PaDisneyCouple
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 17, 2006
- Messages
- 2,407
11/3/07
Our wakeup call was set for 0530, but we didnt make it. Both of us were wide awake and up by 5am. The Magic was just entering the channel to Port Canaveral. The passage back seemed to take much longer than leaving did the previous Saturday. After turning, the ship used its thrusters to inch towards the pier. We could see the deck team preparing for the pink ball and rope that would soon be thrown to them. Around the billet it went, and was then tied to the bumper of a pickup truck. As the truck drove away, it pulled the larger mooring rope out of the Magic and towards the pier. As this occurred, the forklifts were preparing for their dance. One began to unload the first tractor-trailer that had arrived, placing the pallets on the pier. Another began to take baskets of luggage off the ship. We watched this process with great interest as we continued to get ready. One of the trailers even had Disney characters on it. It said to follow them to Walt Disney World. We wished we could.
Shutters was scheduled to open at 0730. It was rumored that Disney took photos of the two ships docked together at Nassau, and we wanted to see what they looked like. Christine and I arrived as Shutters opened, and took one last look around at the photos. A last-minute decision was made to trade in one of our previously selected photos for a different one. And, of course, we bought one of the ships together. Back to the stateroom one last time to finish packing, and we were ready to go.
Orlando, our stateroom host, was already cleaning out the empty rooms up the hall. Sadly, we said good-bye, and boarded the elevators. Topsiders would be the location for our final meal. PJPoohbear and her Mom were several tables away, finishing their meals before heading to the airport. Christine visited with them, and then returned to our table. We dined on hash browns, fruit, a muffin, Mickey waffles, and some eggs. On our way out of the restaurant, we saw Kim, Noah, Paula, Ethan, and Fat English Gent and his family. Fabio was there, too.
Down to deck 3 we went. Sean slid our survey into the box, and we were on the gangway and off the ship. Learning from the DIS, we summoned a porter, who helped us locate our 5 bags. He sped us through customs, and before we knew it, we were waiting on the curb for our ride to Orlando International Airport. Christine snapped a few, final photos of the ship as he headed West.
The trip to the airport was uneventful, and we arrived a little after 9. We inquired about changing to an earlier Southwest flight, but it would have cost more to do that than wed spend on airfare so far this trip. With hours to kill, we wandered the airport mall, then made base camp near security. Christine went into the Disney store, while Sean called his Dad. Then, it was Seans turn to get one last Disney fix. Security was a breeze, and as a bonus, we saw Melanie and Eric again while getting ourselves put back together. After the monorail to our terminal, we grabbed an early lunch of wraps and a strawberry smoothie. As we sat at our gate, we wondered if any of our many DIS friends were on each plane that took off.
The flight to BWI was uneventful, and the baggage came up quickly. In just over an hour, on the uncrowded Saturday roads, we were home. On our way into town, we stopped at our usual local grocery store to get milk and essentials. The air was much cooler than it had been the week before, and we were glad wed bought DCL mid-weight jackets. The store felt downright foreign after our week-plus away. It felt especially strange to go into, through, and out of the store, and not run into anybody we knew. Nobody was wearing lime green anything.
Once home, the unpacking and laundry process began. Even though we were home by 6pm, we were still able to process 2 loads through Saturday evening. Of course, we started up the computer and checked the DIS Moonie cruise thread. Several of our friends were already home, and we each checked back in. Sean removed the countdown timer from our signature, which moved up the ticker for our 2008 Double-dip DCL cruise. Wed booked the 2008 cruise in February, and it gave us some comfort to know it was already less than a year away. And, as a savory enhancement, several of our DIS friends decided to rebook on it while on-board. With all these memories fresh in our heads, we nestled into our nice immobile bed.
Next up: Epilogue, and what have we learned?
Our wakeup call was set for 0530, but we didnt make it. Both of us were wide awake and up by 5am. The Magic was just entering the channel to Port Canaveral. The passage back seemed to take much longer than leaving did the previous Saturday. After turning, the ship used its thrusters to inch towards the pier. We could see the deck team preparing for the pink ball and rope that would soon be thrown to them. Around the billet it went, and was then tied to the bumper of a pickup truck. As the truck drove away, it pulled the larger mooring rope out of the Magic and towards the pier. As this occurred, the forklifts were preparing for their dance. One began to unload the first tractor-trailer that had arrived, placing the pallets on the pier. Another began to take baskets of luggage off the ship. We watched this process with great interest as we continued to get ready. One of the trailers even had Disney characters on it. It said to follow them to Walt Disney World. We wished we could.
Shutters was scheduled to open at 0730. It was rumored that Disney took photos of the two ships docked together at Nassau, and we wanted to see what they looked like. Christine and I arrived as Shutters opened, and took one last look around at the photos. A last-minute decision was made to trade in one of our previously selected photos for a different one. And, of course, we bought one of the ships together. Back to the stateroom one last time to finish packing, and we were ready to go.
Orlando, our stateroom host, was already cleaning out the empty rooms up the hall. Sadly, we said good-bye, and boarded the elevators. Topsiders would be the location for our final meal. PJPoohbear and her Mom were several tables away, finishing their meals before heading to the airport. Christine visited with them, and then returned to our table. We dined on hash browns, fruit, a muffin, Mickey waffles, and some eggs. On our way out of the restaurant, we saw Kim, Noah, Paula, Ethan, and Fat English Gent and his family. Fabio was there, too.
Down to deck 3 we went. Sean slid our survey into the box, and we were on the gangway and off the ship. Learning from the DIS, we summoned a porter, who helped us locate our 5 bags. He sped us through customs, and before we knew it, we were waiting on the curb for our ride to Orlando International Airport. Christine snapped a few, final photos of the ship as he headed West.
The trip to the airport was uneventful, and we arrived a little after 9. We inquired about changing to an earlier Southwest flight, but it would have cost more to do that than wed spend on airfare so far this trip. With hours to kill, we wandered the airport mall, then made base camp near security. Christine went into the Disney store, while Sean called his Dad. Then, it was Seans turn to get one last Disney fix. Security was a breeze, and as a bonus, we saw Melanie and Eric again while getting ourselves put back together. After the monorail to our terminal, we grabbed an early lunch of wraps and a strawberry smoothie. As we sat at our gate, we wondered if any of our many DIS friends were on each plane that took off.
The flight to BWI was uneventful, and the baggage came up quickly. In just over an hour, on the uncrowded Saturday roads, we were home. On our way into town, we stopped at our usual local grocery store to get milk and essentials. The air was much cooler than it had been the week before, and we were glad wed bought DCL mid-weight jackets. The store felt downright foreign after our week-plus away. It felt especially strange to go into, through, and out of the store, and not run into anybody we knew. Nobody was wearing lime green anything.
Once home, the unpacking and laundry process began. Even though we were home by 6pm, we were still able to process 2 loads through Saturday evening. Of course, we started up the computer and checked the DIS Moonie cruise thread. Several of our friends were already home, and we each checked back in. Sean removed the countdown timer from our signature, which moved up the ticker for our 2008 Double-dip DCL cruise. Wed booked the 2008 cruise in February, and it gave us some comfort to know it was already less than a year away. And, as a savory enhancement, several of our DIS friends decided to rebook on it while on-board. With all these memories fresh in our heads, we nestled into our nice immobile bed.
Next up: Epilogue, and what have we learned?
pictures.
night.
