4/24/2010 Med cruise: Friends, Romans, Countrymen lend me your Ears

[shushh]

Welcome linkandclover! Happy Goofy and Brooklyn, glad your Malta tour got sorted out.

Lubi, DH and I were planning on just taking our laptop and dumping our photos onto it at the end of each day, hoping that that's enough as a backup.

Was wondering..are any you planning to take passports down with you in port? Am worried that if something should happen and we miss the ship then obviously its essential that we have it on person. But the less we carry when we're at port, the better. ie less chances of it getting lost/stolen. Any thoughts on this??!?!?

 

[skoi]

Welcome linkandclover!

Hey Belinda, I never got your email.

We're also taking our laptop to download photos, though we might have another memory card or whatever they're called now. I'm thinking of picking up another for Morocco so I can take some short video of souks and snake charmers and wild monkeys attacking ds when he tries to get a picture with them in Marrakech.

Julie

 

[NC_Tink]

Wow I am so glad to have been directed to this site as I have been on another forum and thought that there was no one going to be on the boat. I don't have the time or energy to sift through all of this but I wanted to introduce myself. This is our family's 6th disney cruise (1 on wonder the rest on magic). There is myself, husband, ds13 and ds10.
We are looking for people to share in a private excursion at La Spezia (like the Ferrari one but skipping the whole cheese tour and spending all the time looking at cars- husband is a huge F1 fan). I am looking to spend the day shopping and would love to go with a group of people to Florence. I have been in touch with a private tour so let me know if anyone is interested.

Linkandclover

Welcome linkandclover! Happy Goofy and Brooklyn, glad your Malta tour got sorted out.

Lubi, DH and I were planning on just taking our laptop and dumping our photos onto it at the end of each day, hoping that that's enough as a backup.

Was wondering..are any you planning to take passports down with you in port? Am worried that if something should happen and we miss the ship then obviously its essential that we have it on person. But the less we carry when we're at port, the better. ie less chances of it getting lost/stolen. Any thoughts on this??!?!?

Was thinking of bringing my laptop along -- DH is nervous about this as he feels that it could "walk away." I've emailed our pre-trip hotel and they've indicated that there is a "laptop" size safe in the room and I feel pretty good that it's safe on the ship -- we've left enough around our stateroom in the past that we're pretty secure there. We also know that the laptop will fit in the safe in the stateroom. So, I'm tempted to just bring the laptop - or at the very least - both of my boys have netbooks which are much smaller and I could just "borrow" one of those for the trip

As for passports - I think I'll just bring color photo copies along with my and DH's drivers licenses, as well as our KTTW (Key to the World / DCL) cards. We'll leave our actual passports on the ship. That way if something happens (on land) we have something to show that we are US citizens. I figure, as long as we have copy and go to a US consulate - then they can look up our information. At least that's what I'm hoping

 

[shushh]

Hey Belinda, I never got your email.

Julie

Not sure why...I tried twice and using the email address that you gave me. I've had this problem before when hotmail just refused to talk to yahoo. I'll try PMing you the info when I get home. Can't access hotmail at work.

 

[shushh]

As for passports - I think I'll just bring color photo copies along with my and DH's drivers licenses, as well as our KTTW (Key to the World / DCL) cards. We'll leave our actual passports on the ship. That way if something happens (on land) we have something to show that we are US citizens. I figure, as long as we have copy and go to a US consulate - then they can look up our information. At least that's what I'm hoping

That's a good idea. Will find out and make sure that there's an Australian embassy in all the ports and check with them if a colour photocopy is good enough.

 

[skoi]

Not sure why...I tried twice and using the email address that you gave me. I've had this problem before when hotmail just refused to talk to yahoo. I'll try PMing you the info when I get home. Can't access hotmail at work.

hotmail hates yahoo. It's the way of the world.

I'll pm you my hotmail address. I use msn to talk to my Arabic teacher's brother.

Julie

 

[uwo93]

it is all coming together now. starting to feel real!
flights booked on KLM (decent price, good connections). other YYZ should check KLM.
we will see some of you at the HI Express 22@ (one night pre-cruise and a couple nights post cruise). have you noticed that the rates have skyrocketed in the past week?
Palo and excursions booked. starting to research ports. has everyone been to virtual tourist and eport reviews? really excited about visiting Tunis & Malta for the first time. have to track down the book "Kappillan of Malta" by Nicholas Monsarrat!
all that is left is getting our DS toilet trained, so that he can swim in the "Mickey" pool and go on the water slide.

 

[alltheparks]

Addicted To disboards

It is almost 1 am here, and I finally got internet (been going through withdrawal for 4 days).

Had a great day at Disneyland Hong Kong! Tried to get DH to take about tours, but it wasn't on his agenda tonight. So still planning and considering whether to book private or do on our own.

I am trying to decide if we should go to South America with DH in April, or if I should book the TransAtlantic cruise, the price is so good.

WELCOME to all the new families!

 

[skoi]

Addicted To disboards

It is almost 1 am here, and I finally got internet (been going through withdrawal for 4 days).

