TR Oct/Nov 2012- Cowboys, casinos and pixie dust OH MY!

[zanzibar138]

Wow sounds like you're having an awesome time, and for the upgrade!

Regarding New York, I think Alicia's right. I would get the girls to call their flight operator, hotel, and travel insurance company. Get all the info and options and weigh up whether it's still going to be worth going, even if they technically still can. It would be a real shame if they have to miss out, but I can't imagine it would be much fun holidaying in a disaster zone.

In the meantime, enjoy DLR!

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Wow! We saw some coverage this morning and can't believe the extent of it all. Fingers are crossed it all works out before they go.

Ok so we flew out of San Francisco yesterday, delayed for 2 & a half hours due to fog which sucked! We had been at the airport for five hours by the time we flew out. Anyway when we finally arrived in Anaheim we checked into Paradise Pier love it!!! We got upgraded to a room with a view over California Adventure which is beautiful we slept with the curtains open to see all the lights of the park lol

Last night we did Mickeys trick or treat party and it was amazing!!! We had a blast and scored some photos with villains Frollo, the Queen, Hook and Jafar!!! We just missed out on Malificent but we'll try today we didn't realise were the villains were set up till just before the fireworks so we did well. I filled my handbag in the above photo with lollies so pressies all round! We squeezed in four rides aswell as watching the fireworks & parade, getting in at 6 due to our delays.

Ohh also we got first visit badges, we're celebrating badges, signed princess photos, a Halloween costume photo we need to collect and he is looking for graduation badges for us plus room keys to keep with our names on them lol

Off to Disneyland now for EMH

Sounds like you are having the most wonderfully amazing time. Keep it up

Wow sam i am so happy you are enjoying your trip and that you are having so much fun at disneyland.

The news here is that parts of manhattan are underwater, subways are flooded, fires are occuring and parts of manhattan are totally without power -- i know your nyc leg doesnt commence for 5 days but having been through this experience myself when brisbane flooded it might not be fixed within 5 days. If your friends can get a flight both in/out of nyc most of the infrastructure will likely be damaged ie no subway services, loss of power in most areas, reduced transport options etc. I would hate for your friends to get to nyc and then be stuck there or worse stuck in a hotel for the duration or have lost the booking due to outages/unable to accomodate etc.

Fingers crossed for you that they can pull a miracle and have it fixed soon

This is great advice. It sounds awful for everyone involved. I sure do hope they get everything sorted out really soon.

Wow sounds like you're having an awesome time, and for the upgrade!

Regarding New York, I think Alicia's right. I would get the girls to call their flight operator, hotel, and travel insurance company. Get all the info and options and weigh up whether it's still going to be worth going, even if they technically still can. It would be a real shame if they have to miss out, but I can't imagine it would be much fun holidaying in a disaster zone.

In the meantime, enjoy DLR!

Good advice.

 

[5ofus]

Wow, what a jam-packed first day with the mouse! Awesome I can feel your excitement coming through in your posts

 

[frangipanisam]

Today was awesome no other way to describe it!!! We used EMH but Sam #3 has felt off so she joined later. Started the day with castle photos including magic shots and we did well for rides today though, we only have the jungle cruise, astro blasters, autopia, buzz & innovations plus the ones that are down lol I think big thunder is my fav so far but man we got a good pic on splash mountain, you can see terror all over my face

we doubled up on photos with the Queen & Hook which was frustrating when they don't tell you the character but oh well, also got Halloween Mickey, Minnie & Goofy

Tried a Mickey ice cream sandwich, yummo!!! Also got my last six ear hat ornaments so can tick that off my list! We split burgers & fries at the hungry bear for lunch and had pizza while watching World of Colour from our hotel room!!! Best timing ever, we just got settled on the back of the lounge as it started such an amazing view & so different to what we'll see in the park! The colours are simply spectacular & to watch from basically a birds eye view was awesome

Wish we could stay at Paradise Pier longer, it's simply heaven! Going up to Hollywood tomorrow, the girls are ringing up re:NYC tomorrow but looks like they could be staying with us now so will update you when we know. Off to bed ladies, my feet are dead & I slightly jarred my ankle on Tom Sawyer island walking across a barrel bridge and thanks for all of the advice

