JoAnn's Disneyland Pre-trip Report

Day 3

I got to sleep in a bit this morning. While V and N did the 10K the rest of us got ready for the day. As soon as they got back to the hotel, we had breakfast and went back to the room while they got ready. I grew tired of waiting and decided to head out to Disney's California Adventure. J came with me. We got to the park and soon discovered the ticket he had was only good for Disneyland. We got it switched to DCA and off we went.

We walked through A Bug's Land and Carsland.

The detail in Carsland is incredible.

I didn't get to ride Radiator Springs Racers. By the time we got there all the fast passes were gone and the stand by line was too long.

J had never ridden Tower of Terror. I have a love / hate relationship with this ride. I love the theme of the ride but hate the drop. We walked over to see the wait time and decided to fast pass it.

We had some time to explore while waiting for our fast pass.

We rode the Monsters' Inc ride.

They had a meet and greet with Olaf. We talked about getting in line for it but decided to wait for the others to arrive. Well, we never made it back over there.

The next thing you know it was time for our fast pass for ToT. This was the first ride I heard a CM telling a guest they had to put their selfie stick away. As you can see, I survived the ride. As we were getting off the ride, J got a text that the others had finally arrived. We walked toward the front of the park to meet up with them. Their timing was perfect as Mickey had just come out for a meet and greet.

It was around lunch time when they arrived so ended up back in Radiator Springs to eat at the Cozy Cone Motel.

I had the Chili Cone Carne. It was really good.

We then went to Pacific Wharf. V and N decided to go back to the hotel to take a nap. T, J and I stopped at the Bakery Tour, hosted by Boudin Bakery, where we learned how sour dough bread is made and got a sample. Good stuff. I love sour dough bread.

After the bakery tour, we walked over to Pacific Pier where we spent the afternoon. We took a leisurely stroll through the pier. We rode The Little Mermaid-Ariel's Undersea Adventure and King Triton's Carousel.

A couple of Toy Story random pictures...

I took a break and looked for stoopid shoes while T and J played one of the games on the pier.

At some point in the afternoon, we were back in A Bug's Land and did It's Tough to Be a Bug.

It was soon time for our 4:00 ADR at Ariel's Grotto. I give this dining experience two thumbs up. The food was good and the princess interaction was great. We got a group photo with Ariel upon arrival. The princess were Rapunzal, Tiana, Aurora and Mulan.

I had the salad and Red Oak-Smoked Honey-Wiskey Barbecue Tri-Tip. I could have eaten this whole load of bread, it was sooooo good.

To drink ... just for you MrHub - a Rye Manhattan

We didn't have an option on dessert. The trio was delicious.

I liked that they had some of the newer princesses.

We were very pleased with dinner here.

We walked out of the restaurant just in time for the Pixar Parade.

After the parade, we walked through Grizzly Peak.

It was time to call it a night. We had another early morning ahead of us. V was running the half and T & I were on the chEAR Squad.

I thought the same thing

Day 4

We were up around 3:30 to head over to the starting line. T and I were armed with our Mickey clappers. I was cheering everyone one - the runners, security and the bag check people.

Entertainment before the start

Soon it was time for V to get to her corral to start the race. We walked over to Downtown Disney and tried to see the starting line. There wasn't a designated area and security kept moving people along. We walked to the area between Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure. Since T & I were part of the chEAR squad we were able to enter DL. N and J stayed in the viewing area between the parks.

T & I found a place to see the runners, which was designated the "splash zone". It was right after the water station.

Soon the first runner flew by us. I think she ended up winning the race.

I posted this picture on the Tinkerbell Half Marathon FB page. She's part of the group. She thanked me for posting this.

I did get splashed a couple of times. It was funny. Some runners stopped, drank their water, threw the cup away and continued running. Others just drank and tossed while running not worrying about where the cup landed. One runner said "I don't want to get water on you". Another one said "sorry" as tossed her cup. Meanwhile, I'm thinking "you ladies are running 13.1 miles. I'm sitting on my butt. No need to apologize".

After V ran by, we left the park to try to catch her at Downtown Disney. After that we made our way back to the finish line. T & I had the platinum level for the chEAR squad so we had nice comfy seats and breakfast right at the finish line. The package also included "executive restrooms" which I determined were porta potties with soap and water.

V crossing the finish line

After the race we went back to the hotel to have our last breakfast together. We went to the room to shower and pack. I brought my stuff down to the front desk to store it there. I was staying one more night but in a smaller room. They were heading to LA for the night as they had an early flight the next morning. After they were finally done packing their stuff, I rode with them to DTD where we said our good-byes.

