Sailing with the Gang...DCL magic, Feb. 2016

[jenseib]

After we all finished up our meals, we each paid our bills and added a tip and headed out front. I took a few pictures.


sea71 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sea72 by Jenseib, on Flickr


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sea77 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Since they had changed the Castaway Club bag to a more generic one last fall, I was a bit bummed that I would never get the “gold” bag. I was due to get one on my next cruise…though in reality this cruise I would have gotten one since both Brook and Cass are gold and they didn’t want the bag. Ellen has several gold bags and said she would bring one for me. Now that was months ago and I actually kind of forgot, but Ellen told me early on that she brought it.

After brunch I headed back to Ellen and Katie’s room to pick up the bag, plus Ellen had bought all the girls a Minnie tote bag from NYC. It was really cute. (And Claire has taken it from me already, so I guess she liked it too).


Ellen and Katie had a pretty normal room, very nice and towards the aft. They told me I had to come out on the balcony and look at their neighbors’ balcony, so I obliged.


sea78 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Holy Cow!!! That is one big balcony.


sea79 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Now before you go running out and saying you have to have this room, it is a handicapped accessible room. So I would not suggest anyone going for it…for 1 so that those who really need that room can get it…and 2, it will be a different room, so most likely not the split bathroom, probably no tub, etc.


sea80 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And here is Ellen and Katie’s room all decorated. (which reminds me I need to make new magnets for my next cruise)


sea81 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I then went and joined some girls who were doing trivia in O’Gills. After that was over there were some animated classes starting. I decided I wanted to do that. Several of the girls were going to the matinee show. Cass messaged me that she was saving me a seat, but I let her know I was just going to skip that show today.


As we waited for the class to start they had the previous classes drawing up.


sea82 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We were doing Donald today….which I have done before with Claire on our last DCL cruise.


sea83 by Jenseib, on Flickr


donald by Jenseib, on Flickr


sea84 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I always feel like such an artist when I do these classes. They take you through step by step and seriously…I have trouble even drawing a circle. That being said, the people next to me must have even less talent than me because one was pretty bad. LOL.


I decided to stay for the next class too, which was Goofy.


sea85 by Jenseib, on Flickr


My Goofy was a bit off. LOL.


sea86 by Jenseib, on Flickr


goofy by Jenseib, on Flickr


I stayed after for the next trivia class, but it was so hard that I bailed out really early.


I ran into Cass and Michelle as I was looking right outside D Lounge as they had some stuff set up for the DVC presentation. I saw Michelle go in and Cass was going to go do something else (perhaps swim?). They had this really neat picture of Walt and Lillian on a ship deck and I wanted it (and of course I now have no clue where I put it, but it’s around somewhere and I will frame it eventually and put it in my office) so I decided to go in and they gave me the picture and I sat through the presentation. I didn’t see Michelle when I walked in so I just sat by myself.


They of course tell you the value of DVC and they compared prices of the Poly from 1971 to today’s prices. Holy cow, can you imagine staying there for $29 a night?


dvc by Jenseib, on Flickr


Our presenter was Scott. I know some of you have seen him before….I think he was on the Wonder last summer. Scott is a little extra special.


scott by Jenseib, on Flickr


Scott does the voice of the monorail at Disney World. I got a short video of him. It’s hard to tell in this short snippet, but I could hear it every so often.


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Now I may be mixing days up, but I think I headed to the pool after this. If not, then I have no clue what I did. I know one afternoon Cass and I hit the pool, well I hit the hot tub and then took a nap on the lounger and Cass swam. (This could have been on our Castaway Cay day though…Getting old sucks when you can’t remember which day you did what).


Anyways I am pretending it was today, even if it wasn’t.


I enjoyed the hot tub for a bit and then laid on the lounger and just totally drifted off. It was nice to get a nap in. Cass did laps in the pool. When I woke up I saw several of the girls sitting at a table nearby. I think I woke to hearing my name…probably I was drooling or something and they had a good laugh.


We sat and talked for a while and it was so nice. This trip was just so much fun. It’s really nice to be just me sometimes and not worry about children or a husband.


After a bit it was time to get ready for the evening. Again, my memory is poor but at some point I had to pack. Yes it was it that sad time where you know the cruise is going to end.


