California Spring Fling, 2001 - Day 1
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Little Mermaid · 10-29-2002, 10:09 PM

Cast of Characters:

Little Mermaid - 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

Our departure day dawned bright and early…too early as a matter of fact, considering that I didn't get to sleep the night before until almost 2 a.m. I put off any serious packing until the day before our trip, and between the packing, cleaning of the house and pre-vacation butterflies, it was very hard to fall asleep. I really hate that I always let this happen. Next time, I'll do better…really I will…no more procrastinating for me.

We were up and dressed by 7 a.m. We had our usual "discussion" about my DH Greg not being able to get all our bags in the trunk (he can't, but I somehow manage to…wonder why THAT is …must be those superior female organizational skills at work). We also engaged in "the great jacket debate" (regarding Greg's choice of outerwear for the trip). I had packed our lightweight jackets, but Greg had recently purchased a "lovely" camouflage windbreaker that he thought would make the perfect fashion statement while in California. I have nothing against camouflage mind you…it's great for HUNTING. But, I wasn't thrilled with the idea of him wearing it while I was walking next to him all week long . He kept sneaking it in the bag, and I kept taking it out, but his sad look and puppy dog eyes finally won me over.

Our flight out of Minneapolis-St. Paul departed at 11:25 a.m., but we left the house at 8 a.m. We needed to make a stop at Target on the way to the airport to get some things we'd forgotten. Stephanie and I did an excellent job of making fools of ourselves in Target, as we did the "we're going on vacation in 3 hours Happy Dance" down the aisles. After we left Target, we stopped at Burger King for a quick breakfast. I was chatting with the cashier about our vacation (everyone without listening distance knew we were going on vacation ...what can I say...I was excited!), and after we sat down, she came over with two Rugrats watches for the kids to play with the airplane. What a sweet gesture! We then had to drive back by the house again to make sure the garage door was closed…in our excitement, neither Greg nor I felt 100% sure we had hit the button on the opener as we pulled out of the driveway. We weren't in California yet, but our minds were obviously already on vacation! As we headed for the airport, it began to rain quite heavily, so we abandoned our plans to use the $8/day satellite parking near the airport, instead opting for the comfort and convenience of the $14/day parking garage connected to the terminal. I'm a fairly thrifty person by nature so spending the extra $6/day didn't thrill me, but I decided that the cost was worth it not to start our vacation on a soggy note.

The airport was VERY. But, the lines moved quickly, and we arrived at the gate about 45 minutes before departure. We were surprised to discover that they had already begun boarding. But, when I saw the plane, I discovered why…it was a HUGE 747…definitely the biggest airplane I've ever flown on. It had 90 rows, with a 3/4/3 seat configuration on each row in coach section. With that many people, they had to start boarding early! We sat in the middle row, with an aisle on each side. I was a little bummed that the kids wouldn't have window seats, but it was wonderful to be able to sit together, and have an aisle on each side.

Our takeoff was delayed on the runway for about 30 minutes, but we kept the kids occupied with an assortment of CD's, hand-held games and books. Greg kept himself occupied by spouting off one liners from the two Airport movies (he likens himself to Leslie Nielsen, apparently). The flight crew must have received clearance to begin takeoff without any advance warning, because the flight attendant made the following announcement, "Ladies and gentlemen, we have received clearance for takeoff. Please return to your seats immediately. If you are in the bathroom, hold onto the handrails, and do not attempt to return to your seat! ". The entire coach section erupted in laughter! I feel sorry for whoever WAS in the lavatory at the time!

