A Girl Power Solo Disneyland Adventure! COMPLETED 5/8

[dolewhipdreams]

Hello everyone and welcome back to my own little corner of the Internet! I’m Ann and I’m back to take you on another heart-pounding, show-stopping adventure in the written form. If you’ve come along on these adventures with me before, you know what to expect- many pointless details and side stories, an unhealthy amount of snacks, (plenty of background commentary in parentheses), and way too many pictures.

And if you’re joining me for the first time, please don’t be scared away.

I’m really cool, I promise.

I promise.

But let me back up a sec and introduce myself. I’m a Disney-loving engineer from the Midwest. If I’m not at a Disney park, I’m planning my next trip to one. I love cats, reading, and Coke Zero. My favorite Disney character is Merida and I have a full blown crush on Kristoff (sorry Anna).

​

Normally I’m joined on these Disney shindigs by my truest friend and favorite adventure buddy, my DH Jon, but this here is a solo TR. Although he was invited, he opted to stay home since we had already been to DL once that year and it “seemed excessive.” (He’s really cool too, I promise)

​

So why solo? Well let me elucidate ya….

Like I said, I’m an engineer. My company reached out to me late in the summer and asked if I’d be willing to attend the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) national conference to help recruit at the career fair. I love to travel and I’m a SWE member but have never had a chance to attend the conference before so I said heck yes before even looking at where it was (I’m a sucker for a free trip anywhere)

After I agreed I hopped onto the website to see where the conference was being held and WOULDN’T YOU KNOW it was at the Anaheim Convention Center.

My jaw hit the floor, my heart skipped some beats, the whole caboodle. I was good and psyched up. Not only was I going to get a free trip to Anaheim, but the dates lined up so that I could stay the rest of the weekend and spend all my free time at DISNEYLAND!

So what can you expect from this TR? Opening weekend of the holiday season at Disneyland, all of the Star Wars, and a heck of a lot of girl power. If that sounds like your kinda shindig, then welcome aboard. It’s going to be another wild ride.

​

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Table of Contents
1. "I'm just dead inside"
2. “You always take the longest possible path.” “Because I like to enjoy myself at Star Wars.”
3. “Glad you got to see that, we shared a moment”
4. So, so much rum
5. “I think there’s some kind of play on the water”
6. Neon is obnoxious
7. "Oh look, a chicken nugget"
8. Some good ole fashioned Christmas cheer
9. "Hey baguettes!" "You mean beignets?"

 

[dolewhipdreams]

“I’m just dead inside”

This will be a super short travel day update, since there wasn’t a whole lot to it. The conference was Thursday and Friday, and my coworkers planned on meeting late Wednesday afternoon to go over the plan and set up if needed. Since it usually takes a while to get to LA from my hometown I would need a whole day to travel. So I figured if I would have to take that day off anyway, I might as well fly in the night before and get in some extra Disney time on Wednesday!



My original flight to LAX was direct, but SW moved the time so I would have arrived at like 11:45pm and still would have to get to Anaheim. I chose to take an earlier flight with a connection instead. The second leg (out of Albuquerque) had a super empty flight and I had the whole row to myself. So I stretched on out and caught some ZZZs.



I elected not to rent a car, since I was trying to keep costs low for both myself and my company. My trip was right after they made some changes to the way ride share is handled at LAX and I heard nightmare stories of it taking 45+ minutes to catch an Uber. So to get to Anaheim I booked a shared Super Shuttle, which was also the cheapest option.

This was my first experience and it was alright. The definite downside was the extended amount of time that it took. By the time the shuttle came and went around to all the other terminals it needed to make stops at I probably could have gotten that Uber and gone straight to my hotel. As it was, it probably took about 20 minutes just to get out of the airport.

At one point one of the other passengers told the driver he must have a lot of patience to deal with all the crazy LAX traffic. He just laughed and said, “I’m just dead inside.” And I felt that on a spiritual level.



There were a few other stops before mine and by 11:20 I was off the bus and checking into the hotel. My notes say I left the airport at around 10:00 so that wasn’t too bad, but an Uber probably still would have been faster.

My hotel for the trip was the Best Western Stovall’s, which I chose because it had a really good rate and was kind of halfway between the parks and the convention center. My room was super basic but clean and that’s all I needed! I got settled and hit the hay so I could rise and shine and get my Disneyland on.

