TK --
What a cute photo of you and the family! Don't you just love that Petting Zoo? It's so cute!
Did you catch the movie-by-movie review/reply to you that I posted here a few days ago (including the Hallmark movies, the Lifetime movies, ABC Family and the Ion/Up movies)? I posted it after you mentioned liking
Fir Crazy and not being thrilled with
Santa Switch. I mentioned which ones are my favorites of this year, and which ones will be staying on the DVR! Some of the ones that ended up being favorites are movies that I didn't
think I liked at first glance.
Jenny -
Nope. Vons brought the Impostor Slow Churned variety of Peppermint Wonderland (
translation: the inferior variety that is basically almost white with peppermint bits instead of pink with peppermint bits, and it's bland). Sigh. Oh well. At least they tried to get it right. At least they were on the right track with the Peppermint Wonderland name, and didn't grab me a carton of Egg Nog ice cream or Superbowl ice cream!
I posted the photos below on Christmas day, and was hoping people would try to guess where they were taken, as I am fairly certain that at least a couple of them are in places that may have been overlooked by this year's wave of DLR holiday travelers. Some of them are really obvious, but others not as much so.
I wanted to post more photos in the next day or two but before I do, just in case anyone was guessing at the locations of some of these photo subjects, let me give that info now. This way, if anyone still has yet to leave for their holiday trips -- or may still be at DLR -- and they want to look for any of these things they will know where to find them!
I will list the locations of the photos at the bottom of this post!
Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Let your heart be light
From now on,
our troubles will be out of sight...
From my trip a couple of weeks ago...Can you recognize where all of these holiday sights were located around DLR, or where I was when I took the photos? (Some of them will be obvious! Lol.)
Through the years
We all will be together,
If the Fates allow
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough.
And have yourself a merry little Christmas now.
PHOTO LOCATIONS
Photo #1 - The tree at the Paradise Pier Hotel (which has too much clunky clutter beneath it, compared to previous years).
Photo #2 -- The tree/hearth at the Grand Californian Hotel.
Photo #3 - The (slightly wicked-looking) Snowman loaf of bread situated near the entrance to the bakery tour at Boudin Bakery. You can also see the candy cane loaf of bread. There was also a Christmas tree loaf as well. During Halloween Time they have a pumpkin loaf.
Photo #4 -- This was a window display in Hollywood Land, decorated to look like a retro scene with an old television. The TV featured this snow holiday scene. I think it was on the side of the Off the Page shop, if I recall, but I could be wrong about that.
Photo #5 and Photo #6 -- Flowers anchored to the front of the Candlelight Processional and Ceremony stage. There is a mix of real flowers and artificial flowers. In 2012 these flowers were some of the most vibrant and beautiful I had seen at DLR thus far, but this year the roses and red flowers were a little duller in color and not as vivid. Still, though, it is a striking display and I was not the only person taking many photos of it! (These are gone now, as they can only be viewed during the time the CP is happening.)
Photo #7 -- The best view I have had thus far at the Paradise Pier Hotel. I have had some great views there for the last several years, but this one was, by far, the best. Can you see the Christmas tree on the Pier?
Photo #8 -- The new-for-2013 reindeer at the entrance to the Grand Californian Hotel. There are quite a few of them around the entrance, greeting guests as they drive/walk up. The one that was closest to the guard station took a tumble during some high winds, but the rest of his family remained intact. (These reindeer might be gone from the hotel -- along with other hotel decorations -- as soon as New Year's Day rolls around.)
Photo #9 -- An ornament on one of the many Christmas trees in Club 33. Who knew that Club 33 would be such a hotbed o' Christmas trees, but it is! There were small trees and medium-sized trees all around the restaurant, in the hallways, etc. It was lovely!
Photo #10 and Photo #11 -- The tree in the Adventure Tower of the
Disneyland Hotel. I love the themed details! (This, too, may be gone as soon as New Year's Day hits.)
Photo #12, #13 and #14 -- The gorgeous tree in Tangaroa Terrace at the Disneyland Hotel. The candles smell like a cross between coconut and cocoa butter. I was told that some of the exotic flowers on the tree were real and some were artificial, but I'm not sure which were which!
