allears
"If I were not upon the sea..." I'd want to be!
- Joined
- Jul 20, 2002
- Messages
- 2,864
Tuesday morning was leisurely in starting for our cabin. DH, DD & DS had an excursion but not until 11. DGM & DF were off early for the Turtle Farm & Grand Cayman Island tour. So we wandered to breakfast at Topsiders and took our time there. Then they were off to their Pirate encounter! 
We had seen the pirate ship in port before and experienced it shooting at the ship. DH thought it looked pretty fun and it was inexpensive too as far as excursions go. They tendered to a new docking area on Grand Cayman which was very nice. Then they were tendered out to the Pirate Ship. There were four crew members, The Captain, Wench Mary, The gunman and Bones who were fun, informative and piratey! Anyone under 20 (the runts) got sent down to swab the deck with rags and brushes. Then the Captain yelled there was something missing, pulled a bucket of water out of the ocean and dumped it on them! DD was glad to be 21! The new hands had their teeth checked, their muscles (DS was accused of bringing illegal guns on board) and generally harassed. They sailed for awhile shooting on the neighboring ships. When they fired on the Magic one little boy got very upset yelling, thats my ship! Dont sink that. We have to go back on there! Then they anchored in the ocean , yelled pool's open, and all were allowed to swim. They could either climb down a ladder (wimpy), walk the plank, or jump off the top of the back of the ship! Our crew chose the top of the ship! They said the water was awesome and they had a great time.
DW stayed behind and read on deck 4 overlooking the ocean until DGM got back from her tour. There was a crew lifeboat training session going on near where she was sitting and it was neat to watch. (Did you know the emergency knives they are issued have no points in case they are accidentally dropped in the inflatable rafts? Glad someone thought of that!) The crew seemed to have great camaraderie and the leader of the drill was great. DGM , DF and DW then hit Lumieres for lunch (Yummy) and then off to the Rainforest room where they spent a couple hours just relaxing and talking. A luxury for the two of them.
The buccaneers returned and DH & DS went off to watch Bolt in 3-D in the Buena Vista Theater which has been upgraded with all sorts of new technology that DH said was really pretty cool.
After we got ready for the show and dinner DH and DD ran out to get some character pics (Did I mention how totally into it she was this trip? It was a joy to see her having so much fun!) Then off to Twice Charmed. Twice Charmed has really grown on us and the fact that it is an almost 100% original production is even cooler. The effects in that show are quite impressive, we often have to remind ourselves that were not at a Broadway theatre but on a ship at sea. Once again we found the cast totally committed to these performances and giving them their all. DGM and DF were quite impressed with the show.
Tonight was dinner at PALO! So DS decided he would go to the family cabaret to see Jeff Civilico on his own AND go to dinner on his own. Having been on the ship almost every year since he was 4, he is VERY comfortable on board. He loves Jeff Civilicos crazy juggling and physical comedy. And he had a nice time with Sompong and Richard; ordered steak yet again, and treated them to some of his napkin folding prowess! The next day we were stopped in the hallway outside Sessions by a man who sat near us in the dining room and received some very nice compliments on DSs very good behavior. So I guess hes not full on teen yet!
We had a 7:30 reservation at PALO and once again had Oana for our server. She has only been up there two months but she already had that PALO knack of knowing what we should try, what we would like, and just how much of it to bring. If you dont know, they will bring out smaller portions for you to try. Each thing we tried was better than the last, from the very beginning to the very end. And she had heard us talking about it being DHs birthday and brought him out a little surprise too.
They are all so attentive! We didnt leave there until nearly 10:30! But we really enjoyed the relaxing dinner. We did get called away from the table by DS at the door. He came to ask if he could go to the movie since it would be over later than his curfew. No problem! A couple of us went down and caught a little of Michele Lauzieres adult cabaret act, then DH & DW stayed to dance to the Decades theme party. We figured wed at least know some of the songs from the beginning of the night!
And thus ended our midway through the cruise day!
We had seen the pirate ship in port before and experienced it shooting at the ship. DH thought it looked pretty fun and it was inexpensive too as far as excursions go. They tendered to a new docking area on Grand Cayman which was very nice. Then they were tendered out to the Pirate Ship. There were four crew members, The Captain, Wench Mary, The gunman and Bones who were fun, informative and piratey! Anyone under 20 (the runts) got sent down to swab the deck with rags and brushes. Then the Captain yelled there was something missing, pulled a bucket of water out of the ocean and dumped it on them! DD was glad to be 21! The new hands had their teeth checked, their muscles (DS was accused of bringing illegal guns on board) and generally harassed. They sailed for awhile shooting on the neighboring ships. When they fired on the Magic one little boy got very upset yelling, thats my ship! Dont sink that. We have to go back on there! Then they anchored in the ocean , yelled pool's open, and all were allowed to swim. They could either climb down a ladder (wimpy), walk the plank, or jump off the top of the back of the ship! Our crew chose the top of the ship! They said the water was awesome and they had a great time.