Cass and I both were chatting and packing. I am going to say it again, but I LOVE my new luggage. I had packing cubes and I had a laundry bag I was throwing dirty laundry in. I just condensed all the clean clothes left and packed the dirty ones in the other cubes. This was so amazingly simple and easy and then I just chucked them in the suitcases. I can’t believe I have traveled all these years without packing cubes. I thought ziplock bags would be the same. They aren’t….at least for me. Of course now over a course of over a week I had bought things too, so I had to fit those into the case as well. I just packed as best I could and didn’t worry about weight too much at this point as I had a day at WDW yet and I would reorganize later.


The ship really started rocking now. I could feel it and I took a second bonine to help. After I had my bags pretty much packed I told Cass I was going to go out for a walk…or puke. I hadn’t decided yet for sure which it would be.


The sun is setting.


sea87 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I saw Minnie out for a meet and greet.


sea88 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Walking around did help a bit, but I was still pretty queasy. I went back to the room and Cass was gone, but Brook was there working on her suitcase. I mentioned how rocky the ship was and she said she didn’t feel it. Seriously? You can’t feel it? Nope she said she was perfectly fine. Ok, maybe I’m a wimp then.

We headed to dinner and found Cass and sat down. Charlotte, Kelly and Ellen sat across from us. Charlotte was feeling awful too and Kelly was also feeling it.


sea89 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sea90 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We ordered but honestly I wondered if I would be able to eat.


This is one of my favorites and I managed to get it down.


sea91 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sea92 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I always feel Animator Palate is the worse place to be when you feel sea sick and of course I always seemed to be scheduled there on the roughest nights. I was getting pretty woozy as were others. Ellen saved the day! She said green apples help with sea sickness and she hollered to Jason to get us some. He was right on it and he must’ve known it helps too because he had bowls of them out to the tables FAST!


Several of us nibbled on them and I did seem to feel a little better, not 100% but I now knew my dinner was going to stay with me at least.


sea93 by Jenseib, on Flickr


A couple of the girls left. They just couldn’t make it through dinner.


By dessert time I was starting to feel a little more normal.


sea94 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Katie got a birthday treat!


sea95 by Jenseib, on Flickr



Up Next…Sorcerer Mickey

 

[Timon]

Cass mentioned this sign was new. I can’t say yes or no really. I guess I could look through my old pictures, but I believe her, she usually has a good memory on things like this.

That sign was definitely there on my first cruise in 2013. I took a picture of it because we commented on how strange it is that they turned Bob Iger's wife's name into a place name here (Willow Bay is her name)

Definitely not new. I went back a few cruises (we kind of always get the same pics) and it was there back to 2011. Didn't look back further.

Geeez, a whole lot of backlash over a picture!!!

Sorry, what I meant was that it was new to me.

I had been sitting where 2 tables connected and there was a bump/uneven ledge there…..and I set my diet coke down right on it at one point and it spilled all over. How embarrassing! Just like a dang kid, you can’t take me anywhere!

We can dress you up but can't take you out???

That's one of my favourite things about you

I found out later that Cass does not like the brunch and prefers dinner. I don’t care for dinner. How could my good friend go so wrong?

BAHAHAHA! You know me, just a meat and potatoes girl and Palo dinner has some really good meat and potatoes

Getting old sucks when you can’t remember which day you did what).

Oh man, I think I need to start taking notes on my vacation now because I totally thought that part happened on the Nassau day Getting old does suck

 

[dolphingirl47]

This sounds like a lovely relaxing day. Your Goofy is definitely unique, but I like it. What a shame that some of you got seasick.

Corinna

 

[condorthb]

bump

 

[jenseib]

Geeez, a whole lot of backlash over a picture!!!

Sorry, what I meant was that it was new to me.

No worries. I honestly could not remember if it was new, or a sign that has been there and changed or if an alien used to be in it's spot. hahaha

We can dress you up but can't take you out???

That's one of my favourite things about you

You like that I am a complete wreck some days?

BAHAHAHA! You know me, just a meat and potatoes girl and Palo dinner has some really good meat and potatoes

I do like meat and potatoes too, but I just felt dinner was not better than anything I could get in the main dining room. I probably should eventually give it another try.

