I stayed at the Disneyland hotel, so a visit to the new park required a short walk (quite long if the kids are tired) through Downtown Disney. You may even be tempted by the downtown area to skip the park and just enjoy the shops, food and entertainment there, but don't stop - keep walking to California Adventures.

The admission is the same process as Disneyland, you get a ticket, stand in line and enter the park - only you enter to the right now, where there was once only a parking lot (I think). The initial feeling once entering the park is "Is this really Disney? Where is Mickey?" Well, this park has toned down on the Disney characters. You will still be able to find them around, but you definitely won't be tripping over them.

I decided to go to my right and try everything I passed. My first experience was "Soarin' over California". What a trip! This attraction reminded my of why I fell in love with California - the ocean, the mountains, the orange groves, Half Dome, and more. It is a sight and smell experience you don't want to miss.

Next, came "It's Tough to be a Bug", the Bug's Life 3D show. This is also something you should try and see. Bugs fly in your face, some squirt you, a wasp "stings" you, and insects entertain you. A show for all ages and
a lot of fun - not to mention how cute you look in the 3D bug glasses! Once you leave this show, there is an agricultural set-up by Caterpillar that invites you to tour through a "growing" tribute to California. This is also where you can find stands to buy fresh fruit for nibbling on in the park!

My next stops were the Mission Tortilla Factory and the Boudin Bakery. Both are short tours, the bakery tour videotaped Rosie O'Donnell as a guide. If there isn't a wait, these are neat, especially when you get to taste fresh tortillas and sour dough bread.

I tried to check out the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail, an outdoor family play adventure which supposedly offers swinging from ropes, climbing, hiking adventures, but someone had vandalized the area by cutting through a rope net. Not only was this extremely stupid, but could have been very dangerous. If you are the one who did it - SHAME ON YOU!

Two of my favorite rides were the Grizzly River Run (a water ride) and the California Screamin' (a roller coaster). Both were exciting and worth the wait. The water ride has two settings - winter and summer. Don't let that fool you. Due to the overcast and chilly day, the ride was being run in winter mode - less water being splashed and slopped. NOT! I was soaked from waist down. The rollercoaster is well designed. It may not be the scariest I have been on, but there is one point it does give you a little shock (I'm not telling, you'll have to discover what it
is yourself!).

I did get the chance to ride on the Sun Wheel, a swinging ferris wheel. If it were warmer, it would have been great for sightseeing. As it was, the winds made it very chilly, and I felt the ride wasn't really worth the wait. It is
a constant stop and go - they change passengers every other car. The swinging part was pretty wild, but sure didn't last long enough. Hint: If you have small kids, or don't like the idea of swinging in the wind, get in line for the Red Gondola - this one is typical ferris wheel stuff.

A few of the other attractions I checked-out were the Orange Stinger swings and part of the Disney Animation studio. The ones I missed were the heartstopping Muliboomer (nope,not for me!), Golden Dreams - the California history with Whoopie Goldburg (not enough time), the Golden Vine Winery tour and wine tasting, the Disney Animation Sorcerer's Workshop (line was too long) and several of the small performances throughout the park.

I did get a chance to see the 4:30 showing of the Eureka! parade before I left to catch my shuttle. It was very bright and colorful with a variety of entertaining costumes and dancing. The music was fun and catchy. I believe the parade was designed to represent the many aspects of California from scuba diving and surfing to the Chinese and Mexican influences. I met one father and daughter with season passes that come quite often to see the parade, one of the 6 year old girl's favorite attractions.

There are very few rides for children under 42" tall. There is The Jumping Jellyfish (40" min) - a parachute ride pretty tame for adults but which kids would love, King Triton's Carousel, the SS Rustworthy water play area with squirting whales, the Superstar Limo, the Mulholland Madness (42") - a mini roller coaster, and The Golden Zephyr - a rocket ride that swings around at 22 mph. The shows which are good for kids are the Bug's Life show, Muppet Vision 3D, and the parade, as are many of the performances put on through-out the park. I am sure you could find a full day of things for young children to do and see, but it might take a little work.

After talking with several kids in middle school, I found there were a few favorites: Grizzly River Run, "It's Tough to Be a Bug", California Screamin', Superstar Limo and Grizzly River Run. The food that brought fairly high ratings was the Pizza Oom Mow Mow. It serves surfboard shaped pizzas with a variety of toppings. Sorry, I opted to go to the New Orleans Cafe in Downtown Disney and have a crawfish pie and bread pudding.

My over all opinion of the new adventure park is that is not really for children under 7 years old and that , unless there is a big crowd, you can see it all in one day with time left over for a mid-evening dinner in Downtown Disney at the Rainforest Cafe or somewhere outside the park entirely. There are too many shops and food areas and not enough attractions. If you have a 3-day pass, definitely plan to spend a day at California Adventures. But if you have small children, I would wait a while before spending the money on a one day pass just to go there.