Trip Report Disneyland Drive-By (it's a long story)

brifraz · Jan 14, 2023

Time for It's a Small World! Okay, after about 30 minutes in line. This was our first time ever getting to ride this with the Christmas overlay. We had seen some pictures and read others' reports, but... to be totally honest - it was WAY MORE than I expected. Since they don't do anything like this in Florida and in recent years the holiday decor at WDW has become a bit less than it was in the past, I think my expectations were pretty low. It was nice to see that they are (at least sometimes) still willing to do things like this. Here's just a small sampling of the decorations.

We also didn't remember all of the characters that were added to the ride a few years ago. We had seen them before, but a few of them still surprised us and gave us an extra smile. I'm quite glad that they have not been added in WDW - it's nice to have another unique difference between the two. Since we were already in full Fantasyland-little kid mode, we headed to the Storybook Land Canal Boats. I know there are no thrills and it's basically just a series of Disney movie dioramas, but... much like a good train garden, the detail is excellent and it's nice that they still update and change it.

brifraz · Jan 14, 2023

A new favorite is the fact that they have Oaken's Trading Post just at the end!

Oh, and it was nice while we were riding to see Casey Jr. drive past.

Next up was a favorite of the girls, that I skip out on every single time. Tea Cups! I like that each iteration of this is unique and it's own special something... but, to me, the Disneyland version definitely just feels like a carnival ride.

While the girls were riding, I got a phone call. I don't often get phone calls, so even though it was 'unlisted' number I went ahead and answered. Southwest Airlines! Guess what??? Yup... our luggage had made its way to Sacramento. The women who called was apologetic even as she started "I see in the notes that your luggage should not have come here this late, but it did... I'm so sorry, is there any way you can get it." Which was an easy "nope" from me. So, the new plan that they came up with was for our two suitcases to be FedEx overnighted to our house in Maryland. They would be picked up on the 30th from Sacramento and at our house on the 31st. Which is when we would (assuming our flight from Anaheim to Baltimore happens) be home as well. It was going to be signature required for delivery which was a bit concerning, but we'd rather that than have our bags just sitting in front of our house! If it meant waiting another day or two, that was okay by us - although our flight was super early, so we should be home by mid-afternoon. Crossing fingers our stuff meets us at home!

Okay, back to the fun... or perhaps the 'how the heck does this ride exist' bewilderment. I've been a fan of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride since I was a little kid. How can you beat the story of a rich toad who goes on a bender, drives drunk, and ends up in Hell???

Our daughter, being of a generation that perhaps is wise enough NOT to think that Mr. Toad's behavior is appropriate for little kids tends to spend the entire ride in some mix of shock and horror. Us older kids remember the days when this kind of behavior was pretty much the social norm *insert sarcasm emoji*

We had one more stop before heading back across to California Adventure and that was to catch the lighting at Small World. Really beautiful!

And, as we excited, we had to go through the castle (and we did take a few minutes to walk through the Sleeping Beauty dioramas - which also looked like they had been a bit updated since we last saw them).

I'll see you later, back at California Adventure!!

amjt660 · Jan 14, 2023

Glad to hear your luggage was found and that you enjoyed your Disney days!!

Following along

Max

brifraz · Jan 14, 2023

amjt660 said:
Glad to hear you luggage was found and that you enjoyed your Disney days!!

Following along

Max

Oh, the tale of the luggage is still far from over...

cgersic · Jan 16, 2023

This is a really great photo! I've never seen her in person, but this picture gives more dimension than most that I've seen.

amjt660 · Jan 16, 2023

cgersic said:
I've never seen her in person,

The lady in the pink shoes?
I have not seen her before either

Max

cgersic · Jan 16, 2023

amjt660 said:
View attachment 692473

The lady in the pink shoes?
I have not seen her before either

Max

Now I can't unsee her....

brifraz · Jan 16, 2023

cgersic said:
This is a really great photo! I've never seen her in person, but this picture gives more dimension than most that I've seen.

amjt660 said:
The lady in the pink shoes?
I have not seen her before either

Max

cgersic said:
Now I can't unsee her....

When we first got there, she was already heading up to the carousel so we asked her to go back to the castle so we could make sure to get her in the picture. Then in the first shot, we forgot to use the wide angle lens so the dimension was all wrong. This was actually about the 6th shot we took of her as the one legged kid next to her kept tipping over.