 

[DLo]

following along. Love your TRs . Looking forward to reading more

 

[alpal22]

Here we go! And, since this is pretty much the first TR that I've found at the start, we quote it peeps!

I’m really cool, I promise.

I promise.

You are cool indeed.

Not only was I going to get a free trip to Anaheim, but the dates lined up so that I could stay the rest of the weekend and spend all my free time at DISNEYLAND!

Quite lucky for you! good job.

If that sounds like your kinda shindig, then welcome aboard. It’s going to be another wild ride.

Alright, let's go!

So I figured if I would have to take that day off anyway, I might as well fly in the night before and get in some extra Disney time on Wednesday!

That is an excellent idea.

At one point one of the other passengers told the driver he must have a lot of patience to deal with all the crazy LAX traffic. He just laughed and said, “I’m just dead inside.” And I felt that on a spiritual level.

Great start! Here comes an epic trip!

 

[ariane37]

Joining in! Since it has been YEARS since I was last in DL I'm looking forward to it

I’m an engineer. My company reached out to me late in the summer and asked if I’d be willing to attend the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) national conference to help recruit at the career fair.

Very cool! DS17 is going to college in August for Engineering. While I don't guess he'd be invited to attend the Society of Women Engineers I would of course have to accompany him on any conference near WDW or DL once he's working lol!

 

[pkondz]

Here! Going back to read now. lol.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

following along. Love your TRs . Looking forward to reading more

Yay glad to see you here!

since this is pretty much the first TR that I've found at the start, we quote it peeps!

Wow, can I just say I am absolutely honored?

You are cool indeed.

Oh shucks

Great start! Here comes an epic trip!

I was cracking up silently to myself in the back of the van when he said that

Joining in! Since it has been YEARS since I was last in DL I'm looking forward to it

Oh yay, welcome aboard!

Very cool! DS17 is going to college in August for Engineering. While I don't guess he'd be invited to attend the Society of Women Engineers I would of course have to accompany him on any conference near WDW or DL once he's working lol!

Neat, what kind of engineering?

Here! Going back to read now. lol.

Woohoo welcome!

 

[missangelalexis]

I'm here!! Can't wait to read about DL

 

[dolewhipdreams]

I'm here!! Can't wait to read about DL

Yay so glad you're reading along!

 

[pkondz]

Hello everyone and welcome back to my own little corner of the Internet!

I thought this area looked like your neck of the woods.

I’m Ann and I’m back to take you on another heart-pounding, show-stopping adventure in the written form.

I’m really cool, I promise.

Promise??

I promise.

Okay

I have a full blown crush on Kristoff (sorry Anna).

Sorry Anna?

Don't you think that should be "Sorry Jon"????

he opted to stay home since we had already been to DL once that year and it “seemed excessive.” (He’s really cool too, I promise)

Is the boy right in the head??

After I agreed I hopped onto the website to see where the conference was being held and WOULDN’T YOU KNOW it was at the Anaheim Convention Center.

Anytime I have any kind of work thing... it's in the middle of nowhere.

The second leg (out of Albuquerque) had a super empty flight and I had the whole row to myself. So I stretched on out and caught some ZZZs.

Niiiice...

The definite downside was the extended amount of time that it took. By the time the shuttle came and went around to all the other terminals it needed to make stops at I probably could have gotten that Uber and gone straight to my hotel.

At one point one of the other passengers told the driver he must have a lot of patience to deal with all the crazy LAX traffic. He just laughed and said, “I’m just dead inside.” And I felt that on a spiritual level.

I totally get that. I've done LA traffic.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

I thought this area looked like your neck of the woods.

What gave it away? The use of Ariel gifs? Bad amateur photographs? References to frozen pineapple-flavored treats??

Sorry Anna?

Don't you think that should be "Sorry Jon"????

He and I have an understanding when it comes to Kristoff.

it's in the middle of nowhere.

Some of my work trips send me there, too

I totally get that. I've done LA traffic.

My small town brain can't fathom how that many cars exist in one place at the same time.

 

[pkondz]

What gave it away? The use of Ariel gifs? Bad amateur photographs? References to frozen pineapple-flavored treats??

I am very much for Ariel gifs




But it was the excellent photography and witty and charming prose that I noticed.

He and I have an understanding when it comes to Kristoff.

Ah. I shan't pry further.
(But I do have cameras set up.)

