"New" Wonder Oct. 15-19, 2006

[TinkNanny]

Ok, I promised to do a report after my cruise because I got so much information from other reports. So I will give it my best shot.

This is our first cruise-EVER!!! So I have nothing to compare. BTW- some may say I am a little "quirky", so hope you can follow along!!

I don't typically like to start off anything with a complaint. I try to use the "flatter, however; slam" method. But I feel I must share this to get it off my chest!
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On thursday morning they.... KICKED ME OFF!!! I did nothing to deserve this. I begged, I pleaded, I threatened to hide, to no avail. I was told to be a big girl and learn to share. So to those who come after me... enjoy yourself, but know that they will make you leave too! And don't say that you weren't warned!! hehe

Pre-Cruise Day

We drove down to PC on Sat so we could get to the ship early on Sunday morning. We stayed at the Country Inn & Suites. I highly reccommend this hotel. It was brand new and seemed more upscale that I would have expected. We had a 1br suite for $99. Very roomy and decorated nicely. But the best part was that it was the closest hotel to the ports. We had a great view and could see the Wonder and the Magic from the 4th floor. Now I must stop here and say that according to the DIS boards, this happens very infrequently. It was because the Wonder was just back from Drydock. -You see, they heard I was planning a cruise, so they decided to update the ship...just for me- don't try to convince me otherwise...
I have a couple of pictures from the 4th floor. If I can figure out how to get the pix frm my camera to this post, I will post them.
Anyway, after we checked in, we decided to go to the port for a dry run before embarkment. This is where the "Magic" began and a sense of "Wonder" siezed me. As we were working our way to the Disney terminal, we made a wrong turn and ended up at the other end of the port. The Wonder was docked right where we ended up! WOW- she's beautiful. Being the avid scrapbooker that I am, of course I had to get out to take pictures. There were other people there also, some with camcorders, which I found odd because what is there to record except a still, parked/docked ship. Now if you know anything about southern girls, you know we never meet a stranger. So off I went asking about the camera. I met a lovely couple from Orlando and lo' and behold, the woman was a DISer!! (I knew there was something about her I liked). She even had a lime green drink koozie, which she said wasn't planned, but I knew it was the "Magic" working. She said the Magic was about to launch and soon it would pass the Wonder. HOW COOL!!! That was something I wasn't going to miss. We talked about her postings that I had read that very morning back here in my little Georgia town; it is a small world after all! Sorry, I am babbling, .... Anyway, we watched the Magic come down the canal and then I heard the most beautiful sound -- the Magic blowing her horn. Now I don't want to spoil it for those who haven't experienced it, but I really teared up. As she passed the Wonder, the Wonder saluted the Magic with a horn blow of her own--- Umm, big fat crocodile tears--. Then I'll be doggone if the both didn't blow those horns again. I felt like a proud Momma.
My new friend sent me a clip of it and I got all teary eyed again. My 12 yr daughter though I got a little to attached the the ships. What can I say, I'm a sentimental kinda' girl.
So I can now say that "the road less traveled" (it really was) was the road that led us to see the "Wonder"ful, "Magic"al experience of two ships passing in the night. (ok, it was afternoon, but you know what I mean).

Ok, I know I still haven't even boarded the ship in my report, but I must go cook dinner. I will post more tonight or in the morning...

 

[bdink921]

Great start---hurry and finish that dinner!!! Glad you decided to share--after all, we'll be there in 23 days!!!!

P.S. Do they REALLY kick you off in the end??? Guess I'm gonna have to take down the "For Sale" sign in front of my house .

 

[Amlee]

Disney has this BAD habit of kicking people off!


Weren't the horns amazing? Just reading your report about them, gave me chill bumps and brought tears to my eyes.


Can't wait for more!

 

[Mickey'sfriend]

I am too, too jealous!! What a fabulous experience!! I am sitting here reading your report with tears in my eyes. Counting down the days... 11 weeks to go!!

 

[MagicMe]

It must have been so great to see both ships together and then both horns saluting at the same time!!! How great for you!

