Rob, Cass & Kira - "This trip is NOT going to suck!!!" WDW & DCL

[tow-mater-1]

What a great idea! They must have LOVED that! I was thinking I would steal your idea except next cruise is kid free!

 

[Timon]

Day 12 - Part 3 - I was so embarrassed for them!

Once we got our Dollie from the club, we headed back to our room. Just as we got back, we were pulling out of St. Thomas, so we decided to sit back, relax (gasp! ) and enjoy the view.

Norwegian Epic sailed out before us...

There she goes!

You can see the Butterfly Garden in the photo below...to the left and a little up from the Senor Frogs sign. (light blue roof)

We were next to leave, so the bridge was a busy place! I think one of those was our captain. I have no idea who our captain was actually, first time I've never known that little tidbit

We sailed by as the RCCL Freedom of the Seas watched us go by...

Rob saw the Canadian flag so he whipped out ours

This is where they started sounding their horn.



OMG, it was pathetic!!!

Then we sounded ours...

3 out of 7 of them

And they sounded theirs again!

I was so embarrassed for them

The Epic out in the open waters...

Do not mess with the Coast Guard peeps!

Here is the boat coming to pick up the Pilot. For those of you who don't know, in every port, a "pilot" comes on board every ship that is entering and leaving. He comes on to help the Captain navigate the waters as he is extremely familiar with them. When they reach a safe spot, the Pilot leaves the ship and goes on to the next ship.

Getting close so the Pilot can step off...

And as he left, everyone who was watching gave him a big cheer! He waved in recognition and off he went to the Freedom.

It was actually nice to spend some time on the verandah just chillin'. It was pretty warm still so as soon as we hit the open seas, I went back to the coolness of our room. Kira popped out every 5 minutes and then went back to her Mickey cartoons

Sorry, this is going to be a short update as I haven't edited photos past this point and I have plans tonight.

Before I wrap up, I just wanted to tell you about a little DIS Tag gift we got. I have no idea who gave it to us but my girl REALLY liked it, so thank you room 9536, if you are reading

 

[jenseib]

I have never watched the pilot, but i knew it was something that happened. you got some great shots.

I love her gift!!!

Have fun tonight.

 

[dizneeat]

We always watch the pilot of we can - so nice to see!

Oh, and just a word about the captain, it for sure was NOT Captain/Commodore Tom, as he rearly touches those Mickey whistles.

 

[Jillpie]

Cass, I've taken three Disney cruises and I had NO idea about the pilot! Thanks for that info, who knew!

 

[Timon]

Day 14 - Part 4 - Lilo and Stitch, finally!

We saw that Stitch would be meeting soon just outside the Disney Theatre so Rob took Kira down to meet him. The goal FINALLY was to tell him about our Stitchy! I stayed in the room and iced my ankles while they went down so I don't have first hand knowledge of what happened but I will tell you what I remember what Rob told me.

He can chime in here with more details when he gets around to reading this

The awesome surprise was that not only was Stitch meeting but so was Lilo!!!!

Kira wanted to bring her Stitch pillow to the meet...

Which Lilo immediately grabbed and hugged

They both loved her autograph book...

And then they noticed that she had a Lilo and a Stitch jibbitz on her Crocs and that made them very happy

I think this is where Kira was finally able to tell them about her dogs Stitch and Lilo and how Stitch had just gone to Heaven. I will let Rob tell you about it, I guess it was a very sweet moment

And then one last shot...

They came back and Kira was so thrilled that she had gotten to see both Lilo and Stitch and was finally able to tell them about our L & S

Kira wanted some pizza for dinner tonight so she ate while watching some cartoons and then we dropped her off at the kids club.

 

[Timon]

Day 12 - Part - 5 - Dîner au Jardin Enchanté!

Or Dinner at Enchanted Garden for you non-frenchy folks

This was our first time in the restaurant that "brings to mind an elegant conservatory amid peaceful hillsides in France".

We had skipped Formal Night so we didn't get to see it that night. And since Kira was in the clubs, she never even got to see Enchanted Garden, now that I think about it!

Oh well, next time

The restaurant is quite lovely but we were in the very corner, against a wall, away from most of the "loveliness"

Thankfully, there were no further big issues with Sergio. I do recall Jaime, our head server, speaking to us just as we were getting seated. He asked if there was anything he could do to make our experience better. The four of us all said that getting refills quicker would be really nice.

About 10 minutes later, I noticed Sergio placing several glasses of iced tea and diet coke on the serving station

While this did get us refills faster than any other night, I really did not care for warm, watery drinks for the rest of the evening.

