Since our arrival day in Paris was not a great one, Monday night I contacted our Sunday School class via Facebook and asked for them to pray for our Disney day. This may sound like an insignificant or even frivolous request in light of the things going on in our world. But one of the great things about God is that He cares about the small things on behalf of His children. So I humbly took Him my worry about the predicted heat, whether or not Desmond would nap, and our ability to rebound emotionally from a rough day and my praying friends joined me in that. We asked for peace and fun family memories to be made.
It is therefore with great joy that I can give all the glory to God for our day being a wonderful one
. Considering the 93 degree heat, this was nothing short of a miracle. Such a good gift to end our trip. Thanks, God! :)
We woke up and I made four peanut butter and jelly sandwiches while Desmond chanted "peanut butter jelly time." We each had one, since there was no free breakfast at this hotel, and headed for the subway to ride it in to Disneyland. As we walked Bethie was getting Desmond excited. "We're going to Di'neyland!" He'd say, "Di'neyland!!" Lots of smiles and laughs all around on the way in to the park.
Bethie was teasing me, "I can't wait to read the blog and see what we do today" as she has numerous times during this trip. I told her that her saying that was going to make it into the blog, for one thing, and she laughed.
We took photos on the way in from the train station. Got our tickets. Stepped out onto Main Street USA and felt like we were home. All the signs were in English. Familiar music played. We went over to try and get Desmond a "first time" button from City Hall but they were all out. A friendly cast member got us a paper badge with the characters on it and wrote Desmond's name on there. Desmond wanted to wear it right away.
We spotted Goofy first thing and Bryan took off purposely in his direction carrying Desmond. I ditched the stroller and ran to catch up hollering to Bethie over my shoulder, "You've got the stroller!" Alas, Goofy slipped away backstage before we could get over there
.
As we continued down Main Street, there were Mickey and Minnie, with a long line of people queued up already. I took Desmond over to wave at Mickey and Minnie. He said "Desmond hold it?" I explained that all those people were waiting for their turn to meet Mickey and Minnie and we were going to fly on an elephant instead. Then we saw Chip & Dale. "See where chipmunks is?" So I took him over and showed him who Chip & Dale were.
We continued to follow our plan of taking Desmond on Dumbo first. Bryan did not go to Disneyland as a very young child, so this was his first time on Dumbo as well. :) As we waited Desmond watched with great wonder what people were doing. He commented on the water fountain aspect of the ride. When it was our turn we tried to find two elephants by each other so Bethie and I could sit in front and take photos of Desmond. Unfortunately, they had either let too many people in, or people had split up that were supposed to ride together, because there were not enough elephants for us. We waited while Desmond rode with Bryan, and then it was our turn, waving to Desmond each time as we went past. This worked out fine.
From there we headed to Pirates of the Caribbean. A favorite with the adults, we decided to give it a try with Desmond as there is no height limit. Bryan held him on his lap and said his little heart got to thumping pretty good when we would go down the "slides" but he quietly took it all in, wide-eyed
. There were no complaints about it being too dark, noisy, fast or bumpy. When we got off he seemed to still be processing it all.
Next it was time to introduce Bethie to the European version of Indiana Jones. It is not a story ride. It is a little roller coaster. Bryan and Desmond watched the coaster for a while, filled our water bottles, and then ended up in a remarkably short line to meet Chip and Dale. The Temple of Peril ride was fun. More fun than I had remembered now that I knew what I was getting.
When we rejoined the boys they were third in line to meet the characters. Unfortunately, they do things a little differently in Paris than in the states when it comes to characters. Each family can basically take as much time as they want. There is not an official photographer. The cast members serving as the character's "handlers" will take multiple photos with whatever cameras/cell phones you hand them. This policy, combined with the heat (in which they were, understandably, being very strict about getting the costumed characters their breaks every 20 minutes) meant that they left on a break before Desmond got to meet them. Which explained an oddity Bryan had noticed around the park - long lines for characters that were not even there.
