But You Have Promised Me A Subtropical Paradise

[dolphingirl47]

Just catching up on your report, looks like you have had an amazing start. I really want to go to Disneyland and California in general, it's on my list to do. I look forward to the rest

Welcome. I really was an amazing trip from start to finish. If you do get the chance to got to California, grab it with both hands. Disneyland is absolutely magical, but I also love San Diego and San Francisco really go under my skin.

Corinna

 

[franandaj]

OK, it's my turn. I could have sworn that I posted here last night and now it's gone!

It looks like you had a fabulous and relaxing day. I don't go in the water either, it's just too cold. Did you go to the Souplantation by the Lakewood Mall? That's the only one that I know of around here. I like that place a lot too! I need to go there for lunch sometime again soon, it's been way too long.

I can't wait to hear about all the stuff on the cruise!

 

[dolphingirl47]

OK, it's my turn. I could have sworn that I posted here last night and now it's gone!

It looks like you had a fabulous and relaxing day. I don't go in the water either, it's just too cold. Did you go to the Souplantation by the Lakewood Mall? That's the only one that I know of around here. I like that place a lot too! I need to go there for lunch sometime again soon, it's been way too long.

I can't wait to hear about all the stuff on the cruise!

I am normally an absolute water baby and love swimming in the sea, but after Graham had described it as refreshing, it did not appeal that day.

There is actually a bunch of Souplantations in Orange County. We have been to the ones in Fullerton and Brea a number of times. This time however we went to one on West Chapman Avenue in Garden Grove.

I have the first 4 days of first cruise all typed up, but will pace myself a little. I am just about to post the installment about the embarkation day though.

Corinna

 

[dolphingirl47]

Day 5

I had once again woken up pretty early in the morning. This actually worked out perfectly. I went to the bathroom and then decided to go an check on my laundry in the dryer. That way if some of it needed a second cycle, it would be dry by the time it was time to get up. To my big surprise, everything was already dry and I put everything in the laundry basket and then headed back to bed. The next time I woke up was when the alarm went off.

I got up and ready. I then packed. I also needed to re-organize my carry on as I needed to find some room for the bottle of wine that I had bought. I then checked my emails and came across a bit of a bombshell. The developer had fired our management company and appointed a new one. We were having a few issues with the developer and the management company and where actually in the process to taking them to court. So this had thrown a bit of a spanner in the works. I updated Graham on what is going on and replied to some of the emails that were going around. One of our friends had to leave for work so it was time to say goodbye. We also had some breakfast. We both had coffee and Graham had some chicken sausages and an English muffin. I was to excited to eat anything. Graham seemed to feel better and the fact that he fancied breakfast was definitely good news.

And then it was time to leave. One of our friends works for the Port of Los Angeles and was able to drop us off at the terminal on her way to work. The area by the terminal was a zoo. Even though the terminal was not officially open yet, there were plenty of people arriving and milling around. People where still also coming off the ship from the previous cruise and were picked up. The first spot at the kerb was actually in the arrivals area. We pulled over and got out of the car. We would have been perfectly capable to take our luggage to the luggage drop off area as everything has wheels, but one of the port staff saw us getting out of the car with our luggage and called a porter for us. Once we had handed our luggage over to the porter, we said goodbye to our friend and joined the line, which was surprisingly long. At 10:30 on the dot, the line started moving. They had asked us that we had our passports and cruise documents ready as we approached the doors and because everybody was prepared, the line moved very quickly. As we approached the building, they checked that all our documents were in order, we were given our first copy of the Navigator and we were sent upstairs for check in. When we got upstairs, we were handed a health questionnaire and then directed to the check in line. The line did not look too long and it did move pretty steadily. This would be the last time that we should check in at the normal Castaway Club line. This was our 10th cruise and after this, we would be Platinum Castaways, which means that in future, we would check in with the concierge guests.

