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

[mvf-m11c]

Day 1 – January 12, 2013 – Part 7​

On the last update, we just got off ISAWH and we are now in Mickey’s Toontown to meet the characters. DD2 was looking forward to meeting more Disney characters that day after seeing all the Disney characters during Mickey’s Soundsational parade. We just finished meeting Goofy and now we are on our way to meet more characters at MTT.

After meeting Goofy right by his house, DD2 saw Minnie’s house and wants to meet Minnie. When I looked at the waiting time for Minnie’s house, it was at 10 minutes which seems really reasonable at this time at night. So we head on over to Minnie’s house to meet her. My aunt decided to wait with the stroller and ECV along with our bags. It was really nice to have other people on this trip where I got to talk to other people instead of my DA who goes with me to the DLR a lot.

We got in the queue for Minnie’s house and when we got in the line it was a little long than I have thought. The line was just right at the door which seemed quite long for just 10 minutes. I could tell that the wait time was longer than 10 minutes. So DBF, DD2 and I decided to just wait it out and see what the wait time was like. I also looked on my iPhone at Mousewait app and saw that it was only a 10 minute wait.

I got to get some pictures from Minnie’s house which I haven’t been in to her house in a long time. As always this house has a lot of heart shape from the furniture, appliances, pictures etc. which is great if you are doing a scavenger hunt for hearts which I have done in the past.

We were finally in the house and DD2 was roaming around the living room looking at all of Minnie’s furniture. I was taking a few pictures while we were waiting and talking to DBF about the day so far at DL. She was having a great time and to be able to enjoy this trip with her daughter is a great thing. She is also glad that I came along as their guide.

DD2 sitting on Minnie’s couch

There are a lot of heart shapes in the living room.

Now we were in her bedroom and it was past 10 minutes since we were in the queue and I knew that it was going to be about 20 to 30 minute wait to see Minnie. But DD2 was enjoying herself in the house and played with other kids around her age.

She was sleeping on Minnie’s bed while we were waiting.

Now we were in the kitchen and looks like DD2 is looking for something to eat in the refrigerator.

We waited in the queue to meet Minnie for almost 30 minutes until it was our time to finally meet her. When it was our turn to meet her, DD2 was so speechless that her mom had to tell her to go over to Minnie and greet her. When she finally got close to Minnie, she got all excited. Unfortunately DD2 didn’t take her eyes off her when I asked her to look at the camera.

It was time to move on but DD2 still wanted to stay with Minnie and her mom told her that we had to go and meet up with my aunt since she was sitting with the ECV and stroller for over 30 minutes. I knew that she was wondering why it took so long to meet Minnie that day.

After DD2 finally let go on Minnie’s hand, we head on back towards my aunt and she was so surprised to see us so late. We told her that the wait time was a little longer than expected. It was already dark that day and I knew that they will love seeing IASWH at night with the Christmas lights.

But before we head on out of MTT, we had to use the restrooms. Then DBF wanted to stop at the Gag Factory store which is the only store in MTT. When we were in the store, DD2 was looking through all the merchandise at the store and she told her mom that she wanted a Minnie doll. So my aunt told DBF that she would buy her the Minnie doll for DD2. My aunt hand me the money to buy the doll since I am a Premier AP holder and would save them some money with my 20% discount on merchandise. I was so glad that the DLR have extended the AP merchandise discount all the way towards the end of the year in December. I originally thought that the DLR wasn’t going to extend the AP merchandise in 2013 after the last few years where they have extended it.

When I was at the check-out line, I remember that I was planning on getting the Glow with the Show Ears for my aunt, DBF and DD2 for this trip. I was hoping that the GwtS Ears would interact with “Remember Dreams Come True” fireworks like “Believe…In Holiday Magic” fireworks during the Holiday season where ears interact with the firework show. But they didn’t have them.

We started to head on out of MTT and over to IASWH to see the lights. When we got over to IASWH, my aunt and DBF were all at lost for words to see the façade of IASWH. They were all amazed that they were glad that we came in mid January to see IASWH with the Christmas lights.

I told them that we should get a picture of them at the front of IASWH. So we head on over to the front and got a picture of DBF and DD2 together which is a nice picture of them.

It was really nice to see IASWH in mid January which I am so used to seeing it during November and December during the Holiday season. Especially with most of the Holiday decorations are already taken down in mid January, there was still some Holiday magic during this time where we got to see the snow on Sleeping Beauty Castle which is nice to see.

After looking at IASWH, I knew that we had a while to do some other rides until it was time to head on over to the Hub and get a spot for the 8:45pm RDCT fireworks show. We left IASW Plaza and head on over towards FL to do some other rides before we head on over to the Hub.

While we were in FL, everyone was getting hungry when we passed by Dumbo. That was going to be our next ride since DD2 wanted to ride on Dumbo. But my aunt and DBF were hungry and wanted something to eat while we were in the area. I thought about taking them over to New Orleans Square to have dinner at the French Market Place or Royal Street Veranda like we have talked about. But they wanted something right now and the closest restaurant in FL was the Village Haus. So we head on over to the Village Haus to have dinner that night.

It was really nice to have dinner at the Village Haus after it’s refurbishment. When we went inside there was something for everyone that was nice. They served pizza, cheeseburgers and salads. I got a Angus Cheeseburger while my aunt had the Chicken Sausage in a Pretzel Roll, DBF had the Angus Pastrami Cheeseburger and DD2 had the Yummy Cheesy Macaroni.

I only had a picture of my cheeseburger from that night and we got to eat inside the Village Haus.

After eating at the Village Haus restaurant, it was around 6:00pm when we finished dinner. We had a little time to go on one or two rides until we head on over towards MS Hub to get a spot in front of SB Castle for RDCT.

But first we head on over towards Dumbo since DD2 wanted to ride it. Luckily, Dumbo wait time was only 10 minutes. So DBF and DD2 were in line while my aunt and I were waiting for them until they got on Dumbo.

It was also a great opportunity to head on over towards the Mad Hatter store which sells hats and ears. I knew that the store would carry the Glow with the Show Ears so I could buy three for them. So I told my aunt that I was heading on over towards the Mad Hatter which is around the area to get the ears for all of them.

She wanted to buy the ears for all of them but I told her that I wanted to do that for them since she have invited me to come along and contribute my share to the trip. So I was able to buy three GwtS Ears for my aunt, DBF and DD2. When I got back they were on Dumbo and I was able to get a picture of them before they took off.

