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| We're back! |
We were tying up at Berth 93 in San Pedro, CA at 6:45am. We could see a lot of Prime Time Shuttles lined up out in the parking lot, so no worries there. We got our shipboard accounting and they credited $3.87 back to our Disney Rewards Card, which works out because it is reloadable with our Chase Disney Visa rebates.
We were out of our 7:15am Triton's breakfast by 8am. This was actually a nice touch having a sit down breakfast from a menu with our usual servers. They were calm and unrushed and very gracious with their farewells. I liked it. After breakfast, we took our carryon bags and went out the back door. We sat by a big round window in the Promenade Lounge near the back door of Triton's for about 45 minutes. They called gray Daisy Duck (2nd one after Ariel) to leave the ship by 8:45am. We were on Prime Time Shuttle by 9:15am and at LAX by 10am. (I think we paid $32 for both of us from San Pedro to LAX. So, not too bad, but a lot more than public transit. I guess that is the price you pay for speed and convenience.) As I recall, we cleared immigration, then found the room with our luggage and had to split up and really search to find all 4 pieces, then we walked through customs. Everything went smoothly except the crowded chaos of finding all of our bags which were not together anymore! After customs, I believe people with DCL transport went straight out and people going to cabs and shuttles went left. Interestingly, DCL had a lost and found station set up along there! We didn't think we'd lost anything and went on outside. Clay asked a uniformed person where to find Prime Time Shuttles and they pointed us to a podium with a Prime Time sign on it in the median across the first traffic lanes. We headed over there but the girl working at the Prime Time podium was actually with Super Shuttle. She loaded us into one of her SS vans before realizing that our reservation was with Prime Time. This was after Clay told her at least 3 times we had a Prime Time reservation. Anyway, a big kerfuffle there. If you are taking a shuttle here, pay close attention! Don't just go by signs or expect the person directing you has listened to a word you said. Yes, we did get in a blue van instead of a red one. It did get worked out, no harm done, we all apologized to one another and we got in the next Prime Time van off to LAX.
Our AA First Class award tickets got us through TSA Priority Screening but did not get us Lounge Access. Too bad. We decided not to walk down Sepulveda to In n Out after checking in our luggage. If AA had ever clearly stated anywhere that we would not get access to their lounge with our tickets, we wouldn't have gone on through security. But, they did not tell us clearly that First Class award tickets would only grant lounge access on International flights until we presented ourselves at the desk. Clay was shocked and sure that everything he had read and the Priority Access printed in all capital, bold letters on our boarding passes meant that we had lounge access. I thought it was 50/50 chance either way and if AA meant it to definitely be one way or the other, they would have written it clearly on their website or their travel terms, conditions and documents to us and instead it was very vaguely written. That meant to me, they were giving themselves the flexibility to go either way and we wouldn't know until we tried. Even with the TSA Priority security screening, we didn't want to go through that again, so once through it, we stayed in our little terminal area near gate 40.
I am sorry to report that the remainder of my day's notes were lost! I suspect the sheet I was writing on got left aboard the last plane, but in any event my notes of the day are gone and I am sad about it since it was my only experience in First Class air. What can I tell you that I remember almost a month later? It was similar to Business Class on past International flights, but without the footrest. With the extra legroom, that meant I could not use my carryon as a footrest which meant either my legs dangled, or I had to slouch down to stretch my legs to reach something to rest my feet upon. So, sadly First Class was mostly lost on me. All our flights were on time. It was nice to be able to board and deplane first! The first flight to DFW was twice as nice as the flight from DFW to RDU. It had twice the leg room and attendants were twice as attentive and pleasant. There seems no accounting for that, I would have called it the difference between business class and first class but all of our boarding passes and flight information called both segments First. I would have hated to pay First fares for that second segment! They did not show a movie on either segment on these flights home, but earbuds were free in First anyway. They offered us warm mixed nuts on each segment and then a choice of what they called snacks. We called hot, plated food served with cutlery meals. Really, the leg room on the first segment and the meals were the only thing separating it from the outbound coach flight experience. Well, that and the 5 inches between seats in a row and getting on and off first. But, man what a premium to pay!
We got home after midnight as I recall. We were pretty exhausted as it seemed like it had been a very long day. Clay took off work the following day and that was a good idea as we recovered from jet lag and a short night last night.
So, this completes my Disney Wonder Hawaii trip journal. I hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. It was actually a very relaxing vacation. That's a good thing!
I just located Clay's videos! Sorry! Rather than go back and place them in the appropriate day of the blog, I will just link them here together as a finale treat.
From Pirate night, here are ziplining Mickey Mouse and the fireworks.
From Animator's Palate Show Night.
Leaping dolphins or something else... sailing from Ensenada to Los Angeles.
Sea lions at dock at Ensenada.
