I'm baaaaaack!

Yes, I survived.

The crowds were insane.

The lines were long.

The heat wasn't TOO bad, and it even rained one day while we were out gallavanting...

But all in all, it was a great time.

We flew out on Friday, the 13th, and arrived into John Wayne airport (or Orange County Air, or Santa Anna International.. Take your pick of what name to use!). Getting the rental was interesting..

There were 8 of us, so a conventional minivan or SUV wouldn't cut it. No, we opted for the 15 passenger econo-van. Yes, this monster wouldn't even fit in the airport parking garage, so me and my family got to stand out in the rain at the loading area while my dad hiked with a rental agent to get the van. I even was able to get in trouble there, since my dad didn't park close enough to the loading zone, and a police officer mistook him for a shuttle driver, and proceeded to chew us out for not obeying his traffic laws. I could have easily gotten ticketed that day, if my wife hadn't calmed me down enough to let me know that spending your first day on vacation isn't so fun when you're in jail. Thanks hon!

We got to the hotel, unpacked, and collapsed into separate piles of mush. I never really noticed before, but packing, travelling and unpacking really takes a toll on the mental and physical fortitude of a person. We anxiously watched the news for weather reports, and plotted our plan of attack for the upcoming days.

For the sake of keeping this blog manageable, I'm going to talk about our first day there.

Yup. Valentine's Day.

We went in when the park opened, and proceeded to swim with the other Homo Sapiens in a massive jumble of humanity. Lines were insanely long, crowds were rude, and as long as you weren't in anybody's way, you didn't run the risk of getting run over while walking through the park. Fast passes are a great idea, but the waiting in line to get one is just incredible. I mean, who ever thought up "fast passes" is a god, but how about a fast pass in order to get a fast pass? Waiting in line an hour to get a slip of paper that's good for a quick line for a great ride, but you have to wait an hour to use is kind of an oxymoron, in my humble opinion.

I mean, with the two hours I've wasted waiting in line to get the slip, and then to wait in order to get on the ride, I'm sure I'd have been able to get in line twice for the same stinking ride.........

Anyway, the day was interesting, my dad and I were able to sneak an order of flowers up to the rooms without my mom or my wife noticing, and the day went fairly smoothly.

Dinner was interesting, but at least food was procured for everyone, and we were then able to head home with little energy left for much else.

However, the hotel we stayed at had an excellent view of the Disney parks, and we were able to watch the firework shows from our balconies instead of rubbing elbows with everyone in the park.

Day two's events will be tomorrow, stay tuned!