Our 3rd Annual Holiday Trip to DL in November - November 22nd - 25th, 2013 Post #3416

[mvf-m11c]

Day 2 – November 17, 2012 – Part 23​

Now more pictures of World of Color from that Saturday night on the 17th from our favorite spot in the blue section right in front of the fire hydrant.

That’s it for this post and I will have more from WoC.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 2 – November 17, 2012 – Part 24​

Now more pictures of World of Color from that Saturday night on the 17th from our favorite spot in the blue section right in front of the fire hydrant.

Of course at the end of WoC is the small ending show with the logo

When WoC was over, we had some time later that night until we had to come back at DCA to use our FP’s for Radiator Springs Racers. We got a 2nd pair of FP’s for RSR that day which was very nice and get to ride it at night.

We decided to head on back to DL to do some rides before we head on back to DCA. So we packed up all our stuff and head on out of the park like all the other people.

“Believe…In Holiday Magic” fireworks was going to start shortly so the two of us headed on out of the park and over to DL before it started sine there will be a lot of people watching the fireworks from MS.

We head on out of DCA and over to DL. My DA wanted to drop some of our stuff like my tripod and blanket back to the room since we will be going on rides that night. So she went back while I head on over to DL during the fireworks.

Over at the DL turnstiles, there were a lot of people entering the park as well as leaving the park. It took us quite some time to enter the park which is not surprising to us since the fireworks at DL was over and some people are going to DL to do some rides and other activities.

The Holiday decorations on top of the turnstiles that night.

When I got to DL, “Believe…In Holiday Magic” fireworks was playing and there was no good spot to watch the fireworks, so I just walked down on MS all the way towards Tomorrowland. It was a little busy that night with a lot of people watching Believe. I was right by the Astro Blaster to watch Believe. You can barely see the fireworks from this spot but able to see the fireworks that night.

“Believe…In Holiday Magic” fireworks was over and now I started to walk around DL to take pictures as much as I can before it was time to head on back to DCA to ride RSR.

That’s it for this post and I will have more from DL that night.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Seems like you're packing in quite a full day! I'd love to try RSR at night and hope that the crowds die down for September.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Seems like you're packing in quite a full day! I'd love to try RSR at night and hope that the crowds die down for September.

We did quite a lot that night with all the rides, nighttime show and dinner at the Carthay Circle Restaurant. You will really love riding RSR at night where it makes it even more special to ride it. Even at night, the wait time was still in the 100+ minute wait time during the November trip and about 60+ in January. I would guess that it should be fine for you when you go in September.


The next post will be up shortly.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 2 – November 17, 2012 – Part 25​

We have just watched World of Color that night and I was at Disneyland walking around until my DA joined up with me until we head on back towards Disney California Adventure and ride Radiator Springs Racers since we have FP’s that night. Believe…In Holiday Magic fireworks just have ended where I watched it from Tomorrowland right by the Astro Orbiter. Now let’s get back to the trip report and see what has happened that day.

Believe…In Holiday Magic fireworks just have ended and now I am in Tomorrowland walking around until it was time to head on back to DCA to use our FP’s that night for RSR. I walked around TL and over to FL where I want to get some more pictures of IASWH at night. I didn’t go towards MS since it was all packed with the guests watching the fireworks. The next best way to go to IASW Plaza is heading through TL and over to FL.

In TL, it was busy while rides like Space Mountain, Star Tours and Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage had quite long wait times around 9pm that night.

I walked on over towards IASW Plaza and saw the Holiday lights on the façade of IASWH. The lights are so amazing to see every time during the Holiday season especially during June which I was able to experience it again. After finishing up this trip report for November, I will get to the January trip report.

The nighttime show during the Holiday season on IASW was playing

The show was over and back to the regular lights on IASWH.

IASWH had a long line which was in the 30 minute range which is quite long that night.

After watching the show, I went on back towards Main Street to get some more pictures of the Holiday decorations on MS. While I was walking down, I still get the Christmas lights on the trees down IASW Plaza which is always neat to see every time.

