BE's Never Ending TR -- That kind of ... Ended? Or did it?

[WDWJonasGirl]

Loved the last update.

 

[Belle Ella]

Luckily the rest of the day trip I shouldn't have any lapses in memory!! Only about 3 more posts and this one will be in the books

 

[JH87]

You know, I cannot figure MouseWait out to save my life. At leas the lounge/forum thing. It's too complicated for me. Well, no, that's not the right word. I need more separation and it's just too clomped together for it to make sense in my head, if you can understand what I mean. I need real forums and sub-forums like we get on the DIS. But it's awesome when you can find something new like that. I guess that's what I have you for. But I still mainly want to see Honest John - er - Sir John Worthington Foulfellow.

MouseWait's Lounge was super complicated and annoying for me at first too. But after playing around with it I finally got used to the way it was set up. It's pretty cool I like it very much

I am with you on the new DCA entrance. Gorgeous!! And Buena Vista St is gonna be amazing and I can not wait!! I think I will have to force myself to not visit at all during summer and wait until late Sept again when crowd levels have died down. I don't think viewing it jam packed full of people will look quite as breathtaking as it would with just a few guests there. But DL might be pretty empty during DCA's re-opening after the remodel. And an empty DL sounds great to me!

Great update as usual. I know what you mean about the Little Mermaid ride....although I love every second of it and Ariel is my favorite princess, the one thing I thought was off was after the 'Kiss the Girl' scene (my favorite in the ride...so cute how they almost kiss and pull away. awwww) they skip out on the whole reason why Ursula took Ariel's voice.
I also LOVE the Ursula scene too! She looks so real it's amazing! Even though she's not real to begin with, you get what I mean.

 

[Belle Ella]

Jillian, I know of at least another DIS'er who uses MouseWait as well. Maybe one day I'll give it another go but so far I'm gosh darn content with the DIS.

OK, settling in to get at least one more update in today, if not to finish this sucker up!!

 

[Belle Ella]

So there we were, in New Orleans Square, just deciding the meal plan for the afternoon. We probably could have found something suitable in Disneyland to eat, but my mother was ready for a small afternoon break and I desperately needed to charge my phone if I was going to keep the check-ins coming (and considering how forgetful I am they come in pretty handy when writing a TR) so heading back to the hotel for grub was an ideal solution. Rather than walk out of the Park though, we decided to take the train and so we hopped on at the NOS station and continued our way around Disneyland. And I must be something special because I rode the train backwards! No really, somehow while checking in on Gowalla Primeval World came before the Grand Canyon Diorama. I also tried (and repeatedly failed) to get a photo of my mother and I.

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We stopped by the HOJO first so I could plug in my phone and let it charge while we were eating before making our way across the street to Mimi's Cafe, one of my favorite little restaurants that I don't go to nearly enough. Could I tell you what I ate? No, of course not. Remember, I'm not a foodie. But whatever it was, it was delicious and it hit the spot. Then it was back to the HOJO where, after a quick change of clothes, Meredith and I said goodbye to my mother for a little while so she could nap. We would meet back up with her when she was ready to go back to Disneyland. Our first stop when we were back at Disneyland was something my mother had no desire to see again so we had to take advantage while we could: The Enchanted Tiki Room. There was a show just about to start but since we also wanted to get our Dole Whips (well, the float in my case), and because that line can get ridiculous, we had to wait around for the second show. The good news was that we managed to get our Dole Whips in time without having to wait for yet another show. Some more good news was that we got to have some fun taking silly photos. And the even better news was that we FOUND Maynard! I've seen crazy-awesome Maynard once before at Disneyland, but it was while I was walking by and since I'd heard he's been spotted at the Tiki Room I've always hoped to see him there. Now I finally have. And my expectations were not high and I was dying of laughter long before he got the chance to wake up Jose, thanks to Tiki-Maynard.

for someone who hates feet i have the odd tendency to take photos of mine


we created a new, mismatched person

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Next up, after cutting through the Hub and into Tomorrowland, was yet another adventure on Space Mountain. It's easily starting to become my most frequented ride at Dsienyland. I'm telling you, I have a lot of lost time to make up for. All those years of being terrified of it and all that No silly posing this time. For starters, I am not good at coming up with silly things to do so I just smiled like a goober and this is the result:

