Nick, Marie, The Diva's & Me!! Finally Finished 10-20-13!!

[kaoden39]

I want to comment on the beginning before my quotes. Too bad about your poster that stinks. I think that the tarp is rather clever, a bother but actually clever.

Love the corn dogs. I have to wrap it with napkins a few times to get rid of some of the oil but oh my the taste, is incredible!!!

Hampton Inn's usually are a nice hotel.....a safe bet!!

I did take a pain pill (that can make me loopy) before taking off....which helped!!

Nick & Marie spent way more time in the parks than I did this trip......but I've got pics from them I'm adding into the report.

The corn dog was definitely tasty!!

We stayed at a Hampton Inn one time in Anaheim. It was the worst trip ever to Disneyland. The hotel was awful!!!! It was so bad I had to convince Scotty to ever go back to Disneyland. Worst ever!!!

I forgot to mention that right after I got off the airplane in Santa Ana.....I got a voice mail from the twins teacher. I figured it had to be important since she knew I was out of town. Michayla had darted out the door and they yelled for her to come back & she whipped around and gouged her forehead on a coat hook. Poor baby.......

She still has a knot and bruising and it will be a week tomorrow. Made me sad that she got hurt and I wasn't there.

Poor thing! That is a nasty bruise!

 

[DizNee Luver]

I want to comment on the beginning before my quotes. Too bad about your poster that stinks. I think that the tarp is rather clever, a bother but actually clever.

Love the corn dogs. I have to wrap it with napkins a few times to get rid of some of the oil but oh my the taste, is incredible!!!





We stayed at a Hampton Inn one time in Anaheim. It was the worst trip ever to Disneyland. The hotel was awful!!!! It was so bad I had to convince Scotty to ever go back to Disneyland. Worst ever!!!



Poor thing! That is a nasty bruise!

I know, I was disappointed to get it home and it be all crinkled (big crinkles too).

The tarp was ingenious......I was just sad to see it covered......AGAIN. It was pretty hidden by all the Candlelight Processional in December.....so missed getting to see it again.

Yup, those corn dogs are good!!

That's good to know about the Hampton in Anaheim. I didn't say it was fool proof......but all the ones we've stayed at have been very nice. (but I usually have seen them myself or know someone that can say it looks good)

I know.....Michayla is covered in nasty bruises. Not sure where she got them all. She's a tough cookie that's for sure!

 

[DnA2010]

Thrilled you have started, but oh my that's quite a bruise/sore on Michayla's forehead!!

We also love getting a picture of the "sign" sigh, it truly means you have arrived...

that is a massive crane for sure!

 

[DizNee Luver]

Thrilled you have started, but oh my that's quite a bruise/sore on Michayla's forehead!!

We also love getting a picture of the "sign" sigh, it truly means you have arrived...

that is a massive crane for sure!

It really is.....still quite a bit of color for being 6 days old!

It's tradition to enter thru the right side the first time into the parks.

It is a huge crane!

 

[Trentmom]

Aw. Poor Michayla

 

[DizNee Luver]

Aw. Poor Michayla

I know.....I hate getting those kind of phone calls when I'm not home!

 

[nicholaseck]

We used to have a tradition of riding Peter Pan first.....but now that we're flying and getting in after opening.....that has changed. When we drove down, we'd start early on our first morning and hit Peter Pan before the crowds got bad.

The sad part is, I don't think you got on Pan once this trip. The only time Marie and I did was because it was part of the Walk in Walt's Footsteps tour.

 

[DizNee Luver]

The sad part is, I don't think you got on Pan once this trip. The only time Marie and I did was because it was part of the Walk in Walt's Footsteps tour.

I didn't....in fact I never stepped foot into Fantasyland this trip.

 

[DizNee Luver]

After enjoying our corn dog lunch, we walked into Tomorrowland and decided our first ride would be Star Tours. Star Tours closed the first day of our trip in 2010, so Nick hadn't been on the new & improved ride.

These are when you first enter.

These are after you merge the FP & Standby lines.

This is when you are preparing to enter the ride vehicle/theater.

We started with Darth Vader stopping our vehicle, we went to the planet Hath, Yoda made a visit and then we ended on planet Naboo! (My favorite now.......so much fun!!!)

Our next ride was on Space Mountain.

Here are our on-ride pics!

When we exited the ride & after we added our on-ride photos to our Photopass+ card.....we saw the Star Troopers walking up the exit ramp. They were actually posing for pics!!! Never seen them do this before.

