Day 8 - The Trip Home

We woke up around 8:00 am this morning and spent the next two hours frantically getting packed up to go. After the trip out, I learned a lot about how we should be packed for the train ride plus we had a bunch of souvenirs that needed packed away somehow. We managed to get everything packed away except for one bag with Jonah's Zurg. While I was checking the room over, I realized we never opened the dresser the whole week. Of course there was a refrigerator hidden in one side of it that we could have used instead of keeping our cooler bag filled with ice.

We took one last look at the room and headed to the lobby. They stored our luggage so we could walk around for the few hours before we had to leave for the train station. We walked over to the Disneyland Hotel. I have heard their quick service location, Tangaroa Terrace, has some good breakfast food. On the way I took a picture of a sign we saw the other night. It is a Speed Limit 14 sign. 14 mph! Why?! I must investigate this more.

We arrived only 5 minutes before breakfast switched over to lunch. The item I heard raves about was the French Toast with Bananas & Caramel Sauce. It was delicious. We took some time to walk around the Disneyland Hotel. It is a lovely place. The grounds have a more tropical feel and the artwork around the lobbies contain a lot of classic Imagineering designs for Disneyland. I found the classic Disneyland map with the animations. It was really cool.

We finished off our time at Disneyland walking through Downtown Disney finishing off at the World Of Disney store. It is not quite as big as the one in Florida, but it is still easy for you to lose your family. I had some vouchers for free stuff that I never cashed in and finally did so. We got some commemorative Cars Land pins and a Nightmare Before Christmas Vinylmation. I really don't understand the craze behind Vinylmation, but it is better than the Duffy The Bear crap which makes no sense at all.

We went back to the Grand Californian and sat in the beautiful lobby for about 30 minutes. Then it was time to leave. Eli was holding in the tears. I used to be the same way when I had to leave Walt Disney World. We caught a taxi back to the Anaheim Train Station. Thankfully, there was no crazy taxi strike going on anymore. We had about an hour to wait for the train. The boys and I went to the bathroom which was disgusting. Obviously we weren't at Disneyland anymore. While on the platform we talked to this nice couple who were probably in their early fifties. They were heading to the Staples Center to see Depeche Mode. That made me feel old. Our Pacific Surfliner arrived and we hopped aboard for the 40 minute trip to Los Angeles Union Station.

Union Station in LA was crazy. It is a merging point for about 4 or 5 different transportation systems. We had about 2 hours to wait for our train to leave here. I bought a couple of Wetzel's Pretzels for a snack. They were good. The station was filled with people and it was a little scary. While I was going to see which track our train would be on, Bethany heard an announcement for Amtrak first class passengers to go to the first class lounge. It took us a while to find it because the elevator was closed in that part of the station. Fortunately a nice gentleman from Amtrak asked us if we needed help and he took us to the lounge. Wow, what a difference. The lounge was shiny and clean. We had an attendant providing snacks. It felt a world away from the rest of Union Station. When the train arrived, they drove us out on large golf carts directly to the train platform. Now that is travelling in style.

I got a last shot of Los Angeles as we headed away from the station. Time to relax again on the train. Our car attendant on this train is a little more anal than the trip out. She is paranoid about too much luggage in the racks. Our first attendant just kept sticking them in there until it was overflowing. The dining car is also down a waiter/waitress. The two guys here are working their butts off though.

After a good night's sleep, we woke up in eastern Arizona. Some of the landscape reminded me of Radiator Springs which was inspired by this part of northern Arizona. The train has passed through some of the towns like Seligman and Peach Springs that inspired Cars, but it has been at nighttime. The landscapes of New Mexico are very surprising. It starts off with high desert plains with some buttes in the western half of the state. We passed 5 balloons that were along the red sandstone cliffs in western New Mexico. That was a cool sight. After the high plains we then gradually enter the mountains and descend into Albuquerque which is at the edge of a desert. From there we climb the mountains east of Santa Fe. The western side of the mountains are very desert-like while the eastern side is very wooded. The amount of trees on the east side is incredible compared to the other side. After you get past Las Vegas, NM, you enter large grassy plains in the northeastern part of the state. The Raton Pass finishes the trip across the state.

