The USA Road Trip Los
Angeles
Day 18 Disneyland
We finally made it. DISNEYLAND!!! This was one of the
carrots we dangled in front of the kids to get them excited about moving
halfway around the world.
Once again we started the day early and this one was planned
by Dad to be a military operation, I had gone out before leaving Burlington and
bought a book entitled “Disneyland with a family” so I knew where and when we
had to be. Now like any good plan it didn’t survive first contact with the
enemy. The book did come in very useful however, having lots of useful
information on what’s popular and which rides to get to early and the it
explained the Fastpass system a great way to skip lines.
First stop once we got our bearings in Mainstreet USA, was
to hit the Indiana Jones adventure before the rest of the crowds. The three
adults quickly agreed that this is the best ride in the park but the kids were
of a different opinion. Next the Pirates of the Caribbean, then the Haunted
Mansion (Natasha’s favourite, she’s definitely a witch or ghoul). In between
the popular rides and waiting for our time on the Fastpass system we filled our
time by visiting the quieter rides, if there is such a thing in Disneyland. A
piece of advice, do Splash Mountain around lunchtime so that you can dry off in
the afternoon sun.
The book recommends splitting the park into two halves and
tackling one half the first day and coming back and completing the remainder
the next day. But of course the Nightingales don’t subscribe to that theory and
so by the end of the day we had seen three quarters of the park.
19:00. After dinner which we had wisely brought with us. (Don’t
eat in Disneyland unless you are prepared to sell one of your children). We
settled down along the banks of the Rivers of America to await Mickey Mouse in
“Fantasmic” the laser and light show. A word to the wise be prepared to get
there and get a seat at least two hours before the show starts, which is 21:00.
I first saw this show back in 1993 and apart from the effects being sharpened
up it’s still the same show, which isn’t to say it’s not spectacular. After the
show finishes we sat around and waited for the fireworks which again are
spectacular. I would hate to think how much it costs Disney in fireworks as
this happens every night of the year.
22:30 and two very
tired but happy kids and their parents and Aunt made it back to the hotel.
Day 19 LEGOLAND
LEGOLAND! The one place Ryan really wanted to go ever since
I told him it existed in 2008. Chelle wasn’t interested and Tasha couldn’t make
up her mind until we told her there was a water park. So Helen and I took the
kids while Michelle had some well earned rest, which she didn’t do anyway.
LEGOLAND is about an hour South of L.A. just outside of San
Diego. It’s not a big park and of course it revolves around the theme of LEGO,
with the recreation of some of the American cities in miniature being the
centre point and they don’t have a lot of rides, the park is definitely aimed
at smaller kids. They did have a big
Star Wars display which excited Ryan. We went on a few of the rides but after
Disneyland Tash didn’t find them exciting enough and all she wanted to do was
go for a swim, so we spent the afternoon in the water. The highlight of the
park was a ride that looks like one of those robotic arms that are used in
factories and basically performs the same way. On the end of the arm are two
seats that can be manipulated in any direction. There are five modes of
operation ranging from the tame which Tash and I did, through to the extreme
which Ryan went on. I sat back and watched as my son was thrown through more
gyrations than a jet pilot. He was a bit subdued when he got off but wouldn’t
admit he didn’t like it. The last thing we had to do before leaving was visit
the LEGO shop for Ryan to spend some of his birthday money, which took an hour,
so many decisions.
Day 20: Ninth of
August Natasha’s Birthday at Disneyland
A big day but for a special reason! We headed out extra
early to be there when the gates opened. Our first stop was Town Hall to let
them know we had a special person with us, Natasha was given a big badge with
her name and age on it so no one would miss the fact it was her birthday. After
getting the badge she was then told she had a phone call, when she picked it up
it was Goofy wishing her “Happy Birthday”.
