Disneyland

We left here on Monday morning, headed for California. We had been to Disney World in Orlando last year, and we thought this would be the best year to have a look-see at Mr. Disney's original California park--- this year is the 50th anniversary of Disneyland.

We landed around noon-time, and within the hour, we were walking towards the gates of Disneyland. We stayed at a hotel right across the road from Disneyland, so it was just a short walk to the gates-- no waiting for a shuttle-bus, as we had to do in Orlando. As soon as you walk into the perimeter of the park, you can hear the Disney music playing and you really forget about what's going on in the real world-- you're on Disney-time and that's all that matters. I barely read the headlines of the local Anaheim, California newspaper each morning before we went for breakfast and headed to the park.

I made the same mistake at Disneyland that I made at Disney World: going on rides that had those little red triangles on the signs. Translation: those little red trianges mean the ride will be fast and furious, and my husband ends up with black and blue marks on his arms where I've grabbed on for dear life and didn't let go till the ride stopped. The Disney World ride was the "Rock & Roller Coaster" and the Disneyland rides were "Indiana Jones" and the "Thunder Coaster" or some such thing that was an innocent-looking railroad car. I don't know why I don't trust my instincts on these rides.... I don't like being knocked about and/or turned upside-down. My speed for rides are the cute Disney story-rides with lots of colors and pretty things to look at. About the most adventurous ride I enjoyed was "The Pirates of the Carribbean" -- and we did that one twice.

The nicest restaurant in Disneyland is The Blue Bayou in the New Orleans section. The restaurant overlooks part of the "Pirates of the Carribbean" ride, so you can watch the pirate boats go by as you eat your lunch or dinner. Reservations at The Blue Bayou are a must, though, and well worth the trouble. I broke all my sensible-diet rules and ate very rich oatmeal-raisin cookies, and caramel corn, and ate pancakes for breakfast instead of my usual oatmeal. I think I ate just two healthy meals while we were there--- a spinach salad at The Blue Bayou, and grilled salmon and vegetables at a restaurant near the hotel.

We watched the fireworks over the castle three nights in a row. The first night, we had seen the Fantasmic light show, so we couldn't get close enough to the castle to hear the whole Disney story connected to the fireworks display. The light show around the lake was wonderful, but nothing compares to the fireworks. They actually had a (real live) Tinkerbell suspended from wires high above the castle, and she glided around the castle sprinkling her fairy dust-fireworks.

Fireworks like none other anywhere on earth, I swear. Colors and shapes we had never seen before, more fireworks shot off at one time than any other show we've ever watched. Plus the music, the light displays against the castle... it was all just breath-taking, and your eyes just puddled up with tears at the end.

By the time we left there, I had bought two books on Walt Disney and his work, a fairly large stuffed Mickey and Minnie, a stuffed Thumper (my favorite rabbit from the Bambi movie, various commemorative pins (for me and for gifts), countless postcards & Mickey and Minnie keychains, and a tiny gold/amethyst Mickey charm for my bracelet. I also found a tiny Thumper charm for my "Italian charm" bracelet... the last one left, so I couldn't very well leave him there.

No matter which Disney park you go to, you just get hit from all sides with nostalgia.... you watch all the characters and listen to the music, and your mind just recalls all the Disney movies and music that has been in your life since childhood. No matter how old I get, I will still remember my father imitating Thumper the rabbit as he thumped his foot in Bambi, and hear daddy singing "When You Wish Upon A Star" from the Pinocchio movie. That song just makes me cry all the time, and every time they played it during the parades at Disney, I stood there with tears in my eyes.

We were there for four days... we walked every inch of Disneyland, plus the California park adjacent to it (with the most beautiful, fabulous Ferris Wheel), and we walked around Downtown Disney. We watched all the parades, saw all the fireworks and light shows, enjoyed the live musicals of Aladdin and Snow White.... we went on the rides, the carousel, saw the exhibits, bought the shirts and the trinkets. I remembered to wear the pedometer every day, and we averaged 20,000 steps each day we were there.

You would think that we'd be all Disney-ed out by now. No way. I would go back again and again.... to see the parades, to watch the fireworks, and to cry to "When You Wish Upon A Star." I think that anyone born in the US in the 1950s is a Disney-baby, and there's just no getting away from that.

I hope, in the decades to come, that the Disney Powers That Be always remember to applaud and salute the man whose dreams made these parks such a wonderful reality. The motto of the Disney workers should be "WWWDD." (What Would Walt Disney Do?")