WB repo cruise, the good the bad and looonggg!! Updated day 15 and disembarkation

[aan1701]

That is very interesting about Caio, because we had him as Head Server early seating and he stopped by our table every night and some of the other people at our table made special requests such as a special appetizer and he came through for them.

. Caio was my head waiter and to be honest I was not very impressed with him. He never did anything for our tabe and some nights he never came by. By far the worst head waiter I have ever had on DCL and I did let DCL know this.

I feel bad because we did have late seating and he came by every night to check on us. It was like we had two head waiters. Our head waiter was Gaspare and I have to admit he worked his but off, not because of us but the rest of the group ( the party of 18) took alot of his time.

We had the early siting, and it was like we had a a big sign around our table that told him never to come over. I even asked for a menu or two and he would not let me have them even though I pointed out several other guests were walking out with them. Oh well to each their own on this one I guess. We had a wedding aniversary at our table the second Sunday and he never came over to wish the couple happy aniversary, or even give them a button.

 

[littleaussie]

Day 4

http://figment1986.smugmug.com/gallery/5106018_YK4jC/1/308091059_tRCRi
After dinner my DS and I decided to check out Who wants to be a Mouseketeer in Studio Sea. When we entered the club we were given a number and the computer randomly picked numbers throughout the night. My number actually came up but I sent my son instead. He got all the way to the last answer. the question was " where did the world premier of who framed roger rabbit take place?" He had 50/50 left so after using it, the choices were New York or London. Ok he lost.- it wasn't london. But he got a pin for playing. We collect pins so this one will be a valuable addition to our collection.

Hi there,
I think I was there the night you guys played. My daughter and I were the 4th team up there and we were the first winners of the night! I saw in your pictures the question about Epcot and Test track, I think that was our question and I had no idea! We asked the audience on that one. It was a fun game, wasn't it?
I'm enjoying the report and pictures!

 

[frdeb1999]

Enjoying the TR and pix!

 

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

I love your report!
couple of comments...
Okay so wow you get to the last question on that and only get a pin? You should get a pin and something else- I mean getting to the last question! What do you win if you WIN and got the last question right?

oh, so rockin bar D is where we should have went our entire last cruise. good to know- that's where we'll go next time. We kept wandering around wondering where everyone was late at night. LOL And then DH would go to bed earlier. So now I know where to go! LOL

You are giving so much info on your trip report- I love it!

 

[figment1986]

I love your report!
couple of comments...
Okay so wow you get to the last question on that and only get a pin? You should get a pin and something else- I mean getting to the last question! What do you win if you WIN and got the last question right?

If you win, you get a baseball cap, mug and the pin.

If you get picked to go up there you get a pin.

 

[cmash95]

I love your report!
couple of comments...
Okay so wow you get to the last question on that and only get a pin? You should get a pin and something else- I mean getting to the last question! What do you win if you WIN and got the last question right?

the ship's version only has five questions so more people can play. and the first three are pretty easy pllus the host is allowed to help out. that way you are at least guaranteed a pin.

 

[DiaLady]

Great Trip Report and Pictures . . . can't wait to see the rest.

 

[cmash95]

Day 6

http://figment1986.smugmug.com/gallery/5119750_DZr2i/1/309150184_Ks2Pg

Another sea day. I didn't do a whole lot because I could feel the beginnings of a cold coming on. My DH and mom started out the morning as they did every morning, walking and then breakfast. They then took in the second lecture given by Ken pucket about what to expect going through the canal. That was at 11:00am. Afterwards they headed to topsiders for the mediteranean Buffet. My son decided to check out the college lunch meet at parrot cay and then meet me at 3 pm for ken pucket's last lecture about the canal.

In the meantime I decided to grab a snack and relax. I ended up getting some pizza and chicken strips. I have to admit I love those chicken strips and miss them dearly at WDW. They don't serve them anymore, Instead we get chicken nuggets. If i wanted nuggets I would go to McDonalds. My cold was making me sleepy, so I went to the cabin and took a nap until it was time for the lecture.

I wasn't sure what to expect from the lecture, since he was talking to kids about the canal and I figured they would get bored very easily. He managed to keep all the kids interested and I found the lecture alot of fun. From the start he promised the kids that they would not only learn something but he would make it fun for them and he did. By the time he finished most of the kids in the audience were getting excited about the canal.

That night's show was an impressionist named Scott Record. This was his first time on Disney. I enjoyed his show but I have to admit I think his was the weakest show of the cruise. of course they did have to get entertainment for 15 nights.