Oh man, I think I need to start taking notes on my vacation now because I totally thought that part happened on the Nassau day Getting old does suck

Well you may be totally right there. I can't remember either.

This sounds like a lovely relaxing day. Your Goofy is definitely unique, but I like it. What a shame that some of you got seasick.

Corinna

I did his mouth so whacky. I have no clue why mine looked so different than hers.

bump

 

[jenseib]

It was now time for the show to start. I was glad I made it to the end….and honestly the ice-cream seemed to give me a new life. (Or maybe those apples were kicking in?)



sea96 by Jenseib, on Flickr


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ap dinner by Jenseib, on Flickr


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sea100 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And some video


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And Mickey appeared! He moves so dang fast though that it is really hard to get his picture.


sea101 by Jenseib, on Flickr


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And then our servers paraded around.


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Brook was hooting and hollering! (keep that in mind of later)


sea105 by Jenseib, on Flickr


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We said goodbye to Jason as we all had plans tomorrow and were going to just hit Cabana’s instead of the main dining room for breakfast.


sea109 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And most of us raced to Fathoms for 80’s trivia. Yep, we are geeks and were all riled up for 80’s trivia!


We were messaging amongst outselves and several were bowing out due to feeling sick. I was most shocked to see Brook message that she was going to lay down as she was feeling awful. This was the girl who told me earlier she couldn’t feel the ship rocking AND was hooting and hollering not too long ago.


Matt looking cute as ever!


sea35 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sea110 by Jenseib, on Flickr


The trivia was fun and we were getting into it. It was Charlotte, Kelly, Cass and I and it was hard sitting 4 across to hear all of us and sadly I kept turning away from Cass shouting my answers to Kelly. I am grateful Cass is a good friend and didn’t hit me upside the head…well at least not too hard.


We did really well and there were only a few that we were stumped or made a stupid mistake on. I believe we were 2nd or 3rd in correct answers and sadly the drunk group with Mrs. Waldo was the team that won. That made losing all the worse.


sea31 by Jenseib, on Flickr


After trivia I ran back to the room to set my bags out. Brook was lying dead on the bed. She said she was too sick to even get up and tug her bag out to be picked up. I asked if it was packed and she said yes, so I tugged it out for her too. I was really amazed at how sick she had gotten. She said she ate green apples when she felt it coming on, but it had gotten worse. Cass ran down to the dining room and got some ginger ale for her. With that all taken care of, I dashed back to Fathoms to join the gang in more fun.


I think there was another game of dancing. We had a good time. I believe we had to do moves to certain songs and they would be voted on. At one point they had a dirty dancing song and Kelly and I were shimmying up and down each other and bounced off each other’s chest and just started laughing. Matt had been watching and said..well that didn’t quite work out the way you planned, did it? It was too funny. Now we probably would have won except that some couple did the dirty dancing jump where Patrick Swayze gets her and holds her in the air. Seriously? This girl weight 80lbs soaking wet probably and the guy was super tall. I admit they deserved it, but man I went to a lot of trouble to perfect my dirty dancing moves!


At some point in time, Matt took Katie out on the dance floor to dance with her for her b-day. We all swooned! LOL.


Pam and Matt had a little relationship of joking back and forth all through the cruise. Pam wanted something he was giving away at a lot of the trivia games and I think he thought it was funny she was never winning it, but always super close. He gave her a little surprise that night and said good bye to her.


sea32 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Notice Ellen’s shirt? That is the one I almost bought on Castaway Cay.


sea33 by Jenseib, on Flickr


After the games the DJ came out and played some 80’s music. Love me some 80’s music. People trickled out but Kelly, Charlotte and I and a few others stayed. It was a lot of fun and we practically shut the place down. I had a second wind and the sea sickness was long gone, though it did feel like we were in smoother waters now too.


Sadly the night had to come to an end and I had to go to bed. Brook was in the top bunk when I got back. I was more than willing to take it again and I felt guilty that she went up there. I knew she hadn’t been feeling well, though she said after the ginger ale and the seas smoothing out she did end up feeling much better.


I got ready for bed and soon was out too.

