The 75% All New Trip! - All done! Bonus Material finished, Link to new TR!

[dizneeat]

Caught up here too! Somehow I have such problems staying on top of things ..... I am tempted to blame it on my age.

Love, love, love CC at Christmas time. So pretty, thank for sharing.

I have never seen the barbeque so full that we would not be able to find a table. WOW!!! Glad you spotted your tablemates.

 

[dhorner233]

Is Castaway Cay considered part of the Bahamas? It's a little speck east of Fort Lauderdale? Does anyone live on the island? Or do the CM's from the boat go work on the island while you are there? Was that buffet included with your cruise or did you have to pay for it? You had to pay for your drinks I assume?

Did they have any entertainment? Any thing on the island at night or did the ship even spend the night there?

 

[franandaj]

Great update! Castaway Cay is so pretty, I love to see pics of Serenity Bay, I really want to get there some day.

Cute dress that you got on the island!

Fun pics with Mickey!

Thanks, it really is beautiful and peaceful. I'm fine with just sitting at the bar with a drink watching everyone else in the ocean.

Someday.... someday....

Meanwhile, I will soak all the beachy photos and CC info I can get. I read back a little bit, and was found the topic of re-stocking the island fascinating as well. Hmmm... one wonders. So glad you had a nice day all-in-all, even if there were some issues with walking on sand to get to where you wanted to go. Cute dress! And super awesome sunset photos! Can't beat tropical sunsets!

It is pretty fascinating how they get everything on the island to take care of the guests and then get it all back again. It's such a beautiful and peaceful place, I'm glad I will be going back in a little over a year.

I've got to admit. I actually find the real story about pirates and drug smugglers to be more interesting.

I know. huh!

Lunch looks good. I'm glad you can find a table. I'd be in a meat coma by the time I ate there though... give me ribs, chicken, a burger, a dog, a brat and a steak. Why? Because I can!

If I could eat that much I would do that too!

Well, thankfully nobody took a spill. Either Fran getting to the bar or you in the water. Your drinks look good though, so I think making use of your time to sit at the bar and enjoy them was probably a good idea.

I'm just going to have to remember that. Unless we both get in much better shape and decide to go parasailing again or something crazy like that, I think kickin it with a drink in our hands is the best solution.

Not only can you prove you've been there, but you've been there and actually got off the boat!

Yeah, we hadn't done that since Cozumel in 2014!

Yuck... hadn't thought about that, but it is a valid point. I'm sorry you didn't get a chance to meet Donald and Minnie, but at least you got some nice pictures with Mickey!

That's the only reason I can think of for the lines being so long. The only one we waited that long for on our last cruise was Jack Sparrow. Although Jack and Sally had equally as long a line.

Fun read. It's funny about CC because I am not a beach person. I do not like sand like Fran, water or getting wet. Why do I enjoy CC? I don't know I just do! It has something about it. Like you two we enjoy a morning there then go back to the ship. I do not like the BBQ so we go back for lunch then enjoy the adults only area on The Dream that is empty. Oh those day beds! Plus the view of CC and the colour of the water!

I think it might have something to do with the ocean breeze and how the air just feels calm.

Nice you made it to serenity bay. Have you ever had a cabana? People rave about them but have you seen the price? Hard to justify for 2! Might be good to share for more though

No we have never had a cabana and I don't see us doing that because you would really need to be there all day and I can't see Fran getting up at the crack of dawn just to go sit in a Cabana. How could she shop?

love the 'history' they invented for the island thank you for including that. Lol the signs with 'Bahamian time' always make me laugh.

I think the real history is even more fascinating! But Disney wouldn't like that.

Oh that darn Pirate night menu. We always try to book Palo I can tell you that much. Curious if you have done the same for your dinner.

Love the photos of you with pirate Mickey too cute.

Yeah, too much coconut and other things I don't care for. You will find out shortly!

I love Serenity bay! I'm sorry you didn't like the Konk Kooler...they are my favorite!

Jill in CO

If we didn't "need" to go shopping, I would have gone directly to Serenity Bay, but I'm glad we got the Olaf sipper cup!

 

[franandaj]

Caught up here too! Somehow I have such problems staying on top of things ..... I am tempted to blame it on my age.

Love, love, love CC at Christmas time. So pretty, thank for sharing.

I have never seen the barbeque so full that we would not be able to find a table. WOW!!! Glad you spotted your tablemates.

I was surprised it was that full as well, we were there before noon even!

Is Castaway Cay considered part of the Bahamas? It's a little speck east of Fort Lauderdale? Does anyone live on the island? Or do the CM's from the boat go work on the island while you are there? Was that buffet included with your cruise or did you have to pay for it? You had to pay for your drinks I assume?

Did they have any entertainment? Any thing on the island at night or did the ship even spend the night there?