After passing through FL, I was now back in MS. While I was walking down MS passed the Hub, I remembered from Sherry E that I should try the Peppermint Stick Ice Cream at Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor. I haven’t been to GB in ages since the only place I get dessert is at the Tiki Juice Bar for the Dole Whip Soft Serve. Man I really want to have a Dole Whip Soft Serve right now while I am writing my trip report. Sherry did mention to me a lot that I should get this during the Holiday season at DL which makes the Holiday season special. This was a great opportunity to get one since my DA is back at the room resting up until we head on over to DCA. So I head on over to GB and get the Peppermint Stik Ice Cream.

There was a long line at GB which is no surprise to me at night since there are a lot of guests getting ice cream. I do see it busy every night after the fireworks which most of the guests head on over. Mostly I go over to the Tiki Juice Bar to get a Dole Whip Soft Serve. But this time I am getting the Peppermint Stick Ice Cream.

While in GB, I got another tree for the tree quest

I ordered the Peppermint Stick Ice Cream which they had menu on the counter

I got the single scoop ice cream. It would have been nice if they have the AP discount for GB but they don’t offer it and I have to pay full in advance at GB.

Here is my picture of the ice cream. It was a Holiday Waffle Cone Flavor with Crushed Candy Cane with the Holiday Ice Cream Flavor Peppermint Stick.

When I first tried it, it was a little sweet and the crushed candy cane was a little hard to chew. It was a very nice flavor including the waffle cone which had a little chocolate and mostly crushed candy cane. I was glad to try the peppermint stick ice cream at GB. I would get it again when it is available during the Holiday season at DL. Once again, thank you Sherry E for the idea of getting the ice cream at DL.

After leaving GB with the peppermint stick ice cream, I sit on the curb right by GB and enjoying myself with the ice cream. There were a lot of people leaving while I was finishing my ice cream. I had plenty of time until it was time to go on over to DCA and meet up with my DA.

While I was almost finished with the peppermint stick ice cream, I head on over towards Sleeping Beauty Castle to get some more different pictures of the castle with the Holiday decorations.

I head on over towards the right hand side of the castle to get the different angles.

Snow White Grotto at night which is so great to look at especially with during the Holiday season

Now I was on the back side of SB Castle

After looking through the backside of SB Castle, it was time to head on out of DL and over to DCA since our FP’s are almost ready to be used that night.

It was around 9:40pm that night while I was walking on out of DL and over to DCA

A look at the Christmas tree on MS

Passing through the Fire House with the Christmas tree through the window replacing the lamp during the Holiday season

City Hall

Now leaving the park

I have now left the turnstiles over at DL and now back at the Esplanade and heading on over towards DCA.

My DA was also out right at the Esplanade and we met up and head on over to DCA.

We were now back at DCA and heading on over towards Cars Land to use our FP’s for RSR.

That’s it for this post and I will have more from DCA that night.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Beautiful night time shots. That ice cream looks great; but I am partial to the Dole Whip (and the float!).

 

[mvf-m11c]

Beautiful night time shots. That ice cream looks great; but I am partial to the Dole Whip (and the float!).

Thank you PiO. The ice cream was great, but I just can't stop thinking about the Dole Whip Soft Serve.


The next post will be up shortly.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 2  November 17, 2012  Part 26/FONT]​

We left off at Disney California Adventure where I have joined up with my DA and going back to DCA to ride Radiator Springs Racers that night since we have FPs to use that night. I was just at Disneyland walking around the park at night like I usually do every time I am at DL. I also got the peppermint stick ice cream which is an exclusive ice cream during the Holiday season at DL. I really enjoyed the peppermint stick ice cream that night. Now back to DCA and we were heading on over to Cars Land.

We have just walked in at DCA and we are now heading on over to Cars Land to go on RSR that night. Before we head on over to CL, I had to stop at BVS to see the Christmas tree right by the Elias & Company store which is right across the street from the Carthay Circle Theater. All of the decorations on the tree were all unique which had DCA decorations. I really like the train around the tree which is my favorite.

The Christmas decorations on the tree

After looking at the Christmas decorations on the tree, we start heading on over to CL and ride RSR that night.

Once we got to CL, it was not that full while there were still some people at the land that night going on rides like Luigis Flying Tires and Maters Junkyard Jamboree.

