— It’s not too late to “accidentally” leave your cynicism at home when you travel
Sometime at the end of last year, it came to my flatmate’s attention that I had not had a childhood. Although my knowledge of Disney films is severely lacking, I had never considered this to be a great hindrance in life. Apparently my friends did. After an entire evening devoted solely to discussion of the subject, my worryingly enthusiastic boyfriend decided to take me to experience the Disney magic for real. This is why several months later I found myself hugging Cinderella and taking frantic snaps of
Eeyore in the great childhood dream that is Disneyland Paris. And I have to say, despite my initial scepticism I enjoyed every minute of it.
After a three hour journey on the Eurostar, I was bursting with anticipation to get to the park. I think at one point I actually joined in with the small children’s incessant questioning, “are we there yet?”. Eventually I satisfied myself with the knowledge that I had spotted the tip of the highest turret of the pink castle before anyone else in our carriage.
The journey from the train station to our hotel was just a short bus ride away and we checked in to our Mexican-themed hotel with no problems: impressive considering the huge amount of luggage I always insist on taking, liking to be prepared for anything. One of the best things about Disneyland is the fact that everything is so easy: shuttle buses run to and from the park every few minutes and there are signposts everywhere, so I spent the whole holiday enjoying myself without needing to get a map out once.
On the outset, Disneyland seems to cater exclusively for young children and families, but it really is true (if clichéd) that there is something for everyone in this land of dreams.
The most memorable part of the trip was simply the phenomenal excitement I experienced when we first stepped through the park gates and I caught sight of the pink castle. It was like being a six-year-old girl again. I wanted to live there forever; the real world was nothing compared to this Fantasy Land! And I wasn’t the only person experiencing this fantasy thrill, alongside the spellbound young children, I was surprised to see more couples like us. There was even a party of old ladies enjoying the teacups and the carousel, with the same stupid grin that I’m sure was written across my face.
We had a brilliant time during our stay at Disneyland and I’m sure we got more than our money’s worth, attending all the shows, watching the parades and generally behaving like over-excited children. I even managed to pluck up the courage to ride the largest and fastest roller-coaster; not
an easy challenge when you can hear people screaming as you are queuing!
On our last day we packed our luggage and went to breakfast as usual, but we got a massive shock when we found out the Eurostar services had been cancelled due to a fire in the tunnel. You can imagine my horror – two useless students stuck in France without a penny (or euro) left to get us home. Luckily, the Eurostar people eventually managed to sort us, with only a marginal amount of panic on my side. Not only did they put us up in one of the best hotels for an extra night, but they also gave us free dinner and breakfast, putting us on the first train home the next day, and making our holiday an even greater adventure to tell everyone about.
Katherine Hunter
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