We went to dinner after coming out of the Rockies in southeastern Colorado. During dinner, we witnessed an absolutely beautiful sunset. The colors were truly amazing. When I travel in the west, I understand the inspiration behind Andrew Peterson's "Nothing To Say". Honestly words cannot describe God's creation when you are among the natural wonders of the wild west.

We went to bed shortly after dinner. We needed to get up very early to eat breakfast before arriving in Kansas City around 7:30 am CDT. I want to be well rested for the drive home. We also need to make sure we don't have jet-lag when we return home. I originally thought sleeping that first night on the train was bad because we weren't used to it. The second night on the trip out and the first night on this trip were both decent. I now know that the track in Kansas is horrible. We did not get a good nights sleep. It was bumpy and loud. I guess the track in Kansas is the problem.

We woke up early for our last meal on the train. Shortly after breakfast we were in Kansas City and ready to hit the long road home. Thankfully, the ride home was uneventful and we arrived back in Pittsburgh around 11:30 pm. We are thankful and blessed to have taken this vacation. It was a great time together as a family. I do have some thoughts about Disneyland that I will post later.

Check out time...so sad

Speed Limit 14 mph????

Breakfast at Tangaroa Terrace

Banana & Caramel French Toast...Mmmmm

The Disneyland Hotel has a better pool than the Grand Californian

The animated Disneyland map

Courtyard at the Grand Californian

Goodbye Disneyland

Goodbye Anaheim

LA Union Station...crazy

Amtrak 1st Class Lounge...not crazy

Goodbye Los Angeles

Hot air balloons in New Mexico

The mesas of northwestern New Mexico

High desert plain

Cool modern house not far from Santa Fe

Grassy plains of northeastern New Mexico

Sunset over the Rockies in Colorado

Stunning colors

Day 7 - Ending On A High Note

I really have broken my own Disney rule on this trip. I always tell people who go to Walt Disney World to not go into the parks everyday. Growing up we always took maybe 2 days off from going into the parks. We would use those days to go to River Country, Discovery Island, the Shopping Village, hanging around the hotel or my favorite, riding the monorail around the resorts. Those days always allowed us to relax and recharge. I guess I was concerned about hitting everything in both parks. Bethany told me she would've preferred a day off. If we ever go to Disneyland again, we'd only take 4 days in the park. I did miss having that day of relaxation and exploration. I feel I haven't explored the Grand Californian enough.

I forgot that the parks opened earlier today. That was okay though because we have done just about everything and we are in no hurry. We hoped to hit some things we missed and ride some of our favorites. We started the day in California Adventure. The boys wanted another ride on Goofy's Sky School, but it broke down as soon as we got in line. We rode the swinging baskets on Mickey's Fun Wheel. We only got one really good slide on it. I would never ride this if it had any sort of line. The view was good though. Eli and I took a final spin on California Screamin'. The ride is a lot better at night I must say. As we were walking out of the park, I noticed there were still Fast Passes for Radiator Springs Racers at 9:20 pm. I thought we should try the ride at night and grabbed four.

We headed over to Disneyland after our surprising Fast Pass capture. We ate lunch at Bengal Barbecue again after our good experience the first time. Jonah wanted to ride Haunted Mansion Holiday again. Like I said before, the ride is okay, but to me it is like someone TP'd the Haunted Mansion. Bethany headed back to the room for a nap and the boys and I rode Winnie The Pooh, Splash Mountain, the Sailing Ship Columbia and Star Tours.

They wanted to take a another ride on Grizzly River Run and swim so we put on our trunks and headed downstairs. Unfortunately the line for the ride was 25 minutes, so we got Fast Passes and took a swim first. It is nice that the pool and the ride are about 50 yards apart. The family we rode with asked why were already wet. They were surprised we were just in the pool. This ride was better, I got hit by a rapid and got soaked. We had dinner reservations for 5:00 pm at the Blue Bayou. Disneyland was closing early for the first night of Mickey's Halloween Party. There were people in costumes everywhere. The park was at least twice as crowded as it had been all week. The crowds this week weren't bad. It was more crowded than I thought it would be, but everything was manageable.

