01-01-2012, 07:57 AM
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#181 |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Georgia
Posts: 21,603
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Happy New Year to you, too, Rinky!
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Me (Jackie), Charles, Chelsea (15), Connor (13)
    2012 TR: A Fourth of Pixie-Dust!2012 PTR: Does Pixie Dust Help with Decision-Making? May 2011 PTR: Sensing Pixie Dust I Am! July 2010 TR: Where Pixie-Dusted Birthday Dreams Come True! October 2009 TR: Shaken, Not Stirred, With a Twist of Pixie Dust! A Food and Wine Trip Report!June 2009 TR: Divas, Zebra Domes, and Pixie Dust! A Week in an African Paradise! |
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01-01-2012, 09:42 AM
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#182 | |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Oklahoma
Posts: 4,853
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Quote:
 He told Jared the other day that he would go back to WDW when he had grandchildren to take. I guess I'm just going to have to be happy going without him. I'm hoping to take Jared over Labor Day this year, fingers crossed that that works out!I know Don would go on another cruise, it's just finding the funds to do it that is the issue right now. I need to book more travel and get some more $$ rolling in here!  
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Michelle (Me), Don, Justin (16) & Jared (12)
CurrentTR: Grumpless in Orlando     Sept 2012 PTR Leaving the Grump at Home June 2011 TRCould the Dream Turn the Grump into a Believer?June 2011 PTRGrump is taking me on a DREAM vacationMay 2010 TRFlowers, Segways & DIS Meets, Oh My! May 2010 PTR Flowers & Firsts Christmas 2009 TR The Disney Grump & Family Take on the World August 2008 TR Our Very Own California Adventure! |
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01-01-2012, 10:06 AM
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#183 |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: PA
Posts: 20,033
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Happy New Year!
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~ Oct 2005 CBR ~ May 2007 POFQ ~ May 2008 CSR ~ Jan 2009 CBR ~ Nov 2009 POR & OKW ~ Nov 2010 BWI ~ Aug/Sept 2011 CBR & Poly CL ~ Apr/May 2012 BC ~ Dec 2012 GF SL & Poly ~ Up Next: Aug 2013 YC ~
It's the Most Wonderful Time of Year ~ Dec 2012 Trip Report IN PROGRESS!   |
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01-02-2012, 06:06 PM
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#184 |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: nj
Posts: 1,664
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 HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!! May all your disney dreams come true!!!!!      :
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01-06-2012, 12:53 PM
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#185 |
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Irish Princess because Cinderella said so!
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 3,400
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Joining in and catching up. Love the trip report so far!
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01-06-2012, 03:08 PM
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#186 | |||||
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 3,011
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And I know what you mean... I need my money tree to bloom too!  Thanks for the New Year's Tink! Quote:
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Last edited by RinkyTinkyTinky; 01-06-2012 at 07:50 PM. |
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01-06-2012, 04:42 PM
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#187 |
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Forever in love with Hathaway Browne
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 2,995
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What a wonderful ending to the day! I love swimming at night best, so I think you guys made an excellent choice!
 The show looks really cool too, maybe even cool enough to keep my 2 year old engaged!
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01-06-2012, 08:19 PM
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#188 |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 3,011
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On the third day of Swinter my vacation gave to me...
On the third day of Swinter my vacation gave to me... a heavenly blue lagoon and palm trees as far as you can see!
Friday, October 28, 2011 I'm so excited to finally be sharing the second day of the cruise with you. This was such an exciting day for us! We had one new experience after another and it was everything I had imagined it would be. A real dream come true of a day! It all started early... really early. Well, it was really early to be getting up on vacation anyway. My goal was to see the sunrise over the ocean, so we had to be up on deck by 6:30 a.m. I had been looking forward to this for months. I woke up around 5:00 and got showered and ready for the day. DH and DD soon followed, although a little sluggishly. I knew exactly where I wanted to go to watch the sunrise... our 'secret' spot at the bow of the ship. We headed out and there was absolutely no one stirring about yet. We only passed by one person on the way up and that was a CM who was moping the water up on the deck floor. It was so incredibly peaceful and beautiful up there!    There was NO need for DD and I to have fixed our hair that morning, but it was so worth it!  This picture takes me right back there in my mind.    This boat coming by looked like an ant compared to the Dream.    Again, being up there was easy on the eyes, but not the hair!    Yes, I got carried away with the pictures, but it was so beautiful that I couldn't help myself. Here's a short video I took from up there. (54 sec.) Sorry about the shakiness at the end, but the camera couldn't focus with all the motion. I was trying to zoom in on Atlantis that we could see way off in the distance. Click on the picture.  This is a seating area in the adults only section.  I wanted to stay put right where we were until the ship pulled into the port in Nassau. There's a lighthouse on an island that you can see as the ship sails in and I really wanted to be there to get some pictures of it. DH on the other hand wanted to go eat breakfast. He's ready to eat about 30 seconds after his feet hit the floor each morning, and we had been on deck for about an hour by then. He knew I had my heart set on seeing that lighthouse (I love lighthouses... we have lots of them in NC and I've always been very fond of them), but his belly was telling him it was time to go. What to do, what to do? I knew he was going to be a grump and rush me until he was fed, so I caved and went on with them to Cabanas. I was certain that I was going to miss seeing the lighthouse. There still weren't that many people out and about yet, even at Cabanas. We walked right through the buffet with no line. They had lots and lots of choices and everything we ate was good.  We had a nice window seat. The whole meal was just a really nice experience. Quiet, relaxed, uncrowded, awesome view, good food... it was just a great day to be alive kind of feeling in the air!   We finished up pretty quickly and decided to walk back up to the top deck to see if by some miracle we hadn't passed by the lighthouse yet. This flag flies on the front of the ship.  I couldn't believe it but we hadn't quite made it to Nassau yet! I was really excited! You could easily see Atlantis though so I knew we were really close. Can you see it?  Ok, I'll zoom way in for you...  I'd really like to check that place out the next time we go. Continued in next post
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Last edited by RinkyTinkyTinky; 02-13-2012 at 02:16 PM. |
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01-06-2012, 08:32 PM
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#189 |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 3,011
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There were now a handful of people in our 'secret' place on the bow of the ship watching to see us pull into the Bahamas. Somehow, DH and I got into a conversation with a guy while we were waiting. Well, I say it was a conversation, but we could hardly get a word in edgewise. He just went on and on about how expensive everything was and how Disney was trying to gouge all of us out of every penny we had. He griped about the cost of the alcohol and the pictures the photographers take of you. He said that they tried to charge him $150 for one picture of him and his wife at dinner. I was almost certain that he was dead wrong on that but I kept my mouth shut. I later found out that he was indeed wrong. In fact... he was VERY wrong! One picture is $20! Then he went on to complain about having to pay tips, and pay for excursions, and pay for rental equipment... yada, yada, yada! He was a REAL sourpuss, so I discreetly slipped off to take more pictures and left DH to deal with him!