Off to the part of the park we had previously missed and
start with Space Mountain, Michelle’s favourite from a previous visit when she
was young, the kids also liked this one. Next it was Star Tours a simulator
ride through the world of Star Wars, with C3PO as the pilot. Thankfully we got to
this early as the wait is usually between ninety minutes and two hours. From
there we went back and had another go on Pirates of the Caribbean, Indiana
Jones, Splash Mountain and the Haunted Mansion along with filling all the gaps.
The badge worked well Natasha got a lot of birthday wishes from park staff. As
it was her birthday we also had to get our photo with as many characters as
possible, though we missed Mickey we did get Minnie and of course the Disney
Princesses.
Another action packed day ended and Helen, Tash and I sat
down to watch Fantasmic again while Chelle and Ryan went off to try and get on
some of the rides while they weren’t busy. Hopefully that will be one birthday
that Natasha wont forget to soon.
Day 21 Universal
Studios
My favourite theme park. Universal is across the other side
of L.A. from Disneyland so it was another early start, but thankfully the
traffic wasn’t too heavy. After arriving we got the obligatory photos on the
red carpet, then onto the rides and the shows, starting with Shrek 4D and the
Simpsons roller coaster simulator (worth waiting in line for). After waiting
for me to get my photo with Marilyn we headed to Jurassic Park and boarded a
boat to go through the park, meeting all its residents on the way. Moving
through the park headquarters you get attacked by Velociraptors which in turn
are attacked by T-Rex, escaping from the T-Rex the boat then falls eighty feet
down a waterfall. All I can say is I have never got so wet on any other ride,
this one is a lot of fun. Helen and I then did the Mummy another roller coaster
in the dark.
One mistake we did do at Universal, was to not do the
Backlot tour when we first got there. (The wait for this is horrendous!) The tour itself however is worth the wait.
The kids may have been a bit young to appreciate this though. We came face to
face with “Bruce” the shark from Jaws, drove down Wisteria Lane, saw the
wreckage of a plane crash and were stalked by Norman Bates.
Other things we did were the Waterworld show, a lot of fun,
terminator 4D, I did this on my own very loud and exciting and my favourite the
House of Horrors, which displays the monsters and villians from the movies and
comes with the disclaimer that “performers in the building will not touch you
so please refrain from hitting them” Lol. I have never seen people jump so far.
Once again another long and action packed day.
Day 22 California
Adventure
Because this park isn’t as big as its older brother
Disneyland, we didn’t need to rush as much and this was a bit more relaxing,
with less people. California adventure is based, of course on all things
California and is worth doing. For a nice change of pace from past rides
“Flight over California” is fun, you are in a simulated hand glider in front of
an IMAX screen and so feel like you are flying over the state, it was good for
the kids as they could recognise some of the places they had already visited or
were yet to visit. A lot of the other rides were pretty much standard and based
on some of the older ones that used to appear on piers and at fairgrounds. The
kids still got a kick out of them. The best ride however is the roller coaster,
(California Screamin) for its size it is the fastest one I have been on. To
start you get blasted from a standing start to 60mph in 5 seconds and the ride
doesn’t slow down after that. It was so much fun we went back and did it again
later in the day. The other standout is the Grizzly River Run rafts, again the
best rafting ride I’ve been on so far, another hot weather ride.
Day 23 Seaworld San
Diego
Our last day in L.A. Chelle opted out on this one. So Helen,
Ryan, Tash and I once again headed back South to San Diego. Seaworld is another
of those parks that have to be done. Not so much for the rides but to see some
amazing wild life up close. Such as Walrus, Polar Bears, Beluga and of course
“Shamu” the killer whale. I have seen Seaworld on the Gold Coast and that’s
fantastic but San Diego takes it to the next level. Of course in between the
wild life there are also a couple of good rides and a very entertaining Seal
show, the kids loving this one. One thing we were grateful for was that it was
overcast, otherwise I’m sure it could get unpleasant around there.
At the end of the day we had completed a week of theme parks
and I think everyone had really enjoyed themselves each of us having a
favourite ride or park, so it was time for a change of pace and to head to San
Francisco.
