California Spring Fling, 2001 - Day 3 About This Page:

[Little Mermaid]

Cast of characters:

LilMermaid - me, a 38 y/o SAHM who's in desperate need of some R&R
Greg - my DH, a 40 y/o kid at heart, who's happy to be going somewhere OTHER than WDW for a vacation
Stephanie - my 7 y/o daughter, who's very excited to be going to Disneyland
Mark - my 6 y/o son, who'll go anywhere on an airplane at any time

We were all up bright and early this morning, because we were finally headed to The Happiest Place on Earth!. We arrived at the hotel courtyard for continental breakfast just as they were opening the doors at 7:00 a.m., and we were done by 7:15 (which is testament to how excited we all were to get to Disneyland…Stephanie, Mark and Greg usually eat at a snail's pace). It was a beautiful, sunny day, and we made the quick (less than 10 minute) walk down the landscaped corridor/sidewalk which runs along the east side of the Disneyland Resort along Harbor Boulevard. Candy Cane Inn runs a shuttle to DL/DCA, but we found it quicker and easier to walk since we had our stroller with us. When we arrived at the entrance plaza, we were thrilled to find no one in line at the ticket booths. We had considered purchasing our passes the day before while we were at Downtown Disney, but the DTD booth was closed, and the booths in the DL/DCA entry plaza were quite crowded that day. It was a fairly cool morning, and the CM in the ticket booth correctly surmised that we were not from around here, as we weren't even wearing jackets (she was in a heavy coat, as were a lot of the CM's we saw that day ). I guess 5 years of living in Minnesota has hardened us up a bit. We purchased 4 four-day flex passes ($127 each with the Disney Club discount), and off we went.

We got into line at the turnstiles at about 7:20 a.m., and the gates opened at 7:30 a.m. We expected more of a crowd at the turnstiles, considering that it was the week before Easter, but there was only a handful of people there when the gates opened. We proceeded to City Hall to get our Special Assistance Pass for Mark (my son has a developmental disability that is not always readily apparent), which was set up for us quickly and painlessly. I had brought the Guest Assistance Card we had used at WDW in the fall of 2000 in case there was any questions on the part of the CM, but the CM was more than happy to issue me the SAP. She also gave me Honorary Disneyland Citizen stickers, which the four of us wore all day. The Special Assistance Pass worked wonderfully for us. We found that the CM's at Disneyland are much more accommodating than their WDW counterparts in this respect. We were treated with total courtesy and respect throughout our visit, and had no problems whatsoever accessing the attractions with the pass. Most of the attractions have disabled access clearly marked, and in the few instances it was not, we were able to utilize an alternate entrance.

Although we were admitted into the park at 7:30 a.m., CM's were positioned behind the rope at the end of Main Street, and the rope was not dropped until 8 a.m. on the dot. We proceeded straight to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom as our first ride of the day, based on the recommendations of several Maniacs. It was a very intense ride…too intense in fact for Stephanie and Mark. I wasn't able to follow the storyline or really enjoy the attraction at all, because I was trying to comfort Stephanie almost the entire time (the boulder really freaked her out). Mark was in the driver's seat behind the steering wheel, but I don't think he enjoyed it. He loves thrill rides, but this ride is very jerky. I heard that someone actually had a brain hemorrhage on this ride once, and I would tend to believe it! Neither Greg nor the kids wanted to ride it again during our visit. I wanted to try it once more just to get a better feel for what it was like, but never got the opportunity. Bummer.

