Disney theme parks aren’t as fun when you get older.

Now that might seem like an incredibly obvious statement, but it’s honestly the truth, or at least to me it seems.

Recently, I came back from a week-long trip to California. For two of those days, my family and I went to the Disneyland theme park in Anaheim, just outside of Los Angeles. My sister, who is currently 5 years old, was thrilled to go in and meet all of the princesses. However, my excitement to attend was barely a fraction of hers.

I will admit, I was a little hopeful that the park was going to be fun, but the bigger part of me was dreading the large crowds and long lines, and all I could think about was my misery. This may come across as being ungrateful on my part, but I can assure you that this wasn’t the case–the magic just simply wasn’t in me anymore.

When I was around 6 years old, my family took me and my friend to the DisneyWorld park in Orlando, Florida. The day that we got there, I became endlessly excited to meet all of my favorite characters and ride the multitude of rides.That time, we had stayed about 2 weeks, and I never wanted that trip to end, because I was having a blast, and everything felt real.

This time, I was counting down the hours until we would leave. I was so miserable, nothing piqued my interest there anymore and I was left thinking that’s it?

The reality is once you reach a certain age, everything feels increasingly unfulfilling, and time goes on so quickly you don’t even realize things like all your favorite holidays and trips you were excited for passing by in a flash.

Maybe this is why adults say to cherish your childhood, because once you become one, nothing is magical anymore.

Even the most magical place on Earth