We Moved to Disneyland!! Now What ? Stories from New DLR Locals - Updated 1/15

[tayalltheway]

Chapter 102
Natural Beauty

​

 

[PrincessInOz]

Laguna Beach looks great. And I love the sound of Powell's Sweet Shoppe. Was it worth the visit?

 

[tdashgirl]

Lovely updates. I also like the ceiling at 1901. So pretty! I thought that menu looked familiar We did a late night stop at Carthay Lounge our last trip. We just had drinks -- you mentioned that Tracy likes gin drinks. I tried the Aviation cocktail at the lounge because I heard it was a unique gin drink, made with creme de violette and many bars don't have that. It's very unique and very strong.

I like that Tiffany charger lamp too, where can I get one?

Perhaps the most stunning thing about being in 1901 is that you can COMPLETELY forget you are in a theme park. When it would strike me suddenly that we were in the middle of DCA on a crowded Saturday, I was almost taken by surprise. The Lounge feels like the perfect place to be removed from everything in an amazing atmosphere.

I have to say while not as exclusive as 1901, I made almost the exact same comment to my DH when we were at the Carthay Lounge. It was like we were Walt's Hollywood world -- not in 2013 DCA. So very cool.

California's beaches are so pretty, aren't they? Laguna is stunning. And oooh - gummy candy is my FAVORITE! Yum. Love the places like Powell's where you can mix and match the bulk gummies.

 

[sophies*mom]

Beautiful! I grew up on the central coast of CA and lived there up until a few years ago, and your pictures made me home sick! I miss the beach. Glad you guys got a chance to go out there and enjoy it!

 

[tayalltheway]

Laguna Beach looks great. And I love the sound of Powell's Sweet Shoppe. Was it worth the visit?

Laguna was lovely, to put it mildly! Powell's is good too. It's a chain, and they used to have one in Boulder. As I said, Tracy LOVES gummy candies, so for her, getting about a pound of them at a discount was definitely worth the visit. I enjoy them too, but not as much as she does!

Lovely updates. I also like the ceiling at 1901. So pretty! I thought that menu looked familiar We did a late night stop at Carthay Lounge our last trip. We just had drinks -- you mentioned that Tracy likes gin drinks. I tried the Aviation cocktail at the lounge because I heard it was a unique gin drink, made with creme de violette and many bars don't have that. It's very unique and very strong.

I like that Tiffany charger lamp too, where can I get one?

I have to say while not as exclusive as 1901, I made almost the exact same comment to my DH when we were at the Carthay Lounge. It was like we were Walt's Hollywood world -- not in 2013 DCA. So very cool.

California's beaches are so pretty, aren't they? Laguna is stunning. And oooh - gummy candy is my FAVORITE! Yum. Love the places like Powell's where you can mix and match the bulk gummies.

I think it's kind of great that the Carthay Lounge has the same menu as 1901 because we can go back and get some of the great food we enjoyed sometime without needing the exclusive membership. I'm glad to hear you also felt like it was a world away from the rest of the theme park. We'll have to check it out sometime! And Tracy can try that drink!

What I wouldn't give for that Tiffany lamp cell-phone charger in our living room

All the beaches we've been to here have definitely been pretty, but Laguna was a notch above the rest. We love it there! And yes, being able to mix and match different sorts of gummies is our favorite thing about Powell's. They have such a great variety!

Beautiful! I grew up on the central coast of CA and lived there up until a few years ago, and your pictures made me home sick! I miss the beach. Glad you guys got a chance to go out there and enjoy it!

Glad you enjoyed the pictures and that they could remind you of home! Hopefully you can get back for a visit sometime soon!!

 

[tayalltheway]

Chapter 103
Rocky Cliffs and Sandy Beaches

​

 

[PrincessInOz]

I think I might need to make a stop at Laguna Beach next time I'm there in SoCal. Usually, I hit Seal Beach or the beaches closer towards San Diego from Oceanside down. Definitely time to take a look at Laguna.


In my last trip, I went to visit Birch Aquarium at Scripps. They have a cool water fountain with whales just like that picture of yours.


Nice pictures with Jasmine. I love that you can just stop and wait to take a picture with the characters and not worry about time too much.

 

[tdashgirl]

The Cotton Candy Frappuccino sounds like something my DD9 would love

 

[franandaj]

Your day at Laguna looks very relaxing. It's funny how people can have a completely different relaxing day in the same place. We visited Laguna sometime in the same time that you two went and had a fabulous day as well. Though we enjoy the view, Fran can't easily walk along the beach so we enjoy it from a distance.

