“That’s just a weird thing to be happy about”: A Backstage Magic ABD TR! UPDATED 11/24 X3 & COMPLETE

[pkondz]

Took ya long enough....

Next time throw up a smoke signal or something.
Something subtle... like... “PKONDZ I STARTED A TR!”

Go big or stay home!

You didn’t stay home.

The frustrating thing is the inconsistency in which this ploy works. I've been using it to try to get a second kitten for like two years and I get nuthin!

Wait... you haven’t tried crying????

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Excited to hear about your childless millennials trip!

Hopefully it exceeds your every expectation!

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Next time throw up a smoke signal or something.
Something subtle... like... “PKONDZ I STARTED A TR!”

You mean you didn't get any of the multiple carrier pigeons I sent?? They must have been held up at border control...

Wait... you haven’t tried crying????

I've tried many, many things. Sadly all to no avail and we still only have one cat. I can't be a crazy cat lady with only one cat. That's not how it works.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

The Great Lipstick Conundrum of 2019

It’s time for everyone’s favorite part of the TR- the ever exciting ~travel day~

If you have followed any of my previous TRs (if you haven’t, for shame. I feel absolutely neglected as an artist and MUST INSIST that you spend any and all of your available free time reading about ME and MY LIFE via the links in my signature, and thus validate my existence on this planet we call earth), then you’ll know that we are fans of the evening flight. The obvious upside to this is that we get to start our vacation with a full day of fun! The obvious downside is that it can make that day of work drag on and on and on.

Surprisingly that wasn’t the case the day we left and both our work days went by pretty quickly. Plus our flight was late enough that we even had a few moments to finish up last bits of cleaning and packing (and I got an entire episode of Stranger Things 3 in!).
We got to and through the airport in the normal quick fashion (hands in the air for small airports) and we were treated to a beautiful sunset.

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Soon we were seated on the plane and watching our pre-determined in-flight movie of choice: Cars 3. When the flight attendant came around I didn’t get any snacks because I didn’t want to deal with having to brush my teeth. This sounds like a mundane detail with absolutely no bearing on the rest of the TR, so naturally that must mean that it is vitally important and comes into play later on.

Side note: For those of you who don’t know, I’m going through an Invisalign treatment so that I can straighten my janky crooked teeth. This was my first Disney trip with them and I might intersperse some anecdotes concerning them throughout this TR for anyone who is curious about how they affect traveling.



Anyway our flight landed a few minutes late but nothing crazy. We had our first night booked at a hotel near the airport with a free shuttle. We landed with enough time to get to the airport and go grab some In N Out for a late dinner. I called the hotel to ask for the shuttle and they said it would be 20-25 minutes.

To go less than two miles.

25 minutes.

Well, I said to myself, it is LA traffic. I guess it does take a little longer than I’m used to. 25 minutes passed. Then 30. Then 35, all the while we are standing outside inhaling bus exhaust fumes and getting hangrier and hangrier. At 40 minutes I called back asking where the shuttle was and they said it should be there right away. Thankfully they were right, but at that point I was beyond hangry. Remember how I had refused plane snacks? Yeah that one came back to bite me (wish I had done the biting instead).



We FINALLY got to the hotel, a Hampton Inn, which turned out to be quite a lovely despite the shuttle debacle. It was recently renovated and had nice rooms and free breakfast! By the time we got back to the hotel it was really too late to go out and get anything to eat. We had a somewhat early morning coming up so we chose sleep over food, which is never an easy choice to have to make.

We settled in for a good night’s sleep but I was rudely awakened many hours too early, not by a stomach bug like last time, but something almost as bad- the sinking realization that I had forgotten to pack any lipstick.



Okay technically it was the time change that woke me up but upon waking I had the lipstick revelation and that made it pretty much impossible to get back to sleep. (Ladies and lipstick-wearing gents, do ya feel me here??)

I just sucked it up, got out of bed and started getting ready for the day. If I was going to be sleepy all day I might as well be fabulous about it. This included finding out WWID (what would instagram do) about the lipstick conundrum.