I have no idea if CC is considered part of the Bahamas. I didn't realize that it was that far north. No wonder people used it for farmland back when. I thought a handful of people lived on the island for security type purposes, but Paula says no. She has been on more cruises that have gone there than I, so I defer to her knowledge. The CMs from the ship do work the island in whatever capacity they work on the ship, the do a similar job on the island. All food on the cruise is included except Palo, Remy, and Vanellopes. There is also a smoothie, place that I am not sure if you have to pay for those. "Specialty" Beverages are extra. That includes alcohol, the Olaf beverage, and fancy coffees from the Cove Café.

I'm not sure about the family beach, but at Serenity Bay they had a duo (that also performed in the Atrium on the ship). The guy played guitar and she sang. They did older rock n roll songs, you know things I knew like "Hotel California", "Love Potion No. 9". Stuff like that. The ship left the island by 5PM at the latest. I think before we got in line for Mickey the ship had already pulled out of the dock.

 

[franandaj]

So things are moving along here with respect to our move out. Not sure how many Expedition loads we had transported last time I checked in here, but by now we've moved at least five trips to storage but still only one to the thrift store.

What we did do that was really monumental was get everything down from our attic. I had told you all that it was about 50-100 boxes. I could not have been more wrong! No, there were more than 60 boxes labeled DIS alone! Then there were 15-20 boxes of old tax papers. Some dating back to 2003 or 4. At least we can shred everything older than 2009 and that frees up another dozen boxes or so. Then there was all the rest of the stuff. We counted approximately six rows of boxes across the room and each row was like 4 maybe 5 boxes tall. So let's just say that one "wall" of boxes is made up of 28 boxes. The spare bedroom where we stashed those boxes (not counting Disney which is in the living room, or taxes in the dining room) has probably 7 walls deep of all those boxes. When we were done stacking, the entire room was filled with walls of boxes. You could not even set foot more than a yard past the threshold! So figure 7 walls of 28 boxes and you've got almost 200 boxes in that room alone! Don't ask me what is in them all. There are many boxes of books on the Civil War, lots of boxes of clothes from 2005 & 2006 that Fran wasn't willing to part with. She put them away until she lost the weight. I know I had no less than 12 boxes of Christmas ornaments. That doesn't include the boxes for garland, lights, Pooh's Christmas Village, and other such things. Plus Fran had equally as many Halloween decorations that I've never even put up in our 19 years together. In addition to boxes, there were cauldrons, skeletons, giant spider webs and plastic electric pumpkins. I’m not sure where all this stuff is going to go, but it needs to get out of the house somewhat pronto!

Also I did some math with respect to this trip report. There are 8 days left in the report (including finishing up the day I’m in the middle of). If I am going to wrap this up before my Mississippi River cruise, I need to post a complete day every 6.571 days. So that means some pretty rapid fire updating. So hang on to your hats folks, it may get pretty crazy around here!

Speaking of the Mississippi river trip, thank goodness the rest of the world isn’t Disney World or I would be sunk. I still can’t get Fran to talk with me about restaurants to make reservations at. Every time I try to talk to her, she say something like, “let’s sit down with a map and figure it out, but not right now.” So I’ve been researching on my own. I did get her to say that we are definitely eating at Antoine’s (known for inventing Oysters Rockefeller). We talked about going to Willie May’s Scotch House (famous soul food, most notably Fried Chicken) but it’s way outside the French Quarter/Central Business District where we are staying. Others on the list include:

Commander’s Palace – It’s a long time NOLA favorite, Emeril Lagasse got his start there, and 25 cent Martinis
Café du Monde – because beignets!
Brennan’s – Among other things tableside Banana’s Foster
Mother’s – Known for comfort food, po-boys and one of the first restaurants to come back after Katrina.
Lüke – Because I have always wanted to try Chef John Besh’s cooking, and their bread pudding looks amazing.

We have three full days there or about 75 hours, I think we might be a little ambitious trying to get all that food in!

Anyone have any thoughts, experiences, suggestions? Inbetween feedings we plan on sightseeing at various locations, fancy mansion yards in the Garden district, Audobon park, maybe the Voodoo museum. I’m still working on what there is to do there besides eat! So that’s it, back to the Trip Report!


We had just left off with meeting Pirate Mickey and we came back to the room to relax a little more. Soon it was time we got ready for our dinner at Remy and headed up to deck 12. Some of you questioned while we were not dining at Palo this cruise. Well, there were only four nights on this cruise, and only one day at Sea. Since I had never been on this ship before, I didn’t want to skip the Main Dining Rooms on any other night besides Pirate night. If we go on the Dream again, I know that I can skip our night in Animator’s and I will request the same rotation we had on this cruise and go to Palo the first night on the ship.

But since I wanted to try them all once this cruise, Palo was the only place I had been before. I couldn’t do Palo AND Remy Brunch, so again Remy won out for Pirate night and for Brunch. On the Fantasy, I will be sure to do both!

We arrived at Remy right at 7:00PM, and were seated at our table. I took a few shots of the room.





