katyblue04
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2005
- Messages
- 84
This is my first trip report here on the boards. It was my first ever cruise, and I had a GREAT time!
Ok here goes...(Just so you know, this was coppied from an email I sent out to all my family/friends, so it covers a bit more than just the cruise.)
Friday, April 8th, 2005
Our flight from NYC to Florida was fine, it was my first time flying on Song, and I LOVE that they have a trivia game you can play against other passengers! We picked up our rental car, drove to Disney World and checked in to the All Star Movie Resort. I was pleasantly surprised that we got the room I requested. I called ahead to ask for a room in the Toy Story building, because Pams favorite is Woody. And not only did we get the Toy Story building, but we got a Woody room!! They say the TS building is the most requested and hardest to get, so my awesome planning and calling at the right day paid off!
Then we walked around the resort. It was really cute. When we have kids someday well totally have to stay there. We were in the section that had Andys room and huge Woody and Buzz icons. And little green army men walking all over.
They had a huge Fantasia themed pool, with Sorcerer Mickey and Broomsticks throwing the water into it, and a little kid pool with the baby whale and icebergs. There was also the Donald and Daisy Duck from the Noahs Ark scene in Fantasia.
We also saw the 101 Dalmatians, The Love Bug, and The Mighty Ducks Sections. And of course took pictures all over. Right now Im uploading 450 photos. It took me forever to rename them all and figure out how to put them in date order! At least I had some breaks to unpack a bit, look at all the souvenirs we bought, and cook lasagna for dinner.
Then we hopped on the shuttle bus and went to THE MAGIC KINGDOM!
First we bought our park tickets at the lovely new automated ticket machines. I love how those things are popping up everywhere movie theaters, grocery stores who needs to wait on line when you can do it yourself! We went in and made dinner reservations at Tonys, (and thank goodness Pam asked about the Sun dried Tomato Pesto sauce because they only serve it at dinner), got FastPasses for Peter Pans Flight, then saw the new Mickeys Philharmagic (which is in 3D and SO cool! And yes, I cried almost throughout the whole show. Lol.) We had some lunch and ice cream, found a hidden Tinkerbell in a drawer inside of a shop (too cute), rode on Peter Pans Flight, and then headed to Tomorrowland. We did Buzz Lightyears Space Ranger Spin, Space Mountain, and Stitchs Great Escape, which I hated. You sit in these chairs with restraints and it gets pitch black and you hear and feel Stitch breathing on the back of your neck ugh it was horrible!
Then we headed over to dinner. Oh man was I happy! I used to have dreams about this place after we first ate there. And it was just as yummy. Then we took pictures with some characters, rode on the Jungle Cruise, and staked out a good spot right in front of the Castle for the SpectroMagic parade/Wishes fireworks. Pam wasnt feeling too good, but it was ok because we got to relax on the sidewalk and watch. But afterwards we waited in line for like 45 minutes for the bus back to the resort and that really sucked. We got to our room at about midnight, and went to sleep.
Saturday, April 9th, 2005
Woke up at 8 am with a wake up call of Stitch screaming and Mickey apologizing. Lol. We checked out of the resort at 9:30 and hit the road to Port Canaveral! At a McDonalds drive through for some breakfast we saw Disney Cruise Line busses and I cried because I was so excited. We finally got to Port Canaveral at 10:30, dropped off our car and took a short shuttle to the Disney Cruise Terminal. We went through security, filled out customs forms, looked around the terminal, took a picture with Pluto, and then waited in line to check in. We got our Key To The World cards, and once again I was extremely surprised and happy that we got the dining rotation (APL) I had requested.
We walked on board at about 12:45, and as we stepped into the ships lobby, they announce your names and everyone claps and I cried. A nice guy named David showed us to the Spa so we could make our hair reservations, and then we dropped off some pillowcases to be signed at Guest Services and started exploring the ship. We had some buffet lunch, but I was too excited to eat. So we went to our room because it wasnt ready when we first got on. We were room number 5137, which was on deck 5, aft. Thats the back of the ship. Also, if you call it a boat people get mad. Lol. And there are 1.2 nautical miles to a real mile. I learned so much! Our ships name was the Magic, and everyone said stuff like, Have a Magical day! Everyone was so friendly and it was just the best thing.
Our room door was stuck when I first tried to open it, but they fixed it. Looked like it had just been repainted. We had our Romantic Escape At Sea gift basket waiting for us on the bed, with champagne, chocolates, and a photo album in it. Then our luggage was delivered, and we unpacked and made ourselves at home! We went back outside and saw some people wearing these gold Mickey hats, and found out that they were filming a video/commercial to send to Disneyland because they are celebrating its 50th anniversary. Later, after the boat drill (which was rather disappointing, I thought wed get to see how to get into the lifeboats, but all we did was put on our life vests and meet at a designated area.) we went up on deck 9 for the Sail Away Party, and lucky us probably got to be on film! Kermit and Ms. Piggy were there, and it was funny to see the puppeteers holding them up. We all yelled out HAPPY 50th ANNIVERSAY DISNEYLAND! about 5 times till we got it right, and then we counted down 3-2-1! and streamers came out and the horn blew and we started moving!! Mickey and the gang came out and we all danced and sang and had a great time. The best part is that the horn doesnt just blow, it blows to the tune of When you wish upon a star which is extremely cute.
