Driving Home Memorial Day

We had no trouble with traffic through Stockton or Sacramento on 99.  We stopped for lunch at the Black Bear Diner in Woodland, CA  and there were such big portions, Clayton could not even eat it all!   Delicious, hope to go again: there are 75 restaurants already in the chain, including one near Seattle in Federal Way.  

Lake Shasta is beautiful on both sides of I-5.  I had photos from the west side on the way down.

Thankfully we are not going south to get home – huge traffic jam in the mountain section due to construction on that side.  Guess people are returning to SF from their weekend trip. 

And the Mountain is “out” today!

from the rest area

Stayed in Medford for the night – Clayton can carry two tubas, his roller-board and laptop in one load!

seems he's always smiling

Oops!  Lots of bugs gathered on the way back – we’d better wash Andy’s van for him before returning it!

Nice southern Washington State rest area signs

Going Home: San Joaquin Suite Hotel, Fresno

We left Anaheim last evening about 6 p.m. as we needed to get north and we wanted to avoid the Monday holiday traffic in LA.  Also, Andy and the band were flying home, so Clayton would not have a room to stay another night there.  We checked out of our hotel (Best Western Raffles in Anaheim) in the morning and had another day at Disney, and we were able to store the tubas and the computers in the hotel’s storeroom to be safe until we left that evening.

     The reviews here at this hotel were so mixed, we weren't sure what it would be like but took a chance anyway since it had a separate bedroom and the price was good.  It turned out to be a beautiful place, the grounds were so well cared for, our "room" was like a condo, very large and completely clean!   The bathroom was very large with a separate tub and shower stall. The TV in the living room was huge.  The place used to be an apartment complex.

      There are different room configurations, some with the bathroom just off the bedroom and some with a hallway to the bedroom from the living room where the bathroom is, so not only is it therefore a bigger so apartment , but also gives privacy to all sleepers if you have some on the pull - out sofabed.   We couldn't keep from walking around the grounds: several vine covered archways,  corner spots with benches to sit , stone sculptures, and a beautiful pool area.

Breakfast room

           The breakfast was a surprise.  Held out next to the pool in a beautiful glassed-in sunroom, it even had a waffle maker.  But everything else was rather slim: starch items only.  We talked with the lady afterwards, she said they normally had yoghurt and fruits and juice but they were all gone with the holiday weekend and they had not ordered enough in advance.  So that made me feel better that maybe next time, it would be better.   Because we would enjoy coming again, now that we know better how things are with the check in and parking.  Again, the place is lovely.  

16,565 steps today. More Disneyland activities

We walked around a lot as well as watching parades.  Here Ron and Clayton are watching the Pixar Parade at California Adventure.

Other sightings:

Someone sure is having fun!

 One of our favorite street groups in California Adventure:  Five and Dime.  

Quite a musical show they put on many times a day.

 A unicorn topiary (outside It's a Small World.) 

 It's actually not a unicorn but it looks like one, which we like better!

The Disneyland Band, one of our family's favorite groups to hear -- of course!

 

60th year anniversary decorations were everywhere and especially on the castle!

We left Disneyland about 5 p.m. (as Andy's band was flying home tonight too.)

Clayton went around with Faith's group too. All had a great time

Andy's Middle School Band Plays at Disney

The Pacific Cascade Middle School Band did a great job playing at Disneyland today.

The Disney venue for school groups is really great:  such a nice stage with lighting that changes, and then a fabulous workshop for them too.  

We don’t get to go to the workshop this year – only 4 chaperones are allowed and the school has 10 (so we don’t count!) but we saw it a couple of years ago and were so impressed with the music “curriculum.”   

       Clayton says, "Great job, Dad."

Faith is here too, being in 7^th grade and in her dad’s band!

Since tonight is the only evening we’ll be in the park, we made sure we saw the Light Parade tonight.

18, 4573 steps today, walking and seeing these beautiful things.

Can you guess where this beautiful place is?   

