[Part
One: The Journey, or the Destination?]
If
anyone had been paying attention to my entries here and the cross-posted
notifications in Facebook and Twitter, you would have seen that I had been
conducting a countdown of sorts. The last time I had been anywhere near as far
west as California was a trip to Las Vegas in Spring 2005 with friends from
Atlanta, Chicago, and Phoenix.
As
an aside and by way of a qualifier: I DO like to travel. There are usually two
competing elements that have to align for me to be able to do it. I prefer to
be able to take paid-time off (Vacation Days, PTO, however your respective
employer codes it) and be able to afford the travel costs (gas/airfare, hotel,
tickets if any, etc). The bigger/further the trip, the more these have to
coincide. Now that I am a gainfully employed in a permanent position instead of
contracting, the surprise gift of a Disneyland trip was very possible to
arrange with my managers. If I had still be a contractor, I would have begged
and pleaded with Kevin to cancel as any time I took off would not be covered by
any accrued payable time-off system. Contracting/Temping sucks in some regards.
As
a silly ninny I held off on doing any kind of packing until the day before for
when I got home after work. Part of this was due to me not knowing if I would have
to pay for checking luggage or not for part of my flights there and back. The
tickets that had been acquired for me had stop-overs each way: ATL-HOU-LAX and
LAX-MDW-ATL.
Along
with the connections the flights had been set-up to take me on different airlines:
Airtran and Southwest. My sweet friend Kevin knows that I prefer Airtran and
booked via their website. Within the last couple of years Southwest bought
Airtran and they have been merging routes, gates, and services since.
Evidently, at least for the dates of my flights there and back, there were no
direct flights available on Airtran out of ATL.
Having
never flown Southwest before I was…leery…to say the least. I’ve read the
complaints of passengers regarding people of larger/girthier bodysize in Coach
class; including those flying Southwest. I also have trepidation about SW’s “No
Assigned Seating” approach. As an Airtran flyer I knew the deal and had learned
to work with it quite easily. I would book a ticket in an emergency exit row
then when the online check-in window opened I would upgrade to Business Class
(for the better leg room and wider seats) if available. More often than not,
the upgrades would be there to be selected. Now, I had to take my chance on
even getting a window seat (my preference) and hoping the person in front of me
would not recline their seatback bashing my knees which would already be
perilously close in the non-existent legroom. But…be that as it may. I checked
in online and due to their code/system sharing once I was checked in for my
Airtran flight I received my boarding position for Southwest.
To
add flavor to my travel and park photographs I chose to take along a couple of
toys from my desk at work: my WALL-E figure and a pewter/pot-metal gaming
miniature TARDIS. I thought one or the other, or both, would be fun to take
pictures of while exploring.
JoeZer's pint-sized traveling companions
I
tried to get out of the office early the day before my flight out to LAX. But,
as things have a way of conspiring together, while I did get approval to leave
an hour early I received a client call that took me past the time I had been
approved to leave at. So, instead of burning a tittle of PT minutes I opted to
decline so someone else in the office could escape early if they needed.
Believe me when I say that I was quite happy and relieved when it came time for
me to turn off my desk phone and log off my workstation.
WALL-E,
TARDIS, and I had an adventure to begin…and I had not even opened a suitcase to
shove full of clothes yet.
WALL-E anxious to begin
Along
with waiting to pack until the day before, another “last minute” decision I had
made was to stay awake the entire night before leaving for the airport. No
naps…just me bouncing off the walls of my apartment until it came time to throw
things in the car, get myself to the light-rail, and disembark at ATL to
shamble through security.
My
ATL departure on Airtran was set for 8:40am ET. I arrived by light-rail at ATL
at about 6:45am. Printed by boarding passes, checked my bag (surprisingly I was
able to get all my needs for 6 days/5 nights in California all in to one
suitcase), and then nearly feinted at the huge line with TSA. I got to my
departure gate just as my flight was being called to begin boarding. Being an
early Thursday morning I would not have thought that trying to get out via ATL
would be so…thick…with people. Humanity, you always have to surprise me, don’t
you?