I hope you have been able to return. Its beautiful there.

 

[tayalltheway]

I think I might need to make a stop at Laguna Beach next time I'm there in SoCal. Usually, I hit Seal Beach or the beaches closer towards San Diego from Oceanside down. Definitely time to take a look at Laguna.

In my last trip, I went to visit Birch Aquarium at Scripps. They have a cool water fountain with whales just like that picture of yours.

Nice pictures with Jasmine. I love that you can just stop and wait to take a picture with the characters and not worry about time too much.

You should definitely try to head to Laguna next time you're here. I think it's less of a "go to the beach and lay out" destination (although people were doing that too) and more of a place to explore.

The Birch Aquarium sounds cool!

Glad you liked our pix with Jasmine. I love being able to just see a character is out and stop to pose with them on a whim. It's a very "Disneyland" thing to be able to do since characters are such a time commitment at WDW.

The Cotton Candy Frappuccino sounds like something my DD9 would love

As I'm sure you've realized, we have similar tastebuds to a 9-year-old, so I don't doubt that she would like it

Your day at Laguna looks very relaxing. It's funny how people can have a completely different relaxing day in the same place. We visited Laguna sometime in the same time that you two went and had a fabulous day as well. Though we enjoy the view, Fran can't easily walk along the beach so we enjoy it from a distance.

I hope you have been able to return. Its beautiful there.

Glad to hear you had such a good day at Laguna as well. I definitely understand how it can be a difficult place to navigate with mobility issues as we discovered when Tracy's mom visited. But it's just so great that I think anyone can appreciate it, even if you aren't able to head right up to the beach itself.

 

[tayalltheway]

Chapter 104
Three Years

​

 

[PrincessInOz]

Happy Belated Anniversary.

What a cool way to celebrate the 3 year mark. Perhaps it might be a regular date for all future anniversaries. But then again....there are so many other restaurants to go eat at (but not necessarily in Disney).


I'll have to remember getting to the Hungry Bear if I'm not watching Fantasmic! That's a great tip. Thanks.

 

[franandaj]

Happy Anniversary, that's a great place to celebrate! We just missed our first "milestone" of 5 years, so I'm glad you two are keeping it up! Maybe for the next big one you can do it next door to the Blue Bayou!

 

[tdashgirl]

I agree with your review of the Blue Bayou. The food is pretty good, we've always gotten great service, the atmosphere is wonderful. It's just a tad bit too over-priced so that we don't do it very often. But it's a lovely place for an anniversary dinner

Cool view from the Hungry Bear!

 

[AussieDisneyNut]

Happy Anniversary!

Lovely pic with Jasmine ... she is my DD10's favourite princess. She is still disappointed that she didn't buy the Jasmine costume when we were there in 2011, but she probably would have been too big for it then, let alone now!

I'm glad you enjoyed BB for your anniversary dinner. We ate there when we visited and had a spot of Disney magic by also getting a water-side table for a party of 7! I'm told that it is quite hard to get water-side dining for larger parties.

I have also been wondering if you two have made it over to Tom Sawyer Island yet? I can't remember reading about it if you have. I am sad that we missed it on our last trip, the kids would have loved it.

 

[Luisa]

Great tip about the spot at Hungry Bear, I'd love to see that different perspective of Fantasmic. Blue Bayou always looks so beautiful but it's one place I would feel a bit strange being on my own at, I'm so glad you both had a lovely anniversary dinner there. I had to laugh when reading you left your bag with the passes at home- it's exactly something I would do which is why I get so OCD about checking my passport etc, in fact just mentioning it made me check my bag now!

 

[Rubygoose]

I bet you'll never forget to bring the fanny pack again!

Did you share your meal at Blue Bayou? Did you have to pay a fee for splitting? We haven't eaten there before, but might go on our next trip. The food doesn't really appeal to us, probably because we don't have many places that serve Cajun food in Canada, and DH isn't very adventurous when it comes to trying new foods. The atmosphere looks fantastic though!

I love your pictures of Laguna beach. The beach looks a lot like the beaches we have here on Vancouver Island, but of course we don't have palm trees (we have arbutus trees instead.)

 

[tayalltheway]

Happy Belated Anniversary.

What a cool way to celebrate the 3 year mark. Perhaps it might be a regular date for all future anniversaries. But then again....there are so many other restaurants to go eat at (but not necessarily in Disney).

I'll have to remember getting to the Hungry Bear if I'm not watching Fantasmic! That's a great tip. Thanks.

