NostalgicDad
"iHopeWeNeverLoseSomeOfTheThingsOfThePast"-WD
- Joined
- Jul 10, 2006
- Messages
- 2,532
Well, we have returned from our 10 days in SoCal and are bummed about missing DL already. I've had my VisionsFantastic Radio going non-stop. I'm not much on real lengthy reports but will try to do the best I can in a somewhat condensed version here.
After landing at SNA we got in our rental and were unpacked at the CCI by 6pm on Wednesday, 8/6. We had dinner at Bubba Gump over at the Garden Walk then headed for an evening at DL after picking up our tickets from GAT at the ticket booth. It was so nice just walking around and taking in BTMRR and a couple of other rides before roaming around Main St. until closing. Since the price was literally only $50 more for our 8 day PH's over the 5 day PH's ($10 x 5 of us), we figured burning a few hours in the park on a couple of nights was well worth it while doing other things in the area. We then did 2 full days on Thurs and Fri (8/7 and 8/8) getting a full fix on all things Disney!
Saturday (8/9) was a full day down at the San Diego Wild Animal Park while Sunday (8/10) was spent at Corona Del Mar beach. The WAP was great and definitely recommended. We got to the WAP about 30-45 minutes before the 9am opening and were treated with no charge for the usual $9 parking. We were literally the first in line. As for the beach at Corona Del Mar, I would also highly recommend giving it a try. Although it was busy as any SoCal beach will be in the summer, it was nowhere near as busy as Huntington which was absolutely crazy when we drove by there on our way back to the hotel. We were able to find a place to park on the street for no charge at Corona Del Mar as well.
For Monday (8/11), it was back to the parks until closing. We did our PS at Goofy's Kitchen at 10am. Not many characters this time and as such, probably the last time to do this since it was just shy of 2 c-notes for our party of 5.
A brief nap in the hotel mid-day made for a great night without being totally beat. Tuesday (8/12), me and my DS14 did one of our 2 available MM entries. We were there at about 6am with no one in sight so we hung out until the security people opened the bag check line at 6:40am. Once through that, we scurried to turnstile #15 and were outflanked by some other teenagers so we were #2 in line there. Just after they open the gates there and prior to letting you through the actual turnstile, they were pumping us up and announcing the lucky family that won the Dream Suite. While doing that, the CM's also scanned the first 10 or so people's tickets so that we could just breeze through the turnstile without having to stop. I thought that was pretty cool but remember that for later in my report. My son and I walked while everyone else was "hustling" up Main St. I hadn't planned on doing any riding that morning since I wanted to get some early morning pictures (imagine that!). For some reason, I chased him down as he was getting onto Space Mountain. I don't typically ride that since it disorients me enough to where I feel blah and a bit on the clammy side afterwards. Something about that darkness just doesn't sit well with me any more. But, we were on the 2nd car to go and I enjoyed it nonetheless since it's been a couple of years since I last rode it. From there I let him do his thing and he also waited for the rope to drop for Adventureland and headed straight to Indy. He said he was #1 in line on that ride. I walked around taking pictures without many people around until about 8:45am when we headed back to the hotel for a couple more hours of sleep since we got up before 5:30am. After that, we all headed for Huntington Beach for a few hours during the day then returned to DL that evening for some relaxing fun and fireworks.
Wednesday (8/13), we were realizing that our trip would be ending in a few days and made sure we paced ourselves to do everything we wanted to get done in the parks. We made the opening to DCA and got in the 30 minute long line for TSMM. That ride is great but the lines are as you might expect........waaaaay long! Throughout each day it was typically well over an hour wait from what we could tell. Do it early if possible. It's one of those rides that I can't wait to do again, though! Lots of fun! I also rode Screamin for the first time. I just have never bothered to stand in line in past trips. I'm glad I finally rode it as it is the smoothest roller coaster I've ever been on. I might also mention that it is a blast as well! I love the 3 "humps" towards the end. The rest of this day was a full dose of DCA including the Aladdin show at the Hyperion. First time to see this and it was terrific! It was nothing like I expected and I loved the comedy aspect of it. The genie was great! This won't be the last time to see this show for sure. Also, the rest of this day, I went sans camera which is very hard for me to do! But, it was nice not having that extra appendage hanging around my neck that I usually have.
Thursday (8/14) was a MM for all of us this time. We got to the bag check at 6:30am and were about 15 back. But this time, we managed to be #1 in line at turnstile #15. I noticed the bag check on the other side of the Esplanade was opened about 30 seconds after ours. I'm sure those folks were not happy about that! Anyway, this time when the opened the gate and we were being pumped up and watching the next lucky family, our CM DID NOT scan our tickets while waiting. All of the other CM's were doing it though and I asked her to do it but she refused.
