The triplets sail again – Mom’s Day Eastern 2009

[j2bmickey]

Introduction

Well we have all heard the stories of pirates finding their favorite waters and sea lanes to ambush. This will be no different as the cry rings out “Avast me hearties, the triplets sail again. And this time there be a fourth to share the plunder in honor of their moms".

As we start this tale, be warned that it will not be as filled with adventure as the last. Nay this voyage was more about recuperation and restoration than pillage and plunder. But as there seems to be a void in Eastern Caribbean tales, and I promised my muse (disneyzell) to carry the torch, we will attempt to make it through another round of my ramblings.

As before, this will be based on my recollection and opinions and I will not even try to live up to the abilities of other story tellers on this site. So let’s get started shall we.


Cast of Characters

DH (37) pirate:– This report will once again be started by me although we “share” DW’s id. She will also pop in occasionally to “correct and supplement” my information.

DW (39 on the boat) ::MinnieMo– She once again was mostly content to take a backseat in the planning. As usual, she just requested beach time. She did strongly suggest that she would like to play bingo and do some shopping on the islands.

DD (6) princess:– She is still our little princess, but she is acting more the part as she gets older. She also turns more tomboy every time she gets around her “guys”.

Traveling buddies – We still refer to them as neighbors even though we live in different towns. These guys were beyond swamped before this cruise with a new job, new town, new house, and oh yeah; a new child.

DNH (38) :cool:– Still one of most laid back people I know, but definitely in need of a vacation. I still need to take him up on the tattoo offer.

DNW (39.9999) :beach:– I still think she wants to be the Grand Pubaa Planner, but just doesn’t have the time that the rest of us slackers do. As always, one classy lady.

DNS1 (6) :cool:– Still the spitting image of his father. He seemed to want to hang out more with his Uncle (me) which is pretty cool for someone who lives in a house of estrogen.

DNS2 (6) :car:– This kid is still a gear-head and even made sure the sand castles had a place to park the sand trucks and buggies. More on that later.

DND (2) :tinker:– The newcomer of the crew who was finally old enough to help hoist the sails. Make no mistake, this swabbie could make everyone scuttle.


Planning Stages

So most people who take a Disney cruise and like it will go ahead and book another trip while on board to take advantage of discounts and ship-board credits. For whatever reason, we are not those people. :sad2: Maybe it was the shock of how much we were already spending on board, or being to busy chasing characters for autographs. Whatever the reason, we decided to wait until back on land to plan our next voyage.

So as we finished our first trip report / scrap-booking session in Dec 2007 and the new dates for 2009 were posted, we decided that we needed to plan our return trip to the islands. We first started looking at trying to book a Christmas Holiday or Rodeo Break (it’s big in Arizona) in early 2009, but none of the school breaks seemed to line up. Plus the prices seemed to be a little expensive for the dates we were looking at. In the end we decided we would like a little warmer weather and a week off from Kindergarten would not stop the march of our next supreme ruler. So it was settled that the May 9-16, 2009 Eastern Caribbean would be our next boat to commandeer. At the time, we did not realize that it was Mother’s Day, DW birthday, and DN’s 15th anniversary (almost) so we were taking care of all kinds of celebrations. :dance3:

This cruise plan started with the neighbors from the beginning so there was no trying to convince other people to go or linking dining and excursions at the last minute. Although we did have some issues trying to book the excursions and shipboard activities online for everybody. Disney claims that is was probably user error and that we didn’t confirm all of our excursions. I claim that their website had a hiccup and lost our reservations. :confused3 Whatever the real cause, they were very helpful and we ended up getting everything that we wanted anyway. :thumbsup2

We attempted to take a much more mellow approach to the planning this time. Don’t get me wrong, I still did lots of research on the different islands and excursions. :surfweb: I just didn’t constantly bombard our group with information and try to plan activities for every waking moment and half of the non-waking moments. Some other group members even got into the experience a little and came up with their own research and recommendations. We eventually came up with a handful of activities that we would like to try at each port and would go with the flow as the day arrived. I have to admit that there were times when I would feel the urge to become the obsessive planner again, but I think for the most part I stayed pretty calm.

Another thing that we did differently this time was get involved with the DIS Cruise Meet Thread. This was a lot of fun and I highly suggest it for anyone planning a cruise. :goodvibes It is a great way to meet other cruisers and get pointers for any questions you might have. Of course it also leads to more planning, especially if you want to participate in the FE exchange, but well worth it. :fish: We had a great group of people and several who stuck out whether for their tips, advice, and planning; or just for their wit and humor. :disrocks:

[j2bmickey]

Day 0 – Getting to Cape Canaveral

So not only did we plan a cruise for early May, but we also ended up having TONS of other activities going on in the weeks leading up to the cruise. :confused3 We were either out of town, had guests staying with us, or had some end-of-the-year kindergarten festival to attend right up until a few days before the cruise. And as we all know, it is hard enough to pack suitcase these days with nothing but time. :rotfl:

We once again had our handy spreadsheet that listed tips, things to buy, and what clothes to wear each day and therefore pack. It may sound a little over the top, but these spreadsheets really do help you think about what you really need and not over pack. :thumbsup2 As we collected things we would need, we made a pile in the guestroom. Of course since we had guests before the cruise, this pile would move to the office, our bedroom, and back to the guestroom. I am quite surprised that something didn’t get lost in the shuffle. :scratchin

Since we weren’t taking scuba gear this time, I figured we would only need 2, mayyybe 3 suitcases for all of the necessities. I also didn’t take a suit (used the second tux shirt with a tie) so I figured that would help lighten the hanging bag which was included in the count and could be used for princess dresses. DW reminded me that we were taking FE gifts and more sand toys (we brought the sand toys, neighbors brought sunscreen) and would probably need 4 bags. I told her no way, but guess who was right? :sad2: I still think she must have left extra space to require that 4th bag. Actually, I think the biggest reason was that we were watching weight and breakables (think bubblewrap and boxes) since we had two cases of cactus jelly to pack for FE gifts. And once again, coming back required an extra bag. Of course part of that was because of Mother’s Day and birthday gifts, and rum (the pirate elixir of life), and t-shirts, etc. :)

As Friday morning arrives, we are remarkably organized and calm. We take DD to school, gather up and pack the last few items, and I see who is still left on the cruise meet (I mean I check into how things are going at work). :rolleyes1 We begin the epic journey at about 11 am as we pick up DD and head for the airport (She gets credit for a full day if she is there past 10:57). Check-in at the airport is very smooth (typical for mid-day), and everyone is in a good mood including the TSA and border patrol agents who said they would be glad to take DD for a weeklong training. Clearly they were all single and hadn’t spent much time with a 6 year-old princess. :laughing:

Since we still like to fly AA, we made the mandatory stop at DFW before continuing on to Orlando. The entire trip was pretty smooth and nothing out of the ordinary happened this time (last time included a Make-A-Wish family). Of course we still had time for the Skylink tram which DD loves. :teleport:

Being the seasoned travelers that we are at MCO, we decided that it would save some time if DW collected that bags while I went across the walkway to Avis and picked-up the rental car. This worked pretty well with a few small caveats. DW called me just as I was pulling out of the parking garage to say that they had the bags and were waiting by the curb. Perfect I said, I will be there in a few minutes. Well I was, along with the 4000 other cars picking up and dropping off passengers. :eek: Holy Cow, I have never seen so many people in one place since Times Square a few years ago. :scared1: Surprisingly, everyone is fairly patient and friendly in letting cars in and out of pickup lanes, and I pull into the curb on the first go-round. As I get out of the car, DW has a puzzled look on her face. It seems that instead of the Mazda 626 and booster seat that I reserved, I had pulled up in a Mitsubishi Eclipse with a full harness child seat. After a couple of seat and luggage adjustments, we have everything loaded and ready to go, albeit a little snug. :crowded: DW was still shaking her head but DD and I thought it was a cool little car and we felt like Orlando Drift. :thumbsup2

As we are leaving the airport we decide to call the neighbors to see if they were settled in (this was 10:30pm and they were a few hours ahead of us). They reported that they were just getting into Cape Canaveral because they had spent over two hours at the Cracker Barrel getting dinner. :sad2: WOW!!! We just don’t seem to have very good luck stopping at restaurants on road trips. They were pretty wiped out and wanted to crash at the hotel, so they would talk to us in the morning. Oh, I’m sure you will.

Again, since we were seasoned Florida travelers (one other trip 2 years ago), and we had a zippy little sports car, the drive over to Cape Canaveral was pretty short. :car: Another thing different that we did this time was get a hotel on the beach. I watched specials on the different travel sites until one day the Hilton Cocoa Beach showed up with a killer deal. You may ask why we booked something on the beach since we were getting in so late. Well, you will just have to wait until the next installment to find out. As we are driving through town we spot the ABC Liquor store and it appears to be open. We figure that the neighbors were probably too worn out to stop and it would be less stressful if we go ahead and stop tonight. We pull in and the store clerk is very helpful in recommending the proper refreshments to quench our crews thirst. She even asks which boat we are on as certain bottles will make it past security on other boats. :scratchin

Check-in at the hotel was very smooth although the parking seemed a little bit remote. I can definitely say that this one is on the recommend list. After lugging the bags to the room and getting the princess ready for never-never land, I was wide awake as expected. Since DW was looking a little weary, I decided to go down and see what was happening at the hotel lounge. There were only a few other guys but they were watching the basketball game, and since I am a Lakers fan (goes back to Magic, Kareem, Worthy, and Rambis) I decided to sit and have a beer. We started chatting and one of the guys was actually there to watch the shuttle launch. This is the second time I have just missed a launch when going on a cruise and the bartender said there is a very good view from the hotel walkway on the beach. This guy for the launch actually works for the company who make the engines for the shuttle. How cool is that ?!?!? Sorry, a little of the engineer geek showing up. He mentioned that this is the first launch he has seen, but he has been to the test facility in NC where they only have 1 of the 3 engines going, and that is deafening and shakes the ground from a mile away. Again, how cool is that ?!?!?!?:idea:

[RoyalVizier]

Awesome recount so far! :woohoo:

Thanks so much for sharing. I'll be anxiously watching for more...

[disneynewbee]

Can't wait to hear more.

[j2bmickey]

Awesome recount so far! :woohoo:

Thanks so much for sharing. I'll be anxiously watching for more...


Many thanks. I will try to get a new post up soon, before your next cruise. :hourglass That will mean I can't read all of your past reports, which will be tough. :scared:

[j2bmickey]

Can't wait to hear more.


Hopefully I won't string you out too long, but no promises. :rolleyes1

[RoyalVizier]

Many thanks. I will try to get a new post up soon, before your next cruise. :hourglass That will mean I can't read all of your past reports, which will be tough. :scared:

*L* Well don't rush on my account. I'd rather you do it right and include all of that marvelous detail than to rush just to get it all done by June 20th. I'll be watching! And thanks for taking a peek at mine too! :)

[my3m]

Subscribing

[kimberleeJohnston]

Sounds great so far......
MOre....MOre!!!!

