Towncrier
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Aug 23, 1999
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I managed to convince DW Sue to put her handwritten notes into a form which I could post for everyone on the DIS to enjoy. Sue writes in the 3rd person, probably due to the fact that her father was a newspaper editor. And try as I might, I could not convince her to post under her DIS name (FlowerLady). So without further ado, here is her trip report:
CRUSIN ON THE DISNEY WONDER WITH NANA & AUNT IRENE
October 3rd to 6th, 2002
WEDNESDAY EVENING
Sue & Marge (Nana) to Aunt Irene & Uncle Eds house in Newark, Ohio
6:00p.m. Pizza for supper.
During dinner conversation Aunt Irene mentions that she packed one dinner dress and pants for the other two nights, but she has another dress for us to look at and tell her if she should take it. Marge (who has been on two 7-day Disney cruises) chimes in with, Dresses! Nobody told me to bring a dress! I only packed shorts & T-shirts and a couple pair of long pants!
Aunt Irene shoots Sue the I cant believe this look.
Sue thinks Oh, God, its begun!
Sue assures Marge that it will be OK; I threw in an extra sleeveless jumper-type dress just in case so you can wear that. Aunt Irene promises to let Marge look through her closet to see if she wants to borrow anything.
After dinner, dishes, and a trip to Wal-Mart Sue had the ladies sign their cruise documents and shows them the luggage tags, etc. Irene brings out a couple skirts for Marge to look at.
Marge says (and I quote) Thats OK, Ill just wear my own!
Irene collapses into a chair and gives Sue the now familiar I cant believe this look.
Sue makes a mental note to check Marges medication and calmly asks, Mom, which dress did you bring?
Marge gives a three-minute description of a little nautical number with cute anchors & life preservers on it.
Irene shakes her head and asks, Would anyone like ice cream?
THURSDAY MORNING AIRPORT
Up at 4:30a.m. left for Columbus, OH airport at 5:30a.m. Ed dropped us off at departing flights. We sailed through the airports, security and the flights went smoothly. We had breakfast at the airport in Charlotte, N.C. We were met by some of the Disney Cruise Line staff as we got off the shuttle in the terminal at the Orlando airport. Aunt Irene pulled out her camera and started taking pictures. We have pictures of the cruise line staff, the cruise line podium, the cruise line bus, outside the bus, getting on the bus, in the bus. Pace yourself Aunt Irene were not even on the boat yet!
THURSDAY BUS RIDE
The Disney Bus is the way to go. It was very easy. We were not in the terminal 15 minutes before we were on the bus and on our way. There is a ½ hour movie shown on the bus all about the ship and cruise.
THURSDAY THE WONDER
Aunt Irene is walking to our cabin with her mouth hanging open. She is very impressed with the ship and Mom and I are excited too. Cabin 5520 is fantastic! The big (4ft.) porthole window is cool. I knew that the window was going to have a metal rack in front of it, but its hardly blocked at all. We had a great free view! Irene had never been on a ship before and her son-in-law had told her that the room would be small. He told her to expect to have to take turns raising your arms to get dressed. She was really impressed with the king-size bed, couch that flips forward to be a twin bed and bunk bed above. With three ladies having the split-bathroom worked great. Aunt Irene commented that there were lots of drawers and cabinets for storage and that the closet was at least twice as big as she was expecting. I could feel the cruise line PR people cringing when Marge said, It kinda reminds me of your motor-home, Irene. (Maybe they would like to use that description in their next brochure all the comforts of a motor home sounds great!
There was a HUGE arrangement of stargazer lilys and daisys in our stateroom from MR. WONDERFUL, my husband John (Towncrier) and the kids. They smelled great and as the flowers continued to open over the next three days our cabin was like a tropical paradise really!
We went to the Beach Blanket Buffet for lunch and had shrimp and mahi-mahi among other goodies.
THURSDAY LIFE-BOAT DRILL
When we were on the 7-day cruise you were supposed to be in your stateroom when they sounded the alarm and then wearing your life-jacket walk to your life boat station. We heard the announcement that the drill would begin in 20 minutes, 10 minutes, and then the announcement that the lifeboat drill is in 5 minutes and that everyone should already be there or on their way! OOPS! Actually, it worked out quite well. It was really HOT and with the life vest on it was even hotter. We got there late enough to stand in the front row and have somewhat of a breeze and we only had to wear our jackets for a total of 5-10 minutes until we got back to our room.
THURSDAY - DINNER
The Sail-away party was fun (although after being on the inaugural 7-day cruise it was tame). We walked around a lot and went back to our cabin to discover that it was 5:15p.m. and we had to be at dinner at 6:00p.m. Our luggage was there so we unpacked, got dressed and made it to Tritons at exactly 6:00. Everyone was feeling adventurous so we tried escargot as an appetizer. We decided it tastes like chicken Rubber chicken.
