Cruising with everyone aboard the Eastern Caribbean

[kjblovesdisney]

There will probably be a flurry of reports for this cruise but it will be fun reading them all because everyone's cruise will be different.

Wheeler* Women:
Me: Kathy (50ish)
DS: Martha(only other crusie was a Windjammer with Heidi) (40ish)
DF and DSP: Heidi (another big boat cruise newbie) (40ish)
DF: Wendy (40ish)
DF: Arlene (first cruise and first time at WDW) (40ish I think)
DF and DS's and DSP's neighbor: Betty (travel expert) (60ish)
Sandy (unfortunately did not make it due to all sorts of complications..more about that later)

* we had to come up with a common name for us all so we chose Wheeler as we all had a connection to the name. Martha and I are "Wheeler" sisters and everyone else is connected or at least we are in our minds. Our other choices were the "TETS" (Too Excited to Sleep) but some of us thought it was to close to a word that describes a part of the female anatomy and a configuration of our intials that escapes me now although we thought it was hysterical at the time ( middle age syndrome)


Walt Disney World pre cruise:
Due to Betty's generousity and wonderful nature, we had two days at the Beach Club Resort before the cruise. I met Martha, Heidi, Wendy and Arlene in Boston Wednesday evening and we all stayed at the Holiday Inn as Park and Fly guest. We have done this in the past because you can never count on New England winter weather and it works out well. It is your basic Holiday Inn but suits our needs nicely. We flew AirTran out of Boston thru Newport News (where we had hoped to pick up Sandy but the first problem arose: illness but she would met us in Orlando on Saturday) and arrived in Orlando at about 2 pm. We picked up our rental cars (with the 6 of us we opted for two mid size) which we would drop off at the Budget rental place in Port Canaveral cruise morning. Both Martha and I are fastbreak participants (learned to do this on these boards) and everything went very smoothly. Hoped into the vehicles and headed out to meet Betty who had flown in earlier in the day from Connecticut. Betty is a DVC member so we dropped the cars and there she was waiting for us. We checked in to a 1 bedroom and 2 bedroom suite. It was the first time we (other than Betty) had stayed
at Beach Club. I enjoyed it very much and spent time walking the loop between Beach Club, Yacht Club and the Boardwalk. We spent Thursday evening in the hot tub and pool and decided to have the Kitchen Sink at Beaches and Cream for dinner. If you don't know what that is it is this enormous sundae that comes out in a large container shaped like a sink with everything imaginable on it including cake. Amazing!

Friday was Magic Kingdom day. Arlene had never been to WDW so of course the first time should be at the Kingdom. It never fails me that the first glimpse of the castle makes my pulse quicken. I, like so many of us, just need that fix. Well it was off to Pirates of the Carribean for the new look. Loved seeing Captain Jack as the new addition to the ride. The new amnitronics are amazing to the point that I would have sworn that one of the Jacks was real. Of course he isn't but my sister and I have have this running gag on what is real and what isn't real in the parks. (I still swear that the birds over the fountain at Epcot aren't real )
I stayed for the entire day, while the rest of the group headed back for some R&R in the late afternoon. I just walked around, shopped a little and sat and people watched.
Highlights of the day: A hot dog and fries at Casey's
Pirates of the Caribbean with Capt Jack
Wendy's turkey leg
Wishes Fireworks ( one of my favorites)
Mickey Rice Krispie treat
Splash Mountain was closed but we went on lots of other rides in the park, so it was a very successful day.
Off to the Beach Club and Bed because Saturday is cruise day!!!

Next: Embarkation and sail away!

 

[kjblovesdisney]

Up early, repacked and got the cars. Said goodbye to the Beach Club and hello to the Magic. The ride from Orlando to the Port was easy and is is wonderful when you are going over the long causeway into Port Canaveral and you catch your first glimpse of the Magic at the dock in the distance. The in and drop off at the Port was simple. Martha and I dropped everyone with all the luggage at the ship and then headed to Budget to drop off the rentals. The Magic is a beautiful ship. I think that it's classic look outshines the other ships in port. The porters were very helpful with info and directions.