We departed at about 5:30 pm, and then it was time to see our show (The Welcome Aboard Show that had a magician and a comedian) and then I bought some Disney Cruise Line (Ill refer to it as DCL now ) scrapbook stuff, saw a trivia show called Mickey Mania, and went to dinner where we were assigned table number 69, and met our table mates, Dawn and her son Justin who was 4. He started crying when he realized he had to share a table with strangers, and throughout dinner he was a bit of a terror, but he was cute. Our dining room servers were Philip from Croatia and Gerry from the Philippines, and Philip was a bit annoying and had a weird sense of humor and was hard to understand with his accent, but he was nice. Gerry was supper nice and we loved him. He just had this smile stuck on his face the whole time.
After dinner we went back to our room and the couch was turned into a bed. So I put a note saying there was no need for that for Georgia, our stateroom attendant (aka maid). We had a swan made out of a towel sitting on the bed, and a voice mail saying that our kayak tour was changed to a later time slot. I went to Guest Services to confirm that, and on my way I passed a piano lounge and this old guy asked if I had 3 minutes. So I said yes, thinking he had a question or something, and the next thing I know hes holding my hand and pulling me onto the dance floor. I told him that I dont dance, but he insisted and we danced and he was cracking me up, and twirling me and dipping me. Thank goodness it was pretty much empty, with just the piano guy and a singer. And he was counting out the steps and it was really cute. I couldnt believe that I was dancing with a random old guy, but he told me about his daughters who were grown, and how he hadnt had a dancing partner for years. I finally had to pull myself away and thanked him for the wonderful memory. I got back to the room and Pam went to bed and I read the next days Personal Navigator that lists the activities and info like that, wrote down some stuff in my notebook, and went to bed at 11 pm.
Sunday, April 10th 2005
Woke up with a Mickey call, telling us to hurry up because there was a lot to do! We had our Character Breakfast that morning, and it was really fun to see everyone walking around while we ate. We took some pictures, and it was so cute to see how excited some kids were getting. Had a light lunch before watching the ship pull up to Key West. Then we headed out to our Kayak Eco Tour, and we learned all about Mangrove Trees. They grow in the ocean, but the roots filter the water so only fresh water gets inside, however, there are sacrificial leaves that turn yellow and die because they are the ones that get all the salt water. We also saw great White Herring, a Horseshoe crab, little sharks, a stingray, and other birds and fish. It was fun, and we had to lean way back in our kayaks to go under the trees at one point.
After that we walked around Key West for a bit, then went back on board and ate some more lunch, then swam in Quiet Cove, the adult only pool. We had some ice cream, watched the sunset, and went to the show. It was Who Wants to be a Mouseketeer and the grand prize was a trip for 2 on a 7 night cruise. Nobody won that, but I think one kid got $400 of ship credit! Then we went to dinner, and there was this kid that was falling asleep so a waiter made a bed out of 2 chairs and picked up the kid and laid him down and patted her back until she fell asleep! Then he covered her with a tablecloth as a blanket! I was so amazed. Then Justin tried to steal the cherry from my Pina Colada, so Gerry brought him a whole bowl of cherries. Justin also had a habit of putting his hands into my glass of water lol. After dinner we went back to the room, found a blanket folded into a frog on the bed, I took a bath, and we were in bed by 11 pm.
Monday, April 11th 2005
Monday was a whole day at sea. It was so cool to look off the ship and see such blue water. I didnt think it would look so pretty out there. Had room service for breakfast, and then did some shopping on the ship for souvenirs. I got my niece Brianna a Tinkerbell necklace, (to match the Tinkerbell pillowcase that was signed by everyone), my nephew Nickel is getting a plastic DCL ship with Mickey and Minnie on it that has wheels, and for my new baby niece Sofia a little plush captain Minnie with magnets in her hands and feet so she can hold around her crib bars. Then I got my mom a pin, because she collects buttons and they had some really cute ones. Took me forever to decide which one. I also got an ornament, because I think thats what Im going to start getting when I visit new places. Then when its Christmastime I can be happy and see all my ornaments.
After having an Asian food buffet lunch we went swimming and relaxed in the whirlpool. On our way back to the room we took some pictures, me with Daisy, and Pam with Captain Hook. Then Pam took a nap and I went back to the store and bought her a necklace to go with her dress for that evening. I ran into David, the guy who we first met when we came on board. He works in the merchandise shop, and he asked if I was still excited about everything and said after 3 years of working on the ship, I was the most excited person he ever saw walk on. Lol.
Went back to the room and the ship was rocking back and forth so I tried to show it on my video camera. Then Pam woke up and we got all ready for Formal Night, and ate some more food that I brought down from the pool deck. They had walk up counters with pizza and burgers and fries and chicken tenders, so we pretty much got something from there every day. We got our hair done at the salon, and took formal pictures, then went to the show, which was The Golden Mickeys. On the way to the theater they had a red carpet and were interviewing people and were taking pictures of you like paparazzi would. It was really fun. And we look so pretty all dressed up!! This little girl came up to me with her mom and the mom said, Go ahead, tell her she said that she wanted to tell you that she liked your dress. So I said to the girl Well thank you! And I like your dress too! and then she said, You look beautiful! and it was just way too cute for words. Then I asked to take a picture with her and thanked her for saying the sweetest thing ever.
After the show we had dinner at Lumieres, and boy was it fancy! That restaurant was my favorite because it had chandeliers with roses in them, a la Beauty and The Beast. While we were eating, Mickey walked through in his tux and everyone clapped. Then we sang Happy Birthday to Dawn, and had some yummy desserts. We got back to the room and found a towel made into a dog, complete with a pair of my sunglasses. Also, there were Were Celebrating our First Cruise buttons and awards signed by all the merchandise staff, including David, so I think he had them sent to us. So sweet. Then we had to take out our hair and I had 32 bobby pins in there, and about a whole can of hair spray. Lol. We were in bed by 11 with full bellies.
