Trip Report Golden State of Mind: Our August 2017 California Adventure

11 Days
10 Nights
9 Miles walked on our busiest day
8 Months of planning
7 Days with a rental car
6 Hotels
5 Boat rides
4 Flight segments
3 Disney park days
2 East coasters
1 Unforgettable vacation​

Hello and welcome to my trip report! For those who don't know, here is the essential information:

Me (Bee): 28, opera singer/voice teacher
DW (M): 28, writer/academic administrator
We: grew up in Florida, have visited WDW many times, have been together 10+ years, have been married almost 3 years, now live in NJ just outside of NYC

Dates: August 4-14, 2017
Flights: Southwest, EWR-MDW-SMF and LAX-MDW-EWR
Transportation: Rental car, Lyft, local public transportation
Major locations: Sacramento, Napa Valley, San Francisco, Muir Woods, Sequoia National Forest, Los Angeles, Anaheim
Lodging: 6 different hotels varying from 1-3 nights in each

And here is a link to my PTR: Not our typical Disney trip

I will add the usual disclaimer about us having only smartphone cameras. I am working on uploading all my photos to a third party site which is free and allows me to easily embed them here; however, they only allow 150 uploads per day so it will take some time. All my photos are uploaded and ready to post!

The first six days (August 4-9) we toured various parts of northern and southern California. From August 10-13 we visited Disneyland, including both parks and Downtown Disney. On August 14 we flew home to New Jersey. If you'd like to skip ahead to the Disneyland part of this trip, click here. Otherwise, continue reading for the entire trip report!
 
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75disney

75disney

Well-Known Member
Having 2 girls, I didn't think we'd really like Radiator Springs Racers and Cars Land. I watched the movie Cars for the first time two days before we left. I could not have been more wrong. Cars Land was amazing. Radiator Springs Racers was one of the best Disney rides I have ever been on. It has a nice combination of storytelling, characters, and thrill. So glad I got to ride it 2x. California Screamin' was my teenager's favorite ride. We did ride it twice in a row and four times the whole trip.
 
75disney

75disney

Well-Known Member
Zipitidoda said:
@bee I've always thought it would be no big deal if I didn't make it to DisneyLand but you're making it hard to keep that opinion. I find myself wanting to look at the cost of going now. :D
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We saved 3 years and did no trips to WDW (which was really hard) to get the money together for our California trip. It was so worth it though. I want to go back so badly but I don't know if it will ever happen. Highly suggest trying to do it at least once.
 
Trisha Lynn

Trisha Lynn

Well-Known Member
Finally caught up with the TR, loving it, and also feeling homesick.

bee said:
Later the hotel sent me a survey about our stay and of course I mentioned Esmeralda's wonderful service.
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I'm so glad you did that. I try to do that whenever I can, too, but sometimes I forget.

bee said:
Mr. Mondavi apparently didn't like the inconsistent look of wine stains so he had all the red wine barrels painted with actual wine to hide the stains.
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That seems overly fastidious to me. I also wonder if the wine stain also contributes to the aging?

riverside said:
I'm with you on the windy, narrow roads. Scared to death of them plus I have a huge fear of heights.
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Back before GPS, a then-boyfriend and I hopped from the 101 to PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) heading south from Monterey after a late lunch because we thought it would be a faster, less traffic-free ride. Oh, it was, and it was also windy and dark and terrifying.

bee said:
Mexican Corn on the Cob (I know it has a Spanish name, but that's the official restaurant name).
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Elote! Whenever I make corn on the cob, I make this kind, with paprika instead of super-spicy stuff. It's so good.

bee said:
Send us all your pixie dust!
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Every bit not being used for my rehab is being flung at you. I remember being an assistant to an NYC real estate broker. It is not easy finding affordable, nice, and convenient to Manhattan these days.

bee said:
One word: OUCH. :in pain: I guess we're just getting too old for these jerky rides!
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Every time I hear someone say that, I want to go on the Matterhorn to see if it's jerkier than I remember. It's one of my favorite Disney rides. When we went, we used to lean into the turns like real bobsledders to see if we could make them go faster. *pours one out for the old Knott's Berry Farm Soapbox Racers*)

fractal said:
I think, at least in DCA, they should have a showing for Soarin' over California as well as the new one.
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Was it just our elementary school that did it, or did you have almost half a school year devoted to your state's history? When DCA was announced as being mostly about California, I was going, "Yes, yes! I know all of these things! California is an awesome state!"
 
Zipadeelady

Zipadeelady

Well-Known Member
75disney said:
We saved 3 years and did no trips to WDW (which was really hard) to get the money together for our California trip. It was so worth it though. I want to go back so badly but I don't know if it will ever happen. Highly suggest trying to do it at least once.
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I hopped on their web site to take a peak at prices. It's about what I expected. It won't be in the near future but someday I'll make it out there.
 
bee

bee

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
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