While we were waiting in line, I thought I recognized a couple from our cruise meet thread. I decided to be brave and asked if it was them. It was and we were chatting briefly until it was our turn to check in. I quickly filled out the health questionnaire and handed all the paperwork over. Again I felt quietly smug about my new passport. With my German passport, we always had the problem that the nationality did not auto-populate. With the new passport I expected smooth sailing. Not so. On the new passports, the photo page is no longer laminated and is quite flimsy. However hard they tried, it would not go through the scanner. In the end she had to confirm the passport manually. I was really surprised that considering that to be eligible for the Visa Waiver Program, any passport issued after 26th October 2006 needs to contain a chip that nobody seemed to have the facilities to read said chip. Even at the airport in Atlanta they scanned the photo page rather than reading the chip. Anyway, this was eventually sorted and we were given our Key to the World cards and our gold lanyards. She decided to take new photos to attach to the cards as we had the same photos in the system since the Westbound Transatlantic in 2010. Then we were on our way.

As we approached security, we were given our boarding card. I was really surprised when we were given boarding number 4. Considering how far back we were in the line before they let us in the terminal, I was expecting a higher number. Security was swift and painless and then we found ourselves somewhere to sit down. We ended up sitting somewhere where I had a good view of the area where the character photos would take place. No character was out yet at that point. So I settled down with my iPad. I had considered working on my trip report, but suddenly realized that there is free WiFi at the terminal. So I played around online for a bit. At one point when I looked up, I realized that Captain Mickey had arrived. He must only have got there as he had hardly a line. I headed over there. As it was my turn for a photo, somebody standing to the side was waving at me very happily. It turned out to be Steph, the photography manager. We have come across each other on a few cruises now. When I finished with Captain Mickey, I went to say "hi" to her and got a big hug. We quickly caught up with each other and promised that we would catch up properly on the ship.





I headed back to where Graham was sitting and surfed the internet a bit longer. I continued to keep an eye on where Captain Mickey had been and soon Minnie came out. I headed over to have my photo taken with her. This time I had to wait a little longer, but the line was still very manageable. Once I got back, Graham went for a quick bathroom stop. When he was back, an announcement was made that boarding would commence shortly. At 11:40, the family of the day was announced, which starts the boarding process. This was the earliest I have ever known for boarding to start. By midday, our boarding group had been called. We had our Key to the World cards swiped and then headed outside for the embarkation photo. There was not much of a line for the photo, but there was then a bit of a line to get on the ship. Still, about 5 minutes after we had the photo taken, we walked into the beautiful atrium. We were announced and I welled up a little. I was so glad to be back on the Wonder.









Once we were announced, a member of the cruise staff intercepted us and asked if we had any questions. We told her that we did know or way around. She then directed us towards Parrot Cay towards lunch. This was a first. They are normally trying to send as many people as possible up to Beach Blanket Buffet. When we got to Parrot Cay, they did let us know that the same food was served at Beach Blanket Buffet and that they had outdoor seating as an option, but they were not very pushy about it. Some people decided to head upstairs, but we proceeded to Parrot Cay and were seated straightaway. We were expecting that we would be seated with other people, but we were just by ourselves. I had some Coke and Graham stuck with the water. He had Salad, Peel and Eat Shrimp, Roast Beef, Mashed Potato with Monterey Jack Cheese and Mixed Vegetables for his lunch and a Lemon Cream Puff for his dessert. I had Salad, Strawberry Soup, Pork Schnitzel, Roast Beef, Mashed Potato with Monterey Jack Cheese, Macaroni Cheese, Penne in Provençal Sauce and Mini Corn Dogs for my lunch and Raspberry and white Chocolate Parfait for my dessert. I was so glad that they had the chilled strawberry soup as they did not have this on the Magic in November.

