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CA Coast Wonder cruise Sept 23 - 30 Trip Report! Updated and started adding pics!
- Thread starter socababy
- Start date
Thank you for letting me know....it's a lifesaver!
socababy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 15, 2010
Day 3 - San Francisco
I set my wake up call for 6:25 to make sure I didnt miss going under the Golden Gate Bridge. It would have been nice to sleep in though because I was up on and off all night. The ship was rocking a little bit which makes all the wood in the room creak all night long. I normally sleep with the door opened for white noise but it was so foggy last night that the ship kept blasting its fog horn every 8-9 minutes or so. It was way too loud to sleep with the door open. At 6:25, I go out on the balcony and realize I cant see a thing through the fog. I keep a look out waiting until the last possible moment to wake dd since she wanted to see the bridge too. Around 6:55, we are practically under the bridge. The fog had been so thick that it came upon us quickly and there was no time to go get dd up. My camera had a hard time focusing on auto mode with all the fog. I really need to learn all the settings on my Nikon but I always take pics in auto mode. So the bridge came and went quickly and I was quickly thinking I should have slept in! LOL
Coming into SF. We dock right next to the other ship.
Dd gets up around 7:30 and we get dressed and head down to BBB for breakfast around 8. I dont know what it is about the breakfast sausage that I like so much but I had a few of those along with a cheesy egg omelet. Dd had some fruit, bacon and a waffle. We go back to our room after breakfast and gather our things for the day.
We did not book any excursions through DCL but instead purchased the CityPass for myself. Most of the things offered with the CityPass are free for kids under 5 so I didnt purchase one for dd. I would just pay for her when need be. I have to say I am a little nervous about traveling on public transportation with just dd and I. In fact, I dont think I have ever used public transportation before. So for those of you like me, just go for it because it isnt that difficult. I asked a ton of people questions and they were all more than happy to help point me in the right direction. Our first destination is the California Academy of Science. We hopped on the F line right outside the pier and took it to Embarcadaro Station where we then hopped on the N Judah outbound train/bus. The directions I originally had said to exit 9th Ave and then walk 4 blocks. Well a gentleman on the bus said to exit a few stops before 9th. I should have gone with my original directions because the guys way made it a bit longer of a walk. I didnt mind but dd did. By this time she is already complaining about walking and about it being cold. It is cold for us So CA girls. I have on jeans, Fuggs, a sweater, a jacket and a scarf. LOL I am comfortable though with all this on while outside in addition to the walking. We finally make it to the CA Academy of Science. I did have to pay $19.95 for dd here. Not sure it was worth it though. Dd really enjoyed seeing the Penguins being fed and all the beautiful colors of the butterflies in the rain forest exhibit. However, I found myself a little bored though and it wasnt long before dd was back to complaining, this time about being hungry. The café here didnt have anything dd would want to eat. So after spending just an hour and a half there, I ask the Guest Service desk outside what is the best way to get to the Exploratorium. I am pointed in the right direction and after a short walk, find my bus stop! Yay me, I am doing okay!
After catching the bus and making a transfer along the way, we find our way to the Exploratorium. I was hoping to find some fast food place along the way but to no avail. I know they have a café inside the Exploratorium so after entering, we go straight there where I immediately see the word hot dog and breath a sigh of relief that there will be something there for dd to eat. However, there wasnt really anything I wanted so I settle on a soggy hot dog too. As I am eating I couldnt believe I was eating a soggy hot dog in a city full of fabulous food. LOL I am desperately wanting some clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl but I guess that will have to wait until later. I actually really enjoyed the Exploratorium. Kids under 5 are free here. Dd liked some things but she has become quite scared of a lot of stuff lately. Almost all the exhibits there are interactive but if it involved the unknown (i.e. sticking your hand in something or looking through something) she just didnt want to do it. My boys would have loved it here though. We spent just about an hour and a half here too and then I had had enough of dds complaining. My earlier plan was to stop off at Ghiradelli on the way back to the ship but now my plan was to just get back to the ship. The people at the admissions desk were very friendly and gave precise directions on how to get back to the ship. My first go at using public transportation was successful and we made it back to the ship around 2:45.
As soon as dd set foot back on the ship, she was a new person just full of smiles! We head back to the room to relax for a bit and I call home to see how my boys are doing. As with any other time I have been away, they dont care to talk much because they are having way too much fun with grandma. I let them get off the phone but tell them they will have to talk to me tomorrow. Dd wants to go to the Kids Club so I go and drop her off. Since all I had for lunch was a soggy hot dog, I head up to Goofys Galley and grab a horseradish and beef sandwich and bring it to the room. I normally LOVE this sandwich but today it was quite spicy. I pour myself a skinny margarita (YUMMY!) and kick back on the balcony with a blanket wrapped around me and start writing todays trip report. I can barely make out the Golden Gate Bridge here on the starboard side due to the fog. I can see Alcatraz although not clearly. I relax until almost 5 when I decide to get dd to clean up before dinner.
Dinner tonight was in Parrot Cay which is my least favorite of the 3. Nothing really sounded that great on the menu so all I had was some tuna for my appetizer and roasted chicken for my entrée. Dd had pizza and some sliced turkey on the side (wanted her to have some protein!) We shared a sundae for dessert. I love the fact that Tawanda came and checked on me at dinner to make sure I made it back on the ship!
Ran into Cinderella after dinner. I'm so glad I was always prepared with the camera and autograph book!
