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My Southern California Trip Recap

Day 7, Part 2: Disneyland Resort

After we finished with "its tough to be a bug" we retrieved Daniels stroller and walked towards Paradise Pier. Right outside the enterance to the area a large group had gathered so we stopped to see what was going on. It was the Phineas and Ferb Dance Party. And it even gets a holiday overlay. Those that read my Florida recap may recall that I love Phineas and Ferb and dispite being an adult I have the show set to record on the DVR. Since then Daniel has also taken a love to watching Phineas and Ferb as well. So I was kinda sad that they don't do Meet and Greets for them like they do in Florida at the Hollywood Studios. This little show is the only think in the resort that has the characters. Its a fun little show but not something to go out of your way to see.

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We were on the hunt today for Photopass CMs and Characters. There were many in DCA but they seemed to not be located where you would think they would be. When we came in 2008 there was always a Photopass CM taking pictures on the bridge with Paradise Pier in the background. This trip though there was never anybody there. I thought that was pretty odd as Paradise Pier is one of the most photographed areas of the park.

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Directly across the bridge there are 2 character locations though. One is for Duffy the Disney Bear but he wasn't out at this time. The other is where you can find Donald Duck and since he was one of the remaining Fab 5 characters we need to find we stopped to see him. He had a Photopass CM with him so I was able to get in on some pictures. By this point in the trip Daniel had finally started to warm up to charcters and was cute with Donald just like he was in Florida.

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There was also a Photopass CM taking pictures infront of the Paradise Pier Christmas tree. Yes we got a photo here a few nights earlier but we figured we would get some during the day too so that we could make the most out of our Photopass+.

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In the heart of Paradise Pier we found the area where the Toy Story meet and Greets are done. Its located pretty much across from the Toy Story Midway Mania ride right along the waters edge. Woody was out when we walked up so we got in line. Unlike in Hollywood Studios the charcters only come out one at a time so if you want to see them all you will have to make multipule stops. The wait to meet Woody was only about 5 minutes and Daniel loved seeing Woody while waiting in line. I loved the views you got across the Lagoon and also seeing the Screamin' Roller Coaster trains shoot past. Kiera put Daniel down again to see if he would run to Woody but he started to run away from him instead. Dispite being more warmed up to Charcters Daniel still wasn't too sure about Woody even though The Toy Story movies are the only things he watches over and over again.

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While we were in Paradise Pier I figured now would be a good time to ride California Screamin' again. Kiera took Daniel to go ride the King Triton Carousel again and I went to ask for a Single Rider card. When I asked though the CM instead handed me a Fastpass card saying a guy just gave it to him saying he wasn't gonna use it. So I took it and entered the Fastpass line. Although on hindsight I think Single Rider would have been quicker. Even though both sides of the load station were in use the line still backed up, across, and down the stairs. Eventually though I boarded the train and was on my way. We pulled up for the launch and the countdown began. But at 1 nothing happened. We just sat there. Did the ride break down? I didn't have to wait long to find out though as about 10 seconds later the countdown started and away we went. The ride was amazing once again. I don't know what it is about this coaster but it is so good. I could ride it all day long.

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Upon exiting I loaded my ride photo to our Photopass+ then found where Kiera and Daniel were waiting for me. It was Kieras turn to ride next and this time she did get a Single Rider card. Single rider is done kinda odd on Screamin as you get the card then walk to a completly area to wait. I guess the area is the same that is for those in Wheelchairs. You then wait on the load plateform before being directed to a train. Kiera was on much quicker then I was so Daniel and I waited by the Lagoon to see her launch.

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While Kiera was on the ride I noticed over at the Toy Story meet and greet that Jessie was now out. We originally didn't plan to meet Jessie but I figured why not. Daniel and I went and got in line (which was much shorter then Woody's) and Kiera rejoined us right before it was our turn. Daniel had about the same reaction to Jessie as he had with Woody. He was excited but not nearly as much as we thought he would be. We still wanted to see Buzz though and found out that he would be the next one coming out as they rotate ever 30 minutes.

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By this point in the day we were getting hungry for some Lunch. So with time to kill any ways until Buzz would be out we decided to go find something to eat. We made our way thru the rest of the Pier to the Paradise Garden Dinning area. We checked out what it had to offer. Mostly Pizza, Pasta, and Salad offerings and none of that really sounded too great to me. So we left the area and continued on thru the pier.

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We passed by the Goofy's Sky School attraction that we skipped this time. The ride use to be known as Muhalland Madness and is just your typical run of the meal Wild Mouse coaster. Although the themeing is better since Goofy moved in the ride still wasn't that great. Honestly our Wild Mouse Coaster back home is better so I didn't have a desire to ride. Phenias and Ferb also cruised past while we were walking down the Pier.

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Not far from Goofy's Sky School I found what I wanted for lunch. Corn Dog Castle. I had heard and read good things about this place and I just love Corn Dogs anyways so I figured I would give it a shot. I decided on the Hot Link Corn Dog. Before eating it though we made our way back to the Paradise Gardens where there was a Greek Salad that Kiera was interested in trying. We found a spot to sit and eat and enjoyed the area. There was a band playing and it wasn't packed at all. You wouldn't believe you were in a packed theme park. The Corn Dog was very good and I was happy with my choice. Its something I would have again. Kiera also enjoyed her salad.

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Lunch took longer then we thought and we were almost near the time when Buzz Lightyear would no longer be out. So we quickly hurried back across Paradise Pier in hopes that he woud still be there. Luckly for us he was. But would we get thru the line quickly? It was now as long as it was when we meet Woody. But luck was on our side. We made it before Buzz left. The line moved much faster this time. Daniel actually got excited to see Buzz this time and was happy to see him. It was really cute. I guess that means Buzz must be his favorite.

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After meeting Buzz we finished all we wanted to do in Paradise Pier. We still had more attractions that we wanted to see that we didn't earlier in the week so we started to make our way towards Hollywoodland. On our way out though we noticed that Duffy was now out. So we had to stop to see him as well. Now I know that not many people are fans of Duffy but we bought Daniel a Duffy Bear before he was born and he loves it. So he gets really excited seeing the character. We also loved that Duffy was dressed in Santa clothing.

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Since we still had time to kill before the show started we went back to Buena Vista Street to kill the time. Like Cars Land, Buena Vista Street isn't lacking in Photopass CM's so thats what we would do to kill the time. There was a photographer by the Fountain in front of the Carthey Circle theater, by the Buena Vista Street Sign, Walt statue, and 3 around the DCA Christmas Tree. To make the most of our Photopass+ we stopped and took photos at all of them. I could sit and spend much time in Buena Vista street alone. Its so well detailed and theres just something so special about it.

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Buena Vista Street is also where you will be able to meet Santa Claus. And what better place then in the Elias and Company Department Store. Just like you would back in the 30's. When we arrived though Santa was on a break. Luckly it was a short one though and within 5 minutes he was back. In addition to Santa he also had his elf helping him. And then the Buena Vista Street Carolers came in. It was pretty fun seeing all of this in the environment we were in. This was now the 5th Santa Daniel had seen this winter but he still hadn't warmed up to him. He wanted down the second we sat next to him. Of course he loved the candy cane the elf gave him though.

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The attraction we were waiting for was one that we were only doing for Daniels sake. It was Disney Jr. Live on Stage. Daniel spends almost each morning watching Disney Jr. and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Jake and the Neverland Pirates are 2 of his favorite shows. So we knew we had to take him to see the show. When we finished with Santa the show was finally open and seating guests. Kiera took Daniel in while I quickly ran down to the Tower of Terror to get us some Fastpasses that we could use later in the day.

