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Disney
Magic
November
8-15, 2003
Who: Sue, DVC Member
Sheila, Frequent Travel Companion
DAY
1 SATURDAY NOVEMBER 08, 2003:
Plan: Embark Magic cruise
Actual: After a good night's sleep at the Beach Club Villas we got up around
7-7:30. The morning was lazily spent doing any last-minute packing, and we
shared the bagel for breakfast. On the way out we stopped at Downtown Disney
briefly. I introduced Sheila to Jason at his booth at Festival of the Masters,
then we went to Virgin so she could buy a couple books to read. Shortly after 10
we were on our way to the cruise!!
Just as we pulled onto the Beeline Expressway I realized I'd left the laptop
case in a drawer in the studio - arrgh! Sheila claimed that's what happens when
you're 45, and she'd damn lucky she didn't find her butt bouncing along the side
of the freeway <g>! We turned around and went back to Beach Club Villas,
where I ran up and retrieved the case out of the drawer while the housekeeper
was in there cleaning. We made a fresh start just before 11 and got to the port
shortly before noon.
Most of the embarkation process is very quick & painless - until you get
inside and have to join the endless line of people waiting to board the ship.
That took a good 20-30 minutes, and we bypassed the photo opportunity spot to
get on board faster. After being announced, we headed straight to Rockin' Bar D
to make our Palo reservation. We wanted Monday at 7, but the closest they had
for a party of 2 was either 6 or 9. We took the 6! We didn't bother trying to
book the champagne brunch or high tea - frankly I don't like enough or eat
enough to make them worth it, and Sheila's just looking to relax and isn't
worried about not having more than enough food as it is!
We went up to Topsider's Buffet next, and I tried the orange mango soup
- not bad, but I like the strawberry on the
Wonder much better. We got some lunch and sat inside because that's where we saw
the first available table. Two months ago with Patty on the Wonder the ship
seemed empty for the longest time, but today this ship felt mobbed right from
the start. After lunch we stopped by the spa and Sheila booked a massage for
tomorrow. By now it was time for the staterooms to be ready, so we found ours
(#2098, oceanview) and checked it out. They'd sent the usual Castaway Club gift
- a nice beach towel and 2 pins. Since I got the towel 2 months ago, I gave
Sheila this one.
I glanced over and saw a bottle of champagne on the little table - and a
platter of yummy-looking little desserts. That was odd - but there was a card
accompanying it - a Happy Birthday message from Adie & Lisa. I called them
later from the pool to thank them - that was so sweet of them. The dessert tray
had a great assortment of mini treats - key lime pie squares, pistachio squares,
chocolate things, coconut chocolate chip bars, and chocolate
dipped strawberries! Everything was delicious - I cut a corner off each one, lol.
I think we'll buy some raspberry liqueur and make kir royales with the champagne
- yummm!
None of the luggage had arrived, and we had our swimsuits on under our
clothes, so we went up to deck 9. We of course used the stairs since it's only 7
flights <g>. Sheila knows she won't let me kill her with an excursion this
time, but she says I'm going to kill her with stairs. Hey, with all the extra
food/drink we'll be consuming, we NEED every step, lol! We laid out by the pool for a while. Sheila enjoyed the jacuzzi and I enjoyed just laying
in the sun with a cool breeze and no cares or worries. After about an hour I
returned to the stateroom, where my large piece of luggage had arrived. I
got that unpacked and called maintenance because our room safe would not work.
Within minutes an engineer was there, and diagnosed it as a dead battery. He had to send the carpenter to take care of that, which was also
handled very promptly. More luggage arrived, and I got the rest of my stuff
unpacked before Sheila returned. The laundry is right by our stateroom so I went
over to do some ironing while Sheila unpacked. The family
next door has a wild bunch of monster boys - if Chris was one of them he would
have been grounded or smacked! At 4 we went up for the life boat drill, which is
far more pleasant on a shady November afternoon than it is
on a hot sunny September day!
Following the drill I updated the report for a few minutes, then we went up
to deck 10 for the Sail-away Party. Sheila asked for a head start for the 8
flights, and ended up waiting for me up top. We found the DIS group - easy to
spot in the lime green matching shirts David and his wife had made for us. We
talked to several people, blew some bubbles, but just before sailing we moved
out of the noisy area to the shady side of the ship. Just before the ship's horn
sounded Sheila called her son and I called Tim - they both got to hear it. We
were right by where it sounds, and the noise was enough to almost blast us over
the railing into the ocean, lol!