Tuesday, April 12th 2005
Woke up and had breakfast upstairs at the buffet with Mickey shaped waffles! We were in Grand Cayman, but there wasnt a place to dock so we had to tender in, which sucks. Basically you wait for a ticket for a designated time slot, then you can go off the ship and you get onto a tender boat, which is a shuttle pretty much that brings you to and from the island. It was just too much waiting for me. I get impaitent when I'm excited!! Once we were actually on Grand Cayman we started walking towards 7 Mile Beach, but it was way too hot and the walk was longer than we thought, and I got all grumpy. But then like a miracle from above, a taxi van pulled up and asked f we wanted a ride to the beach. So we hopped in and enjoyed some air conditioning. At the beach we realized we didnt have a towel, because they provide them for us at the excursions, but we were too early. So we bought an $18 towel and bottled water for $2.50. We went swimming and collected some seashells, then took the taxi van back. We were going to eat lunch at the Hard Rock Café, but the line was too long and I was getting mad and annoyed so we found a cute little sandwich shop and got egg salad sandwiches.
Then we met with the other DCL people and headed on to our Stingray City Tour. Oh man it was crazy. But so awesome! After a short ride in a van to the other side of the island, we got on a boat and after about an hour ride we were in the middle of the ocean but the water was only waist deep. It happened out of nowhere, first the water was deep and blue, then it got shallow and turquoise. And then we saw them. Stingrays! HUGE ones! Once we got off the boat we were smack in the middle of at least 75 stingrays. It was so insane. I was terrified. Lol. Not really, but it was quite scary when you turn around and theres a huge stingray headed towards you, so you move and walk right into the path of another one! But after a few minutes I got used to it and I even touched a few. Then we took pictures with the guide and held one! Pam fed one, and she said it was the weirdest thing. She put her hand under the water with some squid in her fist, and when a stingray came over her hand she opened it and it sucked the food out and she said it sucked on her hand too. After about 30 minutes in the water, we had to leave, so we said goodbye to the stingrays and got back on the boat. We bought a mini plush stingray and named her Mini, (not to be confused with Minnie) and Pam ordered the picture of her holding the stingray. It was $15 for one photo! And they said it would take 2-3 weeks for it to arrive. Oh well, at least if our underwater camera pictures dont develop right, well have that picture!
On the ride back we saw a huge iguana lying out in the sun, and then we got on the tender boat and we were the last group back on the ship. After showering I took photos with Pocahontas and Cinderella, then Pam and I took a photo with Snow White. The show that evening was Hercules the Muse-ical, and it wasnt nearly as good as we expected. I guess thats what they mean when they talk about cheesy cruise shows! And I love cheesy things, but this was too lame for even me. The whole thing was sprinkled with corny jokes, and the performance overall was just mediocre. Oh well. Guess we're just spoiled by all the Broadway shows we see! Then we waited in line to take photos with Captain Mickey and Minnie, and then Dopey walked around a corner and so Pam grabbed a quick picture with him. We stopped by Shutters to see our Formal Night pictures. Shutters is the photo store where they display all the pictures they take, and they sell them at $9.95 each. The whole trip we bought only 5 photos, but one of those was our Formal Night portrait, and that was an 8x10 so it cost $19.95. At dinner our waiters realized that I scare easily, so they got me with a teacup prank where they acted like they spilled cup on me but it was empty. Lol. We went to bed by 11 pm.
Wednesday, April 13th 2005
Wednesday was Pirate day, and when we woke up I turned on the TV and saw us pulling up to Cozumel, Mexico. After breakfast in Parrot Cay, we went ashore and loaded a bus that took us to the other side of the island to Buena Vista Ranch. At the ranch cantina they gave out free coke and beer, and we got into groups and started our horseback riding tour. It was so hot out, but strangely I felt ok in my jeans. (We were told to wear long pants.) Our tour guide was Aldo, and my horses name was either Tino or Dino I couldnt quite catch it. Lol. After about an hour of riding through an old Mayan village, and seeing about a hundred iguanas (Pam nicknamed them the Mexican squirrel because they are everywhere) we arrived back at the ranch and I had the best Corona Ive ever tasted. Theres just something so delicious about drinking an ice-cold beer in Mexico while you are sweating and filthy with dust.
Then the tour guides sold beer on the bus ride back to the ship! They said its illegal to serve drinks in a moving vehicle, but that its Mexico and they dont listen to the laws. Lol. Then we passed a beach and the driver yelled out Shes naked! and we all looked and sure enough there was a topless girl walking on the beach. So all the guys cheered and it was pretty funny.
Back on the ship we showered and ordered room service lunch, then instead of having a live show that night, they just turned it into a movie theater and we saw The Pacifier. It was ok, but most of the funny parts were in the coming attractions. I hate that. Back at the room we got ready for dinner and when we got to our table, Gerry put Pirate bandanas on us and there was a Mariachi band and our menus were rolled up like treasure maps. After dinner everyone went up on the top deck for the Pirates IN The Caribbean Party. Captain Hook was there of course, and there were fireworks and everything. (Apparently DCL is the only cruise line that has fireworks on board.) Then there was a midnight dessert buffet, and we sailed away from Cozumel. We were in bed by 12:30, and had a towel snake in the room and chocolate coins on the bed.
