August 13, 2011 Med - Mickey's Marauding Mates

[BWV Dreamin]

How does this look for a fun day in Villefranche?

http://www.boatbookings.com/yacht_search/yacht_view.php?pid=1545&currency=USD

Wishful thinking....

Ha! We are doing the 1/2 day Monaco and Monte Carlo thru DCL. Only one we booked thru Disney.

 

[fongds]

Yeah....we're going on a cruise!

Does anyone know.....we have two connecting cabins (for the five of us)...are we going to have to buy two photo CDs to get all our pictures??!!

Starting to think about what we're going to pack/wear. i also need to nail down what we're going to do in Rome. The Rome DCL excursions didn't really appeal to us....i just don't think the kids would do well with the vatican museums. So i think we'll do the train into Rome and our own walking tour. DH and i have been to Rome a few times (a long time ago) so i hope we can do it.

July is going to be so busy i'm sure it will fly by. Lots of swim meets. Also our oldest is going to be in the musical Honk....so she is busy rehearsing.

Annie - its been SO long since i've been in Paris, i'm not sure any of the restaurants we ate at are still open. Also in the past we have stayed in nice hotels on the right bank....now we are in an apartment on the left bank. We ate some really nice dinners at fancy restaurants in the past but not with three young kids....they can't stand to sit at a table that long.

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

 

[Kels Sem]

Hey LeeAnn, Karen, I'll be doing you girls in a few cocktails! I can't wait to get on that boat to enjoy a few DH also enjoys a few beers.
At work yesterday there wasn't much work done as my line manager is flying to Palma tomorrow for a med cruise with RC. All we did was talk about cruises it got me really excited! Another colleague is leaving from England today on a RC ship for 2 weeks round the med While we were on the subject of holidays yesterday I booked my annual leave for next year so we can go to Florida Nothing booked yet as the flights won't be out until we're back from the cruise but I'm planning in my head

I got myself a new sundress in the sale and a also a new kipling bag. I also got DD some nice sundresses as well. I'm going to go and raid my mums wardobe as she has loads of summer clothes. We have similar tastes and we wear the same size.

Have a great weekend everyone.

 

[west&east]

Good morning all!

DD and I were supposed to go with 2 other moms and daughters to see Taylor Swift last night. Poor Taylor has bronchitis so the concert was cancelled and rescheduled for November! The girls were so disappointed. Instead, we all went to Cheesecake Factory for dinner and then shopped. Starting to give DD12 some more freedom in the mall so she and her friends went ahead and tried on some fun dresses at Dillards. She ended up finding a great dress for the cruise!

The moms shopped a bit too and I also found a dress which was a great surprise because I wasn't planning on looking yet.

I think DD, DH, and I are set for clothes although I still need shoes. Got to get some decent clothes for DS.

 

[west&east]

DH works in IT for a small local lumber yard and he's been putting in some wild hours lately on some conversion that is driving him NUTS. (read: he will DEFINITELY be ready to throw back a few beers by vaca!) And don't get me started on the NFL! . DH still hasn't sold his last Redskins seat & that's ticking me off. That's almost $1,200 we're "out" until he does. Oh and I can also put down 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 mojitos if I put my mind to it. I had some good ones out by the pool on the Wonder last time we cruised. Our friends last weekend had a frozen drink machine running all weekend with coconut lime frozen mojitos in one side. They were like mojito slushies!

[smoothies!! [/COLOR]

My DH used to work in a paper mill. I think they will have lots to talk about. Must be really hard to sell that ticket right now with the NFL situation...

 

[Anal Annie]

Hey LeeAnn, Karen, I'll be doing you girls in a few cocktails! I can't wait to get on that boat to enjoy a few DH also enjoys a few beers.
At work yesterday there wasn't much work done as my line manager is flying to Palma tomorrow for a med cruise with RC. All we did was talk about cruises it got me really excited! Another colleague is leaving from England today on a RC ship for 2 weeks round the med While we were on the subject of holidays yesterday I booked my annual leave for next year so we can go to Florida Nothing booked yet as the flights won't be out until we're back from the cruise but I'm planning in my head

Can't wait to throw back a few with you girls!!

