Land & Sea but no package (Dream 01/21-24 2022) (final update!)

[Lizgistix]

Hello there, long time listener, first time cruiser.

I've been waiting for this cruise for 2 years. It was originally booked for last year. Then the covid happened. So it was rebooked for this year.
Cast of characters - Liz, me, who's definitely a character. Single adult, no partner, no kids. Florida resident. Disney nerd.

So let's just go ahead and get started....with a table of contents!

Thursday - just scroll down past this.
Friday - Part 1 - pre-trip stuff (short read)
Friday - Part 2 - Embarkation and port testing fun!
Friday - Part 3 - Room tour and door decoratin'
Friday - Part 4 - Liz meets several DIS celebrities and lives to tell about it!
Friday - Part 5 - Enchanted Garden
Saturday - Part 1 - Brekkie and Liz gets hot stoned
Saturday - Part 2 - Martini time!
Saturday - Part 3 - Royal Palace
Sunday - Part 1 - An expensive pedicure
Sunday - Addendum to Part 1 (it's short)
Sunday - Part 2 - Let's mix some dranks! (Mixology)
Sunday - Part 3 - Thar be rough seas ahead, matey!
Monday - It's over!
Extra - Liz talks about her tipping strategy

Anyway, on with the show!

THURSDAY 01/20/22

Driving across the state, I was worried about traffic holding me up. Lord knows I've hit traffic snags just driving to WDW when I wasn't on a time constraint. I knew the problem areas would be: Tampa, Lakeland, and that area of I-4 between Davenport/US-27 and Champion's Gate. So I thunked ahead and went ahead of booked a room at WDW for Thursday, so I could deal with traffic the day before, and then the drive from WDW to Port Canaveral would just be toll roads. Picked up the rental car, loaded up the luggage, locked up the house, and took off later than usual. As I do.

But who cares, the vacation has officially begun! So I arrived to the main exit for Walt Disney World and headed immediately to:



Because I'm hungry, and they have deals on the mobile app. And they'll deliver it out to your car. Also, chicken nuggets.

Nuggies in hand (I can't believe I just typed that), I got back onto World Drive and continued into the property towards Fort Wilderness. Check-in was a breeze for us non-RV folks. I specifically chose the 2800 loop so I could be far away from everything and just enjoy the peace and quiet of nature. Arriving at the cabin, I realized the chance for good outdoor pics of the cabin have already disappeared with the night, so that will have to wait until tomorrow. Unless you like green.



That's the best I can do after sunset. At least it kept the bugs away.
The inside of a Fort Wilderness cabin is very quaint and it's like a mini apartment. You've got your living room, dining area, bathroom, bedroom with bunk beds. But they also give you so many helpful things in the kitchen! Dishes, flatware, mugs, cups, stuff for the grill, a pitcher to make iced tea (or kool-aid), even a cutting board that was still brand new wrapped in plastic. And that's handy because it's a long walk to the buffet. You'll need a snack for that journey.

I'm sure you can easily find inside pics of the cabins online, so I won't bore you with those. However, I couldn't resist taking a pic of this framed art piece above the dining area of the Fort Wilderness train (RIP)



The rest of the night was spent eating McDonald's (nuggies!) and then having a few adult beverages while sitting outside and enjoying the sounds of nature and golf carts. Can't stay up too late, tho, because tomorrow I need to check out around 11 and then head towards Port Canaveral for my 1:30p PAT.

Bye, Fort Wilderness cabin, you were great for a one-night stay where I didn't go anywhere but I'll remember you fondly!



Get in the car, losers, we got a boat to catch!

 

[twinsouvenirs]

Keep it coming! I’m dying to hear how it went as we are scheduled for a mid-February 3 night!