Thursday, April 14th, 2005
The night before we had put out our special breakfast in bed order form, so we were awaken by yummy food and then we went to the spa to get our couples massage. It hurt like crazy when she was elbowing down my back, but I still loved it. Pam on the other hand sat up at the end and said it was horrible. Lol. After that we went to a napkin-folding lesson, and learned how to make a boot and a fan. It was a day at sea, so there was lots of stuff to do. We watched an ice carving demonstration, and then we had High Tea at 3pm. Tea was really cute, we had mini sandwiches, scones with different types of jams, and lots of desserts.
Then we played Bingo, but we lost and I was very sad. The jackpot was $4,475!! Bingo was stressful, you sit there double-checking yourself and all paranoid, and the let down when you lose is so horrible! If we had won I would have made us book another cruise. Lol. Then we went swimming but it was too windy and a bit cold, so we went to the show which was Disney Dreams where Peter Pan helps a little girl find her magic inside. And her room is full of Disney stuff, so it would come to life and they sang songs from lots of different Disney movies. They started to do my favorite song from Beauty and The Beast, and Pam went to hold my hand and she knocked over my Bahama Mama drink that was in the cup holder, and it spilled all into my lap. But I didnt want to leave so I sat there soaking wet and dripping and smelling like alcohol. Lol. After dinner we saw a ventriloquist show in the adult only lounge, and then went to the midnight dessert buffet where they had over 60 different kinds of desserts. We had a monkey towel in the room, and then we went to bed by 12:30.
Friday, April 15th, 2005
Friday was the day everyone kept talking about, because we were at Castaway Cay, Disneys own private island in the Bahamas. So we woke up at 7:30 am and ate at the breakfast buffet, over looking the island. When it was time to disembark, we mailed some post cards with Bahamian stamps, then headed straight to Serenity Bay, the adults only beach. We wanted to get hammocks, but there were only 2!! And they were already taken so we were bummed. But we got some lounge chairs, took cute pictures, and found seashells. The water was too cold to get in, and it was windy and overcast. So we decided to check out other beaches, and lo and behold, we spotted 2 empty hammocks! We rushed over and grabbed them, and they were PERFECT! The sun was out and we were tucked away from the main family beach, with an awesome view of the Magic docked across the water.
Lunch was served at Cookies BBQ on the island, and it started to sprinkle rain but it passed in like 10 minutes. Then the sun was out for good! We rented bikes and rode along the bike trail, and on the way back we stopped at Groupers Game Room and played some foosball and pool. It was a lot of fun. Then the kids club came in and we had a little boy and girl giving us pointers. Lol. After returning our bikes we picked up some snorkel equipment, and we got in the ocean and saw a few different types of fish. They have a marine life wall that lets only smaller sea life in and keeps out sharks and stuff. But there are warnings for Barracuda, and later at dinner Dawn told us that she saw one. We didnt even know what a Barracuda looks like, but apparently thats the huge fish that eats Nemos family. =(
Then we got some inner tubes and floated around for a while, but then it was time to leave so we were back on the ship by 4 pm and waved goodbye to paradise. We started packing, which was the first time we argued all week. So we were late to the Farewell Variety Show, and then we had dinner reservations at 8pm at Palo, the adult only Italian restaurant. This place was awesome. Our server, Marco, kept bringing us plates of food and saying Try this, its good! even things we didnt order! We had SO much food. And it was delicious. Then we had the best dessert ever, Panna Cotta. It was this Italian cream thing with raspberries yummy!!
After that we rushed down to Animators Palate, because thats where our regular dinner was supposed to be and they were doing the Baked Alaska Parade, and I wanted to see it. We also had to hand out our tip envelops to our servers. Talk about awkward moments! But it was ok. We gave Gerry more than the recommended amount cause we liked him so much. Back at our room we had our Romantic Turndown service, and on the bed were 2 towel swans with their heads forming a heart, and there were rose petals all over the bed. That night the ship was really rocky, and we even had to take down the coat hangers in the closet because they were jangling too loud. (that was also the same storm that the Norwegian Dawn ship from the news this morning was caught in, and on Saturday they were hit by a 70 foot wave that broke windows!) Luckily it never got that bad for us.
That night was bittersweet because I knew in the morning it would all be over. All our luggage had been taken and all we had was our carry-ons.
Saturday April 16th 2005
We had an 8 am breakfast time, so we woke up and went to that and said goodbye to our servers and Dawn and Justin. We were off the ship by 9:30 am, found our luggage, and the left the cruise terminal and waited for the shuttle to take us to our Thrifty car rental. We were given a brand new PT Cruiser that had only 54 miles to it. Then we drove away from Port Canaveral and I was very sad. That ship was so pretty and I miss it so much! We went to Downtown Disney, because I had never been and we had time to kill before our flight. I bought some more scrapbook stuff, and then we had lunch at the Rainforest Café. I had really really good pasta. And then we got the Volcano cake dessert! Yum yum! We walked around all the shops and then decided to head to the airport.
We got a little lost on the way, and then the car return was off-site so we had to find that (we thought it was right at the airport) and we saw a road kill turtle! Now, tell me. Who in their right mind is slow enough to hit a turtle?! I mean, the turtle must have been taking its time crossing the street, the car could move out of the way?! Thats so bizarre to me. Also Pam saw 4 little black pigs on the side of the highway. And I saw an alligator by a swamp! Florida is weird!
Arrived at the airport at 5:30, bought some Outback salads to take on the flight, and then enjoyed some Song trivia on the way home to NYC. We got home around midnight. The kitties were happy to see us, and we went to bed.
THE END!
Ok here goes...(Just so you know, this was coppied from an email I sent out to all my family/friends, so it covers a bit more than just the cruise.)