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Next up we popped back over to Adventureland so we could squeeze in Indiana Jones. Let's just say it wasn't the best experience! We had tried to get on Indy a few times throughout the day so far, and not with much luck. Once again the ride that is perpetually closed was closed again, and again, and again. Oh, it was down yet again for good measure. We finally wised up a little bit and started to check MouseWait instead of finding out for ourselves but then it was a question of us really wanting to try standby because for the first time in my experience the Single Rider Line was about an hour long. Yeah, that wasn't going to happen. But at least we were warned and so we kept deciding to try again later. Well, now it was later. The SRL wasn't an hour anymore but it certainly wasn't a short wait by any means. Still, it was better than the standby option, or even grabbing Fast Passes. And for the second time this weekend I got serenaded by a group of strangers singing (loudly) Happy Birthday. Has this become a new trend that I have somehow missed the memo on? And of course once the large group started, others who were standing around started singing as well. I'm not that big on being the center of attention, I swear!

When we finally got off Indy I had a couple of texts and a voicemail from my mother who was already waiting for us at the Esplanade. Oops. Indy may not have been that long of a wait but it had been long enough. So Meredith and I hurried out to meet her. We all wanted to make our rounds over at DCA again before coming back to Disneyland for the evening and trying to snag a good spot to watch the fireworks. We found her quickly enough and soon we were once again being ushered into DCA and being reminded to "Keep to the LEFT, keep to the LEFT!" and I started catching bubbles from some little bubble gun that every CM seemed to have. Sometimes I think I act more like my cat than a person, but I am still 6 at heart (or something like that).

Our first stop at DCA this time around was to grab FP's for Soarin' over California so my mom could give that a try on her last Park day. I'm sure she'd been on it before but we hadn't been to Disneyland as a family since our stay at the Grand Californian in 2003 so I doubt she remembered much of it. Then we were moving back towards Tower of Terror with our FP's in hand so we could get that in for a second time that day - a new record for me! I hardly thought I could handle it twice in one trip, let alone a few mere hours apart. But I did it, and I was almost able to do it without holding on. Almost. Maybe next time.

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Now, I remember talking with my mother before the ride started about the first time I had ever been on the ride, and how Tina had had to walk me through the drop sequence so I could mentally prepare myself. Well, for some reason I do not remember the drop sequence that was about to follow being the same one that I was mentally prepared for! It felt different and I was definitely more terrified the second time around than I had been earlier in the day. Gosh-darnit, WDW is supposed to be the unpredictable one. And I was left wondering if I'd just had a brain fart or if the DCA version did indeed have a different drop sequence. But of course, my mind must have been playing tricks on me because to the best of my knowledge that is very much not the case. But it doesn't change the fact that it felt very different to me after we came to a stop and were leaving the Hollwood Tower Hotel.

Afterward we started to make our way back toward Paradise Pier, skipping The Little Mermaid for a second ride that day and just went straight back to Screamin'. Once again, I was going for a second round in one day on a ride I had thought I could only handle once a trip. I really am a big girl now, huh? And considering my inability to talk for days afterward, I definitely believed it.

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As I told everyone at work over the following week, "I left my voice at the Hollywood Tower Hotel!"

Our third and final stop at DCA this time around was back at Sorain' were it was just time for us to use our FP's. I was right and my mother really didn't remember anything about the ride which was pretty fun. We had a good talk with some people in front of us in the line who had run in the Half Marathon that morning which helped pass the time. Soarin' can be a pretty darn slow mover. We did ask the CM at the loading area if we could get the 1st row in Gate B and we did. It was the first time I would get to be center screen and without anyone's feet dangling in my view. I was pretty excited about that. The ride was just how I remembered it and I loved pointing out to my mother the portion that was filmed up in Humboltd, where my sister went to school last year. All in all, a good end to our time in DCA.

Hopefully when all construction is said and done over there I can devote a little bit more of myself to it. But for now it was definitely time to hightail it back to Disneyland and try and find a spot for the fireworks with a good view of the Castle, something I haven't done in years.

 

[smile4stamps]

I'm 12 at heart! When I went to WDW in 2009 I called my mom while waiting for our first character breakfast. She said I sounded like I was 12 which is the age when I first went to WDW!