Some of my work trips send me there, too

My small town brain can't fathom how that many cars exist in one place at the same time.

Did you read my TR for when I rented a bike there?

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Did you read my TR for when I rented a bike there?

I don't think I have, but that sounds absolutely terrifying. Which TR is that?

 

[dolewhipdreams]

“You always take the longest possible path.” “Because I like to enjoy myself at Star Wars.”

Does anybody else feel like time changes are affecting them more with age? It’s never really bothered me until the last year or so and now all of a sudden my body refuses to adjust to new times. On my first morning in Anaheim, my body tried to wake up at 5am (7am at home). Nope. No way. Not necessary.

Thankfully I forced myself back to sleep and got up at my scheduled 7:30 alarm. I took care of some work stuff while getting ready (since technically I wasn’t on vacation), then grabbed some food from the complimentary breakfast to eat on the way to the parks.

[This is the view from the hotel parking lot- you can see DCA!]​

It was an absolutely beautiful morning and I set out on what I thought would be a short walk up Disneyland Drive to the parks. What I didn’t realize was that instead of being able to turn right near the Grand Californian (which is the direction of the parks), you have to go left and go aallll the way around Downtown Disney, then go aaallll the way through DD to get to the park gates.

On a previous trip where I stayed offsite and walked, I went up Harbor and it was a much more direct route.

So I would say the walk took me about 20 minutes of power walking (because anything slower is a waste of time).

[Even though it was a long walk it was a beautiful one]​

But I did eventually make it to Disneyland and stopped first at the lockers outside the park to stow my tripod and jacket. Then it was into the park!

My big priority for the day was to soak up as much Star Wars as possible, but first I had to stop for some "I can't believe I'm at Disneyland!" castle selfies.

​

Spoiler alert- this was probably my favorite day of the whole trip.

I made my way back to SWGE, pausing for a moment to grab a FP for Hyperspace Mtn. My first stop on Batuu was for some photos in front of the Falcon while I was still fresh for the day. The photographer was on it and had so many pose ideas! The sun(s) was being annoying though, right in my eyes. Taking bright suns a little too literally there.

​

The Falcon was calling my name and I went to the single rider line. This was my first time in this SR line and I thought for a minute that I was lost but eventually found the line. I think I waited about 10 minutes and of course got engineer when it was my turn.

​

The pilot was this 7ish year old boy who was absolutely terrible. But the worst part wasn’t that he was crashing us into literally everything, it was that every time he did he would freak the heck out and apologize at the top of his lungs. His mom was sitting next to him and was finally like, DUDE just pretend it’s a video game. It’s fine. I thought the whole thing was more funny than annoying (but it was still a little annoying).

Then I spent a bit just wandering around and taking photos.

​

One of my favorite parts of solo trips is taking as long as I please to get photos of things. My DH is so, so patient, but I can tell that he gets bored when I stop for too long. So it was nice to take things at my own pace without feeling guilty.

I also went to look at the Porgs, which were sold out when we were there in July (I think I forgot to mention that we were at Disneyland on the Backstage Magic ABD in July, which is the main reason my DH didn’t care to come on this trip). I was definitely tempted to buy one but did not.

As I was wandering I heard a couple of people talking and I heard the conversation from the chapter title. I thought it was funny because they were obviously trying to cover up the fact that they were lost, but Batuu is also a place that’s made for exploring and taking the longer path. So it worked out.

At some point I stopped at the PhotoPass spot in front of the TIE Echelon. I'm not sure if it was not or later in the day but I'm going to put the pictures here because I'M IN CHARGE.

[Showing off my amazing Storm Trooper earrings]​

I wanted to see if any characters would come out so I stalled to take a few more photos, but no one came out and my Hyperspace FP was about to run out so I left Batuu and went to Tomorrowland.

Snapped a selfie on the way cuz the sun made my hair look like it was on fire.

​

Phasma was out and about, terrifying children as usual.

​

She and I have that in common.

Hyperspace Mountain was pretty normal. It was funny riding it after experiencing the one at Disneyland Paris, which is much more thrilling and has a launch start. The sound effects fit in a lot better there. At Disneyland it’s just absurdly funny how they have this whole launch countdown sound effect and hyperspeed lighting but you’re going like 0.2 mph up that first incline.

Also I noticed these kennels in the queue for Hyperspace. I assume they're for service animals but I had never noticed them before.