Friday, April 8th, 2005
Our flight from NYC to Florida was fine, it was my first time flying on Song, and I LOVE that they have a trivia game you can play against other passengers! We picked up our rental car, drove to Disney World and checked in to the All Star Movie Resort. I was pleasantly surprised that we got the room I requested. I called ahead to ask for a room in the Toy Story building, because Pams favorite is Woody. And not only did we get the Toy Story building, but we got a Woody room!! They say the TS building is the most requested and hardest to get, so my awesome planning and calling at the right day paid off!
Then we walked around the resort. It was really cute. When we have kids someday well totally have to stay there. We were in the section that had Andys room and huge Woody and Buzz icons. And little green army men walking all over.
They had a huge Fantasia themed pool, with Sorcerer Mickey and Broomsticks throwing the water into it, and a little kid pool with the baby whale and icebergs. There was also the Donald and Daisy Duck from the Noahs Ark scene in Fantasia.
We also saw the 101 Dalmatians, The Love Bug, and The Mighty Ducks Sections. And of course took pictures all over. Right now Im uploading 450 photos. It took me forever to rename them all and figure out how to put them in date order! At least I had some breaks to unpack a bit, look at all the souvenirs we bought, and cook lasagna for dinner.
Then we hopped on the shuttle bus and went to THE MAGIC KINGDOM!
First we bought our park tickets at the lovely new automated ticket machines. I love how those things are popping up everywhere movie theaters, grocery stores who needs to wait on line when you can do it yourself! We went in and made dinner reservations at Tonys, (and thank goodness Pam asked about the Sun dried Tomato Pesto sauce because they only serve it at dinner), got FastPasses for Peter Pans Flight, then saw the new Mickeys Philharmagic (which is in 3D and SO cool! And yes, I cried almost throughout the whole show. Lol.) We had some lunch and ice cream, found a hidden Tinkerbell in a drawer inside of a shop (too cute), rode on Peter Pans Flight, and then headed to Tomorrowland. We did Buzz Lightyears Space Ranger Spin, Space Mountain, and Stitchs Great Escape, which I hated. You sit in these chairs with restraints and it gets pitch black and you hear and feel Stitch breathing on the back of your neck ugh it was horrible!
Then we headed over to dinner. Oh man was I happy! I used to have dreams about this place after we first ate there. And it was just as yummy. Then we took pictures with some characters, rode on the Jungle Cruise, and staked out a good spot right in front of the Castle for the SpectroMagic parade/Wishes fireworks. Pam wasnt feeling too good, but it was ok because we got to relax on the sidewalk and watch. But afterwards we waited in line for like 45 minutes for the bus back to the resort and that really sucked. We got to our room at about midnight, and went to sleep.
Saturday, April 9th, 2005
Woke up at 8 am with a wake up call of Stitch screaming and Mickey apologizing. Lol. We checked out of the resort at 9:30 and hit the road to Port Canaveral! At a McDonalds drive through for some breakfast we saw Disney Cruise Line busses and I cried because I was so excited. We finally got to Port Canaveral at 10:30, dropped off our car and took a short shuttle to the Disney Cruise Terminal. We went through security, filled out customs forms, looked around the terminal, took a picture with Pluto, and then waited in line to check in. We got our Key To The World cards, and once again I was extremely surprised and happy that we got the dining rotation (APL) I had requested.
We walked on board at about 12:45, and as we stepped into the ships lobby, they announce your names and everyone claps and I cried. A nice guy named David showed us to the Spa so we could make our hair reservations, and then we dropped off some pillowcases to be signed at Guest Services and started exploring the ship. We had some buffet lunch, but I was too excited to eat. So we went to our room because it wasnt ready when we first got on. We were room number 5137, which was on deck 5, aft. Thats the back of the ship. Also, if you call it a boat people get mad. Lol. And there are 1.2 nautical miles to a real mile. I learned so much! Our ships name was the Magic, and everyone said stuff like, Have a Magical day! Everyone was so friendly and it was just the best thing.
Our room door was stuck when I first tried to open it, but they fixed it. Looked like it had just been repainted. We had our Romantic Escape At Sea gift basket waiting for us on the bed, with champagne, chocolates, and a photo album in it. Then our luggage was delivered, and we unpacked and made ourselves at home! We went back outside and saw some people wearing these gold Mickey hats, and found out that they were filming a video/commercial to send to Disneyland because they are celebrating its 50th anniversary. Later, after the boat drill (which was rather disappointing, I thought wed get to see how to get into the lifeboats, but all we did was put on our life vests and meet at a designated area.) we went up on deck 9 for the Sail Away Party, and lucky us probably got to be on film! Kermit and Ms. Piggy were there, and it was funny to see the puppeteers holding them up. We all yelled out HAPPY 50th ANNIVERSAY DISNEYLAND! about 5 times till we got it right, and then we counted down 3-2-1! and streamers came out and the horn blew and we started moving!! Mickey and the gang came out and we all danced and sang and had a great time. The best part is that the horn doesnt just blow, it blows to the tune of When you wish upon a star which is extremely cute.
We departed at about 5:30 pm, and then it was time to see our show (The Welcome Aboard Show that had a magician and a comedian) and then I bought some Disney Cruise Line (Ill refer to it as DCL now ) scrapbook stuff, saw a trivia show called Mickey Mania, and went to dinner where we were assigned table number 69, and met our table mates, Dawn and her son Justin who was 4. He started crying when he realized he had to share a table with strangers, and throughout dinner he was a bit of a terror, but he was cute. Our dining room servers were Philip from Croatia and Gerry from the Philippines, and Philip was a bit annoying and had a weird sense of humor and was hard to understand with his accent, but he was nice. Gerry was supper nice and we loved him. He just had this smile stuck on his face the whole time.