In all seriousness, the castle seems tiny.

brifraz · Jan 16, 2023

While our luggage was relaxing and enjoying it's day off in Sacramento, we continued to enjoy Disneyland by heading back over to California Adventure for the evening. The chilly air still hadn't gone away as it was in the 50s, so we did a little shopping for a decent long sleeve shirt for me (didn't have anything between the t-shirts we bought in Chico and the stuff I wore on the plane, which was from cold Baltimore). But, not really any luck. No worries, I'll be okay! We were pretty hungry and knew that the World of Color dessert party we had reservations for didn't have a whole lot of savory options (and wasn't all you can eat) so we stopped off at Pym's again to share the huge pretzel and some fun drinks.

The big pre-World of Color party plans were to catch some more of the Avenger Campus live entertainment. And we totally scored at the Guardians dance party where we were totally front and center. In fact, Star Lord may have even done a little dancing with our daughter at one point.

For the Dr. Strange show, the girls were seated right in front while I was standing off to the side.

Both shows were fun and good entertainment. Of course, we were obligated to visit the most amazing of Dr. Strange's sorcery... the optical illusion!

Oh, I almost forgot our other Avengers campus character interaction. While we were waiting in line to go into the Dr. Strange area for that show, my daughter and I happened to notice someone walking around the Quinjet on the roof of the Avengers headquarters. I'm not sure if he was going to be in any other shows or anything - seems like a lot of costume work to just be sneaking around the headquarters, but certainly fun to see him up there!

Doesn't hurt that we are all huge Loki fans!! Following the Marvel-ously good time we had back in Avenger Campus, we went to get in line for our dessert party. We got there about 7pm which meant we were some of the first to pick our table for the show. Sadly, being a party of 3 our options were very limited. But we did pretty well. We then had about an hour to hang out before seating began so we just stayed in that area: doing a little more shopping, exploring that area, being shocked that people were actually riding Grizzly rapids and getting soaked when it was so cold, making friends with others who were waiting, etc.

A little after 8pm, we got seated and got our food and drinks to enjoy. Sorry the food picture not being the best quality... it was dark!!

While we waited for the show to start, I headed to a few more shops looking for a long sleeve that wasn't too obnoxious, but still didn't have any luck. And it was getting into the low 50s at this point and my t-shirt just wasn't cutting it! So, I spent most of the show with my arms pulled into my shirt. But the view was excellent and I find the World of Color show to be really an excellent one. We didn't realize that it was going to be quite different for the Holidays!

Although our original plans for the evening involved staying out until park close, we decided that between the cold and not having gotten a whole lot of sleep the night before (remember... we were driving from Chico until until about 3am), it was time to head back to the hotel and get some sleep. So we did!

brifraz · Jan 21, 2023

Before I dive into Day 2, found an extra picture that I felt obliged to share!

Yup, that's the giant pretzel at Pym's (along with the grown-up drinks that were not featured earlier). While everything at DL is overpriced (kinda the nature of the beast), it sure is one heckuva huge pretzel and for us it was a great fill-up in the time before the dessert party.

brifraz · Jan 21, 2023

Now back to your regularly scheduled Trip Report. The delays in this report cannot be blamed on bad weather, missing flight crews, or computer system breakdowns - simply a mix of how busy I have been since we got back and how rarely I have the extra time! But, it's Saturday morning, I've got the Premier League on the TV, so I'm ready to go!

It was nice to finally get a full, normal nights sleep in an actual bed (well, not quite... I slept on the fold out couch because, well, snoring). But, regardless, we all slept very soundly before our alarms got us up and ready to go for day 2 at Disneyland. Our first day had been really excellent with the exception of the cold weather. And day 2 is going to have a similar (but slightly different) situation. Everything really good and enjoyable except the weather. Wet. All day long. As you can plainly see!

Also of note - everybody in their heavy coats and I'm still just in a t-shirt... although day two would eventually be more fruitful in the search for a long sleeve.

Our first stop for the morning was Indiana Jones. I've only ever gotten to do this once and so I kinda strong-armed the girls into going on it this trip. Our daughter does NOT like Dinosaur, so at least with Indy she gets to ride the same basic attraction but with scenery that she enjoys much more. We got there a couple minutes before 8am and, even after being quite annoyed by far too many 'our party is up ahead' folks coming through the line and a party right in front of us who were bragging about knocking over little kids to get to the ride, we got in in about 15 minutes total.

