Trip Report *COMPLETED* I've climbed the mountain, I've crossed the river, and I'm almost there!

Introduction

We've only been back from Japan since Saturday night but I am just itching to get started on this report! We had an absolutely AMAZING trip and I'm not ready to let it go, and writing my TR is one way for me to delay the inevitable return back to "the real world." :) This was the longest vacation I've ever taken, and like any long trip-or any new experience, for that matter-there were ups and downs, good moments and not-so-good moments. There were mistakes, mishaps, mountains, and monkeys. Yes, monkeys! There were surprises and there was DRAMMA!* There were things we will do differently next time we visit Japan, and believe me, we knew less than halfway through the trip that there WILL be a next time someday!

In case you missed the PTR, here it is: Bee's Big Birthday! There you can read about the cast, the general plans, and the reasons for planning this particular trip.

Now about the title: It's a reference to this song from The Princess and the Frog:



I have been kind of obsessed with this song lately and I found myself singing it in my head repeatedly during the trip. You'll see why soon!

So, if you're ready for a journey halfway around the world, thousands of photos, and Double Disney bookends, keep reading!

EDIT: The Tokyo Disney stuff starts here.

*I've mentioned it in previous TRs, but I like to spell "dramma" the Italian way because I'm an opera singer and what's more DRAMMAtic than Italian opera?? So please don't think I'm an idiot (for that reason anyway :hilarious:)!
 
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MinnieM123

Premium Member
Jumping for joy -- bee's TR is here!

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bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I'm really looking forward to seeing your report!!
Welcome!

So excited to read this TR! That sunset was amazing!
It WAS amazing! It was so great that one of the gate agents made an announcement over the PA to tell everyone to look at it!

Jumping for joy -- bee's TR is here!

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Love it!

Yay! Loved following along on Instagram, but really excited to hear all the details!!
Yay! The IG photos told the nice version. This will have all the dirt. ;)

I'm so behind in TR reading - so I'm glad I didn't miss this! Julia is so very excited to see the Japan pics.
I thought of Julia and her language study a few times during the trip. I hope she gets to go practice Japanese in person soon!
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 1, cont.

We arrived at the Four Points to check in.

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The staff member who checked us in was super helpful and I wish I remembered her name so I could send a compliment email to the hotel! We asked her about the best way to get to LAX for our flight after we checked out and she helped us figure out what time to leave to get there on time despite traffic. She even recommended a shuttle company, although (spoiler) we ended up taking a Lyft the day of our flight.

We were assigned room 105, which was very close to the front desk and the pool area.

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Look, it's Mickey's Death Wheel!

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The room was quite spacious and comfortable and had been recently renovated. We were very pleased with it.

We were hungry again by this point and there wasn't much around the hotel itself, so we decided to walk to Downtown Disney and get the magic started!

We timed the walk and it was about 13 minutes from the front door of the hotel to the security check for the parks and DD.

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We decided to revisit an old favorite for dinner: Tortilla Jo's quick service.

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And of course, if we're on vacation...

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Downtown Disney was looking nice and festive!

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After dinner, as we made our way back to the hotel, we heard a boom from Disneyland...

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We also got a glimpse at Galaxy's Edge through the fence on the pedestrian bridge over the highway.

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What a great way to end our first night!

Day 1 Stats
Distance: 3 miles
Steps: 6929
Flights: 7


Up next: Disneyland!
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2: Tuesday, December 18

We left the room around 7:15 for the 8:00 park opening. The weather was cloudy and cool. In the daylight we caught a slightly better view of GE:

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There was already quite a line for bag check, but it moved quickly. Soon we were here:

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I was able to use my phone app to enter the park, and was given a paper ticket at the gate.

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How is this park SO photogenic??

Up next: Adventureland rope drop!
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2, cont.

Shortly after we entered the park we made our first MaxPass FP for Big Thunder. We decided to head to that side of the park and decide Pirates would be our first ride, which meant we would be joining the rope drop masses in Adventureland.

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Waiting...

And here we go!

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As EVERYONE knows, DL Pirates>WDW Pirates. ;)

After the ride we were ready for some breakfast, so we wandered in search of food. And I do mean wandered. You'll see by the next several photos that our wandering took us all over...

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Up next: Will we find breakfast? Or will we just keep wandering??
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Very excited to see that you are back and have started on this epic trip report!
Welcome!

I was thinking the same thing while looking at your pictures!!
Thank you! I don't have a fancy camera, just an iPhone 7+, and I don't add filters or edit my photos beyond occasional cropping. This park is just so cute. :inlove:
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2, cont.

Luckily River Belle Terrace was open for breakfast and had plenty of available tables! We had enjoyed lunch there during our 2017 Disneyland trip so we were hoping for another great experience.

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Our official server was Veronica, but she had just gone on break when we arrived so Joe started our orders instead.

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One of the best parts of eating here: FREE COFFEE REFILLS!!

M had the (ADORABLE) Mickey pancakes with a side of eggs instead of meat.

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I had the fried green tomatoes.

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Yum yum yum!

While we waited the time arrived to make our next FP. But, as we discovered a few times on this day, we usually had to wait a whole minute after the assigned time to actually make a FP.

