Discovering Another Mad Dash (Oct 14): Heading Home and Finally finishing this TR #1523 (05/03)

[zanzibar138]

Wow it really was a mad dash!

Glad you got to spend some relaxing time with your family before heading off.

 

[ACDSNY]

Sounds like you spent some quality time with your Aunt. My family is going to be saying the same thing about leftovers as we had way to much for Thanksgiving.

 

[skier_pete]

Looks like a good time you were having, even if the food got a bit repetitive. I am also the "get there early" type. It's funny though, DW is the "get there 45 minutes late" type, and between the two of us we cancel each other out, and now we are almost always 10 minutes late.

I recently read a quote on Twitter from Adam Savage of Mythbusters fame, "Family doesn't push your buttons. They install them." Might make a good "Discovery" for you.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Wow it really was a mad dash!

Glad you got to spend some relaxing time with your family before heading off.

Mad dash or not, I think it was about the right time to spend in San Diego.

Sounds like you spent some quality time with your Aunt. My family is going to be saying the same thing about leftovers as we had way to much for Thanksgiving.

I really enjoyed the Monday. Even though we didn't do anything, it was lovely catching up with the family.
Hope your Thanksgiving leftovers get eaten!

Looks like a good time you were having, even if the food got a bit repetitive. I am also the "get there early" type. It's funny though, DW is the "get there 45 minutes late" type, and between the two of us we cancel each other out, and now we are almost always 10 minutes late.

DH gets quite exasperated with me sometimes when I rush him out the house...only to get to the other end to sit there for 15 minutes waiting for everyone else.

Your way seems better.

I recently read a quote on Twitter from Adam Savage of Mythbusters fame, "Family doesn't push your buttons. They install them." Might make a good "Discovery" for you.

That's a great discovery! Yup. Lots of great button installers in my family.

 

[franandaj]

I know exactly how you felt about the food. We're going to be there tomorrow and we may take a pass on the family for that day. Family dinners for three nights in a row, with the fourth a repurposing of the meals of the last few nights.

My family is not so riveting that it makes the food acceptable. I'm glad that yours is!

 

[PrincessInOz]

I know exactly how you felt about the food. We're going to be there tomorrow and we may take a pass on the family for that day. Family dinners for three nights in a row, with the fourth a repurposing of the meals of the last few nights.

My family is not so riveting that it makes the food acceptable. I'm glad that yours is!

I hope your family Thanksgiving has been relatively stress-free. In any event, you'll be home soon, right?

 

[PrincessInOz]

Day 5: Welcome Home to Disneyland


On the Road to Disneyland


Discovery #27. Welcome Home to Disney NEVER gets old.



DH and I had pretty much packed up the night before but we still had a few chores to complete around the house. Striping the beds and emptying out the trash didn't take long; and we still had eggs and some provisions to finish up for breakfast.






We didn't exactly fly out the door this morning.







But it didn't take us long to get back on the road again.






I will admit that we headed back to Carlsbad Premium Outlets for an hour's shopping. Both DH and I had a few things that we kinda wished we had bought and we figured that it was worth a trip back so that we didn't have any regrets hanging over us. We knew exactly what we wanted and which shops to hit so it really was a quick in and out.




The San Onofre Nuclear Plant has always been part of that Camp Pendleton stretch on the 5 where I want to get past as quickly as possible. I gather that it will be decommissioned in the coming years. Who knows if this structure will still be there in the future?






You can always count on heavy traffic on the 5 at any time of day!






At least it was flowing traffic and before too long, we began to see very familiar roads.







I have always wished that Disneyland was located closer to Australia. But I've reconciled myself to the fact that it isn't and that distance doesn't matter. It always feels like coming home to me. Especially when I'm this close!






There is the perennial debate about whether Anaheim is better than Orlando or if Orlando is better than Anaheim. For me, it really doesn't matter. Anaheim, Orlando, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Paris and soon to be Shanghai. At the end of the day…..welcome home is Welcome Home to Disney. It doesn't matter where the Disney park is. And it never gets old.



Welcome Home!





(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

(Continued from Next Post)


Uva Bar Lamb Burger. I blame franandaj!


Discovery #28. The Uva Bar Lamb Burger is as good as I remember it to be.



Surprisingly, we made good time to Anaheim. It was such good time that Plan A for lunch was left by the wayside and we resorted to Plan B. It was also not-such good time as we were way too early to check-in to our room.