After they got off Dumbo, DD2 was so excited that she wanted to go on it again. But I told her that we will do it again later during the trip since we needed to head on over to MS Hub to get our spots for the 8:45pm RDCT fireworks. Just as we were about to go through the castle and towards MS Hub, it was closed off for the CM’s to set up RDCT fireworks at the castle. So we were about to head on over towards the backside of Frontierland to the Hub since the 6:30pm Mickey’s Soundsational parade was happening. But then when we were right by the Fantasyland and Frontierland border on the backside, I completely remember that Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was going through a major refurbishment and the backside of Big Thunder Ranch was closed off for the construction. So now we had to wait around FL until the 6:30pm parade was over and passed by so we can head on over towards the MS Hub.

When we got back to FL around the Tea Cups, the parade was just finishing up. So we waited until the parade passed by the Tea Cups and the Matterhorn and we head on down towards MS Hub.

When we got to the Hub it was around 7pm and luckily for us there were barely any people in the area right at the curb side close to the Hub. Most of the people took the benches as their spots for the fireworks and we were able to secure a curb side. Since my aunt had the ECV, she parked it right by the curb on the street. I was so glad that we were to get my favorite spot to watch the fireworks. DD2 wanted to go on some rides before the fireworks so DBF and she went on back towards FL to ride King Arthur’s Carousel. So they went towards Snow White Grotto on the right hand side of the castle and head on back towards FL. My aunt and I stayed with the ECV and stroller until it was time for the fireworks at 8:45pm.

It was also nice to see SB Castle with snow on it in mid January which is strange to see the snow on the castle without the decorations.

While the two of us were waiting, my aunt was relaxing in the ECV chair while I was on my iPad reading the threads that night including uploading some pictures from the trip. I wasn’t able to post them since my internet on my iPad was very slow. So I had to upload them later that night instead of the time while we were waiting for the fireworks.

It was around 7:45pm when DBF and DD2 came back from riding KAC. DD2 was so happy that she was able to ride KAC again that night since she like to ride the carousel. So the four of us waited until it was time for the fireworks at 8:45pm. I also gave the GwtS Ears to my aunt, DBF and DD2 and they were all happy to be able to get these ears. I have told them about the ears before the trip and I knew that they will enjoy wearing them at night. I brought my ears with me during the trip and I wasn’t about to bring them during the trip since they could be damaged during the flight. But I was able to bring them and buy them for my aunt, DBF and DD2.

When it was time for the 8:45pm RDCT fireworks, we had all our GwtS Ears and turned on just when it was time for the fireworks. Just about 10 minutes before the fireworks is about to happen, the CM’s told the guests to stand up and move in closer towards the castle so they can fit more people for the show. Some of the people were not that happy since they had to move up closer or stand up. I remember that one group was not that happy that they had to stand up for the fireworks. But that is a fact when you see the fireworks at DL and at the MK in WDW.

It was almost time for the fireworks and we had our ears all light up and standing while my aunt was sitting in the ECV and carried DD2. I had my video camera all set up on my tripod while I had my DSLR camera in my hands. I was thinking of using my tripod for my camera to get the firework trails but I wanted to videotape the show for them so I will have to take the fireworks trails on another trip.

That’s it for this post and I will have the firework pictures from Remember Dreams Come True.

 

[franandaj]

It looks like DD2 is having a great time, especially in Toontown.

 

[mvf-m11c]

It looks like DD2 is having a great time, especially in Toontown.

DD2 was enjoying MTT a lot especially at Minnie's House.


The next post will be up shortly.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 1  January 12, 2013  Part 8​

On our last update, we have done quite a lot that day at the park where we were in Mickeys Toontown getting some character picture from Minnies house. Also we did some shopping at the Gag Factory. Later when we left MTT, we get to see Its a Small World Holiday with the Christmas lights on during January. Everyone enjoyed the Christmas lights on IASWH. Later we were back at Fantasyland having dinner at Village Haus and was able to go on Dumbo and King Arthurs Carousel that night. I also bought them Glow with the Show Ears which the ears light up at night and interact with specific rides and shows. Now we are at Main Street Hub waiting to get ready for the 8:45pm Remember Dreams Come True fireworks show.

Now it is time for the 8:45pm Remember Dream s Come True fireworks at 8:45pm. I knew that they will love this firework show which is my all time favorite firework show at Disneyland. We were able to get my favorite spot in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle right by the Hub on the curb side. My aunt was sitting on the ECV to watch the show with DD2 in her lap while DBF and I were on the curb side watching the fireworks. We did wait for quite a long time (around 1 ½ hours) for the 8:45pm RDCT fireworks but I knew that wait time will be worth it by watching RDCT from this spot.

I had my camera taking pictures while I had my tripod right next to me with my video camera. I was considering trying to do the firework trails without the tripod for a few seconds but I knew that they would turn out really blurry since I dont have a steady hand without the tripod. So I took pictures with different shutter speeds during the fireworks. I used the 18-55mm lens instead of using the 35mm lens since I can get more of the castle and fireworks with the 18-55mm lens than the 35mm lens. I have used the 35mm lens in the past and I wasnt able to get the whole castle in the picture. I was hoping that by using the 18-55mm lens would get great pictures just like when I use the 35mm lens.

Here are pictures from RDCT fireworks that night.

There is Tinkerbell flying in the sky and DBF was telling DD2 there is Tinkerbell flying in the sky. You can tell that DBF was enjoying the first part of RDCT and seeing Tinkerbell flying. My aunt didnt say anything since she was watching the show while holding DD2. I still think about this firework show during this time of the season where RDCT plays in January to May and later on in September to November.

During RDCT fireworks, we had our GwtS Ears on and turned on during the show. As expected that the ears did not synchronized with the show where it changed different colors during each different scene. But we did touch our ears together where they were the same color while we were wearing them. It would be nice if the GwtS Ears could synchronized with RDCT just like Believe...In Holiday Magic fireworks during the Holiday season where the ears synchronized with that firework show.

That's it for this post and I will have more from RDCT fireworks.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 1 – January 12, 2013 – Part 9​

Back with more pictures from Remember Dreams Come True fireworks that Saturday night with my aunt, my aunt DBF and her DD2.

I’ll have more from RDCT later on the next upcoming post.

 

[ACDSNY]

I love your fireworks pics! It looks like DD2 enjoyed her first trip to DL.

 

[mvf-m11c]

I love your fireworks pics! It looks like DD2 enjoyed her first trip to DL.

Thank you Angela. It was nice to see the RDCT that night and everyone really enjoyed watching it.