Irene had duck, Sue had Beef Tenderloin, and Marge had Sea Bass. For dessert Irene had Crème Brule, Marge had Cherries Jubilee, and Sue had Chocolate Mousse Cake. After dinner we looked at Pins in the lobby and took some photos. We saw Hercules the MUSE-ical and went to Shutters to see our embarkation photos. After an 18-hour day we were all tired and went to bed shortly after 10:30p.m.
(I can understand why some people fly down the day before and stay all night at a hotel. If we hadnt had to get up so early we could have stayed up longer. There is so much to squeeze into a 3-day cruise, I would recommend going a day early so youre rested when you get on the ship not ready for a nap.)
FRIDAY NASSAU
Woke up at 8:00a.m. as the ship was pulling into Nassau. We watched from our room, then dressed quickly and went to watch from decks 9 & 10. Breakfast at Beach Blanket Buffet. Half-way through, Sue realized that Aunt Irene had her shirt on inside out! Great Laugh! This was when the giggling began it lasted for the remainder of the trip My, but we had fun! Toured Nassau on our own following (or trying to follow) the sightseeing directions in the Shopping in Paradise guide they handed us when we got off the boat. We walked for 2 and half-hours and never made it to all 5 of the main things to see. Big Mistake! I thought Irene was going to need oxygen! A taxi-tour would have been better with non-athletic types. There are lots of hills and steps to climb. Street signs were not at every intersection. The map from the ship highlights shopping and doesnt have stars or numbers to indicate exactly where the tourist sights are. The printed sightseeing directions say things like proceeding West turn South onto that left me our right away. I cant even figure our port from starboard! You could see Atlantis from the dock. Our waiter suggested going there. He said dont pay more than $4.00 per person each way. On the positive side We had a great time we DID see the statue of Queen Victoria, Parliament Square, an octagonal building built in 1797 and used as a jail until 1873 its now a library, Fort Fincastle, Christ Church Cathedral, and the Straw Market. I was prepared for people to be in your face trying to sell you things. I didnt fine that to be the case. As we walked through the narrow aisles of the straw market ladies would say things like, T-shirts 4 for $10, something for you today ladies but I never felt and pressure or hassle.
Back to the ship after 1:00p.m. Irene Totally Wiped Out! Everyone had a shower then to lunch and then we sat on Deck 4 in the comfy lounge chairs and took naps. We saw a U.S. Marine warship and a couple other cruise ships pull into the dock.
FRIDAY - DINNER
Posed for some pictures in the lobby and then dinner at Animators Palette. Irene was very impressed with the show. Our table #32 was in a perfect location. We had a table for 8, but the family of 5 switched to a later dinner seating so we had the big table all to ourselves. (I hold firm to my opinion that the family walked into the dining room the first night, heard us laughing and high-tailed it outta there.) Marge & Irene had Stuffed Tomato with Rice and Sue had a Lobster & Shrimp Wrap for appetizers. Irene & Marge had Salmon and Sue had Sirloin Steak. For dessert Marge had Boston Crème Pie and Irene & Sue had Double Chocolate Cake. Our Servers Ulyses and Jorge LOVE US! I have been on other cruises and had other waiters who were wonderful but these guys think were nuts! Waiters from other tables kept coming over to our table. It was definitely the party table. We had lots of fun & laughs. It was probably a good thing that John wasnt with us because I think we would have embarrassed him. Jorge pretended to spill hot water on Sue. She jumped (even though this was the third cruise and she should have expected it). Marge was more startled than Sue was and in an attempt to save her she threw her arm out to do what ? stop the water?? Anyway Marge has long fingernails and jabbed them into Sues forearm and almost drew blood. The poor waiter felt horrible which just made the whole thing funnier. It got even better when 20 minutes later Aunt Irene leaned over and genuinely asked, Honey did you get burned real bad? Marge and Sue erupted in another fit of laughter when they realized that Irene still did not know it was a joke. Before we left the restaurant (we were always the last ones out) Marge was giving Jorge a neck massage and he was rolling his eyes and moaning. Our server and one from another table were laughing so hard I thought they were going to fall over.
More pictures, then we grabbed a free drink from one of the waiters and sat on Deck 4 until it was time for the Cabaret/Comedy Show that evening. Sue started apologizing to strangers whenever Marge and Irene would laugh as we were walking around. Dont mind them, its the alcohol Theyve been drinking all day, Im terribly sorry My husband warned me not to let them drink anything Since the drink we had was alcohol-free it only made Marge & Irene laugh harder when Sue kept saying those things. We laughed at the comedy guy but we were already doing pretty good on our own. Went to Dueling Pianos for a sing-a-long then up on deck for a Dessert Buffet. We walked all around the ship inside and out. Sue was so lost she couldnt tell aft from forward today. Back to our room about 12:30.