[I already knew I was going to go buy some lipstick but I just needed some validation. And we all know Instagram is where you go for validation, beside the Dis]​

Jon was fortunately not affected by the time change and eventually got up (at a reasonable time) and we got packed up and ready to start our adventure! Stay tuned to find out what we did pre-ABD.

 

[NJlauren]

Side note: For those of you who don’t know, I’m going through an Invisalign treatment so that I can straighten my janky crooked teeth. This was my first Disney trip with them and I might intersperse some anecdotes concerning them throughout this TR for anyone who is curious about how they affect traveling.

Oh girl I feel this! My husband did Invisalign a few years back soooo much brushing, but he did say it kept his eating in check and even now years later he puts them in at night to avoid eating junk late night!

We settled in for a good night’s sleep but I was rudely awakened many hours too early, not by a stomach bug like last time, but something almost as bad- the sinking realization that I had forgotten to pack any lipstick

Haha!! Love you!

Okay technically it was the time change that woke me up but upon waking I had the lipstick revelation and that made it pretty much impossible to get back to sleep. (Ladies and lipstick-wearing gents, do ya feel me here??)

I’m going with I get it, cause if I forget something I use ever day I freak out! Even if said item is not lipstick!

 

[dolewhipdreams]

“Don’t you dare move!”

Saturday dawned bright and beautiful. We started the day with a really good breakfast, including some premade smoothies that were amazing. I’ve never seen premade smoothies like that at a continental breakfast so it was a nice mix up.

If you recall from my PTR, I mentioned that a fantastic ABD Vacationista set us up with a transfer from LAX to the Loews Hollywood Hotel as long as we could get back to LAX that morning. So we got on the shuttle once again (thankfully sans the 40 minute wait this time). The shuttle was so packed this time. The luggage rack was completely full and the aisles were full of suitcases. It was 100% a fire hazard. Thankfully the bus never caught fire and I didn’t get a chance to prove myself correct.

We met up with our ABD driver Johnny and got buckled in for quite the entertaining drive to Hollywood. You know how some drivers take their cues from the passengers on whether or not they’re interested in conversation? Johnny wasn’t one of those drivers. He talked the whooooole time. And it was like an hour long drive.

It all started when Jon asked him how his day was. That’s it. A simple enough question. But boy did it open the floodgates. No topic was taboo for Johnny. He talked about his kids, he talked about religion, he talked about addiction, he told us how he used to drive for a super rich guy who picked up a side chick then got addicted to drugs and now he’s homeless.

And that was the first 10 minutes.

Jon is an extrovert and usually handles the car conversation but for some reason this day he decided to go against his nature and remain pretty much silent (except for asking the question that started it all, of course). Which meant I, the introvert who generally despises small talk, was left to deal with it all.

But like all great trials, this one did pass and we made it to the Loews. I got out of that car as quickly as possible and we got checked in and left our bags with bell services. Our first stop was the mall next to the hotel for two things:

1:

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To see this little beauty. Well, “see” is used loosely here. We were pretty sure the sign was there but the haze was real and it was hard to make out (and pretty much impossible to photograph). But it was still cool! Jon had been to LA before but somehow missed seeing the Hollywood Sign so I wanted to make sure it was one of the first things we did.

2 was slightly more practical. I had to get to Sephora ASAP so that my lips wouldn’t be naked for 9 whole days. God bless Sephora.

​

Those two things accomplished, we ordered a Lyft to Burbank for our first adventure of the day. I didn’t have any notes about this Lyft driver so they must not have done anything exciting like tell us their life story. And thus, without unnecessary ado, we pulled up in front of a place I have been absolutely dying to visit for YEARS:

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Unique Vintage is a vintage-inspired clothing store that only has one brick and mortar store in Burbank. Most of their business is done online. They’re super popular for things like Dapper Day and I have a few pieces from the shop (one of which will make an appearance in this TR!) but I wanted a chance to actually go in and try things on and look in person at all of the magnificence that is UV.

As soon as Jon walked in and saw it was a clothing store he promptly told me he was going for a walk.