I really wanted to make my way to Ghiradelli tonight after dinner but I thought it would have been way too cold outside for dd with just a jacket. So I will wait until tomorrow. We come back to the room for dd to put some flip flops on for her big night in the Kids Club. She catches Cinderella on tv for the umpteenth time and starts watching it. I take that time to lay my head down and close my eyes. I am exhausted. Could be the glass of wine I had at dinner combined with the lack of sleep I had last night. My nap doesnt last long before dd says she is ready. I decided to set a wake up call for 11:30 tonight just in case I come back and fall asleep. Dd wants to stay in the lab for chill time tonight. This is when they separate the boys and the girls. The girls go in the lab where they can get their nails painted (which is why I put flip flops on her!) and some light make-up put on. This is a highlight of our cruises for dd. I decided to not go to the comedy and ventriloquist show tonight because it would make dd tired and then shed miss out on chill time. The bummer is I have to make sure I stay awake to pick her up around 11 since chill time doesnt start until 10. I will probably head down to Wavebands to listen to SuperFi followed by Karaoke if I dont lay down on the bed!
Some Pixar characters we missed today were Remy & Emile, Russel & Carl, Mr. Incredible, Mike & Sulley and Buzz. Hopefully we can catch them tomorrow. If you decide to stay onboard, you will have the whole ship to yourself! When we got back on at 3 I couldnt believe how empty the ship was! I have never seen it so empty at any port I have been to on DCL.
I set my wake up call for 6:25 to make sure I didnt miss going under the Golden Gate Bridge. It would have been nice to sleep in though because I was up on and off all night. The ship was rocking a little bit which makes all the wood in the room creak all night long. I normally sleep with the door opened for white noise but it was so foggy last night that the ship kept blasting its fog horn every 8-9 minutes or so. It was way too loud to sleep with the door open. At 6:25, I go out on the balcony and realize I cant see a thing through the fog. I keep a look out waiting until the last possible moment to wake dd since she wanted to see the bridge too. Around 6:55, we are practically under the bridge. The fog had been so thick that it came upon us quickly and there was no time to go get dd up. My camera had a hard time focusing on auto mode with all the fog. I really need to learn all the settings on my Nikon but I always take pics in auto mode. So the bridge came and went quickly and I was quickly thinking I should have slept in! LOL
Coming into SF. We dock right next to the other ship.
Dd gets up around 7:30 and we get dressed and head down to BBB for breakfast around 8. I dont know what it is about the breakfast sausage that I like so much but I had a few of those along with a cheesy egg omelet. Dd had some fruit, bacon and a waffle. We go back to our room after breakfast and gather our things for the day.
We did not book any excursions through DCL but instead purchased the CityPass for myself. Most of the things offered with the CityPass are free for kids under 5 so I didnt purchase one for dd. I would just pay for her when need be. I have to say I am a little nervous about traveling on public transportation with just dd and I. In fact, I dont think I have ever used public transportation before. So for those of you like me, just go for it because it isnt that difficult. I asked a ton of people questions and they were all more than happy to help point me in the right direction. Our first destination is the California Academy of Science. We hopped on the F line right outside the pier and took it to Embarcadaro Station where we then hopped on the N Judah outbound train/bus. The directions I originally had said to exit 9th Ave and then walk 4 blocks. Well a gentleman on the bus said to exit a few stops before 9th. I should have gone with my original directions because the guys way made it a bit longer of a walk. I didnt mind but dd did. By this time she is already complaining about walking and about it being cold. It is cold for us So CA girls. I have on jeans, Fuggs, a sweater, a jacket and a scarf. LOL I am comfortable though with all this on while outside in addition to the walking. We finally make it to the CA Academy of Science. I did have to pay $19.95 for dd here. Not sure it was worth it though. Dd really enjoyed seeing the Penguins being fed and all the beautiful colors of the butterflies in the rain forest exhibit. However, I found myself a little bored though and it wasnt long before dd was back to complaining, this time about being hungry. The café here didnt have anything dd would want to eat. So after spending just an hour and a half there, I ask the Guest Service desk outside what is the best way to get to the Exploratorium. I am pointed in the right direction and after a short walk, find my bus stop! Yay me, I am doing okay!
After catching the bus and making a transfer along the way, we find our way to the Exploratorium. I was hoping to find some fast food place along the way but to no avail. I know they have a café inside the Exploratorium so after entering, we go straight there where I immediately see the word hot dog and breath a sigh of relief that there will be something there for dd to eat. However, there wasnt really anything I wanted so I settle on a soggy hot dog too. As I am eating I couldnt believe I was eating a soggy hot dog in a city full of fabulous food. LOL I am desperately wanting some clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl but I guess that will have to wait until later. I actually really enjoyed the Exploratorium. Kids under 5 are free here. Dd liked some things but she has become quite scared of a lot of stuff lately. Almost all the exhibits there are interactive but if it involved the unknown (i.e. sticking your hand in something or looking through something) she just didnt want to do it. My boys would have loved it here though. We spent just about an hour and a half here too and then I had had enough of dds complaining. My earlier plan was to stop off at Ghiradelli on the way back to the ship but now my plan was to just get back to the ship. The people at the admissions desk were very friendly and gave precise directions on how to get back to the ship. My first go at using public transportation was successful and we made it back to the ship around 2:45.
As soon as dd set foot back on the ship, she was a new person just full of smiles! We head back to the room to relax for a bit and I call home to see how my boys are doing. As with any other time I have been away, they dont care to talk much because they are having way too much fun with grandma. I let them get off the phone but tell them they will have to talk to me tomorrow. Dd wants to go to the Kids Club so I go and drop her off. Since all I had for lunch was a soggy hot dog, I head up to Goofys Galley and grab a horseradish and beef sandwich and bring it to the room. I normally LOVE this sandwich but today it was quite spicy. I pour myself a skinny margarita (YUMMY!) and kick back on the balcony with a blanket wrapped around me and start writing todays trip report. I can barely make out the Golden Gate Bridge here on the starboard side due to the fog. I can see Alcatraz although not clearly. I relax until almost 5 when I decide to get dd to clean up before dinner.