I mean, it wasn't that big of a deal for me but I have no idea why she insisted on being the odd one of the bunch and it's a little irritating to hear all of the machines around you scanning tickets and you're standing there wondering why yours isn't. I can imagine that if I was a "serious" MM type of person, that would totally throw me for a loop and complaints would be in order! Luckily though, I have my wits about me and I was over it in about an hour (or 2). 
Close to lunch time, me and my DS14 and DD10 headed for the hotel for a nap while my DW and DS7 stayed in the parks to squeeze in everything possible before our looming departure. We met back up around 2:30pm and sat at Coke Corner for quite a long time, and even watching some of the 3:30 parade from that spot. It was quite refreshing though sitting in the shade and just "watching" stuff/people. We closed down the park once again while eating our Gibson Girl ice cream on Main St. My DS7 had made it 17 hours and 45 minutes this day before finally falling asleep on the curb. Quite the trooper that little guy! We all made the walk back to CCI for one last night knowing that the next day would be our last.
Friday (8/15) and it was time to wake up and pack. We had a premium room at CCI so our check out time was 2pm and we didn't need to be at the airport until 3:30pm or so. After cramming the suitcases with all the souvenirs/gifts, we headed for DCA and DL for a few hours of last minute fun. We got fast passes for Soarin' and I rode Screaming a second time but this time I had the camera in hand. My D300 shoots at 8 frames per second and I took 220 shots while making our way through the ride!
Now, anytime I want to ride Screamin, all I have to do is go through those pictures. We headed to Soarin' for one last time then headed to DL to wrap things up. We hit a couple of shops for last minute souvenirs, grabbed some Dole Whips, rode the horse-drawn carriage, got some candy at the candy store, watched a few old cartoons in the Main St. Cinema, then waved good-bye while listening to my favorite music on Main St. 
Overall, it was a great trip. We all kept our sanity and had no major meltdowns. The crowds weren't too bad and I think avoiding the weekend was a great idea for us. That also made for a great 2 day break from the parks which re-energized us for the rest of the following week. I took right at 4000 pictures and carried my tripod 2 or 3 nights for some cool night shots. Now, I've got to go through those 4000 pictures before uploading to my site for posting. That's always a time consuming process. Our flight home was delayed (of course), and we walked in our door at about 12:30am Saturday morning (8/16). So, it looks like I also managed to make this longer than expected. Hope it gives you all a good idea of how our trip went and I'm sure that there's lots I have left out. Eight days of going through turnstiles creates a ton of memories. But, even as tired as I am from traveling and feeling good to be back home, I'm ready for more time at DL. It's just one of those things that can't be explained I suppose. 
After landing at SNA we got in our rental and were unpacked at the CCI by 6pm on Wednesday, 8/6. We had dinner at Bubba Gump over at the Garden Walk then headed for an evening at DL after picking up our tickets from GAT at the ticket booth. It was so nice just walking around and taking in BTMRR and a couple of other rides before roaming around Main St. until closing. Since the price was literally only $50 more for our 8 day PH's over the 5 day PH's ($10 x 5 of us), we figured burning a few hours in the park on a couple of nights was well worth it while doing other things in the area. We then did 2 full days on Thurs and Fri (8/7 and 8/8) getting a full fix on all things Disney!
Saturday (8/9) was a full day down at the San Diego Wild Animal Park while Sunday (8/10) was spent at Corona Del Mar beach. The WAP was great and definitely recommended. We got to the WAP about 30-45 minutes before the 9am opening and were treated with no charge for the usual $9 parking. We were literally the first in line. As for the beach at Corona Del Mar, I would also highly recommend giving it a try. Although it was busy as any SoCal beach will be in the summer, it was nowhere near as busy as Huntington which was absolutely crazy when we drove by there on our way back to the hotel. We were able to find a place to park on the street for no charge at Corona Del Mar as well.
For Monday (8/11), it was back to the parks until closing. We did our PS at Goofy's Kitchen at 10am. Not many characters this time and as such, probably the last time to do this since it was just shy of 2 c-notes for our party of 5.