I took my time looking around and trying on. There were lots of pieces that I loved but I only ended up buying one- a Mickey crewneck that has Mickey’s front on the front and his back on the back. I don’t know about you all, but I get a kick out of shirts with someone’s front on the front and back on the back. You might say they tickle my fancy.

​

I also found a really cute dress that I loved but told myself I would order it online when we got home so I wouldn’t have to carry it around all day (a big downside of not having a car is when you want to shop til you drop but you can’t because of the frankly tragic limitations of your own ability to carry bags around).

​

Spoiler alert: I never ordered the dress. It’s the dress I deserve but not the one I need right now.

Jon & I met back up and walked down the road toward our next step but got sidetracked along the way by some dude trying to hitch a ride.

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We also popped into a collectables shop (one of quite many on that road, actually) where we perused a fairly interesting assortment of nerdy odds and ends. Our shopping run ended at It’s a Wrap, which is a store that sells clothing and accessories used by the filming studios (thanks for the suggestions @LesleyWake!). We didn’t find anything we wanted but it was cool to browse through racks of clothes worn by TV stars!

If you know anything about shopping it’s that it makes you absolutely ravenous. We were not impervious to the hunger and decided it was high time for the absolute wurst lunch ever.

​

Dog Haus has an assortment of hot dogs and sausages with sometimes extravagant toppings. Jon got one called a Fonz and I got a cowboy and we shared some tots with some nice classic plastic cheese. It was absolutely delightful and I highly recommend it!

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One of the best parts of the restaurant was that it was right across the street from our next destination:

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We booked a tour at the Warner Brothers Studio for the afternoon. I’ve been on one before but Jon hasn’t and I thought it would be cool to experience together. We arrived a little bit early and got added to the tour before our scheduled one, which was nice.

This tour was definitely different from the other one I did. I think because it was summer not quite as much stuff was filming so more of the big sets were open. Here are some of my faves:

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This is from the flashback prom scene in Friends. Jon perfectly captured me yelling to the guide to wait for me because I couldn’t stop taking photos. This was a recurring theme on the tour.

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Don’t hate me but I’m not a major Gilmore Girls fan. I didn’t watch it growing up and I binge watched it all a couple of years ago. It’s fine and I’m glad I watched it but I’m not a super fan. But it was cool to see some big parts of the set, like the gazebo and Luke’s diner.

​

Of course we also got to see some of the PLL sets, like the high school, city hall, and church. At one point we passed by Allison’s house, too.

​

In the archives area they had a bunch of costumes and props from DC (mostly Aqua Man with a little Wonder Woman thrown in there).

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Upstairs was all dedicated to Harry Potter & Fantastic Beasts. That part was extra cool. We didn’t get a chance to do the HP studio tour in London so any time we get to see props and stuff from the films is special.

​

After archives we visited Ellen’s sound stage, which has a smaller audience than I thought.

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As usual, we ended the tour at Central Perk where we got a great photo op on “the couch.” The employee managing the line here was happy to take photos with our own phones.

​

They also had recently added some photo ops for the Big Bang Theory. Unlike the Friends photo op, the employees couldn’t/wouldn’t take photos with your own devices so I asked the family in front of us if they wanted to make a photo deal and thankfully they accepted.

​

There was also a second photo in the hallway of Penny and Leonard & Sheldon’s apartments, but they wouldn’t allow any personal photos there at all.

They still had a photo op set up from the Hobbit to show how they used forced perspective to make the Hobbits look smaller. I did this photo by myself when I came before and tried to just photoshop the two together but it didn’t work. I was super excited to actually do the photo with another person but this time the employees weren’t taking personal photos, even though they did last time. So we had to wait around awkwardly until we found someone who looked cool enough to take our photo.

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Eventually such a candidate appeared and took our photo. Bless you, random friendly woman.

The last part of the tour just has a bunch of general exhibit type things and lots of props. One of them is an actual Oscar that you can hold and get your photo with. THANKFULLY for this one they took your photo on your own phone without any fuss at all. The guy handling the photo op was hilarious and totally working the paparazzi thing.

