a guy, a girl, a jetta, and a baby: Disneyland Adventure

On Thanksgiving day we had the bright idea of going to Disneyland assuming that most Americans would be at home celebrating the holiday with their families. It turns out that most Americans, at least those who live in Southern California, give thanks not by staying home and eating turkey but by going do Disneyland and eating 4 dollar pretzels. Luckily Disneyland, as Jesse would say, has it figured because even though there were a lot of people, we never had to wait longer than half an hour for a ride because they all moved very quickly.
The first ride that we went on was the first one we came to which was called the Jungle Cruise. It was pretty much just a boat ride through a jungle with fake animals moving around in the water and on land. The worst part was the guide lady who obviously was following a script of very bad jokes. As you can tell by this picture, Kyle and Jesse enjoyed themselves. I should make a note right now to say that Jesse is not really a Disneyland fan. He made us aware of this fact while we were at the gates on our way into the park, while we were lined up for every ride, while we were making our way through the crowds of people and then again as we left. The only ride that he did enjoy was the Indiana Jones Adventure because in this ride we were driving through a cave in a jeep which was the closest thing to a 4-wheeler that you could get.

I would have to say that the best part about Disneyland was the amount of effort that seemed to go into making the park look like a city. Unlike Canada's Wonderland where all you see are rides, there were tonnes of little sections with different themes that were all very elaborate. I personally really liked the New Orleans area which is somewhat depicted in this next picture.

Another cool ride was the Haunted Mansion Holiday which happened to be decked out in a Nightmare Before Christmas theme. It wasn't exactly a ride, but more of a tour through a 'haunted' house while sitting in little carts. It wasn't scary but the whole set up was pretty cool.

I would have to say that the best ride that we went on was Splash Mountain. This was the only one that we went on twice. Obviously, as indicated by it's name, it ended in a big drop resulting a big splash. But there was more than that going on. Before the splash, you ride along in your log through a fake mountain with some creepy mechanical animals singing and dancing telling the tale of Braer Rabbit. For me, it was scarier than the haunted house. At the end, as you drop down into the final pool of water, your picture is taken. Now we didn't buy our picture because $12 seemed like a waste, but now I sort of wish I had because the expression on Jesse's face was priceless. So, I took the liberty of reinacting the scene via a picture of the ride that I got off of the internet. Let me fill in the details. Jesse, a person who does not like rides has come to an amusemant park when he would have rather stayed at home. Now he is riding along in a log and about splash into a pool of water. Now normally this event elicits some cries of excitement with arms thrown in the air. This is how Mandy, Kyle and I reacted. (If it helps, look at the picture and imagine I am the 14 year old boy, Mandy is the 9 year old girl and Kyle is the tie-dye loving 50 year old man who is enjoying himself the most). But not Jesse. He just sat there cool as a cucumber expressionless. As I said priceless.

After all the fun we had on Splash Mountain we took a ride on the train that takes you all the way around the park. Even a train ride couldn't get Jesse to smile.

Disneyland was fun although I really like roller coasters and it was a little too kid friendly for my liking. I'm sure bringing kids along would make it a bit more exciting. The next couple of pictures were taken in Toontown. Below, Mandy is sitting on a chair in Minnie Mouse's house.

Jesse loves Toontown.

At least Kyle seemed to be having fun.

Since it was somewhat near Christmas, there were a lot of Christmas themed events and set ups. Santa's village even had reindeer.

And once again, Jesse enjoying himself on Mark Twain's Riverboat.

Walt Disney and Mickey.

Twice a night during the Holiday season Disneyland puts on a Christmas parade. Nothing too spectacular, at least for someone over the age of 8, but my personal favourite was the band of nutcrackers.