But we were able to leave the hire car parked at the Candy Cane, our chosen Good Neighbour hotel, and catch their transport to the bus stop area.






Even DH was happy to be 'home'.






Morning rush hour was well and truly over and it didn't take us long to get through bag check and get into the courtyard between the two parks.






The low whine above us was a welcome noise.







We made our way through Downtown Disney in unseemly haste. It was a brisk walk that left me without any pictures of any of the stores. The reason was because we were all hungry. Our destination was the Catal Restaurant and Uva Bar.






As it was a really hot day, we decided to sit inside.






This picture is from DH's camera.






Despite the Oktoberfest specials, there was one thing on the menu that I'd been craving for the last year.






Franandaj had introduced me to the Uva Lamb Burger last year. The combination of lamb, lemon aioli, rocket/arugula, peppers, pickled onion and feta is truly something that my taste buds loved last year. A year is a long time between bites and I do blame franandaj for the new addiction that is hard to feed.

It is still as good as I remembered it to be. YUM!!!!!






I have to admit that I've been making beef burger variations of this burger at home in the last year. It took me until this trip to realise that I'd gotten the onions wrong. Suffice to say, since my return home to Melbourne, I've totally addressed that misconception. I've been making my own version of that pickled onion at home and it does comes close to tasting like the Uva Bar version.






DS was happy with his standard burger.






DH went with the guacamole and flat bread for lunch.






In keeping with our location, I was seeing Hidden Mickey's everywhere!






DH also indulged in a new addiction we acquired in last year's trip. Sweet Potato fries.







Yes, everyone was happy with lunch. All our newly-found Uva Bar addictions had well and truly been satisfied today.









(Continued in Next Post)

 

[PrincessInOz]

(Continued from Next Post)


Candy Cane Inn


Discovery #29. I need to find another Good Neighbour hotel to call home.



By the time we finished lunch, it was the right time to check in at the Candy Cane. We had stayed at this property in 2007 and it had been a decent enough place. I figured it was worth a return visit.






The room and facilities are still decent.












The most important thing was the bathroom was clean.







But I have to admit that the room felt a little tired. I think I'm on the hunt for another Anaheim hotel should I be fortunate enough to make a return trip.

 

[zanzibar138]

And here was I thinking you were heading directly home... For some reason I thought this was a non-Disney trip. Glad to see I was mistaken!

I totally agree that any Disney park is the place to be! They all have their own unique brand of magic (well, all that I've visited so far).

I had no idea that there was inside seating available at Uva Bar! That's definitely something to keep in mind. I also developed a taste for the sweet potato fries on our last trip.

Interesting to hear what you have to say about the Candy Cane Inn. It has a large following on these boards and it seems that it can do no wrong. I even thought about it for our trip, but it didn't seem like great value to me. I will admit that their bus looked pretty appealing after a long hot day at the parks!

 

[mvf-m11c]

Traffic coming up I-5 North looked heavier than going down south.

You made really good time to SoCal before we got there that afternoon. Just like you, I also got hooked on the Lamb Burger at the UVA Bar and Cafe thanks to your trip report along with franandaj. It was nice to see you eat inside the restaurant instead of the outside. I enjoyed eating inside when I ate at the UVA Bar with my DB and his GF back in July. The food is amazing and I can't stop thinking about it.

The Candy Cane Inn looks very nice but I would not spend the extra staying there along with waiting for transportation.

You should consider the hotels that are right across the street from the DLR on Harbor Blvd like Best Westerns, Desert Inn & Suites, etc. I have learned over the years to spend extra staying across the street in order to get the most of your visit.

 

[Aussie Wendy]

I also thought DL was not on the radar for the mad dash - bonus! Sounds like a lovely last day with the family - glad you and your aunt got some quality time together. I have never ate at the UVA Bar but that lamb burger looks pretty good!

 

[dolphingirl47]

Waiting 60 minutes for breakfast seems a little extreme to me. I cannot even imagine waiting this long for dinner.

What a shame that San Diego Zoo did not live up to your memories. I have never been, but Graham went in May and loved it. I am somewhat surprised at the cages though and I am glad that they will soon be a thing of the past.

Reading about your experience with family, I am very glad that I have no more contact with mine.

That mosaic garden looks absolutely amazing.