[“Don’t you dare move!” That was the artistic direction given by the very energetic employee]​

And with that our tour was concluded! Well, after a stop at the gift shop, of course. We didn't buy anything but I snapped a photo of the Riverdale setup for @Newsies

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I think I’ve oversaturated this update with photos so I’ll break here and regale you with the rest of our day in a separate post. But ya know here's a few more just to end on a good note.

​

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Oh girl I feel this! My husband did Invisalign a few years back soooo much brushing, but he did say it kept his eating in check and even now years later he puts them in at night to avoid eating junk late night!

Yes my eating has changed so much! I used to eat a lot of small meals throughout the day and now it's pretty much just the three main ones and no snacks. It took a loooong time for my body to adjust to not eating that often but now I'm pretty used to it.

I’m going with I get it, cause if I forget something I use ever day I freak out! Even if said item is not lipstick!

Thank you! I know lipstick seems like something frivolous to fret over but it's a big part of my routine.

 

[NJlauren]

Haha I can’t with this car driver! my husband is always chatting with the drivers and I’m like I really just want to close my eyes! I think on lyft/Uber you should have to check a box when requesting a car if you want to chat or not!!

I haven’t done that tour in years but I remember love it! I need to go see if I can find my pics, I did it so long ago most of the shows they have stuff for now didn’t exist yet!!!

Some great pics, and that uniquely vintage store looks so fun, def checking out their website!

 

[dolewhipdreams]

I think on lyft/Uber you should have to check a box when requesting a car if you want to chat or not!!

YES let's make it happen. Calling Uber right now.

Unique Vintage is sooo cute but kind of pricey so definitely check out their sale page! They also have some random amazing sales like putting a ton of their dresses under $25 for a week. So if you like the stuff sign up for the newsletter then hit up those sales!

 

[DLo]

Looks like a fun tour. Love your pics . Y’all have the best facial expressions .

 

[Newsies]

(if you haven’t, for shame. I feel absolutely neglected as an artist and MUST INSIST that you spend any and all of your available free time reading about ME and MY LIFE via the links in my signature, and thus validate my existence on this planet we call earth)

ok me

When the flight attendant came around I didn’t get any snacks because I didn’t want to deal with having to brush my teeth. This sounds like a mundane detail with absolutely no bearing on the rest of the TR, so naturally that must mean that it is vitally important and comes into play later on.

ok me

We FINALLY got to the hotel, a Hampton Inn, which turned out to be quite a lovely despite the shuttle debacle. It was recently renovated and had nice rooms and free breakfast! By the time we got back to the hotel it was really too late to go out and get anything to eat. We had a somewhat early morning coming up so we chose sleep over food, which is never an easy choice to have to make.

BOOOOO I'm so sorry I hope you slept well though!

We settled in for a good night’s sleep but I was rudely awakened many hours too early, not by a stomach bug like last time, but something almost as bad- the sinking realization that I had forgotten to pack any lipstick.

OH NOOOOOOOOO

It all started when Jon asked him how his day was. That’s it. A simple enough question. But boy did it open the floodgates. No topic was taboo for Johnny. He talked about his kids, he talked about religion, he talked about addiction, he told us how he used to drive for a super rich guy who picked up a side chick then got addicted to drugs and now he’s homeless.

And that was the first 10 minutes.

Religion, addiction, a riches-to-rags aesop fable... this van ride is the sequel to Forrest Gump nobody asked for

2 was slightly more practical. I had to get to Sephora ASAP so that my lips wouldn’t be naked for 9 whole days. God bless Sephora.

​

Love this color!!!

I took my time looking around and trying on. There were lots of pieces that I loved but I only ended up buying one- a Mickey crewneck that has Mickey’s front on the front and his back on the back. I don’t know about you all, but I get a kick out of shirts with someone’s front on the front and back on the back. You might say they tickle my fancy.

Dog Haus has an assortment of hot dogs and sausages with sometimes extravagant toppings. Jon got one called a Fonz and I got a cowboy and we shared some tots with some nice classic plastic cheese. It was absolutely delightful and I highly recommend it!

​

This looks AMAZING

SO JEALOUS OF THE HARRY POTTER SET TOUR AH THOUGHT I QUOTED IT I DID NOT

After archives we visited Ellen’s sound stage, which has a smaller audience than I thought.