Our server made us a cocktail tableside, it consisted of Grand Marnier, Grey Goose Vodka, black Currant, Champagne and a drop of pineapple. It was very tasty. I don’t remember if she had a name for it, but we both enjoyed it.





I couldn’t believe that they had a water menu! @Captain_Oblivious I KNOW this place will not be getting a Homer award from you, but stay tuned, you will like the second half of the trip.





I have heard of this Amuse Bouche, it was a deep fried bite of tomato soup. We were instructed to eat the whole thing in one bite. I’ve read in other’s trip reports how it bursts of flavor inside your mouth, but until you actually experience it, you can’t understand.



The bread and butter service was really good!





Our server took our picture early on, before I had too much to drink and spilled anything on my dress. Because it is hanging in my living room waiting for me to find time to take it to the dry cleaner.



We were served another pre dinner specialty. I was a little afraid of it, it had foie gras, some kind of nuts, Macadamia I think, and heavy cream or something similar. It was actually very good.



They have several different ways that you can order. There is the French Prix Fixe menu, the American Prix Fixe Menu or you can pick and choose from the menu a la carte. I ordered the French menu, Fran got the American menu, and then halfway through each course we would switch plates and wines.

My first course was a Scallop with citrus, celery, and a citrus cream sauce. The little white pillows may have been some kind of cream or goat cheese but they were amazing when eaten with a bite of citrus section, the poached celery, and scallop.



Fran’s first course was Shrimp, hearts of palm, not sure what the red and white rectangle cube was, but again served up with a little taste of everything it was just divine.



My next course was Lobster, you have the tail here and two pieces of claw meat. Salsify cooked in lobster sauce.



Then with lobster juice on top.



Now throughout the meal, our server kept asking us “Who won? The French or the Americans?” for the first course there was no winner, both were equally delicious. When she set the plates down for the second course, I was sure that the French Lobster would be the clear winner, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. Fran’s dish marinated Sablefish with ****take and enoki mushrooms, soba noodles and bok choy was the clear winner of this round. The broth was so tasty, obviously it had an Asian flair to it and was just perfect.



My next course was Halibut with fried pureed Jerusalem artichoke, this was cooked to perfection with a hint of sea salt on the top of the fish. Inside that ball was pureed Jerusalem artichoke almost a thick sauce. Fran liked it, I'm not real keen on the taste of that particular vegetable as I have had it before in its "natural" state.



Fran’s dish was a Kurobuta Pork Tenderloin and pork belly with root vegetables. This was tender and had just enough fat to make it unxious. Fran asked me as she took her bite, "why don't they sell pork belly at Ralph's?"



It was hard to choose between the two of these. The Halibut was so good, but the pork belly was too. I think it was a draw again.

With the French menu, my next course was Veal, but at the beginning of the meal we had the option to add an extra piece of beef to Fran’s meal. It was pricey, and we had a choice of 2 oz or 4 oz, and we knew there would be a lot of food, so we went with the 2 oz portion. When they set down the plates, Fran could tell I had “Entrée Envy” and let me start with hers. The Veal was wonderful and if I hadn't been getting so full and had the beef selections first I'm sure I would have loved it, but with those factors in mind I was a bit underwhelmed. They did the full presentation for my meal.

[Continued Next Post]

 

[franandaj]

[Continued from Previous Post]

Here it is with the sauce.



I started off with what were Fran's choices which were

Australian beef machine massaged (right)

Wagyu beef hand massaged (left)

The right was paired with a Spanish Temperanillo and the left with a Syrah. Well actually it was a French wine that begins with H and most regarded of the Syrah. I’m thinking it was Hermitage. While both pieces of meat were exquisite, we thought that the machine massaged beef was superior. While the other had a bolder flavor, the Aussie had a melt in your mouth factor that couldn't be beat.







Following the main course we were offered the option of a cheese course. Well have you ever known me to refuse a cheese course? Heck I’ve been able to create a cheese course from the salad bar at Sizzler!



we were served 8 Different cheeses, among them were triple cream, camembert, a blue cheese a goat cheese, at least one hard cheese. There was only one that I wasn't wild about and I let Fran have that one.



The bread had a little bit of a spicy kick to it.



She also gave us figs, dried apricots and honeycomb. I asked for more honeycomb because that is sooooo good. All of these things paired with the cheese were just delicious.



Then we were served our desserts. I had the Chocolate Praline which was crunchy and creamy all at once.



I had a Grand Marnier with my desserts.



Fran ate all the bananas of her Chocolate banana, but she shared with me the chocolatey cookie type part of her dessert. Both were incredibly scrumptious.



Then they brought us these Chocolate and coffee tarts. They were cut into four quarters, but I could only eat one piece of each. Fran finished the chocolate for me, but left the coffee flavored one.



They were accompanied by these Hazelnut biscuits. I ate one and Fran finished the rest of them off.



They gave us Lollipops and truffles to go, plus a red rose for each of the ladies.



And they gave us these to take with us.