I've been waiting to hear from someone on the new "Wonder". I sailed on her in August and she didn't look all that bad to me so she must really be sparkling now!

Hurry back!!!

 

[TinkNanny]

Hope this comes through...

TWO LOVELY LADIES....

 

[TinkNanny]

OK..... I had every intention of posting more of my trip report.
However, it has taken me 2 1/2 hours to figure out how to get that one picture uploaded. My brain really hurts. Also, I had my in-laws here for dinner.... enough said!?!

Hope you like the picture

 

[MagicMe]

They look absolutely fabulous!! Totally understand your exhaustion.

Okay - that was yesterday - this is today - we're waiting

 

[grumpydude]

How awesome it must have been to see both ships at once.

Thanks for taking the time to post.

 

[wendygirl]

good start! i'm hooked!

 

[SparKeLLy]

Great start Belinda! I love the photo. Can't wait to hear more of your adventures on our cruise!

 

[TinkNanny]

Okay, I will try to get some more of my report done. I want to add pictures, but still trying to figure out photobucket.

DAY 1 - Sunday

Now you must understand, I have been debating this cruise for years. I am terribly claustrophobic and the thought of being out in the middle of the ocean -TRAPPED- sent me into a frienzy. But I sucked it up, came up with a plan, put my big girl panties on and went for it. We booked a veranda room, so I could go outside if I started to get "closed in". I know we were spending more $$ than we had to on the room, but you gotta do what you gotta do!

I decided to use the Transdermal patch for motion sickness. I have every side effect listed and then some. I felt a little "loopy" and my family said I acted a little loopy. Next time I will just use dramamine.

Let me start over::

DAY 1 - Sunday

We took that 1/2 mile trip from our Hotel and got to the terminal around 10:30 am. It was such a pretty terminal. After seeing the other terminals,I was so proud of "mine".

I'm sorry that I don't know how to make the pix smaller.

The check in process was very easy. Everyone was helpful. I had pre-registered on-line (I highly reccomend this!) so it only took about 15-20 minutes for us to take our seat and WAIT!! We were in group 3 to board, so I was pretty happy about that. We just hung around the terminal taking it all in. The lobby is so pretty too!

I bought DCL lanyards (the best $8 I've spent) and got my pager for the Oceaneers Lab (never needed it). As I was going back to my seat I spotted lime green -DIS friends-. I went over to see if I could figure out which ones they were. They had never even heard of DIS boards (gasp!). Anyway, I did talk to them for a few minutes and told them they may be acosted again by zealous DISers!
I got ran over by kids when Mickey came out (be warned, they are out for blood!). Then I spotted Eloise.. A DIS friend's little girl. They were from England. She pointed out a group of lime green--- my other new friends!! We had planned to meet at 3:00 at the Mickey pool. But we had a little preview. YIPPEE!!

It was time to call out groups to board. They picked a "Family of the Day" to be the first to board. Guess what!?! It wasn't us....darn. But it wasn't long before our number was called. We went through the line, got our pre-boarding picture taken then was whisked onboard. I liked being introduced, makes ya' feel kinda special!!
They sent us down to Parrot Cay for lunch. I thought it was pretty good. However, they did not have Sweet Tea! How is a proper southern gal suppose to get by with NO sweet tea. Florida isn't really "south", I guess.

Our room wouldn't be ready til 1:30, so we decided to walk around and explore the ship. It is BIG! The ship is so pretty. It is classy Disney... wouldn't you agree. We went to our room to get settled. I was really dreading this, living in a cracker box for 4 days. But the room wasn't that small. Now don't get me wrong, it wasn't spacious, but it would do. There was plenty of storage space. We unloaded all of our luggage and still had empty drawers. I packed according to the packing list on this board, so I had a lot of stuff. The view was so cool from the veranda and we were still in port.

We went to meet my DIS friends and enjoy the sunshine. Did I mention the weather was beautiful? Before you knew it, it was time for the sail away party. I loved the big Jumbo-tron!! We were up on deck 10, but could watch everything that was going on below.

