On Sunday, as Fareed and I were lamenting over his departure from L.A., it somehow came up that we should’ve taken a little field trip to Disney. Then we realized, “We could still take one…”
He extended his trip for two days, so we could go! Why not, right? (I had a meeting I couldn’t get out of at work on Monday, so we had to make it Tuesday. Wah wah, grown-up problems.)
On Monday, I went into my boss’ office, and asked if I could have the next day off to go to Disneyland. He replied, “Of course!” (Okay, so I don’t have that many grown-up problems.)
Off Fareed and I went, first thing Tuesday morning. We got there right when the park opened, and leapt in. “Hit the big rides first. Then, we’ll work our way around the various lands, catching anything we missed.” That was our strategy, and it worked well. There was hardly a line for any of the mountains (Space, Splash, Big Thunder). I rode the Matterhorn for the first time (as did he, since it was his first time there!).
Did you know that people climb up that mountain in the middle of the day? We looked up later, and there were these climbers scaling the Matterhorn! (I really want to climb it. That’s my favorite adventure stuff to do – stuff that’s in fake nature.)
I also finally got to go on the Finding Nemo submarine. Getting to Disney first thing on a Tuesday morning in September (after most kids have gone back to school) is the way to do Disney. Usually the wait for the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage is hours – with an s (as in multiple hours) long. Not today!
Speaking of fake nature stuff I’d love to do, it would be incredibly cool to scuba through those waters… if I knew how to swim.
While on Splash Mountain, these two middle schoolers were in front of us. About 1/3 of the way through the ride, one of them turned around and said, “You’re fun. What do you think we should do for the picture?”
We posed with arms out left for one person, arms out right for the next, alternating all the way to the back. Everyone committed full out. There was extension in those arms and excitement in those faces. (Sorry I didn’t get a picture for you. Just know it was awesome.)
I needed a sugar rush as the day went on. (We left my apartment before 7am, by golly!) I opted for some cotton candy. It was insanely delicious. Seriously. I didn’t even know if I really liked cotton candy. I never remembered it tasting all that special before, and it had been a long time since I’d had it. But after tasting it, I was pretty sure I could’ve eaten a whole vat full of it. (Though I just ate the one cone of it… which was still probably enough sugar for a week.)
Disneyland was magical with Fareed. He has such enthusiasm, imagination, and wide-eyed wonder. I love being around him, always, but Disney is truly the perfect place to spend a day with him. We could not believe how fast the day slipped away from us! Leaving was a bummer, but alas, we couldn’t stay forever. Sigh.
We both fell asleep on the bus ride home like the somewhat grown-up 5-year-olds that we are. Disney is tiring!