Candlelight & Cannonballs! (MANY MARDI GRAS MASK PICS!) Dec. 2012- Start Pg.235/#3524

[kaoden39]

So pretty! I never thought of the Golden Gate entrance as being splashy. Maybe I was too busy gawking at the bridge itself.

[Sherry E]

Originally Posted by kaoden39

So pretty! I never thought of the Golden Gate entrance as being splashy. Maybe I was too busy gawking at the bridge itself.

I guess what I meant by "splashy" was that, during holiday seasons past, the Golden Gate Bridge was totally lit up and it shone brightly across the Esplanade. It really made a holiday statement, I guess you could say. Some might have thought it was garish; some might have thought it was gorgeous. Either way, you couldn't help but notice it during Christmas time. This new BVS entrance into DCA doesn't really have anything particularly bright, glowing and striking like that - something that you can see even while standing in the line for Disneyland on the opposite side of the Esplanade. It's a much more subtle holiday welcoming, I think.

But I think you'd really enjoy BVS' holiday offerings. You like the vintage style music, don't you (or am I imagining that?)? Like Frank Sinatra and those sorts of singers? If so, you'd really love the vintage holiday tunes!

[kaoden39]

Originally Posted by Sherry E

I guess what I meant by "splashy" was that, during holiday seasons past, the Golden Gate Bridge was totally lit up and it shone brightly across the Esplanade. It really made a holiday statement, I guess you could say. Some might have thought it was garish; some might have thought it was gorgeous. Either way, you couldn't help but notice it during Christmas time. This new BVS entrance into DCA doesn't really have anything particularly bright, glowing and striking like that - something that you can see even while standing in the line for Disneyland on the opposite side of the Esplanade. It's a much more subtle holiday welcoming, I think.

But I think you'd really enjoy BVS' holiday offerings. You like the vintage style music, don't you (or am I imagining that?)? Like Frank Sinatra and those sorts of singers? If so, you'd really love the vintage holiday tunes!

Do I like Frank Sinatra and that style? I have a Rat Pack Christmas CD and a Doris Day Christmas CD. But, I also have a Veggie Tales Christmas CD, and many more!


You're right it was a bit garish but I loved it! I loved the Golden Gate bridge and I was so sad to see it go, but I believe that change is good. It keeps things fresh. I can hardly wait to see the BVS area and Carsland. I am hoping for a trip next Halloween season. It all depends on Scotty's health.

[Sherry E]

In my previous post, I salivated over the prospect of hunkering down with a delicious meatball sandwich and a pepperminty treat from Haagen-Dazs in December, as well gave my opinion/review of Buena Vista Street's holiday decor/atmosphere. My computer is now starting to freeze up again, so before I can't get online at all...

Let's continue on along Buena Vista Street, shall we?

There were a lot of these bell garlands strewn around...




















Vibrant poinsettia beds were prominent...
































Thank you for walking in front of my picture as I was snapping. Grrrr...

More from Buena Vista Street - November 12, 2012 - coming up!

[Sherry E]

Woo hoo! Third installment for today!

Continuing on with Buena Vista Street - November 12, 2012...

Some window display fun...










I think this is gorgeous, with the tinsel and everything. Very elegant.






















There's tons of glare in most of the Buena Vista Street windows, so it's hard to get a distant/wide shot...
















Hello, Holiday Pluto!










More window displays...

More from Buena Vista Street in the next post...

[PHXscuba]

Originally Posted by Sherry E

And I love Haagen-Dazs because it embraces peppermint bark during the holiday season !!

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Let's face it - you just know I will be getting one of those babies at Haagen-Dazs on the upcoming December 2-5 trip!!

In fact, I can envision a whole evening set aside for myself - curled up on a bench somewhere with my Cannonball meatball sandwich from Earl of Sandwich and a frozen peppermint concoction from Haagen-Dazs, as holiday music fills the air and Christmas lights twinkle in the night...and then I will stumble into the wonderful Grand Californian Hotel lobby with a full stomach and fight for a spot in one of the lobby's comfortable chairs, as the Dickens carolers perform by the tree. Then I will munch slowly on the ear of a gingerbread cookie and soak in the atmosphere as I hum along to "Deck the Halls" and watch Santa flirt with ladies... THAT SOUNDS HEAVENLY TO ME!!! It brings a smile to my face just thinking about it - I must make it happen!