Speaking of Palma....has anybody done any other research on the beaches there BESIDES Palma Nova? I am still wondering if that's our best bet to take a taxi to for the day. I know it's "family friendly" and that there are places to eat & restrooms and that it's close to the port. Wondering if it will be the most crowded tho because of ship excursions going there. But if we're relying on taxis to go I want to be sure we go someplace that will have plenty of taxis to RETURN to the port too. I'm a little paranoid about being stranded somewhere.

I got myself a new sundress in the sale and a also a new kipling bag. I also got DD some nice sundresses as well. I'm going to go and raid my mums wardobe as she has loads of summer clothes. We have similar tastes and we wear the same size.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Glad someone else is finally shopping!!

Good morning all!

DD and I were supposed to go with 2 other moms and daughters to see Taylor Swift last night. Poor Taylor has bronchitis so the concert was cancelled and rescheduled for November! The girls were so disappointed. Instead, we all went to Cheesecake Factory for dinner and then shopped. Starting to give DD12 some more freedom in the mall so she and her friends went ahead and tried on some fun dresses at Dillards. She ended up finding a great dress for the cruise!

The moms shopped a bit too and I also found a dress which was a great surprise because I wasn't planning on looking yet.

I think DD, DH, and I are set for clothes although I still need shoes. Got to get some decent clothes for DS.

YUMMM...Cheesecake Factory!!

I picked up some clothes for DS at Kohl's & JCP (I don't have a Dillards). He will be pretty casual on the cruise casual nights with Docker type slacks & some polo shirts & button down Tony Hawk shirts. I still need to pick up some more underwear for all of us tho so I can be sure to have enough to pack AND enough to wear the week leading up to the trip! I don't want to worry about doing a load of laundry the night before we leave but we need 2 weeks worth to pack! I bought a couple pair of those Lindsey Phillips Switch Flops last year along with several straps off of EBay but I haven't WORN them anywhere yet. I am worried I will get blisters if I wait to try them on the cruise but I really have no reason to wear them right now. (I don't go anywhere except to the pool & the grocery store!!) I thought they'd be practical to pack for this trip as it would reduce how many shoes I need to bring for dinners on the ship but I NEED to try them out somewhere. I had bought DH a couple new pairs of slacks at Kohl's last month & I made the mistake of letting him wear them to work NOW. He came home from work on Friday looking like THIS in his NEW pants!! I was PISSED!! I told him he needs to keep an old pair of jeans in his car or at his desk or something so when he needs to crawl around under desks or has to pull cables or something he can change clothes & not ruin his good stuff.

My DH used to work in a paper mill. I think they will have lots to talk about. Must be really hard to sell that ticket right now with the NFL situation...

I think his biggest problem is that nobody wants just ONE ticket. He shouldn't have split the other one between his friend & his brother. It would be easier if he had a pair to sell.

 

[Anal Annie]

OK, so how many bathing suits are ya'll planning to bring?! Normally for a trip to FL or to Hawaii or to the beach I would bring about 4 pp. I am debating between 2 ond 3 for this trip. Thoughts?! I am leaning towards 3. (I have high expectations for lots of pool & beach action don't I?!)

 

[BWV Dreamin]

OK, so how many bathing suits are ya'll planning to bring?! Normally for a trip to FL or to Hawaii or to the beach I would bring about 4 pp. I am debating between 2 ond 3 for this trip. Thoughts?! I am leaning towards 3. (I have high expectations for lots of pool & beach action don't I?!)

2.....

 

[Tinman888]

Just found this site. I'm Shauna (33) booked on cruise with DH (38), DS (5) and DD (8). This will be a first cruise ever and having read through some (not all...too many pages) thanks to you guys for so much information. The DCL book received last week tells you nothing!!! I now know about pirate night, formal night and semi formal night; why dont they tell you in the book the kids would be so sad not to dress up!!!

I have one question if one of you kind people could answer for me. The tips and gratuties I am contemplating pre-paying but undecided. If I pay on board do I tip the crew individually or will I get charged to my account; if I am charged roughly how much?

