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Samantha hops onto a flight to Paris to see Disneyland:

So, our whirlwind trip around 7 countries in Europe started. The Flight was uneventful, the food was good, but sleep on a plane was ever elusive, we landed in Munich Germany, must say, they have a fantastic airport, they even have free beverage stations all over the terminals, which of course we tried out! Then from Munich, a quick flight over to Paris and the start of our adventure! Once we figured out the airport and managed to get ourselves to the train station, the first of many long waits for trains started. Anyone who has ever told me, don’t worry European trains are always on time, clearly didn’t take as many as we did, let me tell you, European trains are certainly not always on time! We finally arrived in Disneyland, found some park buses that shuttle you to the parks and the hotels and set off to check in at Sequoia Lodge, Disneyland. The people at the lodge were lovely and very helpful, we got a bit of a early check in and set off park passes in hand to explore Disneyland. Disneyland is Magical, wonderful, fantastical and it’s really Disney from Top to Bottom, everything is Disney …. No really EVERYTHING is Disney! But its so much fun and a complete escape! The bus takes us back to the entrance to Disneyland, from there you can already see the parks and it’s exciting. We started out in what is known as Disney Village, its basically where you’ll find a lot of food places and lots of Disney stores, I think it took us maybe a minute to find the first Disney store and start shopping! Its really fun and the choice is limitless, so many things to choose from and so many things we sadly just wouldn’t have been able to bring back, I’m most sad about not being able to get a couple of the lovely glass Disney Christmas decorations, but we still had so far to go, it wasn’t worth the risk! So it was one Disney Store done another 300 to go! We decided after lots of shopping it was probably best to grab a bite to eat before we headed into the actual Disneyland Park. Lunch was at Earl of Sandwich, which was awesome, awesome, awesome! Best Sandwiches ever! Filling, Warm, Delicious, we ate here twice! The Entrance and walkway to Disneyland Park is lovely, filled with Pink and white flower gardens shaped into Disney Characters.

You know you’re going somewhere filled with happiness and fun! You run your pass through the machine and you’re in … and the first thing you notice off in the distance is the iconic Cinderella Castle! The next thing you notice is the other 20 million park visitors also heading towards it! The parks are full, there are people everywhere, the shops are so full you can’t move, the lines for the rides are sometimes insane, but it’s all part of the experience. So between popping into all the shops on the way, we started with the rides. We tried to get into the park as early as possible each day to avoid some of the crazy ques, sometimes it worked sometimes it didn’t, but I think we were very lucky, it rained a bit the one day, so everyone bolted back to the hotels and left the park reasonably empty, the few of us who stayed, walked around in the rain for not more than a half hour and it was clear again. We went on as many of the rides as we could and it was all good fun! My favourite being the Pirates of the Caribbean of course! They’ve got a little something for everyone, from scary roller coasters to interactive shooting rides and simulator experiences! Thunder Mountain was lots of fun, it’s fast, dark and popular, we waited a good 2 hours to get onto this ride. We went on the river steamer, which was lovely and lazy! Then to the Haunted house, Phantom Manor, which I must say was rather freaky in a very random sort of a way. You start out in the dark and the room you’re in starts to fall away, the floor drops and the walls rise! Crazy Stuff! For good measure we even went on the spinning tea cups and big merry go round! You’ve got to try it all! All around the park the gardens are filled with hidden surprises, lots of characters, in tree’s, in the shapes of trees and in the flower pattern! They have an Alice in wonderland and Peter pan section! Jack’s bean stalk in huge! The first night, we had an extremely expensive meal at the hotel, it was a fantastic eat as much as you like buffet, but insanely expensive! The next evening we opted for dinner at a traditional American diner, called Annette’s complete with huge burgers, cherry sprite and Waiters on roller skates! The next day, we tackled Disneyland Studio! Lots of movie themed rides and activities here! It’s less for the kiddies and more for the Adults. They offer a studio tour, which is very nice, gives you some behind the scene knowledge and you get to see how rain is made on set and how a flood is created, it comes with a beware you might get wet warning, so when the flood starts you know it is heading straight at the open tour tram you’re on! The Highlight of Disneyland Studio is the Motor Stunt Show! You wait forever to get into this, but its well worth the wait! You learn a few more tricks of the trade as far as stunt driving goes! You see things blow up, cars on 2 wheels and men on fire, it’s great! Then it was almost time to leave Disneyland and move onto Switzerland. But you can never leave Disneyland without seeing some of the evening Character Parade! You have to get a spot early, otherwise the other million people are standing in your way, but it’s good even to catch just a glimpse of it! With that it was Goodbye to Disneyland and Off to Zurich, Switzerland.


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Can't say you weren't warned! We're not sure who the original photographer is who should be credited (let us know if you know, and we'll gladly credit him/her) - the photo was posted on the Travel South Africa Google/+ community.