     Yes, it is actually at Disneyland!  The night lighting at Disneyland in the Radiator Springs section of California Adventure is so gorgeous, Joan couldn't resist taking photos those beautiful canyons, lit up like a sunset on the Cars Land ride in Radiator Springs. 
     It looked like sunset in the Southwest.  She posted the photos on Facebook as a little puzzle, asking people where they thought we were. Most had no idea it was Disneyland… it was so beautiful and natural-like.
         From the hotel, we could just walk a block to get the Disney bus shuttle in the Toy Story parking lot; super easy and close.   A  new parking lot for us – we were used to the 7 dwarves' named ones. 

    Here was another hint she posted on FB for where we are:  Cadillac Ranch off I-40 in Texas has the tailfins of Cadillac cars sticking up from the ground. The Natural Arch Bridge here frames them.  However, the information sign in front of these car fins says they were formed from special movements of the Teutonic plates!!!  (haha)

  

OH, there's a highway in front of Cadillac Ranch!

Of course, it's a Disney ride!  

Are we on Rt 66?

At night, the neon lights are on the shops

Anyone else remember motels like this, where each little cottage was your room?
Here; you order different things at the different cones.

 After we left Disney at 9:30 p.m. we returned to BIOLA to finish packing up Clayton.

Another Trip to Southern California

We are driving south again to LA, this time to pick up Clayton from BIOLA to bring him home for the summer.  We had offered to do this a month ago and Andy finally gave the go-ahead, since there were several possible options.  Of course the biggest problem is the TWO tubas, which are hard to fly home: one yes, but not two.  
       Andy’s middle school band from Issaquah is flying to Disneyland to play there for Memorial Day weekend and we want to see them, too; Clayton’s last day on campus is May 27^th, so that is perfect timing to pack him out of the dorm, he can stay in Andy’s hotel room, and then we can go together to Disneyland, too.  So last week, we went to Fort Lewis (or rather the Joint Base) and bought the military Disneyland special 3-day hopper tickets for Clayton and us.

Rithg on Rt 66!

        We left Tuesday, May 24^th, and stayed at the Rodeway Inn in Ashland (on Choice Hotel points).  They have done a lot to remodel and upgrade.

     

We knew it would be a good stay since they were a Choice Gold Award winner.

We ate dinner at the adjacent restaurant, the Wild Goose, and it was delicious!!  One of the best places we’ve eaten; wish we lived closer to go more often.

One of the rest areas we stopped at had so many trees with signs and we saw that they were labeled for each state. 

You can hardly see the side of the mountain

   We were headed to our friends, Zibby and Bobby in Salinas.  We passed Mt Shasta, but couldn’t find the mountain as there were clouds all over. Then SUDDENLY, she showed a sliver of her side as the clouds moved slightly left, and then after a short drive, suddenly the mountain was there so close, showing more of the top.  It was so sudden and had been hidden for so long, that it was almost scary, like a Monster Mountain suddenly appeared.  Compare this sight to the one when we drove down in April.

    

Suddenly the mountain was close to us

Taking three days to drive down makes it easier for us. Today we ate lunch at Solvang, at the Little Mermaid Restaurant.  It was originally open during the 30's and the previous owners had owned it for 35 years; then it was closed for a long time. has been redone and the new owners have only been open for a year and a half, but they kept the historic carvings.  It was fun talking with them.

    

 

When we got to the LA area, things really slowed down (of course).  A little frustrating, or rather, a LOT frustrating.  But that’s part of it.

   We checked into our hotel (Best Western Raffles), which was just a block from Andy’s hotel and relaxed until Clayton was through with the band rehearsal, etc on campus and then went over to the dorm room to load up.  Well, he was not packed up, so we helped organize for packing and loaded up most of it, and the one tuba he doesn’t need tomorrow.  He’ll have graduation ceremonies (band playing) all day tomorrow so will not be available again to finalize dorm checkout until nighttime.

   We returned to our hotel and brought in the tuba and his computer into our room for security.  We’re going to Disneyland tomorrow by ourselves.