Coast-to-Coast Disney 2011 Trip Report: Mme. & M. Bricker's Zany Holiday

blackthidot · Jun 3, 2011

disneygirl1 said:
Yay another Tom and Sarah TR! I love that you have a blog on wear Sarah shops for her dresses! :lol: I'm a HUGE fan on Rue La La too!

They are all his old ones that she grew into that he never did.

WDWFigment · Jun 3, 2011

xdan0920 said:
Great TR as usual.

On another note, Great job with the blog.

Thanks. I designed the logo myself with PS, and a friend of mine, Adam Hansen helped with the WordPress design. I used to work in IT (only in a managerial sense, so most things are above my head), and because of that I've got somewhat of a grip on basic HTML, the Google web products, and SEO, but I'm far from an expert. We're now the 534,930th most popular website in the US, though!!!!

disneygirl1 said:
Yay another Tom and Sarah TR! I love that you have a blog on wear Sarah shops for her dresses! :lol: I'm a HUGE fan on Rue La La too!

We received a shocking (to me at least) number of questions regarding the dresses as a result of past trip reports. Now I just pre-empt the questions with that. Works well--haven't received any yet this TR. Although blackthidot keeps asking where I buy my underwear...

JohnnyDollaz89 said:
Loving the TR so far can not wait to read the rest of it

derelicte19 said:
A double dose of Disney with this one! I love it!! :sohappy:

Glad you're enjoying!

Mrs.PhD said:
Not really a snow fan. I mean it is nice for a month at the most, but after that I am done! Then it stays for 3 or 4 more months. One of the reasons we visit WDW every year.

You are right about the travel freedom, I am so glad we had that time together before we had kids. I will admit that going with kids brings a whole new joy (and headache) to the trip. The headaches and planning are worth it to see them love the place as much as we do. Our oldest DD is a true Disney fan and trivia buff. She knows it all.

I agree about the UP, we like to go up there once a summer or so, normally with a Mac Island trip. Last year we stayed at Mission Point on the island. It was great. Don't think we are going this summer since we are taking the CAL trip.

The snow makes an excellent excuse to get away to WDW. It's great that you have kids who share your love for WDW!

popsicletrees said:
I got married about a month before you. My husband and I are trying to do the same. He has only been to Disney once, so he doesn't understand my desire to go there every chance I get. He wants to do things like go to Europe and visit his family. psshh.

I'm looking forward to reading this report, of course. I loved the only trip that I've ever had to Disneyland. So you are going back this Christmas? I know you will, but you must do Haunted Mansion Holiday. I can't even sit through all of The Nightmare Before Christmas, but that is an amazing attraction.

Also, you should go on the Liberty Belle. I can't speak for any of the water craft at Disneyland, but the Liberty Belle offers some nice perspectives of BTMR.

Well, there is a Disney in Europe, so...

Haunted Mansion Holiday sounds awesome, and I'm definitely no NBC fan.

We really want to do the Liberty Belle sometime, we just keep putting it off. We are bad about that sometimes.

blackthidot said:
They are all his old ones that she grew into that he never did.

:lol:

switts · Jun 4, 2011

another great trip report. definately have me waiting for more :sohappy:

blackthidot · Jun 4, 2011

WDWFigment said:
:lol:

Such a good sport! My man!!! :sohappy:

WDWFigment · Jun 6, 2011

switts said:
another great trip report. definately have me waiting for more :sohappy:

Well, you don't have to wait much longer!

blackthidot said:
Such a good sport! My man!!! :sohappy:

Hardly. I just didn't want to alienate people with more 'clean' sensibilities who may be reading this. Plus, I think the censor might have _____'d my entire sentence, anyway!

...

Okay, sorry for the delay in getting updates out. We were really busy last week. On the plus side, our new counter-top, sink, and stove look great!

The next update will be posted shortly. There are plenty more to come; hopefully I'll manage at least one per day until the full report is posted!

WDWFigment · Jun 6, 2011

Five hours later, my body was so gracious to wake me up. It was only 6:30 on the west coast. My internal clock, however, probably thought it had hit the snooze a button a few too many times, and was over 3 hours late in waking me up. I laid there, trying to outwit my body and force myself back to sleep, but it was too cunning. Regardless of its inability to discern time zones, it did know we were minutes away from Disneyland, and it would not stand for me sleeping when there were parks to explore.