It's always pleasant sailing away, and today was no exception. HAL's Zaandam
followed us out of the port. Once the sun went down it got pretty cool, so we
decided to wear our warmest clothes tonight! On the way back to the stateroom we
stopped at the new Cove Café. This is the old teen area, which has been redone
for the 18 & over crowd. They sell coffee drinks, teas, wines, alcoholic
coffee, and some fancy drinks. Inside they've got several sofas and small
gathering areas, with plenty of magazines, books, some internet stations, and
board games. There's a large bar area, jukebox, and a big-screen tv. The prices
were not too bad - not as good as on HAL, but not as bad as I'd feared Disney
would be gouging people. The coffees without alcohol (espresso, latte,
cappuccino, frappuccino & mochaccino) are mostly $2.50, while those with
alcohol are $4.75. I imagine we'll be in there for an alcoholic coffee at some
point <g>!
We also stopped at Lumiere's to look at the menu for dinner tonight. Neither
of us were thrilled with it, but since it's the first night we're going to show
up in order to meet our table mates. Captain Hook came by to flirt with us,
until some chick in a cm costume dragged him away to pose for pictures with
kids. We've decided to skip the show --it's the welcome variety show, which
isn't bad, but we're in a "been there, done that" kind of mood. The
only real priority this trip is relaxing, so we may do a whole lot of nothing,
and love every minute of it!
Back in the stateroom there was an envelope from DVC with a couple of
lanyards and invitations to some events. We ate the chocolate covered
strawberries - didn't want to risk them going bad <g>. Sheila took her
shower while I updated the report and went back to the laundry to iron tonight's
pants. I could easily go to bed now - it's so soothing being on the ship! I
ended up not being able to iron my pants - some woman was in there ironing a
stack of clothes, as slowly as you could possibly imagine! I went back and took
my shower, then got dressed for the evening.
The lunar eclipse was beginning, and it was right ourside our porthole. We
decided to go walk around on deck for a while, since there was still 1.5 hours
until dinner. We did several laps on deck 4, checking the progress of the lunar
eclipse each time we came around. Eventually we went up to deck 9, and went into
Cove Café to each get a glass of wine - merlot for Sheila, la crema chardonnay
for me. We took our wine back down to deck 4 and sat on one of the comfy
cushioned deck chairs there until it was time to go to dinner.
Dinner our first night was at Lumiere's, the French restaurant. We were at a
table for 8 next to the window, but only 1 other couple showed up for dinner.
Dennis & Janet are an extremely young-looking couple celebrating their 35th
wedding anniversary here on their very first cruise. They were both really nice,
and we were glad we came to dinner. It would have been weird for them to be all
alone at this big table. Our serving team was efficient and unobtrusive, and
didn't lecture us about their expections for an "excellent" rating on
the comment card!
For dinner Sheila got the fried camembert cheese, mixed garden salad, and
beef tenderloin. I got the garden salad and a chicken breast. The salad was good
- I ate part of it, but all of the 2 croutons with goat cheese - that was
delicious. I also ate part of the chicken breast & part of a baked potato,
but none of the mounds of steamed vegetables on the plate. For dessert we both
got the white chocolate dome, which sounded much better than it really was. It
had some sort of cake-like bottom, then a dab of chocolate with raspberry, all
buried in whipped cream and then a shell of white chocolate over that. The
chocolate/raspberry center was good, but the rest wasn't worth it - so neither
of us finished that.
After dinner we browsed through the shops. I was mainly looking for a watch
battery, since my watch died at 6:15 tonight. They don't sell them here, so
hopefully I'll find one in Key West tomorrow. I ended up buying a cute new DCL
metal license plate with a picture of the ship on it. It'll hang on the wall in
my office with a couple other license plates. I also got a medallion Christmas
ornament with the picture of the ship, and the cm said I could have the Captain
autograph it on Thursday.
We went down to deck 3 to check out Beat Street, and just about gagged from
the cigarette smell before we even got near the door to Rockin' Bar D. We won't
be spending any time in there - no matter how appealing the cabaret show is.
