A Solo Trip: It's the Spirit of the Season at the Disneyland Resort! Dec. 1-7, 2017! *COMPLETE 1/26*

[AMusicLifeForMe]

“We will, we will, QUACK you!”

For those of you that know where that quote is from, now you know where I am.

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

After enjoying some more Southern California sights today, I have arrived at the airport. That means my trip to my hometown area of Southern California has concluded. Time for a very long trip home.

Updates will be starting soon! Stay tuned!

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

I know my trip is over, but I just want to share something with all of you. Part of the reason I left California so soon is I had tickets for something coming to where I currently live.

I am a huge fan of musical theater so I’m about to see the U.S. National Tour of Les Miserables! It’s my first time seeing a professional theater production of one of my favorite musicals!!!

 

[deannaf87]

I know my trip is over, but I just want to share something with all of you. Part of the reason I left California so soon is I had tickets for something coming to where I currently live.

I am a huge fan of musical theater so I’m about to see the U.S. National Tour of Les Miserables! It’s my first time seeing a professional theater production of one of my favorite musicals!!!

I saw Les Mis on Broadway in 2014. Unbelievably awesome. Have fun!

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

I saw Les Mis on Broadway in 2014. Unbelievably awesome. Have fun!

I’m jealous! I wanted to see that cast so much! I saw Aladdin and Wicked on Broadway last year. I’ve also seen the Lion King many times, Newsies a couple times, Wicked a couple times, and Phantom of the Opera on their National Tours.

This cast of Les Miserables is so good!!!

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Thank you to everyone for your patience. Updates from this trip will begin by the end of this week!

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Updates from this trip will begin tomorrow!

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Day 1: Travel Day!​

Hello everyone and welcome to my first updates about this trip! I was ready and heading to the area where I grew up in Southern California! That could only mean one thing. I was on my way to Disneyland!

So, my travel day started nice and early. I woke up around 5:30 in the morning and left my house at 6:20 a.m. Now, this actually isn’t as bad as my trips to Walt Disney World since I’m usually on the first flight out of my home airport to Orlando which could be as early as 5:30 a.m.

I would arrive at the airport around 7:05 a.m, and I would make my way up to the terminal around 7:15 a.m. There was absolutely no line to check-in and there was no line at TSA. This is the reason why I love my local airport. I’m slightly scared since the city I live in recently voted to build a new airport terminal.

I would then have about 90 minutes to wait at my gate for my first flight of the day.



When it was time to board, I got in line at my designated location. Southwest has open seating on their flights, and I always book the early-bird which guarantees me a front row seat or an aisle seat. That really helps me since I’m really tall with my height in my legs. Flying can sometimes be uncomfortable for that reason.



I would board the plane and found out that I was on one of their new MAX-800 series planes. The plane was about a month old and it was really nice. It had lights up and down the side of the plane and the middle of the plane.





I would find a seat in the front row which is always my preferred spot to sit. I was also happy since I got to get a window seat.



Now, I was off on my first flight of the day which was to Phoenix, AZ!

This Southwest flight was equipped with WiFi where you can watch satellite TV for free and surf the web for an additional charge.



During the flight, I decided I would watch one of my favorite Disney movies that recently celebrated its 25th Anniversary. That movie is Aladdin!





I was able to capture a couple pictures during the flight.





Next, we were starting to land into Phoenix!



Below is the Capital of Arizona:





You can see 2 of the Phoenix area sports stadiums in this picture:



Chase Field is one of my favorite baseball stadiums that I have ever seen a game at. Chase Field is home to the Arizona Diamondbacks.



We finally landed at Phoenix International Airport!



I found Phoenix International Airport interesting. Southwest has 3 separate terminals, and I always like when they have the escalators on the side that take you to your next destination.



I would then find a Panera Bread to grab some lunch. I would get a salad and a piece of bread.

It was then time for me to wait for my connecting flight to Orange Count/Santa Ana. If you have lived in California for any period of time, I would be flying into John Wayne Airport.



It was time for my 2nd flight of the day. I was not able to get the same seat on this flight, but I elected to get a window seat since this would be my first time flying into John Wayne Airport. Yep! Our of all of the year I lived in California, I never flew in or out of John Wayne Airport. My family would usually fly in and out of LAX.















I would land at John Wayne Airport and my immediate reaction was how small this airport was. It probably had a total of 12 gates.







I would make my way to get my luggage at the baggage claim, and I really thought this was one of the nicest baggage claims I have seen.



Up next, I went to get my rental car. Then I was off to my hotel where I would quickly figure out I have lost most of my “California driver” skills.

I would arrive at my hotel which was the Embassy Suites Anaheim South to find out my room wasn’t ready.



Since my room wasn’t ready, I made my way to the best Southern California fast food joint in my opinion which is In-N-Out Burger!



I would then head back to my hotel to find out my room was ready!

It would be time for me to get ready to meet some really good friends of mine!

