No way Jose! We are going to Disneyland! 3/13 - Movin' on Up!

[Sunstar]

Yay!

 

[DisMomAmy]

What a fun tour!

I'm glad to see you updating again!

 

[Charleston Princess]

Very excited to see an update, Brook!!!

I had no idea about the Disneyland star, either. Very cool! I am loving the inside of the Soda Fountain and the El Capitan theater -- definitely worth the trip just to see those two things!

 

[brookelizabeth]

WHEW! I still have readers! Thanks all for hanging in there with me through this very drawn out report.

Can I just say how excited I am to see an update from you! The only bad thing is I can't see your pictures and I really need to. I have never been to Hollywood. The only place I have ever been in California is LAX and Venice beach. Sad, I know.

But do not fear. I already have thoughts of a 2014 California trip spinnin around in my head thanks to all the fun DL TRs I have been reading.

So excited for F&W in 11 days!

Is it because you were at work you couldn't see my pics? I hope so! I hope you were able to come back and check them out! More coming soon too!

I would LOVE to go back to Disneyland in 2014. I think it's totally doable! 2013 is pretty much already spoken for, otherwise I'd shoot for then.

F&W in less than a week now!!!!

So I am confused...the stars and the hand prints are near the chinese theatre? I thought just the hand prints were and th stars were somewhere else? Of course I amust be wrong.

I also heard that some of the stars and or hand prints do occasionally get moved further out when a bigger star needs to be closer to the theatre. Not sure if that is true either.

What an awesome experience though.

I have lived in a trailer park before...we surely didn't have that view.

And now I am gonna ask a dumb question...What is Hookah?

Yep! The stars in the sidewalk are all along Hollywood Blvd, and the Chinese Theater is also on that same street. The hand prints are right in front of the theater.

That's funny about the stars being moved! I would not doubt it though. The fact that they had Disney ones all in front of the Disney store makes me think you are correct. I don't recall all who was right in front of the theater...

about the trailer park view! My Mom lives in one, she doesn't have that view either, but she does have a PALM TREE! Jealous.

A hookah is a basically a big pipe. It's what the caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland smokes, and he also smokes it in the MSEP (which is a tad shocking, you can tell it's an old parade! They would never do that now!). It's from the Middle East and there are different flavors you can put into the giant pipe (it sits on the ground, with a tube up to your mouth).

dun dun dun!

Ah, the joys of driving in LA.

I am that you didn't lock the car.

That soda shop is adorable, who knew?

Oh this day did me IN on LA! Ugh! Just wait! From the woman who hates to drive.

And yes, isn't that awesome that we didn't lock the car? In Hollywood? Hi, here is our giant Tahoe with our iPad in the back as we climb out with eager smiles and a giant camera around our neck. TARGET MUCH? LOL!

Yay!! You are writing again! We've missed you.
Great update. We walked from Farmers Market to Hollywood Blvd.We were told it wasn't all that far! But it was a funny, eye-opening experience to be sure. My poor DS got his first look at a drag queen and a bum. Some guy was walking down the sidewalk with his worldly possessions in a shopping cart and my DS asked why he would have all that stuff in a shopping cart walking down the street. I had to explain that he was a HOBO, and when he asked what that was I was like, "he's a bum-he's homeless and takes all he has with him". My poor naive little boy. He was just so beside himself that people would have no place to go. Maybe he will try to save the world one day.

I have missed YOU! Everyday I was thinking, "I should write an update!" but then I'd think about how long it would take to do replies first and I knew I wouldn't have enough time...but then I just thought I'd do an update anyway and try to get to replies. And once I'm caught up it's not hard to stay there...it's just that falling behind...Sigh.

That is one of the things I wanted to see but didn't! I have no idea how far away it is, but I remember looking at map and ya...it wasn't too close! That's so sweet about your DS!!!! Henry gets very concerned about the ones we see here too. He wants to stop and stare at them. And on one hand I want him to have compassion and not just breeze past them, but on another, at this age, I don't want him talking to all of them-because some ARE not all there and that could be a scary situation...it's a tough balance!