We decided to head towards the Matterhorn and had to stop to photograph the "Mine, Mine, Mine" seagulls.....lol

Since the new Matterhorn vehicles don't allow riders that need to be held (something the ADA is looking into)......I didn't get on this in December. There was no way I could seat belt one of the twins into the seat and HOPE they don't try to get out and they would hold on enough to not get whipped around causing injury. Can you tell I'm not thrilled with these new ride vehicles??? Anywhos.......we decided to try them out. We got in line on the Tomorrowland side (yes there is a difference between the two sides......Tomorrowland a little more adventuresome where Fantasyland side is a tad tamer). Here is my attempt of taking a picture above my head....trying to get Nick & Marie......lol

I finally turned enough to get Nick in a photo!

I took a few pics during the ride.

So my thoughts on the new ride vehicles????? HATED IT!!!! If you're long legged, it's really uncomfortable. The seats have zero padding and you feel every bump. Pretty painful ride. Won't be something I ride again unless they make some changes.

 

[kelmac284]

Glad you did the new Star Tours. I have only been on it once since it changed and it made me terribly motion sick so haven't been since. I too do not like the new matterhorn and have not been on IT since the first time I think 2 years ago or whenever it first opened.

So sorry about Michayla. Poor thing.

 

[DizNee Luver]

We decided to head towards Adventureland and stopped to take a photo where the new Fantasy Faire will be opening to the left of the castle. You can see the big ol' crane at Big Thunder Mt RR.

We walked thru Adventureland and right to Pirates of the Caribbean. I wasn't feeling well, so I opted to wait by the exit as Nick & Marie rode.

I didn't get any better while they did POTC, so I decided to head back to the hotel. Nick & Marie went to the Haunted Mansion next. They did pass by a jazz band entertaining at the French Market restaurant.

Then they rode Splash Mountain.

This is there on-ride photo.

When they exited, they saw that Rabbit was out and greeting guests in Critter Country. Rabbit used to be pretty rare, but is starting to make more appearances up here.

So I made it back to the hotel and our room was ready. I took advantage of our clean, uncluttered room to get pics. The only difference I noticed in the upper level (floors 14/15) was the bathroom area was different. Instead of the shower, sink & toilet all being in one big room, this one had the toilet in a small room in the larger room. It also had the closet in it instead of behind the room door. Other than that...pretty much the same lay out. You do also get a DVD player in your room.

Now into the main room.

Please note that these rooms don't have microwaves.....that's a safe above the fridge.

 

[DizNee Luver]

Glad you did the new Star Tours. I have only been on it once since it changed and it made me terribly motion sick so haven't been since. I too do not like the new matterhorn and have not been on IT since the first time I think 2 years ago or whenever it first opened.

So sorry about Michayla. Poor thing.

I love the new Star Tours....I've been on it many times.....this was new for Nick & Marie. They loved it too!! I found when I'm seated in the front row, I have a few tummy flutters.....but not anywhere else. Mike got motion sickness on the old version but not the new one.

The Matterhorn is terrible.....they ruined the ride in my opinion!! I hope they don't do something stupid like that on Big Thunder.....I'll be totally ticked if they do!!

She's getting better.....but I hate when my kiddos are hurt or sick.

 

[DizNee Luver]

More of our room!!

The couch will fold out flat to make a twin bed. The twins used these when we were there in December.

The amenities for concierge rooms also included Scope Mouthwash & a Vanity Kit with cottonballs, qtips & nail files in them. We didn't have them in December because to get a connecting room, we had to go with a room on the 9th floor and not on the "concierge levels". (they do have connecting rooms on the concierge level....just not available on our last trip)

I love this note on the bed:

This was our view from left to right.

This is looking down......YIKES!

 

[Trentmom]

Sorry you were not feeling well and had to leave the parks early

Sounds like you got some good scenes in Star Tours

Looks like you were a little scared on space mountain

The rooms look so nice and cozy there.

 

[DizNee Luver]

Sorry you were not feeling well and had to leave the parks early

Sounds like you got some good scenes in Star Tours

Looks like you were a little scared on space mountain

The rooms look so nice and cozy there.

Thanks.....it ended up being a bit of a hard trip this time but still very good & memorable!!

Star Tours was awesome......love the scenes changing to keep it fresh. But I think the combo we got ended up being my favorite!!

I never know what to do on the on-ride photos......so that was the chosen pose.....and I didn't get blinded by the flash.......lol (I love this ride....I ride it with hands up)

Love the PPH and their rooms.....bright, cheery, roomy & super comfortable beds!!

 

[DizNee Luver]

While I was resting in the room, Nick & Marie decided to leave Disneyland and head into DCA. These pics were taken on Nick's iPhone.

