64 posts tagged “homewood patriot marching band”

I guess I've just lost my desire to be witty and provoke thought and emotion, at least for the meantime....it's too damn hot to think too much LOL! So I haven't updated my blog....but to make a long story short...on May 22nd, 2009 my baby girl graduated from high school!

I remember her 5K graduation like it was a few yesterdays ago. I still have that little rolled up diploma and the cap she wore. You probably can't see it, but she had a gumball machine ring on her finger in this picture. Wow! Time flies and kids grow! Who knew?

Hailey's high school graduation was held at Samford University, a college across the street from Homewood High Schooll. We were all so excited because Hailey will be the first one in our immediate family, since our parents, that graduated from high school the traditional way: I dropped out (pregnant with my son) and took my GED. My sister dropped out (pregnant with her oldest daughter) who also dropped out (pregnant with her first son) and took her GED. My son dropped out because he was being harrassed by the administration at Clay-Chalkville High School over his appearance. I personally went up to that pos school and told the assistant principal he was driving my son to be a drop-out when he was trying desperately to finish his education. Well he did drop out but passed all of his GED tests in 2 tries. Not the way to do it, but we all did it...but we were all so excited to see Hailey walk across the stage in her cap and gown to receive her diploma! Doing it right!

First I would like to say that I am SO glad that I made the wise decision to move to Homewood when Hailey was in the 5th grade. My only regret is that I didn't do it sooner. Homewood has a stellar school system and I'm so grateful that my daughter can say she has a Homewood education. Had we stayed where we were, she would have wound up at Clay-Chalkville (I have much ill-will towards CCHS students and their families that stemmed from a 1st round playoff football game in 2006, but that is old news and I've already blogged about it so I won't go there - but I will say that we won and they didn't take the loss in a sportsman like way).

So before going to the ceremony I wanted to take some photos of Hailey in her cap and gown. We went down to Homewood Central park with my Mom. The wind was blowing like crazy and Hailey was not too happy that her hair was getting mussed!

I still got a couple of good pics though...

We were still way too early to go to the ceremony so we went back home so she could freshen up her hair and makeup. Afterwards she was a little happier and obliged me with a few silly poses.

So we were off to the auditorium to meet up with my son and my sis and her gang. More photos were taken.

Finally it was time for the graduates to go get lined up and for us to get inside and find seats. I started to feel that anticipation when Pomp and Circumstance started to play. The graduates filed into the auditorium, in alphabetical order from both sides of the the room. My VERY TALL brother-in-law was able to snap a pic of Hailey coming in.

Once all of the grads were seated they were a sight to behold! A sea of blue caps!

The ceremony was finally underway. It was LOOOOONG! Several honor grads spoke (some gave excellent and even funny speeches, some were a little boring, some a little too self-promoting). The principal and some other school administrators spoke. The principal honored the parents of the graduates and asked us to stand. I very proudly stood up and I'm sure Hailey's Dad did also (he was there but we never saw him). Finally it was time to hand out the diplomas. The principal took several minutes to stress to the crowd how important it was to keep quiet and to hold all applause and hooting/hollering/etc until all of the graduates had received their diplomas. They went up by rows as they had rehearsed that morning.

By the way, while Hailey was gone to rehearsal I went out to buy some balloons for her. While in CVS asking the lady to show me the balloons they had, I got choked up as I tried to explain to them that my daughter was graduating. It was quite funny that I couldn't even say the words without getting a lump in my throat. I set up the balloons and a couple other little gifts I had bought for her so she would see them when she got home.

So back to the ceremony....Hailey is a 'W' so we had quite a wait. Most people stayed quiet as we were told, but a few hollered and were given stern looks from the principal.  Finally, I heard the announcer call my daughter's name...I was frozen! I saw my beautiful, grown-up daughter walk across the stage, shake the principals hand and receive her diploma...just as I heard my son let out a ripping "YEAH!" At which point he was immediately approached by a Homewood police officer who I thought was going to remove him from the premises, but luckily he got off with a strong admonishment. Whew! I was secretly glad that he did it though because it was cool!

Finally all of the graduates had their diplomas and were back in their seats. They were told to stand and the principal presented the 2009 graduating class of Homewood High School and instructed them to move their tassles. Yeah! Now we could all holler and we did! The applause was deafening and I was SO, SO, SO, SO very proud!