I never think to use Mousewait to check times out either! The 1-hr single rider line for Indy sounds familiar though as I will be getting to something similar soon in my TR!

 

[Belle Ella]

We're just really on the same page a lot, huh?

 

[smile4stamps]

We're just really on the same page a lot, huh?

Yeah! I've noticed that a lot!!

I was going to comment on one more thing in your last post but I couldn't remember what it was! Now I remember.

I am SO a foodie!! I love Food... i.e. the reason I want to go to the Food & Wine Festival at WDW so bad!

 

[Belle Ella]

We knew that if we wanted a good view for the fireworks we'd be camping out pretty early. It was already past 6 by the time we made it down Main Street and reached the Hub and there were plenty of people already staking their spots.I knew that my mom was sore and so we crossed our fingers that we could find a bench to sit on while we wait so she wouldn't have to sit on the curb or anything (although we all know CM's make you stand up for the actual show). Thankfully we managed to snag an entire bench for the three of us, near the Hub and the Partners Statue. It was as good of a view as we were going to get and still have a bench to sit on so we were very happy. Besides, we were going to watch the fireworks and that was all that mattered. Just so we didn't lose our real estate we each took turns going off to find food. I grabbed some chili bread bowls for my mother and I from Coke Corner (I also used the moment to change into some jeans and swap my shorts back with our locker) and when I got back Meredith went off to find what it was that she wanted and so began our wait for the fireworks to begin. It was interesting to watch as people started to crowd around as showtime drew nearer and nearer. Unfortunately, the sourpusses were starting to arrive in the throng of people as well. Unfortunately we had two of the biggest sourpusses I have ever had to listen to for an hour directly behind us.

Now, I almost feel bad for how much they annoyed me. It was a somewhat elderly couple and the wife was in an ECV and to the extent of my knowledge there is no designated handicapped viewing are for the fireworks so at the beginning I could understand their frustration over trying to find a spot for the fireworks (and they were loudly sniping about it for the better part of 45 minutes). I didn't even want to know what they would have to say when they realized CM's would make everyone in the area stand up. It wasn't long after they first arrived that they both started acting like total jerks, sniping off rude comments to pretty much everyone in the area. The husband just came off like a guy who wanted to pick a fight with someone and he was doing his best to do so. I'm sorry but being handicapped or whatever your issue is because it's not my place to speculate does not give you the right to talk to people the way that they were. I'm a pretty tolerant person normally but these two were getting on my very last nerve and I was at the point I didn't want them to have even close to a good experience. Hopefully that can give you an idea of just how bad the situation was getting.

After yelling at a little kid who accidentally hit the ECV a tiny bit when he fell over (because a simple comment or warning to please be careful around you was out of the question) and subsequent sniping at the kid's parents I'd had enough and I had to get away. I grabbed my camera and used some photography time to clear my head so I didn't turn into them and start yelling at people. It had been a while since I had gotten some good night shots, especially of the Castle, so I took my time to get a few that I was happy with for the time being. Well, at the time being it was more like 20 which of course only 2 survived the final edit at home. Oh, I also used the time to go run an errand for my mother, picking up the parasol she had ordered earlier in the day for her since I'm a quick mover.

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Taking photos was such a peaceful alternative that I almost wished I didn't have to go back to our bench! Of course the crowds were starting to get thicker so before taking a seat back at our bench I had to take a quick photo of the mass of people behind the Hub and down Main Street. You think maybe, just maybe, the Fireworks are pretty popular?

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Not long after I sat back down at our bench my mother learned a prime lesson in how valuable your real estate is when saving spots for the big nighttime shows. We had a whole bench for our group (myself, my mother and Meredith) and there wasn't that much extra space on the bench even if we were to squish together. Some woman came up to us at some point asking if there was space for her to sit down and my mother, being the eternal people pleaser that she can be when she wants to, said of course not realizing that the woman didn't just mean her, but her husband, a stroller, and two more kids. Uh ... how on Earth can you actually expect someone to be cool with squeezing that many people into a tight space? It's not like there was a lot of room around our bench. It didn't take long for my happy mother to get very unhappy, especially with Mr. and Mrs. Snipe still going off one everyone behind us. Especially now with a stroller on top of the bench and the people at the bench obstructing their view (did they forget we were there hours before them?) and I was once again left wondering what would happen when the CM's asked everyone seated to stand up for the fireworks.