The Christmas decorations around CL are so amazing to look at especially this time at night.

When we got to RSR, the wait time for the stand-by was at 70 minutes which was still long that night. But we were going through the FP queue where we got a 2nd pair of FPs for RSR that day. We went through the FP queue and got to the loading area in just 10 minutes which was really quick that night.

I have videotaped the ride through experience that night and I have uploaded this video in the past. I havent uploaded the video yet and I might not upload it since I have other videos of RSR.

For our ride experience, we got a green car and we were in the backside of the car which is okay but as always I would prefer to ride up front instead of going in the back. The part of the ride that we are always looking forward to is what store are we heading on over towards. It is Luigis or Ramones side. We were fortunate to go towards Luigis Casa Della Tires side which is the side that we always want to get.

There is me and my DA at the back of the green car

When we got off RSR, we started to head on out of DCA and head back to Best Western Anaheim Inn to call it for the night since we are tired after a long day at the park. The park was opened till 11pm that night which some of the guests were going to stay that late that night. But for us, it was time to head on back to the room and rest up for the next day. We also are leaving that night

The park was a little busy that night with some people staying at DCA while we were planning on going back to the room. On the way back, I got some more pictures of Cars Land on the way out.

We walked on the way out towards BVS and about to leave the park.

We left the park around 10:30pm that night and back to BWAI to call it for the night.

We were able to do a lot that day at the park where we got two FPs for RSR. Got to eat at the Carthay Circle Restaurant that night which my DA didnt like the plate that she had. We got to do our usual rides at DL and DCA that day (Soarin, TSMM, Mickeys Fun Wheel of Doom, Monorail, IASWH, HMH, etc.). We were a little disappointed that we werent able to get the Deluxe AP for my DA since the ticket she got from the Coca Cola contest during CL is not applicable to a AP upgrade.

So that day was over and now we are heading to the last day of the trip which is the saddest part of the trip.

P.S. The next post I am just going to write up what I have done that day since it is a usual last day where I always try to get some rides and pictures before we leave that day. It is the same thing over and over during my other trips. The reason why I am doing this is that I want to get to my January trip report which I am trying to get started.

 

[ACDSNY]

Beautiful pic!

 

[PrincessInOz]

I love the close-ups of the christmas decorations. Thanks for sharing. Looks like you had a great time at night on RSR.

 

[mvf-m11c]

For this trip report, I am just going to write the whole thing on this one post since this is a typical last day for me on any of my trip reports where I just go around DL or DCA in the morning getting pictures of the park and going on a few more rides in the morning before we head on home that day.

Day 3 – November 18, 2012 – Part 1/FONT]​

During my last update, my DA and I had a great day at the parks while we got to do a lot of different rides, nighttime shows, and eating at the Carthay Circle Restaurant.

Now it is the last day of the trip report which is the saddest part of the trip. It is always sad to go home on the last day of the trip, but I was also looking forward to getting home so I can check out the videos and pictures from the trip. I was also looking forward to going back home that day since my DA and I got to do our Holiday trip to DL by seeing the Holiday decorations and going on the HMH and IASWH.

It was a nice Sunday morning and I got up early so I can go to the park just before it opens at 8am. My DA didn’t have a ticket that day so she decided to stay back at the room and rest up until it was time to leave that day. We are planning to leave Anaheim around 11am so we can get a good start to head on to Livingston to meet up with my grandmother.

I left Best Western Anaheim Inn around 7:30am that morning and head on over to the DLR. At least that the park opens at 7:30am for the rope drop so it won’t be that busy at the turnstiles. The last time, my DA and I got to the Esplanade early on Saturday to go to CL. This time, I am going to DL and just go around and take pictures before it was time to leave that day.

I got to DL around 7:50am and most of the guests were inside the park before it officially opened at 8am.

Before the park opened, I went around Main Street Town Square to get some pictures of the flowers around the area.

A little touch of red color in this picture

After getting the pictures of the flowers around Town Square, it was almost time for DL to be opened. So I walked up towards MS and got to the Hub and saw that the guests were now allowed to enter the other lands at DL. Now the park is officially opened at 8am.