[j2bmickey]

As I may or may not have mentioned, I am a pretty light sleeper in general and it usually gets worse when there is something exciting about to happen. ;) This day would start no different as I was awake by 6 a.m. (which was 3 a.m. in my time zone), and of course the rest of my crew is still sleeping like normal people who have only gotten about 5 or 6 hours sleep. I decided there was no use fighting it and would get dressed, start some coffee, and head over for a stroll on the beach. :goodvibes

So now for the explanation of why the hotel on the beach, and no it wasn’t just to say we did it. We had decided that since we already had our dining linked and didn’t have any urgent changes that needed to be made, we would have a leisurely morning and let the kids play on the beach. :beach: I know, I know, that is blasphemy coming from a true DIS’er, but it actually was pretty cool. Now don’t get me wrong, it is also pretty cool getting to port early and checking out all of the stuff in the cruise terminal, but we were on a much more mellow path this time around. :hippie:

Anyway, even though I really am trying to be quiet, the smell of the coffee brewing wakes DW. She doesn’t really like coffee, but she likes the smell. I tell her that I am going to walk down and check out the beach. She says to have a good time and that she was going to try to catch a few more z’s. :ssst: After brewing up the morning cup of java, I head out on my adventure. The outdoor setup was pretty cool with a patio area, swimming pool, rental desk, and a private boardwalk to the beach. As I start strolling toward the pier, I am thinking, oh yeah, this was a good choice to start the vacation. As I watch some of the fishing boats gather bait fish and start their day, I make a mental note that that would be an almost perfect start to a vacation. After about an hour of beachcombing, watching some of the surf fishers catch breakfast, and chatting to others enjoying the morning (did I mention that I have never met a stranger), I decided to head back to the room.

DW was fully coherent at this time, but DD wasn’t. To give here a few more minutes of shuteye, we started adjusting any of the packing that needed to be done, putting the luggage tags on, and making sure we had all of the paperwork filled out. We also sent a text to the neighbors to see if they were awake yet. After a few minutes we received a return text that most of them were up. Since DD was also awake, she and I snuck down to their room while DW called to start making plans. It turns out that their room was directly below ours and DW could hear us knocking and the ruckus as the kids saw each other again. :jumping1: As pandemonium breaks out DW says she will head down also. One of the first things we do is hand out the first of our gifts. We had ordered both families green bracelets with the cruise dates to wear. These were very cool and had been set up and pre-ordered by a fellow DIS’er (Thanks again scottie). :thumbsup2 Since the kids are bouncing off the walls and having a grand time, DNH and I decide that we will just run to the convenience store and pick up some donuts for everyone to eat. As we are selecting the proper sugar tubes, I get a phone call to please also grab a coffee for DNW. It seems that she could not master the art of pouring water and hitting the on button. :confused3 Actually there were a few fancy features for one or two cups, that could make it a little difficult if you were in the middle of a kid frenzy. :scared1:

After the proper nourishment of sugar and milk, it was time to head for the beach. When I had been down earlier, I thought the water was pretty cold and the kids probably wouldn’t want to swim. Naturally since we just let them wear shorts, the first thing they did was head straight for the water.

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After frolicking in the sand and water for a while, it was time to rinse off and head for the boat. DD was cold by this point and wanted a warm bath so we took her up to the room along with DND, and DNW. The boys wanted to swim so they stayed down at the pool with DNH for a little bit longer. :fish:

Our plan for boarding was similar to before. We would drop off the women, kids, and luggage at the port, stock any last minute rations, and return the rental cars. I was a little curious as to how the crowds and traffic would compare to last time since we were heading out later (it was around 11:30 as we left the hotel). It turns out that it was a breeze. We eased up to the curbside checkin with no backups or delays whatsoever. After unloading both cars worth of luggage onto one, I repeat one worker’s dolly, DNH and I head out on our errands. :drinking1 Of course there are several phone conversations to make sure that all is well: are we getting the proper type and amount of libations (good thing we still have two carry-on bags), do we need to get the kids a snack before coming back to the port, how is check-in going, etc. We ended up getting boarding group 16 which sounds like a nightmare but they board so fast that it wasn’t a problem at all. By the time we were dropping off DNH’s car, they were already to group 9 and not slowing down. And by the time we made it back to the port, there was nothing to do but take our picture and get on the ship. :cool1: It was kind of strange to see the terminal so empty and non-chaotic. The only slight bummer to this method was that being after 1 p.m., the kids were getting pretty hungry, so that would be a top priority. I also still didn’t get to go out the terminal doors to look at the ship. :sad2: Maybe the old saying of “third times a charm” will hold true.

DW insert – since we had done all our paperwork online, check-in was again a breeze. DNW and I check in together even though we are not all in the same cabin. The cast member informs her that DNH has not signed his passport! :scared1: What?! Is that going to be a problem? No she says just have him sign it before we get back. Cool! :thumbsup2 Keeping four excited kids from tearing down the terminal was a bit of a struggle. I think every one of them tried to tear down the blinds.

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DD has no fear of Mickey Mouse or any other of the characters (see above, she gets this from her dad), unfortunately DND does not share the same mentality. Needless to say I’m in half the pictures with her and the characters so that DNW can get the pictures. Oh well, I LOVE the characters!! End DW insert. :cheer2:

Hmmm, maybe this title should have been “Almost getting back on the boat”. :scratchin

[disneynewbee]

LOL the picture of the kids on their heads is hilarious. That's exactly what my girls would be doing, actually they do it at home all the time. I'm sure I'll be posting a pretty similar picture come November. Now get on that boat already:banana:

[j2bmickey]

LOL the picture of the kids on their heads is hilarious. That's exactly what my girls would be doing, actually they do it at home all the time. I'm sure I'll be posting a pretty similar picture come November. Now get on that boat already:banana:


Yeah, I thought about naming the report "The monkeys sail again".

I thought we were going to have the all aboard posted last night but it turned into a rather lengthy section. So unfortunately, it is still at the publishers being edited for content. :surfweb: Hopefully it will be up sometime this evening.

[j2bmickey]

Ok, I ran out of steam before completing the first day during the last session, :faint: so let’s get back to it shall we.

Getting the security pictures taken was a little chaotic since DND was staying in our room. Plus the kids were definitely ready to be on the boat. After a quick stop for the first “portrait”, it was across the gangplank and into “THE LOBBY” for our formal welcome and fanfare. Since we were so close to Rockin Bar D and the Guest Services desk, we decided to see how busy it was before heading up for lunch. I know, we are horrible parents for our starving offspring.

I headed off to see if I could make adjustments to our Palo brunch reservations since we had Sunday and DN’s had Monday with childcare also reserved (We weren’t sure DND would be completely potty trained by the cruise). The concierge (P.J.) was very helpful and surprisingly said he could switch all of us to Sunday, but there were no openings for a table of 4 on Monday. I told him that it was greatly appreciated but we were really hoping for Monday because of the childcare (with none available Sunday). He excused himself for a few minutes and came back with a reservation card for the four of us on Monday. Outstanding. :worship: In the meantime, the rest of the crew headed over to Guest Services to drop off the photo mattes (Complete with colored pins and chocolate bribes). :flower3:

Ok time to get some sustenance into the little urchins (and big ones) so we head up to Topsiders. As we are standing in line, we spot the first of our fellow green bracelet wearing DIS’ers. The bracelets would prove pretty handy in striking up conversations throughout the week. I have to admit that I couldn’t remember her name at first (dilmaluvs2cruise) but I did recognize the face from an awesome website that another DIS’er had set up (airtime247). We would actually see each other quite often during the week, partially because our dining tables were in close proximity. As we are nearing the end of the buffet, DNH decided to go in search of seats as it looks pretty packed. :crowded: Unfortunately, we got separated waiting on new cups and had to wander around a little with one of the servers trying to help us out. Before too long, DNH returns to guide the lost sheep to the tables he had scored by the Mickey Pool. Bonus. :cool1: The next order of business is to break into the 40 lb bag of adult beverages we had lugged on. There is nothing like a little rum to properly start off a Caribbean vacation. :drinking1 Ahhrrrr.

Naturally, the kids all inhaled their food and announced that they were ready to swim. Since some of the adults were still eating, we convinced them to hang around the Mickey pool for starters. They were fine with this although they weren’t as interested in the slide this time. They also got to try out the new splash zone which DND loved.

It was about this time that we ran into another DIS’er (ufcabear) and had a nice chat. This is another group that we seemed to run into quite often even though they weren’t traveling with children. We also spotted Pluto and ufcabear was kind enough to take mine and DW’s picture.

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Using the chaos of the Pluto sighting, DW decided to take the opportunity to slip down to the rooms and see if the luggage had arrived and unload the next of our surprises for the neighbors. :tiptoe: We had made door signs for both rooms, although we had played innocent a few weeks earlier when questioned about it. Of course I have to give the proper thanks to all of the people on the DIS boards who share their ideas and blanks for these. :disrocks:

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DW insert – Once down in the room I notice that all four of our bags have been delivered, Sweet! I quickly bring them in and then proceed to stick the door magnets and FE’s up and get out before I get caught. :ssst: I then carefully make my way back up to the pools. DH calls me just as I have reached the Goofy pool. Perfect. End insert. :banana:

Before too long, DNW notices that someone is missing and asks where she went. I nonchalantly reply that she said something about taking some of the carryons down to the room. She decides this is a good idea so after a few orders to her offspring and topping of the refreshments, she is away also. I hurriedly call DW to ask where she is and say that DNW is on the way. No worries, she is almost back up to the pool and all door signs and FE’s are in the proper places.

The kids had decided by this point that they wanted to swim in the Goofy pool (and more likely sit in the hot tubs). So the guys took turns splashing in the pool and relaxing (sort of) in the tubs, while the ladies helped watch for anyone wandering back to the Mickey pool. We had learned from last time not to spend the whole time playing in the pool before the lifeboat drill so about 3 p.m. we pack up and head for the room. The ladies start herding the children while DNH and I fill up our mugs with soda. When we get down to our floor, we somehow get turned around just looking at room numbers and head the wrong way. We end up going all the way around the ship before getting to our rooms. :confused3 It wasn’t a total loss as I spotted the door sign of a fellow DIS’er (lyn9856) and decided to knock. They were very nice and had been on holiday at WDW for a week or two already. :wave2:

When we finally make it back to the rooms, all that I see are the remnants of the cruise baskets we had gotten the kids from Shirley at The Perfect Gift. She did an awesome job as usual. The kids loved them and had the toys everywhere. They girls toted their water bottles everywhere the rest of the week. DW also got a surprise as I had ordered her a bouquet of flowers for Mother’s Day and a pampering gift basket for her birthday which included an autographed photo of Jimmy Buffett.

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It was now time for the infamous life boat drill. We didn’t get as lucky as last time and had to go outside on deck 4. It was toasty, but seemed to be over fairly quickly. Time for some more partying at the Adventures Away celebration. Another tip that we had learned from last time, don’t worry about trying to unpack until after the party and maybe even after dinner. We made it to the party in plenty of time for dancing and hearing THE most awesome ship horn in the Caribbean. We also met a cool couple (can’t remember their names) that had been on some awesome scuba dives. Since DW and I are also divers, we were very interested in their tales. ::yes::

Before we knew it, it was already time to get ready for dinner since we had the early seating at 5:45. I think we may try the late seating on the next cruise since we always seemed to have things going on around the early time and seemed rushed most of the time. The kids club will also come and pick your children up after about an hour into the late seating. This way they can go hang out and you can enjoy a leisurely dinner. Anyway, DD really wanted to stay a little longer and watch us head out to sea. I volunteered to stay with her for a few more minutes while everyone else left to start getting ready. We wandered the decks enjoying the views and the breeze and before we knew it, it was 5:30. Whoa, we better get a move on. :scared1:

As we got back to the room, both FE’s were stuffed with the first of many, many gifts. This was always a kick to see your FE with all its booty. It was also pretty cool making the deliveries while trying not to get busted. :thumbsup2 Once inside, DD announces that she is reeaalllyy tired and doesn’t feel like going to dinner. Hmmm, you know I am pretty worn out too (something about rum and sun) and will stay with her. We had also had a snack of chicken fingers and fries during the party, so weren’t very hungry. So while the rest of the crew filed out to dinner, we hung out in the cool room reading books and playing with the new magnetic fishing pole she got. We did eventually get hungry and ordered room service. We also got to meet our room steward: Made from Bali. He was very nice but I think at times he felt a little overwhelmed with all of the people running around in the connecting rooms.