The Blue Bayou is located inside the Pirates Of The Caribbean where the boats pass through the bayou. It feels like you are outside beside a southern plantation home. It is similar to the Mexico pavilion at EPCOT. It is one of Disneyland's signature restaurants. Bethany had a rack of lamb and I had the Jambalaya. My dinner was good, but Bethany's was excellent. Overall our experience wasn't perfect, but it was very good.

We headed over to California Adventure to catch the neon turning on in Radiator Springs one last time. The park was getting very crowded since Disneyland was closed and the Halloween Party was sold out. We realized we had not had churros the entire week and I told Bethany that was a Disneyland crime. We bought a batch of churro bites from the Cozy Cone with cinnamon-chocolate dipping sauce. They were really, really good. Bethany immediately went and bought another batch after drinking the remaining sauce from the cup.

We strolled around the park and sat on Buena Vista Street taking in the nighttime atmosphere of the park. We got our ride on Goofy's Sky School. The time finally reached 9:20 and rode Radiator Springs Racers for our very last experience in the parks. We all agreed it was a better ride at nighttime. We stopped in the lounge at the hotel for some late night dessert. It was our latest night of the week. We're going to have to spend the next few days getting our internal clocks reset for Eastern Time. Tomorrow we pack up and begin our journey home.

Mickey's Fun Wheel on one side of the car

And on the other side of the car

Ready for a ride on Splash Mountain

Sailing Ship Columbia

This was really cool. Unfortunately the Mark Twain was taking the week off.

The Blue Bayou

Mint Julep in the Blue Bayou. Since we were in Disneyland, it is non-alcoholic of course

Doing a shot of cinnamon-chocolate dipping sauce

More Churros!!!

Relaxing at the Cozy Cone

Nighttime on Buena Vista Street

The greatest restrooms in the world at night

Radiator Springs Racers beckons

Headlights are on for a nighttime ride

Our final night at the Grand Californian

Day 6 - Five Handstamps

Disneyland had the Extra Magic Hour today, so we headed there first. I wanted to get all of the Fantasyland dark rides taken care of other than Peter Pan's Flight. We hit Pinocchio's Daring Journey, Alice In Wonderland, the Sleeping Beauty walk-through and good old Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. Unfortunately Snow White was broken down. I must say that Fantasyland is very nice. Tony Baxter's makeover in the 1980s really created a marvelous land. After the dark ride extravaganza it was 10:00 am. We crossed the Esplanade to California Adventure. This was handstamp number one.

I was heading straight to the Fast Pass machines for Radiator Springs Racers once we got to the end of Buena Vista Street. The line stretched all of the way around Carthay Circle into this little courtyard next to Hollywood Land. So I waited in line for about 20-25 minutes at around 10:15 am so we could ride the ride at 2:00 pm when we still had to wait about 5-10 minutes to load.

Really I despise Fast Pass. They are an illusion. Disney has always pushed them as this great way to avoid lines, but they don't work. A Fast Pass really puts you in a virtual line. A ride only has a limited capacity for a certain day. Giving out a number of Fast Passes means the standby line has that many less places per day. Now if you ride another ride until your Fast Pass window, you are really in line for two rides at the same time. With other people in the same situation, it makes the wait for the second ride longer than it should be. It does not add any more time to your day. Plus I am sure labor costs are higher because someone needs to man the Fast Pass machines. Someone checks the Fast Passes at the entrance and someone needs to merge the Fast Pass and stand-by lines. That is 3 people needed per ride to make Fast Pass work. Some rides just don't work for Fast Pass. A high capacity ride like Pirates Of The Caribbean is just stupid to add Fast Passes to. Its capacity is so big, there is no benefit to having a Fast Pass. I can foresee the stupid My Magic Plus coming to Walt Disney World as a disaster. Now you book your Fast Passes months ahead of time. They will probably be adding rides that shouldn't have Fast Pass into the system to give the illusion of value with MM+. Now you'll need to plan not just your vacation day-by-day ahead of time, but also hour-by-hour. I could go on, but I'll stop now. It makes me mad that I have to use the system, but I am at a disadvantage if I don't.