 

[Lizgistix]

Friday 01/21/22

Friday morning I woke up at the lovely hour of 6:53a after telling myself I was going to sleep in. Great job, body, way to play along! So I woke up, ran to the loo (as one does), checked the time, thought about all the people awake right now hoping to score some lightning lanes at the parks today. Then I rolled over and went back to bed thinking "heh, suckers". Woke up again at 8. Stumbled in the direction of coffee and sat outside while slowly waking up. Today was a doubley important day! Not only is it cruise day, but I have to make sure my luggage is properly packed up again and ready to go. I also have to make sure what doesn't fit into the luggage will fit into the backpack. The only thing I didn't have room for were my sweatpants, so those stayed in the duffel bag in the car that I used for last night. I also had to make sure the essential purse contents would fit into the backpack *somewhere* because I only want to roll up to the port with 2 pieces of luggage and a backpack and be set for the weekend. Luckily, everything worked out exactly how I wanted it to and I was even packed up and ready to go around 10:30am. Check out is at 11, so I did what any normal person would do: I took my sweet time. Gathered up all the garbage and got that ready to go into the bins. I put my used dishes and utensils into the dishwasher and started that shortly before I left. I assume that's okay? Noone really says anything about what you should/shouldn't do.

I snapped a pic of the luggage situation before I left home, so here's what is going on the ship with me:



I travel light.
Wait, can we pause for a second? I have a bone to pick. It's kind of unfair that I have to dedicate part of my luggage to bringing a cpap machine. That took up the majority of the bag on the left. I also stuffed my pillow in there, shoes, and toiletries. But the cpap took up most of that space. The bag on the right was all clothes. The backpack was everything else I needed.

11am came and I said goodbye to my lovely cabin (2843, holla!) and headed back to McDonald's. For real though, once you know where it is on Disney, it becomes a super handy stop for food on the way in or on the way out. I also made a quick trip to Wawa on US-192 for some stuff, and then on the way to the port I stopped at a bank for tip money. I thought I left with enough time to stop at the Dreams Unlimited office near the port but it turns out I had fuddled around enough that I was already going to arrive part way into my PAT, so no special side trip for me.

The drive out to the port seemed to take forever but once I saw bits and pieces of the ship in the distance, I knew I was getting close and I could feel the excitement building. When I got a good glimpse of the ship from the highway, that's when excitement turned to awe and wonder. I had only seen pics of the Dream, or models of it. Now I'm seeing it in person. and in a little bit assuming everything goes well, I'm going to be ON that ship!

I didn't want to get too excited because there were still business matters to attend to. Namely, the pre-cruise covid test. The only thing standing between me and getting on board that ship.

How did that go? What was the procedure like? Did I get to see the Space-X launch while waiting for my test results?
FIND OUT NEXT TIME!

same bat time, same bat channel.

 

[Lizgistix]

Friday pt 2!

So here we are at Port Canaveral! Mere minutes before the Space-X launch. Oh and my cruise arrival time. Judging by the amount of people with cameras along the causeway, launches seem to be a popular thing.

Okay! So here's how the arrival process went for me. Pre-arrival, I was trying to get an idea of the flow of things but couldn't quite figure it out from google maps. Turns out, Disney and the Port did an excellent job of making it seamless and confusion-less. I followed the outside road around, and turned left into the Disney area.

Stop #1 - luggage drop off! I pulled up to the stop sign and a nice gentleman pointed me towards the luggage drop off area and said I should be able to park along side the car already there. I pulled up along side of them but slightly behind so I could get to the back seat. Put my mask on, and pulled one suitcase out of the passenger door on my side. I informed the porter I had another bag on his side. He pulled the other suit case out and I met him behind the car with my other suitcase. He did a quick look over to make sure the DCL luggage tags were on and said everything looked good on his end. He told me my luggage would be outside my stateroom sometime after 3p. I thanked him for his services and pressed a cash tip into his hand. He told me the next step would be to get back in the car, drive to the end of the parking garage and turn left. In doing so that led me to

Stop #2 - parking fee! I pulled up to the first kiosk and was informed the cost for parking would be $68. I asked if they had a discount for passholders. He said no. I sheepishly handed over my credit card for him to swipe at the machine. No tip for that guy, hmph! They slipped a piece of purple paper under my right wiper (I didn't realize this until later. I didn't even know they did it) and told me to drive to the end of the parking garage, turn left, and follow the orange cones. So I followed the orange cones around and then did another turn, almost like a u-turn, and kind of came back up towards the parking kiosk but on the other side of the orange cones and that brought me to...

Stop #3 - testing vial handout! I pulled up to the tent and was given a ziploc bag with a testing vial, a label, and a pen. Free pen! They directed me to continue forward, following the orange cones, which led me to....

