** After you read this report you may want to check out the pictorial updates in our Disneyland Resort Pictorial Update section

It was a nice day in the parks. After all week being hot Friday turned out to be much cooler. The crowds at both parks seemed more like regular off-season than the Friday before a holiday weekend. It was great to see both parks alive with entertainment still though.

My on-going complaint against the parking garage situation still continues. I think it is rather dumb to have to drive all the way around the garge to park and then all the way around again to get out. I hear most people say this was done to make it easier to avoid pedestrians while parking. I think the bigger issue is to avoid them at night when you leave. You are tired, they are tired, and all you want to do is get out of the "stupid garage". Instead you go on a half mile scenic tour of the garage.. makes sense to me... I would rather have to dodge and wait for people while pulling in... plus most are smart enough to travel over an aisle to get out of the way and then head for the trams. With all the gas and environmental concerns it seems like a major waste the extra driving. The only positive I see is that weight gets distributed more evenly in the garage with cars making the rounds.. but they should have designed a building that did not need that. Sorry for gripping just hate wasting time and waiting for no real reason... maybe someday it will return to the original configuration....

We have moved our trip rundowns and mileage reports to our Park Miles section.

Disneyland Items:

• The crowds were mild in the park. The longest wait we saw was 45 minutes. In the early afternoon the longest was only 35.
• We went to the Story Telling with Aladdin and Jasmine. For some reason we had never gone to see it. Usually because we figured it was a brief story and then a photo-op. We decided we had not been in the theater for a long long time so we would go see how they changed it and see what the storytelling was. This is actually a great production. The cast was good. The leader of the show was hilarious. He had humor for both the kids and the adults in the audience. The Aladdin and Jasmine actors were ok, but the other guy stole the show. There is a fair amount of audience participation and afterwards they come out for pictures. I would highly recommend this show. Most people do not stop by, its not heavily publisized, but I think its a hidden gem. I wish some of the other shows (like those at Club Buzz and Fantasyland Theater) were done with such class and were truely as entertaining. I know we will be making more stops at this show in the future...
• Around the rivers of America there were three areas with some work going on, our guess in preparation for the Pirates Premiere. Looks like pipes or conduit have been layed to the areas.
• We boarded the Mark Twain and noticed no one sitting on the Bow chairs, so we did. First time in a long long time we did that. Its such a different view of the River than the upper deck.. of course that meant a couple hikes up to the 3rd deck to get Island shots then back down but it worked out..
• Work on Tom Sawyer Island is moving along. The rocks, bridges, and steps are really taking shape. Looks like it should be a great play area once its done.. will be interesting to see if it is as good as the original.
• Pooh still seems to be drawing people. The line was 45 minutes at 9pm. The entire Critter Country traffic flow is really a mess. Too many people in too small of an area. Between Splash, the photo area and Pooh its really tight. Seems they need to move the photo area to me... maybe a new spot backstage, accessible from the side of the store or something.. I think its going to be a huge mess during the summer and other crowded times.
• It was great to see the Hungry Bear open after dark, guess its due to the larger crowds in the area.
• Autopia has been made a little more "idiot proof". It looks rather tackey, but not too bad. Just a lot of metal...I don't see how this will stop all the problems, you can still easily step onto the track.. this just makes it a bit harder.
• Went to check some scores and see if there was anything new in Innoventions. The former Kaiser area is still closed off. Everything else is the same.. its too bad they don't update the place. Also wish there was a way to by pass Tom Morrow's outside intro. This time was even worse becuase a band was playing at Club Buzz so you could not hear a thing.. Luckily I had it memorized so I barely noticed it because my mind for some reason just knew the soundtrack... erie...
• We saw some of the work lights on inside the Sub Cave and spotted a sub in the work dock (The Oceanic Research Center I mean), but not other visible work on the subs to confirm they are coming back...

DCA Items:

• Over at DCA the crowds were non-existant. You could walk right into the Soarin' Building all afternoon and evening. The longest wait we saw posted was 25 min.
• Went to see the Drawn to Animation Show. The show was maybe 1/8 full and that's generous. There is a Brother Bear trailer being played at the end. Basically the same one on the Treasure Planet DVD plus a little narration by a direction I think.
• Hung out in the Animation building while waiting for Aladdin. Just relaxed and watched the clips. We were commenting on how we remembered when there used to be lines to get into the Workshop area, yesterday you could just walk right in... actually this has been a common site since right after the park opened...
• Aladdin seemed to be having some issues last night. Several technical glitches and performance problems. For example the set piece that blocks the carpet and Aladdin right before a Whole New World came up late and you could see them for a couple seconds. The Cape on Aladdin did not come off when Genie tried to take it off before he went to see Jasmine. They seemed to miss quite a few notes during the ballads too. There was a new actor playing Jafar, he seemed for a a sly bad guy than an sinister one like the other actor. I like the other one better.
• Speaking of Aladdin the show was not full at all.. The balcony was off limits. The second level had probably a half dozen empty rows and the floor level had several empty areas too..

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