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Hollywoodland is an area of the park that I do think is under rated. Yes there is a lack of attractions in the land. And yes the backlot area does hurt the area especially with all the Mad T Party stuff set up, and yes Monsters Inc. makes no sense whatsoever in the area. But the main street area I think works great. So great that it should have been designed as the original entry area to the park much like Hollywood Studios in Florida. I hope Disney works on this area next. Put another great ride in, and update the backlot area and it will be great.

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I made it into Disney Jr. Live a few minutes before the show started. I found Kiera and Daniel sitting on the ground and as soon as the doors closed the show began. Know that this show is catered specifically towards toddlers so unless you have children fitting that demographic you can skip this show. The show is done thru puppetry and is actually kinda cute for what it is. It starts out with the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse gang as they are gonna plan a birthday party for Minnie. However they need certain items for the party and thats where the other shows come in to play. After Mickey we next go to Handy Mandy. This is a show that Daniel has never seen before but he actually seemed to really like it. I mean whats not to love when your a toddler and theres music and fun characters on stage.

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Next up was the Little Einsteins. This is a show that Daniel watches and enjoys and got excited to see. He clapped and laughed and danced. It was way cute. The final section of the show is Jake and the neverland pirates and Daniel really loved this. Almost as much as Mickey and the gang. The show concludes back with Mickey and his friends as they throw the party. Although the show is super simple and for kids it was another one thats worth it after you see your childs reaction. Next to World of Color I don't think there was anything else that Daniel enjoyed more then he did the Disney Jr. show. Totally worth it to see his reactions.

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As we exited the show we noticed that Chip and Dale were out meeting guests dressed in there 1930's attire. The line wasn't long so we figured what the heck and got in line. Daniel LOVED them. This was the best character interaction he seemed to have the entire trip.

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We had only one attraction left that we planned to do in DCA before heading over to Disneyland. When DCA originally opened it had one stand out attraction that was a home run hit. That ride has sense been cloaned at Epcot and is consistantly the busiest and most packed attraction in the entire WDW Resort. That ride is Soarin Over California. And in DCA the ride actually makes perfect sense. The ride sits in an area called Condor Flats which is themed as a desert airfield. The Soarin Hanger is front and center and themed as such. The best part of the California version is that unlike in Epcot the wait is horrendous. When we walked up a 10 minute wait was all that was posted.

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I planned to get a Single Rider card for the ride but was advised by the CM that Standby would be just as quick. The que still isn't themed too much but its significantly better then how the Epcot versions line is themed. Theres a bunch of aviation themed pictures and models all thruout the hanger before you devided to whichever theater your going in to. The ride itself is exactly the same on both coasts. Which is pretty sad for Epcot. Its bad enough that the film is all based on locations in the state of California. But even the Epcot version ends at Disneyland. Florida really needs a new ride film that works better in Florida. And don't even get me started on the conditions of the 2 rides. The DCA version is in much better shape. The film looked to be in better condition and the screen wasn't dirty like it is in Florida. Although in my Opinion I still think Soarin is a pretty over rated ride and not worth the waits it gets in Epcot, its still something that should be a must ride not matter what coast your on. The ride is just set up and overall better in California.

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While I rode Soarin, Kiera took Daniel to ride the Little Mermaid ride again which he just loves. With now wait on that ride though she would be waiting for me back and Soarin to finish. When I was done it was now her turn to ride. The line had grown since I went in so she actually tried using Single Rider and entered the Fastpass line with the Single Rider card where she would wait until someone needed a single rider. While waiting for her I was gonna take Daniel to ride Monsters Inc again. But decided instead to walk around some of the areas we I hadn't been to yet like the rest of Condor Flats.

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I agree completely with the Soarin' criticism! It really should at least have a different film here in Orlando. And how crazy it is to hear a 10 minute wait for Soarin'! :lol:

I take it you didn't tell Woody, Jessie or Buzz that "Andy's coming!" :p I love Toy Story! I remember getting a VHS :)rofl:) of the first film for one of my birthdays many, many years ago.

Thanks for another great report and pics! I feel like I'm there with you guys :thumbs:
 
Day 7, Part 3: Disneyland Resort

Well if you havn't been to DCA before Condor Flats is very small. Infact it wasn't even its own land until the parks relaunch. Before that it was just a sub land of the Golden State land of the park that no longer exists. So I took Daniel and walked around the Grizzley Peak area as well. The signature ride in this area is the Grizzley River Run. A Rapid ride that takes you up and around the Grizzley Peak Mountain. I actually believe Grizzley River Run is a copy of Kali River Rapids at Disney's Animal Kingdom but features an additional drop. I wouldn't know though as I never got the chance to ride Kali River Rapids when in the Animal Kingdom.






We didn't ride Grizzly River run on this trip but it is a fun ride if you like Rapid type Rides. I don't think it was as good as Popeye at Islands of Adventure but it has the 2nd spot in my opinion. When warm i'm sure the ride would provide a nice cool down. Theres also a trail that runs up and around the attraction that we didn't see last time we were here in 2008 so thats where Daniel and I walked. It was calm and quite and felt like you were in the middle of a forest somewhere. This trail would be a great get away from the crowds if you ever needed to get away.






Although nothing major was changed in Grizzley Peak for the DCA remodel they did make a few changes. Gone was the extreme sport theme past old buildings on Grizzly River run and in its place was a restored more vintage look to the buildings and attraction. On the Redwood Creek Challange Trail Brother Bear was vacated and Russle and Dug from UP took over the play area. But that was about it. This area was already the best area in DCA before the remodel so it didn't nead much help anyways. As you may recall the Fastpass Distribution area for the World of Color show is located next to the Grizzley River Run Fastpass area. I didn't know if we'd be back in DCA or not but I pulled Fastpasses for a World of Color show anyways. I was still able to get them for the earlier show but in the Yellow section.





I returned to Condor Flats where Kiera still hadn't finished on Soarin'. I looked around the Fly n' buy and thought it was cool that there was an old Salt Flat racer in there. Eventually Kiera finally came out of the Soarin Hanger and we had finally finished everything we wanted to see in DCA. We still had Fastpasses that we could use for Radiator Springs Racers and also the Tower of Terror but wanting to ride RSR when it was dark I figured we would use both sets of fastpasses later in the evening since Fastpass return times at this point were not yet inforced.





We walked down Buena Vista Street and towards the parks exit to head over to Disneyland. But first we made a stop at guest services to get Daniel a First Visit Badge. He had one from when we went to Walt Disney World earlier in the year so we had to get a badge for the Disneyland Resort as well. Especially since he will likely never go to both US Disney resorts within 1 calender year again.









Our day wasn't even half way over yet when we entered Disneylands gates. But as you can see in the pictures the blue in the sky was gone and it had become overcast. We hoped that this didn't mean rain was gonna roll in like forecasted but we wouldn't know until it actually started or not. Right inside the Gate we founded the final Fab 5 character that we needed to find. Pluto. We were suprised though that Pluto didn't have a photopass photographer. Still Daniel really liked him and kept trying to grab his wiskers like he did in WDW.





Main Street was already pretty packed and it would only get worse as Southern California schools were getting out and the Parade starting within the hour. Infact many people were already staking out spots for the parade as we passed them walking down Main Street. Of course we were also still on the hunt for Photopass People and were finally able to get a photo in front of the Disneyland Christmas Tree. We didn't find any more photographers though until we got to the hub.





One really cool thing I found out on this trip was at the Photo Center on Main Street. By this point in the day my main camera was already dying. And the day wasn't even half way thru yet. I read online the night before that if you drop your camera battery off at the photo center they will charge your battery for free. So I decided to give this a shot. We stopped in the photo center on Main Street and I asked if they would charge it. Sure enough they did. It was great. Just make sure you take your charger to the park with you and your batteries can be recharged free of charge.