The monorail was down so I walked to the parks and decided to hit DCA. They were giving away flowers for Mothers' Day.

I made it in time to catch the 2:20 Aladdin show. I loved it! Genie's jokes were based on current events including a joke about the New England Patriots and deflated footballs. This may be my favorite Disney parks stage show.

I went back to Carsland to see what the wait time was for Radiator Springs Racers (fast passes were gone again). It was down and they didn't know when it would be back up. I considered hanging around to try standby when it opened back up. While in the Radiator Springs, I rode Mater's Junkyard Jamboree.

I was starting to lose energy and needed to get something to eat. I had canceled our dinner ADR since T and family were leaving earlier than expected. None of the quick services places were jumping out at me as someplace I wanted to eat. I hopped over to DL.

I made one last stop in A Bug's land and rode Heimlich's Chew Chew Train. While waiting for the ride, I got a text that my room was ready. As I was making my way to the front of DCA, I stopped to see what the line was like for Olaf. They were only allowing people with fast passes and of course, they were out. Since I was in the neighborhood, I rode Monsters' Inc one last time.

I entered Disneyland with dinner in mind. I took a chance at the Carnation Cafe. The wait was only 20 minutes. I got a salad and chicken fried chicken (it was listed on the menu under "Walt's Favorites").

After dinner, I did a little shopping and made my way to the bus stop. I got to my room and crashed for the night. I was in bed by 8:00.

Each time I saw the FP were gone for Radiator Springs Racers, it did make me appreciate the new system more. I could have schedule it in advance.

I did. I'm not sure if it got passed on to the right people though. I tried another piece from a different table (this time putting it on a separate plate, just in case).

Thanks. I did have a great time.

Thanks

Thanks

Last day

I got up early for my last day in Anaheim. I had breakfast at the hotel, packed, checked out and left my bags at the front desk. All weekend I had a free pass for the ART (Anaheim Resort Transit). I thought I could by a day pass on the shuttle but they only sold one way fares. Ooops. I went back to the Disney desk at the hotel to get my pass and waited for the next shuttle.

My initial plan for the morning was to hit DCA at park opening and hightail it directly to Radiator Springs Racers then hop to DL. The park schedule I had showed DCA not opening until 10:00. I was in line to enter DL around 8:30. The park opened at 9:00.

The line to get into DL.

The line to get into DCA.

I started off in Adventureland. I wanted to ride Indiana Jones again - seemed like everyone else had the same idea. Jungle Cruise was next door, but it wasn't running.

I continued on to New Orleans Square. PoC had a short wait time, so I got in line. IMO, PoC is much better in DL. It seemed longer to me and there were two small drops. The ride went by Blue Bayou restaurant where I had a lunch ADR. After the ride, I found the entrance to Blue Bayou so I knew where to go.

I headed over to Haunted Mansion. HM was closed for refurbishment during the week and opened up on Saturday. I got in line only to find out it was down. I did a little people watching while I devised my next plan. When I got up to leave the area, I noticed the line was moving.

Other than the building, I didn't see any differences between the rides in DL and WDW.

I had time before my ADR so I hopped on the train to Mickey's Toontown. I love how the train station in Toontown had a "cartoony" look to it.

They don't allow dancing on the DL rides either.

While in Toontown, I rode Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin and Gadget's Go Coaster. I walked down to Fantasyland for a ride on the "happiest cruise that ever sailed".

It was time to lunch. I was starving. I had the herb marinated flat iron steak with Blue Bayou house salad and to drink, Louisiana lemonade.

After lunch it was back to Fantasyland for "Mickey and Magical Map" show. What a great show.

I hit one more ride before making my way out of the park - Pinocchio's Daring Journey. I got in line only to find out it was down too. I decided to wait it out for a bit. The wait wasn't too long. This ride would be scary for little ones. I then headed to the hub and stopped for one last look at the castle.

My time in the park was coming to an end. I did have time for a snack at Jolly Holiday Bakery.

I prolonged my exit by stopping the Candy Palace. This is where they make the homemade candy canes every Christmas.

I was soon back at the hotel waiting for the Super Shuttle to take me back to the airport. The shuttle picked me up right on schedule. The next thing you know the driver was stopping for gas. He could have done that before. While we were on our way to pick up the next passengers, his cell phone range which he answered. He then missed this turn and had to turn around. I had the feeling that he was late picking up the next passengers. They didn't look happy when we got there. One more stop to make and we were on our way to the airport.

I got home the next day around 12:30pm.

thanks Jan and Kris!