It wasn't long before we had our answer: they kept screaming at the top of their lungs: SIT DOWN!.

Not going to happen, sorry. And I didn't even feel sorry for them at this point because they had spent over an hour being the most obnoxious people I have ever had to listen to in my life. And considering we weren't in the wrong in any way shape or form (we had staked out or spot early for a reason and we were following directions by the CM) I was going to relish the moment. Call me petty if you want, but if they had a bad experience it was their own fault. I knew that we sure were thankful for the standing room only rule at the moment. It helped ease up on the claustrophobia bit with the family that had somehow squeezed themselves in around us.

All I knew was that it was time for the fireworks and I was getting the share the moment with my mother! And that made the moment special regardless of what else was going on. She had never seen fireworks at Disneyland before and had no idea that Tinker Bell and Dumbo would be making flying appearances. And what could be more touching to have "Baby of Mine" play around you during a nighttime spectacular with a mother and daughter? I'm pretty sure I wasn't the only one between the who of us who let a few tears go.

I did still manage to get a few photos, and although I didn't take the time to edit them other than resizing I will still share them with you.

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I have to say, I'm becoming rather fond of Magical!

When the fireworks had ended we wanted to let the crowd disperse a little bit before we tried to move at all. Unfortunately that meant listening to Mr. and Mrs. Snipe try and get our attention with some very obnoxious "excuse me!'s which yes, we could hear despite the fact that we ignored you rude people!! I'm sure in their mind we were the horrible ones, but I digress. Soon enough we wouldn't have to listen to their negativity any longer. Thankfully I don't think they spoiled the fireworks for us. When we deemed it safe enough to move freely we walked up to the Castle and I was hoping my mother would be able to hold out long enough for the Fire Marshal to give the all clear so we could get a PhotoPass photo in front of Sleeping Beauty's Castle but she was pretty wiped out. It was kind of a bummer because we didn't really have any good photos of the two of us together, but Meredith did take a quick one for us that will have to do.

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There were still a few things I wanted to get done that night, but I was a little unsure about leaving my mother to walk back to the HOJO by herself again, but she insisted we enjoy as much more Park time as we liked, and so we did. For starters we had to go get ourselves some Churros, which had woefully been missing this entire weekend so far, where I got a little Disney magic thanks to a wonderful CM who gave me a free 'Birthday' Churro after discussing how unthinkable it would be to have a trip to Disneyland without a Churro. I couldn't say no to that! And while I can't remember if we did so before or after the Churro, we managed another ride on Space Mountain where our exhaustion was really starting to show. But we had to persevere!

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I think at that point we were planning on getting another ride in on Thunder, maybe catching a tiny little bit of Fantasmic all the while, but just our luck it was down!! But at least Fantasmic was going strong and so I had an absolute blast acting like the Spazette that I am dancing along to the music to the finale while we decided to go give Indy another try. I put a lot of gusto into it, if I do say so myself (and I do). And I kept on dancing to the finale all the way to Indy, our final ride of the day!!

I wish I could have held out a little while longer and really closed out the Park, but it was already 11 pm which I think was pretty darn respectable. I knew Meredith and I would be doing a few hours in the morning, but considering I also had the whole drive home to look forward to I really needed some sleep. As we left Disneyland for the night I had to stop in the Esplanade for one second to get a photo of the new DCA entrance at night before I completely forgot.

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And such was the end to our night of fun, and it was a pretty darn awesome night. That is, until I got back to the hotel and just before going to bed realized the big mistake I had made: I had never gone back to pick up my other change of clothes and sunglasses from the locker! Oops. There was nothing to be done for it now and I would just have to check Lost & Found before leaving the next day.

 

[Belle Ella]

Yeah! I've noticed that a lot!!

I was going to comment on one more thing in your last post but I couldn't remember what it was! Now I remember.

I am SO a foodie!! I love Food... i.e. the reason I want to go to the Food & Wine Festival at WDW so bad!

Yup, I remember this! For me, food is food and I don't give it much more thought than that. I'm an indecisive eater, sure, but not really picky. And I either love something or hate it and couldn't expand more on that if asked.