After the show my son and I headed to Studio Sea for the game show, " So you think you know your family. " think the newlywed game with one parent and one kid. You know the expression Out of the mouths of babes? Let's just say alot of laughs were had by all, and a few family members left with red faces.

Dinner that night was the show dinner for luminiers. About halfway through the dinner, an MC grabbed some diners and created a kickline to "Be our Guest" Then toward the end of the meal we were treated to a short dance from Belle and the beast. I was so taken with the look of the menu that I asked our server if we could take one with us. He agreed as long as we didn't tell anyone. So my son "smuggled" the regular and desert menu out under his shirt. I honestly couldn't tell if he was teasing or not and didn't want to get him into trouble. He was too good a server to lose.

There wasn't much scheduled that night I think because they figured everyone would go to bed early. As I said earlier, I wasn't feeling too hot, so I did get to bed early.

My son decided to take in the ventriloquist's adult show in rockin bar d. Afterwards he hung out on deck 4and watched the magic refuel. That was until a crew member shooed him away.

One thing of note especially for those coming back in August. At the show that night and also at dinner, Brent made a couple of announcements. One that caught my ear was a warning about throwing things overboard. Apparently during the first cruise, people wanted to be generous to the workers in the locks and they threw soveneirs overboard to them. When they got through the canal, Disney was fined for it. SO no throwing anything over the side.

 

[cmash95]

Day 7

http://figment1986.smugmug.com/gallery/5141133_BmkWu/1/310846596_vxzGa

The canal!!! the four of us split up for the day and everyone except me wandered the ship. Unfortunately the cold I was fighting decided to hit me that day. I spent the entire day in the cabin between the couch and the balcony. Thank heavens it was hot as the heat actually made me feel better. They had a bbq up on deck, so DH brought me lunch . I have to admit again the meat was overcooked but everything else was good.

I felt so sick that I skipped dinner that night. IT was the est meets west dinner. My mom and son went and brought back menus signed by our server. They also told me how annimator's palate was done up like the old mickey mouse club and all the servers had on t-shirts and mouse ears. It sounded really cute. I wish they would do something like that for the regular cruises. I was really sorry I missed it but thanks to my son, we have pictures.

They didn't have a show in the theater that night, but instead they premeared ( yes that's how they spell it.) Prince caspian. My son decided to take in the late show that night. He even got a chance to meet the prince in person.

I have to admit that even being sick, the canal was something that I really enjoyed. I had the chance to go to alaska a couple of years ago and we spent the day going through glacier bay and got chance to get up close to several glacier. The canal ranks right up there with glacier bay on my not to be missed list. ok if you haven't already checked out the pictures, let me warn you, There are over 350 for this day because we couldn't figure out a way to cut them down. I hope you enjoy them!!!

 

[cmash95]

Day 8

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Yet another Sea day. I can honestly say I was getting pretty crazy with the sea days. I wanted to get off the ship and go home. I wasn’t the only one getting a bit of that cooped up feeling, I noticed the kids on our floor were starting to get a little more rambunctious as the days went on. I really think that 15 days on a ship is too long for a kid. Too much of the same thing even if it’s fun can get boring after awhile. And of course we had just gone through the canal so it was sort of like, now what? For a lot of them.

There were a lot of interesting things planned though. First was the beginning of Desparate Shipmates. This is a multi day mystery. Now most ships that hold these, hold murder mysteries, but of course this is Disney, so no murder on the high seas. Instead we had to solve the mystery of who stole the captains portrait, and why was it so important. Not giving away anything here but to say that the clues unfolded over the next few days and it was a lot of fun participating. Everyone that participated got a little notebook and pencil to keep track of notes. It was a nice additional souvenier.

My son headed out to another college lunch in parrot cay, while I joined my mom and DH up in topsiders. The day’s theme was pacific, so there was a lot of seafood as well sushi bar.

After lunch I joined my son for the presentation by Ducky Williams. Unfortunately we didn’t win one of the drawings, but it was a lot of fun listening to him talk and watch as he drew the characters. After the presentation, we headed to the atrium for a special Disney auction of some of Ducky’s lithographs as well as the original painting that was done for the lithographs we had gotten the day before. I have to admit this was one of the highlights of the cruise for me as well as probably most of the people at the auction. Ok for those of you who were there, do you remember the lady who won the new years lithograph who was so excited she told everyone how her husband was going to kill her? YUP that was me!!! Btw the litho is home but I can’t figure out where I am going to hang it. It wasn’t my first choice but I don’t care.