While we were enjoying our lunch, we saw a few more familiar faces. Anthony, our server from the Hawaii cruise last year, was resetting a table across the aisle from us. When he spotted us, he came over to give us a hug and we chatted for a couple of minutes. It was nice to see him again. Shortly afterwards another old friend came to say "hi". Hristo had been our server at Palo on a few occasions, but was working in the main dining rooms this contract. We chatted with him for a bit, too. It had been just over a year since we had last got off the Wonder, but with all those familiar faces around, it almost felt like we had never been away.

 

[dolphingirl47]

When we finished our lunch, it was still not quite time for the cabins to be ready. We decided to head up to the spa. We did the spa tour. The atmosphere up there was quite different. Everybody seemed a lot more pushy. One thing that was new is that they took us to the salon and apart from just showing us the facilities and explaining what salon services they offer, they were also demonstrating some of the signature treatments. I had the hot stone massage before and loved it and having it demonstrated reminded me just how much. However, the other treatments are not for me. Graham had this before and really enjoyed it. For me, it just hurt. However, this was nothing compared to the Thai Poultice massage. I thought he was going to skin me alive. That's what it felt like anyway. I was relieved when the demonstration was over and we carried on with the carried on with the tour. We visited various treatment rooms where we were introduced to different treatments. Eventually we ended up in the Rainforest Room. I had planned to get my usual length of cruise pass, but Graham was not so sure. However, as the couple's pass was not much more expensive than the pass for one person, we decided to go for it. They gave us cards to fill out for the raffle, but I had other commitments during the time during which the raffle would be drawn. Graham however said that he would go back for this.

By the time we were finished at the spa, the cabins were due to be open. We headed downstairs. We were in luck. I put up our door spotter and our magnets. I had a bit of fun and games with our magnets. They did not quite want to stick to our door and kept sliding around. It took a fair while for the magnets to be put up. I have never had this problem before. Normally they are sticking so well that I have trouble getting them off at the end of the cruise. I am not sure what the issue was. I wonder if the paintwork on the door was too thick. I was a little annoyed though. With their recent drive that only magnetic door decorations can be used, they should make sure that you can actually us them. The irony was that a few magnets kept falling off and eventually I decided to put them on the inside of the door and there they stayed on with no problems. Initially I thought that this was a problem with my magnets, but I had the same issue with the DVC magnet and quite often I walked along the hallway and saw other people's magnets on the floor.







While I was decorating our door, our stateroom host came by to introduce himself. He checked if everything was OK with our cabin and if we needed anything. I asked for a corkscrew for our wine. They have disposable corkscrews that they are able to provide for people who have brought wine onto the ship. On the previous occasions where I had done this, the stateroom host was able to help us with this and sometimes he or she even brought wine glasses. There was no need for this as we were quite happy to drink our wine out of the glasses that were already in the room. Anyway, when I asked him for the corkscrew, he advised me that I needed to call room service and they would be able to bring me one. I was a little taken aback by this, but thanked him and said I would do. The problem was that he then proceeded to ask if we had contacted room service about the corkscrew every time he saw Graham or me. I eventually got fed up with this and told him that we had been to busy to sit in the cabin to wait for room services to deliver the corkscrew and that we would get around to it when we were good and ready. He backed off after this. The reason that I had given him was half of he reason why I had nor called room service. I also have to admit that I was too embarrassed to call them for just a corkscrew. I figured that we probably would order something from room service at some point and would ask for the corkscrew then. However, this never happened. Anyway, when I first met him, he checked if our luggage had already arrived. It had not and he apologised for this. I told him that there was no rush and that we did not expect it that early anyway.

When I went back to the room, Graham had settled down for a nap. He was still not a hundred percent. I had a look at the Navigator. They have re-done the Navigators since November and I have to say I do not like the new style. It used to have 4 pages. Now it has 4 pages plus an insert with the times guide. The irony is that although there are now two pages, there is actually less information in the Navigator as a lot of space is taken up by pictures. The one thing that I like better is a box on the times guide that has all the character appearances listed. When I finished looking through the Navigator, I still had some time to spare. After I finally managed to have a look at the teenage club Vibe on the Magic in November, I decided to do the same on the Wonder. I had heard that they have quite different themes, but I honestly could tell the difference between the two. On the way down, I cut through the Outlook Cafe and ended up chatting with the bartender for a bit.

