Granted,
I did learn something this round through TSA screening: do not pack the
pewter/pot-metal gaming miniature in your carry-on/computer bag. For surely it
will alert the bag scanners and have to undergo scrutiny for explosives and
rescanned on the belt by itself. Admittedly, it is a hefty, solid piece of
metal…so I can understand their concern. Minus 5 points for Gryffindor for
causing a pause in processing people, JoeZer.
My
first leg was comfortable and just as before whenever I’ve flown Airtran. It’s
easy to say that I will miss them as a choice of airlines when the merger
completes and everything of theirs is flagged Southwest. I have not had a
single bad experience with them as a customer or passenger. Au revior,
mon ami.
Next
stop: Houston-Hobby for a two-hour layover.
Main
observation about HOU was “Crimony, this is a teeny airport” when compared to
the likes of ATL. Had enough time for a nosh and decompressing while
anticipating my first ever Southwest boarding. My boarding position was
assigned the code “B5” and my departure gate at HOU was “42”. Could my layover
be any more influenced by science-fiction??
Directive?
For
those who have not yet flown Southwest, here’s how their boarding process is
broken down as best I can tell:
---
wheelchair/medical assisteds first
---
Group “A1-60” which normally encompasses those who are loyalty rewards members
with SW or who pay for the ability to jump position in line
---
families with small children
---
Group “B1-60”
---
Group “C1-60”
A
peccadillo I have with this is, of course, passengers bringing carry-ons and
taking time to search out the seat they want to take near to where they stow
their bags in the overhead bins. To me, this adds a layer of hassle that
assigned seating does not have. But, whatever. I’m just a lowly fatman on a
plane consisting only of Coach Class seats. What do I know?
I
found an open window seat in a row where a fellow fatman had taken the aisle
seat. The middle had not yet been claimed as I took possession of the
preference. He and I looked conspiratorially at each other sharing the same
thought: “Who would choose to sit between two heavyset passengers?”
At
that point the lead flight attendant made the fateful announcement over the PA
system. This was a full flight and all seats were booked. As it happened, there
was a bendy, slip of a girl that was one of the last passengers to board. Her
choice was already made for her as she was left only with the chair between me
and my corpulent compatriot. She was slim enough where a part of me wondered if
she was anorexic. She was also fidgety during the flight but never bumped
either of us.
Me:
I put in my earpods, started a Doctor Who audio drama by Big Finish, and let my
mind wander above the clouds as I watched the passing scenery.
Destination:
LAX
Achievement
Unlocked: Traveling further west than before
Bonus
Round Failed: Unable to dabble toes in Pacific Ocean due to time/transportation
concerns
Qantas liveried Airbus A380 caught in the wild
The iconic part of LAX - always seemed larger in pictures
Bundling
in to the car service Kevin arranged for my arrival at LAX I was whisked off to
Anaheim and the Happiest Place on Earth while boggled at the haphazard drivers
at Terminal 1’s arrival/departure area and then the LA highways, freeways, and
such. I thought Atlanta drivers were a crop of crazies and that Orlando could
be temper-testing. Little did I realize. We are NOTHING compared to the Greater
Los Angeles area…at least from my perspective. This was one time I was glad to
have not needed to rent a car.
Upon
landing at LAX I caught up on texting with Kevin (as he had arrived earlier
that morning) to make sure he knew I arrived safely and was enroute to the
hotel. Our friend Paul had already arrived…so the party was slowly beginning. This
was at about 1:30pm PT. By this time I had been awake since 7:30am ET the
previous day – roughly 33 hours of consciousness so far. My brain was prepped and ready
for the surreal as it was already nearing that boundary on its own.
