A Weekend in Disneyland

Time to theoretically dust off this blog and start writing again. I've thought a lot about starting to create content online again after basically disappearing for two years and I thought the easiest way to ease myself back into it would be to share a few photos of a trip I took a little over a month ago with two of my best friends. We had been planning a trip for awhile and finally made the decision to go to Disneyland! Our trip definitely could have used a little more planning and time management but we made it work and throughout the ups and downs we made the best of it and had a great time regardless.

We all live in Arizona and instead of flying we decided we wouldn't mind taking a little road trip and driving the 5 hour drive from Phoenix to Anaheim. We had rented out an Airbnb that was about 5 minutes away from Disney and were super excited to get there. The drive was pretty easy, I was exhausted because I hadn't slept the night before but I surprisingly didn't get super sleepy until we got to Cali.

When we arrived we had some time to kill before our Airbnb was available so we decided to drive down to Huntington Beach to see the ocean and explore. I unfortunately didn't take hardly any pictures there, I was exhausted and it was a super overcast day. I would have loved to wade in the water or lay on the beach but I had forgotten to bring towels or sandals so we just walked around for a bit and grabbed lunch at a local Mexican restaurant right by the ocean.

We were excited to get to our Airbnb after the long drive but once we arrived it was...not what we were expecting. We actually ended up leaving and getting a hotel room closer to Disney, we had some trouble because most of them were already booked but we finally found a place to stay and sleep for the night.

We decided that our first day was going to be spent in California Adventures! We didn't get the Park Hopper tickets so we just spent a whole day in each park. The last time had been was when it was Paradise Pier, so I was pretty excited to see how Pixar Pier had come along. I actually liked it a lot more than I was expecting to! 

My favorite ride is hands down, The Incredicoaster. It's exactly the same as it was when it was California Screamin', just with a touch of the Incredibles.  When I visited Disney the first time it took almost an hour of constant convincing for me to even get on that ride. But now I could have honestly rode it all day which is really saying something considering I usually get super nervous and hate roller coasters. (I usually refuse to ride any ride that goes upside down, roller coasters for me are usually a hard pass.) 

Of course we had to hit up Cars Land once the sun set, I just really love how it looks at night with all the neon lights. I have so many pictures that look nearly the same as the two above from the first time I went to Disney. But I can't walk through Cars Land without snapping a few new ones. 

Maybe this is an unpopular opinion but I think California Adventures looks the prettiest at night, even prettier than Disneyland. I just love all the lights and the iconic ferris wheel (which by the way I rode for the first time and it was the only ride in the whole park that made me feel nauseous).

Of course we had to make sure we rode Space Mountain as many times as we could! It was actually the very first ride we went on when we got into the park. When I went in 2015 it was Hyperspace Mountain, so it was cool to see how it is regularly. 

(Fun fact: I actually got stuck on this ride the very first time I rode it, now even though I love this ride, I get nervous every time I get on it that it's going to get stuck again.

We made reservations at Cafe New Orleans just so we could get the Monte Christo. It was good but soo filling we split it between two of use but could have easily split it between three. It's a ham and cheese sandwich that's deepfried and sprinkled with powdered sugar that you dip in jam. I'm not a huge sweets person and usually lean towards savory but it was still really good and a nice balance between the two.

This was the entrance to Club 33. It's an elite restaurant that you have to be a member of to even get into. I guess there's a huge waiting list and it's super expensive to get into, but hey a girl can dream, right? 

Our short trip to Disney was so much fun, even though we had some things go wrong, I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. I had so much fun with my friends and I'm so happy we planned this trip. Hopefully our next one will be less short notice (and a few more days long) but I think we made the best of it.

It feels so weird and exciting to be posting again? I really hope that I have gotten my motivation back and can start writing more and taking more photos. I hope to keep this blog more consistent and update it again soon.

VIDEO | Disneyland Vlog

So, I recently started a Youtube channel to document some of the cool things I do and I will eventually put up some different kind of videos later as well. If you want to check it out and subscribe, feel free! I would really appreciate it. Just please keep in mind this is extremely new to me and I'm still learning how to edit and film, but it's been a lot of fun! Check out the above video to see some clips of my trip to Disneyland earlier this year!