In the hub there were a bunch of photopass photographers. Although there were many possitioned around in front of the Castle there was only one that was in front of the Partners Statue. As we waited we almost weren't even sure if he was a public photopass person. The couple he was doing photos of at the time seemed like they were taking engagement photos and he was giving them advice and tips on how to pose for those types of photos. We serioulsy started to think the was a private photographer for them. But turns out he wasn't and it was soon our turn. We quickly found a photographer in front of the castle as well. It makes me sad though that we never were able to get a photo in front of the castle after Dark.







After we were done with the photographers we walked over to Tomorrowland so that we could pick up where we had left off a couple nights earlier. If you recall we were in line for Buzz Lightyears Astro Blasters when we realized the Fireworks started sooner then we thought. So we vacated the line never actually riding that night. So thats where we would be picking up. The wait was actually shorter now then it was that night we were waiting in line and only took about 10 minutes before we were in the building and boarding the ride.





The ride is pretty much the same as the Space Ranger Spin ride in Florida. This Omnimover Dark Ride is interactive as your helping Buzz Lightyear stop the Evil Emperor Zurg. The big difference here though is that the blasters aren't mounted to the vehicle like it is in Florida so you have more freedom to shoot where you want. The ride is a lot of fun and should be seen at least once. Although we think that Toy Story Mania is the better shooter ride of the two I thought the Disneyland Version of Buzz is better then the Magic Kingdoms version. Daniel really liked the ride being a Toy Story fan and although it was close Kiera once again beat me. That means she has never lost at ether Buzz or Toy Story in the California Parks where I have never lost at Buzz, Toy Story, and even Men in Black in the Florida Parks.





One our must do's today was to see the Christmas Fantasy parade. Do the Candlelight processional taking place nightly this year the parade ran much earlier in the day. And we were about 20 minutes away from the final parade taking place. We walked around further in to Tomorrowland and I stopped and grabbed a Fastpass to use on Star Tours later in the day. We rounded the Tomorrowland Terrece and headed towards the Matterhorn. Knowing Main Street would be rediculously packed for the parade we figured we'd find a better spot up here. And sure enough we did right next to the Matterhorn.



As we waited for the parade to start the high school bands came marching past. I don't recall this happening in 2008 but i'm sure thats because we watched the parade at night back then. There were 3 high schools that came by before the actual parade started. This was also the only time we ever put Daniels Mouse Ears on. Daniel doesn't like to wear hats so he has never really worn the hat we bought him at WDW earlier in the year. It didn't stay on long. lol.






Finally the music for the parade kicked on over the speakers and the parade was making its way towards us. A Christmas Fantasy Parade obviously only runs for the Holiday season. All of the floats and characters in the parade are themed in holiday outfits and decor and the parade has a few different segments. Each segment has a book at the beginning so it obviously is telling a story. I'm just not sure what the story is. The first portion featured Duffy, Donald and Daisy Duck, and also Mrs. Claus.






The next segment is brought in with Winnie the Pooh and Tigger crusing around on there sleds. Mickey and Minnie Mouse are Ice Skating on a pond while poor Eeyor brings up the rear walking with his wrecked sled.










Next up is a Gingerbread type Display with Goofy and his Son Max. This portion goes to show how old this parade is. I'm not sure many kids know who Max is today.





Then comes the Princesses. The Evil Step Mother from Cinderella and the Step Sisters start the segment before the Princesses come in Dancing with there Prince's.






The next and last part features toys and is Started out with Chip and Dale. Then comes floats with Woody, Pinocchio and Geppeto, and Buzz Lightyear who make way for the final float of the parade. Led in with 8 raindeer. The float features Santa Claus and is the ending to the parade.









You can't go to Disneyland and Not see a parade. Same goes for the Magic Kingdom in Florida. In my opinion its part of the Disney experiance. I can't compare the Christmas Fantasy parade though to any of Disneylands other parades though since i've only seen this parade on my last 2 visits to the resort. I think the parade is good for what it is and the music is great. Its a fun festive parade that gets you in the Christmas spirit. And Daniel really enjoyed it.





After the Parade you could really start to feel how much heavier the crowds were getting. With school out for the day and the start of a weekend many locals were starting to arrive. The park was getting crowded quickly. To add to it the Sky was getting Darker constantly starting to tease a rainfall at any moment and the temperature was starting to drop. Daniel quickly fell asleep for a nap in his stroller after the Parade so we headed towards Splash Mountain so Kiera could ride it since she didn't a few nights earlier when I rode it. But first we made a stop in Frontierland where I pulled a Fastpass for Big Thunder Mountain to use later.






The crowds were really bad as we walked by New Orleans Square. The Haunted Mansion had a 1 hour wait time posted. The longest we'd seen the entire trip. We managed to push our way thru though to a empty Splash Mountain. Instead of walking the main line though Kiera opted to do the Shorter Single Rider Line located near the attractions exit and basically walked right on to the ride.






Had Daniel not been asleep I would have taken him on the Winnie the Pooh ride again while we waited. But since He was asleep and not wanting to disturb him I did the next best thing. We went to the Pooh and Friends meet and Greet. There was a short wait and first up to meet was Tigger. He was great with Daniel and the interaction was really cute as he acted to be very quite with the Sleeping Toddler and gave him kisses.





Next up was old Eeyor who was also very cute with Daniel. It was funny how well these characters reacted to a sleeping child.




The Last character was Winnie the Pooh and he was the only one of the 3 that actually had a photopass photographer with him. He also was very cute with Daniel Sleeping.



Kiera still wasn't done on Splash when we finished with the Pooh meet and greet. And we finished right in time as when we exited with Winnine the Pooh, Rabbit and Piglet came out to switch with Tigger and Eeyor. Brer Fox who is from Splash Mountain and song of the south also came out behind Rabbit and Piglet and it was very funny to watch the interation between all of them as Brer Fox was chasing and teasing Rabbit and Piglet. I wish I had the video camera out as it was pretty funny to see.





We waited only a short time longer until Kiera was finished on Splash Mountain. When she exited the ride we loaded her ride photo and then we left Critter Country. As you may know Splash Mountain is my favorite Disney ride so why didn't I ride it again at this time? Well I figured I would try to ride it again late at night. I wanted to try to get a log to myself with nobody else in it so I figured I would try late at night. I hoped it would be something I would get back to as the night ride I had on it a few nights earlier was one of the best i've had.


 
Sorry for the late updates everyone. But I'm finally back. The last month consumed me as I prepared (and pulled off) the largest Automotive event in Utah then right after We went on another vacation to Charleston and Myrtle Beach South Carolina (trip report to come after this one is complete). So sorry but Now I should be able to get this thing finished up. With that said on with the report.

Day 7, Part 4: Disneyland Resort

As we walked out of Critter Country and towards New Orleans square much to our dismay the dark sky's started to open up and some sprinkling of rain had started to come down. It wasn't too bad though and at the time it was still barable. New Orleans square was very packed. The most packed I had seen any place in the parks this whole trip. It was obvious now that the locals were piling into the parks for an evening of fun.





We managed to push our way thru the crowds though and into a still packed and tight Adventureland. We came to Adventureland cause I really wanted to get another ride in on the Indiana Jones Adventure. The wait posted was over an hour but since it was just me and Kiera today I would use the Single Rider line. Now i've gone thru many single rider lines between the Universal and Disney parks. But I have to say that the Single Rider line for Indy was the most odd and confusing I had ever seen. You enter the Single Rider line by actually walking thru the attractions exit the majority of the way. All the way up until you get to the film room. Here you are stopped by a CM as the Single rider line will cross over the regular line. There were quite a few people in front of me at this point and I started to think the Single Rider line would still be a 30 minute wait.




Finally though traffic was stopped and we all were allowed to continue on until the line reformed waiting for the elevator to cross over to the load platform. Then it was another wait for the 2nd elevator to go back down. I told you there were a ton of people in this line but I guess its also the line for those guests needing assistance as when we got off the elevator we were devided out and there ended up only being 5 of us in the single rider waiting area. In total by the time I was loaded onto a ride vehicle I had waited 12 minutes in line. The ride was great as always and with its referb just completed a week earlier almost all of the effects were working. All except the issue I had earlier in the week where it seemed the lighting on the boulder was off and not working right. Although the boulder was rolling.