DW stayed behind and read on deck 4 overlooking the ocean until DGM got back from her tour. There was a crew lifeboat training session going on near where she was sitting and it was neat to watch. (Did you know the emergency knives they are issued have no points in case they are accidentally dropped in the inflatable rafts? Glad someone thought of that!) The crew seemed to have great camaraderie and the leader of the drill was great. DGM , DF and DW then hit Lumieres for lunch (Yummy) and then off to the Rainforest room where they spent a couple hours just relaxing and talking. A luxury for the two of them.
The buccaneers returned and DH & DS went off to watch Bolt in 3-D in the Buena Vista Theater which has been upgraded with all sorts of new technology that DH said was really pretty cool.
After we got ready for the show and dinner DH and DD ran out to get some character pics (Did I mention how totally into it she was this trip? It was a joy to see her having so much fun!) Then off to Twice Charmed. Twice Charmed has really grown on us and the fact that it is an almost 100% original production is even cooler. The effects in that show are quite impressive, we often have to remind ourselves that were not at a Broadway theatre but on a ship at sea. Once again we found the cast totally committed to these performances and giving them their all. DGM and DF were quite impressed with the show.
Tonight was dinner at PALO! So DS decided he would go to the family cabaret to see Jeff Civilico on his own AND go to dinner on his own. Having been on the ship almost every year since he was 4, he is VERY comfortable on board. He loves Jeff Civilicos crazy juggling and physical comedy. And he had a nice time with Sompong and Richard; ordered steak yet again, and treated them to some of his napkin folding prowess! The next day we were stopped in the hallway outside Sessions by a man who sat near us in the dining room and received some very nice compliments on DSs very good behavior. So I guess hes not full on teen yet!
We had a 7:30 reservation at PALO and once again had Oana for our server. She has only been up there two months but she already had that PALO knack of knowing what we should try, what we would like, and just how much of it to bring. If you dont know, they will bring out smaller portions for you to try. Each thing we tried was better than the last, from the very beginning to the very end. And she had heard us talking about it being DHs birthday and brought him out a little surprise too.
They are all so attentive! We didnt leave there until nearly 10:30! But we really enjoyed the relaxing dinner. We did get called away from the table by DS at the door. He came to ask if he could go to the movie since it would be over later than his curfew. No problem! A couple of us went down and caught a little of Michele Lauzieres adult cabaret act, then DH & DW stayed to dance to the Decades theme party. We figured wed at least know some of the songs from the beginning of the night!
And thus ended our midway through the cruise day!
Wednesday was another beautiful day weather- wise. It seems once we left Florida we were all warmed up. Today was DH, DD and DSs turns to lounge on the ship while DW left for an excursion with DGM. But not before she had her next spa appt with DD for their pedicures bright and early at 9:45. First she met DGM in Lumieres for breakfast one of her favorite things on the ship. DW would much rather be waited on that do a buffet while on vacation! Eggs Benedict done perfectly! The pedicure was every bit as nice maybe more so than the manicure as our feet can always use more TLC. Then a short trip to introduce DD to the Rainforest room. She fell in love with it too. Just the wonderful quiet and calm in there is almost enough to make it worth it. 
he always made pirate night even more fun! But we were all up dancing and singing with Richard and Joyce and we had a great time before we even went up to the real party! One of the major highlights of the week is always the Pirate Party. 
After breakfast we all went our separate ways. DH & DD off to lounge in the sun (they had a mission to accomplish you might remember that of making everyone back home jealous of their mid-winter tans!) DS went off to Ocean Quest and his new friends. DGM and DW attended the Art of Entertaining series signature entrée' followed by the napkin folding. Chef Clive showed us how to make a ratatouille stuffed chicken breast with potatoes. And we were also educated by the sommelier on how to pair wines and were given samples of all. Mmm Mmm good! We also received the recipes so we will be trying some new dishes at home. DW always enjoys these whenever she can fit them into the schedule. The Galley Tour was missed this year due to having High Tea at Palo scheduled at the same time. But it is definitely something worth trying to do!
We have been in love with this show since our first cruise in 2000. The enhancements added over the years have only made it more impressive, and there were some cool ones even since last year.
I have only ever managed to take pictures. DH occasionally can force himself to eat something. But this year, again, I just went in for the spectacle of it. It is amazing how beautiful the things are, let alone how they taste. An enormous amount of work goes into the whole setup. I really appreciate what they accomplish.
Then I guess I will be concentrating on rebooking!!!!!!!!!!!! 