​

As usual, we ended the tour at Central Perk where we got a great photo op on “the couch.” The employee managing the line here was happy to take photos with our own phones.

​

All of these came out amazing!!!

The last part of the tour just has a bunch of general exhibit type things and lots of props. One of them is an actual Oscar that you can hold and get your photo with. THANKFULLY for this one they took your photo on your own phone without any fuss at all. The guy handling the photo op was hilarious and totally working the paparazzi thing.

[“Don’t you dare move!” That was the artistic direction given by the very energetic employee]​

Suddenly I'm cancelling my DCP to move to Burbank and become the photo employee for this section of the studio tour

And with that our tour was concluded! Well, after a stop at the gift shop, of course. We didn't buy anything but I snapped a photo of the Riverdale setup for @Newsies

​

Awww, thank you for thinking of me!!! Wish I knew what R*verdale was!

 

[TNjester]

Great report. We to flew into LAX a day early and stayed at a Hampton Inn near the airport (ours was the one on South Acacia Ave in Hawthorne). Similar issue with the hotel shuttle. Called the hotel and they told us 25 minutes. An hour later...the shuttle finally arrived. We were the first ones on board. THEN WE STOPPED AT EVERY OTHER TERMINAL AT LAX (someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that there are 9 terminals). By then, we were jam-packed full. I think some families were sitting in each other's laps. But we finally made it to our Hampton. The next morning I was afraid that we would have to return to LAX for our pick-up, but our Travel Agent had contacted ABD transportation and had the limo pick us up at our hotel. So, that is possible.

Can't wait for the next installment...

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Looks like a fun tour. Love your pics . Y’all have the best facial expressions .

It was super fun!!

I hope you slept well though!

It was definitely the right choice, and I figured I'd have a chance to eat some glorious In N Out later on in the trip (spoiler alert: I did not).

OH NOOOOOOOOO

Thank you for the appropriate response.

this van ride is the sequel to Forrest Gump nobody asked for

I think at one point there might even been a naked woman with a guitar.

Love this color!!!

Thanks girl! I discovered my love of Kat Von D lipstick.

Don't worry I'm sharing all my merch at the end of the TR!

SO JEALOUS OF THE HARRY POTTER SET TOUR AH THOUGHT I QUOTED IT I DID NOT

It was super cool! Especially the mix of HP and Fantastic Beasts. I can't put into words what I would do to eat one of Kowalski's baked goods.

Suddenly I'm cancelling my DCP to move to Burbank and become the photo employee for this section of the studio tour

Okay as much as you would SLAY in that role, please don't cancel you DCP. I already have my hopes firmly set on a frushi date in May.

Wish I knew what R*verdale was!

It's some indie show that probably won't go anywhere. Distinctly lacking in attractive cast members and unrealistic drama though.

THEN WE STOPPED AT EVERY OTHER TERMINAL AT LAX

Oh no!! That sounds horrible.

So, that is possible.

Oh good to know. I had always heard that it wasn't but now I have evidence that it can be done!

 

[LeiaIsAPrincess2]

That van driver would have driven my crazy! I'm all for signing the Rideshare No Chatting Petition. Looks like a great tour and I'm super jealous of your Friends and Big Bang Theory photos!

 

[dolewhipdreams]

That van driver would have driven my crazy! I'm all for signing the Rideshare No Chatting Petition. Looks like a great tour and I'm super jealous of your Friends and Big Bang Theory photos!

I would sign that petition so fast!!

 

[buzzrelly]

This sounds like a mundane detail with absolutely no bearing on the rest of the TR, so naturally that must mean that it is vitally important and comes into play later on.

Oh, no…doesn't sound good!

Jon was fortunately not affected by the time change and eventually got up (at a reasonable time)

Probably because he remembered to bring his lipstick. Who can sleep with troubles like that on their mind?

It all started when Jon asked him how his day was. That’s it. A simple enough question. But boy did it open the floodgates. No topic was taboo for Johnny. He talked about his kids, he talked about religion, he talked about addiction, he told us how he used to drive for a super rich guy who picked up a side chick then got addicted to drugs and now he’s homeless.

