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[BlackPearl]

Okay, here we go. We, that was me and one of my girlfriends this time.

16.05.
We had to change our usual morning start into an afternoon start, as my friend had to torment her pupils first.
After stowing away all of our luggage in the car (somehow there are more and more suitcases and bags with advancing years    we finally began our journey. It started to rain a little bit when we reached the motorway, but it was an easy tour this time, not much traffic on the road and only two little construction sites. They have installed some automatic machines for the cash-peage now. But I must confess I prefer the ones with people. It's not so easy to slip in the coins into the machine's slot or get the change out. And it doesn't save time. (I tried the payment by card, but it often didn't accept the card or took quite long to complete the transfer, so I got back to the cash payment).
After two short stops to stretch our legs the longed for exit number 14 came into sight.
We had already spoted the Panoramagique-balloon a short time ago rising over the treetops.
Oh, and the rain had stopped!
Only minutes after we left the motorway, a friendly porter opened the turnpikes and we arrived at the Newport Bay Club.
Checking in was easy and fast as it was really quiet at this time.
We carried the suitcases to our room,
 
had a quick look around and made it in the direction of the parks.

We decided to eat at the Earl of Sandwich before entering the park, as we were slightly hungry, and I read so much about the restaurant that I wanted to try it.
I really can recommend it. We had different sandwiches which both were very yummy, and the system with the buzzers is ingenious.  
So refreshed we continued our way through Disney Village towards the Disneyland Park. And there it was the Disneyland hotel with the entrance to the Park. The happy feeling was growing inside me.

A first picture of the hand-with-the-wand-sculpture and the hotel (that's sort of a tradition ;-)
and a little stroll through Fantasia garden and then tickets ready to the turnstiles.  
Our late arrival did have something good, there was nearly noone around the entrance area and we were able to enter the park without any waiting time. And the old magic was back. The smell, the sounds, just everything. We strolled underneath Main Street Station and admired the view from the pavillion towards the castle before continuing our way along Main Street.

After a quick look at the information board our next aim was found quickly.
Big Thunder Mountain: 5 minutes waiting time! We couldn't miss that.  
Fort Comstock bid us welcome to the Wild West. I love this part of the Disneyland Park.
(I never can decide wether Frontierland or Adventureland is my favourite). When we left Fort Comstock the evening sun illuminated the rocks of Big Thunder Mountain, just as if we had ordered it :-) The melody of Bonanza played when we stood in front of Bonanza-Outfitters.

 
In the right mood we arrived at the entrance to BTM. It's ages since we last used the normal entrance and not Fastpass. I like the waiting area here. It's so full of details to look at and in the twinkling of an eye our mine-train entered the station. Whoohoo! Here we go! Down the mines and up the hills! I just didn't remember, that you get that wet from the tiny little waterfall at the end of the first climb. Nevertheless we really had fun. After a last glance at the mountain we conquered the jungle of Adventureland and soon reached the shores of the Caribbean.
 

The pirates awaited us. Here too we had a walk-through, no queues at all.

Yoho, yoho, a pirate's life for me! Only minutes later our boat crossed the Blue Lagoon restaurant and sailed into the Caribbean night.
Perhaps I imagined it, but here and there the scenery was better lit. Only the swinging pirate was tired and the two swordfighters were hid behind a curtain that day (but they returned the next day)
 
When we emerged from the Caribbean sea it started to get darker. Fantasyland was closed already because of Dreams, so we walked back through Adventureland to the Central Plaza.

We found quite a decent place right in the middle of the plaza, even though it were only 30 minutes till Dreams would begin.
The time passed quickly, the real evening star appeared left from the castle in the night sky, when finally Dreams started. It was as wonderful as the first time I saw it. The new scenes, especially the ones from Brave / Merida, were just great.



When Dreams ended, we didn't really want to leave. We sort of drifted out of the park with the last stream of visitors. The good-bye wasn't too hard as we knew we would come back the next morning. We leisurely strolled back to the hotel, through the busy Disney Village, and ended up for a late cocktail at the Fishermen's Wharf.
 
