lonegungirl
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- May 4, 2003
So the sis comes into town for a week, and of course, one place you have to hit is Disneyland, right? She used to work at the Tahitian Terrace lo many years ago, so some nostalgia there.
We got to DL around 8:30--I had miscalculated because I thought the park would be open at 9am, but they switched on me and opened at 8am. Oh well--parked in Mickey and Friends and then trammed it to the gate where I renewed my SCAP and got the SoCal discount 2-for-1 ticket for her. Then--DL!
I was concerned about the heat and crowds, as this was probably the last week of summer vacation for the kids, so we beat it over to Splash and got on--wait was around 15 minutes. Then to Pooh (slightly underwhelming) and then walked back to Haunted Mansion. We got fastpasses for some of these rides, but didn't need them, as the wait was around 5 minutes in standby at this point. We then made reservations at Blue Bayou for 11:30 (when they open for lunch) and did Pirates, Tarzan's Treehouse, Jungle Cruise, Tiki Room, and got fastpasses for IJ. Lunch was good--gotta have the Monte Cristo! A little chaotic getting in though--they call names from inside, and with a huge line of people waiting to get in, it's hard to hear. We got the tiny table by the tree near the serving station (waitress: "your own private table, with your own private tree!" Translation: nowhere near the water--
)
After lunch and some shopping in the New Orleans stores (and a stop to beg beads off the live band), we hit IJ (my fav) and then hightailed it to DCA--first time for her.
At DCA, we got fastpasses for Soarin' and Grizzly, which also gave fastpasses for Bug and Muppet--which were not needed, as the wait time was walk-on for both. We went to Hollywood and did Muppets, and then saw the Aladdin show at the Hyperion--good, but we were up really high! I haven't been that high at a show since the Staples center! Then off to Bug's Life and a diet coke at a cart to ward off dehydration. Thusly fortified, we strolled through the Boudin bread tour (yay Colin!) and walked around Paradise Pier until it was time for Soarin'. Afterwards, went on Grizzly, which was a first time for both of us, but we were spared a real soaking and dried off pretty fast.
Then, picked up a fastpass for Mulholland, and did the Orange Stinger and Ferris Wheel, and contemplated Screaming, but decided we were too young to die. We then went back and did the Animation room which was not playing the Mushu show, but had a good time with the character quiz and voice dubbing. Then we picked up an espresso shake and walked back to Mulholland which was a definite squealer.
Quick! Back to DL for more rides before the fireworks! Except we are caught by the parade. We watch and then are unable to cross over to Fantasyland because of the crowds so we end up watching it over again by IASW. Oh well--race to Peter Pan, but they've already closed the line for the fireworks. We ride Snow White instead, along with Pinocchio and Casey Jr. before making a mad dash to the front of the castle (must go around by the Matterhorn as they close all other walkways) to see Believe... A good show as always, even with some trees in the way. Then another mad dash to Frontierland where we snag a table at Riverbelle and get some salmon to eat and wait for Fantasmic! Again, a good show, with a tree in the way, but nicer than sitting out on the ground for an hour. With time for one more ride, we fly to Big Thunder and end the ride portion of the night there.
Later, much shopping down Main Street is done, and finally a tram back to the car...whose alarm refused to turn off! Maybe a low battery in the keychain? Anyway, after everyone has left the lot except us, I finally open the door and set off the alarm, turning it off by removing the fuse. Ugh--noisy, but effective. We drive off with our loot, after a successful day.
So crowds were not as bad as expected, and miraculously it wasn't as hot as it had been the days before. It would have been nice to do more Fantasyland and Tomorrowland, but we've done all that before, and most of Tomorrowland is closed now anyway. AP is renewed now, so I guess Arnold S. isn't the only one who'll "be back..."
We got to DL around 8:30--I had miscalculated because I thought the park would be open at 9am, but they switched on me and opened at 8am. Oh well--parked in Mickey and Friends and then trammed it to the gate where I renewed my SCAP and got the SoCal discount 2-for-1 ticket for her. Then--DL!
I was concerned about the heat and crowds, as this was probably the last week of summer vacation for the kids, so we beat it over to Splash and got on--wait was around 15 minutes. Then to Pooh (slightly underwhelming) and then walked back to Haunted Mansion. We got fastpasses for some of these rides, but didn't need them, as the wait was around 5 minutes in standby at this point. We then made reservations at Blue Bayou for 11:30 (when they open for lunch) and did Pirates, Tarzan's Treehouse, Jungle Cruise, Tiki Room, and got fastpasses for IJ. Lunch was good--gotta have the Monte Cristo! A little chaotic getting in though--they call names from inside, and with a huge line of people waiting to get in, it's hard to hear. We got the tiny table by the tree near the serving station (waitress: "your own private table, with your own private tree!" Translation: nowhere near the water--
)After lunch and some shopping in the New Orleans stores (and a stop to beg beads off the live band), we hit IJ (my fav) and then hightailed it to DCA--first time for her.
At DCA, we got fastpasses for Soarin' and Grizzly, which also gave fastpasses for Bug and Muppet--which were not needed, as the wait time was walk-on for both. We went to Hollywood and did Muppets, and then saw the Aladdin show at the Hyperion--good, but we were up really high! I haven't been that high at a show since the Staples center! Then off to Bug's Life and a diet coke at a cart to ward off dehydration. Thusly fortified, we strolled through the Boudin bread tour (yay Colin!) and walked around Paradise Pier until it was time for Soarin'. Afterwards, went on Grizzly, which was a first time for both of us, but we were spared a real soaking and dried off pretty fast.
Then, picked up a fastpass for Mulholland, and did the Orange Stinger and Ferris Wheel, and contemplated Screaming, but decided we were too young to die. We then went back and did the Animation room which was not playing the Mushu show, but had a good time with the character quiz and voice dubbing. Then we picked up an espresso shake and walked back to Mulholland which was a definite squealer.
Quick! Back to DL for more rides before the fireworks! Except we are caught by the parade. We watch and then are unable to cross over to Fantasyland because of the crowds so we end up watching it over again by IASW. Oh well--race to Peter Pan, but they've already closed the line for the fireworks. We ride Snow White instead, along with Pinocchio and Casey Jr. before making a mad dash to the front of the castle (must go around by the Matterhorn as they close all other walkways) to see Believe... A good show as always, even with some trees in the way. Then another mad dash to Frontierland where we snag a table at Riverbelle and get some salmon to eat and wait for Fantasmic! Again, a good show, with a tree in the way, but nicer than sitting out on the ground for an hour. With time for one more ride, we fly to Big Thunder and end the ride portion of the night there.
Later, much shopping down Main Street is done, and finally a tram back to the car...whose alarm refused to turn off! Maybe a low battery in the keychain? Anyway, after everyone has left the lot except us, I finally open the door and set off the alarm, turning it off by removing the fuse. Ugh--noisy, but effective. We drive off with our loot, after a successful day.
So crowds were not as bad as expected, and miraculously it wasn't as hot as it had been the days before. It would have been nice to do more Fantasyland and Tomorrowland, but we've done all that before, and most of Tomorrowland is closed now anyway. AP is renewed now, so I guess Arnold S. isn't the only one who'll "be back..."
