Over the last month or so I’ve been playing Little Big Planet (a extremely fun Playstation 3 game).
The game is incredible, you run around as a Sackboy (or girl) and collect points, stickers, costumes, vehicles and loads of other things for you to customize your world (and make your own levels). I’m not very good, I tend to take WAY WAY too long on the jumping puzzles. Let me put it this way, long enough for Chris to leave the room, make a snack, come back, and yep… still trying to get up to the third level… ::sigh:: I never claimed to be good at this kind of thing.
Never the less, really fun game, and with a very cute main character. You can change the fabric your Sackboy is made of and add clothing pieces (everything from capes to swim suits, top hats to wigs). The possibilities are endless. Even still, the Sackboy in his pure, un-altered form, is adorable. So adorable that I went on a hunt for a plush Sackboy. Unfortunately I couldn’t find anything. Just this guy…..
But… He’s not for sale…
Why???
He was made by one of the developers Mom’s (what a cool Mom! Check it out on their blog -Click Me-). While that’s great for them… What am I to do?
How do I live without my own cute little Sackboy?
Luckily, Chris suggested I search Etsy.com, the place to buy all things handmade. I found someone who crochets Sackboys and sells them. But not only are the finished dolls for sale… So is the pattern. Only problem is that it’s a crochet pattern, and I don’t crochet.
Or….
At least I didn’t until Thanksgiving weekend… Thanks to the pattern, the internet, and a book from Pattie (thanks!). I am now the proud owner of my very own hand crocheted Sackboy (well, Chris is, I gave it to him).
Not as good as some… But pretty good for my first crocheted thing ever… And I’d say… Pretty cute.
Maybe over Christmas break I will make one that looks like my Sackboy (if it works out I’ll post pictures of both my character, and what I make).
One last trailer from the game… I LOVE SACKBOYS!
The Rides!
Disneyland Rides are a lot like Disney world rides, but there are differences and in some cases there are rides that just don’t exist in Disney World. Here are just a few of the most notable rides (if I were to tell you about everyone… well, this post would have to be turned into a book).
Mr. Toads Wild ride is one of the rides that no longer exists in Disney World. I’ll admit It’s a little outdated by other rides but it’s fun to go on and is one of my favorite rides. You ride in a buggy through the mostly two dimensional ride that is unlike anything else in Disney for one thing it’s the only Wind in the Willows ride, for another the ride ends in Hell (read more on Wikipedia).
Buzz LIghtyear Astro Blasters
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters has a counter part in Disney World but Chris and I decided that the Disneyland ride is better for one key reason. On both rides you get a laser gun and shoot the Evil Emperor Zurg’s minions however in the Disneyland version you hold your gun, whereas the guns are mounted on the car at Disney World (thus hindering your range or motion).
The Haunted Mansion is one of my favorite rides at the Magic Kingdom and in Disneyland. The mansion is filled with ghosts, you board your “Doom Buggy” and take tour through it as the ghosts party and go about their deathly lives. There are lot’s of details in both versions and you notice something new every time you go on the ride (scary trees reminiscent of Snow White, a hidden Mickey in the dining room, etc.)
The Tower of Terror
This is another on of my favorite rides at Disney World (it lives in Disney’s Hollywood Studios) though, not so much at Disneyland. The rides follow the same story… You’ve gone to the “Hollywood Tower Hotel” and you are going to your rooms, however you have to take a service elevator, and this elevator leads to “The Twilight Zone”.
Service Elevator
Although the story is the same the Disney World Ride is longer and takes a more interesting route to the final dropping area. the ride operators at Disney World are also more interesting and better actors (in my opinion) then the ones at Disneyland.
The Monorail
Worth noting just because it is an awesome way to travel, the Disneyland monorail runs between downtown Disney and tomorrow land. It’s a fun trip and, unlike the Disney World version… You can open the windows on the Monorail at Disneyland.