Anyways we had the precious Radiator Springs Racer Fast Pass. We walked over to Hollywood Land and hopped aboard a Red Car Trolley. On the way their I stopped for relief at maybe the most beautiful restroom structure I have ever seen. It was a beautiful Streamline Moderne structure. Anyways, on to the Red Car, I love these little attractions that just add atmosphere to a place. Bethany was so inspired by Soarin' that she wanted to ride it again. After that, we had more time to kill so we headed back over to Disneyland. This was handstamp number two.

This was the perfect opportunity to watch Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln. The preshow area was lovely with Tiki Room concept art, some classic Disneyland art, an opening day model of Disneyland and some Lincoln memorablilia. The whole area reminded me of The Walt Disney Story that is long gone from Main Street in Florida. It is a very relaxing and peaceful place. Sadly Mr. Lincoln only spoke to about 12 of us. It is really sad that classy attractions like Mr. Lincoln are so easily overlooked. It killed The Walt Disney Story and I hope it doesn't kill Great Moments With Mr. Lincoln.

We had a small lunch at Bengal Barbecue and then headed back to California Adventure for Radiator Springs. This was handstamp number three. Bethany was a little nervous about riding Radiator Springs Racers as she hasn't ridden a real thrill ride in a long time. The Racers aren't too stressful though and the ride looked very smooth from the outside. Our Fast Pass time arrived and we were finally in line. The line actually moves very quickly after the merge point of Fast Passes and standbys. It told me that this is another ride that doesn't really need a Fast Pass. It would probably cause a lot less problems if everyone waited in line with the same rules. I liked the beginning which recreated Sally & Lightning's ride into the country with the same soundtrack playing. The inside part can be a little hard to follow, but the animatronic cars are incredible creations. The ending race provides a nice little thrill, but nothing like Test Track. I could tell Bethany loved every minute of it. She was riding a high afterwards. Radiator Springs Racers is a very good ride, but I don't think it is so incredible to be causing such long standby lines and Fast Pass distribution to end within the first hour of the park opening.

We stopped for some sweets. I wanted to try the fresh dipped ice cream bar from Clarabelle's Ice Cream Parlor. I wish they offered some different garnishes like maybe peanut butter chips or peanuts, but it was really good. We separated after that for Bethany to take a nap back at the room and the boys and I headed back to Disneyland. This was handstamp number four.

We went to Tomorrowland to get another ride on Space Mountain and also get a ride on Autopia. While we were waiting for Space Mountain I enjoyed the background music loop playing some classic Future World and Tomorrowland music. I heard Universe Of Energy, Energy (You Make The World Go Round), Timekeeper and Listen To The Land. Autopia's line played some classic music like Nation On Wheels and some of the old Peoplemover melodies. Autopia is the best ride of its kind ever built. It makes Walt Disney World's Tomorrowlad Speedway look horrible. The layout is extensive and the foliage is beautiful. Jonah got to drive his own car solo for the first time. He had a hard time keeping the pedal down the whole time, but he did fine.

We went back to the room (handstamp number five) to get Bethany and the headed back to Disneyland. We had a very good dinner at The French Market. Bethany and Jonah split a shrimp creole pasta and I had cajun meatloaf. We enjoyed it. The boys and I took another ride on Pirates Of The Caribbean while Bethany checked out the shops of New Orleans Square. I don't think I could ever get tired of riding Pirates.