[Continued Next Post]

 

[franandaj]

[Continued from Previous Post]

Since it was Pirate Night, there were fireworks, and we decided to go check them out. On our way to view the fireworks we drove through Vanellopies sweets and treats. This was Fran's first exposure to this place and she decided a return trip here was definitely in order, but not when we had just stuffed ourselves to the gills.

We found what we thought was a good location, but a CM came over to us and said we wouldn’t see anything from where we were and suggested that we go to the handicapped area for the fireworks. OK. Cool.





Now here is where the Wonder’s Pirate Party kicks booty over the one on the Dream. On the Wonder they play Pop/Rock ‘n Roll music for about 20 minutes while the characters dance in the crowd and on the stage. It’s songs that everyone knows, hits from the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, and probably beyond, but I wouldn’t know any of those songs. Then Mickey kicks off the fireworks show as he ziplines across the pool area.

On the Dream they had Pirates on stage for about 5 minutes.



Then this lame video skeleton show came on before the fireworks.



Just before the fireworks started, these other pirates came out.



And then Jack Sparrow jumped from this podium to kick off the show. I liked Pirate Mickey better.



I took a few pictures of the fireworks, but I only had my point and shoot camera, so I mostly watched the fireworks.



After the show they had a pirate related dance party. We left and got ice cream cones.



Came back to room to find hanging monkey. And Wow! Just as I was "previewing" this post to make sure everything about it was correct, I noticed how much of our "trashed room" you can see in this picture!

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Your meal at Remy's looks outstanding! Glad you finally understand the flavor burst that is the first course as I think I used those exact words to describe it before! Loved all the choices you all made - looks like you totally picked the right ones for your enjoyment! Wagyu beef beats veal any day! Interesting they have added the tarts in now.

 

[dhorner233]

Wow! You have really been busy! That was a lot of boxes!

Remy is so fancy! It doesn't look like there very many other people there.

Did Jack Sparrow jump off that little platform? Onto the stage? Looks like it was a long way up there.

 

[jedijill]

Ah, Remy, I miss thee! The food and service is divine! That Australian Waygu beef is amazing! I don't love the Pirate Party anymore. I just watch the fireworks and then go to bed!

Jill in CO

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Wow those boxes you got out to sort sounded like one of my maths exams at school. If I have 26 boxes in a 20 foot by 15 foot room.. How do I get to the door?

Good luck sorting those. You broke the back of it anyway. The process has begun. I hope it's not like here sometimes which goes.... Let's sort out the attic Jo. Sure... So all she does is admire what she has, rearrange it. To my horror bring some of it into the house to 'use' and the rest goes back. None in the thrift store nooooo!

It was Remy! How nice. Can I just say how lovely you both look. That white shirt of Fran's looks super dangerous. I would have that red with sauce in seconds. Pretty dress and I love Fran's jacket.

Yum cocktail. Ohhh scallops... I love this French vs American theme. If it's American land well we know the winners.. Lol. Oh I adore Halibut but so few chefs cook it right! It must be a very difficult fish to cook. Glad to hear Remys can do this.

Now we are talking veal what! I adore veal. I look no further...

Nice desserts and cheese selections. What a delightuful restaurant.

Thanks for the update can't wait for the river cruise that sounds amazing!

 

[skier_pete]

Oooh...that Remy meal looks fantastic! What is the up-charge on that?

 

[Flossbolna]

I loved reading about your Remy experience. Amazing how much the menu has changed over a year! I am really excited to see what they are going to offer when we will be back there on our next cruise! Michael and I decided that the cost of a meal there will just have to be built in every cruise we take on the Dream or Fantasy.

The cocktail they serve at the beginning of the meal was called Colette - after the female chef from the movie. At least the cocktail they served us, which seemed a little different from ours (I thought we had some kind of berry, not pineapple).

I love the picture of Fran with the soft serve. It looks like she is totally shocked that you are making her eat even more!

Did you have the full wine addition to the meal? How was that? Were your servings ok? I had heard that they had cut down a lot in serving size and with that price I would not have appreciated that!

 

[afwdwfan]

You could not even set foot more than a yard past the threshold! So figure 7 walls of 28 boxes and you've got almost 200 boxes in that room alone!

Wow... that's a lot of stuff to go through. Glad it is out of the attic. Good luck with the rest of the work.

We have three full days there or about 75 hours, I think we might be a little ambitious trying to get all that food in!

Definitely ambitious, but how often do you get to go to New Orleans?

Our server made us a cocktail tableside, it consisted of Grand Marnier, Grey Goose Vodka, black Currant, Champagne and a drop of pineapple. It was very tasty. I don’t remember if she had a name for it, but we both enjoyed it.

Based on the ingredients, it should be good!

Our server took our picture early on, before I had too much to drink and spilled anything on my dress. Because it is hanging in my living room waiting for me to find time to take it to the dry cleaner.

While the other had a bolder flavor, the Aussie had a melt in your mouth factor that couldn't be beat.

Ok, it is the American menu... why are they serving Australian beef??? Come on Disney!

