The last time I went to Disneyland was with J before we got married over 6 years ago. My cousin is somehow affiliated with Disney and she gave us tickets as a gift for some pre-wedding festivity, perhaps the bridal shower. Anyhow, we went and it was fine. We were pretty much in agreement that we would never go back unless our future children had somehow been told that there was a place called Disneyland in existence and that they had to go for some homework assignment/field trip.
The funny thing is that I think that this commonality and one other thing that makes me a little strange cemented my relationship with J. Most people have deal breakers and I think my 2 deal breakers would have been (1) a spouse who wanted a season pass to Disneyland and (2) a spouse who wanted to have a dog or animal of any kind living in my house or on my property that I would be required to feed or care for. J basically agrees with this and so when times are rough (and they aren't often), I always think back to these two particular things and love J even more because (1) he'll never ask me if we can get a dog and (2) he'll never take me to Disneyland. I heart him.
Anyhow, I digress, as of late with this Facebook phenomenon whereby you can see everyone's status updates, I have noted that I have a lot of friends who totally LOVE Disneyland. They go at every opportunity. It completely baffles me. Can a Disney lover tell me why they love it? Let me into your world. I want to understand. Long lines abound. It is SO expensive. The food isn't notable. Am I doing something wrong? Where is the happy at the happiest place on earth?
A season pass at Disneyland is $429/person. To go for one day to Disneyland, for my family (excluding the twins because they are still 20 months) it would be $206. $206. I can get an 80 minute massage, a cocktail, and dinner for $206. Ok, that's selfish. The other day I managed to get my kids a HUGE BAG of clothes consisting of what is essentially their entire winter wardrobe for less than $200.
Moreover, I really can't go anywhere with these little people for more than a 3-4 hours or so because then they spontaneously combust with exhaustion and I proceed to combust. So, I would pay $206 for my entire family to disintegrate into tears in less than 4 hours.
Alright, so, I won't get to see the pure joy in the eyes of my children. I would pay $206 for the pure joy in the eyes of my children but is that why you Disney-philes flock there? Because honestly, I can get pure joy at the zoo and the kids almost burst with joy at the aquarium a few weeks ago and it was perfectly doable in a 4 hour block of time without breaking the budget. And then, there are those people who always loved Disneyland - as kids, as adults, pre-kids, post-kids, etc. And they will always completely baffle me. I almost can't imagine any place I would want to be less (excluding jail, underground tunnels trying to cross the border, and traffic school).
I need an explanation. Digame.
Ha ha!! I know you are partially referring to me. In fact, if you remember, James and I went to Disney World for our honeymoon :) I don't know how to convey the fun and joy that I get when I go-there are just a lot of old memories and fun times associated with Disneyland for us. Yes, the lines can be long and I would NEVER recommend going on New Year's Eve (did that once and regretted it) but that is the reason for the season pass. We get one of the middle of the road passes and then when you go, you can go for a shorter period of time without the pressure to do EVERYTHING. Also, your kids are a little young to make it enjoyable. I think 5 is actually a good age because they can wait in the lines with more patience and I think they just enjoy the whole experience so much more. Also, Brianna really loves rides so it is fun to see her having such a good time. We just go without a huge agenda, use the fast passes, and leave when we are tired. The parades are beautiful, the decorations at Christmas are hard to beat, and if you invest in a pass all you need to do is go 3-4 times a year and it pays for itself. We just LOVE it!!!
ReplyDeleteI know there are crazy Disney people out there... I am not one of them, but I do like Disney. Somehow I have figured out how to mostly avoid lines or not mind the occasional 20-30 minute wait. It's not like you're just staring at each other during the lines. The lines are time to take a break in the shade a lot of the time.
ReplyDeleteI haven't been in several years but I would like the chance to go back. I will take your kids. ;) To me it's more fun with smaller ones.
And we went on New Year's Eve once. But that was NYE 01, probably the slowest year in its history.
/shrug... my experiences haven't been terrible. The food IS ridiculously expensive though. And if you as a family manage to avoid it, then you've got no worries!
I couldn't agree with you more. The twins are DYING to go for their 4th birthday in January so off we go to a place we personally haven't been in years...will let you know how it goes! :)
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