Pretty tired we fell into our beds some time after midnight.


So that's all for the first day - will be continued.

[Rafael]

Such a great start! I can't wait for the next installment, BlackPearl!  

[BlackPearl]

Thanks Rafael,
and here is the day number 2:


17.05.2013
On the next morning we saw dense fog when looking out of our window, but no rain, which was great. Punctually we joined the long queue in front of the two restaurants for breakfast. Well, it ,,only" took 30 minutes until we were seated at a table and could collect our breakfast (the usual 2 kind of cheeses, boiled ham, salami, mortadella, 2 kind of rolls, small croissants, chocolat-croissants, jam, honey, yoghurt, fruits, cereals) As we started it quite relaxed, we had time to observe the hectically activities around us. Children running around, sometimes chased by their parents, some sleepy guys, many princesses (really cute!) or Tinkerbells (even cuter with the little wings), people of every age, many Spanish, some eating their breakfast in five minutes and seconds later the table was layed out again for the next hungry visitors. I saw a French family eat spoonfulls of something orange-coloured and sticky out of a large syringe, which they brought with them (does anybody know, what that could have been? Novel food? :-s )
We finished our breakfast with a last hot coffee and walked around the lake towards the Disneyland Park.
 

It was a little busier than yesterday, but still okay. We explored the Main Street and had a go on Buzz. Thanks to a little breakdown I managed to get the highscore to level 4 (I know that's not too much but more than I normally get  
For lunch we had a table booked at the Blue Lagoon. (We eat there more or less every time we visit Disneyland). The food was ready very fast, in fact it had taken us longer to decide what to eat, and it was really tasty.
 

After lunch we entered Pirates of the Caribbean. Again no long queues, I think it was  about ten minutes later, when we passed the place we had just eaten at. A girl waved us goodbye and we waved back before the darkness of the Caribbean night once again swallowed us. Good to see that the two swordsmen were back in action this time.
After Pirates we left Adventureland and went to Fantasyland and Peter Pan. Here, too, the waiting time wasn't very long with only 20 minutes. And queueing in the pleasant sunshine was quite nice (wouldn't like that in the hot summer, though   ) Right next to us a little boy was sound asleep on his Daddy's arm; looked soooo cute. I would have liked it too, to have a nap on someone's arm, but my friend said no, I should find a boyfriend for that. Oh well, where she's right, she's right     Will keep my eyes open for one.
So up to Neverland we flew over the nighttime London. I really wish that ride would be longer.
We then went just around the corner to Meet Mickey! Finally! I hadn't visited that place yet and was impressed. The interior looks so great and I like the old cartoons they show there. Many of them I hadn't seen before. The time passed quickly and after a short while we stood in front of Mickey's backstage door.
 
Meeting the famous Mouse really was fun and he took some time even with two adult girls like us. The photographer was great too and even took some pics with my camera. I just forgot to take one of the room, which is designed fantastically! Well, maybe next time.
We had planned to have a short coffee/tea-break at Toad Hall, but it was closed, so we changed that into the Cable Car Bake Shop in Main Street. It's a beautiful little shop and the coffee and cookies are great.
   

Refreshed we took the Molly Brown for a tour on the Rivers of the Far West. The Mark Twain is still under refurbishment. On the water swam wild ducks with their little ducklings and there was a heron, too. The Molly Brown glided peacefully through the water, which sparkled in the sunlight. Even Phantom Manor didn't looked as spooky as usual. And Phantom Manor was our next aim. We leisurely strolled towards the house, taking time to admire the little park. I can't remember when we last did that.

 
We arrived at the front door of the mansion and could walk right in. Seconds later the door closed and we were ushered into the elevator-room. And down it did go to the doom buggies and the journey to the dead and undead. After escaping the land of the doomed,  we visited Boothill, the little graveyard. The poor soul in the big black sarcophagus/tombstone still knocks to get out. I didn't remember the brassplate at the food of Mr. and Mrs. Ravenswood's grave: ,,Quarreled and fought as man and wife, now silent together beyond this life." And I almost forgot the memorial for the mineworkers, facing BTM.