I got one of those really expensive sail away drinks in the souvenir glass. I really just wanted the glass, but -UMM- that drink was good! It was a strawberry daiquiri swirled with a pina-colada.
We all danced and sang, then the horn blew --teared-up-- and off we went!! Woo-Hoo on our way, off to neverland.... think of a wonderful thing, it's the same as having wings.............. babbling again, sorry!

When we got back to our room, I called to see if we could get our dining time changed. We chose 2nd seating, but our time was 8:30 and I was hoping for earlier. They took my name and within 30 minutes, Jeff, our head server, called and told me our time had been changed to 8 and to be at Tritons then and ask for him. Simple enough!!

We changed, then went to the show to see Michael Harrison. He was funny. The Walt Disney Theater is beautiful! I can't believe it is on a boat...err ship. After the show, we strolled through the shops. My husband said he knew Disney would have it where you couldn't leave the theater without going through a store.

Just as promised, when we got to dinner at Tritons everything was taken care of. We had a single table (no tablemates). We had great servers (JoJo & Roque). The menu was a little more fancy that we were used to. I had the tomato & basil soup(very good), normandy salad(good also) and the Grand Marnier Souffle'(umm, umm good!!!). I could feel the boat swaying a little, but I didn't feel sick. My family didn't feel much movement. My husband said I was a little paranoid... who me?

After dinner, we strolled around the decks then came back to the room. Our room host had our room all ready for nite-nite!! We sat out on our veranda for a while (I wasn't even scared!!-yeah me!!) then went to bed... Gotta get rest for another day.

I'll post more later.

 

[wendygirl]

I decided to use the Transdermal patch for motion sickness. I have every side effect listed and then some. I felt a little "loopy" and my family said I acted a little loopy. Next time I will just use dramamine.

what side effects? i guess i threw that paper away guess i'll google it ...

The ship is so pretty. It is classy Disney... wouldn't you agree.

yes, TinkNanny! Disney is the BEST! Love your report and can't wait for more!

 

[TinkNanny]

Great start---hurry and finish that dinner!!! Glad you decided to share--after all, we'll be there in 23 days!!!!

P.S. Do they REALLY kick you off in the end??? Guess I'm gonna have to take down the "For Sale" sign in front of my house .

I'm jealous!!! I can't wait to go back again! Have a great time!

 

[TinkNanny]

what side effects? i guess i threw that paper away guess i'll google it ...


yes, TinkNanny! Disney is the BEST! Love your report and can't wait for more!

Oooo... Wow....
You are going next month I see! Lucky Duck.
The package says you may have a dry mouth(YES!), dilated pupils(wear sunglasses) and blurred vision, which can cause dizziness. Kinda misses the point don't ya think.......

If I remember correctly from CMA pharmacology, scopolamine(the generic term) was once used (in higher doses) to produce "twilight sleep" in surgery/childbirth so you don't remember what happened.
I bet ya' didn't know you were getting Medicine 101, huh?
Maybe that's why I was loopy... I forgot about that until you ask...

You may want to get a prescription for several patches and try one a few days before just to see if you have side effects. Just an idea...
I have never heard of anyone saying they still got sick wearing one, so if the side effects do not bother you, then it is probably the way to go.

Hope that helps!! Have a great trip!! You Lucky Duck!!

 

[Amlee]

They sent us down to Parrot Cay for lunch. I thought it was pretty good. However, they did not have Sweet Tea! How is a proper southern gal suppose to get by with NO sweet tea. Florida isn't really "south", I guess.

Bama and Georgia are the only places you can get GOOD Sweet Tea!!

As for Florida, didn't your Southern History teach you that it broke off from Maine and floated down here?

 

[TinkNanny]

Bama and Georgia are the only places you can get GOOD Sweet Tea!!

As for Florida, didn't your Southern History teach you that it broke off from Maine and floated down here?

That explains a lot..hehe

 

[TinkNanny]

Great start Belinda! I love the photo. Can't wait to hear more of your adventures on our cruise!

Kelly,
That is such a cute picture of you and Jacob!!! Did you have it taken on pirate night?
That looks like a good candidate for Christmas cards!