My First Trip to Disneyland!

I visited Disneyland for the first time this past New Years. I was so incredibly excited. My whole life I had always wanted to go but never had the chance until now. I was not disappointed. 

We spent two full days there and every day was an adventure. I was constantly seeing new and very detailed things and having so much fun! At the end of every night, my feet would hurt so bad! We would end up walking around 18 miles in ONE day! No wonder I was so sore. 

There were SO many people....so many. Ride times were so long and we had to push through people constantly. I guess that's what you get for visiting on New Years but man, it was packed. I'd really like to visit during a time of year that typically isn't as busy, that would be nice!

This is the one ride a refused to ride. I mean, it looks amazing but I am not too keen on rides that suddenly drop you. No thanks.

Mr. Toad's ride was the first one we went on! It was a nice slow ride, I was really shocked to see how detailed everything is!

The rides were a lot of fun. My favorite rides were California Screamin’, Splash Mountain, and Thunder Mountain. I was terrified to ride California Screamin’ but I am SO happy I did. 

I was able to see Fantasia which was an amazing and lucky experience considering the are taking it away for a year or two. I didn't really think I was going to enjoy it as much as I did. It is SO incredibly impressive. 

We went to a show that was the Mad Hatter's Tea Party. Which is basically a little concert with performers dressed as characters from Alice in Wonderland, people drink, dance and sing. It was pretty cool!

The infamous Mickey Mouse ferris wheel!

Goodbye Disney! Thank you for a wonderful New Years and a magical first visit. See you soon!

New Orleans | February 2015

A few weeks ago I got the chance to take a road trip with my closest friends to New Orleans! We all had never been and were so eager to experience a place unlike any other. 

We decided to drive down and we unfortunately got stuck right in the middle of a terrible snow storm in Kentucky. It took us 16 hours to drive to Louisiana! But we finally made it!

We had our own balcony and had a beautiful view of the city. We didn't get to New Orleans until about 8pm so we didn't explore much the first night. 

We had a very lovely meal at a beautiful restaurant known as Emeril's, yes it is one of Chef Emeril's locations, it was very beautiful and everyone was very kind! 

New Orleans during the afternoon

We got there on the last day of Mardi Gras, otherwise known as "Fat Tuesday". We only went to one of the parades but it was such a cool experience! It was so surreal to think that you're actually experiencing the REAL Mardi Gras. Everyone was dressed up and beads, stuffed animals, umbrellas and other items were being thrown into the crowd. 

How cool is this Alien float? It was probably my favorite!

We headed down to the French Quarter to explore and do some shopping. The whole area was so cute and artistic. There were so many cute and interesting shops as well. 

A very popular brand I saw nearly everywhere I went was "Slap Ya Mama" which I found quite comical.

There were horse drawn carriages all over the streets. It made me pretty sad for the horses, honestly. It was a weird thing to see though, we don't have those roaming around the cities back in Ohio.

It was so cool to see people just singing and playing instruments on the sides of the street. There was also performers, like the Statue Man, who I didn't get a photo of unfortunately.

This absolutely beautiful church I found looked like a castle and was sitting in the prettiest square/park. If I lived here I would come here every day to sit under the trees and relax, it was gorgeous here. 

We stumbled upon this woman named Aamara who gave palm readings. I got my palms read for the first time and it was such a cool and unique experience! I don't know if I 100% believed everything, but I think it was worth it just for the experience. I've always been afraid to get one of these but she had nothing but positive things to say, which true or false, is still a great motivator. 

We stopped at this gorgeous little restaurant and had absolutely amazing food! I tried crawfish and feta crepes and it was SO delicious. Definitely my favorite meal I had down there. 

My dessert was creme brulee and it was also the first time I had that as well and it was super yummy! 

We were only down there for about 2 1/2 days but it was so gorgeous and I wish we could have stayed longer! It was such an amazing experience and I definitely want to visit again! New Orleans is filled with so much culture and the kindest people, I miss it already!