Heck I’ve been able to create a cheese course from the salad bar at Sizzler!

We found what we thought was a good location, but a CM came over to us and said we wouldn’t see anything from where we were and suggested that we go to the handicapped area for the fireworks. OK. Cool.

I'm glad the CM came along to look out for you. Sorry the show was a little bit of a let down though.

After the show they had a pirate related dance party. We left and got ice cream cones.

Because, ice cream.

Came back to room to find hanging monkey. And Wow! Just as I was "previewing" this post to make sure everything about it was correct, I noticed how much of our "trashed room" you can see in this picture!

I like the monkey. Honestly, your room is no worse than ours ever is. I probably wouldn't have even noticed if you hadn't mentioned it.

 

[pkondz]

Phew! Made it over here!
And it looks like I better not fall behind again!

We have lots of restaurants that close by 2:30PM

Interesting. There are very few of those up here.

and I'm not sure any of them would make it from a package mix

Good!

When I left off we were on our way to Serenity Bay, the adults only area of the island.

Which, I'm sure, is where I'd head to as well.

it’s rumored that Pirates frequented the island in the 1700s

Cool!

but soon in his absence the runway was used by drug smugglers to bring narcotics into Florida.

That's really interesting.
Modern day pirates in a sense.

This continued well into the 1980’s until he was arrested and put in prison where he died.

Cautionary tale there kids.

After we boarded the tram, and drove around the loop, we could see that the second canon was a dragon canon.

I like that one.

Here’s Fran on the Tram.

That almost sounds like a children's book.

Fran on the tram.
See Fran on the tram?
The tram ran with Fran on the tram.
The tram ran until... wham!

Hit a tree.

The end.


I could so be a children's book author.

Look at that smile!
Someone's pretty happy!

The abandoned planes you see here, are part of the backstory as the planes were “retired” when the Castaways living on the island abandoned the runway and opted for only boat traffic to the island.

Love those planes.

Here’s how the loading of the scooters works on the trams.

Looks pretty easy and convenient.

Nice view!

But first we’re going to have lunch.

Can't enjoy paradise on an empty stomach.
And that buffet looks really good, too.

Fran’s lunch. She didn’t get a lot because my plate was so full, she knew I couldn’t finish it all.

Just how long have you two been married?

The way there was paved, but it was covered in sandy water. A treacherous combination for someone walking on two canes, but I stuck close to her, we took it slow and she made it through.

Glad you guys made it safely.
Odd that Disney, of all companies, wouldn't have better access.
But maybe you're right and there was a ramp on the other side.

So I took off my sandals and walked down to the water. It was cold!

Really! I wouldn't have thought that.

Plus I stumbled a bit and almost fell, and I decided that I’m not a “beach person”. Unless that means sitting at the bar having a drink or a meal!

That'll work!

Here’s a few shots of the view.

Beautiful! So relaxing to look at!

I was reluctant to try it because one of the ingredients is Coconut something. Fran said she would drink it if I didn’t like it. I ordered one, and took a sip before I had been charged for it and immediately ordered myself a Deep Blue Sea.

If it has coconut anywhere in the ingredient list... no.

Nice shot of the ship.
Hard to believe it fits there.

And the iconic buoys.

Like those.

That looks good. Just the thing to tied you over.

While waiting in line, both Donald and Minnie were downstairs. I knew that we would never get down to their lines before they were done. That was one thing about the Dream, there are so many people on board, the character lines were incredibly long.

Huh.

Love the colour in that one.

but by now we've moved at least five trips to storage but still only one to the thrift store.

I'm thinking you wish the storage to thrift store ratio was a little more on the other side of that scale.

No, there were more than 60 boxes labeled DIS alone! Then there were 15-20 boxes of old tax papers. Some dating back to 2003 or 4. At least we can shred everything older than 2009 and that frees up another dozen boxes or so. Then there was all the rest of the stuff. We counted approximately six rows of boxes across the room and each row was like 4 maybe 5 boxes tall. So let's just say that one "wall" of boxes is made up of 28 boxes. The spare bedroom where we stashed those boxes (not counting Disney which is in the living room, or taxes in the dining room) has probably 7 walls deep of all those boxes. When we were done stacking, the entire room was filled with walls of boxes. You could not even set foot more than a yard past the threshold! So figure 7 walls of 28 boxes and you've got almost 200 boxes in that room alone!

Also I did some math with respect to this trip report. There are 8 days left in the report (including finishing up the day I’m in the middle of). If I am going to wrap this up before my Mississippi River cruise, I need to post a complete day every 6.571 days. So that means some pretty rapid fire updating. So hang on to your hats folks, it may get pretty crazy around here!

pkondz buckles up the TR seatbelt.

I did get her to say that we are definitely eating at Antoine’s (known for inventing Oysters Rockefeller).

Love Oysters Rockefeller... and I've only had them once!
I can't find them anywhere anymore!

"Raw oysters Monsieur?"
No! I want them Rockefeller, darn it!