Stop #4 - pre-testing greeter! I pulled up to the stop and was asked for my port arrival form. The nice person scanned it and directed me to drive forward to the next available testing spot. I set the arrival form on my dash, thanked them, and looking forward I saw people with the orange directional flashlights and people motioning me towards an open test spot. That led to....

Stop #5 - testing! I pulled into the open spot I was directed to and turned the car off. I was greeted by a nice lady who said she would be walking me through the testing process. She asked for my arrival form to scan and I set it on my dash once again. She directed me to take the pen and label out of the bag and write my name and stateroom number on it, then to peel off the backing and put the label over the barcode that is already on the vial. After that step, she walked me through the test process. She handed me a swab and counted to 5 as I circled the swab in my first nostril. Then I put the swab into my other nostril and she counted to 5 again. She unscrewed the vial and directed me to put the swab part-way into the vial and then to bend the handle until it snaps. Well....of course it wouldn't snap. Because my last name is cursed and nothing ever goes right for me the first time. So she did it and got it to break. She screwed the cap back on the vial. Put the vial into the ziploc bag and put it into a cooler on the table behind her. (I don't know if this actually was cooling or just convenient storage for the tests). After the test was complete, she raised her hand for a supervisor. A supervisor came over and scanned my arrival form, then directed me to pull forward and to the left, then u-turn and go up the parking garage and wait anywhere I'd like in levels 2-6. She said if I go to the top, I may be able to catch the Space-X launch. I pulled forward and was directed to turn right and go up the parking garage ramp. This led to....

Stop #6 - waiting! This part was the worst. It really did take at least 30 minutes for the results to come back. As I'm doing stuff on my phone, a notification popped up on my phone that my Safe Passage results had come in. I was excited but nervous. Will it be positive? Will it be negative? Were my safety protocols this past year not been enough? I mean I've been vaccinated, but my industry is filled with anti-vax, anti-mask, anti-mandate people. Did one of them give me something and possibly ruin my vacation? I had to find out! I clicked the link and logged into the safe passage website. I scrolled down towards the bottom of the page to see my test results. This led to...

Stop #7 - CLEARED TO SAIL! I had to read it again. What? Omg. it came back negative. I can board the ship. I'm going on a cruise. I'M GOING ON A CRUISE!

I quickly hopped back into the car and drove around the parking garage to a closer spot to the elevators. I excitedly texted my friends and family (mom) that my test had come back negative and I was cleared to board the ship. I threw on my hoodie and stuffed my keys (and a few other items) into my pockets. I grabbed my backpack and made sure everything was zipped up and double checked my passport was where it should be. I took my arrival form from the dash, rolled it up, and placed it in my hoodie pocket. Double checking that I didn't leave anything else behind, I closed the door, locked the doors, and stuffed the keys into yet another pocket. (can't have too many pockets, ladies)

I snapped a few quick pictures from the parking garage before walking to the elevator.



I'm going to be on that ship soon! And in just a few minutes, I'll be walking down that walkway towards the Disney terminal!

I don't think you can take pics of the testing process and I thought they said no pictures allowed inside the terminal, so the pics stop here until I actually board the ship.

To summarize the next 15 minutes. I basically walked to the elevator, went down a floor to level 3, walked across that walkway in the second picture. Went down the escalator, circled around to the terminal entrance, went up to the next open desk where they scanned my arrival form and looked at my passport. Then I went through security where my backpack made it through the xray but the tray holding my stuff did not. It was too light! it got stuck in the machine! They had to reach in and pull it out.

I asked security if I would need my arrival form again and they said no, so I put that back in the backpack along with my passport. I loaded back up and headed up the escalator into the terminal where was greeted by a huge open space with practically noone around. I walked past the large model of the ship and towards....omg...the giant Mickey logo?! I saw a screen that said "now boarding all groups" so maybe that's why there was noone around. I walked up towards the entrance to get onto the ship and automatically walked through the queue line instead of just going around it. I told the nice gentleman that I'm used to going through queue lines at Disney so it was an automatic reflex.

I walked through the entrance, up some ramps, and suddenly I'm on a cruise ship waiting to have my name announced (which was awkward because it's just me but I grinned and beared it).

We'll start from there in the next installment.

