For reasons beyond my control (despite my best former domestic nagging!), I had been deprived of a long haul mega disney trip for ages. Thanks to perfect company of my beloved sister, we kicked things off last year with an utter long weekend a la joy at Disneyland Paris, had a ball, and I got re bitten by the nostalgic bug.

So when I was coming here to Tokyo, I knew I wanted to somehow segue it into my itinerary. Plus, my lovely pal Vicki and her girls had come back from Florida, and her gorgeous pictures were the only sales pitch I needed.

Whilst I am no full-blown “disney adult” thank you… (they’re an alarming concept, sinster, I dont fully trust) I bloody love a theme park, and disney do them best. And blimey, the Japanese do them better!

It has been 10 years since I was last at Disneyland Tokyo, with Katy, and we didn’t visit their second park, Disney Sea, at all. I have scant memories of it other than, as with much of Japan, that it was utter lunacy on steroids with patrons parading around in homemade cosplay looks, making them indistinguishable from staff! Bloody marvellous.

This decade has unsurpringly bought lots of change, with new rides, parades, and lands, and lord did I have the BEST 2 days.

The 5.30am start was no joke. The Japanese love a queue, as we know now, and arriving early for everything is a cultural (but logicstical) nightmare when it comes to disney.

I skipped breakfast given it was basically still dinner time the night before when the alarm went off!!! And headed to the magic of Disneyland Park…..where I waited… in a queue….on the floor….for 2 hrs for the park to open!!! More alarming still there were easily over 500 people in front of me when I got there!! Great opportunity to catch up on blog writing and also develop a hideously unflattering forearm burn to rival the whitest of van drivers in the land!!!!

The cutesy or kawaii nature of japan means people still go alllllll out on their outfits and most are dressed like they’ve got disney at 7am but the hunger games at 3!!! The morning queue was a great chance to see some incredibly intricate displays of characterful costume charm with harajuku frills and frolicks and massive novelty hats a plenty…

They also take dressing their babies and toddlers seriously, and my word, even I thought I saw a limp spark in the maternal instinct at some of these cutie pies. A tiny Donald duck, aladdin, mini mouse, and pooh bear . So scrumptious you could scoff em!

I’d read a few things online about needing to be regimented here, which feels juxtaposed with the light hearted fun but a few moments focus when you arrive and an early start paid dividends for seeing and soaking up as much of the sights as poss.

There is a lot to plan… but once you’re on top of it, you can enjoy the day care free and eat ALL the snacks!!!

A solo trip proved helpful as it meant the perfect balance of multiple snack stops with minimal judgement! I tried hard to self police when hangry to maximise enjoyment of day. And here are some of my favourite, much needed munch:

Alien mochi – had it both days, soft, squidgy, satisfyingly sweet.

There was a celebration of Donald duck at disneyland Park, and people here go quackers for him… (yes, I’m delighted with the pun, thanks!)

I ordered the mystery Donald ice cream only to be delighted upon opening it to find out it was a massive comedy beak!!!

Nearly cracked a tooth on the complex plastic stick, but otherwise 10/10 refreshing mango flavoured smoosh and comedy factor enhanced enjoyment of everything (as so often does in life as with snacks!)

Mickey nugs. This is something drunk me would have a special appreciation for but despite the food and wine festival anything but gallons of water or full fat coke to literally keep me alive in 80% humidity and on 5hrs sleep was out. Plus, I’m not sure I could hack solo drinking around disney…for the unofficiated, it’s the most magical punishing relentless pursuit you will undertake. With the exception of maybe that time that I walked an overnight marathon for charity.

Snack to sit down ratio went up massively on day 2…as did decline in number of excited pics of me with said snacks. Mainly just sitting quietly, sweating profusely, and planning next logistical steps – along with praising me from a week ago who thought buying a hello kitty fan was probs a good idea. Last week me was smart….I like her!

On this note, both parks were stuffed full of hoards of girlfriends, wives, partners, sisters, and mums in charge of bags, babies, and making the day magical. Closely followed by a shit tonne of hands-free boyfriends, brothers and dads eating popcorn and waiting to be told what to do …eye roll. Good to see the massive weight and burden of entirely necessary holiday organisation falling on the galdem is an international concept.

Cis hetero lads, if you’re reading and you love your partners, pull your bloody finger out and give her a hand. Hols can be a massive stress and really hard to juggle. Spoiler alert NO ONE, I repeat NO ONE “loves” or “is so good at” or is “born with” organisation skills. We have to learn it cos the patriarchy be like, and I hate it. it’s her bloody holiday as much as it is yours. In fact, given this is largely also replicated in day to day life everywhere, I’d warrant that she needs this holiday way more than you do!!! So stop being a lazy, entitled arsehole and help. Here ends the ted talk. Thanks.