The first thing I did was just walk around over to Fantasyland first and see It’s a Small World Holiday. I just walked down IASW Plaza to look at the Holiday wreaths which had different designs. And of course, I got to see IASWH which there is no one in the area. I could have ridden it that morning but I was coming back in mid January with my aunt, BF and DD2 so I had another opportunity to ride it.

After that, I walked towards the backside of Frontierland so I can head on over towards New Orleans Square. I like to go and see Big Thunder Ranch which is a little different this year with the new Jingle Jangle Jamboree which is nice but it is not the same with BTR changed this year.

I walked down towards the River of America and I head on over towards the Haunted Mansion Holiday. I wanted to go back on the ride and get some more pictures of the ride and the gingerbread house. While I was walking down there, NOS looked like a ghost town that early in the morning.

Over at the HMH, it was a walk-on that morning. It was nice that it wasn’t that busy that morning and got to ride it once more before I left that day.

I took pictures with my DSLR camera with the 35mm Nikkor lens and some of the pictures were a little blurry during the ride and some of them turned out well. I was a little disappointed that the pictures didn’t turn out that well during my 2nd time on HMH. But I did get some pictures that were nice.

After getting off the HMH, I head on over to Critter Country to get some pictures of the Holiday decorations. This land is also decorated during the Holiday season with Splash Mountain and Winnie the Pooh ride. Just like NOS, it was also quiet in this area that morning. This land is always empty in the morning when the park opens at 8am, so I use this time to go around and take some pictures of the Holiday decorations before it got busier that day.

Then I head on back over to NOS to get some last second pictures of the Holiday decorations. The decorations at NOS is so fun to look at with all the masks, Mardi Gras beads and musical instruments. NOS was getting a little busy that morning with more and more people coming in this area.

After looking around at NOS at the Holiday decorations, I head on over to Tomorrowland and go on Buzz Lightyear Astro Blaster. The day was very nice while the park started to get a little busy that morning with more and more people entering the park that day.

I got to ride BLAB that day which I mostly ride at least once during the trip and I ride it first thing in the morning where it can get really busy later on that day. For me, I always try to get a high score on the ride. When I completed the ride, my score was 860,600 points which was a fine score to get.

After getting off BLAB, I started to head on out of the park and head on back to the room. It was a little early for me to leave DL and head back to the BWAI where my DA was resting up. I mostly did everything I wanted to do at the park until I found out a few days ago that I forgot to get specific pictures at the DLR for the quests like the Holiday food porn, merchandise, Paradise Pier, etc.

While I was walking down MS, it started to get a little busy with more and more people entering the park. So it was a good time to leave the park around 9:15am that morning. I was only in DL for 1 and fifteen minutes which doesn’t seem that long that day.

I took a last glimpse of the Holiday decorations at MS before I head on out of the park and back to the BWAI. Most of the Holiday decorations at DL is the same like it has been in the past with a few more added in specific lands, shops, restaurants, etc.

I left DL and saw that the turnstiles for both DL and DCA were very long that morning. Good thing that I wasn’t entering the park at that time or I would have to wait awhile to enter. With all the new changes for entering the parks it is just going to get crazier of entering.

I left the Esplanade and head on back to the hotel and meet up with my DA. She was a little surprise to see me back early. But it was time to head on home and we packed all of our bags and took them to our car.

We left BWAI around 10am that morning and the five hour drive to Livingston so we can meet up with my grandmother. When we left Anaheim, the traffic wasn’t that bad around 10am to 11am. In the past when we leave SoCal, we leave around 11am to noon where it is all backed up. So this time when we left early, it was easy with little traffic in SoCal.

It was around 4pm when we got to Livingston and we had dinner with my grandmother. Later that day, we head on home and got back in Sacramento around 9pm that night which we were in Livingston for quite some time. This concludes our trip report from the DLR during the Holiday season.