Thanks! I don't know if we'll make it our go-to anniversary place or not. We definitely enjoyed it, but we so rarely have the opportunity to try out table service restaurants at Disney. Who knows, maybe next time it'll be Napa Rose or Carthay Circle?

You should definitely try spotting the Fantasmic! characters from Hungry Bear. It's a short, quick moment, but we thought it was special!

Happy Anniversary, that's a great place to celebrate! We just missed our first "milestone" of 5 years, so I'm glad you two are keeping it up! Maybe for the next big one you can do it next door to the Blue Bayou!

Well, happy belated anniversary to you too! We'll keep Club 33 in our dreams for next time

I agree with your review of the Blue Bayou. The food is pretty good, we've always gotten great service, the atmosphere is wonderful. It's just a tad bit too over-priced so that we don't do it very often. But it's a lovely place for an anniversary dinner

Cool view from the Hungry Bear!

Luckily we had seen the price tag going in, so we were prepared. And I'm glad that the whole atmosphere was definitely worth it!

Glad you liked the Hungry Bear pictures. I definitely recommend it for a quick diversion when you're not watching the show.

Happy Anniversary!

Lovely pic with Jasmine ... she is my DD10's favourite princess. She is still disappointed that she didn't buy the Jasmine costume when we were there in 2011, but she probably would have been too big for it then, let alone now!

I'm glad you enjoyed BB for your anniversary dinner. We ate there when we visited and had a spot of Disney magic by also getting a water-side table for a party of 7! I'm told that it is quite hard to get water-side dining for larger parties.

I have also been wondering if you two have made it over to Tom Sawyer Island yet? I can't remember reading about it if you have. I am sad that we missed it on our last trip, the kids would have loved it.

Thanks!

Glad you liked our Jasmine pictures. Tracy always talks about how she had a Jasmine costume for Halloween the year the movie came out (I was Aladdin the same year, ironically). I have a feeling she would probably still be able to fit into hers

Scoring a waterside table for such a big party at BB DOES sound like quite the coup! Way to go!!

Tom Sawyer Island is actually (I think) the one remaining attraction at Disneyland that we haven't done. During the summer it always seemed so out of the way on such hot days, and we're so rarely there during the day that it's usually not open when we're there. But one of these days, we're going to do it!

Great tip about the spot at Hungry Bear, I'd love to see that different perspective of Fantasmic. Blue Bayou always looks so beautiful but it's one place I would feel a bit strange being on my own at, I'm so glad you both had a lovely anniversary dinner there. I had to laugh when reading you left your bag with the passes at home- it's exactly something I would do which is why I get so OCD about checking my passport etc, in fact just mentioning it made me check my bag now!

We felt like we were witnessing a bit of "backstage magic" with our Hungry Bear spot, so it was cool!

I understand not necessarily wanting to do Blue Bayou on your own, though I'm sure with the right server, it could still be a fun time!

I'm usually ALWAYS so good about remembering the fanny pack, but this one day I set it down on the black chair as I grabbed the camera, and it must have blended in so I missed seeing it before we left. Ugh, I could have kicked myself! (Glad your passport is still securely in your bag )

I bet you'll never forget to bring the fanny pack again!

Did you share your meal at Blue Bayou? Did you have to pay a fee for splitting? We haven't eaten there before, but might go on our next trip. The food doesn't really appeal to us, probably because we don't have many places that serve Cajun food in Canada, and DH isn't very adventurous when it comes to trying new foods. The atmosphere looks fantastic though!

I love your pictures of Laguna beach. The beach looks a lot like the beaches we have here on Vancouver Island, but of course we don't have palm trees (we have arbutus trees instead.)

Definitely won't be forgetting the fanny pack again any time soon!

We did share our Blue Bayou meal, and here's the deal with the fee. Our server offered to split it onto two plates for us, for which we would be charged a fee, or we could split it up ourselves and not be charged. We obviously chose the latter option. I wouldn't be too worried about the Cajun aspect of the menu because I think only a few dishes are really prepared in that style. Our steak, for instance, didn't really have a Cajun flair to it at all. And the atmosphere really can't be beat.

Glad you liked the look of Laguna. Now you have me wanting to check out Vancouver Island! Sounds very pretty

 

[tayalltheway]

Chapter 105
We Built Soak City on Fried Chicken

​

 

[PrincessInOz]

Great update!


Actually, chickens are not so weird.....

Dogs have Masters, Cats have Staff......chickens lay eggs.