I really liked the cruise portion of our trip the best. Being at Disney together had been fun, but with so many people and all with different likes it was hard to get us all together and do different things. With the cruise I just felt I had more time to mingle with different people and get to know those who I had never met before. We basically were all trapped on the ship, so we only had so many options. And no arguments about where to have dinner each night since that is set in stone (unless you do Palo of course).

The app with texting is super fabulous. It was nice to send and receive messages and know what others were doing and if you wanted to join you didn’t have to look all over the ship for the rest.


I will put this out there now before I forget. There are already plans for next year to do a trip to Disneyland. As much as I want to go, I promised my family that the next time we head that way, all of us will go. The week that has been picked will not work for us. I am already taking Claire out of school for a week in the fall so I am going to avoid taking her out much. I have something in mind for the weekend over president’s day and we’ll see if that pans out. She should only miss 1 ½ days if we do that.

I know I will be jealous seeing others post things on social media, but I know in my heart that it just isn’t going to be doable that week.


Up next……Get off the ship!!!!

 

[Pinkocto]

Too bad the seasickness got you guys. Glad you were feeling better later and really enjoyed the last evening

The animation class looks like great fun. I've got to catch this next cruise.

What cruise on the Wonder do you have next year?

 

[dolphingirl47]

It sounds like you had a really fun last evening. I hope your plans for Disneyland will pan out.

Corinna

 

[dizneeat]

We said goodbye to Jason as we all had plans tomorrow and were going to just hit Cabana’s instead of the main dining room for breakfast.

Every time you said Jason was your server I was thinking if it was OUR Jason from our Med cruise - and YES, it was him. Small world.

Sorry your time on the ship comes to an end and sorry some of you felt REALLY sick. Thankfully up to now we have never felt anything, even sailing through hurricanes.

I am always stunned at how many activities some of you do, as we never ever sign up for many of those trivia and art classes. I might be worse than the people next to you at art (and I teach it) and trivia is just not for us foreigners.

Sorry you cannot go along with the group to DL, but I am sure a family trip will be awesome too.

 

[rndmr2]

Sounds like you had a fun last night.

I really enjoy those Trivia type games, name that tune, etc. They are fun, I remember one trip I took with my parents and my Dad and I did a few of those Name that tune type games, one time we came so close to winning, it was right up the the very last song/question. That was fun, I was the youngest one in there, LOL I think I was about 19 or 20 at the time. I know some people thought it was weird that I went on all those trips with just me and my parents when I was that age (from about 16 till about 27 or so was the last one I did with them) but I'm so glad I have those memories with my parents, especially now that my mom is gone.

That Matt really is a cutie! LOL

So sorry you all got so sick that last night, at least you started feeling better. Was it really rough? Walking, etc? I remember a few trips to/from Bermuda and the one I did in 2013 from NYC down to the Caribbean, those were some rough trips, because we were going right out into the Atlantic I suppose. Luckily I never got sick but I surely couldn't walk well, it was like the floor came up to meet your foot!

 

[Woth2982]

I am sorry you all got so affected by the rocky water on the last night. What a bummer I cannot believe how fast the tables turned as well for poor Brooke! Sounds like you made the most of it and had a fantastic time!

 

[jenseib]

Too bad the seasickness got you guys. Glad you were feeling better later and really enjoyed the last evening

The animation class looks like great fun. I've got to catch this next cruise.

What cruise on the Wonder do you have next year?

Seasicknesses really sucks. I am so glad I got past it and felt better later. I pay we have smooth seas in Oct.

I do like the animation classes. They are a lot of fun. I am hoping my niece will join us next time.

I am looking over the presidents day weekend right now. We'll see how the year goes. (I got to pay for it. LOL)

It sounds like you had a really fun last evening. I hope your plans for Disneyland will pan out.

Corinna

I won't be doing Disneyland at this point. As much as I want to, I want to cruise too and I need to keep costs down. It will be pretty pricey for me to fly out there and a lot of others are brining family so doing a room on my own could be pricey too. I am not 100% saying no right now, but pretty close to that.

Every time you said Jason was your server I was thinking if it was OUR Jason from our Med cruise - and YES, it was him. Small world.

Sorry your time on the ship comes to an end and sorry some of you felt REALLY sick. Thankfully up to now we have never felt anything, even sailing through hurricanes.