This was another great trip where we got to go to the DLR during the Holiday season which is one of our favorite times to come to the DLR. This was another typical Holiday trip where we got to enjoy the Holiday season at the DLR. But it was also the first time enjoying the Holiday decorations at Buena Vista Street and Cars Land which is the first time they have the Holiday decorations. All of the Holiday decorations at CL and BVS lived up to the expectations of the Holiday season. My DA and I really enjoyed all the decorations at BVS the most over CL since this was the new MS at DL with all the different Holiday decorations. We also got to enjoy the nighttime shows at DL & DCA with Believe…In Holiday Magic fireworks and World of Color with the Holiday segment. Got to ride IASWH and HMH which is available during the Holiday season. We did our usual rides like the Monorail, MFWoD, TSMM, Soarin, etc.

I wished that I have taken a lot of different pictures of the Holiday food porn and the merchandise since I was so occupy with CL and BVS. But we did get a lot of pictures of the new lands and the Holiday decorations at the DLR. While I was at the DLR, I took a lot of pictures of the Christmas trees, wreaths, garlands, etc. for the Holiday quests that Sherry have started. This was a very challenging quests since it was the first time to see the decorations at CL & BVS, I also had to go around the whole resort to look for any different trees in the area.

This concludes the November trip report during the Holiday season. Now I will get to the next trip report which was last month with my aunt (who went with me to WDW in October/November), her BF and her DD2 for her first trip to DL. This will be my aunt first time to the DLR in over 20 years just like the time when she went back to WDW in the 80s and her BF first time since the 80s. So this was going to be an exciting trip for all three of them.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Thanks for sharing, Bret.

You have the best trips to DL with your aunt and I hope you'll continue to visit and write TRs for a long time to come.

Looking forward to the next one.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Thanks for sharing, Bret.

You have the best trips to DL with your aunt and I hope you'll continue to visit and write TRs for a long time to come.

Looking forward to the next one.

Thank you PiO.

All of my Disney trips with my aunt are the best times. This past trip last month with my aunt, her DBF and DD2 was a memorable one where we have done some things that I haven't done in a long time. But I will get to that for my updates for the January trip report. Writing these trip reports are so much time consuming but I really like to tell you all about my experience at the parks.

The first update for the January trip report will be up shortly.

 

[mvf-m11c]

I have just finished up my trip report from the November trip and now I am starting up my January trip to the DLR last month. The November trip report which I have just completed was my Holiday trip which my DA and I go to the DLR during the Holiday season. Mostly we go in December for my birthday, but these last few years we have been going to November since of basketball season or I was in WDW in 2010 and 2011 during the Holiday season which was amazing. The trip highlight was the Holiday decorations at Cars Land and Buena Vista Street which was something new at DCA. Now it is time for the January trip report.

Day 1 – January 12, 2013 – Part 1​

It was time to go back to the Disneyland Resort and enjoy another time. I was at the DLR in November and coming back in a couple of months which is very nice. This time I am bringing my aunt (not my DA that goes with me to the DLR a lot) which she came with me to WDW during the October/November trip, her DBF and DBF DD2. This will be my aunt and DBF first time back to DL in the 80s. This will be DD2 first trip to DL which is the best thing for any parent that is visiting DL with their child. I was coming along as a guide for them since my aunt knows that I have been going to the DLR a lot these last few years. I was excited to come with my aunt, DBF and DD2 to the DLR and make their trip a great experience.

This is the very interesting part about the coming trip to DL with DD2. When my aunt made the plans for a trip to DL during the summertime in 2012, my aunt and DBF talks to DD2 of where we are going to and she say “Disneyland”. DD2 is really a smart little girl where she can remember a lot of things which is very impressive for a 2 ½ year old child. I knew that she was going to be very excited when we get to the DLR.

It was around 5am when I woke up since we need to get to Sacramento International Airport early that morning. Mostly I never fly to SoCal since I mostly drive. But my aunt and DBF don’t want to drive that long and they do get car sick on long drives. So this was no option for us during this trip. Our flight was not until 9:30am which is a lot of time. My aunt likes to get to the airport early just in case if something happens when we get to Sacramento International Airport.

I was picked up my aunt with DBF and DD2 and we head straight to Sacramento International Airport around 6am that morning.

We got to Sacramento International Airport around 6:30am and our flight was Southwest Airlines. I really like to fly SA since it is reasonable prices and all the seats assignments are the same where we can sit anywhere we want to. My aunt was able to get good deals on the tickets for about $150 per person round trip. We dropped off the car at the overnight parking lot and head to the new Sacramento Airport Terminal which just opened in 2012. We waited in the terminal for about 2 hours until it was time to leave at 9:30am.

