We were on the road again by 6am. We had about 800 miles to go through, mostly desert and we wanted to reach Anaheim by the time it got dark.

Not much to see and not too many places to stop and get gas or refreshments. We stopped in Holbrook, AZ at Geronimo's Trading Post where they had the world's largest petrified tree (cut up). They also had a great souvenir shop where we picked up a few things.

We were starting to see some more mountains now, some with snow on the tops. That was quite a sight. Lisa and I had both seen them as kids but you don't really appreciate them until you are adults and have spent your whole life on the plains of the Midwest.

We drove across the Mojave Desert and then on into Los Angeles. That was fun. I thought Kansas City and Dallas had some horrendous traffic. They didn't compare. It was frustrating too because we were so close to Disneyland and we were going 30mph on the highway.

We finally arrived in Anaheim and went looking for Disneyland. It is really strange too; we have been to Walt Disney World in Orlando 9 times and we know it like the back of our hand. It is out in the middle of nowhere and you can kind of "look for it over the horizon". But Disneyland is in the middle of the city. So, you turn a corner at a stoplight and BAM, there it is.

Anyway, we arrived at the Grand Californian and checked in about 6pm (8pm in Lamar). The hotel is beautiful. Marina kept saying it reminded her of the Animal Kingdom Lodge. And it did. Actually the same guy designed both hotels. We arrived in our room (#4011) and settled in. It was a nice room. Had a great view of California Adventure. I guess I should tell you all this. Disneyland is trying to compete with Walt Disney World in Orlando. Well, not so much compete but trying to stay up with WDW. WDW has 5 theme parks, 2 water parks and a whole Downtown area with shops and restaurants. The reason why they have all this is because Walt bought so much land down there he had the room. Disneyland in Anaheim does not have that option. So, they had to clear a parking lot to make California Adventure and a couple hotels. The reason why I am telling you this is because a lot of people ask what the difference is between the 2 places. Disneyland and California Adventure are back to back with each other with Downtown Disney and the Grand Californian hotel in between. So that is why we could look out our balcony and see CA. Got it?

We arrived a little too late to hit the parks and we were a little tired so we headed downstairs to the Napa Rose and had some dinner. It was a nice place. After dinner the kids went swimming in the pool. We were ready to tackle tomorrow.