 

[WAMUMOF4]

Today was awesome no other way to describe it!!! We used EMH but Sam #3 has felt off so she joined later. Started the day with castle photos including magic shots and we did well for rides today though, we only have the jungle cruise, astro blasters, autopia, buzz & innovations plus the ones that are down lol I think big thunder is my fav so far but man we got a good pic on splash mountain, you can see terror all over my face

we doubled up on photos with the Queen & Hook which was frustrating when they don't tell you the character but oh well, also got Halloween Mickey, Minnie & Goofy

Tried a Mickey ice cream sandwich, yummo!!! Also got my last six ear hat ornaments so can tick that off my list! We split burgers & fries at the hungry bear for lunch and had pizza while watching World of Colour from our hotel room!!! Best timing ever, we just got settled on the back of the lounge as it started such an amazing view & so different to what we'll see in the park! The colours are simply spectacular & to watch from basically a birds eye view was awesome

Wish we could stay at Paradise Pier longer, it's simply heaven! Going up to Hollywood tomorrow, the girls are ringing up re:NYC tomorrow but looks like they could be staying with us now so will update you when we know. Off to bed ladies, my feet are dead & I slightly jarred my ankle on Tom Sawyer island walking across a barrel bridge and thanks for all of the advice

Sounds like you had a wonderful day i love the idea of the bird eye view of the World of colour, Hope the girls get NYC sorted as others have said it would not be fun to be there right now, Hope your ankle heals quickly

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Today was awesome no other way to describe it!!! We used EMH but Sam #3 has felt off so she joined later. Started the day with castle photos including magic shots and we did well for rides today though, we only have the jungle cruise, astro blasters, autopia, buzz & innovations plus the ones that are down lol I think big thunder is my fav so far but man we got a good pic on splash mountain, you can see terror all over my face

we doubled up on photos with the Queen & Hook which was frustrating when they don't tell you the character but oh well, also got Halloween Mickey, Minnie & Goofy

Tried a Mickey ice cream sandwich, yummo!!! Also got my last six ear hat ornaments so can tick that off my list! We split burgers & fries at the hungry bear for lunch and had pizza while watching World of Colour from our hotel room!!! Best timing ever, we just got settled on the back of the lounge as it started such an amazing view & so different to what we'll see in the park! The colours are simply spectacular & to watch from basically a birds eye view was awesome

Wish we could stay at Paradise Pier longer, it's simply heaven! Going up to Hollywood tomorrow, the girls are ringing up re:NYC tomorrow but looks like they could be staying with us now so will update you when we know. Off to bed ladies, my feet are dead & I slightly jarred my ankle on Tom Sawyer island walking across a barrel bridge and thanks for all of the advice

Your enthusiasm is oozing out of every word. I'm getting excited just reading it. Sounds like the most "fantabulous" day. And to finish off with the fireworks from your room, heaven.

I have my fingers crossed for your friends.

And Big Thunder is my fave ride also.

 

[Caroline NZ]

Wow, it sounds like you having the most amazing time. Your words make me want to be there right now!

 

[frangipanisam]

Yesterday was basic, walked around downtown Disney and Disneyland hotel (got pics with the fairy godmother and rafiki ) then we transferred up to Hollywood. Nice hotel but even with its great location it doesn't include what we booked with the other one so adding it to our complaint list.

We walked part of Hollywood blvd, looking at the stars and the Chinese theatre. Then we got dressed in costumes to have dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe which was awesome. Honestly Hard Rock has been the best quality of food to eat. Then we went back to the room, watched some tv and watch the police & helicopters on Hollywood blvd!! We don't know exactly where the shooting was in relation to us but we had 3 helicopters hovering over our area (Hollywood and Highland) plus one with a spotlight. Then we saw a heap of horseback police and u went to bed lol

Universal Studios today

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Yesterday was basic, walked around downtown Disney and Disneyland hotel (got pics with the fairy godmother and rafiki ) then we transferred up to Hollywood. Nice hotel but even with its great location it doesn't include what we booked with the other one so adding it to our complaint list.

