Hi, all! Well, once again time has flown by and it's been an embarrassingly long time since I've posted here. It's the usual reasons -- just life in general, work-- being busy but not doing anything that exciting to report.
But a while ago I decided I needed to do something FUN. So, I did a bit of quick poking around online, sent an email to a friend in Southern California, and next thing you know I had a trip to Disneyland planned!
Oh, how I love Disneyland. It started, I'm sure, when I was a small child and we went there on vacation a few times. And since then, it has symbolized for me the place where things feel fun and happy and like life can be magical again. I'd not been for about 12 years, so it was high time I went.
I was especially excited for two reasons. Number one was that I'd get to spend time with a good college friend, Moe. We were neighbors in our college dorm and we've been good friends ever since, although we only see each other in person every few years. She lives near Disneyland and loves Disneyland as much, if not more, than I do. She's worked there over the years in various jobs so she knows all of the short-cuts and insider things, too.
So it was totally fun to spend time with her. Even the time spent in long lines for rides flew by because we just yakked the whole time. We had a lot of catching up to do!
The other part of being there that was so fun was that Disneyland is celebrating its 60th anniversary, and it was all decked out for the occasion. There were blue bunting and sparkly diamond decorations everywhere. I loved seeing how they'd dressed up everything for the event.
So, I had a great time. We rode on a bunch of rides, including some new (to me, anyway) ones at California Adventure that were really fun. The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. The Radiator Springs Racing Cars. And there were so many old favorites, some revamped a bit. Star Tours. "Hyperspace" Mountain. Big Thunder Railroad. Indiana Jones. I even got into It's a Small World again, which had been closed the last two times I'd been there. I still remember the delighted amazement I felt as a small child, riding through that ride with so many delightful details and dolls and decorations to look at.
We ate delicious food -- okay, not the healthiest -- but still, perfect for a few days where I was constantly walking everything off. (20,000 steps each day!) The Mickey waffle was a must-order for the first morning in the park. And it wasn't just cute, it really was the fluffiest, crispiest, most delicious waffle I've had in ages.
And yes, there was another Mickey-shaped treat on another afternoon, the beignets from a cafe in the New Orleans area. I had a lovely break sipping iced tea, enjoying the beignets, and watching people. And then brushing powdered sugar off of my clothes for a while!
In case you're wondering, not all of the food was shaped like mouse ears, and not everything I ate was fried and indulgent. I had a fabulous salad one afternoon, another delicious and relatively healthy dinner of roasted chicken and roasted veggies another night. But really, who goes to a theme park for the healthy food?! And on 2 of the 3 days in the park, I stood in line for the famous Dole Whip -- a soft-serve ice cream made with fresh pineapple juice that was fabulous and fresh and perfect for the hot afternoons.
I did a fair amount of sketching. It was fun to sit and listen and look and sketch, and just soak up the feeling of just being in Disneyland.
And I took a lot of photos, thinking that maybe I'll sketch from them when I need a little mental visit to Disneyland.
So it was a very fun couple of days. The very best part, though, was just having pure fun with a dear friend. There's nothing like it. I'm already dreaming of my next Moe-and-Disneyland trip!