Commander’s Palace – It’s a long time NOLA favorite, Emeril Lagasse got his start there, and 25 cent Martinis
Café du Monde – because beignets!
Brennan’s – Among other things tableside Banana’s Foster
Mother’s – Known for comfort food, po-boys and one of the first restaurants to come back after Katrina.
Lüke – Because I have always wanted to try Chef John Besh’s cooking, and their bread pudding looks amazing.

Those places all sound amazing.

Some of you questioned while we were not dining at Palo this cruise. Well, there were only four nights on this cruise, and only one day at Sea. Since I had never been on this ship before, I didn’t want to skip the Main Dining Rooms on any other night besides Pirate night.

Ah. Now I know.

Our server made us a cocktail tableside, it consisted of Grand Marnier, Grey Goose Vodka, black Currant, Champagne and a drop of pineapple.

mmmm.... sounds good.

I don’t remember if she had a name for it

Heaven.

I have heard of this Amuse Bouche, it was a deep fried bite of tomato soup. We were instructed to eat the whole thing in one bite. I’ve read in other’s trip reports how it bursts of flavor inside your mouth, but until you actually experience it, you can’t understand.

That sounds interesting. Would love to try it.

Our server took our picture early on, before I had too much to drink and spilled anything on my dress. Because it is hanging in my living room waiting for me to find time to take it to the dry cleaner.

whoops!

I ordered the French menu, Fran got the American menu, and then halfway through each course we would switch plates and wines.

Smart.
And I won't comment on every dish, but... wow! What a meal!

Fran’s dish marinated Sablefish with ****take and enoki mushrooms

That kills me that the DIS removed that part of ... that type of mushroom.

Since it was Pirate Night, there were fireworks, and we decided to go check them out.

I'd like to see fireworks off a ship some day.
sigh.

On our way to view the fireworks we drove through Vanellopies sweets and treats. This was Fran's first exposure to this place and she decided a return trip here was definitely in order, but not when we had just stuffed ourselves to the gills.

That makes sense. On both levels.

We found what we thought was a good location, but a CM came over to us and said we wouldn’t see anything from where we were and suggested that we go to the handicapped area for the fireworks. OK. Cool.

Nice of him/her.

After the show they had a pirate related dance party. We left and got ice cream cones.

"Would you put that camera down before these melt all over me!"

I noticed how much of our "trashed room" you can see in this picture!

It doesn't look bad at all. Love the monkey too!

 

[disney ny]

I finally have had some time to check in here and was excited to see your new report. I have had about zero Dis board time since school started in September but I had to have surgery a few weeks ago and am having a super slow recovery so I am catching up. I tell everyone I would recover faster at Disney but they ignore me.
So I am all caught up now and really enjoying your report. I am looking forward to the WDW portion and hearing about all the new stuff you try. I am glad you are making progress at the apartments, you will feel so much better once it is finally done and you can focus all your energy on your dream home. Are all those DIS boxes more decor for the house? I would love to come help- I am pretty sure I would recover better in California too lol!

 

[dizneeat]

Love the update! I am amazed at how the menu at Remy has changed. Some things I recognized (but together with other components) others were new to me. Thanks for sharing.

The pirate parties are definitely more fun, with Mickey kicking off the fireworks on the Magic and Wonder. But what we like is to sit out on our balcony and watch the firework. Yip, I know you should not, but it is still nice.

Just as I was "previewing" this post to make sure everything about it was correct, I noticed how much of our "trashed room" you can see in this picture!

And this could have been our room as well.

 

[franandaj]

Your meal at Remy's looks outstanding! Glad you finally understand the flavor burst that is the first course as I think I used those exact words to describe it before! Loved all the choices you all made - looks like you totally picked the right ones for your enjoyment! Wagyu beef beats veal any day! Interesting they have added the tarts in now.

It was a fantastic meal. You're not the only one who used those words to describe it, but even having heard that it totally took me by surprise when I tasted it. Next time (on the Fantasy), we may just go for the American or pick and choose possibly.

Wow! You have really been busy! That was a lot of boxes!

Yup! Going to move a bunch to storage today when Darcy gets here.

Remy is so fancy! It doesn't look like there very many other people there.

It is very fancy! The chef from V&A's designed the American menu. There were only about 3-4 other parties there. We also took our time. One young couple who was seated after us, also left before us. They didn't have the wine pairings either.

Did Jack Sparrow jump off that little platform? Onto the stage? Looks like it was a long way up there.

It was sort of a bungee jump. I don't remember if he came all the way down to the stage or not because the fireworks started and I was looking up there instead.

Ah, Remy, I miss thee! The food and service is divine! That Australian Waygu beef is amazing! I don't love the Pirate Party anymore. I just watch the fireworks and then go to bed!

Jill in CO

It was, I'm going to make sure and have that as long as it is on the menu. It was nice to try the other one, but next time, I'll just save my appetite and have the Australian one. I never loved the Pirate Party in the first place. If I could see the fireworks from my stateroom I would, but they seem to shoot them on the Starboard side and we are always on the Port.