I took way too much time getting ready, finally making it to Main Street shortly before rope drop. This is one thing I regret. I planned on taking photos of the Disney hotels during this trip, but upon waking up early that morning, I told myself I’d do it later in the trip. For whatever reason, this always happens. I am up early or late one of the first days of the trip (and not tired), and in contemplation of whether I should photograph something (usually the resort at which we’re staying), I elect not to because I can do it later. I never do it later. As the trip wears on, I become progressively more tired, until I’m running on fumes by the time we get back to our resort (and not waking up early at all, let alone early enough to go out and take photos).

Not having experienced rope drop before, I didn’t realize I’d be so far back in the crowd by only arriving 10 minutes early to the park, another mistake. I thought Disneyland was the antithesis of Walt Disney World in that regard: a “locals only” park where the lax attitude of the SoCal crowd means no one shows up until 11 a.m. Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but I certainly didn’t think the crowds would be that heavy (the ‘locals only’ part is the exaggeration--obviously I know tourists visit DLR, too--if it really were locals only, it would be dead until after 11 am. Lazy Californians!).

We knew by the time we arrived in Fantasyland, Peter Pan’s Flight would already have a long line, so Sarah headed over to Space Mountain to get FastPasses while I took some photos around the hub with my new toy: my infrared camera.

Before each trip, I invariably make one photo purchase. This time, it was a Nikon D70 that had been converted to an infrared camera. I was really excited to use it at Disneyland, especially after seeing all of the great greenery and flowers in Disneyland Spring photos. As you can see in the shots here, infrared photos give plant life a very unique white look.

I'm not much on the science behind this, but essentially, the camera I used to take this sees only the near infrared spectrum of light (light beyond that which humans see). Some cameras can see this light by either having their IR blocking filter removed or by adding a filter to the lens.

Besides the conversion to black and white and some added contrast, these photos are basically straight out of camera. (Near infrared photos--at least the good ones--are achieved as a result of the camera, not because of wacky Photoshop filters.)

Since infrared photos are very divisive--people either love them or hate them (I happen to love them whereas my wife hates them)--I tried to avoid taking too many photos with the infrared camera. I took a total of around 450, and all of these were bracketed (the exposure is difficult to get right, so I bracket for speed when shooting them, and just use the best of the three files once I get home), which means that I only took around 133 unique shots with the camera. Not much considering the cost of the thing! I told Sarah that I would sell the camera after this coast-to-coast trip, but I think between Disneyland and Walt Disney World, I only took 200 photos with the camera. So I definitely need to take it on at least one more trip to get my money’s worth. Right?!

First stop after all of this was the Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye. The standby queue was really short, although I was disappointed we didn’t get to go through any of the outdoor switchbacks. Although I’m sure I wouldn’t have been too happy if the wait times necessitated this, it would have been fun to at least walk them!

WDWFigment · Jun 6, 2011

I’ve often commented in my Walt Disney World trip reports that Jungle Cruise survives as an attraction that we still do if only because it has classic status. Neither of us are really all that wild about it, and that seems like it’s because our skipper always phones it in. However, this wasn’t the case at Disneyland last summer, nor was it the case at Disneyland this trip. I am reluctant to say Disneyland skippers care more, as my experience is anecdotal, but in my anecdotal experience, we’ve had better skippers at Disneyland. Plus, I think the attraction is better at Disneyland. The piranhas, for whatever reason, really impress me (I am easily impressed, I suppose) and the attraction seems like it’s in better shape, overall. That’s the story of Disneyland v. Walt Disney World, overall, though.

WDWFigment · Jun 6, 2011

Following this, we did Haunted Mansion, which really needs no further explanation. I suppose I could add that we saw more of the grounds during the daytime, and I think the exterior of the Mansion is really impressive. It reminds me a bit, unsurprisingly, of Port Orleans French Quarter at Walt Disney World. If the Haunted Mansion had a dancing alligator band and a big serpentine in its pool, I probably couldn’t distinguish the two. I’m not suggesting the Haunted Mansion should have those things, as they might be a bit awkward thematically.