I quickly went back to the cabin to pick up the Castaway Club gift. This is a rather nice backpack with some snacks and a key ring. However, I have a few of those now and had no intention to take this home. Somebody on our cruise meet thread had mentioned that she would like one so I brought this one for her. I was still a little early, but as Graham was still napping and I did not want to disturb him, I grabbed the gift and my iPad and headed to the Promenade Lounge. I read for a bit until some other people arrived. It was nice to put some faces to names and finally got to meet in person. I talked to a number of people and looked out for the person who I promised the backpack to. I had nearly given up when I finally spotted her.

Time definitely flies when you are having fun. All too soon it was time to head back to the cabin in preparation for the safety drill. Graham was up and about and had actually made it to the spa raffle, but had not won anything. Shortly after I go back the alarm sounded and we headed to our muster station. It seemed to be a lot better organised than on the Magic. However, I yet again wonder what the purpose or benefit is of having very young children at the safety drill. I could understand this in the days when people had to attend the safety drill with their life vests so that the parents had a chance to figure out how to put the life vests on their kids. Now I cannot see a purpose to them being there. There is absolutely no way that a baby, toddler or pre-schooler will understand what is going on so having them there will not save any lives in the case of an emergency. However, having a bunch of young kids their that struggle to get away from their parents, scream and cry or get up to no good distracts everybody else and could potentially cost lives in an emergency situation. I had a pleasure of being kicked by some kids that had been picked up by their parents so that they could not get away all through the safety drill. Well, I can't remember anything that was said at this particularly safety drill. Still, I have done it all before countless times and essentially know what I would need to do in an emergency.

 

[dolphingirl47]

After we had been dismissed, we waited for the worst of the crowds to disperse and then we headed back to the cabin to pick up our cameras. Graham wanted to head up to deck 10 to watch us sail away from San Pedro. I actually have never managed this as for all of our cruises out of Los Angeles, I had some kind of spa or salon appointment straight after the safety drill. So that was settled. Graham found himself a spot and I decided to be adventurous. I really only attended the sail away party once in 10 cruises and absolutely hated it. Deck parties in general are just not our thing. I had heard that this cruise was at full capacity and some morbid curiosity compelled me to check out the sail away party. Well, there did not seem to be many people about. If I had felt really enthusiastic, I could even have found a spot on deck 9 without too much trouble. I did not hang around too long as I remembered very quickly just how tedious I find this kind of activity. I got a couple of nice photos of the big screen and then I went back to join Graham.







He had moved on from his spot. I caught up with him again by the sports deck. Shortly after I re-joined Graham, I heard the horn for the first time this cruise. Then we were on our way. We sailed underneath a suspension bridge. We seemed to be making a bit of a habit of this during this holiday. The waterfront around San Petro is really pretty. I had never realized all of this was there as the Port of Los Angeles itself is rather industrial. However, a short distance away there is a historical area and a nice marina. I stayed out there watching the world go by until we were out in the open water. It turned out that a family from our cruise meet thread were standing right next to us. So I talked to them for a while.