Our flight was heading on over to the John Wayne Airport Orange County which is one of the closest cities to the DLR. I have flown at OC at lot in the past and glad that we are flying over to OC.

It took an hour and ten minutes to get from Sacramento to OC. When we got off the plane, we head on down to get our baggage and head on over towards the SuperShuttle area. I originally planned to use the Disney Express Bus, but my aunt wanted to use the SuperShuttle instead. It did took us a while to wait for the Super Shuttle at OC but everyone was patient. Our Super Shuttle arrived around 11:30am and we are on our way over to the DLR.

We rode the SuperShuttle all the way to Best Western Park Place Inn which is one of my favorite hotels to stay at during my DL trips. I was glad that my aunt let me choose the hotel to stay at since she wants a close hotel with a short walk distance or shuttle. I told her that taking a shuttle bus to the DLR takes a while and the DLR hotels are so expensive that the best option was one of the hotels on Harbor Blvd. But this time instead of taking a car, we are riding the SuperShuttle towards the BWPPI.

We got to BWPPI around noon which was not that bad from OC Airport. When we got to the hotel, we check-in at the front desk. But our room wasn’t ready so we left our bags in the lobby area. I was hoping that our room was ready for our visit, but we came a little too early and it was a Saturday which people were staying that day which makes sense that the room wasn’t ready.

We left our bags in the lobby at BWPPI and now we are on our way to our first activity. But we were all hungry that time and we decided to eat somewhere on Harbor Blvd since it is close to the BWPPI. We walked down on Harbor to look for a restaurant and the one that I have talked with my aunt and DBF is Mimi’s Café right across the street from Howard Johnson hotel or HoJo we call it on the threads. They all agreed to it when we talked about where to eat.

The day was really nice where it wasn’t that busy on the sidewalks of Harbor Blvd and it was a little walk down towards Mimi’s Café.

When we got to Mimi’s Café, we were seated immediately since there were some people in the restaurant. I haven’t ate at Mimi’s Café in a long time and I have heard from other people that it is a fine place to eat before or after the parks.

DD2 and my aunt all smiling as we were seated at Mimi’s Café

We all had different dishes that day where I had the French Dip which was very nice my aunt had the Artisan Sandwich, DBF had the French Quarter and DD2 had the child menu of spaghetti. I only had a picture of the French Dip plate.

After eating at Mimi’s Café, we head on back down towards Harbor Blvd and went back to BWPPI and see if our room was ready that day around 1pm. I would assume that the room should be ready at that time.

Luckily for us our room was ready and we got all of our bags and head to our room. Our room was on the 2nd floor close to the lobby as requested since I have learned in the past at staying at the Best Western hotels is that by getting a room close to the lobby means a shorter walk to the room when you come back from the parks.

When we dropped off the luggage in the room, we head on out and over to the DLR. DBF and DD2 were all getting so excited every minute when we got closer to the DLR. I knew that they were waiting for this ever since the summertime and it was a dream come true for them especially for DBF since it will be her first time coming to DL as a parent. It was around 2:30pm when we left the room where we rested up a little until it was time to head on over to the DLR. We also brought a stroller for DD2 so we won’t have to carry her around the park and we can use the stroller to bring stuff in the park. Mostly I never go with children to the parks and it was nice to have a child’s stroller so we can put them in and use it for other things.

It took us about 6 minutes to get from BWPPI over to the Esplanade and we first head on over towards DL. But before we head on in towards DL, my aunt wanted to get an ECV during our time. Since our trip to WDW in October/November she had trouble walking around the parks and had to use the ECV or wheelchair at times during our trip. So this time she got the ECV for herself and glad that she got that or she would have trouble walking at the park and sitting down while we waited for the nighttime shows. I will get to that later on during the trip report.