After dinner we went back to our room and the couch was turned into a bed. So I put a note saying there was no need for that for Georgia, our stateroom attendant (aka maid). We had a swan made out of a towel sitting on the bed, and a voice mail saying that our kayak tour was changed to a later time slot. I went to Guest Services to confirm that, and on my way I passed a piano lounge and this old guy asked if I had 3 minutes. So I said yes, thinking he had a question or something, and the next thing I know hes holding my hand and pulling me onto the dance floor. I told him that I dont dance, but he insisted and we danced and he was cracking me up, and twirling me and dipping me. Thank goodness it was pretty much empty, with just the piano guy and a singer. And he was counting out the steps and it was really cute. I couldnt believe that I was dancing with a random old guy, but he told me about his daughters who were grown, and how he hadnt had a dancing partner for years. I finally had to pull myself away and thanked him for the wonderful memory. I got back to the room and Pam went to bed and I read the next days Personal Navigator that lists the activities and info like that, wrote down some stuff in my notebook, and went to bed at 11 pm.
Sunday, April 10th 2005
Woke up with a Mickey call, telling us to hurry up because there was a lot to do! We had our Character Breakfast that morning, and it was really fun to see everyone walking around while we ate. We took some pictures, and it was so cute to see how excited some kids were getting. Had a light lunch before watching the ship pull up to Key West. Then we headed out to our Kayak Eco Tour, and we learned all about Mangrove Trees. They grow in the ocean, but the roots filter the water so only fresh water gets inside, however, there are sacrificial leaves that turn yellow and die because they are the ones that get all the salt water. We also saw great White Herring, a Horseshoe crab, little sharks, a stingray, and other birds and fish. It was fun, and we had to lean way back in our kayaks to go under the trees at one point.
After that we walked around Key West for a bit, then went back on board and ate some more lunch, then swam in Quiet Cove, the adult only pool. We had some ice cream, watched the sunset, and went to the show. It was Who Wants to be a Mouseketeer and the grand prize was a trip for 2 on a 7 night cruise. Nobody won that, but I think one kid got $400 of ship credit! Then we went to dinner, and there was this kid that was falling asleep so a waiter made a bed out of 2 chairs and picked up the kid and laid him down and patted her back until she fell asleep! Then he covered her with a tablecloth as a blanket! I was so amazed. Then Justin tried to steal the cherry from my Pina Colada, so Gerry brought him a whole bowl of cherries. Justin also had a habit of putting his hands into my glass of water lol. After dinner we went back to the room, found a blanket folded into a frog on the bed, I took a bath, and we were in bed by 11 pm.
Monday, April 11th 2005
Monday was a whole day at sea. It was so cool to look off the ship and see such blue water. I didnt think it would look so pretty out there. Had room service for breakfast, and then did some shopping on the ship for souvenirs. I got my niece Brianna a Tinkerbell necklace, (to match the Tinkerbell pillowcase that was signed by everyone), my nephew Nickel is getting a plastic DCL ship with Mickey and Minnie on it that has wheels, and for my new baby niece Sofia a little plush captain Minnie with magnets in her hands and feet so she can hold around her crib bars. Then I got my mom a pin, because she collects buttons and they had some really cute ones. Took me forever to decide which one. I also got an ornament, because I think thats what Im going to start getting when I visit new places. Then when its Christmastime I can be happy and see all my ornaments.
After having an Asian food buffet lunch we went swimming and relaxed in the whirlpool. On our way back to the room we took some pictures, me with Daisy, and Pam with Captain Hook. Then Pam took a nap and I went back to the store and bought her a necklace to go with her dress for that evening. I ran into David, the guy who we first met when we came on board. He works in the merchandise shop, and he asked if I was still excited about everything and said after 3 years of working on the ship, I was the most excited person he ever saw walk on. Lol.
Went back to the room and the ship was rocking back and forth so I tried to show it on my video camera. Then Pam woke up and we got all ready for Formal Night, and ate some more food that I brought down from the pool deck. They had walk up counters with pizza and burgers and fries and chicken tenders, so we pretty much got something from there every day. We got our hair done at the salon, and took formal pictures, then went to the show, which was The Golden Mickeys. On the way to the theater they had a red carpet and were interviewing people and were taking pictures of you like paparazzi would. It was really fun. And we look so pretty all dressed up!! This little girl came up to me with her mom and the mom said, Go ahead, tell her she said that she wanted to tell you that she liked your dress. So I said to the girl Well thank you! And I like your dress too! and then she said, You look beautiful! and it was just way too cute for words. Then I asked to take a picture with her and thanked her for saying the sweetest thing ever.
After the show we had dinner at Lumieres, and boy was it fancy! That restaurant was my favorite because it had chandeliers with roses in them, a la Beauty and The Beast. While we were eating, Mickey walked through in his tux and everyone clapped. Then we sang Happy Birthday to Dawn, and had some yummy desserts. We got back to the room and found a towel made into a dog, complete with a pair of my sunglasses. Also, there were Were Celebrating our First Cruise buttons and awards signed by all the merchandise staff, including David, so I think he had them sent to us. So sweet. Then we had to take out our hair and I had 32 bobby pins in there, and about a whole can of hair spray. Lol. We were in bed by 11 with full bellies.
