September Trip Day 4.1

A brand new day means brand new adventures to be had, including the third and final character meal of my stay. With all the fun fun between Ariel's Grotto and Goofy's Kitchen it was bittersweet to make our way to the Park for breakfast with Minnie & Friends. Back in March 2009 Minnie's became my first character meal experience and we had so, so, so, so much fun that we had to add it on the 'menu' again. But let's just say the morning didn't go so smoothly. Andrea had a very hard time getting up in the morning which led to a rather stressful morning between the two of us. Without going into all the sordid details, because I was at my breaking point that morning, I left the hotel all by my lonesome to get in line at the gates for Minnie & Friends for our PS. I prefer the earliest time that we can get so it doesn't take too much time away from enjoying the park, and getting a fix in of having the Park all to myself for just a moment. I wasn't in any mood to compromise that morning, so like I said, I was off on my own and she either got there in time or she didn't. I honestly didn't care, even if it would mean a lonely breakfast and possibly no photos.

Because this particular meal takes place inside Disneyland it has it's own special entrance gate in the morning so those of us with a PS time before the park opens can get inside.
The wait wasn't even that bad. I love chatting with other Disneyland-lovers while waiting to get into the Park. Sometimes you even learn something new that you didn't know or remember something that you always wanted to do, which is never a bad thing when you are always forgetting your previously made mental to-do lists. Having others in line to talk to made up for the fact that I was there by myself. And did I mention how much I like unobstructed views of Disneyland? When they started to let us in through the gates I managed to take some photos on the walk down Main Street to the China Closet where we would line up again at the little red door at the end of the street and wait for the cast member who would let us through the door to walk over to the Plaza Inn and check in for our meal. An empty Main Street is not something you get to see everyday.


After checking in I got my photo taken for the photo op and paid for the meal. The funny thing about my table is that I was seated in the exact same spot as we were back in March, just on the opposite side of the restaurant. Instead of going to the left, I was seated on the right. At least I found it funny. I had enough time to grab myself some food and get a solitary visit from Tigger and Dale and Pooh Bear too before Andrea showed up. I tried my best not to be in a grumpy mood, but sometimes my best just doesn't cut it.
Unfortunately it made for a tense breakfast and as soon as I was done eating I was ready to high-tail it out of there rather than wait for any more characters, which meant that I didn't get the wide variety that I saw my first time. In fact I only got visits from Captain Hook, Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore and Minnie Mouse. It's a far cry from the insane amount of characters that we saw back in March but I couldn't sit there much longer or I think I would have exploded. If I remember correctly Andrea was sill eating when I left, but I do know we spent most of the day doing out own thing with plans to meet back up to save ourselves some seats for Fantasmic! which we weren't going to miss for the world, especially with the debut of the new dragon just a week or so before we arrived. But before I forget, here are the photos:

Now I remember. Since we planned on catching Fantasmic! later that night we were going to need a few extra things from the hotel with us for the night in the Park. Mainly, needed my tripod if I expected to get any photos worth keeping. And since this is me, that would be a definite yes, please! I didn't want to bring bulky items with me the breakfast without anywhere to put it all so when I left the Plaza Inn I made my way back to the hotel and grabbed my tripod along with a change in clothes. The black bermudas were already a little too warm for my taste so I knew I wouldn't last the whole day. When I got back to the Park and stowed my tripod and a sweater for later in a locker I started to make my way towards Fantasyland and got side tracked by a couple of things, one being Mickey Mouse and the other proving to be a fun distraction that Andrea would have killed me over if I hadn't gotten a hold of her. She was a little bummed about my little encounter with Peter Pan the previous day and was determined to see him at some point before we left. Well, I did happen to spot him off to the side of the Castle and had to give her a call.

What ensued was probably the funnest 30 minutes I have ever spent at Disneyland, even if it sounds a little silly to anyone else. We went on a little adventure with Pan and an adorable little girl dressed as Wendy who were trying to set a trap for Chip & Dale. Sitting there and watching the interaction between the two really made you want to be a kid again and get to experience the magic of Disneyland like that, because I sure as heck don't have stories like that to tell when I was her age. I mean, I don't see how it can get much better. I don't think anyone who witnessed it would doubt the Disney Magic. I'll try and give you a run-down of what happened, but it was one of those "you had to be there" moments for me.
only the best acorns for the sticker trap...

too bad the weren't good enough...


step quietly away from the trap and let's catch a chipmunk...

too bad it didn't work. we hid and watched groups of people walk by and not touch the trap. well, darn! A new plan was needed...

brainstorming...

new plan: we have to capture a princess. with a pine cone. and what does a princess like? flowers, jewelry ... and pretty boys...


after failing to capture a princess a new plan was needed...

and we were off to seek the aid of an evil witch...i mean queen!

dear evil queen, please cast a spell on this acorn to make a princess fall asleep so as to help us capture chip & dale...

but we should have known better, time to be off again...

perhaps a wishing well will end our quest...

alas, no such luck. but a new plan has been formed. we shall find alice and have her shrink us to chipmunk size...

someone got a little side tracked looking for new recruits...
Eventually he managed to find Alice and brought her out to say hi to the little Wendy. It was a fun half an hour to spend watching the interaction and going on an adventure to capture a chipmunk or two (even if we were unsuccessful). You really had to have been there. And some other things we learned straight from the mouth of Pan ... He can speak Whale (he must be friends with Dory), spit isn't sticky and he has no boogers, girls aren't that smart, the best way to attract a Princess is with flowers, making traps takes too long and hunting is better, and where is the fun in capturing Hook if you don't release him in the end so you can capture him once again?

Best Disneyland moment by far.