NitroStitch
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2009
I love the latest report! Your photos are gorgeous, and I'm so glad you once again remember so many details. 
"The Best Things in my Life came from Disney" - ABD Backstage Magic, Summer 2010 TR
- Thread starter ragtopday
- Start date
Chropistopy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2002
I have not received the photo CD. I'm so excited to see the other pictures!
Jeff & Stacy in NYC
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2008
Hi Kristin! It's so true, I get splashed every single time, but I love it so much! Can you imagine what I look like after Splash Mountain? I'm a wreck!! 
Your pictures of the show look great!
We were just talking about the CD too. We can't remember how long it took to get the last one, either. I will certainly post a heads-up the day we get it!
Your pictures of the show look great!
We were just talking about the CD too. We can't remember how long it took to get the last one, either. I will certainly post a heads-up the day we get it!
Chropistopy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2002
Don't hesitate! Go! I was also on this trip solo but never felt that way. I was on a wonderful adventure with 20 friends!
sayhello
Have Camera, Will Travel
- Joined
- Oct 28, 2006
I've taken 3 ABD's as a solo, and loved it! It's a great way to travel by yourself, but not *be* by yourself! I've found the folks on these trips to be very inclusive and inviting, and the Guides really work on this, too. I would highly recommend ABD for folks traveling alone.
Sayhello
connie1042
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 18, 2006
Oh how I would love to take this trip. Maybe someday. Thanks for letting me take the trip through your eyes. Great writing.
scrappinDW
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2005
Kristen, Did you put your 'Opening Day' print by Joe Yakovetic in a frame? I am having a hard time finding the right size.
I also want to get 'Above The Firehouse' that he did. I am hoping to find it at WDW in September. I can't seem to find it online!
I also want to get 'Above The Firehouse' that he did. I am hoping to find it at WDW in September. I can't seem to find it online!
ragtopday
Proud Member of Red Sox Nation
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2007
Even though I had a roommate on this trip, I went solo. And then again, I didn't! Because it was the trip sponsored by the DIS Unplugged Podcast team we all got to "meet" before hand on the boards and chat, and not only had a love of Disney in common, but the podcast.
Jeff and Stacy from our group also did this same trip in 2008, and are doing it again next year too!
I totally agree! The great thing about these trips, and I've heard it from everyone who's done one, is that you make such great, fast friends with everyone on it. I know I definitely did!
Thanks for reading along - it's so cool to hear that folks who didn't do this trip with me are interested!
Pam - I did get a frame for it at Target, but I feel like the print is lost in it! I got an 18x14 frame (I think? Whatever size the mat is, anyway). I almost think it needs another mat and at least one size bigger frame.
I looked online for "Above the Firehouse" and this is the best I could find:
Contact Disneyland Merchandise Guest Services at 800.362.4533. Let me know if you try it - I want "Jingles"!
Thanks for reading everyone - I was out of town over the weekend so haven't had a chance to do the final day yet - coming up hopefully later today!
Jeff & Stacy in NYC
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2008
Your print looks great! I'm glad they got it to you safely. Thanks for posting that phone number. We also liked "Above the Firehouse". Can't wait to read your next installment! You've remembered so many details, it really is like reliving it!
Pam, please let us know if you are successful getting the "Above the Firehouse" print. We were interested in that one too!
Pam, please let us know if you are successful getting the "Above the Firehouse" print. We were interested in that one too!
NitroStitch
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2009
Your print looks great! I'm glad they got it to you safely. Thanks for posting that phone number. We also liked "Above the Firehouse". Can't wait to read your next installment! You've remembered so many details, it really is like reliving it!
Pam, please let us know if you are successful getting the "Above the Firehouse" print. We were interested in that one too!
We were interested in "Above the Firehouse" too! We'll be curious to see if you're able to get that one by phone/mail also.
scrappinDW
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2005
Kristen, I think your frame looks nice, but I will try and get the bigger size. I will call that number to see if they have 'Above The Firehouse' if not I will look at Disney World when we go in September. That will be here soon!!! Pam
ragtopday
Proud Member of Red Sox Nation
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2007
We woke early, again, to meet in the lobby at 7 am. The lack of sleep is really starting to show its effects. Folks were dragging, and more and more people showed up with coffee.
We were headed to California Adventure today, which doesnt open till 10 am, so I wondered why we were meeting so early. I mean, yes, we need to eat breakfast, but 3 hours before the park opens? Not that Im complaining, mind you, just wondering!
This guy met us at Goofys Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel
And then this one:
Belle is my favorite princess (because she likes books) .also because shes not just out there looking for a man .but I digress.