Afterwards we stepped into the Court Of Angels. This quiet little corner of the park is the perfect example why the Disney Company of today is so misguided and distant from its founder. The little hideaways that were loaded with details are what made Disney parks different. Now this beautiful little spot is being closed off to expand the private Club 33 and will no longer be accessible to the general park guest. Every square foot of the parks now has to generate maximum revenue. That is today's Disney mantra and it is why I don't frequent Walt Disney World like I used to. The absolutely greedy move of removing Center Street, The Penny Arcade and The Magic Shop to make a gigantic Emporium of crappy character merchandise was a great example. The company needs to stop having MBAs and their spreadsheets making decisions. It is going to drive me away completely if it keeps up.

The last major attraction we had to ride came up next, the world famous Jungle Cruise. While it was nice having a short 5 minute wait to ride, I did miss listening to the great queue background loop. We had a good skipper and the boys really enjoyed the trip. I am not sure if the boats have always been different or if they replaced boats at both parks, but I remember the seats on the boat being nice and padded. The benches were hard on the boat now. It was uncomfortable for Bethany. The ride was comparable to WDWs, but I did miss the tunnel through the ancient temple. I wanted to take a nighttime ride on the Matterhorn so we hit that before we left. It was fun, but those trains need some padding on the seats. It would make it a much better ride.

It was a good day with some beautiful southern California weather. Tomorrow is our last full day at Disneyland. I may not have another post for a few days (depending on internet access on the way back). I want to enjoy my last day and take my traditional late night walk on the last night of a Disney trip.

We paused for a picture on the way to the park

This was halfway through the Radiator Springs Racers Fast Pass line

I've got a Golden Ticket!

Most beautiful restroom structure ever?

On the Red Car Trolley

Looking at the opening day Disneyland model.

An enjoyable ride in Radiator Springs

Hand dipped ice cream bar

About to ride Space Mountain

After the Autopia ride, this Stormtrooper scared the crap out of Jonah and I

The beautiful Court Of Angels

My princess

The jokes are always corny on the Jungle Cruise

Day 5 - A California Adventure

I had to make an unexpected trip to CVS this morning for Bethany. It was about a mile walk. This caused us to get to the early entry for California Adventure a little later than we wanted. I knew that Radiator Springs Racers would already have a long line then so I changed our tactic. I think a lot of people try to ride popular rides on early entry days, but this makes their lines just as long as they would be the rest of the day. Instead you should ride the next tier of rides that will be moderately long later in the day, but will be short during the extra hour.

We went to Soarin' Over California first. I haven't ridden it yet and I was excited about this one. Bethany was very apprehensive about it, but I convinced her to go on it. I could tell she was a little stressed at the beginning of the ride when the seats lifted off. After a minute though, she relaxed and enjoyed the remainder of the ride. Soarin' is a great ride because it provides thrills for all without any physical stress put on the body. I love the pine smell and orange smell. Of course the orange smell makes me sad because it reminds me of Horizons.

Eli and I took another spin on California Screamin'. It is a really good coaster. We also rode Toy Story Midway Mania and Goofy's Sky School twice before the park opened for everyone else. So we got 5 rides done including 3 popular rides in that extra hour. We probably wouldn't have even got on Radiator Springs Racers in that time.

We stopped for the Phineas and Ferb show on the street for the boys. Amazingly Jonah joined the other kids dancing along with Phineas & Ferb. The other highlight was the 40 year old dad who was singing along and groovin' to Squirrels In My Pants. He was hilarious.

We rode The Little Mermaid ride next. It follows the tradition of the Fantasyland dark rides, but one thing really bugged me. It jumped from "Kiss The Girl" to the finale without really resolving the conflict. Other than showing an angry Ursala in the background of them kissing, there was nothing. Bethany needed a hot beverage so we stopped at Ghirardelli so she could get a hot chocolate. It was the most intense dark chocolate I've have ever tasted. It was almost too strong. For Bethany to say that, it really means something. While she was getting her cocoa, Eli and I went to get Fast Passes for Radiator Springs Racers. We were just about to get to the machines when they ran out of them for the day. I was stunned. Honestly I hate Fast Passes. I have many reasons why I do, but I won't get into that now. I use them though because it puts us at a disadvantage if we don't use them. Now we were stuck without doing Racers today without having to wait at least an hour. I am going to plan a way to get on tomorrow.

