My Terrific Tuesday Trip Report

[Pooh'sTwin]

Hi All,

Seeing as I did not do a trip report for my long weekend in October, or the various other days I have been to the parks lately I figured I would give you a glimpse of my random Tuesday visit. My partner and I went for the day on November 21, to see all the Holiday fun and it ended up being a frentic Friday for several reasons so we left early and I did not get to do some holiday shopping I wanted to get done. So I decided I would take a day for myself and go! Here's a run down...

* 7:10am, I am standing at a bus stop in Long Beach ready to see if I truly can figure out this getting there by public bus thing.

* After two transfers, I arrive at Disneyland plaza in one piece around 8:45am. Not a bad trip for just $3. It was on the walk in that I witnessed the most hilarious thing I had ever seen at a Disney park. A little girl of three or so, the age where kids mimic everything, was running ahead of her mother screaming as loud and as excitedly as she could, "Oh SH*T Disneyland!" Her mother looked so embarassed and kept asking her husband to get the girl to stop. I'm sorry, but it was so funny to hear her so excited and so inappropriate at the same time!

* More people than I expected at first on a cold, dreary Tuesday morning but not too bad. Longest line of the day was at the stroller and ECV rental but it wasn't that long and I soon had my ECV and was on my way.

* My first stop was the bakery on Main Street to get a pumpkin muffin and warm caramel cider for breakfast. I enjoyed both on a bench infront of the castle. It was around 9:40am by that point and I decided I wanted to head to DCA for its opening at 10am. I was let right in and as I noticed most paths still had ropes up I veered to the right and headed to Soarin'. Was let right in to the building and at 9:59 exactly we were let on our flight. This ride always takes my breath away. I just love it!

* Right after Soarin' I made my way to the Midway. My intention was to hit Toy Story Mania first but the complete absence of a line at California Screamin' drew me in for my first ride of the day. I truly love this coaster. It is fast and fun, and as a side note is a great coaster for us Pooh Sized folks. No worries with fit here, I could ride it all day (and it would eventually seem like I did!)

* After Screamin' I headed next door to Toy Sory Mania. Another great experience. I did not score quite as high as I did on my first time ever a week or so ago, but I still had fun with the 3-D games.

* Tower of Terror was next and it was a blast, especially with the small child who scolded his parents after telling them, "You did not say this would be scary! I will never believe you about rides again!" You could see his folks holding back a laugh as he stomped off the ride.

* From Tower I went into the Animation area and then into the store attached, I am blanking on the name but it is my favorite in DCA. There I saw so much Disney holiday stuff I had to exit before I drained my debit card. I decided it was time for something lunchy so I made my way back to Disneyland.

* I first hit Pirates because it is a must do. Afterwards I found my fave spot, Bengal Barbecue, to have no line at all, at noon, this was unheard of!! I grabbed myself the delicious bacon wrapped asparagus (really the best thing ever! you must try it!) and the spicy beef skewers. I contemplated the tiger bread but knew I wanted a pretzel with cheese at Princess Fantasy Faire with a vanilla coke (best drink on property in my opinion!) later so I skipped it. I then snagged a Dole whip float and had my lunch on a bench right infront of the "Partners" statue. Such a peaceful place for a quick bite or rest. You also get asked to take pictures a lot while sitting there I found. I gladly helped four groups that day. hehe.

* After lunch I headed to Fantasy land and rode Peter Pan (one of my faves) two times in a row thanks to a nice CM, and then went on to Small World. I had never seen the Holiday overlay before and oh my how gorgeous is it? I really loved the whimsy of the characters, the music and lights. Also, the new boats and track were nice. It was so clean. I wanted to jump in and swim my way through! They should totally make Small World a lazy river type ride. hehe Just kidding, but I would love it!

* I grabbed my beloved Vanilla coke and pretzel after Small World and checked out the holiday decorations in Toon Town. As I exited TT, the Train was arriving so I took it over to Tomorrow Land where I explored Innoventions and then faced a fear... I rode Space Mountain, and I loved it! hehe. It was a tight squeeze for me but it was ok, and the ride was worth it. I decided after that I wanted to hit all the mountains in a row, so I went on Matterhorn next, and made my way to Big Thunder.

* Big Thunder was closed!!! I was distraught! So distraught that I decided it was time to go back to DCA and ride Screamin' again... and again'! hehe I considered Toy Story Mania again as the ride was low but I decided instead to make it to It's Tough to Be A Bug. I love that show, especially the Human Repellant and the ending (which I won't give away! hehe)

* Exhausted yet?! hehe

* I had a Fast Pass for Soarin' from the morning so I hit that again and Tower of Terror. Can I mention how much fun it is to be alone in the parks on days like this? I really liked being able to do what I wanted to, when I wanted to.

* I knew I needed to start getting to my main reason for coming, my holiday shopping, so I made my way through a few stores in DCS including the Candy Shop and Everything under the Sun. It was a chilly afternoon so I decided I needed a corn dog to warm me so I went over to the Corn Dog Castle and had one of their fantastic dogs with the apple slices, which I love as an option because I dislike chips.