Breakfast at Goofys Kitchen was wonderful. We pretty much had the place to ourselves, which I found amazing. The food was fantastic so many choices! Including 17 desserts I think I tried 15 of them (OK, maybe only 3-4). At WDW this place would be mobbed. All the better for us! There was some dancing too Paul really got into this (someone got a video of it please share!) and the characters came by multiple times.
Oh, and you have to try their specialty, the peanut butter pizza:
After breakfast we headed to DCA through the back entrance of the Grand Californian. People were already waiting in line to get Fast Passes for that nights World of Color showings. We waltzed right by and into an otherwise empty park it was probably 8:30 or so and headed right to one of my very favorite attractions:
This is why we had to get breakfast so early! We were met outside by a CM who walked us in, talking about the queue. The banners over the middle of the queue are the names of aircraft based in California.
These flags are for aviators with California roots.
On the wall were also portraits of many of these people (no photos of those though). It was nice to be able to take the time to take some of this in, which you dont always do when youre touring the parks in crowded conditions.
We were immediately broken up into 2 groups half loaded onto the ride, while the other half (my half) followed the CM downstairs, which went underneath and behind the screen. And here I want to apologize to my mother who had thought the screen was IMAX and since I had never heard it was, I said it wasnt, but it is in fact an IMAX screen. All of you who have known this forever may now ridicule me mercilessly (but please dont go on too long Im very sensitive you know).
Downstairs/Underneath is considered backstage, so we had to put our cameras away, but what a sight! The screen is, as you know, huge, and is metal and actually full of holes! We were all polka-dotted down there! We could see up through the holes to see the movie, but also see our fellow Adventurers on the glider, soaring around. Their feet all went up at the same moments, which was cool to see (youre not the only one who does that!).
Afterwards we switched places and I cant tell you how special it felt to be on Soarin with no one else there! It was wonderful, as always.
We all met up again and got to hear about some of the history and challenges in putting this attraction together from a CM who had been there when the attraction opened. It was interesting to hear that the footage was all done prior to 9/11 and much of the footage would not be able to be reproduced today. There are also 2 sections of the film which are digitally enhanced. I bet you can guess one, but the other one is a little trickier to pick out, although it seems obvious once you know.
Have you ever noticed the spots that seem to appear and disappear on the screen as youre watching? Those are bits of dust which are wiped away periodically, and then reappear.
We also got to view a part of the actual film
and learned how difficult it is to maintain it. The film breaks frequently!
There are three points during the film when you are blasted with a scent. We got to see the scent canisters, which are very similar to those that are used (or used to be used?) in toilet paper rolls!
Then we all got to ride again, this time without the music. While music adds a whole new dimension to every experience, the absence of it can be cool too. We all laughed and talked about our favorite spots as we rode, something youd never do with music playing. I dare say it was a bonding experience!
We spent nearly 2 hours in Soarin, I think, and it went by in 2 minutes. When we got out the crowds were lined up to ride and we moved on to .
The Animation Studio! Where there was a special message scrolling just for us (and which proved incredibly hard to photograph!). It said Welcome Adventures by Disney. Enjoy Your Adventure!
In the Animation Studio we all drew Mickey Mouse! Ive never done this before and thought it was really fun. My Mickey didnt come out great (although it wasnt awful either) and it was fun to see how everyone else did. We have some budding animators in our group!
Michael and Dean gave us tubes to put our masterpieces in and whisked them away for us so we didnt have to carry them and then passed out more World of Color FastPasses (!!!!), gave us 5 more FPs each for later in the day, and then offered to take us to Tower of Terror, since the FP machines are down. Yeah, baby!
We went right over to ToT and were ushered to the front. As we were passing the masses one woman leaned over the rope and asked us Is that the Fast Pass line? and we just said Nope and kept on going.
We all rode in one car, Rob and Nichole for the first time (and who were both really nervous). This was an absolute blast!
Notice Wayne with the goofy look .again!
After this we were on our own till dinner, but first Michael told us to meet at 5:50 pm at ..what was the sign on that door? OK, were off!
We split up into our usual groups, and Jeff, Stacy, Wayne, Nichole, Christy, Lisa, Paul, Anne and Alan and I headed off. We decided to hit Monsters, Inc first, since theres never a line. I thought this was going to be the Laugh Floor, but no! It is a cute dark ride. Do not wait in line for it, but it is cute, especially at the end when Roz asks someone in your car a provocative question. Funny and cute.
Big Thunder Mountain was next (yes, we crossed over) and it was fun to do this in the daytime. It was a completely different ride than the other night!
After a few photos I was getting really banged around so I put my camera away. Glad I got a few photos though!