Our first stop was the mall next to the hotel for two things:

1:

​

To see this little beauty.

I see it! I've only been to CA once and I don't even remember if I saw that. I need to plan a trip.

2 was slightly more practical. I had to get to Sephora ASAP so that my lips wouldn’t be naked for 9 whole days. God bless Sephora.

​

Pretty

Unique Vintage is a vintage-inspired clothing store that only has one brick and mortar store in Burbank. Most of their business is done online. They’re super popular for things like Dapper Day and I have a few pieces from the shop (one of which will make an appearance in this TR!) but I wanted a chance to actually go in and try things on and look in person at all of the magnificence that is UV.

I just googled it and I love it. Super cute!

Don’t hate me but I’m not a major Gilmore Girls fan. I didn’t watch it growing up and I binge watched it all a couple of years ago. It’s fine and I’m glad I watched it but I’m not a super fan. But it was cool to see some big parts of the set, like the gazebo and Luke’s diner.

I love Gilmore Girls…just finished watching the whole series again on Netflix

That tour looks like so much fun!

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Probably because he remembered to bring his lipstick.

That tour looks like so much fun!

It really was! Since I've done this one twice now I'd like to go see another studio but WB is definitely recommended.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

This bee listens to Tool and shops exclusively at Hot Topic

Hello and welcome back to my corner of the TR-sphere where I will do my best to regale you with tales of love, excitement, and utter nonsense. We’ll laugh, we’ll cry, we’ll marvel at the complexity of human psychology. It will be great fun.

When last we met, Jon and I were just wrapping up our Warner Brothers Studio tour. Once our tour ended we ordered another Lyft so we could get a closer look at the Hollywood sign. My original plan was to go to Griffith Observatory and stay through sunset, walking some of the trails and doing some exploring to kill time.

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Since we got on an earlier tour at WB, we got to Griffith Observatory a little earlier than we expected (via a Lyft with a delightful driver who gave us some good advice and suggestions, none of which we followed). The observatory was really busy, which made sense on a Saturday in July. There was also some sort of telescope convention or otherwise astronomically-centered event because the lawn was absolutely filled with folks and their optical viewing devices.

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We poked around and took lots of pictures, squeezing in between tour groups to get a peek at some of the exhibits and things on display inside the observatory. If you’ve never been, Griffith Observatory is a fully functional astronomy observatory perched in the Hollywood Hills that also features lots of science-based exhibits and learning opportunities. It’s also completely free.

My favorite exhibit was down in the basement where they have a bunch of stuff on the solar system, including a little display on meteorites. This is where I discovered an Ann from history who was struck by a meteorite. Bless you, Ann from the past, for continuing to give our name such meaning.

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My favorite non-Ann-centered exhibit was a setup of the periodic table of elements that had actual bits of the elements in the little cases. The chemistry nerd in me got way too excited and I definitely gave some dagger eyes toward a little boy who kept trying to shove his way into my photo op.

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Throughout our wonderings we also got lots of great views and opportunities to take some photos from different vantage points around the observatory. Here are a few of my favorites for your visual enjoyment.

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We also of course had to do some traditional tourist photos with the Hollywood sign.

[I married a model]


[This is perplexing. Is it meant to be a commentary on the juxtaposition of science and blogger moms who think they know science?]​

We were pretty satisfied with all we had accomplished at the observatory and a tad over-saturated with people so we decided to cut short our sunset plans and just head back to our hotel and find somewhere to eat. While we waited for our Lyft I observed this little goth bumblebee.

[It has a black bedsheet tacked over its bedroom windows and gets mad when you call it emo]​

Our Lyft driver was apparently far too overwhelmed with traffic to come get us and we watched them take several wrong turns on the app and after about 15-20 minutes they just straight up cancelled the ride. Rude.

So we ordered another and this one got there with no problem. Our room was ready when we got back and to our great surprise we had an incredible view of the Hollywood Sign from our room!