The next day there was an item in the Personal Navigator about no loud conversations or running in the hallways after midnight. She told Marge & Irene to cool it and Irene pointed out that we were never running in the halls.
SATURDAY CASTAWAY CAY
Woke up around 6:00a.m. although we didnt get up until around 8:00a.m. The ship was already docked at Castaway Cay. Breakfast at Beach Blanket Buffet lingered over coffee and laughed with the waiters there. It was 10:30 before we got off the ship for the beach. Decided to go to the adult beach, as wed never been there before. Immediately regretted not getting an earlier start as our choice of chairs with umbrellas was w -a- y down the beach. Sue found a sand dollar right by our chairs. We all put beach chairs right out in the water and enjoyed the sun. Marge & Sue also spent some time lounging under the sun umbrella. 1:30p.m. lunch at Serenity Bay. We had burgers, hot dogs and fruit. Marge was starting to burn so we decided to head back to the ship. Rode the tram back to the family beach, looked in the store and back to ship by 3:00p.m.
SATURDAY EVENING
We all dressed for dinner and went to the dis-embarkation talk at 4:30. We stayed to watch the Discover the Magic kids show and then went to the Castaway Club reception at Wave Bands. Talked to a lot of nice people and had some appetizers and a drink with REAL alcohol. Marge & Irene took theirs with them to dinner at Parrot Cay and even the Head Waiter made a comment to them about Drinking again ladies Our Assistant Server teased them about not buying a drink from him so we HAD to have another round.
When he brought the charge slip for us to sign he gave it to Marge and kept saying Dont forget to put down your room number Madame, until Marge got his double meaning and we were all laughing again.
Irene had Coconut Prawns & Onion Rings as and appetizer and Sue & Marge had Caribbean Okra Gumbo Soup. Irene & Sue had Prime Rib for dinner and Marge had the Seafood Creole. She hated it but would not let the waiter bring her anything else. Sue gave Marge her baked potato and all was OK. All had Bananas Flambé for dessert. Irene asked if she could share one with Marge. Certainly Madame. was Ulyses reply. When he brought the desserts he gave a whole dessert to each of us and told Irene that she could share a bite of Marges and that Marge could share a bite of hers. Ulyses came over again later to talk to his beautiful ladies and in reaching out to take his hand Marge knocked a full glass of ice water directly into Irenes lap!
To Shutters after dinner. We traded in our photo package for credit as we had originally purchased a 10-photo deal and we were only buying 3 photos. No problem. We went back to our room and Marge started to pack her suitcase. Irene wanted Sue to figure out who owed for what so they sat down and did that and then filled out the customs forms and the new luggage tags. Irene suddenly realized that is was 10:50p.m. And our bags had to be packed and out in the hall by 11:00p.m.! Marge said, I knew what time it was and I wondered what time you two were going to start packing! We made it! Our bags were packed, re-tagged and in the hallway by 11:02p.m. And gone by 11:05p.m. Marge wanted to roll up her hair so that she would look good when she got off the ship tomorrow ??? Sue wondered why now ???
Irene gave Sue the look again. Sue & Irene went up to deck 9 for coffee and giggled again when the room steward saw them in the hallway and said Good Morning to them on the way back to their room. Irene checked her watch and discovered that it was after midnight.
SUNDAY BREAKFAST
We had a Mickey wake-up call at 5:45 a.m., but we were all awake by then anyway. Sue took the flowers from John & the kids to the Guest Services Desk, as she couldnt bring any plant materials back into the U.S. They seemed to really enjoy them. The arrangement was bigger than the one that was on the windowsill. Sue set the flowers up in the corner of the L-shaped counter and told them to enjoy them or give them to someone who would.
Breakfast at Parrot Cay at 6:45a.m. Jorge asked us if we wanted juice and when Irene tasted hers she said, Hey, theres no vodka in here! Wheres the vodka?
Jorge was standing by Sue then and she said, Youve only had to serve them dinner you should be glad this is the only day you have to be around them in the morning.
Jorge rolled his eyes heavenward, lifted his arms and said in his wonderful accent, Tank Gott
It was a leisurely and very nice breakfast and we didnt feel rushed. Several of the other waiters came over to say good-bye to us. When we were leaving, the head waiter, Ibraham, said to Sue, Madame, Ill see you next month.
SUNDAY DIS-EMBARKATION
We picked up our last photo at Shutters at 8:00a.m., got off the ship (no line), picked up our luggage, and wheeled it outside directly to the U.S. Airways check-in. They tagged the bags through to Columbus and said that we were all set just go to the gate at the airport. We got on the Disney Bus at 8:15a.m. and left at 8:20a.m. for the Orlando Airport. We watched at cartoon on the bus about Mickey, Donald & Goofy building a boat. The boat sank I guess thats why they dont show it on the way to your cruise!
