummer!

Undaunted, we perused our park map and noted what we hadn't yet seen the 3-D movie, It's Tough to Be a Bug. So we walked over to "a bug's land" and did that attraction before heading to Paradise Pier. We weren't about to ride the thrill rides there, but a new attraction opened just days before we arrived - Toy Story Midway Mania. A giant audio-animatronic Mr. Potato Head tells you outside the ride that "It's a ride that's a game. It's a game that's a ride." Riding along wearing 3D glasses, you use a pull-string launcher to send virtual eggs, darts, hoops and other projectiles at 3D targets representing various carnival games. Your score is recorded on an LCD screen in your car. At the end, you learn how close you came to the all time highs for the day and month. None of us came even close, but we had a good time. The queue was long and it took about 45 minutes to get on the ride, but it was well worth the wait. Who knows if we'll ever get back here, after all!

There are two places to eat at Pacific Wharf - the Cocina Cucamonga Mexican Grill and the Pacific Wharf Cafe. We chose Mexican - burritos or tacos, and I had a frozen Margarita from Rita's Baja Blenders. Thus fortified, we found spots to wait for Disney's Electrical Parade, the precursor to the SpectroMagic parade at Disney World. Very cute and a fitting finale to a wonderful week in Anaheim.

Day 6: One last fling

It is 1pm. The conference has ended! We are sitting next to the pool at the Candy Cane Inn, updating our blogs.

The morning started with Khaled Hosseini and ended with Diahann Carroll, with some time to browse the exhibit hall in between. All that is left to do now is use up the last day on our Park Hopper passes, so we will soon be leaving for the parks for our last day of play before returning home in the morning.

Anaheim has been the ideal location (from this Disney parks fan's point of view) for an ALA conference. Our hotel is equidistant from both the convention center and the parks - and we have taken full advantage of that! For example, last night after all our conference events ended, we left for Disneyland aroung 9:30pm and once again closed the park at midnight. We rode all the rides in Fantasyland with minimal waits and we weren't surrounded by strollers!


Photo above: Valerie, Linda and Gerri on the Carousel.

We have all been functioning on very few hours sleep each night, but what the heck - sleep is highly overrated and there will be plenty of time for that on the plane. I think we'll go to California Adventure, at least to start out with - and there are a still few things to buy in Downtown Disney. It's a safe bet that we will wring out every last bit of fun before Disneyland closes at midnight tonight.

See all our Fun in Anaheim photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/msla/sets/72157605829097639/

Day 5: Club 33

Gerri and I had an amazing night at the private and very exclusive Club 33 in Disneyland. Here are the photos, and you can read about it on the MSLA Anaheim en Mass blog. What a night!


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Day 4: The Bash

We didn't spend a lot of time in Disneyland today, as it was a very full conference day. If you're following Anaheim en Mass, you'll see that all of us are deep into our conference activities now.

Tonight was the ProQuest Scholarship Bash. This is a regular event at ALA Annual to raise money for college scholarships for aspiring librarians and it is traditionally held at a fabulous local venue - Universal Studios in Orlando, the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago - and of course Disneyland here in Anaheim.

Before the Bash, Gerri and I met our ProQuest friend Donna for cocktails at her hotel and she gave us an invitation to a reception at the Uva Bar at Catal, a restaurant in Downtown Disney. We shared a table with a couple of California librarians and enjoyed some fancy hors d'oeuvres before connecting up with Valerie and Linda to go into Disneyland.

We got there in time to blast off "to infinity and beyond" to try and save the universe from the Evil Emperor Zurg on Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlasters. Then it was time to make our way over to the Coca Cola corner to meet Stephanie, a public library director from New Jersey who arranged a Disney fan meet. We enjoyed chatting with Stephanie and her Aunt Marie before the fireworks, which marked the end of our night.

See all our Fun in Anaheim photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/msla/sets/72157605829097639/

Day 3 continued: Fireworks and a Runaway Train

Really - Big Thunder Mountain is a very tame coaster - although Sandy might tell you differently...but I think she's still speaking to me nevertheless....

After the Holiday House cocktail party, we went back to Disneyland to try and snag a good spot for the Remember...Dreams Come True fireworks. We got separated in the crowd and Linda circled the hub about four times looking for Sandy and me, but eventually we reconnected a little closer to the Castle than we were last night - at least close enough to get a few decent fireworks photos.