* After my corn dog and some people watching I decided to snag a spot for the Pixar Play parade (it was almost 5 by now.) It being mid week and cold, there was not a huge parade crowd so I got a great spot. I really like the energy and music of the parade though my favorite part is the water, which they skipped possibly due to the temperatures. It still was a blast, 5-4-3-2-Fun!

* When the parade finished I did what everyone else in DCA did at that moment, flooded over to Disneyland. There I did the rest of my shopping in the Emporium. I also wanted to get a Pumpkin muffin for my partner but he was out of luck as the line was insane! Everyone wanted cocoa I suppose. Instead I got us some Pumpkin and Egg nog fudge squares, and two of the ginger bread men with Mickey ears. (He was happy!)

* It was not around 6:20pm, and my partner was picking me up after work at like 7:15pm so I found a good parade spot in the town square area, near the exits, and watched the Holiday parade. I had seen it the other day but it was so nice to see it at night all lit up. As soon as the last float neared I new I had to leave in order to beat the crowd. So I returned my ECV, gathered all my packages and headed to the 15min parking lot.

Just as I arrived so did my partner. I collapsed into the car after a very full and fun day. I got all of my shopping done and rode more rides than I had hoped. Overall it was a relatively light crowd day in my opinion. Heck, at like 2pm there were only a few dozen people in line at Pixie Hollow, and usually their jammed by midday in my experience. Now today I am regretting going all out as I did because I have to get ready to leave at 5am Thursday for a trip to see my family but heck it was Disneyland, how could I not go?!?!

Have a great day all!

 

[Sherry E]

Great trip report, Pooh'sTwin! Could the store in DCA you are referring to be Off the Page? That is a really good one, as is the shop by Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. I was chuckling at your description of the child stomping off Tower of Terror because his parents didn't warn him. Too funny!

Now, you MUST start filling us in on the details of the Fox Disneyland contest win! I want to know things like if they send you the Park Hoppers in advance or if you have to pick them up at the ticket windows. I am very curious what hotel they put you in and which character meal you choose! Whoever won Round 2 - which does not appear to me, sadly - has not shown up yet, so you are the only winner I can ask questions of!!!

 

[Pooh'sTwin]

No worries Sherry! I will definitely let you all know what happens with the prize. So far I had to fax a few releases into FOX and once they process them I will get more details on how to use the prize.

 

[Sherry E]

No worries Sherry! I will definitely let you all know what happens with the prize. So far I had to fax a few releases into FOX and once they process them I will get more details on how to use the prize.

Really? It's a week later and I am surprised they haven't already gotten this all squared away with you already! Maybe they will actually mail you the Park Hoppers and hotel/character meal voucher so you don't have to fuss with standing in the long lines at the ticket windows to claim your prize!!

I will eventually do a solo trip to DLR. I like going with friends - especially those who I don't get to see very often - and we do have a DLR plan for a couple of weeks from now that none of us can afford!!! Disneyland is so magical around the holidays and for me, it is my only holiday celebration the whole season, so for that reason, I feel it is worth it. HOWEVER, sometimes when we go with people, we don't always get to DO the things we love to do, isn't that right? I always end up leaving DLR, remembering several shops I wanted to visit and things I wanted to take pictures of, etc. So that is where a solo trip comes in handy - to take care of all those odds and ends you don't get to do when you go with people. But I have to get past this upcoming DLR group trip and see what money is like then before I go and plan a holiday solo trip! (And I would also do what you did - use some form of public transportation, though from my location, it would probably take 3 hours to get to DLR and that is crazy!)

I know I could shop and take pictures alone. I THINK I could get on rides alone without feeling too odd. Not sure if I could bring myself to eat a character meal alone, however! I think that should be enjoyed with other friends!

 

[Sherry E]

Oh, I also meant to say that I think I know why the Blue Ribbon Bakery always has such a long line. It's not necessarily because they have yummy treats, which, of course, they do (have you ever tried the gooey cinnamon roll? Oh, Lord, have mercy...that is good, and so is the peppermint blended mocha). I think the line is always long because, if you notice, the set-up that they have makes it so that you can't view the treats in the case and decide what you want or IF you want anything without getting in the line and walking all the way up to almost where the cash register is to see them!! By the time you get all the way to where the case is, they are asking for your order and I assume people just end up blurting out things on the spot OR they take their time to give an answer because they haven't been able to scope out the goodies yet, and this holds up the line too! So I think a lot of folks get in the line just to basically see what is in the case, and then are kind of forced to order something at that point because they are already at the register!!! Then, people walking by on Main Street see the (forced) long line, and they wonder what the buzz is about and what's so good inside this bakery, and so they go in and get in the line too! Very sneaky, Disneyland - but very clever strategy!!!

 

[LavenderPeach]

Sounds like you had a great time! How nice to be able to wander around and do whatever you want. I need to try that sometime but not sure I'll get the opportunity.

 

[DisneyMomma81]

How fun ~ sounds like a lovely way to spend a day.