I love the look of that Oktoberfest menu. As far as Good Neighbor hotels are concerned, we quite liked the Howard Johnson.

Corinna

 

[Leshaface]

All caught up!

I agree! Zoo food is never, ever good. That's too bad.

I"m the exact same way about being punctual. When we lived in Long Beach, I would arrive to school 40 mintues early to make sure I got a parking spot...and I lived about 5 mintues from the school

Wow nice aim

What I love about the DIS is that we're able to say how we feel whenever we want and I feel that we're never judged. Hope you felt a bit better by saying what was on your heart and mind I'm the oldest (just two of us) but never felt I was treated differently. Junior high was probably the worst time for me. I got made fun of a lot for my looks and it still gets to me every now and then if I don't feel 'up to par', if that makes sense.

Alison raves about the Lamb Burger! I'm not sure but many years ago, we sat at the bar in the middle of DTD and ordered a burger the bartender suggested. It totally could have been the lamb burger, but I just don't remember.

We just recentely stayed at the Candy Cane Inn for our first time in October and liked it so much better than the other GN Hotels. That was the 6th different hotel i've stayed at, and i'd say it's better than than Tropicana or Desert Palms. MUCH cleaner, slightly cheaper and breakfast is 100% times better! We never took the shuttle during our stay, so can't comment on how fast or slow it was, but we never even thought about it at the end of the day. I've been wanting to try the HoJo but they never have availability. I hear it's pretty good!

 

[franandaj]

Glad you made good time on your way to Disney. Now I want a lambuger from the Uva Bar!

Sorry the Candy Cane inn wasn't quite up to snuff. But at least it did the job for one night.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

All caught up and the food porn is making me hungry. It's only 11am here and I'm even salivating over the mojito.

Reading about how good that Lamb burger is, I feel like I missed out while I was at Disneyland. It would have been much tastier than the awful Monte Cristo that DH insisted on trying and regretted after the first bite.

 

[zanzibar138]

Reading about how good that Lamb burger is, I feel like I missed out while I was at Disneyland. It would have been much tastier than the awful Monte Cristo that DH insisted on trying and regretted after the first bite.

What was your DH thinking?

 

[WanderlustNZ]

What was your DH thinking?

Lol, I think curiosity got the better of him. I must admit curiosity got the better of me too and I had to try a bite of his sandwich. I just don't understand the popularity. It's more like a large heavy doughnut-like dessert than a main meal.
It is highly unlike my DH to not finish a meal, but he didn't even get half way through this one.

 

[PrincessInOz]

And here was I thinking you were heading directly home... For some reason I thought this was a non-Disney trip. Glad to see I was mistaken!

I totally agree that any Disney park is the place to be! They all have their own unique brand of magic (well, all that I've visited so far).

I had no idea that there was inside seating available at Uva Bar! That's definitely something to keep in mind. I also developed a taste for the sweet potato fries on our last trip.

Interesting to hear what you have to say about the Candy Cane Inn. It has a large following on these boards and it seems that it can do no wrong. I even thought about it for our trip, but it didn't seem like great value to me. I will admit that their bus looked pretty appealing after a long hot day at the parks!

The CCI is fine as it is. We got it with a AAA discount using the RACV (that's our local AAA equivalent for the US readers) code so it didn't work out too bad.

But I thought it was just looking a bit dated. Of course, comparisons are unfair because the last time we were there, the place had just been renovated and it was sparkling. Still, the bathrooms were clean. And with parking, Wi Fi and breakfast included in the tariff, I really can't complain too much.

Traffic coming up I-5 North looked heavier than going down south.

It was. But it did flow at the speed limit; so we made pretty decent time to Anaheim.

You made really good time to SoCal before we got there that afternoon. Just like you, I also got hooked on the Lamb Burger at the UVA Bar and Cafe thanks to your trip report along with franandaj. It was nice to see you eat inside the restaurant instead of the outside. I enjoyed eating inside when I ate at the UVA Bar with my DB and his GF back in July. The food is amazing and I can't stop thinking about it.

I've been making that pickled onion at home. It's been making my homemade burgers tasting more like the Uva Bar; so I'm happy.

The Candy Cane Inn looks very nice but I would not spend the extra staying there along with waiting for transportation.

We tend to use the transport to get to the parks. Even after you left us that night, we figured we were better off walking. We did wait 5 minutes and then hit the road. With the AAA discount, it wasn't too bad a price.

