TamiJean
05-09-2008, 07:22 PM
• Tami Olson
• tamiolson@cox.net
• 4/11/08-4/14/08
• Time of Year: Spring
• Travel Method: Car
• Resort: Offsite
• Accommodations: Ages Represented in Group: Adult
• Disneyland Experience Represented in Group: Veterans &
Cast:
Tami Olson, Me – Disneyland Veteran
Nicole Baron – Hadn’t been in over 10 years!!
Rosan Moser – Hadn’t been in about 13 years!!
Bonnie Miller – Grew up North of Anaheim
Accommodations: Park Vue Inn
Places Visited: Disneyland & California Adventure – and did Mouse Adventure!!
Pre Trip Planning:
One Saturday in January, I think, I was just checking in on Mouse Planet…and noticed that registration for Mouse Adventure was that week. My husband and I had done it once about 5 years ago. Our church has always done an annual girls’ Rocky Point Trip during a weekend in April…but the organizer doesn’t go to the church any longer…and with the new passport restrictions – it wasn’t happening this year.
So, the next day at church – I mentioned it to my friend Libby. She thought that it would be a great idea…so we found two other ladies crazy enough to join us :p. I registered us in the Mouse Adventure 101 division and found us a hotel. The plan was to drive to Anaheim from Tucson after work on Friday night (& Saturday morning!). That would give us Sat to play at DL and Sun for Mouse Adventure.
The Tuesday before the trip – Libby cancels on us!! She had a bunch of work problems and wasn’t able to take Mon off of work. So, Bonnie & I called about a dozen other ladies in our church to see who could take Libby’s spot. Everyone thought it was a great idea…but couldn’t afford to go on FRIDAY! (So, hopefully next year we’ll have a bigger group with multiple teams!!) We did finally call Rosan and she was able to come!
Friday – April 11, 2008
It wasn’t until today that I really realized how late it was going to be before we actually arrived at DL…since it’s about an 8 hour drive!! I had never driven that far since my husband always drives to DL…but I did it and we really did pretty well. We got out of the house about 6pm…didn’t eat dinner until 8ish on the far side of Phoenix. The only other stop we made was at Blythe for gas & bathrooms. We arrived at the hotel at 2:30 in the morning. I was the first one into the bathroom, into my PJs and into the top bunk bed.
Saturday – April 12, 2008
Wow…6am came REALLY early today! But, we did all get out of bed, showered and ready to go in decent time. We headed to the continental breakfast (which is GREAT at Park Vue Inn) about 8am. I was a little antsy since DL was already OPEN…but tried to relax and eat something and not annoy my companions too much!!
So, we finally get to the turnstiles and I give the Cast Member my Annual Pass – and she tells me it’s a BLOCKOUT DAY!! I didn’t even think to check…so I had to run over and pay my $40 to get in for the day!
After all that we got into the park about 8:30 and headed to Space to grab a FP – but the line was only 15 min, so we jumped in line. After that we did Buzz & Star Tours with only small waits at both. I think that Nicole could have spent all day on Buzz trying to beat her old score!! Next stop was Big Thunder Mtn RR…the line was kinda long so we got our first FP of the day. We used the FP really well on this trip and saved a lot of time!
While we were waiting for the FP – I suggested we run over and do Pirates since the window was only about 45 min away…but we when we got over to Pirates, it had just shut down and everyone was walking off the ride!! Nicole was worried that she wouldn’t be able to go on Pirates!! Instead – we headed over and did Haunted Mansion & then Pooh…and then grabbed a FP for Splash – the window was 12:20 -1:20. By now we were able to head back BTMRR and use our FP to ride this one. This is a ride that Bonnie didn’t remember ever riding. She used to come with her sister often – who lived in CA…and her sister was the Tour Guide…and Bonnie just followed!
***Yesterday on the drive in someone brought up eating at the BB to get the Monte Cristo Sandwich and I mentioned that you could get them right across the street instead – they were cheaper and the wait to be seated wouldn’t be as long. I gave Bonnie my cell and told her to call Disney dining and make a priority reservation for the Café Orleans. After everyone stopped laughing at me for having the phone # memorized :p…she called as was able to get a table for 4 outside at noon the next day!!***
So…after BTMRR we still had a little while until our PS – so we headed over to Indy – but the line was way too long and I knew we’d never get done in time for lunch, so instead we went on Jungle Cruise. The line was actually kinda long – I hadn’t waited upstairs for this ride for years!! But, it went by quickly and we had a nice trip. I was seated right next to the Skipper and he was pretty good & funny. We got off JC and had about 20 min or so…and Rosan had mentioned a few times that she definitely wanted to see the Tiki Rm this trip – so I suggested we head over to Tiki. We were walking up to it and someone said…umm – I think this is the line. I said "No, that’s the line for the Dole Whips!"…we went right through the turnstile and I was telling them how good the Dole Whips are and how it was too bad that we were just about to eat lunch and couldn’t have dessert first…then we realized – we were at Disneyland!! Without any kids or spouses – so we bought one and split it…it was SOO good.