As I made the long walk back and exited the ride I found Kiera and Daniel waiting in one of the nearby shops. The rain picked up more while I was on Indy so they went to find cover. The rain was back to a light sprinkle though when I returned. I asked Kiera if she wanted to ride Indy as well but she didn't want to. So we went back to New Orleans square to walk thru it again with the Christmas Lights turned on and to get some photos.






Remember earlier I mentioned I grabbed a Fastpass for Thunder Mountain? Well thats where we would be heading next. The stand by line was much longer then it was earlier in the week so this time I made certain that I remembered to grab a Rider Swap Card before boarding the ride. I went first and as I waited in line the sky once again opened up and it started to rain harder. The ride was still opperating though and so I got the Rider Swap Card, boarded the train, and away I went on this wild train ride. In the rain. Now I've rode a lot of roller coasters in my day. I think my coaster count is up to around 45 now. But I don't recall ever riding any in the rain like I did on Thunder Mountain this night. The experiance was pretty fun and unique. I mean first of all Thurnder Mountain is a great ride as is but riding it after nightfall makes it even better. But then add the rain it was way fun. Luckly the rain wasn't coming down hard enough to hurt as you raced down the track but it still tingled. As I got off I found Kiera and Daniel hiding beneath a tree. I gave Kiera the rider swap and away she went and also had a ride in the rain.





After our wet rides we walked down Big Thunder Trail and into Fantasyland which was packed with people. We were making our way to "its a small world" to see if we could take cover from the rain on that ride. Well everyone else had that idea too as the ride had its extended que set up with an hour wait posted. Needless to say we didn't ride. We were also dissapointed to find that there were still not photopass photographers out in front like there was in 2008. I don't know if there ever was or if they dissapeared during the rain.






With it cold, the rain coming down, no photopass photographers anywhere (even the castle ones were gone), and Disneyland Park getting very packed we decided it was time to leave the park and hopefully find smaller crowds over in DCA. We stopped by Main Street Photo to pick up my now charged batter for our newer, nicer camera and then made our way down Main Street to the parks exit. There were many people also leaving the park as I'm sure they didn't want to deal with the rain. The Candlelight Processional area was empty as the rain cancelled all the performances that evening.



But not everyone was leaving the parks to go back to there hotels. Many of them had the same Idea we did and were going to DCA. The lines to get in were long and it figures that after waiting out the lines they would open 2 more turnstyles right as we were entering the park.



We knew once we were on Buena Vista street that there were a few things we wanted to do. We needed to find something to eat for Dinner and we wanted to get out of the rain for a little bit. After looking over the map and the touringplans.com app we decided to give the Fiddler Fifer and Practical Cafe. This is a counter service location that you can find at the end of Buena Vista Street. But its better known as being the first restaurant in a Disney park to get a Starbucks location. It was nice to walk indoors and get out of the the rain and cold for a little bit. Unfortunatly though everyone else had the same idea. Especially since it was during Dinner hours anyways. The place was packed. Still we got in line and waited it out. It actually seemed like most people were getting a warm Starbucks Coffee to drink and warm up to. Still the line dragged but we were finally able to order. I decided to get the Roast Beef and Cheddar and Kiera got the Chicken Tortilla soup to warm herself up. We also got Daniel a Milk as it was about time for another bottle. The food was actually really good and even now I still find myself craving that Sandwich as it was extremely good. We were also shocked to see the Starbucks prices no more expensive then there normal locations. This is a place we would eat at again.






As we walked out of the cafe and back on to Buena Vista street it was a relief to see that the rain had let up somewhat and wasn't too bad anymore. Even the Photopass Photographers were back out now with there cameras covered in ponchos. We got some night time photos with the Carthey Circle Theater and then continued onwards into the park towards Carsland.




Daniel was starting to get a little fussy not only being cramped up in his stroller but having to be in the plastic poncho bubble we rigged around the stroller as well. Since all the regular spots where we could let him out and run around and play were soaking wet we decided to go to the Baby Center instead. In DCA the Baby Center is located almost in the middle of the park in the Pacific Warf Area. Its pretty much right on the border of Carsland as well and directly next to the Gheradeli location of the park. Since it was right next to Gheradeli we decided to stop in and take a look around first. It was nice to get a free Pepperment Chocolate square as we entered. The store is really cool and watch the San Fransisco animation on the wall for some cool effects. We left empty handed though.




Since the rain had stopped now and while Daniel was out and playing in the Baby Center I figured now would be a good time to use the Radiator Springs Fastpasses that we got earlier in the day. I wanted to take a night ride on the attraction and thats why I pulled the Fastpasses in the first place. Our return time was at 1:45pm but since Disney wasn't enforcing Fastpass Return Times yet we could use them any time. I left Kiera and Danny at the Baby Care Center and walked down Route 66 towards the Racers. Once again Carsland is incredible and breathtaking after nightfall. The place is great during the day. But its even more incredible after nightfall once all of the neon lights come on. And something about the wet ground made it even better. I took this time to walk thru the Doc Hudsen Hospital portion of Flo's (they are connected) since I didn't earlier and this is the where you can see the Piston Cups he won back in the 50's.










There was something I had forgotten though that I remembered as I strolled down Route 66. Radiator Springs Racers already seems to have problems as it is. But it really has issues whenever theres a little bit of rain fall. And we have had a lot of rain so far tonight. Sure enough at the intersection of Route 66 and Cross St. there were CM's letting people know that the Racers were down and they had no ETA on when they would be running again. Infact they had even cleared out all of the que so nobody was even waiting anymore. My hopes of ridding again were quickly going out the window. Since I wouldn't be riding RSR I walked down Cross Street instead towards the Pacific Warf to get some night photos of the Cadillac Mountain Range which is always an amazing site. It was weird though hearing silence instead of the Racers racing by.








The Pacific Warf area is just a large area for Counter Service food. But the place was practically a ghost town since all of the seating is outside and with the cold and wet conditions i'm sure 90% of people went to indoor locations to find food. I made my way back to the Baby Care Center where Daniel was having a blast running around and climbing on chairs. I told Kiera that RSR was down and instead we should go use the other Fastpasses that I pulled earlier in the day. We cut down thru Carsland, Past the Luigi Tires which were still running in the light rain (that could be an interesting ride) and into Bugsland. Of course we were just walking thru Bugsland though as our destination was in Hollywoodland. We were heading for the Tower of Terror.






As you recalled I also pulled Fastpasses for the Tower of Terror earlier in the day that we hadn't used yet. As I walked toward the Fastpass entrance for the attraction Kiera took Daniel further into Hollywoodland to go to the Animation building to go see Turtle Talk with Crush. This was the first time I had encountered any sort of issue using a Fastpass late as when I handed it to the CM he told me that since it was expired he really shouldn't let me use it. But then he said that he will let it go for now but just know that starting at the beginning of the year they would start enforceing the return time. I'm glad I got to go thru but there was only a half truth to what he said. It had been reported for months that Tower of Terror CM's were saying that. Always starting at the beginning of the following month. I guess they finally got it right though once they did start enforcing the return time.



I walked right into the Lobby of the abandoned hotel and strait into the preshow room with no wait. But the boiler room was a different question. The wait was pretty much backed all the way up the door. And unlike earlier in the week they had both levels open and in use. I waited probably 15 minutes in the Boiler room before I was finally boarding the elevator for my trip to the Twilight Zone. This ride is great and this was the first time I rode the attraction (on ether coast) after complete nightfall. It was very fun and added to the erieness to the ride. Of course the Florida version is much better but still don't miss out on it. On my way out of the ride I stopped to load my photo to the photopass+ card. But I didn't just load mine. I was also able to load my cousin and her families photo from a few days earlier as well.





