April 3 - 6 on the Wonder - 3-nights trip report with PICTURES

[nzdisneymom]

We had a wonderful 3-night cruise on the Disney Wonder. I'm working on my trip report this week and will post along the way including pictures. I told the other DISers on-board that I would do a trip report but they had to promise to jump in and add to it, too. We all enjoyed reading Dreamfinder's report in the days before we had our WONDERful cruise and hope to "pay it forward" to someone else counting the days until their own journey.

So check back later and we'll start our adventure.

 

[nzdisneymom]

Cast: Cindy D. (43), Gary (52), Nathan (11 3/4), and Zachary (10 1/2)
Where: Disney Wonder (Thursday through Sunday)
Why: Spring Break and celebrating Gary’s 30 year anniversary at his job

Thursday, April 3, 2008.

It’s Cruise day! Our 3-nights on the Wonder would begin today! We were looking forward to this day more than the WDW portion of our trip. Because we were driving over from Saratoga Springs, we knew we didn’t have to leave too early, so we let the kids sleep in until around 9 a.m. I woke up early and was ready to get packed up and head out. We had done most of the packing the night before, so we mostly had to get the rest of the bathroom stuff and the kitchen stuff packed up from our 4 days at WDW. I had to sort out what was going on the cruise and what was staying in the car. And then I had to figure out what needed to be in the day-bag that I would have to carry with me until we could get into our stateroom at 1:30 – yet another reason to not get to the Port too early.

We headed out around 9:40 a.m. with an ETA of 10:45. We took 535 to 536 to 417 to 528 to the Port. Traffic was light the whole way. Tolls were $1, $1, and $1.25. We arrived at the port right at 10:45, just ahead of a DCL bus. The Port personnel were efficient and informative about providing directions and instructions for getting us unloaded and the car parked. Gary dropped the boys and me off with our hand-luggage, and we gave the rest of the luggage to the porter. The porter pointed us to the terminal entrance and showed Gary where to go to park and how to get back to the terminal, and double-checked to make sure he had his photo ID. He used his Driver’s License for his photo ID so that I could take his passport in with me to go through the check-in process.

As the boys and I were in the line (there were less than 10 people ahead of us) to go through the security scanner, our fellow-DISer Deb T. came in line. She had been on the DCL bus that had been behind us. We had hoped to meet on Wednesday at Epcot but it hadn’t worked out, but she recognized me right away from a picture I had sent her previously. The boys and I went through security and were greeted by Disney CMs who made sure I had everything I needed before entering the check-in line. I asked about the Bahamas immigration form and she told me that they were not doing those any more; I had wondered when we didn’t have them in our documents packet.

Because we were returning guests, we are part of the Castaway Club which provides a separate check-in line than general check-in. We were given a boarding ticket for our family and I went right on in; there was no one else waiting, so I got to go right on up to check-in. Check-in was pretty seamless except that two of our Keys to the World cards had to be re-done because our names were wonky. The names print out based on the passport swipes, according to the CM, but ours didn’t print right so he had to override the names to get them right. Because we had done online registration, I didn’t have to change the kids’ charging privileges; the registration process had taken care of making them non-charging KTTW cards.

I finished up and found where the kids were just as Gary came in looking for us. It wasn’t busy in the terminal at all; the kids were watching t.v. Deb got done with her check-in as well so she came over and I introduced her to Gary and we started getting acquainted. She went out to watch the ship while I took the boys to get their wristbands and pager for the Oceaneer Lab. There was only one family ahead of us but by the time we were done, there was a considerable queue.

We had about 30 minutes to wait, so I turned the boys loose with my camera and asked them to get pictures. Nathan was the main one getting pictures: ship model, Minnie Mouse, the Wonder.

And then it was time to board. We were boarding with Deb in Group 2, but the queue was jammed up with Group 3 people blocking and it wasn’t very clear as to where the line was for boarding, but it was only a couple of minutes before they announced for groups 2 *and* 3 to board, so we were able to go through. We had agreed to by-pass the Embarkation photo opportunity (and every other photo opportunity this trip), so we went straight on through and crossed the gangway to have our names announced as we entered the Atrium of the Wonder!

 

[Dreamfinder2]

Hey, Cindy! Good to see you weighing in on your cruise!

Looking forward to your report as it unfolds.

 

[Grumpymom73]

I can't wait to read more. We are going on the Wonder May 8. I love reading trip reports as we wait too!

