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

[franandaj]

What's sad is that you and I got similar scores on TSMM and I was playing while you were shooting! I just suck at that game. I remember feeling sick after TSMM and trying not to hurl while you guys were on Grizzly River Rapids. I'm glad you had fun and I hate getting soaked, which is why I don't go on the water rides unless I have a hotel room to go back to and change after I ride the ride!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Love the pics of the rapids ride. I too hope Soarin is still as good with the refurb - I love that ride.

Thanks.
Yeah. I hope that Soarin' is as good or better. If they did as good as job as Star Tours, it should be awesome.

What's sad is that you and I got similar scores on TSMM and I was playing while you were shooting! I just suck at that game. I remember feeling sick after TSMM and trying not to hurl while you guys were on Grizzly River Rapids. I'm glad you had fun and I hate getting soaked, which is why I don't go on the water rides unless I have a hotel room to go back to and change after I ride the ride!

I remember you saying you weren't feeling well. I didn't realise that you were feeling that bad!
I think you were feeling better after we got off GRR. If not, you hid that well!!!!

 

[PrincessInOz]

It's all about Rides Today....The Official DisMeet


Discovery #58. Sometimes in life, when opportunity comes a-knocking, grab it while you can.



By this stage of the day, Alison needed to head on home. But before she left, we had one last thing to do together. And it involved a catch-up.

One of Alison's fantastic connections has become a friend of my family now. And whenever we visit, it seems like a good opportunity for us to catch up for a drink. I used to think it was the Australian connection and novelty factor; but I guess we must like each other after the last 3 years or so. At least, I hope so!
So we trekked back across the promenade to make the catch-up.

When an opportunity like this comes along, I've long learnt to make sure I knock along with it....or in this case, ring the bell loud and clear. Lucky we were invited!






It's now behind closed doors.






But it's still as illuminating as ever.






We took the opportunity to capture the official DisMeet evidence here. We made sure DH grabbed a shot of the Dis-sers present from all cameras. This one was from mine.






But we were here for a drink, right? And we weren't just after water!






It was a great place to catch up with each other.






I got a Ruby mocktail. I don't remember the exact mix but it was grapefruity.






Some of the others got tea.






And then some!






The drinks were cool and refreshing after a long day in the park.





It was nice catching up with friends; even if they are a little camera shy.

Naturally I took some time to look around. Afterall, it was rather like being given the ivory keys to the land.






I didn't forget to check out the original keys either.






Still as lovely as ever.






I liked the vibe of this new space. It was really relaxed.






....with lots of Bayou and Jazz influences. The artwork is amazing.
















I had a bit of mis-communication with my boys. Whilst I was looking round....






....they didn't know where I had gone. Turns out they went back outside because they thought I had left. Really???






I guess it really was time to leave. We had stayed longer than we had thought. But it sure was nice to look back and reflect on a wonderful opportunity to catch up with friends.








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[PrincessInOz]

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It's all about Rides Today....Dole Whip Float


Discovery #59. Dole Whip Floats are my most favourite snack in all of Disney.



We said our goodbyes to Alison and she headed on home. Happily, the goodbyes were brief this time as we would see her again later.

The rest of us had one more thing to tick off in Disneyland.
The queue outside in Adventureland is always long; but you can always count on the queue inside the Tiki Room waiting area to be shorter.






Dole Whip Floats are just about my favourite snack in all of Disney. So good! Even my lactose intolerant DH can indulge in this!









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[PrincessInOz]

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It's all about Rides Today....Night Time at Carsland


Discovery #60. You can never get enough of pure magic in your life.



I was Dole Whip floating on air after indulging in my favourite snack.






We were making our way out of Disneyland whilst everyone else was waiting for the night time Soundtastic Parade.






I almost wished we were watching the parade again; but we had another park to get to.






There really was only one place we were heading to. For me, Carsland at night is pure magic.






I don't think I've ever seen a place where life so closely imitates art than here.







Life could be a dream, right?












We then headed on round the corner.







It was an opportunity to take a look at Ornament Valley at night. The night time sight of Willy's Butte and Radiator Falls is one that I haven't yet tired of.






And the view the other way isn't half bad either.







We kept going past Pacific Wharf. There was one last attraction we were going to do tonight.

 

[franandaj]

It was nice to hang out with you guys at the New Club. I think actually that the drink helped out my feelings of nausea. I'm glad that my friend was able to make it out so we could hang out there for a bit.

I'm glad you guys got to see the neon in Carsland. I think I picked us up some takeout from the Italian place up the street on my way home, maybe a meatball sandwich. Scary that I don't remember, but I did get something on the way home for Fran and I.

 

[ACDSNY]

Great update, the club looks beautiful and relaxing. I'm another one that loves Cars Land at night.

 

[tiggrbaby]

What a lovely spot for a drink, and amazing shots of Carsland at night!

 

[mvf-m11c]

We had a great time with you PiO and Alison that night. It was nice to relax after a long day at the parks.

