Day 20 - Mon 8th Apr 2024
Participants: Tam & Kev
We're awake at 6.00 am, but that's ok as the plan is to get to Disney's California Adventure early, do a few rides then come back and the relax at the pool for a couple of hours before enjoying the Food and Wine Festival later.
We enter DCA via the back gate that gets you into the top end of Paradise Pier at 7.30 am as we get in 30 minutes early for onsite guests. Radiator Springs Racers isn't open so we go to Webslingers. This is the first time we've ever ridden and it's great fun and Tam wins by some margin much to my dismay.
The photo's a bit blurry, but at least you can see the ride vehicles.
Radiator Springs Racers is now up and running and the wait is already 80 minutes, so we use the single rider line and are inside in 10 minutes. Another first for us and what a ride! Great audio animatronics and the theming is amazing, this goes straight to the top of our favourite rides list.
We stop for a coffee and cookie and it's still reasonably quiet. Tam has some horrendous concoction of egg yolk topped iced coffee - she likes it though.
Coffee with egg on top? No, sorry, I'm not having that.
We ride Soarin' using Lightning Lane and then Mickey's Philharmagic followed by the Monsters Inc ride.
There is supposed to be partial eclipse today. We thought Disney might have made a thing of it and be handing out glasses to see it safely, but there's nothing to be found. Tam resorts to trying to see a reflection in the store windows until a nice chap takes pity on us and lends us his darkened glases in order to have a look.
Grizzly River Run is our last ride of the morning and we get a bit wet, which isn't too much fun as we still have our jeans and hoodies on although it is really warming up now.
Across to Disneyland Park where we get the monorail back to Downtown Disney and we return to our hotel.
We change and go to the pool. There is a seperate DVC pool, but the seats are mostly in the shade, so we use the main pool where Tam sees a hummingbird. She also somehow gained access to my trip report notebook as the next time I look at it it says 'Tam is so gorgeous, I can't believe she's my wife. God I'm lucky'. The woman has no shame.
After a couple of hours we shower and return to DCA where we take the tram up the main street. The young CM's operating the tram are not good. As we wait onboard for it to fill up they chat away to each other about their shifts almost blocking the doorway and not really interacting with the guests. Not what we've come to expect from Disney.
We've bought
the Sip and Savor Card, which costs $61 and gives you 8 tags to
use at the food booths.
At various places we have fish tacos, BBQ pulled pork mac and
cheese, a white wine flight, top sirloin with mash and
chimichurri sauce, a build your own flatbread along with a beer
flight and we enjoy this while listening to a band playing
country music.
The San Fransokyo area in DCA is nicely done. There's not much there except places to eat and drink, but it's a nice spot to walk through and admire the theming.
Off to Carsland where we sit and wait for the neon lights to start coming as they play Sh Boom over the speakers. It's not a big thing, but it's nice to sit for a while and watch the place change as it gets dark. Carsland is an example of how good it can be when Disney gets things right and it certainly comes into its own in the evening.
We get a beer and head off to watch World of Color - One, which is the water projection show on the lake in front of Paradise Pier. This description doesn't do it justice as it's quite spectacular. We are right at the front and get lightly sprayed with water as the warning notices tell you that you will.
We walk around for a while and decide to watch the second show of One. This is much quieter and we stand further back to see it from a different perspective. I manage to get a beer just as the last stall is shutting down, so I'm pleased and so is Tam as I arrive back with some churros for her. I know how to keep my wife happy.
We exit the park through the Pixar Place exit and it's very easy and close to the Disneyland Hotel, but we do notice that you exit straight back into the real world of traffic and noise, something you don't do in WDW if you stay onsite.
Bed at 11.15 pm.