Wow those boxes you got out to sort sounded like one of my maths exams at school. If I have 26 boxes in a 20 foot by 15 foot room.. How do I get to the door?

Good luck sorting those. You broke the back of it anyway. The process has begun. I hope it's not like here sometimes which goes.... Let's sort out the attic Jo. Sure... So all she does is admire what she has, rearrange it. To my horror bring some of it into the house to 'use' and the rest goes back. None in the thrift store nooooo!

You're so funny! Yes it could sound like an algebra problem! Well for now they are just going into storage because I don't think they will ever be gone through. I hope that I am proven wrong!

It was Remy! How nice. Can I just say how lovely you both look. That white shirt of Fran's looks super dangerous. I would have that red with sauce in seconds. Pretty dress and I love Fran's jacket.

She actually didn't spill on hers! I don't remember what it was that I spilled. Still need to get that dress to the cleaners!

Yum cocktail. Ohhh scallops... I love this French vs American theme. If it's American land well we know the winners.. Lol. Oh I adore Halibut but so few chefs cook it right! It must be a very difficult fish to cook. Glad to hear Remys can do this.

I tried to cook Halibut last night, and while it wasn't bad, I chickened out and didn't sear it long enough to get that lovely caramel crust on the top. There was browning, but not like what I had here.

Now we are talking veal what! I adore veal. I look no further...

It was good, but I'm going for the beef on the Fantasy!

Nice desserts and cheese selections. What a delightuful restaurant.

Thanks for the update can't wait for the river cruise that sounds amazing!

Everything was wonderful. I am getting very excited! I know you don't have AAA, but I'm sure you have something like it. We stopped there this morning and picked up maps of the states we will be visiting and yet another guide book! Plans are really starting to come together. I may even be making our reservations for dinner soon!

Oooh...that Remy meal looks fantastic! What is the up-charge on that?

The meal itself was $75pp, worth every penny. We paid $55 for the 2 oz American Wagyu, and while we don't regret it, next time we will just go with the Australian cut. That way I can eat more of the desserts! I don't remember what the wine pairing was, but I think with gratuity and everything it came in just under $500. We always tip our servers on the "value" of the meal and not the actual cost. They probably got about $150 in tip for the two of them (sommelier and server).

I loved reading about your Remy experience. Amazing how much the menu has changed over a year! I am really excited to see what they are going to offer when we will be back there on our next cruise! Michael and I decided that the cost of a meal there will just have to be built in every cruise we take on the Dream or Fantasy.

So I can bet that it will again be different on our Fantasy trip in a year? I agree, that's the entire reason for being on the larger ships is Remy!

The cocktail they serve at the beginning of the meal was called Colette - after the female chef from the movie. At least the cocktail they served us, which seemed a little different from ours (I thought we had some kind of berry, not pineapple).

Oh thank you for the name! You're absolutely right!

I love the picture of Fran with the soft serve. It looks like she is totally shocked that you are making her eat even more!

Yes, her expression is pretty hilarious!

Did you have the full wine addition to the meal? How was that? Were your servings ok? I had heard that they had cut down a lot in serving size and with that price I would not have appreciated that!

Yes we did the wine pairings. I could have used a slightly larger glass of wine. I had to restrain myself not to drink it too fast as they were all very good and matched the food perfectly. The serving sizes were perfect. I was definitely full by the end.

 

[franandaj]

Wow... that's a lot of stuff to go through. Glad it is out of the attic. Good luck with the rest of the work.

I have a sinking feeling that we won't be going through it and it will just sit indefinitely while we keep paying the storage fees.

Definitely ambitious, but how often do you get to go to New Orleans?

I hope more often that I have before!

Based on the ingredients, it should be good!

It was awesome!

I'm glad the CM came along to look out for you. Sorry the show was a little bit of a let down though.

The fireworks show was great! It just wasn't nearly as entertaining to wait for as previous trips.

Because, ice cream.

I like the monkey. Honestly, your room is no worse than ours ever is. I probably wouldn't have even noticed if you hadn't mentioned it.

Well that's good to know. I didn't notice it until I had the picture large and in preview mode on the computer. I guess everyone else throws their clothes all over the chairs and stuff when they come back to the room!

Phew! Made it over here!
And it looks like I better not fall behind again!

I'll try to be gentle, but I don't want to start the next trip with a bunch of days left on this one! That happened with the last one and I ended up just plowing through it over Christmas. I don't like doing that.

Interesting. There are very few of those up here.

I don't know if it's because we're a beach city or what, but I was surprised when I moved here how many places opened from 6AM-2:30PM, no dinner, just breakfast and lunch.

Good!

I hate when restaurants cut corners, use package mixes, or frozen stuff.

Which, I'm sure, is where I'd head to as well.

It's much more calm and peaceful!

Cool!

That's really interesting.
Modern day pirates in a sense.

Cautionary tale there kids.