In the World of Disney window... I love these little trees. I keep meaning to get one but it's never been the right time, money-wise.



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As silly as this may sound, I think that a month may make some difference to me in the level of Christmasy-ness on Buena Vista Street. While all of the decorations were up and in full force, my mind had a hard time reconciling the fact that it was already the holiday season on November 12th (not that I mind), with the sun beating down on me. It didn't feel like holiday weather after about 11:00 a.m. In December, even if it is a warm day it still feels less harsh and more Christmasy!

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Sherry, I think you and I need to do a double-blind taste-test of all of the peppermint shakes being sold this season, starting at Disneyland of course. That shake looks delish and it's a good thing the nearest Haagen Dazs is a long way from my house.

I bought one of those little Disney trees during my Christmas trip for my brother and SIL who live overseas. They have a hard time finding a Christmas tree (one year they had a branch) where they live. Plus they love Disney too.

I also agree that a month will make a big difference in feeling Christmas-y on BVS. Maybe you need more peppermint to get the effect?! Have you been to Clarabelle's? Pictures I've seen make one of their treats look a lot like a Balboa Bar. If they covered one of those in crushed candy canes I might just faint.

I'm enjoying the pictures; hope your computer keeps up!

PHXscuba

[6Smiles]

Sherry -

Your pictures are wonderful! I can not wait for next month to come. I will be anticipating your December Trip Report.

Kris

[tksbaskets]

Sherry - I'm watching Christmas movies on the Hallmark channel and looking at your wonderful trip report. The decorations at DCA looks spectacular. Did they surpass your expectations?

I was at Sam's Club yesterday and some of that Peppermint Bark ice cream lept into my cart. When DH and I ate some last night I thought of you. It would have been even better if eaten at DL!

Thanks so much for sharing!!

[Carolwoodpr]

I am absolutely loving the pictures Sherry.

BVS looks absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to see it. 34 more days. Just a few more weeks for you before you get to go back. I am jealous .

I think you should try to sell some of your pictures. You are an incredible photographer, and you take pictures that catch the eye. They are pleasing and enjoyable. You have an eye for color. Indeed, between your writing and your photos, I think I book should be in your future. You could title it " My 40 years at Disneyland" or something like that. I would buy it.

And as for my tastes in Christmas Music? I LOVE the 'oldies' but 'goodies'. I am big Rat Pack fan, Paul Anka, Gene Autry, and others I can't think of now because I am old, and they are all on my iPod. I have yet to watch a Christmas movie this year though.

Thanks Sherry for all of the pictures. They give me something to look forward to on our trip.

[Sherry E]

I'm feeling a bit mopey and blah again, but am trying to muster up the inspiration to continue posting pictures. There are 2 weeks until my 'real' Disneyland trip and I am hoping to get in the spirit of it before 12/2 rolls around. I am so preoccupied with and stressed over other things going on that it's hard to be super-excited at the moment. But I'll get there, one way or the other.

Originally Posted by PHXscuba

Sherry, I think you and I need to do a double-blind taste-test of all of the peppermint shakes being sold this season, starting at Disneyland of course. That shake looks delish and it's a good thing the nearest Haagen Dazs is a long way from my house.

I bought one of those little Disney trees during my Christmas trip for my brother and SIL who live overseas. They have a hard time finding a Christmas tree (one year they had a branch) where they live. Plus they love Disney too.

I also agree that a month will make a big difference in feeling Christmas-y on BVS. Maybe you need more peppermint to get the effect?! Have you been to Clarabelle's? Pictures I've seen make one of their treats look a lot like a Balboa Bar. If they covered one of those in crushed candy canes I might just faint.

I'm enjoying the pictures; hope your computer keeps up!

