Dana has been having foot issues for over a year. She has been dealing with plantar fasciitis (the ligament is inflamed on the sole of her foot). Her "best friend" on and off since arriving in California has been a very bulky and uncomfortable walking boot.
Normally, we are smart about what types of activities we're going to attempt on the weekend. The main goal is to minimize the stress/amount of time on her feet.
I say "normally" because every now and then we head out on a "bad idea" foot-wise but a fun idea in reality.
We recently made a last minute decision to spend the day at Disneyland. Yes, we live close enough to Disney that the only advance planning is deciding to drive to the park.
We called ahead to inquire about any special passes or accommodations for park visitors with foot issues. We were told to head to City Hall once we entered the park to get a pass with two arrows on it that would allow us to skip the lines with a minimal amount of walking.
Fantastic!
We entered the park and immediately found City Hall. Dana trudged her way to the building and patiently waited her turn. Once we got to the front of the line, the cheerful Disney rep told us that the person we spoke to on the phone didn't know what she was talking about in terms of passes.
I asked about the two arrows pass and was told it was a pass that is only issued to people with mental issues. I told her I could act like I have Tourettes but she was VERY unamused by that suggestion. Dana's choices were:
*Take a pass that allowed her to enter the handicapped entrances of the rides.
*Rent a wheelchair.
*Take her chances in the regular lines.
We chose the pass that allowed her to enter the handicapped entrances.
And that's when the "fun" began....
We quickly learned that Disney does not have an overall
guideline for people who have some sort of physical issue:
*The staff of some of the rides did not make us wait in line at
all.
*Some staff members put us in the single rider line.
*Other staff members seemed unimpressed/not worried about
the handicapped logo on the pass and put us in the regular line. We (normally) don’t mind waiting in line but
the long wait defeats the purpose of helping someone who isn't supposed to be on
their feet all day.
The really annoying part was the process of finding out the
different rules for each ride.
We always
walked down the long pathway of the handicapped entrance to the worker at the
end of the line. If we got lucky we were
in the right place to enter the ride. If
not, we had to walk all the way out of the handicapped area to the front of the
ride where there was no one stationed to tell us where to go in the first
place.
My favorite experience was on “Star Tours”. The worker in front of the building opened a
door for us and told us to “walk down the hall and then take the elevator to
the next floor. After you exit the
elevator, walk down the hallway and then turn…I don’t remember if it’s left or
right…but make a turn and walk until you see other people. Someone will help you from that point.”
Basically, we wandered around the “Star Tours” building without
the help of any guides or workers. We could
have gone anywhere in the building and grabbed any “souvenirs” we wanted as a
keepsake of our day at Disney! Visions
of eBay sales danced through my head!
Dana’s injury is not permanent so our Disney adventure with
her foot was a funny family memory in the making. I was surprised how little concern the Disney
parks have about the comfort of their handicapped guests. There is no way I can begin to describe the
day as an “easy experience” for Dana.
One other odd note…I somehow went the whole day without
seeing Mickey Mouse in person. What kind
of day at Disney doesn’t involve a glimpse of their most famous character?
It’s just another sign that Disney is not focused on (what
should be) their main concern…The complete customer experience.