Having just barely survived the runaway train ride on Big Thunder Mountain, we looped around through Fantasyland, walking through the Castle from the back side and on to the Rivers of America to watch Fanstasmic. This is staged quite differently from the Florida version - you have to stand on the walkways instead of sitting in an amphitheater, but the projections on the water screens and all the pyrotechnics are still impressive.

We waited for the crowds to thin out somewhat before leaving the park for bed. Tomorrow we all have 8am meetings, so we'll be up and out early for a full day of conference activities and the official opening of ALA Annual.

See all our Fun in Anaheim photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/msla/sets/72157605829097639/

Day 2 in SoCal

The time difference between the east and west coast worked in our favor. We're up bright and early with time to exercise and have a light breakfast before heading over to the conference center to pick up our badges, bags, and other conference materials.

We spent the rest of the day at Disney's California Adventure, mostly in the Hollywood Pictures Backlot area, where first we rode Monsters, Inc, Mike & Sulley to the Rescue! and Muppet*Vision 3D. We had a quick lunch at Award Wieners, followed by Disney's Aladdin - A Musical Spectacular. It was more than spectacular! From flying carpets to a giant elephant coming down the aisle, beautiful sets and costumes, great singing and dancing, and dazzling special effects. It took my breath away.

Around 4pm, while the others went to see Turtle Talk with Crush, I walked over to Disneyland and got us all FastPasses for Indiana Jones ride. While walking through Main Street, I got to see parts of the Parade of Dreams again, from a closer vantage point. It didn't take too long to get our FastPasses, which were for 10pm - an indication that the park was extremely busy today.

Back at California Adventure, we all rode Soarin' Over California - the ride that was later replicated at Walt Disney World. Everyone loved it. Then we went over to Paradise Pier and looked at all the carnival rides and games. Linda and I rode the Sun Wheel with a couple of very nervous librarians from California. We caught part of Pixar Play Parade on the way out of the park and everyone took our last ride of the day on the Golden Zephyr.

Then is was over to Downtown Disney for dinner at the Italian restaurant Naples. While we waited for our table we were entertained by an excellent (and extremely handsome) flamenco guitarist, Emilio, and his partner. Sandy's daughter and her friend who are here on vacation joined us. Our meal was really great and it was a nice break after being out in the sun with all the noise and activity all day.

Afterward dinner, we went to Disneyland to watch the Remember...Dreams Come True fireworks (fabulous) and ride Indy. This was another resounding success. We all alternately screamed and laughed throughout the ride. What a great day acting like kids, laughing and playing together in the sun.

See all our Fun in Anaheim photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/msla/sets/72157605829097639/

Day 1 in Anaheim

After a long, but uneventful flight across the country, we arrived in Anaheim at 10:30am Pacific time, checked in at the Candy Cane Inn, dropped off our luggage, and headed for Downtown Disney for lunch at the House of Blues. Then we made our first foray into Disneyland.

Photo above: Linda, Valerie, Sandy and Gerri take a break while waiting for the Parade of Dreams to begin.

It was a beautiful day in Anaheim and the crowds were fairly light in the park. We took in several attractions, listened to the All-American College Band and watched the Parade of Dreams before fatigue and the time difference caught up with us.

We walked over to the the new and deserted-looking Anaheim Gardenwalk and had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. Back at the Candy Cane, we got our luggage and quickly settled in before crashing into bed.

See all our Fun in Anaheim photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/msla/sets/72157605829097639/

Anaheim en Mass.

I'll be posting the more frivilous aspects of the trip to Anaheim here on kay-lo's world. With my colleagues from MSLA, I'll also be blogging the ALA conference on the new blog we created for that purpose, Anaheim en Mass. [Get it?] I hope you'll follow both!

Club 33

Oh - my - goodness!

I got a call the other day from our local rep at Disney Educational Productions inviting me to a very private dinner (with only 8 other school librarians and their guests) at the very exclusive and legendary Club 33 in Disneyland!

My colleague Gerri will join me Sunday night, June 29th, when we will be admitted to a place very few Disneyland visitors ever get to see, or even know about. I have heard that the food and service are second to none. This will be the highlight of my trip to ALA in Anaheim, without a doubt!

Read about Club 33

Back to Anaheim...

...this time for the Annual Conference and Exhibition of the American Library Association at the Anaheim Convention Center - right next door to the Disneyland Resort!

