Best Friends and New Friends - a MAGICal Tale

[Kimberly815]

Aren't we cute?!

That is a very nice picture of you guys! I am so glad you enjoyed Palo! It sounds like it was a lovely dinner!

Silly DISers!

Looks like a fun group to cruise with!!

ETA: I need to know what the towel animal is too! A seal maybe? I don't know!

 

[Jennifer48]

This was our only busy packed morning. After the DIS photo meet, we planned on hitting up the DVC talk in Diversions. It was freezing in there! They had the a/c cranked and my toes were numb. It was crazy. Anyways, we sat down and this woman comes over and hands us her DVC business card and says that if we sign up, mention her name and we’ll get a free gift. Umm ok. She walks around the room giving out these cards. As soon as the DVC cast members began their spiel, she took off. She didn’t even pretend to stay. So I took her card, ripped it up and threw it away. How cheesy. Probably all so she could get extra points or something. There was one couple there from Georgia I believe that has been DVC members since the beginning. They now have 1720 pts! Crazy. I’d love to have them as my grandparents! They said that they use those points to take their family to Disney. Must be nice! Dan and I didn’t sign up this time, but now that we know how everything works, maybe sometime in the future we will become DVC members. We just aren’t financially able to do it at the moment.

We had so much stuff between the CC and the DVC talk that we stopped in at our stateroom and then decided to head up to Pluto’s for lunch. Man I miss those chicken fingers!

Once stuffed with fluff like Pooh , we headed down to deck 4 to sit on the wonderfully comfy deck chairs and chill for a bit. We actually both napped on them for a while. It was soooooooo relaxing. I also read for a bit and Dan did his Sudoku. I’m not sure how long we were out there for but it had to be a couple of hours easy. After we were good and reenergized, we decided to do a bit more of the PassPorter’s Treasure Hunt. Now that I think of it, I should have taken pictures along the way. That would have been fun. Oh well. There’s always next time!

We dropped off our books and headed over to the Walt Disney Theater to see Twice Charmed. This is the one show we hadn’t seen yet and we wanted to make it a point to see it. We really liked it. The only bad part was about ½ way through the show, a family of 4 decided to show up and sit right in front of us. Mom & Dad explained the WHOLE DAMN Cinderella story to the kids. Are you serious? And then they decide to leave when one of the kids starts squirming. Thank goodness.

Back to the room we go to shower and get ready for dinner. And again, I apologize for no food pics

After dinner at Parrot Cay, we changed back into our comfy clothes and headed up to deck 10 to walk around. We were passing by what we think was St. Thomas based on the map they showed on the stateroom tv. The island was all lit up. It was beautiful. Just staring up at the black sky with the twinkling stars was just so perfect with my Dan. *sigh*

They had Monday Night Football on the Ariel View but we didn’t care much for the game so we just lapped around deck 10 for a bit before heading back to the room for the night.

Up next: St. Maartin or St. Martin, which is it?

 

[scottishwee35]

Hi Jennifer48

I am same well as not sure about DVC well. My mil was asking lady from Chiago while we were sitting at cove cafe and she explained about DVC and I still not sure about it as she said long times ago was good rates. But now seem okay I am still confusing with DVC too.

Can you tell me which one is best Disney Resort Hotel for one night? As I am searching for one night after flight back from LA after the Disney Cruise? We are staying in LA for 3 nights at Antheim Disney Hotel then flight back to Orlando for one night. It is much appreciated if you let me know which suitable for our kids as I don't want take them to disney park as want relax with lovely swimming pool before catch the flight at 6.30 pm.

Scottishwee35

 

[Kimberly815]

There was one couple there from Georgia I believe that has been DVC members since the beginning. They now have 1720 pts! Crazy.

Wow! That's a lot of points! I am so jealous!

It was beautiful. Just staring up at the black sky with the twinkling stars was just so perfect with my Dan. *sigh*

Sounds perfect!

 

[Jennifer48]

Hi Jennifer48

I am same well as not sure about DVC well. My mil was asking lady from Chiago while we were sitting at cove cafe and she explained about DVC and I still not sure about it as she said long times ago was good rates. But now seem okay I am still confusing with DVC too.