Instead of the Cadillac Lounge they have Sessions on this ship, but it smelled
bad too. The new Diversions is a sports bar, and it smelled nice -
but we most likely won't be sitting
in front of a big-screen tv watching football any time this week <g>. I
think Cove Café is the place for us - or Promenades if the entertainers don't
suck. Those venues are both non-smoking.
Sheila headed back to the staterooom and I did a couple more laps on deck 4
before I headed down there as well. We haven't met our stateroom steward yet, as
we left for dinner a little earlier than he probably expected. There wasn't any
towel animal, but he did leave a couple of chocolates along with tomorrow's
Navigator. Sheila read for a while and went to bed. I finished up the report and
then read for a while.
It's great to be back on board the ship. Although HAL is still my favorite
cruise line, the Disney ships are familiar and comfortable. The cabin is in
excellent shape, the ship looks great (of course it's only been out of drydock 2
weeks now <g>), and we're both ready to relax for the next
7 days!
DAY 2 SUNDAY NOVEMBER 09, 2003:
Plan: Key West
Actual: I got up at 6:30 - having been awake off & on for a while before
that. During the night we went through a thunder storm, so I heard some of that and saw the flashes of lightning. Someone had posted on DIS that
this cabin was noisy, and it did have it's share of creaks & groans -
nothing too disturbing, though. I'll take creaks and groans over kids screeching
or people talking anyday!
I got cleaned up and dressed, and let Sheila know where I was going. She let
me use her watch so I didn't have to carry the cabin clock with me <g>.
After climbing the 7 decks (huff, puff) I got some cappuccino and then walked a
mile on deck 4. At the start there was a pretty rainbow, but by the time I came around for the next lap the sun had risen enough that it was no
longer visible. It's also pretty warm, and very humid!
At 7:30 I returned to the stateroom, where Sheila was up & dressed. We
went to the spa up on deck 9 for the 7:45 Abs, Hips & Thighs class. Around
5-6 other people were there for the class, but Sheila didn't get to stay because
she was wearing Tevas instead of sneakers. I don't think
she was too upset at leaving, since the room was fairly warm. It was a great
class - tough, but not a killer. Afterwards I went into the gym and used the
free weights to do some upper body work, then went out and wandered aimlessly on
deck 9. I ran into Sheila, and although she'd already eaten a light breakfast
she offered to sit with me while I ate something.
She got a great table by the railing behind Topsiders and I got a plate of
melon. It was delicious, and it was really nice outside. The ship is moving very
slowly, so it's not very windy. It looks like the Carnival ship in port with us
yesterday is following us. It was getting close to 9 so Sheila headed to her spa
appointment, while I did another lap or two on deck 4, checked the Lumiere's
brunch menu, and then returned to the stateroom. The wind & humidity ruined
my hair almost instantly last night, so I took another shower to wash my hair
again. Still no sign of the cabin steward - we've not met him and I have no idea
what he even looks like.
Just before 10 I went upstairs to Diversions for the DVC Member Celebration,
where Sheila joined me later. The room filled up with lots of DVC members -
every seat was taken. I prefer the afternoon reception on the Eastern itinerary
- I'd much rather have hors d'oeuvres and free wine than have coffee & pastries! I skipped the food and just got a seat. The Celebration
was basically a party for DVC members, for DVC to say thanks for being members
and for referring others. There wasn't any selling going on, and they didn't do
the usual member update stuff. Everyone had a raffle ticket and they would call
a number and ask that person a trivia question (the cm would give the person the
answer) and then the person would get to pick out a prize. My
number came up really late, so all that was left were t-shirts and a tote bag I
already had. The shirts are all size XL - but it's so freakin' cold in the
stateroom I might decide to wear it to bed! Either that, or it can be a
sloppy-looking swimsuit coverup.
We dropped our loot (DVC baseball caps, luggage tags, shirt, and the points
charts for the cruise rebooking incentive) in the stateroom - still no sign of
our steward! This is a bit ridiculous. We went up to Lumiere's for brunch, as we
sailed into Key West. Sheila got a ham & cheese omelet and I ordered the
fruit plate. The fruit was pretty pitiful - very small portion and I didn't like
the kiwi sauce they put all over it. I had a couple bites of Sheila's omelet and
part of the fruit. We decided to share a dessert - a strawberry crepe! This was
definitely the highlight of the meal - it was delicious, and definitely large
enough to share. The waiter was behind me, about to take my plate away when I
dipped my spoon into the chocolate sauce - he pulled his arm back and Sheila
laughed and suggested he dare not take my chocolate or I was likely to stab his
hand with my fork, lol!
