After a short nights sleep I awoke (6 am which was actually 7 EDT as you gain an hour crossing the time line) before the rest of the family to start using all of the information that I had read on this site and begin to explore the Disney Magic.
I started the day by checking out the status of the ship on the TV. One of the channels shows the temprature outside on the deck, the speed and direction of the ship, the size of the waves, the winds across the deck, and the distance traveled from our last port and the distance to our next port. On another channel you can see a view from a camera mounted over the bridge.
I then jumped into the bathroom. I actually would not say "jumped" as with the size of the bathroom that would have hurt! There is enough room for one (or two if someone is in the shower). We were in cabin 6303 which is as far forward as you can get on deck 6 and in cat 11. The suggestion about having a dollar store shoe caddy over the back of the door was a lifesaver!
So I got dressed and took off to explore! I started on deck 9 just to see the view of the ocean from the top of the ship. Upon stepping out on deck the ocean was vast. I found two ships on the horizon and a land mass off the port side. I then thought about where we were traveling and figured out that the land was probably Cuba (it was. Times and distance from land masses you pass are noted on the days navigator/front page/ top right). We were only 12 miles off the coast of Cuba. After looking off into the ocean and realizing how vast the ocean is I began to walk toward the aft section and check out the pool areas before the crowds decended.
The pool areas are smaller than I imagined but large enough to use early and station yourself near during the day (armed with a good book and a drink from the bar). There were plenty of tables and chairs along with deck lounges closer to the pools. There are also a couple of ping pong tables situated about mid ship on deck 9. At the very aft section lies topsiders buffet. A few people were already helping themselves to breakfast at the buffet and coffee and juice from the port/aft side of the ship. I decided then that I would return to my cabin (after more exploration) and get my wife for breakfast here with a view of the ocean. I then went up the starwell to deck 10 where I found myself outside PALO at the most aft part of the ship. Walking forward you get an overview of the pools (now you can see the Mickey shape of the pool) and the two smoke stacks of the ship (one being functional the other being the outside of the "STACK" which is the teens club).
From here I went down to deck four to find the "much balyhood" deck chairs. Taking the elevator down to deck 4 forward and upon exiting I found the Walt Disney Theater entrance and just outside it was the doors to the prominade on deck 4. There were a few (about 12) lounge chairs all along the deck. This deck is also used by joggers and walkers for their morning run. Alonng the walls were letters posted. These are the stations that we would use later for our safety drill. This deck surrounds the ship and can be walked 360 degrees around the ship.
After walking toward the front I re-entered the ship and walked down the stairs to enter the lobby on deck 3. In the lobby is a statue of captian Mickey at the ships wheel which is directly in front of the entrance to Lumiere's (open at 8 am for sitdown breakfast). It was now about 7:15 and I thought that it would be safe to awake my DW (she is not a morning person) and see about the two of us going back to deck 9 for breakfast and the view. I was surprized to find my wife up and eager to see what I had found. We took the elevator back up to deck nine and had a nice quiet breakfast from Topsiders. The were usual buffet fare of eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, toast (of all types) bagles, english muffins, danish, fruit, milk, and all that is available at the refreshment center. All of it was good but if you like your eggs well done (not runny) you then need to have your eggs at a sit down resturant as you wont get them well done here. Other than that breakfast was good and the view along with it was outstanding. If you want a nice quiet breakfast without all of the comotion from 2700 other guests (1000 of them children) then my suggestion is to be an early riser and partake of the buffet before 7:30 am. By this time it was now 8:30 and we returned to the cabin to check on DD. She was now up and getting ready to meet with her new found friends for breakfast.
My DW and I had plans to sit in on the shopping talk (my wife is the ultimate shopper) and DD was off to explore with her friends.
The Magic's shopping director is Carrie. You may think that something like this would have no value but I can tell you if you have never been there before then take the time to listen to this information as the information provided was right on target. Carrie explained that the stores that she talks about all are under the Disney Cruise satisfaction program (all are not in the program although they might tell you they are in order to get you to buy from them). Some of the stores make specials available (via carrie) to Disney Magic guests. If you plan to shop at a port of call (and have never been to this port of call before) be sure to attend this informative talk. It was held at the Buena Vista Theater on Deck 5 aft.
By now it was 10:30 and we ran back to the cabin to meet with DD and then go down to deck 4 for the safety drill. We grabbed our life vests and headed off to our station (G) for the drill. It starts off at exactly 10:45 am with seven short whistles and one long one. We lined up single file talest against the wall to shortest at the front facing the ocean. We were all instructed to wear our life vests (uncomfortable but important to know how to put on the life vest in an emergency). After taking attendance by cabin number we waited about 15 minutes and we were given the all clear.
