Forever Magical
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As I begin to share my impressions of Disney’s California Adventure I must confess I love California. In 1977 I moved with my family to Southern California from a very small East Texas town. It didn’t take long for me to lose the accent and for my parents to take me to Disneyland. I inherited my love of California from my dad who from his youth wanted to move here to be near his Dodgers and Disneyland.

I have lived in Southern California most of my life but in 1993 I found myself back in Texas. My dad had been teaching at an area university but had decided to quit. We were trying to decide where to move. We thought Orlando would provide us more employment opportunities and the surrounding area was less expensive to live in. It was a reluctant decision but we’d be close to Walt Disney World, the Dodgers play in Vero Beach in the Spring and there are beaches and palm trees. It would have to do. Days before we were to leave Texas I visited Six Flags Over Texas with a group of friends. We were riding the attraction Top Gun. Guests sit in individual flight chairs in a large theater watching a movie. 3/4 of the way through the film we flew over Edwards Air Force Base just north of where I grew up. I recognized the scenery and began to cry. Fortunately Dad ended up getting a job offer back in Southern California and we headed west instead.

I love L.A. I enjoy being able to and have played in the snow on the San Gabriel Mountains and then jumped in a car and a few hours later been at the beach playing in the sand. I love driving along Sunset Blvd with its high energy and yet know that a few hours away are the open deserts. I grew up listening to the Beach Boys, Frankie Avalon and Annette. I daydreamed about being Gidget and hanging out at the beach surfing each day. It is through these eyes that I explored Disney’s California Adventure.

The East mural (representing Northern California)

Walking past the oversized letters spelling out California the first thing I noticed was the entrance plaza music. I heard familiar tunes such as Natalie Cole singing Avalon, Twenty-Six Miles, Do You Know the Way to San Jose and others. As we waited for some friends to catch up I looked over the murals highlighting the diversity of images and activities available in California and continued to sing along with melodies.

The Golden Sun and sparkling waves were beautiful. I enjoyed watching the waves break underneath the sun. To the left is the entrance to the Hollywood Pictures Backlot and to the right the entrance to Condor Flats. We headed over to Condor Flats. Doobie, although afraid of heights, is fascinated by airplanes and simply fell in love with this area. I fell in love with the smells of Taste Pilots Grill. The flame-broiled burgers over there sure do smell good. I haven’t had a chance to try one yet, maybe on the next trip. Then I stopped to listen to a fantastic a cappella group. They sang Save the Last Dance For Me and Stand By Me when we passed by again later in the day we heard them performing Itsy Bitsy Spider.

The A Cappella group in Condor Flats