Our dining rotation was APL, so we missed the light show by skipping dinner. :sad2: We also found out that our server was quite handy with crafts and magic. The twins both came back with ferrets made from napkins that could leap out of their arms. You can already guess what the first thing DD will want when she meets him. Since everyone else was also pretty worn out by this time, we decided to just hang out, unpack, and get some of the FE gifts ready for delivery.

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[RoyalVizier]

We had also had a snack of chicken fingers and fries during the party, so weren’t very hungry.

I wonder how many times I'll type this exact same sentence on my own TR. :laughing:

[MagicMe]

Enjoying your report! Can't wait to hear more!!!

[kimberleeJohnston]

Your report is so fantastic, you are doing a wonderful job. The pics of the kids running on the beach brings tears to my eyes. My kids loved the beach and I can just picture their smiles playing in the water! Im so happy your family is having a magical time so far.....cant wait for more!!!!:dance3:

[j2bmickey]

I wonder how many times I'll type this exact same sentence on my own TR. :laughing:

It should be the last time I post that we missed dinner because of an earlier snack, but won't be the last time we miss dinner. :sad2: Oops, I'm giving away hints to upcoming events!!!

Enjoying your report! Can't wait to hear more!!!

Thanks. I have been trying to work on the next installment, but life keeps getting in the way of my Disney habit.

Your report is so fantastic, you are doing a wonderful job. The pics of the kids running on the beach brings tears to my eyes. My kids loved the beach and I can just picture their smiles playing in the water! Im so happy your family is having a magical time so far.....cant wait for more!!!!:dance3:


You are too kind. The kids have definitely gotten the hang of the beach thing and love it. :woohoo: Too bad I have to travel so far to get to it.

[j2bmickey]

We knew from the last cruise that we would like more sea days as they seemed to “make” us relax and not plan so much. This day would follow that route although it started fairly early as this was our day for the Island Jam Breakfast. Of course we all know that no alarm was necessary as I was awake in plenty of time. ;)

The theme of the breakfast has reverted back to the original format since the last time we cruised when it was a free-for-all. I know everyone has their preferences and I like certain aspects of both. It is nice to have the characters come to your table for a brief encounter with pictures and autographs. And if your children are at all shy, this would be perfect for them. It is also fun to watch all of the games and interactions that the kids had at the free-for-all. Of course, our kids have no fear about getting into the middle of things, so they fit right in. Again, I am glad that we got to experience both types.


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This was also DD and my first chance to meet the serving team. Although these guys were extremely kind and efficient at their jobs, something just seemed off the whole cruise. :confused3 Don’t get me wrong, they didn’t do anything wrong, and we enjoyed the service, there was just something not quite right. I don’t know if it was new for them working together or something else. One thing that was off the first few nights, and they asked about it and corrected, was bringing the kids meal during the adult’s appetizers and salads. They were bored to death by the time we were ready for dessert. :bored: It helped once this was adjusted, but it seemed to me that the entire dining area seemed to move slower than before. I think I heard someone mention that they were trying more of a European pace to dinner with plenty of conversation between courses. Unfortunately, that didn’t work so well with the younger members of our party.

I digress. Our truly awesome server team consisted of: Okim the magician from Indonesia, Samuel the shy (at least in the beginning) assistant from Sweden, and Allesandro the head server from Italy. I have to make one more detour before continuing. Allesandro was amazing. He seemed much more interactive than any head server I have seen before. I am pretty sure that he stopped by several times a meal and would stay for several minutes, not just shaking hands and moving on. He also helped out with many of the smaller details like handing out drinks or food. We even saw him at Topsiders one morning clearing tables and helping fellow cruisers find seats. :thumbsup2

Of course one of the first things that DD asked was for Okim to make her a napkin ferret. He said that he would see what he could do, but it was a very busy morning with all of the characters. Of course he not only made the ferret, but also napkin hats and bows. The kids loved it.


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After being one of the last diners out, we head over to the kids club since we haven’t registered anyone and they want to do Flubber at 10. We also went ahead and did a trial run with DND in the kids club even though she was slightly under-aged. It turned out that she loved it and had no problems with the bathroom. Granted, it was a fairly short period and we made sure she went before venturing off on her own. The adults used this time to wander around and look at the art, check out photos, and sign up the guys for the martini tasting (such sophistication). :rotfl: So about 20 minutes later, we get a page that DNS2 is ready to be picked up. DNW says no way, he can at least stick it out for the hour. I am not sure what the issue was, but it was common as he had an attitude about the club every time they went, which was not often. :confused:

As flubber was ending, we decided to check on the kids to see if they were ready for new adventures. They all reported a hearty “yes, let’s go swimming”. We had a bit of sad news as DD had somehow lost her glow-in-the-dark DIS bracelet during the science experiment. It was a good fit so she must have set it down to wash her hands of something. Needless to say, it was never turned into lost and found. I was a little concerned at first because she can sometimes be very sensitive about things like this. Luckily there was enough Magic on board and she wasn’t overly sad. Also good to know, is that I didn’t give any lectures about taking care of things because that would have come back to haunt me.

So off we head to the Goofy pool and hours of fun and sun. Somehow we scored several chairs by the pool and in the sun. This was a big deal to DNW as that was all she wanted for the whole cruise. :sunny: As lunchtime approached, I stuck to my guns of trying something I missed before (sorry that will probably be a common theme to this report) and headed for Goofy’s Galley for a wrap. I thought they were pretty tasty although the tuna seemed a smidge dry.

As 1 pm drew near, the ladies decided that they wanted to go to the “Port and Shopping Show”. That’s cool, the kids are still having a blast in the pools. Although I have to admit it was a little hectic at times since they all seemed to suddenly want to be in different pools. I also went and grabbed one of the sand buckets since DND had seen another kid with one and thought this was a grand idea. For the most part it was, with kids sharing and dumping water on each other. It was around this time that I had my first glimpse of the legend of MouseNDaHouse (actually it was his lovely ladies first). Unfortunately it was from across the pool as they were leaving. This would be a common theme throughout the cruise and I would never have the honor of actually talking to them. Perhaps next time. :(

With the afternoon winding down towards martini time, we menfolk decided it was probably a good idea to take the children down for a little downtime. While unloading the bags in the room, I discover that I have lost a pin from my lanyard. I am not heavily into the pin trading, nor do I wear the lanyard much, but I have a little bit of bling and unfortunately I have lost the “2007 Magic” one. Bummer. I take a page from DD’s book and make it through the rest of the cruise, although I am a little harder on myself because I am usually very careful with these pins. Note that DW went out and bought locking backs later that evening. :laughing: The ladies return shortly before our departure (Good thing, as the kids were looking sleepy and we might have had to leave DNS1 in charge :lmao:), and of course they have bought the shopping book. DW points out that there is some coupon that they will be using that pays for the book on the first stop. She also wants to know how much I love her as she won a St. Thomas Del Sol pirate shirt. Since I am very much into pirates and a geek for color changing apparel, I reply “Duhhh, huh, that would be me”. pirate::woohoo:

Off we go to the debonair world of martini tasting. The tasting was a lot of fun and as usual, we learned a few things along the way. :teacher: Things were led by a CM from Poland whose name I can’t seem to remember. She was great and had lots of funny stories. Things start off with the only “true” martini as it contains Tanqueray and Vermouth, all others were made from vodka (which of course the CM said was a better sipping alcohol anyway). Sadly, I will not be the next Bond as I was not very fond of the gin martini. :crazy2: DNH tried a “dirty” martini later that night which has olive juice in it. It was better, but the taste still lent itself more to a shot than a full drink. The next two drinks were an apple martini and a pomegranate cosmo. The final drink was mine and DNH’s favorite, a chocolatini. This thing was made from vanilla vodka, dark Godiva liquer, Franjelico, and Baileys. Holy cow was it good. I didn’t even know that Godiva made alcohol. :thumbsup2

Before heading back to the room, DNH and I decide to take a lap around deck 4 (not a jog, just a stroll). That was pretty cool especially in the forward part of the ship where you can actually see some of the workings. Upon arriving back at the room we discovered two things: children that were well rested and cheese platters from room service. Both of our families really like cheese and we usually get several platters during the week. :rolleyes:

[j2bmickey]

Since the kids were starting to get restless, DW and I decided to take them out on an FE delivery run. They had a lot of fun, but their stealthiness lacks a little to be desired. :jumping1: We didn’t stay out too long because it was formal night and we wanted plenty of time to get everyone gussied up and ready for pictures before dinner. And I do mean everyone was dressed up, to the nines. :groom: Both families had been involved in recent weddings so all guys were in tuxedos and all ladies had fancy dresses. DW had shown her craftiness again and was wearing a dress that she made. DD wore a white dress that happened to match the wedding gown worn in her aunt’s recent ceremony. I think most people who saw us probably thought we were part of a wedding party. :bride:


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Formal dinner for us was once again at Parrot Cay. Maybe some day we will get the timing right to be in Lumiere’s for formal night. Oh well, the food was still good and the service friendly. DNS1 even got into the magic act by sticking spoons to his face.


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We mentioned to Samuel that we had really enjoyed the chocolatini earlier and he suggested a chocolate dessert that was not on the menu coupled with a port wine. I can’t remember the name of either (I really need to start writing the food down as I always forget the names :rolleyes2), but oh man were they good. The ladies also received a Mother’s Day cake which was pretty to look at, but not very tasty according to them.


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Tonight’s show was the Golden Mickey’s and once again we couldn’t get any of the kids to interview on the red carpet, although they did enjoy seeing all of the different characters on stage. We had talked about going to some of the after parties, but we ended up just hanging out and delivering more FE gifts. The towel animal was a pair of kissing swans, which we were very excited to get tonight. :)


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[j2bmickey]

The second sea day dawned with the crew definitely in vacation and relaxation mode, taking full advantage of being able to sleep in late. Everyone, of course, except me. :sad2: Yes it is sometimes quite disgusting that I very seldom sleep in late. Oh well. Since everyone else seemed pretty content to stay in slumberland, I decided I would head to the gym and try to keep from gaining too much weight. It was a nice thought but didn’t work very well. DW actually lost weight on the cruise. Huh, how does that happen? :confused3

Since I was still getting my sea legs and remembered that it is slightly more difficult to exercise on a boat, I started with the elliptical so I would at least have something to hold onto if we hit a big wave. After awhile I started getting my confidence and decided to try the treadmill. This worked out fairly well, but you definitely have to pay attention to you footing more than on dry land. There were a couple of times that I would be looking out at the ocean and catch a slight bobble. Luckily I never completely tripped as that would put a serious damper on the rest of vacation. :eek:

After about an hour of various exercises I figured I would head for the room to see if anyone was ready for breakfast. Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. Wow, these guys are taking their rest and relaxation seriously. :thumbsup2 This seemed the perfect time to take advantage of the adult pool without feeling any guilt about leaving other adults out. I guess most of the boat was in sleep mode this morning as it was pretty empty at the pool. I took advantage of the empty pool to swim a few laps before relaxing in the hot tub. I topped off the morning by stretching out on a cushioned lounger to enjoy the sun and breeze. Man are those chairs comfy. :cloud9: That is probably one of reasons people with no kids like to cruise with Disney. I decided that 45 minutes in adult land would have to suffice for now and headed back to the room sure that someone would be up by now. On the way to the room I ran into DW heading for the gym so I knew that someone was awake. Most of the kids were either still asleep or quite content to stay lounging in bed so the adults took turns bringing plates of food down to the room. We all stayed pretty light on the breakfast as today was our Palo brunch. Before long it was time to take the kids to the club and head for the feast. :woohoo:

I think brunch is my favorite of the Palo meals. Probably because there is such a variety of food and mounds of cheese. As we entered the restaurant, I recognized our martini host who was one of the bartenders (I still can’t remember her name). She also recognized us and asked if we would like to start the day with a dry martini. Uh, no thanks, I think I would rather have a mimosa. Our server this morning was Emanuel from the Philippines. He was very friendly with a good sense of humor. He had a nearby table of ladies in stitches by telling them to just press their service button and he would appear with their order. The tour of all the different food stations was a little crowded as several large tables started at the same time we did. :crowded: It moved smoothly however and soon it was time to sample the delicacies. We all loaded up on the different cheeses and seafood shooter. Yummy. DNH is a sweets guy which included a fresh cinnamon roll and stolen bread. We all ordered slightly different hot selections and shared the portions. Except for the Oysters Rockefeller which I enjoyed by myself. The meal was completed by a trip to the dessert section and of course included the tiramisu. We did notice that several of the other choices seemed much richer and sweeter than before.

