Favorite Table Restaurants at the Disney Parks

Welcome to those of you joining me from Disney Babies Blog and those of you who have just hopped aboard.  I am the third stop on our Magical Blogorail, and today we're each talking about our favorite table restaurants inside the Disney Parks.

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This month's topic is an easy one to get behind because it's something near and dear to my heart, and my stomach; my favorite Disney Dining Experience.  What throws a little bit of a curve-ball into the ballgame, though, is my choice for favorite dining location.  I've eaten at some of the "best" restaurants at The Resort, such as Blue Bayou, Steakhouse 55, and even the most famous (or perhaps infamous) one of them all, Club 33.  The food at each is some of the best I've probably ever had in my life, but they still don't make my list as the favorite.  So what's the one spot in The Parks that's both tasty enough and fun enough to earn the "favorite" label from me?  It's a little spot tucked into my favorite area, New Orleans Square; this is Cafe Orleans.

My Disneyland Trips Aren't Complete Without...

Welcome to those of you joining me from "Disney Babies Blog" and those of you just hopping aboard. I am the 2nd stop on our Magical Blogorail.

I have a confession to make before we even get started. This month we've been charged with coming up with something (attraction, food, show, whatever) that, if left out of our Disney trips, leaves our time in The Parks feeling rather incomplete. For me, there's one little item in particular I feel this way about, and I've written about it before but it's been quite some time since I've done so. So, in the interest of time and getting it out there again, I've decided to redeliver it to you, our loyal readers, in a very slightly altered format. I think it's still good though, and worth a look-see. Phew! Now that that's out of the way...

Everyone seems to have something that they absolutely have to have anytime they are present inside a Disney Park. Fortunately, most people can relate to my article today because in my case, it involves something from the foodservice industry of Disney. For me, no trip inside Disneyland Park (since Disney California Adventure Park doesn't have them) is complete without a classic, the Mint Julep in New Orleans Square.

Typically, people fall into one of two categories when they think of the Mint Juleps at The Park:

1. The "They taste like glorified mouthwash" camp and
2. The "They're the best!" camp

So, originally, I wasn't really sure whether I initially wanted to try the little concoction or not.  But having done so I can proudly say, "They're the best!", with all the enthusiasm I can muster.

So first things first.  What exactly is the Mint Julep in should you so desire one?  The Park describes it as "A refreshing mint drink with a hint of lime flavor", which is actually what made me hesitant to try one in the first place, and is surely why many people fall into the "glorified mouthwash" camp.  I figured the mint would more than overpower the lime in the drink, and thus be exactly like drinking mouthwash.  But after having had several of my own, I tend to think it's more of "A refreshing lime drink with a hint of mint flavor".  In all of the ones I've had, I've never felt the mint was too overpowering; it's always been light and refreshing, which is just what I'm looking for, especially on a hot Southern California day. That said, I know it's probably still not for everyone (different people have different tastes and buds), but if you're on the fence because of the mint, I have to encourage to try it for yourself and see what you think.  It just may surprise you like it did me!

And you can see exactly how it's served up, complete with a lime, lemon, a few mint leaves, lots of ice, and a cherry on top!  Delicious!

Now that you know what the Mint Julep is, I suppose you might be wondering where exactly to go to get one.  Luckily for you, I know the answer!  One place you can find it should you get a hankering for one is Cafe Orleans in New Orleans Square.  If you're going to be eating at that restaurant, it will definitely compliment your meal and with free refills, you can't go wrong.  That said, my favorite place to grab one is at the Mint Julep Bar itself, also in New Orleans Square.  It's located right next to the dining patio for the French Market restaurant.  In fact, if you are taking the Disneyland Railroad from Main Street USA to New Orleans Square, you'll most likely see the bar as soon as you de-board.  It's practically right in front of you across from The Haunted Mansion.  The drink itself will run you only $2.99 (a steal!) and is well worth the money. Sometimes you pay an amount for a drink and feel ripped off a bit, but I've never felt that in this case, and I'll usually order one and either park myself at a nearby table, or wander off into Critter Country, happily sipping away.

