I am starting to miss
Disneyland again. After I got back last week, I wasn't feeling that immediate 'I have to get back" thing that sometimes hits me. Maybe it's because I got a lot done (not "a lot" according to the commando-style of DLR-touring, but a lot in terms of what I wanted to do). Although, at the same time, I missed out on sooooo many things! I was actually shocked at how many things I didn't get to do, considering how many things I
did do - if that makes sense!!
I could have done a quick breeze-through of the Reindeer Round-Up, but I wanted details details details. I could have simply snapped a couple of photos of New Orleans Square and moved on. But I wanted a LOT of photos. I could have merely taken one or two pictures of ToonTown and then moved on, but I had to get many photos.
My main goal was to really get up in there and focus on the specific
holiday touches and decorations of DLR. And in doing so, I took a lot of time with this task...and I missed out on A Bug's Land. I missed getting photos of or by the DCA tree. I missed sitting and enjoying the Carolers in the GCH (one of my favorite things to do). I missed trying a couple of treats. I missed getting IN photos with the various Santas, although I got a couple of photos OF Santa. I didn't get back to IASWH at ngiht, like I wanted. There were another couple of things I had planned to do that I missed as well.
Anyway, I was just reminded of how I am starting to miss Disneyland again - I wish I could go there tomorrow, for Christmas! - when I saw the DLR Dickens Carolers performing on my local morning news show. The reporter is at DLR for Christmas Eve and they did a segment on the carolers. Those carolers are so talented too - their voices blend so well together in 4-part harmony. I saw them in the hallway of the GCH (separate from seeing a different group of carolers by the tree in the GCH when I walked by), and noticed how lovely the women's voices were.
I just need more time on these DLR trips! I need to add more days, and then have a good rest period in the middle of the trip to sort of regroup.
So, the way to cure the 'I miss Disneyland at Christmas blues" is to work on my Trip Report. We have a looooong way to go with this TR, ladies and gentlemen. We have barely scratched the surface. The photo-taking didn't even really begin until after Shawn left and I was by myself!!
I also need to work on my PhotoPass pictures and get them edited. I need to work a bit on the Christmas thread here on the DIS, and add some information to it. I need to make my free calendar from Snapfish (I made a free Shutterfly calendar last year, so I appreciate that Snapfish is now offering a free one!!).
Those are all the fun tasks. Then I have to also clean and do household stuff, and I need to make some money - if my client has any work!! There is not enough time in the day!!
First, I wanted to reply to these posts:
So cute Sherry. I love the wreaths, they are so sweet. And the ducks enjoying the beautiful weather and blessed peace and quiet. So nice. I love when there is no one there. And aren't you glad that you were there last week and not this week? The rain is so bad. Are you okay?
Michele, yes, I was thinking this same thing! If I had stuck with my 'go to Disneyland the weekend right before Christmas' tradition that I have upheld for 3 years in a row, I would have been totally soaking wet and miserable for the entire trip. I know, I know, I know - everyone says they love DLR in the rain. The thing is, if you are an avid photo-taker who has specific goals in mind for outdoor things you want to photograph, the idea of getting the camera wet is not ideal. I went for two entire days without going on any rides, so I wasn't concerned with those lines or rushing from one ride to another. Most people would use the rainy days as their advantage in getting on rides quickly. But my plans involved walking very slowly from one location to another to try to catch little holiday touches and details that I might have otherwise overlooked if I were hurrying. And in walking very slowly from one place to another, I would have been drenched...and so, too, would my camera. I just cannot enjoy myself by taking photos if I am caught in a monsoon!
Also, given my precarious financial situation, one never knows when I will be able to get back to DLR for several days during Christmas time. I may get there for one day, or I may not get there at all. I may not be able to do multiple days like I did this year. I may not have another AP when this new one expires. So I wanted to get as many holiday photos as I could on this trip because I may not get another chance for a while.