We left the restaurant full, but not overly stuffed and went to pick up the kids for the movie. popcorn:: This was the one time that DNS2 actually wanted to stay in the club. :scared1: And it wasn’t car related as one would expect. He wanted to stay for the Ratatouille Cooking School so we obliged. I was a little surprised that DD didn’t want to stay also, but she had really been wanting to see Bedtime Stories. It is a pretty good movie with some of the typical Adam Sandler silliness, but on a family friendly level. Unfortunately not everyone got to see the whole movie as DND became restless and DNS1 was freezing so DNW took them to warmer surroundings.

We all started to split up at this point with DNH taking the boys up to swim, while the rest of us went to the room to relax. DD and DND both said they wanted to watch a movie on tv and take a nap so I volunteered to watch them while the ladies went to bingo. A nap sounded like an excellent idea but the novelty soon wore off with DND. She wasn’t obnoxious or anything, just the typical inquisitive 2-year-old who is not going to let you get any zzz’s. DNW returned before much time and rescued me, I mean took some medicine, and decided to take DND to DNH for swimming since she had so much energy. Of course with the cabin peaceful and quite, DD decided she wasn’t tired anymore and wanted to go explore the boat. I’m pretty sure she sensed a disturbance in the force and was afraid somebody was having fun without her. So we wandered the ship for awhile before ending up in the shops on deck 4.


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Of course we noticed the do not climb sign after I took the picture, oops. :rolleyes1

The original intention of the shopping was to find a birthday present for DW, but we couldn’t quite agree on what she would really want, so we ended up buying DD a charm necklace and a couple of charms instead. We actually had a lot of fun and came up with some pretty good gift ideas that we would feel DW out about later. DD even pointed out the frosted glass doors that showed a young Mickey on one side and a grown up Mickey on the other. I had never noticed this before. However, I was only able to get the one picture since there was a display set up in front of the other door.


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Dinner tonight was at Lumiere’s and was one of the few times that we didn’t have tons of things going on and weren’t rushed. We were able to casually get ready and even stop for a couple of pictures.


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One thing I forgot to mention before was our table location. We once again scored a very nice table with a window view, table 12. And as before, we had to fight the children to actually get the chair next to the window. I have the same problem on airplane trips. :sad2: I will usually allow it without too much grumbling as long as there is no pouting, fighting, sleeping, or watching movies. DNH and I had also mentioned to Okim and Samuel the night before that there were many meals that we liked with salsa, and inquired what kinds they had. Every night for the rest of the cruise there were at least 2 and often 3 different types of salsa waiting on the table. And always, at least one of them was hand made. :goodvibes There was usually some kind of mixture that was similar to what Okim was familiar with in Indonesia. He mentioned one night that a common meal would consist of raw and cooked vegetables and many different dipping salsas. I need to check this out sometime.

We had conditioned the children that we loved to hang out with them, but there would be a couple of times throughout the cruise that were adult only. Tonight would be one of those times and they had no problems with it. Well most of them, but we won’t rehash that scenario. On the downside, this meant that we would also miss “Twice Charmed” again. Hmm, what was it that I mentioned about third time’s a charm? I may need to start a must-do list for the next cruise. Anyway, after dropping the kids off, we did what most adults would do: take some pictures, hang out on deck 4 and the Cove Café, stroll the top decks….. Wait a minute, I must be reading someone else’s report. We did enjoy strolling around and taking some pictures though. We thought the beach backdrop would be really cool, but none of the pictures turned out very flattering. And for the entertainment, wait for it…….., we went to the arcade. :rotfl: I know lots of people have given this the thumbs down, but I guess we are easily entertained. Actually it had the basic requirements we were looking for except a pinball machine (Maybe that is more information than I should be sharing). It had an upgraded air-hockey table, a couple of decent racing games, the classic Galaga/Ms Pacman cabinet, and Guitar Hero. :rockband: Yes we do live the simple life, but DNW and I had been trash talking for weeks about who was the better ax grinder, and tonight we would find out. We stayed pretty evenly matched, but I think my fingers kept from cramping a little longer to declare me the winner.

Before long it was time to pick up the offspring. We had promised them only a couple of hours and DND was in the nursery as we weren’t quite sure how long she would last in the club at night. She loved them both and was content either way with no accidents. The women had glimpsed CM’s setting up the cheese buffet which they remembered from last time. So DNH and I took the kids back to the room to get ready for bed while they backtracked to get the scoop. It turns out that the feast didn’t start until 11 p.m. so none of us quite made it. I was still wound up however, and convinced DNH to go to “One Hit Wonders” with me.

DW – Insert. While on our search for the cheese table we run into Max heading for his photo session with dad Goofy.


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I took a quick shot of him in the hall and then DNW said she wanted to get the boys and have them take a picture with Goofy and Max. I told her we could try, so we consult the navigator and see they are only out for 15 minutes. We figured by the time we got the boys, convinced them it would be fun and got back to deck 3 they would be gone. Oh well, something to do for the next cruise. That way all kids can act goofy with Goofy. :lmao: End insert.

The format for this night was that the DJ would play part or most of a song that was a one-hit wonder. Most of the songs were from the 80’s which is when we grew up, so we recognized a good portion. As the songs would play, the MC would grab people from the dance floor to identify the song and singer. If they were correct, they were treated to a free shot. We had a blast singing along although we stayed off the dance floor (unlike some other DIS’ers). After a few songs, I spotted a fellow DIS’er (ufcabear) and walked over to say hello. As we are chatting, they start playing Twisted Sister “We’re Not Gonna Take It” which I know fairly well. I start singing with my best Dee Snider impression which the MC pointed out and said “I think this guy knows the song”. :mic: I reluctantly walk onto the stage and continue my bellowing for a couple of versus to the cheering of the crowd. Needless to say, I knew the song and group and was awarded the free shot. I think I should have gotten a double for actually knowing the words. :banana:

Towel animal for the night was a cool looking lobster.


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[dollysmom]

We were on your cruise and I love reading your report. It's cool to read what others were doing the same time as us. Keep it coming!

[chubbyjen]

Wanted to let you know that I'm also following your trip report! ;) Love it! :goodvibes Can't wait to read more!!

[j2bmickey]

We were on your cruise and I love reading your report. It's cool to read what others were doing the same time as us. Keep it coming!

Thanks for stopping by and leaving the kind words. :) I remember your name from the cruise meet. Sorry we never got to meet in person.

Wanted to let you know that I'm also following your trip report! ;) Love it! :goodvibes Can't wait to read more!!


You guys are too kind. :worship: I have fun telling the stories, but I know that I can get long winded so we'll see how everyone is feeling by the end. :faint: :rotfl:

[dollysmom]

I think we did meet on the first day. I was putting up my fish extender and door magnets and you were walking down the hallway. I noticed your bracelet. It was around the boat drill time I think? It was a very quick hello. I know we did not run into each other after that.

[chubbyjen]

You guys are too kind. :worship: I have fun telling the stories, but I know that I can get long winded so we'll see how everyone is feeling by the end. :faint: :rotfl:

Hahaha! Seriously...there's more? Isn't he done yet? :rolleyes: Just kidding... :laughing:

[j2bmickey]

I think we did meet on the first day. I was putting up my fish extender and door magnets and you were walking down the hallway. I noticed your bracelet. It was around the boat drill time I think? It was a very quick hello. I know we did not run into each other after that.


You know, that does sound vaguely familiar. I think you guys were on the same floor as us, so I am a little surprised we never ran into each other again. Probably because we never made it past the midship elevators with the painted back wall. The kids kept calling it their secret shortcut. :laughing:

[j2bmickey]

Here is fair warning that I couldn't pair down the pictures so this will probably be a multi-part thread.


As much as we enjoy the sea days, it was still nice to wake up and see land on this morning. I’m not so sure that I could do the Transatlantic with SIX---days---in---a---row at sea. Perhaps if it was an adults only trip. :idea: Two other things that would greet us this morning were the RCI floating city “Liberty of the Seas” :scared1: and rain. :sad2:

I know there have been plenty of discussions of Royal versus Disney so I will not even get into that here. The one thing I will say is WOW! That is one big ship! It made the Magic look like a lifeboat.


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I’m also not sure that I would always want to be around that many people for the entire cruise. :crowded: Anyway, I don’t want to turn this into a debate report, soooo moving on.

As we are getting ready to head to Topsider’s for breakfast, it seems that the rain is starting to let up. Hopefully this will turn out to be the typical tropical storm that we hear about and clear skies will be with us shortly. :sunny: We had something similar happen to us on Grand Cayman during the last cruise. Just as we walk outside on deck 9 the skies open up and it starts to pour down rain. You couldn’t even avoid it by walking under the covered sections it was raining so hard. I felt sorry for the people who had already left the ship because they had to be getting soaked and scurrying for cover. I couldn’t tell though since you couldn’t see the dock. As we slosh into the restaurant we are hoping to find an empty table because there is no way we are trying to sit outside. Luckily we found a couple of empty tables tucked in a corner. :thumbsup2

We leisurely enjoyed our breakfast as we watched the rain continue to fall. DW also snuck down to get a photo and autograph from Jiminy Cricket since you don’t see him out very often.


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Finally around 10, it seemed to show signs of stopping so we decided to pack our bags and brave the outside world. We included umbrellas and rain ponchos just in case, but since we had rented cars, we figured we would just drive until we found a patch of sunshine. :car::beach: We had made reservations with Arthur’s since I had seen good reviews, he was close to the port, and he gave us the best deal on two cars. My current concern was if he would have any cars left since we were running so late and I knew he had a smaller operation.