Had a great day at Disneyland Hong Kong! Tried to get DH to take about tours, but it wasn't on his agenda tonight. So still planning and considering whether to book private or do on our own.

I am trying to decide if we should go to South America with DH in April, or if I should book the TransAtlantic cruise, the price is so good.

WELCOME to all the new families!

I'm so jealous. We were trying to fit a trip in the DL Hong Kong on our last trip to China, but no luck. How was it?

Julie

 

[skoi]

it is all coming together now. starting to feel real!
flights booked on KLM (decent price, good connections). other YYZ should check KLM.
we will see some of you at the HI Express 22@ (one night pre-cruise and a couple nights post cruise). have you noticed that the rates have skyrocketed in the past week?
Palo and excursions booked. starting to research ports. has everyone been to virtual tourist and eport reviews? really excited about visiting Tunis & Malta for the first time. have to track down the book "Kappillan of Malta" by Nicholas Monsarrat!
all that is left is getting our DS toilet trained, so that he can swim in the "Mickey" pool and go on the water slide.

We'll be there at HI Express 22 beginning Wednesday before the cruise.

Is it going to be warm enough to swim, do you think? Oldest dd was just asking about bringing bathing suits.

We're also really excited about Tunis, can't decide if we should do it completely on our own or have some back up (all day cab or tour guide).

Julie

 

[guynwdm]

My wife and I just booked yesterday. As we're a little late in signing on, I've been trying to catch up today. It's taken me about 5 hours just to read this thread! Fortunately, there's a lot more activity here than on the CC board.

As it's just the two of us, and our first trip to the Med, we're interested in joining a small group for some private tours. I'll try to pm those that I remember from the thread. However, if I miss a group, please feel free to contact me.

Looking forward to meeting some of you!

Chris & Robin

Welcome aboard. I have not been keeping up on here either. I have not booked any excurisions or flights yet. I need to book my post cruise stay in Paris yet too. I can get one way tickets to paris for $50 which is cheaper than multi leg plane tickets. I am way behind. I am guessing I better get on the ball. My luck everything will be booked up for excursions. I need to find something that my 77 yr old father will be able to hear (legally deaf from military duty) and that will not wear him out too much. With all the snow storms this winter here (rural schools cancelled again today, some are getting close to making up 2 weeks now) he is not getting out to go walking at the mall like he ususally does.

Can't wait to meet everyone!!

 

[shushh]

has everyone been to virtual tourist and eport reviews?

Great site! Just discovered it recently

Addicted To disboards
I am trying to decide if we should go to South America with DH in April, or if I should book the TransAtlantic cruise, the price is so good.

Ah...your life is too good!!! But yes the price is awesome. We wish we could go on it too but we don't have enough leave.

I can get one way tickets to paris for $50 which is cheaper than multi leg plane tickets.

Awesome price!

Julie did you get my PM about montserrat? Maybe we can update the front page with the few things that we have organised so far ie the meet on embarkation, meeting at the fountain, the formal/semi-formal/pirate nights...if you time that is!

I'm trying to find out what priorities DCL are giving to passengers with early flights but DU still hasn't got back to me. Will post when I find out.

 

[NC_Tink]

So, I did a little research for those that are interested regarding weather (my source was wunderground). These are the historic average daytime temperatures for the ports we will be visiting. I got the temperatures in Farenheit and did my best to convert to Celsius (please forgive me if I got it wrong )

Barcelona (pre-trip) Avg. temps: Mid 60s -- about 18C
Valetta - Avg. temps: lower 70s -- about 22C
Tunis - Avg. temps: upper 50s (about 59) -- 15C (one website indicated between 17 and 25 Celsius (or 62 - 77 Fahrenheit) - indicated that April is a hodgepodge.
Naples Avg. temp: lower 70s -- about 22C
Civitavecchia (Rome) Avg. temp: lower 70s -- about 22C
La Spezia Avg. temp: 69 -- about 20.5C
Ajaccio Avg. temp: 70 -- about 22C
Villefranche Avg. temp: lower 60s -- about 16/17C

Should be great temps for sightseeing But, not ideal for beaches However, my boys are fish and we still plan to head to the beach in Corsica at the very least -- found out that there's a beach that is not far from the port and is easy to walk to

 

[Brooklyn]

Hi everyone! I hope all of your planning is going well!

I wanted to share a few things that I learned this past week. Please know I am only passing on this information as just that, information. I am not trying to say that I don't think anyone would not be reponsible when traveling to other countries. Some of the stuff is just good to know if you are not one who travels out of the country very often.

DD 4 has a problem with her immune system so whenever we go on vacation we meet with her infectious disease doctor to get more information on the places we are going. She can't get most vaccines due to issues that she has so I wanted to pass this on just in case anyone else is not vaccinated against it.

Tunisia is a place that has a high occurence of Typhoid. Because we are only there for a day he did not want to give DD the vaccine against Typhoid. In order to help prevent this he said to avoid foods that are not well cooked and anything from street vendors. Typhoid comes from eating prepared food that has been contaiminated.

He gave me 15 pages of information on everything I need to know about all the places we are going. I wanted to just higlight some things that might be helpful.

