Part of that World

Well, as I sadly knew, photos I post via my Macbook never stay loaded on the page. I may just be doing it wrong, but it is the ONE thing that is easier on a PC. So until I figure this out my travel blog will be lacking photographic evidence of my trips.

After the lengthy trip to and from San Diego, I met my parents and brother at LAX to begin our Disneyland adventure. If you know me for longer than a minute, you discover that my family has an obsession with Disney World. I'm not lying when I say that I can't tell you how many times I've been to the parks.

To mix it up, we decided to go to Disneyland since I had to be in California anyway a week later. We spent only three days in the two parks, which was plenty. If you have the endurance, you can really do the parks in just two days, but if you like to take your time or wake up later in the day it may take you more time.

The two parks are Disneyland and California Adventure, and they are situated across from one another with barely a football field between them. This makes it easy to go from park to park if you've purchased the Park Hopper option on your ticket. Another convenience it that all three Disney hotels are within walking distance, so you'll be able to go back to your room and rest if you need.

My overall rating is unimpressed. I'm glad we went as a onetime thing, but I would not likely return. Disney World just spoiled me. Four parks with a myriad of restaurants and attractions that can keep you engaged for days. I did enjoy myself, but it just wasn't the same I was glad to experience some of the new rides in Carsland and the rest of California Adventure. Also, many of the rides that are in both parks were actually better at Disneyland! It lacked the same caliber of restaurants and that feeling of magical escape because it is so close to the major roads of Anaheim.

Now I'll get a little more specific about each park and some suggestions. Firstly, Californians share something in common with me. They love to sleep in and take their time getting somewhere. Because of this, the best time to go to either park is first thing in the morning and staying late. The parks are open as late as midnight. On our first day, we were almost finished with everything at Disneyland by lunch because the lines were so short. This was partly due to the new attractions opening in Carsland at California Adventure. The line to get a FASTPASS for the Radiator Springs Racers is just as lengthy as the line for the ride itself.

Right after lunch both parks fill up and lines are just as long as you'd expect them to be in the middle of summer. You can't let yourself get too distracted or you might miss a celebrity or two. On the way out of the Haunted Mansion, my mother's wheelchair was pushed up to a chain that needed to be unclipped, so a nice boy unclipped it for us and let as pass. We look back only to discover that the four sisterwives and children along with Kody were waiting to get on, and one of the kids had been the one to help us out.  

While Disneyland is pretty comparable to Magic Kingdom at Disney World, there is one feature worth visiting the park for. That is the Indiana Jones adventure ride. A group of twelve sit in a jeep that is going into a tomb to explore but end up invoking a curse. The jeep speeds through the temple escaping fire, bugs, snakes, and boulders. The ride is beautifully crafted and involves impressive special effects and ride technology. It's a similar experience to the Dinosaur ride, formerly known as Countdown to Extinction, at Disney's Animal Kingdom, but it is infinitely better.

California Adventure was filled with new things to experience. Some highlights were their pier style "wooden " roller coaster and the Little Mermaid ride. I loved them both for different reasons. One was a great thrill ride and the other went through all of the music of one of my favorite movies. It's definitely good for a one time visit. The ride in Carsland is even worth the wait if it isn't constantly breaking down. It'll be much better once the novelty of it being new wears off.

My personal favorite part of the trip was beating will and the Toy Story Mania attraction. It's a ride where you play carnival style games via a 3D video game. You accumulate points based on how many targets you hit. Will tends to KILL me at these games, but one time I was able to win. It's on my top ten lists of accomplishments.

More information about all Disney parks can be found here. http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/ If you have any specific questions or want recommendations, let me know!