When we had paid our respect to the dead and the ghosts, we left Phantom Manor (quick look over the shoulder, no ghost or ghoul following, sigh of relief)
We did a little shopping in the Liberty arcade making our way to the Storybook Store, which now is more a Duffy store (though I quite like the bear). The shop's decoration above is often overlooked, I hope they keep it. Just as we left the shop the parade was about to reach the Town Square. We remained in the second row and had a good view on the parade. We hadn't planned to watch it, but as the oppertunity was offered we didn't say no. I'm still fascinated by the three fairy godmothers and the other enchantresses that go on that segway-things. Looks great. After the parade was over we left the park and had a snack at the Earl of Sandwich for diner.



Night time at the lake.

We stored our shopping bags in our hotelroom and found a free table at the cocktail-bar.
We had a little card-playing and some cocktails.
Guess which one I chose


Funnily the Jack Sparrow cocktail is non-alcoholic. That doesn't sound right, does it? Jack Sparrow and no rum?? They could have done a normal Jack Sparrow cocktail and a Virgin Jack Sparrow ....okay, that sounds as silly as the non-alcoholic version Well, I can recommend the Black Pearl, tastes good! (Jack Sparrow tastes good, too, by the way)

[TigerLily]

Loving your trip report black pearl! Beautiful pictures too

[Rafael]

Again another great installment, BlackPearl!

[never2old]

I'm really enjoying your trip report! Looking forward to some more

[ed-uk]

Enjoying the pictures of Cable Car Bake Shop and the Blue Lagoon, two of my favourite places.

[ilovedisneylandparis]

Really enjoying the report so far! Your descriptions of the rides are lovely, you're a great writer :')

[BlackPearl]

Thank you to all of you!
I will try to continue soon, but I'll be off to the Northsea coast for a week and I don't know if WLAN will work.


Here are some more pictures for you, ed-uk:

[ed-uk]

Thank you. We always go into The Cable Car Bake Shop. And the Blue Lagoon is my favourite Disney restaurant, I love the theme and atmosphere. The last time we went in I could have done with a torch to read the menu the lighting was so low, but it only added to the atmosphere.

[Ravenseye]

Your pictures are beautiful!
Thanks for sharing  

[BlackPearl]

So, I'm back from the coast and here is the promised continuation:

18.05.2013
We had a late start this morning. Originally we had breakfast-time for 08.00 o'clock, but we both were pretty tired and just gave it a try and arrived for breakfast at 9.30 something. It was no problem at all, as we were only two persons and it was really quiet at that time. After some coffee we were awake and ready to go.
We took the shuttle-bus to the park (pretty crowded) and had to cross the security checks (I don't feel any safer with them, then again I don't feel very unsafe in Disneyland anyway). Well there wasn't a long queue and at the entrance itself there wasn't any queue at all. As we hadn't done it in years we entered the Main Street station to do a full tour around the park with the train. Once again I admired the wonderful design and glass windows at the station.
       

We only had to let pass two trains when we were able to get on the next one. It's much better now that they direct you to a free seat than the rush on in earlier years. And they have a (for me) new grate door that's closed when the train is ready to leave. In our compartment there were two ladies from Belgium with their two daugthers or nieces. We had a little chat, as I overheard their conversation with the castmember on board about calm rides and suggested that they should try ,,It's a small world" and ,,Le Pays des Contes de Fees" for a start. And while in the boats of Le Pays they could have a look at Casey junior, which I think is a fast ride but not so wild as such for a first ,,rollercoaster".
While they left the train at the Fantasyland station, we continued our tour until we reached the Main Street station again.
As my friend is a great fan of Duffy the bear, we headed for the Meet and Greet and she nearly shrieked with joy, when the CM told us that Duffy would be out any minute (keep in mind we are both adults  . And Duffy was so cute. There was a little girl with her Duffybear and he played with it.