Then the graduates exited the same way they entered to go back to the 'secret place' to turn in their caps and gowns and get their actual diploma (the leather case given to them on stage was actually empty because they wanted their caps and gowns turned back in - clever)! She got to keep her tassle though and she got a rope for 4 years in band and a little card, like an id card that says she's a high school graduate. How cool is that?

Afterwards we had planned to go to Cheesecake Factory for dinner. The whole motley crew! We had a blast and although we were ALL watching our money it was still so much fun! I don't think we have all EVER gone out to dinner together! Hailey was glowing!

It was a very fun night!

So high school is all over with and I'm feeling a little sad. It's so strange to think I'll never go to the school again. But what I'm going to miss most is band. The thought of no more band camp and football games and parades and trips makes me really, really sad but I have tons of great memories and they are all preserved in photos and videos. Being in band was such a huge part of Hailey's high school experience and mine. To have the honor and privilege to march in both the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade AND the Tournament of Roses parade in her 4 year tenure is something she will take with her throughout her life! And I'm so thrilled that I was able to be there for both parades! It's all a testament to the school system, the fine arts program and the extremely dedicated band directors!  I asked the band e-mail lady to keep me on the distribution list. In the fall, when I get the e-mails about picking up uniforms and shoes and practices and the first football games, I'm probably going to cry, cry, cry. But I still want to be a part of it. That is just something that never leaves you. It gets in your blood and in your heart and soul if you let it...and I did.

So now Hailey moves on to the next chapter in her life. It's going to be great! I know it will take some time for her to come to realize that she misses high school....kids live in the moment and right now they are ALL just glad it's over...but that reflection will come....in time...as they mature.

We Love Homewood Day is an annual event held to celebrate the city we love. It starts early in the morning on the first Saturday each May with hot air balloon rides and continues throughout the day with a carnival, rides, crafts and bar-b-que...then just as the sun is setting the We Love Homewood Day parade steps off from the Homewood Library. The star of the We Love Homewood Day parade? Well the Homewood Patriot Band of course! Even though this event celebrates our city, more importantly, it is a major fund raiser for the Homewood Band programs.

Hailey actually got to march in the parade as an 8th grader in a group called 'Dance Workshop' but even though I was very proud to see my baby in the parade in that group, the Patriot Band still competely stole the show!

On May 2nd, 2009 Hailey put on her Patriot Band uniform for the final time to march in her 5th consecutive We Love Homewood Day parade and 4th consecutive as a Patriot Band member.

I worked the carnival early in the day as band parents are always asked to do. Seeing all of the beautiful little girls riding the ride I was working, I couldn't help but get choked up! Standing there taking tickets I was blinking back tears. My baby was all grown up! I just wanted to grab those parents and tell them "Don't miss a thing, it's going to go by in the blink of an eye!" It was VERY hot and humid but I still enjoyed it and told them to sign me up for next year (many band parents continue helping out the band long after their child graduates, in fact the woman who is in charge of the uniforms hasn't had a child in the band in 25 years but she still goes to every game, trip, competition and works tirelessly on the uniforms).

Now it was time to get ready for the parade! My Mom came as usual, and for the first time, Hailey's big brother came to see her march!

 

I snagged some pics from Hailey's friends on FB of them cutting up at parade lineup:

 

 

This parade is pretty predictable but always enjoyable because the whole community comes out to watch, many being able to walk to the parade route from their homes. The parade always begins with the JR Air Force ROTC from the high school. All the regulars were represented: the Southern Belles and cheerleaders, the clowns, the big trucks and huge wreckers, the Birmingham Humane Society with all the cute doggies, as well as city officials and realty companies all throwing candy in hopes of people's support or patronage. This year we had a new addition to the parade: An orthodontists office being represented by a giant, walking tooth! Everybody watched and clapped and collected candy, t-shirts and beads!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But it was all in anticipation AND celebration of the STAR of this parade: THE HOMEWOOD PATRIOT MARCHING BAND!

So, here is HAILEY'S FINAL MARCH!

 

On April 30th, 2009 Hailey played her final band concert with the Homewood Patriot Band. I'm just in shock that it is actually over...no more band concerts! Where did these years go.

I remember like yesterday when she signed up for band in the 6th grade. I didn't have the money to buy her a clarinet so the middle school band director, Mr. Cooper, found her a loaner for the beginning of the school year. I remember when she brought it home and started playing it, it sounded horrible but it was still music to my ears! Her Dad bought her her own clarinet for Christmas that year.

