A Southern CA City Pass Vacation to DLR and a few other parks...

scrpbookr · Dec 3, 2013

Hi There!

I'm Brenda...

In the last couple of months reading trip reports here on the disboards has become my favorite way to spend free time. I'm planning a couple of Disney trips for 2014 but while I wait for those to get here I thought it might be fun to share our Spring Break 2013 trip to California.

The three main characters in this trip report will be me.... aka scrpbookr or Brenda, my little boy (Reagan) and my Dad (Fred)

I'm going to attempt to make a table of contents here...
Intro and Flight

ROSARITO, MEXICO
The Beach!
Rosarito Hotel
Happy Hour!

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
San Diego Zoo - Part 1
San Diego Zoo - Part 2
Ocean Beach, CA- Part 1
Ocean Beach, CA - Part 2
Sea World Time!
Ship Wreck Rapids - Sea World
Sea World Tide Pools and World of the Sea
Shamu!
Sea Lions, Sharks and Turtles! Oh My!
Arctic Friends!

DISNEYLAND!
Downtown Disney!
Disneyland Morning!
Childhood Memories!
It's a Small World
Toon Town!
Mouse Pad!
Donald's, Chip's, Dale's, Goofy's and Minnie's!
Down the Rabbit Hole!
Time For Adventure!
Tomorrowland, Pin Trading, Souvenirs and Sweets!

CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE!
Our First Peek at California Adventure!
Mike and Sulley to the Rescue!
Meeting Minnie and More!
The Little Mermaid and Paradise Pier
More Paradise Pier...Toy Story Mania & King Triton's Carousel
Duffy Down by the Pier and Wharf
Carsland!
Luigi's
The Cozy Cone
More Carsland!
Bug's Land Part 1
Bug's Land Part 2
Pixar Play Parade
Pixar Play Parade, Part 2 and Carsland at Dusk
Our night at California Adventure and the next morning in Orange, CA

UNIVERSAL STUDIOS!
Citywalk
Universal Studios Hollywood - Part 1
Universal Studios Hollywood - Part 2
Transformers, Sponge Bob, Frankie and Scooby!
Universal Studios - Continued

South of the Border

A link to the next trip report I'm working on.... Spring Break with a side of Disney

I'm a girl who loves a good deal. Sometimes it is tricky to work that into a Disney trip but I still try. For the first time EVER I was able to use my air miles to book airfare for this trip which made that portion of the trip a really great deal. I booked flights for my son and I for just $33 a ticket! We had direct flights from Philadelphia to San Diego on US Airways. That took care of the biggest transportation cost. And the best part was that Reagan was finally a big enough boy to haul his own luggage on this trip!

That's exciting news for a travelling momma...

Another fun air travel deal I took advantage of was the free US Airways Lounge Pass that I receive each year as a US Airways Visa card holder. Philadelphia airport offers one of these lounges and it was a lovely way to pass our time after going through security but before having to board the plane. They offered yummy snacks in a comfortable setting.

Reagan enjoyed apples and crackers with peanut butter.

I enjoyed their house wine and liked having a comfy place to use the internet while we waited.

Reagan is always a good traveler and found something to entertain himself with, too.

Cheers to the start of a fantastic vacation!

I grew up in Southern California and worked some family visits into this trip, too. I had not seen my dear old dad in almost 6 years and he and my little boy had never met in person. Their only interaction had been over Skype. I was so excited for them to meet and for all of us to get to spend some time together. We would have nine full days together during this trip. With a travel day on each end we were off on an 11 day adventure.

I decided to purchase the Southern California City Pass for each of us which allowed us to visit Sea World, San Diego Zoo, Universal Studios Hollywood and a three day ticket for Disneyland and California Adventure. I believe we saved about 30% off of the standard ticket prices by booking through CityPass.com.

I grew up visiting Disneyland fairly often and all of my childhood Disney memories are tied to this park. I was very, very excited to share it with my little boy and to be back there with my Dad. California Adventure was a new park for all three of us. San Diego Zoo and Sea World are also full of childhood memories for me. We often stayed at the Ocean Beach Hotel as a family when I was growing up and I was sure to make a reservation there for us. In the Ocean Beach area I was crazy excited to share the tide pools with my little guy.