Thanks in advance, you all sound fun and we look forward to cruising with you all....not long now (Sooooooooooo excited)

 

[jd99]

Greetings all. It's been a while. In case you were interested, I started posting pictures from our Dream cruise with my trip report. More to come.

Dream Trip Report

Busy busy around here. Can't believe we are just a bit more than 3 weeks before we head across the pond! Lots to do. Swim meet this coming weekend (B Champs) and DD is hoping to beat some times by taking everything she learned at her swim camp and applying it here. We shall see. If she does well enough, she may qualify (in breast stroke) for BB champs in a couple weeks.

Getting very excited about our trip. May adjust a couple of our excursions. we were planning on the half day to Monte Carlo but I think we are going to cancel and just hang out a bit in the port at Villefranche since it's so pretty. I'm also trying to talk the family into changing what we do in Rome - last year we did jumping back to Eternal Rome and LOVED it so everyone wanted to do the same thing this year. I am now rethinking that and want to do something different - maybe something outside of Rome. I suspect I am going to get outvoted on this one.

Not long now peeps and we'll all be saying hi in the Promenade Lounge!

 

[mikki.young]

Just found this site. I'm Shauna (33) booked on cruise with DH (38), DS (5) and DD (8). This will be a first cruise ever and having read through some (not all...too many pages) thanks to you guys for so much information. The DCL book received last week tells you nothing!!! I now know about pirate night, formal night and semi formal night; why dont they tell you in the book the kids would be so sad not to dress up!!!

I have one question if one of you kind people could answer for me. The tips and gratuties I am contemplating pre-paying but undecided. If I pay on board do I tip the crew individually or will I get charged to my account; if I am charged roughly how much?

Thanks in advance, you all sound fun and we look forward to cruising with you all....not long now (Sooooooooooo excited)

Welcome aboard! Where are you from - lots of Europeans and US folk in this group so far. Re tips, I am going to pay onboard because how much I give will depend on the service. Disney have suggested rates (see page 11 of that booklet!) but you can go above or below if you think the service merits it. When you pay onboard you will be given a slip to put in the various envelopes you are given on the last night for the tips. Someone will tell me if I am wrong as this is only my second cruise!

Now I am going to be more rushed than I expected before the trip. I think I mentioned that we were going to Barcelona early on the 8 August. Well now I am going to Bermuda from 2 to 6 August for a memorial service for my birth father. I'm so glad I got the chance to say goodbye when we went over in May. Think I might have to get packed for the cruise before I go to Bermuda!

 

[Anal Annie]

Just found this site. I'm Shauna (33) booked on cruise with DH (38), DS (5) and DD (8). This will be a first cruise ever and having read through some (not all...too many pages) thanks to you guys for so much information. The DCL book received last week tells you nothing!!! I now know about pirate night, formal night and semi formal night; why dont they tell you in the book the kids would be so sad not to dress up!!!

I have one question if one of you kind people could answer for me. The tips and gratuties I am contemplating pre-paying but undecided. If I pay on board do I tip the crew individually or will I get charged to my account; if I am charged roughly how much?

Thanks in advance, you all sound fun and we look forward to cruising with you all....not long now (Sooooooooooo excited)

Hi Shauna!! Welcome aboard & welcome to the DIS!! Where are ya'll from?!

Tips...personally, we wait & decide how much to give at the end of the cruise & go and have them added to our onboard account (usually around the next to last day otherwise the line at Guest Services is really long - UNLESS you go late at night). When you do it this way they give you a receipt or ticket to put into their envelope with the amount on it. The recommended amounts for gratuities works out to be $12 per person per night. The tips go to your stateroom attendant & your serving team. So for a family of 4 that is $48 USD per night x 7 nights = $336. They will leave you a sheet with the recommendations for each position in your stateroom on the last day. We usually end up adding a little bit more (maybe 10% or so) to at least a couple of the positions so that's why we wait to see how our service is. I don't want to assume the recommended minimum is going to be enough. Anyway, you give the tips out in one lump in an envelope that will be provided on your last night. You hand it to your serving team at dinner & sometimes we end up leaving our stateroom host one on the bed as they come in & turn it down while we're at dinner.