 

[Belle Ella]

It's a shame, but Monday had to roll around eventually. Bummer. What was an even bigger bummer was the fact that I had some serious problems sleeping the night before and I blame a really bad case of heartburn, go figure. I thing guesstimating that I had about 3 hours of sleep would be pushing it in my favor but I gave up looking at clocks at a certain point so who even knows. Luckily we didn't have a super early wake up time in order to get to Disneyland for opening at 8. I didn't think it was going to be a go-go-go kind of morning, not that I would have the energy for it anyway. But despite what felt like a lazy morning while getting ready to me I was still ready to go by 7 am and by 7:30 am Meredith and I were waiting to get in to Disneyland for Rope Drop. I made a quick pit stop over by the Guest Assistance window to the left of the entrance gates to see what time Lost & Found would open so I could hopefully get my shorts, sunglasses, and whatever else I had left in our locker the previous night back. But of course that wouldn't open until 8 and I would rather go straight in and get some rides done when everything opened and decided I would check on them on my way out for the trip.

What a sad thought that was, this trip would really be over in a few hours! It was best not to think about it.

I met back up with Meredith, first ones at our gate, and around 7:45 am they started scanning our tickets and unleashed us on Main Street and we made our way down to the rope that would hold us back from the rest of the Park. Just like I always do, I took the moment to take a few photos of the Castle in front of us, with nobody obstructing my view.

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Well, there was one somebody obstructing my view, but we'll let it slide. Mostly because he was the CM who got a very large group of people to sing a birthday song (not the birthday song, just a birthday song) in honor of everyone celebrating their birthday that day. You know, someone like Pluto Or maybe even someone like me seeing as this whole trip was an early birthday celebration (the 5K was just tossed in there for the fun of it all) and you'd better believe I was still wearing button ... er ... buttons, plural. In fact, after the rope was wound back up I even got to represent everyone celebrating their birthday and got to cross that threshold while the entire crowd waiting for the Park to open sang the short little ditty I had learned on The Jungle Cruise a few years ago: "This is a birthday song, it isn't very long!" This trip sure had a lot more birthday songs than I was used to!

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It wasn't long after the impromptu birthday celebration that it was finally 8 am and we were all unleashed on whichever Land we desired to go to first. For Meredith and I, this was the best opportunity we were going to have to get a few Fantasyland rides in and so that's where we headed first, with Peter Pan's Flight being our top priority. Then it was time to fly with Dumbo!

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Those were the two Fantasyland rides we had to do and by then the ever present Fantasyland crowds were already creeping their way in and nothing else was calling to us strongly enough to make us get in line again. Before we decided where to go next we did a little mini photo shoot with the backside of Sleeping Beauty Castle as our backdrop and I put my own spin on one of my favorite photos of Walt Disney walking through the Castle and mixed it up with the new statue of him and Mickey Mouse for DCA. Here is your final result:

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Sadly, it's also the last photo I have from the entire vacation! But there were still a few more things on my to-do list before I called it a day, although I was starting to feel my lack of sleep and I was even still feeling a little under the weather. But I kept on going. We fit in rides on Thunder and Jungle Cruise, and even a Mint Julep, before I was really starting to feel like I had to call it a day. At that point we wandered through the Emporium to do a little shopping of sorts and I ran into one of the Divas from the Scavenger Hunt Committee, Wendy (wendylady36). Little did I know at the time she was buying a few things for Halloween Exchange we were both taking part in. She had received her name early, in time for the trip, and it just so happened that she had me! Go figure. I really don't know the extent of my super-secret-ninja-skills, I guess.

Sadly, this was also when I had to say goodbye to Meredith and really bring this trip to a close. I wasn't feeling well at all and knew I wasn't going to last any longer if I wanted to make the drive home. It was Labor Day and traffic was going to be a given. And so goodbye we said, and I was so glad that she was able to come down for a short period of time! It had been a fun weekend all around. As I left the Park I did actually remember to stop by Lost & Found where I was indeed able to retrieve the items I had left in my locker the night before. I sure was glad of it, those were brand new shorts! I did also swing by World of Disney so I could make my final purchases and then I was on my way back to the HOJO to pack up our car and hit the road, and we were officially on I5 no later than 11:05 am.