Pirates of the Caribbean was next on the agenda, but only because we determined that Hungry Bear wouldn’t be open quite yet (our timing was a little off), and rather than wait, we backtracked to Pirates.

Most people who have been to Walt Disney World and Disneyland think that Walt Disney World’s Pirates is better in two regards: its queue and its show building. The first one of these is a no-brainer. Disneyland’s queue is very uninteresting, with the exception of the interior portion where ships pass, and even that is nothing to write home about. The pirate and the treasure sitting there seem almost like an awkward afterthought. Something about it just rubs me the wrong way.

However, on the second point, that concerning the show building facade, I think there might be some room for disagreeing. While Disneyland’s facade fits the architecture of New Orleans Square perfectly, WDW’s just looks awesome. With its large pirate ship mast out front, it does completely sync with the architectural style of the land. Then again, the architectural style could be described as a mishmash, so maybe it fits perfectly. In any case, I prefer WDW’s building just because I think it’s interesting and has more character than its bland DLR counterpart, but I see how the argument could be made that DLR’s is better.

HollyBelle · Jun 6, 2011

Great report, so far. Brett and I are finally talking seriously about a Disneyland trip. I think we're going to put it on the agenda for next spring.

I really like the infrared photos. There's just such an artistic touch to them and the lens flare you have going on in those early morning shots is swoonworthy! You've already purchased the camera, so it would be a shame to pass it on before you've had a chance to play with it on at least another trip or two. I'm sure it will be worth just as much to resell then as it is now.

I'm guessing that the Donald Duck on your gear is a golf club cover. Genius idea!

WDWFigment · Jun 6, 2011

HollyBelle said:
Great report, so far. Brett and I are finally talking seriously about a Disneyland trip. I think we're going to put it on the agenda for next spring.

I really like the infrared photos. There's just such an artistic touch to them and the lens flare you have going on in those early morning shots is swoonworthy! You've already purchased the camera, so it would be a shame to pass it on before you've had a chance to play with it on at least another trip or two. I'm sure it will be worth just as much to resell then as it is now.

I'm guessing that the Donald Duck on your gear is a golf club cover. Genius idea!

For anyone else, I would probably recommend waiting until Carsland, Carthay Theatre, and Buena Vista Street open at Disney California Adventure before taking a DLR trip, but with the way you two travel, I don't think that should be a consideration. I would be absolutely shocked if you are "one and done" Disneyland people. Granted, I don't actually know you guys, but that's still my guess.

I doubt I will sell the infrared camera now. I mean, think of the photos I could take of Christmas trees with it!? It needs to take at least a Christmas trip to Walt Disney World and one to Disneyland! Unfortunately, it wasn't calibrated to focus with the lens I was using that morning, so you might notice the background in some of those shots is unintentionally out of focus. After I switched to the Tokina 11-16mm, the shots became much sharper. Oh well, live and learn!

The Disney golf head covers were a last second idea, and luckily, I found a cheap set on eBay. Sarah worries when I'm out swinging my bag around that I'm going to hit some kid in the head (even though I still could with the lower portion of the legs), so this allayed some of her fears, I think.

...

A bit of an aside, but a photo of Sarah that I took at Disneyland highlights the O.C. Register's Disneyland May Photos section. http://ocresort.ocregister.com/2011/06/06/photos-you-took-at-disneyland-in-may/79495/

This photo was featured online earlier this month, and in their print edition as well, I think. (I'm not really sure since I don't get the OC Register, being that we live in Indy!)

GrumpyFannyPack · Jun 6, 2011

I'm getting in late. Another great report Tom. I always look forward to your work. Your photos help ease the depression of not being there.

I have to ask too, do you get stopped a lot while you are at WDW? I would think, next to Peyton Manning, you have to be the most well-known people from Indianapolis.

mrerk · Jun 6, 2011

WDWFigment said:

Tom, great report so far. Can't wait for more.

