Disneyland! (Part 2)

We left our intrepid explorers in the late afternoon of their second day at the Disneyland park. Z and I were poolside, and Mom joined us for a while.

Next, we split up: Mom and Boompah went to dinner at a swanky hotel restaurant called the Napa Rose (more on that later), and Sweetie, Z and I headed back into the park for MORE FUN!! First, we went to Pirates of the Caribbean. I remembered it vaguely from childhood, but it still surprised me -- I had forgotten there is a rather rapid drop in pitch darkness. Also, I got a little disoriented. When we went in the building, it was almost dusk, and we were in there for a few minutes, but by the time we went by the restaurant inside the ride, it seemed pitch black. I asked Sweetie, "Is it that dark already?" He gave me the look and said, "It is when you're INSIDE." I knew WE had gone into a building, but I just sort of lost track of where the building began and ended, and the dining area really looked like a courtyard! (I'm not crazy: it looks like this.)

Anyway, I thought it was great fun, and Z seemed to as well. She was pretending she was a pirate, too!

Next was the Haunted Mansion, which I remembered only a tiny bit of, so it was like an all-new experience. I thought it was pretty cool -- from the little bucket chairs that you enter from a conveyor belt (which seems to heighten the sense of urgency), to the big elevator you descend in to even get there, to the projected faces on the statues... I thought it was cool how they mixed more high-tech effects with pretty low-tech stuff, and it really created a multi-textural sort of feel. And it wasn't too scary for Z. 

She had been asking for cotton candy, so Sweetie bought her some, and we sat together and ate it, and then went off for something more like a real dinner. In Adventureland was a place called Bengal Barbecue, and there we each got one skewer of something (veggies, beef, and chicken) and Sweetie and I shared a pretzel as well. I couldn't quite finish my veggies, but I got close. Then we decided to try for just ONE more ride. I had been using an app on my phone which lists wait times, and the wait time for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride was quite short, so we started heading that way. The crowds were MASSIVE, and on several pathways, Disney "cast members" were waving people in one direction to clear a way for the parade, I think. We made it, with some difficulty, all the way to Fantasyland where the ride is only to find that it was closed because of the fireworks show. At that point it was quite late (way past Z's bedtime, to the point that she was actually asking to go back to the hotel), so we started trudging back, but right as we got to the Disneyland Railroad (the last thing before the gates), the fireworks show started. And it was... really cool. Sweetie has NO interest in fireworks. If asked, he will generally complain about what a waste they are. But I love them! I have been known to climb up on a ladder in the street or on the roof of my house to get a better look at a fireworks display. Anyway, this one beats all of them, including the pretty amazing one I saw in Chicago at the Navy Pier. They had music going, and clips from the movies, and the dialogue was timed to the fireworks, so that when Gepetto wishes upon a star, a firework that looks like a shooting star flies across the sky! And when the fairies in Sleeping Beauty are arguing about whether to add a final touch of pink or blue, pink and blue bursts are going off in the sky! There was a long section from Mary Poppins, which Z is now interested in as well. She was like, "Tell me ALL about Mary Poppins," and I'm all, "Uh, she's a nanny, and she's... magic, and... she has a chimneysweep friend. Uh.... she sings a song about a spoonful of sugar..."

Wednesday was our last day. We had a character breakfast scheduled at 7:50, but we hauled ass to make it onto one more ride, taking advantage of our early admission. Sweetie and Z went for California Screamin', which was a good-looking coaster! I haven't focused on the fact that I am 8 months pregnant, and therefore incapable of going on several of the rides, but I will indulge myself for a moment: I absolutely love rides and roller coasters, and I would have gone on ANYTHING there. I'm never even nervous. I never get motion sickness. I used to beg my friends to come to the state fair with me just to ride the rides, and someone would volunteer, saying they too would ride anything without fear or sickness, and almost without fail, they'd puke at some point. Not me! Anyway, I was pretty jealous that they got to go on this one and I didn't. It did a loop-de-loop, and when it started it looked like they were shot out of a cannon! So fun! And you can tell the fun by the looks on their faces: 

(Okay, you can't tell from their faces, but look at the faces of the people behind them. 

Sheer joy, right?)

After this, we went back to the hotel for a breakfast in the Storyteller's Cafe. Boy, I'll tell you what -- they are NOT messing around with food at this joint. It was a buffet, but it was like the best buffet ever. I had eggs, hash browns, pastries, fruit, and French toast. There was a seeded wheat croissant that was wonderful -- I'd buy a dozen anytime. And throughout breakfast, we were visited by Chip (or Dale -- the difference between them became a source of confusion for me), two different bears, and a raccoon. (Secret confession time: my favorite childhood stuffed animal was a raccoon named Rocky, and I have a particular fondness for stuffed raccoons -- not real ones -- and so I was kind of really stoked to have my picture taken with him.) They even got up and played the hokey pokey. 

Back to the park! From our hotel, California Adventure was slightly easier to access, so we went there first and wound our way through the Hollywood area and Buena Vista Street. I hadn't seen any of that yet, and it's really lovely. It kind of reminded me of Palm Springs in that it looks all retro Spanish-style, but is completely fake. We saw that the line for "Soarin' Over California" wasn't that long, and some friends of Mom's had said to make sure to see that, so we did. You go through an airplane hangar, then you get in these big comfy seats, belt yourself in, and it lifts you up to watch a movie -- probably helicopter footage -- where you appear to be flying over parts of California. It's almost like a promotional tourism office film, in that it highlights our best features, but it's a pretty competent illusion, too! As soon as you pick up speed (or the movie does), they blow air at you. Then there are dips and bumps and you tilt as the camera does. Pretty cool! And it showed the ocean, Yosemite, San Francisco, Napa, the mountains, people on the American river, LA, and ended with you up close and personal with the fireworks show at Disneyland. (Hey Dad -- at one point we "flew" right over the deck of a big aircraft carrier, so we made sure to tell Z that you had worked on that kind of boat.)