Greetings all. It's been a while. In case you were interested, I started posting pictures from our Dream cruise with my trip report. More to come.

Dream Trip Report

Busy busy around here. Can't believe we are just a bit more than 3 weeks before we head across the pond! Lots to do. Swim meet this coming weekend (B Champs) and DD is hoping to beat some times by taking everything she learned at her swim camp and applying it here. We shall see. If she does well enough, she may qualify (in breast stroke) for BB champs in a couple weeks.

Getting very excited about our trip. May adjust a couple of our excursions. we were planning on the half day to Monte Carlo but I think we are going to cancel and just hang out a bit in the port at Villefranche since it's so pretty. I'm also trying to talk the family into changing what we do in Rome - last year we did jumping back to Eternal Rome and LOVED it so everyone wanted to do the same thing this year. I am now rethinking that and want to do something different - maybe something outside of Rome. I suspect I am going to get outvoted on this one.

Not long now peeps and we'll all be saying hi in the Promenade Lounge!

It realllly is getting close isn't it?! Are you worried about your trip to Greece at all?? Have things settled down there yet? I haven't seen anything on the news in the last few days.

Go DD go!! Swim FAST DD!!! Is this like an age group championship? We just have our Divisionals meet in 2 weeks - we have not had a good season as we have only 1 15-18 girl so they've been swimming a couple of 13/14's up...but they're not the best 13/14's. They think we will drop from 'C' Division to about 'E' next year. This past Saturday DS ranked high enough to swim free, back & fly & he scored points in all 3 strokes so for our 'B' meet this Wed. he can only swim Exhibition & can only swim the IM. Almost a waste of time to go BUT I'm still hoping he can drop a couple more seconds on that. Our meet this next Saturday is our last meet for the season. It's his last chance to improve his ranking on the team to maybe make Divisionals. The kid that he passed LAST week in free passed him again this week by like .20 of a second. He showed up on Saturday in one of those special expensive racing jammers - guess he wanted his 3rd place spot back!! They have been trading back & forth between 3rd & 4th place all season. DS is still in 3rd place in the 13/14's with his back (by .08). I think I AM going to schedule another private lesson with one of his winter team coaches on Thurs. morning. A little more work on his backstroke start & maybe some time on his turns & finishes won't hurt, right?! Saturday is his last shot to move up at all. Then we're going to a long course meet on Sunday but they only offer 100's for his age. It is an optional meet & doesn't count toward Divisionals.

2.....

Only 2?! Really?!

Did you get your room assignment yet??

 

[Anal Annie]

Welcome aboard! Where are you from - lots of Europeans and US folk in this group so far. Re tips, I am going to pay onboard because how much I give will depend on the service. Disney have suggested rates (see page 11 of that booklet!) but you can go above or below if you think the service merits it. When you pay onboard you will be given a slip to put in the various envelopes you are given on the last night for the tips. Someone will tell me if I am wrong as this is only my second cruise!

Now I am going to be more rushed than I expected before the trip. I think I mentioned that we were going to Barcelona early on the 8 August. Well now I am going to Bermuda from 2 to 6 August for a memorial service for my birth father. I'm so glad I got the chance to say goodbye when we went over in May. Think I might have to get packed for the cruise before I go to Bermuda!

Awww Mikki - that's so sad. I am sorry your father passed - did I miss this news on here somewhere or did it just happen?? Yes, you should probably try to be pretty much packed for the cruise before that trip so you don't have to stress any further over it.

 

[west&east]

OK, so how many bathing suits are ya'll planning to bring?! Normally for a trip to FL or to Hawaii or to the beach I would bring about 4 pp. I am debating between 2 ond 3 for this trip. Thoughts?! I am leaning towards 3. (I have high expectations for lots of pool & beach action don't I?!)

We'll pack 2 bathing suits. Trying to keep it very light!

 

[mikki.young]

Thanks Annie. No, I hadn't mentioned it partly because I thought the only service was going to be mid cruise in Canada. I hadn't realised there was going to be one I could get to, albeit not that easily!

