Took the family to Disneyland last week. Overall, I’d say it was a success as far as family vacations go. We learned that Disneyland is very hot in July. Read on for the boring details.
The first day was probably the best. The boy, who turns 4 today, was excited to be outside in a new place with lots of things to look at and big crowds to navigate. His first ride was It’s a Small World and he seemed to soak up the animatronic scenery. His favorite by far was the Dumbo ride, a somewhat carnival-ish circular ride where thrill-seekers board Dumbo mock-ups that go up and down at the throw of a lever. We weren’t sure whether he would allow us to take him on the other Fantasy Land rides but he stood in line like a champ and didn’t balk at boarding Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride and Alice in Wonderland. I took him on the rocket ride in Tomorrowland, thinking it would be similar to the Dumbo ride, but it was a little faster and a little higher and both the boy and I were a little bit freaked out by it (I know, I’m a wuss). The fireworks show started just after we disembarked the Jungle Cruise and we confirmed that the boy is quite frightened of the big booms and exploding sky. Like any good parents, we decided that the time was right for Pirates of the Caribbean. Not sure whether he liked that, but he didn’t show any overt objections. By the way, I was expecting complete rubbish since they re-vamped the ride to match the movies, but I was impressed. The animatronic Johnny Depp was quite well done.
Day 2 was a little more difficult. The heat was settling in and we were all a little foot-sore by then. The boy wanted to be carried a lot and was getting anxious about standing in lines. We started the day at the California Adventure park where the boy enjoyed Flik’s ride (another circular up/down thing) and was utterly perplexed (as were his parents) by the very strange Heimlich train. He spent some time in a water feature and his parents used the break to enjoy frosty treats. I took advantage of the single rider pass and rode on the Mickey roller coaster, which was way more fun than I was expecting (see I’m not a complete wuss right?)
About mid-day we made our way back to the main park where we rode Dumbo again and Peter Pan. Peter Pan was my childhood favorite and I wanted my son to share the same experience, but the line was a good 40 minutes in the full sun and by the time we boarded he was in no mood for magical journeys. After that we took a break from the heat and ended up sitting down with food and beverages just in time to see the Hillbillies perform. We were pleasantly surprised by a very entertaining show and I think that turned out to be the highlight of the day.
We may have instilled a fear of roller coasters by taking the boy on the coaster in Toon Town. He was very interested in watching while we were in line, but by the end of the ride he was quite distressed and couldn’t get off fast enough. Poor little guy. He bounced right back when we found a little playground with a slide for him to play on.
On the third day, we decided over breakfast not to cash in the final day of our 3-day passes and instead drove down to LegoLand. While I griped about poor management (there is absolutely no excuse for a theme park line with 3 people ahead to take 30 minutes, sheesh), the boy had a wonderful time running around the 3-story wooden play structure, where he learned to climb a cargo net. That in itself was worth the price of admission.
So that was our Family Vacation, 2006. Now I need a vacation.