Photo #15 -- Another themed tree -- this time, in the Frontier Tower at the Disneyland Hotel.
Photo #16 -- Kooky garland at the entrance of D Street in Downtown Disney.
Photo #17 -- The tree by the window of Catal in Downtown Disney. I don't recall seeing a tree at Catal in the past, but I may have missed it. All of the DTD businesses seemed to be really 'in the spirit' this season, which I loved.
Photo #18 & Photo #19 -- One of the many beautiful floral arrangements at the charming Main Street Flower Market. I loved this particular one because it reminded me of a wintry forest.
Photo #20 -- One of the trees inside the Market House/Starbucks. This was the tree closest to the Flower Market.
Photo #21 and Photo #22 -- Thanks to
Jamie's tip, I ventured into Ariel's Grotto to inspect this tree. You don't have to go into the dining room to see it -- it is right near the entrance/front door. I loved it! My only issue with this tree is that it is located against a backdrop of a big window that casts annoying light when trying to take a photo. It was almost impossible for me to get a halfway decent photo of the tree from a distance because of that big window behind it, but I loved that the tree had a full underwater theme. Unlike the tree at the Paradise Pier Hotel, which seems to be relying on its stunning colored lights to give off the underwater vibe, the Ariel's Grotto tree was really committed to the undersea theme, with "schools" of fish swimming together in certain sections, and seahorses grouped together in other areas -- just like you would see in the ocean.
Photo #23 -- A window display at Julius Katz & Sons in California Adventure.
Photo #24 -- One section of the small gingerbread house in White Water Snacks at the Grand Californian Hotel. You have to actually go into WWS and walk towards a back wall to see this house, but because I saw the 2012 version I knew where to find it this year. I loved that Santa's 'sleigh' was made of candy canes! (The WWS house is always a smaller variation of the house in Storytellers Cafe. The designs of each display are never exactly the same, but a lot of the details each year are mirrored in both houses, like the trees made of candy canes, the figures, etc.)
Photo #25 -- This is part of a window display on the side of the Mickey in Paradise gift shop (in the Paradise Pier Hotel) that is closest to the PCH Grill/Surf's Up with Mickey. Even though there is a door there and the people who enter/exit through that door will see this window, I think that a lot of people who enter and exit the PPH another way will miss it completely because it
is literally tucked around a corner, out of sight! I only saw it for the first time in 2010, and I'm not sure if the display had been there during my previous years' PPH stays.
Anyway, I particularly wanted to give the locations of these photos now, before the hotel stuff vanishes, so people have a chance to check out some of these wonderful details over the next few days. I am guessing that any of the above-shown examples of decorations in and around the hotels may be in danger of disappearing immediately after January 1st. I don't think Disney will keep the hotel decor up through January 6th. So you probably don't have much time to catch them.
And the Candlelight flowers are totally gone, of course. But everything else should still be around for at least a few more days, and other things will be around through January 6th.
Honestly, I saw so many wonderful trees and different themed decorations this year, everywhere I went, that it was hard to keep up with! I'm glad I had the number of days I had, or I would have missed a lot...and yet, I think I still missed a lot!
I have always loved the holiday season at DLR, of course (hence, this Superthread!), but I felt like everything was much more Resort-wide and all-encompassing this year, even more so than in the past. It really seemed to me like there were little bits (or big bits) of holiday magic everywhere. Sure, there are a couple of areas that could stand to have more decor (and Fantasyland is an obvious choice, as Jamie has said), but even that area had a few new touches this year in the Fantasy Faire location.
I loved every bit of it! I felt totally immersed in Yuletide splendor. This was truly one of my best DLR trips -- and certainly one of my best holiday trips -- ever, for many reasons!
Why can't Hallmark have an On Demand channel?
I watched "The Christmas Ornament" and "Let it Snow" this afternoon. I really liked "The Christmas Ornament" but I've got to say that "Let it Snow" so far is my favorite of 2013. I was in tears towards the end and I thought the chemistry between the two leads was great. Throw in a horse drawn sleigh and you've got Christmas movie magic!
I feel somehow invested in the outcome in all of our first-time holiday season visitors and I am always very curious to know how things went! Sometimes people don't come back here to tell us what happened!