SUNDAY AIRPORT
Sue called John to tell him that we were at the airport at 9:30a.m. We got a drink and went to the gate to wait for our flight. Ten minutes before boarding the plane, there was an announcement asking if there was a party of three ages 18 or over traveling together. They needed someone to switch with a family that had a small child who could not sit in an exit row. Irene & Sue went to the counter to volunteer. Thats where we met Russell!
He took our tickets and handed them to another lady at the counter and then asked me for our tickets. I just gave you our tickets, I said.
No, you gave me your boarding passes, I need your tickets he said.
Those are the only papers I got at Check-in I told him.
Then you have a BIG PROBLEM he said, Because there is a $70.00 fee each for lost tickets."
Sue calmly said, Well Russell, I hope you can help us. She showed him the computer print out for the E-Tickets, gave a brief description of what had happened, went the route of the my husband always takes care of this and answered several questions. He said that the cruise line people are not airline people and since they had screwed up he would re-print our ticket at no charge. Sue wisely did not mention that it was a U.S.Air employee at a ticket counter who gave them the boarding passes without tickets. We all agreed that it was a good thing we were trying to be nice by switching seats or we would not have encountered the problem until we were ready to board the plane and as it was over-booked it might have been a big problem.
Russell was the one taking tickets. When we got on the plane and he said, I remember you you were the ladies causing all the trouble earlier! Ha! Ha! When we walked down the jet-way we discovered that Row 8 A-B-C (our new seats) were JUST inside the cabin door so we waited outside the plane to allow others in so we didnt get our knees knocked or trip anyone. We were laughing and joking with people getting on the plane, Welcome to U.S. Air..etc. The stewardesses inside the plane were laughing at us as Sue was making jokes that there had been some cutbacks at the airlines and that the three of us were now the flight attendants. We really had a BAD case of the giggles!
One guy came around the corner of the jet-way and said, Hey Honey, its the ladies who were laughing at dinner the other night. That just cracked us up and we were doubled over with laughter. He told us that they sat a couple tables away from us and that we always seemed to be having a good time!
When we took our seats there was about 4 feet of open space in front of us. In trying to fill all the seats on the plane, Russell came onto the plane to confer with the flight attendants. He said, I hope you ladies have enough legroom considering youre all of 52, 53, and 53! We had the whole front half of the plane laughing SERIOUSLY!
As we were waiting while they filled the last four seats on the plane, Irene discovered that her shoe was untied. She leaned forward to tie it and couldnt because of the seat belt, we all laughed some more. Sue snapped her fingers a couple of times and said, Russell, Russell, where are you? We need you. Turns out he was just outside the plane on the jet-way and he heard me! He came in and said, Ladies, how can I help you? Marge let out a whooping laugh, the man behind us was holding onto Sues seat he was laughing so hard. By this time tears are rolling down Sues face. He bent down, placed Irenes foot in his lap and tied her shoe. The stewardesses were beside themselves! They were hollering to the other flight attendants to come and see this. I heard one guy behind us laughing and saying to another guy, I dont know what theyre laughing at, but you just cant help but laugh with them! Two stewardesses stuck their legs out of the door and asked Russell for a shoeshine! The poor man will probably never live this down. I knew were really in trouble when the Co-Pilot came back and said, The captain asked me to come back here to see what was so funny.
We did eventually settle down and the plane left at 12:15p.m. When they brought the drink cart around one of the stewardesses said, No Alcohol for Those Ladies! We all chose coffee or tea and Irene said that some people probably think were really trying to sober up!
During the flight Sue tried to write down this latest episode and she kept giggling. Marge would say, What? Whats so funny now?
Dont even look at me, Sue said, or Ill lose it again.
One gentleman from who knows how far back in the plane stopped by on his way back from the bathroom and put his hand on Irenes shoulder, and said, Its nice to see someone enjoying their vacation so much! I like to see that!
We changed planes in Philadelphia we were all a bit more subdued on this flight. Plane arrived in Columbus on time. We picked up our luggage and Ed met us at arriving flights. We went out for supper on the way home. Sue told Ed that he had better take us to a buffet place or at least a cafeteria because we hadnt eaten lunch and we wouldnt be able to stop eating so much food like we did on the cruise cold turkey. We went to a nice family restaurant and we were very calm as Uncle Ed is a bit more straight-laced than the rest of us, but when they brought Sues cheeseburger with - tomato, lettuce, onion, pickles but no cheeseburger we dissolved into laughter again.
We were back to Irene & Eds house by 7:30p.m. Marge was the navigator on the drive from Irenes to her house. At one three-way intersection Sue asked, Which way do we turn, left or right?
Marges answer was, Where are we?
Turns out we were in Wooster and Sue knew how to get from there to Dalton so she turned right and kept driving while Marge tried to figure out what previous turn we had missed to end up there. Sue & Marge had another great laugh about that on the way home. Dropped Marge off by 9:30p.m. And Sue was home by 10:30p.m.
