Skip to main content

Disneyland Report


Camera-savvy youngest daughter took this photo on our trip to Disneyland on Monday.  But wait, you say--doesn't Star Tours officially open today?  That's true, but before a ride officially opens, Disneyland often has "soft" openings.  Monday was such a day, when Star Tours had a "sneak preview" and was open to everyone.  Thanks to short lines early in the day, and the use of fast passes, we were able to ride four times!!! 

The ride lived up to its hype.  Each time we rode, we experienced something different than the previous times.  We never knew where our journey would take us.  Each ride visits multiple locations, so even though we visited the same place on more than one ride, we never had the exact same experience.  Sometimes we met Darth Vader, other times Yoda, other times Jar Jar Binks.  One of my favorite scenarios is the underwater adventure.  I won't spoil it for you, but the imagineers really put a lot of humor into the situation.

We will definitely return to ride again!



Disney's California Adventure park also had a soft opening on Monday, for Ariel's Undersea Adventure.  It would fit right in at Fantasyland in Disneyland.  It is a cute, gentle ride, filled with music and animatronic characters from The Little Mermaid.  It has its dark moments, but overall I find it less dark than most of the Fantasyland rides.  We all enjoyed it, but I don't think it is on our "must see" list for next time.  If the kids were young or big Little Mermaid fans, that might be different.

Oh, this didn't happen on Monday, but here's a funny Disneyland story:  Everyone is probably familiar with the "gets-stuck-in-your-head" song, "It's a Small World."  I never thought it could be worse, until one day I heard a little girl singing it on the tram ride back to the parking lot.  Instead of singing the whole chorus, though, she sang:  "It's a small world after all, it's a small world after all"...breath....then she repeated that much!!!  Over and over again.  She never got to the "...it's a small, small world" part! 

In case you hate me now for sharing that story, maybe I should tell you about our visit to "the tiki tiki tiki tiki tiki room."   ;-)

Comments

  1. HizzeatherJune 3, 2011 at 8:17 PM

    Arghh...I'm so jealous! We were there Wednesday, but Star Tours was only open for winners of some prize and had special passes. You are so lucky!!!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Conversations are so much nicer when more than one person does the talking. :-) Please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts; I'd love to hear from you!

Popular posts from this blog

Ten Things of Thankful: 39 Years Edition

A political map of the world circa 1987. The Soviet Union takes up a sizable portion. A lot has happened in the last 39 years. The Berlin Wall came down. The Soviet Union collapsed. The Twin Towers fell. Technology has changed: landlines and phone booths are practically extinct, and random questions can be answered in seconds by asking Google, Siri, or Alexa. No longer do drivers keep the Thomas Guide in their cars; navigation systems will give turn-by-turn directions, and recalculate when the driver doesn't follow the directions. Some cars don't even need drivers. While many shoppers do their shopping in-person, some simply log into Amazon and have their item show up on their doorstep--sometimes within hours.  I've seen pieces of the Berlin Wall. I've traveled to places that used to be behind the Iron Curtain. I've been to Ground Zero. I no longer have a house phone, and have looked up the answers to countless questions using my cell phone. I do not miss the stress...
5 comments
Read more

Ten Things of Thankful: April Showers Edition

  A red peony bud prepares to open fully  After an incredibly dry winter, we had a bit of precipitation this past week, in the form of falling snow. We didn't have much, and it didn't really stick, but we'll take water however it wants to come. Fortunately, my peonies seem unaffected by the cold snap, and are ready to put on a show here soon. 1. I'm thankful for moisture. 2. I'm thankful the flowers are still going to bloom. I don't know how the colder temperatures will affect the fruit crops. The strawberries look like they are still planning to set fruit. We'll have to see what happens with the peach, apricot, pear, and apple. (The apricot only bears heavily every other year anyway, and I think this is an "off" year--though I could be wrong.) Strawberry plants in full bloom 3. I'm thankful for anticipated berries.  We continue to clear out and otherwise prepare John's parents' house for sale. I've been going through old photos and...
8 comments
Read more

Tuesday Time to Tackle: DIY Swamp Cooler Pump Replacement

Yesterday morning, despite having the swamp cooler on all night long, we woke up to 81 degree temperatures inside the house.  John went outside to inspect and announced that the swamp cooler pump had stopped working. Fortunately, replacing the pump is a quick and simple do-it-yourself project. 
4 comments
Read more