Sharing the Disney Magic with Family & Friends-DL Diamond Anniversary-DCA F&W Fest Kiosks & The End!

[afwdwfan]

The cruise plans look great. I hope you can convince Fran to go along with the pirate night costumes.

Looks like a lovely evening at Tortilla Jo's and having drinks. I really regret not eating there when we were out there. It always smelled so good, but it just didn't work out that we were nearby when we were looking for food. Your pictures look delicious!

 

[franandaj]

Love your update! Your pictures are great! That guacamole is incredible and so is the view from your balcony!!! And you guys look great too!

Thanks! Both the guac and the view were things that were awesome about this particular visit!

You have a nice plan for your DCL trip.

Very nice meal at Tortilla Jo's. I have enjoyed eating at Tortilla Jo's that this is DAW favorite restaurant at the DLR since she like Mexican food. I know that she will want to go there again in the near future. The treats always look very nice especially with the Diamond Celebration one's. Your view of DCA is very nice. I can always enjoy getting up every morning and going outside and see DCA.

I'm really looking forward to the DCL trip! Tortilla Jo's is fast becoming a favorite of mine out there!

Your plans for your cruises sound great. Do they no longer over the wine country tour in Ensenada. That was hands down the best port adventure I ever did and it was dirt cheap to boot.

They do offer the wine country tour. It's funny we did that almost 20 years ago when we took a Carnival Cruise to the region. We just didn't want to opt for that tour as it had about an hour of walking and scooters aren't allowed, so Fran didn't think she could walk/stand that long.

Tortilla Joe's was never really on my radar, but having seen the photos, this may have to change. It looks like you had a really nice evening.

We are starting to really like it. Both the meals we had here this year were very good!

Wohhooo I am with you there on the excitment of your cruise and a B2B in the offering! How neat. Have you done one before? They seem ideal. We are less interested these days in getting off the ship what with my mobility and all the ships have to offer. Jo keeps saying might as well do the transatlantic!

This is our first B2B and I'm really looking forward to it! Same thing for Fran and her mobility, but we remembered that we want to get off the ship in Ensenada if nothing else to visit the Pharmacy!

Your mexican supper looked nice. I just adore salsa. Just hand over the bowl right!

It was very tasty!

DL stay looks super. How nice to meet up with your friends. I love your anniversary sweet treats Fran got. I always marvel over the photos of DL I think the big Mickey wheel looks so fabulous. So iconic. Not having one at WDW it really sets the parks at a difference which I like. It's such a pretty big wheel. That's what we call them here in England. We use to have them a lot on seaside piers and funfairs.

We had a great time staying over at DL. I'm sorry that we don't have plans in the near future to do it again, although Fran is happy that we are only going out for day trips. Me, I like staying overnight!

I am so excited for you for your cruise! You must dress up for Pirate Night! No 'swag' restrictions me hearties why not! They should have a Pirates League on the ships!

I think I can convince her to do it!

Your plans for your B2B cruise sound great and relaxing! Its always great how much luggage you can get away with when you are driving - my husband & I are totally spoiled with that on this coast. Luckily his new car gives me a ton more room to overpack.

I'm hoping that we can bring enough so I won't have to do any laundry on the ship this time! Great that your new car affords you that luxury as well!

Ugh - you're room picture of the 1-bedroom makes me so depressed that I wasn't able to snag one at 7-months for our trip. I really, really, hope my waitlist comes through - even for only 2 nights. I would take one that looked out on a brick wall - but THAT VIEW! Too cool.

I still have my fingers crossed for you! I really hope that the waitlist comes through!

 

[dolphingirl47]

We just didn't want to opt for that tour as it had about an hour of walking and scooters aren't allowed, so Fran didn't think she could walk/stand that long.

They must have changed it then as when I did it in 2012, there was not a great deal of walking involved.

Corinna

 

[franandaj]

I remember how much you enjoyed being in the spa for that previously!

It was absolute heaven.

Excellent work!

Mmmm...Tortilla Jo's...

Sounds like a fun impromptu get-together.

It was fun and unusual for us!

Gorgeous shots!

Thanks!