 

[lillasmom]

 

[Lizgistix]

Friday pt 3!

Continuing on, I had just stepped onto the Disney Dream and was waiting to do the awkward walk while my name was announced and people cheered the lonely cruiser with no friends (me). A few days prior I was thinking "wouldn't it be great if they played 'Get Your Ears On'?" However, I justified they wouldn't since Move It Shake It is a Disney parks thing, and probably wouldn't be on the cruise ship. After the awkward walk, I was directed to stand on a dot and prepare to be welcomed aboard the ship by Mickey and Minnie. Neat! My own little welcome celebration!

And then they played "Get Your Ears On". I nearly cried.



Following a fun welcome, I was directed to go ahead to my muster station and get that taken care of. They asked what station I was assigned to and I proudly said "A!". Then they asked if I knew where that was, and I said "Buena Vista Theater!" to which the cast member replied "Walt Disney Theater." Dang, so close. I knew it was a theater. Luckily, the Walt Disney Theater is directly south of the main atrium, by the aft elevators. Easy peasy! So I walked to muster station A and saw the letter and saw a life jacket and looked around, not seeing anyone around. I wasn't quite sure what to do next. Suddenly a cast member scurried up and I explained I was here for my muster drill. She tried to walk me through setting my phone on airplane mode and then connecting to the wifi and loading the DCL app. Well, unfortunately it wasn't working properly. She marked me down on her spreadsheet that I was here and I did the muster drill, so that was complete, and I could go ahead to my stateroom.

I headed towards the front of the ship and took the forward elevator to deck 9. Hopped off the elevator and into the corridor. A few steps later I was at my room. I counted it during the first day. It was 25 steps from my room to the forward elevators. Only 25 steps! I only walked past 2 or 3 doors to get to my room. Convenient! When I arrived at my stateroom, one of my suitcases had arrived. But not the other one. Odd. I took my room key from the fish and opened the door.



Why yes, I did spring for the room decoration package, and I'm so glad I did because it's so cute!





Seriously, how cute is all that? Plus there was a window cling on the door to the verandah and a magnet on the bathroom door.
Also in the room was the 6 bottles of water I purchased, which would turn out to be another excellent idea, as well as a gallon of distilled water for my CPAP machine. The room was perfect, the decorations were perfect, and all my requests were fulfilled, so that was perfect. Everything was perfect. I nearly cried again. Until there was a knock on my door. Odd. I opened the door to see another guest letting me know that my other suitcase was sitting by their stateroom down the hall. Not sure why one suitcase made it to my room and the other one, which had the same luggage tag, ended up by 9006, but whatever. Okay. I walked down the hall and brought my suitcase back to my room.

Then of course I had to unpack and hang things up. I unlocked the suitcases and set the luggage straps in a nearby cubby. I set up the CPAP for later. I unpacked the toiletries. Of course I tossed my pillow onto the bed, and I hung up my clothes. Digging through my backpack, I pulled out my park bag and got out all the daily essentials I might need.

Then, of course, I had to decorate the door.



I would move the skirt down below the peephole, but I wanted the picture to look nice. And while mom wasn't able to cruise with me, I still wanted to represent her and have her along in spirit.

I grabbed my park bag, the room key, and of course a mask and prepared to start my vacation!
First stop, the smoking area on deck 13 to see if a certain celebrity might be there.
...and he was.
Who? Find out next!

 

[Lizgistix]

Friday pt 4?
This is taking longer than expected.

So I thought I was only 2 decks down from the smoking area at the front of the ship. The deck map said it was next to Currents. So I hopped into the elevator and pushed the button for deck 11 and exited onto...

Oh. This is where the spa is. Well that's okay, I'll be there tomorrow. (ooo, teaser!). So I walked outside and found myself.....at the adult pool area. Okay, there's the adult pool, there's the adult pool bar. There's the infamous Cove Cafe that I've read about. Where's Currents? I was so confused. So I asked a cast member.
"Two decks up"
Great googily-moogily. I apparently read the deck plans wrong or something. Here I was bragging to myself that I was only 2 decks down from Currents and I was actually 4 decks down. They pointed me in the direction of the stairs. I walked up the first flight of stairs and...nope, not here. I looked to the deck above. Oh, there it is.