John had a cup of tea waiting for Sue when she got home and he wanted to hear every detail of the trip. It was 12:30 a.m. by the time Sue finished talking and showed him the pins she bought him.
CRUSIN ON THE DISNEY WONDER WITH NANA & AUNT IRENE
October 3rd to 6th, 2002
WEDNESDAY EVENING
Sue & Marge (Nana) to Aunt Irene & Uncle Eds house in Newark, Ohio
6:00p.m. Pizza for supper.
During dinner conversation Aunt Irene mentions that she packed one dinner dress and pants for the other two nights, but she has another dress for us to look at and tell her if she should take it. Marge (who has been on two 7-day Disney cruises) chimes in with, Dresses! Nobody told me to bring a dress! I only packed shorts & T-shirts and a couple pair of long pants!
Aunt Irene shoots Sue the I cant believe this look.
Sue thinks Oh, God, its begun!
Sue assures Marge that it will be OK; I threw in an extra sleeveless jumper-type dress just in case so you can wear that. Aunt Irene promises to let Marge look through her closet to see if she wants to borrow anything.
After dinner, dishes, and a trip to Wal-Mart Sue had the ladies sign their cruise documents and shows them the luggage tags, etc. Irene brings out a couple skirts for Marge to look at.
Marge says (and I quote) Thats OK, Ill just wear my own!
Irene collapses into a chair and gives Sue the now familiar I cant believe this look.
Sue makes a mental note to check Marges medication and calmly asks, Mom, which dress did you bring?
Marge gives a three-minute description of a little nautical number with cute anchors & life preservers on it.
Irene shakes her head and asks, Would anyone like ice cream?
THURSDAY MORNING AIRPORT
Up at 4:30a.m. left for Columbus, OH airport at 5:30a.m. Ed dropped us off at departing flights. We sailed through the airports, security and the flights went smoothly. We had breakfast at the airport in Charlotte, N.C. We were met by some of the Disney Cruise Line staff as we got off the shuttle in the terminal at the Orlando airport. Aunt Irene pulled out her camera and started taking pictures. We have pictures of the cruise line staff, the cruise line podium, the cruise line bus, outside the bus, getting on the bus, in the bus. Pace yourself Aunt Irene were not even on the boat yet!
THURSDAY BUS RIDE
The Disney Bus is the way to go. It was very easy. We were not in the terminal 15 minutes before we were on the bus and on our way. There is a ½ hour movie shown on the bus all about the ship and cruise.
THURSDAY THE WONDER
Aunt Irene is walking to our cabin with her mouth hanging open. She is very impressed with the ship and Mom and I are excited too. Cabin 5520 is fantastic! The big (4ft.) porthole window is cool. I knew that the window was going to have a metal rack in front of it, but its hardly blocked at all. We had a great free view! Irene had never been on a ship before and her son-in-law had told her that the room would be small. He told her to expect to have to take turns raising your arms to get dressed. She was really impressed with the king-size bed, couch that flips forward to be a twin bed and bunk bed above. With three ladies having the split-bathroom worked great. Aunt Irene commented that there were lots of drawers and cabinets for storage and that the closet was at least twice as big as she was expecting. I could feel the cruise line PR people cringing when Marge said, It kinda reminds me of your motor-home, Irene. (Maybe they would like to use that description in their next brochure all the comforts of a motor home sounds great!
There was a HUGE arrangement of stargazer lilys and daisys in our stateroom from MR. WONDERFUL, my husband John (Towncrier) and the kids. They smelled great and as the flowers continued to open over the next three days our cabin was like a tropical paradise really!
We went to the Beach Blanket Buffet for lunch and had shrimp and mahi-mahi among other goodies.
THURSDAY LIFE-BOAT DRILL
When we were on the 7-day cruise you were supposed to be in your stateroom when they sounded the alarm and then wearing your life-jacket walk to your life boat station. We heard the announcement that the drill would begin in 20 minutes, 10 minutes, and then the announcement that the lifeboat drill is in 5 minutes and that everyone should already be there or on their way! OOPS! Actually, it worked out quite well. It was really HOT and with the life vest on it was even hotter. We got there late enough to stand in the front row and have somewhat of a breeze and we only had to wear our jackets for a total of 5-10 minutes until we got back to our room.
THURSDAY - DINNER
The Sail-away party was fun (although after being on the inaugural 7-day cruise it was tame). We walked around a lot and went back to our cabin to discover that it was 5:15p.m. and we had to be at dinner at 6:00p.m. Our luggage was there so we unpacked, got dressed and made it to Tritons at exactly 6:00. Everyone was feeling adventurous so we tried escargot as an appetizer. We decided it tastes like chicken Rubber chicken.