Yeah, it's always a good day when it is time to book excursions and dining for a cruise!

It makes it start to seem real!

Is your cruise sailing out of San Diego? I just looked up the Wyndham Bayside as a potential overnight hotel before our PC cruise. Thanks for the hint.

People on my FB page recommended that as the closest parking and that works for me!

Before you book anything .... keep in mind that usually on the first sea day there is the Castaway Club reception. It will not be advertised anywhere, but you will find a letter with the information the first night of the cruise. Since this is your 6th cruise you should be invited! Free drinks and lovely snacks!

Thanks for the hint! What time do they usually hold the reception? On our Dream Cruise in December I want to do the Remy Champagne lunch at noon, will we miss the reception?

Laughing because I thought if we had a 6pm dinner we would be able to go to the pirate buffet .... NO way.

We tried to enjoy the Pirate Buffet on our last cruise, and even with not eating much dinner at the Pirate menu, we still had no room!

I am sure you could order eggs over easy at Triton's as well, but I am so with you - ALL food tastes so much better if you do not have to make it yourself.

That's good to know, but I like having the Eggs Benedict at Triton's! Like you!

WOW!!!!!!! What an awesome view. I guess I would not leave the room for quite some time if I had view like this.

It's been a long time since we have had the sixth floor view!

Love your cruise plans and still bummed we're not going but it'll be great to see you and Pam!

No cilantro? Blasphemy!

At least we can have lunch the day before, but I'll miss having you all on the cruise!

Especially with those stops, I'd rather stay on the ship too!

With the exception of prescriptions in Ensenada, we probably will just stay on the ship.

That's cool! Like a private class?

Basically. It will be scheduled before we set sail and we'll know when it takes place when we book anything on board.

Absolutely

Can you imagine if there was an earthquake and that was your seat?!

The thought did occur to me....

OH my gosh it is the best! This and just margaritas would be perfect for me

It probably would have been enough, but I really wanted the enchiladas too.

What a pretty glass.

I have one at home.

What is in the packaging? It looks like a broken up s'more.

The "new" thing at Disney is different kinds of "bark". This is S'mores bark, so tasty!

I absolutely love seeing RSR backdrop at night from the rooms. So gorgeous and different!

I know it's so cool to look at! Especially lit up at night!

 

[dizneeat]

What time do they usually hold the reception? On our Dream Cruise in December I want to do the Remy Champagne lunch at noon, will we miss the reception?

It's usually 11 or 11.30 - can't remember, and it sometimes changes as well, BUT - if you have a noon reservation you can easily do both!!! The CC reception only takes about half an hour and if it comes to the "worst" - you can always "sneak" out and head up to Remy!

Is it the first time you are doing the Remy lunch? We have done it several times and I prefer it to dinner.

 

[franandaj]

Your cruise plans sounds so fun! Doing a Back2Back must be really fun! Too bad you actually have to get off the boat and get back on. There needs to be a way to eliminate that step.

It would be nice....if customs wasn't involved perhaps they could do that.

What a fun dinner - tableside guac and sitting below all the cool tequila bottles. Fun!

How nice that you got to spend the evening with some of your band friends. Perfect ending to the day!

It worked out for an overall great day. Not too much hustle and bustle and lots of good food and drink!

I had many pages to read to catch up on things in your busy and exciting life. I did like the pics of the fireworks and the Paint the Night Parade.
(Saw those on a Disney site.)

Glad you are caught up, and happy that you enjoyed the pictures.

Interesting 33 menu - sorry it was not very enjoyable.

It gets better.

Love the 60th merchandise and all the purchases made - nice jewelry.
Glad Fan is doing great with the meds.
The cruise will be here before you know it -love your planning skills.

Thanks, I can't take my necklaces off, I keep alternating between them! Fran is definitely feeling better and I really hope the cruise gets here soon! I need it!

Cruise plans sound great and it will be time to set sail soon.

I keep hoping!

Keep building those miles! I might actually see the two of you here in Australia!!!

Well the miles right now are erasing cruise fees, but we are doing good on Airline miles, I'm just not sure we can use them to get to Oz. This one will take planning, but we WILL get there!

