Driving Down I-5 During the Holidays

The family decided to spend Christmas in Disneyland this year. Ever since my father passed in 2020, and my mom has been lost to dementia—not too mention all the kids are adults now—the cohesion has been broken for a larger get together with the extended families. So instead of spending the holiday alone at home, we opted for going to Disneyland. To change things up, I decided to bring along my Leica M10 Monochrom and 28mm lens for the trip.

We got up at 5:00 am on Saturday morning before Christmas and drove down I-5 to Los Angeles. Apparently, everyone else in Northern California had the same idea, because the traffic was solid all 400 miles. To add to the lovely travel conditions, fog meandered throughout the valley, thick in spots, to make for a surreal (and frustrating) driving experience.

Since we had left so early, I informed the family that I would like to make a stop at the Leica Store in Los Angeles. I had been meaning to visit the store several times but never actually got around to it. Since we would arrive in LA around noon, and we couldn’t check into our hotel in Anaheim until later that afternoon, the stop made sense. Well, at least to me. I ignored the grumbles from my daughters in the back seat.

The Leica LA store is two stories, with the main store on the first level and the entire second level being a gallery. While I visited, they were showing “Byways” by famed cinematographer Roger Deakins. I talked with a staff member for a bit, toured the facility, then took a picture of the lighted stairs. Check off that bucket list item for me.

christmas eve at disney california adventure

The next day was Christmas Eve and we woke up early and headed to the parks. We were slated to start in Disney California Adventure before being able to enter Disneyland after 11 am. But first, I had to wait in line for a scooter. My knee has a torn meniscus, and even though a recent cortisone shot has made walking much better, we figured it was better safe than sorry.

After getting the scooter, we spent the morning catching some rides and eating breakfast at the Lamplight Lounge before going over to Disneyland. Having been the first food of the day at mid-morning, the meal was delicious!

My favorite ride as a kid was Pirates of the Carribbean. Of course, in those days, the only roller coaster was the Matterhorn. There was no Space Mountain until 1977 (when I was 9 years old), so Pirates was the best use of our “E” tickets (that’s right, you used to buy ticket books and there were different levels of rides and only so many tickets to go around).

We hit Pirates first thing and then followed that up with Big Thunder Railroad. After that, we returned the scooter and headed back to the hotel to save more rides, etc. for Christmas Day.

Christmas Eve dinner was at Fleming’s Steakhouse. If you’ve never been to a Fleming’s, I highly recommend it if you get the chance. The drinks, food, and service are incredible.

Why Disneyland at Christmas?

Walt Disney managed to create the sense of being transported to another world while inside the parks. Disneyland at Christmas time is that same feeling on steroids. During the holidays, the park is transformed into a winter wonderland of festive decorations and classic holiday music. The celebratory mood of all the families, the the aroma of baking treats, mixed with the holiday-themed decorations, evokes a nostalgia of days of Christmas past.

We woke up early in our hotel room, opened presents (well, stockings), and headed to the Grand California Hotel for the breakfast buffet at Storyteller’s Cafe. The food was delicious and the atmosphere festive. After eating, we waited in the long ass line for another scooter before heading to Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge for a reservation at Olga’s Cantina.

The highlight of any trip to Disneyland during the holidays is the Haunted Mansion. They deck it out in A Nightmare Before Christmas theme and it is our favorite every time. Due to my knee, we received a specific time to show up and hop in the front of the line so that I didn’t have to stand the entire time. In the mean time, we grabbed a bowl of gumbo and beignets at Tiana’s Place. Once again, the food was top notch.

Right before dinner, my wife and I took a break to watch the San Francisco 49ers play the Baltimore Ravens at the bar in the Grand Californian Hotel. The bar was great, the game was not (the 49ers got their asses kicked). After eating dinner at Napoli, we headed in to ride Rise of the Resistance while everyone else watched the fireworks. It’s something we do every time and is totally worth it because the line virtually disappears.

All in all, it was a fantastic family get away and another successful Christmas. It still doesn’t make up for the large gatherings we used to have but traditions change and so must we.

Thanks for reading and Happy New Year!