I started walking up to deck 13 to Currents. I turned my head towards the smoking area to scan for familiar faces and THERE HE WAS!
The man I've seen on videos.
The man I've heard on poodcasts.
The man who owns this place.
The man. The myth. The legend.
PETE WERNER!

And he had people with him. Other famous people!
Most recently, John aka Big Fat Panda!

Aaaaand. The other "the man, the myth, the exotic legend" Frederico from Si Disney!

Pinch me. This is seriously not happening. So I casually walked over, and he noticed I was walking over to him and I said "Pete Werner, I presume." I'm great with greetings. Here's where I just spilled all the beans. I introduced myself as not only Liz but also a DIS member, podcast listener, video watcher, Patreon member, and Dreams Unlimited client. I figured the more related info I dropped about myself, the more impressed he would be. (I think it worked!) I got introduced to everyone, and was able to meet Pete's brother who has no qualms about mentioning that he's the younger brother (lol!) and his wife. John and his partner. As well as some of Pete's extended family. My head was literally spinning right now. I eventually ordered a pina colada from the bar and I apologized to the server because I'm sure they're tired of making them, as it's such a cliche drink to order on a cruise. The next hour or two was spent chatting, asking cruise questions, listening to the ship horn, listening to the emergency alarm, and also feeling my seat suddenly begin vibrating and noticing that we're actually moving.

Wait. We're moving. The boat. is. moving. We're cruising! It's happening!
I spent some time up there talking with Pete and friends before they decided to go do some shopping. Not ready to do some shopping yet, I decided to hang around and take this all in. Since it wasn't time for dinner yet, I decided to walk around outside, take some pictures, and appreciate the moment and the experience that had just begun.






Did I mention I've never been on a cruise ship before? Also I've never been this far away from dry land before.




I don't remember the title of what was playing on the big screen, but I do know it was a Pixar short where the Toy Story gang made a Hawaiian vacation for Barbie and Ken. I heard a familiar scene over the speakers and was giddy with excitement since it was a favorite moment from that short that I've seen before.

I did eventually make it down to deck 3 where the shopping was and found Pete in the jewelry store looking at watches, just as he said he would be. I walked around the general stores to get an idea of what was available. I'll do my shopping another day. I have all weekend!

It was getting close to dinner time, so since that is going to be a picture-heavy section, I'll save that for next time.

Next up, when I'm not too exhausted to write: dinner at Enchanted Garden!

Before I go, here's the Duck.

 

[gerberdaisy1234]

Congratulations on your first cruise!!! I hope it was every thing you dreamed of and more. What a way to kick things off meeting such a prestigious gang.
Pictures look like you are on a private cruise. Any idea on the number of passengers?

 

[Lizgistix]

Pictures look like you are on a private cruise. Any idea on the number of passengers?

I was told they were expecting 1300 and only 1100 boarded.

 

[Lizgistix]

Friday pt 5!!

We're in the home stretch! Of the first day, and it was only a half-day. Goodness, I have 2 more days to go after this. Wowzers!
Okay, so this should be easy because all I did was eat and then hang around on the top deck until bedtime. So let's get to eatin'!

Enchanted Garden!


First, the bread (which was very crumbly), with hummus and butter balls...because I, too, am a butterball.



Lobster ravioli which originally was disappointing, but I kind of wanted more of it.


Tomato basil soup


Prime rib with potatoes and veggies. I'm not turning down prime rib ever.


Scallops with couscous I think? I can get really good scallops at home so it's tough to compete with that.
These weren't bad, but I've had better.


I believe this was an orange-cranberry cake? It was okay.


The better dessert: sticky date pudding. Loved it!


The rest of the evening was uneventful and unmentionable.
Dinner the first night was just okay. Luckily, tomorrow's dinner will make up for it.

Watch for more updates, as Saturday's highlights will include:
Breakfast at Cabanas
Massage at Senses
Lunch at Flo's
Martini tasting
Dinner at Royal Palace

 

[Lizgistix]

Saturday! pt 1

After a glorious morning of sleeping in, I awoke at the ripe hour of 7:41. Thanks a lot, body.
I cautiously moved towards the shower, aware that these be tight quarters, matey. And after stepping into the shower, I learned that I cannot fully stand up in the shower. Nope. Too tall. So I had 2 options: squat down to wash my hair or 2) not wash my hair. I'll try again tomorrow.
What I should have tried, lol, is taking my shampoo and conditioner to the pool area and used that shower.