What a super cool update! I am not a fan of big cities so driving there would have really freaked me out. Sounds like you did great though! We don't have much traffic in small town Minnesota.

My daughter wants be a rock star and has begged me take her to see Capitol Records because that's who signed Katy Perry. Oh the dreams of a twelve year old girl.

Love all the pictures Brook!

Oh just wait until my next couple updates in regards to the driving. I don't like to drive at all - but if I do drive, I actually prefer city driving (I'm weird!), but this... oy!

That's so cute about your daughter! Well, you have a very good excuse to get to Disneyland then.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Great to see you Brook! Thanks for the tour of Hollywood....I've never been there, so this is great. It looks kind of different than the Disneyfied DHS version.

Finding the Hollywood Sign....how hard could that be? It's right over thataway. Great big letters. On the hillside.

Just a tad different than the Disney version. I think I posted on my Facebook that day that it was cool to see the Chinese Theater, but it needs a refurb.

Exactly. Thataway. Uh-huh.

Wonderful to see you back here!!

When I was in California we actually stayed right in that area for three nights before moving to a hotel in Anaheim. It was right behind the mall (we used the parking garage of the mall as a shortcut). We never ventured out late at night, but during the day we felt totally safe in that area. Do you realise that the "mall" is also home to the former Kodak Theater (no idea what the name is now) where they have the Oscar ceremony? The red carpet is actually along Hollywood Boulevard in front of the mall.

I did! My friend Cole (who we met "last night" in the report, and will make a reappearance "today"), does movies and stuff for a job - so she's always going to shows/previews and she has gotten to help, or something! at the Oscars. I don't think she actually got to attend, but she did tell us that. Pretty amazing! I'm not huge into Hollywood, but it was still pretty surreal to be THERE!

Yeaaaah, Brook is back!!

I actually read and caught up while you were away.

I lived in Orange County (no, not the one you see on t.v. with all the housevwives ) and never, not once, went to that part of Hollywood. HOw sad is that?!?
I did however make it to Rodeo Drive, baby! Where a pair of fancy designed pantyhose (yes, they were very popular back then-1989 just graduated high school) cost you $45. Now they would probably cost you $145.
The only "star" I saw was Mike Tyson crossing the street, later on I was actually hit on by his bodyguards. while they were stading guard outside the store Mr. Tyson had gone into.
The sad part was they just saw me walk by with my family and baby sister not even five minutes before, I had to walk back by them to go back to the ice cream store to get napkins for my little sister. I was never so scared in my life!! They were some BIG boys!!

So great to see all the Disney stars!! I love that they have stars for the characters, especially Tinker Bell since she's my favorite.

Can't wait to read more!!

Ah, Rodeo Drive! We will have to visit there next time, just to do it! I have so many good excuses to go back to Disneyland/California. I cannot even begin to imagine some of the costs, but my guess is some are fairly similar to 5th Avenue here? No idea!

That is hilarious about the bodyguards hitting on you!!! What a story!!!

So glad to read an update, Brook. And a great one too. I'm so glad you got to go to Hollywood and love the pictures of all the stars on the sidewalk. Henry's ice cream looks really yummy.

It was really fun, a very different experience on a Disney vacation (we are outside the bubble! ), but I'm so glad we did it! (and the next things too...)

So excited to see that you updated today!!

That soda shop is too cute, I think I need to see that for myself

I'm guessing the search for the Hollywood sign didn't go as planned.......

It really is a cute shop! It was super busy, so we didn't explore much, but I'm glad we stopped. The ice cream was good too!

Great update Brook!

I remember our first time visiting Hollywood on our honeymoon...we both said, at the same time, "This is IT???"

Every two blocks, people were trying to sell us oranges and wipe our windshield

Looking forward to the rest...dun dun dun!

Yes, Hollywood seems all glamour, but honestly....a bit sketchy! Kinda like parts of NYC. They really make it look prettier than it is on TV!

Sell you oranges?! That's funny. I didn't get any of that. Nor the windshield people-but those guys are sometimes here, I've even heard they will just start washing and then threaten you if you dont' give them anything!