The new Disney's California Adventure entry.

Buena Vista Street.

They headed right over to CarsLand!!

They got in line to ride Mater's Junkyard Jamboree.

I was a tad sad that I didn't get to see their expressions the first time they walked down Buena Vista Street and into Radiator Springs......but I'm glad they enjoyed it!! They were going to head back to the hotel when they heard the music at Paradise Bay, so they headed over to catch part of the "Instant Concert, Just Add Water" with Maestro Goofy directing the water fountains (where they hold the World of Color).

I also happened to be watching the show from the room.

I enjoyed the view from our room and got more pictures. One of the things I noticed was the Silly Symphony Swings was TOTALLY taken down for the refurb. I was surprised to see the entire thing dismantled!

This is the siding on the Goofy's Sky School.

The Matterhorn and the tips of the spires of Sleeping Beauty's Castle.

Space Mountain.

Grizzly Peak.

The Tower of Terror.

The hills/mountain area of CarsLand.

Ariel's Grotto Restaurant.

California Screamin'.

 

[DizNee Luver]

So remember I had mentioned that I received a Annual Passholder Gift at check-in? This is what I got. A beautifully colorful glossy poster from the World of Color. I LOVE it!!! Unfortunately, TSA decided to open one of the my checked bags and it got crinkle/wrinkled badly.

I looked out the window & saw Nick & Marie headed back to the hotel.

A couple more pics of DCA. I spotted the Phineas & Ferb vehicle heading out for their little show.

Nick got back up to the room & took a picture of the view.

I picked up 2013 pins for Nick, Marie & I. Here they are with our hotel room keys.

I was feeling better, so we decided to head to the concierge lounge for "Happy Hour" which is held daily from 5-7pm. Lots of goodies and free beer or wine.

Pretty nice spread they put out!!!

 

[Sherry E]

A couple of observations...

1. Not only did your room have the mini-Scope bottle with the other toiletries, but it also had - unless my eyes deceived me - real coffee mugs next to the coffee maker and not paper cups. I could have been hallucinating and thinking that I saw actual mugs - but they sure looked different than the usual paper cups that come with other rooms. I know you said you don't drink coffee (correct?), so you might not have realized there was a difference when you took the coffee maker photo; and

2. I think that this particular concierge spread o' goodies ^^^ looks more appetizing (to me) than other spreads I've seen in other photos. The selection really seems to vary depending on time or day, doesn't it? There have been other times when I've seen PPH concierge food photos and thought, "Well, I guess I could find something to snack on but none of it looks terribly enticing." None of it would have been enough to get me to pay for concierge.

This time, I was looking at your pictures of the food and thinking, "Yep. I'd grab that...and that...and I'd take one of those back to the room...and then I'd grab a couple of those too..." So I guess the problem with relying on concierge food is that you can never be sure if what they put out will be appealing enough to warrant paying extra for concierge!

 

[DizNee Luver]

A couple of observations...

1. Not only did your room have the mini-Scope bottle with the other toiletries, but it also had - unless my eyes deceived me - real coffee mugs next to the coffee maker and not paper cups. I could have been hallucinating and thinking that I saw actual mugs - but they sure looked different than the usual paper cups that come with other rooms. I know you said you don't drink coffee (correct?), so you might not have realized there was a difference when you took the coffee maker photo; and

2. I think that this particular concierge spread o' goodies ^^^ looks more appetizing (to me) than other spreads I've seen in other photos. The selection really seems to vary depending on time or day, doesn't it? There have been other times when I've seen PPH concierge food photos and thought, "Well, I guess I could find something to snack on but none of it looks terribly enticing." None of it would have been enough to get me to pay for concierge.

This time, I was looking at your pictures of the food and thinking, "Yep. I'd grab that...and that...and I'd take one of those back to the room...and then I'd grab a couple of those too..." So I guess the problem with relying on concierge food is that you can never be sure if what they put out will be appealing enough to warrant paying extra for concierge!

Those were real coffee cups....but I don't drink coffee.....so didn't really make that observation until you pointed it out.......lol

I meant to take pics at the breakfast, midday and desserts but forgot to do that. The options were pretty tasty every time we stopped by. I'm still not sure we got our monies worth out of it.....but we did enjoy being able to stop by and grab water, sodas or a snack. The CM's are fabulous and are always super helpful!!

 

[Trentmom]

Looks like Nick and Marie had some fun at DCA

The show with Goofy looks neat


That spread at Concierge Lounge looks so good. I want some of those choc covered strawberries..mmmmmmmmmm