When we got off this ride it was getting close to lunchtime, and folks had different ideas of what to do for lunch, so we split up again. Wayne, Nichole, Christy and I headed over to get in line for the Alladin show. The line was pretty thick but we got in and it was a terrific show. The Genie is, of course, very funny, and I enjoyed the timeliness of some of the jokes, but the Magic Carpet stole the show as far as I was concerned.
Exhaustion and hunger were both battling for attention at this point. We stopped and got some lunch at the Mexican place I got a kids meal as I didnt want to eat too much (I think it was 2:30 or so), but it only partly did the trick. We really wanted to rest, but then decided to do the Grizzly ride since if we got soaked we could go right in and change.
Here is another place California has it all over Florida. Right outside this ride is a bank of lockers that you can use for free while you are on the ride (I think its up to an hour). So much better than everyone trying to stuff your valuables into the tiny hold in the middle of the floats like they have you do on Kali. We stowed our cameras and phones and used our FPs to ride.
It was great fun, and while we got wet, we were not soaked and it was a perfect end to this part of the day.
Naptime!
Up Next: Farewell Dinner
We were headed to California Adventure today, which doesnt open till 10 am, so I wondered why we were meeting so early. I mean, yes, we need to eat breakfast, but 3 hours before the park opens? Not that Im complaining, mind you, just wondering!
This guy met us at Goofys Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel
And then this one:
Belle is my favorite princess (because she likes books) .also because shes not just out there looking for a man .but I digress.
Breakfast at Goofys Kitchen was wonderful. We pretty much had the place to ourselves, which I found amazing. The food was fantastic so many choices! Including 17 desserts I think I tried 15 of them (OK, maybe only 3-4). At WDW this place would be mobbed. All the better for us! There was some dancing too Paul really got into this (someone got a video of it please share!) and the characters came by multiple times.
Oh, and you have to try their specialty, the peanut butter pizza:
After breakfast we headed to DCA through the back entrance of the Grand Californian. People were already waiting in line to get Fast Passes for that nights World of Color showings. We waltzed right by and into an otherwise empty park it was probably 8:30 or so and headed right to one of my very favorite attractions:
This is why we had to get breakfast so early! We were met outside by a CM who walked us in, talking about the queue. The banners over the middle of the queue are the names of aircraft based in California.
These flags are for aviators with California roots.
On the wall were also portraits of many of these people (no photos of those though). It was nice to be able to take the time to take some of this in, which you dont always do when youre touring the parks in crowded conditions.
We were immediately broken up into 2 groups half loaded onto the ride, while the other half (my half) followed the CM downstairs, which went underneath and behind the screen. And here I want to apologize to my mother who had thought the screen was IMAX and since I had never heard it was, I said it wasnt, but it is in fact an IMAX screen. All of you who have known this forever may now ridicule me mercilessly (but please dont go on too long Im very sensitive you know).
Downstairs/Underneath is considered backstage, so we had to put our cameras away, but what a sight! The screen is, as you know, huge, and is metal and actually full of holes! We were all polka-dotted down there! We could see up through the holes to see the movie, but also see our fellow Adventurers on the glider, soaring around. Their feet all went up at the same moments, which was cool to see (youre not the only one who does that!).
Afterwards we switched places and I cant tell you how special it felt to be on Soarin with no one else there! It was wonderful, as always.
We all met up again and got to hear about some of the history and challenges in putting this attraction together from a CM who had been there when the attraction opened. It was interesting to hear that the footage was all done prior to 9/11 and much of the footage would not be able to be reproduced today. There are also 2 sections of the film which are digitally enhanced. I bet you can guess one, but the other one is a little trickier to pick out, although it seems obvious once you know.
Have you ever noticed the spots that seem to appear and disappear on the screen as youre watching? Those are bits of dust which are wiped away periodically, and then reappear.
We also got to view a part of the actual film
and learned how difficult it is to maintain it. The film breaks frequently!
There are three points during the film when you are blasted with a scent. We got to see the scent canisters, which are very similar to those that are used (or used to be used?) in toilet paper rolls!
Then we all got to ride again, this time without the music. While music adds a whole new dimension to every experience, the absence of it can be cool too. We all laughed and talked about our favorite spots as we rode, something youd never do with music playing. I dare say it was a bonding experience!
We spent nearly 2 hours in Soarin, I think, and it went by in 2 minutes. When we got out the crowds were lined up to ride and we moved on to .
The Animation Studio! Where there was a special message scrolling just for us (and which proved incredibly hard to photograph!). It said Welcome Adventures by Disney. Enjoy Your Adventure!