DD2 is really enjoying her first trip to DL and she still talks about it when I see her. I can tell that she wants to go back as well as her mom.

The next post will be up shortly.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 1  January 12, 2013  Part 10​

Back with more pictures from Remember Dreams Come True fireworks that Saturday night with my aunt, my aunt DBF and her DD2.

Tinker Bell coming back out during RDCT and DBF was excited to see her again and told DD2 that Tinkerbell is out there again during the fireworks.

After RDCT firework was over, we waited in the area until it wasnt that busy. I knew that exiting the park just when the firework was over will be busy. So we decided to wait until it wasnt that busy to exit DL from MS.

I talked to everyone and asked if they really enjoyed RDCT. DBF was crying so much that she has never seen a great firework show like RDCT. She was so amazed with Tinkerbell flying and all the different firework scenes from RDCT. My aunt said that it was worth the wait of an hour and a half to get a view of the fireworks in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle. DD2 was so excited that she wanted to see Tinkerbell flying again in the sky. But she was getting a little tired that night and she almost fell asleep on my aunt lap during RDCT.

While we were waiting until the crowds left the park, I was hoping that Fantasmic! would be running during our visit in mid January. Unfortunately Fantasmic! was not running during our visit since it was down due to refurbishment. I knew that they will love seeing F! especially my aunt who have seen F! at WDW with me during our trip in October/November. I knew about this for a while and was bummed that it was down. But one day when they come back with me we will see F!.

It was just passed 9pm and I thought that we should go on at least one more ride until we head on back to Best Western Park Place Inn where we are staying. I mentioned to them that we should ride the Disneyland Monorail so they can have a look around the DLR from DCA to DTD and back to DL above the sky.

They all agreed to it and we head on over towards Tomorrowland to ride the Monorail as our last ride of the night before we call the night. I knew that they will like to ride the Monorail since this is the ride that I have to go on every time I am at DL.

When we got over to TL, it was not that busy as well as rides like FNSV which was only a 15 minute wait at that time. But we head on over to the TL Monorail station and waited for the next monorail.

The Monorail station was quite busy so we had to wait for the next one. I told them that we should go at the end of the station to ride the back since it will be busy at the front. We brought the ECV and stroller at the end of the station and were approached by a CM and asked if we wanted my aunt to be in the ECV and moved to the 4th car where it is for the ECV. We told them that we will leave the ECV and stroller behind since we are going to make a round trip around the DLR. We were allowed to leave the ECV and stroller out at the TL station until we got back from our round trip.

The monorail that was coming to the station was Monorail Blue. So we were able to ride in the back of the cabin of Monorail Blue. I knew that they will enjoy riding the back of the monorail. It would have been nice to ride in the front of Monorail Blue but there were people in front so the back was a nice way.

We boarded Monorail Blue and did a round trip around the DLR all the way back to the TL Monorail station. I didnt take any pictures while we were in the back of Monorail Blue since it was dark and most of the pictures would turn out blurry. We were talking about what is the game plan for tomorrow which we will be doing a lot of different things. While we were riding everyone was excited to see DCA, the Grand California Hotel, Downtown Disney and coming back to DL in Tomorrowland.

After we got off and got the ECV and stroller at the station, we used the elevator and got back to the bottom right by the FNSV queue. Now it was around 9:45pm and it was time to head on back to BWPPI to call it for the night.

Now we were at MS Hub and heading down towards MS all the way to head out of the park. It was not that crowded after spending some time in DL by riding the monorail.

I thought that they wanted to do some shopping when we left the park but they were all tired especially DD2 who was already sleeping in the stroller. So we just head on out of the park. As always I had to get pictures while we were walking on out of the park.

Its been awhile since I have seen the MS station closed during refurbishment. I will be looking forward to riding the Disneyland Railroad and passing by the MS station the next day.

A look back at the MS station all covered up

When we exited the turnstiles and back at the Esplanade, we had to drop off the ECV at the Disneyland Stroller and Wheelchair Rental area right on the right hand side of Disneyland next to the Disneyland Kennel. It was a good thing that my aunt got the ECV since she would not have lasted long while walking around the park including DBF who used the ECV a little bit during our day. But I can tell that they will need to get it again the next day since we will be at the park twice as longer than Saturday.

After dropping off the ECV, I was pushing DD2 who was sleeping in the stroller and my aunt and DBF were helping each other back while we were walking on back to BWPPI.

It took us about 5 minutes to get from the esplanade back to the BWPPI even with the traffic of guests heading on back to the room.

We got back after 10pm that night and this concludes our day at the DLR. We got DD2 out of the stroller when we got back to BWPPI and we had to get her up so DBF can change her into her sleeping cloths.

I forgot to say that we got the 2 Queen bedroom with a sofa bed. I used the sofa bed while my aunt had one bed and her DBF and DD2 had one bed. This is so good about getting the 2 Queen bedroom at BWPPI so you can have more people stay with in the room. I remember that I had 6 people including myself stayed in the room. So this is a great place to have multiple people stay in a room as well as being close to the DLR. I haven't used a sofa bed in a long time and it was no problem for me when i slept on it during those two nights.

We all went to bed around 11pm and that was the conclusion of our day and we are getting ready for the next day.


This was a very nice day where we all got to do a lot of different rides and shows. It was also fun to have my aunt, DBF and DD2 with me during this trip since it was DD2 first visit to DL and my aunt and DBF first time since a long time. DBF was also experience the first time with her child and she was all happy and teary the whole day where we got to do a lot of different things. I was here for them and they were glad that I came along with them. If they try to do all those different activities without me they would completed about half of them and wouldnt be able to experience the parade and fireworks in a great way.

We have done a few rides that day with DD2 really enjoyed IASWH, Dumbo and KAC. The best part for her when I talked to her the next day was meeting Cinderella when entering the park. She was so stunned to meet her favorite Disney princess and it was a dream come true for her to meet Cinderella. She was able to meet Goofy and Minnie while in MTT.

It was also a good thing that my aunt got the ECV so she didnt have to walk. If she walked without the ECV, we would have to make a lot of stops and she might not be able to stand up for the parade and fireworks during the wait time. We didnt try to take advantage of the handicapped by using the handicapped sections of the ride since it will slow us down when getting on the ride. We got a nice spot to watch Mickeys Soundsational parade in the handicapped section with little wait time and used the ECV as another area for us so we can watch RDCT that night.