 

[brookelizabeth]

I've been lurking all summer to prep for our first visit to SoCal and Disneyland. We went at the end of August and reading your impressions of Hollywood had me laughing. Coming from NY...I was not as impressed as I thought I would be. I guess Pretty Woman and the original 90210 had me ruined...my dreams were much better than the reality! Don't get me wrong, I was glad to see it all but really looked forward to getting back to our Disney bubble at the Grand Californian.

Quick story because I just haven't mustered the strength to write my own trip report. I was really excited to see Grauman's Chinese Theater. I've been dreaming of that since I was a little kid. When we went over there it was closed for the premiere of the Oogieloves movie. WHAT?!?!?! So my husband promised we would hit it again 2 days later.

2 days later....went back at dinnertime for a quick peek with a hungry and crabby 9 year old boy. Guess what? CLOSED AGAIN!! Covered with a pink carpet and lines of women. Apparently it was a Skinny Cow hosted event. The 25th anniversary of DIRTY DANCING!!! WHAT!?!?! The movie I saw 3 times in the theater the summer it came out? The movie I knew every line to?

I try not to lose it and turn away to go find somewhere to eat dinner when my husband tells me to stay right there and not move. 10 minutes later someone is putting a bracelet with drink tickets on our wrists and leading us in. Yes...we crashed the Dirty Dancing party. Free ice cream, Jennifer Grey, movie, afterparty and swag bag. Now THAT was Hollywood!

Other than that my favorite place was the cemetery where Marilyn Monroe was buried!

Bwhahahahaha! That is AWESOME!!! Love it!!!!!!!! "I went to Disneyland and crashed a premier party!" The best!! So glad it worked out, better than you ever thought it would!

Sorry I didn't get back here all summer. Summer kicked my booty with time - it just disappeared from under me. Sounds like our impressions of Hollywood were fairly similar. I'm glad I saw it, but nothing I would rush back to.

I'm going to be smiling/laughing all day over the crashing the party...that is just fantastic!!

Glad you are back! Great update Love the pictures of the stars and handprints...I would love to see that area Im a little afraid of what may happen to you guys since you have diverted from your original plan...waiting to find out

Oh it was an adventure, that is for sure! Just wait...hopefully I can get that posted today.

I am definitely still here! I can't wait for more updates!

Yay! I'm so happy I still have some readers!!

Welcome back! Great update! Love all the Hollywood Blvd photos! My fave dive place is on Hollywood Blvd maybe a block down from the CHinese theater. It is Shellys cafe. I go there every time I am in LA! I agree with the Shadyness, but with so many people around it isn't too bad, and I always have fun around there.

Your foreshadow reminds me of the wild goose chase my sister took us on last month! She had us driving through the canyons, in a car I nicknamed the Titanic, at night, to a destination she couldn't remember how to get to lol. It was interesting to say the least....we never did see the Hollywood sign that night.

Ah! I'll have to keep Shelly's in mind for a return trip! Not sure we'll have Hollywood on our list for next time, but ya never know. Plus I can send others that I help with Disney trips there!

Wild goose chase is a perfect explanation. That giant sign is NOT easy to find!

What a fun update!! In all of our trips to Disneyland we've still to take a day and go to Hollywood (or anywhere else for that matter!!). Maybe on the next family trip.

I'm glad we did it! It's a pretty quick drive, just high way too, so it's not bad. Go for it!

Yay, an update with pretty pics! I guess it's easier to do now that school is back in session. Hope you were able to get Henry into the one you wanted.

Exactly! With school in session I can actually complete a thought! I've been really busy so far, and my hours fill quickly, but it's much easier to squeeze in some DIS time as I finally catch up on some things.

Yay!

What a fun tour!

I'm glad to see you updating again!

It was! I'm glad we did it!

Very excited to see an update, Brook!!!

I had no idea about the Disneyland star, either. Very cool! I am loving the inside of the Soda Fountain and the El Capitan theater -- definitely worth the trip just to see those two things!

It really was. Just to see those things in real life was fantastic. A piece of history!

 

[brookelizabeth]

Woth2982 put it the best above, finding the Hollywood sign is a wild goose chase.