When we were about to head on over to the turnstiles at DL, I notice at that there were some CM’s outside the turnstiles with iTouch in their hands. They were scanning the guest tickets and see if those park tickets actually belongs to the guests. I have heard from recent reports from other people a few days ago that the DLR is having CM’s scan guest tickets and see if the ticket actually belongs to that person. I first didn’t want to believe it until I see it and when we went through the turnstiles, the CM’s were asking all the guests to hand out their park tickets. I didn’t have to give them my annual pass so they can scan it since my picture is already in the system. But when my aunt and DBF were allowed to enter the park, they got their ticket scan and were asked to get a picture of them. So this was a fact that the CM’s with the iTouch scanners are set outside to scan park tickets so no other guests can use that person ticket when they enter the park.

When we got through the turnstiles, the park was a little busy that afternoon. The Main Street station was all covered up that day since it was under construction. So we won’t be able to ride the Disneyland railroad from the MS station.

When we were about to get a picture in front of the covered up station, Cinderella was in the area and DD2 told us that she wanted to meet her favorite princess. DD2 is a huge fan of Cinderella and she really wanted to meet her so badly. So this was an easy decision for us and head on over to meet her.

It was our turn to meet Cinderella and DD2 head on over to her. Cinderella ask her what her name was and she was all silent. We all could tell that she was speechless that she was actually meeting her favorite princess. It took a while until she was able to talk to her and I got a picture of her with Cinderella.

DD2 didn’t even let go of Cinderella’s hand and we told her that she has to meet other children that day. So she let go of her hand and we head on over to get a picture of her and DBF since this is their first time as a mom and child at DL. DBF was so ecstatic that she was in the park with her daughter.

After getting some pictures in front of the MS station, we head on in towards MS and about to do our first thing at DL. The park was a little busy that afternoon where all the vehicles on MS were being put away. I would assume that they are putting the vehicles away since it was almost time for Mickey’s Soundsational parade at 4pm. We were planning on seeing the parade that day. But we weren’t planning on watching it from MS since it draws the most guests to watch it from.

Just like front of the MS railroad station, the backside was also covered up and you can’t even go up towards the MS station. The park benches around Main Street Hub were close to the street which means that they were being used for the parade at 4pm that day.

So we walked up towards MS and see that it was a little busy and people were getting spots to watch the parade.

When we were in MS Hub area, we saw that Sleeping Beauty Castle had the snow on top of the castle. But the Christmas decorations were all taken down and it was about a week until the Holiday season was over. It was nice to see the snow on the castle and it was going to be nice to see Remember Dreams Come True fireworks that night. I have never seen the snow on the castle without the Holiday decorations in person where I have seen it on the threads and other sites.

Over at the former Carnation Plaza Garden is still under construction for the new Fantasy Faire which is about to be open shortly in mid March. I really missed the Carnation Plaza Gardens ever since they closed it and going to make it a meet & greet area for the princesses.

So we all head on over in front of SB Castle to get some pictures together. At first, it was DBF and DD2 that were in the picture. I notice later on that DD2 was not happy in the picture and I was trying to cheer her up and make her smile.

One of the Photopass CM’s asked if I wanted to get in and I got in as one of the rare pictures with me in the picture. My aunt didn’t want to get in but she did later on during the trip.

After getting some pictures in front of SB Castle, we head through the castle and now in FL.

Fantasyland was a little busy that day with most of the people at PP. It was about a 30 minute wait which was the right wait time and other rides around the area were mostly walk-ons.

My aunt, DBF, DD2 and I head on over towards the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique store to check it out. We did talk about this store and see if they want to make DD2 all nice and during our trip. It was expensive to do the make-up, accessories, etc. for DD2 and while they went in, I stayed outside with the stroller and ECV and took some pictures of window display at the BBB.

After they came out of the BBB, they are considering trying it out and make DD2 as nice as a princess. But I can tell that they aren’t going to do that package since they can do that themselves at the room.

So we walked down FL and the first ride we did was King Arthur’s Carousel. DD2 is a big fan of the carousel where she rides it a lot back in Sacramento and at the Sacramento Zoo where they have one. She wanted to go on KAC and she was all excited to ride it. DBF went with her while my aunt and I were waiting outside getting some picture of both of them.