The plan was to leave the women and children in the port plaza while DNH and I went to get the cars and then come pick them up. As we cross the street (good idea not to bring the kids) and approach Arthur’s rental shack, I start getting a sinking feeling in my stomach, the place looks locked-up and deserted. :worried: Closer inspection brings the fears to full light, the door is locked and nobody is home. Uh-oh, now what are we going to do as I have heard that the on-site prices are typically pretty high. :scratchin As we are contemplating options, another gentlemen from a different rental company sees us, pulls up, and asks if we need to rent a car. Well, we had a reservation with Arthur but we seem to have missed him. The guy mentions that he had seen him leave about 10 minutes ago and could call him if we liked. Really, you would do that? :worship: Sure, no problem the guy says and dials the number. Wow, I am already liking the friendliness of this island. It would definitely be a common theme throughout the day. He gets a hold of Arthur who was on the way to the airport to get ready for other clients, but agreed to come back and take care of us first. Sweet. :thumbsup2 This other gentlemen gives us a card and says that if Arthur doesn’t have what we need, come by as they are just down the road. You bet we will and thanks for the help. We had packed two-way radios so we could stay in contact as we motored the two cars around the island, but of course we didn’t think to bring one with us as we are picking up the cars. :confused3 Maybe one of us should walk back over to the port and let everyone know what is going on. Nah, Arthur will be here soon and we will be on our way. Famous last words.

It is a welcome sight as Arthur pulls up. He is super friendly and only gives us a little grief about not showing up on time. He mentions that too many times people have made reservations and then just not shown up. He says that since he didn’t get a call or email, he figured the rain was keeping us on the boat. Huh, we never thought about trying to contact him to say we were running late but were still on our way. :guilty: Several profuse apologies and hearty thank you’s seem to help as he is never in a bad mood. Our next fear soon comes to bear however as the only car he has left is a WELL USED Geo Tracker. :eek: There is no way we are getting all 8 of us in that. Luckily Arthur seems to know everyone as there is an available car at a hotel up the road and one of the agencies back at the port has a car seat. Cool, we are on our way. Unfortunately up the road actually meant in Phillipsburg, which required driving almost the entire length of a one-way street before being able to come back on the opposite one-way to the hotel. And oh yeah, these streets are narrow and busy. Oh man, we are so in trouble when we get back to the port. :sad2: Thankfully for us, during Arthur’s phone calls he had relayed a message to the rest of the crew so they at least knew we were still on the island. Plus, since we had been through town once, we could direct them to certain shops. Information that would prove pretty useless later in the day.

After a quick gas stop we were finally heading back to the port. :banana: Our original plan had been to drive around the island in a counter-clockwise direction and just stop at whatever grabbed us. This would leave us around Maho beach in the early afternoon to watch the planes land. Arthur suggested we go the other way since we were getting a late start and the traffic would be much better in the late afternoon coming down the east side of the island. Since we knew the kids would like the Butterfly Farm, and Le Galion Beach seemed pretty safe, we decided to head there first and then branch out if and when we felt the urge later. So a little after 11 o’clock we had the crew and gear loaded up and were headed off to explore the island. It’s a good thing I had decided to take a much more mellow approach to this vacation or I would have been freaking out about the delays by now. :scared1: :eek: :scared1:

[j2bmickey]

People have reported that the roads are not marked very well and it is true. However, it is fairly easy to navigate your way around and there are usually signs at major intersections that point the way to the main attractions on the island. We took the scenic route and meandered along the coast on our way to the Butterfly Farm.


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The setup here is pretty basic with a small gift shop and essentially a giant net spread out across the farm. Of course inside the net is what everyone is here for and they do not disappoint. There is a path that weaves back-and-forth which is lined with tropical plants and trees and of course tons of different colored butterflies.


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They also give a short guided tour and show you the difference between a moth cocoon and butterfly chrysalis. If you are at the farm early enough in the morning, you can even see butterflies emerge. We weren’t even close.

Surprisingly, the kids grew weary quicker than I would have expected, even after we started getting the butterflies to land on each other. :confused3 It probably had something to do with being a little muggy and they really wanted to go to the beach. So off we go for the short jaunt over to Le Galion Beach. Along the way we pass one of the horse stables and luckily we don’t see anyone out riding. DD LOVES to ride horses and would have strongly requested that we stop and ride. :love: The problem would have been that I don’t think this establishment allows anyone under 7 on the trail rides even if they know how to ride. Anyway, she didn’t bring it up so we didn’t have to find out.

We chose the left (North) road to the beach where the restaurant is and pulled into the parking area. There is a pretty nice picnic area with lots of trees between the parking area and the beach. A section of the beach around the restaurant has chairs and umbrellas for rent, or you can just walk a little farther down and plant yourself in the sand. Now when I say restaurant, I mean more of a beach bar with a small galley and tables under shade structures. It was perfect for the setting. It also had a couple of small bathrooms and a rental hut for canoes and such. Actually I think I read somewhere that it used to be a hotel.


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We wanted umbrellas so we inquired and were instructed to find the guy in the camo shorts named Mike. We quickly spotted him and asked about two open chairs close to the bar. He said to go ahead and grab them and he would catch up with us later. I have a feeling we are not going to see much of the rest of the island. ;) After getting the kids greased up and loaded with sand toys, the adults decide to order a tasty beverage and change into swim suits. I snag a table at the bar while DW heads to the bathroom to change (I didn’t realize at the time that I could have just placed drink orders with Mike also). The waiter takes our order as I relax under the shade and gaze out over the water. Oh yeah, there is no way we are going to see any of the other sites on the island. :upsidedow This really is a nice beach that is perfect for families with smaller children.


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There is a reef that keeps the water calm and clear, it is not very deep, and there are a couple of platforms that you can wade/swim too.


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We also didn’t notice any nudity which we were hoping to keep from explaining to the kids this trip. It wasn’t so much explaining why other people didn’t have clothes on as much as convincing them that we didn’t need to do the same. :rolleyes1 I did talk DNH into going topless though. :rotfl2: I know, I know, that was a cheap joke.

Returning from my own attire change, the other adults have now joined the table to place their drink order and suggest getting a snack for the kids. They all return to the beach chairs and kids while I relax with a Carib beer and wait for the food. This would become the brew of choice at all establishments for the next two days. :drinking1 The waiter returns and inquires as to why all of my friends have deserted me. I point to the chairs a few yards away and reply that they haven’t gone far. He asks if I would like to start a tab and go join them. Well sure. Another example of the friendliness that we encountered on the island. ::yes:: We spent the rest of the afternoon playing in the sand, splashing in the water, and jumping off the platforms. Before we knew it, it was almost four o’clock and since the ladies still wanted to shop, we decided to head back toward the port.

We took a more direct route back into Phillipsburg, but still managed to stop at the border for a picture.


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We also went through a small village with a winding downhill road that gave a great view of the two ships sitting in the port. So of course we pulled off the road for more pictures.


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[j2bmickey]

As we rolled into town, DND was sound asleep so DNH agreed to keep her with us as we left the triplets with the ladies. The longer we drove through town, the more I began to think that maybe we dropped everyone off a little too soon. :scratchin I was thinking they could start on one end and work their way to the other end. In hindsight, it would have been better to just drop them in the middle. We’ll know better for next time. ;) DNH and I arrive back at Arthur’s and he is friendly as ever, asking how our day was and making sure everything was ok with the cars. We tell him that we had a blast and thank him again for his service. We are then off to the water taxi, but not before stopping at an outdoor pub for another Carib since we didn’t have to worry about driving any more. :thumbsup2

When we get to the dock in Phillipsburg we turn on the radio (we did get smarter as the day wore on) and prepare to find the rest of our crew. Almost immediately DW comes on asking if we can hear her. I reply yes that we are in the plaza right by the boat dock. She says that she thinks they are just west of us in a jewelry store. I have a puzzled look on my face until another couple points to the left, thanks. :headache: As we round the corner we spot DW only a few shops down. It seems that both DW and DNW have found what they are looking for and want our opinions before handing over a child as payment. :hyper: Actually, DW didn’t need my go ahead since she was looking for tourmaline earrings. DNW however, wanted a diamond anniversary band to celebrate their 15th wedding anniversary and figured she better get buy-in from DNH to make life smoother.

While they were perusing the choices, DD and I crossed the street to a cigar shop. I wanted a high quality cigar and they definitely had quite a selection. They were very insightful in helping me select a brand to fit my tastes. I also picked up a small wooden turtle for DD. Upon returning to the jewelry store, the neighbors had found the perfect ring and were now negotiating the proper price to keep everyone happy. :hug:

Since the older kids were getting restless, I volunteered to take them out and see if we could find the Del Sol store. This was a much bigger store than I had seen before. It had a larger kids section complete with stuffed animals whose paws change colors. Of course all three of the kids head straight for them. :dogdance: While they change the color of everything in the store, I find DW a t-shirt. Knowing the answer before I even ask, I inquire as to what if anything they wanted. Needless to say, we left the store with three stuffed cats and a stuffed dog. Yes, I am a pushover. :wave2:

We wandered around a little more and then decided we had better start heading back to the ship since it was almost 7 and the all aboard was 7:30. :hourglass When we walked up to the water taxi dock, the ticket booth was closed but the boat captain said there was one last boat leaving in 15 minutes that we could take and pay for on the other side. Perfect, that gives us just enough time to pop into the liquor store and buy some guavaberry rum that I have heard so much about. We also bought a coconut rum and a banana crème rum that we thought was MUCH better than the guavaberry. I don’t know if we got an off brand or what, but nobody in our crew was very impressed. :crazy2: We did learn an interesting pointer though. Since the bottles of rum are hand made and painted, you can claim them as a souvenir instead of alcohol on the customs form. Of course on the way out we had to practice our pirate pose.



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By the time we got back to the port, it was empty. I mean not a soul. It was very eerie and I might have thought both ships had left if I couldn’t see the Magic.


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Talk about squeezing every last minute of fun out of a port, it seemed like we had just entered our rooms when the anchors were pulled and we headed out. Needless to say, we didn’t make it in time for dinner and they were probably beginning to wonder if DD and I had something against Animator’s Palate. :confused3 Instead we ordered room service and started preparing for pirate night.

We all had costumes and glow necklaces and tattoos thanks to the FE gifts. And this time there would be no princesses, only pirates.


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We ended up missing all of the character appearances but still had a blast goofing around the picture sets and checking out the pin trading station.



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As the pirate party drew near, we moved our marauding up to deck nine. This was a lot of fun as usual and the kids participated more this time. We also got to see Mickey on the high wire (too windy last time) which was very cool. pirate::rainbow:pirate: It didn’t seem quite as packed this time until the food buffet started. I’ve never seen so many hungry people on a cruise ship.


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The towel animal tonight was a monkey.


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[TexDisneyMom]

great report!

[j2bmickey]

great report!


Thanks, I'm glad you like it.:)

[dollysmom]

You guys certainly did make most of that port day. Did you ever make it to Maho Beach?

[j2bmickey]

You guys certainly did make most of that port day. Did you ever make it to Maho Beach?


Yeah we had quite an eventful day, but it was fun. Unfortunately, Maho was one of the stops that was not accomplished on this trip. Mostly because of the late start.

[j2bmickey]

We received a copy of the nighbors pictures, and since I am running slow on the next chapter :hourglass, I thought I would try to appease the masses with a couple of cool pictures. :cool1:




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[j2bmickey]

Today would start out pretty early as we had excursions planned through Disney. The guys were going on the Doubloon Sail and Snorkel, while the ladies went to Coral World. We generally try to book excursions on our own, but both the sail and snorkel and the semi-sub at Coral World were only available through Disney. What can you do? :confused3 So after hauling a couple of food trays from Topsiders to the room, we loaded up the two crews and headed to our respective meeting points.

