A dizzy Disney weekend!
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infinity&beyond · 10-16-2002, 07:20 PM

Okay, let's see how far I get today...
Travelers: Me, 36, frequent Disneyland guest, and my DB, 47, another frequent Disneyland guest
Occasion: Business trip for my DB, a chance to see "Spirited Away" at the El Capitan, check out the new paint job on It's a Small World, and check out the construction of Tower of Terror, and visit Flik's Fun Fair

Day 1, Hollywood and El Capitan Theater:
Arrive at Burbank Airport at about 3:15pm. Our flight was thankfully uneventful, and we used Alamo for our rental car which is great because they are located right at the terminal. We head towards Hollywood, which is a short 30 minute drive from the airport. Along the way we pass by Paramount Studios and the Hollywood Bowl, and before we know it we are on the famous Hollywood Boulevard! We hadn't seen the new Kodak Theater (where the Academy Awards are now held) and it is really a sight! There was a big event happening with red carpet and all, it was a Women and Guitars show, with Gloria Estefan and some other female artists. Limos lining up to drop off the "stars." We did a little shopping and photo taking, then had a quick dinner in the food court (eggplant parmejiana pizza and vegetarian tacos) while overlooking the El Capitan theater. Then it was time to pick up our tickets and go to see "Spirited Away."

We are big fans of Hiyao Miyazaki, who directed this film. We had already seen the film near home, but wanted to experience it again. The El Capitan is a movie theater with the Disney touch. There are ushers that take you to your seat! We had reserved seating which is very nice. You pay an extra $9, but it includes a soda and popcorn as well as the best seats in the house! Three curtains open for the movie...REAL curtains! It is very ornate inside, a classic movie palace.

The show was great, and the exhibit was nice as well, including lots of stills and background artwork. However none of it was original art, just prints. We enjoyed ourselves, and will be going back!

About 9:30 we got in our retal car to head to the hotel, which is next to LAX. (We didn't wan't to fly in to LAX, the drive was much preferred to dealing with that airport. And the hotel is where his meeting was.) My DB had some things to take care of before the meeting, so it was after midnight when we finally got to bed.

Day 2: Solo in Disneyland and DCA!

DB is off to his meeting by 7:30am, so I take my time getting ready and am in the gigantic parking garage at Disneyland by 9:30! Feeling a little self-conscious with all these families and couples, I just think of how much I will be able to see when its just me.

And wow, did I see a LOT! There are single rider lines for Indiana Jones, Splash Mountain, and Soarin' Over California, so I had hardly any wait for all of those attractions. And since it was Friday, it wasn't too crowded anyway! I had a great time on California Screamin' with a 10 year old girl who had never been on, and was a little scared. We screamed together...it was great.

The most exciting moment was my visit to Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. I've never seen the show, but I'd read Jennifer and Dave's tips here to press the button over and over as soon as you know the answer to the question. Well, guess who ended up in the hot seat? Me!!! It was a little embarrasing (I know I was blushing) when the host asked who was with me today and I answered "No one!" I tried to talk my way out of my embarrasment but it was no use. Anyway, I did pretty well...8,000 points and a baseball hat, five pins, a button and a lanyard are now part of my Disney memory. Pretty cool, eh? No trip to New York, though.

Headed back to the hotel at about 5:30. DB wasn't back from his meetings until about 8:30, and had several things to do to prepare for the next day of meetings. So it was room service pizza for dinner and another late night. Bed by 1:00am!

Day 3: A very busy afternoon in the Parks!

This one will have to wait until later!

infinity&beyond · 10-17-2002, 04:30 PM

Okay, here's day 3:

My DB's meeting went until about 1pm, then we checked out of the LAX hotel and headed to Anaheim. We had reservations at the Best Western Park Place. We've stayed there before, but since then it has been completely remodeled and was actually quite nice! Better than expected (except for the really noisy kid upstairs who would jump back and forth from one end of the room to the other). We had a "mini-suite" with a queen bed and a sofa bed. Perfect for the two of us. There was also a refrigerator and a microwave, pretty darned nice for $79/night. We checked in and rested for about 30 minutes, changed clothes and walked across the street (the entrance to our hotel is at the crosswalk to Disneyland). We were in the park in 10 minutes! Today was a DL day, not just for us but for everyone on the planet (at least that's what it felt like!) We actually spent the entire afternoon and evening just exploring the shops, and visiting the Haunted Mansion exhibit at the Disney Gallery. The exhibit was way cool. The first thing you see when you walk in is the audio-animatronic character who has the shivering knees when you head into the graveyard of the Haunted Mansion. It was neat to see him up so close, and get our pictures taken with him. I even pulled up his pants leg and you could see his animatronics! There were lots of miniatures and original artwork pieces from the initial development and imagineering of the Haunted Mansion. It was originally intended as a walk through, and lots of the artwork showed this. Then there was another big section that showed images from Nightmare Before Christmas, as well as pieces that were used in designing the NBC overlay that is in the Mansion for the holidays. Really an excellent exhibit. We spent over an hour there, and wanted to go back tomorrow (which we will, but you'll find out about that later.)
We ate at Rancho del Zocalo, which is very similar to El Pirate y el Perrico at WDW. Then we continued shopping. We headed down to It's A Small World and admired the white and gold paint. It's nice to see it back as it was when I first visited DL as a kid.
We also went to the penny arcade and used up all our pennies watching the old movies that are flipped cards which you look at through a 3-d viewer. Lots of fun, and cheap entertainment!
The big crowds really slowed down our pace, but it was nice to just enjoy the Disney atmosphere for the day. We didn't get back to the hotel until close to 2:00, so we decided to sleep in a little on Sunday. More later!