I visited Disneyland and Disney California Adventure on Friday, August 5, and thought I’d share some photos and various observations from my visit.

Star Tours continues to be the hot Fastpass ticket (no real surprise there!). I got a Fastpass ticket at 8:15 a.m. which had a 10:30-11:30 return. At 11:20 when I exited the ride the return time was 11:20 P.M.! Though at least there were still Fastpasses left – but I’m sure they were gone within the next 15 minutes. This time on Star Tours I *finally* saw a character other than Leia – it was Admiral Ackbar. (When the rebel spy turned out to be male and not female I was sure I’d get someone different!) In five different tours I’ve been to all the various destinations now, and the only element I haven’t seen is Yoda. I have some favorites – I like the Hoth scene (though I get a kick out of Threepio’s aggressiveness in the pod race) and the final scene with the Death Star/Rebel Command ship, though I think the motion effects for Naboo are the best – it shakes you around quite a bit.

While I was in the queue I took this video of one of the droids in Droid Customs area – he may look familiar!

Since it was still early after I’d obtained my Star Tours Fastpass the lines were short and I took the opportunity to enjoy some attractions that were walk-ons. I always enjoy seeing Storybook Land, so I took a ride on Casey Jr. Circus Train. There were only three passengers – me and a man and his young grandson. There’s some really nice views from the elevated railroad. By the way, the Matterhorn Bobsleds attraction is still undergoing refurbishment – it’s scheduled to re-open on September 2.

Not quite as interesting as the back side of water – but it’s the back side of Sleeping Beauty Castle.

I’ve seen lots of ducks and even swans enjoying the castle’s moat, but never one of these! I think it’s a cormorant.

The Annual Pass Holder processing center in the Plaza Pavilion is shut down now. Starting this past week, annual passes are sold at the main ticket booths, and new AP holders can either get a PhotoPass photographer to take their photo or they can upload one from home.

Tarzan’s Treehouse was closed, but it’s not on the refurbishment schedule, so I guess Tarzan and Jane just didn’t feel like having visitors. 🙂

There’s a relatively new fruit cart/snack stand next to the Mark Twain’s dock. In addition to healthy snacks like fresh fruit and trail mix, they also sell chimichangas, corn on the cob and turkey legs.

Pirates of the Caribbean will be undergoing a fairly lengthy refurbishment starting on September 7. It’s not scheduled to re-open until close to Thanksgiving. During this time the Blue Bayou restaurant will be closed as well. Oh, and do you remember how the Blue Bayou Kids’ Menus used to double as a cute pirate hat? Now it’s just a boring piece of paper – which gives them the flexibility to change it more often, apparently – though what’s on the new piece of paper is what has been on the hats for quite a long time!

I took quick rides on Haunted Mansion and The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh, which were both walk-ons. I rarely ride Haunted Mansion except when it’s dressed up for the holidays, and it seemed odd to see it in its “normal” configuration. Disneyland hasn’t added any of the modifications to the queue or the hitchhiking ghosts like they have at WDW, though. Big Thunder Mountain had a less than 10 minute line (I love being in the park early in the day!).

On my way out of Disneyland to DCA I wandered into the Emporium. The construction walls are still up inside the store, cutting its available shopping area by at least 1/3. I don’t know what the project is, but it will be nice when it is done.

And meanwhile, over at DCA…

The monorail bridge doesn’t look much like the Golden Gate at all now.

Engine-ear Toys, Bakers Field Bakery, and Brrr-Bank Ice Cream are all closed now, and behind construction walls.

This makes the walkway to Condor Flats quite narrow and congested, especially since it’s the shortest route from the entrance to the World of Color Fastpass distribution area and to Paradise Pier.

Here you can see the sharp corner with the top of the Carthay Circle Theater in the background.

Now that Bakers Field Bakery is closed, it means one less option for those who might want breakfast in the park, so Taste Pilot’s Grill is now serving breakfast from the time the gates open (usually 9:30) until 11:00.

In addition to the pastries that were available at the bakery, they are also serving a selection of breakfast burritos. (People who want a mocha or latte or some other specialty type of coffee are out of luck, though.)

The menu is HERE. I decided to try the Breakfast Burrito, which is filled with scrambled eggs, potatoes, and cheese. It was very good, though the potatoes are seasoned with pepper, and have some bits of red pepper in them. They had fresh salsa available (as well as packets of Tabasco sauce) at the toppings bar. I was disappointed in the salsa – it was fresh, but didn’t really have a lot of flavor. I would’ve preferred the La Victoria salsa packets available at Cocina Cucamonga. The new breakfast menu also offers a breakfast burrito with sausage, and an egg white and spinach burrito.

The name of the ice cream place at Paradise Pier has changed – it used to be Catch a Flave, and now it’s the Paradise Pier Ice Cream Company. The MENU is still the same, though.

In a planter near Silly Symphony Swings I saw these flowers – they reminded me of the fountains in World of Color. Very appropriate.

I knew that they had put a water play area in Paradise Park, but I’d never actually seen any of it in action before. In addition to the central fountain you see here, there are shorter fountains around the perimeter and misters as well. When I walked by this area later the Disney Channel Rocks show was running – but the fountains weren’t. 🙂

After this I went back to Disneyland – but I’ll have more on that in Part 2, as well as some updated construction photos from DCA.

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