After lunch we went out on deck 4. The ship was docked but hadn't been
cleared yet. Unfortunately we didn't get the dock space right at Mallory Square like when I was on HAL years ago, so if we want to watch the
Sunset Celebration we'll have to do it on shore. We went back to the stateroom
to pack up what we wanted to bring ashore, and soon the announcement was made
that we could leave the ship. We met our cabin steward at this point, and let
him know we'd be leaving the cabin early each morning (7-8am), so he's going to
start doing our cabin early. He'd assumed since we had late dinner that we were
up late at night and slept in each morning, which makes sense.
It was hot & muggy when we got off the ship. We stopped first at a Little
Switzerland (jewelry store) to see about a battery for my watch. They couldn't
help me there but suggested I visit their other location, where the jeweler was
working today. We found it easily and dropped the watch off. From there we walked along Duval Street to the very end and stopped at the
tourist-tacky Southernmost Point of the USA. We took some pictures, and then
began the long trek back. Getting the battery replaced was only $10, which
seemed like a good deal to me.
Overall I was not at all impressed with Key West, and it's not a place I have
any burning desire to return to. I'm sure I have an unfair picture based on the
fact that 3 cruise ships had dumped their passengers into port today (including
a mega-monstrosity from Carnival), but I don't see anything here that interests
me. Everywhere we went people were standing on the sidewalks smoking, and
it was disgusting walking through that. I was uncomfortable too with the people
basically begging for money or sleeping on walls outside buildings. I know
people who love Key West, but from what I saw on this visit, it's not for me.
We got back on the ship around 2:30 or so, glad to rest our weary feet! We
snacked on some of the pastries in the stateroom, and I updated the report. We
decided to head up on deck to sit & read for a while. Sheila got a bowl of
ice cream and I later got a slice of pizza. The pizza here is good - tastes
better than it looks. We read for a while, then I decided to go wander around
some. I was starting to fall asleep laying there! When I got up to deck 10 it
looked like HAL's (Holland America Line) Veendam was casting off her ropes, so I
talked to a couple of people which watching that process. It's so cool how the
ship slides out sideways from the dock, then travels backwards to deeper water
to turn around. I hate seeing a HAL ship sail away, for some reason - guess I
always want to be on board rather than left behind!
I did another mile on deck 4, then returned to the stateroom to relax a
while. I called Chris and talked to him, then the cabin steward (Clefas) stopped
by with our invitation to the Castaway Club reception Tuesday. Sheila got back
shortly after 6 and mentioned the Carnival Glory had just left. Damn - I missed
it! Looks like the Magic is the only ship that stays in port into the evening
here at Key West.
Tonight is a casual night, and we're eating in Animator's Palate. The show
tonight is Who Wants to be a Mouseketeer, which we knew each other preferred to
skip without even asking. I absolutely can't stand that tv show, lol, and can
only take so much of this version too. Plus, to me it's very bizarre to go to
your show before dinner - I just can't get used to that!
We were dressed & ready by about 7, so we went to the Promenade Lounge
for a glass of wine before dinner. The waiter was going to get the Moscato wine
I like, but came back to say they were out of that wine ship-wide. Instead, he
recommended a riesling kabinett that I sampled and liked. Sheila got the La
Crema pinot noir. The lounge was fairly busy with people enjoying a quiet drink,
when all of a sudden a group of families with about 6-7 hellions arrived.
Their kids were elementary school age or younger, and were sliding across the
dance floor in their socks, doing somersaults (with idiot mother clapping &
encouraging them), being carried upside down by idiot dad, and generally
rough-housing and making a racket. I was horrified, as were several others -
based on the glares I saw coming from other tables. The parents didn't see
anything wrong with the brats' behavior, and Disney didn't do or say anything
either. The entertainer got on the stage and started playing - decent job on the
piano, but he couldn't sing at all. It was difficult to enjoy him though, with
the monsters slipping & sliding in front of his show! We finally couldn't
stand it any more, and moved to a table behind a wall, as far away as possible.
It's such a shame that lounge with pleasant adult entertainment was essentially
ruined for that time period by those clueless breeders who let their kids run
wild.