Pirates of the Caribbean
Possibly my favorite ride at both locations is Pirates. I love the theme song, I love the details, everything about the ride, though as with Buzz Lightyear, the Disneyland version is better. Not only because it’s almost twice the ride length (Disneyland’s ride is 16 min 30 sec, Disney World is only 8 min 30 sec) but also for several other reasons. The ride first takes you through a kind of a dark lake scene that also happens to be a restaurant and so is filled with yummy smells. Disneyland has two drops (Disney World has only one) and there are just amazing details around every curve. Read more on all the variations (including Disneyland Paris and Tokyo) on Wikipedia!
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
The finding Nemo ride at Epcot in Disney World is kind of a let down, your board a clam mobile (just like a doom buggy) and go through the ride where animated scenes are projected so that the animated fish apear to be in the tanks with the live fish. There is not much story and is basically just Nemo swimming around hiding from his father. From all the publicity we had seen about the Disneyland ride we thought it would be the same only in submarines. Well, that’s not the only difference although, you do board a submarine…
Nemo Submarine
The ride starts and the “Captain” tells you that they’ve got a new system on board that allows you to hear what fish and other sea life is saying. You pass through some interesting 3d sets
and then you “dive” (in reality bubbles shoot up near your window obstructing your view as you enter a cave creating the illusion that you are further under the water). From here you see animated scenes (from or inspired by finding Nemo) much like at Disney World, however in this version Nemo is not hiding and doesn’t appear to be a jerk. The only weird part of the ride is the fact that the ride operator stands in the center of the Sub and peaks out through the top so you sit near his/her legs the whole time and never see their face which is… Awkward…. However… I’m so glad we didn’t miss this one because it was the best surprise of the whole trip.
All in all I was very happy with all of the rides at Disneyland including many not mentioned in this post. And, although I thought this would be a one time trip, cannot wait to plan another Disneyland trip sometime in the future.
About the time we chose to go…
Memorial Day Weekend, if I were to think about a time where there would be tons of people at Disneyland, this would be it. Had I realized that the weekend we were trying to go was memorial day weekend before I started really planning I might not have done it. And it would have been a shame. Sure, there were times in the parks where for most rides you had at least a 30 minute wait, and sometimes up to 90 minutes (we didn’t wait 90 minutes for anything, the most we waited was 50, and that was just Finding Nemo which is brand new). During Mid afternoon the crowds peaked
Crowds (as seen from Tarzan’s Tree House)
But even with the crowds like this, it wasn’t that bad, you could practically walk onto Haunted Mansion at anytime of the day, Buzz Lightyear is always moving so the wait is never that bad. Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Finding Nemo, Indiana Jones, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad… These had long lines long lines all day, but they have FASTPASS so really, as long as you look at the wait time before you get on, for the most part you can spend even the busiest of weekends happy, without standing in line for more than 5-20 minutes for almost anything.
And if you’re willing to get up early you can see things like this…
California Adventure, with no one around
Mickey and Walt, all alone
Sleeping Beauty Castle, with only Cast Members in sight
You can walk down Liberty Square without a crowd.
Even if it is a holiday weekend, if you go to your favorite ride first thing you might get to ride… By yourself.
Chris and me on Slash Mountain all by ourselves
On this particular ride, we got back up to the beginning of Splash mountain and the ride operators asked us if we wanted to go around again. So we did, we didn’t get off the ride and we rode twice in a row on Splash Mountain (where just hours later there would be a 60 minute wait).
I was prepared for the worst, big crowds, long lines… But like most of the good guide books say, if you see the big attractions either first thing in the morning, or later (around dinner time or later) the lines are not that bad, even on the weekend. Our handy Disneyland Ride List (HERE) helped a lot, and since Chris laminated it at work (thank you!) it lasted all weekend.
Mid day we saw things like, Davy Crockett’s Explorer Canoes, Disneyland: The First 50 Years, Star Tours, Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean, among others. We enjoyed each others company, and the scenery. And, even though there were tons of people we were still lucky enough to be winners of The Year Of a Million Dreams Mickey Ears!