 Nice of me huh? Anyway, what's the moral of this story??? If you're going to sink major cash into a vacation, do your homework first and know what's included and what's not. Don't just show up blissfully ignorant and expect to have a good time. It wasn't too long before this boat came out to greet us and led the ship into the port.  And we're getting closer...  And then... there she was!  I got just a little bit snap happy... but as the boat sailed by, the view kept changing, and it just kept getting more and more beautiful. I couldn't help myself!    Atlantis is in the background.         Our parking spot for the day  This is the entrance to Nassau.   We never made it here. Maybe next time.  A swanky Bahamian resort   Then the captain started to turn the ship around and backed us into the port.   There were lots of seagulls flying around hoping someone would throw them a morsel.  It had been a fantastic morning so far, despite our time with Henny Penny, but we had to get back to the room to redo our hair and pack up our backpack for our excursion. This fish extender gift was stuck to our door when we got back. Thank you Wisconsin Princess! I use this almost every day!  It only took a few minutes to get ready to go. We were all really excited about our excursion. We were doing the dolphin encounter on Blue Lagoon island! Another dream come true for me! So stay tuned... lots more pictures and fun to come from this awesome day in the Bahamas! Up next... The third day of Swinter: Part 2!
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Last edited by RinkyTinkyTinky; 01-07-2012 at 07:32 AM. |
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01-06-2012, 08:54 PM
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#190 | |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 3,011
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01-06-2012, 09:35 PM
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#191 |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 6,724
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I agree - the shows are awesome for little ones (and big ones)! They really are captivating.
Rinky - I feel like I'm reliving our trip too - thank you! You really got some beautiful shots of the sunrise and light house. I am anxious to hear how your dolphin encounter was, since we also did that! Might I be nosy and ask - did your DH lose weight? He looks thinner in these pictures- just great, he's a handsome man! 
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01-06-2012, 10:03 PM
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#192 | |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 3,011
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Quote:
 Just kidding! If he's lost any weight... I've found it! He is very fortunate that he is 6' tall and has a racing metabolism. He eats like a government mule and never gains a pound! Disgusting I tell you! But as far as I know, he hasn't lost any weight. In fact, he thinks he's starting to gain some. He says the older he gets, the more he is getting his mother's double chin!  He's even named it his 'gobbler' because he says it shakes just like a turkey's does! He's a nut! But I'll tell him you thought he had lost weight and that will make his day! I know, our trips were really similar with us doing the same excursion. I think a lot of us did that one. I know Jen, Michelle, and Anita all did that one too. I knew that was the excursion for me. I didn't even have to research the others. I've always wanted to get in the water with the dolphins. Next time I would like to see Atlantis though. I just don't know if I am brave enough for their water attractions. They all look really intense, and I am such a chicken. And I absolutely fell in love with Blue Lagoon island so I might be better off just going back there. We ended up spending the entire day on BLI and we didn't want to leave at 4:00 when the last boat came. WE LOVED IT! Glad you guys made it back home safely. 
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Last edited by RinkyTinkyTinky; 01-07-2012 at 07:45 AM. |
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01-06-2012, 10:31 PM
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#193 |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: nj
Posts: 1,664
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Really, Really enjoying every moment of your magical trip. you pics are awesome!!! Its like heaven on earth!!! Keep it coming, Rink!!!
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01-07-2012, 07:58 AM
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#194 |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 19,895
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I feel like I was right there with you! Great photos, great start to the day.
Next time I need a food alert though. I was sitting her fending off my morning hunger........... and that plate of gorgeous food popped onto my screen! Sunrises are the best though aren't they. When we're at the beach I'm up every morning to photograph it. |
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01-07-2012, 08:00 AM
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#195 | |
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DIS Veteran
Join Date: Jun 2008
Posts: 3,011
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Quote:
I think the Bahamas in general gets a bad wrap because the city part is slummy, but there are other areas that you can go to that are truly awesome! We really loved the Bahamas and would go back in a heartbeat. I don't think I'd ever go into the city, but I'd go back to Blue Lagoon or Atlantis in a split second. My DD has been asking lots of questions about Heaven lately. She's at that age where she is starting to really ponder the things she hears in church. Anyway, she asked us the other night what Heaven looked like and if it was as beautiful as the islands we went to. We told her it was even MORE beautiful and she said, "Wow! Really? That's going to be one awesome place then!" So yes, it's about as close to Heaven on Earth as you can get!
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