At 8:30 we went to dinner, and met 2 of the missing table mates from last
night. Dana & David are a young couple from near Washington DC, on their
first cruise. They're really nice, and we're happy with the entire table. Head
Waiter PJ stopped by to introduce himself and give us our tickets to the
character breakfast tomorrow (no way in hell, lol). It didn't sound like anyone
from our table would be attending! PJ offered to take care of any special
requests, and since there wasn't anything on our dessert menu that appealed I
asked if he could get me a sugarfree chocolate mousse from Lumiere's instead -
he said yes.
For dinner I had the gazpacho, which paled in comparison to the gazpacho at
the Food & Wine Festival last week. For my meal I had an appetizer caesar
salad and had them put a chopped chicken breast on top. It was plenty, and a
better choice for me than any of the big entrees. Sheila got the duck & goat
cheese flatbread and the maple glazed salmon entrée. Janet got the cannelloni,
which looked good and was actually a decent sized portion (not too big) -
I may get that next time. For dessert I had the mousse
from Lumiere's and Sheila got the cheesecake. The cheesecake is delicious - the
best thing on this menu, but it's too big for me and I know I'd stuff it down
regardless! So, I avoided it. They did the light show in the restaurant tonight,
followed by the servers parading around. As we were leaving our server came out
with a birthday cake for me - oops! I told him my birthday
was earlier in the week, and he said he'd do a cake again Friday. I'd rather he
just skip it, since the cake's nothing special, but I didn't want to be rude or
appear unappreciative.
After dinner we went up to deck 10 and watched the ship pull away from the
dock, turn around, and sail away from Key West. We had just enough time to get
to the Buena Vista Theater (movie) to see the 10:30 Cold Creek Manor. We sat in
the back row, and were hysterical when we sat down. There is much less leg room
in this row - I had extra space, but Sheila is not much taller than I am yet her
knees were hitting the back of the seat in front of her. A couple guys further
down the row were sitting sideways, and we all laughed watching other people
come in, try to sit down, and then move to another row. It reminded me of a
candid camera set-up <g>. The movie started, and by a little after 11 I'd
had enough. I was tired, realized it wasn't a movie I would like, and didn't
want to be there until 12:30 since we're going to the 7:15 exercise class.
Sheila decided to leave also - she thought the movie was just too weird.
She went out on deck 4 briefly and I went back to the cabin. I finished up
the report while she did some reading, and it was lights out by around midnight.
Today was a fun day, despite less than ideal weather. We did a LOT of walking,
and other exercise, did some relaxing, and enjoyed dinner with our table mates.
I'll most likely be booking another 7-day cruise the Monday I get back -
being on the ship makes me uncomfortable not having the next one booked, and
Sheila's available so it looks like December 2004 we'll do the eastern itinerary
again. I'll pack warm clothes for the ship's indoor areas next time - it's
positively freezing here!
DAY 3 MONDAY NOVEMBER 10, 2003:
Plan: At Sea
Actual: I'd set the alarm for 6:30, knowing our Tone Zone class started at
7:15 up in the Vista Spa. I'm not sure I was sound asleep at that time, but the
alarm definitely feel like it came way too early! I got up and started getting
ready, so I'd be out of the way for Sheila to do the same. The sun came up
but the clouds obscured most of the view - when I came out of the bathroom
Sheila was sitting up in her bed watching the sunrise. A little after 7 we made
the climb up to the Vista Spa for the class, in order to be sure to get in. It was a pretty big group today - I'd say at least a dozen
people, which for this tiny spa is a lot!
The class was good - not too strenuous but we felt the muscles working.
Afterwards Sheila got some lemon water in the spa (just water with lemon slices)
while I worked out with the free weights for a short while. After
that we went down to deck 4 and walked a mile, then returned to the stateroom to
gather up our stuff for the day & change into swimsuits.
We set up our chairs on deck 10 forward by the adult pool. It was pretty
cloudy, but eventually the sun took over. We had a fairly big breakfast at
Topsiders and were up at our chairs by shortly after 9. We alternated between
sitting in the pool and relaxing/reading on our lounge chairs. We met a really
nice couple from Michigan and ended up talking dvc with them before he went off
to the DVC presentation. Eventually Sheila moved into the shade, and a little
later I did the same. I got a small ice cream cone and then around 1:45 returned
to the stateroom to take a shower and rinse out my swimsuit. She returned
shortly after 2 with a plate of chocolate chip cookies, and got cleaned up for
our 2:30 wine tasting.