Can you tell me which one is best Disney Resort Hotel for one night? As I am searching for one night after flight back from LA after the Disney Cruise? We are staying in LA for 3 nights at Antheim Disney Hotel then flight back to Orlando for one night. It is much appreciated if you let me know which suitable for our kids as I don't want take them to disney park as want relax with lovely swimming pool before catch the flight at 6.30 pm.

Scottishwee35

Hi Deborah,

Yeah the DVC was confusing to me also but once I sat and listened to their presentation, I understood it a bit more. They are free to attend so if you ever pass by one of the DVC desks, they will be happy to discuss it.

As for the Disney resort, it depends on what you are looking for. The Caribbean Beach was really nice for one night. It was a large area with beaches, hammocks, pools, and a great dining area. If you are able to afford that, I would recommend it. If you are looking for something in the Value range, I've only stayed at the All-Star Movies and that was a good choice also. I hope that helps!

 

[Jennifer48]

Wow! That's a lot of points! I am so jealous!

The room was one large "WOW" when they said that. We were all pretty jealous!

 

[Disneygrl36]

Jennifer....didn't realize you have a trippie. I will be back to read later.

 

[Jennifer48]

Jennifer....didn't realize you have a trippie. I will be back to read later.

I do! Its not as good as yours but I hope it will keep you entertained

 

[Hixski]

The room was one large "WOW" when they said that. We were all pretty jealous!

1720 points makes our 200 points look like we don't have any at all. But they get us to where we want to go.

Keep up the good work on the trip report.

 

[Jennifer48]

Tuesday, September 18th

Docked in St. Maartin; the view from our stateroom porthole

This morning’s alarm was set for 7:30am. We were to meet in Rockin’ Bar D at 8:45am for our Under Two Flags tour excursion. We were very excited to see the island. As we headed out of the ship towards our bus, we were to follow the Pluto Paddle of Power.

Signage

We were to line up 2 by 2 and we were close to the end of the line. We knew what was coming. Well, Dan knew what was coming. When we got on the bus, there were solo riders. The seats were 2 by 2. Sure enough, not only did people who were traveling together, split up so each had a window seat, but solo riders who were not with a companion also took up 1 of the 2 seats. So what ended up happening? Dan and I did not sit together, again. He got stuck with some man and I got stuck in the back row of 5 seats between an annoying woman and her mother and this older couple. Why was she annoying you ask? Because every time we passed a goat or a Burger King she acted as if she never saw one before! Come on lady, you can’t be that sheltered. That and they both complained about how hot the bus was and I couldn’t hear our tour guide/bus driver. Despite them and the woman next to me from Knoxville who decided that I needed to hear her personal business, it was a great tour. Our guide was fun and very informative. It’s amazing how such a small island functions as two separate countries. He was telling us how for those that live near the border, to call their neighbor across the street in the other country; it is considered an international phone call. It would be faster and cheaper for them to walk across the street than to place that call. Crazy!

We made many stops along the way to get out and take pictures. The ship docks on the Dutch side and we drove all the way over to the French side and back. Our guide said that when we got off the bus on the French side that we have legally been to France, woo hoo! So now I can tell my friends that I’ve been to France, they just don’t need to know it wasn’t the one with the Eiffel Tower!

We're in France!

Colorful rooftops

This ship was pushed to shore due to a hurricane and they left it as a reef for the fishies

Border on the island between the Dutch and French sides

Once back on the Dutch side, we decided to head back to the ship for lunch before venturing back out to do some shopping. There were some ominous clouds on the French side and you could tell it was raining pretty well over there. In case they decided to head in our direction, back on the ship sounded like a good idea. We turn to head towards the ship and there docked beside the Magic was the Royal Caribbean ship Liberty of the Seas. This is the worlds largest cruise ship and it certainly looked like it. It dwarfed the Magic. Too big for my liking. That’s like taking the whole city with you on vacation. Too many people for me.

Massive ship!

This sign made me happy as we were boarding the ship

Up next: Thunder!

 

[Kimberly815]

Docked in St. Maartin; the view from our stateroom porthole

What a beautiful view to wake up to!!!

We were to line up 2 by 2 and we were close to the end of the line. We knew what was coming. Well, Dan knew what was coming. When we got on the bus, there were solo riders. The seats were 2 by 2. Sure enough, not only did people who were traveling together, split up so each had a window seat, but solo riders who were not with a companion also took up 1 of the 2 seats. So what ended up happening? Dan and I did not sit together, again.