6th grade band doesn't even get uniforms, they just play concerts in 'church clothes'. I remember at that first Spring concert, after they played their painfully rough 3 concert songs, Mr. Cooper had taught them just a verse of "Hoorah for Homewood". They played it and the crowd went wild! Just a snippet of what was to come for these little band seedlings!

7th and 8th grade band members are issued a very cool looking Patriot red blazer that they are to wear with black pants, black socks, black shoes and a white shirt underneath.

 

Once the band members enter high school they are issued their much coveted Homewood Patriot Marching Band uniform (which doubles as their concert uniform without the hat).

 

 

 

 

So the final band concert has finally arrived. As a Senior Hailey is in the 1st period Honors band and they performed 4 songs.

The Washington Post March by John Phillip Sousa, conducted by Mr. Chris Cooper

 

Jefferson: A Vision For America by Robert W. Smith, conducted by Mr. Ron Pence, narrated by Jason Kennah

 

"I" of the Storm by Stephen Melillo, conducted by Mr. Ron Pence, Caleb B. soloist

 

Light Calvary Overture by F. Von Suppe', conducted by Mr. Ron Pence

my memory card got full on this one and cut off just before the big finish :(

 

So 7 years of band concerts have come and gone. They were all fabulous and I'm going to miss it a lot.

One more band event and Hailey will be done.

Not really, just wanted to get somebody's attention LOL. I made a compilation video about the band's trip to California for the 120th Tournament of Roses Parade. So, if you missed my 10-part post about our trip to California, this little video encompasses the jist of the reason we went there. It turned out very well and I hope it will be a lasting memento for my daughter and her band mates so they will always remember when they were invited to the Rose Parade. The soundtrack is by Coldplay. Hope you like it!

 

So it's January 2nd, 2009 and it's coming home day. Our first flight leaves @9am so we're up with the chickens again to shower and finish packing to make sure we get to the airport in plenty of time.  Flight 1 members of the band, including Hailey, are also up and heading out to the airport to catch their flight. They are flying out of John Wayne/Ontario, we are flying out of LAX. I've been very concerned that Hailey might get back to the school before me but looking at our flight schedules I've already determined that it looks, on paper, like I would be able to get there just a few minutes before she does. We have a layover in Houston but she has a 2 hour drive from the Atlanta airport to the school. It's going to be close!

We get checked in fine but Hailey texts me to tell me that they took her Victoria Secret body spray because it was in her carry-on. She also tells me that their flight is delayed because they are waiting on a flight attendant. This is good news to me because I really want to be there when their buses roll in!

We take off on time and have a nice flight with another movie and meal. I felt cramped because I was in the middle seat! We have the same hassle in Houston and once again I DON'T find 'outside security' in time to have a cigarette!

The sweeps and dips coming in for a landing in Birmingham make my stomach do flips but we land fine (Thank God) now I just gotta get Hailey on the ground and through that 2 hour bus ride and we will be HOME!

We get our luggage, I get my car out of the garage with $50.00 (wow) then we head to the school. It's around 5:45pm Bham time and the band is supposed to arrive at school around 6:30pm.

Just as we were turning into the school Hailey called me and said they were 15 minutes out. I couldn't believe it worked out so perfectly! Some of the 'stay in Bham' band parents had erected a Welcome Home sign for the kids. It was AWESOME!

 

Mom was anxious to get home so she headed out and I anxiously awaited the buses arrival. All of us parents were out of our cars waiting for the buses (and if I'd had a nut in my head I would have pulled out my camera, but I was tired and goofy). When the buses pulled in they received a round of applause! I got my girl and we stopped by the Pig for some food because I knew she didn't eat hardly anything there (she's picky) and I knew there was nothing at home to eat...then we headed home.

The animals went absolutely nuts when we came in (especially Heidi). Michael and Alyssa had made us a Welcome Home sign as well...

 

How sweet!

It was a fantastic trip but it was good to be home. Mom called and said she had made it home so all was right with the world. We all 3 made it there and back safely.

So that's our trip. Thanks for checking it out!

88gurl

Please see parts 1-8 first

All of the floats in the parade were beautiful but there were a couple that were my favorites.

First is the Jacko float. Now, not being from California I thought this was a float dedicated to Michael Jackson. It was only later that I realized it was about Jack in the Box, the fast-food restaurant. Who knew?