We go the shuttle back to port in no time and joined up withthe rest of the group. We had still not seen Sandy but recieved a voice mail while waiting tht she would not be joining us. Thank goodness she ahd trip insurance. Just a few days before the cruise out TA with DU emailed and asked if we would be willing to change our room categories from a 4 to two 6's. They would also upgrade Wendy and Arlene who were traveling in a category 11 to a 7 and that we would all be on the same deck. (Betty remained in her 5) After a short discusiion and not knowing at that point thatSandy would not be with us, we opted to take the change. It actually worked out well for us. Martha and Heidi had one cabin, I had the other 6 and Wendy and Arlene had a port hole verandah. After we discovered that Sandy wouldn't be with us, we weren't sure about how easily we could rearrange things. It was a piece of cake and check in was a breeze. I was very impressed with how quickly we got through the process.
We waited for our number to be called, stepped through the Mickey ears, a quick photo and the next thing we knew we were being announced onto the ship.

We opted for lunch at Parrot Cay. I was thrilled to see the options for lunch as I am doing WW and was concerned about screwing up the diet. it was not a problem except when I made it one. I also decided early in the cruise that as long as I watched what I ate and didn't go crazy, it wouldn't be aw hardship. Tips: always use the stairs instead of the elevator. After a day or so, my legs got used tothe climbs and I usually beat the elevator anyway. (I actually have my first post cruise weigh-in tomorrow....we'll see how I did)

We checked into the rooms at 1:30 and unpacked. It is amazing how much storage space there actually is in the rooms. Our hostess was Beverly and she was the best, very helpful, very unobtrusive but there for questions when you needed her. She greeted us (we all had her) with smiles every time we saw her, and always asked about our day.

After unpacking we headed out to explore, and for the rest of the trip we would do things both togehter and on our own. It worked very well. We met usually for breakfast, sometimes lunch, always dinner. Our dinner rotation started in Lumieres. Our server was Ever Lee and our assistant was Erwin. Ever Lee was great, and worked his butt off to make our meals enjoyable and exactly what we wanted. Erwin was also good but had to be reminded about things like milk for the coffee even up to the second to last day of the cruise. We had two other folks at our table, Jim and Pat from NY. They were great dinner friends and we would chat with each other when we would see them on the ship.

I enjoyed the food at Lumieres. The escargot was delicious and both Martha and I hoped to have it on one of our other nights but it wasn't on the menu again. I chose fish often throughout the cruise and being a New Englander I am fish picky. I was never disappointed by any fish dish I had. (Great salmon and grouper)

Desserts were good but not always fabulous which was okay because I would have a taste and then pass on the rest (except when we ate at Palos...moreon that MEAL later).

The lifeboat drill was a lot less painful then I remember them being on another cruise line and pretty well organized. It did not take that long to get through.

The sail away party was great fun and I had a blast blowing bubbles. I actually got a litle teary eyed when the horn blew because we had planned for this trip for so long and it was finally here. You would have thought that we were a bunch of kids. The CMs and characters put on a great show to set the mood for the trip.
Finally we were heading to sea!

 

[Babs417]

Im enjoying your trip report. Where was your assistant server Erwin from?

 

[bywheel]

I enjoyed the food at Lumieres. The escargot was delicious and both Martha and I hoped to have it on one of our other nights but it wasn't on the menu again. I chose fish often throughout the cruise and being a New Englander I am fish picky. I was never disappointed by any fish dish I had. (Great salmon and grouper)

Yummm Salmon

 

[kjblovesdisney]

Erwin was from Jamaica, and Ever Lee was from the Phillipines.

 

[kjblovesdisney]

We had no plans to meet this morning, so I got up and scoped out Topsiders. A couple of observations about Topsiders:
If you enter from the aft staircase it is very confusing in which direction you should head because there are different stations and lines.
For the amount of people who chose this breakfast option, the set up can get very congested especially if you plan on getting an omelet or cereal as they are both in different spots away from the main buffet. The cereal area which is also the dessert area at lunch time is right at one of the exit doors to the aft eating deck which causes major traffic jams.