When the auction was finished, we headed back to the cabin to get ready for the show. Tonight was Twice Charmed, A show I had been looking forward to for a very long time. Needless to say, I loved it. It just goes to show that Disney can still come up with orginal material that is entertaining and fun!!! I hope they keep up the good work when the new ships come online.

Dinner that evening was in Parrot Cay. We were treated to the Prince and Princess menu. Dress that night was semi formal, but I saw a lot of attire that would have bordered on formal wear in my mind. A few members of the larger group purchased small princess tiaras and wore them to dinner. Of course our servers ended up having to try them on by the end of the meal. I have to say that the it would have been nice to have Cinderella and belle and snowwhite make an appearance during dinner. Even princess Minnie would have been a nice addition. I saw something else at dinner that night that really bothered me. This has nothing to do with the crew but with certain guests. Ducky had our dinner rotation and while he was seated with his party enjoying dinner, a group of guests, walked all the way across the restaurant to his table and stood and waited until he drew them a sketch. Now this wasn’t someone at his next table or near him. They walked all the way across the restaurant so that everyone could see them and didn’t leave his table until they got their sketch. I have to admit my son wanted to go see him but I informed him that Mr. Williams was eating his dinner like the rest of us and it would be very rude to disturb him. Of course after the group got their sketch they walked back across the restaurant so everyone saw the sketch. Sorry but that really got my goat.

After dinner my son and I headed to Rockin Bar D for an evening of rock and country. What a lot of fun. They had cowboy hats for everyone and the entertainment staff did a number. The cruise staff also led line dances. I have to say that the adult cruise staff really let their hair down at the “parties” at the club. They made sure everyone was having a great time no matter what the theme of the evening was.

 

[cmash95]

day 9

http://figment1986.smugmug.com/gallery/5150464_7Fk5n/1/311641002_fkJhR

Quiet Sea day. not much happening, or so we thought.... My mom and DH started off as usual with their morning walk and breakfast at topsiders. I actually grabbed a little bit to eat later in the morning.

Lunch had an asian theme. I joined my mom and DH in Topsiders, while my son had another college meet in Parrot Cay. I have to admit it was nice having the extra choice for lunch on sea days. The buffets have the same items on them. Including specialties and deserts. It's just that in Parrot Cay you are seated and they bring your drinks to you, and in topsiders it's all serve yourself. IT also breaks up the lines so you don't have to wait so long to get your food. Of course if you want to sit down and be served, luminiers was always great for lunch.

After Lunch I met up with my son and we watched to beginnings of Goofy and Max's Boat Builiding Competition. This was a brand new activity on the magic and I hope they make it permanent. Today was registration and rules. What happened was simple, each person got a milk carton and they had five days to build a boat out of it. There were four catagories you could enter in. THe fastest, the most seaworthy, the most beautiful, and of course since goofy was there, the goofiest. Max and Goofy were there to kick things off.

After Max and Goofy, my son and I had a date with Francine(the captain's daughter) and her new boyfriend, the artist yuri. in the promenade lounge.That morning we recieved a phone call inviting us to a lecture given by the famous artist. Of course this was the next installment of desparate shipmates. I am not going to go into great detail because i don't want to spoil it for those on the eastbound cruise, eventhough I hope they change it up a little. When Yuri finished his class, He headed out to have lunch with Francine and her little dog. But before he left, he gave us a card that said Storm was giving a lifesaving demo at the quiet cove pool in 15 minutes and we should check it out. Ok so here we are at the BACK of the ship on DECK3 and we have to head ALL the WAY FORWARD!!!! and had just a few minutes to do it.

A mad dash to the elevators and brisk walk forward and we made it just in time, but boy was I pooped. Anyway we got hints as to where more clues were hidden. I was so bushed after all that running around, that I decded to head back to the cabin and take a break. My son decided he needed one too so we headed back tothe cabin and found my DH relaxing on the verandah doing what he loves to do on sea days... reading. I think he read 4 books while onboard.

That night's show was one done just for extended cruises called " The Art of the Story." It featured songs from Hunchback, Mulan, Tarzan, and beauty and the beast. I truly enjoyed myself.

Dinner that evening was in Luminiers and was the Master Chef. That night John Charles gave one last performance this time in the Disney Theater. this was going to be his last show because he was disembarking in acapulco tommorrow. After the show Rockin bar D was hosting a Spring break bash. So my son came back to the cabin after John charles, grabbed a towel and changed into his swim trunks. I wish I had stayed up late enough to enjoy the bash but I had to be up early for acapulco, so I went to bed. I have no idea what time he got back but I heard all about it the next day in acapulco so I know he had a good time.