Irene had duck, Sue had Beef Tenderloin, and Marge had Sea Bass. For dessert Irene had Crème Brule, Marge had Cherries Jubilee, and Sue had Chocolate Mousse Cake. After dinner we looked at Pins in the lobby and took some photos. We saw Hercules the MUSE-ical and went to Shutters to see our embarkation photos. After an 18-hour day we were all tired and went to bed shortly after 10:30p.m.
(I can understand why some people fly down the day before and stay all night at a hotel. If we hadnt had to get up so early we could have stayed up longer. There is so much to squeeze into a 3-day cruise, I would recommend going a day early so youre rested when you get on the ship not ready for a nap.)
FRIDAY NASSAU
Woke up at 8:00a.m. as the ship was pulling into Nassau. We watched from our room, then dressed quickly and went to watch from decks 9 & 10. Breakfast at Beach Blanket Buffet. Half-way through, Sue realized that Aunt Irene had her shirt on inside out! Great Laugh! This was when the giggling began it lasted for the remainder of the trip My, but we had fun! Toured Nassau on our own following (or trying to follow) the sightseeing directions in the Shopping in Paradise guide they handed us when we got off the boat. We walked for 2 and half-hours and never made it to all 5 of the main things to see. Big Mistake! I thought Irene was going to need oxygen! A taxi-tour would have been better with non-athletic types. There are lots of hills and steps to climb. Street signs were not at every intersection. The map from the ship highlights shopping and doesnt have stars or numbers to indicate exactly where the tourist sights are. The printed sightseeing directions say things like proceeding West turn South onto that left me our right away. I cant even figure our port from starboard! You could see Atlantis from the dock. Our waiter suggested going there. He said dont pay more than $4.00 per person each way. On the positive side We had a great time we DID see the statue of Queen Victoria, Parliament Square, an octagonal building built in 1797 and used as a jail until 1873 its now a library, Fort Fincastle, Christ Church Cathedral, and the Straw Market. I was prepared for people to be in your face trying to sell you things. I didnt fine that to be the case. As we walked through the narrow aisles of the straw market ladies would say things like, T-shirts 4 for $10, something for you today ladies but I never felt and pressure or hassle.
Back to the ship after 1:00p.m. Irene Totally Wiped Out! Everyone had a shower then to lunch and then we sat on Deck 4 in the comfy lounge chairs and took naps. We saw a U.S. Marine warship and a couple other cruise ships pull into the dock.
FRIDAY - DINNER
Posed for some pictures in the lobby and then dinner at Animators Palette. Irene was very impressed with the show. Our table #32 was in a perfect location. We had a table for 8, but the family of 5 switched to a later dinner seating so we had the big table all to ourselves. (I hold firm to my opinion that the family walked into the dining room the first night, heard us laughing and high-tailed it outta there.) Marge & Irene had Stuffed Tomato with Rice and Sue had a Lobster & Shrimp Wrap for appetizers. Irene & Marge had Salmon and Sue had Sirloin Steak. For dessert Marge had Boston Crème Pie and Irene & Sue had Double Chocolate Cake. Our Servers Ulyses and Jorge LOVE US! I have been on other cruises and had other waiters who were wonderful but these guys think were nuts! Waiters from other tables kept coming over to our table. It was definitely the party table. We had lots of fun & laughs. It was probably a good thing that John wasnt with us because I think we would have embarrassed him. Jorge pretended to spill hot water on Sue. She jumped (even though this was the third cruise and she should have expected it). Marge was more startled than Sue was and in an attempt to save her she threw her arm out to do what ? stop the water?? Anyway Marge has long fingernails and jabbed them into Sues forearm and almost drew blood. The poor waiter felt horrible which just made the whole thing funnier. It got even better when 20 minutes later Aunt Irene leaned over and genuinely asked, Honey did you get burned real bad? Marge and Sue erupted in another fit of laughter when they realized that Irene still did not know it was a joke. Before we left the restaurant (we were always the last ones out) Marge was giving Jorge a neck massage and he was rolling his eyes and moaning. Our server and one from another table were laughing so hard I thought they were going to fall over.
More pictures, then we grabbed a free drink from one of the waiters and sat on Deck 4 until it was time for the Cabaret/Comedy Show that evening. Sue started apologizing to strangers whenever Marge and Irene would laugh as we were walking around. Dont mind them, its the alcohol Theyve been drinking all day, Im terribly sorry My husband warned me not to let them drink anything Since the drink we had was alcohol-free it only made Marge & Irene laugh harder when Sue kept saying those things. We laughed at the comedy guy but we were already doing pretty good on our own. Went to Dueling Pianos for a sing-a-long then up on deck for a Dessert Buffet. We walked all around the ship inside and out. Sue was so lost she couldnt tell aft from forward today. Back to our room about 12:30.
The next day there was an item in the Personal Navigator about no loud conversations or running in the hallways after midnight. She told Marge & Irene to cool it and Irene pointed out that we were never running in the halls.
