D-E-F-G-H-I-aye-aye

Our last visit to Disneyland was on April 20, and it was a great one! We conquered our last D, finished the F's, G's, and H's, (E's were already done), and started on the I's. It's far too much to put into one post, so I'll spread it out over a few. Then, we went again on May 13 and finished the I's, J's, K's, and L's. Buckle in, folks, we've got lots to do!

D is for Duffy the Disney Bear. We had tried to see him a few times back when we were actually on the D's, but he's an elusive critter. We finally caught up to him and were honored to have our picture taken in his presence. So - who is Duffy the Bear? I don't know! But he's big and cute and has his own picture taking "throne" in California Adventure's Paradise Pier area.

Notice in the picture that we are a bit WET! We saw Duffy after riding Grizzly River Run. That's the high-adventure water flume ride in California Adventure. It's your typical water ride with lots of twists and turns and jostling about in the large round boat. It's not the big final drop that gets you wet though, it's the numerous shorter drops on the way there. And of course, like usual, I attract the most water and ended up virtually soaked from head to toe!

But let's back up in the alphabet. With Duffy, we finished the D's. We had already finished the E's. There was one "F" to finish, and that was the Fantasmic show they plays only at night. Fantasmic is an extremely popular outdoor show. People start "camping out" hours ahead of time to be able to see it. Walt and I aren't very patient when it comes to waiting for shows, so we paid for reserved seating. It was expensive, and I don't know that it was worth the money, but it was truly a worthwhile experience. Instead of sitting on the ground, we were provided with folding chairs in a roped off/reserved area with premium viewing. We had "servers" who offered us complimentary (rather, already paid for) coffee, tea, water, or hot chocolate. Then, each guest received a wonderful snack and dessert tray. It included fresh fruit, cheese and crackers, and a marvelous variety of desserts beautifully presented.

The show itself was great. The "stage" for much of the show was a wall of water. The wall of water became a screen for projected images. But there was so much more. As we looked across the water to the island in the center of the lake, we were entertained by Mickey Mouse himself and many others. The show also included boats traversing across the lake with everyone from pirate scalliwags to princesses and virtually every Disney character there is. An entertainment delight!

Coming next... Gadget's Go Coaster, Golden Zephyr, Goofy's Sky School, and more!