PHXscuba

PHX -

For some reason I can skip things like candy cane cotton candy - that has no appeal for me. But things like peppermint ice cream or any kind of peppermint ice cream concoction, as well as things like peppermint + chocolate together, I cannot resist.

I think the weather makes a big difference in feeling Christmas-y. If I feel too hot, then it doesn't seem like it's the holiday season.

Originally Posted by 6Smiles

Sherry -

Your pictures are wonderful! I can not wait for next month to come. I will be anticipating your December Trip Report.

Kris

Thank you, Kris! I'm glad you're still following along here.

Originally Posted by tksbaskets

Sherry - I'm watching Christmas movies on the Hallmark channel and looking at your wonderful trip report. The decorations at DCA looks spectacular. Did they surpass your expectations?

I was at Sam's Club yesterday and some of that Peppermint Bark ice cream lept into my cart. When DH and I ate some last night I thought of you. It would have been even better if eaten at DL!

Thanks so much for sharing!!

TK -

Funny how that peppermint ice cream just ends up in one's shopping cart, isn't it?

I posted my thoughts about the BVS decorations on the previous page (with the comparison to Main Street and all of that). I don't think I can fairly say whether or not the decorations surpassed my expectations - YET. If the weather had been cooler and it hadn't been not-even-mid-November, I think the whole feeling of BVS would have made even more of an impression on me, in a holiday way. I guess it was pretty much what I expected - but at the wrong time, with the wrong weather. I think I will have to reassess the BVS decorations in a couple of weeks, when it is hopefully a bit cooler.

I just felt like - even though all the decorations were up and in place - that it wasn't quite the holiday season yet. A couple of weeks can make all the difference.

Originally Posted by Carolwoodpr

I am absolutely loving the pictures Sherry.

BVS looks absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to see it. 34 more days. Just a few more weeks for you before you get to go back. I am jealous .

I think you should try to sell some of your pictures. You are an incredible photographer, and you take pictures that catch the eye. They are pleasing and enjoyable. You have an eye for color. Indeed, between your writing and your photos, I think I book should be in your future. You could title it " My 40 years at Disneyland" or something like that. I would buy it.

And as for my tastes in Christmas Music? I LOVE the 'oldies' but 'goodies'. I am big Rat Pack fan, Paul Anka, Gene Autry, and others I can't think of now because I am old, and they are all on my iPod. I have yet to watch a Christmas movie this year though.

Thanks Sherry for all of the pictures. They give me something to look forward to on our trip.

Carolwoodpr -

Thanks for the kind compliments! I appreciate it.

I have only 2 weeks before I set off for Disneyland again. I feel ill-prepared. While the hotel is paid for, I still have to scrape together the money for everything else...in a very short time frame.

[DizNee Luver]

Originally Posted by Sherry E

I'm feeling a bit mopey and blah again, but am trying to muster up the inspiration to continue posting pictures. There are 2 weeks until my 'real' Disneyland trip and I am hoping to get in the spirit of it before 12/2 rolls around. I am so preoccupied with and stressed over other things going on that it's hard to be super-excited at the moment. But I'll get there, one way or the other.

I'm sorry you're stressed......it's not a fun way to live! (trust me I know!!) *+*+*+*Hoping the Christmas Spirit will lift your spirits!!*+*+*+*!!

[Carolwoodpr]

Sherry, I wish I had ideas for helping you scrape up money. I think I told you we bought me a new electric car, and now hubby is jealous so has to have a new car too. Because of this we don't have cash on hand for our own trip in December. We won't have the cash in hand until January, so our December trip is going to go on credit. No worries, (I think) because it should be paid off in January, but I still stress about things like that, so I can somewhat relate to what you are going through.

I hope you are able to scrounge up enough money that you don't have to worry about it at all in December. I know you have been looking forward to this trip, so don't give up, and try not to worry so much. (Yeah, I know, easier said than done). I can give good advice, but I can't take it, so now worries if you can't either. I think the world of you Sherry, and hope this trip turns out to be everything you wanted.

Now, go watch some Hallmark Channel Christmas movies and get out of the blah's. Want me to send you some Ghiradelli peppermint bark?

