Mickey and Friends Surf's Up! Breakfast

It has been awhile since I reviewed a character breakfast.  Last summer I took one of my former high school English students from RVA in Kenya to breakfast at the Mickey and Friends Surf's Up! Breakfast in the PCH Grill at the Paradise Pier Hotel. 

Mr. Diva and I had gone to this breakfast back when it was the Lilo and Stitch Breakfast and we liked how laid-back it was and how much time you got with the characters.

It may have changed names, but it is still a nice, laid-back character breakfast and you still get a lot of time with the characters.

 One of my favorite parts of this breakfast is that you get to see DAISY!!  She is a really tough character to find at Disneyland.  Trust me.

 Minnie is looking good in her lifeguard outfit!

And so is Mickey!

 Stitch showed up to breakfast, but Lilo was nowhere to be found.

 Look at Pluto's cute star fish tag!

I probably should stop here and let you know about the food.  It is a Disney Breakfast Buffet - one price, all you can eat.  Fruit, granola, cereal, muffins, yogurt, eggs, bacon, sausage, waffles, omelette bar, etc.  If you have been to a Disney character breakfast, you know what I'm talking about.  

 Periodically, the characters all come out and start dancing with the kids to some surfer music.  It's fun, upbeat and cute.

 The decor is fun, beachy, surfer, Hawaiianish.  Take some time to look around and get pictures with some of the fun spots around the room.

Kowabunga!!

And here we are, student and teacher re-united 20 years later.  

Even with the characters coming through and us going back for refills, we had a great time chatting and getting caught up with each other after 20 years.  And one other nice thing is that you don't need park passes to have the breakfast, so if you are meeting friends or people who will not be going into the park, you can enjoy some Disney magic with them for a fraction of the price!

As far as character meals go, I highly recommend the Mickey and Friends Surf's Up! Breakfast. 

Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree

 The Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree is the new performing arts area in Disneyland.  For decades, high school and college choirs, bands and other performing arts groups have been showcased at the Carnation Plaza Gardens  to the left of Sleeping Beauty's Castle.  The Plaza Gardens is undergoing a big rennovation this next year and so this will be the new area to showcase the performing arts.

 To get to the Jamboree, you just walk along the Big Thunder Trail either from the Village Haus in Fantasyland or Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Frontierland.  Pass through the petting zoo area, or the walkway by the Big Thunder Ranch BBQ.  You'll see the signs.

 There is a big stage for the performances. 

 There are also some things for you to see, quilting, wood carving, learn to twirl a lasso, etc.

 And of course, some of our favorites, the characters in their western get-ups! We found Minnie, but never did find Mikey in any of the three times we ventured back.  Must have missed him every time!

 Chip and Dale are always a good time!  I got hugs and kisses from these crazy chipmunks!

 Matt danced to the high school band's music with the guys.  They jumped right in and kicked up their heels!

 And then posed for this adorable picture without missing a beat!

 Donald was his usual camera hog.  Stepping in front of us to make sure he got top billing.

Gaucho Goofy has some seriously loud chaps and plaid on the day we saw him! 

It's a nice break from the crowds and gives you a little chance to sit down, cool off, meet some characters and take in a performance. Along with the regular characters, we heard that Clarabelle Cow and Horace Horsecollar also make an appearance.  

Be sure to stop in to the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree the next time you are at the Disneyland Resort!  I believe it will be open until next year when the new Plaza Gardens is revealed.

Meet and Greet with Merida from Brave

Disneyland had a new character meet and greet spot for Princess Merida from Pixar's new Brave animated feature that is coming out June 22nd.  It is over in the structured area across the parade route from It's a Small World.

 It has this photo spot with the three little animated bears (who, from trailers I've seen, appear to be her brothers, who are triplets that get turned into bear cubs.) Everyone tries to use a Scottish accent but since I work with a lady who is actually Scottish, meh.

After you exit from the photo spot, you can wander over to the archery area where a cast member helps you to shoot an arrow at a target.

I made a bullseye and she was shocked.  Really?

Mr. Diva made a bullseye also.  She was impressed. Really?