I am always stunned at how many activities some of you do, as we never ever sign up for many of those trivia and art classes. I might be worse than the people next to you at art (and I teach it) and trivia is just not for us foreigners.

Sorry you cannot go along with the group to DL, but I am sure a family trip will be awesome too.

I can't remember....did you like Jason? He was just so fabulous to us. I wish I could get him on the Fantasy. Do you know any good ones on the Fantasy. Last time we did the big family cruise on the Dream we had some duds and I would love to get a good server for our big group.

some of the trivia is really hard. I am trying to do different things for different experiences too. I hope to try some new things in Oct. I am so happy for a long cruise.

Sounds like you had a fun last night.

I really enjoy those Trivia type games, name that tune, etc. They are fun, I remember one trip I took with my parents and my Dad and I did a few of those Name that tune type games, one time we came so close to winning, it was right up the the very last song/question. That was fun, I was the youngest one in there, LOL I think I was about 19 or 20 at the time. I know some people thought it was weird that I went on all those trips with just me and my parents when I was that age (from about 16 till about 27 or so was the last one I did with them) but I'm so glad I have those memories with my parents, especially now that my mom is gone.

That Matt really is a cutie! LOL

So sorry you all got so sick that last night, at least you started feeling better. Was it really rough? Walking, etc? I remember a few trips to/from Bermuda and the one I did in 2013 from NYC down to the Caribbean, those were some rough trips, because we were going right out into the Atlantic I suppose. Luckily I never got sick but I surely couldn't walk well, it was like the floor came up to meet your foot!

I travel with my parents quite a bit still. I think it is good for Claire to have those memories as well.

Matt is cute!

It was a little bit of the drunkin walk that night for me. It did get better, but when I went out for my walk to get air, it was quite bumpy.

I am sorry you all got so affected by the rocky water on the last night. What a bummer I cannot believe how fast the tables turned as well for poor Brooke! Sounds like you made the most of it and had a fantastic time!

 

[jenseib]

Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016


We all know how that last morning is….it sucks! These wonderful Cast Members you have come to know and love are now smiling at you in a different way….It’s been nice….but get off the ship, we have very little time to prepare for the next set of travelers.


I got up way too early again. I always notice this is the one day I would like to actually sleep in. Crazy, isn’t it?


We went to Cabana’s for breakfast.


bye1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Evidently I wasn’t too hungry? Or maybe I had a 2nd plate and didn’t take a picture of it.


Everyone had different plans today. Some were going back to Disney World, some were heading to the airport and one lucky one, Patty, had her family meeting her at the port and she was sailing the Magic once again. Brook was almost as lucky..well lucky in a different way. Her family was flying in as well but they were spending the night at WDW and then sailing the Dream tomorrow. I proposed this to my husband and he looked at me like I was insane.


I was heading back to Disney for 1 more night. It is so depressing to have to go back the airport when getting off the ship. I try to avoid it if possible. Plus I knew that hanging with a group meant that what I did in the parks was going to be minimal early on in the trip.


Cass was flying out but she had a later flight. She had rented a car for the day and said she would take me back to Disney. Brook had her mom’s car and offered as well, but Cass said she had time to waste and it was perfectly fine so I went with her. Good thing. It took basically hours for Brook to get to her car and then get it out (it was blocked) at the offsite parking area. I don’t remember which place it was but I have noted to myself to never use it.


We got off the ship and got a porter and breezed through customs. Cass checked to see how long before an Uber driver could be there to pick us up and take us to Hertz. They were not that close and we decided since taxis were waiting there already we would just hop in one of those.


Bye bye Disney Magic!


bye2 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bye3 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bye4 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Only a few minutes later we were at the Hertz, which is located right in front of the Residence Inn….and a new hotel, which I think just opened recently but was not at the time we were there.


bye5 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bye6 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Cass ran in and got settled and then they brought the car out and we loaded all the bags in and set off for the World!


We chatted away about the likes and dislikes of the cruise and both had felt it went fairly well. We weren’t sure if we were going to like everyone in person…talking online is one thing, but meeting and hanging out can be full of surprises sometimes. Luckily we had a great team.