Disney has a wine tasting activity today, also at 2:30, but our is an
informal gathering of people from the DIS board. We agreed to bring wine and
meet on deck 7 aft, which is a small deck most passengers don't know about. We
had about 12 people, and 12 bottles of wine! David hosted the event, and we
tried each wine as a group as David or the person who brought it explained the
history of the wine. David also was very knowledgeable about wine in general -
it was actually educational as well as fun. By the time we finished though, we
were staggering <g> after 2 straight hours of drinking wine!
Sheila went down to the stateroom to sleep hers off, while I decided to walk
around deck 4 to walk mine off! I kept stumbling and tripping walking on the
marble flooring - thank goodness nobody was around to see me! I did a mile out
on deck 4, then returned to the stateroom to get my book and go sit up in the
shade to do some reading. I came back around 5:15 and washed my hair & got
dressed for the evening. Palo serves my favorite wine - I hope I can manage to
drink a glass without my face falling into my plate tonight!
We headed up to Palo shortly before 6 and were seated right away. This is
such a lovely restaurant, and the service and food is always excellent. Our
table was by the window and we had a view of the sky changing color for about 20
minutes or so before it got dark. For an appetizer we both got
the buffalo mozzarella and tomato thing, which was excellent. I'd asked about my
Moscato wine, but they confirmed the entire ship is out of it so I stuck with
water. For my entrée I got the filet mignon with port wine reduction and
gorgonzola cheese sauce. It was delicious, but huge. I doubt I ate half of it,
but it was plenty. The presentation was terrific, too.
Sheila got the chicken stuffed with shrimp scampi, and our server also brought
us the special pasta of the day - penne pasta with chicken
& sun dried tomatoes in a blue cheese crème sauce. Everything was great!
For dessert I had the chocolate hazelnut souffle with chocolate and vanilla bean
sauces, Sheila got the cappuccino cheesecake, and I also asked him to bring the
pistachio tart with berry compote - to which he added a scoop of pistachio
gelato. We didn't finish anything but had more than enough to eat! The pistachio
thing was really good - a light, flaky crust and inside was a layer of pistachio
topped with a layer of berries. All in all it was a
wonderful meal - definitely the best food on the ship.
After dinner we checked out the cocktail party but the free drinks were mai
tais or Shirley Temples. Wine wasn't an option, so we skipped the drink. We
watched people lining up for portraits with the characters in formal wear, and
were dismayed at the number of slobs who were wearing shorts or jeans despite
all the documentation asking them not to. Of course, it's Disney's fault for
allowing it. Most people looked really nice, and the little kids in tuxedos or
suits were adorable. The under-dressed crowd did detract from the overall
atmosphere.
We went to the 8:30 show in the Walt Disney Theater. For the first time,
Disney has brought a show on the ship that is not a Disney show - and it sounds
like it's very recent (maybe this is the first cruise???). It's Siegfried and
Roy present Darren Romeo, the voice of Magic. We didn't know what to expect, but
it ended up being fabulous! Darren Romeo is this cute young guy with a great
singing voice who also does terrific theatrical magic tricks. He seems very
personable, and one section of the show was a montage of impressions of a wide
variety of singers - usually parodying the words to their song. His black
leather pants and little black tank top were the perfect costume for him, too
<g>. He got a standing ovation when the show ended, which was definitely
well deserved. They had him set up for an autograph session shortly after the
show, but we didn't stick around for that.
We went back to the stateroom and found a towel elephant waiting for us.
Neither of us wanted to put up with the smoke in Rockin' Bar D, so although the
cabaret show is no doubt very good, we'll skip it. It's a shame they allow
smoking in the bars where there are shows - I can see designating a bar for
smokers to smoke and listen to music, because there's also one set aside for
non-smokers. It's times like this the Carnival Paradise starts to look good, lol
--but I want to stick with HAL and Disney. We decided to make it an early night,
and just did some reading the stateroom.
It's been a glorious day - nice weather, very relaxing, nice people all
around. This is what cruising is all about!
DAY 4 TUESDAY NOVEMBER 11, 2003:
Plan: Grand Cayman
Actual: I was up early again (6:20), with Sheila up shortly after that. We'd
anchored at Grand Cayman by 6:45 and it looked to be another gorgeous day.
Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Sea came in after we got here. We got
dressed and headed up to deck 4 to walk 6 laps (2 miles) for a while before our
8am Hollywood Arms & Abs class. There were only 6 of us in class today,
which was to be expected since we're already in port. The class was pretty easy
compared to the others - I would have liked for it to be longer to get more work
done.
After class we went to Topsiders and had breakfast out on deck. There are 6
cruise ships in port today, so it should be VERY crowded in Grand Cayman! We've
got an Oceana ship, Carnival Inspiration, NCL, Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the
Seas, Celebrity and us. We changed into our swimsuits and got our beach bags
packed, then headed up to get tender tickets about 9:30. I was pleased to find
no wait/delay at all. We got our passes and immediately boarded the tender. The
tenders hold quite a few people, and soon we were on our way to Grand Cayman.
With 6 ships in port the island was a total zoo. People were shoulder to
shoulder, and it was just nuts. At the end of the pier a guy was asking who
wanted to go to Seven Mile Beach, so we and a family from NJ took his taxi
(minivan) for the hair-raising ride to the beach. They drive on the other side
of the road here, and just like on most of the islands the roads are narrow and
the drivers are wild. I don't think I'd ever rent a car here. He dropped us off
at the Hyatt, and instructed us on how to walk to their beach and turn right - which put us on a condo's beach but nobody bothered us. The
fare was only $3/person each way, which was about as cheap a beach day as you
can ever hope for!
We spread out our towels - Sheila in the shade, I started in the sun. The
water was gorgeous and the beach was clean & uncrowded. We'd arranged with
the driver to come back for all of us at 12:30, so we had just about 2.5 hours
to relax. He was right on time waiting for us when we returned, and took us back
to the cruise ship docks. Our dock had a huge mass of people standing in a very
disorganized line, and we overheard someone saying it was a 45-minute wait from
where she was. It turned out to be the line for the tender back to NCL's ship.
It was horrible - poor people standing in the hot sun waiting up to an
hour or more for a damn ride back to their ship - what an awful way to spend
your vacation.
We wandered around a little bit, but it was too crowded and we decided to
just head back to the ship. We found a couple of pirate statues and posed for
touristy pictures --one of them was Big Black Dick, which we giggled over
<g>. The duty free liquor place (Tortuga) doesn't deliver to the Magic,
and since they have to deliver what they sell, we weren't able to buy anything.
I'm not sure why, and don't really care - we just thought it was odd.
We walked back to the pier and bypassed all those poor NCL souls (why anyone
would cruise NCL is beyond me - this is just further proof I won't be repeating
a cruise with them) and walked right onto our waiting tender for the ride back
to our ship. Aaaah - that's how it's supposed to be! We stopped at the stateroom
for a minute, then I updated the report while Sheila went up to walk around on
deck 4. I headed up there when I finished on the computer.
I walked a mile on deck 4, then walked around up on deck 10 taking some
pictures. At scoops I got some peanut m&m's without any ice cream and then
got a magazine from the stateroom and sat in the shade on deck 4 to read. At 3 I
returned to the stateroom hoping to catch General Hospital, but they didn't have
ABC operating. I worked out, then met up with Sheila back at the stateroom.
We decided to shower & get cleaned up before the Castaway Club reception
rather than afterwards, since we were so grungy. The show tonight is Hercules,
and neither of us are interested in attending again.
Around 4:45 we went up on deck to watch our ship sail away from Grand Cayman.
There were only 2 other ships with us at this point - the others left without
our realizing it. We left at 5, setting sail for Cozumel. At 5:15 we went
downstairs to Beat Street and joined the Castaway Club reception. This cruise
there were almost 900 repeat cruisers on board, so they set receptions up in
Rockin' Bar D and Sessions. We grabbed a table and asked the waiter for wine
instead of the drinks they were serving - he brought us each a glass of white
wine. I got a plate of hors d'oeuvres for us to share - coconut shrimp for
Sheila and eggrolls and wantons for the both of us. It was all good, and hit the
spot since I hadn't really eaten since breakfast. In no time at all the wine had
gone to our heads, so we did the responsible thing and flagged down another
waiter to get a 2nd glass before the reception ended <g>. Hey, free wine
is not something to pass up on a cruise!