Then we went over so I could spin and see from which Scottish Clan I herald.

According to this kilted cast member, I hail from the Dingwall Clan.

This is our clan symbol.  It looks like a boar to me.

This is a rubbing stone with the image of our brave clan leader upon it.

This is Lord Dingwall, our clan leader.

There are some fun activities to take part in, and I imagine this photo area will be around until at least June 22 when the movie opens, and probably most of the summer as well.

In case you have missed them up to this point, here is one of the trailers for the film:

Gitchy Gitchy Goo means that....You're a Hero in Training??

There is a lot of construction going on all over Disney's California Adventure Park this year. So, to keep things interesting, since parades just aren't a possibility this year, there are a few street performances that you may be interested in checking out.

The Incredibles make an appearance in the Hollywood Backlot area. Mr. and Mrs. Incredible and Frozone show up and they do a Hero In Training show that involves the kids.









Another fun show for kids is the Phineas and Ferb Rock Rollin' Dance Party that takes place out in the area in front of the wharf and the Little Mermaid ride. Phineas and Ferb drive up and then go out and start dancing to some of the songs from their TV show. They get the kids involved too and let them come out and show off some of their dance moves.








So don't let the construction at DCA keep you from having a great time this year! Check out both of these fun little shows and let the kids have a good time!

Calling All Wilderness Explorers!

The Redwood Creek Challenge Trail in Disney's California Adventure has recently gone through a rennovation of its own. The changes are minor, but I think they bring the area into the present with the inclusion of the characters Russell, Dug and Kevin from the Pixar movie UP!

The camp notices board right at the entrance shows the new characters in some of the activities available to guests in the Redwood Creek area.

These are some of the Wilderness explorer badges that are displayed on both sides of the entrance. If you complete the activities in the Wilderness Explorer Guide, you could get them.

This is the Wilderness Explorer Guide you are given as you enter the Redwood Creek area.

It opens to tell you some of the activities you can get involved in (if you are a kid!)

You can see that this map has some silver circles on it. That is because as you complete the challenges, you get the rub off the silver and reveal the wilderness badge you earned for that station. Follow me and Mr. Diva as we tried to earn our Wilderness Explorer Badges.

Station 1 - Tracking! You have to find Kevin's foot prints.

Woot!! Found 'em!

Badge #1! We're on our way!

Challenge #2 - Bravery

This time we were to take on the tire slide.

Badge #2 - Bravery

Station #3: Rock Climbing

Badge #3 - Rock Climbing

Station #4 - Howl like a Wolf as you do down the slide.

Don't these look fun?

Badge #4 - Wolf Howl

Station #5 - Find your animal spirit.

You go into the Spirit Cave, press your hand on the screen and your spirit animal will appear.

Mr. Diva got a Salmon.

That is supposed to mean he is instinctive and strong-willed.

The have added a new animal spirit at the bottom. I think that is mine!

Badge #5 - Animal Spirit

Badge #6 - Puzzle Solving

This challenge directed you back to your Wilderness Explorer activity guide and you had to go to each of the statues listed and find which description matched the statue, then put the corresponding letter in the blank to see what it spelled.

HAWK

TURTLE

RAVEN

CATFISH

BUZZARD

DRAGONFLY

MOUSE

FROG

Badge #6 - Puzzle Solving

When you have completed all of your activities and earned your badges, then you proceed to the Awahnee Circle for the Wilderness Explorer ceremony to earn your Senior Wilderness Explorer badge.

You must raise your hand, and you must know the Wilderness Explorer call and motto.

"An explorer is a friend to all,

be it plants or fish or tiny mole."

"Caw, Caw, Raaawr!"

Once you have completed the ceremony, you get a Senior Wilderness Explorer Badge.

Here are me and Mr. Diva with Russell after getting our Senior Wilderness Explorer Badges.

And we met Dug too!

As you can see, this is a really fun, cute area for people to spend some time, especially if they have kids. But if you are just adults like me and Mr. Diva, it can also be a nice, fairly quiet corner of DCA where you can get a little respite from the crowds.