Disneyland Vacation

Ben and I took our first vacation together as a couple. To me, the honeymoon didn't count as a vacation. We were expected to do some sort of traveling immediately following the wedding in order to get away and celebrate our first few days of marriage. But even after being married for three months (today!), it's easy to forget that we're "allowed" to do things now that we couldn't before. As we packed up the car on Friday, it was like, "Oh yeah, we're married. It's okay for us to go to California by ourselves!" Ergo, our first vacation.

The ride Star Tours at Disneyland is closing on July 27. This news upset me, since our next Disneyland trip wasn't scheduled until November (with the Moores!). However, we each had a free one-day pass to any Disney park for volunteering earlier this year, and decided to use them this weekend.

Ben accompanied my family to Disneyland last year, so it was fun to go again - just the two of us. We rode Star Tours one last time, which was a bittersweet experience for me. You have to understand that a large portion of my childhood was spent at Disneyland. I LOVE Disneyland, and grew up riding Star Tours, with the predictable script and sequence of events. At least I didn't cry or anything dramatic. Actually, I was grinning like a fool the entire ride. I just love going on those rides that have been there ever since I can remember.

The park was not busy at all, which was really unexpected. It was a Saturday in June; of course it was going to be busy. However, I started getting suspicious when the line for the Finding Nemo ride was only ten minutes long. Ten minutes??? It's usually at least 45 minutes long by the time the park has been open for ten minutes! The longest we waited for anything was 40 minutes for Toy Story Mania in California Adventure, which a) doesn't have a FastPass line, and b) is completely worth the wait. Second to that was Soarin' Over California (20 minutes), which is also worth waiting for.

Speaking of Soarin' Over California, we have the best story to tell. On that ride, each "vehicle" (if you can even call it that) has three rows that each hold ten people. Ben and I got stuck in front of a large group of loud junior high aged kids. Eventually, you get put in line according to what section you will be sitting in. We were the first two to get seated in Row 1, with all the annoying kids right next to us - yay. The other two rows were queued behind us... all twenty of them were Asian and barely spoke a hint of English. As we waited in our strange group of thirty, we watched a short video that discussed safety precautions regarding the ride. It also showed what the ride vehicles look like. As soon as they showed the first image, all of the Asians gasped and said "Woah!" Apparently they had no idea what they were getting into until that moment.

The girls in the junior high group were really anxious to get on the ride, and I anticipated that they would try to cut in front of us, which would put me and Ben in the middle of the group. Sure enough, we start walking in and one of the girls runs in front of me and Ben. I put my hand out and told her to hang on and let me and Ben sit on the end so they can all sit together. Ben told me later that I used my "d-group voice" to redirect her. It's good to know that my d-group experience is good for something.

Soarin' Over California is a simulation of hang-gliding over various areas of California. You're suspended over a concaved screen and it feels like you're "soaring over California"! The scenes change to show Napa Valley, the mountains, the ocean, etc. Every time the screen changed, everyone - EVERYONE - either gasped or clapped or cheered or something that involved excited noises. There are three "vehicles" riding over the screen at once - a total of 90 people. The entire theater was making noise the entire ride. Ben and I just laughed. It was hysterical.

Anyway... now we're home, and I have a blister. But we had a great time.