The TCD Gang Goes to Disneyland!

[Momof6....aka Marty 769]

They had a TV set up in a corner of the room, and it was playing a video narrated by Steve Martin.  It was very interesting, and covered a lot of Disneyland history:

 

 

 

I wanted to stay and watch more of that, but we still had one last must-do.

 

You can watch it now, if you like: 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIGqkJr5TN0

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

You can watch it now, if you like: 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIGqkJr5TN0

 

Awesome!

 

That is the video!  I see now that it was from Disneyland's 50th birthday.  I wonder if Steve is going to update this for the 60th?

 

I watched the whole thing, and it's very good.  Thanks for posting it.

 

TCD

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

Sorry about the candy cane disappointment!

 

The Mr. Lincoln attraction sounds like sort of a cross between Hall of Presidents and One Man's Dream.

[twiceblessed....nacole 433]

Haha... I'm laughing at this TR as I've followed along (enjoying myself understand) but waiting for the report on the candy cane and then... no. big. deal.  Haha.  You say well played Disneyland... I say well played TCD.  Well played 

 

Sorry you spent the $28 bucks, but glad that you and two of your girls got to enjoy such a special trip.  Hopefully next go around...  you'll have all three of your miracles with you.

 

Oh and the prices of the Grand Californian.. mercy.  What truly amazes me, is that there are people out there who can actually afford to pay those prices and for more than one night!  Wow.

[Littleolwoman.aka.Kristie 119]

Bummer on the Candy Cane. Not surprising if you think about it I mean pepperment is pepperment. I kept wondering what they could have done to make it so great. I guess it is the best Disney candy cane you will ever eat, I am sure that is what they ment.

[parrothead7368 aka Norm 101]

I think the whole big deal about the candy cane is that it is hand rolled.

 

Best Regards,

Norm

[h2odivers...Ray 952]

I was hoping for a "that was the best candy came ever!"

But thanks for taking a bullet on that candy came for us. You saved us all $14. Lol.

I wish I could have stayed later on my fall 2014 trip to Disneyland and California Adventure. I think I would have liked that Pixar Parade.

At the end of the Incredibles jack jack flames up.

A Moment with Mr. Lincoln is great for taking a nice afternoon nap.

What was the 2nd must do at Disneyland?

[dvccamper 32]

I guess if you take enough Valium, like those Californians, it is the best candy cane ever.

[LONE-STAR 370]

I really thought the candy cane was going to be awesome some how. Maybe you need to eat them when they were still warm?

[Memphis 105]

It had to be the best candy cane it cost $14.  Just wait Disney World's MK is going to make one twice as good next year for only $28. but it will cost you a FP+.

[GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799]

I knew it; the candy cane is a fraud! 

 

I love all the historical stuff you're sharing. Very cool. 

 

I wish they'd bring parades back to the other 3 parks in the World. 

[BuckeyeFortFan 35]

A couple of comments.....

 

1.  Jack-Jack does spontaneously combust at the end of The Incredibles.  When the villain (Syndrome?) is taking him up to his ship Jack-Jack turns into a devil looking thing, and then a solid metal thing and then lights on fire.  The villain then drops him and gets sucked into his ships engine...by his cape.

 

2.  It seems to me, when DL was built, the castle was not the centerpiece of the park that it is at the MK.  It was simply the entrance to Fantasyland and so did not need to tower over the rest of the park.  Sometime after that it become iconic, and was made to be more impressive at WDW.  Just a theory.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Sorry about the candy cane disappointment!

 

The Mr. Lincoln attraction sounds like sort of a cross between Hall of Presidents and One Man's Dream.

 

The candy cane thing wasn't a big deal.  I'm glad we tried one, as I would have always wondered if we missed something special.

 

That's a good description of the Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln attraction.  And, thanks for mentioning One Man's Dream.  I remember that there was quite a bit of Disneyland stuff in there.  Now I need to go back there and look at it all again with a new perspective.

 

Haha... I'm laughing at this TR as I've followed along (enjoying myself understand) but waiting for the report on the candy cane and then... no. big. deal.  Haha.  You say well played Disneyland... I say well played TCD.  Well played 

 

Sorry you spent the $28 bucks, but glad that you and two of your girls got to enjoy such a special trip.  Hopefully next go around...  you'll have all three of your miracles with you.

 

Oh and the prices of the Grand Californian.. mercy.  What truly amazes me, is that there are people out there who can actually afford to pay those prices and for more than one night!  Wow.

 

Thanks.  And you're right-  I feel bad that big sister wasn't with us on this trip, and we definitely need to take her. 