 

[Deb T.]

Deb T. here ~ adding to the embarkation part of nzdisneymom's TR (as promised! ).

This "Cast of Characters" consisted of just me, a middle school teacher on a much needed and well deserved spring break. Why was I sailing solo? Well, as fate would have it, DH had to cancel due to work , DS is in law school in Sacramento, and DD is a teacher in a different county and both kids had a different spring break than I did . I could have cancelled with DH... ummmmmmm... riiiiiiiiiiiight... maybe next time dear . Since this was my 6th DCL cruise, I'm pretty familiar with the ship and felt totally comfortable traveling alone. Yes, alone in a Cat6 cabin. No one to answer to. No one to plan around. No one to elbow when that person wakes me up snoring. Ahhhhhhh, all alone. (I highly recommend it!) Actually, I figured that the only awkward time for me would be the first night at dinner when I would have to explain why I was sailing alone, especially if I was seated at a table with a family. I had no idea exactly how awkward that first dinner would turn out to be.... but more on that later.

I arrived at MCO at 8:40am and headed straight to Disney's Magical Express counter (Side B, Level 1) to check in for my ride to the port. (Cruise guests go to a separate line at the far left side of the counter.) I happily learned I would be on the first Disney bus from the airport headed to the port , then found a comfy chair to sit and read (and people watch) while I waited. The first bus left a little after 10am and soon we were going over that last bridge where The Wonder comes into view ! Oh what a beautiful sight! After we pulled up to the Disney port terminal, the driver stepped off the bus to offload luggage from under the bus while a DCL cm boarded the bus to tell us where to go and what to expect during the check-in process. I knew that Cindy and her family were planning to arrive early and expected to find them already in the terminal, so I was surprised when I saw her in the security line with her boys! As she said, I recognized her immediately from a photo she'd sent!

On my cruise last April, we received our boarding number immediately after going through the security screening at the bottom of the escalator, but this time we received them just prior to entering the check-in line. I had already printed all my cruise documents, so check-in was very quick and easy.

It was fun to finally meet Cindy and her family in person after "talking" with her for months on our cruise meets thread.

I have to be honest here and tell you that the boarding process was a complete mess on this day. We saw the concierge guests being escorted through the big yellow Mickey ears and knew that, as Boarding Group 2, we'd soon be able to board so we headed toward the ropes. There seemed to be two huge lines and we weren't sure which one to get in, so we picked one and once it was announced that Group 2 could board, that line moved only a little bit. I realized the family in front of us was holding #3, so we moved to the other line which, unfortunately, did not move either. Our only other choice would have been to cut in front of both lines to move to the front, but that seemed rude, so we waited, wondering why none of the lines were moving. After a while, they announced that Groups 2 and 3 could board! What??? I have no idea why an effort wasn't made to make it clear that if you weren't holding the correct boarding number then you needed to move off to the side so other people could board. It was a little disappointing to have missed our golden opportunity but, in the end, we still boarded in a timely manner and were soon onboard one of the two most beautiful ships in the world! I also by-passed the photo line, but did have them announce my name as I boarded... and became teary-eyed as usual. Then I turned to clap as Cindy and her family were announced! Yea!

We had decided to head to Beach Blanket for lunch, but first I wanted to pick up a Navigator from Guest Services since I knew I wouldn't officially be getting one until my cabin was ready at 1:30pm. Cindy thought this was a good idea and picked one up, also! Then we hopped on an elevator to Deck 9!

 

[Deb T.]

I'm going to jump a little ahead of Cindy's report here because I won't be able to post again until tomorrow night...


Cindy and her family were very gracious and invited me to join them for the wonderful embarkation buffet lunch! I enjoyed getting to know them! After lunch, Cindy and I both headed to Wavebands to ask about dining changes. Cindy wanted a different dining rotation at her early seating. I wanted to find out whether I would be dining with other single cruisers and adults or if I had been used as a "filler" at a table with a family at my late seating. Turns out the latter was the case, so Simone checked and found a spot for me at a table with two adult women who were traveling together and a family of three at the PLA 8:30pm seating. Awesome! Or so I thought...