 

[newfamilyman]

Ducky had our dinner rotation and while he was seated with his party enjoying dinner, a group of guests, walked all the way across the restaurant to his table and stood and waited until he drew them a sketch. Now this wasn’t someone at his next table or near him. They walked all the way across the restaurant so that everyone could see them and didn’t leave his table until they got their sketch. I have to admit my son wanted to go see him but I informed him that Mr. Williams was eating his dinner like the rest of us and it would be very rude to disturb him. Of course after the group got their sketch they walked back across the restaurant so everyone saw the sketch. Sorry but that really got my goat.

I am enjoying your report, especially that you are sharing the bad as well as the good. I did want to comment on this part, though. While I agree with you that it is arguably tacky to ask a famous animator whose drawings sell big bucks for a complimentary sketch, I do admire the cojones of such a person. And I personally have no problem with someone approaching him at dinner. After all, he is getting a free cruise out of the deal, and I assume part of the reason that it is free for him is there is an obligation to mingle with the guests. Maybe I'm biased because I live in LA, where seeing celebrities is not such a big deal, and if it's somebody I want to talk to, I will. It usually goes well, since they understand it's part of the package.

 

[ibouncetoo]

day 9

After Max and Goofy, my son and I had a date with Francine(the captain's daughter) and her new boyfriend, the artist yuri. in the promenade lounge.That morning we recieved a phone call inviting us to a lecture given by the famous artist. Of course this was the next installment of desparate shipmates. I am not going to go into great detail because i don't want to spoil it for those on the eastbound cruise, eventhough I hope they change it up a little. When Yuri finished his class, He headed out to have lunch with Francine and her little dog. But before he left, he gave us a card that said Storm was giving a lifesaving demo at the quiet cove pool in 15 minutes and we should check it out. Ok so here we are at the BACK of the ship on DECK3 and we have to head ALL the WAY FORWARD!!!! and had just a few minutes to do it.

A mad dash to the elevators and brisk walk forward and we made it just in time, but boy was I pooped. Anyway we got hints as to where more clues were hidden. I was so bushed after all that running around, that I decded to head back to the cabin and take a break.

.

Well, I was doing just the opposite of you. My call was from Storme and then we were sent to 'spy' on Uri. They actually did three or four skits so everyone could see it, and I stayed and watched the rest of Uri's...as they had audience participation in that one. I think the CMs had a lot of fun with this!

Really enjoying your report.

Now I'm off to look at more photos!

,

 

[ibouncetoo]

Chris, on Day 4 I was probably standing very close to you when you were watching the midnight dress rehersal of Minnie's Fiesta! That's practacly the same view I had!!

.

 

[figment1986]

Chris, on Day 4 I was probably standing very close to you when you were watching the midnight dress rehersal of Minnie's Fiesta! That's practacly the same view I had!!

Actually, All photos are mine. Cmash95 (mom) was not there during dress rehearsals, but included stuff I did (and took photos of) into the trip report.

It was a nice treat to see the dress rehearsal though.

 

[disneycruise05]

Great pictures (found myself in a few of the pictures during the sail-away party and CPR class with Storme)! Looking forward to seeing the rest and reading the TR!

 

[cmash95]

I am enjoying your report, especially that you are sharing the bad as well as the good. I did want to comment on this part, though. While I agree with you that it is arguably tacky to ask a famous animator whose drawings sell big bucks for a complimentary sketch, I do admire the cojones of such a person. And I personally have no problem with someone approaching him at dinner. After all, he is getting a free cruise out of the deal, and I assume part of the reason that it is free for him is there is an obligation to mingle with the guests. Maybe I'm biased because I live in LA, where seeing celebrities is not such a big deal, and if it's somebody I want to talk to, I will. It usually goes well, since they understand it's part of the package.

It only bothered me during dinner. I know he was working but I am one of those people who believes that anyone, no matter who they are should be able to eat in peace. Also he was with his friends and family. There were times he was out in the atrum or on deck and I saw him talking to people. We even spoke to him a couple of times. I just have a thing about dinner time being kept for ones self.

 

[cmash95]

Day 10

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ACAPULCOOOOO I was really excited about this port. If only because I was finally getting off the ship!!! To give a bit of backround. I know I am dating myself, but I grew up in the 60s and 70s and to me acapulco was the place where all the "beautiful" people went and of course if you could afford to go to acapulco you were rich in my eyes. I had an aunt and uncle that went on a regular basis and they always had pictures of themselves with various celebrities. I always dreamed of going to acapulco. Of course it lost some of it's luster in the 80s and 90s, but now, its coming back.