Really wanna go nuts?  Feel free to polish it off with an order of Mickey-shaped beignets too and feel those sugar energies soar!  A 3-pack will run you $3.99 and a 6-pack will run you $6.99.  But who doesn't love little fried Mickey heads with confectioner's sugar on top?

And there you have the Julep!  Again, I know that a lot of people probably don't or wouldn't like these little beauties, but if you've never tried one, they come with my highest recommendation and are firmly at the top of the list where it comes to my favorite "In-Park" treats.

Thank you for joining me today. Your next stop on the Magical Blogorail Loop is "Ideally Disney".

Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail should you happen to have to make a stop along the way and want to reboard:

1st Stop ~ Disney Babies Blog
2nd Stop ~ Days in the Park
3rd Stop ~ Ideally Disney
4th Stop ~ A Disney Mom's Thoughts
Final Stop ~ Capturing Magical Memories

New Orleans Square Station: Disneyland's Undiscovered Secrets

Welcome to those of you joining me from Disney Babies Blog and those of you just hopping aboard. I am the 2nd stop on our Magical Blogorail. For today's topic we're talking about the undiscovered things from our favorite Disney Parks; secrets, little details, all the little things that make our favorite Place so special. For today's article, we're going to be looking at a very special place in Disneyland: New Orleans Square Station. Welcome aboard again! We're glad you're back, and hope you enjoy your journey along our magical rail!

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"To all who come to this happy place, welcome.

Disneyland is your land.

Here age relives fond memories of the past,

and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future.

Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, and the hard facts that have created America,

with the hope that it will be a source of joy, and inspiration, to all the world." - Walter Elias Disney

Perhaps if you're not a Disneyland Resort regular, the above words might possibly mean very little to you, and if so, shame on you! (I only say that because I have them committed to memory) 

When Disneyland first opened its gates in 1955, it did so to these words spoken by Walt Disney himself. The words themselves are memorialized forever in The Park, and any Disneyland fan whose worth his salt probably knows most, if not all, all of them the exact same way that I do. Of course, it doesn't hurt that I've heard them about a million times during watching the "Remember... Dreams Come True" Fireworks show. But did you know that you can still hear the words spoken, in a manner of speaking, each and every day inside Disneyland still? And probably in the place you'd least expect it.

I can remember very early on in my Disneyland Park trips, each and every time I would pull into the New Orleans Square Station on the Disneyland Railroad, you could hear the audible tap-tap-tap of a telegraph line going off. Of course, back in the old days, it was how people communicated along the railroad lines. Not morse code exactly, but by tap-tapping that little thing, companies like Western Union were able to send messages across the country in ways they never had before. So it makes perfect sense the depots at Disneyland might do exactly the same thing. But I remember always wondering just exactly what it meant, if anything. Like most of Disneyland's secrets or details, everything tends to mean something, if one can only find out what.

I honestly can't say I where I learned it from at this point (it's too far back in my future), but of course now I know (and you will too!) that the little tap-tap-tap of the telegraph line is actually putting out the first few lines of Walt's Dedication Speech (up through youth savoring the challenge of the future). How cool and awesomely amazing is that??? In fact, I believe at one point when we were riding through this particular depot, a Cast Member on the train asked if anyone knew exactly what the telegraph was putting out, and I was able to recite the entire speech on the spot; not to brag or anything! And it's always a good time when you're standing in a long line of people at the depot to pay attention to conversation because, many times, you hear people around saying the exact same thing I used to: "I wonder if that telegraph noise means anything."

So there you have it! A well known, and still amazingly enough little known secret about Disneyland, and Walt Disney himself!

Thank you for joining me today. Your next stop on the Magical Blogorail Loop is Pursuing the Magic.

