Write My Life

“This is so cool!” Jackie exclaimed. “We get to ride more than once!”

With the three-day park hopper pass we were able to visit Disneyland, California Adventure and still be able to repeat our favorite rides. On previous visits, we experienced less time at the parks so we had to cram it all into a day or two. This time, we had the luxury of a third day. With our third day we were able to see more shows, duplicate rides and relax a bit more on the third day.

Case in point: We rode the Jungle Cruise 4 times…over and over again.

“And now, we’re approaching beautiful Schweitzer Falls, named after the famous African explorer, Dr. Albert Falls.”

“And now, we’re approaching beautiful Schweitzer Falls, named after the famous African explorer, Dr. Albert Falls.”

“And now, we’re approaching beautiful Schweitzer Falls, named after the famous African explorer, Dr. Albert Falls.”

“And now, we’re approaching beautiful Schweitzer Falls, named after the famous African explorer, Dr. Albert Falls.”

Our Disney plan consisted of getting up early for early park entry hours, leav ing the park for lunch, spending the rest of the afternoon at the hotel, then heading back in the late afternoon and staying as late as possible. Monday was the longest day, getting there at 8 a.m. and leaving at 11:45 p.m.

On Tuesday we were much more tired. We left the park after the 8:45 p.m. electric light parade. On Wednesday, we didn’t want to leave since it was our last night, but long lines scared us away at 10:15 p.m. The next morning, the girls didn’t get out of bed until after 8:00 a.m., much later than normal for them.

We never could have stayed up late if it weren’t for the afternoon returns to the hotel. Mike and I were able to nap a little but the girls did not. They read books or played. The girls and Mike also used the cold, cold pool.

We attended several special Disney events including two events new for the girls. It was the first time they had seen the Electric Light Parade. We camped out along the parade route an hour before the parade. The girls were dubious about the parade but really did enjoy it.

The other new event was the Aladdin play in California Adventure. Again, we waited another hour in line for the show. It was totally worth it, though. While seeing the stage sets were cool enough, the production was well done in many ways. The actor playing the genie did a great job with his jokes and manners.

The girls developed definite ride preferences at Disneyland this year.

• Jungle Cruise. Throughout the 3 Disney days, the girls were reciting various lines from the Jungle Cruise. We rode the Jungle Cruise four times and got four different drivers. Everyone enjoyed different pieces of each drivers monologue so we kept repeating our favorites lines to each other.

• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The girls didn’t remember this one much so it had a definite “new” feel that created smiles on the faces of the girls. We rode this roller coaster three times.

• Soarin’ Over California. Another ride with the “wow” factor that made the girls smile. They had vague memories of this ride but were definitely impressed by it.
• Pirates of the Caribbean. It was obvious that this ride had been upgraded since our last Disneyland visit and they had done a great job with it.
• Matterhorn Bobsleds. We rode this twice, once during the day and once at night. If it weren’t for the excessively long lines, the girls would have ridden this one more.

Others on the top of the list included Indiana Jones, Peter Pan’s Flight, Star Tours, and Buzz Lightyear.

When Mike and I go to an art museum, we look, admire and reflect. When Jackie and Jennifer go to an art museum, they draw. Well, at least that was the most interesting part of the Getty Villa to our two daughters!

While our daughters did enjoy walking around the villa, modeled after a first-century Roman country house, the Villa dei Papiri in Herculaneum, Italy, they were not interested in the art of the Greeks, Romans and Etruscans. Instead they visited the Family Forum, where they used whiteboard markers to decorate a vase.

Instead of watching art, they created art.

The drive down the California coast from Carmel to San Simeon along Big Sur on Highway 1 is really unparallel to any other drive. It has to be one of the most beautiful in the world. The curving road winds its way along the rocky coastal cliffs. The drive is not the fastest route for sure and not for the faint of heart when it comes to heights, but it is breathtaking in beauty. We stopped for a few photographs of the coastline.

We also spotted a very unusual sight as well – take a look at this California Condor. The condor is the largest land bird and the world’s rarest bird of prey with only 273 captive and wild condors. We saw three at one time, one of them swooping down to within 15 feet of us.

As we traveled down the California coast on Highway 1, I had a flash of a memory…a time when someone told me they had found a whole bunch of elephant seals on the beach near San Simeon. I wondered if we could be so lucky as well. As we traveled, I kept a watchful eye. When I saw some objects on the beach and lots of cars pulled over, we stopped. They were there! Hundreds of Elephant seals moms and youngsters hanging out of the beach. A few noisy males approached each other, but for the most part, the elephant seals lay motionless on the beach.

Our spring break vacation began with a visit to one of our favorite spots in California: the Monterey Bay Aquarium. With a new exhibit, Wild About Otters, we were compelled to start at the aquarium. We watched the African and Asian river otters frolic in the water. Then, we visited the Sea otters busy grooming and swimming in their tank.

Blue. Green. Red. Mix them all together and what have you got? You’ve got the most fun part of decorating Easter eggs for Jennifer and Jaclyn. They love the combinations they can create with even the simplest colors. They enjoy partial dippings and swirls. No special tools. No special mixes. Just simple materials and an imagination to boot.

April 6, 2007