After our doomed trip to the Temple of Doom [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] we headed for Fantasyland, where we rode The Scary Adventures of Snow White, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Pinocchio, Peter Pan, Dumbo and It's a Small World. The Snow White ride isn't nearly as good as the WDW version, IMHO. Greg and Stephanie were thrilled to be able to ride Mr. Toad, as they have been mourning his demise at WDW. The Peter Pan ride seems a bit longer than the WDW version, but Dumbo is exactly the same. We did see a small tragedy while waiting for Dumbo. As a man was exiting his Dumbo, his cell phone came off, fell to the ground, cracked into several pieces, most of which landed in the water/moat! Poor guy! It's a Small World is set up differently than at WDW, because you board (and disembark) the ride outside before entering the land of the annoy…oops, I mean singing dolls. There are some interesting topiaries of Disney characters to see during the outdoor portion of the ride. I did notice however that the façade of IASW was definitely in need of a good coat of paint. Considering the above average maintenance done typically done at Disney parks, I was quite surprised to see this.

After IASW, we rode the Matterhorn Bobsleds, which we all rated a solid 10 on a scale of 1-10. I was a little concerned about how Stephanie would tolerate this ride (as was she), but she LOVED it (as did Mark). Greg and Stephanie have a lot of inside jokes about "Bigfoot", and they really got a kick out of the Abominable Snowman that screeches at you during the ride.

Our next stop was the Alice in Wonderland ride. This ride received a big thumbs down from us…not once during the ride do you even SEE Alice, at least not that we noticed. Stephanie found it "lame", and didn't care to ride it for the rest of the trip.

Our next stop was the Storybook Land Canal boats. Greg and I found this ride a bit on the "lame" side, but the kids thoroughly enjoyed it. Each boat has room for two children to sit on the bow, and serve as "whale watchers". Mark served as a whale watcher for our cruise, and loved the birds eye view from the front of the boat.

After another round of Snow White (one of Mark's favorite rides…he likes the Kwicked Ween), we headed to New Orleans Square to ride The Haunted Mansion. The general storyline is the same as the WDW version, but there are some differences in the staging areas once you leave the stretch room, and a few subtle differences in the ride itself.

The sunny skies from earlier in the morning soon gave way to overcast skies, and off-and-on drizzle. It also became quite a bit cooler (even by Minnesota standards). We purchased Disneyland ponchos (a fashionable blue color), and donned them after leaving The Haunted Mansion. It was 11:30 a.m. by now, and we were all beginning to feel "rumblies in our tumblies", so lunch was next on the agenda. We had made a priority seating at the Carnation Café that morning while waiting for rope drop. BUT, since Carnation Café is an outdoor café, we decided to cancel those plans since it was cool and drizzling. We opted instead for the Plaza Inn, which I had heard many good things about.

I personally was not impressed with the Plaza Inn. While I'm accustomed to paying "above average prices" for "below average food" at Disney, I still can't get over paying $14 for a "extremely mediocre" pot roast plate dinner served counter service style. Greg enjoyed his fried chicken, but it's not a place we care to return to.

After lunch, we noticed that Buzz Lightyear was signing autographs near the entrance to Tomorrowland. Now, here is one of the few gripes I have about Disneyland --- when characters are out and about signing autographs in the parks, they do not have "handlers" with them! Grrrr! All the character meet and greets in the park were basically mob scenes, with no sense of order, no lines, and lots of pushy, rude people! Poor Mark didn't have a chance! Stephanie wasn't interested in seeing Buzz, so Greg lifted him up, and we jockeyed in as close as we could. Mark had a huge smile on his face, and his eyes were beaming. He held out his hand, and Buzz looked up over the crowd of children shoving their way to him and held his hand out for Mark. Buzz leaned over the other children and gave Mark a hug, while tears started welling in my eyes (where's a darn sock when you need it?). Buzz then gave him a high five, and squeezed his hand again before we got pushed back. It was definitely the most magical moment of the day.

After our intergalactic encounter, we headed for Pirates of the Caribbean. We loved this ride and we all thought it was much better than the WDW version. The beginning of the ride where you drift past the Blue Bayou restaurant is themed very well.