I picked out my choices(of which there were many) and headed out to the aft deck. Throughout the trip there were gusty winds so watch out for flying napkins.

Ran into Martha and Heidi on the way out, had a second cup of coffee.

I had my first of 4 Spa appointments this morning. This one was an hour with a personal trainer, one on one. I am dieting and working on getting this 55 year old body into reasonable shape so I thought what the heck . I met with Laslo from Hungary who talked to me about my expectations, my current diet and workout regimen and asked what I was looking for. At the end of the session I had a great workout, information on an upper body weight lifting regimen, ideas to bring it all back into my family room inexpensively and another appointment for a Body Composition Analysis on Wedensday.

Headed out to the Quiet Cove Pool which is amazing in the fact that the pool is like an oasis on the ship. It is just the other side of the Goofy Pool that by anybody's standards can be insane, but after stepping through the small alcove by the Cove Cafe, the noise and confusion disappears. I thought the staff did a great job in keeping the area kid-free. I actually saw a CM speak to two parents who were heading to the bar with kids in tow explaining that it was adults only.

Spent most of the day hanging by the Cove pool. Had my first Pina Colada. YUM!
Wondered about available space on loungers but didn't really have a problem. If I found just towels sitting on a lounger I had no problem after a few minutes in moving them. It seemed that often folks would head out to do other things and instead of putting the towels in the bins they would leave them on the loungers. Also I didn't notice, except for a few times, that adults staked out a lounger, dumped their stuff and then disappeared for any real length of time.

Discovered at Scoops Ice Cream, (by the Mickey Pool) there were pannini sandwiches, wraps, salad choices and fresh fruit. They were all great lunch ideas. Best time to go was after 1:30. Just make sure that they press the sandwich long enough. The veggie pannini was great.

Bingo was enjoyed in the afternoon by my fellow travelers.

Back to the room to shower. Great idea the split bathroom. Also I really thought that the shower was great, great water pressure and I loved the H2O products which I brought home with me only to have them disappear from my suitcase side pocket sometime during my flight. Hmmmm
The products are available in the Treasure Ketch shop.

I loved having the verandah and found myself sitting there often to soak up the sun, have a cup of coffee or in the evening just enjoying the warmth. My stateroom was on deck 6 aft (6150) and had a larger verandah because we were located at the curve of the deck. The first evening, I heard every noise and creak but after that it became white noise and I hardly noticed it. I would definitely chose this area of the ship again.

More later......

 

[bywheel]

I miss the ship.

 

[beachwench]

I miss the ship too.... I slept so much better on the seas. Never thought that would be the case (with motion sensitivity), but never felt queasy. Thanks Bonine.

 

[NotAmused]

Good trip report so far
And I'm glad to hear that there were plenty of food choices as I am also doing WW and may be going on a cruise later this year.

 

[Floridagram]

Gosh, Kathy, we are waiting! 5 more days to go!

 

[kjblovesdisney]

Sunday night is formal night on the 7 day and our dinner was at Animator's Palate. It was wonderful seeing all the kids and parents in their formal attire and we all lopoked pretty spiffy ourselves. The first time you dine in Animators the staff does the transformation show for you so don't miss dinner that night. (The second dinner at Animators is great but no show)

Shows:
Saturday: Welcome Aboard
Tonights (Sunday) show was the Golden Mickey's....
Monday: Twice Charmed-what happens when the wicked stepmother gets her own wicked fairy god father
Wednesday: Cabaret Showtime: We had Wilde and Haines, comedians and jugglers...very funny guys!
Thursday: Disney Dreams-Imagination, pixie dust and a huge cast of characters
Remember the Magic: Relive the cruise shows- fabulous

Sunday was NFC/AFC Playoff day so the Diversion bar was the place to be if you were a Bears, Saints, Pats or Colts fan.... the bar was packed for both games and had munchie food..great wings (yum)...we won't discuss the results of game 2 because there are those of us who were greatly disturbed.

During the entire week of vacation, one of my favorite things to do was to go up on deck in the evening, grab a cocktail or coffee and just wander around. I also loved sitting on the verandah before bed.

