A magical place...

Disneyland. Pure magic. The smell of cinnamon and sugar around every corner, the musky feeling of water in the air, twinkling lights at night, music that takes you back to your childhood, cold brisk nights and people smiling. That's what I see, smell, hear.

It's pure magic.

California Adventure, the little sibling of Disneyland smells of fresh orange groves, burnt sugar, sounds of Coney Island (what I'd imagine it would sound like, like the scene from Beaches), tortillas, sprays of water, vineyards and carefree attitude.

It's a place where you can let your hair down and pretend you are a Californian. Oh wait, I am. See, it even has me dreaming.

Seeing this through the eyes of someone so young, that's what makes it magical. It never gets old.

I love you Disney

I came across an old Disney video of an attraction that was removed a long time ago... Can I go down memory lane for this post? I must share this with you because if you haven't seen Captain EO, took a trip on the People Mover or sat through The Country Bear Jamboree... you missed out.

My Disneyland
I grew up at Disneyland. Literally. I've said this before, but I'm going to say it again. My mom and dad bought us passes ever year growing up. We would go 2 to 3 times a week. Sometimes after school for dinner and one ride or show. We usually went on Pirates of the Caribbean, the Jungle Cruise, It's a Small World, saw The Country Bears or Captain EO after dinner at the French Market or The Blue Bayou, Our favorite restaurant.

I miss the good ol' days of Captain EO. I remember sitting in the theater with my 3D classes on, peeking through as the scary parts came on and trying to touch the little animals as they came up to your face. It was always cold in the theater and when we left I always had a good "the world is right" feeling. Even to this day I can hear the ending song and feel warm and fuzzy. I think it was the idea of evil conquering good ( <-My sister pointed this out... lol) GOOD conquering EVIL... I'm sure it had nothing to do with *Michael Jackson.
Part 1

Part 2


The people mover was also another great attraction that I miss!


The Country Bear Jamboree... sigh... I miss it so much! Why oh why did they have to stop this?
Part 1


What were some of your favorite past time or present time Disney rides, attractions and restaurants? I'm curious to know...

Disneyland with a Two-Year Old - Part 2

Part 1 here.

By Mid-afternoon we headed over to California Adventure. E-ver-y-one had the same idea. It was packed and hot.

The minute you stepped into the park, you can tell it was pumpkin season. Candy corn ws everywhere.

Candy corn stalks and candy corn cactus!

First Stop - Hollywood

Playhouse Disney
What's more fun this standing in line in the hot sun for 20 minutes? My thoughts exactly. But it was well worth it, the minute we walked into the playhouse, settled on the floor in a massive room full of kids and parents, we knew this was up Cristian's alley. What's better that tool puppets and tigger? It was so cute and the quality of the show was incredible.

Disney Animation Building
I can spend hours in here. When you walk in, the main room is massive, dark and cool and covered with huge screens playing still shots from the Disney animated movies. In the center are plush sofas for sitting.

There are different rooms with interactive attractions that take you behind the scenes of Disney's animation. Our feet needed some rest so the first thing we did was see Turtle Talk with Crush. Crush, the turtle dude from Finding Nemo, interacted with the audience. How Disney does it is a mystery.

In Animation Academy they show how to draw Disney characters with real Disney Animators. Below is a showing of how animation is achieved. This Toy Story setup shows characters that are slightly different than the others. The setup begins to spin super fast... and magic happens.

We headed back to get the stroller and this is what we came upon... not an easy task, trying to figure out which one is yours and how to get it out. We ran into country fall Mickey and Minney as they ran away from the crowd.

Second Stop - Bug's Land

By this time, the weather was beautiful. The sky's were picture perfect!
Cristian is a water kid. He loves showers and baths, he's already in the middle of swimming lessons. The minute I saw the water zone, I knew we had to stop... As you can see below, he l-o-v-e-d it! We continued onto Bug Land and went on a few kiddie rides. Cristian was now almost over the screaming fear of Disneyland.

As we waited for my aunt and cousin to get off the roller coaster I took some pictures of the California sunset. It was the perfect day to be at Disney.

We headed back to Disneyland for the night, along with the other multi-trillion people.

Third Stop - The French Market and Fireworks

The French Market is my favorite restaurant in Disneyland. My parents would always take us to The Blue Bayou or the French Market. Both are located in New Orleans Square. The food is scrumptious and the atmosphere is priceless. The Blue Bayou is a swankier restaurant compared to the other dining places in Disneyland. The inside makes you feel like you are outside. Tables overlook the swamp that is the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. The French Market is located next to the train station with dimly lit lanterns and iron gating all the way around. You stand in line for your food and then sit down to a serenade of Jazz. I ordered Clam Chowder in a sourdough bowl and a Salad with their famous blue cheese dressing. My family is big on blue cheese. We love it! We split this chocolate cake with a white chocolate castle on top.