 

I thought the same thing about the Grand Californian prices.  Obviously, the rack rates wouldn't be so high unless there were guests wiling to pay those rates.  It surprises me that there are that many people who are willing to pay that much for a hotel room.  Then again, I say the same thing about the campsite rates at Fort Wilderness.

 

Bummer on the Candy Cane. Not surprising if you think about it I mean pepperment is pepperment. I kept wondering what they could have done to make it so great. I guess it is the best Disney candy cane you will ever eat, I am sure that is what they ment.

 

Right.  Except for some of those fancy flavors they've introduced in recent years, every candy cane I've ever had has been the same.  It's peppermint. 

 

I think the whole big deal about the candy cane is that it is hand rolled.

 

Best Regards,

Norm

 

True.  And they are made in limited quantities.  This is a classic example of marketing and supply and demand.  If they mass produced a bunch of giant candy canes in a factory and had them out in all the retail locations, there's no way they could sell them for $14.  Or even $4.  By limiting availability and making people line up for wrist bands, they created some kind of mystique about ordinary candy canes, and they can sell them at a huge mark up.  But, in the final analysis, I wonder how much profit they make from all the effort on their part.  They have to pay a lot of labor expenses for the wristband CM's and the candy makers. 

 

I was hoping for a "that was the best candy came ever!"

But thanks for taking a bullet on that candy came for us. You saved us all $14. Lol.

I wish I could have stayed later on my fall 2014 trip to Disneyland and California Adventure. I think I would have liked that Pixar Parade.

At the end of the Incredibles jack jack flames up.

A Moment with Mr. Lincoln is great for taking a nice afternoon nap.

What was the 2nd must do at Disneyland?

 

Yeah, I hope that I save a lot of you from the $14 candy canes.  Spend that money on something else.

 

The Pixar parade was very well done.  It seemed to have way more performers in it than the parades at WDW.

 

I don't remember the part with Jack Jack flaming up.  It's been a long time since I've watched the Incredibles.

 

Yes, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln would be an excellent spot to take a nap.

 

We had a lot of must-do's at Disneyland.  The last one is going to be covered in the next update.

 

I guess if you take enough Valium, like those Californians, it is the best candy cane ever.

 

LOL.

 

And, don't forget all the medical marijuana they have out there.

 

I really thought the candy cane was going to be awesome some how. Maybe you need to eat them when they were still warm?

 

After all the hype I heard, I thought there would be something special about those candy canes too.

 

I'm not sure you can get your candy cane when it's still warm.  They wrap them up in plastic before they go to the store. They probably have to be cooled for that .

 

It had to be the best candy cane it cost $14.  Just wait Disney World's MK is going to make one twice as good next year for only $28. but it will cost you a FP+.

 

That's it exactly.

 

There are many blog posts I've read where people gush over how great those candy canes are.  They probably don't want to admit that they threw away $14.

 

I'm surprised Disney World doesn't do this.  It seems like an easy money grab.  And we all know how much they love easy money grabs.

 

I knew it; the candy cane is a fraud! 

 

I love all the historical stuff you're sharing. Very cool. 

 

I wish they'd bring parades back to the other 3 parks in the World. 

 

You're right.  A total fraud.  I wonder how many regular candy canes I could have bought for that $28 I threw away?

 

I'm glad you like the historical stuff.  I do too.  If you haven't already watched the video Marty linked above, you should. There's some cool footage in it showing Walt walking around the orange grove that was to become Disneyland.  Back then, it was in the middle of nowhere.  Which is really hard to believe when you see it today.

 

I agree with you about the parades.  The fact that they just took the recent parades away from DHS and Animal Kingdom is just another example of how WDW management continues to cut corners to boost the bottom line with no regard to guest experience.

 

A couple of comments.....

 

1.  Jack-Jack does spontaneously combust at the end of The Incredibles.  When the villain (Syndrome?) is taking him up to his ship Jack-Jack turns into a devil looking thing, and then a solid metal thing and then lights on fire.  The villain then drops him and gets sucked into his ships engine...by his cape.

 

2.  It seems to me, when DL was built, the castle was not the centerpiece of the park that it is at the MK.  It was simply the entrance to Fantasyland and so did not need to tower over the rest of the park.  Sometime after that it become iconic, and was made to be more impressive at WDW.  Just a theory.

 

Now I remember.  Like I said, it's been a while since I've seen the Incredibles.  I'll need to dig out our copy-it's a good movie.

 

Good point about the castle.  Each of the lands at Disneyland has a definite themed entrance from the hub.  It probably was intentional to make the Fantasyland entrance equal to Adventureland, Frontierland and Tomorrowland.  Your theory makes a lot of sense.  The castle captured people's imaginations, and they made it a focal point at Disney World.  As someone said earlier in this thread, Disneyland was their first try at this, and it was one heck of a first try.