I meet up with Kiera in the lobby of the Animation Building. Kiera said that Daniel started to act up a bit during Turtle Talk as he just wanted to run around so they ended up leaving the show early so that he could just run around in the large Animation lobby. We let Danny run around for a little bit and then we exited the building so that Kiera could go take her ride on the Tower of Terror. Interestingly though nobody told her anything about using the Fastpass late.





While Kiera rode the Tower of Terror I took Daniel to walk thru the Mad T Party Dance Party thing. Disney started doing these Night time partys to keep people entertained until World of Color started but this temporary event turned into a big success so Disney continued doing them. This is the 3rd version of the party and being a big Tron fan I was dissapointed to see ElecTRONica replaced as I never got to see it. Still I was interested to see how this party would be as the infastructure really is out of place and in the way during the day time.





I thought the environment was actually pretty cool. All of the lights and props and decor works well at night and its a very fun atmosphere. When I walked into the area the live band was playing some Christmas songs up on the stage and they were even dressed as if they were characters from Alice in Wonderland. One thing though that was very distinct smelling was the Alcohol. Theres only one other time I had smelt Alcohol in the air that badly before in a Theme Park and that was during Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Florida.





You may not notice it during the nightime (its even kinda hard to notice during the day time too) but there still a ride open back here in the Hollywoodland backlot even when the Mad T Party is going on. It is Monsters Inc and a ride that Daniel just loved earlier in the week. Really nobody notices it during the Dance Party as when Daniel and I entered the line we were the only people we saw in the whole line. There was nobody else. We walked strait on to the ride. It was fun and Daniel had a blast. We could have probably rode this thing 3 times strait if we weren't needing to meet back up with Kiera soon.




As part of the Dance Party they also had a building called the Mad Arcade open. Inside were a bunch of old Video Games that i'm sure went over better when it was Flynns Arcade during ElecTRONica. If you have a buck to spare though cash it in for some of the tokens. They are custom made for the arcade and are pretty cool to keep as a souvanier.




We soon Meet up with Kiera after her ride and were ready to leave Hollywoodland. But she still hadn't been in the Mad T Party area so we walked back thru there before leaving. The live band wasn't playing anymore but there was this weird bendy thing doing some sort of show on a different stage. It was oddly cool to see. After walking thru the area we exited Hollywoodland and started making our way back to Carsland one last time.











Since we would soon be leaving DCA for good to finish our night at Disneyland we stopped back in to Carsland to get a few things before leaving. One of things I wanted was a Cone Cup from the Cozy Cone so thats where we headed first. I mentioned earlier that we tried the Reds Apple Freeze drink and wasn't too impressed with it. Well its not the only Special Drink that was created for Carsland so I was excited to try something else and to get it in the cone cup. Well I hate to break it but you can't get any of the Special Drinks in the Cone Cup. You can only get regular soda and thats it. So I ended up paying $9 for a soda. Disney really missed the mark on this one as I think the specialty drinks should be marketed with the special cup. Oh well though. I decided to get the Christmas Version instead of the regular one.




As we were walking thru Carsland we figured we might as well check if RSR was back up yet. And we were in luck. IT WAS RUNNING. And it had just barely reopened. The standby was less then 30 minutes which was the shortest we had seen it. We wouldn't need to do the Standby though as we still had our Fastpasses from earlier to use. Since I went on the Tower of Terror first I let Kiera go first on the Racers. While Kiera went to ride I took Daniel with me to look around the shops to see if there was any last items I wanted to pick up. We spent most of the time looking around Ramone's and Daniel really thought the Tire Hats were really cool. He actually loved and wanted to play with a lot of the Cars merchandise.







Kiera soon returned from her ride and it was my turn. I took my fastpass and entered the line and walked strait to the merge point with no wait. But then I started feeling drops of water hit my head. The rain started again. And now I was scared as I knew what happened earlier in the day to this ride when the rain started to come down. Dispite the rain starting though and it getting harder the line didn't slow down. The ride was still running. And finally after about 10 minutes I was loading into a car to start my Night ride on Radiator Springs Racers in the rain. This ride is incredible at night. I can't recommend it enough to make sure you get on this thing after dark. I mean the ride is conistant and makes since as its dark outside and all of the indoor scenes are at night time as well. The Rain may have been coming down but everything in this ride was working perfectly this time. None of the problems that I experianced earlier this morning were present. The ride worked great. My car once again went into Romans to get repainted before our big race. A race which is amazing in the dark as you race past the lite up mountains. Although I struck out on all 3 rides and was never in a winning car.





Since we were able to get our final rides on Radiator Springs Racers we missed out on some of the other things we wanted to do. We wouldn't end up seeing World of Color again even though I pulled Fastpasses for it. We also would miss the first showing of Fantasmic over in Disneyland. The rain returning wasn't helping much ether. We now walked down Route 66 one last time as we were about to return to Disneyland to finish our night. We stopped in the shops along the way and ended up getting a Postcard from Radiator Springs Cureios.






The rain was coming down and the ground was soaked and Kiera was cold so before making the walk back to Disneyland we stopped back over at Gheradeli's to get a Hot Chocolate. We also got some Chocolate Squares again. The Hot Chocolate was very good and diffenitly hit the spot on this cold, wet night.




We walked down Buena Vista Street one last time. Hearing the Old Christmas Music playing thru the area, seeing the tree and all the stores lite up with Christmas Lights, and seeing the exciting Displays in the store fronts. The new DCA is an amazing Park and finally worthy of the Disney name. The little park that could has blossumed into a Disney Park so good that only Disneyland itself is better then it in my opinion. Good times were had with our time in the park and I look forward to when we get to return again.

 
Day 7, Part 5: Disneyland Resort

As we left DCA we were in a rush to get back to Disneyland. As you recall we originally planned our final day at Disney to be on Thursday. However one of the reasons we changed it to Friday was so we could see Fantasmic! It was one of our favorite shows from Walt Disney World and hearing the Original Disneyland version was better made it something we really wanted to see. We stayed in DCA longer then we originally planned though getting our late rides on Radiator Springs Racers and already missed the first showing of Fantasmic that was scheduled at 9pm. We were now rushing to make the 10:30pm showing and we had 20 minutes to get there. That of course was if the show hadn't been cancelled with the rain coming down.

When we reentered Disneyland Park I asked the CM's at the gate if they had heard if Fantasmic had been cancelled or not. Luckly for us they said the show was still going to happen. We entered a not too packed Main Street as the majority of guests had already left the parks to avoid the rainfall. Since we had a few minutes to spare until the show started we stopped and got some more photopass pictures with the Christmas tree as the photographers were out in the rain still. This happened to be the only time we ever saw a photopass Photographer out in front of the castle after nightfall. Of course though it was a time where we didn't have any more time to stop so that we could make showtime. We figured we would hit it up after the show.





As we approched the Rivers of a America though we were in for a suprise. There was music coming from the river. The Mist Screens were on and images were projected on to them. I though to myself this must be some sort of pre show or something. I mean it was only 10:23 (according to my time stamp). The show wasn't even suppose to start for another 7 minutes. That though quickly went away though as the Sailing Ship Columbia came around the bend with Peter Pan and Hook battling it out. This scene is not part of the Florida version of the show but its something people really enjoy in California. It wasn't as excited as I thought it would be though but I assume thats because they weren't swinging around like they normally would do the rain.




We found a spot close to the shore to watch the rest of the show as I tried to figure out why the show started already. Maybe it was the first show that got delayed. Maybe the cancelled the first show all together and just did one show earlier. I never knew the exact reason but it was sad to have missed the first part of the show. From this point the show was pretty similar to that in Florida. Of course though the viewing wasn't as good and there isn't a mountain. However It seemed like everything was much more in your face and up close then it got in Florida.