Once the land had disappeared into the distance, I headed back to the cabin. Graham decided to stay up on deck 10 a little longer as we was hoping to see some whales. We agreed to meet at the Rainforest Room at some point. When I got back to the cabin, our luggage had arrived. I got out my evening gowns and put them in the laundry bag for pressing. While I did that, I unpacked some of my other clothes that needed hanging. I then figured that the rest could wait until the next day and headed for the Rainforest Room. When I got there I found out that they are now doing things slightly differently from previous cruises. When we purchased our length of cruise pass, we still had a coloured dot applied to our Key to the World card and we still had to leave the card with the spa reception when using the Rainforest Room. However, we now also had to sign in and out. I did this, got changed, grabbed myself a glass of cucumber water and settled down on a heated tile lounger. As soon as I entered the Rainforest Room, I noticed another big change. The main room is now dark with electric candles dotted around the fountain in the middle of the room for some mood-lighting. I have to say I was not too impressed with this. I did not find this particularly relaxing with people stumbling around in the dark. Fortunately all my books are on my iPad which is backlit so I could still read. Graham joined me shortly afterwards. At one point we had both fallen asleep. I have often fallen asleep in the Rainforest Room anyway, but with it now being dark, it was even easier falling asleep. When I woke up, I was feeling quite hot. So headed to the relaxation lounge that are part of the changing rooms for a bit to cool down before heading for the shower. When I was ready, I headed back to the Rainforest Room to make sure hat Graham was awake, but he was no longer there. So I went to sign out, collected my Key to the World card and headed back to the cabin.

Once Graham got back, he quickly got changed and then we went for dinner. Dinner that night was at Parrot Cay. When we arrived at the dining room, we noticed that yet again we had been given a table for just the two of us. I was more than a little disappointed. The rotational menu for this restaurant was served that evening. Graham was still not particularly hungry and just had the Island Spiced Grilled Rib-Eye of Beef topped with handmade spiced Butter, Corn on the Cob and Double – baked potato followed by Lemon Meringue Pie on Kumquat Sauce for dessert. I had Jamaican Marinated Chicken Tenderloins in a Sizzling Spicy Jerk Sauce with a Chunky Bleu Cheese Dressing followed by West Indies Romaine Salad, a fresh Crisp Romaine tossed with a Creamy Romano Dressing topped with West Indies spice Dusted Croutons. For my main course I had Braised Jerk Seasoned Pork Chop served with a Warm Curried Peach Relish and Cornmeal Cakes. I really had enough to eat at that point, but Parrot Cay serves two of my favourite desserts. Fortunately they both feature in the Sweet Temptations so this is what I had. This dessert sampler consisted of Crème Brûlée Cheesecake, Lemon Meringue Pie and Chocolate S`More Vanilla Cake. I was glad that we had this menu on the first night. One thing that was unusual was that they had photographers in the dining room the first night. Normally this is the case for formal night, semi-formal night and Pirate Night. The photos actually turned out pretty nice.





There was something that made this first dinner decidedly less than magical. There was a very large table right next to us with multiple adults and children. All the adults were seated at one end and all the kids at the other end. Now, I fully understand that Disney Cruise Line is for the family market and there will be children around. I also understand that children are just that and not angels. I understand that sitting through a multi-course dinner every night is probably not their favourite way to spend their vacation and that they can get a bit restless or whiny during dinner. I understand all of this and this will not impact on my enjoyment of the cruise. If it did, I would choose another cruise line. What happened that evening though was not acceptable. The kids at the next table were running around between the tables when servers were going backwards and forwards with heavy trays. That no accident happened was a miracle in itself. They then turned there attention to (play) fighting and when this got boring, they started to hit each other over the head. At no point did the adults in this party intervene. Actually they seemed so engrossed in their conversation that I am not even sure that they noticed. At one point our head server came over to introduce himself. He asked if there was anything that they could do to improve our dining experience. Graham mentioned that somebody really needed to have a word with the family next to us and we shared what had been going on. The first response that we got is that this is Disney and that this must be our first Disney cruise. Essentially he was hinting that we had gone into this without doing our research and were now surprised that there were kids on board. That alone rubbed me up the wrong way. We explained that this was actually our 10th Disney cruise and that we had never experienced anything like this. As a response to this, he just laughed at us. I was could not believe the cheek. Fortunately he had the good sense to move on after this.