We returned to the room to place our life vests in the closet and off to our next activity. On the Magic there were having a behind the scenes series which today featured Kevin Neary. Kevin was a PT Disney Store cast member at one time. A few years back the Disney Stores held a CM trivia contest among its CMs from all over the country. Kevin wanted to win so much that he literally wrote the book to study for the contest. His book "Ultimate Disney Trivia Book" has expanded to volume 4 with a new volume 5 due out soon. He was so well versed that Disney's publishing company tapped him to collaborate on the book and the rest is history. Kevin offered his own shortened version of the contest (20 questions) and the winners were provided prizes. He also offered some Q & A to the attendance of the activity.
It was now noon time that Captian Tom anounced his daily navigational update from the bridge. After the captian's anouncement we headed off to Parrot's Cay for lunch. Today was the Asian Buffet theme along with the usual lunch buffet items of salads and deli selections. The stir fry was wonderful with chicken, green peppers, onions, water chestnuts, mushrooms, snow peas, and some mongolian BBQ sauce to "kick it up a notch". DW had the regular fare and enjoyed the small deli sandwitches made from Turkey and cheese with lettuce and tomato on fresh baked rolls and potato salad. Deserts were great with Strawberry Cheesecake for DW and German Chocolate Cake for me.
We took a quick walk around deck 3 (to see where afternoon Bingo would be held) and then back to prominade lounge on deck 3 for the 1:15 Gemstone Seminar (DW loves jewlery). Carrie again provided some great information about where to shop, specials available just to Disney Magic guests, and imformation about stones that are available on Cozumel.
After that it was off to the gift shops. The ships stores are only open while the ship is at sea. Since all of the sales are not charged Duty (as on liquor, cigars, perfumes, etc.) and no state sales taxes, the ship can only sell items when they are at sea. The shops do offer a daily liquor special ( as in by 1 at a special price and a second at an even lower price). We bought a replica of the Magic that we planned on having Captian Tom sign on Friday and a few pins (I collect Disney pins) and two tee shirts for DD and myself.
DW and I were then off to the afternoon Bingo session. We bought the special of 4 sets of 6 Bingo cards for each of at $35 for each person. No luck here as we both came up short.
Now it was 4:40 and we headed back to the cabin to get ready for the evening's activities. We started by calling room service for a cheese plate as a snack before dinner which was delivered quickly. It was just the right size to curb our appitite before the show. We Headed out to the theater at 5:45 ( a little early but we wanted a good seat) and got to watch as many children that were arriving with their parents were interviewed on the red carpet and shown on the large screens in the theater. The show was great and not to be missed. It featured many of the Disney characters and was the 2nd best (next to Disney Dreams) of the entertainment on the cruise.
After the show were were off to our cabin so I could c grab my pin trading bags (that's right..BAGS, plural as in 3 of them) and off to the pin trading in the Lobby on deck 3. At the lobby we were surrounded by many families getting their pictures taken at the many stations in and near the lobby. The pin trading was near the lounge area just next to guest services. They also had a pin cart offering sales of limited edition pins only available on the Disney Magic. I did not do much trading but I did talk with a few young traders that had just started trading and gave them a few pointers and let them choose from my special pin bag ( I keep one bag just for kids as I can't say no to children that want to trade every pin they have for my Stitch pins on my trading lanyards). With people clearing out from the lobby we ran back to the cabin and then to dinner at Animator's Palate. Dinner tonight was great with the changing colors of the black and white walls of the resturant changing to full animated color during the evening. DW and I both had the filet of beef with roasted vegtables, I also had a tomato and greens salad with balsamic dressing and DW had the mixed greens. Desert was again an experience with DW having a double chocolate cake and I with vanila ice cream over an aprocot melba. DD was not happy with the dinner choices (teenagers) so the servers got her "an off the menu" choice of stuffed chicken breast and roasted potatoes. One of the families that were dining witrh us also had a DS that was 15 and after gulping down their dinner they both (DD and Ds of other couple) were off to the stack before dinner was finished to visit with their friends. Those of us at our table were again the last to leave the dining room as our conversations were endless and ended up sharing our experiences of the days activities and family activities from home. We did not leave the dining room until much after 10 pm and after a long day filled with activites and our day tomorrow we turned in early to get well rested for our excursion to the mainland of Mexico tomorrow to explore the Mayan Runins at Tulum and hopefully a few hours shopping in Cozumel!