The Cove Cafe was a great meeting place for adults in the evening...also check out the goodies there for a special treat. Also the evening is a great time to get photos of areas of the boat without all the mayhem.

Tomorrow is Monday: 2nd day at sea....Second spa treatment

 

[kjblovesdisney]

Monday:

Rum runner is drink of the day
Dinner is Tropical night at Parrot Cay. (Thank you Wendy for the colorful leis)

Woke up early (which was the practice for the week) and walked laps around deck 4 to work off some of the calories I had already consumed. 3 laps equals just over a mile and there were walkers and jogger using the deck this morning. Suggestion: if you can bring a bottle of water. The heat of the day starts early and I learned quickly that you need to hydrate all day long.


I have a Spa treatment today(Full back massage with a facial and neck massage). The Spa on the Magic offers lots of different treatments and i am someone who loves to take advantage of it when I have the opportunity. During my planning for the cruise, my focus was more on pampering and taking advantage of things I don't normally do than on shopping (although at St Thomas I kind of slipped in that area )
I had scoped out treatments online prior to sailing, reserved 2 but then added 2 more once on the boat. I also picked an excursion on St Maarten that I was very excited about (12 metre regatta)
The massage was wonderful, very relaxing and my masseuse was wonderful. She was very concerned with my comfort but not intrusive on my relaxation.
Amazing.
The 4 treatments I had were:
Personal time with a trainer ( 1 hour)
Deep tissue Massage
Body Composition analysis
Ionithermie Cellulite Reduction Program
More about the other later.


Met everyone at the pool. Still breezy but really warm. Spent the best part of the day hanging out. Rum Runners were yummy but I'm partial to the Pina Coladas. Had the veggie panini from Scoops with fresh fruit. Very good again.
Options for lunch are many and varied so check them out the first day at sea and plan for the week. also if you have lunch a little later you miss a lot of the lines.

Dinner at Parrot Cay and it was tropical night. I think that Parrot Cay has the best lunch buffet but for dinner we ordered off the menu. The food had a caribbean flair...very yummy wings and ribs.

Tonights show is Twice Charmed and I really enjoyed it. The caliber of the Disney Magic's shows is great...I have seen a few of their shows on Broadway and these are almost that good. The sets and costumes are first class. The actor who played Fairy Godfather was the best and ranks right up there with great Disney villians.

After the show poked around in the shops, headed back to the room to see what Beverly had left this evening, checked out the Navigator and got ready for tomorrows excursion. Went back up on deck, got a yummy coffee and wwtched the ocean and people.

Time for bed....

tomorrow Saint Maarten!

 

[kjblovesdisney]

Recap of travelers

Wheeler* Women:
Me: Kathy (50ish)
DS: Martha(only other crusie was a Windjammer with Heidi) (40ish)
DF and DSP: Heidi (another big boat cruise newbie) (40ish)
DF: Wendy (40ish)
DF: Arlene (first cruise and first time at WDW) (40ish I think)
DF and DS's and DSP's neighbor: Betty (travel expert) (60ish)

I was the only person in our group to sign up for an official excursion. I chose the 12 Meter Regatta and signed up through DCL. I had room service which came early as it seems on docking days room service is swamped so keep that in mind. Met in the Diversions Bar at 8:15 with the rest of the group. There were 25 of us in all of varied ages with the youngest being high school age (I think).

Suggestions:
Sunscreen Sunscreen!!!!! The sun, even in January, was intense despite the fact that it was windy on the boat

I wore Teva sandals and they worked out well.

Dress in light layers. That way you can protect yourself from the sun's rays. Our excursion was the first one of the day. I wore shorts, sleeveless top and light weight long sleeve cotton sweater. I took off the sweater but was glad I had it when we got back on the shuttle boat. Despite the fact hat I had used sunscreen, I could feel the effects of the sun. Also the shuttle boat has no cover and that puts you in the sun that much longer.

You can bring on a backpack which is stored for the duration of the sail.

They provide water and soda.