 

[SparKeLLy]

Thanks Belinda, yes we had it taken on Pirate Night. It's my favorite photo we had done - I love that white background! We have one with Mickey and Minnie on the white background that's a close second. I was thinking the same thing when I was scanning in that photo how great it would be for our Christmas cards but we might get some great ones yet from the wedding too! Do you think people would be annoyed if we sent them like like a 20 page booklet of pictures of us? hahaha.

 

[TinkNanny]

Ok, I'm back. I've had a cold and felt lousy. Glad it wasn't during my cruise!!

Day 2- NASSAU

I woke up around 7:30(ish). I slept so good on my comfy bed, with my super soft pillow and my cozy sheets. The bed was a lot more cozy than I thought it would be. I went out on the veranda and could see the Bahamas off in the distance in front of us. I got out my binocluars (take a pair!!) and checked it out. I ordered coffee from room service the night before to be delivered as a wake up call-- (Great idea Thanks DIS boards). I got my coffee and sat out on the veranda for a while. It was so peaceful. The ship wasn't moving that fast, but it was making such a pretty wake. Yes- I was leaning over the rails enough to see the water-- Yeah me! There were several other people on their verandas looking out. It was so funny to see heads popping out of the ship. Kinda reminded me of the old TV show, "Laugh-In" (anyone remember that?). I had to squelch my impulse to pop my head out and crack a joke-haha. Anyway...
We got dressed and went up to Beach Blanket Buffet for breakfast. It was pretty good. There was such a variety of food! But, check this out, they had GRITS!! Yes, grits on board, but NO SWEET TEA?? Someone, please, help me make sense of it all!!!
After we ate, we went to the front of the ship to watch us port in Nassau. We had never been outside if the good ol' USA, so this was pretty cool for us. Let me tell you--- It was WINDY......(A blustery day ). I had no idea that in order to dock the captain had to BACK IN!! I read on the DIS boards(thanks again!) that there was a look out area that the capt. stood on to port the ship. It was pretty cool. It stuck out about 15-20 ft and had a glass bottom area so he could see the dock to get close up. I need one to help park my Explorer.

Pretty cool, huh!?!

The process of leaving the ship was very easy. Our problem was getting to the 1st floor to exit the ship. I think we went in circles. My advise; make sure you know how to get down there before you take off. Ask someone, because we never did do it right.
I think you should get a sign when you exit the ship that says "No Thank-you" because I must have said that 1,263 times. We probably had 498 offers to braid my daughters hair. We booked an excursion for the afternoon to go snorkeling, so we decided to just check out the port area of Nassau. I really wanted to go to the straw market for a basket. It wasn't what I expected. I thought it was an open market area, but it was really tight rows (like a flea market) under a tented area. It was exhausting. I spent most of the time trying not to knock over anyone or anything because the rows were so tight. I spent the rest of the time saying "No, Thank you" or "I'm just looking". We did get some t-shirts and I got a straw fan. I understand that this is the only income for most of the people and I respect that. I know they are just makin' a livin', but I wanted to relax. So we went back to the ship. We had a reservation for Palo that night, but our dinner was Animator's Palete and we wanted to eat there as a family. We went to Palo to see if we could change times, but they were all booked up for the rest of the cruise. Darn! Our 9:00 Reservation went to someone else. Oh well.
My DH & DD ate lunch at the Pizza place on deck 9. I was still full from breakfast.
We met in Wave Bands for our 1:30 excursion. We did the Caribbean Queen Snorkeling tour. There was probably about 20-25 people. We walked to a boat at the dock (we didn't get lost this time because we were following a CM). There was a narrrated ride out to the reef that we were to snorkel at. After a brief description of what to do, we were let off to snorkel for 1 hour. The water temp. was so nice. As a matter of fact, I didn't even notice if it was cold or not. I enjoyed this excursion. Would I do it again? No. There wasn't a lot to explore because we were confined to a small area. But I am glad I did it. After a short boat ride, we were back to the ship and back to the room to get ready for the show and dinner.

I'm feeling a little feverish...so I am going to take a break. I'll be back soon!!