Since our trip involved a pirate ship, I was pretty sure I would have a good time. pirate: When we met the crew member Alex on the pier, I knew it would be a blast. This guy is a character and already had everyone smiling with his antics. :rotfl2: As he is collecting the tickets from everyone, he borrows a paperclip that was holding one group’s tickets. He then uses this to hold all of his tickets to demonstrate to the CM’s how efficient and professional he is. ;)

After a short walk to the end of the pier, and more shenanigans along the way, we are introduced to our boat and the rest of the crew.

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These guys were great (Captain Dave, Marine Biology Officer Meagan, and First Mate Alex) and went out of their way to make sure everyone was enjoying themselves. As we are motoring out of the harbor, they go over the plan for the day while most of us gaze at the Magic and the fire drill that the crew is practicing. I learned from our room steward Made later that he was one of the people being lowered from the crane and it was a little scary. I don’t know what it is about sailing by the Magic in another boat that always gives me goose pimples and requires a picture.

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We also got to see a very impressive house complete with tugboat and pirate ship docked at their personal pier. According to the crew, the house is owned by a doctor with a couple of children. The pirate ship started out as just the back third and mast to be a playhouse for the kids. They ended up not being overly excited about it and he was so he ended up building the whole thing. It is built completely from teak, sails, and cost approximately $1.5 million. They keep trying to get Meagan to be the babysitter so they can play with all the toys. :lmao:

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Heading into more open waters on our way to Buck Island, the four of us were sitting in the very front of the boat and were soon exposed to the free add-on…………………….A WATER COASTER. It started out fairly mild with the occasional splash, but soon built into some pretty good rocking and soaking. DNS2 started feeling sick so he and DNH went to the back of the boat while DNS1 and I held our ground. The further we got from St. Thomas, the bigger the waves seemed to get. At times it felt like the entire boat was coming out of the water and crashing into the waves. :scared1: Before long DNS1 decided he was drenched enough and headed toward the back of the boat. But not me, I was having a blast. Keep her steady captain, wait a power cat is passing us, ramming speed and prepare to board. Oh, maybe that is too much over-the-top. :rotfl2:

By the time we reached the snorkel area, half the boat was soaked and several people were looking a little green in the gills. :sick: The crew later confided that it was the roughest water they had seen in years. Buck Island however, is protected and we enjoyed some pretty calm water. Of course neither one of the boys is interested in snorkeling. DNS2 is still feeling sick and I think DNS1 was having sympathy pains. We tried to tell them it would be fun and they would feel better getting in the water. And of course if any one blew chunks, that would just attract the fish. Anyway……, the water was a little murky from the sandy bottom being stirred up from the recent storms, but it was still fun and Meagan was great to point out and explain the different turtles, fish, etc. DNH even had a turtle surface right beside him. As we ventured from the sandy area to the coral, DNS1 finally decided he would give it a try. He really enjoyed himself and even got to see a few turtles. Of course he didn’t get much time in before it was time to head back. Our official call back to the boat was supposed to be Meagan blowing on the conch shell, but Captain Dave made it a little difficult.

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The trip back to St. Thomas was much more relaxing. With help from some of the stowaways, all of the sails were raised, and we glided back with no engine whatsoever. All I can say is WOW!, that is a very cool experience that I want to try again. :cool1: It is very peaceful to just ride in on the waves and jam to some beach tunes. Of course the tasty beverages also help. The painkiller was quite tasty and I think I found my second favorite beer, Blackbeards. :drinking1 This was a little darker than the Caribe, but still quite yummy and the bottle cap has a skull and crossbones. Did I mention that I like pirates???? Another task on the ride in is the official Doubloon Tatoo. This is a custom made temporary that is thicker and lasts longer than most paste-ons. You can have them placed anywhere, and of course half the fun is the application. The crew wets a paper towel and smacks it down to mark the spot. Of course with the guys I think they launch from about three feet away to get the appropriate SMACK.

As we neared the docks, the sails were lowered (which I got to help with) and Alex modeled the t-shirts that were available for purchase. Including the Pirate Girl form-fitting pink tank top. It was hilarious. I couldn’t decide which I liked so I bought two. After a final cocktail and pictures, we headed back to the ship to meet the girls and grab some lunch.

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[j2bmickey]

Over lunch, the ladies report that they also had a good time although nobody would pet a shark, wimps. They also said that their drive over was almost as exciting as our trip to the snorkel area.

DW insert – the ladies head to promenade lounge to meet our shore excursion. After sitting for a few minutes someone tells us we have to check in with the desk and get out sticker. We were the Pocahontas group, cool. As we head out to meet our taxis, DND wants to sit with DD and I but unfortunately there was not enough room on our row. Needless to say she was not happy the whole ride to coral world. :sad: Which… was… long… enough… traveling on the wrong side of the very narrow and winding roads. :scared1:Once we arrived, we were lucky enough to be in the first group to head to the “submarine”. With the water being murky from the over night rain storms, it was not as cool as I imagined it would be. We still enjoyed ourselves and DD thought the arrow crab was really cool. The crew of the sub sent a diver into the water to feed the fish and collect interesting marine life to show the spectators. That was pretty neat since we wouldn’t have seen them with the water being so cloudy.

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After our sub trip we ventured into coral world to see the rest of the park. There is a really cool area where you can pet a sea cucumber, sea star and a fuzzy sea urchin (this was odd as they are of the spikey variety). The hermit crabs didn’t want anything to do with us when we picked them up and the conch hid in their shells, but it was still entertaining to watch them “walk” around in the water. DD really enjoyed touching the sea animals, but she didn’t want anything to do with the sharks. Oh well, neither did I. (DH edit shown above - wimps).

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We enjoyed watching the sea turtles and exploring the tower and undersea observatory.

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We didn’t get to see the entire park and explore the beach next door which we have heard so many good things about. :( Next time we’ll plan on missing our taxi back to the port and play at the beach and ocean for a while before we head back. All too soon it was time to catch our cab and head back to meet the guys for lunch. Back on the narrow roads and more driving on the wrong side of the street. So glad I’m not in charge of driving. End DW insert.

After lunch we decided to head into town and do a little shopping, if we could find a taxi. Anyone who has been to St. Thomas knows that they are plentiful and ready to take you where you want to go. It started to get a little annoying as we walked the streets of Charlotte Amalie and had someone ask every 5 steps if we were ready to go back to the ship. No thanks, we just got here. And besides, you asked me the same thing about a block ago. :furious: We also had a guy walk up and comment on my new Doubloon t-shirt that a good friend of his designed the logo. He then went on to ask us what we were shopping for and said he could help with anything. It was a little bit creepy. Based on my limited experience on both islands, I think St. Thomas is prettier, but St. Maarten is more relaxed as far as shopping and taxi drivers.

We weren’t really looking for anything special this time. I needed a new flash card for the underwater camera and DNW needed a new lens cap for her DSLR. I think mine was the more difficult as my camera only takes a 1GB card and nobody sells under 4GB anymore. After browsing several stores we found an electronics store that had just about everything including my flash card and DNW lens cap. :thumbsup2 With that accomplished, we wandered around some more and ended up in another Del Sol store. You would think that we wouldn’t need much after the haul on the previous island. Wrong, we found plenty. Of course none of the other adults had the pleasure in the previous port so they felt they needed to try one of everything. DW and DNH bought a pair of color-changing shades that are pretty cool and come with a lifetime guarantee. If anything happens to them, including losing them, they will send you another pair. Hmmm, maybe I should have tried a little harder to find a pair I liked. I seem to have a real problem with braking and scratching sunglasses lately. :scratchin

After more aimless wandering, we found the perfect spot to relax before heading back to the ship, The Harbor Bar.

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It was a fun hangout and several people wanted to know about my Doubloon t-shirt that I was sporting. Of course I was happy to oblige with a story, imagine that. The bartender made DNW some kind of drink that had so many different kinds of alcohol and twists, we weren’t sure what to call it except tasty. :drinking: Luckily we were able to find a taxi that agreed to take us back to the port. The trip back involved lots of traffic and made me glad to be a passenger. It also allowed us time to watch the seaplanes landing and taking off from the harbor. That is another thing that I definitely want to try some day.

Once on the boat, we had another relaxing evening of hanging out, delivering FE gifts, and meeting characters. Maybe that is not so relaxing, but we did get some cool pictures. One of the best is DD and DND posing with Cinderella. It was one of the few times that DND was not at all scared to meet a character. Maybe if was because of DD with her or maybe because they all had the same color dress.

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DNW also got another one of her cool pictures with the Queen of Hearts. She had gone to get an autograph of Alice and the Queen and almost caused a riot when Alice signed on the same page as the Queen. She was livid and threatened to take everyone’s head. I wish I would have been there as it sounds hilarious.

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DW and I also went on an autograph search later that evening as most of the kids were starting to fall asleep. We were mainly after Donald and Daisy since we had not seen them out much. We caught them both in the same place although none of our pictures turned out very well. As we were deciding what else we might want to do, we noticed that the rebooking desk was empty. Ah-ha, this seems like the perfect opportunity since we missed it on the last cruise. The CM was very helpful and quickly had us rebooked for a dummy date. :thumbsup2 We don’t plan on cruising next year since we want to catch the last year of the College World Series in Rosenblatt Stadium. Although, we still haven’t completely ruled out the 5-day with two stops at Castaway Cay.

The towel animal tonight was an elephant.

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[princess22]

I'm in the middle of reading your TR and I love it so far. I had to stop reading for a moment to ask you a question. You mentioned that someone in your party who was underage for the kids club did a trial run in the club. Is this the two year old? Are they allowed in the kids club if they are two and potty trained? Thanks

Now back to reading your wonderful TR... :goodvibes

[j2bmickey]

I'm in the middle of reading your TR and I love it so far. I had to stop reading for a moment to ask you a question. You mentioned that someone in your party who was underage for the kids club did a trial run in the club. Is this the two year old? Are they allowed in the kids club if they are two and potty trained? Thanks

Now back to reading your wonderful TR... :goodvibes


Thanks for stopping by. :)

Yes, DND who is 2 was the one who gave the kids club a trial.

If they are potty trained, you can talk to the CM's and they will let them in. Note that they will not help the child in any way when going to the bathroom.

[j2bmickey]

DW Insert- Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to mmmeeee, Happy Birthday to me! :banana: End Insert.

So after two adventure filled days in port, it was time to relax, sleep in, and celebrate DW birthday. Oh, wait, this is me telling the story. Yes I did sleep in (a little, won’t say the time), but not as much as everyone else so I once again headed for the gym. Since I was an experienced sea jock by now, I contemplated joining the spin class. :lmao: Nah, let’s not get carried away.

Returning to the room I found people stirring and the first round of donuts being devoured by the kids. DW went for the next round of food while I hopped in the shower. When she returned we took DD to go birthday shopping while the neighbors fed and dressed their crew. We didn’t have much time as the neighbors had a couples’ massage scheduled and didn’t want to be late. So after a few good tips, DW headed back to the room to watch the kids while DD and I finished our shopping. DD was leaning more towards the knick-knacks, but we settled on a new watch and a couple of Disney prints.

When we got back to the room, the twins were getting restless but DND was not. So I agreed to take the triplets site seeing while DW and DND hung out and relaxed. We wandered around taking pictures and spent most of the time horsing around down Beat Street.

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There was also a princess gathering this morning that I knew we didn’t want to miss since we needed Snow White’s autograph. We didn’t do this on the last cruise so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I should have known it would be efficient and I was impressed. They have the 3 princesses spread out in the lobby and you work your way through a kind of maze to get autographs and pictures. They have staging areas where parents can stand and take pictures yet be out of the way. We even talked DNS2 into getting a picture with Snow White.