 

It was like 60s hippie dancing themed and kind of reminded me of an episode of Laugh-In!

 

 

 

My most favorite float in the parade was the Bollywood float! The colors were gorgeous and the dancers walking alongside were beautiful and it was the scene of a wedding.

 

 

 

 

The stealth bomber was late but finally showed up! I heard there was frost on the wings and they had to de-ice it before it could take off from somewhere in Kansas!

 

And now...the moment we've all been waiting for (well me and my Mom anyway)! The Homewood Patriot Marching Band making their 3rd appearance in the Tournament of Roses Parade. The Homewood Patriot Band is the first band from Alabama to ever appear in the Rose Parade and holds the record for the most appearances. I have numerous videos that I have found across the internet as well as the video that I made myself.

Anyone watching the piece of crap network called NBC probably missed our band because the scumbags chose to air a commercial while we were marching by.....a lawsuit is pending!

Video of the band being featured on ktla in Los Angeles (Homewood is shown at the beginning of the part 6 video)

KTLA actually has another video of our band as well as all of the bands and floats and equestrian units in the parade. Just keep clicking next.

HGTV gave Homewood a good bit of airtime although he spends part of it talking about a new television show and he called us the 'Hollywood' Patriot Band LOL...this video is not available online but someone cleverly filmed it on their television screen.

 

Someone I don't know also made a video of our band in the parade.

 

And finally my own video I made as they marched by our area. They were awesome!

 

GO HOMEWOOD PATRIOTS!

After the parade was over there was a mass exodus out of there!

 

We got back on our bus and rode back to our hotel.

The band was not done with this day yet...oh no...they had plans to go to the Santa Monica Pier and then have a special Mexican dinner with Mariachi band at their hotel.

Mom and I had planned to go to the pier to meet up with them but we were just too exhausted. We decided to just hang at the hotel and start packing for the trip home.

To be continued in part 10...

 

Please see parts 1-7 first

The floats and horses in the parade were simply amazing! Here are a few of my favorites.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I couldn't believe Hee Haw had a float in the parade. Marty Stewart and his wife were on board.

 

The Vera Bradley float carried women who had survived breast cancer. Cynthia Nixon (Miranda from Sex and the City) was on board. She looked so pretty!

 

 

The now famous skateboarding dogs, Tyson and Tillman had their own float in the parade with a skateboarding track built right in! This float was blaring "Who Let the Dogs Out?" and it was a real crowd pleaser!

 

I believe it was one of these horses that took off with the most amazing gait I have ever seen. I believe it's called the rack or racking. I wish I had filmed that!

 

Both USC and Penn State showed up for the parade and both teams were greeted with both cheers and boos as they came by our area!

 

 

 

 

More to come including my favorite floats AND the Homewood Patriot Marching Band!

Continued in part 9...

Please see parts 1-6 first

Happy New Year!

Finally parade day is here! This is what we've been waiting for for over a year. This is the whole reason we are here. This is the BIG DEAL!

We decided to skip the free breakfast at 4am in exchange for a little extra sleep. Mom ate some poptarts in our room and I skipped breakfast. We got downstairs in plenty of time to check-in and get on our bus. Grandstand tickets at the parade as well as transportation there including a boxed lunch were the only things that were included in our trip. Our group filled up 3 buses departing from our hotel. There were some other buses at the hotel loading other groups. It was very exciting!

We got on our nice, warm charter bus and it was so nice to just be a passenger and not have to worry about being on the right bus or knowing when to get off. Ahhh!

We left the hotel around 5:45 and arrived in Pasadena around 6:30. The traffic was maddening but our driver was a pro and got us in and parked pretty quickly. We were given our tickets and were left on our own to make our way to Colorado Blvd. We had to walk a couple of blocks and I noticed this extremely long line of people. I thought maybe there was a line to get onto Colorado but it was actually the line for the porto-potties. Yikes!

We had fantastic seats! We were about a mile into the parade so the bands and floats and horses would all be fresh. We were in a grandstand in the next to the top row. Everyone sitting around us was in our group and we all talked and told them about Hailey and the band so they could all cheer for them.

I had some time to take some pre-parade photos. As the sun rose over Pasadena it was looking like a beautiful day for a parade!

 

 

 

As we waited for the parade to reach us we were treated to some skywriting!

 

 

The Goodyear blimp was flying high above to get those fantastic aerial shots you see on television.

