Disney's Magic Fulfilled Its Promise – a report of a wonderful journey *UPDATE* 1/10

[austin77]

Im so gald that you had a great time...i hope our family will too.

 

[gossipgirl]

Im so gald that you had a great time...i hope our family will too.

I hope you will have a grreat time. Appearenly i won't be going this summer.

 

[Gerweniel]

Hope everyone enjoyed their holidays and Santa was generous. Now back to trip report.

Part 4 – Key West

I vaguely remember Key West. I mean I know I’ve been there several times in my debaucherous youth and revelled with the crowds of Fantasy Fests of the past. The Hogs Breath, Sloppy Joes and Green Parrot tour was not one I wanted to share with the boys. I wanted a kinder, gentler and more sober Key West. So, we didn’t plan on doing much. LOL!

The weather was sunny and hot and we disembarked the ship with Disboards cruise tip recommended rolling cooler and made our way to the Kino Sandal factory which was still open. (I knew it closed early on Sundays). I purchased a sweet pair of flip flips which will probably last me until I am a grandparent. (Just before the cruise I threw away 2 pair of Kino’s that I had almost 20 years.) Not far from the sandal factory I spied a cigar stand and crossed the street to buy a couple of stogies for my brother and bro-in-law. The man selling the cigars was a character as he was tattooed all over and only had 2 teeth in his mouth. Needless to say it made conversation with him a bit difficult. Unable to communicate effectively and a bit intimidated I just pointed to two cigars that were close, paid for them and high tailed it back across the street. We wandered up Duvall a bit and I tried to explain the Conch Republic and Margaritaville culture to the boys. They weren’t interested but WERE hungry, so I decided to take them to Parrot head Mecca - Margaritaville. They don’t get the whole Jimmy Buffett thing, but were up to try conch chowder and conch fritters. I was very happy to sample the restaurant’s namesake beverage.

We finished our snack and started heading back to the ship, the boys deciding that they didn’t want to walk to the southernmost point and don’t care about the cat guy and jugglers at Mallory Square and Hemingway. Personally, I think video games, air conditioning and smoothies at the Stack were drawing them back! First we had to locate a Key Lime Pie on-a-stick for Ian and the CVS for our water - both we found very close to each other. At CVS we got in the check out line and in front of us was a scantily dressed, raspy voiced middle aged woman trying to buy 1 cigarette from the cashier. HUH? She started to rant when the poor cashier told her she couldn’t sell her 1 cigarette and became increasingly agitated; mumbling about how she left her home, came to Key West and threw her hearing aid into the ocean to signify freedom and will be living there forever. HUH?
I paid for the water, hustled the boys out the door with them looking behind at the woman, bemused expressions on their faces… “Welcome to Key West” I said.

The rolling cooler with our water was an excellent tip from the Dis and we were able to get it aboard with no problems, saving a good bit of money. I’d also like to mention the excellent sanitation and hand washing policies of DCL, especially when re-entering the ship at the gangway.

The boys disappeared to their respective clubs as soon as we returned completely missing the famous Key West Sunset. I filled our cooler with ice then ventured to deck 10 aft to photograph and watch the event. I liked the pirate looking sail boats in the distance. I remained topside, sipping a cold one brought to me enthusiastically by a wonderful server and enjoying the quiet that dusk brings. The boys and I went to Rich Purpura’s early show which was enjoyed by all. After the show and before dinner we went to play “Who Wants To Be A Mouseketeer”. I had been quizzing the boys with trivia questions over the past months to prepare for the cruise. During the second round my son Devin’s name was called and he made it to the hot seat! We were cheering him on and with A LOT of help from the audience he went all the way to the end! WOO HOO! I was more excited than he was. He won a nice 3D etched glass award and a collectable pin (I'll post a picture soon) and we strutted out like we hit lotto. From there we had our late dinner at Lumiere’s. Sorry that I did not record what we ate and only photographed a few meals. (Something I regret now). Much to our server’s chagrin, our tablemates did not arrive for dinner. We hadn’t seen them aboard and I hoped that everything was ok with them.

It's funny - CraftyMouse and I have almost exactly the same shots! (Hers are better I think)

Tomorrow was our first day at sea and I had grand plans including finally meeting CraftyMouse in person for tea at Palo and some family events throughout the ship. There were photos to be taken, games to be played and martinis to be tasted. After dinner, Ian and Devin changed and migrated to the Stack and Ocean Quest. They had been emailing CraftyMouse’s children and were anxious to meet them in person. I got changed into comfy clothes and had fully intended to take a stroll, but the bed was turned down and it ended up being an early night for me.

I have to mention a fellow Dis'er named GrumpyGramps who designed and printed 2 of our door signs. They were awesome and if you are reading - Thank you very much again!

Next – Cuba, a day at sea and preparations for Rays, Reefs and Rum Point.

 

[lvstitch]

Great Report...can't wait for the next installment.

 

[gossipgirl]

Hey Gerweniel do you have any pics of the stage shows.