After POC, we headed for Splash Mountain. We were wearing our fashionable blue DL ponchos as we headed for Splash Mountain (it was still cool and damp), and we passed a group of CM's on the way. One of the CM's called out (in a friendly manner), "Hey, it's the Smurfs!". I said, "Hey, do I not look stylish in my blue poncho?" to which he remarked, "Yes ma'am, you are stylin' and profilin". That was my motto for the rest of the day (which annoyed Greg to no end, I might add [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] ).

Upon arriving at Splash Mountain, we decided to wear our Smurf suits while on the ride, because I really didn't know how wet we were going to get. Stephanie was a bit apprehensive, but I told her that if she could handle the Matterhorn Bobsleds, she could certainly handle Splash Mountain (she tried it once at WDW, and while she wasn't terrified, she was in no hurry to ride it again). She agreed, and we all enjoyed it! The DL version doesn't seem as long as the WDW version to me.

After Splash Mountain, we headed towards Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Stephanie decided that she had been adventurous enough for one day, and decided to sit this one out. Greg and Mark went ahead while we waited, but the ride went down as they were queuing up. Mark handled this disappointment very well, so we decided to reward him by letting him ride Space Mountain instead. Stephanie wasn't interested in trying Space Mountain (which turned out to be a good thing), so Greg and Mark rode while we waited. Mark loved it so much that he insisted on riding it again with me. I've turned into a ride weenie in the last few years, and roller coasters are no longer my thing. But, being the nice mommy that I am, I indulged him. I wish I had not. I felt VERY nauseous when I came off of that ride, and I was very glad that Stephanie had opted not to ride it. It would have been way too much for her (Mark on the other hand could ride it over and over! ).

Stephanie was champing at the bit to do some souvenir shopping, but Mark wanted to try to ride Big Thunder Mountain again. So, we split up, with me taking Stephanie to shop (oh the sacrifices I make [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] ) and Greg taking Mark back to BTMRR to see if it was up and running. Stephanie and I visited Tink's Toy Shop in Fantasyland, and then met up with Greg and Mark behind the Castle after they had ridden BTMRR. Greg told me that he had run into someone he used to work with…it really is a small world, isn't it?

Mark wanted to ride Snow White yet AGAIN, so Greg took him on Snow White, while Stephanie and I rested our aching feet. When they came back, Mark wanted to ride it AGAIN (I told you he loved the Kwicked Ween), this time with me. I was still feeling a bit woozy from Space Mountain, but the Mark's penchant for the Kwicked Ween was not to be denied, so off we went.

It was almost 6 p.m. by now, and we were all pretty worn out (well, except for Mark…I do believe he would have rode rides all night, if given the opportunity). We stopped at Refreshment Corner on Main Street and got hot dogs for supper before heading back to the hotel. Mark had apparently worked up quite an appetite riding rides, because he finished his hot dog in record time, and asked for another. He then proceeded to eat almost my entire Mickey pretzel as well!

As we were heading towards the entrance, we realized we hadn't ridden the train yet, so we made that our last ride of the day. Our timing was perfect, as the train was right there. Greg and the kids got their jackets from the backpack but I didn't think I would need mine, so I hadn't put it in the backpack. It was getting quite cold as the sun was starting to go down, so I donned my Smurf suit (aka stylin' blue poncho) before the train took off. The train ride was very enjoyable, and goes past several different themed areas, including a dinosaur section and a diorama of the Grand Canyon.

We left the park after the train ride, a good eleven hours after we began. We walked back to the hotel (and I wore my Smurf suit during the walk…hey, it was cold…the strange looks didn't bother me at all). The kids were asleep by 8:15, and Greg and I prepared for the following day before turning in.

It was a wonderful first day at Disneyland…the kids were so happy and excited to be there, and we didn't have a single tantrum or melt down (well, from the kids anyway). The crowds were pretty much what we expected…the first few hours weren't crowded at all, but after lunchtime, it was bordering on wall-to-wall in most of the Lands. The Special Assistance Pass worked wonderfully for us, and it contributed greatly to a stress-free day.

Coming next - Day 4 - Should we, or shouldn't we? We're glad we did!