[Once again, I promise it’s there]​

I left Jon in charge of finding dinner and he looked up an Italian place within walking distance so we set off in that direction. On the way, two things of note happened:

We saw all the setup they had for the Hobbs & Shaw movie premiere that was at the Dolby the night before. It’s incredible how big of a production it was. They had a bunch of the Fast & Furious vehicles out on display and everything (although I’ll admit I only know what they look like because I saw them in the queue of the ride at Universal).

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Coincidently, this would start a trend of us pretty narrowly missing celebrity sightings. We learned from some other Adventurers who were there on Friday that they saw Dwayne Johnson.

The other thing that happened was that some random dude told me I reminded him of Paramore.

To say that my heart burst at that moment would be a gross understatement. Just ask Jon. I walked around on a cloud for the rest of the journey to dinner. My little pop punk rebel soul could hardly contain itself that someone thought me similar to Hayley Williams.

Dinner was at a spot called Miceli’s which was right off Hollywood Boulevard. I thought the location and the fact that it was a Saturday night would mean it would be pretty packed but there was hardly anyone there. What we didn’t know was that the restaurant featured a live pianist and that the wait staff would serenade the customers on occasion.

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We were seated right next to the piano which was a little loud but allowed us to witness something pretty memorable that I’ll explain later. The menu was your traditional American Italian fare. I got a mango Bellini to drink and Jon probably got a lemonade with a splash of Sprite. I picked the lasagna for my meal and Jon got his favorite- chicken fettucine alfredo. Both were absolutely delightful.

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Now on to the entertainment portion of the meal. For the most part the pianist just played whatever he fancied, which was mostly jazz. He was exceptional and we found out later that he is a regular at Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen in Downtown Disney.

Anyway, someone requested the theme from New York, New York by Sinatra and the pianist hesitantly acquiesced. He did a fine rendition, even singing the last verse. But the most memorable part of the performance was after he finished the song. Out of nowhere he pulled out a picture of Frank Sinatra, put it on top of the piano, knelt in front of it as if in prayer, and said, “Forgive me Frank, for I have sinned.” He then promptly stood up, put the photo away and sat back down to play. All without missing a beat or looking around.

Jon and I glanced at each other and just died laughing. And we didn’t stop for several minutes. It was so absurd and hilarious that we just couldn’t.

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Stuffed to the brim with carbs and cheese (two of the best things to be stuffed with, IMO), we decided to take a stroll down Hollywood Boulevard and enjoy the lights and ambience. We soon realized that a leisurely stroll simply wouldn’t be possible due to the crowds. The premiere setup blocked a portion of the sidewalks so it was even more crowded than it might have been.

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At one point we passed the Ghiardelli shop and decided to go get some ice cream to end the night. Along the way a Jack Sparrow impersonator looked at me and said in his best Johnny Depp voice, “Surely a mermaid!” Which burst my already burst heart yet a little more.

At Ghiardelli we got the Crissy Field Sundae, which is all about cookies. It was everything an over the top sundae should be and the perfect way to end our great first day in LA.

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With that we decided to just call it a night. It wasn’t terribly late but I was definitely looking forward to getting to bed at a decent time to make up for the unfortunately early morning I had.

Up next: our ABD officially begins!

 

[TNjester]

Great report so far. Really looking forward to the ABD portion. Regarding the HOLLYWOOD sign...On Monday of our ABD, there was "on our own time" for dinner. Well, a former neighbor of ours lives in the Hollywood area, and she met us for dinner. We were talking about the sign and she said that she lives in Hollywood Hills just below the sign. Then she asked if we would like to drive up to see it. Of course we did.

Here are some of the photos that we took.



This first one was from a park, and our friend said that this was a favorite tourist location for photos. But, she said that there was a spot that the locals went to that was closer. So, off we went to play the part of a local.







She said that she and her husband often hike in the area, and that we could hike up to the sign from here. The second close up was a short way up the trail, but it was beginning to get late and we probably wouldn't make it up to the sign and back before dark. So that will have to wait for another trip.

 

[lvcourtneyy]

Ugh that van driver sounds like my worst nightmare lol. My DBF will talk to anyone about anything and I spend my time trying to avoid talking to people as much as possible.

Thanks for all the pictures of the studio tour! Def on my list to do when we get to California next year.