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Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail should you happen to have to make a stop along the way and want to reboard:
1st Stop ~ Disney Babies Blog
2nd Stop ~ Days in the Park
3rd Stop ~ Pursuing the Magic
4th Stop ~ The CanaDisney Blog

My Favorite Place to Celebrate at Disneyland Is...

Welcome to those of you joining me from 'Capturing Magical Memories' and those of you just hopping aboard. I am the Final stop on our Magical Blogorail.

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Welcome back everyone! It's that time of the month again where we all hop back on board (remain seated, please!) the Magical Blogorail and discuss some of our favorite Disney topics.

This month's theme is definitely a good one, but a hard one, so I figured I would just go to my old standby when something is difficult to decide on, and rather than follow the theme exactly, stand the theme on its head and approach it from a different angle. So rather than focusing on my favorite place to celebrate in Disneyland, I thought it might be fun to talk about my favorite celebratory moment in The Park; that's honestly a heck of a lot easier to come by!

This year (next week, actually) my wife and I will celebrate our 14th wedding anniversary. I know; crazy, right? And we've been together for almost 16 years now! Time certainly flies when you're having fun and three children, but I digress.

I really wanted to pick something fantastic to do for our 13th celebration. That number has such a bad rep in general, I guess I just wanted to prove to myself that we could make the date fantastic regardless of some silly superstition or weirdos wearing hockey masks chasing teenagers through the woods. So a couple of phone calls and favors later, I had my reservation set, having decided to take my lovely wife to a very lovely place for our anniversary, Club 33 at Disneyland.

There's tons of information about the Club on the internet, and it's true the food and all is amazing and spectacular, as befitting a restaurant of its stature, but for me the best part of the day was just being able to enjoy something so warm and romantic with my wife. Part of the charm of Club 33 is in its ambiance and history, and it was truly a pleasure to be able to share it once with the most important person in my life and my best friend. We didn't get to spend a lot of time there, and we barely made it in time, but it was all well-worth the effort just to slip away for a few hours with her to such a special place.

So as another year has gone by and I'm deciding once again what to do for her, it's been fun to think back to last year and relive those memories in my mind's eye. It is quite possibly something we won't every do again, but we'll always have those memories, and it's something I know we will remember for the rest of our lives.

So I guess this post serves two purposes: it's allowed me to relive a great memory of a great celebration, and it will serve as a little "Happy Anniversary" to my wife again this year; happy anniversary my heart, I love ya!

12/22/2011 - Stephanie outside Club 33 for our 13th Anniversary luncheon

The lobby is always beautifully decorated during the holidays

The obligatory "menu shot"

Clowning around in 'The Happiest Millionaire's phone booth

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Thank you for joining Magical Blogorail Blue this month. We will be back Friday, January 11th with an all new theme. Keep checking in with our blogs in between loops to keep up to date with our Disney info, photos and stories. If you are looking for more Disney magic, you can make your way over to The Magical Blogorail website to see all our members and their blogs, as well as all our previous loops.

Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail should you happen to have to make a stop along the way and want to reboard:
1st Stop ~ Pursuing the Magic
2nd Stop ~ The CanaDisney Blog
3rd Stop ~ Disney Babies Blog
4th Stop ~ Capturing Magical Memories

We're "Pursuing the Magic" Today With a Look at Pirates of the Caribbean!

We love Days like this where we're invited to play in someone else's sandbox!

Our friend Beth over at "Pursuing the Magic" is doing an awesome series this month on Pirates of the Caribbean, and as a contributor for her blog, Chad was asked to come on over and write an article about the Disneyland Pirates attraction.

It's been a terrific set of articles so far (Chad's is the 5th in the series), so we invite all of our regular readers to hop on over and check them out!  They all approach the Pirates theme from a different angle, and are both informative and entertaining to read, and we hope that you'll take the time to give them a look and enjoy them for yourselves.