When they got off KAC, it was past 3:30pm and it was almost time for the 4pm Mickey’s Soundational parade. So we head on over towards It’s a Small World Plaza to see the parade. This is what I was talking about earlier that IASW Plaza is a great place to watch the parade from since it doesn’t require a long waiting time like Main Street.

We got to IASW Plaza and saw that there were people waiting for the parade, we were fortunate to get the ECV and there was an handicapped area right by the food stand carts on the left side facing IASWH. It was also nice to see that IASWH had its Holiday decorations up during our trip. I knew that they will like IASWH a lot when we rode it that day.

It was now at 3:45pm and we had 15 minutes to go until it was time for the 4pm Mickey’s Soundsational parade.

The whole area around IASW Plaza is getting full with more and more people entering the area looking for a decent spot to watch the parade. We were in the handicapped section in the front row waiting for the parade.

That’s it for this post and I will have more from DL.

 

[disneykiwi]

That was great - I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading this next one and many more reports.

Cheers

 

[PrincessInOz]

Looks like the start of another magical trip, Bret. That DD2 is just adorable! Looking forward to more.

 

[ACDSNY]

I'm with PIO it looks like a great start.

 

[franandaj]

I got way too behind on the last one, but It looks like you are on great start with the new one!

 

[mvf-m11c]

That was great - I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading this next one and many more reports.

Cheers

Thank you. Glad that you have enjoyed the trip reports. This one is an exciting trip report where I get to experience it with a young child and her first time to the DLR.

Looks like the start of another magical trip, Bret. That DD2 is just adorable! Looking forward to more.

Thank you PiO. It was a very nice start to the trip where DD2 got to meet her favorite Disney princess Cinderella.

I'm with PIO it looks like a great start.

Thank you Angela.

I got way too behind on the last one, but It looks like you are on great start with the new one!

Thank you Alison. It was nice first part of the trip at DL where DD2 got to meet Cinderella and got some nice pictures in front of MS station and SB Castle.


The next post will be up shortly.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 1 – January 12, 2013 – Part 2​

We left off getting to SoCal that day and it was a nice afternoon where we got to have lunch at Mimi’s Café and got to check-in at our hotel. The four of us are now at Disneyland doing some different activities like meeting Cinderella and getting pictures at the iconic areas at the park. All of my party were very excited to be at DL for the first time or haven’t been to the new DLR since DL was the only park. Now let’s get to the trip report and find out what we have done that afternoon.

We were now in the handicapped spot at It’s a Small World Plaza right by the food carts right across from the Princess meet & greet area. It was about 15 minutes until it was time for the 4pm Mickey’s Soundsational parade. I had a hunch that they will really like this parade ever since it debut in 2011. I haven’t seen Mickey’s Soundsational parade for a while even though I have seen it walking by, I haven’t got a spot and watched it fully since the summer of 2011. We were chilling and relaxing until the parade started.

Just while we were waiting, there were school bands band coming down the parade route playing to the crowds.

After the two school bands left the area after a 5 minute separation from one another, we were all getting excited for the parade especially DD2 who really is looking forwards to the princesses scene.

Here is my aunt, DD2 and DBF getting a picture from yours truly.

Now it is time for the 4pm Mickey’s Soundsational parade. I did videotape the show on my tripod while I had my camera in my hand so I can take pictures of the parade. Here are pictures from Mickey’s Soundational parade from IASW Plaza area. This was also my first opportunity to use my Nikkor 35mm lens for the parade since I have used the 18-55mm lens in the past.

DD2 was so excited to see the 5 princesses on the float which is by far her most favorite scene during the parade.

Speaking of the princesses, we went to see Disney on Ice yesterday on Sunday at Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento and got to see a lot of different princesses from Princess Tiana, Princess Cinderella (which is her favorite) and Princess Rapunzel during Disney on Ice Dare to Dream show. She was so excited that she wanted to leave her seat and go to the stage to meet her favorite princess. It was a long time since I have attended a Disney on Ice since I was a little kid and it was a nice experience to see it that day.

Here is a picture while we were waiting after one of the scenes was over and waiting for the next one.

Now back to more pictures from Mickey’s Soundsational parade

That’s it for now on this post and I will have more the next time from Mickey’s Soundational parade.