The trip:
You are met at the cruise ship by someone from the 12 Metre-Challenge. You have a last minute potty break (of course, there are no facilities on the boat).
You will be given a brief history on the America'a Cup racing history...very informative and well done. Captains are chosen and teams picked. I, being a singleton was the last one sitting there but they let me chose my team so I wouldn't feel like I was "back in grade school on the playground" Our boat was the Stars and Stripes and we were competing with the True North from Canada. A shuttle boat picks you up and brings you along side of the racing yacht. On the trip out to the Stars and Stripes, you were given responsibilities for the race. There is a crew of 3 on each boat who shows you how to do your job then its off to race.
After you are dropped off at the 12 Metre gift shop where there are great shirts and sweats to purchase, as well as a picture of you on your yacht in the heat of the race. It is the only photo I purchased on vacation. You have the opportunity to return to the pick up point (the shuttle boat waits for you) or you can leave from here to head into St Maarten. There is also a restaurant associated withethe 12 Metre (which I did not go to)

There were about 6 people on our boat who were doing this excursion for the second or third time. I can understand why. IT WAS THE BEST!!!!
It is something I will do again if I ever have the opportunity.

I headed back to the ship to hook up with Martha and Heidi if I could find them. They had plans of their own that didn't work out so I found htem on board. WE had lunch at of pannini sandwiches and fruit and decided to hang on the boat. the rest of the ladies went shopping which turned out to be quite successful for Betty. Love those jewels.

Tonight is Pirate night and we are ready for our dinner and the show.
We all dressed up with matching T-shirts (courtesy of that amazing designer Martha), bandanas, eye patches...( I passed on the eye patch...I have a hard enogh time seeing with my glasses on ) We had tattoos, and assorted other pirate paraphenalia and were a hearty bunch of mateys. Argh!!!

The dinner was wonderful, you get a complimentary copy of the menu for your scrapbook (or box you have hiding under the bed, full of momentos of every Disney thing you've done. Its hidden there so your family won't really know the depth of your fanaticism. )

After dinner we hung out, checked emails, walked off the overfilled stomach, before we headed up to the show. it was already packed ...Holy Pirates!
We found an area on deck 10 to watch. Martha recorded the entire thing with her video camera. Wendy, the turkey leg queen, managed to get one at the buffet although she admitted it wasn't as good as the one's in Frontier land at WDW. ( a side note here...although this was not my first cruise ship vacation I have decided that DCL has more opportunities to eat then any other line I've been on. Every time I looked there were little buffets set up in various parts of the ship. )

Everyone headed back to their rooms. I grabbed a drink and sat out on the verandah enjoying the ocean and moon.

Next: Early morning at St Thomas

 

[kjblovesdisney]

St Thomas...

Drink of hte Day: Rum Runner
Dinner: Master Chef
Show: Wilde and Haines

I read and heard that going through customs Wednesday morning was a pain the butt.... Our report time was 7:30 and other than having a slight holdup for wheelchair passengers, it was pretty quick. I wish I could say the same for all the Wheeler girls

Tuesday morning, not Wednesday, Arlene woke Wendy up to go through customs. Problem was, Wendy didn't catch the mix up. Unfortunatley they couldn't open the safe sothey called down to guest serviuces to have osmeone come up and help them. There was no mention to the guest services about missing customs until the CM came and opened the safe. Wendy thanked her and made a comment about needing the passports for customs. The CM was surprised and informed the ladies that that was tomorrow! Not to worry, Arlene did not sustain any injuries!

the plan today is to have breakfast and meet up with everyone before going ashore. Betty, the shopping queen, is in charge. Martha and Heidi are looking for gold chains, Wendy is staying on board after the shopping extravaganza in Saint Maarten, and Arlene hasn't decided her plan. Betty, Martha, Heidi and I head off the boat, grab a rideinto town. As we are pulling away from the dock, we see Arlene waiting at thecab stop. We get into the shopping district and wait for the next cab to appear. There is Arlene so we join up and head off.
Betty takes us to a jewelers that she has shopped at before (including at Saint Marrten) I have never seen so many jewelry shops crammed into so many alleys and streets. Martha and Heidi scope out the gold chains, Betty is trying to explain to the manager that she has already filled her jewelry quota for the trip. Arlene and I are browsing. That when I made my fatal mistake. I happen to mention to Arlene that I love a gold bangle bracalet with rainbow sapphires and diamonds but think that the diamonds are a bit much for my taste. The next thing I know one of the salesmen is showing me the exact bracelet without the diamonds for the discounted price of $8200. Way out of my price range!!!! . Well we talked back and forth until I was finally shown a beautiful sapphire bracelet in every color of the rainbow that kind of fit into my price range. Hmmmm.. ewwww.. crimminies...never in my life...
I bought it. I told my husband that it is his 30th wedding anniversary gift to me (we celebrate in June 07) and that helped assuage the guilt. It is beautiful and I wear it every day.

