The New Submarine Ride

OK, Libby's comment on my last blog about the Finding Nemo Submarine Ride (opening this Summer) deserves its own blog in response. This is the first ride in a long time that really deserves the title "An e-ticket ride." From everything I've heard and seen about it, this new version of the submarine will turn it from "that cheesy ride with the fake fish" to a "how did they DO that? Can we go on it again??" must-see ride. I'm very upset that it won't be open when we go (16 days til DL, by the way), but I don't want to deal with the summer crowds. But maybe next year (if we go to Disneyland for our 10th anniversary instead of Disney World).

At the end of this blog is a You Tube link to the Finding Nemo ride at Epcot Center in Florida. They've been calling this "Finding Nemo Subs-Lite" because it uses thet same 3-D projection technology and has some of the same show scenes. You should watch it, and especially take a look at thte last minute or so, where the Finding Nemo characters are swimming in a REAL tank with REAL fish near them. It's some sort of 21st century, high tech version of the Haunted Mansion ghosts effect, and it looks SO AWESOME.

However, the Submarine version (instead of riding in clamshells) is going to be a 14-minute big-budget experience--not to spoil anything, but I hear there will even be a scene where your sub shakes. Apparently PIXAR head John Lassetter made them add in a bunch of extra stuff to make it even better than they'd planned originally. Of course, they were only able to add in a few extra seats to each sub, so unless you ride it first thing in the morning, expect to wait for HOURS or miss out.

At any rate, Libby, and any others who are skeptical about this ride--just wait til you see it.

18 Days--No Schedule?????

Yes it's true, I did NOT make an itinerary for our last day at Disneyland. What? Super-OCD Andy, the obsessive guy that wishes he could schedule bathroom breaks didn't plan out the last day at Disneyland? Well, no, I didn't, and here's why. Assuming that the parks aren't TONS more crowded than expected, we should be able to see almost everything we want to in the first 2 days, so the third day is our "catch-up/ride again" day. Anything we missed or want to go on again, we can do that day.
And that works out well for us, because it's a Friday, the most crowded day of our 3 days there. So we can take it easy, avoid crowds, and just relax on our last day. We're even planning on staying as late as the kids will let us, because then they can sleep in the car the next day on the trip home.

These rides are not in the schedule, that we can fit in on earlier days if there is time/changes to schedule; otherwise, ride on Friday:

Animation Building
Turtle Talk with Crush
Tough to be a bug
Tortilla Factory

Rides I don’t mind skipping:

Mullholland Madness
Jumpin Jellyfish
Aladdin
Autopia
Golden Horseshoe
Honey, I Shrunk the Audience

Now, here's a video of the most boring, annoying ride ever that I will do everything in my power to avoid. But, to make it more interesting, here's Autopia in 3-D!!!! (Red/Blue 3-D glasses Required for 3-D viewing)

19 Days--Into the Teens

OK, we're down to the teens...it's getting close. Here's what Thursday's plan looks like (and remember, these plans are really more like guidelines)

Thursday
Disneyland: 9-11
DCA 10-8

(Get Fastpasses for any convenient attractions)

06:15 Wake Up
07:15 Leave Hotel
08:00 Early Entry to Fantasyland
08:10 Dumbo
08:20 Casey Jr.
08:35 Peter Pan
08:50 Alice
09:00 Carousel
09:20 Tea Cups
09:40 Small World
10:00 DCA Opens
10:05 Soarin’—Andy gets Tower of Terror FPs
10:30 CA Screamin’/Triton’s Carousel
11:00 Tower of Terror/
Monsters Inc
11:30 Grizzly River Run/
Redwood Creek Trail
12:30 Back to Hotel
02:30 To Disneyland
03:00 Mark Twain
03:30 Pooh
04:15 Thunder Mt.
04:50 Roger Rabbit’s Cartoon Spin
05:15 Gadget’s Go Coaster
05:45 Dinner
06:30 Storybookland Boats
07:00 Matterhorn
08:00 Back to Hotel
Now it's TIME for the Small World clock!!!