 

[glindamood]

Great report! We did the western back in 2005 and are going again in October '08 so reading your experiences brings back memories and heightens the anticipation for October. Keep the installments coming

 

[Gerweniel]

Hey Gerweniel do you have any pics of the stage shows.

Sorry- I didn't take my camera to any of the shows. I don't have a strong zoom or fast enough speed to shoot without using a flash and that is of course a NO NO!

CraftyMouse's trip report has some excellent shots of the shows! We were on the same 12/1 Western.

 

[Hypermommy]

Great TR!!! You're a very talented writer and I'm on the edge of my seat waiting for the next installment.

I have some questions for you, if you don't mind. I'll be taking my first ever cruise in April (family of four including 14yo and 12yo boys - so as you might guess I'm loving the info you're including about your sons). I thought a cooler wasn't allowed... it is? And I'm understanding that you bought water at CVS in Key West? Are there rules about what you can bring in your cooler onto the ship? I mean, why not just buy the water before you leave? Or maybe I'm just not understanding.

Also, your door looks great!!! Are door decorations something a lot of folks do? Are the signs magnetic or taped on or what? That could be fun.

Thanks for your patience with my stupid newbie questions and keep it coming with the great TR. I can't wait to read what happens next!!!

 

[anty30]

Love your TR
One of the best I have read. You have managed to make me cry and laugh out loud, keep it coming.

 

[nokidz]

I thought a cooler wasn't allowed... it is? And I'm understanding that you bought water at CVS in Key West? Are there rules about what you can bring in your cooler onto the ship? I mean, why not just buy the water before you leave? Or maybe I'm just not understanding.

you can bring a soft sided cooler on the ship. As long as there is no ice in it. You can have the room host/hostess fill it with ice numerous times in the day. You can bring bottles of water and other beverages . The room has a small fridge style cooler aswell.

Great trip report, lets see lotsa pictures!!

 

[Hypermommy]

you can bring a soft sided cooler on the ship. As long as there is no ice in it. You can have the room host/hostess fill it with ice numerous times in the day. You can bring bottles of water and other beverages . The room has a small fridge style cooler aswell.

Any restrictions as to the type of beverages that can be brought? Could I, for instance, bring a bottle of rum and several bottles of beer or would it be only water and soft drinks?

 

[DisneyZell]

Any restrictions as to the type of beverages that can be brought? Could I, for instance, bring a bottle of rum and several bottles of beer or would it be only water and soft drinks?

you can bring whatever beverages you want to bring on board. We brought beer, as well as a few other alcoholic beverages. So go ahead!

 

[LITTLEKID58]

Awesome.. TFS

 

[Gerweniel]

Happy New Year Everyone! Hope you all have a wonderful 2008 and can travel to WDW or DCL as much as you want to!
---
Monday morning, I was up long before sunrise and took a shower. I must insert a personal observation here. As in most cabins on the ship, we had a split bath. I had read on many tips lists to bring an over the door shoe holder because there was little room for toiletries. I found this to be untrue in my case and had plenty of space between both sides of the bath to store all of our toiletries. I did use the shoe holder in the closet for all of our shoes!

Anyway, I was up strolling the decks early and was one of the few up and waiting for the sunrise. This ended up being my favorite part of the day. Coffee and quiet time. The sunrise was beautiful and I learned the land we were slowly sailing past was Cuba.

Later that morning, I woke the boys up and we had brunch at Lumiere’s. Happily, I saw they served eggs benedict, but I was disappointed with the eggs. They were lukewarm and mediocre at best. With Navigator in hand, we went over the day’s activities and I discovered that Ian and Dev had their own plans in mind. Not wanting to step on their toes, I relented and spent a very relaxing day on deck 10 in the sun, reading and taking a dip, promising myself I’d do some activities on the next sea day.

At 3:00PM, I met CraftyMouse and her friend Pam at Palo for our tea. What a delightful time! Great company, elegant surroundings and wonderful tea. The crumpets and clotted cream were excellent, as were the finger sandwiches and other dainty delights. I enjoyed everything and the service was top notch.

Tonight was Animators Palate and Formal Night. I’d been planning this evening for months. Traveling with the tuxes was a pain in the neck, but well worth it in the long run. Our first night I’d sent out the shirts and pants and my dress for pressing and they came back quickly and in excellent condition. The boys looked so wonderful – I was so proud. We had our photos taken by the Shutters photographer who seemed absolutely flustered and harried beyond belief, but the shot of the boys came out great. It was the only picture I purchased from Shutters and I used it for this year’s Christmas card.

We loved Animators Palate, enjoyed the meal and again I crashed early – probably by 10:30pm. I made the boys return to the cabin by 11:00PM because we had to be on the first tender the next morning.

