The Flippant Trip - (new TWILIGHT TR update 11/16/09 bottom of pg 29)

[travelmel]

OKAY then... my first Trip Report!

I am a lifelong Disneyland fan. I really, REALLY wanted to go do WDW but once I started planning things got ugly... REALLY ugly. I got on Tour Guide Mike (One particularly late night at the computer my husband poked his head in and said, "are you coming to bed or are you sleeping with Mike tonight?" It was a valid question!), Disboards, RideMax, ALLears, Mousesavers, ARES, and several other of the hottest names on the dis channels.. there was a great Disney themed music station online but I can't remember the name of it... great for late night planning sessions...but anyway, I digress.

WDW was going to cost us in the neighborhood of $5,000 the way I wanted to do it. And unfortunately, I don't got it. You know.. I went to college.. my husband went to college...we have "good jobs" and nope.. no money. Who knew? I told my husband to get a second job. You think I'm kidding, don't you? lol I'm not.

Moving on.... we go to So Cal often (we are in Portland, OR) for family events and this summer a wedding came up that we had to go to. With the prospect of a 65 hr work week looming my husband hoped to appease the Disney Gods living within my brain. So he flippantly said, "We could go to Disneyland while we're down there." And as my signature states, unfortunately for him, I always act on flippancy. And thanks to Oybolshoi, the FLIPPANT TRIP was born!

Yes those are matching shirts, yes they're hand made, yes my husband wore one, too.

Close-up

THANK YOU DISigners!

Cast of characters comes next, I believe...

ME: age 38. Love to plan vacations, Love Disney, thought the Neverland scene in Peter Pan was the greatest single feat ever accomplished by mankind. Definitely believed that you shrunk in the Adventures to Inner Space machine. I mean, BELIEVED. No doubts. They showed small people for godsakes!

DH: age 38. Has been to Disneyland, will do anything the family wants to do and loves to enjoy himself. One in a million!

DDB: age 12. DDB for Bailey...Big Sis.. even though she's shorter than her little sister who is 1 yr and 5 days younger than she is. She is an old soul. A true BFF

DDC: age 11 DDC for Cassidy...Lil Sis....11 going on 17. Way too cool for the rest of us but still willing to wear a matching shirt! Ahh tweens..

Bear with me as I figure out how to insert pics and make links... I've got a lot of images to share!

 

[travelmel]

From Portland to Newport to Anaheim

We flew from Portland, OR to Ontario, CA which has a great little airport that is really easy to navigate.

The view leaving PDX..7 volcano's visible on a clear day

We slept that night and got up to go to my cousin's wedding the next day. It was very sweet and the reception was held in parking hell..otherwise known as Balboa

$10 for valet? I woulda paid you a hundred!

The views from this place were amazing and I have pictures to prove it!

The party favor was a "make your own treat bag"..very clever!

After partying our butts off till the wee hours of the morning my husband put his foot down and we left to get some rest. WAKE UP CALL: 5:50 AM to DISNEYLAND

DDC was named the Dancing Queen... and a legend was born


Party cam

 

[travelmel]

We got up on time.. SOMEHOW.. and hurried down to the Continental Breakfast which opened at 6:30 AM. We planned to grab a muffin and a banana and drive off into the sunrise. Unfortunately, the kitchen was CLOSED Turns out the lady who opens it had a "flat tire." What?? Oh no, this is not in the schedule.. I have RideMax..they alert me of ALL schedule changes in advance and this is not it! I stood, dumbfounded with my Mickey Head shirt proclaiming my status as Mums and said calmly to the front desk girl at the Ramada, "Um.. it said breakfast and we uh...well, we need it. I hate to be difficult.... but I ..." She furrowed her brow and realized that anybody with enough spunk to get her family to wear matching shirts to Disneyland would not leave quietly. So she let us in to grab a half frozen muffin and a banana and OFF WE WENT!