SATURDAY CASTAWAY CAY
Woke up around 6:00a.m. although we didnt get up until around 8:00a.m. The ship was already docked at Castaway Cay. Breakfast at Beach Blanket Buffet lingered over coffee and laughed with the waiters there. It was 10:30 before we got off the ship for the beach. Decided to go to the adult beach, as wed never been there before. Immediately regretted not getting an earlier start as our choice of chairs with umbrellas was w -a- y down the beach. Sue found a sand dollar right by our chairs. We all put beach chairs right out in the water and enjoyed the sun. Marge & Sue also spent some time lounging under the sun umbrella. 1:30p.m. lunch at Serenity Bay. We had burgers, hot dogs and fruit. Marge was starting to burn so we decided to head back to the ship. Rode the tram back to the family beach, looked in the store and back to ship by 3:00p.m.
SATURDAY EVENING
We all dressed for dinner and went to the dis-embarkation talk at 4:30. We stayed to watch the Discover the Magic kids show and then went to the Castaway Club reception at Wave Bands. Talked to a lot of nice people and had some appetizers and a drink with REAL alcohol. Marge & Irene took theirs with them to dinner at Parrot Cay and even the Head Waiter made a comment to them about Drinking again ladies Our Assistant Server teased them about not buying a drink from him so we HAD to have another round.
When he brought the charge slip for us to sign he gave it to Marge and kept saying Dont forget to put down your room number Madame, until Marge got his double meaning and we were all laughing again.
Irene had Coconut Prawns & Onion Rings as and appetizer and Sue & Marge had Caribbean Okra Gumbo Soup. Irene & Sue had Prime Rib for dinner and Marge had the Seafood Creole. She hated it but would not let the waiter bring her anything else. Sue gave Marge her baked potato and all was OK. All had Bananas Flambé for dessert. Irene asked if she could share one with Marge. Certainly Madame. was Ulyses reply. When he brought the desserts he gave a whole dessert to each of us and told Irene that she could share a bite of Marges and that Marge could share a bite of hers. Ulyses came over again later to talk to his beautiful ladies and in reaching out to take his hand Marge knocked a full glass of ice water directly into Irenes lap!
To Shutters after dinner. We traded in our photo package for credit as we had originally purchased a 10-photo deal and we were only buying 3 photos. No problem. We went back to our room and Marge started to pack her suitcase. Irene wanted Sue to figure out who owed for what so they sat down and did that and then filled out the customs forms and the new luggage tags. Irene suddenly realized that is was 10:50p.m. And our bags had to be packed and out in the hall by 11:00p.m.! Marge said, I knew what time it was and I wondered what time you two were going to start packing! We made it! Our bags were packed, re-tagged and in the hallway by 11:02p.m. And gone by 11:05p.m. Marge wanted to roll up her hair so that she would look good when she got off the ship tomorrow ??? Sue wondered why now ???
Irene gave Sue the look again. Sue & Irene went up to deck 9 for coffee and giggled again when the room steward saw them in the hallway and said Good Morning to them on the way back to their room. Irene checked her watch and discovered that it was after midnight.
SUNDAY BREAKFAST
We had a Mickey wake-up call at 5:45 a.m., but we were all awake by then anyway. Sue took the flowers from John & the kids to the Guest Services Desk, as she couldnt bring any plant materials back into the U.S. They seemed to really enjoy them. The arrangement was bigger than the one that was on the windowsill. Sue set the flowers up in the corner of the L-shaped counter and told them to enjoy them or give them to someone who would.
Breakfast at Parrot Cay at 6:45a.m. Jorge asked us if we wanted juice and when Irene tasted hers she said, Hey, theres no vodka in here! Wheres the vodka?
Jorge was standing by Sue then and she said, Youve only had to serve them dinner you should be glad this is the only day you have to be around them in the morning.
Jorge rolled his eyes heavenward, lifted his arms and said in his wonderful accent, Tank Gott
It was a leisurely and very nice breakfast and we didnt feel rushed. Several of the other waiters came over to say good-bye to us. When we were leaving, the head waiter, Ibraham, said to Sue, Madame, Ill see you next month.
SUNDAY DIS-EMBARKATION
We picked up our last photo at Shutters at 8:00a.m., got off the ship (no line), picked up our luggage, and wheeled it outside directly to the U.S. Airways check-in. They tagged the bags through to Columbus and said that we were all set just go to the gate at the airport. We got on the Disney Bus at 8:15a.m. and left at 8:20a.m. for the Orlando Airport. We watched at cartoon on the bus about Mickey, Donald & Goofy building a boat. The boat sank I guess thats why they dont show it on the way to your cruise!
SUNDAY AIRPORT
Sue called John to tell him that we were at the airport at 9:30a.m. We got a drink and went to the gate to wait for our flight. Ten minutes before boarding the plane, there was an announcement asking if there was a party of three ages 18 or over traveling together. They needed someone to switch with a family that had a small child who could not sit in an exit row. Irene & Sue went to the counter to volunteer. Thats where we met Russell!