Morning came, we all had a quick breakfast and prepared for our Grand Cayman day. I had booked the Rays, Reefs and Rum Point excursion through NativeWay Tours directly. We had to meet them no later than 8:45am at the pier.
We did make the first tender and ended up having to wait almost an hour at the pier for our tour to depart because other passengers from the Magic did not get on an early tender, causing the NativeWay escort to franticly search for them. When we finally boarded the bus to the marina, I was nervous that this was going to be a bad omen for the tour. The tour consisted of a boat ride to 2 reefs for snorkeling, then over to Stingray City and then to Rum Point Beach for a grilled lunch and some beach time.

The tour had 12 people total. The captain was great and the boys and I think this was the highlight of our cruise (other than some issues we had with a few of the other tour members which I won’t go into). We loved the reef snorkeling and the captain sought out a moray eel that Devin actually touched! Stingray City was a blast and not to be missed in Grand Cayman. Rum Point Beach was also beautiful and the lunch was delish – except it started to get a bit chilly (overcast and breezy) and we didn’t spend too much time in the water. I recommend NativeWay Tours. They were excellent.

Another early night for me and Cozumel in the morning.

I had done a lot of investigation about trips in Cozumel. We really wanted to do the dolphin swim, but it was not in our budget so instead, I booked the All Inclusive Beach Break at the Wyndham Hotel and Resort (used to be the Reef Club). The price was $40.00 for me and $20.00 each for my sons. I had to put $20.00 on my credit card to reserve it and paid $60.00 at the resort. As much as I was looking forward to this, I was a bit disappointed. It did cost us $15.00 each way by taxi plus a $5.00 tip each way - not a problem.

The resort is pretty. Beautiful lobby and pool overlooking the beach with gorgeous blue water. Everything I saw was clean and well maintained. The staff were friendly and since I speak Spanish poorly I was relieved that most of them spoke English. You are issued a bracelet identifying you as day guests and cards for the towels and for snorkle equipment. You must leave ID with the front desk and return the towel cards to get your ID back. A nice gentleman approached us and offered to pay for our cab fare back to the pier if we went to a 40 minute presentation about vacation ownership. I politely declined.

There were 2 restaurants that were open while we were there. The beach "barbeque" opened about 11am and it served burgers, nachos etc. You had to leave the beach and sit down at one of their tables and be served by a waitress for the food. Not what I expected and a bit inconvenient. The burgers we had were good. The buffet restaurant opened about noon and that was completely indoors and sit down. We did not go there as we wanted beach time.

The bar was fine and if you had the inclination you could sit there all day and drink as it was included. I had a few margaritas and my sons had sodas. I tipped the bartenders a couple of dollars each time and they were happy.

There were plenty of beach palapas and comfortable lounge chairs. It was not crowded and pleasant. The beach itself has white sand but as soon as you hit the waterline, it became TOTALLY ROCKY. I don't mean pebbles, I mean full scale stones ranging from a few inches to over a foot high. If we didn't have water shoes we could not have swam at all. This was the part the 3 of us were most disappointed in. It was really uncomfortable to go out to deep water and impossible to play in the water. There were some older folks not too sure on their feet and they had a very difficult time. We all snorkled and there was some pretty fish if you got out deep enough. I also saw submerged huge pieces of concrete with rebar protruding! There are no lifeguards on the beach.

There were plenty of kayaks and several small sailboats which were included in the price. We brought our own snorkling equipment, but they had that available also. I think if you are not a beach swimmer, don't have little kids and want to eat, drink and hang out in a nice pool this would be a super excursion. They did have music at the pool and it looked like there were plenty of folks enjoying the day. We are more beach lovers and it just didn't fit for us.

After reading CraftyMouse’s trip report and seeing the pictures, I highly regret not taking the Chankanaab trip. I know now we’ll do that if we venture back to Cozumel. When we returned to the pier, I asked the boys if they wanted to get some authentic Mexican food and they said no. They didn’t want to shop either. Guess where they wanted to go – you got it – back to their clubs!!!!

Next – a day at sea, a day feeling sick.

 

[Gerweniel]

Also, your door looks great!!! Are door decorations something a lot of folks do? Are the signs magnetic or taped on or what? That could be fun.

Thanks for your patience with my stupid newbie questions and keep it coming with the great TR. I can't wait to read what happens next!!!

Hi, A lot of folks make incredible door signs. You use magnetic printer paper. There is an entire thread of great designs on the cruise line main page. I am lucky that a fellow Dis'er who was on the ship made the mouse ear sign and the pirate sign for us. I dabbled a bit, but my home printer is not capable of the excellent quality of the other signs.

 

[CraftyMouse]

I am loving your report! It's nice to hear about other experiences in the ports we visited, just in case we get back there someday.

Happy New Year to you and the boys!

 

[mruhaak]

Enjoying your report! You got on the ship the day we got off!

 

[CRSNDSNY]

Great TR! I'm really enjoying it!
More please!

 

[sftnslky]

Just replying so I can get all the rest of your AWESOME trip report. I really, really, do enjoy the ay you write...you have that 'down home, rocking in my rocking chair with a big mug of hot tea feeling . Thank you again.

 

[fairfax]

Great report! I'm enjoying it and the pictures!