Tuesday, April 12th 2005
Woke up and had breakfast upstairs at the buffet with Mickey shaped waffles! We were in Grand Cayman, but there wasnt a place to dock so we had to tender in, which sucks. Basically you wait for a ticket for a designated time slot, then you can go off the ship and you get onto a tender boat, which is a shuttle pretty much that brings you to and from the island. It was just too much waiting for me. I get impaitent when I'm excited!! Once we were actually on Grand Cayman we started walking towards 7 Mile Beach, but it was way too hot and the walk was longer than we thought, and I got all grumpy. But then like a miracle from above, a taxi van pulled up and asked f we wanted a ride to the beach. So we hopped in and enjoyed some air conditioning. At the beach we realized we didnt have a towel, because they provide them for us at the excursions, but we were too early. So we bought an $18 towel and bottled water for $2.50. We went swimming and collected some seashells, then took the taxi van back. We were going to eat lunch at the Hard Rock Café, but the line was too long and I was getting mad and annoyed so we found a cute little sandwich shop and got egg salad sandwiches.
Then we met with the other DCL people and headed on to our Stingray City Tour. Oh man it was crazy. But so awesome! After a short ride in a van to the other side of the island, we got on a boat and after about an hour ride we were in the middle of the ocean but the water was only waist deep. It happened out of nowhere, first the water was deep and blue, then it got shallow and turquoise. And then we saw them. Stingrays! HUGE ones! Once we got off the boat we were smack in the middle of at least 75 stingrays. It was so insane. I was terrified. Lol. Not really, but it was quite scary when you turn around and theres a huge stingray headed towards you, so you move and walk right into the path of another one! But after a few minutes I got used to it and I even touched a few. Then we took pictures with the guide and held one! Pam fed one, and she said it was the weirdest thing. She put her hand under the water with some squid in her fist, and when a stingray came over her hand she opened it and it sucked the food out and she said it sucked on her hand too. After about 30 minutes in the water, we had to leave, so we said goodbye to the stingrays and got back on the boat. We bought a mini plush stingray and named her Mini, (not to be confused with Minnie) and Pam ordered the picture of her holding the stingray. It was $15 for one photo! And they said it would take 2-3 weeks for it to arrive. Oh well, at least if our underwater camera pictures dont develop right, well have that picture!
On the ride back we saw a huge iguana lying out in the sun, and then we got on the tender boat and we were the last group back on the ship. After showering I took photos with Pocahontas and Cinderella, then Pam and I took a photo with Snow White. The show that evening was Hercules the Muse-ical, and it wasnt nearly as good as we expected. I guess thats what they mean when they talk about cheesy cruise shows! And I love cheesy things, but this was too lame for even me. The whole thing was sprinkled with corny jokes, and the performance overall was just mediocre. Oh well. Guess we're just spoiled by all the Broadway shows we see! Then we waited in line to take photos with Captain Mickey and Minnie, and then Dopey walked around a corner and so Pam grabbed a quick picture with him. We stopped by Shutters to see our Formal Night pictures. Shutters is the photo store where they display all the pictures they take, and they sell them at $9.95 each. The whole trip we bought only 5 photos, but one of those was our Formal Night portrait, and that was an 8x10 so it cost $19.95. At dinner our waiters realized that I scare easily, so they got me with a teacup prank where they acted like they spilled cup on me but it was empty. Lol. We went to bed by 11 pm.
Wednesday, April 13th 2005
Wednesday was Pirate day, and when we woke up I turned on the TV and saw us pulling up to Cozumel, Mexico. After breakfast in Parrot Cay, we went ashore and loaded a bus that took us to the other side of the island to Buena Vista Ranch. At the ranch cantina they gave out free coke and beer, and we got into groups and started our horseback riding tour. It was so hot out, but strangely I felt ok in my jeans. (We were told to wear long pants.) Our tour guide was Aldo, and my horses name was either Tino or Dino I couldnt quite catch it. Lol. After about an hour of riding through an old Mayan village, and seeing about a hundred iguanas (Pam nicknamed them the Mexican squirrel because they are everywhere) we arrived back at the ranch and I had the best Corona Ive ever tasted. Theres just something so delicious about drinking an ice-cold beer in Mexico while you are sweating and filthy with dust.
Then the tour guides sold beer on the bus ride back to the ship! They said its illegal to serve drinks in a moving vehicle, but that its Mexico and they dont listen to the laws. Lol. Then we passed a beach and the driver yelled out Shes naked! and we all looked and sure enough there was a topless girl walking on the beach. So all the guys cheered and it was pretty funny.
Back on the ship we showered and ordered room service lunch, then instead of having a live show that night, they just turned it into a movie theater and we saw The Pacifier. It was ok, but most of the funny parts were in the coming attractions. I hate that. Back at the room we got ready for dinner and when we got to our table, Gerry put Pirate bandanas on us and there was a Mariachi band and our menus were rolled up like treasure maps. After dinner everyone went up on the top deck for the Pirates IN The Caribbean Party. Captain Hook was there of course, and there were fireworks and everything. (Apparently DCL is the only cruise line that has fireworks on board.) Then there was a midnight dessert buffet, and we sailed away from Cozumel. We were in bed by 12:30, and had a towel snake in the room and chocolate coins on the bed.
Thursday, April 14th, 2005
The night before we had put out our special breakfast in bed order form, so we were awaken by yummy food and then we went to the spa to get our couples massage. It hurt like crazy when she was elbowing down my back, but I still loved it. Pam on the other hand sat up at the end and said it was horrible. Lol. After that we went to a napkin-folding lesson, and learned how to make a boot and a fan. It was a day at sea, so there was lots of stuff to do. We watched an ice carving demonstration, and then we had High Tea at 3pm. Tea was really cute, we had mini sandwiches, scones with different types of jams, and lots of desserts.
