24 hours of disney * part four

we started our final stretch of the 24 hours
the best way that we knew how ...



we were running on very little sleep
and i am sure i was not completely with it
yet when i look back
surprisingly
i don't remember feeling tired.
there was so much going on
and we were running on pure adrenaline

disney did a great job of keeping us busy as well

the disneyland band and dapper dans performed every hour through the night

 periodically mike wazowski and sully messed with the castle
and there was audio playing as they fought over what color it should be

 

they created a party like atmosphere
to help everyone -
cast members included -
get through the early morning hours



between 4 and 5 a.m. many of the rides started to shut down
so we did as many of our favorites as we could

we looped buzz lightyear

 

 

 we rode pirates of the caribbean

and made our way back towards the castle

as we did ...

we saw this ...

and realized that good morning america was setting up
to broadcast live in front of the castle

while taking pictures of them setting up
i happened to get this picture of rachel smith being photobombed
and couldn't resist posting it ...

the night was coming to an end

and we decided that when it is 5am
and you are already feeling slightly loopy
there is no better place to finish up a fabulous 24 hours
than with a bunch of singing birds
in the tiki room

 

we went in while it was dark

and came out to find light

 

the sun was coming up

and we were just minutes away from the 24 hour mark

 

 main street was full of people
waiting to celebrate

the cast members were lining up
to high-five everyone still in the park

and of course ...
i took my turn ;)

 

even the characters came out in their pajamas to help celebrate

it was 6 a.m.
everyone was cheering

and we had spent the past 24 hours doing disney

 

 with only a few breaks

because of the crowds it wasn't a typical 'disney day' for us
BUT
we did get to experience something that we probably won't ever experience again
AND
we got to see disney pull something together
that was above and beyond.
it seemed as though they had learned from the past 24 hour day -
as far as we know
neither of the CA parks hit capacity
AND
in true disney fashion ...
they did it VERY well

part one : part two : part three

24 hours of disney * part three

as we entered our thirteenth hour
we were anticipating it to be the busiest part of the day
and we made our way back over to disneyland

main street was absolutely PACKED.

it was so busy that as we got near,
they directed us through side doors and into a behind the scenes area.
they were using an area typically used by the cast members
as a one way walkway BEHIND main street
to try and free things up

  

it was crazy!!

we spent the next few hours roaming disneyland
and watching the sunset.

we rode the train to avoid some of the crowds
and witnessed guests with pillows using the train as a resting spot.

we watched as the lights came on
and the park took on a different life



it's a small world was one of my favorite nighttime locations
the facade is fantastic and it is even better when lit

everyone was lining up to watch the fireworks and fantasmic

 

and the place was crazy!

 

 once again it was the perfect time to eat ;)

we made our way to cafe orleans
we had made reservations earlier in the week
knowing that we wanted to try the pommes frites and the mickey beignets

 

because of fantasmic it was VERY dark
so the pictures do them no justice -
but they were both EXCELLENT!!

the fries had a garlic parmesan taste and were served with a cajun remoulade that we loved
and
the beignets were hot
which was great because we were FREEZING
and came with a vanilla cream sauce and a raspberry sauce

if we do ever head back to disneyland
i can guarantee this is one place we will stop ;)
just thinking about it now is making me hungry!

as we finished
it was getting close to midnight
and the park was still hoppin'

BUT ...
as the darkness set in
we were getting REALLY cold
and we just couldn't shake it
that is one thing about california that we weren't expecting
and that we didn't care for
although we had jeans and sweatshirts
we were uncomfortably COLD
the attractions were all air conditioned
and
it was still too busy to do much without waiting in long air conditioned lines

 

we were wishing we could just use the dream suite

but instead opted to head back to our hotel to warm up
and catch a quick nap before heading out for our last few hours

go back to part one : part two
part four

24 hours of disney * part two

as our monstrous adventure continued



we enjoyed the fact that california adventure wasn't too busy

 

and decided to grab some lunch at pacific wharf cafe

many of the restaurants had special monstrous summer food offerings
and we LOVED what pacific wharf cafe had added to their menu

we got ourselves a bowl of baked potato soup
in a bread bowl
which was probably my favorite part ;)

caught part of the phineas and ferb dance party

and then decided to head back towards our hotel

our thinking was that if the parks were going to hit capacity
they were going to do it somewhere around dinner
when people got out of work and school.
we wanted to have a chance to get a quick catnap
and get back before that rush

it worked perfectly!!

when we got back to the parks
i was craving sweets
and stopping in at pooh corner
only made matters worse

we ended up getting a chocolate peanut butter graham from pooh corner
fabulous!

 

and a honey lemon cupcake from the hungry bear restaurant
also very good!

this gave us the perfect opportunity to sit in the hungry bear eating area -

right on the rivers of america

in the heart of critter country

in the shade

refueling and watching 'explorers' on the davy crockett's explorer canoes

the parks were officially PACKED

and getting from one place to another was not an easy task

we had gotten a few fastpasses earlier in the day -
so we rode autopia
which is like the grand prix raceway at disney world -
only better

and spent most of our time wandering around -
watching the craziness that surrounded us

i think it is safe to say that at this point
the boys would NOT have been having much fun ;)
it was very busy
the lines for rides were VERY long
and
there wasn't much to do except watch people ...
and eat

AND ...
that is exactly what we did.

we grabbed some roasted veggie pizza from pizza planet in tomorrowland
which we both thought was really good
THEN ...
made one final stop at california adventure
before committing to disneyland for the evening

we were officially HALFWAY through our 24 hours of disney!!

go back to part one
part three : part four