What could be a better combination for a Disney-loving librarian? I'll be traveling with four fun colleagues/friends from the Massachusetts School Library Association's executive board - Sandy, Gerri, Valerie and Linda. We'll be there to listen, work, think, plan and learn, but unless you're a librarian too, you have no idea how much fun can be had at these huge national conferences (almost 30,000 of our kind will be there)!

In addition to the usual conference presentations and exhibits in a hall the size of a small city, speeches by famous personalities, and authors signing and reading from their books, there will be meals hosted by vendors in classy restaurants, receptions, happy hours, and "meet and greets" galore - all with free food and drink, of course! And this year, because of its proximity, the big party - the Scholarship Bash - will take place at Disneyland!

During our 7 days in Anaheim, we will try and maintain our decorum, avoid sore feet, total exhaustion, overindulging in food and drink, and public faux pas as we cram as many meetings, speakers, exhibits, workshop sessions, dinners, tours, parties - and of course, forays into Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure - as we possibly can.

Our plans are just about set, our Google calendars are filling up, we've printed lots of extra business cards, and we are making sure we leave enough room in our suitcases with our librarian-chic outfits, funky jewelry, and comfy sandals for a couple of extra bags to carry home all the swag we will collect in the exhibit hall.

More of the exciting adventures of the MSLA Five coming soon, here in kay-lo's world!

Final Thoughts on Our Phoenix & SoCal Vacation

We really covered a lot of ground on this trip from Phoenix to Anaheim and enjoyed every bit of it.

The Arizona Biltmore and Spa is probably the most luxurious hotel we have ever stayed at - and one of the most expensive, even with the special rate we got for the conference. It was fun to pretend to be rich and famous for a little while and mr. lo got a kick out of using the spa.

We'd stay at La Jolla Shores again if we ever find ourselves in that area. Nothing can beat the view of the beach and the climate really is heavenly. San Diego is a beautiful city with lots of diversity. We only scratched the surface of what there is to see there.

The Howard Johnson's Plaza Hotel in Anaheim actually had the nicest, most spacious, and best laid-out rooms of all three resorts and was by far the best value. Three nights there cost less than one at the Biltmore or La Jolla Shores, so with its proximity to DLR, I would be happy to stay there again and highly recommend it.

I finally had my lifelong wish of visiting Disneyland fulfilled and it was as wonderful as I had dreamed. Many people comment that its smallness and urban location is a disappointment after seeing Disney World, but I don't agree. Once inside the gates of Disneyland, I was never aware of the outside world and the compactness made it easier to get from one land to another. They certainly have packed a lot into that limited space. I liked New Orleans Square the best because it is totally different from anything at Disney World's Magic Kingdom and it also has the best restaurants.

California Adventure was a bonus, although I have to admit that if it wasn't right next to Disneyland, I don't think I'd go out of my way to go there. Not being into thrill rides, it doesn't have much to draw me. Our favorites at DLR were all in Disneyland: the Haunted Mansion Holiday, Pirates of the Caribbean, "it's a small world" holiday, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage, and Indiana Jones. And - of course - my chance to sing with the Disneyland Band was an experience that will stay with me always.

This was most likely a one-time trip for us. Although we really enjoyed Disneyland, mr. lo and I agree that Walt Disney World is the place that calls us back. Because there are so many more options there, you can always escape a crowded location and find something equally enjoyable to do elsewhere. Epcot is what really draws us to WDW. We always stay in one of the Epcot resorts so that we can wander in and out whenever we want. Evenings strolling around the lagoon before Illuminations are the best part of a WDW vacation for us. We like to be able to dip in and out of the other parks, but we spend most of our time in Epcot. So if we find ourselves in the vicinity of Disneyland again, I'm sure we'll stop in, but I doubt it will be our destination for future trips.

Thanks to all for reading! Don't forget, all the photos from this trip are on Flickr! I hope you'll check in here from time to time to see what I'm up to next. I have reset my Disney countdown clock for our next trip to WDW in just 140 days - April 27-May 3, 2008

Our Last Day at DLR

When we woke up this morning, it was raining lightly, but by the time we left for Disneyland, the sky was clearing and the predicted monsoons never materialized until we arrived at the airport this afternoon.