The big Climax of the show where Mickey faces off with the Dragon was much better in California though. Gone is the cheap and crappy looking puppet dragon and in its place is a full Animatronic that rises from nowhere for the battle. The dragon was very cool and pretty convincing unlike the one in Florida that really needs to be updated.





At the end all of the characters come out on the actual Mark Twain Riverboat instead of the cartoony looking one thats used in Florida. This was another thing I liked as again it was much closer and seemed like there were many more characters onboard then there were in Florida.





The show was good but it wasn't without its faults. It did seem shorter then the Florida version and of course the viewing area sucks compared to Orlando as its all standing room. Its something that you probably need to get to very early to get a prime viewing spot. So which one is better? I don't think I can make that comparisson right now. With the show starting earlier then scheduled and obviously running in a modified rain version of the show I think I need to see it again before I can rightfully compare the two. Still I don't think its something you should miss.





We were wet and cold after watching the show. And Daniel was hungry for his final bottle. We made our way back thru Adventureland and to the Hub where we hoped we could get that night photo with the Castle from a photopass photographer. But of course it would be our luck that by the time Fantasmic! was over all the photopass photographers had dissapeared. So we walked over to the Baby Care Center where Daniel could get warm and eat in comfort.



While Kiera feed Daniel I decided to head over to Tomorrowland where I could use the Fastpass that I pulled earlier in the day for a final ride of Star Tours. Suprisingly the wait to ride was still about 15 minutes in the Fastpass Line. I'm guessing because many people were using there expired fastpasses from earlier in the day (like me) and also taking cover from the rain by doing indoor rides.





Eventually though I was finally outside my gate for my galaxy flight. I boarded the Starspeeder and were soon on our way. We didn't get far though until the Ship was stopped by some Storm Troopers who were looking for a rebel Spy. We fought ourselves away and jumped to light speed where we found ourselves on the Planet of Tantooine and get caught up in a Pod Race. After winning it was back to space where we got an incoming message from Admiral Acbar informing us to protect the rebel spy on board. After the jump to light speed again we found ourselves on Couresant dodging other space craft on the planet that is all a city. Where we arrived safely at our destination. It was another great ride and continues to prove to me that it is now my favorite Motion Simulator. Although i'm pretty sure this was the exact same ride I got one one of my rides in Orlando.





After my ride I walked thru an empty Tomorrowland and decided to check around "Its a Small World" again in hopes that maybe, just maybe there would be a photopass photographer out there. But as I made my way in that direction I got distracted by the Materhorn.






The rain was coming down hard but the Materhorn was still running. And the best part was there was litterally no line to ride. Since there was no line I figured what the heck and hoped in the Tomorrowland side line and walked strait on to the bobsled. I had the sled all to myself as I guess some people don't want to ride a roller coaster in the rain. This would now be my third ride in the rain haha. The ride was a lot of fun even though the rain did somewhat sting as it hit your face going high speeds. The Tomorrowland side of the ride also felt much smoother then the Fantasyland side which we rode earlier in the week.



With my side diversion completed I made my way back to Its a small world but there were no photographers present. I soon got a call from Kiera saying Daniel was done and now asleep. With less then 15 minutes to go until park closing we decided to get one more ride in. I told Kiera to meet me at Pirates of the Caribbean which would be our final ride of the trip. I cut thru Fantasyland to get there and wished I had a tripod as the wet ground and an empty park would have made for some amazing pictures.








I got to the attraction a few minutes before Kiera and Daniel did. He was asleep when they arrived but he was so tired that he stayed asleep as we took him out of the stroller and entered the empty que. There was nobody else in line and we walked right on to the attraction. This would be one of the most errey rides we've had as we were in a boat all to ourselves and none of the other boats around us had anyone in it. It was like we had the ride all to ourselves. The AC was also blowing strong inside the attraction which when mixed with our wet clothes made for a chilly ride. It was still way fun though and a great way to end the day. By the time our ride was over the park was officially closed for the night.




Daniel was still asleep as we loaded him back into his stroller and put the poncho over it to protect him from the rain. The 16 hour day had been completed. And we were tired. Needless to say we didn't stick around any longer as we pretty much be lined it out of the park after our ride on Pirates. We didn't stop at any shops. We quickly walked down Main Street and towards the exit. I did make a quick stop by guest services though to get another first visit pin for Daniel as he managed to break his earlier.






The 16 hour day was fun but I don't know if its something we would want to do again. It was a very, very long day. I don't know if it would have been better without the rain or not though. Still i'm glad that we were able to accomplish it no matter how tired we were afterwards.






This was possibly the quickest walk back to the hotel we had. We finally had an end point in sight and could get out of the rain for the rest of the night. I swear we made it back to the hotel in like 10 minutes as we practically speed walked the entire way. Once there we all quickly got ready for bed and had no issue at all falling asleep. The busy day was over. We only had one full day left of vacation. And the only thing we knew for sure was that we would be sleeping in and trying to recover from the 16 hour day in Disneyland.


 
Day 8: Beverly Hills

Today was our final full day in Southern California. We had just survived our 16 hour day in the Disneyland Resort so dispite sleeping in for as long as Daniel would allow us to we still took it easy today.

Frankly we didn't have anything planned at all for our final full day in Southern California. We still had a day at Sea World in San Diego on our City Passes that we could use. But we didn't feel up to the nearly 2 hour drive to get there. Plus by the time we finally got moving for the day it was around 2pm. It would have been fun and i'm sure Daniel would have loved seeing the sea life but being exhausted from the theme parks, the long drive, and now short day we figured it just wouldn't be worth it.

I looked for ideas of what we could do on the internet while Kiera and Daniel got ready. It could be cool to go see the Space Shuttle at the science Musium in LA but then I found it was already sold out for the day. Maybe Hollywood? No we will do that tomorrow. I eventually came across a trolly tour of Beverly Hills that sounded like it could be fun. It was only $5 a person and about a 45 minute tour of the famous landmarks and some celebrity homes. So thats what we decided to do.

As I mentioned before it was nearly 2pm by the time we started our day. We grabbed some Jack in the Box (one of my favorite Fast Food locations that we don't have in Utah) thru the drive thru and then started what we thought would only be about a 45 minute drive to Beverly Hills. Well we were wrong. Traffic was HORRIBLE this Saturday afternoon heading in to the LA area. In total it took us nearly 2 hours to get to Beverly Hills. Maybe the drive to Sea World in San Diego wouldn't have been so bad after all.

We eventually made it to Beverly Hills though. As we drove down Santa Monica Blvd we passed the Los Angeles LDS Temple and soon we were in the heart of Beverly Hills. There were many parking garages next to Santa Monica Blvd but with the many one way streets that ran around the city it was kind of difficult to get in to some of the garages as they too only had one enterance and exit. Finally we figured it out though and got the car parked. The rates were more reasonable then I thought they would be as well.



The parking structure we were in was located about 2 blocks from the famous Rodeo Drive. Thats the street we were heading to as thats where the Trolly Tour would be departing from. The roads many trees were decorated with Christmas Lights and decor just as many of the High End Retailers store windows were. For being a Saturday afternoon though the street wasn't nearly as packed as I thought it would be.



Before starting the Tour we wanted to make a bathroom break so we stopped in to a small shopping area. This place was deserted. It was kind of errie actually and possibly one of the most complicated areas to find your way around. We practically went up and then back down to the bottom to find the restrooms. Luckly they were still open.




It was now a quick walk to the main part of Rodeo Drive where we would meet the trolley. The trolley was scheduled to leave at 5pm and that would be the final tour of the day. No worries though as it was a short walk and we made it on time. Infact we were the 2nd group on the trolley.







