It's a Disneyland Halloween- Day 2

I may not like getting up at home but vacations are totally different. (The time zone change helped.) I know that if I want to be able to do anything in the parks without a mask on, I have to get it done before 10am and the restaurants start cooking lunch.

One of the rides I had to do was Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.This ride closed down years ago at Magic Kingdom and I've missed it. I also did the Nemo Subs early. The subs were what I remembered from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Nemo was a fun addition that really didn't take away from the ride.

I hopped over to DCA before having to re-mask and ran into Flick from Bug's Life. He really liked Stitchy.

After another ride on Radiator Springs Racers and Luigi's flying tires, it was time for lunch. I stopped at Taste Pilot's Grill while waiting for my Fast Pass for Soarin'. Lunch was a plain hamburger patty and applesauce. The manager and chef were at a loss as to feeding me with all my allergies. I'm just glad I walked away without a reaction. The queue for Soarin' at DLR is way better then in Epcot but the ride's exactly the same.

I went back to the hotel for a break. The evening was spent at DL riding the Indiana Jones, the original Pirates,  Jungle Cruise,  It's a Small World, and Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy. They need to put the add-ins on the rides at WDW.

Fantasmic is much, much better at Disneyland then at Hollywood Studios. If they could put the DL show in the DHS amphitheater, it would be perfect.

It's a Disneyland Halloween - Day 1

Why did I booked a 7am flight when I hate waking up in the morning? I'll remember not to make that mistake again. After checking luggage and getting through security, I almost didn't make it on the plane. Lunch in Atlanta was okay; I did my research and knew where to find safe food. People kept glancing over at me but I'm used to it since it's rare to find someone eating with a mask on. Oh, right, that's why I did the early flight...so I wouldn't have to wear the mask on the first flight. Guess I will have to remember to make that mistake again.

The flight from ATL to LAX was uneventful. I boarded early to wipe down the seat and area around me, not taking chances in a plane. My seatmates were a mom and her little boy, who also had food allergies. His mom had just given him Benedryl so he slept most of the flight. I read until we got to the mountains and then I was glued to the window. It's been too long since I've seen the mountains.

LAX was just as crazy as I remember it. There was a short wait for the Disneyland Express bus. The driver was nice and gave us a little tour on our way to Anaheim. The only thing I didn't like was that the bus drop of for my hotel, the Castle Inn & Suites, was half a block away from the lobby.

I went to Disney California Adventure first. Last time I was here, this was a parking lot. I like the park better. Radiator Springs Racers was an amazing ride; Disney Imagineering at it's best. The whole of Carsland really makes you feel like you're in the movie. Having the cars actually driving out for meet & greets made it seem all the more "real". Dinner was at Flo's Cafe- roast beef, Spanish corn, and roasted potatoes.

Once it got dark, I wandered over to Disneyland. When I was 5, I swore I would never forgive my parents for making me ride the Matterhorn. First thing I did after riding Matterhorn was to call my folks and  tell them I'm no longer traumatized by the ride...but it's still is a crappy ride.

I wanted to get up early the next morning so I headed out and watched the fireworks from Harbor Blvd. There's a 7-11 at the corner that carries snacks. I picked up munchies for the morning, and called it a night early.

Robots and Ice Skates

Mid-September is one of my favorite times of year because of the annual Fall Classic Figure Skating Competition in Ellenton, FL. For the competitive kids, this is the last hurrah before Regionals. They have the opportunity to skate against some of the same skaters they will be going up against in October. For Showcase skaters, this is the time to debut new programs after National Showcase in August. I haven't been to a National Showcase yet but plan to attend my first in 2014. 

This year had a new skater in Adult Bronze, my new friend Flutz, the Autobot scout from the planet Cybertron. Flutz is a recent visitor to Earth. I introduced her to ice skating and she's getting better every week. Her music is to the Transformers Theme (no surprise there) and the music from the Citoren commercials fromEurope. Flutz won first place in Adult Bronze. Expect to see her at national showcase next year.

I skated Adult Silver to a collection of music from the Wishes firework show at Magic Kingdom in Disneyworld. I came in 3rd but I'm okay with that. I need some work on my flying sit spin and Axel. The Axel continues to ellude me. We're coming up on 3 years now that I've been working on this stupid jump. It's all in my head now...

I wrote most of this on the plane ride to California. I'll be spending a few days out west on a little vacation. There's Disneyland, ice skating, mountains, and lost of shopping. Next post'll be about this little trip I'm on.