I'm not a big fan of these changes in case you were wondering. But tradition is tradition, right? To heck with change -- gotta go celebrate at DCA, right?

On our way to Paradise Pier, we noticed the Vineyard Room was not even open for lunch. While Dianne and Megan ran upstairs to use the restroom, I wandered over to the dining area -- that really neat one on the patio. Standing there amid the empty tables, with not a person in sight, it felt very sad and bleak.

Robert Mondavi is no longer sponsoring Golden Vine Winery - the large section of DCA dedicated to California's wine country. On opening day it featured two upstairs restaurants -- The Vineyard Room, and a separate outdoor patio/bar. Downstairs was a small deli, a wine country gift shop, two wine-tasting bars, and an attraction/film 'Seasons of the Vine.'

A bit like EPCOT's World Showcase pavilions, the entire district was abuzz with attentive, knowledgeable and enthusiastic staff members. It was hard to believe we were in a Disney theme park. As it turns out, Mondavi and Disney found it hard to believe too, and by October 2001, Mondavi had left, and Disney is now in charge of the whole complex.

As I was standing there day dreaming, a shirt-and-tie cast member broke the silence. "Do you need any help, sir?" I explained that I was reminiscing about our visit to The Vineyard Room last Easter, and the terrific day we had. "We're not open until 4:00" and he abruptly walked away -- about as disinterested in my comment as if I'd mentioned I was an exterminator.