For All Who Come to this Happy Place: My 1st Trip to DL for the POTC World Premiere!

[Fairy_Tale_Bride]

Disney's California Adventure
Part 1




We didn't get much sleep because we were up bright and early for our last day of fun in Disneyland! We were going to Disney's California Adventure! It was another cold and dreary day in California. Of course, we didn't dress properly once again and we were already freezing outside our motel waiting for our shuttle.

We arrived to Disney's California Adventure as soon as it opened because it would be closing earlier today than usual. Depending on how tired we were, we were going to try to make it over to Disneyland in the evening for the fireworks!

We would have loved to check out one of the main attractions, Grizzly River Run, but it was just too cold and there was no way we were getting wet!

We decided to go to Paradise Pier first because it looked like the most fun! The park was pretty empty and I think it was mainly because of the cold and drizzle in the air.

We decided to go to California Screamin' first and it wasn't too busy at all, but it did have the longest wait at just 15-minutes.

California Screamin' was a lot of fun, but we really weren't able to enjoy ourselves because we were so cold! Blastin’-off in the cold wind just wasn't that enjoyable.

Over in the Paradise Pier area we could see Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel and Disney's Grand Californian Hotel. They each had perfect views of Disney's California Adventure!

Then, we went on the big Sun Wheel, which was the craziest ride! We sat in the swinging and sliding gondola that whipped back and forth as the wheel went around. It was a really fun ride, especially doing it 16 stories up in the air!

We enjoyed our time over at Paradise Pier and went on all the fun amusement rides, like the Golden Zephyr and the Orange Stinger!

I was tired of being cold, so we decided to go check out some of the shops and see if I could find a jacket! I found a lot of really cute Disneyland shirts and I found one that had a matching jacket. It was perfect and I couldn't wait to be warm. They also had a special offer to get a "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" watch and exclusive lithograph. I had to get them, of course!

We were getting a little hungry, so we decided to get some lunch once we saw Oom Mow Mow, which was this really neat pizza place!

The pizza was fantastic and the slices were huge! Yummy!

Continued...

 

[Disneygrl36]

Do you mind telling us who? I am very curious now!

Lindsey, it was Rick Springfield........the other love of my life besides my husband..... I hope you aren't too young to have a clue who he is...he really is AWESOME & the time I spent with him will live forever in my memory & in my heart.

 

[Disney-Kim]

Lindsey...your comments about the cold crack me up...because I have always taken that knowledge for granted and now I realize that those who never been to So Cal know about the weather there.
Dland is always cooler than other places and the humidity really cools it off more...as opposed to making it seem hotter like WDW.
I have bought MANY cute jackets/pullovers at Dland.

We have always had to dress in layers at Dland...as you have found out because the mornings are COLD/wet and the afternoons HOT and the nights COLD.

I am so enjoying your trippie...you are really an entertaining writer

 

[2angelsinheaven]

Thanks for another great installment, loving all the photos!

 

[Disney-Kim]

I am hijacking for a few pics of our Club 33 experience. Don't judge the clothes...it was freezing and we had been in the park all day.

 

[Disney-Kim]

here are a couple more of the bathroom...its famous

 

[Disney-Kim]

a couple more pics. I realize now that we didn't take a lot of pics of the interior of the restaurant. but you get to see us in the restaurant

 

[Fairy_Tale_Bride]

Lindsey, it was Rick Springfield........the other love of my life besides my husband..... I hope you aren't too young to have a clue who he is...he really is AWESOME & the time I spent with him will live forever in my memory & in my heart.

That's so neat! Where did you meet him? I love Rick Springfield! Of course, I know who his is! Who doesn't love "Jessie's Girl!?" I kept on the news too and knew all about his return to General Hospital!

Lindsey...your comments about the cold crack me up...because I have always taken that knowledge for granted and now I realize that those who never been to So Cal know about the weather there.
Dland is always cooler than other places and the humidity really cools it off more...as opposed to making it seem hotter like WDW.
I have bought MANY cute jackets/pullovers at Dland.

We have always had to dress in layers at Dland...as you have found out because the mornings are COLD/wet and the afternoons HOT and the nights COLD.

I am so enjoying your trippie...you are really an entertaining writer

You described the weather perfectly! I am so not use to that at all being from the East Coast. I just always thought it was warm! I never see any of the celebrities in anything, but skimpy clothing! Layers is the key because the weather changes is just so drastic. Now, I know and I learned my lesson for next time!

I am hijacking for a few pics of our Club 33 experience. Don't judge the clothes...it was freezing and we had been in the park all day.