I started the day by checking out the status of the ship on the TV. One of the channels shows the temprature outside on the deck, the speed and direction of the ship, the size of the waves, the winds across the deck, and the distance traveled from our last port and the distance to our next port. On another channel you can see a view from a camera mounted over the bridge.
I then jumped into the bathroom. I actually would not say "jumped" as with the size of the bathroom that would have hurt! There is enough room for one (or two if someone is in the shower). We were in cabin 6303 which is as far forward as you can get on deck 6 and in cat 11. The suggestion about having a dollar store shoe caddy over the back of the door was a lifesaver!
So I got dressed and took off to explore! I started on deck 9 just to see the view of the ocean from the top of the ship. Upon stepping out on deck the ocean was vast. I found two ships on the horizon and a land mass off the port side. I then thought about where we were traveling and figured out that the land was probably Cuba (it was. Times and distance from land masses you pass are noted on the days navigator/front page/ top right). We were only 12 miles off the coast of Cuba. After looking off into the ocean and realizing how vast the ocean is I began to walk toward the aft section and check out the pool areas before the crowds decended.
The pool areas are smaller than I imagined but large enough to use early and station yourself near during the day (armed with a good book and a drink from the bar). There were plenty of tables and chairs along with deck lounges closer to the pools. There are also a couple of ping pong tables situated about mid ship on deck 9. At the very aft section lies topsiders buffet. A few people were already helping themselves to breakfast at the buffet and coffee and juice from the port/aft side of the ship. I decided then that I would return to my cabin (after more exploration) and get my wife for breakfast here with a view of the ocean. I then went up the starwell to deck 10 where I found myself outside PALO at the most aft part of the ship. Walking forward you get an overview of the pools (now you can see the Mickey shape of the pool) and the two smoke stacks of the ship (one being functional the other being the outside of the "STACK" which is the teens club).
From here I went down to deck four to find the "much balyhood" deck chairs. Taking the elevator down to deck 4 forward and upon exiting I found the Walt Disney Theater entrance and just outside it was the doors to the prominade on deck 4. There were a few (about 12) lounge chairs all along the deck. This deck is also used by joggers and walkers for their morning run. Alonng the walls were letters posted. These are the stations that we would use later for our safety drill. This deck surrounds the ship and can be walked 360 degrees around the ship.
After walking toward the front I re-entered the ship and walked down the stairs to enter the lobby on deck 3. In the lobby is a statue of captian Mickey at the ships wheel which is directly in front of the entrance to Lumiere's (open at 8 am for sitdown breakfast). It was now about 7:15 and I thought that it would be safe to awake my DW (she is not a morning person) and see about the two of us going back to deck 9 for breakfast and the view. I was surprized to find my wife up and eager to see what I had found. We took the elevator back up to deck nine and had a nice quiet breakfast from Topsiders. The were usual buffet fare of eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, toast (of all types) bagles, english muffins, danish, fruit, milk, and all that is available at the refreshment center. All of it was good but if you like your eggs well done (not runny) you then need to have your eggs at a sit down resturant as you wont get them well done here. Other than that breakfast was good and the view along with it was outstanding. If you want a nice quiet breakfast without all of the comotion from 2700 other guests (1000 of them children) then my suggestion is to be an early riser and partake of the buffet before 7:30 am. By this time it was now 8:30 and we returned to the cabin to check on DD. She was now up and getting ready to meet with her new found friends for breakfast.
My DW and I had plans to sit in on the shopping talk (my wife is the ultimate shopper) and DD was off to explore with her friends.
The Magic's shopping director is Carrie. You may think that something like this would have no value but I can tell you if you have never been there before then take the time to listen to this information as the information provided was right on target. Carrie explained that the stores that she talks about all are under the Disney Cruise satisfaction program (all are not in the program although they might tell you they are in order to get you to buy from them). Some of the stores make specials available (via carrie) to Disney Magic guests. If you plan to shop at a port of call (and have never been to this port of call before) be sure to attend this informative talk. It was held at the Buena Vista Theater on Deck 5 aft.
By now it was 10:30 and we ran back to the cabin to meet with DD and then go down to deck 4 for the safety drill. We grabbed our life vests and headed off to our station (G) for the drill. It starts off at exactly 10:45 am with seven short whistles and one long one. We lined up single file talest against the wall to shortest at the front facing the ocean. We were all instructed to wear our life vests (uncomfortable but important to know how to put on the life vest in an emergency). After taking attendance by cabin number we waited about 15 minutes and we were given the all clear.
