Land/Sea July 21-29 Sea portion-Long

[cristit14]

Trip report for land/sea July 21st- July 29th

Characters:
Myself Cristi, DH Brad, DD8 Rachel, and DS 6 Jacob

Sea Portion
Day One
Took DCL bus to port from AK. Ride was okay, but I wish they had played more cartoons to keep the kids occupied. We were on board around 2:15. Had stateroom 2652. (Definitely a noisy room. Mostly just engine noise which didn’t bother me except for going into port. Two nights though there was a lot of loud music coming from somewhere in the middle of the night.) DD and I went to buffet for a little food while the guys were in the room(or so I thought). DD and I were probably only gone for 45 minutes and by the time we got back to the room DH was on his second drink of day.
Off to life boat drill then up to sail away party. After the party we met up with Rachel’s friend Kylie and family(the girls had been emailing for a month or so before cruise). We had early seating for dinner PTA rotation. I wasn’t very hungry for dinner since we had lunch so late. I had the cold mango and papaya soup which was very yummy, then the Mixed Grill which was also good and for dessert the Lemon Meringue Pie which I didn’t think was that great. Our server, Das, had Rachel up in the conga line after dinner. She had fun with that. After dinner kids went to clubs for a little bit, DH went to explore the ship and I went to Hercules by myself. I loved that show. It was very funny.
TIP: Make sure the pager number on your childs armband actually matches the pager number you have. Our DD’s number was wrong the first night she kept trying to page us and the pager never went off.

Day Two-Nassau
Beach Blanket Buffet for breakfast then off the ship for a little while. We went to the straw market for a little shopping and then to the Pirate museum. I didn’t really care for the Pirate Museum and the kids were bored there also. We were back on the ship by 1pm. Went to the pool and met up with Kylie, Erin (sister), Laura (mom) and Pat(dad). Had a really good time at the pool talking and having some yummy Planter’s Punch (mine really did pack quite a punch too) J. Dinner was at Tritons. It was really nice. I had Deep fried Camembert, mixed garden salad, lamb shank and grand marnier soufflé for dessert. I loved the camembert and the lamb. Didn’t like the salad much (had too much bitter lettuce) and the dessert was just okay. After dinner we managed to get the kids to go to the clubs for awhile and we got to have some adult time. We spent some time relaxing on Deck 4 chairs (very comfy) and then went to Wavebands for awhile. After we picked up the kids, DH and DS went on deck for a little bit and then back to room. DD and I went to the deck party which had been moved to the atrium because it had been raining most of the evening. I was having a really good time at the party and DD was too, but she was really tired so we went back to the room.

Day Three-Castaway Cay
We didn’t get there until a little later because of the weather, but once we got there it was really nice. It was overcast most of the day, but didn’t rain. It was nice because it wasn’t quite as hot. Spent the day at the family beach with Kylie and family. We rented a float tube, but didn’t use it that much. DH took the kids on a paddle boat. Mostly we just hung out on the beach. Those Konk Coolers are very good. We got back on board around 4pm. DH went up to get a drink while we were getting ready for dinner. He was gone a really long time. He finally came back about 15 minutes before dinner. I thought maybe he had too many Konk cooler and got lost, but it turns out he was playing Bingo.J Dinner was at AP. That was my favorite restaurant. I had Baked Stuffed Tomato, Butternut squash soup, Veal chop and double fudge chocolate cake. I loved all of my food that night. After dinner we all went to Golden Mickeys. That was a good show. After the show DD went to club with Kylie. DH and DS went to deck 4 for a little bit (DS loved the deck for Lounge chairs sitting with Daddy) and then back to room. Laura and I went to Wavebands for the magic show and then a little bit of 70’s night.

Day Four-Sea Day
We slept in and didn’t go to breakfast until around 10. Then we went to the pool for an hour or two until the rain started. DH and DS stayed in room for about an hour or so while DD and I met up with Kylie, Laura and Erin for lunch. We walked through Shutters after lunch and then met up with DH and DS for matinee of Disney Dreams. I didn’t like it as well as the other shows, although when tinkerbell sprinkled pixie dust on the audience I thought that was really cool. After the show, DH went to play bingo and I took the kids to the clubs to rehearse for the kids show. Then I went and picked out the pictures we wanted, went to Mickey’s Mates for frames and albums and did a little bit of packing. I met up with DH for the kids show and afterwards it was a mad dash to get ready for dinner at PC. Dinner was good again. I had Artichoke and garlic dip, romain salad with artichoke chips, roasted red snapper and chocolate decadence. Everything was really good that night too. Our server, Das, kissed Rachel’s hand goodbye at the end of the evening and our asst. server Ban Jang gave Jacob a hug goodbye. After dinner DH and kids went up to the pool while I finished packing. Then I went up to the pool and had a drink with DH while watching the kids play. We took the kids to the clubs in their PJs around 930 so we could have a little adult time again. Went back to the deck 4 chairs again and then to Barrel of Laughs for the Dueling pianos. That was a good show. We picked up the kids around 11:45 and then off to bed.