As we approached Disney, Cass said I should get my camera out since this is probably going to be the best shots of arriving I will ever take…so true. I am either driving or on a bus most times. And even a front seat on a bus is hard to get a good shot.

I took about 30!


welcome1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


welcome2 by Jenseib, on Flickr


welcome4 by Jenseib, on Flickr


As we were driving I got an email that said my room was ready and it gave me the room number. Well that’s great. Cass could drop me off near it and less hassle with the bags.

I was staying at All Star Sports this time. I decided from the beginning to just stay cheap. I also have a goal to eventually stay at all the resorts. I figured with 1 night I would get it out of the way since I really had no desire to stay here. Nothing wrong with the place, I just don’t like sports so the theming isn’t great for me.

As we got closer to the trip, I really debated at moving to the Contemporary to be close to MK as that is where I planned to be and knew it would be much easier getting back and forth so close. I also looked at Port Orleans Riverside in a Royal room and decided to save that for when I have Claire with me. In the end I stuck with Sports and I am glad I did and saved the money and got that one off my list.


We pulled up and Cass helped me with the bags. We went to the room, which is WAY far out, not close to the main building at all. I swore I booked a preferred. I always book preferred because I can’t stand being far out. I have done standard a few times at a Value and was always unhappy with how far out I am put.


I scan my band and nothing…I try again and again and again, and nothing. Ugh! What the heck am I going to do? I have 3 bags and one is Mr. Tippy who falls over if you look at it cross-eyed. Cass said she would help me lug the bags up and see what is going on. That was a long walk. All 3 of my bags are spinners but they were all heavy and I was just achy and ready to be done lugging bags around.


When we got to the lobby I double checked my reservation and I did book standard! Who knew? Won’t make that mistake again.


As we tried to figure which line to go in a CM came up to me and asked how she could help. I told her my problem and she looked into it.


sports1 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I had a new band for this part of the stay, but they somehow linked everything to the band from the Poly. I have no clue why as both were in my MDE and this one was for Sports. And I have heard that most of the time you can use any active band and it will work for everything. I know some change band colors to go with their outfits. Let me tell you this does NOT work for everyone. I have another friend who goes often and she said the same thing. None of her old bands EVER work.


sports2 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports3 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports4 by Jenseib, on Flickr


The CM got it all squared away with my current band. The other was buried in the luggage somewhere and I was not about to hunt for it in the middle of the lobby. She also got a guy from bell services to help with my bags.


We made the walk back and put everything in the room and the guy told me his name and said to ask for him tomorrow morning.


Then it was time to say goodbye to Cass. We had been together for over a week and I hate saying goodbye. I hate getting mushy. I don’t want to tear up and I could see she just might do so. I hugged her and told her not to cry. (mainly because I didn’t want to cry either. ) I like to think we will see each other again soon and it’s not really a goodbye. Yes that is a coping mechanism, but it works for me. We said goodbye and I had a pang in my heart as Cass walked away. If this was a movie, I would have ran back to her and hugged and cried and we could spend another week together because I just got a text that that I won the lottery. But that didn’t happen, unfortunately.

Now I was on my own. What was I going to do without Cass with me. Yes I had been with all the girls throughout most of the trip, but I had been with Cass since Day 1 and we really just gel together well.


I went into the room to look it over and take pictures.


sports5 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports6 by Jenseib, on Flickr


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No need for me to unpack. I was just there for 1 night and it was only me.


sports17 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports18 by Jenseib, on Flickr



Up next,…. A walk around Sports

 

[Pinkocto]

What an excellent idea to grab a taxi to the rental car place! Last time I waited for the shuttle for ages.

Last morning on the cruise is really the pits. Great idea to have one more day at WDW. Too bad Skip didn't like the cruise idea, that would have been fabulous!

How sweet of Cass to drive you. Horrible that it took Brook hours to get her car, definitely not the way you want to end the cruise.

 

[dolphingirl47]

Looks like disembarkation went quite smoothly. How nice of Cass to drive you to Walt Disney World. I had a look around All Star Sports while we were staying at All Star Music last year and hated it. We did actually quite like All Star Music and the room does look very similar to those at All Star Music. What a pain about the Magic Band. I had a similar issue at All Star Music, but mine was even stranger. I stayed at All Star Music first for 7 nights and then moved to Kidani Village for the final night. Whatever they tried, the Magic Band that was supposed to be for All Star Music never opened the door. However, the one for Kidani did.

