It started off as a nice day at the Disneyland Resort. Sprinkles and very light rain would later fall, but that was okay!
I arrived at Disneyland around 11:50am, picked up a Disneyland Park map, and took my obligatory photos of the train station. I walked into Disneyana to see if any Indiana Jones Funko POP figures were still available, and I saw 3. The figures were very big, but they were nice to look at.
After that, I sat on a bench enjoying the view of Town Square. I noticed that only the United States Flag was flying, and later found out that it was probably the ‘all weather’ flag since rain was in the forecast. Angela joined me as I sat there waiting for Mr. DAPs and Caitie to arrive. Once they arrived, we waited for the Main Street March across from the Train Station.
If you have never seen the Main Street March, it’s a show that features the Disneyland Band, Mickey and Friends, and the Dapper Dans. It starts at the forecourt of Sleeping Beauty Castle at 12:30pm with the Disneyland Band and Mickey and his pals! As they march down Main Street, the Dapper Dans join them. Around 12:40pm they gather at the Main Street Train Station, and perform ‘Welcome’ from ‘Brother Bear.’ You may also remember this song as it was featured in Walt Disney’s ‘Parade of Dreams’ from 2005 through 2008.
After watching the Main Street March, we made our way to Market House Starbucks. From there, we headed towards Fantasyland to get a spot for ‘Magic Happens.’ We saw our friend Sophia who was decked out in ‘Magic Happens’ best! Sophia loves the color purple, and since this parade’s two main colors are purple and blue, it’s perfect for her!
We soon then made our way back to Main Street because we thought it would be a better spot for the parade. We stood near Emporium for over two hours waiting, and we even felt a few sprinkles. It was nothing threatening despite what the clouds looked like. Right before the parade started, Cristina joined us from out of nowhere! It was great, and we wish we had captured it on video.
“MAGIC HAPPENS” PARADE SPOILERS AHEAD!!
It was definitely fun seeing ‘Magic Happens’ for the 3rd time. I was fortunate to see it both times on Thursday during the special preview. This time seeing it on Main Street was even better than at Small World Promenade on Thursday. There’s something special about seeing a Disney parade on Main Street. It just feels right!
One thing I’m loving about ‘Magic Happens’ is the diversity of the Cast and units involved. Yes I feel there are some things missing from the parade, but I like how the floats and characters all have one thing in common – magic! I’m also loving the music! While we hear familiar songs from the movies and characters depicted in the parade, the original theme and songs for the parade are very catchy! It’s definitely fun to sing along as the floats and characters make their way down the street!
After the first parade, we headed toward Town Square in hopes of finding a bench to sit and watch the second parade. We did, and staked out our spot. This time, we waited a little over 90 minutes, which didn’t seem long at all.
Around 5pm, I went to Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor to get the Dulce de Leche Sundae. It’s a waffle cup sundae with a double scoop of dulce de leche ice cream, topped with bananas, caramel sauce, a Mickey sugar cookie, whipped cream, and a cherry. I very much loved the flavor of this sundae. The mix of bananas, caramel, and ice cream hit the spot. I’ve been hoping for an ice cream sundae served with bananas that wasn’t a banana split, and this dessert was perfect! I will definitely be getting this sundae again!
As we waited, it sprinkled a bit, and there was even some light rain before the parade was to begin. The parade even started 5 minutes early in hopes of getting the full parade in and back to the parade warehouse. Steven even joined us to watch the parade, which was fun!
There are only a few days left to see this parade at night with the lighting and effects on the floats before the time changes this weekend. This parade shines at night, and it has a different feel. The colors and lights pop like never before, and it’s great!
Once the parade passed by us, we made our way to Disney California Adventure for dinner. We ate at Smokejumpers Grill, and even found a covered table as it was still raining lightly. After dinner, we went to look at the Food & Wine Festival booths. The booths have new signs this year, and some of the signs are even animated. I also checked out some of the merchandise available at the Festival.
We then headed towards Soarin’ Over California, which is back for a limited time run during the Food & Wine Festival. Next, we headed towards Guardians of the Galaxy as construction walls were removed late last week. The area is now fully back open, and there are no walls to navigate.
After that, we went back to Disneyland and travel to Galaxy’s Edge. We hadn’t been there all day because of waiting for ‘Magic Happens.’ We took some photos there before making our way back to Main Street to end our day.
As mentioned earlier, the U.S. Flag was flying high, and it was nice to get some photos of Main Street and Town Square with the flag. With that, we ended our night.
More fun is coming next week, and I can’t wait to share those adventures with you! Have a great week, and see you soon!