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After breakfast we stopped in some nearby bathrooms before using our first FP.

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The only bathroom pic I took because there were other people in the bathroom and I felt weird taking more than this!

Even though we had a date with BTMRR I couldn't help but stop for photos...

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Finally M pulled me away from my photo-taking and we enjoyed our first (but not our last!) ride on Big Thunder!

Up next: Disneyland goes ALL OUT for holiday overlays!
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2, cont.

I guess I didn't take any photos of Big Thunder, but we did indeed ride it!

Our next FP was for Haunted Mansion Holiday. Having never visited Disneyland during the holiday season we had no idea how well they do holiday overlays. It was a totally different ride! I'll put my photos under a spoiler in case you don't want to be, AHEM, spoiled.

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While waiting for HMH we were able to make another FP and use it almost immediately.

Up next: FastPasses on top of FastPasses!
 

Spash007

Well-Known Member
Day 2, cont.

I guess I didn't take any photos of Big Thunder, but we did indeed ride it!

Our next FP was for Haunted Mansion Holiday. Having never visited Disneyland during the holiday season we had no idea how well they do holiday overlays. It was a totally different ride! I'll put my photos under a spoiler in case you don't want to be, AHEM, spoiled.

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While waiting for HMH we were able to make another FP and use it almost immediately.

Up next: FastPasses on top of FastPasses!

Last year I saw a special on how they create the holiday overlay for HM, and it was crazy to see how much work goes on behind the scenes to get it to go just right. I'll admit, I'm not the biggest NBC fan, and when I started watching it, I was doubting it would be appropriate for a classic attraction like HM. By the end though, I'm 100% on board and need to get over to the west coast to see it in person!
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2, cont.

Our next FP was for Indiana Jones.

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After we helped Indy get...whatever it is he needed to get...(I have forgotten!) we headed to Tomorrowland to use FP #4. The clouds had started to clear and the blue sky was beginning to show!

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For the first time in forever (SEE WHAT I DID THERE???) we got a storyline that actually stayed within one trilogy's timeline (the sequels this time). I think we visited Jakku and Crait and got a message from Finn. Sadly, I was not the Rebel Spy this time. :bawling:

We reserved FP #5 (!!!) before 11:00am and made our way to Fantasyland.

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Our FP was NOT for this. The Matterhorn was a one and done experience on our first DL trip! #ouch #toooldforthis

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I just took this photo because Edelweiss Snacks is cute.

Up next: Using FP #5!
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2, cont.

Did you guess what our FP was for??

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As we waited we caught a glimpse of the DLRR:

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We waited maybe five minutes from the time we scanned our FPs to the time we were on our boat and inside the ride.

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Yay 2019! Bring on the new year! Goodbye, crappy 2018!!!

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MUSHU!! :joyfull:

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I know plenty of fans were upset when Disney character dolls were introduced to IASW. I'll admit I was skeptical at first, but once I actually saw them for the first time I couldn't get over how darn CUTE they are. Now I like seeing them and even look for them like it's a scavenger hunt.

Up next: More IASW, and more Fantasyland!
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2, cont.

We continued our happy little cruise...and did I mention that verses of the theme song alternated with verses of "Jingle Bells" and "Deck the Halls" for a PERFECT holiday medley???

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Their song books say, "Deck the Halls!"

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Here's hoping...

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Sayonara! Soon it will be Konnichiwa!

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We had already reserved FP #6 but we had a bit of time until then, so we visited a Fantasyland favorite of ours.

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We waited less than ten minutes for our turn for tea. I love this ride so much. There's something about spinning and giggling and escaping from the real world for a minute or two, and I must ride it every chance I get. :joyfull:

Up next: Something we missed on our last visit to Disneyland
 

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 2, cont.

We left Fantasyland in search of a snack and more coffee.

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We ended up at Jolly Holiday Bakery. M reserved a table outside and I went inside to purchase something yummy.

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Raspberry macaron and iced mocha

I had a hard time choosing what to eat because there were SOOOO many delicious looking options. I almost went with the GIANT sprinkle Mickey cookie:

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Not my photo, obv.

But I'm so happy I picked the macaron. The fresh raspberries inside were juicy and sweet and tart, and all the flavors and textures together were Practically Perfect. :inlove:

And I paid for it all with Disney Dollars!

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We still had a bit until our next FP so I checked the app to see what had a short wait. We ended up here:

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We ended up with Skipper Lucie and she was PHENOMENAL. Her delivery was spot on the entire time. Even though the jokes are corny and I've heard them all before I found myself literally LOLing in the boat.

After our Jungle Cruise we decided it was time for another snack!

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Everything we eat here must be Mickey-shaped, obviously!!

As we enjoyed our pretzel, my phone alarm rang, indicating that it was time to check in for tomorrow's flight. I had already downloaded the Japan Airlines (JAL) app and we stopped in some shade to complete checkin.

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This plane had eight seats across in the economy section (two left, four middle, and two right). We had been assigned two of the four in the middle, but I was able to switch us to two on the right side in a different row. The app told me that the "window seat" didn't actually have a window in that row, but we didn't mind as having a little row to ourselves was more important than having a view.

Up next: A ride on the MPB [(c) @Tuvalu and @Woodywrkr, used without permission]
 

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