California, Part 6

This is the last segment, seriously!

Tuesday, September 22nd

This was our last full day in California, and all we had planned is to go back to Disneyland. We got up early and drove back to Anaheim.

Parking at Disneyland is much different than at WDW, and by different, we mean worse. It took over 30 minutes for us to park, and it was probably a good hour before we were actually inside Disneyland.

Our first attraction of the day was Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride, one of our reasons for wanting to go to Disneyland in the first place!

It definitely is a classic, and it’s too bad they no longer have it at WDW. After Mr. Toad, we went on the Pinocchio ride and then went over to Adventureland for the Enchanted Tiki Room. From there, we headed to New Orleans Square for an awesome lunch at the Blue Bayou. Blue Bayou is this iconic restaurant inside of Pirates of the Caribbean. You sit at candlelit tables in the dark, with boats from the ride going past you through the swamp on one side, and a giant manor sits across the room. There are lanterns strung above your heads...you're inside, but feel like you're outside at night. It is a great atmosphere.

After lunch, we eventually got dessert at the Golden Horseshoe, and watched the show while we waited in the very long line.

Then we went over to Critter Country to ride Splash Mountain. And at Disneyland, it definitely lives up to its name! We were totally drenched, and weren’t very happy about it. After that, we rode the train over to Main Street and after looking in a few stores, parked ourselves in the sun to dry off. We got some delicious iced mochas from the bakery and then went over to Tomorrowland. We rode the Matterhorn again, and went on the Mad Tea Party, and then It’s a Small World.

Next, it was time for an undersea voyage with Nemo. It’s a cool attraction that replaced 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Our last ride of the night was Thunder Mountain. The line queue is all outside, making it a bit different from WDW.

The park was closing when we got off the ride, so we headed down Main Street and left Disneyland, but not without stopping at a few stores in Downtown Disney. Finally we got back to our car, and found a restaurant (Mimi’s Cafe) on Harbor Blvd. It was exactly what we needed, as we were ridiculously thirsty. After dinner we went back to our hotel and began packing. Our time in California was almost over!

Wednesday, September 23rd

We got up somewhat early and finished shoving everything into suitcases. We ended up with quite a bit of extra stuff, and I realized we would need to check an extra bag, boo!! Eventually we got it all situated and checked out of the Hyatt. I was determined to find a beach and stand in the Pacific Ocean before we left, so we headed west. We got a little lost on a small island that appears to be inhabited by millionaires. Eventually we found a beach/state park, but they wanted $15 for parking! Nevermind! So we drove south on PCH and finally found a little beach (in Laguna Beach) that had meters to park at. It was exactly what I wanted, with cliffs and rocks and whatnot. The opposite of a Florida beach! We walked down the stairs and made it onto the beach. It was very foggy, which I think made it even better!

We looked around for a bit, and I stood in the ocean - very cold!

The waves can get very big and their size changes rapidly. You can think you're standing in a safe spot, and then all of a sudden a wave is coming at you!

I was so happy we got to stop at a beach before our flight, but after 30 minutes or so, it was time for us to leave. We programmed the GPS and headed towards Ontario. We drove through Laguna Beach, which quickly turns from beautiful beach to arid desert! The drive to ONT took about an hour, and I was kind of surprised to see that it was kind of in the middle of nowhere, out in the desert! It was very hot, and we were very close to the mountains. We dropped off our Altima (easier than I thought it would be!) and boarded a shuttle that took us to the terminal. Ontario International Airport is TINY. We checked our bags on the first floor, and then the security checkpoint started at the bottom of the escalator. There's not much more to the airport than that, and I saw no shops or restaurants before we got through security. After we were securly in the terminal, we grabbed lunch at Friday's and then waited for our plane. It showed up a few minutes behind schedule, and we took off a few minutes late. It was an uneventful flight, minus the last few minutes where they asked if there was a nurse or doctor on board. Luckily, another woman volunteered her services before I had to. She ended up kneeling in the aisle during our landing, which really would have scared me. The person needing medical attention was taken off the plane in a wheelchair before anyone else was allowed to get off, which delayed us a few more minutes. We only had a 50 minute layover in Dallas, which made us a little nervous. By the time we got off the plane, our next flight was scheduled to leave in less than 30 minutes. Luckily we only had to walk a few minutes to get to our gate, so we had time to use the bathroom, but that's it. We quickly got in line and got on the plane - this one had wifi! It was a little bumpy at first, but it went quickly, and we landed in Tampa just after midnight. We were exhausted and glad to be home!