Corinna

 

[mom2rtk]

Playing catch up again!

Every single picture of Atlantis is just stunning. What a gorgeous place!

Those sharks are awesome. I would have loved seeing that. I probably would have been all in with the Jaws them too!

The view from those rooms? And the Royal Tower is even better. I would feel the same as you looking out at the DCL ship sitting out there though.

I'll take room 12-582 please! I can't believe that only holds 4 people. I guess we'll have to find somewhere else now.

That thing here the chihuly used to be onboard......... What the heck IS that?

Your lighthouse shots are amazing! Love the blues. Just gorgeous. I don't blame you for framing it for your room!

Your towel guy (the one with the glasses) was too funny!

I would love the Tangled show! I really wish they would do that in the parks.

Cool clouds on your sunrise shots! What a bummer that those clouds came with the wind and waves though. I would want to be playing with the underwater camera too! Did the wind make it chilly? Or was it at least a warm wind?

I love all the wind photos. Wouldn't love the wind, but love the interesting photos it provided!

And I agree....never too many shots of the ship. She just looks so impressive sitting in such a beautiful place.

The private room at Palo looks awesome. You know, until you left the hidden Mickey stain! I would be all over the brunch. I'll take one of everything! Would it be wrong to eat chicken parm AND pancakes?

I'm sorry your last night you were so queasy. Do you normally get seasick?

So glad you didn't have to head straight for the airport!

 

[jenseib]

What an excellent idea to grab a taxi to the rental car place! Last time I waited for the shuttle for ages.

Last morning on the cruise is really the pits. Great idea to have one more day at WDW. Too bad Skip didn't like the cruise idea, that would have been fabulous!

How sweet of Cass to drive you. Horrible that it took Brook hours to get her car, definitely not the way you want to end the cruise.

The taxi was much faster. I have heard horror stories on the shuttles so we knew we were going to avoid that.
I hate that last morning.
It didn't surprise me that Skip said no. I swear he says no about everything travel related and always has some stupid excuse.
Brook had such an amazing time dropping it off and being taken to the port but coming back was a nightmare. I think they offered her a free stay next time, but she didn't even use it for her next cruise.

Looks like disembarkation went quite smoothly. How nice of Cass to drive you to Walt Disney World. I had a look around All Star Sports while we were staying at All Star Music last year and hated it. We did actually quite like All Star Music and the room does look very similar to those at All Star Music. What a pain about the Magic Band. I had a similar issue at All Star Music, but mine was even stranger. I stayed at All Star Music first for 7 nights and then moved to Kidani Village for the final night. Whatever they tried, the Magic Band that was supposed to be for All Star Music never opened the door. However, the one for Kidani did.

Corinna

I am just not a sports fan at all, so the theming is lost on me. I know a lot of people love it there, but it's not for me. Of course if it meant staying there or not going...I would suck it up again.
Music is the only Value I have not stayed at yet. I have toured it and the suite rooms but never stayed.
The bands are still whacky. Why can't this company with all it's millions get things working properly.

Every single picture of Atlantis is just stunning. What a gorgeous place!

Thanks. It is an amazing resort.

Those sharks are awesome. I would have loved seeing that. I probably would have been all in with the Jaws them too!

It was neat to see them with fins up out of the water...from safety.

The view from those rooms? And the Royal Tower is even better. I would feel the same as you looking out at the DCL ship sitting out there though.

The views are really amazing and much better than the actual rooms themselves.

I'll take room 12-582 please! I can't believe that only holds 4 people. I guess we'll have to find somewhere else now.

I was amazed they didn't have anything for a family of 5 or 6.

That thing here the chihuly used to be onboard......... What the heck IS that?

Ok, I am lost here. Are you talking about the new light versus the old Chihuly. The new light is ugly in my opinion. Just not my style. I worry they will do the same to the Wonder this fall. Hopefully Disney has listened to all the complaints.

Your lighthouse shots are amazing! Love the blues. Just gorgeous. I don't blame you for framing it for your room!