We walked part of Hollywood blvd, looking at the stars and the Chinese theatre. Then we got dressed in costumes to have dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe which was awesome. Honestly Hard Rock has been the best quality of food to eat. Then we went back to the room, watched some tv and watch the police & helicopters on Hollywood blvd!! We don't know exactly where the shooting was in relation to us but we had 3 helicopters hovering over our area (Hollywood and Highland) plus one with a spotlight. Then we saw a heap of horseback police and u went to bed lol

Universal Studios today

Oh no, a shooting ? Scary stuff. I agree that Hard Rock has lots of good eating options and at reasonable prices.

It's fun seeing the stars on the Walk of Fame isn't it.

 

[frangipanisam]

We did Universal today and it was good but has nothing on Disneyland I didn't realise how little rides they have we met a staff member at the start of the day & ran into him twice more and he was lovely! We did the Simpson ride first, awesome ride!!! Very clever ride then we did the studio tour, it was good but I really expected more if I'm honest. Then we watched Shrek 4D, had lunch at Mel's diner which was good and went down to do the mummy & transformers rides, both awesome! We did the mummy twice, slightly cut that the Jurassic park ride was down. Then we did the special effects show and waterworld, got soaked prior to the show lol

Character photos included Frankenstein, Beatlejuice, Marilyn, Shrek, Spongebob, Scooby, Daphne, Shaggy and woody woodpeckers girlfriend. Loved Donkeys waffle stand I took photos, he said cheese & when I took another he asked if I was a groupie and his Facebook stalker grabbed Ben & jerry's ice cream as we left, omg yum!! New York fudge & cookies n cream with whipped cream, hot fudge & rainbow sprinkles

Got a kids meal from johnny rockets (take out) for dinner, ate one and a half of the slider burgers and was full. Watching a bit of tv now before bed, will continue to update Hollywood stuff tomorrow using the Go LA pass!

 

[frangipanisam]

Ps: our studio tour guide was hysterical!!! Had some fantastic one liners & jokes through, great job Dan

 

[Caroline NZ]

Yum, sounds like you are enjoying the food

 

[australiankaren]

Yum, sounds like you are enjoying the food

food porn please...dying here

 

[alicia1506]

loving your on-the-go updates sam

can't wait for your next installment. i hope NYC is up and running and back to some semblance of normalcy when your friends are due to visit

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

We did Universal today and it was good but has nothing on Disneyland I didn't realise how little rides they have we met a staff member at the start of the day & ran into him twice more and he was lovely! We did the Simpson ride first, awesome ride!!! Very clever ride then we did the studio tour, it was good but I really expected more if I'm honest. Then we watched Shrek 4D, had lunch at Mel's diner which was good and went down to do the mummy & transformers rides, both awesome! We did the mummy twice, slightly cut that the Jurassic park ride was down. Then we did the special effects show and waterworld, got soaked prior to the show lol

Our family adored the Simpson's ride, so much fun. Shrek 4d is fun

Character photos included Frankenstein, Beatlejuice, Marilyn, Shrek, Spongebob, Scooby, Daphne, Shaggy and woody woodpeckers girlfriend. Loved Donkeys waffle stand I took photos, he said cheese & when I took another he asked if I was a groupie and his Facebook stalker grabbed Ben & jerry's ice cream as we left, omg yum!! New York fudge & cookies n cream with whipped cream, hot fudge & rainbow sprinkles

Ahhhhh Donkey, that funny little guy. I hadn't heard about that until we were there and it gave me such a giggle. He was being so funny/mean to these people, I was in hysterics

Got a kids meal from johnny rockets (take out) for dinner, ate one and a half of the slider burgers and was full. Watching a bit of tv now before bed, will continue to update Hollywood stuff tomorrow using the Go LA pass!

Sounds like another awesome day.