Chis and me in our the Mickey Ears we Won.
I’m not going to pretend that it wouldn’t have been nice to have less crowds, but I was prepared for way worse. We had an amazing time, we rode… Everything, in just 2 1/2 days!!! And we came home happy and ready to go to Disney again (which is exactly how I like it).
Next up…. Disneyland rides!
Ahh… Disneyland, where the happiest place on earth all got started. And Chris & I got to go!
First let me say that almost all of the pictures I am going to post Chris took (thanks!) I’m just not great about taking pictures on trips. Especially because his always turn out so nice. It seems silly to take the same photo he just finished taking. Second, I don’t plan on making a record of everything that happened, just some highlights.
Today’s Highlight…. Our Hotel.
There is something to be said for being nice to the people who are going to take care of the place you stay. There is also something to be said for letting your vacation happiness shine through and not hiding it. Case in point, our hotel room/stay at the Hilton Anaheim.
I get way excited about any trip, but especially Disney, and when I get excited I tend to act a little giddy. I smile, I clap my hands, I bounce… I see no reason to hide my excitement. I’m glad I haven’t lost that quality. I like that part of myself, I like being happy. And this weekend, it paid off and I was happy to find out that acting crazy sometimes isn’t a bad thing… Well… We got to the hotel and talked to the clerk, asked him if we could get a room on the 5th floor (which we had heard was newly renovated) or one looking over Disneyland. He asked us about our trip and I was of course happy to tell him that we were going to Disneyland the whole time and were way excited to be there. He asked what we were most excited about and I said seeing the differences in Pirates of the Caribbean, Tower of Terror and Haunted Mansion. Turns out our clerk used to work at the Tower of Terror in Walt Disney World and he warned us that Disney Worlds was much better than Disneyland’s, but he also said that Disneyland had the better pirates (we later found out he was right about both). Well… He picked us out a room, on the 6th floor over looking the park, and said that it was something special. I had no Idea what to expect.
We went up the elevator to the 6th floor and started walking to the room, it was a bit of a walk, with about 3 turns, we passed lots of doors along the way… Did he trick us? We finally found our room, the very last door at the end of the hall, on a wall all by itself. We put in the key and opened the door, no… He didn’t trick us.
2 of our four walls were floor to ceiling mirrors!
Plus, the 6th floor has now also been renovated because the furniture and bathroom fixtures were definitely new. On top of that, we had a great view out our window of Disneyland including the Tower of Terror, Space Mountain and the Matterhorn Bobsleds.
Tower of Terror
Space Mountain
Matterhorn Bobsleds
It made for something awesome to come back to at night, being able to look out over the parks and think about all the things we had done there that day… And on that first day, it built the excitement even more. After looking out the window for awhile, and jumping up and down, Chris and I rushed to the parks…
But that’s another post.
So after lamenting that the Disneyland books didn’t have the handy guides that the Disney World books do, I decided to take it upon myself to compile the list. Really I’m not sure why the Disneyland book doesn’t have it. The information is already there. I guess they didn’t want to pay for the extra pages.
The following is the result of about 1 1/2 hours of work (a lot of which was spent making it look pretty). The Rides are in Alphabetical order and lists when the best time to ride is (and if they have FASTPASS) I’m sure there are typos… But it will have to do.
The project served as an outlet for all my pent up Disney Energy… Plus, now I feel more confident about our trip… I wish I could be less obsessive, but I’m not.
Okay, so much for updates while I waited for Disney to arrive.
This month has flown by and now…. 4 Days until DISNEY!
So many things to do, well. Pack, plan, look up more info about the rides, print out the itinerary… Okay, maybe not so much to do. Really it’s pretty much done, but… Anyway.
I felt way more prepared when we went to Disney World. Maybe because I had MONTHS rather than A MONTH to get excited and plan every little detail. This time I feel as though I’m not sure what I am getting into. I’m not sure if that adds to the excitement, or takes away from it. Maybe I’ll be taking a lesson from Chris this trip and just taking things as they come. But I am still disappointed that while, the guide books for Disney World are awesome. They have cut out pages for everything, including a handy reference guide for the rides. I can’t find anything like that for Disneyland. But hopefully we can still avoid the long lines.