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Day 1: A Trip to Los Angeles!​

My Friday evening would consist of getting together with friends that I have had since I was in elementary school. We decided that we would go to Los Angeles, and let me say that a trip to Los Angeles is always more than just a trip. That is because if you have never driven in LA traffic, then never complain about traffic ever again. There’s only a few other cities in the U.S.A. that can rival LA traffic in my opinion.

So, I would make my way to my old hometown to meet them before we were on our way.

Yep. I figured. We got into some LA traffic!

We would make our way to a restaurant called Lemonade. This location was in Pasadena, CA. I had never been here, but it was interesting. It was filled with a bunch of healthier options which was great.





I would end up getting a grilled chicken sandwich, but the picture below is of a turkey sandwich since I got what I didn’t order.



The area the restaurant was in was very nice. It had a nice fireplace and a Christmas tree.





So, the reason for this trip to Los Angeles was to go to Griffith Park and see the views of LA from the Griffith Park Observatory. In my opinion, this is where you can get the best view of LA and Hollywood.



Inside the observatory, there is a pendulum which is really cool to watch.



Here is a look at the different moons you can see.



At one time were were there, we got to see the Tesla Coil turn on! This was really neat!





Here are the different sizes of the planets.





They have a seismograph as well where you can jump and make the graph move.



Now, enjoy the views of Los Angeles at night from the Griffith Park Observatory!











Here I am standing at the Griffith Park Observatory with the view of Los Angeles at night!



So after a trip to the Observatory, I was getting tired after a long day of travel, as well as, due to the time change. So, we make our way back to my friends house where I would head back to my hotel from there.

My first day at Disneyland would be the next day!!!

 

[BrerMama]

Just wanted to say I'm enjoying your report. We're doing ICT (Wichita) to Phoenix to SNA on Southwest in May so it was fun to see your pictures! Go chiefs (although oh my heavens, my husband yells at the TV when they're playing recently...)

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Just wanted to say I'm enjoying your report. We're doing ICT (Wichita) to Phoenix to SNA on Southwest in May so it was fun to see your pictures! Go chiefs (although oh my heavens, my husband yells at the TV when they're playing recently...)

Awesome! Thanks for joining in! A fellow person from Kansas (or very close lol)! I flew out of KCI so our itineraries are slightly different, but that's cool!

I like to call myself a casual Chiefs fan. It has definitely been a rough couple weeks though.

 

[Capang]

Love the LA highlights. Never been there, hope to some day. Love the observatory pics!

In N Out. By far the best fast food joint ever. My folks had a place out west for many years and I always looked forward to it and the secret menu. Wish they would expand to Ohio.

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Love the LA highlights. Never been there, hope to some day. Love the observatory pics!

In N Out. By far the best fast food joint ever. My folks had a place out west for many years and I always looked forward to it and the secret menu. Wish they would expand to Ohio.

They’re supposedly coming to Colorado! That means they are right next door to me now!!!

 

[BrerMama]

I flew out of KCI so our itineraries are slightly different, but that's cool!

I recognized the KC airport. We usually just fly out of there because it was always still cheaper, but now we have a new terminal for Wichita and with Southwest now flying from ICT, we're going to try flying out of ICT. We haven't done that since our 2000 trip, so it's a huge deal for us. A little nervous about making the connection in Phoenix, but you made it look easy...

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

I recognized the KC airport. We usually just fly out of there because it was always still cheaper, but now we have a new terminal for Wichita and with Southwest now flying from ICT, we're going to try flying out of ICT. We haven't done that since our 2000 trip, so it's a huge deal for us. A little nervous about making the connection in Phoenix, but you made it look easy...

I had about 90 minutes in Phoenix, and it was very easy to go from terminal to terminal. Southwest has 3 separate wings at the Phoenix Airport so your connection might be in the A, B, or C terminal. It all depends on where you are dropped off. I had to go from A to B, and Panera Bread was in the C terminal. I did a lot of exploring in that airport lol.

 

[rteetz]

Great updates! It all looks really cool. I need to get out there soon.

 

[thumper*]

Hi Zach I enjoyed your last TR and I'm following along on this 1.

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Great updates! It all looks really cool. I need to get out there soon.

It’s a great place, but it can be overwhelming at first especially if you aren’t used to that many people in one city.

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Hi Zach I enjoyed your last TR and I'm following along on this 1.

Thank you! I’m glad you’re joining in for one of my other adventures!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

great start - glad to see the travel was relatively smooth!

I haven't done a ton of driving in LA/California - but have driven and and out of LAX and yeah, driving is not fun. I am more used to driving in NYC which is a whole different type of challenging

I was working out of our Southern California office (it's in Westlake Village) once and we at lunch at a Lemonade - I thought it was pretty cool and everything seemed pretty home made and in small batches which I liked.

Glad you got together with your friends and the Griffith Park Observatory looks pretty cool!