Dinner tonight was in Parrot Cay which is my least favorite of the 3. Nothing really sounded that great on the menu so all I had was some tuna for my appetizer and roasted chicken for my entrée. Dd had pizza and some sliced turkey on the side (wanted her to have some protein!) We shared a sundae for dessert. I love the fact that Tawanda came and checked on me at dinner to make sure I made it back on the ship!
Ran into Cinderella after dinner. I'm so glad I was always prepared with the camera and autograph book!
I really wanted to make my way to Ghiradelli tonight after dinner but I thought it would have been way too cold outside for dd with just a jacket. So I will wait until tomorrow. We come back to the room for dd to put some flip flops on for her big night in the Kids Club. She catches Cinderella on tv for the umpteenth time and starts watching it. I take that time to lay my head down and close my eyes. I am exhausted. Could be the glass of wine I had at dinner combined with the lack of sleep I had last night. My nap doesnt last long before dd says she is ready. I decided to set a wake up call for 11:30 tonight just in case I come back and fall asleep. Dd wants to stay in the lab for chill time tonight. This is when they separate the boys and the girls. The girls go in the lab where they can get their nails painted (which is why I put flip flops on her!) and some light make-up put on. This is a highlight of our cruises for dd. I decided to not go to the comedy and ventriloquist show tonight because it would make dd tired and then shed miss out on chill time. The bummer is I have to make sure I stay awake to pick her up around 11 since chill time doesnt start until 10. I will probably head down to Wavebands to listen to SuperFi followed by Karaoke if I dont lay down on the bed!
Some Pixar characters we missed today were Remy & Emile, Russel & Carl, Mr. Incredible, Mike & Sulley and Buzz. Hopefully we can catch them tomorrow. If you decide to stay onboard, you will have the whole ship to yourself! When we got back on at 3 I couldnt believe how empty the ship was! I have never seen it so empty at any port I have been to on DCL.
Thanks for the live report. We leave on Sunday for our cruise. I looked at the navigators for the first cruise and didn't see Mike or Sully listed so I wasn't planning on bringing dd's Boo costume but now maybe I should.hmmm... Maybe I should just try packing!
Duhey2
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2012
Yeah, I was disappointed that Mike and Sully weren't on the cruise.
hahaha
socababy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 15, 2010
Sorry for the late update! I'll try too not slack off tonight! LOL
Day 4 - San Francisco
Yay for sleeping in! I finally got a good night sleep since the ship was docked and we didnt have to hear fog horns or wood creaking! I got up about 8 and hopped in the shower and dd got up about 8:45. Once we were up and dressed, we headed up to BBB for breakfast. I was hoping to find something new from the morning before but it wasnt meant to be. I had my usual breakfast sausage, fruit and a ham and cheese omelet. We were headed off the ship about 9:45.
Our first stop of the day was the Aquarium of the Bay. My CityPass included a ticket to here but I had to buy one for dd for $10. It is literally a 5 minute walk from the ship. I cant remember what DCL charged for the Aquarium but I am sure it is more than buying it n your own. I would suggest getting it on your own. The ticket booth is right in front of the Aquarium. The Aquarium had the usual things youd expect to see at an aquarium. The one thing I thought was cool was that you could touch baby sting rays and baby sharks in addition to being able touch star fish. Of course dd was too scared to do any of that. My boys would have loved it though. We were at the Aquarium for only 30 minutes. Another thing included in the CityPass was a ticket for the Gold and Blue fleet boat ride around Alcatraz. I think you can even upgrade this ticket for a ticket to Alcatraz. I have done Alcatraz before and I knew it wouldnt interest dd. The weather was beautiful today with blue skies and warm sun but you still had a cool breeze. I thought it would be fine to go out on the boat but dd had only one thing on her mind&getting to the Chocolate Deli, AKA Ghiradelli.
We walked down Fishermans Wharf stopping at Boudin to watch the chef making different shapes for the sour dough bread. Dd really liked watching this and I eventually had to pull her away promising wed come back later so that I could get my clam chowder. Before we get to Ghiradelli, we pass the turn around stop for one of the cable cars and the line is super long! Cable car rides are also included with the CityPass and I really wanted to take dd on one. We finally reach Ghiradelli after about a 15 minute walk with just a small amount of complaining from dd saying her toes were tired. We order a chocolate shake to share and I get a diet coke. We enjoyed the shake and then set off to find a different stop to catch the cable car. We found one but it was just one stop from the turnaround. It was packed and I wasnt about to let dd hold on from the outside. I thought about going further up the route but it was all uphill from there. There is no way dd would have made it so I gave up on riding the cable car. I imagine the best way to catch a cable car would be to take a bus further inland and then take the cable car back towards the port. I guess we will just leave the cable car on our must do list for next time we are in SF.
For those of you who dont have an In and Out near you or have never eaten at one, there is one along Fishermans Wharf. They have fantastic hamburgers! We also went inside a candy store that seemed to be on steroids! They had huge gummy bears, huge boxes of Nerds, etc. Everything was Jumbo size! We then stopped back by Boudin where I ordered some clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl and dd ordered a mini turtle shaped sourdough bread. Dd was freaking out (surprise! Surprise!) about all the birds and seagulls flying around so we ended up sitting in a table along the main walkway just to be away from most of the birds. After eating, we head back to the ship.
