A Rare Disney Day

By "rare" I mean that CM wanted to go. He's not as big a Disneyland fan as I am, nor does he abhor the place; let's just call him a Disney Tolerator.

I purchased two discounted 2Fer tickets to Disney a few months ago, waiting for a time when our friend RG would be able to spend a Saturday at one of the parks. Trying to schedule that, though, turned out to be more difficult than I thought, with both RG and myself getting sick or other previously scheduled events taking place. So, after a rough week filled with video and teleconferences for me and multiple drives to Pasadena and Culver City for CM, he suggested throwing caution to the wind and spending today at Disneyland.

Who am I to say "no"?

We returned a short time ago, both a rosy pink thanks to the Sun, legs aching from all the standing walking climbing of stairs, bellies full of Riverboat pork chops with garlic smashed potatoes from Hook's Pointe. We both enjoyed checking out the updates to "it's a small world" as well as to Sleeping Beauty's Castle. And we didn't mind the large number of people (thanks to Spring Break and some cheerleading or band competition). What ticked us off was not one attraction breaking down while we waited in line, but two attractions.

The first was the Monorail which we had planned to ride into Disneyland as the first attraction of the day. One of the new trains pulled into the station, and we were told not to board it because it was being tested for use. No worries; we would simply wait for the next train. Ten minutes later, and the new train hadn't left the station. A cast member announced that the other train hadn't left its station due to technical difficulties. They weren't sure how long it would take to repair so the ride was temporarily closing. Not a problem. We hoofed it along Downtown Disney to the park entrance and were soon enjoying our day.

Then came Space Mountain. Even after waffling about the 60-minute wait, we stood in line, wandering through the labyrinthine queue for the better part of an hour. And then, just within a few feet of the entrance to the building, a ride operator's voice blasts a muffled message that the ride has temporarily stopped. What many others in line didn't quite catch were the words that followed: "For those still in cars, remain seated and a cast member will help you out." My face dropped. Cm asked what was wrong so I told him that if they are walking people off the ride, it's going to be closed for at least an hour. A few guests in the Fast Pass line turned around, following the queue back the way they came. When I saw that, I grabbed CM and excused our way to the nearest chain to climb over and head for the exit. Sure enough, as we made our way out the entrance, a cast member was turning guests away, saying they didn't know for how long the ride would be down and to check back in about an hour.

We grumbled a bit but in the end, managed to snag two Fast Passes for another attraction and enjoyed a quickie lunch in the shade, listening to some ragtime piano.