 

 

 

 

Finally the parade reached our area! Yeah!

 

 

 

Asimo was the first float and he was astounding in stature! I heard that he actually knocked down some power lines further down the parade route.

 

Other highlights:

Chloris Leachman was a very gracious Grand Marshall.

 

Corky Conzonire, the President of the Tournament of Roses Parade rode proudly with his family. Hats off to him because he's the reason we are here!

 

 

 

I didn't photograph many of the bands because I was really trying to conserve my batteries. Our band was 56th in line so it would be a while before they came by.

One band amazed me though. It was a unified high school band from Hawaii. They were huge and amazing!

 

 

All of the bands in the parade were fantastic and while I was thoroughly enjoying myself and taking it all in I was also waiting with anticipation to see my beloved Homewood Patriot Band!

More to come!

Continued in part 8...

Please see parts 1-5 first

 

The Hollywood Tour was somewhat exhausting (especially for Mom) and we were both needing down time that just didn't seem to be available in our days. We weren't getting much sleep and the strain was starting to show. I was not looking forward to our journey to Buena Park because it involved 2 different buses and a train ride. Nevertheless, I knew we were going to make it there because we had both already paid $50.00 for our ticket and I wanted to see Hailey. This was the only day (besides travel days) that the band did not have to suit up for a performance. This was definitely a working trip for them because in addition to the 3 performances they had to do they were also still practicing! This day was for them to just be kids and have fun. I remember in New York after the parade when we all had dinner on the boat and the kids were all dressed up and had a disco on their level of the boat. They were just having a blast and I kept thinking to myself how much they deserved it. This trip they haven't even marched the parade yet and they already deserve some fun and I wanted to be there too!

The band and company (300+ people) had had breakfast on the Queen Mary on their first day but we weren't even there yet. It's really hard to find places where they can all go at once and dinner theaters are usually popular places for large bands to go when they are on trips. Dinner tonight was at the Pirate's Dinner Adventure. I had bought our tickets online and saved $20.00. The 6:00pm show was sold out so I'm glad I went ahead and bought the tickets.

On a last minute whim I called the concierge at the hotel to review our travel plans and see if he knew any better or quicker way for us to get there. He informed me that Buena Park was very far away and he felt like it was too far to take public transportation. He offered us a private car at the low, low price of $65.00 one way! Ummm.....what? Thanks but no thanks. So we hit the street to begin our journey.

We caught the blue bus to the train station where we would catch the green line train. There was a ticket kiosk and I went ahead and bought us both day passes which would cover the round trip. $5.00 for me and $1.80 for my Mom who gets a Senior discount.

The train was like an above-ground subway. It went very fast and seemed to be traveling along with the interstate traffic. We rode it for about 20 minutes. We stopped at a station called Norwalk to catch the orange bus whose final destination was Disneyland. It was getting off work time and the place was extremely crowded. This was the first bus we had ridden that had standing room only. It stopped at every stop with people getting off and more people getting on. Mom and I had to sit with other people and there were people standing in the aisles. It was quite cramped and very uncomfortable. It amazed me though, how these people utilized their public transportation. The crowd died down as we got closer to the final stop. Finally it was our stop and we got off. We had to walk about a block to the dinner theater. It was surprisingly very cold and we just wanted to get in where it was warm.

The sign out front welcomed the Homewood Band! How cool is that?

 

When we got inside the entire band and company were there and they were just mingling, having snacks, drinks and watching a pre-show. It was so good to finally be with them! I called Hailey and told her we were there. She said "Where?" She found us quickly and I gave her a big hug! We talked for a bit before she was whisked away with her group. I've been on a few of these trips over the years and I know that parents intefering or pulling their own kids away from the group is not allowed. It is a huge job to keep up with 250 kids and they do a great job at it but it also means that parents have to understand that their inteference will undermine their whole process. So I got to see her for a few minutes.

 

The theater was in the round and divided up into 6 different colored sections. Hailey was in the purple section and Mom and I were in the green section. Each section was assigned a pirate that was wearing the section color. We were to be the cheerleaders for our pirate. It was a very interactive show and some parts of it seemed like a pep rally! There were singing and dancing numbers and some incredible acrobatics. All of the performers were extremely talented. Our green pirate, a very nice-looking young guy, was amazing when they all took turns on a trampoline. There were fireworks and explosions. They didn't allow any flash photography so I didn't get any pictures. The meal was shrimp and chicken with a salad and rice, 2 glasses of beer or wine and apple cobbler for dessert. It wasn't fantastic food, but all in all it was a fun time and well worth the $50.00.

