4 July--What better way to celebrate the 4th of July than to go to Disneyland? I suppose if you do this in the States you can expect ridiculous crowds and such. Fortunately the Japanese do not celebrate American holidays, and since the 4th was on a weekday most folks were at work, meaning that the place was bound to be pretty much empty.
We woke early on the 4th so we could catch the bus to the New Sanno Hotel in Tokyo. The New Sanno is run by the US Navy MWR and is located in a very upscale district in Tokyo (the French embassy is right next door). The price is absolutely affordable--$89 for a King Suite that had, duh, a king size bed and a fold out couch. There are restaurants, an indoor pool, gift shops and (sound the trumpets) a Navy Exchange. That might not sound appealing, but after two years of AAFES a NEX was dreamy.
After a two hour bus ride we arrived, only to discover that we could not check in until 3:00. No worries. We checked our bags with the bell hop, ate lunch, then walked to the subway to catch the train to Disneyland. We only got lost once while walking, but we found our station fairly easily. 45 minutes and one transfer later we arrived at the Magic Kingdom. We could barely keep the kids from sprinting the half mile from the station to the main entrance. Everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) was wearing an expectant smile and had a heightened heart rate. We were met immediately by Mickey, Minnie, Pooh, Goofy, Pluto, Daisy, Belle and more. We could not decide who to take a picture with, but the unruly Japanese crowds helped us to realize that we were not being aggressive enough. Personally I feel aggression is something best left outside of Disneyland, so we settled for one posed shot with Daisy and a passing shot of Belle before we walked through the main gates.
We woke early on the 4th so we could catch the bus to the New Sanno Hotel in Tokyo. The New Sanno is run by the US Navy MWR and is located in a very upscale district in Tokyo (the French embassy is right next door). The price is absolutely affordable--$89 for a King Suite that had, duh, a king size bed and a fold out couch. There are restaurants, an indoor pool, gift shops and (sound the trumpets) a Navy Exchange. That might not sound appealing, but after two years of AAFES a NEX was dreamy.
After a two hour bus ride we arrived, only to discover that we could not check in until 3:00. No worries. We checked our bags with the bell hop, ate lunch, then walked to the subway to catch the train to Disneyland. We only got lost once while walking, but we found our station fairly easily. 45 minutes and one transfer later we arrived at the Magic Kingdom. We could barely keep the kids from sprinting the half mile from the station to the main entrance. Everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) was wearing an expectant smile and had a heightened heart rate. We were met immediately by Mickey, Minnie, Pooh, Goofy, Pluto, Daisy, Belle and more. We could not decide who to take a picture with, but the unruly Japanese crowds helped us to realize that we were not being aggressive enough. Personally I feel aggression is something best left outside of Disneyland, so we settled for one posed shot with Daisy and a passing shot of Belle before we walked through the main gates.
She gets grumpy when I publish pictures of her, but she is too gorgeous to ignore,
what with the "I'm going to Disneyland" smirk.
We're walking, we're walking, we're... Wait, what is that over there?
Kevin had to beat down some unruly locals to get Anna Grace in, but here she is with Daisy Duck.
As close as we could get to Belle.
In Anaheim I think this is called Mainstreet USA. Here it is called World Market,
or some such nonsense.
Anna Grace forcing herself to be happy.
You can take the boy out of Korea, but you can't take Korea out of the boy.
It's a Small World. I love this place.
Owen insisted on carrying the map and keeping track of where we were all day.
Anna Grace was not too excited about the Winnie the Pooh ride, but she
endured. The ride was okay. The best part was when you enter the beehive.
It actually smelled like pollen and honey.
Right where they belong.
Waiting in line for the Roger Rabbit ride.
Probably a pretty accurate predictor of what it will be like when she actually
gets her real driver's license.
This was Owen's favorite ride. I think Anna Grace liked it, too.
Jacob just read The Swiss Family Robinson, so this was kind of cool for him.
The Jungle Cruise. Lots of robotic animals and spraying water. The spraying water was nice,
because it was a warm day. It was also a very windy day. So windy that they had to cancel the
big Jubilee Parade.
By this point in the day (around 1830) we were all getting a little giddy and
punch drunk. Everything seemed fun, and when the attendant at this ride
spotted Anna Grace an extra inch so that she made the legal height for entrance,
I knew we were destined for greatness.
Even a blurry picture couldn't keep from proving that Kevin was beyond excited about
the Star Tours ride.
The folks behind us in line at the Star Tours ride were messing around with their iPhone
lightsabers, so Lorri busted out her iPod lightsaber and gave it to Jacob, who quickly
subdued the rogue Jedi.
Monsters, Inc. flashlight tag.
Magical at any time of day.
The end of a long day. Questions?
Whew. 8 hours at Disneyland. 1:00 - 9:00. Dinner. Rides. Snacks (curry popcorn!). The kids got a little sleepy on the train ride back, but by the time we climbed out of the subway they all had their third or fourth wind and were going strong. No one needed to be carried back to the hotel. What an excellent day.
A few shots of the New Sanno. The building in the background of the bottom picture
is the French embassy.