I didn't really want to go down to the dining room for breakfast, so I opted for Cabanas. Hey, gotta try all the dining options that I can, ya know?
So I made the trek allll the way down to Cabanas and was pleasantly greeted by hand washing stations. Yes! I will take that, please and thank you. After a wash and sanitize, I was directed to the line where I was pleasantly greeted by a cast member and my breakfast plate was started.



Of course I had to get a Mickey waffle. It's the law.
Not pictured was coffee, which I heard described as "swill" but it's not terrible. Truck stop coffee is worse than this.

I frittered around for a bit after lunch taking pictures until around 11:30



So there's Castaway Cay. Yup. I've heard great things about it. I'll be staying on the boat this time. Next cruise I'll form an expedition to roam the land. Pete had an extra wristband for his cabana and invited me out to it, but I politely declined the offer. I didn't want to intrude on their vacation (he and everyone he was sailing with).

11:30 came and I headed to Senses for my massage. A massage! Again, first time ever getting a massage. I filled out some paperwork. Something about areas of concern, health issues, special considerations, death and dismemberment waiver, etc. etc. Now...funny thing...it's pretty easy to upsell me on something when I was already on the fence about it. What I had signed up for was a 60m Swedish massage. What I ended up deciding on in the room was a 75m Hot Stone massage. Plus, because I upgraded on the ship, I was given a free eye treatment.

So there's my cruising pro tip! Sign up for a lesser priced spa treatment, and then decide in the moment on a more expensive treatment (the one you really wanted to get) and see if you get something free added on as a bonus. It may not work for you, but it worked for me, and I've been on one cruise so I'm an expert.

Y'all. Y'all. The hot stone massage was amazing. Nay, life changing. It was peaceful. It was relaxing. She was massaging parts of me that I didn't even know needed to be massaged, but it felt amazing when she did it. Along with the stones, I believe she was using her forearm, maybe her elbows. I think at one point it felt like she was using her knees . It was amazing. It was fantastic. I highly recommend it!

You do have to wear a mask, tho, but you can put it down below your nose, she said. I also resisted the after-massage upsell of products. Although maybe I should have bought the oil she used because my elbows haven't been ashy ever since. Next time. Plus I didn't want to go too crazy because I have limited space for stuff with my luggage.

I only wish they let you shower after the massage because I kind of felt like a greased up pig for a while after. I wore my two piece bathing suit to the spa, so I could take the top off, yet keep the bottoms on. She said I could strip down to my comfort level, so I put on a turtleneck. The two-piece worked out perfectly for personal comfort, so that's my other tip, ladies. And trust, I'm not talking bikini. Ha! No, babes, I had a tankini and swim skirt, so it was modest. And then the skirt had shorts under it for extra modesty. It worked out perfectly! I didn't want my butt massaged anyway. Plus what if I got too relaxed and farted?! I could never show my face in there again!

After some relaxing post-massage and trying to even out my tan, I headed to the quick service for lunch. Mama hungray!



So as you can see, I ate at Flo's and just got a simple all-American lunch of a cheeseburger, hot dog, fries, and a fruit bowl (because HEALTHY!) Lunch was fine. It wasn't terrible. It was fine. Really, no complaints about it. They do the burger toppings behind the counter, so you can request only want you want. Condiments were also behind the counter. I really had no complaints! For something quick and easy, it was perfect. Plus the tables looked out over Castaway, so you can't beat the view.

I walked around a bit, taking a few more pictures.
Again, this photo is required by law. Wait, what's that towards the edge?


Lol omg. That's hilarious, and I wonder how many people don't even notice it?


The business side of the island. My stateroom had a lovely view of the island crew doing the ship moorings.


The pleasant side of the island.


I did eventually go back to the room for a quick shower because I have a martini tasting coming up!
More on that later....

 

[Lizgistix]

We interrupt this trip report to bring you an important announcement.

Ya girl is a published author.
(it's on the DCLFan website)
A first time cruiser's expectations vs reality

 

[Lizgistix]

Saturday, pt 2: MARTINI TIME!