What is the app on Sarah's iphone in this photo?

meganw1985 · Jun 6, 2011

Tom, your reports always have me cracking up. Out loud too. So I try to read them when noone is home

I just have to say, I recently had my first experience flying *not* Southwest. We flew American to Miami for our honeymoon. I was so mad the whole time, what with paying $50 for our bags, flights being delayed, etc. I kept saying to my husband "if we were on Southwest, this wouldn't happen". Hated it. Won't do it again if I can help it!

switts · Jun 7, 2011

keeps getting better and better....just saddens me when i am all caught up to date and desperately waiting for more

WDWFigment · Jun 7, 2011

GrumpyFannyPack said:
I'm getting in late. Another great report Tom. I always look forward to your work. Your photos help ease the depression of not being there.

I have to ask too, do you get stopped a lot while you are at WDW? I would think, next to Peyton Manning, you have to be the most well-known people from Indianapolis.

Shockingly, we get stopped a few times per day at WDW. Not very often at Disneyland. I still am amazed that people actually enjoy reading what I have to say. (Although I have my suspicions that Sarah is paying you all off!)

mrerk said:
Tom, great report so far. Can't wait for more.

What is the app on Sarah's iphone in this photo?

The app on Sarah's iPhone is the wonderful, the amazing, the Lines - Mobile Wait Times App from TouringPlans.com. As I've mentioned before, I work for TouringPlans, so that's somewhat of a plug, but we really do think it's a great product. We wouldn't use it if we didn't think so.

meganw1985 said:
Tom, your reports always have me cracking up. Out loud too. So I try to read them when noone is home

I just have to say, I recently had my first experience flying *not* Southwest. We flew American to Miami for our honeymoon. I was so mad the whole time, what with paying $50 for our bags, flights being delayed, etc. I kept saying to my husband "if we were on Southwest, this wouldn't happen". Hated it. Won't do it again if I can help it!

It's best to read these reports at work. And laugh out loud there. I actually recommend doing this during meetings.

The bag fees actually don't get me so much, honestly. I mean, they're ostensibly annoying, but when I think about it, I think they level the playing field a bit. For example, if Airline A offers a fare of $150 and charges $50 per bag, but Airline B offers a fare of $200 with free bags, they're the same cost (if you're flying with one bag). Those who don't fly with any bags are rewarded with lower fares. And why shouldn't they be? If you're a day traveler not contributing anything to the weight of the plane, shouldn't you pay less than someone with 99 lbs worth of luggage?

I'm not sure if fares are *actually* lower because of the bag fee (it seems they sometimes are), but when I fare shop, I include how many bags we'll likely have to determine the package cost, and compare on that basis.

It's similar to shipping and handling charges on eBay. A lot of people complain about excessive shipping and handling charges by sellers. In reality, the sellers set these prices high to escape eBay's crazy final value fees, which (used to not be) aren't charged to shipping. Instead of complaining, buyers could just determine the total amount they want to pay for an item, deduct the shipping cost, and bid accordingly.

So that summarizes why baggage fees don't bother me. Plenty of other things about other airlines do annoy me, but that isn't one of them. Sorry to go on that little rant!

switts said:
keeps getting better and better....just saddens me when i am all caught up to date and desperately waiting for more

Well, you won't have to wait much longer!

WDWFigment · Jun 7, 2011

Following Pirates, we wandered around, taking our time getting to Hungry Bear while we explored the details in New Orleans Square.

Hungry Bear was next. After hearing of the extensive refurbishment and reading of the new menu, this was one of our most anticipated meals of the trip. We really enjoyed Hungry Bear on our last trip because of its tranquil location, and its theming to one of my favorite Walt Disney World attractions, the Country Bears. I was a little worried that some of this theming would be eliminated during the refurbishment, but my fears were allayed once we arrived at the pick-up window and the bears were still right behind the counter. A minor detail about which most guests may not care, but for me, it’s the little things that matter.

In advance of the trip, Sarah had her mind dead-set on one of the Lemon “Bumblebee” Cupcake; she was actually reasonably excited about it. Once we saw it in person, there was good cause for this. It was huge, and looked very well prepared. It actually looked like it would be worth the $4.99 price tag (but honestly, we would have bought that sucker if it were $29.99, given the hype we built for it in our heads).