I then went to the spa to schedule a massage. I had tried to do this online at 90 days out, but the only time slots available conflicted with other activities I wanted to participate in, specifically: the Sail-away party, the shows, the dinners, and Castaway Cay. I asked about a 10:30am massage for the next morning (Nassau day) but was told nothing was available and another time slot was suggested. When I declined and said that 10:30am was the only time I could do it, miraculously that time became available! Oh I am a lucky girl!

I wandered around the ship for a little while and also slipped into Cove Cafe to check out their little glass case full of wonderful treats. I helped myself to something chocolate and then went to wait for the "rope drop" so I could drop my day bag in my cabin. Stateroom 6598 was perfect, just as I expected! I looked through all the new Castaway Club goodies, verified my $100 onboard rebooking credit, and unpacked my day bag before enjoying some quiet time on my verandah. I peeked in the hallway twice before my suitcase appeared and then quickly unpacked. After putting my "valuables" in the safe (wallet and camera), I couldn't get it to lock! Oh no! I tried my room key, my Disney VISA, and everything else in my wallet that had a magical magnetic strip! Darn! It was 3:15pm and time for our DIS meet so I grabbed the stuff out of the safe and headed up to the Mickey Pool. After the meet, I called Guest Services to report my very un-Disney-like uncooperative safe locking mechanism, only to be reminded that you have to swipe the card magnetic-side UP. Duh! How many DCL cruises did I say I've been on?!?!?!?!?

Our DIS meet was nice even though there were only 4 DISers and their families in attendance: nzdisneymom, Ness2289, GoofyJJ, and me. It was great to put faces with DIS names. We had all hoped that the others who had posted on our meets thread (Pryncesa, Belle'sMom, Isi, and momof-4/wjruss/mommyruss) would also attend, but didn't. You know, it's amazing that there were nearly 3,000 passengers onboard and yet the four of us kept running into each other several times each day!

We all headed off to prepare for the 4pm lifeboat drill. Afterward, I went to the front of Deck 10 to watch us set sail. As we pulled away from the dock, I watched two dolphins off the starboard side! I stayed at the front of the ship until we were past the last buoy and officially out-to-sea. Then I headed to the Walt Disney Theater for the greatly anticipated 6:15pm showing of Toy Story! All I can say is WOW! I loved the whole show! Woody and Sid did a particularly AMAZING job of portraying their characters! Buzz needs a little more bent-knee bounce in his walk, but otherwise did an excellent job, too. ALL the characters were awesome! After the show, I briefly considered skipping dinner in Parrot Cay so I could watch it again. In hindsight, I should have...

 

[nzdisneymom]

Because Deb and I spent some time together after embarking, bear with me for any repeats!

As Deb mentioned, we stopped at Guest Services to pick up Navigators; I’m so glad that she got them because she also got the movie schedule. I had mentioned on the Meet thread several times about wanting to be sure to see a movie in the Buena Vista Theater and she had remembered that. At first glance it looked like I would, indeed, have several opportunities to see the movies we wanted to see.

We both wanted to change some dining plans but agreed along with Gary and the boys that lunch was more important at that point than worrying about dinner! So we got on the elevator and swooshed on up to Deck 9 for our first steps outdoors on the Wonder! It was amazing! The kids were looking for both the similarities and differences between the Magic and the Wonder. They were excited to see Pinocchio’s and Pluto’s! We noticed the water-play splash zone on the port side of the Mickey Slide which is not on the Magic. It really makes good use of that space!

 

[nzdisneymom]

The boys stopped to get their lunches outdoors while the adults went in to Beach Blanket Buffet. I have to say that I like the theming of BBB better than Topsiders; it just feels more vacationy (is that a word?). We were greeted with sanitation wipes and big smiles.

The buffet lunch had the standard sailing day foods including the peel-and-eat shrimp that previous cruisers had recently tempted us with in pictures! We each got what we wanted and then found the boys had picked out a table inside (they don’t like to eat outside because of the wind) and we joined them. Deb accepted our invitation to eat lunch with us – it took a little bit of convincing to assure her that she was absolutely not intruding on our family vacation. We all love meeting new people and my boys had “taken” to her immediately. There’s just something so exciting about sail-away day that you have to share that excitement with someone!

After the boys finished eating, they took off for foosball and exploring. Deb and I went down to Wavebands to see about our dining needs. Our family had PTA rotation. Our only hope had been to NOT have Tritons on the second night because we had thought we would just have dinner at Beach Blanket Buffet that night. But I didn’t want to miss eating in Tritons either. After a short wait, I found there wasn’t availability to switch our rotation (I figured there wouldn’t be) but he did give me some options about how to switch on a daily basis, but it was too much effort.