Out of all of the places we are visiting Tunisia is the one to be the most careful. We are only there for a day but I wanted to pass this info on.

Travelers Should:
Eat at well known establishments
Eat foods that well cooked and served steaming hot
Eat breads, tortillas, crackers, biscuits and other baked goods.
Eat fruits, nuts and vegtables with thick skins, peels or shells that you can remove yourself.
Eat canned foods
Always wash your hands with soap before eating.

Travelors should NOT:
Eat any food from street vendors or market stalls
Eat leafy or uncooked vegtables and salads. Some organisma in soil and water are not destroyed by normal cleaning methods. So even if you order a hamburger forgo the lettuce and such.
Eat undercooked, raw or cold meat, seafood and fish.
Eat large carnivorious fish, especially from reef areas. Many contain concentrated toxins.
Eat or drink unpasteurized dairy products such as cheese, yogurt and milk. be particularly wary of ice cream and other frozen confections that may have been made or stored in contaiminated containers.
Eat cold sauces such as mayonnaise, salad dressing, chutneys or salsas, which are usually raw and made by hand.
Eat buffet foods such as lasagna, casseroles, and quiches - unles you know they are fresh (not reheated) and have been kept steaming hot. Avoid buffets where there are no food covers or fly controls.
Eat creamy desserts, custrads or sauces that may not have been adequately refrigerated.

Beverage Precautions:

Travelers Should:
Use sealed bottled water or chemically treated, filtered or bottled for drinking and brushing teeth
Drink bev that are made only with boiled water (such as hot tea and coffeee). water boiled for even a minute is safe to drink.
Safely drink beer and wine; however, alcohol added to beverages does not render them safe

Travelers Should Not:
Drink Tap Water
Rinse Toothbrush in tap water
Use ice unless it is made from boiled, bottles or purified water. Freezing does not kill the organisms that cause diarrhea
Assume that water is safe bc it is chlorinated. Chlorination does not destroy all organisms that can make you ill.
Drink from wet cans or bottles. The water on them may be contaiminated.
Drink fruit juice unless it comes directly from a sealed container; otherwise it may have been diluted with tap water.

 

[goofprincess]

WELCOME all new families. I haven't posted much on this thread due to being over on the TA; looking forward to cruising with you all.

Brooklyn--THANKS for the post regarding all the bewares of. Good reminders and I like being informed. I agree about the Palo seating, there aren't that many tables for two, so what gives with the bookings.

Lynne--We left Maui on Saturday and have NOT seen the sun since landing in California. The rain goes on and on. We do need it, however, so am thankful. Still can't believe we missed you by one day.

We got our Palos and I splurged and got a tea. Rome will be our big day and still trying to figure out the rest. Its great to hear what everyone is planning on doing, so keep those posts coming.

Everyone have a good week.

 

[skoi]

Glad everyone got their reservations.

Brooklyn-
You should see the pages of info we got for Morocco. The kids are all over-inoculated due to two trips to China all the normal shots plus hep and typhoid and a few other things, I think. I just went to the travel clinic to get hep A, hep B and typhoid series started for our trip. But it's always good advice- basically the same thing they say for Mexico- even though sometimes we don't follow it.

It's nice to see people back onboard.

I'll definitely update the first post.

Our big news is that if we can get a booking on the same flight, oldest dd will be coming to Morocco with ds and me in March, which will just make the trip all the more hilarious.

Julie

 

[Brooklyn]

Glad everyone got their reservations.

Brooklyn-
You should see the pages of info we got for Morocco. The kids are all over-inoculated due to two trips to China all the normal shots plus hep and typhoid and a few other things, I think. I just went to the travel clinic to get hep A, hep B and typhoid series started for our trip. But it's always good advice- basically the same thing they say for Mexico- even though sometimes we don't follow it.

I was thinking about you when writing my post. DH can't be stationed overseas bc of DD. Her body can't handle the shots. There are a lot that she can't get at all.

 

[linkandclover]

Has anyone decided to book the Berber Village tour. We just did and I feel like i am buying something and not sure what I am paying for exactly. When I called Disney all I was told is that it is a mystery to them too.

 

[skoi]

Has anyone decided to book the Berber Village tour. We just did and I feel like i am buying something and not sure what I am paying for exactly. When I called Disney all I was told is that it is a mystery to them too.

We were looking at this and so was Jeanne I think. But neither of us can find any reviews. The problem is that the words are so common in Arabic and used in place names all over North Africa. I even tried looking it up in Arabic as close as I could come to it- I can't spell really well when I translate English letters to Arabic. (Ok, my Arabic is really poor, especially since I've been allegedly studying since the summer)

No luck. It sounds pretty cool though. I want to try it, kids don't. They want to go to Carthage and the medina in Tunis and eat all those foods Brooklyn's list says they shouldn't, like they did in China.


Julie

 

[friend of tinkerbell]

We booked the Berber Village excursion also. We can't find a thing online about it. We can't even find mention of the Douar Sidi activity center, which is said to be the location. We're hoping to find out more, or we might change to the Bardo Museum and Medina for Families. This tour includes a kids activity.