We walked out of the Tiki Rm at 11:58 – perfect timing! We had a short wait to be seated…Bonnie & I split a Monte Cristo & the Pomme Frittas. Nicole also had a Monte Cristo and Rosan had a salad – can’t remember what it was exactly but it looked good! While we were waiting for our food – Bonnie offered to run to the bathroom and over to Indy to get us all FPs since it was after 12:20 and we were able to get another one - the Indy FP wasn't until 3:30 or so that afternoon. While she was gone, a waiter dropped a plate as he was piling up dishes right underneath another table. The girls at that table got splattered with ketchup – especially on their white socks. A minute later, we realized that the ketchup had splattered all the way over to us & Rosan had ketchup on her shirt and it was all over our table too!! Oh, I had also ordered the Mint Julep – all the other girls ordered iced tea. But they all had a sip of my drink and asked to have some Mint Julep in their tea when he came around with refills. We just paid with one check and used my AP discount…the CM took my AP when he went to ring up the credit card…and then he forgot to give it back with the ticket. I thought maybe I had put it somewhere, but couldn’t find it…and we finally flagged him down and it was in his apron pocket. I’m just glad I realized it then and not after we had left and were trying to go into DCA!!
After we ate far too much…we went over and used our Splash FPs. It was about 1:30 or so by now…so we decided to head over to DCA to get some of the rides over there. First, we got a FP for Soarin’ – then tried to get one for GRR – but it was broken down. So, next we headed over to Tower of Terror. The line wasn’t too bad – 13 minutes!! The ride was great – I was the only one who had ever been on it. Bonnie said that she was a little nervous, but that she wanted to try it. Nicole never said a word (which I realize now should have thrown up red flags…since she’s a talker! :D ) so I had no idea that she was nervous. We got off the ride and I thought Nicole was going to die…she couldn’t walk straight and was almost hyperventilating…all the while laughing. She immediately called Chet her husband and told him what a horrible experience she just had. Then we talked her into buying an “I Survived the Tower of Terror” magnet to put on her fridge. I think at this point it was about 3:00 – so we ran back over to DL just to use our Indy FPs and then we headed back to the hotel and went on an outing to the Character Warehouse. I found a Tink shirt and a Valentine Mickey antenna ball for my mom who was helping to watch my kids on Saturday – she has an antenna ball collection. I also got myself two shirts, Megan (my 4 yr old) a Marie cat headband with little ears. All this for less than $40 with my 20% discount!! Everyone else found stuff…especially Bonnie…and was super happy that we spent the time away from DL to come shopping here. The one thing I was actually looking for was some sort of a black hat – all my hats are somehow pink!! But, I couldn’t find one.
We headed back to the hotel and changed into pants and tried not to sit down for too long – in case we couldn’t get back up again! It was about dinner time – and we had FPs for Soarin at 6:00 ish…so I recommended Taste Pilots Grill. I got the Aviator’s Ckn Sandwich – like always. There was a new option though – you could choose either fries or a tangy veggie salad. So, Nicole and I both got a Ckn Sandwich – and one got fries & one the salad & we split them both. The salad was really, really good – and very tiny. But, I will definitely get it next time (and then steal some of my husband’s fries!). After dinner, we went Soarin’ and everyone loved it. We headed back over to DL to squeeze Pirates in before the fireworks – Nicole’s request. A few times earlier today, we walked by Pirates and the line was HUGE…as big as it was right after one of the movies had just premiered. Our only guess was that it was because it had been down earlier in the day and everyone really wanted to ride it! But, by now the line was only about 20 min and we had a great time – they all loved the Jack Sparrows. Nicole took tons of pictures with her camera phone, not just on this ride, but all the time. I think she said she had over 200 pictures by the end of Sunday!
