TR: David and Bill Ride The Rails to Knott's & Disneyland!

Nrthwnd · November 6, 2019

Time for Oga's Cantina! ~ And We Find Ears for Baby Groot!

We'd spent most of the day in Disneyland, riding attractions, and basically "killing time", so that we could (finally) visit the spot I was most looking forward to: Oga's Cantina in Black Spire Outpost. I had reserved an entry time, before we left on the trip. 3:45pm. Earlier times were taken, which made me wonder why people would go drinking that much earlier in the day? No matter. We took the advisement of arriving 15 minutes ahead of our appointment, got there to queue up at 3:30, and after only a few minutes, my name was called out. My first name, which kind of threw me at first. Maybe they couldn't pronounce my last name, lol.

We were led to a standing table area, which at first we weren't too sure we could handle. But after several minutes, and a couple of cocktails, we enjoyed this way more than we would being sequestered in a booth. The view of the whole place was much better where we were standing. AND - their rule of maximum 45 minutes time there, actually turned into over an hour for us! We were in before 3:40, and we didn't leave until after 5! No complaining there, heh.

And for two cocktails and two ciders, it cost us nearly $60 U.S. We didn't mind. We were very happy and slightly tipsy when we left the place, arm in arm. The cocktails were good, we loved the cider, and had great conversation with others who shared the other half of our table. I think we even convinced a couple to look into going to Tokyo Disney Resort for a nice romantic vacation.

After we left Oga's, we immediately headed to Docking Bay 7 for some food to balance out all those drinks we just had. David picked the ribs (natch) and I had what was the chicken salad. Both were excellent, and we decided we would both get these both again, in a future visit.

Inside Docking Bay, I spotted another guest with a Baby Groot on his shoulder. But this one had The Ears on his head! I rushed over from our table to ask him "where did you get that?" He told us it was a key chain that Disney was selling, and someone had figured out that the ears were the right size for Baby Groot! So it could bought, the chain take off of it, and the e3ars went on Groot's little head. Perfect. But, he warned us, everybody was finding out about it so the key chains were "selling out very fast all over the Resort." Eep.

So we headed to the Emporium, and found nothing there. The guest had already told us all the key chains were out at the Guardians ToT Gift Shop (where they got theirs). So we decided to hit the World of Disney in Downtown Disney, and start there. That's where we found a wonderful cast member who got on a phone (key chains were all sold out there, too) and checked practically every main gift shop there was in both parks. Nothing found yet. Until she called the little gift shop in the Disneyland Hotel main lobby... Jackpot! And there were only a few left of them, too.

So we immediately headed off to the Disney Hotel, with directions from the cast member. Found the key chains and bought one. David humphed at the $10 cost, but I in hindsight, thought I should have bought two of them just to spite him, lol. But only one was bought. Happy us. But later here at home, I realized we were only a few steps from Trader Sam's which I really wanted to visit, at least once. Ah well. Next visit for sure.

Then we stuck around Downtown Disney, until it was time to get our shuttle and head back to the Knott's Hotel...

On the way to Oga's. Every time we passed this, I immediately thought of Knott's Berry Farm.

Spires!

We find The Coke, along the way to Oga's.

Here we are, and just as we stepped into the queue, my name was called. Fast!

First look at it all, inside.

We see the souvenir mugs and the Rancor Beer Flight board and 'teeth.'

Menu, side A. David had the Fuzzy Tauntaun and I had The Outer Rim.

Menu, side B. We were curious about the Oga's Obsession, but never got one, darnit.

We did keep it to two drinks each. The cider's in front of David.

I am happy with my Outer Rim cocktail.

Rex "spinning disks" like a good DJ should. Great to wat.

Souvenir coasters (the other kind) to take with us!

Back to Docking Bay 7 for food!

David had the Kaatu, and I had the Tip Yip.

Both excellent! And of the two, I really enjoyed that salad over the ribs!

Heading out to find Ears for Grrot.

Remember the trivia, when Walt actually considered this side of The Castle being the front of it?

Then he "turned it around" and all was well with the Disney World. (o;

Heading to the Emporium for our first look for that key chain. No luck there.

Nope. No DCA for today.

Interesting displays in Downtown Disney.

A Starbucks break.

Where we headed for those Ears. And we were soooo close to Trader Sam's too (below the pools there).