Uh..this is going to be a short one and the details are going to be fuzzy, because while I took pictures of every drink, I didn't write down what was IN every drink.

So first thing's first: the deets. The Martini class was held at Skyline on the Dream. It's back in the bars area of the ship, I think it's called The District or something. There's a bunch of bars back there. Luckily, Skyline is the first bar just off the promenade. No, really, you walk in the doors to go inside and it's the first set of doors on your right. Super convenient!

I arrived about 15 minutes early, only to find out they were still setting up. Whoops! Okay, guess I'll just wait outside or something. Really, though, 15 minutes early and I'm the first one here? Anyway. So 4p rolls around and people start showing up. I guess 4p is when can arrive, not necessarily when the class starts. I had another class the next day, arrived 5 minutes early and again was the first person to show up. Some of y'all gotta work on your punctuality, just sayin'.

LET'S START DRINKIN'!
Drink number 1 - the classic martini (gin and vermouth)
Liz review: I hated it


Drink number 2 - uh, cranberry and something (not strawberry). Maybe it was a Cosmo, I don't remember.
Liz review: much better than the first one
This one was sweet, and then to demonstrate how to cut the sweetness if it's too sweet, an assistant came around and topped everyone's drink off with Prosecco and it legit cut the sweetness in half and made it more pleasant to sip


Drink number 3 - something with the juice of a whole lemon in it
Liz review: it's nice, I enjoyed it


Drink number 4 - the one that kinda smelled like licorice
Liz review: I really liked it but totally forgot what's in it. This might have been the one where he infused earl grey tea in vodka
Also, that's not a spider, it's star anise.


Drink 5: the Grasshopper (creme de menthe and...uh...other stuff. and a cocoa powder rim)
Liz review: I'll have another one of these, please!


And then I headed back to the front of the ship with a nice buzz.
I believe the class was $25 and everyone had 5 mini martinis, so $5 each isn't a bad price.
Good class, interesting class. Andy, the guy who runs it and also is the bartender at Skyline said several of these drinks are only available at Skyline. Skyline itself, tho, was small. I was rather disappointed by how small it was, but they also had to squeeze a few other bars in this aft section, so I guess it's whatever. The cool thing about the bar, though, is like the name implies, along the back wall are different city skylines and change after a few minutes. We visited Paris and Chicago for sure, and that was really neat. They even animated traffic in Chicago along Lakeshore Drive, which was a neat touch.

I wanted to return Sunday night for an after dinner drink but the seas would be too choppy for that. More on that with Sunday's report.
Up next, when I have a little time to write: Saturday night dinner at Royal Palace!

 

[sab53085]

We signed up for the martini tasting in a couple of weeks. Very excited! All of the tastings seem like a pretty good deal.

 

[Templemom]

Love your humor, it comes across great in your writing, I do not have that talent so I am following along, hoping to pick up tips !

 

[Lizgistix]

We signed up for the martini tasting in a couple of weeks. Very excited! All of the tastings seem like a pretty good deal.

For the price and the number of drinks, it is a good deal! Not to mention the variety of flavors and a bit of an education about the martini.

 

[Lizgistix]

Love your humor, it comes across great in your writing, I do not have that talent so I am following along, hoping to pick up tips !

Just be yourself! (that's all I'm doing)

 

[Lizgistix]

Saturday, pt whatever number. oh, part 3

After the martini tasting and dinner, not much really happened. Milled around by Currents, mostly. Made some friends (as I tend to do). Made some people laugh (as I tend to do). So once again, I didn't feel like getting dressed up for dinner. Or wearing makeup. Or doing my hair. Girl problems, amirite ladies? So I threw on my new favorite cardigan and voila! Dressed for dinner.

We arrived via the midship elevator to deck 3 I think. Stepped out into the main atrium lobby and like last night, there were princesses. I didn't have any special requests for the lovely ladies, I simply said "just be yourself!" Now I feel underdressed for dinner. Thanks, Cindy.

So, fun fact. Turns out you can only have 10 pics added, so Belle and Jasmine had to be cut to make room for food pics. Sorry!