A brief nap in the hotel mid-day made for a great night without being totally beat. Tuesday (8/12), me and my DS14 did one of our 2 available MM entries. We were there at about 6am with no one in sight so we hung out until the security people opened the bag check line at 6:40am. Once through that, we scurried to turnstile #15 and were outflanked by some other teenagers so we were #2 in line there. Just after they open the gates there and prior to letting you through the actual turnstile, they were pumping us up and announcing the lucky family that won the Dream Suite. While doing that, the CM's also scanned the first 10 or so people's tickets so that we could just breeze through the turnstile without having to stop. I thought that was pretty cool but remember that for later in my report. My son and I walked while everyone else was "hustling" up Main St. I hadn't planned on doing any riding that morning since I wanted to get some early morning pictures (imagine that!). For some reason, I chased him down as he was getting onto Space Mountain. I don't typically ride that since it disorients me enough to where I feel blah and a bit on the clammy side afterwards. Something about that darkness just doesn't sit well with me any more. But, we were on the 2nd car to go and I enjoyed it nonetheless since it's been a couple of years since I last rode it. From there I let him do his thing and he also waited for the rope to drop for Adventureland and headed straight to Indy. He said he was #1 in line on that ride. I walked around taking pictures without many people around until about 8:45am when we headed back to the hotel for a couple more hours of sleep since we got up before 5:30am. After that, we all headed for Huntington Beach for a few hours during the day then returned to DL that evening for some relaxing fun and fireworks.Wednesday (8/13), we were realizing that our trip would be ending in a few days and made sure we paced ourselves to do everything we wanted to get done in the parks. We made the opening to DCA and got in the 30 minute long line for TSMM. That ride is great but the lines are as you might expect........waaaaay long! Throughout each day it was typically well over an hour wait from what we could tell. Do it early if possible. It's one of those rides that I can't wait to do again, though! Lots of fun! I also rode Screamin for the first time. I just have never bothered to stand in line in past trips. I'm glad I finally rode it as it is the smoothest roller coaster I've ever been on. I might also mention that it is a blast as well! I love the 3 "humps" towards the end. The rest of this day was a full dose of DCA including the Aladdin show at the Hyperion. First time to see this and it was terrific! It was nothing like I expected and I loved the comedy aspect of it. The genie was great! This won't be the last time to see this show for sure. Also, the rest of this day, I went sans camera which is very hard for me to do! But, it was nice not having that extra appendage hanging around my neck that I usually have.
Thursday (8/14) was a MM for all of us this time. We got to the bag check at 6:30am and were about 15 back. But this time, we managed to be #1 in line at turnstile #15. I noticed the bag check on the other side of the Esplanade was opened about 30 seconds after ours. I'm sure those folks were not happy about that! Anyway, this time when the opened the gate and we were being pumped up and watching the next lucky family, our CM DID NOT scan our tickets while waiting. All of the other CM's were doing it though and I asked her to do it but she refused.
I mean, it wasn't that big of a deal for me but I have no idea why she insisted on being the odd one of the bunch and it's a little irritating to hear all of the machines around you scanning tickets and you're standing there wondering why yours isn't. I can imagine that if I was a "serious" MM type of person, that would totally throw me for a loop and complaints would be in order! Luckily though, I have my wits about me and I was over it in about an hour (or 2). Close to lunch time, me and my DS14 and DD10 headed for the hotel for a nap while my DW and DS7 stayed in the parks to squeeze in everything possible before our looming departure. We met back up around 2:30pm and sat at Coke Corner for quite a long time, and even watching some of the 3:30 parade from that spot. It was quite refreshing though sitting in the shade and just "watching" stuff/people. We closed down the park once again while eating our Gibson Girl ice cream on Main St. My DS7 had made it 17 hours and 45 minutes this day before finally falling asleep on the curb. Quite the trooper that little guy! We all made the walk back to CCI for one last night knowing that the next day would be our last.
Friday (8/15) and it was time to wake up and pack. We had a premium room at CCI so our check out time was 2pm and we didn't need to be at the airport until 3:30pm or so. After cramming the suitcases with all the souvenirs/gifts, we headed for DCA and DL for a few hours of last minute fun. We got fast passes for Soarin' and I rode Screaming a second time but this time I had the camera in hand. My D300 shoots at 8 frames per second and I took 220 shots while making our way through the ride!
Now, anytime I want to ride Screamin, all I have to do is go through those pictures. We headed to Soarin' for one last time then headed to DL to wrap things up. We hit a couple of shops for last minute souvenirs, grabbed some Dole Whips, rode the horse-drawn carriage, got some candy at the candy store, watched a few old cartoons in the Main St. Cinema, then waved good-bye while listening to my favorite music on Main St. Overall, it was a great trip. We all kept our sanity and had no major meltdowns.
The crowds weren't too bad and I think avoiding the weekend was a great idea for us. That also made for a great 2 day break from the parks which re-energized us for the rest of the following week. I took right at 4000 pictures and carried my tripod 2 or 3 nights for some cool night shots. Now, I've got to go through those 4000 pictures before uploading to my site for posting. That's always a time consuming process. Our flight home was delayed (of course), and we walked in our door at about 12:30am Saturday morning (8/16). So, it looks like I also managed to make this longer than expected. Hope it gives you all a good idea of how our trip went and I'm sure that there's lots I have left out. Eight days of going through turnstiles creates a ton of memories. But, even as tired as I am from traveling and feeling good to be back home, I'm ready for more time at DL. It's just one of those things that can't be explained I suppose. 
...sounds like you had a wonderful family trip...We did a morning PS at Goofy's and thought the same thing...very few characters...but we also did a dinner at Goofy's and were over run by characters...and lots of character time...did not feel rushed at all...
...WE love your pictures
Sounds like you had a great trip!