For the Holiday season it was advertised that the tour would be given buy Mrs. Claus. And sure enough she was on the trolley. But in addition to her there was also a regular tour guide as well. The Trolley was soon loaded and we began our tour driving around the city streets as Mrs. Claus pointed out some of the more famous stores, buildings, and locations used in film.







Mrs. Claus was a pretty good guide and pretty engaging. It was really fun hearing her tell us about the city. But that didn't last long. Since this was the final tour of the day she wouldn't be with us the entire trip. Right before we finished with the city portion of the tour she got off the Trolley and the other tour guide took over.






This guide wasn't nearly as exciting to listen too and honestly at times didn't seem like she knew what she was talking about. One of the things the tour mentioned on the website was that you would go by some celebraties homes. That was pretty much a half truth though. We went by some homes that some famous people lived in. But at this time they no longer do. They have long since moved. The Trolley Tour is actually ran by the City of Beverly Hills so I guess it makes since that the City doesn't want to upset the actual famous residents by taking the city sponsored trolley by there house ever hour. Theres plenty of other tours for that stuff.





Now I can't remember who use to live where but the houses we saw on the tour were big and very fancy. The pictures do not do them justice at all. I mean these are full blown Mansions. Costing 10's of Millions of Dollars. Houses we could never fathem living in let alone walking in to.




In the middle of the neighborhoods though we came across one of the most famous Beverly Hills Landmarks. The Beverly Hills Hotel which has a rich history in the entertainment industry. We pretty much circled completly around the hotel before continuing on with the mansions tour.









As we passed the Beverly Hills park that spans across many city blocks Daniel starting to become impatient and was done with the trolley ride. Apparently looking at homes and buildings were as exciting to him as Disneyland was lol.










One of the final stops on the tour was by a house known as the "Witches Cottage". This house looks like it comes strait out of a fairy tale and is really cool and unique. I thought they said it was used in a movie as well although i'm not sure which one.





After the Witch house we were back in the city area and the tour ended where it began. The tour was alright for what it was. It was cheap entertainment for about an hour of our time. We saw some neat houses and the Mrs. Claus part was fun. However I feel that the website made the tour sound like more then it was and the guide we had for the majority of the trip wasn't exciting to listen to at all. This isn't something we would do again but if your in Beverly Hills and looking for something cheap to kill some time then it might be worth checking out. It diffenitly wasn't worth the time and drive though that we spent getting there from Anaheim.











With nothing else planned after the tour we decided to walk around Rodeo Drive a little bit more. We walked into the famous shopping area and looked at the expensive shops windows without ever going in anything. This area had a nice Christmas Tree and also some Carolers to help set the Holiday mood.









We exited the area across the street from the famous hotel where Pretty Women was filmed. Then we headed back up Rodeo drive back towards where we parked the car. Other the the tour and expensive shops there really wasn't much else to see here that interested us. It was crazy to look in some of the shops windows and see 4 or 5 employees just standing around doing nothing. I mean how much money do these shops have to make off so few sales to pay 5 employees to do nothing most of there day.











It was pointed out to us on the Trolley tour and we didn't realize we were parked on the same block as it. But we had heard about a Cupcake Vending machine somewhere in LA and how fun it would be to go to it. By luck we were right there next to it. I couldn't turn this thing down so before leaving we walked over to the Bakery called "Sprinkles" which is home to the worlds only "Cupcake ATM". The line to use the ATM was actually longer then the wait inside the bakery. Yeah it would have been quicker to go inside but that would take away the novelty of using a freakin ATM to get a cupcake.





The ATM was very easy to use. You just scroll thru the screen, pick the cupcake you want, swipe your credit card, and out comes the brown box with your cup cake. We decided to try a Holiday Pepperment Chocolate cupcake and it cost around $4.50. I'm not sure if there was an upcharge for the ATM or not. The Cupcake itself was pretty good although we thought it was on the small side considering how big the box was it came in. Still we bought a fresh cupcake from a vending machine. Not many people can say they have done that.





We loaded back into the car and started to make our way back to Anaheim. We were hungry and ready to find something to eat for dinner. I thought tonight we could keep it simple and just find a Chilies or Applebees or something. I was suprised that after searching on my phones GPS that there wasn't anything in the immidiate area. We finally found a Applebees somewhat close to Anaheim and it took us over 45 minutes to get there. We were glad to find though that there was no wait once we got there and got right in.

After dinner we called it a night dispite it still being fairly young and headed back to our hotel. It was our last night so we needed to get packed and ready to go in the morning. But not without taking a final swim in the pool and relax in the Hot Tub. While we were in the pool once again the Disneyland Fireworks went off which drew many people out of the Hotel and around the pool area to watch the show. We enjoyed relaxing in the hot tub more though having seen the fireworks twice now.

The night really was over after our swim. Daniel quickly crashed out and then we started to get the final things packed for the morning. We took the traditional photo of all the things we bought on the trip and then packed them up. Then we retired to bed. Although we were going home tomorrow we still had most the day ahead of us as we had a later flight leaving LA that evening. One day left. We hope we would make the most of it and that the weather would continue to cooperate like it did today for us.

 
Day 9: Hollywood

Our final day of vacation was upon us. By the end of the day we would be back in Salt Lake City and our trip would officially be over. Being such a short flight from home though we decided to book a late flight giving us almost another full day before heading home.

Hotel Check Out was at 11am so we were up early to finish getting everything packed and loaded back into the rental to be on our way. The car was packed and at 10:45am we were on our way out of the Hotel. I just had to stop to check us out where we got a nice surprise. This hotel has a $10 per night parking fee. We stayed 8 nights so I expected to pay $80 at check out for the fee's. Upon seeing how long we stayed at the Holiday Inn though the desk clerk said thank you for as long as we did and waved the 1/2 of the parking fees for it. So we only paid $40 for parking. Such a great jesture that I am a Holiday Inn fan now and wouldn't hisitate to stay there again.

Before leaving Anaheim we stopped by Downtown Disney one last time. Kiera wanted to grab some more things from the World of Disney store (we still had another 20% off coupon) and we figured we could grab lunch as well before leaving. It seemed much less crowded then it was a few days earlier.

Since we missed the Hotel Santas earlier in the week we figured we stop by and see if they were out now. First up was the Disneyland Hotel but Santa was nowhere to be seen. We didn't spend much time here though as we continued on into the Rest of Downtown Disney making our way towards the World of Disney store.








The next stop though was at the Grand Californian again to see if the Santa was out but we were dissapointed once again as he was nowhere to be seen. So we quickly reexited the hotel and moved on.




We finally got to the World of Disney store and Kiera knew exactly what she was looking for (a certain christmas ornament for me). While she got the item and waited to check out me and Daniel looked around the store again to see if there was any last items we would want to get. Unlike the rest of Downtown Disney though the World of Disney store was very busy at the moment.




As I mentioned we also wanted to grab lunch while at Downtown Disney and decided on none other then Earl of Sandwich again. What can I say. We love this little sandwich shop. I so wish we had one closer to us then the one in Las Vegas. Unfortunatly though since its taken me 6 months to write this report I honestly don't even remember what it was that we ordered. All I remember was that it was once again very delicious.




After lunch we were done with Downtown Disney and Anaheim all together so we hit the road to drive to our next destination of Hollywood where we planned to spend the rest of our day. Unfortunatly though we hit a familiar sight as rain started to fall again the closer to LA and Hollywood that we got.




We made a quick stop for some gas (wow was it expensive in the Hollywood area) and then made our way to Hollywood Blvd. We decided to park at the Hollywood and Highland center as its right in the center of the Hollywood attractions and the pricing is alright. I actually first turned into the Valet Parking located under the Madam Tussau's Wax Musium and that too was a great deal. However it was cash only and with no cash we left and parked in the regular parking.

