Chapter 1
As If We Never Said Goodbye

We checked in at the hotel and got our room on the 5th floor. On our way through the corridors, I loved looking down at the 3rd floor and seeing this Mickey below us.

Our actual room was pretty standard (though actually quite spacious). We began to unpack a little since we’d be here for several nights.

Of course, we weren’t content staying at the hotel for long. It felt like it had been forever since we’d set foot in the parks (even if it had just been two months), so we made our way across Harbor and into the esplanade as quickly as possible.

Entering the park, Disneyland itself still felt like home, and every part of our routine was still second nature.

It literally only took moments to see our first character of the trip.

Our first stop had to be Guest Relations to renew my DAS card, so we veered left and went through the arch.

Card in hand, we started walking down the middle of Main Street, U.S.A. Always a sight for sore eyes.

The longer it’s been between visits, the more I feel like I appreciate the architecture and theming, so I always start off trips a little camera happy.

Tracy was on a mission this afternoon, and so our first real stop was the Fortuosity Shop, where we bought her first Alex and Ani bracelet.

We were also ready for a snack already (obviously), so we grabbed a Mickey Pretzel with Cheese at the Refreshment Corner.

No better way to start a Disney trip than by biting into a delicious snack shaped like Mickey Mouse himself.

We sat by Jolly Holiday to eat and enjoyed looking up at the Matterhorn.

If you remember our tradition from way back when, it’s important for us to start every new Disney trip with a ride aboard Pirates of the Caribbean. We’d gotten a time for the attraction, and it was now time to head over there. We decided to go through Adventureland today.

Though the park really didn’t feel crowded as we’d made our way through thus far, New Orleans Square was certainly hopping.

As per our tradition, here’s a photo of us getting ready to set sail.

As always, this attraction is just spectacular. No better way to welcome you into Disneyland than the sights, sounds, and (yes!) smells of Pirates.

This was our first time seeing the fully redone New Orleans Square—it was still a giant construction zone when we left in June—so we spent the first several minutes after the ride just wandering around.

Disney purists online are prone to be more than a little overdramatic when analyzing any changes to the park, so I’d read plenty of complaints that Disney had RUINED one of the best lands in Disneyland with the way they updated it. Seeing it in person, I’ll say that it did look a little different, but the changes were nowhere near as dire as they had been made out to be.

Obviously, the biggest change was the expansion of Club 33. Though the public lost the Court of Angels, we knew it must still be there behind the new doors they’d installed, so I stuck the camera lens in between and took a picture. Luckily, it looks almost the same as it always did.

Even if we may never be allowed in there again, it’s nice to know that the Court is still a part of Disneyland—and still quite beautiful!

Speaking of the doors, here’s what that spot looks like to us lowly commoners who aren’t able to score reservations to Anaheim’s most exclusive eatery. (Also note the giant window up above that looks into Club 33 itself).

On the whole, I wouldn’t say I’m totally unhappy with the refurb of New Orleans Square by any means. A lot of the building exteriors are looking great. I guess the annoying thing, though, is that it was done almost solely so that they could shake more money out of the people who can afford Club 33 memberships. As I’ll never be in that group, it’s hard for me to see the whole redo as totally justified… I don’t know. I guess I’ll just say that I’m not the right type of guest to pass judgment, and I’ll move on.

Heading back to the Haunted Mansion next, we took pictures with/of all the new merchandise that they’ve recently gotten in for the 45th anniversary.

We would totally get these guys if they weren’t SO expensive.

Our main goal over in the region of the Mansion was actually to hit up the Guest Relations cart there so we could get a time for Alice in Wonderland. We chose not to ride anything over here just yet, and started wandering back toward Frontierland instead.

The setup for the Legends of Frontierland game took up quite a bit of room, but most people had already quit playing for the day by this time.

I had Tracy stop to take a picture in front of her favorite attraction.

Continuing into Fantasyland, we were looking for something quick to ride because we only had about 10 minutes until our 6:30 dinner reservation. The King Arthur Carrousel ended up being a great option because it so rarely has any line.

Tracy rushed around and actually got Jingles!!

I took the horse next to hers.

These three jewels on Jingles almost/sort of form a Hidden Mickey.

After our ride around the kingdom sloooooowly came to an end, it was really time for us to start heading toward dinner. So we made our way under the castle en route to the front of the park.