Although I thought the cupcake was large-enough for us to split, I think Sarah had other plans, asking why I didn’t get my own. I said I would just eat any of it that she didn’t want, if she didn’t want any. She didn’t up not eating a fair portion, even though she said it was absolutely delicious. And it was absolutely delicious. Moist, rich but not to the point that you can only eat small portions, and most importantly, balanced in flavor. This last one was big for me. All too often lemon flavors are too strong, and are overbearing on any supposed complimentary tastes. Here, the lemon was understated with a honey-vanilla taste, and was a perfect pairing with the chocolate of the cupcake itself. This cupcake is the stuff legends are made of.

Backtracking a bit (sorry, that cupcake gets me worked up!), we had a delicious meal at Hungry Bear. I decided in advance that I was going to go way out on a limb there, and try the Fried Green Tomato Sandwich, which was a huge departure from my normal fare. It didn’t contain meat. While I will experiment with my food, I am an unabashed carnivore, and will not try a vegetarian plate, no matter how good it may otherwise sound. In fact, I was so confused as to what one of these “vegetables” things might look like, that when I initially received a chicken sandwich by mistake, it actually took me biting into the sandwich to realize that it was not what I had ordered.

The Fried Green Tomato Sandwich was okay. A little disappointing, but better than a lot of Disney counter service dishes; I think part of the problem was that I had set my expectations for it a bit unreasonably high. Plus, it was a bit odd biting into a sandwich and not tasting a delicious animal in there. The fried green tomato itself was a bit too small, there was too little dressing, and the multi-grain bread a bit too dry. Otherwise, the condiments and vegetables on the sandwich were abundant and seemingly fresh.

Sarah got the Turkey and Provolone Sandwich, which was good, but is not the type of thing I order at Disney. I’d rather have something a bit more complex, and I think if you can’t make a decent turkey sandwich, something is wrong.

WDWFigment · Jun 7, 2011

My other disappointment is the sweet potato fries. Thematically, I think they work well here, but Disney is introducing them everything, so it’s not a matter of theme, it’s a matter of them being trendy. Sweet potato fries are marginally better for you than regular fries. However, to offer them as the only fry-like option is a bit disappointing, given that they don’t have broad appeal. I think if Disney is going to offer unique menu items--and it absolutely should--it needs to offer balance. That said, if it’s a matter of offering only conventional foods or a bit more unique options, I would much rather have the unique options. I think a mixture of the two is the best business model, and I have to believe the kitchens at issue here are large enough to accommodate both, but what do I know.

Overall, it was a good first visit to Hungry Bear, and we knew we’d have to come back to sample the rest of the menu!

After Hungry Bear, it was time for Pooh. (Like that clever word play there?) Pooh became one of Sarah’s attractions out west. I think this is because of the quaint, wooded outdoor queue and for the fact that it’s not in Fantasyland with a thousand screaming kids and strollers bouncing all around, but she says she likes the attraction itself far better, too. To me, they are just slight variations of one another, and if anything, I think Florida’s is slightly longer.

Although, to be fair, I haven’t really made an effort to study the differences, so I could be wrong. If anything, I think it’s like comparing the two Haunted Mansions, not like comparing the two Pirates of the Caribbeans. The difference in the former case is minor, the difference in the latter case is substantial.

switts · Jun 7, 2011

yes! this is what is keeping me going on my 90 hour work week this week. and making me visit the world asap :sohappy:

foreverbelle · Jun 7, 2011

Great TR. Never have been to Disneyland I am welcoming some of your comments and comparisons to rides at the land vs. the World. And of course as always your photos are amazing.

The hubs and I have been debating on whether or not to take a trip out west but have always wondered if it would be worth it, or if it would leave us wanting more.

Somehow your photos are making me think we would not be.

disneygirl1 · Jun 7, 2011

Loving the TR Tom! Disneyland is definitely on my agenda in the near future!

Coast-to-Coast Disney 2011 Trip Report: Mme. & M. Bricker's Zany Holiday

blackthidot

Well-Known Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

switts

Member

blackthidot

Well-Known Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

HollyBelle

Well-Known Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

GrumpyFannyPack

Member

mrerk

meganw1985

Active Member

switts

Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

WDWFigment

Well-Known Member

switts

Member

foreverbelle

Well-Known Member

disneygirl1

Well-Known Member