As me and two of my new friends were marveling at the princesses, I turned around and saw a familiar face from the stateroom tv. I turned back around and said "you guys. I think that's the cruise director behind us." As we're waiting our turn, I looked around and saw an animated sign on a nearby wall. IT IS THE CRUISE DIRECTOR! I need to stop meeting famous people on this ship because I keep fainting. Once it was our turn (not in the official sense, we were just waiting for the couple already talking to them to leave) We introduced ourselves and gushed about how adorable she is and how cute her British accent is. She does the announcements over the ship speaker and she does sound adorable, so getting a chance to meet her in person and enjoy her bubbly personality was a joy. Liz pro tip #2: try to meet your cruise director if possible. She's not the captain, although she said she does periodically poke the captain while he's working.

Anyway, let's go eat at Royal Palace!


First up. the bread. Similar to last night's bread but there were some softer rolls (the one that looks like a muffin). So I focused on those and ignored the crumbly rolls.


Appetizer one. Cold lobster and shrimp. So one bite of lobster and three shrimp that were peeled except for the part near the tail that I had to peel myself because there's meat in there and I don't waste food. This was a miss. Don't order this one.


Appetizer 2. aka the one I really wanted. THE FRIED BRIE! Deni has talked about this on a DCL show. Y'all. This is where it's at. Fried brie with a cranberry orange chutney. Then you can cut the fried brie into quarters and the cheese is all melty and starts oozing out. IT'S SO GOOD! Don't order this with the plan to split it because you'll want it all for yourself and possibly stab your partner who's being all grabby hands with it. Order this. You won't regret it. Unless you're lactose intolerant, then you will regret it. Fried brie: fantastic.


Soup: potato and leek soup. It was good. Needed crackers. I think fancy dining rooms don't bring you crackers. It was very nice. No complaints.
Question: if you get this to go, did you take a leek?


Disappointing main entree! Some fancy name for hearty shell pasta and lobster. This wasn't that great. I told the server that I wasn't impressed by this, but I'll eat it anyway because I don't like to waste food. So while I'm doing that, go ahead and put in an order for another item.



Much better choice entree: THE CRISPY DUCK!
Seriously, this was absolutely fantastic. I raved about this duck the rest of the night and for the rest of the cruise. And for a few days after the cruise. And here I am raving about it again. This was so good! The sliced duck was very tasty and tender and didn't taste really gamey.


So then it was time to tackle the drumstick. I picked up my fork to start pulling the meat off and the whole thing came right off the bone! No, really, it slid right off the bone. I had to stop and take a picture because I was that amazed by how tender it was. This was absolutely fantastic!
Liz pro cruise tip #3: GET THE DUCK.


Confusing dessert 1: teh souffle. I don't even know what a souffle is. Apparently it's French for "souffle". It's baked. There's dough involved. There's a sauce. I don't know where the sauce goes. Or how it goes. Do I pour it on top? Do I punch a hole and pour it down into the souffle? Do I take sips of it? Is this like a shot or a chaser type deal? Pound the cake and then chug the sauce? There's no instructions!
5/10 because I didn't know what the heck I was doing. I can't even remember what the flavors were for this. Confusion. It tasted like confusion and bewilderment. I might have just said the same thing twice.


Better dessert: the opera cake! This was so good. So so good! Soft and mmmoist and chocolate and more chocolate. And it wasn't a tall slice or a large slice. It was a good serving since. And then the creamy layers in between. It's thin cake layers and thin cream layers and it's a bunch of layers and I should have pawned the edible gold instead of eating it. And then it came presented with a piece of chocolate sitting on top of some creamy foundation. Great presentation, great dessert. A definite winner here!


So that was dinner at Royal Palace. Despite the misses, this was a big step up compared to Enchanted Garden the night before. Lots of good things on this menu, so I hoped Sunday night's dinner at Animator's Palate will be a step up from this. Will it be? Won't it be? Find out next time! Wait, no, it won't be next time. I have to talk about the salon, and then lunch, and then the Mixology class...
I'll write about it eventually. You'll see it, you'll see it.

 

[Zip76]

Love the review! We’re doing the 3 night on the Dream at the end of the month.

 

[ichoose2believe]

Thank you so much for posting about all of your experiences. We take our first Disney cruise on the Dream in 11 days.