In the Animation Studio we all drew Mickey Mouse! Ive never done this before and thought it was really fun. My Mickey didnt come out great (although it wasnt awful either) and it was fun to see how everyone else did. We have some budding animators in our group!
Michael and Dean gave us tubes to put our masterpieces in and whisked them away for us so we didnt have to carry them and then passed out more World of Color FastPasses (!!!!), gave us 5 more FPs each for later in the day, and then offered to take us to Tower of Terror, since the FP machines are down. Yeah, baby!
We went right over to ToT and were ushered to the front. As we were passing the masses one woman leaned over the rope and asked us Is that the Fast Pass line? and we just said Nope and kept on going.
We all rode in one car, Rob and Nichole for the first time (and who were both really nervous). This was an absolute blast!
Notice Wayne with the goofy look .again!
After this we were on our own till dinner, but first Michael told us to meet at 5:50 pm at ..what was the sign on that door? OK, were off!
We split up into our usual groups, and Jeff, Stacy, Wayne, Nichole, Christy, Lisa, Paul, Anne and Alan and I headed off. We decided to hit Monsters, Inc first, since theres never a line. I thought this was going to be the Laugh Floor, but no! It is a cute dark ride. Do not wait in line for it, but it is cute, especially at the end when Roz asks someone in your car a provocative question. Funny and cute.
Big Thunder Mountain was next (yes, we crossed over) and it was fun to do this in the daytime. It was a completely different ride than the other night!
After a few photos I was getting really banged around so I put my camera away. Glad I got a few photos though!
When we got off this ride it was getting close to lunchtime, and folks had different ideas of what to do for lunch, so we split up again. Wayne, Nichole, Christy and I headed over to get in line for the Alladin show. The line was pretty thick but we got in and it was a terrific show. The Genie is, of course, very funny, and I enjoyed the timeliness of some of the jokes, but the Magic Carpet stole the show as far as I was concerned.
Exhaustion and hunger were both battling for attention at this point. We stopped and got some lunch at the Mexican place I got a kids meal as I didnt want to eat too much (I think it was 2:30 or so), but it only partly did the trick. We really wanted to rest, but then decided to do the Grizzly ride since if we got soaked we could go right in and change.
Here is another place California has it all over Florida. Right outside this ride is a bank of lockers that you can use for free while you are on the ride (I think its up to an hour). So much better than everyone trying to stuff your valuables into the tiny hold in the middle of the floats like they have you do on Kali. We stowed our cameras and phones and used our FPs to ride.
It was great fun, and while we got wet, we were not soaked and it was a perfect end to this part of the day.
Naptime!
Up Next: Farewell Dinner
Jeff & Stacy in NYC
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2008
Excellent! I remember another attraction we did together that day (if you can imagine we did even more stuff
) ... California Screamin'!! I think we did it before we left California Adventure. This was the first time Jeff and I were able to fit it in, and it is now a must-do. I will always remember us screaming like lunatics!! Great rollercoaster!
I'm looking forward to the Farewell dinner installment because it represents another special night, but it also makes me kind of sad. It's our last night "in the nursery" to borrow a bit from Peter Pan!
) ... California Screamin'!! I think we did it before we left California Adventure. This was the first time Jeff and I were able to fit it in, and it is now a must-do. I will always remember us screaming like lunatics!! Great rollercoaster! I'm looking forward to the Farewell dinner installment because it represents another special night, but it also makes me kind of sad. It's our last night "in the nursery" to borrow a bit from Peter Pan!
ragtopday
Proud Member of Red Sox Nation
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2007
Excellent! I remember another attraction we did together that day (if you can imagine we did even more stuff
I'm looking forward to the Farewell dinner installment because it represents another special night, but it also makes me kind of sad. It's our last night "in the nursery" to borrow a bit from Peter Pan!
OHMYGOSH! You are right! I had it in my notes, but at the end of a line - I totally missed it when I was typing away! Yes, California Screaming is a definite MUST if you like Roller Coasters, which I do!
According to my notes it was the first thing we did after ToT, so yes, thanks for jogging the memory, which gets foggier each day (even with notes to refer to!).
NitroStitch
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2009
Fantastic report on another day! Of course, it starts to get sad as our adventure starts to wind to a close...
stitchlover
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jan 10, 2007
Have to ask before I read...is this safe for someone who is going next year that has never been on the Podcast ABD? Don't want to read if it's going to spoil anything!
NitroStitch
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2009
Have to ask before I read...is this safe for someone who is going next year that has never been on the Podcast ABD? Don't want to read if it's going to spoil anything!
All of these trip reports have spoilers, so if you want total surprises, don't read.
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