My First Vacation in 13 years!! (No, really)! *LOTS of Pictures!!!*

[louise1928]

A) I watch "Lost" religiously (can't wait for it to come back on the air in another few months!). I don't know if I ever noticed Charlie's shoes while he was 'alive.' (That is a debate for the ages - whether they are 'alive' or not!)

B) I also DETEST heat - especially in the blazing sun of DLR, where it always seems hotter than in the 'real world.' I like cold. I like it in California/DLR when we are lucky enough to drop down to the 30's sometimes in December. I like to bundle up in comfy sweaters and coats to get warm and sip cocoa rather than feeling like I am going to pass out because I can't cool down fast enough no matter how much water I drink. And I drink a lot of water.

C) My friends and I are also really uncomfortable with big drops on rides, like on Splash Mountain. It took YEARS from my childhood fear of POTC for it to grow into one of my absolute favorite rides now! I still have one friend who won't go on POTC at all, and another friend who will ride it is still terrified of the drops and can't relax until they are over!

Another "LOST" fan right here, Can't wait until it returns, but its great to watch the reruns on the Sci-Fi channel.

 

[Ferry Joy]

http://lh6.ggpht.com/Rachel.Standlee/SPJ9L05UaJI/AAAAAAAAAMU/OGB_MW6g8e4/s512/IMG_0207.JPG[/IMG]

Matt really wanted to show me his undies. I don’t even have underwear that is that pretty and colorful. I was jealous. He was pleased.

I'm just reading along enjoying your trip report and then suddenly I'm choking on my coffee and spitting on the computer. What colourful undies!!!!
I have to say his boxers are brighter and more colourful than anything I have ever owned. Pity me!
Keep all the pictures coming!

 

[TXAng]

You survived Splash Mountain! It's such a bummer when it's so hot. It seems to make everyone so cranky and miserable.

Great TR! You guys look like you're having a ball! We also left for DL out of PDX ;-) LOL

I love how you are so young but begining your Christmas Village... Be carefull.... here's what can happen before you know it!

No, DH did not have too much eggnog-it's just a bad pic!

That is NOT a store. It is my DMIL's house.

anyway, thanks for the great report!

Keep up the good work!

P.S. Sorry nobody took your picture... that kinds stinks.

That's about what my stepmother's village looks like!

 

[travelmel]

How many days did you guys spend in the park total? I am going to be there from the 14th-19th of December so I am hoping we are able to get everything in. When we went 2 years ago I went home with quite a few things I was kicking myself for missing. I have had the trip booked and paid for since august but I am having a heck of a time finding a good deal on airfare out of PDX.

Hmmm... don't despair.. everytime I start to stress a good price comes up. I set myself an alert with expedia (I think) to let me know when the price drops below $250. That definitely helps me search for prices.

Good luck!

 

[10stime]

Thanks TravelMel, Jet Blue actually just dropped their fares to around 250 round trip flying into Long Beach. I was hoping for SNA since I already had Disneyland Express Vouchers through GetAwayToday that I purchased with the package. If I can find some good transportation out of Long Beach I think we have found our flight!

 

[travelmel]

Thanks TravelMel, Jet Blue actually just dropped their fares to around 250 round trip flying into Long Beach. I was hoping for SNA since I already had Disneyland Express Vouchers through GetAwayToday that I purchased with the package. If I can find some good transportation out of Long Beach I think we have found our flight!

Nice job!

 

[wendylady36]

I'll only go on Splash Mountain when it's hot or other people are really enthusiastic about going on it. To me, Splash Mountain is a reminder of how mean my family can be...Minnie Mouse is, in fact, NOT at the top of Splash Mountain...you've been warned!

Anyways, I did in fact have my Mark Twain a few weeks ago and I rode the Mark Twain twice, so that made me think of you!

I can't wait to hear more about your trip!

 

[Rainforest_Elf]

Oh my, has it been awhile! Hello again my disboard friends. I've missed you!

Life has been super busy for me for the last month and a half, which will explain my abandonment of my trip report! But rest assured, here comes more of it! I still have a whole heck of a lot of days and pictures to share with you!!!

So when I last left you, I was explaining how it was mid day on our first day in the park and it was like, 98 degrees in the shade and it was just hot and gross. We found shelter in the Disney Gallery.... i think is what it was called. The museum full of old Disneyland memorobila!

I really liked this guy, he was very informative and had a pleasant speaking voice. I think he said he was at opening day of Disneyland when he was a wee lad, or something. I wasn't exactly paying attention to what he was saying, we were just glad to be in an air conditioned room!

Original outfit for cast members on the matterhorn. Personally I think they're way cuter than what they wear now!

We spent maybe 20 minutes in the museum thing before we realized we better head over for our dinner reservations at the Blue Bayou, so we skeedaddled out of there and took a nice stroll over to New Orleans Square.

Some nice cast member took this for us. We don't really like each other which is why we're all prim and proper and not touching.

JUST KIDDING!!