Bryan stuck it out and waited in the sun until they came back. And I'm so glad he did
. When it was Desmond's turn, the characters encouraged him to pet the fur on their paws and see how soft they were. Then he gave them high fives and fist bumps. We took a family photo next. Then Bryan set him down on the ground and he walked up to Dale and initiated a hug all on his own. It was precious. I could have gone home at that point and the day would have been worth it. Desmond loved meeting them, and my heart was full watching him, and watching Bryan be the sort of papa that will stand in the 93 degree heat waiting for characters to return to bring him that joy.
At this point it was lunchtime and we all needed to cool off. Bethie looked at the map and pointed us in the direction of Cowboy Cookout Barbecue. As we stepped inside the barn it was dark and cool. The place already got my vote of approval. There was live music (which Desmond enjoyed, dancing around a bit while Bryan got food) and the food was tasty. We left feeling much better about life in general.
Next we split up again. Desmond and Bryan headed over to the Jedi Academy show while Bethie and I went over to the Walt Disney Studios park and did my favorite ride in Paris, Crush's Coaster. It was even more fun than I had remembered! (Unfortunately they wouldn't give me a baby switch pass without seeing the baby this time, so Bryan didn't get to ride it with me later like I had hoped.) Then we waited in the hot sun for one of Bethie's favorite Disney rides, the Tower of Terror
. I'd never done it before and I giggled my fool head off. Too fun.
Meanwhile, Desmond who was theoretically going to be napping by this point, was still awake and eating ice cream with Bryan. We met up in between the parks and went shopping for a bit and got some cold drinks. I found a cute Chip & Dale cup that said Disneyland Paris on it. Bryan found all the Star Wars things. Bethie found some not-to-be-missed mugs. Desmond found a bucket. And then inflated, remote control R2-D2. And then little light sabers which he activated and swung against Papa's just like they'd seen in Jedi academy. We left empty handed so as not to tote a bunch of stuff around the rest of the day, but had lots of good ideas of where to throw our money.
Next up was the new Ratatouille ride. None of us had ever ridden it, so that was fun. Desmond looked like he would fall asleep in line wrapped up in his little blankie, but he made it and even wore his 3D glasses like a champ
. There were a couple of times during the ride that he was definitely startled, but when we got off he said "that fun ride" and wanted to do it again.
Next we continued an ongoing search for frozen lemonade, a favorite Disneyland treat of Bethie's. We stood in line for slushes, which was the closest we'd found. When I ordered mine the woman said "I can't recommend it. In this heat it is just juice." She swirled around a cup of the red liquid and we put out money back in our pockets.
We entered Disneyland proper again to find a place along the parade route. I couldn't wait to see Desmond's little face when the characters started coming by. It very quickly became evident that all the shady areas were packed with overly warm parade goers, and the sunny areas were filling up as well. It was impossible to imagine standing in the sun for the parade. Desmond didn't know there even was a parade and wouldn't be disappointed in the least, so I voted with the others to change our plans
. Before we left Main Street Bryan asked a cast member with an information button on, "Frozen lemonade?" "Ah, yes. By the Frontierland Railroad. Just next to it."
We took off to get Bethie her long sought after treat. As we got closer and closer we began to be suspicious. There were signs about the "Frozen Sing-along." I couldn't stop laughing as it dawned on us all that the woman had sent us to a Frozen entertainment event (which was definitely *not* Bethie's favorite) instead of to a snack stand.
As Bethie sipped her consolatory "tropical" flavored blue slushy, we made our way to Pirates of the Caribbean and walked on the ride. When we got off the ride for the second time that day Desmond's little voice could be heard singing "Yo ho, yo ho a pirate's life for me." It was awesome.
We went back over to Fantasy land and introduced Desmond to the teacups. All four of us rode in the same cup, and I was struck by how little room there was for my legs and knees! Desmond got to help turn the wheel, but looked like he could have used another time or two to get it through his un-napped brain just what was going on with this ride.
Next we did Alice's Curious Labyrinth. This is a walk-through storybook attraction that is actually a hedge maze. It's great fun! Desmond walked part of the way and sometimes Bryan carried him and let him choose which way we all went
. I particularly liked it when he bushes were tall enough that we were walking in the shade. ;)
The parade goers all seemed to have rejoined us in the park by this point. So we went and got dinner at the Pizzeria Bella Notte, a Lady and the Tramp themed pasta place we had enjoyed four years ago when we were here last. It didn't disappoint.