So I am very grateful that I had the foresight to make my trip dates earlier than they normally would have been (partially due to the expiration date on the PIN code offer I received) - and, therefore, missed the rain! Of course, it was blazing hot for my first two days, and it was very, very crowded for the first 3 days, but at least I didn't get rained on and I got tons of photos!
Your off to a great start during your TR. That kind of sucks to see that IASWH was not running when you and Shawn arrived in the morning. At least you got to do a few rides before you got on IASWH.
I am kind of surprise to hear that the IASWH head is not tilting left and right. I got the samething when I was in DL last month. I thought that the resort would have the head moving again.
Very nice pics of the wreaths right by IASWH and the ducks in the canal by SLCB.
Bret - I'm not sure why the Santa guy on IASWH was not tilting left and right. It was odd.
I still recommend the MM hour, even though I know it can be hit or miss for some people (like in deejdigsdis' case). We missed Peter Pan this time because that line was already building while we were waiting for IASWH, but we went on Alice, Mr. Toad, Snow White and Pinocchio. And we got on IASWH before the Magic Morning hour was finished - it just wasn't open when the MM began. It's just nice to be able to walk through Fantasyland and see the ground, without being smooshed in with thousands of people!
Now, I had another MM option for Tuesday, December 14th. Did I use it? We'll see...
That was great fun. For it appearing like he didn't take many pictures he got quite a few in. How fun. Too bad you had a lack luster Mad Hatter.
Michele - I know -it was so weird. If you were standing where we were standing and looking at the guy holding my camera, you would have seen what I mean - every time I looked at him, he was staring off in the distance with a blank look on his face, waiting for more Alice characters to come over...holding up the line of people waiting for photos the entire time when I just wanted him to snap something so we could leave. I think I only saw him raise my camera to shoot one time (the rest of the time I was posing, waiting for him to shoot), and I was pretty sure the camera had shut itself off by that time. I didn't see him turn the camera back on, so when he aimed the camera that one time and pretended to shoot, I was positive there was no photo there because the camera was off!!
So how that guy ended up getting 4 photos without us really knowing, and without even really looking at us to frame the shots, is beyond me!! He must have used some crazy voodoo, hoodoo or Jedi mind tricks on the camera or something.
Yes, I feel the same way, and the feeling of arriving at Disneyland hits me the same way. It starts when I first enter the top of Main Street and see the Castle at the other end. Sometimes I just close my eyes and just listen to the Main Street music. I recognize that I have finally arrived home.
I just have to add: beautiful pictures Sherry!
Thanks, Liza.
Deejdigsdis mentioned a while back in her TR the concept of "knowing" you are at Disneyland. It's a certain moment. It could be a thing - like maybe you see a particular thing or hear a sound, or smell a familiar smell... but whatever it is, it is the telltale thing that lets you "know" you are in Disneyland. It doesn't even necessarily have to conjure up warm, fuzzy feelings for people, I would imagine. There are people who probably "know" they are at DLR and don't feel anything even remotely nostalgic.
It took a while for me to figure out what my 'thing' was. In the old,old days, the thing that let me know I was at Disneyland was seeing the peak of the Matterhorn from the freeway...and then seeing the tram whizzing around the huge parking lot.
I couldn't quite get what the 'knowing' moment was when I went to DLR in November. But I
think I established after this last trip that my 'moment/thing that lets me know I am at Disneyland' is simply Main Street, because the sights and sounds of Main Street have been there in some capacity since I began going to DL in 1972. Even in the face of all the changes that are happening to the Resort, the sights and sounds of Main Street have changed very little. So I can walk onto Main Street now, and I am instantly brought back to my first Disneyland trips in the 1970's, when I heard and saw almost the same things.
Well, I think it should count.
Shawn doesn't look like she hasn't changed much in a year. She looks exactly like she did in earlier posts in your TR.
Oh, I know the pink tree counts in Tree Quest, of course! All kinds of Christmas trees count in Tree Quest. It's just that I could not get a good photo of it no matter what I did or what time of day I approached it, because that window just picks up too much reflection and glare!! So I wanted a better photo of it to submit for Tree Quest, but oh well...what can you do?