After Pirates we headed back to the center hub and Bonnie was on her cell phone trying to meet up with her niece who lives in CA and was here with some friends for the day. Tiffany was telling us she was right in front of the castle…and so were we – but we couldn’t find her. Finally they figured out that she was in the other front of the castle…in Fantasyland!! We did all finally meet up and got some pretty good seats for sitting down at 9pm – behind the center hub just a bit, so the trees weren’t blocking too much – and exactly centered behind the partner’s statue! The fireworks were great – Nicole & Rosan were amazed. After they were over – Bonnie headed off with Tiff for a little while I took the other two to see Fantasmic (Bonnie had seen it lots of times). We got stuck in the huge crowds of people…and just happened to get back row, right in front of the first rope – directly center of the center water spray. So, we waited a little while, looked at some pictures…and Rosan & Nicole learned how just many family members will come and squeeze in with the one person sitting in front of us!! There was also a group of teens next to us talking about princesses and asking each other Trivia Questions…and one of them happened to be a question the next day at Mouse Adventure!!
After Fantasmic, we headed to Main St and did a little bit of shopping. I left the other three in the candy store while I headed to Disneyana. We had gotten an email from Olzsewski a few weeks ago that the Astro Orbiter had been re-released. This is one of the few pieces we have missing from our Main St in our living room!! So – my husband told me I wasn’t allowed to come home without it!! So, I get there – and it was one the shelf…and I asked and it was in stock…and then I ask how I can get a discount. The CM replies – with a Disney Visa you get 10% off. Now, I really should have remembered that – but I left my Disney Visa back in the hotel room and only carried in my American Express. So, to save $25 – I told the other girls that I was going to run back to the hotel – which I did, literally. It was 11:30 by now – so I jogged as much as I could when there weren’t crowds. Boy was I tired by the time I got back to the hotel. So, I grabbed my Disney Visa & a water bottle and power walked back to DL. I was able to get my Astro Orbiter. Since I was alone on Main St – and not at all tired any more after my run – I decided to do some shopping. I wondered into the shop next to the Magic shop that has CDs & DVDs and asked if they had a CD with the parade song. But the CM couldn’t find it. So, I settled for the 50th Anniversary CD. It’s a great CD and has some really neat, different songs on it. After that I wandered through the clothing shop on the end and then over to the Mad Hatter…where I found a black hat that I loved. It is black with just the word “Princess” in the front and a crown in the back that are stitched in silver. So, I bought it for myself!! By now it was after midnight and the park was officially closed…so I headed back to the hotel and showed all by booty to the other girls…and I finally fell asleep close to 1am.
Day 2 Coming Soon...
• tamiolson@cox.net
• 4/11/08-4/14/08
• Time of Year: Spring
• Travel Method: Car
• Resort: Offsite
• Accommodations: Ages Represented in Group: Adult
• Disneyland Experience Represented in Group: Veterans &
Cast:
Tami Olson, Me – Disneyland Veteran
Nicole Baron – Hadn’t been in over 10 years!!
Rosan Moser – Hadn’t been in about 13 years!!
Bonnie Miller – Grew up North of Anaheim
Accommodations: Park Vue Inn
Places Visited: Disneyland & California Adventure – and did Mouse Adventure!!
Pre Trip Planning:
One Saturday in January, I think, I was just checking in on Mouse Planet…and noticed that registration for Mouse Adventure was that week. My husband and I had done it once about 5 years ago. Our church has always done an annual girls’ Rocky Point Trip during a weekend in April…but the organizer doesn’t go to the church any longer…and with the new passport restrictions – it wasn’t happening this year.
So, the next day at church – I mentioned it to my friend Libby. She thought that it would be a great idea…so we found two other ladies crazy enough to join us :p. I registered us in the Mouse Adventure 101 division and found us a hotel. The plan was to drive to Anaheim from Tucson after work on Friday night (& Saturday morning!). That would give us Sat to play at DL and Sun for Mouse Adventure.
The Tuesday before the trip – Libby cancels on us!! She had a bunch of work problems and wasn’t able to take Mon off of work. So, Bonnie & I called about a dozen other ladies in our church to see who could take Libby’s spot. Everyone thought it was a great idea…but couldn’t afford to go on FRIDAY! (So, hopefully next year we’ll have a bigger group with multiple teams!!) We did finally call Rosan and she was able to come!
Friday – April 11, 2008
It wasn’t until today that I really realized how late it was going to be before we actually arrived at DL…since it’s about an 8 hour drive!! I had never driven that far since my husband always drives to DL…but I did it and we really did pretty well. We got out of the house about 6pm…didn’t eat dinner until 8ish on the far side of Phoenix. The only other stop we made was at Blythe for gas & bathrooms. We arrived at the hotel at 2:30 in the morning. I was the first one into the bathroom, into my PJs and into the top bunk bed.