The sun is shining so dd wants to go in the pool. I had seen at the tv that the pools were heated to 90 degrees all week so I said sure. It was too cold for
me though so I just sat at a table in the sun and read my Kindle. She swam for an hour and for the most part, there were only 4 kids in the pool with her. There was never anyone in line for the slide when she went up on it. She LOVED having the pool practically to herself.
She got out wanting to eat. I grabbed her a hot dog but she was shivering even though I wrapped her up in 5 towels. So we took her lunch and went back to the room. She quickly ate and then took a hot, jetted bath! She spent another 30 minutes in the bath just playing around.
Here are some pics of Alcatraz and the GG Bridge. It was a beautiful day inland but still foggy a distance out.
We relaxed in the room for awhile before heading to Wavebands to play Disney Wheel (aka Wheel of Fortune.) Every game this week has been Pixar themed and The Wheel was no different. They divided the room into 2 teams and we were just lucky enough to have some devoted Pixar fans on our team and we ended up winning! Our prize was all we can eat ice cream up on deck 9 (oh, and pride too!) We then walked towards the Promenade Lounge where they were having some Pixar trivia. We just sat and watched since they had already started. Apparently I dont know my Pixar trivia that well so it was good that we didnt play.
Dinner tonight was back in Animators Palate. I had the mushroom risotto for my appetizer which is one of my favorite things on the ship! Bonieface also brought me out some fabulous spicy shrimp and some calamari. I had the Beef Wellington (more red beef!) which was very tender and delicious. I was very stuffed after dinner. Dd had mickey shaped pasta and mozzarella sticks. I had a difficult time getting her to eat because she was more interested in watching the walls/pictures change color. She had a brownie sundae for dessert while I had the sugar free lemon souffle. IT was pretty good but I love almost anything lemon!
Tonights show was Finding Nemo in 3D. This was the only time all week we could see it in 3D but dd didnt care to watch it. She wanted to go to the kids club. On our way there, we ran into Snow White! Im so glad I have made a point to always carry my camera and dds autograph book on me just for these random appearances.
I then drop dd off at the Kids Club and I head over to Diversions where they are finishing up 80s Music Trivia. I order a margarita and take a seat on a comfy chair near the porthole. I finish listening to the trivia and then take out my Kindle and read for about an hour. There was only 5 or so people in there so it was nice and quiet. A little after 9 I head back to the room so that I can go out on the balcony to watch us set sail. We didnt start moving until 9:30. At this point I am exhausted but I want to see us go under the Golden Gate Bridge again. It is FREEZING outside at this point. I have a jacket and scarf on and I have 3 different blankets wrapped around me for warmth. It is foggy once again and you cant really see anything. I kept hearing the fog horns from the bridge so I kept thinking we are right under it or I missed it?? Finally at 10 oclock, you can slightly make out the lights on the bridge but cant see anything else! What a bummer! After we pass under the bridge, I go and get dd from the club and we come back to the room to pass out for the night.
There were a lot of characters out today. I wish dd would have taken her pic with some of them. Hopefully some will be back out on another day and Ill try to convince her again. Today Stitch, Russel, Dug, Chip, Dale, Frozone, Minnie, Mickey, Woody, Jessie, Mike, Sulley Remy and Emile were all out for pics.
Day 4 - San Francisco
Yay for sleeping in! I finally got a good night sleep since the ship was docked and we didnt have to hear fog horns or wood creaking! I got up about 8 and hopped in the shower and dd got up about 8:45. Once we were up and dressed, we headed up to BBB for breakfast. I was hoping to find something new from the morning before but it wasnt meant to be. I had my usual breakfast sausage, fruit and a ham and cheese omelet. We were headed off the ship about 9:45.
Our first stop of the day was the Aquarium of the Bay. My CityPass included a ticket to here but I had to buy one for dd for $10. It is literally a 5 minute walk from the ship. I cant remember what DCL charged for the Aquarium but I am sure it is more than buying it n your own. I would suggest getting it on your own. The ticket booth is right in front of the Aquarium. The Aquarium had the usual things youd expect to see at an aquarium. The one thing I thought was cool was that you could touch baby sting rays and baby sharks in addition to being able touch star fish. Of course dd was too scared to do any of that. My boys would have loved it though. We were at the Aquarium for only 30 minutes. Another thing included in the CityPass was a ticket for the Gold and Blue fleet boat ride around Alcatraz. I think you can even upgrade this ticket for a ticket to Alcatraz. I have done Alcatraz before and I knew it wouldnt interest dd. The weather was beautiful today with blue skies and warm sun but you still had a cool breeze. I thought it would be fine to go out on the boat but dd had only one thing on her mind&getting to the Chocolate Deli, AKA Ghiradelli.
We walked down Fishermans Wharf stopping at Boudin to watch the chef making different shapes for the sour dough bread. Dd really liked watching this and I eventually had to pull her away promising wed come back later so that I could get my clam chowder. Before we get to Ghiradelli, we pass the turn around stop for one of the cable cars and the line is super long! Cable car rides are also included with the CityPass and I really wanted to take dd on one. We finally reach Ghiradelli after about a 15 minute walk with just a small amount of complaining from dd saying her toes were tired. We order a chocolate shake to share and I get a diet coke. We enjoyed the shake and then set off to find a different stop to catch the cable car. We found one but it was just one stop from the turnaround. It was packed and I wasnt about to let dd hold on from the outside. I thought about going further up the route but it was all uphill from there. There is no way dd would have made it so I gave up on riding the cable car. I imagine the best way to catch a cable car would be to take a bus further inland and then take the cable car back towards the port. I guess we will just leave the cable car on our must do list for next time we are in SF.