At this point, I felt there was nothing else that could be done. There was no point in complaining anymore. I gave up hope of getting good service at dinnertime for the rest of the cruise and I just decided to shut my trap and deal with it.

Hopefully we get much better servers on our next cruise!

On to the food.

I don't recall anything being special that night. I think it was satisfying but nothing stood out enough to mention.

Although this was the night that Okim got Nancy some gnocchi! Nancy had requested some on the first night and this is what she got that night...

Nancy, Robin and I all tried it and we all agreed it was disgusting!

Oh well, kudos for Okim for trying

When we were all done, Okim attempted a trick with forks. I've seen this before but with toothpicks, forks and a salt shaker.

One departing pic of the cool fountain....

We picked up Kira and headed back to the room...

I filled out the Guest Survey

I needed two extra sheets to tell them all about the lovely Sergio which I then got Rob to staple to the actual survey.

As we were getting ready for bed that night I had noticed that my throat was hurting a little.

You know when a cold starts and your throat feels all prickly when you swallow?

Yeah, that is what was going on that night. I reluctantly told Rob.

The vacation was almost done and all three of us had almost escaped the Cruise Sicky curse! It seems like at least one of us gets sick on our cruises. We had hoped to break the curse this time but sadly that was not the case

That was the beginning of a very long struggle for yours truly

 

[jenseib]

Glad dinner went a little better. I drink my diet coke with no ice. I don't mind it warm but I can't stand a watered down drink. I understand just giving up on complaining though.

 

[jedijill]

That's so sweet about Kira's meet with LILO and Stitch!

I still am shaking my head about your severs....glad you had extra paper and a stapler!

Jill in CO

 

[__disneygirl]

Aww! What a sweet M&G for Kira with Lilo and Stitch. That photo of Walt behind them is gorgeous too! I remember you posting about your dogs when you first got them! I'm so sorry you lost one of them, I lost my dog three years ago and I still think about and miss her every day! It's so hard. But sharing that story with Lilo & Stitch must have been so nice for Kira.

I love Rob's polo shirt with Tigger on it. He sure knows how to rock Disney clothes!

I'm so sorry you got sick again. I hope it wasn't too bad for you. It sounds like such a wonderful trip so far though.

 

[cntkg1]

Yes!!! Super kudos to Okim! He tried so hard to bring me that gnocchi that I love so much but it just didn't cut it. It's ok though, he got extra points for trying. He was so pleased with himself too for being able to bring not only one plate but two!! It was truly appreciated.

But in his defense, even the Gnocchi I had at Palo for dinner one night wasn't the best either.

I guess I'll never get the same dish that was served to me in Lumiere's a couple years ago that made me want to lick the plate clean in front of all my table mates.

 

[Timon]

Do spill it!

Jill in CO

Exciting news? Is it unfair for me to guess?

Keep it secret, keep it safe

All caught up! I LOVE the pirate night pics! Next cruise... or I should say next cruise the boys are with us I'm totally going to book the pirate make over thingy for them.

That's right! You're next cruise will be filled with Adult areas only

Those pics of the butterfly farm are amazing, Cass! I love the one where it looks like the butterfly has a huge eye or two on it.

That was our fifth DCL cruise and by far the hottest, although it was the latest in the year we've ever cruised. Chuck and I made it to the Pirates Chest to look once more for my lightning picture and then headed to Hooters for T-shirts for the boys back home. That was more than enough for us! It was soooo stinkin' hot.

That heat was terrible, wasn't it!

I am late, so very late for an important date!! Another trip report from Cass!!
Glad to be along on the journey. I have a trip report to finish. I love DCL but after my last cruise...I too have a chronic illness, Meniere's. A year long flare I've had since my cruise Dec 2012. I am finally feeling like reading DIS and planning another trip. Only on page 5 but can't wait to catch up.:

Better late than never

Sorry to hear about your flare-up.

Mine is still ongoing...almost a year and a half now

Chronic illness BITES!!!

Love the butterfly garden. That looks like a nice easy thing to do. We have been to a few in the area and I always love them too. Fun for pictures.
That Blue one Rob is holding is so beautiful!

Yes, very easy and very close to the port

Oh my word!!!! That food looks so good. Of course it's dinner time and I have yet to start cooking!

They must've had to go kill the cow for that meatloaf!

LOL, yeah I try not to read food reports when I am hungry

Well, I guess that's what I get when you go off the menu and order something they aren't really offering that day. Now you want me to tell you about it after 3 months? C'mon Cass, you know I don't even remember what I had for lunch yesterday, let alone 3 months ago.