Cilantro??? She gave you cilantro????
Glad she made you a new batch!!

I know! Can you believe it!

The cruise plans look great. I hope you can convince Fran to go along with the pirate night costumes.

Looks like a lovely evening at Tortilla Jo's and having drinks. I really regret not eating there when we were out there. It always smelled so good, but it just didn't work out that we were nearby when we were looking for food. Your pictures look delicious!

I can usually convince her, I think it will be fun.

You really need a redo at DL, now that you did a Banzai rides trip, you need to go and enjoy the other stuff, like that Pistachio ice cream or at least a Dole Whip!

They must have changed it then as when I did it in 2012, there was not a great deal of walking involved.

Corinna

Well, I don't remember it being that long back when, but we don't want to risk it. We can tour wineieres anywhere, I'd probably rather just check out the pharmacy and then go back to the ship and eat in the restaurants there and enjoy the pool while people are off the ship!

It's usually 11 or 11.30 - can't remember, and it sometimes changes as well, BUT - if you have a noon reservation you can easily do both!!! The CC reception only takes about half an hour and if it comes to the "worst" - you can always "sneak" out and head up to Remy!

Is it the first time you are doing the Remy lunch? We have done it several times and I prefer it to dinner.

That's good to know. The cruise in December will be our first time on either of the Big Ships, so far we have been on the Magic once and the Wonder three times. The next cruise will make five Wonder Cruises. I have yet to book the Fantasy!

 

[dolphingirl47]

Well, I don't remember it being that long back when, but we don't want to risk it.

I completely understand. It is not worth the risk.

Corinna

 

[franandaj]

On the day of Disneyland’s 60th Anniversary our wake up call came in at 5:30AM. We had planned to be grabbing breakfast at 6AM and then being out the door by 7AM when they would supposedly be letting folks into DL. But we had been done in by our activities of the day before. Both of us were having severe heartburn or GERD type feelings and dared not leave the hotel room for fear of creating a public nuisance.

Instead we took some Pepcid Complete and crawled back into bed. I think it was around 7:00 or 7:30 when I came back to consciousness. I’m not going to say that I felt “good”, but I didn’t feel nearly as bad as I did a couple hours ago, and I was ready to get dressed and face the world. Fran was not quite as much so, but she was willing to get up and out of bed after I had some food and she felt a little better too.

My breakfast. I managed to eat this and not get sick, and came back to get Fran dressed and ready to go.



I think it was about 9:00AM when we finally got going and left the hotel. We had seen a couple posts on FB from our friends that the park was pretty empty so we were pretty happy about that since we had gotten such a late start. By the time we got inside the park it was almost 9:30 and Fran suggested that we just park ourselves in front of the TV on Main Street since we could get a spot in the shade and we probably wouldn’t be able to get a spot anywhere near the hub and it certainly wouldn’t be in the shade. I figured it was as good a spot as any and went with it.

When we first sat the place was fairly empty.



We had a good view of City Hall.



And though we couldn't actually see it, Walt’s Apartment was right there.



I could zoom in nicely on the screen.



Already our spot was beginning to fill up fast. By the time 10:00 arrived the entire space next to us was packed as well as the area in front of us all the way up to the screen.



Disney encouraged folks to dress up like 1955 that day. A lot of people gave it the old college try and a lot pulled it off quite well. I took pictures of anyone I saw who was trying.











And then our area started to become really crowded, so much so that I thought no one was going to be able to walk through and eventually I was right.



The performance that we were waiting for, finally began.



We were treated to a performance by Richard Sherman and Ashley Brown (Mary Poppins fame).



And then all the characters came out to say, “Happy 60th Birthday!”



But even better is to watch it for yourself.

Then we were on another mission. Our friends John and Suzie had told us about the cupcakes on the 50th Anniversary, and various CMs had confirmed that they would have cupcakes for the 60th as well. So we went out in search of the cupcakes. We heard that one of the locations was Big Thunder Ranch.





They were really good cupcakes! Evidently they planned on serving them until 8PM that night.



On our way out, I saw this girl dressed up in this cute skirt that her mom had made for her.