For those of you who dont have an In and Out near you or have never eaten at one, there is one along Fishermans Wharf. They have fantastic hamburgers! We also went inside a candy store that seemed to be on steroids! They had huge gummy bears, huge boxes of Nerds, etc. Everything was Jumbo size! We then stopped back by Boudin where I ordered some clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl and dd ordered a mini turtle shaped sourdough bread. Dd was freaking out (surprise! Surprise!) about all the birds and seagulls flying around so we ended up sitting in a table along the main walkway just to be away from most of the birds. After eating, we head back to the ship.
The sun is shining so dd wants to go in the pool. I had seen at the tv that the pools were heated to 90 degrees all week so I said sure. It was too cold for
me though so I just sat at a table in the sun and read my Kindle. She swam for an hour and for the most part, there were only 4 kids in the pool with her. There was never anyone in line for the slide when she went up on it. She LOVED having the pool practically to herself.
She got out wanting to eat. I grabbed her a hot dog but she was shivering even though I wrapped her up in 5 towels. So we took her lunch and went back to the room. She quickly ate and then took a hot, jetted bath! She spent another 30 minutes in the bath just playing around.
Here are some pics of Alcatraz and the GG Bridge. It was a beautiful day inland but still foggy a distance out.
We relaxed in the room for awhile before heading to Wavebands to play Disney Wheel (aka Wheel of Fortune.) Every game this week has been Pixar themed and The Wheel was no different. They divided the room into 2 teams and we were just lucky enough to have some devoted Pixar fans on our team and we ended up winning! Our prize was all we can eat ice cream up on deck 9 (oh, and pride too!) We then walked towards the Promenade Lounge where they were having some Pixar trivia. We just sat and watched since they had already started. Apparently I dont know my Pixar trivia that well so it was good that we didnt play.
Dinner tonight was back in Animators Palate. I had the mushroom risotto for my appetizer which is one of my favorite things on the ship! Bonieface also brought me out some fabulous spicy shrimp and some calamari. I had the Beef Wellington (more red beef!) which was very tender and delicious. I was very stuffed after dinner. Dd had mickey shaped pasta and mozzarella sticks. I had a difficult time getting her to eat because she was more interested in watching the walls/pictures change color. She had a brownie sundae for dessert while I had the sugar free lemon souffle. IT was pretty good but I love almost anything lemon!
Tonights show was Finding Nemo in 3D. This was the only time all week we could see it in 3D but dd didnt care to watch it. She wanted to go to the kids club. On our way there, we ran into Snow White! Im so glad I have made a point to always carry my camera and dds autograph book on me just for these random appearances.
I then drop dd off at the Kids Club and I head over to Diversions where they are finishing up 80s Music Trivia. I order a margarita and take a seat on a comfy chair near the porthole. I finish listening to the trivia and then take out my Kindle and read for about an hour. There was only 5 or so people in there so it was nice and quiet. A little after 9 I head back to the room so that I can go out on the balcony to watch us set sail. We didnt start moving until 9:30. At this point I am exhausted but I want to see us go under the Golden Gate Bridge again. It is FREEZING outside at this point. I have a jacket and scarf on and I have 3 different blankets wrapped around me for warmth. It is foggy once again and you cant really see anything. I kept hearing the fog horns from the bridge so I kept thinking we are right under it or I missed it?? Finally at 10 oclock, you can slightly make out the lights on the bridge but cant see anything else! What a bummer! After we pass under the bridge, I go and get dd from the club and we come back to the room to pass out for the night.
There were a lot of characters out today. I wish dd would have taken her pic with some of them. Hopefully some will be back out on another day and Ill try to convince her again. Today Stitch, Russel, Dug, Chip, Dale, Frozone, Minnie, Mickey, Woody, Jessie, Mike, Sulley Remy and Emile were all out for pics.
Duhey2
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2012
Mike and Sulley were on the cruise? I never saw them....
ETA-Oooooh...I was on the cruise leaving the 16th. I'm sad I missed Mike & Sully.
We had great views of the GG Bridge in and out of SF Bay.
socababy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 15, 2010
Day 5 - At Sea
Yay for sleeping in again! Although, I didnt have as good a nights sleep as I did before. I couldnt leave the door open due to the fog horns again so there was a lot of creaking in the room. Dd must take after her dad because he could always sleep through anything! I got up around 8 and hopped in the shower and dd got up about 8:30. I was skipping breakfast because I was having brunch at 10 at Palo! We had a banana, frosted flakes and milk already in the room from Mondays room service so that is what dd had for breakfast. I dropped her off at the Kids Club at 9:50 and then headed up to Palo.
I originally had a reservation for just myself but I met another mom traveling alone with 2 of her kids so I asked her is she like to join me and she said yes. (She is also a DISer, so hi Natasha!) Brunch was fantastic as always. We even saw some whales out in the distance. After brunch, I went and picked dd up from the club and she was hungry. She wanted pizza but I told her we would have to eat it back at the room because it was cold and windy outside. So she decided to go to BBB. Once we got there we were welcomed to their seafood buffet. I knew dd wouldnt eat seafood so I asked about Parrot Cay and it was the same buffet. So we walk down to Tritons and there isnt pizza on their menu or anything that dd would really eat. So we walk back up to deck 9 and end up getting her some pizza and eating it back at the room.
