After having Drew and Annie over to help us consume the contents of the kitchen before we went on holiday, Edy and I stayed up, packed, had a one hour nap and left for the airport at 4:45 a.m. this morning to begin our California Adventure. We battled monster line-ups at US Customs (Edy was subjected to a "special" search) and took our America West flight to Phoenix. We chose America West because it was seriously cheap; cheap enough that we didn't mind going to LA via Phoenix...I guess everyone likes saving a little money because rapper-turned-actor Ice Cube was also on our flight. He walked by us in the departures lounge at YVR, and then he got off our flight in Phoenix and headed into a bar to wait until the leg to LA. I wanted to tell him how much I liked "Barbershop" (that was him in that, wasn't it?!) and Edy listened to Cube's masterpiece "Check Yo' Self" on his IPOD to get in the mood.
We feared for our lives a little bit coming into Phoenix; there was a big rainstorm, which are obviously unusual for Arizona, and it was a bumpy landing. Then, our plane from Phoenix to LA was delayed by an hour and a half due to the storms. This did not make for happy travellers, who hadn't actually gone to bed yet. Anyways, we finally arrived without incident and took a "Super Shuttle" from LAX, on those monster 6-lane-each-side freeways, to Anaheim, and the hotel I had booked for us, the Lemon Tree.
I hunted high and low for a cheap hotel in Anaheim that wouldn't be super scary, bug ridden, and 45 minutes from Disneyland. With the help of my new friend Trip Advisor, I picked the Lemon Tree. It SOUNDED good, but you never can be sure about what you read online. So I was biting my nails a little bit as Super Shuttle turned in the driveway.
It turns out I had nothing to worry about. We were greeted in the Spanish hacienda style lobby by Juan Carlos and Eugene. As Edy described it, the hotel decor looks a little like Trading Spaces meets Hotel Makeover, but it's cute, clean, and covered with lemon-themed cutesy stuff that reminds me of Mom's kitchen. They even have a big basket of Lemonhead candies sitting on the front desk. Juan Carlos gave us a quick tour of our room and the hotel before we settled in. Our room is quite big, again, Trading Spaces chic but cute and clean, and opens up onto a courtyard filled with flowers, a fountain, and a pool. We feel like we are staying in a villa. And for the price we paid (cheaper than any motel on Expedia or Orbitz), we feel we lucked out.
While Edy sat down to make use of the free wireless internet (of course he brought the laptop), I explored the hotel and had a chat with Eugene at the front desk.
"So, how do we get to Disneyland tommorrow," I asked. "Is there a shuttle?"
"Welllllll," he hedged. "The shuttle only runs up and down Harbour Boulevard, and we're a little off the beaten path for that. It's about 7 or 8 miles to Disneyland. That's too far to walk. So I say take a taxi. Or, we'll get you some cardboard and you can make a sign that says 'Need a ride to Disneyland' and stand outside the hotel on the road!"
We had a little talk about where would be a good place to go for dinner, or to explore tonight, on our only "non-Disney" night in Anaheim. Eugene gave us directions to his very favorite Chinese restaurant, that he goes to when he's "homesick" (he's Chinese), and then suggested if it was too adventurous for us we go to the Block at Orange, a big mall/street fair/entertainment area down the road in Orange, CA. He said it would be a good place to get something to eat, pick up some wine or beer, and come back to the hotel and relax in the hot tub. "Just don't forget to bring a beer back for me," he said.
That's what I like in staff. A little pluck and a little attitude! Oh, and he gave me a much needed hairdryer. So points for that, too. Tonight, we go to Orange. Tommorrow, The Fabulous World of Disney. Land. More from us later...
The Lemon Tree Hotel, from the back entrance. There is a more "swish" front entrance without the homey sign.
The fountain in the courtyard just outside our room, Room 113.
Edy got searched at YVR, I got searched by Air Marshalls before getting on the flight from Phoenix to LA, and lo and behold, our bag was opened for inspection and rifled through at LAX, too.
You step out the sliding glass door of our suite onto a little patio, where we have two little deck chairs and a small wooden table.
The pool and hot tub, which is in the courtyard outside our suite.
This is now the Encounter Restaurant at LAX.