Deb and I parted ways after getting our dining situated and I set off to explore the ship and take some pictures of the terminal, gangway, and parking lot from Deck 4.

Gary came out then so we roamed the ship for a bit, wondering where the boys had gotten off to while waiting for it to be 1:30 so we could go to the cabin. Zachary was wearing Gary’s watch so we didn’t know what time it was.

 

[nzdisneymom]

We headed up to Deck 9 to get a drink (and Gary had already had an ice cream) and then wait for the room. As we were heading for the drink station, Zachary found us and told us Nathan was in the room. The boys had been going up and down the stairs waiting for the all-clear to go to the staterooms (they were just a wee bit excited). So we went to our stateroom (6116) and dropped off our day-bags.

We had spent 10 nights in stateroom 6116 on the Magic last summer. We loved the location so much that we have declared this to be “our” cabin. But when we entered, Gary remarked how small the cabin was and how he couldn’t believe we had spent 10 nights in such small space! Then he stepped out onto the verandah and he had that “aha!” moment when he realized how much space the verandah adds and how much time he spent (and would spend) out there!

We had some welcome-aboard gifts from Castaway Club and of course all the papers that are left in the stateroom when you arrive. I got out a pen and started going through the Navigator to see what I wanted to do for the afternoon. I knew we had a DIS Meet at 3:15 by Goofy’s Galley, so I needed to plan around it.

I had considered going to the Shopping Show where they tell you about the ports and give you flyers and such, but I’d never been to one and it was scheduled for 2:30 – 3:30. I thought I might go and just slip out to make it to the meet. Then there was an announcement over the speakers, including a promotion for the shopping show, and Zachary said he wanted to go. So we did.

If you’ve never been to a Shopping Show, they are actually pretty entertaining. Dustin was our Shopping Guide and he made it interesting as he told us about shopping in Nassau. And of course there was a drawing for a couple of things including a bear from the Del Sol store that a child would win. I have to tell you that the only store I wanted to shop at in Nassau was the Del Sol store. I’ve only been to one twice before – once in Huntington Beach, CA (the first one) and the other in Key West. Both times I bought t-shirts for the boys and they had outgrown them, so I wanted to get another shirt for each of them. I was hoping that the shopping show would give us a discount or a flyer for something free like a tote, but the only free thing they had was lanyards. Oh, I love that changing nail polish they have, too!

Zachary and I watched the time and as it got closer to 3:15 we knew we had to make a choice – miss the drawing for the bear (and there weren’t a lot of kids there) or be late for the Meet. I had Zachary run upstairs to tell Deb and whoever else made it that I was coming but was going to be late. His first trip up, no one was there yet, but he went back a few minutes later to deliver my message. We finished up with the show (and Zachary didn’t win even though several adults around us gave him their tickets) and then I went up to the meet.

It was so nice to meet the other families that we’ve been posting with for months. We had organized a fish-extender gift exchange so it was nice to have faces for when we made our deliveries later in the day. The deck was getting pretty crowded so we didn’t “meet” for very long but it was a good time to know who our fellow DISers were. As Deb mentioned, we all kept running into each other!

After the Meet, I returned to the cabin to find that four of our five bags had made it. But then I discovered that really all five had made it, but that Gary had already efficiently unpacked his bag and stowed it under the bed! He also had already had a nap! Nathan was watching t.v. and also coming in and out from the verandah.

We got ready for the lifeboat drill and went out to our familiar Assembly Station N. This was our opportunity to see that Zachary really is bigger than his older brother Nathan as we were instructed to line up smallest to largest. The drill didn’t take long and it was an overcast day so it wasn’t unbearable being outside as it has been on our previous voyages. The worst part about the lifeboat drill is getting back in and returning to your cabin; the passageways are crammed with people, and of course there are always those who insist on taking their life jackets off and dragging the straps for someone to trip on.

We made it safely back to the cabin and I started unpacking, particularly looking for our clothes to wear to dinner. Mine needed a quick pressing, so I went off to the laundry room. There was one guy in there getting ready to do his laundry already, but he said he’d already been traveling for several days! We had, too, but we had been at Saratoga Springs and had done all of our laundry the night before! This was my only trip to the laundry room for the cruise!