I had a fun time with my aunt, her DBF and DD2 during the first day of the trip. It was also nice to experience something different when I am at the park of taking care of a young child who which is her first trip to DL. I wanted to make it a memorable for her and to this day ever since over one month ago she is still talking about the trip and wants to go back one day. I got to do some things that I havent done in years which is go to Minnies house. We got to watch Mickeys Soundational parade and watch RDCT that day which is so nice to see especially RDCT.

The 2nd day will be a fun for all of us since we will have a full day at the parks and to have dining experience at two different restaurants that day. We also got a surprise for DD2 that day which she will be so happy. I wont tell you until we get to the post so stay tune for the 2nd day of our trip to the DLR.

 

[PrincessInOz]

WOW! Great night. I'm sad to the MS station all covered up; but I guess everything needs a do-over at Disney at some stage.

 

[mvf-m11c]

WOW! Great night. I'm sad to the MS station all covered up; but I guess everything needs a do-over at Disney at some stage.

It was a very nice night where we got to watch RDCT and did a few rides like the Monorail. It was sad that the MS station was covered up during our visit. But it needs some new paint during Spring Break.


I also purchased tickets to the Walt Disney Studios and Archives for May 4th today. My DA and I are excited to go back to the SoCal and attend the WD Studios and Archives.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 2 – January 13, 2013 – Part 1​

Now it was a new day during our trip to the DLR on a nice Sunday morning. We were planning on going to DL for Magic Morning that day where I was able to go to the park during the Annual Pass Magic Morning which I am very excited. I rarely do MM at the DLR since I am not staying on-site or have a 3+ day multi day park hopper ticket. My aunt and her DBF had MM tickets for that day so I knew that we were going to have a great day at the park before we did our character breakfast that morning. I will get to that shortly on the upcoming posts of what restaurant we went that morning.

It was around 6:25am when I got up and I knew that we got up late that morning. I was the first one up while everyone was still asleep. We were kind of tired after the flight from Sacramento to Orange County and spent about 6 hours straight at DL. Everyone got up just when I was in the shower getting ready and I knew that we weren’t going to make it during MM that morning. DD2 was so tired that she didn’t take a long nap yesterday and took a few naps while we were in the park and left that Saturday night. But she was all excited to go to DL that morning.

We all got dressed and we left the room around 7:15pm. But before we head on over to the park, we had continental breakfast on the 2nd floor of Captain Kidd’s restaurant. It has been a long time since I have ate a continental breakfast at the BWPPI since I have been staying mostly at the Best Western Anaheim Inn which is a couple of buildings down from BWPPI. The food choices for the continental breakfast was completely different then in the past where they now serve sausages, eggs, and waffles. I don’t considered it calling it a real breakfast since it looks like it was from a box and they warmed it in the microwave and seared a little bit on the pan. It was nice to have a little something before we head on over to the park that morning. We also had a surprise for DD2 that day but we couldn’t tell her yet

After finishing eating during the continental breakfast, we head on over towards the esplanade and over to DL. I thought about going to DCA first but it was a good idea to head on over towards DL first since we could enter the park during MM.

Over at the esplanade, we head on over to the Stroller and Wheelchair Rental location so we can get a ECV for my aunt. So we got the ECV again for her so she wouldn’t have to walk and stand up a lot during that day. It was a good thing that we got the ECV again since it will help her out later that day.

When we got the ECV, we head on over to the turnstiles that was for the MM. Unfortunately, when we got to the turnstiles, the regular guests without the MM are already in the park and I was told by the CM’s that there was no MM for the hotel guests and the 3+ day PH tickets. So we went through the regular turnstiles to enter the park and just like the other day, there were CM’s outside scanning the guest tickets to see if the ticket belongs to that person. My aunt went through the ECV and wheelchair turnstile where the three of us went towards the regular turnstiles. With scanning of the tickets at the turnstiles, it was just going to slow down the time to enter the turnstiles. I also understand why Disney is doing this so they can crack down on the used tickets to other people. At least I don't have to hand my AP to them when I enter the park since I have to show the CM outside the turnstile to them and just hand my AP to the CM at the turnstile.

It was just passed around 7:40am when we got inside DL and now it was time to enjoy another day at DL. Main Street Town Square was quiet while most of the guests are heading on over towards the rope drop area at the Hub. So we followed along with the other people.

While we were in TS, we saw Mickey right by the Disney Showcase store and DBF asked DD2 if she wants to meet Mickey. She wants to meet her so much that we head on over to meet Mickey.

We only had to wait about 2 minutes through the line to meet Mickey and DD2 went over to meet him. She was so excited to meet him just like when she met the other characters. DBF was so happy to see that DD2 is enjoying meeting the Disney characters.

We head on up towards MS and we saw that there were other guests walking right by the Plaza Inn restaurant where they are able to go to Tomorrowland or up at Fantasyland. I knew that it was the APMM area where the AP holders can enter and enjoy FL & TL during MM. But we can’t all go together since my aunt and her DBF didn’t have AP’s. But they told us that DD2 and I go on some rides until the park opens at 8am.

So I took DD2 with her stroller with me to the area where the CM’s are letting the AP holders enter TL and FL. I showed them my AP and the two of us are now on the other side of the rope drop area and we first head on over towards FL to go on some rides. Since I was pushing the stroller I wasn’t able to get a lot of pictures until we met up with my aunt and her DBF. It was very nice where it wasn’t that crowded around Sleeping Beauty Castle.

We went through the castle and now in FL. First ride for the two of us was Peter Pan Flight since I know that PP will be very long later that morning when the park opens at 8am. DD2 wants to see PP and we head on over to PP. The wait time was only 5 minutes so it was an easy decision to ride it during APMM.

When we got off PP, I noticed that DD2 was a little scared since she was grabbing my hand tightly. I asked why she was scared and she was scared of the Tick Tock Crocodile at the end of the ride. I didn’t know that she was scared of crocodiles and I wouldn’t took her on PP. But she was excited to see PP fly that she didn’t tell me the rest of her fears. At least I know one of the things that she didn’t like.

My aunt and her DBF were now in FL and it was past 8am and now DL is officially opened for that day. While we were in FL, we head on over towards Dumbo to ride it that morning. When we got over to Dumbo, there was no one in the queue and we head on over to ride Dumbo. Unfortunately, Dumbo wasn’t operational since there were some CM’s repair crew working on it. We also saw a repairman CM riding Dumbo of testing it out. DD2 was a little disappointed that Dumbo was not running at that time but we told her that we will be riding Dumbo later that day.