We relaxed a bit and about 1:30 dd is asking to go back to the kids club. I take her there only to realize that it is Open House in the Club right now. Dd wanted me to stay but I didnt want to sit there and just watch her go down the slide a million times. She is adamant that she doesnt want to go to the Lab. So I ask her if she wants to go join the Pixar characters for pictures. At 2 and 5 today, Pixar characters are going to be in the Atrium Lobby visiting and taking pics. There are no official lines to see the characters, it is almost a free for all. She says no so I tell her that she needs to sit with me while I take some pics. I went and sat in a chair on deck 4 by the DVC counter because I knew the characters would come down that hall and head down the stairs there. Sure enough we have Remy, Emile, The Incredibles, Jessie, Woody, Flick and 2 others I believe (I am drawing a blank right now!) coming down the hall. If you dont want to go down in the Atrium, hang out near the art work pretending to look at the art and youll be in the perfect position. All the characters stood against the wall for about 5 minutes before they were announced and then headed down the staircase. I saw many of the characters posing with kids that were right there before they headed down. The characters were not signing autographs at this session though, just taking pics. At that point dd had had enough and now said she wanted to go to the lab!
I drop her off and then head out to deck 4 to grab a lounge chair to sit on. It is cool but I had sweats and a sweatshirt on and I wrapped myself up in 2 blankets and was just fine. I read my Kindle for awhile, looking up every so often to see if I spot any whales. I didnt but I did see Goofy running the track in his running suit, complete with bandana! He only went by once though so I dont know what kind of workout he was doing?? I then decide to head back to the room to rest my eyes for a little bit. I dont think I rested them all that much though because I was afraid of falling asleep. I started watching The Vow on tv again which just bummed me out. Its movies like this that really make me miss my Dh even more. Anyway, I go get dd at 3:45 and she is in the middle of Ratatouille Cooking School where they are making chocolate chip cookies. Due to the club still being Open House, there were a ton of kids in the Lab. Id say there were at least 60 kids making the cookies. I think that is the most kids I have ever seen in the club or lab ever at one time. Dd and I go back upstairs to get ready for dinner.
Tonight is semi-formal night and dinner is in Parrot Cay. Before heading to dinner, we stop off at the Concierge Reception in the Cadillac Lounge. Mickey stops by for a visit which always makes dd happy. I talked briefly with a couple who was on this trip as a gift from their son for their 50th wedding anniversary. So sweet! We soon head to dinner where they are featuring a brand new menu made especially for these Pixar Cruises. It is Toy Story themed and the front of the menu are made for you to use the 3D glasses they give you. The glasses didnt really work but the idea was cute. I had a tomato caprese and seafood cocktail for appetizers. I also had the asparagus salad and the lobster for my main course. Dd had a cheeseburger. This menu had the most fun dessert ever a sundae made with bubble gum ice cream! I hadnt had bubble gum ice cream since I was a kid. Dd got this and I made sure to have a few bites and I got a chocolate cake type dessert that had baileys. Both desserts were pretty good!
Tonights show is Toy Story but dd has no desire to see it. So I drop her back off at the Kids Club telling her that I dont know how long she will be there since I am already super tired. I came back to the room to write up this report. I am hoping to stay up to go see Alfred and Seymour at 10:30 in Wavebands. They were on the Wonder last month and they are hilarious! Hopefully I will last until then.
For those Pixar fans, they had Tia Kratter give a behind the scenes glimpse of how Brave was made.
Yay for sleeping in again! Although, I didnt have as good a nights sleep as I did before. I couldnt leave the door open due to the fog horns again so there was a lot of creaking in the room. Dd must take after her dad because he could always sleep through anything! I got up around 8 and hopped in the shower and dd got up about 8:30. I was skipping breakfast because I was having brunch at 10 at Palo! We had a banana, frosted flakes and milk already in the room from Mondays room service so that is what dd had for breakfast. I dropped her off at the Kids Club at 9:50 and then headed up to Palo.
I originally had a reservation for just myself but I met another mom traveling alone with 2 of her kids so I asked her is she like to join me and she said yes. (She is also a DISer, so hi Natasha!) Brunch was fantastic as always. We even saw some whales out in the distance. After brunch, I went and picked dd up from the club and she was hungry. She wanted pizza but I told her we would have to eat it back at the room because it was cold and windy outside. So she decided to go to BBB. Once we got there we were welcomed to their seafood buffet. I knew dd wouldnt eat seafood so I asked about Parrot Cay and it was the same buffet. So we walk down to Tritons and there isnt pizza on their menu or anything that dd would really eat. So we walk back up to deck 9 and end up getting her some pizza and eating it back at the room.
We relaxed a bit and about 1:30 dd is asking to go back to the kids club. I take her there only to realize that it is Open House in the Club right now. Dd wanted me to stay but I didnt want to sit there and just watch her go down the slide a million times. She is adamant that she doesnt want to go to the Lab. So I ask her if she wants to go join the Pixar characters for pictures. At 2 and 5 today, Pixar characters are going to be in the Atrium Lobby visiting and taking pics. There are no official lines to see the characters, it is almost a free for all. She says no so I tell her that she needs to sit with me while I take some pics. I went and sat in a chair on deck 4 by the DVC counter because I knew the characters would come down that hall and head down the stairs there. Sure enough we have Remy, Emile, The Incredibles, Jessie, Woody, Flick and 2 others I believe (I am drawing a blank right now!) coming down the hall. If you dont want to go down in the Atrium, hang out near the art work pretending to look at the art and youll be in the perfect position. All the characters stood against the wall for about 5 minutes before they were announced and then headed down the staircase. I saw many of the characters posing with kids that were right there before they headed down. The characters were not signing autographs at this session though, just taking pics. At that point dd had had enough and now said she wanted to go to the lab!