Many thanks to Beth, as always, for allowing us to "pursue the magic" with her!

Happy Anniversary Blogorail Blue - All Aboard for This Year's Best!

Welcome to the first stop aboard Magical Blogorail Blue. Today, we are celebrating the one year anniversary of our very first Magical Blogorail Loop by sharing our greatest Disney moment since joining the Magical Blogorail!

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It's our Magical Blogorail Blue anniversary today! I'd be remiss if I didn't say anything about that to begin.  Writing for the Blogorail, and being a part of its first line (the Blue Line) since its inception has been a huge honor for me.  I had only been blogging for about a month or so when I was asked to join up.  My writing still pretty much stank, and I was just getting my sea-legs under me, but our fearless leader Beth ("Pursuing the Magic") must have seen something in me to have asked, and the rest has been seen on a monthly basis over the course of the past year.  Not only that, but the entire concept has grown by leaps and bounds and now ecompasses 39 different Disney bloggers over a whopping 8 different lines.  It's just been an amazing experience, I've met so many amazing people (both online and in the real world) during the experience, and it's something I hope I get to do for a very long time to come.  Here's to Year Number 2!

But, on to today's article, which actually had its humble beginnings long before I began writing for The Magical Blogorail.  Most people probably already know that I've been hanging around the Disneyland Resort for much longer than I've been blogging about it.  I've been an Annual Passholder for quite some time now, but I was just never able to go as often as I wanted because the family didn't want to go that frequently.  Fiends, I know, but that's the way it was.  So I was left looking for other people to go and hang out with.  Solo trips are okay, but it's ever so much funner to have a friend along with you.  I've known Mark for years now (he grew up in our Youth Dept. at church), and one day I heard he had a hankering for the Magic Kingdom, too.  So, on a whim, I decided to ask him along one day.  We had such a great time it just started happening more and more frequently, and here we are today.

I owe a lot to Mark as far as my early "Disneyland development" goes.  He's always been a huge wealth of information about the place, so when I first started going, he taught me a lot.  He'd hopefully agree that now I can pretty much hold my own, and well, about the place, but back in the day, it was all about him showing me around and teaching me about all the cool little tidbits and secrets around Disneyland, including the biggest one of them all probably, Club 33.

Most people are probably familiar with Club 33 to some degree, but at its simplest back in the 60s Walt Disney decided he needed a special place in which to host dignitaries that were visiting Disneyland.  He chose 33 Royal Street in New Orleans Square as his location for his restaurant, but unfortunately died mere months before it opened.  Nowadays, people all over the world know about the restaurant, or Club if you will, but since its a "members only" restaurant, very few ever get to see the inside of the restaurant, let alone eat there, which is what makes it such a mysterious place, as well as such a "hot button topic" unfortunately.

But for Mark, as with many Disneyland-crazed fans, Club 33 was a dream to be wished about every chance you get.  Every time we would walk down Royal Street and see the 33 sign near the door to where the Club is (I remember thinking it so cool I even knew where the door was!), he would just mumble to me, "Someday... someday..."  But neither one of us really put much belief into it, I'm afraid.  Not knowing a member ourselves, our chances were somewhere between none and noner.
  

Definitely a popular photo spot...

But fast forward a few years and we're steadily blogging away.  Unfortunately, some of my "gifts" are loquaciousness and geekiness. So when we first began blogging, I was the one who created the Twitter account and, now armed with this high-tech means of spewing my nonsense, had quickly amassed a decent number of followers, and met some pretty darn cool people in the process.  In fact, some of the early followers I had (and started following back) are now considered some of my dearest friends in the world, and we hang out at Disneyland fairly often.  You guys know who you are.  I love ya!

Without writing a novel, it was one such friend who, having been invited to Club 33 by a member they met, invited me to come along.  And before I go any further I just want to say the biggest "Thank You" on the planet to both of you guys and you know exactly who you are.  Your generosity in inviting me enabled me to have my best Disney moment of the year in the past year, and heck, it will arguably go down as the Disney moment of a lifetime for me.   

