In 1976, we went on a family trip to Disneyland. We'd been there in 1972 when I was much younger, but my recollections of that trip have proven suspect. As far as that goes, I consider 1976 my first tangible visit to the Magic Kingdom.

It was a big deal for us; I'd just turned ten that spring, and my kid brother was all of five years old. We were still recovering from the impact of Dad's heart attack a couple of years prior, and I remember Mom taking a part-time job at the university bookstore for some extra cash. It had been a crazy summer; I'd discovered the joy of chicken pox, my skin shellacked with calamine lotion, lying on the living room floor in the summer heat watching The Gong Show, and hoping like crazy that the 'pox would be gone by August, when we made our exodus to the Mecca of the Mouse. Mecca Mouse. Well, it's funny to me…

We lived in San Jose, a little podunk suburb in the Santa Clara Valley, and in those days Disneyland might as well have been on the moon, it was that far away. The world was much bigger then. We picked up Mom at the bookstore on a Friday afternoon, and drove into the night. Dad has always been a careful driver, and this summer was no different. I believe we maintained the posted speed limit every stinkin' mile of the journey. Given the distance we were traveling, we had to stop for two, count 'em, TWO sit-down, here's-your-menu, would-you-like-appetizers meals along the way. My pre-adolescent mind was on the verge of cracking from the strain; I mean, didn't they realize where we were going? That every second mattered? The notion of grabbing a burger on the fly and eating while driving didn't appear to have occurred to my parents and when I suggested we take such action, they looked at me as though I'd sprouted antlers. In all, I believe we made the 450 or so mile trip in just a shade under nine hours (many years later, I made that same drive in under four hours, although I wouldn't advise trying it). What do I remember most about this most epic of car trips? Two things: Mom reading Pearl S. Buck's Stories For Children out loud to my brother and I as we passed Casa de Fruita (home of the cup flippers!), and the song "Midnight At The Oasis" by Maria Muldaur. We heard it so many times on the drive that it just about drove my parents nuts. And as I write this, naturally, that's the song I'm listening to. Ambience is everything when taking a trip in the Wayback Machine of memory and nostalgia.

So we arrived, hot and tired, and of course the first thing I wanted to do was go to Disneyland. But that had to wait until morning, because it was pretty darned late by the time we finally pulled into the parking lot of the Disneyland Hotel. And when the first light of dawn cracked the sky, I was dressed and ready for action. We got into the park just after it opened, and I remember it being a completely different world than any I'd seen before. Everything was fresh, clean, and sparkling. Everyone was smiling, and it seemed like anything was possible. We ambled down Main Street, taking in the sights, but I was itching to check out Tomorrowland. Eventually we made it to Walt's vision of the future, and I fell in love. An endless sea of open concrete greeted us, and I was first struck by the huge, beautiful tile mosaic mural. I wanted to linger to really take it in, but there was so much to see; a rocket trip to Mars, a voyage to the depths of the seas, getting shrunk down to the size of an atom; it was enough to make this kid's head swim in delirious ecstasy. We hit every attraction in Tomorrowland, and ventured back to Main Street to catch the Bicentennial parade (again, this was 1976). Honestly, I remember very little of the parade; all I could think doing was getting back to Tomorrowland and do it all again. After the parade, we went into the other areas of the park, and as best I can recall, we went on every single attraction at least twice.

Throughout the day, we plundered the Spanish Main, navigated the Rivers of America, took a cruise through the African Jungle, sang our way through It's A Small World (from the corner of my eye, I even saw Dad singing along) and discovered the place that launched my love for all things Polynesian, The Enchanted Tiki Room. I will consider my life a success when I am able to retreat to a study with bamboo walls, tikis galore, and a tropical storm that I could summon with the flick of a switch. My brother and I were more than a little leery of going to the Haunted Mansion, so we took several trips on the Mike Fink Keelboats (one of which now lies on the banks of Rom Sawyer Island) while Mom & Dad got spooked.

After exploring everywhere else, we headed back to Tomorrowland and its open spaces, clean, angular lines, all but insuring that a beautiful, streamlined future that lay ahead for all of us. At dusk, we boarded the People Mover, still one of my most favorite rides ever. I remember it taking us through the Adventure Through Inner Space, and then over the beautifully lit submarine lagoon. The Cast Member attending the People Mover that night was really cool – even though there was a line, she let us go around a second time.

Of course, we had to do the Submarine Voyage again at night, and it was a completely different experience. I think that was the first time I actually noticed the strings that attached the fish to the rocks of the lagoon. I saw the rotating metal arm to which other fish were mounted, but here's the thing: it didn't matter. The realization that it was a contrived, artificial experience actually made me love it all the more. That someone had actually taken the time to design it all, paint the fish, and set the whole thing up purely for entertainment nearly brought a tear to my young eye. That was the moment I fell in love with Disneyland and what Walt had so successfully accomplished.

And that's what it's all about, for me at least. That a grownup would willingly spend the time and money to create something so fantastic is a standing tribute to the sense of joy and wonder that too many of us leave behind as we become adults. And whether we go to Disneyland and see Walt's vision through the eyes of our children or just to open up that part of ourselves that has been closed off for so long, the magic still works and we're all kids again.