Disneyland Overview

There were several reasons why this was a great trip.

We spent 4 days in the park(s).

We saw all the new things that have been done to the park, like the restored Sleeping Beauty walk-through in the castle itself, the new It's a Small World Ride, with Disney characters sprinkled throughout. The new Toy Story Midway Mania, which is a shooting gallery that is interactive.

We also took the time to visit old things that neither of us had seen a lot of in the past decade, like: riding Dumbo, riding the Carrousel, riding some of the other Fantasyland rides like Snow White and Pinocchio. And we rode the double-decker bus a couple of times when our feet were tired. Such things kind of force you to slow down.

One big highlight was stepping into Club 33 with our guide. She could only show us the lobby, of course, but we really enjoyed finally getting behind the big Club 33 door. Membership is quite expensive, and there's a waiting list (but none of us will be on it soon).

Our guide had been in the other two rooms above the lobby, but had never had a meal there. (How convenient that it's all connected to the kitchen in the Blue Bayou, downstairs.) She opened the elevator for us so that we could take pictures. It's one of those old-fashioned ones, with iron bars and grating, much like the one in the Hotel del Coronado.

And we took in the parade in DCA - the same 'ol Pixar one, only this time, UP is leading the way! - and the parade in Disneyland as well - very small, surprisingly short. And then we got in place, sitting on the curb in the Disneyland Hub, to see the fireworks. People nudged us, walked on us, whatever they could do to get by us into the street. It was rough-going, but the fireworks were fantastic. They launched them from all around us, and I still don't know how they pulled that off.