Well, that just stinks! It's never as fun when you don't get to sit with your travelmates!

We're in France!

You've been to France!! You lucky girl!!

 

[LITTLEKID58]

Tfs

 

[frdeb1999]

Love the TR so far and all the pics! Look like you had a wonderful time!

 

[scottishwee35]

Hi

Beautiful pictures and shame about seat spilt up Always like that is it!!

Oh no about Thunder next??

Scottishwee35

 

[Jennifer48]

Back on board, we headed up to Topsiders for lunch. We could hear the thunder rumbling around outside. We met up with Hixski Donna and her husband Glenn who were just finishing up their lunch. They had a snorkel excursion that morning over on the French side and they said that it rained almost the whole time. They even postponed most of it. They finished their lunch and left and another couple sat with us and ate as we were just about finished. It was a busy time at Topsiders!

Plan of attack was to now head back out and walk around some more. Visit the shops and check out the “amazing deals” in the electronics and jewelry stores. I didn’t do any research before we left so I had no idea if things were really “deals” anyways. All I know is how much I paid for my iPod and if I saw one cheaper I’d be upset . So we checked back out and headed to the water taxi area. We paid $5 for unlimited rides and they give you a bracelet to wear. We walked around the beach area and made sure to put our feet in the Caribbean Bay! We really weren’t into shopping but we wanted to make sure we got to see as much as we could. We got tired pretty quickly and it was raining off and on since we were right on the edge of the storm that was hitting the French side so we decided to head back on board.

Dan shooting some hoops during one of the few times the court was empty!

I'm checking out St. Maartin from the ship

Finding Nemo was playing on the Ariel View

We headed to our room to change into our swimsuits and headed up to the Quiet Cove pool. CMs kept coming out and closing the pool due to the thunder overhead and then within 5-10 minutes, they’d be back out to open it again.

After jumping in and out of the pool, we headed back to our room to shower and get ready for Pirate Night. I purchased a pirate shirt when I was at WDW back in January and you all know the story about Dan’s pirate shirt now. I also bought some PoTC jewelry to wear and we brought our old pirate bandanas as extras. Nothing special but we were in the spirit.

We added Pirate Night door signs

We went up to deck 10 to check out the lightning show. While we were up there forward, we looked over and saw a young couple and an older couple standing there laughing. Then we noticed that their hair was sticking up! Dan asked them if he could take their picture. Do not try this at home!!

Can you see their hair standing up?!

There was that much electricity in the air that we were in striking distance of a bolt. Obviously we didn’t get struck but it was definitely cool to watch the lightning fingers crawl across the evening sky.

We went up to deck 4 to check out the characters in the atrium lobby in their pirate garb. There were long lines for them all so we headed outside to get some fresh air. Who was standing right outside the door??

Up next: Pirate Night!

 

[Disney owl]

thanks for sharing

 

[Jennifer48]

It was Captain Hook and Mr. Smee! Since they were all alone, Dan and I jumped in to have our picture taken with them. How fun!

ARG, Pirates!

Now that I was in the mood to take character photos so we went back inside and I jumped in line to meet Pirate Mickey. Our dinner tonight was in
Lumiere’s and since we were right there, we weren’t that worried about being late. At this point, it was just about 8:30pm.

Pirate Mickey

In to Lumiere’s we went after our picture and our table mates were already there. Again, sorry, no pictures!

Our table is located near the windows to the hall. As we are checking out the pirates menu we hear a loud bang on the windows. We all look up and there is Stitch banging on the windows begging for some food! The CM that was with him was yelling at him to leave us alone and she pulled him away. It was so funny!

The bestest servers! L-R Soumitra, Jeevan, Romeo

We didn’t eat dessert tonight because we all wanted to make sure we saved room for the buffet during the Pirates in the Caribbean party!

From dinner, we headed up to deck 10 to catch the party. I wanted to dance but we wanted to catch the fireworks so we started up there. Of course since we had the late dinner we were late for the party and all the good spots were taken. We found a hole near the back so we could have a good view of the fireworks.

The fireworks were shot off and only for about 2 minutes when one seemed to prematurely blow right on deck 10 next to Palo’s. No more fireworks. They were stopped for the evening. Boooo! So we went back down to deck 9 so I could get my groove on! I danced the night away as others left for the evening. Hixski Donna and Glenn showed up with beers and I continued to danced while they chit chatted.