Next I got Zachary to go with me to deliver our fish extender gifts. The other participants were all on the starboard side of ship and all on decks 5, 6, and 7, and all either midship or aft, so we didn’t have to run all over the ship! We had already had a delivery from a DISer and the boys had so much fun checking our “fish mail” whenever something was in there during the trip!

Then it was time for sail-away! We had opted to skip the party but wanted to be up on Deck 10 for pulling out of the port. We took a quick walk around the party and then suddenly we were on our way. We hadn’t heard the horn so I was a bit confused. But never mind, we found a spot to watch us pull away and head through the channel. As we cleared the channel, that’s when the horn played, and we were way forward so we got an earful! We took some pictures and then headed back down to get ready for dinner.

 

[Dreamfinder2]

Cindy, Dustin was the shopping guide on our cruise. While I sure as heck wasn't gonna go to any shopping presentation , my girls did, and Dustin recognized them and spoke to them whenever he saw them on the ship. They enjoyed getting his recommendations and collected "freebies" while we were in port.

Looking foward to more!

Oh, yeah, Deb T. - good to see you piggybacking here. I told Amy about your son. She just rolled her eyes and grinned.

 

[RLccweems]

I love your TR and all the pics. I can't wait to read more....

 

[Deb T.]

The boys stopped to get their lunches outdoors while the adults went in to Beach Blanket Buffet. I have to say that I like the theming of BBB better than Topsiders; it just feels more vacationy (is that a word?). We were greeted with sanitation wipes and big smiles.

Okay, I have to admit that I couldn't help taking a peek at this thread between classes. ...and this would be because my heart and mind are still on The Wonder while my body is back on land.

I wanted to pop in to say I think the difference between the two buffet restaurants is that The Magic's Topsiders feels a little more sophisticated with its blue dolphin motif whereas The Wonder's Beach Blanket is very "beachy" with colorful stain-glass sails and beach balls. Cindy is right, BB definitely feels more "vacationy"!

I'll be back online after school... TTFN

 

[scottishwee35]

We had a wonderful 3-night cruise on the Disney Wonder. I'm working on my trip report this week and will post along the way including pictures. I told the other DISers on-board that I would do a trip report but they had to promise to jump in and add to it, too. We all enjoyed reading Dreamfinder's report in the days before we had our WONDERful cruise and hope to "pay it forward" to someone else counting the days until their own journey.

So check back later and we'll start our adventure.

Hi Cindy

Good to heard that you all had a good times. I will reading your forum

Our cruise is 28 days now and we are looking forward to Panama Canal cruise.

Take care.

Scottishwee35

 

[scottishwee35]

.

Next I got Zachary
ome pictures

He look grown up since I last saw him last year. I will show this photos to Keith tomorrow.

Scottishwee35

 

[nzdisneymom]

He look grown up since I last saw him last year. I will show this photos to Keith tomorrow.

Scottishwee35

You know, he really has grown a lot in the last several months. He really doesn't look like the same kid we took to the Med.

I know you guys are looking forward to your trip - coming up real soon! Can't wait for your trip report!

 

[nzdisneymom]

Here are the pictures of the terminal and the gangway. I thought I had already uploaded them when I posted before but instead of editing them into the posts, I'll just put them here. These are from Deck 4.

 

[naner]

subscribing!

 

[Hypermommy]

Great start! Can't wait to read more from all of you. When you first said something about requiring people to post my first thought was "well... do I have to be nice?" Glad to know I don't have to (post or be nice).

But quite honestly... can't wait to hear more. And see more pictures!!!

 

[nzdisneymom]

Thursday, Continued...

Our dining rotation was Parrot Cay, Tritons, and then Animator’s Palate. I was looking forward to Parrot Cay the most because they have my most favorite dessert – crème brulee cheesecake! Mmmmmm.

I should preface our dinner experience by saying that on our first cruise, I was all about the dining rooms, making sure we all looked our best, etc. But boys (and DHs) being boys, getting them into dress pants and dress shirts was not a pleasant part of our previous cruises, so this time I promised that I wouldn’t bug them about what they wore. I made sure to pack what they would need should they decide to eat in the dining rooms each evening. And because we were on the 3-night cruise, I knew that dress was a bit more casual than on the 7-night. But even so, I still wanted clean shirts and faces and preferred that they wear long pants. So they abided by my wishes and off we went.

