The MAGIC is Back!!! ~ WBTA 2014 ~ Come & join the fun!

[geffric]

Liesbeth! Phil and I are the couple on the left on this photo!! That was a FUN tasting - was that the one that we had all the girls who had come from the Champagne Girls meet up at the table behind us - and they were very chatty? The other people at their table keep SHHHHSHHH'ing us and were no fun at all??? Or was that the Hawaiian Mixology class ? or maybe the Origami class? I don't remember - the tasting memories are a little "fuzzy!"" LOL!! I just remember the CM - was it Wawan? who kept pronouncing STIR as STEER !!

It was Hawaiian Mixology class...how do I know?? I was one of the CG and a bit drunk..well maybe a lot...but we did have fun.

 

[pharmjenn]

Hello everybody! And a very happy good morning! I'm not bragging or anything, but my weekend started at 7am this morning. Of course I'm now sitting on the couch in my PJs not knowing what to do with myself ... nap, clean the house (cash money, if anyone here is volunteering) .... Would it be completely wrong to have a glass of wine before noon and just DIS instead? Can anyone else who works midnight shift commiserate?

Until Disdel quoted you, I totally missed the midnight shift part. Yes, I have worked graveyards for the last 8 years. I still need to have "breakfast" when I get home in the morning, but I can also eat breakfast food in the evenings when I wake up!
Definitely have a drink whenever you want! My weekend (well week, since I work 7on-7off) started yesterday morning, and I feel I have been pretty productive for the last 24hrs.

 

[geffric]

I like your idea of "turned it up a notch" from LeCellier......to a Disney cruise! We are also empty nesters and our kids can't understand why we are going all the time on cruises and we didn't go when they were at home. We tell them that now that we've gotten them through college.....we finally have some money to play with!!!

LOL DH says that I am used to spending the college money so now we arent paying the schools, I just use the money for cruising..Yep.. seems right to me!

Sarah....the remembering part was kind of shady. You have about 45 minutes for the mixology/mojito tasting, it takes about 30 minutes for them to show you how to make the drinks, we make them, and then you have about 10 - 15 minutes to drinks those BIG 4 or 5 drinks. I've never tried guzzling down that many drinks at one time! lol I can usually nurse one drink for about 30 minutes!

During the Hawaiian mixology, I think we had the person show us how to make the drinks..but I am VERY fuzzy LOL..( and we were having to good of time chatting and laughing)

We made the drinks???

Ok my memory must also be hazy from that day as I remember drinking some pretty coloured drinks, but don't remember how they got there in the first place!!!!

LOL on the Dream we were in SKYLINE and they made us go behind the bar and make drinks..then we drank them, then the next group made different drinks and we drank them, etc.. very fuzzy after a while I do remember that I went to the room and napped.

 

[woody73]

Yes, and the food was great.

Terrific! I'm very glad to hear it.

Woody

 

[thedonduck]

Wow, I have been gone for 5 days and y'all added more than 30 pages! Apparently I need to get reading! Once we have a name/theme/logo decided I will get working on the lanyards and name tags.

Our intro:
We moved to Orlando last March from Green Bay, WI. We have been loving our weekly trips to see our favorite Mouse.

I (Kimmy) am 27 and a high school English teacher turned stay-at-home mom! I spent a semester+ studying abroad while in college and fell in love with traveling and Europe. I have been talking my family into a TA for the last 5 years!
DJ is my DJ. He is 27 and works at MCO as an Air Traffic Controller, so whenever you all visit he may be the one helping to land your plane (and no he is not the guy that has the orange sticks outside your plane window, although I joke that is what he really does. He currently works in the radar room.)
We have a 2.5 year old (will be 4 on cruise) DS named Casen who has a love for all things Mickey and Buzz Lightyear at the moment. He LOVES fireworks, Disney, and anything on wheels! The WBTA will be his 4th cruise.
Our DD is 1 (will be almost 3 on cruise) and her name is Elliot. She loves all things pretty at the moment and is fascinated by the princesses! rincess:This will be her 1st cruise (sadly Disney doesn't count cruises while in-utero because she would at least have a silver status!!!).
MIL-Jil will always be joining us! She loves to cruise and relax so hopefully this will be an excellent vacation for her. She loves her grandbabies and Disney. She is hoping to get a job working for Disney (possibly at Port) when she moves her this year!
We are also hoping to have another baby by the time this cruise rolls around, so send some pixie-dust our way!

Well if that ain't long enough

 

[babydiver]

Wow, I have been gone for 5 days and y'all added more than 30 pages! Apparently I need to get reading! Once we have a name/theme/logo decided I will get working on the lanyards and name tags.

Our intro:
We moved to Orlando last March from Green Bay, WI. We have been loving our weekly trips to see our favorite Mouse.