ARG!

Once the party was over, they cleared the deck so everyone (or those that were left) could take the loungers back out and watch Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest on the Ariel View. It was so wonderful to see Captain Jack Sparrow and Will Turner magnified! *sigh*

Captain Jack!

We stayed for about an hour to watch the beginning and we figured it was getting too late and we had a very early morning. Rachel had mentioned earlier in the day that they had to schedule Pirate Night this night because it was the only time they were safely able to shoot off the fireworks in a safe distance. Hey that’s what she said.

Towel gorilla?!

Our stateroom host set up a bed for Mickey tonight

Up next: I don’t need any stinking immigration!

 

[Kimberly815]

Our table is located near the windows to the hall. As we are checking out the pirates menu we hear a loud bang on the windows. We all look up and there is Stitch banging on the windows begging for some food! The CM that was with him was yelling at him to leave us alone and she pulled him away. It was so funny!

Ha ha! You gotta love crazy Stitch!!

The fireworks were shot off and only for about 2 minutes when one seemed to prematurely blow right on deck 10 next to Palo’s. No more fireworks. They were stopped for the evening.

Bummer!

ARG!

I love this pic! You look like a real pirate! All you need now is some rum instead of beer (although, I think beer works just fine too!)! I am worried about your pillaging and plundering!

Our stateroom host set up a bed for Mickey tonight

How cute!! Now Mickey can get a good night's sleep!

 

[Disneygrl36]

Jennifer,
I am all caught up now.....
I love that rainbow picture. Beautiful.
Your tour guide stopped more than once for photos? We only got one stop. Hmmmmmmmmm.
Sorry bout your pirate night fireworks.......at least you made it to CC though right?
Cute picture with Smee & Cap'n Hook.

 

[ReAnSt]

Monday, September 17th:

We decided that we would try to make it to the character breakfast this morning. We debated about it for a while because I had read that the characters don’t make it around to the tables like a normal character meal. But like anything else, we wanted to judge for ourselves.

Mickey’s Island Jam was held in Parrot Cay and our arrival time was 9:45am. Nice and late for us sleep-iners. Lisa and Chris joined us also at our table. Breakfast was delicious and the show was fun. The characters walked by our table and would stop for a few seconds at other tables that had children but we didn’t mind. We enjoy watching children interact with them.

Menu

Minnie

Lilo

Pluto

Lilo & Stitch

Minnie

Dale

Chip

Goofy

After breakfast it was almost 11am and time for the Castaway Clubhouse. We received our invites in our room the night before so we decided to check it out. We headed over to Rockin’ Bar D but since we were late, there weren’t any open seats left. We stood up in the back by the bar for a bit listening to Rachael and Captain Thord.

Captain Thord

A family in front of us left so we jumped to their table. We had a good time. Captain Thord told us that ¾ of the passengers were repeat cruisers. Shows you Disney does something right!

After the videos you watch, they have a raffle for some Disney Cruise Line clocks. Neither of us won but it was fun cheering those that did because as they were to go and receive their gift, Rachael made them do a happy dance. And can you believe it? I didn’t even eat a Mickey rice crispy treat… .sue me. We saw our DIS friends Lisa, Chris, Kamgen Kami and her husband there. Lisa told us at breakfast that they set up a DIS photo meet in the atrium lobby for 12 noon. So from the Castaway Clubhouse, we made our way to the lobby. Bareacuda Ann had set up for a DCL photographer to take our picture. She’s so smart like that! So we took a few happy pics and then one silly one. I never purchased any at Shutters but I did take pictures of them….shhh! Ironically the only one that came out focused was the silly one!

Silly DISers!

Up next: Are you serious lady?!

So Mickey's Island Jam was the one thing I really wanted to do my two weeks and never made it. The first week was the Behind the Scenes tour of WD Theater, the second week was our meet at the Quiet Cove Cafe. We even asked our head waiter if we could come another day and they said we could and I overslept. I should have tried to go in the later breakfast that day but we were told to come at a certain time and didn't want to cause any trouble so I never made it. Well just an excuse to go again.

I see myself as well. I didn't take any pictures of our group pictures.