[tksbaskets]

Hi Sherry,
Thanks for directing back to your very thurough assessment of BVS and it's holiday decorations. I think I was so spoiled with the great pictures I inadvertantly skipped over this prose.

I'm all caught up now!

TK

[deejdigsdis]

All caught up, once again!

OK...let's talk about that ice rink. The advertising for it doesn't match the real thing. I think it is very sorry-looking, considering all you (Disney) could do to make an ice skating rink look and feel Christmas-y. I like the snow, though. Those little blue huts? If that's all the village was going to consist of, why not make them look Christmas-y? The blue and white doesn't scream "Christmas" to me. Oh yeah, I have to agree with Michele. Who has time to ice skate at Disneyland. I could see making the time to go over if it was an amazing site, all Christmas-y with peppermint and chocolate wafting through the air, maybe an occasional snowfall, etc. Hmmm. Maybe it's just me.

I loved that little Hidden Mickey in the door. It was so cute!

I love the stockings on Pluto's ears! How clever.

Wonderful pictures, as usual! I love the simple throw-back decorations of BVS. I love that kind of music, too. Were the singers on the car singing Christmas tunes?

[Sherry E]

It occurred to me that I never gave you all my Dreyer's peppermint ice cream update! This is important holiday season news!

I assumed that my local Ralphs had gotten the peppermint ice cream in stock back in September, as they did in 2011 - and as PHXscuba said was the case at one of her local stores in Arizona this year. But I was not actively seeking out the ice cream yet, so I didn't really pay close attention to whether Ralphs had it. I figured I wouldn't start to look for it until late October or November.

On one of my recent trips to the grocery store, I actually made a point of looking specifically for the peppermint ice cream at Ralphs.

The first thing I noticed? I did not see the bright pink telltale carton anywhere on the shelves! (I posted photos of the pink full-fat carton and the pink Slow Churned [half-fat] carton many pages ago.)

How could this be? Upon closer inspection I noticed that the only trace of peppermint ice cream on the shelves at Ralphs was the Slow Churned/half-fat kind - and it was NOT in a pink carton (which explains why I didn't notice it from a distance). There was not a single carton of the full fat ice cream to be found!

I assumed the full fat ice cream was out of stock, so I looked closely at the price stickers on the shelves. I did not even see a tag for the peppermint ice cream, which would indicate that they'd had it at one point but had run out.

It was as if Ralphs didn't get the regular peppermint ice cream in this year! I had to leave and didn't have time to actually ask a clerk about it, but I was horrified. How can they leave me with just the Slow Churned variety (which has half the fat but also not as much color or flavor)? Last year I recall the Slow Churned was always in abundance but the full-fat kind was always running a bit low, which would seem to imply that the full-fat kind was more popular.

Disneyland sells the full-fat variety of Dreyer's Peppermint Stick ice cream, but I would hate to think that I can't find it in any of the stores around here. Ralphs seems to be floundering in the peppermint ice cream department, so now I have to visit CVS sometime in the next couple of weeks to see if they have any in stock. If not, then I will try another store. CVS sometimes sells both varieties in one year, and then in other years they only carry the Slow Churned. I don't want Slow Churned! I want the real thing in the bright pink carton!

Originally Posted by DizNee Luver

I'm sorry you're stressed......it's not a fun way to live! (trust me I know!!) *+*+*+*Hoping the Christmas Spirit will lift your spirits!!*+*+*+*!!

Thank you.

Originally Posted by Carolwoodpr

Sherry, I wish I had ideas for helping you scrape up money. I think I told you we bought me a new electric car, and now hubby is jealous so has to have a new car too. Because of this we don't have cash on hand for our own trip in December. We won't have the cash in hand until January, so our December trip is going to go on credit. No worries, (I think) because it should be paid off in January, but I still stress about things like that, so I can somewhat relate to what you are going through.

I hope you are able to scrounge up enough money that you don't have to worry about it at all in December. I know you have been looking forward to this trip, so don't give up, and try not to worry so much. (Yeah, I know, easier said than done). I can give good advice, but I can't take it, so now worries if you can't either. I think the world of you Sherry, and hope this trip turns out to be everything you wanted.