Yep, Shawn has not changed much in all the years I have known her (24/25 years or so).
I love that pink tree!! Was that a feather tree? And Shawn's expression in a few of those pictures is hilarious. Sherry I think you are probably a kick to do the park with.
Michele - Yep. Feather tree!
I don't know if I/we are a kick to hang out with at the park, but we are silly and goofy, so we often get on these laughing tangents about ridiculous things and make them running jokes through the whole trip. Maybe it would be annoying to other folks, but it's fun!
One of my sons favorite expressions is "well that doesn't even make sense"
This is exactly what went through my head when I read Pioneer Pier. Even if it was Pioneer themed it wouldn't be followed by pier. Weird
Sherri - Yes, I suppose that if it were called "Pioneer" something, it wouldn't be followed by 'Pier,' but I think Shawn just remembered that there was a 'P' and an 'R' in a 3-syllable word, and instead of Paradise she came up with Pioneer!
Great TR Sherry!!! We couldn't even get to IASW - it was that packed when we went to ride it, so I missed all those great wreaths and the inside stuff.
Pink feather tree DEFINITELY counts! Where was that? Get it in the Christmas superthread stat.
That guy taking your picture with the Alice gang probably was thinking,"Move already ladies, I got your picture like 4 times. Maybe if I look like I'm not interested, they'll be done."
amamax2 -
The pink feather tree was located in that shop that's close to the bathrooms in DTD - I can't recall the new name of it. Maybe it used to be called Starabilias?
I don't think I realized that you never made it back to IASWH on your DLR trip! I can believe how packed it was. It never ceases to amaze me how absolutely congested that whole area in front of IASWH can get at night, with the mobs of people just standing there to stare at the pretty lights. And it has only gotten worse over the years. It's not a good set-up, really. See, at least with the Osborne Family lights in WDW (DHS) - from what I can see in photos - the people are not standing there, staring at one building, concentrated in one spot. The whole area is involved in the light display, so there are many things to look at and capture people's attention. People are at least moving a little bit, I think (correct me if I am wrong!). In the case of IASWH, it is just one lone facade, and it's a terrible area for people to be crammed in, staring at it, because ToonTown is still open for a few hours when the IASWH lights go on, and people are going in and out of there. It's just a mess. I don't know how they could fix it and make it less of a mess, but it's a mess - which is a shame, because IASWH is sooooo absolutely gorgeous at night that it is worth seeing.
I don't know what the guy who took our Alice/White Rabbit/Mad Hatter photos was thinking, but I sure as heck didn't see him take 4 pictures. I don't know how he did that. He appeared to be holding up the whole line because he was fixated on staring off into space!! As I said above...it must have voodoo, hoodoo or Jedi Mind Tricks!!
Even Shawn asked me later, "Did that guy even get a photo with Alice in it?" She didn't see him shoot anything, either!!
Lurking here
I had to smile at your IASWH photos.
they remind me so much of the photos I took (and still need to go through,sigh!) We like to take photos of the same things!
Woo hoo! tdash!!! Hello! I'm glad you spoke up and didn't just lurk! Thank you for joining in. I have tons and tons of photos coming up in future installments. The funny thing with my IASWH photos is that I always seem to end up on the same side of the boat. I don't know why or how that happens - I don't plan it that way. So I tend to take photos of the same things on that ride because they are easier to catch with the camera. I took a bunch of IASWH photos back in November - many of which are better because I was trying a bit harder to get clear shots. On the December trip, I tried to get photos of things that I hadn't gotten in November - and yet, I snapped many of the same things anyway...because I was on the same side of the boat again!!
Some things in that ride are just tough to get because they move too quickly.
Anyway, I'm glad to know that you got many of the same shots - great minds think alike!! I wonder if you were on the same side of the boat that I always end up on (the right-hand side)?
Did you get caught in that torrential downpour over the weekend at DLR? I thought of you because you probably got more 'sitting in the GCH lobby and enjoying the atmosphere' time than I got - which was none!!
But a rainy day is a great day to do that!