​

Anyway, my next note says ‘having an amazing Star Wars day’ and I think that really perfectly captures my mood. It was such a fun, carefree, do whatever you want kind of day and I was there for it.

Up next, my amazing Star Wars day continues!

 

[alpal22]

What I didn’t realize was that instead of being able to turn right near the Grand Californian (which is the direction of the parks), you have to go left and go aallll the way around Downtown Disney, then go aaallll the way through DD to get to the park gates.

That's quite unfortunate, but that is a well known fact.

My big priority for the day was to soak up as much Star Wars as possible, but first I had to stop for some "I can't believe I'm at Disneyland!" castle selfies.

Cause if there's no pictures, you weren't at Disneyland!

I think I waited about 10 minutes and of course got engineer when it was my turn.

Such serendipity for this trip! And that's a really short wait for such a popular ride.

The pilot was this 7ish year old boy who was absolutely terrible. But the worst part wasn’t that he was crashing us into literally everything, it was that every time he did he would freak the heck out and apologize at the top of his lungs. His mom was sitting next to him and was finally like, DUDE just pretend it’s a video game. It’s fine. I thought the whole thing was more funny than annoying (but it was still a little annoying).

That would probably become more annoying as it goes, but I would be annoyed eventually.

I'm not sure if it was not or later in the day but I'm going to put the pictures here because I'M IN CHARGE.

Your TR, your rules. This makes you in charge of it!

She and I have that in common.

Why would you be scary?

Also I noticed these kennels in the queue for Hyperspace. I assume they're for service animals but I had never noticed them before.

Interesting.

 

[rdkeim]

Following!

 

[missjackiemcg]

Hi, Ann I'm so glad you decided to do a report for your solo trip! I went on the EPIC Dis girls trip last May, and while that wasn't entirely solo, as you can imagine, I did spend some solo time park hopping, and it was so freeing!! I loved not having to answer to anyone or get anyone else on board with my plans. So fun doing just what you want to do when the mood strikes you!

 

[lvcourtneyy]

Joining in!

Although he was invited, he opted to stay home since we had already been to DL once that year and it “seemed excessive.”

Men are weird sometimes.

After I agreed I hopped onto the website to see where the conference was being held and WOULDN’T YOU KNOW it was at the Anaheim Convention Center.

Whoa. That worked out great!

He just laughed and said, “I’m just dead inside.” And I felt that on a spiritual level.

Honestly, same.

Does anybody else feel like time changes are affecting them more with age?

Yes!! What the heck. It never used to bother me- now it takes weeks to adjust.

(because anything slower is a waste of time).

True.

Love this picture- and your shirt!

 

[pkondz]

I don't think I have, but that sounds absolutely terrifying. Which TR is that?

It was in DISmeet Vacation.

And... no. Not terrifying at all... quite the opposite. Here's the excerpt:

I had rented a Harley and was traveling from LA down to San Diego, via the coast highway.
Much more scenic and far less traffic, until...

Eventually, I had to leave the slower,
more sedate and scenic route
and join the freeway.
I entered via the on-ramp and...

There was a mile or so of
stopped cars in front of me.
Five lanes.
Full of cars and trucks.
None of them moving at all.
Might as well turn the ignition
off and relax.
It's gonna be a while.

At least.... that's what would
have happened if I'd been
driving a car.

Let's talk about lane splitting.
According to California Bill AB-51:
For the purposes of this section, “lane splitting” means driving a motorcycle,
as defined in Section 400, that has two wheels in contact with the ground,
between rows of stopped or moving vehicles in the same lane,
including on both divided and undivided streets, roads, or highways.

California is the only State
in which lane splitting...
Well, it's not exactly legal...
but it's not illegal too.
They'd defined it...
just haven't said what to do with it.

So... let's just say that it's
kinda allowed.


Clear as mud?


In any event, it is a common
practice that I saw many
times while I was stuck
in traffic in my rental car.


So...
Five lanes of traffic,
none of it moving.
I gradually, moved myself
in front of and between
cars until I was between
the outer two lanes.
I then passed about a mile of cars.
I passed the bottle neck,
within about five minutes.
(I never did see why four lanes were blocked,
I was too busy watching the cars around me)

In a car, it would've been well over
an hour before I'd gotten through.


So upshot is...
If I'd been in a car, I'd have been "parked" for hours.
But on the bike... I was through the jam in about 5 minutes. Easy peasy.