Oh, but wait! We have a blind guy as a navigator and phones, AND I have researched this. Surely we could find it, right???

Okay, to be fair, my husband, despite being legally blind DOES have a fantastic sense of direction. And mine is miserable. To the point where even if I have researched it, have a map with step by step directions, I throw the map out and trust him.

And that is just what I did this day.



Let's hop back in Carzilla and find that Hollywood sign!

Leaving the Hollywood Blvd area

The streets were getting busier with tourists and performers when we left.

Pretty.

Life is good! Hollywood!

Wait, we've already seen that parking garage.

Are we going in circles?

Map is ditched, pull out the iPhone. Joe lead me, I can't handle this traffic, plus looking at the phone.

There is that parking garage AGAIN!

And let me tell you, for a person that does NOT like to drive, getting lost in Hollywood is not fun!

Joe attempted to direct me.

We got turned around.

The map was retrieved from the back seat. Maybe it would help.

Henry was bored.

I was annoyed.

35 minutes later we still weren't ANY closer to that big 'ol sign!

Finally, I am at a red light long enough to actually ask my phone to give me the directions. Joe was just looking at a map on his phone, trying to figure it out.

I'm mad. I asked him to make it give him directions 3.1 trillion times. No less.

He's frustrated.

Henry is beyond bored.

It's a fantastic family vacation!



Actually asking the phone for directions, instead of just looking at a map works. I try not to gloat that I figured it out before Joe. He complains that there are too many roads mislabeled/incorrect on the map. Which is true. But I stay silent.

Finally we think we are getting closer and we start to laugh at the absurdity of the whole thing. This was the map on my phone:

It's a bit windy. Just a bit!

All the roads look like this

VERY narrow, big houses on either side, uphill.

It was an experience. Driving in Carzilla up these hills with cars parked on both sides at times...memorable!

Crazy roads!

The higher we got, the better our views though!

And the road became normal!

We continued to drive, it felt like we were in the country - Joe was wondering if this road would actually get us there...but I was determined, this HAD to be it, GPS was telling me so!

And suddenly...after 1.5 hours of driving (I'm not kidding!)

Ahhhhhhh! I can hear the angels singing! Thank you GPS!

We curved around the road a bit until we finally came to the gravel "parking lot" nearby. This was as close as you could get without climbing the hill, or being really rich and living in that house. We MADE IT!!!

View the other way

He was over the sign pretty quickly.

But Joe and I really enjoyed the views.

Continued in next post

 

[brookelizabeth]

Continued from previous post

Throwing rocks off the hill.

After taking 17 pictures of the Hollywood sign...that all look exactly alike...we started on our way back down the windy road, now just laughing about it all. I admitted that I was NOT happy with Joe (like he didn't know already!), that he ignored me about actually ASKING the GPS for directions during our entire ordeal up the hill. He knows I hate to drive, and seeing this sign was one thing I REALLY wanted to do.

Thankfully I have my own GPS so I could just do it!

He apologized, I forgave, all was good again!

And on the way down, we only got turned around twice.

We turned around in this person's driveway and admired their home

Soon enough we were back here!

The mall attached to the Chinese Theater!

Our next stop would be the Santa Monica Beach. Just straight down a road basically...easy!!

 

[brookelizabeth]

I finally updated my ticker!

As you can see we leave next week for OKW. We are in a 2-bedroom and friends from Minnesota are meeting us there! It will the the first time for their kids, and their second time (they also honeymooned at WDW, but stayed offsite). The husband of the family is a HUGE Disney fan and an artist, he's even more excited than the kids I bet.

Between now and then I'll try to get another Disneyland update in, so we can at least wrap up this day. I still have TWO cruises to write about that I took this summer! With family on the Magic out of NYC in June, and with girlfriends, again on the Magic, out of Galveston in September! I think I'll write those as a joint report after this Disneyland one. This upcoming big WDW one might only get a breeze over/highlights since I'm so far behind.

