The continuing saga of the family from Montana on the Magic.
I forgot to mention yesterday that as we were sailing away past the marker boueys, we saw three dolphins checking out the ship. We were thrilled. I decided that this was a signal that our cruise would be wonderful.
We woke to a beautifully sunny morning. The verandah is a wonderful way to start a day. Sunday, February 29, happy birthday to me! Today we are on our way to Key West. Breakfast was the Lumiere brunch, which was very good.
The Dismeet was in the Promonede Lounge at 10. Everyone wandered in a bit late, but we ended up meeting Threethings, Plutospup, jbix, mississagamom, mailman028, ksjayhawks and others (sorry, the names slip away). We chatted for a while. DD6 got to meet mississagamom's DD7, and that looked promising.
We hit Topsiders for lunch, I had chicken cachatory. Buffet style works well with kids who don't like the same types of food as each other, they take what they want.
Docking at Key West was a thrill. It is amazing that such a huge ship can be maneuvered so precisely. Our first stop was the Key West Aquarium. This was a fun place and we were in time for a tour. We got to hold a sea cucumber from the touch tank and got to touch a baby nurse shark. They fed the stingrays, who jump right up out of the water when they think you should be feeding them. It was exciting to watch. We got to see the nurse sharks be fed and check out the Atlantic reef exhibit. It was a nice intro to the town.
By this time my DH was ready to shop so we took off down Duvall Street. We stopped at the Hard Rock, Margaritaville, and a "Sponge Store". We managed to find Kino's and bought some cool sandals at great prices, $8-$9/pair. We had the best fresh-squeezed lemonade from a street cart. The town was pretty thick with crowds with a bunch of Harley riders coming through for some gathering or other. We would have been wise to study the street map better, it would have been easier to plan out our stops more efficiently. As it ended up we did a lot of walking and the kids got worn out. Credit to the kids though, they held up like troopers (Is Daddy done shopping yet?) for the most part.
Our excursion meeting here was at 4:15 p.m. for the Western Union Sunset Sail. We walked a couple of blocks to where the shuttle bus picked us up and drove us to the proper pier. What a beautiful ship, and the captain and crew were very friendly and did a great job.
The sail was an incredible experience. Feeling the power of the waves and the wind was invigorating. The wind was very strong that night and the swells were big at times (some of my pictures have a funny slant to them). Some of the people sitting at the very front got soaked. We were about mid-ship and mostly just got gentle spray. Sometimes I have to wonder why I live in a land-locked state when I love the ocean so much. A clever man was playing the hammer dulcimer and guitar and singing sailing songs the whole trip. DH joined in the group raising the sails, the crew cheered them on while their work was done for them this time. After the sails were up they served complimentary conch chowder, beer, wine and champagne. A couple got married aboard the ship by the captain and they fired two cannons after the ceremony. We got to see dolphins playing at the bow of the Carnival Glory as they left port. Wow.
The sunset was amazing. I think I had goose-bumps during this whole excursion. The kids were awed by the crew (Mommy, they are barefoot!), and by the "head" (how are you supposed to pee when the ship is rocking so much?). We got some great pictures and view of the Magic as we sailed by her ("our ship"). I highly recommend this excursion. The only drawback was that we missed our dinner seating at Animator's Palate, but I think it was worth it. One amazing birthday.
We got chicken strips and fries at Plutos before going to "Who Wants to be a Mouseketeer". The kids wanted us to be picked so badly! I must say we could have held our own on most of the questions too, but it was not to be. Plutospup was picked for the lifeline panel, and they were undefeated. It was a lot of fun.
DS was off to the kids club for a couple of hours and we checked out the ship's shops.
What a day.
I forgot to mention yesterday that as we were sailing away past the marker boueys, we saw three dolphins checking out the ship. We were thrilled. I decided that this was a signal that our cruise would be wonderful.
We woke to a beautifully sunny morning. The verandah is a wonderful way to start a day. Sunday, February 29, happy birthday to me! Today we are on our way to Key West. Breakfast was the Lumiere brunch, which was very good.
The Dismeet was in the Promonede Lounge at 10. Everyone wandered in a bit late, but we ended up meeting Threethings, Plutospup, jbix, mississagamom, mailman028, ksjayhawks and others (sorry, the names slip away). We chatted for a while. DD6 got to meet mississagamom's DD7, and that looked promising.
We hit Topsiders for lunch, I had chicken cachatory. Buffet style works well with kids who don't like the same types of food as each other, they take what they want.
Docking at Key West was a thrill. It is amazing that such a huge ship can be maneuvered so precisely. Our first stop was the Key West Aquarium. This was a fun place and we were in time for a tour. We got to hold a sea cucumber from the touch tank and got to touch a baby nurse shark. They fed the stingrays, who jump right up out of the water when they think you should be feeding them. It was exciting to watch. We got to see the nurse sharks be fed and check out the Atlantic reef exhibit. It was a nice intro to the town.
By this time my DH was ready to shop so we took off down Duvall Street. We stopped at the Hard Rock, Margaritaville, and a "Sponge Store". We managed to find Kino's and bought some cool sandals at great prices, $8-$9/pair. We had the best fresh-squeezed lemonade from a street cart. The town was pretty thick with crowds with a bunch of Harley riders coming through for some gathering or other. We would have been wise to study the street map better, it would have been easier to plan out our stops more efficiently. As it ended up we did a lot of walking and the kids got worn out. Credit to the kids though, they held up like troopers (Is Daddy done shopping yet?) for the most part.
Our excursion meeting here was at 4:15 p.m. for the Western Union Sunset Sail. We walked a couple of blocks to where the shuttle bus picked us up and drove us to the proper pier. What a beautiful ship, and the captain and crew were very friendly and did a great job.
The sail was an incredible experience. Feeling the power of the waves and the wind was invigorating. The wind was very strong that night and the swells were big at times (some of my pictures have a funny slant to them). Some of the people sitting at the very front got soaked. We were about mid-ship and mostly just got gentle spray. Sometimes I have to wonder why I live in a land-locked state when I love the ocean so much. A clever man was playing the hammer dulcimer and guitar and singing sailing songs the whole trip. DH joined in the group raising the sails, the crew cheered them on while their work was done for them this time. After the sails were up they served complimentary conch chowder, beer, wine and champagne. A couple got married aboard the ship by the captain and they fired two cannons after the ceremony. We got to see dolphins playing at the bow of the Carnival Glory as they left port. Wow.
The sunset was amazing. I think I had goose-bumps during this whole excursion. The kids were awed by the crew (Mommy, they are barefoot!), and by the "head" (how are you supposed to pee when the ship is rocking so much?). We got some great pictures and view of the Magic as we sailed by her ("our ship"). I highly recommend this excursion. The only drawback was that we missed our dinner seating at Animator's Palate, but I think it was worth it. One amazing birthday.
We got chicken strips and fries at Plutos before going to "Who Wants to be a Mouseketeer". The kids wanted us to be picked so badly! I must say we could have held our own on most of the questions too, but it was not to be. Plutospup was picked for the lifeline panel, and they were undefeated. It was a lot of fun.
DS was off to the kids club for a couple of hours and we checked out the ship's shops.
What a day.