Then we played Bingo, but we lost and I was very sad. The jackpot was $4,475!! Bingo was stressful, you sit there double-checking yourself and all paranoid, and the let down when you lose is so horrible! If we had won I would have made us book another cruise. Lol. Then we went swimming but it was too windy and a bit cold, so we went to the show which was Disney Dreams where Peter Pan helps a little girl find her magic inside. And her room is full of Disney stuff, so it would come to life and they sang songs from lots of different Disney movies. They started to do my favorite song from Beauty and The Beast, and Pam went to hold my hand and she knocked over my Bahama Mama drink that was in the cup holder, and it spilled all into my lap. But I didnt want to leave so I sat there soaking wet and dripping and smelling like alcohol. Lol. After dinner we saw a ventriloquist show in the adult only lounge, and then went to the midnight dessert buffet where they had over 60 different kinds of desserts. We had a monkey towel in the room, and then we went to bed by 12:30.
Friday, April 15th, 2005
Friday was the day everyone kept talking about, because we were at Castaway Cay, Disneys own private island in the Bahamas. So we woke up at 7:30 am and ate at the breakfast buffet, over looking the island. When it was time to disembark, we mailed some post cards with Bahamian stamps, then headed straight to Serenity Bay, the adults only beach. We wanted to get hammocks, but there were only 2!! And they were already taken so we were bummed. But we got some lounge chairs, took cute pictures, and found seashells. The water was too cold to get in, and it was windy and overcast. So we decided to check out other beaches, and lo and behold, we spotted 2 empty hammocks! We rushed over and grabbed them, and they were PERFECT! The sun was out and we were tucked away from the main family beach, with an awesome view of the Magic docked across the water.
Lunch was served at Cookies BBQ on the island, and it started to sprinkle rain but it passed in like 10 minutes. Then the sun was out for good! We rented bikes and rode along the bike trail, and on the way back we stopped at Groupers Game Room and played some foosball and pool. It was a lot of fun. Then the kids club came in and we had a little boy and girl giving us pointers. Lol. After returning our bikes we picked up some snorkel equipment, and we got in the ocean and saw a few different types of fish. They have a marine life wall that lets only smaller sea life in and keeps out sharks and stuff. But there are warnings for Barracuda, and later at dinner Dawn told us that she saw one. We didnt even know what a Barracuda looks like, but apparently thats the huge fish that eats Nemos family. =(
Then we got some inner tubes and floated around for a while, but then it was time to leave so we were back on the ship by 4 pm and waved goodbye to paradise. We started packing, which was the first time we argued all week. So we were late to the Farewell Variety Show, and then we had dinner reservations at 8pm at Palo, the adult only Italian restaurant. This place was awesome. Our server, Marco, kept bringing us plates of food and saying Try this, its good! even things we didnt order! We had SO much food. And it was delicious. Then we had the best dessert ever, Panna Cotta. It was this Italian cream thing with raspberries yummy!!
After that we rushed down to Animators Palate, because thats where our regular dinner was supposed to be and they were doing the Baked Alaska Parade, and I wanted to see it. We also had to hand out our tip envelops to our servers. Talk about awkward moments! But it was ok. We gave Gerry more than the recommended amount cause we liked him so much. Back at our room we had our Romantic Turndown service, and on the bed were 2 towel swans with their heads forming a heart, and there were rose petals all over the bed. That night the ship was really rocky, and we even had to take down the coat hangers in the closet because they were jangling too loud. (that was also the same storm that the Norwegian Dawn ship from the news this morning was caught in, and on Saturday they were hit by a 70 foot wave that broke windows!) Luckily it never got that bad for us.
That night was bittersweet because I knew in the morning it would all be over. All our luggage had been taken and all we had was our carry-ons.
Saturday April 16th 2005
We had an 8 am breakfast time, so we woke up and went to that and said goodbye to our servers and Dawn and Justin. We were off the ship by 9:30 am, found our luggage, and the left the cruise terminal and waited for the shuttle to take us to our Thrifty car rental. We were given a brand new PT Cruiser that had only 54 miles to it. Then we drove away from Port Canaveral and I was very sad. That ship was so pretty and I miss it so much! We went to Downtown Disney, because I had never been and we had time to kill before our flight. I bought some more scrapbook stuff, and then we had lunch at the Rainforest Café. I had really really good pasta. And then we got the Volcano cake dessert! Yum yum! We walked around all the shops and then decided to head to the airport.
We got a little lost on the way, and then the car return was off-site so we had to find that (we thought it was right at the airport) and we saw a road kill turtle! Now, tell me. Who in their right mind is slow enough to hit a turtle?! I mean, the turtle must have been taking its time crossing the street, the car could move out of the way?! Thats so bizarre to me. Also Pam saw 4 little black pigs on the side of the highway. And I saw an alligator by a swamp! Florida is weird!
Arrived at the airport at 5:30, bought some Outback salads to take on the flight, and then enjoyed some Song trivia on the way home to NYC. We got home around midnight. The kitties were happy to see us, and we went to bed.
THE END!
Seriously, you did a great job with the pictures! That's a drag about the little boy and his lack of manners. I was afraid of that very thing happening to us. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been able to stand it. I know my kids would have been bug eyed with disbelief to witness it.
I've bookmarked your journal so that my whole family can read it. Their excitement level hasn't quite reached mine.
Linda