Because we booked the trip so fast after deciding to go it still seems unreal. I can’t believe that on Friday I will be in one of the Happiest Places on earth sharing time with Mickey and Minnie. 
YAY!
I am eating, sleeping, breathing Disney right now (okay, for those of you who don’t know, that’s not too far off from normal but… anyway). I’m really looking forward to seeing the differences in the Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror and the Jungle Cruise from the ones in Disney World. Unfortunately It’s a Small World will be closed, guess I’ll just have to sing the song on my own (iiit’s a small world af-ter all, iiit’s a small world af-ter all, iiit’s a small world af-ter all, it’s a small, small, world).
The plan is to go on every ride at least once and possibly more… ::eeek!:: I can’t wait, oh to be around Mickey and Minnie, see the princesses!
This video sums up all of my feelings for our upcoming Disneyland trip… It’s a commercial and It’s for Disney World but, you get the idea.
I hope the month goes quickly, I don’t know what I’m going to do if I can’t sleep for that long.
::voice of that Disney announcer guy:: They’ve been to Disney World twice together and multiple times before that, but they’ve never visited the place where it all started. The place where it’s Sleeping Beauty not Cinderella who rules and you not only watch Indiana Jones, you go on an adventure with him. Where King Triton has a garden and Mr. Toad still goes on his wild ride. But this Memorial Day weekend that all changes. Using their brains and the internet, one lucky couple scores big and lands a trip to California. On May 23, Chris and Melissa… Go to DISNEYLAND.
That’s right Disneyland! I can hardly contain my excitement. Chris and I have been talking about going to Disneyland since February (when I found out that my employer was not going to back pay me for the vacation I took in January even though I had cleared it with both my boss and HR and made sure that I would be able to have those days counted towards the vacation I hadn’t earned yet…. But anyway). Since I had some extra vacation time we thought, why not go to Disneyland? I’ll tell you why we almost didn’t.
California is way further away than Florida from Illinois, so airfare is more expensive. Tickets to get into the parks are just about as expensive as the tickets we buy for Disney World. And! Unless we stayed in a motel (not my idea of a magical Disney vacation) hotels near Disneyland are much less affordable.
Here’s the breakdown,
Through Disney’s Website 3 nights at the Hilton Anaheim (two blocks from Disneyland) and Park Hopper tickets to the parks were $864 (cheaper than reserving the room alone and buying the tickets, but still pricey). The cheapest airfare I was finding was about $250 round trip (without taxes, just for one of us!) with connecting flights and spending most of the day on a plane, or $400 without connecting flights. For two of us to go it was going to cost us between $1364 – $1664, too much. I can’t justify spending that much money on one weekend, especially when we spent about 1300 to go to Disney World.
I searched everywhere, Expedia, Orbitz, Southwest Airlines, Air Tran. I kept hoping that Southwest or Air Tran would send me a deal (I’m on their mailing lists) but no such luck. Then on a whim I checked priceline.com It was the best move I’ve ever made.
Airfare (American Airlines, no connections, for both of us) and reservations at the Hilton Anaheim (same hotel, through priceline), $735 (with taxes). Park Hopper tickets for the two of us, $280. Total cost $1015, a savings of $349-$649. Now that, I can justify.
So I booked it, and we’re going. I’m sure that priceline isn’t right for every vacation (I’ll still probably book Disney World through Disney because I love staying on property), but this time it worked out well. We were ready to give up on the trip and thanks to that site, we didn’t have to.
So if you’re trying to get away and find good deals check it out, it’s worth looking. And stay tuned, because as we get closer to Memorial Day, I’ll let you in on more of our plans.
Amazing Photo of Sleeping Beauty Castle (not taken by me)
Isn’t it funny how I just saw Princess Aurora dancing
and now I get to visit her castle?