Enjoying the nighttime at Disneyland from the Club 33 Balcony

Playing on the Club 33 Balcony and inside the phone booth from "The Happiest Millionaire"

But, here's the kicker. My greatest Disney moment over the past year wasn't in the fact that I got to dine at Club 33, but because of the fact that since I was invited to go, and told to bring others with me, I was able to invite Mark in to fulfill his biggest Disney Dream, and that's what it's all about.  Mark's been a great friend over the years, and after hearing him talk about Club 33 for so long, and with such gusto, there was simply no way I was going without him.  And, truth be told, if my invitation had only been for one, I would have gladly given my spot to Mark and let him go in my stead; it was that important to him.  I've never seen anyone smile for four hours straight before, and I always thought a person's face might stick like that, but he never stopped smiling the entire time, and he seems no worse the wear for it, so that's a good thing!  It was an evening I know he'll never forget, and I was glad that I was able to do my small part in helping it happen for him.  And that's my Disney moment for the past year - seeing my friend realize his own Disney dream.  If I could do that for other people all the time, no matter the dream, well that would just be okay with me.

All smiles...

I think that's one of the things that makes The Magical Blogorail so special, and one of the things that keeps us doing it, even when it's hard to come up with things to write, and topics to talk about.  In some small way, I think that each of us see it as a way of giving back to the community that continues to do so much for us.  At least, one can always hope.  Walt Disney once said that "Curiosity keeps leading us down new paths", and who am I to argue with greatness?  On to the next dream!

If you're interested in finding out more about Disneyland's Club 33, you can visit one one of our own DLRnetwork sites, Disneyland Club 33 for more information.
 

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Thank you for joining me today. Your next stop on the Magical Blogorail Loop is "The CanaDisney Blog".

Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail should you happen to have to make a stop along the way and want to reboard:
1st Stop ~ Days in the Park
2nd Stop ~ The CanaDisney Blog
3rd Stop ~ Disney Babies Blog
4th Stop ~ Cooking with Mickey
5th Stop ~ Meet the Magic
Final Stop ~ Pursuing the Magic

The Scary and the Tasty - Almost Wordless Wednesday

We've spent the last couple of weekends roaming Disneyland Park enjoying all of the new sights and sounds that go along with the Halloween Time season at The Resort.  With our trusty pocket cameras in tow (also known as cell phones) we've been snapping off random shots of just about everything that struck our fancy; so, of course, they're now making their way here!

You'll find some pictures here from the newly installed, "one of our favorites" Haunted Mansion Holiday and Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy, and we spent some time this past weekend hanging out in the Village Haus restaurant and you'll find some of that here as well.

One of the things we most enjoy doing on other blogs is simply taking in all of the pictures and random shots people nab from all over the Disney Parks, and that's exactly what we try to recreate here: the random wonder of a day in The Park.  We hope we're successful and that you enjoy!

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Days In The Park's Favorite Things: The Mint Julep

We've spent some time in the past talking about Amy's favorite things, and we've even spent some time talking about Chad's favorite things, or Mark's favorite things, but every so often something comes along that we can all get on behind, prompting a big "Favorite Things!" from all of us.  Such is the case with this little Park classic on the tips of so many people's tongues (literally and figuratively), the Mint Julep in New Orleans Square.

Typically, people fall into one of two categories when they think of the Mint Juleps at The Park:

1. The "They taste like glorified mouthwash" camp and
2. The "They're the best!" camp

So, other than Amy (because she's an old hat and they're relatively new to Chad and Mark), we weren't really sure whether we initially wanted to try the little concoction or not.  But having done so we can proudly say, "They're the best!", with all the enthusiasm we can muster.