I can never leave the DLR without getting my favorite dessert at DL which is the Dole Whip Float. It was nice to have the Dole Whip floats that night.

Great pictures of CL that night. I can never get tired of CL when seeing it at night. You have to see it during the holiday season one day.

Great updates.

 

[Leshaface]

I really do need to try a Mint Julep sometime, I hear they're delicious!

I LOVE the newly refurbished BTMR! And it's 100 times better than MK's version.

What a great lineup of rides: RSR, TSM

You're brave to do GRR. I haven't done it in years. If it was ridiculously hot, I would consider it. But I think DH's hatred of getting wet has rubbed off on me.

Ooh, is that cranberry mint infused water?? The new club looks fabulous!

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Beautiful pics. I look forward to seeing Carsland one day.

 

[eandesmom]

All caught up!

I love French Market, it may be one of my favorite lunch spots on either coast and is a CS location I could do dinner at which always seems to be very difficult for me to find. What is late for lunch? Just curious, we always eat late but it can help with crowds.

Fabulous BTMRR shots not only are they simply good, I can just feel the fun! You are getting in all the headliners, Splash, BTMRR, RSR, TSM, Soarin and GRR. What a day so far! Soggy but seriously fun.

GRR was down on my last trip with the kids and Ann and I didn't try (can't remember why, maybe time of day or line or ??) still a little bummed about that, especially with the kids. I hope with the Soarin' overhaul they still keep the DL queue, it's very special to us.

Wonderful updates, fun fun day so far.

 

[skier_pete]

Oooooh, Club 33 - lucky you!! Our one foray there was pre-refurb. The new lounge looks beautiful.

Love Carsland at night. I only hope someday they put a themed area into Florida as well done as that. (Avatar? "Crosses Fingers")

 

[PrincessInOz]

It was nice to hang out with you guys at the New Club. I think actually that the drink helped out my feelings of nausea. I'm glad that my friend was able to make it out so we could hang out there for a bit.

I'm glad you guys got to see the neon in Carsland. I think I picked us up some takeout from the Italian place up the street on my way home, maybe a meatball sandwich. Scary that I don't remember, but I did get something on the way home for Fran and I.

It was nice at the new club. And thank your friend for me. I'm always conscious of not imposing.

One of these days, I'm going to try for a few more days at DLR and try to get a ride on RSR at night.

I think that's why I take as many pictures as I do. Without the pictures, I wouldn't remember a thing!

Great update, the club looks beautiful and relaxing. I'm another one that loves Cars Land at night.

Thanks Angela.

Yes, CL is beautiful, isn't it?

What a lovely spot for a drink, and amazing shots of Carsland at night!

I really enjoyed being able to relax and take some time out from the park. And it was a great space for a drink.
Thanks!

We had a great time with you PiO and Alison that night. It was nice to relax after a long day at the parks.

I can never leave the DLR without getting my favorite dessert at DL which is the Dole Whip Float. It was nice to have the Dole Whip floats that night.

Great pictures of CL that night. I can never get tired of CL when seeing it at night. You have to see it during the holiday season one day.

Great updates.

Thanks Bret. It was great hanging out with you, DAF and Alison as well. Hopefully we can do it again...may during a Christmas period.

I really do need to try a Mint Julep sometime, I hear they're delicious!

I LOVE the newly refurbished BTMR! And it's 100 times better than MK's version.

Welcome back! Yes, BTMRR is so much fun with the refurb.

What a great lineup of rides: RSR, TSM

You're brave to do GRR. I haven't done it in years. If it was ridiculously hot, I would consider it. But I think DH's hatred of getting wet has rubbed off on me.

It was pretty hot on the day. And whilst DH and I got soaked, because it was so hot, I think we dried off in about 30 minutes or so.

Ooh, is that cranberry mint infused water?? The new club looks fabulous!

You know....I don't think I took a drink from that container.

Beautiful pics. I look forward to seeing Carsland one day.

Thanks Wendy. I hope you're planning a trip to DLR soon.

All caught up!

I love French Market, it may be one of my favorite lunch spots on either coast and is a CS location I could do dinner at which always seems to be very difficult for me to find. What is late for lunch? Just curious, we always eat late but it can help with crowds.

I think we ate lunch close on 2 pm that day. I tend to eat lunch at noon normally. And as breakfast was at 7 am, it was a long time between food!

Fabulous BTMRR shots not only are they simply good, I can just feel the fun! You are getting in all the headliners, Splash, BTMRR, RSR, TSM, Soarin and GRR. What a day so far! Soggy but seriously fun.

GRR was down on my last trip with the kids and Ann and I didn't try (can't remember why, maybe time of day or line or ??) still a little bummed about that, especially with the kids. I hope with the Soarin' overhaul they still keep the DL queue, it's very special to us.

Wonderful updates, fun fun day so far.

Thanks. Yes, we did tick off the headline rides this day.

I guess time will tell with Soarin' and I hope you get on GRR when you next visit. Not long now to the run, right? (But Aulani first! I'm so envious!)