This is it. Or them, I guess I should say. (o:

On Baby Groot, at home. Perfect fit.

ytterbiumanalyst · November 7, 2019

All the food and drinks are made with Earth stuff! They lied!!!

Everything looks awesome, and $60 for four drinks is about what I would expect.

Nrthwnd · November 8, 2019

^ But those damned Earth visitors just can't visit other worlds, without

their damned chicken salad, and damned pork ribs being available, too.

Damn them all!

I brought back The Coke Bottle, too. Looks totally messed up, like it should be. (o:

Nrthwnd · November 9, 2019

Guess this creature! Then, please share with us, What ~ It ~ Is?*

No prize. Just thanks. (To Be Continued...)

*And Coat Hanger Beast does not count.

In the Antiques Shop in Black Spire Outpost. Sept.13/19.

Nrthwnd · November 12, 2019

Friday The (sept) 13th in DLR ~ What Could Possibly Happen? And....it did.

Our final day of the trip happened to be a Friday The 13th. Not that we're superstitious or anything.

But - after my morning shower, I went to use the room's hair dryer. And after all the time I'd been

using it during our stay..... pfffft. It wouldn't work any more. Hmmm.

But we carried on. Starting in DCA, we had another great breakfast at Flo's, then continued on to Racers.

Because the queue had already gotten so long, I suggested to David that we try the Single Rider Line.

So, that's the way we went for this ride. And when we got going, I was three cars ahead of him.

And....long story short...just as my vehicle was heading into Ramone's for "a fresh coat of paint",

everything - started --- slowing down ------- to a stop. So while I was stopped inside Ramone's,

poor David was stopped just as he entered the town. And the music kept playing where he was.

For us where we were, total silence.

And then, The Message started up. Every three minutes or so. Telling us to to stay seated, not to

bring out cameras and such, and the attraction would start up again "momentarily"...

It never did start up again. And after what felt like an eternity, we had Cast members coming up to

each car, getting us carefully out of the car, and then walking us in single file out of the attraction.

I had no idea where David was being led, but my group headed out, from where the race started,

along side the racing 'track' and easily out of the attraction area.

David and the group he was with joined us back through the single rider queue. And there we were

all given a Fast Pass on our ticket, good for any ride at any time, within 48 hours. We did have Fast Passes

for Racers, for later on in the afternoon. But decided not to go back.

The whole event lasted roughly, by David's count, 32 minutes. Which really wasn't that bad in timing.

The Fast Pass we were given, we decided to use on a second ride of Midway Mania. After I did another

ride on The Incredicoaster. Then both of us on Mater's Jamboree. And one more ride for us on Guardians.

Then, we headed out, over to Disneyland and and eventually back up to Black Spire Outpost for

drinks and air conditioning....

Really love what they did for Halloween, here in Cars Land.

Flo's again for breakfast.

In Sarge's, they had this great display of Cars Land model buildings for sale.

But they were only being sold one at a time. Ramone's Body Shop was the one being sold at this time.

And I wanted this one. And Fillmore's had glow in the dark stuff, too. Well, there's always eBay.

The scenic calm before the glitch at Racers.

If I was this kid, I wouldn't trust that human OR the truck, either.

Back to DL, we see "It's Still A Stroller World After All..."

We get a refreshing non-boozy Mint Julep.

Side Theming.

Even poodles need to poop. A nice, but very public, area for Service Dogs.

I wish we'd gotten a second ride here. Oh well. Next time I/we visit. (o;

Where ARE the crowds in this park? A lull in the walkway towards Black Spire Outpost.

In Docking Bay 7, we had one of each of these.

The Moof Juice was too "sour" for me. The Batuubucha was much sweeter and nicer.

Interior shot of Docking Bay 7. (To Be Continued...)

Nrthwnd · November 13, 2019

After we finished our drinks, we finally headed into Dok-Ondar's Den of Antiquities. There's again, like most of the places in Outpost, so real sign to signify which is what place. And that's fine with me. It makes the exploring all the more enjoyable. And we kept seeing the front "door" sliding open and shut, so eventually we decided to investigate.

Lots of "stuff" to see, in a two floor spot. But you are only allowed on the first floor, and have to admire what is on the second floor from afar. What really got us was the collection of stuffed (taxidermied?) heads on one spot of the wall. All freeky, but all interesting, too.

(DM) = David Myers took those particular photos.

