Memories of Disneyland - the happiest place in the world

Disneyland is always a good idea, not only for children but also for adults. The happiest place on earth, Disneyland stays with you long after you have returned. Our youngest writer Lavanya Kar recalls her trip to the wonderland a few years ago and and hopes she'd get to go there soon.

If there was one place I could visit again, it would be Disneyland. If I could list the one place that brought me happiness like no other had, it would be Disneyland. I've wished countless times, during both this lockdown in the last, to be rid of the walls of my own home, suffocating and stuffy, and the first place I'd go, if I could, would be Disneyland. Looking at the pictures we took invokes memories of a better time, a time when there were no worries, and the scariest thing was not a global pandemic, but rather the evil stepmother in the relatively tame Snow White ride. In retrospect, it was quite harmless, but a younger me had to do all I could to stop myself from bringing up the giant vanilla ice cream cone I had eaten just before.

It was Disneyland Paris' 25th anniversary the year we visited, making the experience extra magical for us. There were banners and elaborate displays all in their signature silver and royal blue color scheme, matching the magical cloud-streaked sky. We took a bus from our home stay, located in a small village close to Disneyland. The main city of Paris being quite far, we had decided to stay here. In just ten minutes we were in Disneyland. I had imagined being here multiple times and now that I had finally reached, it seemed surreal.

We walked onto Main Street of the park as soon as we passed security. In awe of the horse-driven transport carts and vintage buildings, we were soon lured into a roadside boutique, one of the many we would slip into merely to glance the racks and racks of items, each organized according to its section. We took pictures with hats, wands, jackets and what not. Had mother not reminded that there was an entire park waiting for us outside, we'd have spent the whole day there.

Trudging back into the sun, we caught a glimpse of the majestic castle, the central character in the park. The castle, when we went in, seemed as good as real. Inside were stained glass murals, winding staircases and the very spindle that pricked Aurora. At every station we paused at, there was a storybook open at the page depicted in the tapestry behind. We left the castle truly enlightened about Maleficent's evil deeds, brains so muddled that we walked into yet another store, this time posing with plushies, and breaking a snow globe.

The carousel was our first real ride, and a wonderful way to start the day. We ambled around, taking pictures for a bit, before coming across Tigger and Eeyore, characters from Winnie the Pooh series whose hugs were probably the best I've received in my life. And then, we waited for what seemed like forever, in line for a train, which ended up not being a ride, but a way of transportation around the park. After wasting an hour on the rather useless train, two of us decided to join a Star Wars ride, which was fun, considering I know nothing about the series.

The next few rides are a blur, I faintly remember spinning teacups, and a boat ride through the magical kingdoms of each Disney Princess. What I do recall clearly is standing in line to meet Mickey Mouse, who had his own theater. Luckily, to prevent boredom, they played old animated shorts from the initial stages of Disney while we waited. We were ushered into a plush backstage room, and I daresay he was quite happy to see us. We explored the rest of the park, clambering onto Jack Sparrow's lookout and exploring a few more Princess rides before getting in queue for the parade.

The Parade is the highlight of the Disneyland Parks, wherever in the world they may be. If you happen to be in the park in the afternoon and see everyone drifting towards the same direction blindly follow them and you will inevitably reach the Parade route. We did that too and found ourselves among hundreds of people waiting for the parade. It is worth your while to sit patiently along the street and wait for as long as an hour -- or more -- before the parade begins, for if you are not in the front row, you are going to miss all the fun. So we sat and waited for a long, long time. And then it came - the parade with each of the Disney character singing, dancing, jumping prancing and making the already perfect experience a little bit more perfect.