Starting off with a quick commercial today…
Still have places for that last minute Private Railroad Car trip on Saturday, December 13. Again that’s roundtrip from Oakland to Sacramento. At $75 per person, it’s a great way to see what this travel experience is all about. Visit the web pages for details.
Speaking of travel experiences, I’m off this afternoon on one of my own. I haven’t been to the Park since… Okay, it’s been so long that I can’t clearly summon the details. If memory serves, it was back in May. There’s no stay at the Grand Californian this time, more a casualty of high rates than the interest in doing so. Seems that my travel agent is busy doing her own trip to the Park for a AAA travel congress event, so that opportunity is right out. Michele is staying at the Disneyland Hotel for the first time in about eight years, so she’ll be looking at it with a fresh eye. And the travel congress takes place in the hotel’s function space as well.
I won’t miss out though. I’m off to spend a weekend with my mother enjoying the Park. No grandchildren, no pets, no pressures. I’ve done a day at Disneyland with just the two of us before, but this time it’s a weekend, and some things there we both have never enjoyed before. Prominent among those is the Candlelight event. We thought about using a Club 33 connection for that, but those were all booked back in September, so we were told. Next year! I knew there were dining event packages last year, so I tried to track down info for this one, only to be rebuffed along the way by official sources. Eventually, the info made it’s way out to the public, and we’re going to enjoy an early dinner at Granville’s Steak House before the 8:00 p.m. Candlelight festivities. Again, here is another one I haven’t enjoyed before, for reasons I can’t recall. You would think by now that I’ve seen or done everything the Disneyland Resort has to offer, right?
Disneyland at Christmas has always been something of a favorite of mine. Hard to say why, though. Some of my fondest memories of the season are family related, as they should be, with San Francisco as the venue. Visits with Santa at the Emporium on Market Street or out at Stonestown. The drive along the Marina Green viewing the lights in and out of windows with holiday festiveness all aglow. The visits to my grandparent’s home on 29th Avenue just outside of Seacliff, complete with the Christmas tree shining from the window of the front room and the fireplace doing as intended with appropriate crackling now and then.
Later on there was the pageantry of midnight mass, with participation in various choral groups, even a stint as an altar boy. So when it comes to Disneyland and Christmas, I’m at something of a loss to explain what the attraction is. Maybe it’s just a comfort thing. Who knows?
While I’m not waiting for the Believe fireworks, I do like the snow effect at the end of the show. Having spent just enough time in the real thing to enjoy the falling snow (and not the shoveling of it), the concept of snow at Disneyland is interesting to say the least. I’ve been there on nights when it was cold enough that it could have snowed without artificial means, but didn’t. Usually if that part of Orange County gets that cold, there is no cloud cover. If there was, it would keep the temperatures above freezing. Go figure. We’ve had some cold, sparkling mornings where one could see snow on the mythical San Gabriel mountains (mythical because thanks to air quality, a.k.a. smog, you almost never see them from Anaheim), but that’s a fair piece away from the Park.
I get a kick from some of the ironic moments along the way as well. With the Park on the site of orange groves, it’s not hard to recall how fresh fruit such as citrus was once regarded as a holiday treat in many places across the country. My mother’s father recalled how an orange at Christmas was a very special treat for a young boy in eastern Oregon.
And as much as the holidays are a time for home and family, the Disneyland Resort has become something of a holiday destination for many families. Some have even taken to arranging for Christmas trees for their hotel rooms so that the gifts may be properly opened on Christmas morning. “The proprieties must be observed at all times.” as Barry Fitzgerald so well put it in John Ford’s “The Quiet Man”.
Five years ago, I did something for myself. I spent my Fortieth birthday at the Park all alone. Flew down that morning from San Francisco (on the now departed Reno Air — in first class no less) and back again that evening. I just took the day to relax and enjoy. No hurried pace, no one to meet or have to be somewhere at a certain time.
Kind of a sit back and take it all in day. Did a Disneyland Forever CD with a selection of my favorite track, bought a pocket watch (Mickey Mouse, of course!), and topped off the day with a quiet, late lunch at the Blue Bayou. As much as I have great memories from days at the Park with family and friends, this was one of the few where it was all about me. Kind of refreshing…
Enjoying this weekend with my mother also brings back a memory from San Francisco and my past. On my 18th birthday, she took me to lunch (again, just the two of us) at the Palace Hotel’s Garden Court, where I enjoyed my first Monte Cristo sandwich. Yes, I know it’s a favorite of many from their Blue Bayou visits (and yes, they do quite well there), but it’s all the more memorable a sandwich from that December afternoon in the City.
(The Garden Court has it’s own Holiday events worth noting. Book early if you can as they are very popular!)
Another holiday item of note that I’m exploring this weekend: The Holiday Time at Disneyland Tour. From that page, here are the highlights:
“Share wonderful holiday memories with your family on the “Holiday Time at Disneyland®” tour, where you’ll experience Disneyland® park like never before!
Discover the holiday history of Disneyland park, from the early days of Walt Disney to today — as well as the holiday legends and customs of cultures throughout the world.
Watch “A Christmas Fantasy” Parade at Disneyland park from a premium vantage point… while indulging in a special holiday treat!
Enjoy special FASTPASS® service on the Haunted Mansion Holiday and “It’s a Small World” Holiday attractions”
That’s on tap for Sunday… I’ll have a report for you next week.
And in a final moment, I’m toying with putting together a Best of Ruminations printed edition with more photos and footnotes. Look for details here sometime in the coming New Year. It’s a real challenge that I’m looking forward to. A self-published kind of fanzine thing, for sale at a reasonable price. Any thoughts you might have would be more than welcomed! So drop me a note to pullman@privatecarservice.net, and for those who might be tempted, the spam filter is on, so don’t bother.
There you go, another column all over the map.
Next week? Other than the report on the new Disneyland tour, not much lurking in the wings, but who knows what topics might spring up along the way. Check in to find out!
Thanks again to everyone for your continued support. If you would like to show your appreciation, click on this link for Roger’s PayPal Donation Box. (Yes, it’s a change from the Amazon Honor System, although that is still active as well.) Any amount is always welcomed!