After that we were waylaid quite nicely by this gentleman who was going to give us a ride tot he Top of the Mountain for the "best" banana daquiri we have ever tasted. We hem and haw and decide it is worth the cost and meet him back at the minibus(van) in 1/2 hour. He worked really hard trying to waylay some others but when we told him if we didn't leave in 10 minutes, we were leaving, he gave up and we headed out. The view a the top was breathtaking and the banana daquiris were all they were touted to be. In fact the place was very busy.


He drove us back to the boat. Once on board it was pool time again,
At 4 pm, I had an appointment at the Spa for a BCA (body composition analysis) A little info: I am doing Weight Watchers and trying to gt this 55 year old body in shape before it gets much older. I decided that this was something I would like to know about and it wasn't too expensive. (There is always a part of me that thinks thing like this are gobbledegook.) iIdid it anyway and was very interested in the info that Laslo gave me. It worked well because he had given me a trainng program (and yes I have actually done some weight training at home) and he explained what everything meant. I am thinking that sometime at the end of summer i will have a second one done and see hwo they compare.

It also spurred me to think about signing up for my final spa treatment: ionothermie cellulite reduction. What the Hay! I'll do it. Martha nad Heidi also signed up for another spa treatment-a seaweed wrap and massage) We all had appointments for Thursday morning.

Dinner was our second in Animaotors Palate. Tomorrow night is PALO"S!!!!

After dinner went to see Wilde and Haines...very funny again! This evening a young boy named Josh stole the show and had boththe audience as well as Wilde and Haines in absolute hysterics. I never laughed so hard in my life.

Headed back towards the room after the show...stopping and checking out character greetings, the Cove Cafe and emails.


Tomorrow:
At Sea...the Spa and Palos!!

 

[beachwench]

ahhhhh the memories .... we travel together so well. Its nice to have a group of friends and family, you really enjoy being with (that are Disney crazy too). I know you wish we could be back on the ship... ME TOO!!! Guess in a perfect world we would not have work schedules and other commitments to keep us from our Disney duties. So while we are going through withdrawls keep writing your trip report. I love it. I wonder if Simone ever got Pikey to Sky dive? Hmmm, have to see if someone has any info on that. Just remember... have a little Faith, Trust and.......... PIXIE DUST. before you know it we will be scheduling our next cruise and starting a new countdown. :

 

[kevinsmom]

i love your report!! is anyone else in your group going to do another one??

 

[kjblovesdisney]

kevinsmom.... We hope so, in fact Martha, Heidi and I have already looked at and dreamed about another cruise.....

Our last full day at Sea!
I have a 9:15 am Spa treatment and its one I have never done before but have looked at on ohter cruise ships and even checked out when I was doing reservations before this cruise. It is the Ionithermie Cellulite Reduction.
Okay let me say right off, I am 55, mother of 4 20 somethings and back on Weight Watchers to take the extra weight off once and for all. I never planned to book this treatment although I did book the 1 on 1 with a personal trainer which I really liked as well as a massage ...you can never have too many massages in your life.

I decide to give it a try because what the heck this is a Disney Cruise and I am worth it.

Here is how it works:

You go into a private room and get ready for the treatment. I choose to target those wonderful parts of the body known as thighs, butt and tummy.