Saturday – April 12, 2008
Wow…6am came REALLY early today! But, we did all get out of bed, showered and ready to go in decent time. We headed to the continental breakfast (which is GREAT at Park Vue Inn) about 8am. I was a little antsy since DL was already OPEN…but tried to relax and eat something and not annoy my companions too much!!
So, we finally get to the turnstiles and I give the Cast Member my Annual Pass – and she tells me it’s a BLOCKOUT DAY!! I didn’t even think to check…so I had to run over and pay my $40 to get in for the day!
After all that we got into the park about 8:30 and headed to Space to grab a FP – but the line was only 15 min, so we jumped in line. After that we did Buzz & Star Tours with only small waits at both. I think that Nicole could have spent all day on Buzz trying to beat her old score!! Next stop was Big Thunder Mtn RR…the line was kinda long so we got our first FP of the day. We used the FP really well on this trip and saved a lot of time!
While we were waiting for the FP – I suggested we run over and do Pirates since the window was only about 45 min away…but we when we got over to Pirates, it had just shut down and everyone was walking off the ride!! Nicole was worried that she wouldn’t be able to go on Pirates!! Instead – we headed over and did Haunted Mansion & then Pooh…and then grabbed a FP for Splash – the window was 12:20 -1:20. By now we were able to head back BTMRR and use our FP to ride this one. This is a ride that Bonnie didn’t remember ever riding. She used to come with her sister often – who lived in CA…and her sister was the Tour Guide…and Bonnie just followed!
***Yesterday on the drive in someone brought up eating at the BB to get the Monte Cristo Sandwich and I mentioned that you could get them right across the street instead – they were cheaper and the wait to be seated wouldn’t be as long. I gave Bonnie my cell and told her to call Disney dining and make a priority reservation for the Café Orleans. After everyone stopped laughing at me for having the phone # memorized :p…she called as was able to get a table for 4 outside at noon the next day!!***
So…after BTMRR we still had a little while until our PS – so we headed over to Indy – but the line was way too long and I knew we’d never get done in time for lunch, so instead we went on Jungle Cruise. The line was actually kinda long – I hadn’t waited upstairs for this ride for years!! But, it went by quickly and we had a nice trip. I was seated right next to the Skipper and he was pretty good & funny. We got off JC and had about 20 min or so…and Rosan had mentioned a few times that she definitely wanted to see the Tiki Rm this trip – so I suggested we head over to Tiki. We were walking up to it and someone said…umm – I think this is the line. I said "No, that’s the line for the Dole Whips!"…we went right through the turnstile and I was telling them how good the Dole Whips are and how it was too bad that we were just about to eat lunch and couldn’t have dessert first…then we realized – we were at Disneyland!! Without any kids or spouses – so we bought one and split it…it was SOO good.
We walked out of the Tiki Rm at 11:58 – perfect timing! We had a short wait to be seated…Bonnie & I split a Monte Cristo & the Pomme Frittas. Nicole also had a Monte Cristo and Rosan had a salad – can’t remember what it was exactly but it looked good! While we were waiting for our food – Bonnie offered to run to the bathroom and over to Indy to get us all FPs since it was after 12:20 and we were able to get another one - the Indy FP wasn't until 3:30 or so that afternoon. While she was gone, a waiter dropped a plate as he was piling up dishes right underneath another table. The girls at that table got splattered with ketchup – especially on their white socks. A minute later, we realized that the ketchup had splattered all the way over to us & Rosan had ketchup on her shirt and it was all over our table too!! Oh, I had also ordered the Mint Julep – all the other girls ordered iced tea. But they all had a sip of my drink and asked to have some Mint Julep in their tea when he came around with refills. We just paid with one check and used my AP discount…the CM took my AP when he went to ring up the credit card…and then he forgot to give it back with the ticket. I thought maybe I had put it somewhere, but couldn’t find it…and we finally flagged him down and it was in his apron pocket. I’m just glad I realized it then and not after we had left and were trying to go into DCA!!