Next up was a ride on the west coast version of Pirates. Definitely a better overall ride than the one we are used to, but no matter where it is, how short or long the drop is, or whatever other complaints we might have... it's a must do for our family. Although the wait ended up being a bit longer than we expected. Not sure what happened, but we were stopped for a few minutes without moving before getting into the building - which coincided nicely with the rain getting a bit heavier. But, by 8:45am, we were on our boats and ready to visit the Caribbean.

I think my look of concern was directly linked to the very wet seat that I was in!! After a quick rest stop and minute or two in some shops in New Orleans Square, it was time to pass through these gates...

And to ride one of the highest priorities for this entire trip. For those who are perhaps hoping to make a pilgrimage to Disneyland for Haunted Mansion with the Nightmare Before Christmas overlay and don't want to know anything before you go - scroll quickly. The next two posts are just going to be pictures from the queue and the ride!!

brifraz · Jan 21, 2023

brifraz · Jan 21, 2023

And while these pictures do show quite a bit, it's almost impossible to imagine the sheer volume of things that are involved in this overlay. As three big fans of both Haunted Mansion and Nightmare Before Christmas, we absolutely loved it. Even with about a 30 minute wait, as soon as we got off, we hopped right back in line and did it again. And enjoyed it just as much the second time - if not more!!

amjt660 · Jan 24, 2023

Max

brifraz · Jan 27, 2023

'Twas just a little bit after 10am when we finished our second ride through the Mansion and we were a bit hungry and perhaps feeling a slight need for some adult beverages (maybe it was the luggage frustration still hanging over us), so we checked out the wait for Oga's on the app. It was just a 10 minute wait, so we decided to venture into Batuu and take a little break at the local tavern. Not terribly exciting - since it is something we have done often in WDW - but, it was nice to visit her other location and enjoy the ACTUAL FOOD that they have (okay, just a huge pretzel, but it was good!). But, for you, loyal reader, it means it is time for some more drink pictures!

As is always the case at Oga's, we chatted with those around us and helped the party next to us who were trying to figure out what drinks to get. Our daughter's advice on the non-alcoholic choices was very well appreciated by their 3 kids. After we had our drinks and our bite to eat we got one of the highlights of the trip... I found a decent long sleeve t-shirt that I liked!!! No really good pictures of it, but in the drizzle and low 60s temps, it was greatly appreciated. Especially considering our next activity. In the interest of doing things we can't back east, we decided to go out on the canoes! And the rain had let up pretty much totally at that point, so it was nice to escape the craziness of most of Disneyland for some time out on the water (and you can kind-of see my new shirt!).

Plus... hard to believe they were in Anaheim - we saw some moose!!

After the canoes, we decided to take the train around to the front of the park. The line was a bit long, but should just be a couple full trains, right? Well, as we got over there it started to really rain - not just the light drizzle of the morning so far. It was raining enough though, that nobody was getting off the trains. And the line was long enough that we were not under the cover of the train station. After the second train came through and the line had barely moved, we bailed out and walked to the front of the part. Took a little pause to get a nice "wet in front of the castle" picture.

One last little stop before heading out - we had to see the animatronic that started it all and visit with Mr. Lincoln. Sadly, no pictures from Mr. Lincoln... and my recollection is a little sparse. Might've fallen asleep for a few minutes in there.

brifraz · Feb 4, 2023

Sorry for the somewhat lengthy delay in getting the rest of the trip report posted. The past week or so has been quite busy and I haven't had time to sit and the computer and get things together. But, it's finally time to get things back on track!

Fresh from a little nap with Mr. Lincoln, we were headed back over to California Adventure with really just one target in our sights (well... really just in the girls' sights) - a ride on the Incredicoaster. The line had consistently been a bit long all day and when we arrived to queue up, that had certainly not changed one bit. On the way over, we shopped for someplace to have a late lunch/early dinner and happened to get a 2:45 ADR for the Lamplight Lounge. It was about 1:30pm when we got to the line and needed every second of the hour plus until our lunch to get through the line.

As always, the girls greatly enjoyed the coaster and while they rode, I just wandered around the pier area for a bit and caught some live music back in the currently Encanto themed area. But, instead of taking pictures or video, I just enjoyed. Sorry! By the way, it was still chilly and was still drizzling a bit all day - not very southern California!

At 2:30pm, I headed to the Lamplight and the girls arrived about 10 minutes later. We were seated outside, but luckily they have pretty excellent heaters keeping the area nice and toasty. Also helping get things toasty were some really nice drinks!