As there was no long queue we too had a photo with him. Guess that was something unusual for him two adults with no kids hugging a big Teddybear. Ah well, Disney brings out the child in everone I guess
We did a little Photo-shopping (means: look aroud the shops and taking pictures)

   

When I took a picture of the transportation-rails (or whatever you call it) on the ceiling of the Emporium one of the CMs looked upwards perlexed at what there was to take a picture of. I remembered that I always wanted to see Dapper Dan's. It was closed but you can have a look inside from the Emporium. There's only a swing door, that devides it from the shop. Dapper Dan's is a beautifully designed old barbershop.
   

We then checked on BTM, but it had a waiting time of 75 minutes and the fastpass would have been for a very late time that day already. I was so glad that we did BTM on the very first day! When we continued our way to Adventurland my friend spied one of the African drumers and we just followed him to the Hakuna Matata, where he and two others began to place their drums. Yes! I never heard them and we just sat down on one of the benches and only had to wait for them to start.

And they did a great show. Just as a warning: if you don't want to play drums or dance in front of many many spectators, DON'T stand in the first row. They chose some guests who had to perform with them at the drums or do some sort of dance with one of them. But really a great show. I don't know, whether they perform every day, or only when there are many visitors.
As we were around we had a little snack at the Hakuna Matata (I love the Hakuna fries and the mini-kebab) and then explored ,,La passage enchante d'Aladdin".

       

After that it was time for the suspension bridge. It took a minute until I remembered the way. When we finally found it and crossed it, the sky began to turn dark grey. As soon as the rain started, we decided to enter the caves. First Ben Gun's where we found the treasure and the ,,throne" (and all that without a treasure map or GPS!).

And I even remembered the way to the storeroom of the Robinson's treehouse. Looks like no looters found it yet, everything was in place.
As it was really pouring with rain by now and we had a table booked in the hotel, we returned to the Newport Bayclub and relaxed a bit in our room. At eight o'clock it was quite busy in the restaurant, but as we only were two persons we got a table in a short time. This evening we tried the buffet at the Cape Cod, which was okay, just a bit crowded.
Another late night visit in the bar ended our day.

[gemma2806]

Love the trip report Black Pearl, can't wait for the next instalment and your pictures are beautiful. I can't wait to go back now!

[tubbsy]

Loving your report. And great photos

[BlackPearl]

Thanks, gemma2806 and tubbsy, and here comes day number 4:

19.05.
The weather wasn't getting much better that day. We originally had planned to do a day in Paris, but with the rain and all we visited the Studios instead and did all the shows we love (Animagique, Cinemagique, Art of Animation).


 
In the time in which it didn't rain, we rode on the ,,Flying Carpets over Agrabah" (just a little short, but still fun). We even gave Slinkydog a chance. Crush's was beyond good and evil, never saw the waiting time under 1 hour. And as I won't do it again, my friend would have had to queue alone, which she didn't felt to.
 

While another shower of rain came down we played a bit with the "faces" at Art of Animation:
   


For lunch we headed to Café des Cascadeurs. It's the first time, we ate there and it's great. In the trailer there even is an old jukebox at the entrance. We both had the hotdog with cheese and fries, yummy.

 


When we left and reached the Art of Animation building, we spied Arielle, who was lovely with the kids and even saw Cruella and Gaston flouncing by.


Just some random pictures of the studios:
   
   
I love this scene from Fantasia 2000 with the flamingos.

When the rain started again, we started to explore the shop inside Studio 1.  
I found this T-shirt ( I do have the figurine of it already with the Star Tours logo)

and the back:

 :lol:

On our way back to the hotel, we strolled through the shops in Disney Village and did a little more shopping.
This evening we dined in the Yacht Club. I can highly recommend it. The food was really delicious. I had a potato soup as starter, veal medaillon with risotto as main course and a chocolate macaron as dessert.
We had a nice view over the lake and dropped the plan to watch Dreams again this night. It was raining cats and dogs by that time. So we made ourselfs comfortable on the armchairs at the Fisherman's Wharf played some card plays and just relaxed. After all we had to pack either that evening or the next morning. Well we started that evening and completed the next morning in the end.