Oooooh, Club 33 - lucky you!! Our one foray there was pre-refurb. The new lounge looks beautiful.

Love Carsland at night. I only hope someday they put a themed area into Florida as well done as that. (Avatar? "Crosses Fingers")

New lounge is great!

I hope they do a decent job on Avatarland. The renderings look promising so far. And I noticed that Avatar 2 is going to be delayed to 2017. Will be interesting to see how it all plays out!

 

[PrincessInOz]

It's all about Rides Today....World of Colour


Discovery #61. Final moments in the park really suck.



The World of Colour is one of my favourite attractions at Disneyland. Yes, I know it's just images projected on a water screen....but the concept of World of Colour taps into that inner child within me....both figuratively and historically.

The World of Colour was what I remember as my earliest childhood Disney memories. That opening song....the World is a Carousel of Colour, wonderful, wonderful colour....always takes me back to being a child yearning for Sunday night to come round....waiting to be transported into the Wonderful World of Disney. And even today, when the opening strains start and the first images are projected....






I am that child again, viewing everything through the kaleidoscope of a rainbow.






And for a brief moment in time, childhood memories flood back. Little wonder that I get emotional to the point of tears by the time this image is projected.






Throw in catchy Disney music, and I'm right there....singing along.






....and calypso dancing.






Yes, I was really having a whale of a time with this show.






I may be totally off the planet with being so emotional; and for admitting it.






But it really doesn't matter. Afterall, I am sitting here in the comfort of my home writing down my thoughts. It's not as if there is anyone else out there watching me, is there?






By this stage of the show, I've probably got enough of my emotions under control that I'm no longer on the verge of tears. I'm usually enjoying the spectacle of the colours.






Old Fogie or not....






....I'm usually feeling just about excited enough to spin upside down.








It really was like coming home.






Let's just enjoy some of the images, shall we? With luck, they might transport us back to happy childhood memories.











































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[PrincessInOz]

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I always find the couples sequence so romantic. I'm pretty sure that's a girlie thing. I did my best to capture as many of the couples as possible.










































And with that, the show was over and so was our time at Disneyland on this trip.






Final moments in the park really suck. It's always so sad to leave the parks not knowing when you're going to be back again. I really do wish I lived closer and had the luxury of treating it like my backyard playground. Still, it had been a great day with Bret, DAF and Alison.






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[PrincessInOz]

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Not My Disney Shopping Loot


Discovery #62. Boys will be boys. *sigh*



We did go shopping at The World of Disney as we headed out of the park. I had two very specific items to get by way of request of an 8 year old niece back home.

I took some pictures to send home to her parents; but there seemed to be a very pesky photobomber in the pictures.











My cousin was very pleased with the pictures and very happy with the loot. Unsurprisingly, they passed on taking the photobomber as well.






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[PrincessInOz]

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Pizza Press Dinner


Discovery #63. Life is so much cheaper outside of the Disney bubble.



So where was my DS photobombing from?


It's a little pizza place on South Harbour Blvd called the Pizza Press. I believe it opened in 2012; and it's just right by where the Tropicana Hotel is. I had never eaten here before.


It was after 9 pm when we got here and the place was pretty busy still. We had originally thought to eat at Naples in DTD but they were closed. In fact, mid-week, a lot of the restaurants in DTD were closed. So, that left us looking outside of the Disney bubble for somewhere to eat. And if I recall correctly, both DAF and DS were keen for pizza so I was pretty pleased when Bret suggested this place.


We had been pretty lucky to find an empty table big enough for the 5 of us. And after conferring with the menu, we decided that the special offer was the way to go. The special included a choice of 2 pizzas, 2 soft drinks and a garden salad for $28.


The garden salad was a decent size.






In keeping with the name of the establishment, the pizzas all had a newspaper related name. This was the Press.






The Tribune.







The Hungry!







The pizzas were pretty tasty. And the bonus? The meal was significantly cheaper than pizzas at Naples. Welcome back to real life pricing.


We said our goodbyes to Bret and DAF after dinner and made our way back to the Candy Cane Inn. The Candy Cane Inn had been rather generous with our parking privileges. We had been allowed to leave the car on property for the whole day and that meant that we didn't have to pay for parking at all.


Our destination for the next 3 days was Long Beach. It took us about 30 minutes to get to Alison and Fran’s place. They had generously offered us a place to stay and we were all looking forward to spending time with them. We spent the rest of the night catching up with them and settling into their home. And then we all crashed!

 

[LegoMom3]

Wow, that World of Color show looks amazing! Love all the character images (although Buzz might have been a bit too larger-than-life!!).

Cars Land at night IS gorgeous!! I've never seen anything look so much like its inspiration film! Walt would be proud.....talk about being in the movie!

.

 

[jedijill]

Awesome last night at DL. You got some great pictures of WoC! That pizza looks delicious! Non-Disney prices are a nice change after the bubble.

Yay for staying a Casa Neuva.

Jill in CO