 

[Marlea98]

We loved the donkey stand too and his mean comments to the Japanese man who insisted on standing in my son's space when he was chatting to him! Despite Donkey's repeated attempts at telling the man to go, he wouldn't take a hint. Actually that was the tone of our trip there with the Japanese tour groups, they pushed in no matter how long people had been waiting in line for for character meetings and pics

 

[Minniemum]

Really enjoying your TR frangipanisam. Looking forward to more updates!

 

[frangipanisam]

Well the last few days have been a blast! We used our Go LA passes yesterday to do Madame Tussades, movie stars home tour, Hollywood museaum and the Warner bros VIP tour. The Hollywood museam was pretty dull but the rest was great. The Warner bros tour was the highlight!!! It was great fun & our tour guide Nate was awesome. We walked around a lot of areas which was cool. IMF we saw the Big Bang set with our own eyes no photos allowed on the set but we were in heaven lol

Then we saw some props and saw the Friends central perk set Sam #2 was on and Nate took our pic on the famous couch which isn't allowed lol Sam was also jumping out of her skin then we saw the costume museum, again no photos but we saw the Dark Knight rises, Friends, Harry Potter and Big Bang to name a few. Ohh I got sorted into Slytherin, Sam #2 into Gryffindor and the other two got Hufflepuff

Today we shopped well we started by visiting the Halliwell Manor from Charmed three of us are huge fans so the $60 round trip was worth it then we did Victoria's Secret (I only got body wash ect), Sephora, Ross and Guess. We also did the Disney Soda shop for lunch which was awesome!! I had a Caesar salad & a cookies n cream shake after so I was stuffed as we walked down to Ross, where both Sam 2 & 3 bought their third cases

Then we packed, I have everything squished into two suitcases (one side an empty because it won't be weighed going back to Anaheim ) plus my carry on, handbag & two shopping bags

cannot wait to pack next Sunday after doing my Disney shopping while keeping all 3 bags under 23kgs

We're off to El Capitan theatre tonight to see Wreck it Ralph!!! Grabbing cheseeburgers while we line up and popcorn & drinks are included. More to come

 

[alicia1506]

Well the last few days have been a blast! We used our Go LA passes yesterday to do Madame Tussades, movie stars home tour, Hollywood museaum and the Warner bros VIP tour. The Hollywood museam was pretty dull but the rest was great. The Warner bros tour was the highlight!!! It was great fun & our tour guide Nate was awesome. We walked around a lot of areas which was cool. IMF we saw the Big Bang set with our own eyes no photos allowed on the set but we were in heaven lol

Then we saw some props and saw the Friends central perk set Sam #2 was on and Nate took our pic on the famous couch which isn't allowed lol Sam was also jumping out of her skin then we saw the costume museum, again no photos but we saw the Dark Knight rises, Friends, Harry Potter and Big Bang to name a few. Ohh I got sorted into Slytherin, Sam #2 into Gryffindor and the other two got Hufflepuff

Today we shopped well we started by visiting the Halliwell Manor from Charmed three of us are huge fans so the $60 round trip was worth it then we did Victoria's Secret (I only got body wash ect), Sephora, Ross and Guess. We also did the Disney Soda shop for lunch which was awesome!! I had a Caesar salad & a cookies n cream shake after so I was stuffed as we walked down to Ross, where both Sam 2 & 3 bought their third cases

Then we packed, I have everything squished into two suitcases (one side an empty because it won't be weighed going back to Anaheim ) plus my carry on, handbag & two shopping bags

cannot wait to pack next Sunday after doing my Disney shopping while keeping all 3 bags under 23kgs

We're off to El Capitan theatre tonight to see Wreck it Ralph!!! Grabbing cheseeburgers while we line up and popcorn & drinks are included. More to come

sounds like you're having the most amazing time. congratulations

 

[Beee]

sounds like you are having an awesome time, great to hear that you enjoyed the warner bros tour - we're doing that instead of universal, I was a bit turned off by universal's lack of rides and the fact that half of them are 3D (I'm blind in one eye so can't see 3D stuff ). So looking forward to seeing the set of true blood and big bang theory at WB's though!

Loving your talk of food, I must try ben & jerry's and the disney soda fountain is high on our list for hollywood