Z wanted to go on Pirates again and to take Mom and Boompah, so the four of us went while Sweetie rode Indiana Jones again. Then she snookered me into going into Tarzan's Treehouse with her. Next, we went back to Fantasyland for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride (quite clever and fun, I thought), and then Sweetie and Boompah wanted to ride the Matterhorn Bobsleds. Z didn't want to, so she and Mom and I sat out and had some cold drinks. It took them quite a while, and we had made plans to meet an old high school friend of mine for lunch on Main Street. It was early, only 11:15, and neither Mom nor I could even think about eating again, so we just had iced tea and visited. 

We all met up again by about 1, but Boompah wanted to see the old Disneyland Hotel, so the remaining four of us decided to go on the Disneyland railroad. I kind of pushed for it, because I often like the experience of seeing something from up high or outside. I love taking the Monorail at the fair, because it helps you orient yourself, I think. This railroad wasn't great for that -- there were long stretches where you couldn't see much because you were in a tunnel -- but it was still fun. They even made the tunnels interesting, with random Grand Canyon exhibits or animatronic dinosaurs. And it was a nice ride. 

Mom went to the hotel while our little nuclear group went back to California Adventure. First, we got a cold slushy drink. I went and used our photo voucher to buy that awesome picture above. Then we got a couple things in that had short lines: the Golden Zephyr and the Silly Symphony Swings. We also saw some performances -- a Phineas and Ferb rock and roll party, and the green army men. We had agreed to meet Mom around 3:30 so she could take Z to see the Aladdin musical, but as 3:30 approached, Sweetie and Z wanted to try to ride the water ride once more. We got Fastpasses, but they were for 5:10 to 6:10, which meant that they started while the musical was going and ended after our dinner reservation time. So we stood and got splashed by the boats for a few minutes, then went back. 

We gave Mom the Fastpasses, not knowing whether they'd use them or if Boompah would go with Z, and then we said goodbye. Mom had made reservations for dinner at the Napa Rose for us as our 9th wedding anniversary gift (it's in a couple weeks), and was also taking Z as part of the package. So we relaxed a bit, then went to Downtown Disney to shop. I had hoped to get a souvenir for Z, maybe something unique for myself (I collect Alice in Wonderland stuff), and perhaps something for the baby, too. But honestly, once we got into the big Disney store, it was sort of overwhelming! It went on for ages, and there was no way to just go find your one character you liked -- you had to look at all the pins or all the keychains/shirts/mugs/ornaments/dolls/iPhone cases... you get the picture. There was just so much stuff I kind of panicked and walked out. When I found Sweetie, he looked a little shell-shocked, too. We ended up not getting anything. 

Our dinner was at an impeccably lovely place. It did remind me of Napa, and it continued the  theme of the Arts and Crafts style from the hotel. Our service was fantastic, too. There weren't that many vegetarian entrees, but when I made an inquiry that included "I'm a vegetarian," the waitress like, opened up a new portal of awesomeness, showing me all the things that could be made vegetarian and telling me about several options that weren't on the menu. I really try not to be special-needs about my diet and I generally just order off the menu, but she practically broke into song ("I can show you the world!"), so I decided to have this beautiful pizza with grapes, cambozola, and caramelized onions. It normally has proscuitto, but they left it off for me. It was delicious. It was also listed as a starter, so I wasn't sure it would be enough and I ordered a side of veggies. Sweetie had lamb, and we shared an appetizer of asparagus with "carrot silk" and carrot chips. It was all delicious, and unfortunately a bit too much -- I had to make him finish my veggies! But when she came back talking about dessert options, my philosophy is that it never hurts to just hear them. In this case, we both saw the first item listed and knew it was all over -- it was a Scharffen Berger chocolate pate. I am nutballs over Scharffen Berger. We shared it, and they were even nice enough to bring it on a plate that said "Happy Anniversary." 

We made one more stop in California Adventure so that Sweetie could ride the Grizzly Rapids thing, and I bought one small souvenir -- a bear for the baby. Then we went back to the hotel to meet Mom, Boompah, and Z. 

We thought hard about going back to the park, but the other group had had a late dinner, too, and we all ended up hanging out in the hotel lobby for a while, talking. Z was in a Stickley rocker watching Donald Duck cartoons, and she seemed perfectly content to go up and go to bed after a while, so that was essentially the end of our trip. Oh! It turns out that they had used the Fastpass for the water ride -- and my mom had gone with her!! My mom does NOT go on rides. But it seemed like she had fun. 

We're all home safe now. My stomach is still fairly queasy. The garden was dried out, but not dead. We had a quiet afternoon and evening resting and putting a few things away. I have some more observations, but they're not really about our experience as much, so I'll wait on those. I've really written a novel this time, sorry! 

If you couldn't tell, we had a really wonderful trip, and I hereby officially understand the magic of Disneyland, why it's called The Happiest Place on Earth, and why grown-ass adults go there over and over. Zadie probably said it best. On Tuesday, we asked her if she was having fun, and she said it was the best day of her life. Somewhat teasingly, we asked her on Wednesday if it was also the best day of her life. She answered seriously that EVERY day at Disneyland was the best day of her life. 

Hope you're all well. Take care, 

CM