But, I think it was a tad bit dry and not as flavorful as I imagined. But what the heck, it wasn't like it was my last lunch ever. I'm sure I filled up on yet another Mochaccino from the Cove Cafe right after that! I couldn't get enough of those things. We blew through 2 punch cards that week!

******

Now that cheeseburger you had looks delish! That would've been right up my alley. Maybe you and I shouldn't have perused the menus for months and months before the cruise because I was finding all kinds of food I wanted to try.

Yeah, next time try the burger

Wow, those butterflies are BEAUTIFUL! And you are so kind for making that care package for the Kid's Club CMs.

I am really happy that the other server wasn't around to make fun of the whole kid's meal situation again!

Yeah, if we had gotten Sergio for that lunch, we all would have gotten up and left

 

[Timon]

What a great idea! They must have LOVED that! I was thinking I would steal your idea except next cruise is kid free!

Hmmm, maybe bring some for your favourite bartenders

I have never watched the pilot, but i knew it was something that happened. you got some great shots.

I love her gift!!!

Have fun tonight.

We've seen the Pilot many times, but we missed him in St. Maarten. Guess it just depends on what you are doing at sailaway time

We always watch the pilot of we can - so nice to see!

Oh, and just a word about the captain, it for sure was NOT Captain/Commodore Tom, as he rearly touches those Mickey whistles.

Definitely not Commodore Tom then!

Cass, I've taken three Disney cruises and I had NO idea about the pilot! Thanks for that info, who knew!

HAHAH, well then I am glad to know that my trip report has some educational value to it too

Glad dinner went a little better. I drink my diet coke with no ice. I don't mind it warm but I can't stand a watered down drink. I understand just giving up on complaining though.

I like LOTS of ice! I like my drinks VERY cold! Yes, I am very picky about it too

That's so sweet about Kira's meet with LILO and Stitch!

I still am shaking my head about your severs....glad you had extra paper and a stapler!

Jill in CO

I asked Rob to go to guest services to get it stapled but I guess there was a huge line so my smartie pants hubby popped into one of the stores and did it

Aww! What a sweet M&G for Kira with Lilo and Stitch. That photo of Walt behind them is gorgeous too! I remember you posting about your dogs when you first got them! I'm so sorry you lost one of them, I lost my dog three years ago and I still think about and miss her every day! It's so hard. But sharing that story with Lilo & Stitch must have been so nice for Kira.

I love Rob's polo shirt with Tigger on it. He sure knows how to rock Disney clothes!

I'm so sorry you got sick again. I hope it wasn't too bad for you. It sounds like such a wonderful trip so far though.

I think Rob has more Disney clothes than I do We were made for each other

Yes!!! Super kudos to Okim! He tried so hard to bring me that gnocchi that I love so much but it just didn't cut it. It's ok though, he got extra points for trying. He was so pleased with himself too for being able to bring not only one plate but two!! It was truly appreciated.

But in his defense, even the Gnocchi I had at Palo for dinner one night wasn't the best either.

I guess I'll never get the same dish that was served to me in Lumiere's a couple years ago that made me want to lick the plate clean in front of all my table mates.

Yes, although he wasn't fantastic as a server, at least Okim tried! That's a LOT more than I can say about Sergio!

 

[tow-mater-1]

I think this is where Kira was finally able to tell them about her dogs Stitch and Lilo and how Stitch had just gone to Heaven. I will let Rob tell you about it, I guess it was a very sweet moment

Awww. Hurry up and read it Rob... I wanna hear about it!

As we were getting ready for bed that night I had noticed that my throat was hurting a little.

You know when a cold starts and your throat feels all prickly when you swallow?

Yeah, that is what was going on that night. I reluctantly told Rob.

The vacation was almost done and all three of us had almost escaped the Cruise Sicky curse! It seems like at least one of us gets sick on our cruises. We had hoped to break the curse this time but sadly that was not the case

That was the beginning of a very long struggle for yours truly

Noooooo! That darn prednisone makes you susceptible to catch everything!

 

[tow-mater-1]

Hmmm, maybe bring some for your favourite bartenders

Now you're talking

 

[cntkg1]

Yes, although he wasn't fantastic as a server, at least Okim tried! That's a LOT more than I can say about Sergio!

See?, now I liked Okim a lot. Jaime was pretty good too. I had no problem with either one of them.
Okim might not even be there anymore. He told me he was leaving DCL and going back to school to become an EMT back home. Something he's wanted to do for a long time now.

 

[Darkrobe]

Day 14 - Part 4 - Lilo and Stitch, finally!

He can chime in here with more details when he gets around to reading this

LOL I got time, well, sometimes

The awesome surprise was that not only was Stitch meeting but so was Lilo!!!!