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At one point I glanced up to see Captain Hook walking around the floor above us and shaking his fist at the scene below. It was quite humorous.

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With this mission accomplished, DNS1 mentioned that he wanted the captains autograph so we headed back to Treasure Ketch. Man it felt like I was spending a lot of time in the shops today. :sad2: Captain Tom didn’t seem overly thrilled to be there, but he did sign anything that people brought to him.

After satisfying the autograph seekers, we headed back to the room to open presents and then head for the pool. DW feigned surprise as she opened the gifts from DD and I since she has made some strong suggestions on what she would prefer from the shops. :eek: Of course you just never know what you will get with us, plus I picked up a DCL roller duffle that was a surprise. She also didn’t know what the neighbors were getting her which turned out to be Dallas Stars memorabilia. We used to live in Dallas, had season tickets, and DW is a HUGE fan. This went over quite well, especially the new NON-tradeable pin for her lanyard. :thumbsup2

Time to go camp out in some loungers around the pool and relax with some lunch. Oh wait, we still have the kids so no time to relax, much. We pretty much spent the rest of the afternoon around and in the Goofy Pool, although I did send DW and DNW over to the Quiet Cove Pool for a little while. They reported that it was quite pleasant although there were no available cushion chairs. :confused3

DW is also reminding me that this was the day the she and DD went to the towel folding. Oh right, I forgot about that. That’s what I get for not taking any notes past Wednesday. As they did that I wasn’t sure what to do and just ended up wandering the ship for a while looking for interesting subjects to photograph, watching the ice carving, and dropping by the art auction for a few. With everyone meeting up back at the pool, we ended the afternoon swimming and watching a showing of Hatching Pete on the Ariel View Television.

We had time before dinner to pose for pictures and we chose the sunset Mickey. I don’t remember this one from the last cruise but I think it is one of the best pictures we had taken. :cool1: Tonight was semi-formal and our restaurant was Lumiere’s which worked out pretty cool. Dinner was good and most of us ordered lobster tails as usual. The entertainment for the night included a dancing spoon magic trick which Okim taught to all of the kids and of course singing happy birthday to DW. DNS1 also got to practice his new skill of using the crumber that Samuel had taught him.

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After dinner we went and caught Lynn Trefzger’s show which was geared toward the family and quite good. The kids still like to tell the chewing gum joke and getting a bubble butt. :rotfl: I have heard she has a pretty good adult show also, but we didn’t get to see it this time around. DND was starting to get pretty run down at this point from all of the sun, so DNW decided it was time to head back to the room and relax. The rest of us changed and went to spend quality time in the arcade. :laughing:

DNH and I had talked about catching some of the late night adult shows again, but we were pretty wiped out by the time we got back to the room. It didn’t take much encouragement for both of us to stay put. Once the decision was made, DNH did his superman impression and had changed into pajamas and was laying on the bed before I had taken two steps back towards my room. pixiedust:

The towel animal tonight was a dog, a dog, an elephant and a monkey. The last three are from the earlier class.

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[j2bmickey]

Oh yeah, back to everyone’s favorite island. :cool1: :banana: :woohoo: I am seriously considering that 5-day two stop CC cruise next year. If I can just figure out how to squeeze that cruise in with the College World Series and DW 40th birthday and my high school reunion, I am golden. :scratchin

Everyone woke up pretty early this morning, probably because of the excitement. :goodvibes We decided to head up to deck 10 to watch the islands and enjoy the breeze. As we neared Castaway Cay, the ladies decided to take the kids to breakfast and get everything ready. DNH and I stayed where we were to watch the approach to the island. You could see the cranes from a distance as they get ready for the bigger ships on the other side of the docking peninsula. It is very cool to watch the scenery as you approach the island and DNH and I were probably acting like a couple of giddy school kids, I mean intrigued grownup males. :yay: We were also discussing if we were going to pull into port forward as it sure seemed that way. As we got closer we noticed that the captain was starting a slow arc which probably meant no forward pull-in. I also glanced over the side and noticed that the starboard steering station was still covered which served as more proof. As the captain continued his arc, DNH and I decided to head to the back of the boat for breakfast. I glanced over the edge on the port side as we were walking off and sure enough, the steering station was uncovered for a backward docking.

As we made our way through the buffet line and walked out the back, we found the rest of our crew at a perfect location. They had snagged a table in the back corner which provided a beautiful view as we backed into port. Of course we also shared our view and railing with all who walked up to our area. This was also another time to see the work of Allesandro our head waiter. He was outside helping seat people and clean up after they left. I am still really impressed with his work ethic over the entire cruise. ::yes::


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After finishing breakfast and taking a few cool pictures, we headed down to the room for final preparations for the day. For whatever reason, it took a long time once we docked before they made the announcement that Castaway Cay was now open for plundering. As we headed down to the gangplank, DND was still looking a little flush so DNW decided to run by the infirmary as a precaution. :sick: DNH decided to go with her and gave me the twins ID and said he would catch up with us later. So the five of us continued on our way although it seemed to take for----ev-----er to get off the ship. :confused3 This was probably because DW had a cabana massage (another part of her bday presents) scheduled for 10 a.m. and it was fast approaching.

Even though she was about to be running late, DW decided to go ahead and drop off her pre-labeled postcards at the post office since first thing is generally one of the least busy. Unfortunately the worker had gone to get change so no mailing yet. :sad2: At this point she is officially late and decides to hoof it with some of the stuff and will drop it off in chairs for us to find. I ask the kids how they would like to travel and they unanimously reply “wait for the tram”. So we hang out and people watch while waiting for our transportation. Seemingly in line with the theme for this morning, the tram is running a little slow while a steady crowd of people builds at the waiting area. And several of them are displaying somewhat of a Donald Duck attitude. :donald: Come on people, you’re in the Bahamas on a BEAUTIFUL morning. Thankfully the tram arrives and Everyone finds a seat.

As we reach the tram stop, we first head to a most important stop if traveling with kids, the wagon corral. :thumbsup2 These wagons make traveling the rest of the way to the beach so much easier with kids and gear and I am surprised at how many people still don’t know about them. Hmmm, maybe I should strike that part as it helps keep the far end of the beach less crowded. :rolleyes1 The triplets and I took turns pulling and pushing the wagon to our preferred location on Family Beach to find DW just now heading off from the same location. She hollers that she has arranged four chairs with two umbrellas around the wagon that she had snagged. As she scampers off I am thinking to myself, why in the world is she messing around when she is already late for her massage. :confused3 That is just the way she is, make sure everyone else is comfy before taking care of herself. :hug: She also mentions that we just need to follow the wagon tracks to find our landing spot. Ohhh mmyyy, that stared an adventure that the kids were all over. All three of them suddenly transformed into the great scout on the jungle safari. :magnify: I tried to veer off the trail a couple of times, but they made sure I followed the correct route and didn’t wander off into the sea. Soon we had found the camp and prepared for the rest of the days adventures.

All three of the kids headed straight for the water while I organized all of the toys and gear in piles. They soon returned asking for snorkel gear as DNS1 had remembered the fun he had at St. Thomas. I helped them don their gear while reminding that their probably wouldn’t be as much to see this close to the beach. I also told them that they had to wear a yellow life vest if they wanted to breathe with the snorkel. They weren’t overly excited about the wardrobe requirements and decided that just using the mask was good enough.

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Before long, they excitedly tell me that they are seeing fish and I need to come look. So I took the underwater camera with its new flash card and waded out to see what all the hoopla was about. Sure enough, there were a couple of pretty good sized fish swimming around.

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I snapped a few pictures and DNS1 inquires if he can use the camera for a while. I told him that I wasn’t sure if the flash card would hold up and let him use the waterproof film camera instead. It turns out that the flash card is fine (which is very cool since I was afraid that the camera might be messed up):sad:, but he was more than happy with the film version. He ended up taking some pretty good pictures too.

[j2bmickey]

It wasn’t long before they tired of the limited snorkeling attractions and decided they wanted the sand toys. They built roads and hills for the trucks to drive on, and created shakes and pies for the workers to snack on. I decided to get in on the action and build a sandcastle fort. As the construction progressed, DNS2 kept making sure that I was leaving a spot for the cars to drive in and park. It started getting very hot and I was afraid that the structure wouldn’t withstand the help that it was starting to receive, so I didn’t make it nearly as elaborate as the original plans called for. DD also built a much more serene castle with manicured grounds and informed us that there were no roads to drive on. She insisted that you had to walk through the gardens to get to the castle.

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As we neared completion of our sand creations, the other adults started showing up. The neighbors roll up with DND in a wagon and looking much better. They report that the ship doctor said she probably had a heat rash or ate something that didn’t agree, but nothing contagious or to worry about. :) He went ahead and gave them some antibiotics just to be safe. DW shows up a few minutes later looking very relaxed and relays that the cabana massage was great. She said she was exhausted by the time she made it, but it was well worth it. :cloud9: They gave her a little bit of ribbing for being late and unfortunately couldn’t give her the full time since they have appointments stacked all day. That is kind of bummer since it was the ships fault that we were late in the first place. I guess that is a lesson not to schedule something for first thing on the other side of the island. :idea: She did get almost the full time and the guy ended up only charging ½ price, so I guess that is something.

The kids and I were hot and sweaty from all the building, so we decided to get back in the water. Everyone else agreed that this was a great idea. Even though we had brought some small floaties with us, DD noticed that a group of people beside us had a huge pile of tubes and wanted to know where we could get one. I explained that you had to pay for them, but maybe she could borrow one for a few minutes. She walked over to ask and the people very graciously let the kids use several of them for the rest of the afternoon. :thanks: As the day wore on, we actually started having quite a collection of tubes that nobody was sure where they came from. I have heard other people report this phenomenon, but wouldn’t have believed it without actually seeing it.

As we horsed around in the water and on the beach, DW made another attempt to mail her postcards. She returned unsuccessful as the attendants were on lunch break. :confused: One of the CM’s at information told her that if she couldn’t catch someone, she could still send them from the ship that evening. She neglected to mention however, that they would not have the Castaway Cay stamp. :sad2: Bummer, we did get them really quick though. We pretty much just went to lunch in shifts, but every time we asked DD if she was ready for lunch she would reply “not yet”. What???? What have you done with my daughter as she never turns down food. :scared1: Too much fun in paradise I guess. I can’t blame her as I wasn’t overly interested in food either. As it was nearing closing time for lunch, we finally decided along with DNH that we had better get some nourishment. We loaded up on the traditional and yummy BBQ and I also snagged some couscous. DD asked what the funny looking rice was and agreed to try a little (she is actually pretty good about at least trying something once). She loved it and still tries to get us to fix it as often as possible. :cool: I can’t believe we never thought to fix this as she is also a big fan of rice and pasta. We decided to top off the meal with some creamy frozen goodness, but just like last time the machine broke down just as we were nearing the front of the line. DNH decided he didn’t need ice cream that bad but DD and I stuck it out. Soon they had freezer maintenance out to fix the machine just as the other machine broke down. :confused3 This was not looking good but we held our hope that they would soon solve the problems. And they did and we celebrated with a double helping. :lovestruc

With our hunger conquered, we returned to the frolicking on the beach with the rest of the crew. DW mentioned that she hadn’t seen the giant sandcastle from last time so we decided to go search it out. The neighbors said they were good with the kids, so we made it a leisurely search. On the last cruise we had noticed a giant sandcastle near Castaway Rays that we had assumed was just for decoration. We learned later that they actually let the kids destroy it and stored that bit of information for a later trip. As we stroll the various areas between family beach and teen beach, we don’t notice a sandcastle anywhere. We end up asking the CM’s at Castaway Ray about it and they reply that the person who used to build them no longer works on the island so no castle. Bummer, good thing we didn't say anything to the kids about it. You know I just realized that I have said that several times during this report. Don’t get me wrong, we still had a blast and plan on returning even though we had a few minor setbacks.