I had visited Universal as a teen. Honestly I'm more of a Disney girl but the deal through CityPass was too good to pass on.

In recent years my Dad had moved from my childhood home down onto the beach in Mexico. He's just south of San Diego in Rosarito now. My little brother moved into my childhood home in California's High Desert. During this trip we also visit both of those places.

Here's a self portrait of us on the plane...

We made good time on the flight there and arrived a bit early. Because we were a little early we had to wait just a few minutes for my Dad to arrive to pick us up. Here is Mister Cutestuff on the curb waiting for my Dad.

We managed to travel with carry-on luggage only for this trip which I thought was impressive for an 11 day trip. We each had a cutecase and then we had a backpack and Reagan's car booster seat.

I think I'll stop there and will pick back up with our bit of beach time in Rosarito before heading back into San Diego for the zoo and Sea World. Following those days we head to Disneyland! Back with more soon....

scrpbookr · Dec 4, 2013

It took a bout an hour to get from the airport in San Diego to my Dad's place just south of San Diego in Mexico. It was after dark when we arrived. Reagan was one tired little guy and we tucked him in pretty quickly. My Dad and I stayed up talking pretty late before calling it a night.

The next morning I was quite thrilled to look out my Dad's back sliding door to find this view...

We were excited to get our toes in the sand and set out for a morning walk on the beach.

Down one direction from his place is a more resort type area. The tall building is the Rosarito Hotel...

Looking for treasures! As I mentioned in the first entry this trip was when my Dad and little boy first met in person and it warms my heart to look at this pic and see them together....

Reagan found a sand dollar!

Reagan had his first look at real seaside tide pools on this morning. He had explored them a bit at aquariums but there's nothing quite like finding them on a walk by the ocean....

barnacles!

There is a nice, long fishing pier in Rosarito that you can see in the background...

A feathered friend!

This next picture shows the tide pool rock formations along the beach. Up atop the cliffs was a more residential/vacation home type area of Rosarito...

Reagan found a nice tide pool to show me....

Lots of anenomes!

Reagan was collecting special rocks and shells along the beach that he put along my Dad's planters back at his place....

At this point we went back home for a bit and had some breakfast. Coming up next... Later in the day Reagan and I walked down to check out the resort area a bit.....

scrpbookr · Dec 4, 2013

After a yummy breakfast we decided to venture out towards the more resort like area of Rosarito. It is an easy walk from my Dad's. Along the way we came across this offer....

Approaching the hotel....

Some little gift shops along the way...

Welcome!

I thought this stained glass near the entrance was pretty....

Lovely flags along the ceiling as you walk through one of the hotel corridors...

The pool and a restaurant between the beach and pool....

The pier at the hotel...

Reagan humored me with a pose near the pier...

Some thatched beach umbrellas and the lifeguard station...

There were some snack vendors set up along the beach...

Reagan and I got a kick out of watching this chihuahua puppy play on the beach...

A beach trip wouldn't be complete without one of these....

Under the pier...

Walking back towards my Dad's place...

The temps rose into the mid eighties by afternoon and we couldn't resist changing into our swim suits and lounging on the beach for a bit. From our spot on the beach I took a picture looking back towards my Dad's place. It is just to the right of the three tall palms in a row...

A self portrait of Reagan and I enjoying the sunshine!...

Jumping in the waves!

Loving vacation so far!

Here's a group that said yes to the horseback riding on the beach offer....

My aunt (Dad's sister) moved down to this area a couple of years before my Dad did. Later this evening we visited her little beach bungalow for happy hour. I'll pick up there in my next post....

scrpbookr · Dec 4, 2013

Following our time on the beach we took showers and got dressed for Happy Hour at my Aunt's home. Her place is just a few minutes walk from my Dad's. Once we were ready we hung out on my Dad's roof top patio while we waited to leave. While up there we snapped a few pics...

My Aunt's place is really cute. She has a great outdoor patio/ deck area where you feel a bit like you're in a tree house...

It was great to see her. Like with my Dad I also had not seen her in about 6 years. Too long... She prepared yummy snacks for us...

Her view is superb!

Directly across in this next picture is my cousin. He has moved to Rosarito, too! His mom is sitting next to him. She's my great aunt and still lives in Laguna Beach, California.