I drop her off and then head out to deck 4 to grab a lounge chair to sit on. It is cool but I had sweats and a sweatshirt on and I wrapped myself up in 2 blankets and was just fine. I read my Kindle for awhile, looking up every so often to see if I spot any whales. I didnt but I did see Goofy running the track in his running suit, complete with bandana! He only went by once though so I dont know what kind of workout he was doing?? I then decide to head back to the room to rest my eyes for a little bit. I dont think I rested them all that much though because I was afraid of falling asleep. I started watching The Vow on tv again which just bummed me out. Its movies like this that really make me miss my Dh even more. Anyway, I go get dd at 3:45 and she is in the middle of Ratatouille Cooking School where they are making chocolate chip cookies. Due to the club still being Open House, there were a ton of kids in the Lab. Id say there were at least 60 kids making the cookies. I think that is the most kids I have ever seen in the club or lab ever at one time. Dd and I go back upstairs to get ready for dinner.
Tonight is semi-formal night and dinner is in Parrot Cay. Before heading to dinner, we stop off at the Concierge Reception in the Cadillac Lounge. Mickey stops by for a visit which always makes dd happy. I talked briefly with a couple who was on this trip as a gift from their son for their 50th wedding anniversary. So sweet! We soon head to dinner where they are featuring a brand new menu made especially for these Pixar Cruises. It is Toy Story themed and the front of the menu are made for you to use the 3D glasses they give you. The glasses didnt really work but the idea was cute. I had a tomato caprese and seafood cocktail for appetizers. I also had the asparagus salad and the lobster for my main course. Dd had a cheeseburger. This menu had the most fun dessert ever a sundae made with bubble gum ice cream! I hadnt had bubble gum ice cream since I was a kid. Dd got this and I made sure to have a few bites and I got a chocolate cake type dessert that had baileys. Both desserts were pretty good!
Tonights show is Toy Story but dd has no desire to see it. So I drop her back off at the Kids Club telling her that I dont know how long she will be there since I am already super tired. I came back to the room to write up this report. I am hoping to stay up to go see Alfred and Seymour at 10:30 in Wavebands. They were on the Wonder last month and they are hilarious! Hopefully I will last until then.
For those Pixar fans, they had Tia Kratter give a behind the scenes glimpse of how Brave was made.
kdn hawaii
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2012
Thanks for sharing! I look forward to your posts
kdn hawaii
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Aug 31, 2012
socababy said:
No problem! Thanks so much for sharing with us! Hope you enjoyed your last days!
YAY this is where we "met" then.... I am Connor the "team captain's" mom...were you the ones sitting in the front row to the right of us then??? He LOVED that game and made some great memories hamming it up and being "in charge"
LOVE that you live blogged this trip ;-)
luv2sleep
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2011
Great trip report! I travel solo with my 5 year old all of the time. I am a solo parent. No dad. It's challenging to keep my little boy happy and also get time to myself. We've done a 7 day and are headed on the 14 day Hawaii trip. I am really looking forward to it. I had hoped to stay out late and get to some of the adult only venues this time but I am not sure that will happen. Did you get to on this trip? How late does your DD last in the clubs?
Your DD is a doll!!
socababy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 15, 2010
Day 6 - San Diego
Woke up this morning before the wake up call at about 6:30. We were already heading into San Diego but all the fog made me think Captain Fabian got turned around and took us back to San Francisco! I did see a small amount of sunshine peeking through the fog though so I knew the sun would be shining soon.
I waited as long as I could before waking dd up. Around 8 we head up to BBB for breakfast. We both had our usual since there wasn’t anything new up in BBB. Shortly before 9 we head over to Studio Sea for our excursion to Legoland! It didn’t seem like there were a lot of people in Studio Sea for the Legoland excursion but they had 2 buses to take all of us there. We didn’t get walked down to the bus until 9:20 or so and we were not on the road until 9:45.
Legoland is a lot of fun for the younger age crowd. There are no rides for the thrill seekers. However, if you love legos, the displays they have are awesome. We lie just about 30 minutes from Legoland and went for the first time last summer. All my kids had fun and I really liked how it was so different from a theme park like Disneyland. It was expensive (I’ll get more into that in a minute!) but I didn’t want to chance taking transportation on my own and then not making it back to the ship. The weather was beautiful and the crowds were light! If anyone has any questions regarding Legoland, feel free to ask!
When you enter the gates to Legoland, there are signs everywhere saying how you can upgrade your day pass to a Annual Pass. Towards the end of the day, I go and ask if our passes bought through DCL could be used towards an annual pass. I don’t have my onboard bill in front of me but I know I paid $120 for my ticket and slightly less for dd’s. I believe it is around $75 for a day pass if you by it at the park. So already DCL is making quite a bit off each ticket. After talking to someone at the Membership window, I am told the tickets were purchased through a 3rd party and that each of our tickets were purchased for $50 each, therefore giving us a $50 credit for each annual pass if we so desired! I never really gave thought to how much DCL is making off of excursions but now I have some idea! I did decide to upgrade out tickets to annual passes. Before the credits, mine was $130 which includes parking and dd’s was $99. So we will have future visits to Legoland over the next year!
Everyone seems to make it back to the bus on time! As soon as we have the freeway within sight, all we see is red tail lights! It is only 4pm and I am a little surprised to see so much traffic already. Luckily, the traffic lightens up before long and we travel smoothly back to the ship. Dd had fallen asleep as soon as we hit the freeway so she got in a good 45 minute nap. We were back on the ship and in our room around 5:00. I try to call home to talk to my boys only to realize they are probably on their way to batting practice. Dd and I rest and clean up before heading to dinner. I did snap some pics of the USS Midway which we were docked right next to.
Tonight is pirate night and we had dinner in Tritons. Now that I am writing this report from home, I cannot recall what I ate at dinner. I know I did have some fabulous spicy shrimp and calamari because Bonieface had both made for me every night! Dd had no desire to take pictures with anyone tonight besides Stitch. So after dinner, we went straight over to where Stitch would be arriving soon at 7:30. I love how Stitch laid down on the ground to sign dd’s book.