We returned to the beach to find everyone still having a blast and asked if anyone was ready for a bike ride. The kids all replied with a hearty Yay, so we were off on our next adventure. :yay: The bike rentals were something that confused me a little in the beginning as you can reserve them online as an excursion. The confusing part was that there was no start or end time, so what happens if they run out of bikes. My question was answered as we approached the rental kiosk and saw all of the bikes. Wow, I think they have enough for everyone on the ship and part of the neighboring islands. :eek: They also have all kinds of sizes for male grownups, female grownups, kids, training wheels, and bicycle seats for toddlers. DND was starting to act a little fussy so DNW and DNH decided to pass on the bike ride and stay in the shade or maybe even head back to the ship. No problems, we’ll catch up with you later. One thing I would suggest if you plan on going on a bike ride. Don’t do it with a wet bathing suit. :scared: I ended up getting a rash on the insides of my legs that was quite painful. Luckily we had baby power with us that helped ease the sting. :p

The twins quickly selected their transportation and were ready to zoom off down the road. DD was in one of her mellow moods and wanted to take things casual. She gets these often on walks and hikes and likes to stop and smell the roses, every one of them. :flower3: So DW stayed with the guys and their Tour De Castaway while DD and I sauntered along. One of the first things you come to on the ride is the runway. You are clear for takeoff on runway 32, pretty cool. Seriously.

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As the speed demons came flying back in for a landing, we decided to take the loop out to the observation tower. Although the paces were very different, we seemed to end up at the tower at about the same time. Maybe the guys made a couple of laps before actually stopping.

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I would give the observation tower a big thumbs up as you can see the entire island including the ship anchored on the other side.

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After goofing off for a while, DW asked if I wanted to go with the guys and work off some energy. I replied that DD and I were doing good as she reminded me that it was good to take it slow sometimes so you could enjoy the scenery. So profound for a 6-year-old.

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[j2bmickey]

When we returned to the beach we noticed that DNW and DND have left, but it looks like DNH is still around although we don’t see him. We soon see him swimming toward the beach with snorkel gear on. As we are frolicking in the water, a lady wades up to me and asks that I hold her beer while she goes to reprimand her kids. ;) I am standing in cool water, on a beautiful sun-drenched island, with a cold beer in my hand, and too stunned to notice that she has a green bracelet on. DW hollers out that it was very brave of the lady to hand me a beer and recognizes that she is someone from our cruise meet. We chat for a little while and are surprised that we have not crossed paths until now. :confused3 We also got to see a lifeguard in action. A lady and her small child had gotten pretty far out in the snorkeling lagoon and fell off their float. The lifeguard on the playset whistled to his fellow guardians and was off with a splash. It seemed like no time at all before he was out to them and then back to the beach with everyone safely in tow. That was impressive. :smokin:

Here is a picture of DD's new version of SPF 500 sunscreen.

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It seemed all too soon that they were announcing that the beach was closed and we needed to get out. Ahhhh man, I wonder what they would do if we refused. I probably don’t want to find out. :eek: On the way back to the boat I did a quick shopping stop at She Sells for a t-shirt that I had spotted earlier in the day. It didn’t take me long and I was able to pile into the last tram heading for the ship. This was a most welcome ride as I was worn out from the days activities. :thumbsup2

Once back on the boat, we relaxed in our staterooms, took showers, and started getting some of the suitcases ready. One big thing that we had learned from last cruise was not waiting until the last minute to get the suitcases ready. :idea: Throughout the week we had slowly repacked dirty clothes, costumes, glow necklaces, etc that we wouldn’t be using anymore. This made the final night so much less hectic. On the way to dinner we decided to stop for some photos with Goofy. We got some really good shots including him doing a somersault with the kids. DD was very impressed.

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Dinner tonight was in Animator’s Palate and you will be glad to know that DD and I actually made it. I guess the third time really is the charm. :rotfl2: Since this was the last night, there was lots of chatting with the servers and the parade of all servers and chefs.

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We let our wait staff know that based on our previous experience, we probably wouldn’t be in for the debarkation breakfast. It seems to put too much of a rush on things being that early in the morning. They said they understood and were glad to have been a part of our week.

The kids decided that they wanted to spend part of their last night in the Oceaneer Club, so we dropped them off and went to look at the pictures in Shutters since it would be quite with people either at dinner or at the show. With our small fortunes spent on picture packages, we returned to the staterooms to finish getting the suitcases packed and out the door. This didn’t take very long and we headed back to pick up the kids for the “Till we Meet Again” gathering. DD was not very excited at first because she was actually getting to play on the playset for the first time all week. :sad1: She quickly changed her mind though as the characters started coming out and mingling with the crowd. This was a pretty cool event as you get to just hang out with the different characters although of course a few lines formed for the more popular ones. We had Minnie Mouse walk right up to us and one of the best was hamming it up with Ensign Benson.

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Here is a free pointer if you want to get a really neat picture of the characters on the staircase, leave someone stationed in a prime location as they will fill up towards the end. ::yes::

This doesn’t really follow any storyline, but will melt you heart anyway.

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The towel animal tonight was a cobra.

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[j2bmickey]

We had learned from the last cruise that the last morning could be a little rough with the early dining and EARLY breakfast. Therefore, we decided this time that we would just casually wake up with no alarm and saunter to breakfast when we felt like it. This worked out really well as we all got a few more needed winks and ambience of the Magic. :thumbsup2

As everyone started waking, we slllloooowwwwwlllllyyy finished packing our carry-on bags and walked up to Topsiders for the final meal. It seemed pretty full, mainly because they were restricting the seating to inside for less mess to clean up before the next cruise. There were some people who didn’t get the hint though and tried to figure out a way to take a tray outside and then were upset that they couldn’t get back in to refill their coffee. Uhhmmm maybe the four locked doors and barbwire should have been a hint that they would prefer that you didn’t take food outside this morning. :sad2: Sorry, I have a problem with really rude and dense people. One or the other I can handle, but together is just a little much.

We finished off the last meal we didn’t have to fix and moseyed down to the Atrium. Are you getting the feeling that we were not in any big hurry. Upon arrival it was completely empty which is another plus of leaving on your own schedule. We goofed around with the CM’s for a few minutes before heading on down to customs.

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We once again snagged a baggage porter and were whisked through customs and to the car rental curb in a flash. I have heard that the customs officials are fairly lenient at the port since DCL keeps a pretty tight control over things at each port. Really ??? I find that a little hard to believe, but maybe people are trying to be more honest. Nahhh, I doubt it.

The two families used different rental companies but we had similar flight times from MCO so agreed to meet up before heading out of town. On the bus ride over to the Avis office we chat with a gentlemen who seems like he should be familiar. It finally dawns on us that it is another person from our cruise meet thread. We have a good conversation in the short ride, too bad we didn’t run into each other sooner. The pickup at Avis is pretty smooth although another customer is having a very bad time. It seems that she is allergic to smoke and the car smells like smoke even though Avis has a strict no-smoking policy. I am not sure how it turned out, but the lady didn’t seem like she was going to accept anything that Avis offered short of a limo ride for her entire vacation. Of course if she was that allergic, maybe she deserved the reward for Avis not monitoring the returns close enough. :rolleyes1

We headed for Orlando with plans to hang out at Downtown Disney for awhile before the flights. The trip was pretty uneventful until we got into Orlando. The neighbors knew about the toll plaza between Canaveral and Orlando, but we seemed to have forgotten to mention that there were two more once in Orlando before reaching Disney. Oooops. So the caravan came apart as they pulled off for more cash. We did stay in cell phone contact however, so we were able to reconnect once in the parking area of Downtown Disney.

We once again spent most of our time around the Lego store with kids building different creations to race on the outside ramp. Once inside DD again built a 3-person pack while everyone else wandered the store. The other kids also picked up some kits and then I relented to DD and DW to let them fill a bucket of random Lego pieces. These two had a blast picking out the different pieces and planning what they would build while trying to cram as much as they could into one bucket. They still love pulling out the pieces and combining them with other Lego sets for new creations. And surprisingly, I still don’t get into it much. I can’t figure that one out since I really am a geek and love to build things. ;)

Since it was way beyond feeding time (especially just getting off a cruise ship) we decided we would get the kids a quick snack and then head to the airport for a more substantial meal. At least that is what I thought we agreed upon. As we headed toward the parking lot, DW walked in to get the kids some fries and DNW walked in separately to use the restroom and pick up some waters. DD and I somehow walked off to explore with no-one seeing us and then walked to the car. So for several minutes afterwards, everyone was waiting on someone else to show up at the same location they were. This probably should have been a clue that things were about to go slightly awry. :confused3

We once again started the caravan with all intentions of arriving at the airport together. This quickly dissolved as we reached an intersection on the highway and took separate paths. Don’t tell anyone, but I think DNH actually took the better route. We did end up in the general direction of the airport (with no tolls), but the neighbors figured we were headed for the everglades and decided to stop for lunch.

The rental return was once again very smooth, but there were no porters to be seen this time. Well, I remember the drill from last time so I will grab a cart and we will be fine. Things did go fairly smooth with no hassles, but that was a lot of luggage to hall on a little three wheel cart for what seemed like several miles. Once we were through security, we called the neighbors to check on their location since we needed to take separate trams to different terminals. They were just getting into the airport so we decided to go ahead and take the tram to our terminal (they had a later flight and could come to our area before heading to their plane). As we got closer to needing to head for the gate, we called them again. It seems that they had all kinds of issues returning the car and getting a Hertz shuttle back to the terminals. They were just now trying to get through security. Well keep us posted, but we will probably catch you the next time through. The rest of the flight home was pretty uneventful. We arrived back in the desert and our neighbor was there to pick us up.

So ends another tail of the triplets and their parents who can be pretty colorful. We had a blast and plan on returning again. If you wonder about the goodbye that wasn’t so good in Orlando, never fear we will see the neighbors soon. For as I write this final chapter, we are about to head out to their residence to surprise DNW for her 40th birthday. :tiptoe: It should be a riot.

[Proud2BMomof3]

Thanks so much for posting your report and wonderful pics. We are taking our triplets on their first cruise this Christmas and after reading your posts I know we'll have a great time. Thanks again for taking the time to create such a great thread.

[j2bmickey]

Thanks so much for posting your report and wonderful pics. We are taking our triplets on their first cruise this Christmas and after reading your posts I know we'll have a great time. Thanks again for taking the time to create such a great thread.


You're welcome, I'm glad you liked it.

Have a great cruise, as I am sure you will, especially at Christmas.

[papertraveller]

Thanks for a great trip report. There aren't many on the board right now chronicling the Eastern itinerary, so this was very helpful and inspiring. Your pics are wonderful!

[j2bmickey]

Thanks for a great trip report. There aren't many on the board right now chronicling the Eastern itinerary, so this was very helpful and inspiring. Your pics are wonderful!


You are very welcome. I noticed the same thing about not as many Eastern reports and that is one of the main reasons I went ahead and did another one. Well that and DW reminds me that I love to B.S. :confused3

Thanks again for the kind words. :thumbsup2