We had a really lovely time catching up. And Reagan was a very polite, articulate, well behaved little guy during all of this adult time. I was very proud of him.

Once back at my Dad's the sun put on quite the show for us!

I can see why my Dad is hooked on his little slice of sand here....

That sunset wraps up our first full vacation day. The next morning we leave bright and early to head into San Diego for our zoo day. More of that in the next post!

julieheyer · Dec 4, 2013

Lovely!! Can't wait for the rest!! ( I'm from Phila too, but now live in AZ. I went to college in CA and am enjoying your TR). Lots of similarities! Thanks!

wiigirl · Dec 4, 2013

Following along!

scrpbookr · Dec 4, 2013

Our Drive from Rosarito to the San Diego Zoo are on Sunday morning was easy-peazy! I need to make a mental note of this because a week later we left on a Monday morning to head to the San Diego Airport from Rosarito and it wasn't so easy. I think it was less than a two hour trip on Sunday morning and almost a four hour trip on Monday morning. Both times we left before sun up.

Once in the zoo area we stopped for breakfast and by that time the zoo was about to open.

Welcome to the zoo!

One little guy with one big topiary...

Bird of Paradise always make you feel like you're officially on vacation!

My little guy always needs time to review a park map first thing. I love this about him and always try to snap a pic of him in the process....

Alright! He's a little man with a little plan! Let's head to where the bus loads for the tour!

Are you ready for animal pics?! Flamingos!

The polar bears were a lot of fun to watch. One was snacking on a carrot...

The other was swimming...

Elephants!

A sweet giraffe....

zebra!

and a tiger! sort of...

We're back off the bus at this point. We caught a quick show with this cutie named Isa...

Reagan was being a good sport about posing for pics for me...

This little fur ball posed pretty nicely, too!

A little Fennec Fox all curled up in a ball...

Hippos are my favorite!

There was a petting zoo area where Reagan made friends with some goats...

The otters are always a blast to watch. They're so playful!

Meerkat!

We took in the Camp Critters show next. Sea Lions are always the star of the show for me!

Their collection of Gallapagos Tortoises was impressive!

Reagan spent a bit of time learning about the shell....

It's not easy being green....

I'm about at my image limit so I'll wrap this post up here and continue on with the zoo in the next post...

scrpbookr · Dec 4, 2013

Zoo Continued..
This flower (which may be called bottle brush??) reminds of of Horton's flower that contained Whoville.

Gator? Croc? It's hard for me to tell the difference....

Iguana? or maybe Komodo(sp?) Dragon. He reminds me of the guy who tried to steal my banana once while in Cancun. Luckily I tossed the banana before he crawled up me. Eeek....

A lovely hibiscus!

Reagan and I tend to collect the souvenir pennies when we see them. They easily adhere into the scrapbook. It's also a very inexpensive souvenir that doesn't take up any space. Remember the cutecases?

Next stop.... the gift shop! That little meercat just over Reagan's shoulder came home with us.

We took the sky tram next. My dad happened to have the perfect souvenier t-shirt in his drawer at home for this trip!

The Balboa Park views from the Sky Tram were just perfect...

From the Sky Tram I was able to get a decent picture of the type of bus we rode on for our tour earlier in the day.

And our current tour vehicle....

A Wallaby!

There is a tar pit simulation that is pretty neat...

Reagan started to get especially clever with his picture poses.Do you see him there along the bottom?...

This one is also pretty clever! I guess if mom is snapping your pic every time you turn around you might as well have fun with it!

I believe these cuties are Capybaras...

I always make sure to keep all my ducks in a row... :dance3:

Camel time...

Another view of the sky tram....

This little one is having a delicious looking fruit salad for lunch!

Gorillas!

The primate habitat was pretty. I think there are Orangutans up in the swings to the left...

Another cute pose from the Love Bug....

By this point it was mid afternoon and we were about zooed out. I was also eager to get to Ocean Beach where we were checking into a hotel full of wonderful, childhood vacation memories for me. My Dad and I had been there countless times but this was Reagan's first visit. More from Ocean Beach, San Diego in my next post!