My husband dropped me and DDB off at the front gates while he parked. This was a GREAT idea and much easier than I thought it would be. You just drop off at the drop off point on Harbor Blvd and voila! We were the second people in line! We met a REALLY nice woman who's husband was asleep in the room and she ended up giving DDB her first trading pin. When DDC arrived, even though I told her it wasn't necessary she insisted on giving her one, too. By the end of the trip we had three lanyards and several pins. My husband later referred to the nice lady as, "The Pusher."

Here kid.. the first one's free...

But seriously, THANK YOU NICE LADY for spreading the dust!

Trading pins was really fun...and addictive

We arrived on a Sunday morning which was EMH Extra Magic Hours/Magic Mornings... we knew the lines for Nemo would be ugly so we hit up the other Fantasyland Wonder... PETER PAN

we were on PP in less than 3 minutes

While the girls and I rode PP my husband hot footed over to get our FP for SM and then met up with us to ride The Toad, Snow White, Pinochio, and Alice, and the Materhorn Bobsleds.. all within the first 30 MIN of the park opening! It was even more amazing then the last visit! I love ridemax!

Who doesn't like traveling on leaves?

Happy Cat

Here is the Mountain that the Matterhorn was modeled after

Bobsleds

After wrapping up our ToDo list in FL my husband ran off to get Indie FP and the girls and I stopped for a yummy yummy pineapple flavored, chunk free, frozen delight called....THE DOLE WHIP.

Pineapple is the diamond of fruits

The resemblences are uncanny..

We met back up with DH and did a walk on to Big Thunder Mountain RR. The line looked sorta daunting but really only took about 7 minutes.

Who's excited???

We then walked onto Pirates and Haunted Mansion where I snapped a really good image.. SPOILER ALERT...The next post includes the part where you look up in the Elevator after the lightening strike...

 

[travelmel]

OK, this is going to be fairly quick as I just worked on this post for about an hour and then my computer froze and I lost all that work and I don't even know if anybody's reading this anyway SO..... back at it.

First some HM trivia: When the Imagineers were designing this attraction they wanted to put scary pictures and signs to tell people what to expect. Walt said nope.. the mystery is in the not knowing. IMHO he was SO right. I remember I was REALLY, REALLY scared of that house. I clearly remember turning the corner and seeing it and thinking to myself, "how did they trasport that REAL haunted house here from New Orleans?... Disney is genius." You didn't have to tell me twice that it was scary.. it was evident from the moment you walk in...

And you realize there is NO WAY OUT.. ah ha ha ha hahaaa

I always had a thing for medusa

What a great ride! So much in Disneyland is so authentic feeling. Here are the back alley's of NOS

Throw me some beads!

Next we headed over to Splash Mountain. The walk on time was so short I don't even remember standing in line for it. It was definitely less than 5 minutes. I decided to sit in front though I don't know why! I got SOAKED!

Here, let me take all of the splash.. soon after they had to add more water to the track. It was Small World all over again.

Next my husband ran over to collect Buzz FP and the girls rode on Pooh with me. They made it clear this was not their choice, however. Pooh is really cute but in no way can compare with what it replaced... THE BEAR COUNTRY JAMBOREE!!

Cause there was... DONG... BLOOD on the saddle.... BONG... Blood on the ground....

My children are fond of telling this little ditty to strangers, "My mom wanted to pay FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS to go to Walt Disney World just to see the Bear Country Jamboree!" Outta the mouths of babes!

Next we hopped a raft and headed over to the Island.... TOMS island. I think Tom would like all those pirates hanging out on his island!

 

[oybolshoi]

Bendy the cheesemonger is here!

Some thoughts ...

You know that people will only throw you beads in NOLA when you flash them, right? For some reason at WDW I always end up with free booze or dessert ... I'm not complaining but I do find the differences interesting.

And then you went and quoted Big Al from the Country Bear Jamboree ... that is my all-time favorite part of the entire show!

I didn't know that it was no longer showing at DL ... what a shame.

I'm subscribing so that I can come back and read updates as time permits, but don't give up; you're doing a great job and I, for one, am really enjoying your report so far.

I'd like to drag my hubby out to DL soon ... he's never been and it's been more than 20 years since I've been there ... so I'm taking notes for future vacation planning with mucho interest.

And it's lovely to put a face to the name!