Wow! How neat! The bathroom is the coolest thing I've ever seen! What a unique and yet weird toilet! It looks kinda small too. I just love those plates! Okay, now I have added Club 33 to my list of "must sees" in my lifetime! Thanks so much for posting these! What exactly did you eat there? Is it just a fancy restaurant? How big is it? Many questions...

 

[Fairy_Tale_Bride]

Disney's California Adventure
Part 2




We were finally warming up a little and that meant the crowds were getting larger too!

We found the entrance to Disney's Grand Californian Hotel and it was so neat that it was right there in the park! I also found out the Johnny and his family were enjoying some time in the parks today, as well! I never saw them, but it's still neat to know they were there!

I was very excited to go on the actual Soarin' Over California! It was definitely neat to see it out in the open in it's own building and the waiting area was much more decorated too.

I really enjoyed all the neat California touches in the theme park like the Golden Gate Bridge and the subway car, I felt like I was right there in San Francisco!

Well, you can go to California, without going to Hollywood!

The area reminded me of a smaller version of Disney-MGM Studios. It had the same vibe, but on a smaller scale. They even have Turtle Talk here!

I remember hearing about the Aladdin Musical in Disneyland on TV back when it first opened and luckily there were a few shows going on the day we were there! I found out its not every day that they have the performances. Lucky us! We got in line and the line was huge for this production!

We waited only about 15-minutes and we were brought into a huge theatre. It was like actually being at a real theatre, not like at Disneyland or Walt Disney World. It was enormous with balconies and everything. I would have had no idea it was this large from the looks of it outside. Well, the Aladdin Musical was spectacular! It was truly a Broadway production! The music and talent was great! Aladdin and Jasmine even fly over the audience on their magic carpet! DH had his mouth opened wide through the entire show. We were so impressed and it is quite a long show too. It is a must-see!


Then, it was time for the Tower of Terror! Of course, I was thrilled once again to do my comparing between here and Walt Disney World!

I don't want to give away too much, but it was much scarier here at California Adventure! The ride is once again, totally different from WDW! It's amazing all the differences in the rides! You actually go up in the same elevator, but it never actually becomes a ride vehicle. The door opens and you see yourselves in a mirror and then you all become ghosts! Next thing, DROP! It was really neat! A completely different feeling and ride from Walt Disney World!


The next stop was the Monsters Inc. Ride, Mike & Sulley to the Rescue, that we are not lucky enough to have in Walt Disney World. The outside of the ride was so cute and I could not wait to go on it, since it is one of my favorite movies!

The ride was just like you were there going through the movie! They didn't leave out any of the details. We got in a taxi cab and made our way through Monstropolis!

The characters were just amazing in the ride and there were also some great special effects. You actually even go through the locker room and the bathroom during the ride, just like in the movie! They even have Mike's contact sitting there on a bench. I was so impressed with this ride and just loved it!

Continued...

 

[tksbaskets]

Yeah! Breakfast with your trippie Thanks for the new installment,
TK

 

[Disneygrl36]

That's so neat! Where did you meet him? I love Rick Springfield! Of course, I know who his is! Who doesn't love "Jessie's Girl!?" I kept on the news too and knew all about his return to General Hospital!

I met him at the sound check before a concert in Atlanta. It was truly a dream come true. I haven't watched General Hospital in years, but I am taping it every day now.

Disney-Kim thanks for the pictures of Club33

Lindsey....I love your pics from California Adventure. I went not long after it opened & it looks like they have some great additions. I am working on talking DH into a Fall 2008 California trip.

 

[FauntleroyFAN07]

Sounds like your trip was great. I would love to go back and see that park again, I was out there when I was 10 and the only thing I remeber about Disneyland was the Monorail going through the park and how everything was close together. I thought it was so weird because I was used to WDW and how everything is spread out and the monorail not going through MK.

Going to have to make a trip out there and see all of the new stuff.

 

[cherokeemamma]

Hi Lindsey!
Really enjoying the last couple of installments!

I must say as far as the weather is concerned...I was clueless. In my mind S Ca is always warm and sunny...low humidity. I really would have never dreamed it was so cool and damp. We would probably go in late Oct. Any idea how the weather is that time of year? or the crowds? I will def. have to research that when I start planning my trip. So, thanks for the heads up on that!

I know the night of the premiere you guys must have been exhausted. I can't imagine sitting/standing/waiting in such a small area for so many hours. I have been that tired only a couple of times before - when you just felt to tired to eat...it is a bad way to be. But worth it for Johnny
Oh the memories you will have....lucky girl!

The pictures from the park look wonderful. I really want to go now...

Thanks so much for sharing. You are doing a fantastic job.