We had main dining but the later of the seating times (6:00 p.m.) and were scheduled for table 74. As we were getting ready to queue for Parrot Cay, DISer Ness2289 and her daughter were just coming down, too. We compared table numbers to find that they were at our table! How cool was that? <start singing It’s a Small World after all…>

We were taken to our table where we met our server Alfredo and our assistant server Catherine. It was a 6-top, so it was going to be just the six of us for dinners. That was nice to have another DISer, and it was Ness2289’s first cruise, so I was excited to hear her perspective on things.

Dinner got started with that yummy banana bread they have in Parrot Cay, and I started with a caesar salad that was every bit as good as I had remembered. But between the salad and the entrée, I started feeling sick – as in the ship’s motion is making me nauseous. Uh-oh! Ness2289’s DD was also feeling puny and so was Nathan. Gary sweetly went upstairs to get the Dramamine (chewables, for children). Nathan took his, ate a few of his grapes, and then left to go check out the Lab. Our entrees arrived and looked delicious, but I was only able to manage a few bites before I knew I’d better not. I hated the wastefulness (but Gary was glad to have my double-baked potato!) and I took some Dramamine then, too. Time for dessert and I really considered it, but decided I had better pass because I knew I could have some tomorrow Zachary left at some point to go back to the room but I stayed until Gary was done. We found out the next day that there was a lot of room service this night due to the seas – they weren’t rough, but just enough of a difference in motion to cause folks to feel ick.

 

[nzdisneymom]

After dinner, we went back up to the room. Nathan had been to the Lab but said the ship simulator wasn’t working, so he checked himself out and went back to the cabin.

Our stateroom host (Nonoy) had turned our beds down while we were at dinner and left our towel animal (swan) and arranged our soft friends that cruised with us at the foot of Nathan's bed.

Toy Story the Musical was the show for the evening and I really wanted to see it. So I had about 1/2 hour to get myself feeling better, so I laid down for a bit while the boys watched t.v. and Gary sat on the Verandah. The Dramamine had time to kick in (next time I will know to go ahead and take it right after sail-away to give it time to work before dinner), so Zachary and I went to the Walt Disney Theater around 8 p.m.

On the Med Cruise last summer, we had decided that sitting in the front section off to the right was a good spot for watching the shows, so we headed down for our favorite row. The theater was pretty full by the time the show started. There were the usual “no flash photography, no LED screens” announcements and then Rachel came on stage. We had sailed with Rachel in Dec. 2005 for our first cruise and it was interesting to me how much her script is the same.

We had seen every show on the Magic and were wowed by many of them, but I have to say that Toy Story the Musical was my favorite WOW performance! The performers were on and energetic, the effects were fun, and the costuming was amazing. This was the only show I had planned to see and I didn’t want to miss it! Zachary and I both gave it two thumbs up and considered it a highlight of the trip!

After the show, I wandered through the gift shops for a few minutes, finding a postcard for my office door, a magnet for the refrigerator, and a Cruise Line Goofy to add to our collection of soft friends. Then back to the room to find out who wanted to go get hot chocolate with me from Deck 9.


Nathan had already had his shower, but unfortunately we didn’t have HOT water – it was barely warm. Ugh. But it was warm enough and felt refreshing after being in the heat of the day, so I didn’t call about the shower, thinking perhaps that it was due to so many other people taking showers at the same time.

We got hot chocolate from Deck 9. Speaking of the beverage station, I meant to get a picture of it to show what beverages they offer, but I didn’t get it. But I did notice that they have both regular Diet Coke and caffeine free Diet Coke. They have Sprite and Diet Sprite.

The boys went to sleep pretty quickly – Nathan on the bottom and Zachary on the top bunk. I flipped through channels while reading through the DCL book that has the room service menu in it. I came across the story of Castaway Cay (starts on page 36) and found it interesting to read the Disney tale of the beginning of CC. I made a note to have Gary and the boys read it before going to CC on Saturday as it explains why some things are named what they are (like She Sells Seashells and Everything Else – with Seashells crossed out). I watched some folks playing basketball out on the sports deck (beware of what you do on the sports deck – you never know who might be voyeuring). And then I found the Q/A channel where they have FAQs about the ship and shipboard services. This was helpful to me because I found out that once per voyage you can cash a personal check up to $100 on board and I was a little lower in cash than I wanted to be for Nassau.

Then off to zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz………………………..