I was GOING to do a photopass card, but these last three pictures were the ONLY time we ran into a Photopass Photographer, and I just didn't feel it was worth it. I mean heck Disney, I was going to give you $75 of my hard earned cash for nice pictures but you didn't keep your photographers out and about!

I thought this was very random. We made friends. This Indian will make a reappearance on the last day of our trip... in a very special way...

So we had reservations for 5:30 that night and we showed up at 5:15. When I called in the priorety seating I had asked for waterside seating and the dude on the phone had told me I didn't really want our party to sit there because it was a 3 hour wait even with the PS and that the people on the boat heckled you. I said that he knew best and to just sit us where-ever.

We were called to our table at... 5:45, I think. And they walked us right on back to a 4 person table right next to the water!!! The one trade off though was, we were seated right next to the kitchen. All in all, that wasn't bad to be honest. Waterside seating>sitting near the kitchen.

I was so thrilled!

I totally loved it in there. Our meals were a bit pricey, but hey, it's disneyland. The atmosphere was totally worth it

And of course, we got the cookie boat!!

The cookie was WARM, the chocolate was gooey and melty, and the ice cream was delicious! The plan was for me to take the sugar sail back in my suitcase, but it seemed kinda fragile, so we decided to see what it tasted like instead....

Matt and I would not reccomend trying it. It tasted like rice paper and chalk.

Because of the heat and the long day, after dinner, we were pretty much done with the parks and didn't want to do anything else, so we headed out for the gate. I had said early on, in the trip, I had absolutely NO interest in staying for any parades and silly stuff like that.Matt couldn't be bothered one way or the other, so we walked by the Walt Disney Parade of Dreams on our way out...

...but wouldn't you know it? Timmy LOVES parades:

Seriously. The dude freaking lit up like it was Christmas morning. We did stop and watch it because this was the happiest he had been all day. And actually, when he was watching the parades (yes, we saw another one later in the week) that was the happiest he was the ENTIRE trip.

I do have to admitt, it was pretty cool. I wouldn't mind watching another one.

This is my "I'm tired and sunburnt" face.

Matt and his very first pin:

And that's the conclusion of Day 1 in the parks!!!! PHEW! I'll try and upload a bit from Day 2: Universal Studios, sometime this weekend

 

[weslovesauntmeg]

Yeah!! More TR..I thought we had lost you. I'm a sucker for parades too, alothough no one else in my fam is..they aren't as gracious as you to let me watch it. So I have to watch them on YouTube whenever I get the craving!! Keep it coming..

 

[Sherry E]

You have actually been gone from posting on this TR thread since mid-October! Did you realize it had been that long? I have had a whole other DLR trip (in December) since the last time you were on here, woman! In fact, I went back and added in all kinds of pictures at the beginning of my TR and from the October trip I took as well as from December in my TR! You have to revisit it!!

The last time I posted on your TR thread, I was talking about Lost, I think, as well as big drops on rides!!!! Anyway, I am glad to see you back on here, continuing where you left off. I had thought of you the other day and wondered what happened to you! But now it's like we are picking up in the TR like you never left! I hope you had a great holiday season!!!

 

[Rainforest_Elf]

You have actually been gone from posting on this TR thread since mid-October! Did you realize it had been that long? I have had a whole other DLR trip (in December) since the last time you were on here, woman! In fact, I went back and added in all kinds of pictures at the beginning of my TR and from the October trip I took as well as from December in my TR! You have to revisit it!!

The last time I posted on your TR thread, I was talking about Lost, I think, as well as big drops on rides!!!! Anyway, I am glad to see you back on here, continuing where you left off. I had thought of you the other day and wondered what happened to you! But now it's like we are picking up in the TR like you never left! I hope you had a great holiday season!!!

Oh wow, I didn't really realize it had been quite that long! Been working a lot of 6 day weeks at muh job since November, and the with the holidays...just haven't had a lot of computer time!

Imma have to go look at your TR you were making when I was first starting mine, because you hadn't posted pictures at that point. Woot! I'll go have a look!

 

[travelmel]

Welcome back! That's funny that that guy only likes parades...

 

[Rainforest_Elf]

Well, I'm bored and I cleaned out my desk and am now without anything to do until bedtime, so, hey! More trip report!

Day 3: Universal Studios

We planned before we left that we wouldn't be messing with a rental car because none of us are 25, and we didn't want to pay up the wazoo to rent one. Plus we weren't really going to be doing a whole lot of driving, so we took the suggestion of someone on these forums and we did a package through Greyline America which picks you up at your hotel, then drops you at a main station where they then take you to your destination, like Sea World, tours of Hollywood... and then of course Universal Studios, where we were heading.

It was a zoo.

I wish I had taken a picture of this lot from the back of the parking lot. There were just masses amounts of families all spread out. They send one person from your party into a main hub which is a dirty, nasty crowded place where you check in. We sent Matt in there. He said it was gross.

This was a nice Australian family we kept running into. Also, our bus.