I considered our Zoo day a complete success! Sharing my favorite childhood zoo with my little guy was special. The fun day with Dad was a treat, too. This was also the first of 5 parks we used our City Pass at. We had purchased the Zoo addition which allowed us to pick between the Safari or the Zoo. Worked like a charm!

scrpbookr · Dec 4, 2013

The drive from the zoo to Ocean Beach was quick and easy. It was so exciting to be back on our old vacation stomping grounds.

The hotel...

Here are some pics of our hotel room...

We settled right into the balcony and enjoyed the people watching.

The hotel has a cute little courtyard with fountain...

Reagan used it to stretch his little legs...

The hotel has a beautiful woody automobile. *side note* We have a yellow lab named Woody. It was in this same little beach town back in 2002 that I met a Golden Retriever named Woody. I loved the name for a future dog and when we brought our sweet pup home back in 2008 the name was perfect for him. I love that he shares his name with a really great Toy Story Character, too! Okay.... back to the car...

Love it!

We made our way down the street to find some dinner. We were planning on either Hodad's or Newport Pizza.

As we approached Hodad's I saw that they had a long line out the door which may be typical for this place...

The Hodad's surf van is very cool...

I like that little surf bug parked out front, too...

We decided to walk back to the pizza place to check out the crowd there.

We were seated and served right away. Before we knew it we were enjoying our slices. It was every bit as delicious as we remembered!

Following dinner we crossed the street to Lighthouse Ice Cream. The smell of the waffle cones brought me right back to my childhood!

My Dad and Reagan both enjoyed their cones! In fact, my Dad liked his so much he got a second! That is what vacation is all about!

This Beach Sweets shop is new since I was here as a kid...

I loved this paiting of the Ocean Beach pier and scene that is hanging in the ice cream shop!

Our night ended with another beautiful sunset! I could get use to this!

The next morning we spent a bit more time in Ocean Beach before heading to Sea World. I'll share the rest of Ocean Beach in the next post. We're finally getting a bit closer to the Disney portion of this trip! It's about time!

scrpbookr · Dec 4, 2013

On our third full day of vacation the plan was to head to Sea World but we did have a bit of time in Ocean Beach in the morning before it was time to head to Sea World. Following Sea World the plan was to head to Downtown Disney. It was bound to be a full day.

As a girl I always enjoyed exploring the tide pools in Ocean Beach and the timing worked out for us to have a low tide for morning exploration.

We headed out towards the beach from the end of the hotel courtyard...

It was fairly early in the morning but the surfers were already out...

Looking up a quiet Newport Avenue from the beach...

Reagan and I climbed up the pier steps to take in the views from up there...

I thought this row of beach rentals was really cute....

Looking down at the tide pools from the pier...

And back at our hotel...

We spend a lot of time at Delaware beaches now that we live in Central PA. Although I grew up with seaweed like this you just don't see this type where we spend our beach time now. Reagan and I were both amused by it...

The evening before while we were exploring the town we picked out a couple of Ocean Beach t-shirts for Reagan. This is one of them...

The Ocean Beach pier is especially long...

Time to explore the tide pools!
Reagan picked out a few more rocks for his Grandpa's planters...

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a...0130305154248084.JPG/ps=50/r=0/rx=720/ry=480/

I was surprised to see so many hermit crabs crawling around. I don't remember that type of crab here when I was a kid...

A cute little tide pool...

And another with some anemone...

Don't fall in...

This pretty bird was exploring the tide pools, too....

I love this one.... What's under here?...

Rinsing off his rocks for Grandpa...

We brought breakfast back from a beach cafe and joined my Dad on the balcony...

Dad and I had really yummy breakfast burritos. Reagan had pancakes, bacon and eggs...

Time to head to Sea World! More from there in the next post!

scrpbookr · Dec 5, 2013

We've arrived! YaY! :cheer2:

The drive from the Ocean Beach area to Sea World is the easiest ever. Just a few minutes and we were there. It was a Monday during the first week in March and the crowds were light. This was another park I loved as a kid and I was very, very excited to be here!

Look how adorable this Shamu Bug is!

Love it!

The boy has the map! must.study.it!

We were able to meet Shamu as we entered!

Our City Pass tickets worked again without any issues. :woohoo:

Reagan needed a bit more time with the map.

He was still formulating his plan of action for the day....

I talked him into going up in the Sky Tower while he made his plan. I thought the birds eye view would help him plan.

Up we go....