 

[MadiMouse]

Great report! Can't wait to read more!

 

[travelmel]

Bendy the cheesemonger is here!


I'd like to drag my hubby out to DL soon ... he's never been and it's been more than 20 years since I've been there ... so I'm taking notes for future vacation planning with mucho interest.

And it's lovely to put a face to the name!

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you are able to find a good tip or two You should definitely come out to DL "resort". I was actually looking at the amount of rides in Disney California Adventure and really they have a LOT of the rides that are spread out across the world all wrapped up in one convenient little park. Sure the themeing could be improved but if you go with an open mind (and I know you always do) it's really quite a gem of a place!

DL itself is the original and it's got so much charm... I love that place!

More updates to come!

 

[travelmel]

Great report! Can't wait to read more!

Thanks Madi, it takes awhile but it sure is fun!

 

[Disneygrl36]

subscribing as flippancy sounds like way too much fun.

 

[mommaU4]

Hi there! I love your TR so far. And all the pics!! I was cracking up over the "pusher" reference with the pins.

When I read this part.....

Next my husband ran over to collect Buzz FP and the girls rode on Pooh with me. They made it clear this was not their choice, however. Pooh is really cute but in no way can compare with what it replaced... THE BEAR COUNTRY JAMBOREE!!

....I was wondering if you saw the little tribute to the Country Bear Jamboree they left in the Pooh ride? You didn't mention it so I wasn't sure. It's hard to spot. You actually have to turn around because it's behind you.

Anyway, I am loving it so far!!

 

[travelmel]

subscribing as flippancy sounds like way too much fun.

Thanks! That's just the encouragement I needed to push onward!

Hi there! I love your TR so far. And all the pics!! I was cracking up over the "pusher" reference with the pins.

....I was wondering if you saw the little tribute to the Country Bear Jamboree they left in the Pooh ride? You didn't mention it so I wasn't sure. It's hard to spot. You actually have to turn around because it's behind you.


Anyway, I am loving it so far!!

Thanks for reading! Actually, I did know about the tribute and I forgot to turn around and look Thank you for posting that picture though, good to see what I missed.

 

[IndyBride]

Great TR so far!! Thanks for sharing! The pic with your girls at NOS is great! I forget how beautiful it is back there.

 

[Phalene]

Sounds like a great trip so far, I can't wait to read more about it.

 

[travelmel]

Great TR so far!! Thanks for sharing! The pic with your girls at NOS is great! I forget how beautiful it is back there.

Thanks! I've really never spent more than a daytrip to DL in the last 15 yrs so it was nice to kick back and take everything in..

Congratulations on your upcoming WEDDING !! I can't wait to hear about it

Sounds like a great trip so far, I can't wait to read more about it.

Thanks so much and wait no more..

 

[travelmel]

We were soaked to the bone and just in time for the raft over to Pirates Lair. When I was a kid I remember these things being packed to the gills. I couldn't figure out the physics on how something that thin could hold all those folks!

luckily we were not at max capacity

My husband and I were married on the Pirate Ship in front of the Treasure Island in Las Vegas. This ship always reminds me of that day

Where do we go to cash in our chips... I mean dabloons?

Not all had changed across the pond. I was so glad to see my girls enjoying the ultra cool and too tiny for adults cave area.

How'd you get that camera through the tiny cave crack?

Briges and caves and coves, oh my!

Hey Cass...what's that out there?

Let me get to the spyglass and have a peek!
Though she looks more like Popeye than Blue Beard!

I think it's that bilge rat and all around no good pirate #$^%!

Next time she's see's him she'll be singing a differnt tune!
We took a moment to reflect on the fact that this man... this CM will be in more family scrap books than perhaps ANY OTHER HUMAN BEING ON EARTH.. that's mind bending.

We also went around back and pretended to be captured
yo ho yo ho a captive's life for me

I'll flirt my way outta this one

We soon realized we needed to find the "facilities" somewhere on this deserted island... Luckily, the facilities in captivity were pretty civilized...here's a picture of the futuristic hand dryer in the lieu on TSI

Tomorrow Land has nothin on this gizmo!