You are given a pair of paper panties to wear, then you are exfoliated with a soft bristle brush. You measurements are taken in various parts of your thighs and waist and written down. (I being sometimes cynical watched where she measured. ) You are then slathered with an algae based lotion that is infused with a liquid.(Its warm) What I would call electrodes are attached to specific areas of the thighs, lower back and stomach....I think there were 7 of them. You lie down and they plug you in. I was always askeda about my comfort level for everything she was doing. There is no pain associated with the process. What happened is that she turned on the "electrodes" and your muscles kind of spasm. There are different degrees of contraction and I was comfortable with pushing the limit. It tenses for about a minute then relaxes for about 15 seconds. It is basically working out your muscles while you lie down.
As my personal trainer explained, its a physical workout for muscles that along with the use of the detoxifying product forces toxins out of the tissues.
At one point I had some concentrated heat across my entire lower back area and mentioned it to the spa consultant. She got cool compresses to lay under me and that worked for about 10 seconds. It was not burning but just really warm. When I mentioned it to her a few minutes later, she told me it was the toxins sweating out.
Because I was lying there and could feel the moisture building up under me, I at this point started to think that maybe this proceedure actually does work. (European women have been using this reduction technique for years.)
So after about 45 minutes, it time to stop and clean off and another cream is put on. She takes my measurements again ( I watched) and steps out so that I can dress. She came back and asked what kind of inch loss I was hoping for. I told her that I would be thrilled with 4 overall..knowing in my logical and sometimes cynical mind it was wishful thinking.

According to her measurements I had lost a total of 10 inches......
Okay so I am still not totally convinced but know that the girls will tell me if there looks like there is a difference. I head out and as funny and weird as this sounds feel lighter...I go to the cabin and put on my suit and head up to meet everyone. Martha nad Heidi are still in the spa. Martha will tell me truthfully how I look. When I see her, she tells me that my thighs seem smoother. They did. When I put on pants later, there was a marked difference in how they fit so.....believe it or not!

I'm sold..... I am now trying to find a spa around here that does this proceedure.

The rest of the day involved jackpot bingo...no we didn't win; a young woman from Alaska did.....
sunnning by the pool....another pina colada...and a 6:00 pm reservation at Palos.

We all met up and looked very beautiful in our dress up grownup clothes.
Arrived at Palo and were seated right away. Lucille... sorry its Louise...thanks Heidi (England) was our server and she was the best. She talked about the menu and the food, giving us tips on choices...
Here's what I remeber about the food.
First, it is so worth the money!!!!! With Lucille's guidance, I ended up having one of the best meals in my life.
Appetizers:
We each ordered a specific favorite. I had the fried calamari, which I love being a New Englander and knower of all that is seafood....
It was delicately fried, not greasy at all and served with a tasty marinara. We ordered two pizzas for the table, one with spinach, pesto and garlic and another with cheese. I am not a pizza person..never have been, never will be...but I did enjoy the spinach one. Louise (edited) also brought out a portabella mushroom appetizer (that was her personal favorite) and it was out of this world. I love portabella mushrooms.

For the main course I ordered the rack of lamb crusted with pistachio and herb done medium rare. Everyone else ordered wonderful dishes including a few had lobster tails (It was lobster night in the main dining room). We ordered a filet mignon for the table. The lamb was delicious and the only fault I could find with it was it was very rich because of the pistachio crust. I did not taste the filet but the group raved about it as well as the lobster.

We ordered dessert at Louise's (edited) suggestion: 3 chocolate souffles to share and then one of each other kind. Yum Yum Yum! The chocolate souffle was to die for. There was a bread pudding that was fabulous.

I had 3 limoncella martinis that were tart and tasty. (It was my alcohol splurge for the cruise.)

Dinner was leisurely (3 hours) and delicious with impeccable service. The restaraunt is delightfully decorated and the views are fabulous. Palos is a must for any adult cruiser.

We rolled out stuffed to the gills and headed back to rooms to change. I roamed the ship for a while in order to try and digest some of the feast. We met up at the Diversions Club to see Wilde and Hanes and once again enjoyed their humor this time geared to adults. If you have the chance to see them when you are cruising don't miss their show.

Tomorrow is Castaway Cay... at last.