Mom was extremely exhausted from the traveling and all of the noise was making her very edgy. It seemed to go by so fast and now we had to make the grueling journey back to our hotel. Since we had crossed the street to get to the theater coming I knew that our bus stop would be on the same side of the street to go back. I saw the band loading their buses and tried to get back there to tell Hailey bye but I could not. We couldn't risk missing our bus. We started walking to the bus stop and Mom really needed to sit down. There was a little bench a few yards from the bus stop so I told her to sit there while I went to check and make sure it was the right stop. While I was checking the bus actually came and it was the right one. I asked the driver if he could drive down and pick up my Mother (he could see her sitting there it just just a few yards away)! Well, he refused and said she needed to come to the bus stop. I knew he wouldn't wait while she walked there. He just told me there would be another bus in a few minutes and shut the door in my face and drove off! I couldn't believe it! I walked to get Mom and got her to the bus stop and we just had to sit there and wait. It was freezing cold and I was wearing flip flops. I saw all 7 of the bands buses pull out and leave and I felt so sad and jealous. Even though they had the boosters on ghetto buses at least they were ON a bus! I wondered why we didn't just go ahead and pay the extra money and do the trip the other band parents did. Oh well!

Finally our bus came and we got back to the train station much quicker than before since it didn't stop near as many times. There were some Disneyland employees on the bus who had just gotten off work and we got to listen to some very interesting stories about people breaking rules and stuff. Wow! Those people had seen it all!

So we get on the train and it's just sitting there with a couple of people on it. I look at the map on the wall and we're definitely on the right train but it's not moving! As more and more buses came, more and more people got on the train. It was around 9pm on New Year's Eve so there were all kinds on that train. People still coming home from work, people going to parties, it was crazy! After about 30 minutes of sitting there finally the train left (driving backwards, which was weird) and we flew back through the interstate traffic and arrived at the station around 10:15. Due to missing the first bus and the train being delayed we had missed our final bus back to the hotel that was supposed to come at 10:02. There were no buses there and I was worried. I called the concierge to see if the shuttle could come pick us up since we were very close but he said they couldn't do that. Finally another blue bus came. The driver needed to take a quick bathroom break so he parked the bus for five minutes before he let us get on. He was so nice when I asked him if he was going to Century and Aviation. He said sure I'll get you there! Whew!

I have never been so glad to see a hotel in my life!

Mom crashed but I stayed up to watch the ball in New York drop on TV.

Tomorrow was the big day, parade day and we had breakfast at 4am and loading of the buses at 5am. I left another ridiculously early wake-up call and crashed myself.

Happy New Year!

continued in part 7...

Please see parts 1-4 first

After wandering around in this Grove place for probably 30 minutes we finally found the entrance to The Farmer's Market. I was completely gahgah! It was so cute! There were all these little shops and food stands and a whole produce section just like in the grocery store. I even saw an entire little store that sold nothing but different hot sauces! I took as many pictures as I could before we had to return to the tour bus.

 

 

 

 

 

I could have stayed in there a whole nother hour but we had to get back to the bus so he didn't leave us!

When we made it back to the street where the bus was parked we noticed a couple of the band's buses driving by!

I pulled out my phone to call Hailey and see where she was and noticed I had a missed call. It was her! She was in the Farmer's Market but we didn't have time to go back in! I looked and her bus was parked right in front of our tour bus! Can you believe it? It's now Wednesday afternoon and besides a brief glimpse of her at Bandfest I haven't seen my daughter since early Sunday morning.

 

 

So, feeling deflated I told Hailey that I would see her at the dinner theater FOR SURE and we got on our bus to leave.

This was pretty much the end of our tour but our guide pointed out a few other things on the way back to the hotel. Most notably, the house where Marilyn Monroe lived.

 

All in all it was a great tour. We saw so much and our guide was both knowledgeable and very funny. He really engaged the crowd. At one point he even let me sit in the passenger seat. I don't think there is any way we could have seen as much as we did trying to tour on our own. What I didn't realize, and I guess a lot of people don't realize how HUGE this place is. I was glad we took this tour and we got back to our hotel around 2:30 so we had an hour before we had to begin our journey to Buena Park.

To be continued in part 6...