 

TCD

[rm0530 5]

I've read somewhere that Walt ran out of money when building and didn't have the resources to make the castle any bigger. Not sure how accurate that account is though.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I've read somewhere that Walt ran out of money when building and didn't have the resources to make the castle any bigger. Not sure how accurate that account is though.

 

Interesting.

 

Now that I've been, I am much more interested in hearing Disneyland history.  I'm going to see if I can find anything about this.

 

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Well, we have finally reached that point.

 

This update has the last photos from our trip.

 

Which means this TR is ending.

 

I have one postscript I'm working on, but I need to do a bit more research for that.

 

And, I'm going to compose a post consolidating my final thoughts about Disneyland.

 

So, we are not quite done here.

 

But, we will be done talking about the actual trip.

 

We left off tearing ourselves away from the displays in the Main Street Opera House.

 

We had one more must do, and we all wanted to do it.

 

Oh, and I realized a couple of posts ago that I goofed on failing to mention a good cliffhanger.

 

When we were in California Adventure, around the time we were on our last ride on Radiator Springs Racers, I missed a call on my phone, and saw that it was from an Anaheim number, and that I had a new voice mail.

 

I checked it, and it was the lost and found department from the Grand Californian.  They had an item that housekeeping had found in our room, and wanted me to call back to see if it was ours.

 

I called them back.

 

The CM said they had found a plush doll and a pair of brown boots.

 

A plush doll?

 

What kind, I asked her.

 

She said it was from Jake and the Neverland Pirates.

 

Huh?

 

That's not ours, I told her.

 

But, what about the boots?

 

The twins had boots.

 

How big were they, I asked.

 

Women's size, she told me.

 

I asked the girls if anyone had not packed her boots.  They both thought they had. Plus, I was in the room earlier to call for the bellman, and I checked the closet and around the room to make sure we hadn't forgotten anything.

 

I told the CM that I thought there must be a mistake, but that we would stop by later and check.

 

So, that meant we needed to get back a little earlier than planned so we could stop by the lost and found before retrieving the car and heading out.

 

For now, though, we were on a mission that required us to travel up Main Street.  Past the Christmas tree:

 

 

And beneath the garland:

 

 

We weren't planning to see the castle lighting ceremony, but it was about to happen when we got there, so we stopped for a moment:

 

 

Ta dah (I liked how the trees lit up too) :

 

 

The castle lighting ceremony here is simple and to the point.  No bad acting/singing from college girls in wigs and fancy dresses.

 

Then we headed to our destination.  It was a little red trailer called the Little Red Wagon:

 

 

They are famous for one thing and one thing only.

 

Corn Dogs.

 

That's right.

 

Corn Dogs.

 

When is the last time you had a corn dog?

 

I can tell you that it had been a very long time for me.

 

I'm not really a fan,.

 

I like me a hot dog.

 

In a bun.

 

Or a pretzel roll.

 

Or even a pig in blanket.

 

But, I'm not a corn dog fan.

 

But, people go absolutely ape over these Disneyland corn dogs.

 

There are 632 reviews of the Little Red Wagon on Yelp.  And the place earned 4.5 stars.  Check out some of the comments on there:  http://www.yelp.com/biz/little-red-wagon-Anaheim

 

The hype for these corn dogs dwarfs the candy cane hype by far.

 

The authoritative LA Foodie blog lists the corndogs in their top 10 list of the best food items at Disneyland, and states:

 

As you near the end of Main Street, look off to the right and you’ll see the truck. The corn dogs are gigantic. They are also the best I have ever had – not just at Disneyland but anywhere.

 

http://lafoodie.com/post/23574727336/top-10-best-foods-at-disneyland

 

I could go on.

 

There are more blog posts about these corn dogs than I could possibly link.

 

So, let's just get down to it.

 

Here's one of our corn dogs:

 

 

So how were they?

 

They were awesome.

 

Like LA Foodie says: The best corn dog I ever had.

 

They make them fresh, one at a time, in that little red wagon.

 

This time, something lived up to the hype.

 

That corn dog photo is the last photo I have from Disneyland.

 

After our corndogs, we proceeded out of the park, through California Adventure, and back to the hotel.

 

We were running short on time, so I went to fetch the car, and the girls wet to the lost and found.  It turns out that Twin #2 had somehow left her boots in the room.  There was a stuffed animal there too, which they had never seen before, which was really strange.  But, I'm grateful they called about the boots.  I'm sorry that some kid lost a stuffed animal.

 

After that, we loaded in the car, and drove back to the airport.

 

The rental car return situation at LAX is confusing, but it was late on a Monday night, so we made it with no problems or delays.  And we again missed that legendary bad LA traffic.