I like that one.

I wonder if the Imagineers made it or they found it somewhere.

That almost sounds like a children's book.

Fran on the tram.
See Fran on the tram?
The tram ran with Fran on the tram.
The tram ran until... wham!

Hit a tree.

The end.


I could so be a children's book author.

Look at that smile!
Someone's pretty happy!

And I was especially pleased with the previous days events!

Love those planes.

They do add character.

Looks pretty easy and convenient.

Thank goodness something for her was!

Nice view!

Kinda sums things up nicely.

Can't enjoy paradise on an empty stomach.
And that buffet looks really good, too.

Lots of tasty stuff there! I wish I had a bigger stomach!

Just how long have you two been married?

Married? 7 1/2 years, with an 11 year engagement.

Glad you guys made it safely.
Odd that Disney, of all companies, wouldn't have better access.
But maybe you're right and there was a ramp on the other side.

I'll have to notice when we're back there next February.

Really! I wouldn't have thought that.

I know I was expecting warm Gulf Current!

That'll work!

I live in a beach town and I don't think I've actually gone in the ocean once in 18 years, but some of my favorite restaurants have an ocean or harbor view.

Beautiful! So relaxing to look at!

Yup!

If it has coconut anywhere in the ingredient list... no.

I usually think the same, but I wanted to give it a shot and see if my palette had changed. Nope.

Nice shot of the ship.
Hard to believe it fits there.

I think they trimmed those plants specifically like that. In fact I think we got a photopass in that spot in 2001.

Like those.

They looked freshly painted too.

That looks good. Just the thing to tied you over.

It was a perfect little snack.

Love the colour in that one.

It did come out nice. I have another at WDW that was also pretty good.

I'm thinking you wish the storage to thrift store ratio was a little more on the other side of that scale.

Yeah, the amount of stuff she keeps putting in boxes saying, "I can sell that on eBay..." is a little daunting, especially since we only have two things on eBay.

Yeah, that's a lot of boxes!

pkondz buckles up the TR seatbelt.

Love Oysters Rockefeller... and I've only had them once!
I can't find them anywhere anymore!

"Raw oysters Monsieur?"
No! I want them Rockefeller, darn it!

Evidently the recipe for these is so secret the owner wouldn't even share it with her husband once they got married!

Those places all sound amazing.

Ah. Now I know.

On such a short cruise, there were only so many meals we could eat!

mmmm.... sounds good.

very much

Heaven.

Magdalene was able to point out that it was called a Collete, after the woman chef in the movie.

That sounds interesting. Would love to try it.

someday....

whoops!

Yeah, it happens.

Smart.
And I won't comment on every dish, but... wow! What a meal!

It was fantastic! I can't wait to do it again in about a year.

That kills me that the DIS removed that part of ... that type of mushroom.

I know I remember someone had ordered the mushroom soup at Artist Point and it did the same thing on her TR!

I'd like to see fireworks off a ship some day.
sigh.

Someday.....

That makes sense. On both levels.

Unfortunately there weren't many times that we weren't stuffed to the gills!

Nice of him/her.

It was.

"Would you put that camera down before these melt all over me!"

That's another good one!

It doesn't look bad at all. Love the monkey too!

Cool, maybe we're not as big of slobs as I thought!

 

[franandaj]

I finally have had some time to check in here and was excited to see your new report. I have had about zero Dis board time since school started in September but I had to have surgery a few weeks ago and am having a super slow recovery so I am catching up. I tell everyone I would recover faster at Disney but they ignore me.
So I am all caught up now and really enjoying your report. I am looking forward to the WDW portion and hearing about all the new stuff you try. I am glad you are making progress at the apartments, you will feel so much better once it is finally done and you can focus all your energy on your dream home. Are all those DIS boxes more decor for the house? I would love to come help- I am pretty sure I would recover better in California too lol!

I'm sorry you've been so busy and that you're laid up with surgery, but I'm glad you stopped by! I'm sure you would recover even faster in Florida or California, or even on a cruise where everyone is pampering you!

I'll tell you I have no idea what is in those DIS boxes. It's not stuff to decorate with. It's all souvenir type stuff from probably 1995 and before. All these boxes were created before we were even together, and she didn't have the kind of money back then to buy as much stuff as she does now. Well I take that back, in some of the boxes there are Bronze figures that we have a cabinet in the new house where they will go. Right now it's all full of books and crud, so we need to clean that out so the shelves are freed up.

Love the update! I am amazed at how the menu at Remy has changed. Some things I recognized (but together with other components) others were new to me. Thanks for sharing.

It's good to know that they are constantly updating parts of the menu, so that it is still fresh on repeat visits.

The pirate parties are definitely more fun, with Mickey kicking off the fireworks on the Magic and Wonder. But what we like is to sit out on our balcony and watch the firework. Yip, I know you should not, but it is still nice.

We're always on the wrong side of the ship!

And this could have been our room as well.

I'm glad everyone else makes a mess of their room!