We left Dumbo and our next ride on our agenda was Storybook Land Canal Boats. This was another ride that they will like a lot with all the miniature world of many Disney motion picture classic.

When we got in the queue for SLCB it was running a little slow where there were CM’s on one boat. I would guess that they were doing training that morning with future CM’s on the boats. While we were in the queue, one of the CM’s asked DD2 if she was having a great day and she said that she was. Then he gave something to her and it was a little miniature glass slipper. She was so excited that she thanked the CM for the slipper.

Casey Jr. train was passing by on top

My aunt in the background while DD2 and her mom are all getting excited to ride SLCB.

Finally it was our time to get on the boat and we had to wait about 10 minutes to get on the boat since there were CM training and adding more boats that morning. While we were getting on the boat, my aunt was having trouble getting on the boat. She had some problem while standing up for quite a while and waiting that long to get on SLCB shows. One of the CM’s told us that we should consider getting the Guest Assistance Card (GAC) at Town Hall so it would be easier for her. She told me that she will be fine since we have the ECV that day. So entered the boat and went through SLCB and saw all the different miniature buildings.

While we were riding SLCB, I also saw the bridges of Casey Jr. that had safety railings as part of the safety. It was so ugly to see all those railings on the bridges of Casey Jr.

Casey Jr. passing by

After getting off SLCB, my aunt got back on the ECV and asked her if she wanted to get the GAC at City Hall in MS. She told me that we didn’t need to get it since we waited for quite some time to get on SLCB.

So we head on over to our next ride while we were in FL. We head on over towards Alice in Wonderland since there wasn’t too many guests on the ride. I had a hunch that DD2 would not like this ride in which it can be a little scary for young children. She wanted to see it so we head on over there and I warned her of the ride.

When we got off the ride, DD2 was a little scared at the end of the ride with the dynamite birthday cake at the end of the ride. She was brave enough to go on the ride. We were all glad that she wasn’t that scared of AiW.

It was around 8:40am and we had to leave the park and head on over to breakfast at the Disneyland Hotel. So we walked on out of DL early that morning and had breakfast. When I first talked to them about the breakfast, it was cutting it close when we could use that morning to do a lot of different rides. This trip was all about them and my aunt wanted to have breakfast around that time and we set it up at that time.

We walked back underneath SB Castle and walked on out of the park. It wasn’t that busy around MS until we got to MS TS while more and more guests were coming in the park that morning.

A look at the Fantasyland Faire which is to be open in a couple of months during our trip and will be open in a few weeks. Even though I am not a big fan of Disney taking out the former Carnation Plaza Gardens for the new FL Faire, it was a nice place where you can meet the Disney princesses and it was perfect area since it is close to SB Castle.

It seems that we were the only guests leaving the park while everyone is coming in that morning.

We exited the park around 8:50am and we are on our way over to the Disneyland Hotel to have breakfast. You will find out on the next post of where we ate that morning unless you read my pre-trip report of where we had breakfast.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 2 – January 13, 2013 – Part 2​

On our last update, the four of us were at Disneyland that morning and we did quite some rides and meet Mickey that morning. DD2 wasn’t happy that Dumbo wasn’t running that morning but we were able to go on Storybook Land Canal Boats that morning. We got to go on a few rides that morning for about less than an hour in the park where we left before 9am so we can have breakfast.

We just left DL after 8:50am and were back at the esplanade. But before we could advance towards Downtown Disney we had to drop off the ECV back at the Wheelchair and ECV Rental area since we can’t bring the ECV towards DTD. You can only use the rental ECV in the parks and esplanade.

When we dropped off the ECV, we head on over to DTD. DTD was not as busy as I would have thought around 9am. We were also supposed to head on over to DCA to get FP’s for WoC. But we decided to get them later after we finish breakfast.

We walked all the way down through DTD and we passed by the Lego store and DD2 wanted to see the Disney Lego characters which she really liked.

We passed through DTD and were on our way over to the Disneyland Hotel where we will have breakfast at Goofy’s Kitchen. I want to thank Sherry E for help me choosing this character breakfast for our group since DD2 wants to meet a lot of Disney characters. And what better place to have a first character breakfast at the DLR is at Goofy’s Kitchen. I was originally going to go with the Plaza Inn with Minnie and Friends at DL. But the menu choice was not that a big selection from GK. My aunt told me that they wanted to eat at a character breakfast that serves a lot of different food and still have a fun time with the Disney characters.

I haven’t eaten at GK in a long time since I was a kid and this was going to be a great breakfast with my aunt, her DBF and DD2. I haven’t been at the DLH area in a long time since I haven’t stayed at the DLH and haven’t eaten at any restaurants in a long time.

Walking on over to the DLH

Goofy’s Kitchen Sign

We entered the DLH and head on over towards the check-in counter. There were quite a lot of people outside waiting to get in the restaurant and breakfast that morning. Since we have reservation, we didn’t have to wait a long time to be seated. But before we were seated we got a picture with Goofy. I didn’t get in the picture with them since I was taking the pictures. This is all about my aunt, DBF and DD2 so I thought that it would be better for them to have the picture without me. But later on during the trip, they told me that I should have been in the pictures with them since I am with them for the trip. They were right about that and I should have listened to them about that.

We were seated on the 2nd level and we were close to the buffet area. When we were seated we head on over to the buffet station to have breakfast. My aunt & DBF were amazed at all the different selection of food at the buffet station. There was sausage, bacon, Mickey waffles (which is nice to see) Mickey shape pancakes, hash brown, salad, fruit, cereal, etc. All the adults got at least two full plates so we won’t have to eat the park until later that night which we have another surprise for DD2. DD2 didn’t want to eat that morning but we told her that she had to have something or we wouldn’t let her eat that day.

While we were eating the characters came to our table and got some pictures. I was taking pictures of them the whole time during breakfast and we were hoping that Cinderella made an appearance that morning. There were a lot of different characters out greeting the guests. From the Character Meals Super Thread that I looked at before our trip and saw that there were a lot of different characters that DD2 will like.

We first met Pluto with his chef hat and apron.

We saw Dale and he is funny as ever with DD2

Next was Baloo

Our last character that we met that morning was Chip. Chip was playing with DD2.

We had breakfast for almost 1 hour that morning which was quite long. But we had a great time at GK that morning. Thank you again Sherry for your insight and knowledge about GK and it was a great character breakfast to have with DD2 and the rest of our group. It was very nice where there were a lot of different food choices then at the Plaza Inn. One day we will come back to have breakfast at GK, if I do bring back my aunt, DBF and DD2 in the future this is the place where we will have our breakfast.