Back to the magic!!!

Day 2 was Disney Sea. It’s a totally new concept park I’d never seen and is not replicated anywhere other than here. Another 5.30 start and catching up with me after an 18-hour day yesterday. On the plus side, I’ll have thighs as tight as beyonce when I come home…so for that Mickey, I am grateful.

The parks have festivals and celebrations that run throughout the year, and as with Donald Duck’s Ducky Duck Duck fest at Disneyland (yeah, it really was called that!) Disney Sea was all about ‘Duffy’. No, not the one that sang Warwick Avenue that was embrolied in that dogging superinjunction….but this giant bear only found here.

People bloody love him!!! And I mean go nuts for him….like bring literal prams of stuffed toys with them to the park, nuts!! No children, just endless bears in prams. If it was the UK, you’d 100% be put in a watchlist…..but here we all laugh and coo and say it’s cute. Which given the word of the day every day here is harmless (and also maybe batshit) it’s fine…apparently. He’s also got a girlfriend called Shelly Mae – who does a meet and greet, where people queue for houuuurs. And I mean frequently always over a 3hr wait. People will pay for a day pass for the park just to queue to see this massive pretend bear with a bow in it’s hair. It’s lunacy and I a little bit love it.

I couldn’t be doing with any of that bollocks though, as I had rollercoasters to ride. With the exception of the big cheese himself, thanks to a 10 minute wait to see him when the evening parade was on (#tactics)

Soarin was the perfect way to start the day and one of my favourite rides in any Disney complex. It’s hard to explain without experiencing it, but it is a huge imax style screen where you sit in a simulated paraglider and soar over sights of the world. The wind blows in your face and sounds and smells accompany the jounrey. It’s utterly blissful.

Veritable feast of new and innovative rides here in this park, too, including submarine diving, hunting for coral reefs, and sunken ships on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Tunnelling through mantle and core in a wrought iron, super high speed digging machine in Journey to the Center of the Earth and being exposed to supernatural curses and dropping into another dimension in Tower of Terror.

Then there were the shows. Full west end theatres with plush seating, a dress circle, and a performance to rival Broadway finest. I saw the coveted Big Band Beat, and it was super cute despite obtaining tickets being like Glastonbury!! It’s an ode to the jazz era of the 1920s and 30th but sung by Mickey and Pals. God bless the comfy seat after all the steps and lord almighty the air con!!! A dream.

The theme influence is exceptional here, one moment you’re boarding a steamboat across the mississipi, next it’s ice cream in Agraba, and by lunch, you’re riding a gondola in Venice (no really…!) A wild and wonderful place

So there we have it, Tokyo Disney? Completed it, mate….Absolutely caned these past 2 days and beyond exhausted but in that lovely way holidays do to you. I did 58,778 steps over 2 x 18hr days, on a combined total of about 10 hours of sleep. (I will imminently need to incinerate the trainers I’ve had on for those 2 punishing days! A casualty of the cause)

Truly reckon only my beloved sister could match that level of disney. And I spent so much of it wishing she was here. Not only because she is my favourite person in the whole world… but she just gets it like I do. We’ve been sitting next to each other on disney rides for 25 years, and it was tinged with sad to do this one solo. Us Thurlows are seasoned pros  – Mama and Papa T taught us well.

On that point…The older I get I find more and more ways to respect my utterly incredible parents but how on earth they did 14 days in a row at Disneyworld with 2 small children and didn’t smother one of us or each other is beyooooond.

I need to lie down in a cold, quiet place for 4-6 working days before I feel ready to address the world again….they are machines!!!!! Incredible.

This trip was made all the extra special by a very generous donation from Mama Thurlow, who wanted to cover the magic even though they couldn’t be there. And just another reason I’ve cried about 85 times since I’ve been here. I’m blaming hormones and 5am starts but I just have the best fam ever, I really am so very lucky to have landed amongst that bunch and have their love and support even when I’m thousands of miles away. I hope I’m doing them proud on my adventures (despite probs doing lots of things they wouldn’t do!)

And so I am unbelievably at the final chunk of the trip, albeit still 3½ weeks of South Korean adventures to have. I currently still feel like I have Minnie ears on the whole time…it’s the disney equivalent of sea legs and a nostalgic token of the trip for the next day or so.

Shelled out for a luxe Uber to the airport hotel. I’d have given my firstborn child to the Disney complex if they’d let me just collapse on their floor and sleep in the lobby, but this was the next best thing. An air-conditioned leather seated lexus back to the airport ahead of another departure lounge tomorrow. Til next time, Mickey babe….

Get ready, South Korea….I’m coming for you!!!