There had been another familiar face that I had spotted earlier, which was Pierre, the food and beverage manager. We had first met him in 2009 and since then he has been on most of the cruises that we have been on. He is French, but has lived in the UK for many years so he tends to come by for a chat. Anyway, shortly after the head server left, he came to say "hi". He asked how we were enjoying the cruise so far. We told him about our dinner. He asked if we had told anybody about this. We told him that we told our head server and were just laughed at. He looked rather surprised and then asked us to give him a minute. Shortly afterwards one of the other head servers approached us an offered us to move tables. We took him up on this offer. He ended up becoming our new head server, but I did not know this at the time. He turned out one of the best head servers we ever had. Usually the head servers do not add much to the enjoyment of our cruises and I have taken to some of them more than to others. However, with him it was different. We really enjoyed our nightly conversations with him.

After dinner I wanted to get some photos done. They had the backdrop up that looks like wallpaper. We had our photos taken. The photographer was the same one that took the Mickey and Minnie photos at the terminal. She told us that she had heard all about us and that her supervisor Kate had told her that we are a lot of fun when she saw our photos. This did not sink in at the time and I could not figure out who she was talking about. It was not until later that evening that I started to wonder if a fantastic photographer that we had got quite close to on a previous cruise may be on the ship. After we had our photos taken, we headed back to the cabin. I took a quick photo of our towel animal and had a quick look through the Navigator and then we settled down for the night.

 

[RweTHEREyet]

Thoroughly enjoying reading your report, all the pictures and am looking forward to more. Thanks for all the details and such a thorough report. I am glad you posted the link in one of my threads as I probably would have never found it as I have been looking mainly for reports with either the "Wonder" or "Alaska" or "B2B" in the title. I would have missed out on your most excellent report.

Glad your table was changed and you were moved away from all the ruckus in the dining room. I would not have been able to enjoy my evening or my dinner with all that commotion either. Shame on those parents for turning a blind eye.

 

[Chilly]

The Head Server needs an attitude change, as they say the customer is always right.

 

[jedijill]

Wow, the Head Server's attitude was so bad! Glad you ran into the F&B manager and were willing to say something. Unacceptable!

Jill in CO

 

[RweTHEREyet]

And now that I see where this is posted, I know I would have never found your report, because I have never been to this section before. Thanks again for putting the link in my thread. Looking forward to reading more about your journey.

 

[irongirlof12]

Love the photos, this is turning out to be a great trip

 

[dolphingirl47]

Thoroughly enjoying reading your report, all the pictures and am looking forward to more. Thanks for all the details and such a thorough report. I am glad you posted the link in one of my threads as I probably would have never found it as I have been looking mainly for reports with either the "Wonder" or "Alaska" or "B2B" in the title. I would have missed out on your most excellent report.

Glad your table was changed and you were moved away from all the ruckus in the dining room. I would not have been able to enjoy my evening or my dinner with all that commotion either. Shame on those parents for turning a blind eye.

I like catchy titles. My husband kept coming out with this phrase to tease me and somehow it stuck.

I was very relieved when we were offered a change of table.

The Head Server needs an attitude change, as they say the customer is always right.

He needs a change of some kind, that's for sure - preferably one that takes him far from the Disney ships.

Wow, the Head Server's attitude was so bad! Glad you ran into the F&B manager and were willing to say something. Unacceptable!

Jill in CO

Pierre is an absolute star. We always joke that they must have cloned him as he always seems to be everywhere at once.

And now that I see where this is posted, I know I would have never found your report, because I have never been to this section before. Thanks again for putting the link in my thread. Looking forward to reading more about your journey.

I like to stay close to home

Love the photos, this is turning out to be a great trip

By the end of this trip report, you will be sick of all the photos. I think all in all I had about 2000. I won't post every single one, but definitely will post a good selection.

Corinna

 

[Pinkocto]

Congratulations on Platinum!

First day of a cruise, the excitement is almost too much!!!

I'm glad they moved you, that wouldn't have made for enjoyable dinners.