I (Kimmy) am 27 and a high school English teacher turned stay-at-home mom! I spent a semester+ studying abroad while in college and fell in love with traveling and Europe. I have been talking my family into a TA for the last 5 years!
DJ is my DJ. He is 27 and works at MCO as an Air Traffic Controller, so whenever you all visit he may be the one helping to land your plane (and no he is not the guy that has the orange sticks outside your plane window, although I joke that is what he really does. He currently works in the radar room.)
We have a 2.5 year old (will be 4 on cruise) DS named Casen who has a love for all things Mickey and Buzz Lightyear at the moment. He LOVES fireworks, Disney, and anything on wheels! The WBTA will be his 4th cruise.
Our DD is 1 (will be almost 3 on cruise) and her name is Elliot. She loves all things pretty at the moment and is fascinated by the princesses! rincess:This will be her 1st cruise (sadly Disney doesn't count cruises while in-utero because she would at least have a silver status!!!).
MIL-Jil will always be joining us! She loves to cruise and relax so hopefully this will be an excellent vacation for her. She loves her grandbabies and Disney. She is hoping to get a job working for Disney (possibly at Port) when she moves her this year!
We are also hoping to have another baby by the time this cruise rolls around, so send some pixie-dust our way!

Well if that ain't long enough

Will be sending you a PM regarding lanyards 'cause don't remember if I did or not and we definitely want some....

So DJ is an Air Traffic Controller at MCO - was he working the night of 26th Jan this year when Virgin plane had a bird strike and lost engines and had to make an emergency landing.....We were on that plane!!!!! the Captain and flight staff were wonderful.


.

 

[JessicasMom]

I'm going on the Breakaway 4/28 it's a one day cruise from Rotterdam to Southampton. I have made a cruise this year on the Spirit, the food was great better then on Disney.

Glad to hear you liked NCL; we're doing Alaska this fall on the Pearl, which will be our first cruise with that line. I'm not crazy about all the upcharges, but I'm looking forward to trying something new. DCL was just out of our price range for this route .

Until Disdel quoted you, I totally missed the midnight shift part. Yes, I have worked graveyards for the last 8 years. I still need to have "breakfast" when I get home in the morning, but I can also eat breakfast food in the evenings when I wake up!
Definitely have a drink whenever you want! My weekend (well week, since I work 7on-7off) started yesterday morning, and I feel I have been pretty productive for the last 24hrs.

DD Jess inherited my allergy to mornings and has worked various overnight shifts for the past five years. Now she does four l-o-n-g nights a week, then tries to keep a more "normal" schedule (gotta have that social life ) on her days off. I don't know how she does it, but I guess it's youth . I worked 11pm-7am for just over a year when she was little, but I could never do it again . I consider myself lucky to work mostly 10am-6pm shifts...not too early, not too late. DH used to have to get up before 5am every day; retirement has made him a very happy man!

 

[woody73]

. . . Glad to hear you liked NCL; we're doing Alaska this fall on the Pearl, which will be our first cruise with that line. I'm not crazy about all the upcharges, but I'm looking forward to trying something new. DCL was just out of our price range for this route . . .

We enjoyed sailing through the Panama Canal on the Norwegian Pearl, which is a beautiful ship. We previously sailed through the PC (twice on DCL, and once on Celebrity).

We did not find the upcharges any more bothersome than on other cruise lines. The crew will offer specialty coffees, drinks of the day, bingo, bottled water to take off the ship, photos, and upcharge restaurants -- just like DCL. Just decide for yourself where to spend your money.

On this 14-night cruise, our shipboard charges totaled $88 for the two of us (not including daily gratuities). This included dinners for two at four specialty restaurants.

The cruise fare for 14-nights was incredibly low: $847 pp for an oceanview cabin (+ tax and port fees).

YMMV

Woody

 

[AlexandNessa]

Well, enjoy the weekend, glad for the early start. I worked midnights for 11 years straight - and Debbie was a midnight head nurse when we met - so I'm sure you know "Eat whatever meal suits you" ( In the mood for dinner at 3 AM?, breakfast at 7?, so it goes) , so obviously, your choice of beverages is fine.

Is it a Bermuda itinerary in June? After you asked if we planned to sail on her, I looked, and if there's a good last-minute to snag for August 23, we just may. I had been watching Celebrity for August 25 out of Bayonne, so we'll see what develops.

- and Three Sisters, Four Sisters, whatever maybe it's Five Guys wine?

Yes, it's a Bermuda itinerary. Have you been reading about the mess at Heritage Wharf? That it may not be ready on time for the Breakaway's first cruise to Bermuda, and there are rumors of tendering or a change in itinerary? I have zero interest in tendering on a ship that huge, but our final payment is due within in a day or two and we already secured that week of vacation. I will certainly report back on how it goes!

I'm going on the Breakaway 4/28 it's a one day cruise from Rotterdam to Southampton. I have made a cruise this year on the Spirit, the food was great better then on Disney.

Oh! The maiden voyage! Glad you liked the food on the Spirit. Please, please give new a quick rundown of what you thought of Breakaway when you get back! Enjoy!

 

[AlexandNessa]

Until Disdel quoted you, I totally missed the midnight shift part. Yes, I have worked graveyards for the last 8 years. I still need to have "breakfast" when I get home in the morning, but I can also eat breakfast food in the evenings when I wake up!
Definitely have a drink whenever you want! My weekend (well week, since I work 7on-7off) started yesterday morning, and I feel I have been pretty productive for the last 24hrs.