After we had our fill of running amok we headed for some grub and grog at (drumroll please.....)

THE BLUE BAYOU!

VMK dreamin'

 

[travelmel]

My girls really enjoyed the online Magic Kingdom game called, Virtual Magic Kingdom (VMK). It was recently taken off the "air" and it is really a shame because it was GREAT! I won't take the time to explain it but suffice to say it gave you a GREAT fix of you were jonesin' for some DL time.

One of the things you could do was go on a "date" to the Blue Bayou. You would go with a friend and sit down at a table and wave to the "gator-waiter." When he arrived you had to say, "Clownfish please" and then you got your meal and made small talk with you date. The date was a real person.. typically aged 10-13 who was hanging out at the VMK that day, too. Sounds weird but it was SO cute!

Anyway... the girls GLOVED it (wink) and were so mesmorized with the Blue Bayou that it made the entire meal glow!

That is one happy cornball family right there!

this is my lucky table!

We were seated by the water and the girls were just ITCHING to order the clownfish.. they were on pins and needles!


What? no clownfish? I'll have the mac and chees then..

The girls raved over the mac and cheese..they were on a roll enjoying everything from the size of the noodle to the color of the fake cheese!



My husband and I split the yummy, yummy pork chop plate. This is a blurry picture (as were most of them on this trip!) but the food portion pictured here is already half of the meal.. it was a good portion. The white/green things were asparagus.. tres elegant! woo woo

The food was not undelicious

One caveat (SP??)... they still charge the split plate fee of $4 (no problem, I already knew about it) but now the new policy is no extra soup/salad! What?

Yummy yummy wedgie for my tummy

The kids meals come with a drink and the waiter said mint julips were covered so she tried one! We all tasted it and decided it was good... I would have preferred it with ice tea.

It was so cute that THEIR nostalgia was taking center stage over mine for a change!

Where the Gator-waiter would stand...take my picture, take my picture!

The girls got kids meals which came with this hat...they wore it for the picture only!

Dead mum's tell no tales...

WARNING: Do not read the following if you are a devout Disneyian...

Ok, mini rant: I noticed during planning that the prices at WDW were RIDICULOUS at $26-$39 per plate PERIOD at most places.. now I know that some will balk and say that's a great value but pishaw! The prices at BB used to be market prices.. and cheaper at lunch! Now, the menu looks just like a stock WDW set up with increased prices and less for the money. END MINI RANT... yes I know you think it's worth it... I know, I know... but it's just my two cents.

Moving on........
Nobody can be irrirtated at this masterpiece of culinary genius!
Davy Jones will not be gettin his hands on this ship!

The candle really does something for the picture...I stole that idea from another poster

Overall it was a GREAT meal with GREAT ambiance and FANTASTIC service.. we loved it and will remember it for years to come. We had fun talking and waving to the people going by in the boat..we could hear the fiddle of the guy on his porch.. it was peacful and pretty, and cool. Everything you've heard it to be. We loved it.

I do wish they'd bring back VMK!

Bathroom cuteness

It's late...more adventures to come! Goodnight!

 

[chickyann]

 

[curlz2tite]

So far so good , Loving your trip report!! Thanks for sharing.

 

[oybolshoi]

"the girls gloved it."

I probably have the wrong reference but I busted a gut when I read that because it reminded me of the blue meanies from Yellow Submarine. I often like to weird out my husband when we're cooking by donning the oven mits and cooing silly things like, "Gooooooood Glove," and, "I Glooooove you," and so on and so forth.

TMI?

Your daughters are really cute and it looks like you were all having so much fun. And while I'm not a big fan of the whole Pirate thing that seems to be sweeping the Disney community I do think that dessert looks really cool.

Thanks for sharing!

PS. The food was not undelicious? Wow ... that's a strong statement!

 

[Phalene]

I love the Blue Bayou! I had the pork chops my last visit and they were delicious. I debated about the cookie boat, but ended up with the key lime pie.

This time we're not going to eat there, but maybe we should stop in for the cookie boat dessert-it looks fabulous in your photo!