TTFN
Darlene

 

[Disney-Kim]

Wow! How neat! The bathroom is the coolest thing I've ever seen! What a unique and yet weird toilet! It looks kinda small too. I just love those plates! Okay, now I have added Club 33 to my list of "must sees" in my lifetime! Thanks so much for posting these! What exactly did you eat there? Is it just a fancy restaurant? How big is it? Many questions...

The restaurant was not very big and there was a side banquet room with taxidermy animals around the top of the room that were rumored to have secret microphones in them for when Walt met with people...
The area where we ate was one big room done in ornate Victorian decor and we had basically a fancy dinner. Our food was comped so we pigged out.
It was about a $200 dinner without alcohol. There were other people dressed up fancy but you knew they were only there to eat and not tour the park.
I felt out of place in our warm sweatshirts BUT we had been in the park for hours and it was cold. We were there in Oct or Nov...can't remember which.
We did see Mary Rakjusub the actress ( I think I got her name wrong and butchered it) she is on the show 24....but not at the time we went..we were there in 2003. We bought a few souveniers and took the paper napkins off the table. We bought writing pens, a tie tac, and a shotglass. The polo shirts were boring and there wasn't much selection of stuff to buy. It was very businessy stuff.
The picture of us in front of the wood/glass area...thats the elevator you take up to the restaurant...its on the 2nd floor...sort of above the crystal shops in NO SQ and above Cafe Orleans. We could see Fantasmic from the windows...which was COOL !!

it was a really great experience and we will probably never get to do that again in our lifetime...which is a weird thought...

 

[Disney-Kim]

Lindsey...
I am surprised you liked the TOT....My DH was disappointed in it compared to the WDW one. I don't ride it...too scary...but the ambience of the surrounding area and lobby didn't seem as good to me. My DH missed the elevator moving around.
but then we were there last in 2005...so maybe its changed a little.

We have not been on Monsters Inc yet so I am glad you gave it a

 

[luvfigment]

Another great installment!!! I agree that ToT is different than in WDW and I talked my friend on going on it since she is totally scared of Free Falls. I promised her that I would tell her when we were going to drop...or so I thought. Little did I know that the set up is totally different than WDW and was not able to warn her and she was so . I wish I had bought the picture...she was curled up in a ball and was soooo mad at me after! It was kinda funny! Anways I was just as surprised but loved the ride of course!!!

 

[PirateKitty]

OMG! You got to see Johnny!! Just catching up after 5 days of (abscessed tooth+allergic reaction to antibiotics=hospital stay & a root canal ) I was missing this TR soooooo bad...I am home now scrambling through the pages and

I'm so glad you were able to capture Johnny on video. He was looking right at you. And you seemed so close!!! Like you could have reached out and grabbed him! I just love him. Maybe I missed it, were you able to get his autograph?? I'll bet you were in heaven.

 

[gatrbait]

Oh man Piratekitty I hope you feel better...

Lindsey...
awesome awesome...Johnny right there in front of you, looking at you, smiling, man I would have just melted into a pile of mush ...I commend you and keeping your wits about you!
I tell you, your DH is a heck of a guy, he takes this all in stride doesn't he? You definitly have a keeper...he has helped make all your fairy tales come true!
M

 

[pooh98378]

Okay, now I have added Club 33 to my list of "must sees" in my lifetime! Thanks so much for posting these! What exactly did you eat there? Is it just a fancy restaurant? How big is it? Many questions...

I've really enjoyed your TR!! The pics are awesome! It looks like you guys had a great time!

Club 33 is also on my "must sees." Here is more info on it --

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Club_33
http://www.disneylandclub33.com/

 

[cryssi]

Lindsey,

I'm so glad that you enjoyed DCA! I think it gets a bad rap...lol It holds a special place in my heart b/c that's where our wedding reception was! You were in the areas we had it...Hyperion queue (the Aladdin show waiting area) and Sun Plaza!

Next time you are out here, you should get corn dogs...oh wait, you don't eat corn dogs, huh? Bummer, they are really good. Well, they have fried cheese...do you eat that? The cornbread batter is really good, that's why! Did you get a mickey shaped sourdough bread? Wait, your trippie probably isn't over yet! Sorry I jumped the gun! LOL

I'm from so cal and I've purchased DL sweatshirts so don't feel too badly about it... You'd think that by now I'd have the foresight to bring a jacket every time...

p.s. definitely if you can find someone to get you into club 33...it's worth the experience! the food is just amazing! we went for our anniversary last year, but DH wouldn't let me take pictures of the food b/c he said that it's tacky to do that in a nice restaurant... no matter that everyone else was doing it! LOL