We are doing WDW again in February, AKL Club Level, so I want to write about that experience for sure! I might have a solo trip in the Spring, then we'll likely be back at WDW as a family in July/August for a church conference (at the Dolpin). Not 100% set on that one, but most likely. Beyond that, I'm not sure we'll have anything else in 2013 (aside from trips to see family...), we'll see if anything pops up! 2014 my goal remains the same: Europe!!

Thank you again for all hanging in there with me. I miss you and hope to be caught up on YOUR report soon!

 

[3inthefamily]

That was a great view! We got as far as the bridge you see in the picture of the mall at the Hollywood and Highland Center. We had parked there and went to the "observation deck" to see the sign. I can't get over that the Oscars are held there...I can't imagine Brad and Angelina walking past Johnny Rocket's to go up the stairs into the theater. Weird. The Dirty Dancing after party was in one of the empty areas in there as well. It is a strange place. Then again, we must have been strange to the LA people having a 9 year old boy at a premiere after party! Can't wait to see your take on Santa Monica. We never made it over there.

 

[KristiMc]

Glad you got to see the sign and YAY for OKW!

 

[wdwgirl03]

WOW, another trip! I remember you saying on my TR how you were going in February but I had a feeling you'd probably be going sooner than that! Only 6 days, I'm jealous!

Cool California updates! Love all the pictures. It's so neat to see the real Chinese Theater. And yay for seeing the Hollywood sign. I think we might've only seen that from a distance as we were driving around. haha!

 

[blessedby3]

Goodness! What an exhausting time trying to find that sign! Im glad you guys finally made it...although Henry doesnt look impressed I dont think I would have liked driving on those roads either...scary!
We are leaving for WDW in 9 days! Maybe we will see you down there Are you doing the MNSSHP? We are looking forward to it on the 23rd...and hoping for great weather

 

[MEK]

Oh Brook, your driving adventure sounds awful. I hate to drive too. Thankfully Denny handles all the difficult driving in places we've never been to. I'm glad you finally found the Hollywood sign.

I have yet to catch up on your pictures, because, yes, I am at work.

But only 6 more days for me too!!!!!!!! (my ticker is off by a day). Really looking forward to meeting you at the DIS meet on Thursday afternoon. This is going to be a crazy trip.

Score on the 2BR at OKW. I bet its wonderful. I really want to try a 2BR there. I get its huge.

 

[Tiggerrn2]

Loved the update! Been so long since CA adventures for us now. But great fun reading yours. So excited for you for AKL trip! I love that resort. We are just back from a mom's only food and wine fest trip and had dinner at Sanaa. One of the best TS meals we had while there. Enjoy your trip to OKW! Can't wait to read more of your adventures.

 

[jenseib]

Yay...I can feel your frustration. I've been there before and the "husband" doesn't listen to what you are telling him.

Skip wouldn't apologize though. LOL

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Oh goodness do I hate driving! Driving in unfamiliar places is the worst. I'm so glad you finally found the famous sign. Hallelujah! Love the photos! I'd love to see it too!!

I hope to see you next week Brook!

 

[mickeystoontown]

It's good to see you back posting on the Dis again!

Hum, after looking at your pictures, I can honestly say that Hollywood doesn't look like I thought it would althought I don't know what I thought it would look like. It seems as if "Hollywood" has done a good job at only showing the cleaned-up version of Hollywood. Still, I'm sure that it was neat to see the stars and the Chinese Theater.

I get tickled every time you refer to the vehicle as "Carzilla". Here in Louisiana, they think the bigger your car, the better. (Sounds a little like our neighboring State of Texas' motto doesn't it? ) I could feel just how frustrated you were when you described the driving and getting turned around/lost. Thank goodness you guys finally made it and were able to take pictures with the Hollywood sign.

 

[MotoWifey185]

my DH and I took our dog to California a few weeks before our wedding and we had the same issue with finding that sign. We gave up! We got pictures of her on hollywood blvd with the stars and the chinese theater so that was alright. Nice that you got to find the sign, and another great update!

 

[eandesmom]

I'm doing the 6 day dance with you!

Impressive that you persevered to find the sign, what a total UGH of an experience. I hope getting to the pier was relatively painless after all that.

Can't wait to meet you next week!