We still don't know what any of these creatures are. (DM)

(DM)

Everything looks just "wrong" on this head. (DM)

Got toothpaste? (DM)

If this is a friendly creature, I don't think I want to be licked by it. Euuuuuw. (DM)

All of them.

When the door opens, this is what you see first in the shop.

Who's this?

It's Dok-Ondar himself.

Outside the shop. Should have given it away. (To Be Continued...)

Edited November 14, 2019 by Nrthwnd

bert425 · November 13, 2019

can't help on some of em. . but. .

THIS:

is a TaunTaun (what Han/Luke slice open and hide inside of during the ice storm in Empire Strikes Back)

THIS:

is a Rancor (like what Jabba keeps under is throne room in his palace in Return of the Jedi)

ytterbiumanalyst · November 14, 2019

The trophies are a nice touch, and that Dok-Ondar animatronic looks great!

Nrthwnd · November 15, 2019

^ We were looking at those, and whatever we could see on the upper level, more than what was actually being sold in the place. And compared to the Market Stalls in the other area of the Outpost, this had some primo expensive stuff for sale, including clothing. Also, Dok-Ondar didn't move that much. Usually a side to side movement, then leaning forward to look at invoices, I guessed. And he was very quiet, too. I thought he would blurt out something loudly, but he never did when we were there. And compared to other shops we've been to (like DL's Emporium) it was freekishly quiet in there. Nothing above a whisper. Almost like a library (or a religious place) of some kind, heh.

And ^^ thanks Bert for identifying two of those heads. I thought the TaunTaun was familiar, but I am a very poor Star Wars fan when it comes to trivia and remembering such stuff. It's the "age thing", probably.

By the way, with all the "stuff" around Dok-Ondar's neck, I thought it'd be funny, maybe around April Fools Day (Apr.01), that somebody slip a pin lanyard around his neck, with Disney Pins all over it, lol.

Paper Fast Passes collection, soon to be extinct in DLR. (rumor?)

Nrthwnd · November 17, 2019

Our Final Hours in Disneyland

It had to end eventually. Our time in Disney and at Knott's. But we didn't last-minute rush to ride rides or see shows. We just enjoyed being in the atmosphere of the place, simple.

We took a second ride on Smuggler's Run and actually got the pilot seats again. But we gave them up to a couple with us, who had the Engineers passes, as we wanted to just shoot stuff, LOL. It was again fun, and we actually "collected" two of those power capsules this time 'round. And there was still so much to see in the queue, which didn't last very long, either.

After Run, we headed back through Fantasyland, and went on another ride "down the rabbit hole" with Alice. I will never tire of that dark ride. And I still wonder why they never duplicated it in any other Disney Magic Kingdom in the world?

After our Wonderland adventures, I got a third ride on the Matterhorn (thank you Single Riders queue), and then we went in search of.....fries. David had this wish to get some fries before we left, so we looked around a bit, and found them at the Galactic Grill in Tomorrowland. He was happy.

After that, we just poked around, looking at theming, taking in the atmosphere of Main Street, USA. And after my getting a Starbucks coffee, we headed out of the park to the shuttle pickup for our final ride back to the Knott's Hotel.

And started packing, for our leaving the next morning.

Back in line for one more Smuggler's Run mission! (o:

A better view of that abandoned card game.

David and his fries. And my 1st (of two) coffee beverage.

I miss the days when this performance stage used to lift up from the ground.

For the Halloween shows we didn't see. (Photo by Disney)

Striking.

Bustling Main Street.

One last look.

7 pm. Me, Groot and my 2nd coffee drink. And it's time to get to our shuttle pickup at 7:20. (DM)

Bye Disneyland.

Till we meet again, Disney California Adventure.

Last night shots from Knott's Hotel.

G'night. Early rising in the morning. We got a train to catch!

One more adventure with Alice.

One more ride for me on The Matterhorn, Right Side. (o;

Edited November 20, 2019 by Nrthwnd

805Andrew · November 18, 2019

Looks like you had a nice trip. It seems like you just missed the Halloween events like Knott's Scary Farm and Oogie Boogie Bash. Next time you do a California trip I recommend coming when Halloween events are in full swing so you can experience Knott's Scary Farm (and Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights too). If Halloween events aren't your thing I recommend visiting when all the holiday decorations are up at Disneyland and when Knott's Merry Farm is going on as long as its not Thanksgiving weekend or too close to Christmas (more crowds). Knott's Boysenberry Festival in the springtime is also a good time to visit for a future trip. And if you haven't been to Universal Studios Hollywood or haven't done it in many years I also recommend visiting it on a future trip (and its easily accessible from the LA Metro).

ytterbiumanalyst · November 18, 2019

Great conclusion to a great trip!