At least I wouldn't have to wait too long before I would return!

 

[smile4stamps]

Congrats on getting to TR DONE!! Was that like the quickest one ever?!?

 

[Belle Ella]

Haha, yes! I don't think I've ever gotten one done without spending weeks procrastinating or simply editing photos without actually posting anything. This one took me less than a month! I blame the lack of photos. And the ones I used I did the quickest edit that I could, and it was mostly just resizing and not editing at all! I fully expect the next to take much, much longer.

Now here's to getting a brand new PTR up

 

[JH87]

Yay for another amazing TR! I always love your TRs.
Sorry to hear about the rude couple at fireworks. I think people like that are so selfish, do they not realize they might possibly be ruining the experience for others around them?? But you did get some amazing shots of the fireworks! And glad to hear they didn't completely ruin the show for you guys.

 

[smile4stamps]

Haha, yes! I don't think I've ever gotten one done without spending weeks procrastinating or simply editing photos without actually posting anything. This one took me less than a month! I blame the lack of photos. And the ones I used I did the quickest edit that I could, and it was mostly just resizing and not editing at all! I fully expect the next to take much, much longer.

Now here's to getting a brand new PTR up

I'll let you PTR for the both of us!! As I simply will not get there!!

 

[mommaU4]

Love this photo!

Great TR, Jess! Can't wait to meet you in February for our mint julep date.

 

[Belle Ella]

Yay for another amazing TR! I always love your TRs.
Sorry to hear about the rude couple at fireworks. I think people like that are so selfish, do they not realize they might possibly be ruining the experience for others around them?? But you did get some amazing shots of the fireworks! And glad to hear they didn't completely ruin the show for you guys.

Thanks Jillian! This was a fun one to right since I actually had some new experiences. And some people just really don't know how to think of anyone other than themselves. I know I have my moments, but if I ever act like they did towards others someone please slap me or something. It was completely inappropriate. Why some people think they can get away with acting in that manner is beyond my comprehension. But c'est la vie.

I'll let you PTR for the both of us!! As I simply will not get there!!

Sounds good to me! I'll work at it a few days and post it either Wednesday on my day off or Saturday before I go to work. Because then it's literally just me going to work, sleep, and then hitting the road!! Let me know if you have any photos you want me to include in it. By the way, the PPH reservation has officially been amended to include you.

 

[Belle Ella]

Love this photo!

Great TR, Jess! Can't wait to meet you in February for our mint julep date.

That's definitely one of my favorites. But I'm so nitpicky that all I can think is "I wish I hadn't chopped off the flags on the right". I'm just never happy I suppose.

At least February keeps getting closer and closer. It's almost October and then it'll only be 4 months until February (regardless of the whole, at the end of the month thing). And I could never forget out mint julep date. I love spreading that wealth around.

 

[DizNee Luver]

Sheesh, what is wrong with people??? You're in Disneyland & you have nothing better to do then complain about EVERYTHING?? If you don't like it.....leave so the rest of the people who LOVE it can enjoy themselves!!!

I've learned about the "sharing" a seat bit.......I make it quite clear we have room for ONE person if you have others, this spot won't work. Big pet peeve with me, is getting there early & then having throngs of people push their way up & expect a prime seat!!! I usually make sure we take up all the room around us (spread out.....lol) I think what it is....I can't stand people who think they're entitled to things for one reason or another. Like the couple behind you that went on & on about stuff. I had a guy at the Carnation Cafe one morning while we were waiting for our tables (with a ressie) get bent out of shape because he wanted a table NOW because he's in a wheelchair & has a GAC........really buddy??? I have 2 of them, so I guess I trump his one......lol Get real......make a ressie or wait like the rest of us. The GAC & wheelchair isn't a free pass to be a butthead to everyone.

I"m glad you got to spend some time in DL with your mom & share the fireworks with her!!!

Great pics as always!!

 

[kim3339]

Just caught up on your tr, and loved it! Congrats on your great time for the 5k! You'll do great in January.

Loved the pic of Rabbit. In all the times/years I've been to DL, I've never seen him. That's awesome.

Sorry about the old people at the fireworks and the squishy family. Glad to hear the fireworks weren't ruined for you!