After we ate far too much…we went over and used our Splash FPs. It was about 1:30 or so by now…so we decided to head over to DCA to get some of the rides over there. First, we got a FP for Soarin’ – then tried to get one for GRR – but it was broken down. So, next we headed over to Tower of Terror. The line wasn’t too bad – 13 minutes!! The ride was great – I was the only one who had ever been on it. Bonnie said that she was a little nervous, but that she wanted to try it. Nicole never said a word (which I realize now should have thrown up red flags…since she’s a talker! :D ) so I had no idea that she was nervous. We got off the ride and I thought Nicole was going to die…she couldn’t walk straight and was almost hyperventilating…all the while laughing. She immediately called Chet her husband and told him what a horrible experience she just had. Then we talked her into buying an “I Survived the Tower of Terror” magnet to put on her fridge. I think at this point it was about 3:00 – so we ran back over to DL just to use our Indy FPs and then we headed back to the hotel and went on an outing to the Character Warehouse. I found a Tink shirt and a Valentine Mickey antenna ball for my mom who was helping to watch my kids on Saturday – she has an antenna ball collection. I also got myself two shirts, Megan (my 4 yr old) a Marie cat headband with little ears. All this for less than $40 with my 20% discount!! Everyone else found stuff…especially Bonnie…and was super happy that we spent the time away from DL to come shopping here. The one thing I was actually looking for was some sort of a black hat – all my hats are somehow pink!! But, I couldn’t find one.
We headed back to the hotel and changed into pants and tried not to sit down for too long – in case we couldn’t get back up again! It was about dinner time – and we had FPs for Soarin at 6:00 ish…so I recommended Taste Pilots Grill. I got the Aviator’s Ckn Sandwich – like always. There was a new option though – you could choose either fries or a tangy veggie salad. So, Nicole and I both got a Ckn Sandwich – and one got fries & one the salad & we split them both. The salad was really, really good – and very tiny. But, I will definitely get it next time (and then steal some of my husband’s fries!). After dinner, we went Soarin’ and everyone loved it. We headed back over to DL to squeeze Pirates in before the fireworks – Nicole’s request. A few times earlier today, we walked by Pirates and the line was HUGE…as big as it was right after one of the movies had just premiered. Our only guess was that it was because it had been down earlier in the day and everyone really wanted to ride it! But, by now the line was only about 20 min and we had a great time – they all loved the Jack Sparrows. Nicole took tons of pictures with her camera phone, not just on this ride, but all the time. I think she said she had over 200 pictures by the end of Sunday!
After Pirates we headed back to the center hub and Bonnie was on her cell phone trying to meet up with her niece who lives in CA and was here with some friends for the day. Tiffany was telling us she was right in front of the castle…and so were we – but we couldn’t find her. Finally they figured out that she was in the other front of the castle…in Fantasyland!! We did all finally meet up and got some pretty good seats for sitting down at 9pm – behind the center hub just a bit, so the trees weren’t blocking too much – and exactly centered behind the partner’s statue! The fireworks were great – Nicole & Rosan were amazed. After they were over – Bonnie headed off with Tiff for a little while I took the other two to see Fantasmic (Bonnie had seen it lots of times). We got stuck in the huge crowds of people…and just happened to get back row, right in front of the first rope – directly center of the center water spray. So, we waited a little while, looked at some pictures…and Rosan & Nicole learned how just many family members will come and squeeze in with the one person sitting in front of us!! There was also a group of teens next to us talking about princesses and asking each other Trivia Questions…and one of them happened to be a question the next day at Mouse Adventure!!
After Fantasmic, we headed to Main St and did a little bit of shopping. I left the other three in the candy store while I headed to Disneyana. We had gotten an email from Olzsewski a few weeks ago that the Astro Orbiter had been re-released. This is one of the few pieces we have missing from our Main St in our living room!! So – my husband told me I wasn’t allowed to come home without it!! So, I get there – and it was one the shelf…and I asked and it was in stock…and then I ask how I can get a discount. The CM replies – with a Disney Visa you get 10% off. Now, I really should have remembered that – but I left my Disney Visa back in the hotel room and only carried in my American Express. So, to save $25 – I told the other girls that I was going to run back to the hotel – which I did, literally. It was 11:30 by now – so I jogged as much as I could when there weren’t crowds. Boy was I tired by the time I got back to the hotel. So, I grabbed my Disney Visa & a water bottle and power walked back to DL. I was able to get my Astro Orbiter. Since I was alone on Main St – and not at all tired any more after my run – I decided to do some shopping. I wondered into the shop next to the Magic shop that has CDs & DVDs and asked if they had a CD with the parade song. But the CM couldn’t find it. So, I settled for the 50th Anniversary CD. It’s a great CD and has some really neat, different songs on it. After that I wandered through the clothing shop on the end and then over to the Mad Hatter…where I found a black hat that I loved. It is black with just the word “Princess” in the front and a crown in the back that are stitched in silver. So, I bought it for myself!! By now it was after midnight and the park was officially closed…so I headed back to the hotel and showed all by booty to the other girls…and I finally fell asleep close to 1am.
Day 2 Coming Soon...