Nrthwnd · November 19, 2019

^ Thanks.....but wait! There's more! The train ride back home

was it's own surprising "adventure", heh. Stay tuned.

And ^^ thanks for all the great seasonal suggestions in visiting these parks. Unfortunately, at our age (I'm 66, David's 72) and health, and current income, it is tricky organizing any trip that feels "worth it" to and for us. That said, I/we really REALLY want to visit more during a Holiday Season, especially Disney. And Knott's too. We're planning to do the Food & Wine Festival at EPCOT in Nov.2024. And Tokyo Disney Resort during their Holiday Season too, after Fantasy Springs opens in TDS (probably Nov-Dec.2025).

Also, we've discovered that no matter where we travel in the world, most school children are back in school after Labor Day weekend. So that proves (early-mid Sept.) be a somewhat less-busy time to visit parks like Disney and Knott's. It is usually between different holiday events/seasons. But that's okay. It's worth the smaller crowds, most times.

And of course, things can always change with future planning, right?

This is going on top of a New York style CHEESECAKE, that I will be making, eventually.

Nrthwnd · November 21, 2019

~ Heading Home ~ Day 1 (The Day After Friday The 13th)

Saturday, Sept.14 - We got up, checked out of the Hotel headed to the

train station, and got our quick connecting train ride to Union Station in LA.

On the main train, settled into our sleeper room.... and then they announced....we're doing a detour.

So, no view of the ocean, heading back. All inland, and re-connecting with our original route, we had no idea where it would be. Hmmmph. But what can ya do in this situation? We had to detour because of planned bridge work and some track being repaired/replaced/re-something. How much extra time this would take, and put us off our schedule, we also didn't really know.

And then - later on - we stop "somewhere" and stay where we are for at least a 1/2 hour. And then they announced... apparently, it was announced, a freight train had "hit a vehicle" and our train had to wait until things were cleared off, we supposed. It was also announced later on (after two hours still where we were), something about a "trespasser" on the tracks. WTF? I don't think we ever got a really accurate reason of what was happening. But one thing we did know - time was moving along...and we weren't.

After we finally got moving again, we were pretty sure there was no way they were going to make up for time. So we just accepted it, relaxed, had our meals with other fellow passengers, and just rode along the rails...

Union Station as seen from our sleeper car room.

Bye bye LA.

That's not white paint. It's foaming, rushing water, running down there!

Joshua trees.

Le Menu for lunch.

Starter tea and roll.

Finished! LOL, why the photo of a plate I have no idea. Think I was still in shock about the train route change.

Crack in the world.

Orchard.

Random photo.

Hops. (o:

The single bare tree must be significant to the farmer. Maybe?

Dinner time!

I had the priciest thing on Le Menu. Steak with a big crab cake.

Night light shots. Hmmm. "Cinderella & Her Three Fairies"....?

Hidden Mickey? Sort of?

G'night.

Edited November 21, 2019 by Nrthwnd

bert425 · November 21, 2019

I'm surprised they charge for the food!

for the length of your train ride, i really thought the meals would be included (as they are with a long plane flight).

Nrthwnd · November 21, 2019

^ They are included. I just wrote that caption wrong. If you are riding economy, or without any sleeper room set up, you still can eat in the Dining Car. But you have to pay. And these are the prices they charge. I figured that within our train price, aprrox. up to $200 is allotted for food, alcohol not included. That's for five meals (1xB; 2xL; 2xD).

I should have explained that up front, sry.

bert425 · November 21, 2019

ah. .makes more sense

ytterbiumanalyst · November 21, 2019

I've never traveled first class, but I have traveled in economy on the Texas Eagle (Chicago-San Antonio train). We ate breakfast in the diner once, still one of the best meals I've ever had. I remember it being a little on the high side but not terribly expensive. The food is legit good on the long-distance trains. Shorter ones like the Missouri River Runner (Kansas City-St. Louis) have microwaved meals that are...um...not worth it.

JG-77 · November 21, 2019

Regarding food on Amtrak:

If you're doing a sleeper car, meals are include, otherwise you must pay.