Now, go watch some Hallmark Channel Christmas movies and get out of the blah's. Want me to send you some Ghiradelli peppermint bark?

I'm sure many folks would like to be in your shoes - two new cars and not paying off your Disneyland trip until - gasp! - January! (It's not quite the same thing as my situation or others I know of, but I appreciate the sentiment.)

No Ghirardelli peppermint bark for me, thank you. I don't want to overdo it. I am fine with the samples in DCA.

Originally Posted by tksbaskets

Hi Sherry,
Thanks for directing back to your very thurough assessment of BVS and it's holiday decorations. I think I was so spoiled with the great pictures I inadvertantly skipped over this prose.

I'm all caught up now!

TK

Thank you! It's okay! I know it can be easy to overlook posts when the pages have turned. I think that most people tend to just go right to the most current page of a thread, and they may not realize that there were posts of note on the previous page that got lost when the page flipped.

Originally Posted by deejdigsdis

All caught up, once again!

OK...let's talk about that ice rink. The advertising for it doesn't match the real thing. I think it is very sorry-looking, considering all you (Disney) could do to make an ice skating rink look and feel Christmas-y. I like the snow, though. Those little blue huts? If that's all the village was going to consist of, why not make them look Christmas-y? The blue and white doesn't scream "Christmas" to me. Oh yeah, I have to agree with Michele. Who has time to ice skate at Disneyland. I could see making the time to go over if it was an amazing site, all Christmas-y with peppermint and chocolate wafting through the air, maybe an occasional snowfall, etc. Hmmm. Maybe it's just me.

I loved that little Hidden Mickey in the door. It was so cute!

I love the stockings on Pluto's ears! How clever.

Wonderful pictures, as usual! I love the simple throw-back decorations of BVS. I love that kind of music, too. Were the singers on the car singing Christmas tunes?

Thank you!

No, the singers on the car were not singing Christmas songs. I thought they would be, but maybe they will later in the season?

The holiday music is very prominent on BVS as soon as you enter, unlike on Main Street. "Frosty the Snowman" and "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" were very loud (but not obnoxiously so) all through the area. And in Cars Land, wherever you go you can hear the themed retro-ish holiday songs or novelty holiday songs.

I didn't think the little huts/chalets looked Christmas-y either. The only thing I can guess is that Disney made them that color to fit in with the Periwinkle theme (since Periwinkle is the new Winter fairy on the block in the world of fairies!).

The snow around the ice rink was made of some weird "prop snow" material or fabric. It wasn't powdery - it was like a blanket of hard, rubbery fake snow!

I was just totally thrown off because the initial descriptions of the "Christmas village" indicated that the chalets would be selling seasonal treats and merchandise. As I mentioned before, I knew it wouldn't be an elaborate village out of a Dickens novel and that they wouldn't have much space for a village, but I didn't expect that the seasonal treats would include ice skate rentals and helmet rentals! I expected maybe some hot cocoa and cookies, possibly a holiday pin or knit cap!

I walked by the chalets at night, when they were open, and I looked inside. I only saw skates and head gear - no seasonal treats or trinkets! What happened?

That's why I wondered if maybe the plans got changed and Disney decided to not sell seasonal goodies at those chalets after all, or if maybe they made it sound different at the start just to lure people in, but never really intended to do anything different. Whatever items they sell/rent in those chalets, it is definitely not anything even close to being a "village"!

In any case, I guess I don't mind the idea of a rink there - if people are actually going to use it. At Universal CityWalk (next to Universal Studios), they have an ice rink (or they used to). If people go on dates to these places, they may want to skate. So I can see where an ice rink could come in handy if you look at Downtown Disney as a separate evening out, independent of the 2 parks. There are people who go to DTD to see movies and to eat, but who are not park visitors.

BUT...I missed seeing a tree in Downtown Disney. I hope that they put one up somewhere - even if it is not the same giant tree from years past. If that rink is there, preventing a tree from going up, and no one is really skating, then I'd prefer to have the tree back!