When we had breakfast that day at GK, some of the Disney characters never made it to our table. DD2 was sad that she didn’t see Cinderella but I knew that it was going to be a long shot if she was here that morning. We did see Snow White, Rafiki, Captain Hook, Mad Hatter out there while they didn’t make it to our table.

After we finished eating at GK, we head on outside of the restaurant and back outside at the DLH. We told DD2 that we had a surprise for her. We didn’t tell her about it or you readers of what that surprise was unless you looked at my pictures at the beginning of the trip report.

We waited until the surprise came and she finally arrived. When DD2 turned around it was her step sister which her name is Kayla. She actually lives in SoCal and meet up with us for the trip where she will get to see her step mother. It was neat that she lives in SoCal and met up with us during the trip. She didn’t meet up with us on Saturday since she was working that whole day. It was nice for her to take some of her time off and be with us during our trip. We will call her Kay during the trip report. DD2 was so excited to see her and she ran over to her and gave her a hug. She knew my aunt and this was the first time meeting her. I have talked with her in the past through my aunt DBF and it was nice to meet her that day.

Here is a picture of DD2, Kay and my aunt DBF right at the DLH when we met up

Then the five of us head on out of the DLH area and back on over to DTD. Before that I had to get a picture of the topiary of Mickey and Minnie right at the DLH Pool.

When we were back at DTD, we stopped Disney Pin Traders store to get DD2 a lanyard. I thought that it was a little too early for DD2 to get a lanyard with pins, but they told me that they wanted to start her with something. They picked out a nice pink princess lanyard with the Disney princesses which matches her jacket. I used my AP to save them some money on the purchase since it was about $15 without the AP discount. While I was at the store, I saw a very nice

After getting the lanyard, DD2 went over to see Belle and I had to get a picture of her with the Lego Belle.

When we finished looking at the Lego Belle, we walked on down towards DTD. But before we passed by the restaurants, my aunt DBF looked at the caricature art work and she wanted to get one of DD2 with Kay. So we stopped again at another stand at DTD. This time it was a caricature of DD2 and Kay. So we waited for a while the Disney artists draw the two of them. I didn’t get a picture of it and it was so amazing to see them on a caricature.

While we were waiting we looked at the different stands around the area which had glasses, stuff animals, shirts, etc.

After the artist was done with their picture and we paid for it which was around a $100, we walked down of DTD and over to the esplanade.

At the esplanade, we didn’t get the ECV yet since we were going to DCA to get FP’s for WoC and hope that we could get the 8pm blue section. I knew that we would get the first show during that time.

We went through the DCA turnstiles and just like DL, there were CM’s outside the turnstiles to scan the guests tickets and taking picture of them to make sure that the ticket belongs to that guests. Kay had to get her picture of the ticket which she had a 2 day park hopper ticket. I thought that she was only going to be with us at the park for one day that was Sunday, but my aunt and DBF convinced her to get a multiday ticket since she will be staying with us at BWPPI.

We entered DCA and at BVS. The first thing I did was getting everyone’s park tickets so I can walk on over towards Grizzly River Run area to get the FP for World of Color that night for the 8pm show. This show is something that I have to see every time I am at the DLR and I knew that they will like it. Kay told me that she has never seen WoC even though she has been the parks with her family and friends. This was going to be a special night to see WoC for all four of them. While they were in DCA, I told them that they can go in the stores in BVS while I was over at GRR to get the FP’s. They all went to the stores while I went on over to GRR to get the FP’s.

It wasn’t that busy at DCA around 11:30am which was really nice during the off season.

We head on over towards Condor Flats and on our way to get SP for WoC

I got to GRR and it was down due to refurbishment. It was 3 ¾ hours (or four hours) after the park opened at 8am and I was worried that we came late that morning to get the 8pm blue section FP’s for WoC. I wanted to get the 8pm blue FP’s so we can watch WoC from my favorite spot at the green fire hydrant that I have been using for years. But I also remember that my aunt had the ECV so we could be in the handicapped section. I have seen the handicapped section in the past from all different spots in the blue and yellow areas and I don’t like those spots to watch WoC. But it is a good idea to try the handicapped spot and give my impression about it.

I walked up to the CM and handed all the tickets and luckily all the FP’s were in the blue section for the 8pm show. I was kind of surprised to see that we got blue FP’s for the 8pm show with about 4 hours after the park opened. It just shows you during the off-season that you can still get the blue FP’s even after 3 hours. But during the busy times you will most likely get the yellow FP’s for the first show.

After getting the FP’s at GRR, I head on back towards BVS to meet up with everyone else.

They were in the Elias & Company store looking at the different merchandise. After meeting up with them, DD2 had something in her hand in the stroller and it was Chip and Dale stuffed animals. I asked why she was getting Chip and Dale since she had met them during breakfast at GK. I was surprised that she wanted more stuffed animals and my aunt DBF told me that she will get those for her. I didn’t want to say anything to her about buying all these stuffed animals but that was her decision.

When we got the stuffed animals at the Elias & Company store, we head on out of the park and back towards the esplanade. We had to go back out at the esplanade and get the ECV at the Stroller and ECV rental area for my aunt.

After leaving DCA and got our hand stamps, we head on over to the Stroller and Wheelchair rental area to get the ECV for my aunt. She showed the paperwork that she had got the ECV that day so we wouldn’t have to pay another full rate to get the ECV.

When we got the ECV, we head on over to our next park which will be on the next update. So stay tune what we have done later that day with Kay and the rest of our group.

 

[Sherry E]

You're welcome, Bret! There's no need to thank me, but I am very glad that your group had a good time at the Goofy's Kitchen breakfast! The pictures are great! I would have felt terrible if you had taken a chance on eating there (based on my recommendation) and everyone hated it! Thankfully it was a success.

It's a shame that those other characters didn't make it to your table! It sounds as if they must have been working one side of the restaurant while the characters that you all met were on your side of the restaurant.

I think it's great that you guys had a good time despite some of the characters not coming to your table. I can guarantee that some other folks would have probably said they had an awful time at Goofy's if even one character missed their table, let alone a few. Sometimes the negative reviews are so extreme or so harsh that it almost doesn't even sound like the same restaurant that I have been going to for so long. I begin to wonder if I just have really horrible taste in character meals, or if the character meals just have really good days and really bad days!

(Oh, and that last round of fireworks photos was spectacular, as always - in fact, they seem to keep getting better and better with every trip you take!)