Food on long distance routes west of the Mississippi are prepared on the train, and is usually good.

On shorter routes, as well as the all the long distance routes on the east coast (except the Auto Train), most of the food is now just pre-made and reheated before consumption after budget cuts.

The reasoning for cutting eastern but not western routes, if anyone is curious, is that because the eastern long distance routes are shorter (about 1-2 days) than the western routes (about 2-3 days), full dining service is less important. Oh well.

Nrthwnd · November 21, 2019

^ I was a little bit peeved, that we didn't have a/the bar car available on this trip. Going down or returning home. We did have one on the trip I did three years ago. And I ~ loved ~ it! Plus, I learned the true way to make a Russian Mule, and I still have the Coast Starlight copper cup to prove it, heh.

Menu of Cocktails.

Yum.

Our bar car, Sept.2016.

Nrthwnd · November 26, 2019

One Day Left of Traveling On The Train......3-1/2 hrs. Late

Yes, it eventually worked out to that much time we were off, from the usual schedule. Besides the freight train accident the previous evening, and because there was a lot of time spent on the tracks, waiting to move on... train personnel had to be changed "somewhere along the line," we were told. A designated spot was picked and we were at it, an hour or so, more.

Eventually we got back to Seattle. But instead of the usual large bus (with bathroom) to take us up to Vancouver, there was a small white van waiting. With no bathroom. Turns out there was only 5 of us traveling back north. But still, a "Bathroom Break" had to be called by a couple of us, at the last rest stop before we hit the border.

That done, we sailed into the Canadian Border just before 3am. And there were five officers waiting for us! Compare that, to when we first bused down on the trip, arrived at the American Border around 6:15am...and had to wait at least 20 minutes, before one officer arrived and instructed us what to do. What a difference!

Got back to where we started (at 3:30am instead of midnight), got a taxi and headed to home.

And the cat. And life in general, as we know it.

Sunrise.

In the wrong spot.

Instead of where we were supposed to be, 3-1/2 hrs. along.

But, Mount Shasta could be seen at this earlier time.

I keep forgetting what this mound of dirt is called. Anybody?

David tried the mussels for lunch. He shared. They were good.

Ahhhhh baby mussel!

We started to get rain along the way.

Noted.

I like how some companys' buildings along the train route, make it a little nicer to look out at. (o:

Very nice.

This was neat to see, too.

And this. There was a running fountain in there, somewhere.

Albany. 3-1/2 hours late. Or thereabouts.

Portland OR.

Last shot of the trip. Traveling over the Columbia R. into Washington State. Almost home.

ytterbiumanalyst · November 26, 2019

Wow, very cool to see Mt. Shasta!

bert425 · November 27, 2019

looks like this was a great trip.

glad y'all had such a good time, and thanks for sharing, Bill.

Nrthwnd · November 29, 2019

^^ Mt.Shasta was cool to see and we got as many photos as we could, once there was enough clearance.

and ^ Thanks, Bert. And of course, there's MORE to show! My Onride Photos and our Souvenirs coming up!

There were only two photos of me/us "onride" which I liked. Us on ToT (bottom left corner), and myself "reacting" on Space Mountain. I definitely liked the Space Mtn. one, as the older person behind me, managed to get herself out from behind me and get her photo, too!

As far as David's Souvenirs go, he really only had one he really wanted to get: the Mickey Mouse Bubble Maker! There was also one with Ariel on it, but this one he really REALLY wanted...and got.

And extra bubble liquid, too. Here's a small video of it going bubble crazy, heh.

P.S. We did share in "edible souvenirs" (lots of stuff from Knott's), but this Souvenir was "personal."

MVI_1842.MOV

PARDON IF THIS DOESN'T WORK FOR EVERYBODY.

How it looks, not 'on'.

It's on.

No bubbles. That's the upper switch.

Nrthwnd · December 3, 2019

Souvenirs: Most Things Paper.....and Pins etc.

Some people collect match book covers. Others collect menus from where they had a good meal.

For myself, I collect whatever I can get my hands on, LOL. That includes used tickets, drink coasters, info flyers...anything is possible, when it comes to collecting memories and stuff from my trips.

So here's the paper souvenirs, with other stuff thrown in, and the pins I bought at the parks. Not a lot this trip, as I think I was keeping tabs on David and making sure he was interested in everything going on around us. So shopping wasn't as much (or costly) as I usually do it.