I have to say, I really really liked Universal Studios. I'm a HUGE movie nerd and I really enjoyed everything about this place. And it was so NOT crowded. I mean Disneyland was terribly crowded every day we went there. At Universal we didn't have to wait more than 5 minutes for ANY ride. In some cases we just got off the rides, walked back around in line then immediately got back on it.

Part of the back lot which was burnt down. They're trying to clean it up to rebuild it.

Going down to the lower lot via one of the 1 million escalators they have in the place. Okay really it was more like 7, but still. A LOT of escalators.

Lining up for the studio tour.

Our shoes.

Universal Studios is so large it has its own zip code and fire station!

Tram!

Flash Flood!

Some random dude in western town.

The earthquake/subway room

Some of the lot really needs to be updated desperately... at leas the part where they do the tour. I love Jaws and all that but this was so cheesy...

I was really bummed when I heard about the fire at Universal last year, especially because the tour used to take you through the set of Back to the Future, which is one of my favorite movies ever. Instead, they now take you to Wisteria Lane from Desperate Housewives. The houses are cute and all, but I'm not a fan of the show so.... boring.

This was probably my favorite bit on the tour. The bates Motel. Norman Bates comes out, puts his mother in a car trunk, then comes and chases after your train with a knife. Made me laugh.

Also, Whoville is behind the Bates Motel. True story.

War of the World's set. Love the movie. Kinda boring and a big mess. Not really sure why they keep random stuff like this around unless it can be used in another movie or something, it's not like War of the Worlds is as major as Back to the Future was or something.

I liked this sign

Think I've reached my picture limit... I'll continue in my next post!

 

[Rainforest_Elf]

So after the tour we decided it was time for rides!

Oh boy. I loved the Jurassic Park ride!

My boys were very excited!!! As was I!

You tell me what Tim was doing to Matt here, cause I have no idea. Looks a bit.... frisky, wouldn't you say?

We ended up buying the $25 picture of us coming down the 5 story drop, because we all looked scared out of our minds, not knowing what to expect. Unfortunately I don't have a scanner so I can't share it with you. Boo.

Waiting in line for the Backdraft demonstration. Don't really care for the movie, but the demonstration was pretty cool.

Matt and Tim with our good friends Kevin Bacon, Tom Hanks, and Bill Paxon.

Pretty sure the Universal Attendant who was managing the hallway where you enter the ride for The Simpsons was high out of his mind. Yup.

The only thing Tim really cared about doing while we were at Universal was seeing the Waterworld show.

Pretty awesome set, if you ask me.

We were sitting in what's called the "soak zone." Obviously the goal here, is to get wet. One of the actors did come around and squirt us with one of those tube shaped squirt guns. When he was turned away, I squirted him back with my water bottle. That ticked him off and he got a BUCKET, filled it up, and then tossed it on us in the front row. My camera was hidden away in my purse at this time so I didn't get a picture of the actor. But he was a total ham.

We had a bit of bad luck though. They started the show, and about 5 minutes in, the gate, which is part of the show, BROKE. I guess it was a pretty major part to the show because they made everyone leave because of "technical difficulties." We were pretty dissapointed. To make matters worse, while we were eating at the Saddle Ranch Chop house for dinner, we had realized that they did eventually start the show... like 45 minutes later.

I had heard that the saddle ranch chop house had a mechanical bull, and I really wanted to ride it, so that's where we went to dinner! It's litterally just outside universal. However BOTH of the ones they had were roped off and didn't look like people could use them, so I didn't even get to try it =(

Just some pictures of the boys at our table during dinner. The food was pretty good although they messed up all of our orders. Oh well.

You have no idea how upset I am BOTH of them are blinking in this picture. It would have been 100% perfect otherwise.

Tim and I take real gud pikturs.

We decided to behave for the second frame.

And that concludes day 3 of the trip! This was traffic on the way home. I was so glad at the end of the day we just had to sit and relax for a good hour and a half on the bus. I would have been so stressed driving in this.

 

[Echie]

I am loving your trip report! Thanks so much for all the awesome photos!
You and your friends take the funnest photos ever! You guys seem to have a blast together!

Quick question: About how long did it take to get from your disneyland hotel to universal by that bus?

 

[Rainforest_Elf]

I am loving your trip report! Thanks so much for all the awesome photos!
You and your friends take the funnest photos ever! You guys seem to have a blast together!

Quick question: About how long did it take to get from your disneyland hotel to universal by that bus?

the way there it was maybe 45minutes to an hour... not long. On the way home it was more like an hour and a half to 2 hours. We left at 6pm and werent back at the hotel until 8:15pm, but then the Disneyland hotel was the last stop, i think.

 

[10stime]

Yay I am glad you are back to share the rest of your trip with everyone! I just got back from my trip a few weeks ago. I have never done a trip report but I think I may give it a go! Did you love all of our snow we got? We made it back from Disneyland the night before it hit. Although if flights were cancelled going into Portland we might have had to stay longer