I believe that's the dolphin pool first and then Shamu's stadium in the distance...

We visited with the otters a bit next. They are always a highlight for me...

We made our way over to the dolphin pool. For this session we were lined up along the side of the pool and we listened to the trainers share information about the dolphins. Some were also able to pet the dolphins. Reagan did get to touch one briefly but I missed the exact Kodak moment...

They were just an arm length or so away which was neat for us...

I'm going to stop here and pick up with the Ship Wreck Rapids area in the next post....

scrpbookr · Dec 5, 2013

Reagan was feeling especially brave for him and decided we should ride Ship Wreck Rapids. Dad and I weren't so sure. Getting wet wasn't especially appealing first thing in the morning. But we figured if the 5 year old could brave it so could we.

I love the themeing in this area at Sea World...

Here's a clever idea! Those are people dryers! You have to pay to use them but depending on how wet you get it may be worth it...

Our first peek of what was in store for us...

This is reassuring...

Channeling his inner pirate...

More signage along the way...

Checking to see if he's tall enough...

All set!

Here we go!

Having fun!

I loved the ship wrecks along the way...

Dream Boat...

Waterfall coming up...

My Dad is enjoying himself...

Wholly Mackeral!

Just a little wet!

Royal Star ship wreck...

Looking back over the ride from up top...

That was a lot of fun to relive here. One last pic before moving on to the next attraction...

scrpbookr · Dec 5, 2013

We're getting our share of tide pools on this trip so far!

This starfish / oyster statue is very cool!

The real starfish are even better! The vibrant color is very fun!

This is a touch pool so Reagan was able to inspect it a bit closer...

Starfish belly!

World of Sea was our next destination...

Beautiful aquariums...

Coming up in the next post.... Shamu!

scrpbookr · Dec 5, 2013

No Sea World trip is complete without some time with our favorite Orca!

The Shamu Story...

This current show seemed much more impressive to me that the shows I remember from my childhood.

I have no idea how they get a whale to lay on its back..

Splash Zone!

Those pesky whales...

Very impressive pose!

...and jump!

After the show we had to check out the Shamu gift shop!

Reagan became the proud owner of his very own plush Shamu. We chose a smaller size with the carry-on cutecase in mind...

Next up..... Shamu Bar!

Not quite a Mickey Bar but very special in its own way...

YUM!

Coming up in the next post, my favorite part of the day.... Sea Lion Feeding....

scrpbookr · Dec 6, 2013

I'm looking forward to getting through the Sea World pics here. Later this same day we end up at Downtown Disney! I left off with the Shamu portion of the day.

Our next activity was my favorite part of the Sea World day..... feeding the Sea Lions! I remember loving to feed both the sea lions and the walrus as a little girl.

Look at these cuties!!

I got a couple trays of fish for us to feed to them...

You never know whether or not a kid will want to touch a fish but Reagan was a good sport...

He had his first taker...

I can't get enough of them...

My Dad got in on the action, too...

Open Wide!

Such a special experience!

This guy is ready!

Sammy the Seal by Syd Hoff is a favorite children's book of mine. This next guy reminds me of Sammy...

Next we made our way over towards the Shark Encounter. We came along this fun photo op on the way...

Shark Encounter time!

As we were entering we found a souvenir penny machine and Reagan wanted to add one to our collection...

There
is a neat aquarium tunnel to go through in this exhibit...

The sharks are all around you...

These tiny sharks were cute...

This gets the point of a shark's size across...

Reagan found another souvenir penny machine already. I love how hard he works at cranking these...

Next we moved on to the Turtle Reef...

Reagan demonstrated his crab walk in front of this big beautiful tank...

There was an educational video game about turtles within this exhibit. I didn't know if I was ever going to talk Reagan into being done with it. He was pretty into it...

He completed the entire mission and then wanted to do it again...

I'll wrap this post up here and continue on with a show we watched in the next entry...

scrpbookr · Dec 7, 2013

So we're nearing the last part of our day at Sea World. We took in a show at this point which was a good opportunity for a snack.

The aquatheatre was pretty impressive!

Reagan decided he was in the mood for cotton candy and lemonade!

There were some flying acrobatics in this show that were really neat!

If you look closely you can see the performer over the aquaitheatre...