 

[franandaj]

Looks like DD2 had some great Character meets and so glad that Goofy's kitchen was a hit. We had a great time there when we went! So glad you got so many awesome photos!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Those pictures of DD2 with Mickey and the other characters are just darling. What a lovely surprise for her with her step-sister coming to visit. Just such gorgeous memories through your pictures.

 

[mvf-m11c]

You're welcome, Bret! There's no need to thank me, but I am very glad that your group had a good time at the Goofy's Kitchen breakfast! The pictures are great! I would have felt terrible if you had taken a chance on eating there (based on my recommendation) and everyone hated it! Thankfully it was a success.

It's a shame that those other characters didn't make it to your table! It sounds as if they must have been working one side of the restaurant while the characters that you all met were on your side of the restaurant.

I think it's great that you guys had a good time despite some of the characters not coming to your table. I can guarantee that some other folks would have probably said they had an awful time at Goofy's if even one character missed their table, let alone a few. Sometimes the negative reviews are so extreme or so harsh that it almost doesn't even sound like the same restaurant that I have been going to for so long. I begin to wonder if I just have really horrible taste in character meals, or if the character meals just have really good days and really bad days!

(Oh, and that last round of fireworks photos was spectacular, as always - in fact, they seem to keep getting better and better with every trip you take!)

Thank you Sherry. We all had a great time at Goofy's Kitchen breakfast. It was a good thing that I talked about it with you and checked out the Character Super Thread that made my decision a lot easier. All of the pictures were very nice and I should have gotten in some of those pictures that morning. But it was all about them. My aunt and I have talked about it and read all the different reviews about GK and the other character breakfast's at the DLR and GK was the best choice in her mind since it has more of a food selection and have a lot of different characters that will be coming to the tables. It was a success and everyone enjoyed it.

It was but it wasn't the Disney character that DD2 wanted to meet which was Cinderella. It was a long shot and hoped that she was there that morning. I would have guessed that she was at Ariel's Grotto where all the princesses are at that morning. I believe you know where we were sitting that morning. We were on the 2nd level right close to the entrance when you enter the dining area and we were close to the buffet area which was nice. It would have been nice if we were in the back area of the restaurant where most of the characters were at.

I would say the same thing that some guests would not have a great time at GK. As you know that there are some guests write harsh words on their experience at the restaurants that the food was not that good, service, etc. But as you know that you have to experience it yourself and see if it is a great experience or not. I mostly don't want to read the reviews and hear bad things about it so I won't have to eat there. But for people like you and the other DISers on the boards make the decision easily since everyone here is so kind. It would have been nice if the characters came to our table and interact with them but that is part of it and we enjoyed the food and atmosphere of eating at GK that day.

Thank you. The firework pictures are getting better and better with every trip.

Looks like DD2 had some great Character meets and so glad that Goofy's kitchen was a hit. We had a great time there when we went! So glad you got so many awesome photos!

DD2 was having fun with the characters at GK. We were all glad that GK was a great experience for all of them. My aunt was happy with all the different choices to eat while DBF and DD2 were having fun interacting with the characters and I was enjoying the atmosphere and food at GK. Thank you Alison.

Those pictures of DD2 with Mickey and the other characters are just darling. What a lovely surprise for her with her step-sister coming to visit. Just such gorgeous memories through your pictures.

DD2 was so excited to meet Mickey that morning just before the park officially opened at 8am. A lot of the good pictures with her smiling is with her step-sister and that was nice of her to come and be with us during the trip. This trip for my aunt, her DBF and DD2 just got a lot better with her joining us.


The next post will be up shortly.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Day 2 – January 13, 2013 – Part 3​

On our last update, we just had breakfast at Goofy’s Kitchen. It was a nice surprise for DD2 to be able to meet some different Disney characters when we had breakfast that morning. It was enjoyable to eat at GK since I haven’t ate at that restaurant in a very long time. It was worth every penny for that breakfast while my aunt and her DBF had a great time. We also met up with my aunt DBF step daughter Kay who lives in SoCal and met up with us after breakfast. DD2 was so excited to see Kay at the DLR. We head on over towards Disney California Adventure to get FP’s for World of Color and we were lucky to get the blue section for the 8pm show. Now we are back at the esplanade after getting the FP’s. Now we will see what we have done that afternoon with everyone here.

After we got the ECV, they all wanted to head on over to DL to do some other rides. So we head on over to the DL turnstiles. It was a little busy to get through the turnstiles at DL. DD2 was being pushed in the stroller by Kay while my aunt was using the ECV while I was talking with my aunt DBF about what we should do later that day.

When we entered DL, DBF wanted to get a picture of her and her step daughter a picture at the MS station even though the MS station was covered up during the construction. This was a very nice picture of them together at the MS station.

The E.P. Ripley Engine #2 with the Excursion car set passing by the MS station which you barely see too often when the train passed by the station without stopping.

Just when we were about to head on over to MS, DBF mentioned to us that DD2 wanted to see Dinsey Junior-Live on Stage at DCA. I looked at the time schedule and see that there was a show about to happen. So we head on out of DL and back on over to DCA to go see the Disney Junior-Live Stage!.

We left DL and back towards the esplanade while heading on over to DL.

We were now back at DCA and we head on over to Hollywood Land to make the 12:30pm show. It was cutting it close since we just got in the park.

When we got to the Disney Junior-Live on Stage! area, there was a long queue to get in and luckily we made it just in time to make the 12:30pm show. This was another show that I haven’t see in a long time and it was nice to see the show. DD2 have been watching Little Einsteins a lot and she was really enjoying the show. Most of us were just relaxing while DD2 with Kay are enjoying the show. It was a very nice show for the little kids while my aunt was resting a little bit while we were on the benches on the sides.

After the show was over and we got the ECV and stroller, DBF wanted to ride Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue since she is a big fan of Monsters Inc. So this was our next ride while we were in Hollywood Land. The day was not that bad while it was getting a little busy around Hollywood Land.

Just when we were about to head on over to Monster’s Inc, DBF saw the Schmoozies quick snack stand where they sell smoothies. Her DH call her Scmoozies a lot when they are home and she had to get a picture in front of the stand.

We head on over to Monster’s Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue and we parked the stroller while my aunt rode the ECV in towards the queue. This was the first time during the trip that she brought the ECV through the queue. The wait time was only 5 minutes that afternoon which was the right time for this ride. It is so surprising to see that this ride does not get a lot of people like the other rides at DCA.