We returned to the room to place our life vests in the closet and off to our next activity. On the Magic there were having a behind the scenes series which today featured Kevin Neary. Kevin was a PT Disney Store cast member at one time. A few years back the Disney Stores held a CM trivia contest among its CMs from all over the country. Kevin wanted to win so much that he literally wrote the book to study for the contest. His book "Ultimate Disney Trivia Book" has expanded to volume 4 with a new volume 5 due out soon. He was so well versed that Disney's publishing company tapped him to collaborate on the book and the rest is history. Kevin offered his own shortened version of the contest (20 questions) and the winners were provided prizes. He also offered some Q & A to the attendance of the activity.
It was now noon time that Captian Tom anounced his daily navigational update from the bridge. After the captian's anouncement we headed off to Parrot's Cay for lunch. Today was the Asian Buffet theme along with the usual lunch buffet items of salads and deli selections. The stir fry was wonderful with chicken, green peppers, onions, water chestnuts, mushrooms, snow peas, and some mongolian BBQ sauce to "kick it up a notch". DW had the regular fare and enjoyed the small deli sandwitches made from Turkey and cheese with lettuce and tomato on fresh baked rolls and potato salad. Deserts were great with Strawberry Cheesecake for DW and German Chocolate Cake for me.
We took a quick walk around deck 3 (to see where afternoon Bingo would be held) and then back to prominade lounge on deck 3 for the 1:15 Gemstone Seminar (DW loves jewlery). Carrie again provided some great information about where to shop, specials available just to Disney Magic guests, and imformation about stones that are available on Cozumel.
After that it was off to the gift shops. The ships stores are only open while the ship is at sea. Since all of the sales are not charged Duty (as on liquor, cigars, perfumes, etc.) and no state sales taxes, the ship can only sell items when they are at sea. The shops do offer a daily liquor special ( as in by 1 at a special price and a second at an even lower price). We bought a replica of the Magic that we planned on having Captian Tom sign on Friday and a few pins (I collect Disney pins) and two tee shirts for DD and myself.
DW and I were then off to the afternoon Bingo session. We bought the special of 4 sets of 6 Bingo cards for each of at $35 for each person. No luck here as we both came up short.
Now it was 4:40 and we headed back to the cabin to get ready for the evening's activities. We started by calling room service for a cheese plate as a snack before dinner which was delivered quickly. It was just the right size to curb our appitite before the show. We Headed out to the theater at 5:45 ( a little early but we wanted a good seat) and got to watch as many children that were arriving with their parents were interviewed on the red carpet and shown on the large screens in the theater. The show was great and not to be missed. It featured many of the Disney characters and was the 2nd best (next to Disney Dreams) of the entertainment on the cruise.
After the show were were off to our cabin so I could c grab my pin trading bags (that's right..BAGS, plural as in 3 of them) and off to the pin trading in the Lobby on deck 3. At the lobby we were surrounded by many families getting their pictures taken at the many stations in and near the lobby. The pin trading was near the lounge area just next to guest services. They also had a pin cart offering sales of limited edition pins only available on the Disney Magic. I did not do much trading but I did talk with a few young traders that had just started trading and gave them a few pointers and let them choose from my special pin bag ( I keep one bag just for kids as I can't say no to children that want to trade every pin they have for my Stitch pins on my trading lanyards). With people clearing out from the lobby we ran back to the cabin and then to dinner at Animator's Palate. Dinner tonight was great with the changing colors of the black and white walls of the resturant changing to full animated color during the evening. DW and I both had the filet of beef with roasted vegtables, I also had a tomato and greens salad with balsamic dressing and DW had the mixed greens. Desert was again an experience with DW having a double chocolate cake and I with vanila ice cream over an aprocot melba. DD was not happy with the dinner choices (teenagers) so the servers got her "an off the menu" choice of stuffed chicken breast and roasted potatoes. One of the families that were dining witrh us also had a DS that was 15 and after gulping down their dinner they both (DD and Ds of other couple) were off to the stack before dinner was finished to visit with their friends. Those of us at our table were again the last to leave the dining room as our conversations were endless and ended up sharing our experiences of the days activities and family activities from home. We did not leave the dining room until much after 10 pm and after a long day filled with activites and our day tomorrow we turned in early to get well rested for our excursion to the mainland of Mexico tomorrow to explore the Mayan Runins at Tulum and hopefully a few hours shopping in Cozumel!