Kira wanted to bring her Stitch pillow to the meet...

Which Lilo immediately grabbed and hugged

Lilo started sleeping on the wall for a bit and Stitch went to wake her up, it was pretty funny! Great cast members doing L&S for sure! Wish we had a better photographer from the ship though.

They both loved her autograph book...

And then they noticed that she had a Lilo and a Stitch jibbitz on her Crocs and that made them very happy

They got down on the floor to look at her Croc's, it was pretty funny actually! I wish I had more hands to video tape it all! Kira was sure having fun with them. They really loved her book though!

I think this is where Kira was finally able to tell them about her dogs Stitch and Lilo and how Stitch had just gone to Heaven. I will let Rob tell you about it, I guess it was a very sweet moment

Yes, I kind of teared up a bit when she told them. Stitch was actually acting very sad and compassionate to Kira, as well as Lilo. In some ways it was like another goodbye to Stitch (our dog) talking about him to the character that inspired his name. Overally, they treated the moment with Kira very well though the Photopass guy TOTALLY missed the moment because he was busy looking at his camera. I wasn't thrilled with him at all. I was trying to take as much pictures as I could but had my hands full with a pillow and cameras.

 

[Timon]

Day 13 - Part 1 - The whole day in one post!

Sadly, I can do this entire day in one single post


Yup, I can fit all my photos from that day AND some smileys in one single post




When I woke up on our last At Sea day, I felt HORRIBLE

I had zero energy, my throat was killing me and basically just felt like a truck had just run me over

I spent most of the day in bed. Rob and Kira brought me some breakfast from Cabanas and then they did the other two missions for Midship Detective Agency. I stayed in bed, slept and watched a movie.

I was able to drag myself out of bed for the matinee of Disney's Believe. I had seen it before on the Dream but I enjoy watching Kira's reaction to it. Her favourite part? Collecting all the streamers at the end of the show

I went back and rested some more after the show. Not much energy for anything else really.

We had Palo dinner that night at 6pm with Chuck and Nancy and I did NOT want to miss it! I am the one who talked them both into going, so there was no way I was going to miss out

I showered and felt only slightly better.

Just before dropping Kira off at the club, she was in a funny mood...

(first photos of the day, folks! Note the darkness in the background! )

I was really lagging, so Rob dropped Kira off at the club and I told him to meet me at Palo. I was a few minutes late since it was so far away and I was not very speedy that day.

While I was not feeling so great, the food and the company were wonderful and I am glad I was able to drag myself out of bed for it! Thanks to N & C for dinner and for dressing up and joining us, I hope it wasn't too horrible for you

Here is my second fave piece of art...very well hidden and worth searching for!

We got Kira and then it was pool time for Rob and Kira!

I stuck around for about 15 minutes getting some photos and video.

They did the Aquaduck over and over again! There was no line and it was a warmer night.

Up they go again!

And down again

I love this weird shot...

I left them to conquer the Aquaduck a few more times while I passed out in my bed!

Came back to this...

Oh, looks like our stateroom host was Reiza! She was very good, so I am glad I could mention her here

I went to bed early and got lots of sleep. Tomorrow is out Castaway Cay day and for Kira's sake, I did not want to miss it!

 

[Timon]

Noooooo! That darn prednisone makes you susceptible to catch everything!

Actually, I wasn't on Pred then, just the Methotrexate but still my immune system is crud

See?, now I liked Okim a lot. Jaime was pretty good too. I had no problem with either one of them.
Okim might not even be there anymore. He told me he was leaving DCL and going back to school to become an EMT back home. Something he's wanted to do for a long time now.

Jaime was the only one I cared for

Yes, I kind of teared up a bit when she told them. Stitch was actually acting very sad and compassionate to Kira, as well as Lilo. In some ways it was like another goodbye to Stitch (our dog) talking about him to the character that inspired his name. Overally, they treated the moment with Kira very well though the Photopass guy TOTALLY missed the moment because he was busy looking at his camera. I wasn't thrilled with him at all. I was trying to take as much pictures as I could but had my hands full with a pillow and cameras.

I am sorry I missed that moment

The photographers weren't very good this cruise. And there were tons of missing pics, like BBB on Pirate night, your Aquaduck pics and your L&S meet and greet!

Oh well, you still got great pics, babe

 

[monica23535]

Hi Cass,

I'm sorry you weren't feeling too great that day, but I'm glad you managed to make it to Palo.

Was the food good? We didn't make it there last time as it was only a a four day cruise but hope to next time

Can't wait to hear about your Castaway Cay day, but hope you were feeling well enough to enjoy it!