Note: This is the fourth - and final - post about our family reunion at Disneyland. You can see the previous post here.
Dear Friends:
This is the final post about our trip to Disneyland. It was the last day in Los Angeles, and the older kids had already left for home. My wife and I had a late flight that day, so we spent one more day at the park.
G-Man and I started the day early, by attending the D23 Expo. This is Disney's annual event for Disney fans. Disney rolls out previews of upcoming movies, TV shows and updates to their theme parks. We just happened to be there at the same time. While I'm a big Disney fan, I witnessed some pretty serious Disney devotion there.
The reason that we attended, was to see a special preview of Disney's popular video game - Disney Infinity. The game is a combination of real-world Disney figures, and a completely interactive world where you play as one of many Disney characters. My son really loves the game, and it's one of the few games that he and I can play together. As someone who has been in the video game industry for over 20 years - I'm really glad to find wholesome content like this.
Disney was going to preview the big 3.0 update. The emphasis here, was adding Star Wars characters to the game. As a huge fan of both Disney and Star Wars...it was a real treat. First, G-Man and I stood in a giant line to enter the convention hall where the session was going to take place:
Many people in line were dressed as Disney characters - both classic, as well as Marvel and Star Wars characters. Standing next to us was this kid, dressed as an Ewok:
We finally arrived at the giant hall...the size was mind-blowing. The room held 2,000 people easily:
For a special moment, they had two of the actors that will be in the upcoming Star Wars film - The Force Awakens. They showed what their characters would look like in the game:
As a special surprise, they gave every single attendee a free figure for the game - Mickey Mouse, of course - as well as a bonus disc that won't be available in stores. As you can see, G-Man was really, really excited about this:
The rest of the Anaheim Convention Center was filled with exhibits and displays. It was pretty amazing, to be honest. We only had a couple of hours to spend, so we tried to see as much as we could:
They had a huge exhibit dedicated to Disney Infinty - it was the exact booth that they had at the E3 trade show (see previous post). G-Man had a chance to actually play the game before it was released:
There was no shortage of products to buy. The Disney fan base has proven their ability to collect and buy merchandise (me included):
They had a special section for women and girls to get a little of the "princess" treatment that L received a few days before:
Meanwhile, back at Disneyland, my wife and L had an amazing time. My wife allowed L to choose wherever she wanted to go. I think that empowerment was a great idea. L chose to catch the Disney Princesses that she missed over the last 3 days:
G-Man and I left the D23 Expo and joined the rest of our family. We met them just in time to meet up with some of G-Man's favorite Marvel superheroes:
With little time remaining at Disneyland, we wanted to get some pictures of our family. We found one of the most interesting Disney photographers that I've ever met. This guy was game for anything...he took a TON of pictures, because we had purchased a special pass that gave us unlimited digital pictures.
This is by far, my favorite. It really helped sum up our time at Disneyland that day. I love the look on everyone's face...despite the incredible heat ; )
I'm so glad we were able to make this trip work for not only my little family, but my extended family. I love them and loved being around them. I will forever cherish these kinds of moments when, despite the heat, little kid melt-downs, waiting in lines, and emptying one's wallet...the memories will last forever. Thanks for reading!!!
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