Following behind everyone while we were in the queue of Monster’s Inc.

Kay and DD2 waiting in the queue

When we got to the loading zone, my aunt got out of the ECV and they moved it to the end of exit area so it would be ready for us to use it. Luckily the ride vehicle for Monster’s Inc. have three rows so we were able to ride in one vehicle together. I was in the back while DD2 and DBF were in the front while Kay and my aunt were together in the middle. I took a few picture during the ride and seeing how these pictures turned out. I didn’t take a lot of pictures during the ride as I have thought since I was enjoying the ride as well as the others even though I have been on this ride a lot of times.

The ride was over and we got the ECV right at the exit and DBF was so excited to go through Monsters Inc. that she really enjoyed it a lot. After getting the stroller after getting off Monster’s Inc. We head on over to the back side of Hollywood Land over to A Bug’s Land. DBF wanted to see It’s Tough to be a Bug and it was on the other side. We didn’t go back towards BVS and decided to go through the backside instead.

When we were about to head on over to ABL, we saw the Tower of Terror and DBF wanted to go on ToT. She asked Kay and me to go with her on ToT and we went with her. Unfortunately, DD2 was not tall enough even if she was tall enough there was no way she would gone on the ToT since the ride will scare her. My aunt didn’t want to go either so she didn’t go on the ride and waited with DD2 until the three of us got back.

It has been a very long time since I have rode the ToT at DCA. I believed the last time I rode it was when it first opened back in 2004. It has been less than 10 years since I have rode the ToT.

The wait time for the ToT was only 13 minutes which seems the right amount of wait time to get on thre ride. When we were through the queue, it took quite a while to get on the ride. We were in the back side of the elevator. When we went through the process of riding ToT, DBF was holding onto Kay arm so tight that she had markings after we got off the ride. I can tell that DBF was scared of riding the ToT by holding onto Kay so tight. She was screaming a lot during the ride while the drops were random. It is so fun to ride the ToT while you don’t know how many drops you will get on your ride experience.

When it was over, DBF wanted to get out so quickly. Kay had markings on her arm where DBF hold on her arm so tight on the ToT. When we got out, we had to look at our picture while riding the ToT. I didn’t bring my DSLR with me since it was with my aunt and DD2 so I used my iPhone to get the picture and it was nice. Well the picture didn’t turn out great but it was fun to rid the ToT after not riding it over the years. As you can tell from my picture that I was not even scared of riding the ToT which looks like I am bored.

After getting off the ToT, DBF was so glad that we were out of the ToT. Kay told my aunt everything about DBF holding on her arm so tight during the ride that she was scared. They even asked me that I didn’t even flinched during the ride. We head on over to the backside of ABL and while we were walking some of them had to use the restroom. While they were using the restroom, I was talking with Kay about her a little more and we had a good conversation about her life and having a nice stepmom in DBF.

When we met up we walked on out of the main entrance of ABL. While walking on out, I saw that the Christmas lights in ABL were still up during mid January. This was very interesting to see the Christmas lights still up during mid January when the Holiday season at the DLR is over. But I didn’t see the giant ornaments. So the Christmas lights were still up while the ornaments were put away.

When we left ABL, we were now heading on over to It’s Tough to be A Bug so DBF would be able to see this show. She is really a big fan of the Pixar movies like Monster’s Inc. and A Bug’s Life.

We got our glasses and were underground to watch ITtbaB. DBF was getting excited while DD2 was a little scared of going underneath. They all tried to encourage her to be a good girl and see the show with everyone.

Everyone in the waiting area were now entering the seating area and we had to be in the back since we have the ECV. During the show, everyone except DD2 was not enjoying the show. She was covering her eyes during the show and got scared from the bug’s that were coming down from the ceiling. I thought that she wanted to leave but she was brave enough to stay and watch the show with the rest of us. We were all excited for her to be able to stay and not cry during the show.

We exited the show and now back at DCA to do our next activity. But that will be on the next post and see what we have done later that day at DCA.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Seems like a fun day to spend with everyone. Thanks for sharing.

I don't do ToT at all. I chalk it down to having done it for real......I once was in a lift that dropped about 6 - 10 floors before the safety catch took.

 

[Sherry E]

I don't like the bugs that come down from the ceiling in ITtbaB either! Those spiders! Ick! And I don't like the feeling of the little bugs scurrying past us in the seats at the end of the show. It's creepy!

The 3D glasses on DD2 are so big, they take up half of her face!!

I wonder why the giant Christmas lights were still up in A Bug's Land in January? I hope they're not leaving them up year-round. They should only be up during the holidays. It doesn't seem like it should take too long to remove them.

 

[mvf-m11c]

Seems like a fun day to spend with everyone. Thanks for sharing.

I don't do ToT at all. I chalk it down to having done it for real......I once was in a lift that dropped about 6 - 10 floors before the safety catch took.

It was a fun day where we got to do a lot of different activities at DCA that afternoon. Thank you PiO.

I haven't done ToT in a long time at DCA. I know that my DA that goes with me to DL a lot does not like the ToT and it was nice to ride the ToT with my aunt DBF and Kay. 4 floor difference on one drop seems scary even with a safety belt. I believed during our ride experience that there was at least one drop that fell from 4 floor down.

I don't like the bugs that come down from the ceiling in ITtbaB either! Those spiders! Ick! And I don't like the feeling of the little bugs scurrying past us in the seats at the end of the show. It's creepy!

The 3D glasses on DD2 are so big, they take up half of her face!!

I wonder why the giant Christmas lights were still up in A Bug's Land in January? I hope they're not leaving them up year-round. They should only be up during the holidays. It doesn't seem like it should take too long to remove them.

DD2 was scared of the bugs coming down from the ceiling. We didn't get the bugs scurry past us in the seats since we were in the handicapped section where we were feel the bugs from our seats as well as the spray of water. The handicapped section is the only area that you will not feel those special effects.

The 3D glasses on DD2 were big and she had to hold on them to watch the show. But she mostly close her eyes during the show.

That was very interesting to see the Christmas lights up at ABL during our trip. The ornaments were gone during our time which was no surprise. But the lights were a surprise and just as you said that they should only be up during the Holiday season at DCA not during mid January after the Holiday season was over after one week. As you know that most of the Holiday decorations at the DLR was taken down except for IASWH which runs through mid January and the snow on SB Castle will be taken down later after taking down the Holiday decorations. It was nice to see the snow on the Castle during our visit.


The next post will be up shortly.