Oh by the way - 2 costumes is what I had planned on, even before the extra trip. I will be taking one there as I know the hotel (which is opposite my sisters house) Has a swimming pool and it is a good way to start the day in that heat.

 

[west&east]

30 days until we leave!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OMG, officially getting Disney obsessed again. I usually get very detail oriented much sooner but life has been so busy this year, that I haven't researched nearly as much as I usually do. Well, I have been catching up big time the last few days, reading trip reports, web sites, etc. I'm going to share some of what I learned with you great cruise buddies, although some of you experienced Disney cruisers may already know it...

My Disney obsession has also increased because we are officially planning our December pre-Xmas trip. The last two years we booked great club level rooms with a room only discount, so I'm waiting on the edge of my seat for another offer to come out. This time, the kids and I will be sharing a room with my friend and her daughter. We are leaving the dads to stay home and work!

Got to take a break from Disney stuff to host book club tonight. The book is "The House of the Spirits," a family saga that takes place in Chile. Kind of a heavy book for summer but very well written.

 

[SailingSeas]

Mikki, I am terribly sorry to hear about your father. I hope something in your travels reaches out to you and sparks a good memory of him, and makes you smile.

Anne, two bottoms, three tops. Yeah, i'm sure not helpful.

Tinman, welcome to the cruise! I prepay tips (since i always tip the min anyways, those kids usually send the money home to family, and wait until you see how hard they work) and then the night before, DCL is SO KIND as to put the slips and envelopes into my stateroom. From there, I slip a little extra into the envelopes for those who shone. Unlike the prepaid or onboard charges, the cash tips tend to be VERY appreciated in ports when they have some time off.

As a side note, if you can only work with the minimum PLEASE spend time instead of cash, filling out the comment cards on excellent service. It can make or break a promotion, shore leave, and ship preferences for a Cast Member.

JD - that's what we are doing. I discovered so many cool alleyways, wonderful shops, and food opportunities in the village of Villefranche, I am really looking forward to that port.

I am so excited. 30 days from now, I will be ON A PLANE!!! <------------ me, doing a can-can en francais!

 

[mikki.young]

You are all very kind. I am very lucky because I only met my father two years ago and thought it would never happen. I have also found that I have a full brother and sister (already taken the sister and her family to WDW!) If anyone is interested in the full story you may get told on the cruise.

Thinking about the tipping, I may have come over as a bit negative but our one 3 night cruise we did was an absolute nightmare service wise. I have to believe that was an exception but that is why I want to wait and see if the service is bad, good or excellent before deciding on what to give.

 

[west&east]

You are all very kind. I am very lucky because I only met my father two years ago and thought it would never happen. I have also found that I have a full brother and sister (already taken the sister and her family to WDW!) If anyone is interested in the full story you may get told on the cruise.

Thinking about the tipping, I may have come over as a bit negative but our one 3 night cruise we did was an absolute nightmare service wise. I have to believe that was an exception but that is why I want to wait and see if the service is bad, good or excellent before deciding on what to give.

Mikki, sounds like you will have a busy but meaningful August! Sounds like a fascinating family story....

 

[west&east]

29 Days until we fly to BCN!

For those of you with younger kids and late seating, you might be interested in this:

“Dine and Play” aboard Disney Cruise Line provides more time for kids to have fun at youth activities and gives parents a relaxing night cap during their evening meal.

With “Dine and Play,” parents can check their children into evening youth activity programming without leaving the dining room. Offered during the second seating in all of the main dining rooms and open to children ages 3 to 12, “Dine and Play” allows the dining room serving team to facilitate the children's meals first, while serving the adults at a more leisurely pace.

Upon arrival for second seating dinner, parents simply inform their server that their children would like to participate in “Dine and Play.” Children receive their meals in an expedited fashion and youth activities counselors arrive approximately 45 minutes into dinner to escort children to their respective youth activities groups for an evening of fun and entertainment.

Parents can then enjoy the remainder of their dining experience. Afterwards, they can take a romantic stroll on deck or head to the adults-only nighttime entertainment district for dancing, drinks and entertainment especially for them.

I think this will be a great option for my DS8 and his friend.