And then we were off to our next destination, a very special Anniversary lunch!

 

[jedijill]

How fun to be there on the exact day! Those cupcakes look yummy.

Jill in CO

 

[mvf-m11c]

Very nice day on July 17th. I wish I was there on that day. The cupcakes look nice.

 

[dolphingirl47]

What a shame that you both felt unwell early in the morning. I am going to have to come back to watch the video over the weekend. The cupcakes look very nice.

Corinna

 

[dhorner233]

How exciting that you were there on THE DAY!! I'm looking forward to "following you around" the whole day!! Thanks for the video. The cupcakes look kind of small but yummy.

 

[dvc at last !]

Thanks for sharing the 60th Birthday Party pics and loved seeing the video also of the ceremony.
Glad you felt better as the morning progressed - you and Fran could not have missed the ceremony - and you had great seats, too !
Cupcakes looked nice.
Was that your new necklace ?
You both matched the blue theme.

 

[PrincessInOz]

What a great kick-off to the 60th. Thanks so much for sharing it with us.

Those cupcakes look delicious!

 

[MommyJKM]

I recognized you and Fran from your previous TR (somewhere on this board) and waved this day and you looked at me like "Do I know you?" and smiled waved back! HA! Do you remember that? My poor husband was like "Stop waving at strangers" and I said "I know her, her name is Allison." and he just glared at me and kept walking.

 

[Pinkocto]

You look great in that dress Alison!

How fun to be there on the actual day. Very special.

Bummer you started off not feeling well, glad it didn't last.

 

[franandaj]

I completely understand. It is not worth the risk.

Corinna

Besides, I think we will enjoy our time on the ship just as well.

How fun to be there on the exact day! Those cupcakes look yummy.

Jill in CO

It was great to be there on the day. As you'll see we didn't do a lot, but it was nostalgic.

Very nice day on July 17th. I wish I was there on that day. The cupcakes look nice.

I think you would have really enjoyed being there on that day too!

What a shame that you both felt unwell early in the morning. I am going to have to come back to watch the video over the weekend. The cupcakes look very nice.

Corinna

Yeah, it wasn't how either of us wanted to feel that day, but it eventually went away. The cupcakes were tasty.

How exciting that you were there on THE DAY!! I'm looking forward to "following you around" the whole day!! Thanks for the video. The cupcakes look kind of small but yummy.

We actually didn't do very much that day as you will find out in the next update. The cupcakes were actually the perfect size. Any bigger and it would have been too much!

Thanks for sharing the 60th Birthday Party pics and loved seeing the video also of the ceremony.
Glad you felt better as the morning progressed - you and Fran could not have missed the ceremony - and you had great seats, too !
Cupcakes looked nice.

I'm glad we parked it there. We were in the shade and had good view of the screen. Anywhere else I'm pretty sure we would have been miserable and not had as good of a view. The hub was pretty much blocked up with the VIPs and stuff.

Was that your new necklace ?
You both matched the blue theme.

I was wearing the new necklace. We didn't try to match the theme although Fran was wearing her Diamond Anniversary Polo shirt.

What a great kick-off to the 60th. Thanks so much for sharing it with us.

Those cupcakes look delicious!

Thanks!

I recognized you and Fran from your previous TR (somewhere on this board) and waved this day and you looked at me like "Do I know you?" and smiled waved back! HA! Do you remember that? My poor husband was like "Stop waving at strangers" and I said "I know her, her name is Allison." and he just glared at me and kept walking.

You know I think I remember that moment. Fran waved to you and I was looking at you like "huh?" I'll have to remember that folks recognize me at Disney so I need to be more friendly!

 

[franandaj]

You look great in that dress Alison!

How fun to be there on the actual day. Very special.

Bummer you started off not feeling well, glad it didn't last.

Thanks! It was a new one. It was pretty cool to be there on the day. Fran had me reserve the rooms 11 months in advance so we could be sure to be there. I just wish we didn't feel icky upon first waking up. At least it did get better!