So first things first.  What exactly is the Mint Julep in should you so desire one?  The Park describes it as "A refreshing mint drink with a hint of lime flavor", which is actually what made us hesitant to try one in the first place, and is surely why many people fall into the "glorified mouthwash" camp.  We figured the mint would more than overpower the lime in the drink, and thus be exactly like drinking mouthwash.  But after having had several of our own, we tend to think it's more of "A refreshing lime drink with a hint of mint flavor".  In all of the ones we've had, we've never felt the mint was too overpowering; it's always been light and refreshing, which is just what we're looking for.  That said, we know it's probably still not for everyone (different people have different tastes and buds), but if you're on the fence because of the mint, we have to encourage to try it for yourself and see what you think.  It just may surprise you like it did us!  Our friend Amanda at Disney Go To Girl described the Julep in one of her articles as a "mint-flavored lemonade", and we think that's pretty close to the mark, too.

And you can see exactly how it's served up, complete with a lime, lemon, a few mint leaves, lots of ice, and a cherry on top!  Just hits the spot perfectly on a hot day in July in The Park.

Now that you know what the Mint Julep is, we suppose you'd be wondering where exactly to go to get one.  Luckily for you, we know the answer!  One place you can find it should you get a hankering for one is Cafe Orleans in New Orleans Square.  If you're going to be eating at that restaurant, it will definitely compliment your meal and with free refills, you can't go wrong.  That said, our favorite place to grab one is at the Mint Julep Bar itself, also in New Orleans Square.  It's located right next to the dining patio for the French Market restaurant.  In fact, if you are taking the Disneyland Railroad from Main Street USA to New Orleans Square, you'll most likely see the bar as soon as you de-board.  It's practically right in front of you across from The Haunted Mansion.  The drink itself will run you only $2.99 (a steal!) and is well worth the money we think.  Sometimes you pay an amount for a drink and feel ripped off a bit, but we've never felt that in this case, and we'll usually order one and either park ourselves at some nearby tables, or wander off into Critter Country, happily sipping away.

Really wanna go nuts?  Feel free to polish it off with an order of Mickey-shaped beignets too and feel those sugar energies soar!  A 3-pack with run you $3.99 and a 6-pack will run you $6.99.  But who doesn't love little fried Mickey heads with confectioner's sugar on top?

And there you have the Julep!  Again, we know that a lot of people probably don't or wouldn't like these little beauties, but if you've never tried one, they come with our highest recommendations and are firmly at the top of the list where it comes to our favorite "In-Park" treats.  Try one for yourself and see if you like it!

What say you?  Have you tried the Julep yourself?  Let us know what you think!  And if you've never tried one, and you plan to, come on back and let us know if you liked it.  We'd love to hear from you!

Pathing Around The Park: Tomorrowland to New Orleans Square

It's that time! Time to start "pathing" our way around The Park again. When we last were strolling, we had just finished winding our way from Fantasyland to Tomorrowland by one of our favorite routes.  It's another month, and time for another one of our favorite paths; this time we'll be picking up from where we left off at the entrance to Tomorrowland and carrying on to the next stop on our usual route, New Orleans Square.

Few of our trips into Tomorrowland are complete without stops at the following attractions.  They are "must-dos" in our book and most Days In The Park will find us riding almost all of these, especially now that we've become halfway decent at Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters.  Mr. Lightyear has an amazing attraction named after him in which you sit in your very own XP-40 Star Cruiser, armed with nothing more than a badly-sighted laser gun, charged with tackling and taking down the Evil Emperor Zurg (sworn enemy of the galactic alliance) and all of his Double-A battery-stealing minions.  It's an awesome ride, and a great way to get out of the heat on hot summer days, and an even greater way to show your kids just who's the boss around here.  You point your laser gun and shoot; simple, right?  But totally awesome!  Who has the highest score in your family?