 

[beachwench]

Just an update incase someone else is going to Palo... our server was actually Louise... Hope you don't mind the correction Kath... Just want people to ask for the right person... Louise is AWESOME...!!! She asked us up front if we had something we were going to after dinner or if we were there to take our time and enjoy... We told her we were not in a hurry and wanted the experience, she gave us great treatment. WE saw tables turn over alot quicker, but I for one wouldn't have wanted to rush the PALO'S experience.

 

[kjblovesdisney]

I was up early as the was this little voice telling me not tomiss a bit of hte day. I watched as we pulled into Castaway Cay...actually backed in...and w was excited to be started. Martha and Heidi were on the verandah (next door) and we watched as the supplies were unloaded. It was pretty breezy but that would not deter us.
Met up with everyone else and headed out to the family beach.
Oops...be back in a few....

 

[kjblovesdisney]

The set up at Castaway Cay is remarkable. We headed out to the family beach and found our first nesting spot. It was about midway down the length of the beach and in the back. we had part shade..part sun which worked for everyone. Wendy was thinking about going to Serenity Bay because of the noise level so after lunch which was quite yummy by the way...chicken, ribs, cole slaw, bean salad, potato salad, cookies..we packed up and headed out to get the shuttle. Luckily we ran into our dinner mates who told us that it was really windy on the adult beach and cold when you came out of the water. we decided to park ourselves at the further end of the family beach...down near the hammocks and bar. It worked out quite well.
4 of us (Martha, Heidi, Arlene and I) planned to do the banana baots ride. It was hysterical and so much fun. I would do it again in a heart beat. It was choppy outside the lagoon but it didn't matter. The only thing I would suggest is to bring goggles. It got a little tricky trying to wipe the salt water out of your eyes and still hold on. I wore shorts over my suit and was glad I did. It gave my butt traction and luckily no chafing!

I took a walk to the adult beach and was quite surpirsed at how much smaller the area is then the family beach. I'm not sure what I expected. It is a lovely beach. I was going to investigate the outside massage cabanas but decided not to.


A couple of funny things...it must have been because it was the end of the cruise and my brain had retreated into a state of complete oblivion, which is usually what you want when you are on vacation, but it made my sister Martha nuts! Heidi and I had walked the distance from the ship to the family beach while the others took the shuttle...as the shuttle pulls up Martha is gesturing and I wave back...welcoming her to the beach. What I did not realize is Mickey and Minnie are walking behind me...Well...brain fart....
Later on I was at the bar ordering a yummy drink and was talking to the bartender who is making my drink. The CM begins talking to someone standing almost directly behind me, asking how he was and if he wanted anything. The gentleman says no he is very fine the way he is and says goodbye. Now I didn't turn around because I didn't want to appear rude and nosy! The CM responds by saying have a great day JACK! I turn and who is walking away but Jack Sparrow..DOH!!! Okay when Martha hears that she really knows I've lost my mind!

All in all, it was a fine day.
Unfortunately the end of the cruise is closer than ever but we have one more night.
Head back to the ship, shower, and get dressed for dinner. We stand out on the adjacent verandahs and watch the passengers head back. Martha, Heidi and I wave to the CM's on the pier, each of us secretly wishing we were them.

Dinner is at Lummiere's and is the farewell dinner...so sad but still yummy. This night I order 2 desserts ... Been wanting to do that all cruise but refrained because I was so trying to stick to my diet (WW)

We went to the Good Bye show which was so much fun. It was great reliving parts of the entire cruise. MArtha, Heidi and I decided to hang around for the finale with all the characters in the Lobby Atrium. It was so much fun to be able to meet and greet every character who was part of the entertainment on board.

I went to bed with dreams of our next cruise....hoping it woul dbe sooner than later...

Debarkation went off without a hitch and we had a van drive us to the airport...got our flight out (no snowstorms to keep us in Orlando one more night ...dam) and landed in Boston.

I would definitley book anohter cruise with DCL despite the cost. I really enjoyed the quality of service, the stateroom and the itinerary. My traveling companions were A+ which made for so much fun.

Thanks for reading this...See you real soon!