You should consider the hotels that are right across the street from the DLR on Harbor Blvd like Best Westerns, Desert Inn & Suites, etc. I have learned over the years to spend extra staying across the street in order to get the most of your visit.

Maybe I will....next time.

I've been seriously thinking of checking out HoJo.

I also thought DL was not on the radar for the mad dash - bonus! Sounds like a lovely last day with the family - glad you and your aunt got some quality time together. I have never ate at the UVA Bar but that lamb burger looks pretty good!

How could I go all that way and not go to DL?

It came down to the airfare. Staying 9 nights was significantly cheaper than staying 5 nights. Go figure.

Waiting 60 minutes for breakfast seems a little extreme to me. I cannot even imagine waiting this long for dinner.

I know, right? I think this is a population thing.

What a shame that San Diego Zoo did not live up to your memories. I have never been, but Graham went in May and loved it. I am somewhat surprised at the cages though and I am glad that they will soon be a thing of the past.

I think we would re-visit the zoo. But only after the reno is completed.

Reading about your experience with family, I am very glad that I have no more contact with mine.

Families. Can't live with them. Can't live without them.

That mosaic garden looks absolutely amazing.

I love the look of that Oktoberfest menu. As far as Good Neighbor hotels are concerned, we quite liked the Howard Johnson.

Corinna

The HoJo is popular with the Aussies as well. Maybe next time.

All caught up!

I agree! Zoo food is never, ever good. That's too bad.

I"m the exact same way about being punctual. When we lived in Long Beach, I would arrive to school 40 mintues early to make sure I got a parking spot...and I lived about 5 mintues from the school

If I lived closer, I think you and I would be parking....and then finding an appropriate cafe to have coffee whilst we waited.

Wow nice aim

What I love about the DIS is that we're able to say how we feel whenever we want and I feel that we're never judged. Hope you felt a bit better by saying what was on your heart and mind I'm the oldest (just two of us) but never felt I was treated differently. Junior high was probably the worst time for me. I got made fun of a lot for my looks and it still gets to me every now and then if I don't feel 'up to par', if that makes sense.

Yes it does. But you know you're really gorgeous, right? I love your Eurasian looks.

Alison raves about the Lamb Burger! I'm not sure but many years ago, we sat at the bar in the middle of DTD and ordered a burger the bartender suggested. It totally could have been the lamb burger, but I just don't remember.

Did you enjoy it?

We just recentely stayed at the Candy Cane Inn for our first time in October and liked it so much better than the other GN Hotels. That was the 6th different hotel i've stayed at, and i'd say it's better than than Tropicana or Desert Palms. MUCH cleaner, slightly cheaper and breakfast is 100% times better! We never took the shuttle during our stay, so can't comment on how fast or slow it was, but we never even thought about it at the end of the day. I've been wanting to try the HoJo but they never have availability. I hear it's pretty good!

CCI is still pretty decent. I just think it was started to look dated and it might be time for me to try somewhere else.

It'll be interested to see how HoJo stacks up. The one Bret stayed at also looked nice.

Glad you made good time on your way to Disney. Now I want a lambuger from the Uva Bar!

Sorry the Candy Cane inn wasn't quite up to snuff. But at least it did the job for one night.

It was more than fine for one night.

All caught up and the food porn is making me hungry. It's only 11am here and I'm even salivating over the mojito.

Reading about how good that Lamb burger is, I feel like I missed out while I was at Disneyland. It would have been much tastier than the awful Monte Cristo that DH insisted on trying and regretted after the first bite.

I could eat about one of those Monte Cristo 'wedges'. It is very filling, isn't it? And rich.

What was your DH thinking?

Lol, I think curiosity got the better of him. I must admit curiosity got the better of me too and I had to try a bite of his sandwich. I just don't understand the popularity. It's more like a large heavy doughnut-like dessert than a main meal.
It is highly unlike my DH to not finish a meal, but he didn't even get half way through this one.

To my taste, the Monte Cristo was sweet and rich. I enjoyed at the time I was eating it. But it did repeat on me a little afterwards.

 

[jedijill]

I really liked the HoJo but it was getting expensive. I stayed at the Anabella in March and it was nice but the walls were a bit thin. Not a bad walk to GCH and DTD.

Jill in CO