After a long long dinner we headed over to the castle to get seats for the firework show. By this time, my feet hurt so bad, I didn't care of there was bird poo on the floor, I was going to sit! I sat under this massive flower bulb...

We waited a good hour for the show to start. I took pictures of the crowd all around the circular square that didn't come out very well. The mass of people was overwhelming. No walking space, barely room to sit on the floor and tuck your feet and hands in.

If you haven't seen the firework show at Disneyland you are missing out. This was my favorite part of the whole day. Incredible! I took a long video to post here... It is worth watching!

Part one - Disneyland Fireworks


Part two - Disneyland Fireworks


All in all, it was a fun Disney day with my favorite kid!

Disneyland with a 2 year-old - Part 1

I've probably been to Disneyland 200+ times in my life time. Our family had this special connection with Disneyland, my dad, his company that is, made the wheels for the rides and certain little pieces, to this day I don't know what they're called or what they do. There was a time my parents would take us a few times a week just for dinner and a ride, which usually was Pirates of the Caribbean. Rarely have I gotten the chance to go with a kid and take them on all the fun kiddie rides and see all the attractions that are meant for the younger Disney fans.

We had the opportunity to take my 2 year old nephew to Halloween Time at Disneyland. The park is decked out in candy corn and Halloween themed foods. Kids are dressed up and running around like it's a fun zone.

Normally I map out what I want to see and where I want to eat. Since this was his first time at the wonderful world of Disney, I was going to to go with the flow. Cristian decided to map out his own day...



On the way down main street, we stopped several times, not once or twice, several times to take pictures. Because, of course, this was Cristian's first time at Disneyland. I had my camera turned on indefinitely, just in case a good shot needed to be taken. In case he smiled, in case Mickey came out, in case there was an opening at the extra large, massive pumpkin in the middle of the square.

The weather in California has been perfect... not on this day. It was hot! Standing in a 15-20 minute line, outside, under the sun... miserable.

First Stop - Buzz Lightyear Ride

The minute we walked in the cool, air conditioned building, relief! But... Cristian didn't feel the same. He screamed as any 2 year old would do the minute they saw an 8 ft Buzz Lightyear glowing in the dark building. "No, no, no Buzz!"

The ride was just as eventful. Cristian clung to Auntie Cat as Mommy and Cat shot aliens. As soon as the ride was over it was, "No, No, No Buzz, all done! All done!"

Second Stop - Mad Hatter and Dumbo

After buying Mickey Mouse ears, with the exception of me who didn't want to pay $12.99 for a pair of ears that would be taken off minutes later, we stood in line for Dumbo. Cristian rode with me, his little head couldn't see over the edge of the "Dumbo", but he still loved it!

Third Stop - Mr. Toads Wild Ride, Lunch at Village Haus, and Casey Jr.'s Train

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride is one of the scariest kiddy rides in Fantasyland. You take a dark trip to hell that all kids just love! Not really. Cristian was no different than I was when I was a little girl, he screamed and tried to crawl out while we held on and assured him that it was almost over while we laughed like crazy people attempting to lighten the mood of flames and thunderings (is that even a word?).

Next... FOOD was calling our name. After standing in line for 20 minutes to get cheeseburgers, we headed over to Casey Juniors train, one of my favorite kiddie rides. By this time, the heat had doubled and we were all ready to get into a cooler zone. As soon as we were off the ride, I ran to the refreshment stand and bought a Diet Coke for $2.75. When you come to Disneyland, you have to remember to pay an arm and a leg for a drink that would normally be $1.00.

(Mr. Toad's Wild Ride)

(Not sure if Casey Jr.'s is scary)

Fourth Stop - The Jungle Cruise

You'd think that being a lover of animals, well monkeys, the little man would LOVE the Jungle Cruise. If you've never been on the Jungle cruise, let me tell you about it. ... I don't remember eve being scared of the animals as a little girl, but that was long ago and maybe I blocked it out. After you climb in a boat that is on green swampy water in the middle of the "jungle", your safari captain narrates as he leads you through the waters past monkeys, hippopotamus, and crazy jungle men... with heads hanging from their fist! The minute Cristian heard the strange "oooeeeeahhhh oooooeeeee" he buried his head and begin screaming. The piranhas jumping on the side of the boat didn't help to calm his nerves.

Would you like a little Jungle Cruise Disney Trivia? The jungle became so authentic that real life massive spiders, were talking spiders bigger than your head, and snakes begin to reproduce and take over the jungle in the middle of the park... true story. As for the ride itself, it's one of the first attractions that was installed when the park opened. The canopy boats were designed by Walt Disney after the movie - The African Queen, which starred Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn. Thought you might find that interesting.

Part 2 - California Adventure... to be continued.