 

[franandaj]

For the 60th Anniversary, we were lucky enough to get a reservation at a Wine Maker Dinner/Luncheon with Silverado Winery, the one owned by Diane Disney Miller and her husband Ron Miller. We were able to attend the earlier version, but the same meal was also served during dinner. We arrived early, but were led upstairs and immediately served glasses of wine. I believe that it was a Chenin Blanc.



Shortly before noon, we were lead to our table.



I was one of the first to enter the room.



The Menu



And a copy that you can read.





Our first course was absolutely delicious! According to the Menu it read, Salad of Little Gem Lettuce, Marinated Scallop in Lemon, Pistachio and Silverado EVO and Fennel Dust (at least I think that’s what it said.) But in plain English it was a miniature grilled romaine heart, and a scallop cevice. This was soooo good! The meal was promising, so far!



Our next course was Sauteed Black Bass on Lobster Agnolotti with Chanterelle Mushroom Minestrone and Basil Pesto. And this one totally knocked it out of the park!



They poured the sauce tableside. Here’s the after picture. For those not familiar, Agnolotti is just a fancy word for a kind of “ravioli”. These little pillows of goodness were filled with incredible lobster filling. I was doing the “Happy Food Dance” in my chair, so much so that Fran gave me one of hers!



Next came the Blackberry Braised Pork Pot Roast with Blackberry Relish and Roasted Brentwood Corn. My mother gets Brentwood Corn at the farmer’s market when we visit in the summer, so I knew how special this was. The pork was melt in your mouth tender and this dish also was spot on! I wanted to lick the little tureen.



Keep in mind that each one of these dishes came with a glass of wine. Fran had a couple sips of her wine, but not a lot, she was letting me finish off her glasses, so by this point, I think I was up to eight glasses. Luckily they weren’t full pours!



Our main course was Grilled Prime Beef Delmonico with Shaved Truffles, Beef Cheeks and Grilled Kumquat and Rhubarb Jam. The steak was flavorful and perfectly cooked. I didn’t really care so much for the Beef Cheeks, but I was also pretty full from all the other courses, so that was OK, the cats really liked them.



After the main meal we relocated to another room, the lounge, for a presentation from Ron Miller and his family. But first we all served ourselves dessert from a dessert bar. They had a selection of cheeses, Crème Brulee, Opera Cake, and Cheesecake. I ended up eating about half a dozen of the little Crème Brulees!



Then the presentation started. Ron Miller talked about how he and Diane Disney were introduced via Blind Date, and they hit it off immediately. Walt gave him a job, and Ron talked about how difficult it could be working for Walt because his expectations were always so high, and once you did something well, he always expected you to do the next job even better.







Some of Walt’s grandchildren from Diane and Ron were there, and they talked about what it was like growing up in the spotlight. Walt Disney loved to showcase his grandchildren and they didn’t always appreciate being put on the spot for ride openings and appearing with Walt in front of huge crowds. The oldest son said that it was a little daunting to kids under 10 years old.



They showed lots of family photos with Walt and I don’t remember all the details of each of the photos, but it was fun to listen to him tell various stories about his time with Walt.



Here is a photo of the family enjoying the apartment above the firehouse on Main Street.



These were the kinds of events that Walt would have his grandkids present for “ribbon cutting” ceremonies and the like.



While the kids may not have appreciated having to be celebrities at ribbon cutting ceremonies, they did agree that Grampa Walt sure had some of the best toys that they got to test out!



And getting to test new rides with Grandpa wasn’t bad either!



And try new restaurants.



All in all they agreed that having Walt as a FIL/Grandpa was really pretty cool when it came down to it!



These were very special times that all of them remembered and cherished even today.



And they concluded with this memory of Walt Disney.



It was around 2:30PM when we were finished and after all that great food and many many glasses of wine, there was only one thing that we could do and that was go back to the room and take a nap.

 

[dizneeat]

The meal looks awesome!
Lots of wine - awesome!
Silverado, my favourite - awesome!
And all those great photos - awesome!
Taking a nap afterwards - awesome!

Can you see the trend? Reading your TR and being able to share your experiences - awesome! Absolute best thing to read on a lazy Sunday morning!

Thanks for sharing!