Now that Star Tours is once again open, all is right inside Tomorrowland.  "Star Wars" fanboys and fangirls, unite!  It's worth a trip into this Land if for no other reason than to give this new, updated attraction a spin.  Almost everyone is familiar with the older Star Tours attraction, so the premise is much the same.  But add in a new 3D-HD version, a new pilot, and up to 54 different ride possibilities made up of 11 different attraction elements (planets and characters), and it's a party in your Star Speeder!  But be warned, this one is known to cause some motion sickness.  If you're able to handle turbulence well, though, you can't afford to miss it.  We never do!

And what trip into Tomorrowland would be complete without a stop at arguably the galaxy's greatest store?  Welcome to the Star Trader, your one-stop place to shop for all of your "Star Wars" paraphernalia.  You can find everything from caps, t-shirts, plush all the way up to creating your own light-sabers.  A perfect place to stop and shop for souvenirs for the kiddies, or maybe that adult in your group who just refuses to grow up like Mark does with us.  And who could resist a life-size replica of an X-Wing Fighter?  Not us, say we!

And we've only just scratched this surface of this particular Land O'Plenty.  There is tons to do inside Tomorrowland, and we enjoy almost every bit of it.  Looking for a bit of Michael and some 80s cheese (oh, it's so gouda)?  Then check out the Captain EO Tribute.  Looking to blast through the galaxy and see the stars?  Hop on board Space Mountain, always a popular ride with everyone.  Hungry?  Head on over to Red Rockett's Pizza Port for, you guessed it, pizza or pasta.  Innoventions is always a great place to beat the heat with tons to see including the House of Tomorrow (today!) and Asimo the scary robot.  Not had quite enough "Star Wars" yet?  Check out the Tomorrowland Terrace and catch the Jedi Academy show, where your kids can be the stars and get actual Jedi lessons from actual Jedi and then fight an actual Darth Vader.  How cool is that?!  Not quite out of breath yet?  Take a ride and see if they ever find Nemo on the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage, or teach your kids the meaning of the phrase "burn rubber" and "eat my dust" on the fastest racing attraction in Tomorrowland, Autopia.

click on any of the photos for larger versions

Right about now we've sampled all of the best wares that Tomorrowland has to offer and we're ready to move on to our next adventure.  Where some people might think that Fantasyland might be the next logical stop (since we missed so much there before), we say nay!  Our next favorite place to unload ourselves is in actuality New Orleans Square.  And our favorite way to get there?  By hopping on board the Disneyland Railroad at the Tomorrowland Station, of course!

It may be totally old school, and we may in fact be able to walk faster than the train can carry us, but we absolutely love to ride the Railroad and we do so every chance we get.  Not only is it a great way to get around The Park and rest those weary feet of yours should you need to, but there's a show included.  We love "two-fer"s!  If you're riding the rails between Tomorrowland and Main Street, USA (the stop before New Orleans Square) you get a sneak peek at the Grand Canyon, Disneyland-style!  But wait, there's more!  You also get a sneak peek at the Grand Canyon, Jurassic-style with Primeval World.  Any time we're with the kids, they love hopping the train and seeing this particular part of The Park which, astoundingly enough, many people don't know about.  A ride and a show at the same time?  Can't be beat!

Next stop, the Main Street, USA station, but we're just going to sit tight and move right on through.  Still, while you're here, take a few minutes while you're waiting for the new passengers to load (and the old to unload) to stare down Main Street and just soak it all in.  It's one of our favorite vantage points inside The Park to just sit and people-watch, and you never know who (or what characters) you might see roaming around.

Next and last stop, New Orleans Square!  And that's where we quit pathing for this trip.  Next time, we'll roam around a bit and explore some of our favorite "haunts" (get it?) inside the Square, and who knows where we'll wind up next?  Well, we do, but you'll have to come back to find out.

Got a path of your own that you like to take from Tomorrowland?  Let us know because we'd love to discuss it with you.  And let us know if you enjoyed our little path.  That's the beauty of The Parks; so many different things to see and experience, and so many different ways to do it.

Until next time, keep pathing!