I love lighthouse shots and was pretty happy with these.

Your towel guy (the one with the glasses) was too funny!

I love seeing what they do each night. I don't think I ever saw our host, but Cass did...and he was pretty good.

would love the Tangled show! I really wish they would do that in the parks.

It's an amazing show. I wish we could still take pictures.

Cool clouds on your sunrise shots! What a bummer that those clouds came with the wind and waves though. I would want to be playing with the underwater camera too! Did the wind make it chilly? Or was it at least a warm wind?

It was cold. This whole cruise was colder than my Alaskan cruise. LOL. though you may have liked it...Cass loved it.

I love all the wind photos. Wouldn't love the wind, but love the interesting photos it provided!

It did make neat photos.

And I agree....never too many shots of the ship. She just looks so impressive sitting in such a beautiful place.

I love the cruise ships. I am wishing I was rich so I could sail a few times a year.

The private room at Palo looks awesome. You know, until you left the hidden Mickey stain! I would be all over the brunch. I'll take one of everything! Would it be wrong to eat chicken parm AND pancakes?

Well nothing wrong with that except I might puke after from being too full. hahaha

I'm sorry your last night you were so queasy. Do you normally get seasick?

I do have a tendency to get motion sick. Usually with bonine I am pretty ok. As I have gotten older I feel it more though. It was pretty darn rocky. I pray in Oct we have smooth seas as my sister gets sicker than I do. And little Abby (who will be 7 when we go) does too.

So glad you didn't have to head straight for the airport!

Me too. I hate having to head right back. The plan now is to do that in Oct, though the flights are a lot cheaper the next day and you know how Disney Math works. I just can't find a cheap hotel for the night though. Plus with Mom with me, I think she won't understand Disney Math.

 

[jenseib]

Now I always get anxiety when I know I have only a short time to do all I want. I decided to fight that anxiety and just chill out. My original plan was to head right over to MK but I decided to be more laid back and walked around the resort a bit to check it out. (I actually even debated taking a nap).


sports19 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports20 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports21 by Jenseib, on Flickr


It’s a fun resort, but again I have no interest in sports so I just was not overly impressed with the theming.


sports22 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports23 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports24 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports25 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports26 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports27 by Jenseib, on Flickr



sports28 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports29 by Jenseib, on Flickr


This football field was a hot spot for a lot of young boys. I think there were some teams of some sort staying here and the boys would play on this field all the time. They were kind of wild actually. I always seem to notice when I go to hotels with a team staying there that the parent’s kind of let the kids do their own thing while they stand or sit off to the side. Sure the kids are having fun, but in most cases they are annoying everyone else around. I have found this in the pool area a few times on different hotel stays we have done and accidently stayed when a team is staying as well. This held true for this field area, but at least they weren’t bothering so many people in this area.


sports30 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports31 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports32 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports33 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports34 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports35 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports36 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports37 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports38 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports39 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports40 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I hate that they put fences up around all the pools now.


sports41 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports42 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports43 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports44 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports45 by Jenseib, on Flickr


sports46 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I then decided to head to Disney Springs. Yeah, I know…that was not in my plans either. But I honestly wanted Earl of Sandwich for lunch and I had no one to answer to but myself now.


I got on the bus and got a seat. I laughed at this girl with her suitcase. I am actually shocked she was let on. I know when changing resorts you are not allowed to take your luggage on the bus. Your options are to have it transferred via Disney or take a cab or uber. She must have not gotten that memo and I guess the bus driver didn’t catch her.


luggage bus by Jenseib, on Flickr


Up next….Disney Springs

 

[dolphingirl47]

It looks like a nice and relaxing day. The photos reminded me just how much I dislike the theming of that resort. Shame that the parents did not supervise the kids.

Corinna

 

[dizneeat]

ASSports - my least favourite resort! Like you, that is one theming I really don't care for.

And saying goodbye to a friend is never easy, especially since you spent so much time together.

And ...... thanks to you I learned something new today. I never knew you were not allowed to bring a suitcase onto Disney transport. Guess since we always drive and usually transport our luggage yourself it never crossed my mind. But good to know. Thank you!