The Hollywood and Highland Center is located right next door to the Famous Grauman's Chinese Theater. Its not only a large shopping complex but its also home to the Academy Awards which take place in the complex's Dolby Theater. The theater use to be known as the Kodak theater but do to the companys financial issues they no longer sponsor many things (as seen in the Disney Parks).




Exiting the Theater entrance across from the theater where Jimmy Kimmel Live is filmed we turned and headed towards the Chinese Theater. The rain had let up a little bit at this point but it was still lightly coming down. The Chinese theater hasn't really changed since the last time we came. Although I do belive its ownership has changed hands again. Now to enter the theater courtyard your required to have a photo taken that they try to get you to buy before leaving.







The World Famous Grauman's Chinese Theater is most well known for it's concrete hand and footprints of famous celebrity's that make up the theaters courtyard. It is also the inspiration for the facade of the Great Movie Ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios in Florida. Its too bad that Disney has felt the need to hide this replica behind that hidious hat.







You can't go to Hollywood and not visit the Chinese Theater. Its basically a symbol for Hollywood. Its actually a lot of fun looking around at all the different hand and foot prints and seeing what different celebrity's you can find. We would have spent more time here but the rain once again started to pick up and we were ready to get out of it.








A newer attraction in Hollywood is the Madam Tussaud's Wax Musium. We've always wanted to check out a wax musium before but we just couldn't ever justify the cost of them being around $25 a person. However while at the Chinese theater we were given a buy 1 get 1 free coupon for the Wax Museum. $12.50 was a bit easier to pay and wanting to get out of the rain we decided what the heck and decided to check out the museum.





The Museum is 3 stories tall and you actually start at the top and work you way down. As we took the elevator up to the top it dumps you out in an area that looks like a lounge with many wax models of celebrity's all over as if its a party or something. We've seen the Wax models before that they typically have out in front of the attraction. But it was kinda eery seeing so many in one place. Its amazing how real and lifelike they look. Especially there eyes. Can you make out who the celebrity's are that we are "hanging out" with in the following pictures?














The next room we came to was one the celebrated the Stars of an earlier Generation. From the 30's to the 60's there were many of that eras most famous celebritys here.







The 2nd level is the largest portion of the museum and had the most Wax Models. This was really the best part of the museum as many of the Models are set up in front of backdrops from the famous films that they are representing.
















Eventually you come to a room that is like the backstage area of a set and then the themes change to once with famous Musicans and Sports Atheletes.













The final room on the 2nd level still has many of the backdrops but it also has many models just standing around like that first room on the 3rd level. However this room is themed to Superhero's and Actions stars.










After this room you will go down some steps back to the main level and probably the most interesting room of the bunch. This room doesn't have any famous celebritys but instead is a behind the scenes section that shows how they create these amazing Wax Models.



The final room before the exit is set up as an awards ceremony where once again there are many of the Wax Models around dressed up in there most elegant wear.







Of course as with all major attractions you end your tour of the museum in the gift shop. As I mentioned above we thought the museum was pretty cool. Its amazing how life like these models are and they really are a sight to behold. However I stand by my original statement. Is it worth the $25 admission? I would say no. But it was worth it if you have a buy 1 get 1 free admission.

We were in the museum for nearly an hour and a half. We really hoped that while in the Museum the rain outside would have stopped. Unfortunatly it had gotten worse though. Dispite the rain we decided to walk the Hollywood Walk of Fame anyways. The Walk of Fame is the sidewalk along Hollywood Blvd that has "Stars" for those most derserving celebrity's in the Entertainment industries. Just like at the Chinese Theater its fun to search and find the stars of your favorite celebrity's. The Walk of Fame is fairly long though and will go miles past the main area of Hollywood Blvd. There will also be many people dressed up as Characters out on Hollywood Blvd wanting you to come take photos with them. Just beware that these people expect to be paid for there photo.














We didn't walk too much of Hollywood Blvd though and decided to turn back around and head to the Hollywood and Highland Center after passing the Disney Soda Fountain and the El Capitan theater. I thought there was a gift shop at the Disney Soda Fountain but I didn't notice one. It also seemed pretty expensive to grab a snack from there.















The shopping side of the Hollywood and Highland center isn't all that different then your typical outdoor mall. You will find many of the same run of the mill stores and there aren't really many high end options. Even most of the restaurants are what you could find at home. In addition to the Dolby Theater that usually has a Circ De Soula show running there are also additional movie theaters and some night clubs. The complex is I think 5 levels tall and on a clear day will give you some great views of the Hollywood Sign on the Hill.










Unfortunatly for us though the rain still hadn't let up and the cloud cover was low enough to completely hide the Hollywood sign from view. With the exception of our very first day in town we never saw the Hollywood sign again. Had it not been getting dark so early we would have drove up closer but the sun was already setting by the time we were done in Hollywood.



We tried to kill some time at the Hollywood and Highland complex but we did all there was to see and not wanting to pay any more for parking we decided to grab a pretzel and then we were on our way out of Hollywood for the day and trip. We still had a few hours to kill before our flight home. Unforutnatly with the rain and early darkness there wasn't a whole lot that we could find to do. We swung back over to Westwood where we grabbed a dozen cookies from Diddy Reese and also picked up a Dinner at a nearby Kentucky Fried Chicken and then it was time to head to the airport.



After stopping to finish topping of the Rental Cars gas tank we returned it to Alamo. Its still so weird to me that all of the Rental car locations are located off property away from the airport. It kind of made the location hard to find but with the help of my phones GPS we were able to find it. We then loaded on to the Bus that would take us to LAX to catch our flight.

We were at the airport at around 7:30pm. About 2 hours before our flight. I thought the LA airport would be quite busy to fly out of but we were suprised to find it as a ghost town. We checked in very quickly and were soon at our gate ready to head home. We had plenty of time to kill and Daniel had fun playing around until it was time to leave.









We boarded the plain and it was very empty. I guess not too many people fly to Salt Lake City late at night lol. We thought for sure that Daniel would sleep the whole way home but he decided he wasn't tired on the plane and really didn't sleep. The flight was uneventful for the most part and before we knew it we were back on the ground in Utah. Where we were soon greeted by the Friged cold and Snow.




One new thing we tried on this trip was with our late arrival (after midnight) Kieras parents brought our car and dropped it off at the airport already for us. This worked out but we really didn't know where it was parked so it took us a little bit to find it. Which in the cold late at night really isn't the funnest thing in the world to do. It was nice to be able to go strait home from the airport though instead of stopping somewhere to pick up the car first.

Overall we had a wonderful and amazing vacation dispite the issues we had with the weather and rain. The parks are beautiful during the Holiday Seasons and the Disneyland Resort continues to prove itself as my favorite theme park destination in the world. Someday I hope to return once more to Southern California and the Disney and Universal parks again. But right now we have no idea when that will be as our next few trips are already planned out to be on the East Coast again.






And thats it everyone. Thanks to those of you who have been patent with me as this report took forever to write. Thanks for following along and reading and checking out the photos and especially thank you for allowing me to share them with you. Vacationing is a big part of our lives so there will be many more reports to come. I will shortly start on my trip review to Charleston and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina from this past May shortly. And this September we already have a Eastern Caribbean Cruise booked on the Carnival Dream where we will not only return to cruising but we also plan to become Universal Orlando Annual Pass Holders that same trip. Until then thanks again everyone.
 
I like how it looks like you're holding onto the seat for grim death on the ferris wheel.

Damn, Disneyland looks fantastic. It reminds me much more of the Eurodisney experience than the WDW experience, much more dense.

I have to say, your commitment on keeping this report going at the level of detail which you have is pretty remarkable. I would have given up at around the time you landed in LAX.
 
Thank you for a great report. It reminded me of our great trip to CA last year. Disneyland is a beautiful resort and I hope to one day return as well.

Look forward to your upcoming reports as well. You have a great writting style with lots of details which makes it fun to read.
 
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