Dd wanted to go to the Club but it was going to be Open House at 8:30. She did not want to go to the lab. Tonight’s show was the fabulous comedy of Alfred and Seymour once again, only this time is was good clean comedy for the whole family! I did make it the night before to see the adult show and I laughed as hard as I did when I saw them the first time on the Dream. Dd wanted to go to the shops but I told her they wouldn’t open until 9 so she should go to the lab if she didn’t want to see the show. She decided it would be best to go to the show with me because then we would be really close to the shops when they opened! LOL The show was funny and even dd laughed a lot!
We hit the shops after the show. I did give dd some guidelines, NO MORE STUFFED ANIMALS and whatever she got had to be small. LOL I was really looking for a Merida poster that I had seen as a prize at one of the trivia games but it was not for sale in the shops. So dd ended up with some small, hard plastic princess dolls.
None of my kids really have any interest in going up to the Pirate Party anymore. So dd and I went to deck 9 to get some drinks and then we headed back to the room. The bummer about being on deck 8 is that you cannot see the fireworks from your veranda. This is also my 4th time with a veranda on the starboard side and I have never had a letter in my room stating to not be outside during the fireworks. So dd and I listened to the fireworks and saw a glow from them but that was about it. LOL We both were exhausted from our long day so we headed to bed!
Woke up this morning before the wake up call at about 6:30. We were already heading into San Diego but all the fog made me think Captain Fabian got turned around and took us back to San Francisco! I did see a small amount of sunshine peeking through the fog though so I knew the sun would be shining soon.
I waited as long as I could before waking dd up. Around 8 we head up to BBB for breakfast. We both had our usual since there wasn’t anything new up in BBB. Shortly before 9 we head over to Studio Sea for our excursion to Legoland! It didn’t seem like there were a lot of people in Studio Sea for the Legoland excursion but they had 2 buses to take all of us there. We didn’t get walked down to the bus until 9:20 or so and we were not on the road until 9:45.
Legoland is a lot of fun for the younger age crowd. There are no rides for the thrill seekers. However, if you love legos, the displays they have are awesome. We lie just about 30 minutes from Legoland and went for the first time last summer. All my kids had fun and I really liked how it was so different from a theme park like Disneyland. It was expensive (I’ll get more into that in a minute!) but I didn’t want to chance taking transportation on my own and then not making it back to the ship. The weather was beautiful and the crowds were light! If anyone has any questions regarding Legoland, feel free to ask!
When you enter the gates to Legoland, there are signs everywhere saying how you can upgrade your day pass to a Annual Pass. Towards the end of the day, I go and ask if our passes bought through DCL could be used towards an annual pass. I don’t have my onboard bill in front of me but I know I paid $120 for my ticket and slightly less for dd’s. I believe it is around $75 for a day pass if you by it at the park. So already DCL is making quite a bit off each ticket. After talking to someone at the Membership window, I am told the tickets were purchased through a 3rd party and that each of our tickets were purchased for $50 each, therefore giving us a $50 credit for each annual pass if we so desired! I never really gave thought to how much DCL is making off of excursions but now I have some idea! I did decide to upgrade out tickets to annual passes. Before the credits, mine was $130 which includes parking and dd’s was $99. So we will have future visits to Legoland over the next year!
Everyone seems to make it back to the bus on time! As soon as we have the freeway within sight, all we see is red tail lights! It is only 4pm and I am a little surprised to see so much traffic already. Luckily, the traffic lightens up before long and we travel smoothly back to the ship. Dd had fallen asleep as soon as we hit the freeway so she got in a good 45 minute nap. We were back on the ship and in our room around 5:00. I try to call home to talk to my boys only to realize they are probably on their way to batting practice. Dd and I rest and clean up before heading to dinner. I did snap some pics of the USS Midway which we were docked right next to.
Tonight is pirate night and we had dinner in Tritons. Now that I am writing this report from home, I cannot recall what I ate at dinner. I know I did have some fabulous spicy shrimp and calamari because Bonieface had both made for me every night! Dd had no desire to take pictures with anyone tonight besides Stitch. So after dinner, we went straight over to where Stitch would be arriving soon at 7:30. I love how Stitch laid down on the ground to sign dd’s book.
Dd wanted to go to the Club but it was going to be Open House at 8:30. She did not want to go to the lab. Tonight’s show was the fabulous comedy of Alfred and Seymour once again, only this time is was good clean comedy for the whole family! I did make it the night before to see the adult show and I laughed as hard as I did when I saw them the first time on the Dream. Dd wanted to go to the shops but I told her they wouldn’t open until 9 so she should go to the lab if she didn’t want to see the show. She decided it would be best to go to the show with me because then we would be really close to the shops when they opened! LOL The show was funny and even dd laughed a lot!
We hit the shops after the show. I did give dd some guidelines, NO MORE STUFFED ANIMALS and whatever she got had to be small. LOL I was really looking for a Merida poster that I had seen as a prize at one of the trivia games but it was not for sale in the shops. So dd ended up with some small, hard plastic princess dolls.
None of my kids really have any interest in going up to the Pirate Party anymore. So dd and I went to deck 9 to get some drinks and then we headed back to the room. The bummer about being on deck 8 is that you cannot see the fireworks from your veranda. This is also my 4th time with a veranda on the starboard side and I have never had a letter in my room stating to not be outside during the fireworks. So dd and I listened to the fireworks and saw a glow from them but that was about it. LOL We both were exhausted from our long day so we headed to bed!
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