Hi Jenn! Do you find that when you have a few days off, it's difficult to get back onto a "regular" sleep schedule to be awake among the living? That is my issue. After 5-6 years on midnights, I'm finding the older I get, the harder it is to "come off" of them for a few days.

One of our old timers is thinking about retiring next month. He's been Retired in Place for a good two years now, so it's part of my nightly prayers that he makes his retirement official. Did I just say that out loud? Anyway, my point is, if he does retire, I'm going to assume his evening shift for a bit of a break! (We bid for tours by seniority, even though we're management.)

Enjoy the early start to your weekend as well! I'm jealous you were so productive. I want a medal just for mopping the kitchen floor....

 

[AlexandNessa]

We enjoyed sailing through the Panama Canal on the Norwegian Pearl, which is a beautiful ship. We previously sailed through the PC (twice on DCL, and once on Celebrity).

We did not find the upcharges any more bothersome than on other cruise lines. The crew will offer specialty coffees, drinks of the day, bingo, bottled water to take off the ship, photos, and upcharge restaurants -- just like DCL. Just decide for yourself where to spend your money.

On this 14-night cruise, our shipboard charges totaled $88 for Yyy the two of us (not including daily gratuities). This included dinners for two at four specialty restaurants.

The cruise fare for 14-nights was incredibly low: $847 pp for an oceanview cabin (+ tax and port fees).

YMMV

Woody

88$!! Did you pre-pay excursions too? I'm jealous! I'm happy if we spend 88$ a day, and that rarely happens.

 

[woody73]

88$!! Did you pre-pay excursions too? I'm jealous! I'm happy if we spend 88$ a day, and that rarely happens.

LOL! I'll bet the bar waitstaff just LOVES you.

No prepaying here. Since it was our fourth Panama Canal cruise, we decided to DIY at the ports.

Last year when we were on the EPIC (not exactly my favorite ship), they had previews of the Breakaway. One of my biggest objections to the EPIC was the lack of a true promenade deck. On the Breakaway, NCL seems to have corrected this -- and then some! I like the idea of sitting at a cafe on the promenade, and watching the people and scenery. Or going on an evening stroll (passeggiata). Very European.

Woody

 

[AlexandNessa]

LOL! I'll bet the bar waitstaff just LOVES you.

No prepaying here. Since it was our fourth Panama Canal cruise, we decided to DIY at the ports.

Last year when we were on the EPIC (not exactly my favorite ship), they had previews of the Breakaway. One of my biggest objections to the EPIC was the lack of a true promenade deck. On the Breakaway, NCL seems to have corrected this -- and then some! I like the idea of sitting at a cafe on the promenade, and watching the people and scenery. Or going on an evening stroll (passeggiata). Very European.

Woody

Hehe, you are not wrong! On three of our Disney Cruises, the bar staff has made us a Magical Family. Imagine that ..

If we ever get around to doing a PC cruise, I'm totally coming to you for advice on excursions. The Epic was not your favorite, eh? She seemed like a giant toaster when we all docked next to her in St. Maarten in 2010. Made the Magic almost look like a tug boat! It sure sounds like Norwegian took its Epic criticisms into consideration when they built the Breakaway. Just hoping it's true!

 

[Pinky166]

THE POLL HAS BEEN ADDED

Please vote for your favourite name, thanks.

 

[scottishwee35]

Hehe, you are not wrong! On three of our Disney Cruises, the bar staff has made us a Magical Family. Imagine that ..

If we ever get around to doing a PC cruise, I'm totally coming to you for advice on excursions. The Epic was not your favorite, eh? She seemed like a giant toaster when we all docked next to her in St. Maarten in 2010. Made the Magic almost look like a tug boat! It sure sounds like Norwegian took its Epic criticisms into consideration when they built the Breakaway. Just hoping it's true!

PC Cruise with Disney was awesome... and my speical birthday we went to Freedom of the Seas at Eastern Caribbean, when we arrived St Thomas as there was Epic behind us and we looked at it and thought it look not nice ship as I don't like back of the ship too...

We are sailing with RC to Venice this July with Splendour of the Seas with deaf group as first time we give a try..

But this Magic is my favourite ship

Scottishwee35

 

[Helenr]

Please could you add my to the list of those on this cruise.

I'm Helen and I'm travelling with my Daughter Fallon who will be 2. My DH doesn't know his work commitments yet, so he's booked on the cruise but may not be able to join us.

We're in room 6616.

Looking forward to meeting people, especially those travelling with little ones like me.

 

[TotallyAngelic]

THE POLL HAS BEEN ADDED

Please vote for your favourite name, thanks.

Consider it done

 

[JustAnnieNotHazel]

THE POLL HAS BEEN ADDED

Please vote for your favourite name, thanks.

Oh my! I like all of them, now to make one choice!!!!

 

[squitty]

My vote has been cast

 

[babydiver]

THE POLL HAS BEEN ADDED

Please vote for your favourite name, thanks.

Just voted and a hard decision. Thanks for compiling this Claire!


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