Finally it was Bryan's turn to ride a roller coaster. Bethie and he decided to do Space Mountain 2. I was going to take Desmond on It's a Small World, but Bryan suggested he might enjoy seeing the Jedi Academy show again now that he knew better what to expect. I asked him if he'd like to go see Troopers and Jedi again and he was all for it, so we went with that plan.
It turned out to be a real winner. As soon as the lights and music started he climbed up in my lap and he watched and clapped at every opportunity along with the crowd. He didn't stop watching until the music had ended and every last stage light went off. Theatre-goer in the making, perhaps? ;)
Then we used the ride switch and I went on Space Mountain 2 with Bryan. So that was a good use of our time. :) We were all pretty tuckered out at this point, so we headed back to the castle to see the dragon before going home. Except they had the dragon's lair blocked off. Bummer. But we got some good evening photos with the castle before leaving the area.
Last we did our shopping and went back to the RER station to ride back to the hotel. Desmond fell asleep at this point without a fuss. What a blessing. I had been expecting a Disney-meltdown all day and it never came. He tried new things without refusing, he met characters with enjoyment and no fear, and he watched the Jedi show with delight. He was a Disney rockstar. Thank you, Jesus. What a wonderful way to end our trip. :)
~ Merilee
Disneyland Paris!
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
Champs-sur-Marne, Île-de-France, France
Other Entries
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1Starting Out
Jul 0217 days priorSeaTac, United Statesphoto_camera12videocam 2comment 3 -
2Flying to San Francisco
Jul 0316 days priorSan Francisco, United Statesphoto_camera6videocam 0comment 5 -
3On to Boston
Jul 0316 days priorBoston, United Statesphoto_camera6videocam 0comment 3 -
4Freedom Trail
Jul 0415 days priorBoston, United Statesphoto_camera25videocam 0comment 2 -
5Flight to Zürich
Jul 0415 days priorZürich, Switzerlandphoto_camera14videocam 0comment 2 -
6Arrival
Jul 0514 days priorZürich, Switzerlandphoto_camera16videocam 1comment 2 -
7Lovely Luzern
Jul 0613 days priorLuzern, Switzerlandphoto_camera31videocam 2comment 2 -
8Amazing Alps
Jul 0712 days priorLauterbrunnen, Switzerlandphoto_camera27videocam 1comment 3 -
9Train Day to Innsbruck
Jul 0811 days priorInnsbruck, Austriaphoto_camera23videocam 3comment 1 -
10Through Salzburg to Wien
Jul 0910 days priorSalzburg, Austriaphoto_camera27videocam 2comment 2 -
11When in Wien
Jul 109 days priorWien, Austriaphoto_camera41videocam 2comment 1 -
12Trains and Bones
Jul 118 days priorPrague, Czech Republicphoto_camera24videocam 0comment 1 -
13Prague Day
Jul 127 days priorPrague, Czech Republicphoto_camera23videocam 0comment 3 -
14Bus Out to Nürnberg
Jul 136 days priorBeroun, Czech Republicphoto_camera10videocam 1comment 1 -
15Nürnberg
Jul 145 days priorNürnberg, Germanyphoto_camera33videocam 0comment 4 -
16Day Trip to Rothenburg
Jul 154 days priorRothenburg ob der Tauber, Germanyphoto_camera39videocam 0comment 3 -
17Rhine Cruise and Onward
Jul 163 days priorMainz, Germanyphoto_camera31videocam 0comment 2 -
18Belgium
Jul 172 days priorBruxelles, Belgiumphoto_camera29videocam 0comment 1 -
19Paris
Jul 181 day priorParis, Francephoto_camera14videocam 2comment 1 -
20Disneyland Paris!
Jul 19Champs-sur-Marne, Francephoto_camera28videocam 5comment 2
Comments

2025-02-16
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Andrea
2016-07-22
So glad it was such a good day!