 

[dolphingirl47]

Congratulations on Platinum!

First day of a cruise, the excitement is almost too much!!!

I'm glad they moved you, that wouldn't have made for enjoyable dinners.

Thanks, I wonder how long the new status will last. I got talking to some of the officers and it was mentioned that they are looking into a revamp of Castaway Club. They mentioned that they now have a number of people who have sailed 50 or 60 times and that Castaway Club in its present form does not really recognize this. Time will tell I suppose.

Corinna

 

[ukintheus]

Subscribing to hear all about your adventures on the Wonder. We are sailing on her for the first time in September so I am enjoying tracking down TRs from people that have recently sailed.

Thanks, I wonder how long the new status will last. I got talking to some of the officers and it was mentioned that they are looking into a revamp of Castaway Club. They mentioned that they now have a number of people who have sailed 50 or 60 times and that Castaway Club in its present form does not really recognize this. Time will tell I suppose.

On our April cruise on the Magic from Galveston there was a couple having dinner in Palo with the Captain. Our server told us that they had done over 100 cruises on DCL!!

 

[izzie-wizzie]

Looks like a fab trip already!

Well done braving tower of terror. Club 33 looked amazing!

Love reading about Disney cruise trips - I would love to do one but my fiancé works on ships so going on a cruise for holiday doesn't appeal to him, I'm working on it though! For now ill go vicariously through your report

 

[jenseib]

Yay!!! You are on your way! I can't wait to hear more.
I understand kids too, been there done that ...but yes, if the kids are acting up, at least make an effort to do something about it, or have someone go and take the to the kids clubs till dinner is over for the adults.
I can't believe he head server just laughed about it.

 

[dolphingirl47]

Subscribing to hear all about your adventures on the Wonder. We are sailing on her for the first time in September so I am enjoying tracking down TRs from people that have recently sailed.




On our April cruise on the Magic from Galveston there was a couple having dinner in Palo with the Captain. Our server told us that they had done over 100 cruises on DCL!!

You will have a wonderful time. For many years the Magic was my favourite ship, but when we were on the Magic in November, I actually really missed the Wonder. If you have any questions, I am happy to try to answer them.

100 cruises is something I could definitely aspire to. Alas, I would need to win the jackpot in the lottery to get to this number.

Looks like a fab trip already!

Well done braving tower of terror. Club 33 looked amazing!

Love reading about Disney cruise trips - I would love to do one but my fiancé works on ships so going on a cruise for holiday doesn't appeal to him, I'm working on it though! For now ill go vicariously through your report

Club 33 is really amazing.

What a shame that your fiance is not keen on the idea, but I can understand this if he works on ships. I had to work on my DH for 10 years until he agreed to do a cruise, but fortunately now he is as hooked as I am.

Yay!!! You are on your way! I can't wait to hear more.
I understand kids too, been there done that ...but yes, if the kids are acting up, at least make an effort to do something about it, or have someone go and take the to the kids clubs till dinner is over for the adults.
I can't believe he head server just laughed about it.

I do get kids. I am a former elementary school teacher and have worked with kids in one way or other for literally half my life. It was the reaction of the adults (or lack thereof) that shocked me.

Corinna

 

[franandaj]

I can't believe the reaction of that Head Server. First off as someone else pointed out "The customer is always right" (unless they are manic!) But to laugh at you for the reaction. As you said, kids will be kids, but anyone behaving badly should not be tolerated, kids or adults.

I'm glad you got your table reassigned and have so many old friends on the Wonder!

 

[Pinkocto]

Thanks, I wonder how long the new status will last. I got talking to some of the officers and it was mentioned that they are looking into a revamp of Castaway Club. They mentioned that they now have a number of people who have sailed 50 or 60 times and that Castaway Club in its present form does not really recognize this. Time will tell I suppose.

Corinna

Wow! I wouldn't think they would 'demote' anybody, maybe just add another tier to the Castaway Club.