My mom didn't have an excursion booked, but she did get off the boat and do some shopping. DH had the ancient petryoglyphs booked. My son and I booked the acapulco city tour with the cliff divers. We met at rockin bar D at 12:30 to check in. I had put the tickets in my wallet the night before so I wouldn't forget them. I got them out and then checked to make sure that I had some cash and that I had the all important credit card. That's when I realised my drivers license was missing. ( remember me saying I thought I dropped it somewhere getting back on the boat in castaway cay?) I had my passport so I still had ID.

Due to security, busses aren't allowed in port area, so we had to walk off the ship and through a wearhouse where our busses were waiting. We loaded onto the busses and headed out. I really enjoyed the city tour. however I must admit that I held my breath alot as the bus negotiated the winding roads in the mountains. We saw what i would call the old glamour area, I think they called it " gold" area, as well as the newer glamourous area. and many spot in between. Unfortunately because of security conserns, we weren't allowed into any of the hotels. Many of the high end hotels have their own security forces patrolling the area. It was a big scary to see guards with machine guns running around and large electric gates. Our guide admitted that there were situations with drugs and gangs in certain areas of town and the police could only do so much so the hotels hire protection for their guests. SOme of the nicer hotels looked like a fortress to me. After the city tour we headed over to the clff divers. We actually arrived a bit early so lucky us, we had more time to shop. The shop was actually very nice, but like most vendors, the salespeople were pretty pushy. especially when selling the jewelry. I had to say no to one more than once.

When the time came for our show, we headed into the restaurant. It actually has three different levels where you can stand, or sit if you can grab a chair, and watch the cliff divers. We were warned ahead of time that they ask for tips after wards but it was up to us if we wanted to give them extra. They had already been paid extra for this show. It was interesting watching them climb up the cliff. They had to wait until the tide hit just right in order to dive. They actually dove from two spots. The whole show lasted maybe 15 minutes, they also had a small folk dancing group the danced at the end.

When all was done, we loaded up the busses and headed back to the ship. I sent my son back to the cabin with our purchases and had him call my mom and meet us at the theater. While I was waiting for them, pluto showed up for a quick meet and greet. There weren't alot of people around so we all had a chance to " pet " the dog. btw he loves to have the nose scratched.

The show that evening was Los Caporales Festival Folklorico. They were wonderful. I happen to really love the flowing dresses and the mariachi music.
When the show was over, I headed back to cabin and found my DH half asleep. I was kind of surprised because his tour wasn't supposed to get back until around 8. ok time for another bit of backround. We are big people and when i was looking at excursions for our family, i purposefully stayed away from the excusions that were extremely active in nature. The petrolyphs was listed as having a medium level of activity. I should have double checked when I booked because the level was up to active and he couldn't climb the 500 steps. Now Disney sent a rep along for all their excursions in case something happened. She took his name and cabin number and stayed behind with him until the rest of the group came back down. He told her he wasn't short of breath or anything like that but that his legs were hurting him so he wanted to take a break.

When we got back to the room,there was a note that had been pushed under the door informing my dh that if according to the activity level and the fact that the discription said he would be doing alot of climbing, it was not disney's responsibility if something happened. I know disney had to cover their buts so he wouldn't sue so we sort of just let the whole thing slide. He did however tell me he had a good time and enjoyed what petroglyphs he saw.

DH was still tired from his excursion so he decided to skip dinner that night and catch something on deck later. of course dinner that night was themed to mexico. and minnie and her girls showed up at the end to invite everyone up on deck for minnie's fiesta grande deck party.

we headed up to deck ten to get a spot for the party. it was pretty crowded by the time we got there but we did find a spot. One of the nicer things they did was have servers milling through the crowd with spicy finger foods. Lots of fun!!! the cruise staff also set up an ultra lounge in the cove pool. I didn't go but heard it was very popular.

After the party, DH, mom and I headed for bed, but my son headed of course to rockin bar D for krazy kareokee.

Oh one more thing, that morning there was a note under the door to check out channel 10 for more desparate shipmates clues. thankfully the loop ran all day other wise i would have missed it. of course that meant more clues to check out.

 

[Joan1]

Thank you for your report - I am really enjoying it

I do have a question - can you tell us what dining time you had and what the dining rotation was? Did you have PAL, LAP, APL, and did they just repeat after the 3rd night?

Thanks

 

[figment1986]

Thank you for your report - I am really enjoying it

I do have a question - can you tell us what dining time you had and what the dining rotation was? Did you have PAL, LAP, APL, and did they just repeat after the 3rd night?

Thanks

We had later seating (8:30 i think) with APL, and it just repeated itself after that