Friday 10/19/07 – Day Seven (Castaway Cay)
When we woke up, we were not very hungry so DH went to Topsiders and brought down some coffee, juice, and some eggs for the kids. We sat on the verandah and watched the ship approach Castaway Cay. It was just as beautiful as we’d remembered. My mom was anxious to get off the ship and get a good spot on the beach. She and my dad took DD and got in the very long line to get off the ship. They found us a nice spot on the family beach. DH and I were behind them in the crowd and got off the ship a little later. We took photos with the ship in the background and DS with various characters including Mickey in his beach clothes and Goofy. Mickey has a larger wardrobe than I have! During the cruise we saw him in his white captain suit, red captain jacket and hat, pirate outfit, formal outfit, beach outfit, and probably a few more I’ve forgotten.
I also stopped to get a photo with Jack Sparrow since I’d missed him on pirate night. He did not really talk or interact much with people but just posed. The photo came out pretty well.
We met my parents on the beach. DD had already met up with another girl her age and was building a sandcastle. She is able to make friends anywhere, she is very outgoing, sometimes almost to the point where I think she is bothering people, so I have to keep an eye on her. The water was clear and warm and we all went in to look at all the fish before the sand made the water too cloudy to see anything.
I love Castaway Cay and it is one of the most beautiful spots on earth. It is bittersweet being there because it means the cruise is almost over. We had gorgeous weather except for one quick but heavy rain shower. We huddled under our umbrellas, but all our stuff got soaked! Oh well, it dried off when the sun came out. DD wanted to go to the “Whale Bone Dig” with the kids club so I took her over there. The rest of us went to get some lunch. Mom bought a round of Konch Koolers for us. Wow, those were fantastic!
Mom picked up DD from the club and took her to lunch. They rejoined us and we stayed on the beautiful beach for hours, until around 3 PM when DS was completely exhausted. We had time to go up to the room, let the kids rest a while as we packed (very sad!) and got ready for dinner.
Our last meal on the ship was Til We Meet Again in Animator’s Palate. I had the lobster bisque (excellent) and the chicken wellington. How would I ever go back to eating regular food again? We said goodbye to Girish and Anastacia, also our head server Fitz who was also very kind (he got a hot dog for DD one night when she wouldn’t eat anything else). We knew there was no way we’d make the 6:30 AM breakfast the next morning.
DD wanted to go to the Oceaneer’s Club one last time, so we took the kids up there. They were having ‘Make Up’ night, where you could make up any craft you missed. DD wanted to color another pillowcase. I ran up to the room to finish packing. On our bed were the pillowcases we’d left to be signed. I was a little disappointed to find they only had a few signatures: Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Daisy, and Donald. There was a lot of empty space. I had asked for all characters, but the Guest Relations person had just taken the pillowcases and did not fill out a slip. Anyway, I saw a lot of people on the cruise carrying the pillowcases with them to have the characters sign the pillowcases at the character greetings, and I think I’ll do that next time so I can be sure to get more signatures.
My mom, DH, DS, DD and I went to the ‘Til We Meet Again party in the atrium at 10:15. We managed to get a spot in front and were first in line to see Belle. As all the characters came out and down the staircase, DD noticed the young man who played the prince in “Twice Charmed” and “Disney Dreams.” He was not dressed as the prince but rather in a costume that looked like it was from the Golden Mickeys, but she still recognized him and said "Look, it's the Prince!." After we got several autographs and photos including Alice, Snow White, Stitch, and Minnie, DD wanted to go see the Prince. He was upstairs on Deck 4, helping with autograph books in the line for Chip and Dale. I bypassed the line for Chip and Dale and went over to the ‘Prince,’ who looked surprised when I asked him for his autograph and photo with my daughter. He was very nice. It turns out his name is Kyle Taylor. I told him how much DD and I enjoyed the show and that he was wonderful in it. He was very gracious and thanked us and was very sweet with DD, who was thrilled. I asked if it was him singing on the CD I’d purchased, but he said no, it was the first cast. I know it’s silly but I felt a little starstruck talking to him!
We ended up getting in line for photos with Chip and Dale as well, then back downstairs where DD got a photo with the actor who played the Fairy Godfather in Twice Charmed, but I couldn’t get his autograph as her book was full and the character greeting was over so he had to hurry. We stayed for the final goodbyes of all the characters and DD of course had to collect some of the pixie dust that fell from the ceiling.
On the way back to the stateroom, DD said “I’m so sad to be leaving the Disney Magic.” I told her we were all sad but would come back someday.
We got the luggage out on time and all stayed up way past midnight watching movies on tv and having the last verandah time.
Waking up the next morning, it was very sad to feel the ship not moving and know we were back in Port Canaveral. As we drove away, DD said “Goodbye Disney Magic, we’ll be back soon!”