These Pilot Whales were quite the performers! I don't remember seeing Pilot whales prior to this.

It is always fun to get familiar with something new!

A wider shot of the aquatheatre...

This performer is standing on the back of two dolphins!

I was pleased with some of these jump shots I captured. With a camera's delay you never know what you might get...

We loved the show and left there refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of the park!

Where to next!?!

This bird of paradise flower was putting on a show of it's own!

We checked out this ride a bit but Reagan decided he wasn't up for it. Shipwreck Rapids was all the adventure he had in him for one day. I'm not the type of mom to push these things on him. We just do what we are comfortable with at this age and I know that as we get older other some of these will be more appealing...

We'll wrap up with the walrus and penguins in the next post before heading to Disney! :moped:

YaY!

Finally!

scrpbookr · Dec 7, 2013

One of our final destinations at Sea World was the Arctic section. It was very well themed!

I was enjoying how Reagan and my Dad were taking in all the details...

It was exciting to get to see a Polar Bear again so soon after meeting the two at the zoo.

For me the star of this arctic section was the Walrus for sure! I wonder what the history of this guy is. Years ago you use to be able to feed the walrus similar to how we fed the sea lions. He was in an exhibit more like the sea lions were. I just have this feeling that this is the same guy in this new exhibit but I have nothing but a feeling to base it off of.

Look how huge he is!! It was feeding time when we came by.

Here's an example of the viewing area...

He swam over to the glass to say hi which was quite a treat!

Such a cutie!

They encouraged him to swim down through his exhibit to find fish to eat...

We were able to view the lower/ under water part of his exhibit from another area....

We were led out into a Walrus dump shop. Reagan is the son of a scrapbooker for sure. When he posed for this picture he told me to title it WALRUS STAMPEDE! for the scrapbook.

We spent some time with the penguins next...

The penguins were definitely a "last but not least" way to wrap up our Sea World day.

Reagan wanted one of these big penguins! I had to remind him that it alone was bigger than his cutecase! We would have to get it its very own plane ticket home!

So he settled for a quick snuggle instead...

On our way out we passed through the Seasame Street section.

There is a play place within the Sesame Street area and as we passed through Reagan made a mad dash through...

We didn't spend a lot of time here because it was time to head for Disney!

Downtown Disney coming up in the next post!

scrpbookr · Dec 7, 2013

We made the drive from Sea World to Downtown Disney with ease. You never know what CA traffic may bring so this was a relief. We were before the after work traffic.

Our first peak at Downtown Disney...

We were on the lookout for a dinner venue and Rainforest Cafe was a contender...

Seeing the monorail made me giddy! We really are at Disney! YaY!

Reagan had long been anticipating the Lego Store in Downtown Disney. I love all the elaborate structures!

Beauty and the Beast...

Reagan along with Woody, Buzz and RC...

The rooftop dragon is very impressive!

Lego Friends... You can see my dad in the background taking it all in...

A display case with the giant Lego wall in the background...

I was trying to talk Reagan into putting together his own container from this wall but he had zero interest in it.

He did want to make a purchase but just wasn't sure what it would be yet....

Lord of the Rings... (I love how the dragon's tain comes through the ceiling in the background here)...

Aladdin, Jasmine and the Genie...

The decision was becoming overwhelming for Reagan...

Eventually he worked through it. We came to a decision and he had a big smile on his face. I wasn't sure how it would work with the cute case but figured once the pieces were out of that big box that we could make it work. It was the Star Wars Rancor Pit.

Posing with the Hulk!

I would have liked to explore more of the shops but I had my Dad and Reagan to consider and we needed to find some dinner...

We decided on Tortilla Joes for dinner...

We sat outside under one of the patio heaters and this worked perfectly...

Reagan worked on building a smaller, free Lego set he was given with his purchase as well as the Rancor from his large set between eating his meal.

My Aunt lives about 10 minutes from Disneyland and was kind enough to let us stay with her for a few nights during this portion of the trip. I had given her a call while we waited for our meals to arrive.

Our dinners were good. Reagan and I had quesadillas and my Dad had a burrito plate. I have always connected Mexican food to my home state of California so this was a good choice for us.

Following dinner we headed to my Aunt's place. Coming up in the next post.... the start of our Disneyland day!