Next we headed to the area of California Adventure that I was looking forward to, Buena Vista Street. It did not disappoint. The architecture was classic SoCal from the 1930s. The details just oozed from every corner. I could just sit there and take in the atmosphere all day. My favorite building was the corner of Elias & Company. Bethany enjoyed the inside of Elias & Co. more than the facade. I think that was the store she has spent the longest in during the whole trip. I just relaxed in the little plaza outside of the store taking in beautiful Buena Vista Street. The boys didn't really like either of our pleasures. I always loved Hollywood Blvd at Hollywood Studios until they put up that stupid, awful hat at the end of it. The Main Streets are definite classics. EPCOT Centers airy entry plaza before they made it a cemetery always set up the park nice. Animal Kingdom's Oasis is different and refreshing. But I now think Buena Vista Street is my favorite entrance area in all Disney theme parks.

I was surprised by Hollywood Land a little. I was under the impression it was all fake facades, but the main stretch was very reminiscent of the amazing Hollywood Boulevard in Florida. The area around Monsters Inc. ride and Muppetvision was a mess though. I can see why they are thinking redoing this area. The Monster Inc. ride was good. I loved the ginger smell in Harryhausen's and the door rooms were well done. We caught a break and were able to watch the full Muppetvision preshow (which is just as funny as the actual show). The Tower Of Terror is definitely inferior to the Florida ride. The ride loses a lot without the 4th Dimension room.

After a decent lunch in Paradise Garden and a spin on the Silly Symphony Swings, we returned to the room to take advantage of one of the benefits of staying at The Grand Californian. The boys and I put on our swim trunks and returned to the park to ride Grizzly River Run. We left our room and were in line for the ride in less than 5 minutes. This was one time I hoped to get soaked on a rapids ride. Unfortunately I just got wet and not soaked. The boys and I then jumped in the pool for a 20 minute swim.

For dinner, we tried two rice bowls from The Lucky Fortune Cookery. The Tofu Teriyaki was ok, but we enjoyed the Beef with Orange Sauce much better. Dessert was another stop at Ghirardelli's for more chocolate goodness. I am glad we don't have one of these near us. We would go broke.

We wanted to see the neon turn on again in Cars Land before Eli and I rode Screamin' again. He drove us crazy all day begging to ride it again. We got a front seat again and the picture was too good not to use our ride photo voucher on it. We finished the night by using our Fast Passes for access to a World Of Color viewing area. After waiting half an hour the show started and neither boy could see a thing. I tried to hold them both up, but they are too heavy to do that now and that only lasted about a minute. Eli was trying to jump and see what was going on. First of all, everyone was holding up cameras taping the thing. Secondly, most of them saw these two little boys trying their hardest to see the show and were completely indifferent to their plight. I was pretty mad. We decided to just leave. When we reached the top of the viewing terraces, The stroller parking area had some space and we stopped to watch the remainder of the show from here. The boys were able to see it much better here. So really we wasted over a half hour of our night when we could have just showed up at the last minute to watch the show from the stroller parking area. The show itself is nice, but it is no Illuminations. Not even close.

We darted out of there quickly at the end of the show and were back in our room in 10 minutes. I love staying this close to the parks.

Ready for Toy Story Mania

Jonah joining Phineas & Ferb

Beautiful Buena Vista Street

My favorite building on Buena Vista Street

Monsters Inc queue - The boys had no idea what this was

Hollywood Tower Hotel lobby

Eli does his Gareth Bale impersonation to show how much he loves California Screamin'

Getting on Silly Symphony Swings

Bethany's favorite "ride" in all of Disneyland

My dessert

Did I mention Bethany loves Ghirardelli

 Bethany trying to get Jonah to dance during the neon light up in Radiator Springs

Eli is in pure bliss

Waiting for World Of Color

World Of Color begins

Kind of a creepy photo, but this is me trying to hold up both boys for World Of Color