Our flight to Los Angeles was uneventful, and we arrived in Los Angeles only slightly behind schedule. I was a little concerned about navigating a big, busy airport like LAX, but the way the terminals are laid out, it's really very easy. We found the baggage area with no problem, and set out for the shuttle bus stop to catch the Avis bus. They are doing construction at the terminal (like every other airport in America), and apparently, the signage for the shuttle bus stop at our terminal was non-existent. We stood and waited for quite awhile, watching the Avis buses pass us by. I seriously considered just jumping out in front of one, as we were getting incredibly frustrated. I finally did a "hitchhiker" pose as yet another Avis bus rolled by, but the driver only motioned back. Okay, WHERE are we supposed to go? We walked down to the next terminal, where we saw an Avis bus standing there. After a few choice words under my breath about not being able to get a bus from OUR terminal, we got on that bus and reached the off-site Avis lot quickly. Since we are in the Avis preferred program, our car was ready and waiting for us, and we were able to forego the rental counter. I was a little paranoid about getting out of the airport area and onto the highway, but the signage leading out of the airport is very good (Avis could take a lesson from the LA County sign folks), and we were headed south towards Anaheim in no time.

The bright, sunny crisp California weather was a welcome relief from the cold, dreary and wet weather we had left behind in Minnesota. We took the 405 to Highway 91 (the Artesia Freeway). As we went down Highway 91, I finally saw it….the sign…looming larger than life….something I've heard about, but never had the pleasure to experience...a Krispy Kreme donut shop. My hands began to tremble, and I began to drool. "Greg, look…look, there it is…no, not Disneyland…KRISPY KREME". I wanted to stop and buy some, but by the time we saw the sign, we were past the exit, and it probably would have added another 20 minutes to double back and get the goods. I was a bit bummed, but figured we'd see another Krispy Kreme shop somewhere else. Sigh!

We finally reached the Candy Cane Inn, and checked in without any problems. We were directed to room 240, which is in the back left corner of the hotel. We were impressed with the hotel itself. The grounds are very well landscaped and maintained, and the lobby looked clean and well-kept. It's a motor-inn type hotel, so we were able to park just steps away from our room.

While I was impressed with the hotel itself, I was not impressed with the room we were given. We had been told that the deluxe rooms were larger than the standard rooms, but this room definitely wasn't. There were two queen sized beds, but the bed closest to the door was wedged right up under the window...if this was a bigger room, I would have hated to see a regular room! Being that it was in a corner, our view was a lovely (NOT) brick wall, and we were right next to the maintenance room. There was also a VERY bright light flourescent light right outside our door. Even with the shutters closed, it wasn't anywhere CLOSE to dark in there...impossible to sleep decently. I stopped by the front desk on the way to dinner, and requested a change to a different room. Nothing was available that night, but they arranged to have us moved the following day.

We drove north on Harbor Blvd., but didn't see any restaurants that appealed to us (and, there weren't nearly as many as I imagined there would be). So, we doubled back and went south on Harbor about 2 miles past our hotel, and found an Outback Steakhouse and a Red Robin. We opted for the Outback Steakhouse. The staff at Outback was incredibly friendly (as was most everyone else we met in California), and the food and service were excellent. Greg and I had steaks, while Stephanie had a burger, and Mark had his usual chicken fingers. The kids asked for dessert, so we looked at the menu to see what was offered. What???? Do my eyes deceive me??? Blue Bell Ice Cream???? In California???? I couldn't believe they had Blue Bell Ice Cream (a very popular Texas brand) in California, so I questioned our server about this. From what she told me, they serve Blue Bell at ALL the Outback Steakhouses…they have it flown in from Brenham, Texas! It had been 3 years since I had Blue Bell, so of course, I had to have some. The Homemade Vanilla was as creamy and rich as I remember! Yummy! Our vacation was definitely off to a good start! After dinner, we decided to call it a night as we were all running out of steam. We turned in early, and I went to sleep with visions of Rodeo Drive in my head….

Coming Next - Day 2 - Downtown Disney & Rainforest Café, and a visit to Hollywood & Beverly Hills.

**LilMarcieMouse** · 11-02-2002, 10:35 PM

Soory I just found the time to read this. I can't wait for the next installment. i want to hear or read about the parks. Very good start.Please contianue.