Last morning L
I got up early and watched the sunrise, then woke up the family. Went to BBB for breakfast then off the ship. We were very sad to go. Had to wait for about 45 minutes in line to check bags at Delta then on to the busses. We were the last four to get on our bus so we had to sit with me and the kids in the back three seats (next to bathroom) and DH by himself upfront. It was not a good ride to the airport. We got back home around 6:30 Denver time.

I am having a hard time adjusting to being home. I just want Das to bring my food to me and I need someone to bring me the Drink of the Day. J We found the recipe for Konk cooler on line here and made some last night, boy are those good. J We had a great time! We didn’t re-book onboard only because we couldn’t afford to do the deposit right now, but we are thinking that maybe in October or November 2006 we will do a 7 day cruise and probably skip the parks (or maybe do a day or two). The 4 day cruise is just too short. Sorry this is so long. If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask away.



I just got my pictures on line here is the link

http://community.webshots.com/user/cristit842

 

[m-sjaxjag]

cristit14 -

Great write up. Sounds like everyone had a great time. Did DH win any $$$ at bingo??

 

[cristit14]

No, he didn't win anything. He said that he was one number away from a $400 prize. Oh, well... he had fun at least.

 

[motherwitch]

I can't believe you have your trip report posted already. I'm still working on our three days at the parks, LOL.
It really was sad getting off the ship on Thursday. I'm glad we had an extra day in Orlando after the cruise.
It was great meeting you and your family.
Margo

 

[cristit14]

I can't believe that I have it posted either. I don't seem to want to do anything besides think about the vacation though. I am having major motivation problems. It was great meeting you guys too. I have a feeling that Rachel and Kylie will be lifelong friends.

 

[cristit14]

bump

 

[MrsHeg]

We'll be going on our first cruise in a couple of weeks, I noticed that you boarded the bus for the port at Animal Kingdom. Would you mind telling me how that worked? Did you have to take your carry ons to the park with you?

Thanks

 

[cristit14]

That worked okay. We did have to take our carry ons to the park, but right after you go through security they have a DCL desk where you can leave your bags until time to go. We left everything there except our backpack with waterbottles, sunscreen and camera. They gave us a fast pass for one of the shows and some pointers about how to get the most out of our morning. Just make sure that you let them know at your resort that you will be taking the bus from AK and not the resort. They have to have reservations for you so they can have enough busses at the park.
Have a great trip!

 

[MrsHeg]

Sounds great, I do worry about my carry on though, as it will
include my CPAP machine that I use at night due to Apnea.

 

[cristit14]

I wouldn't worry about it. They keep the carryon luggage in a locked room and the cruise line people are the only ones in there.

 

[Sleeping Beauty fan]

Great pictures, Cristi! We are also going on a Land/Sea cruise next July (05). We were wondering what the heat and crowds are like at the parks in July. We have always gone in early June. We will be there about a week after the 4th of July. Thanks!

 

[cristit14]

The first day we got there we went to MK that evening. We hadn't been there 30 min and we were thinking that we were INSANE to be there in July. The crowds were huge and the heat was INTENSE. Now, as for the heat, although I grew up mostly in the South, I have lived in Colorado for close to 20 years so we really weren't used to the humidity. We had a great time, but are going to try to plan any other trips at different times of the year. Some advise is to make sure you have lots of water to drink at the parks (and sunscreen), that helped with the heat alot. I had bought some Brita sports bottles. They have a filter in the lid so you can fill them at water fountains and it still tastes great. DH would go get a complimentary cup of ice at snack stands and the water was nice and cool. Also, probably the worst time for the crowds was trying to leave as parks were closing. I would suggest that if you are staying for fireworks, to be as close to the exit as possible. We were kind of on the back side of the castle and it took probably 20- 30 minutes to get out of the park and to the bus pickup and then once there it probably took another 20-30 minutes before we were able to get on a bus and then it was standing room only. We did have a great time though!!!