And, some delicious food as well. The potato skins (yes, those really are potato skins), the burger and the salmon BLT.

It was all very good food - and we were quite happy to be under a roof as the rain got a bit stronger for a while during our time eating and drinking. We also liked all the little Pixar touches throughout the restaurant. We stuck around for about 2 hours just enjoying (and staying warm and dry). Then I took the girls back into the Pixar Pier area that I had been exploring earlier to check out some of the Encanto decor. And also a little Saludos Amigos as well!

All the way in the back was a delightfully decorated wall and doorway and we waited a bit for the kids with bubbles to leave so we could get some pictures, but they were just having too much fun, so here's someone else's kids!

And, while they hadn't really moved the Casa Madrigal to Disneyland, they certainly did a nice job getting some of the magic there!

We continued to wander a bit, but the wet was getting to be too much, so we looked for some indoor options for a while. So, we hit one of our long time family favorites - the Animation Academy! Back when it was at Hollywood Studios (pre-Launch Bay), we made sure to stop by at least once every visit. And twice we secured drawings from the host/artist - which are now framed in our daughter's room. This time, we got to draw Mei from Turning Red (in Panda form) at the 5:30pm seating. Heading out after that... the wet was still happening and we were very tired. What better to do than... Mickey's Philharmagic! In fact, we stayed there for two consecutive showings (as did a lot of people). I can't really say we watched or enjoyed the show twice because there was definitely some napping going on!! Luckily, but the time we got out of the theater, the drizzle had lightened up quite a bit and we could enjoy things a little more. And, I'll try to get back here a little more quickly than this time so you can enjoy the last evening of our visit to California!

brifraz · Feb 12, 2023

What an incorrigible tease I am. Again, it's a week between posts. Sorry!

So, I believe I left you on December 30th somewhere around 6:40pm. The rain had lessened a bit - still a bit wet, but much less offensive while touring. The only real target that we had for the evening was Webslingers - since I had missed it the first day and the girls had both loved it. Sadly, as we left our little nap in Philharmagic, it was down, so we had to go to plan B (and the closest attraction that we wanted to do again without a huge line). And, Monsters, Inc. had only just reopened, so it had a pretty short line - just 15 minutes in fact. Given that it tended to be about an hour most of the day, this was great. And, we had to get some fun shots of some of the things in the queue.

Gonna have to find a recipe for BLORT so I can serve it at our next party. Stuff looks awesome.

It was about 6:55pm when we got off and Webslingers was back up and running. It was already showing over an hour wait, but we were okay with that so we rushed over and jumped in line. Which moved somewhat normally for about 15 minutes. Then it stopped moving. And... yup, it was down again. And this time, they cleared the ride, the building, and the exterior queue area and weren't letting people stay in line. Kinda seemed like it was going to be down for the duration at this point. And, while this picture is from our previous ride, it definitely shows our feelings as we left Webslingers behind.

We couldn't leave without any Spiderman experience, so we got a good picture of our daughter in her new WEB shirt in front of the attraction building.

Without any other attractions that we really wanted to do, we just wandered around a bit, looked in some shops, etc. until heading over to Disneyland to get a good spot for fireworks at about 8:15pm.

Not a bad spot at all!

The sky was heavy, so the fireworks themselves were a little less than stellar. But, the overall show was still quite enjoyable and the projections looked great.

Initially, we had again planned to do a little late night touring after fireworks, but after a long, chilly, and wet day, we decided to just head back to our hotel. Our wake up call for the next morning was 3am to get a Lyft to LAX for our 5:45am flight back to Baltimore. Crossing fingers it all works out okay. But... that's for the next post!

MickeyCB · Feb 12, 2023

brifraz said:

Beautiful photo!

brifraz · Feb 12, 2023

MickeyCB said:
Beautiful photo!

I'll let @MeffysMom know! She took it (I think).

The bottom of it is also showing our greatest current Disney visit frustration - people who hold their phones/cameras above their heads to film and take pictures. We make a point of always keeping it in front of our body or in front of our face at most so as not to bother anyone behind us.

MickeyCB · Feb 12, 2023

brifraz said:
The bottom of it is also showing our greatest current Disney visit frustration - people who hold their phones/cameras above their heads to film and take pictures.

Totally agree.
At 5'1" in well soled sneakers I can't see above them at all.

Trip Report Disneyland Drive-By (it's a long story)

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