He took our tickets and handed them to another lady at the counter and then asked me for our tickets. I just gave you our tickets, I said.
No, you gave me your boarding passes, I need your tickets he said.
Those are the only papers I got at Check-in I told him.
Then you have a BIG PROBLEM he said, Because there is a $70.00 fee each for lost tickets."
Sue calmly said, Well Russell, I hope you can help us. She showed him the computer print out for the E-Tickets, gave a brief description of what had happened, went the route of the my husband always takes care of this and answered several questions. He said that the cruise line people are not airline people and since they had screwed up he would re-print our ticket at no charge. Sue wisely did not mention that it was a U.S.Air employee at a ticket counter who gave them the boarding passes without tickets. We all agreed that it was a good thing we were trying to be nice by switching seats or we would not have encountered the problem until we were ready to board the plane and as it was over-booked it might have been a big problem.
Russell was the one taking tickets. When we got on the plane and he said, I remember you you were the ladies causing all the trouble earlier! Ha! Ha! When we walked down the jet-way we discovered that Row 8 A-B-C (our new seats) were JUST inside the cabin door so we waited outside the plane to allow others in so we didnt get our knees knocked or trip anyone. We were laughing and joking with people getting on the plane, Welcome to U.S. Air..etc. The stewardesses inside the plane were laughing at us as Sue was making jokes that there had been some cutbacks at the airlines and that the three of us were now the flight attendants. We really had a BAD case of the giggles!
One guy came around the corner of the jet-way and said, Hey Honey, its the ladies who were laughing at dinner the other night. That just cracked us up and we were doubled over with laughter. He told us that they sat a couple tables away from us and that we always seemed to be having a good time!
When we took our seats there was about 4 feet of open space in front of us. In trying to fill all the seats on the plane, Russell came onto the plane to confer with the flight attendants. He said, I hope you ladies have enough legroom considering youre all of 52, 53, and 53! We had the whole front half of the plane laughing SERIOUSLY!
As we were waiting while they filled the last four seats on the plane, Irene discovered that her shoe was untied. She leaned forward to tie it and couldnt because of the seat belt, we all laughed some more. Sue snapped her fingers a couple of times and said, Russell, Russell, where are you? We need you. Turns out he was just outside the plane on the jet-way and he heard me! He came in and said, Ladies, how can I help you? Marge let out a whooping laugh, the man behind us was holding onto Sues seat he was laughing so hard. By this time tears are rolling down Sues face. He bent down, placed Irenes foot in his lap and tied her shoe. The stewardesses were beside themselves! They were hollering to the other flight attendants to come and see this. I heard one guy behind us laughing and saying to another guy, I dont know what theyre laughing at, but you just cant help but laugh with them! Two stewardesses stuck their legs out of the door and asked Russell for a shoeshine! The poor man will probably never live this down. I knew were really in trouble when the Co-Pilot came back and said, The captain asked me to come back here to see what was so funny.
We did eventually settle down and the plane left at 12:15p.m. When they brought the drink cart around one of the stewardesses said, No Alcohol for Those Ladies! We all chose coffee or tea and Irene said that some people probably think were really trying to sober up!
During the flight Sue tried to write down this latest episode and she kept giggling. Marge would say, What? Whats so funny now?
Dont even look at me, Sue said, or Ill lose it again.
One gentleman from who knows how far back in the plane stopped by on his way back from the bathroom and put his hand on Irenes shoulder, and said, Its nice to see someone enjoying their vacation so much! I like to see that!
We changed planes in Philadelphia we were all a bit more subdued on this flight. Plane arrived in Columbus on time. We picked up our luggage and Ed met us at arriving flights. We went out for supper on the way home. Sue told Ed that he had better take us to a buffet place or at least a cafeteria because we hadnt eaten lunch and we wouldnt be able to stop eating so much food like we did on the cruise cold turkey. We went to a nice family restaurant and we were very calm as Uncle Ed is a bit more straight-laced than the rest of us, but when they brought Sues cheeseburger with - tomato, lettuce, onion, pickles but no cheeseburger we dissolved into laughter again.
We were back to Irene & Eds house by 7:30p.m. Marge was the navigator on the drive from Irenes to her house. At one three-way intersection Sue asked, Which way do we turn, left or right?
Marges answer was, Where are we?
Turns out we were in Wooster and Sue knew how to get from there to Dalton so she turned right and kept driving while Marge tried to figure out what previous turn we had missed to end up there. Sue & Marge had another great laugh about that on the way home. Dropped Marge off by 9:30p.m. And Sue was home by 10:30p.m.
John had a cup of tea waiting for Sue when she got home and he wanted to hear every detail of the trip. It was 12:30 a.m. by the time Sue finished talking and showed him the pins she bought him.
Wanna join us? 
Great trip report!