The park was very empty – probably the forecast kept many people away – and since it opened so early today, we had enough time to do all we wanted to do before we had to leave. We went directly to Nemo when the gates opened. There was a reported 20-minute wait that turned out to be more like a half-hour, but we were in line behind a really nice couple from California who struck up a conversation. They are annual pass holders and come to Disneyland every time the wife, who is recovering from Pancreatic cancer, visits her doctor in Los Angeles. If she has a good check-up, they come to Disneyland to celebrate. This time, 3 years out, her doctor says she is doing fine and won’t have to return for more check-ups. So now, happily, they need another excuse to come to the park. What a pleasant way to pass the time in line, talking to such nice, hope-filled people!

The Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is, in my opinion, the best-engineered, designed and themed of all the Disney rides, either here or in Orlando. Along with that, the storyline is understandable – not rushed to the point of incomprehensibility as so many of the old “dark” rides in Fantasyland are. We were so glad to finally be able to experience this ride without having to wait for hours in line and I was able to get some really cool underwater photos from the sub. (See Flickr for more.)

We just had to return to “it’s a small world” holiday after that. Who’d have thought that we would both be so enchanted with this ride? The interweaving of Christmas songs with the traditional “It’s a Small World” is delightful, as are all the costumes and other holiday decorations. This is such a cute rendition of another of Walt’s originals.

Of course, we had to do Haunted Mansion Holiday one last time and it still held up after repeated viewings. There is so much detail to this ride that you really do have to repeat it many times in order to catch everything.

It was great strolling around this morning without having to dodge masses of people and strollers. A great end to a fabulous trip!

The Rest of the Day

This was an Early Entry day at Disneyland (when Disney resort guests and others holding 3- or more-day passes can get in an hour before the park's official opening time), so we were there, lined up and ready to go in at 9 a.m. with a ton of other people. Our plan was to get a Fast Pass for Indiana Jones Adventure, but we soon learned that this is not one of the rides open during Early Entry, so we beelined it over to Fantasyland and rode the Matterhorn instead. mr. lo was surprised to find out that this isn't the same as the Expedition Everest ride at Walt Disney World, but he enjoyed this vintage Disney ride nevertheless. We thought we'd try to get on the new Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage next, but the wait time was already at 75 minutes, so we passed and went on "it's a small world" holiday instead. This ride is delightful. Way better than the Magic Kingdom version, especially in this holiday version.

Now it was time for the park to open to regular entry guests, so we hightailed it over to Indiana Jones again, only to find this time that the ride was down, so we went on Haunted Mansion Holiday again. mr. lo says we have to ride this one every time we're in the park and I'm fine with that. It really is a great ride.

We decided it was time for breakfast, so we stopped at the Café Orleans where I had the famous and decedent Monte Cristo French Toast and mr. lo had scrambled eggs. A pirate came by and chatted for a while and a Dixieland jazz band marched by and beaded mr. lo. We rode Pirates of the Caribbean - today there was hardly anyone in line - and then started to head to California Adventure. This time when we passed Indiana Jones, it was finally running, so we got in line - it took about 20 minutes - and we finally got our chance to experience this ride, which is unique to Disneyland. The theming is as great as we'd heard and we both enjoyed it.

It was at this point, as we were leaving for California Adventure, that I had my impromptu gig with the Disneyland Band. When I was done signing autographs [not], we were finally able to leave Disneyland for our first look at California Adventure.

This shiny new park has lots of thrill rides, a great layout, and fantastic theming. There are four "lands" - Hollywood Pictures Backlot, "a bug's land", Paradise Pier, and Golden State. We briefly checked out the Hollywood area, but decided to move on to Paradise Pier, where the rides are all different from those at Walt Disney World. We watched the coasters, California Screamin' and Mulholland Madness, but decided that they, along with the Orange Stinger and Jumpin' Jellyfish, were a little too "thrilling" for us. We did ride the giant Sun Wheel, a Ferris wheel with cars that slide along a rail and swing back and forth as you go around. You can see all over the park from the heights of this ride and it isn't nearly as scary as it looks. We walked through the rest of Paradise Pier and into the Golden State, where we watched the rafters on the Grizzly River Run get drenched. We watched the film Golden Dreams, featuring Whoopi Goldberg.

We had to leave the park at this point to go back to the hotel and print out our boarding passes for our flight home tomorrow, but we returned to Disneyland later to see "it's a small world" holiday lit up and the "icing" of the Castle. After that we had had enough of the crowds, so we called it a night. Tomorrow Disneyland opens at 8 a.m. and we plan to be there to try and finally ride Nemo and get in our last rides on our favorites before leaving for the airport.