From
the approach the driver used, I had hoped to catch sight of Disneyland from the
highway and local streets on our way to the Disneyland Hotel. I was a bit
surprised when we were entering the grounds for the hotel to drop me off an I
had not seen even a hint of the Matterhorn as of yet from outside the park.
However, that would be an easy thing to get past in the grand scheme of this
excursion.
Neither
Paul nor Kevin were down in the lobby awaiting me; but the room number had been
texted to me. An elevator ride later and knocking on the door, and I am
reunited with friends I only see but rarely. Hugs shared, greetings greeted, I
am allowed to freshen up and change for my first steps in to the fabled
homeland: the first theme park Walt Disney built.
JoeZer on DLR Main Street - unable to locate the castle
Getting
to Disneyland, or even Disney California Adventure, from the hotel would take
us on foot through Downtown Disney then, when arriving at the esplanade, either
choosing to go left (Disneyland) or right (DCA). The main entrances to both
parks are about a football field (if not less) apart from each other. SO EASY
for park hopping, if I must say. This time, the destination was clear:
Disneyland.
In
brief, as I do plan on more detailed thoughts in following entries, I will say
that the original park felt quaint and cozy to me. The buildings, attractions,
lands are snuggled closer together and the exterior queues are coiled and
designed in a way as to not hamper guest traffic unless there is an undue
amount of attention for an attraction (brand new experience, reopening after
long refurbish, etc). However, I can easily see how Walt’s comment about the
Florida Project is very apt: for the original concept of EPCOT he needed, and
got, the “blessings of size” by purchasing large tracts of land at fair prices
before it became known who was actually making the purchase, thereby making the
price skyrocket.
On
the walk over from the hotel to the parks Paul, Kevin, and I stopped for a meal
in Downtown Disney. Was good to get some real food in me after traveling all
day and only having plane nibbles and airport Wendy’s in Houston. While in
Disneyland for the afternoon I got my first runs through on some classics:
Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, explored the “Mechanical Kingdom”
exhibit at the Disney Gallery, plus other things that are escaping my brain at
the moment.
Due
to my self-imposed marathon of consciousness I began to flag on my endurance.
My brain barely registered that it should feel like I was in the Twilight Zone
or a parallel world while in Disneyland: similar experiences, buildings, and
such but not all in the same place as I am used to them being in. We ambled
back to the hotel to take in one lest new experience before retiring to bed:
Trader Sam’s.
Now,
one would think that as I am not responsible in any way for driving anywhere on
this trip that I would (quite possibly over-) indulge in some libations. One
would be correct in this case. But, knowing my current physical state, I opted
to stay with only one drink this evening while enjoying the company of friends
and the Tiki infused ambiance of the lounge. Our talks ranged topics near and
dear to each of us as we partook of drinks and nibbles: Kungaloosh for Kevin,
Krakatoa for me, something margarita-ish for Paul, and a Pu Pu platter for all.
Order this, and you will blow a volcano making it very happy.
This is what I swallowed when making the volcano blast.
And, yes. I got the souvenir Tiki mug to commemorate me
blowing the volcano.
Let’s
just say, that since Trader Sam’s is designed as a Disney lounge, there are
chances for things to happen within the bar when certain drinks are ordered by
guests. As mentioned above, I ordered a Krakatoa. Doing so, I got to blow
volcanoes.
Me.
Blowing volcanoes. Amongst friends. Quite a nice way to wind down and wrap up
my day’s travels and quickie peek inside the park that Walt built.
Brain
was ready for bed. My spirit was happy and light.
So…I
look at the old saying: “The journey matters more than the destination.” I
wonder, now that I am physically at the destination for this trip, is my
journey over? Or still in progress…?
A selection of "Welcome to DLR, ya First-Timer!"
Kevin had these laying out for my arrival at the hotel
(photo courtesy of Kevin Q)
~JoeZer
PS:
Poor WALL-E and TARDIS never saw inside the parks once I arrived and unpacked
at the hotel…
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