AB&Me Travels: Disney California Adventure

[This is part of our AB&Me Travels : US Trip last March 2015. I am in Dubai at the time of this writing]

California Disney Adventure

03.13.15

Map Source

Early Friday morning we made our way to California Disney Adventure. This is just on the other side of Disneyland Park California. I cannot stress this enough, one day in the park, any Disneyland Park, is not enough! 

First things first, we went inside the first souvenir shop we saw. My sister and I got matching hats and I got myself an Ariel shirt … coz, you know, I want matching outfits. LOL.

We didn’t know where to start so, why not a photo at Cars Land? We kept walking, checking out rides and looking for somewhere to eat. Blake wasn’t really interested in anything so I was kinda bummed. We wanted to eat at Ariel’s grotto but of course, they’re full and can’t accept walk-ins. 

Tip: Make table reservations ahead of time!!

Also, can you tell I’m fixated on the Little Mermaid? Coz as a little girl, I wanted to be a mermaid!

We ended up eating at Pacific Wharf Cafe. While waiting for our orders, my sister and I grabbed the chance to sneak away and went to the Hollywood Tower Hotel. This is one creepy ride. And the guy behind us was creepy too! (Dude, if this is you, I just want to say sorry, you creeped me out. Fo’realz)

After lunch, we went to A Bug’s Land. My sister was so excited about the “It’s tough to be a bug” ride but apparently they’re somewhat renovating so they showed us the trailer of Cinderella instead. 

Blake was so fascinated by the bugs that we stayed here for a while. We got on Heimlich’s Chew Chew Train and Francis’ Ladybug Boogie. Blake had a gazillion churros in between rides. 

We actually had to trick her just so we can move on to other places. Luckily, we were able to get a fast pass to see Queen Elsa and Princess Anna at Hollywood Land.

I think I was more excited for Blake. In the confusion, I totally forgot to have my picture taken with them. Haha! But I was able to ask them to sign my journal. #win!

We explored Beast’s Library while waiting for our scheduled time to see Disney’s Aladdin – A Musical Spectacular!

Disney’s Aladdin – A Musical Spectacular 

This is a Broadway-style musical based on the classic animated Disney film, Aladdin and I loved it!! The genie was so funny. You definitely should watch this when you’re in Disney California Adventure. The musical is for 40 minutes and performed in the Hyperion Theater at Hollywood Land.

After the musical, we stayed for a while at Monsters University. 

We went back to Cars Land and had some ice cream from the Cozy Cone Motel while waiting for the Residents of Radiator Springs. This is a very embarrassing fact but I have NOT watched any Cars movie so I was really surprised when Blake started naming the characters. She knows them!! I’m so proud. 

We had dinner at Flo’s V8 Cafe. Of course, we ordered barbecued pork and the whole shebang. We were at the patio so we had a good view of the Radiator Springs Racers cars. 

For the finale, we got our fast pass for World of Color. When we got to the viewing area, people were already waiting. We chose a spot and waited for like half an hour. We didn’t get the best view coz there was a pole right smack in front of me but it was fine. I enjoyed the 22-minute show immensely, Blake, not so much. She was already tired by then. 

A one-of-a-kind nighttime extravaganza, World of Color features nearly 1,200 fountains—shooting water up to 200 feet in the air—to create a 19,000 square-foot projection “screen.” The soaring music that accompanies the images is equally momentous, as are the stunning fire, fountain, fog and laser effects.

The music was playing in my head for days. It was indeed spectacular.

I wish we could have done more or planned our day more carefully rather than just going with the flow. A day is not enough, especially for kids (at heart) like me. 🙂