 

Our flight was less than half full, which gave us room to spread out.

 

I slept a bit, but I was fascinated by the interactive screens they had on this plane that tracked our path and even would show landmarks to look for.  It would have been cooler in the daylight.  As we flew over Florida, I saw that we headed a lot further south than we needed to for some reason, and the screen confirmed that:

 

 

But, we made it on time.

 

We were all pretty wiped out, but the girls headed right back to WDW when we got home, and worked a Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party that night.

 

Since then, they have finished out their College Programs, and are back at school.

 

Applications just opened up for next fall, though.

 

And there's a Disneyland College Program.

 

TCD

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

Spend all day in Disneyland, fly cross country, and work a shift at WDW all in the same day?  Wow!  

[mouseketab.....Carol 1,261]

 

 

And there's a Disneyland College Program.

 

TCD

Uh oh...... at this rate, the girls will spend as many years in the College program as they will in school!!

 

Awesome report!!  Thanks for the details, it's getting closer for our trip, can't wait! (Although, we plan to sleep some while we are there

[Momof6....aka Marty 769]

Thanks again for bringing us along!  I have loved my virtual trip top Disneyland!

[dvccamper 32]

Awesome trip report!! I have really enjoyed learning more about Disneyland and have renewed my vow to make it there someday.

I have heard about the corn dogs before, dd#3 says we must go as she claims the best corn dog she ever had was in AK and would like to compare. So I guess we have to go.

[Littleolwoman.aka.Kristie 119]

Been a pretty great TR thus far. Sad to see it end but glad you all had a fantastic time and got home safely.

[Hotmamac aka Misty 11]

Thank you for sharing this TR. I never thought I cared about going to Disneyland, but now it's going on my bucket list. 

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Spend all day in Disneyland, fly cross country, and work a shift at WDW all in the same day?  Wow!  

 

Oh to be young.  Yup.  Monday night, they were on Main Street at Disneyland munching on corn dogs and looking at the little castle.  Tuesday night, they were at the MK watching the Frozen sisters light the castle.  This time on the clock.

 

Uh oh...... at this rate, the girls will spend as many years in the College program as they will in school!!

 

Awesome report!!  Thanks for the details, it's getting closer for our trip, can't wait! (Although, we plan to sleep some while we are there

 

This has been the subject of much discussion among the TCD gang.  Older sister finished her degree in four years, and went right off to grad school, and will have her Masters here come May of this year.

 

The twins are currently just one semester behind in their sophomore year, which they will make up most of by going to school this spring and summer.

 

But, if they were take off another semester in the fall, they are probably going to get far enough off track that they won't finish in four years.  The problem is that some of the classes they need to take aren't offered in the summer.

 

Twin #2 went to school to major in hospitality management, with the idea of working for Disney one day.  After spending her time in the Disney College Program, she is even more sure of that choice.  Twin #1 thought she wanted to do something else career-wise, but now is all about working for Disney as a career too. 

 

They'll be 20 years old in May.

 

If they were to apply and get accepted to work at Disneyland for a semester, then why not?

 

I am envious that your trip to Disneyland is so close!  I know that you will love it.

 

You don't have to worry about the Candy Canes, but be sure to get a corndog.  Even if you don't like corndogs.

 

Thanks again for bringing us along!  I have loved my virtual trip top Disneyland!

 

Thanks for reading it all, and participating.  You never know, maybe you'll make it out there one day too.

 

Awesome trip report!! I have really enjoyed learning more about Disneyland and have renewed my vow to make it there someday.

I have heard about the corn dogs before, dd#3 says we must go as she claims the best corn dog she ever had was in AK and would like to compare. So I guess we have to go.

 

Do you remember where your DD got that corndog in AK?  All the corndogs I've seen at WDW were plainly prepared at some date in the past, and were just reheated at the serving location. If they're making fresh ones someplace at WDW, I want one.

 

Been a pretty great TR thus far. Sad to see it end but glad you all had a fantastic time and got home safely.

 

It's always sad when a trip report ends.

 

But that means it's time for another trip.

 

Thank you for sharing this TR. I never thought I cared about going to Disneyland, but now it's going on my bucket list. 

 

I never felt that strongly about going to Disneyland.

 

Now, I want to go back.

 

And I will. 

 

Just need to figure out how and when.

 

Should one of both twins become DL CM's then look out.

 

TCD

[Family of Bears 98]

Aren't they still serving these Disneyland corn dogs at the fantasy fare food truck at dtd? I remember seeing them and they did a comparison review on the disneyfoodblog. They say they are different but still good.

[dieseldave 5]

Another awesome trip report!  Thanks for sharing!  I think I see a trip to Disneyalnd in my future.