We were among the last to leave, and went to sit upstairs on deck 4 inside
with our wine. We watched people walk by, talked to the cruise booker, talked
briefly to the dvc person, and chatted away the next hour or so. After early
dinner let out, the area became really hectic - way too many people, characters
& kids - so we left! We went up to deck 9 to get some ice to chill our wine
(classy broads always put ice cubes in their wine <g>) and then sat in
Cove Café until it was time for dinner. I really like this venue - too bad
we're eating dinner at night, as this would be a great place to sit & have
an alcoholic (high-calorie) coffee drink in lieu of a real
dinner.
At 8:30 we went to our dinner at Lumiere's - tonight is the Small World menu.
Our table mates are great, and we're enjoying their company at dinner. I ordered
the quesadilla appetizer, which was ok but not great. It was larger than I
expected, so I barely ate half of it. Sheila got the scallops appetizer, which
she said was very good. I also had the chilled cucumber soup, which was somewhat
bland but good. Sheila had the chicken fettucini alfredo, which was very good
but a huge portion. I skipped the entrée and had an appetizer greek salad,
which was also very good. One of our tablemates had the prime rib, and
declared it the best prime rib ever. For dessert Sheila got the rather ordinary
chocolate torte, and ate the top layer. I got the sugar free strawberry
shortcake because nothing appealed to me. The apple pie was the most popular
item at our table, but I knew the portion was way to big so I didn't order it.
After we ate our desserts our serving team and PJ (head waiter) came over and
brought me a birthday cake, getting everyone to sing to me. PJ is such a trip -
very nice guy, but absolutely flaming - which makes him a lot of fun! He kissed
me - figures it's the gay guy, but what the heck! The cake got wrapped up in a
big aluminum foil swan and brought back to the stateroom for some other time (or
it may end up in the trash, with all the other food available).
We went back to the stateroom after dinner and I updated the report while
Sheila read tomorrow's Navigator. She was laughing at me on the way to the
stateroom, saying she couldn't believe after all these cruises (this is my 6th
on Disney) I still can't figure out the difference between
forward and aft. I'm constantly headed in the wrong direction, until I hear
Sheila say something. For some reason I get turned around easily on these ships!
We headed upstairs for the 10:30 showing of Under the Tuscan Sun, careful not
to select the back row this time! The movie looked really good - I enjoyed what
I saw of it, but kept nodding off. Finally about an hour into the movie I just
went back to the stateroom to go to bed. I enjoyed what I saw of the movie, but
was exhausted. Tonight we turn our clocks back an hour, then tomorrow night we
turn them forward again. So, we get an extra hour of sleep tonight and lose an
hour tomorrow night.
Today was another wonderful day. Spending a couple of hours at Seven Mile
Beach was fun, and worth doing once. I think next time I'll just stay on the
ship, though - it's easier and just as relaxing. Grand Cayman is cleaner and not
as poor as many of the islands, but since I'm not a snorkeler or diver, there
really isn't anything I need to see or do on the island. I'm here to enjoy the
ship, and to enjoy cruising, so not being nuts about Grand Cayman or Key West
isn't a problem at all and doesn't take away from my enjoyment of this cruise.
The only thing I really don't like is the cruise is over half finished at this
point - we're going to hate leaving on Saturday!
DAY 5 WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 12, 2003:
Plan: Cozumel, Mini-golf tournament
Actual: With the time change, the sun was shining brightly through the window
before 6am. I woke up, expecting it to be much later, but it was barely after 6.
Eventually I looked over at Sheila's side of the cabin, and she was sitting up
awake in her bed, too - so we decided to start the day!
We got cleaned up & dressed, then did 2 miles on deck 4. The fitness
class today was a "stretch and relax", and I go to classes to work,
not relax. I can relax in bed or on a lounge chair, lol! The ship was rolling
quite a bit this morning - I noticed it when I woke up and my bed was rolling
from side to side. I enjoy the movement though - makes me feel like I'm on a
cruise ship! Walking was a challenge - we looked drunk, but it was just the ship
moving beneath our feet. After walking we headed to Topsider's for breakfast,
knowing we weren't going to eat a regular lunch. I'm not sure I'll last today,
since I had a small pancake and thing of yogurt, which doesn't stick with you as
long as a bacon/egg meal. There are always food options available if I'm hungry
when Sheila isn't though.
After breakfast we walked around on decks 9 & 10, looking for land. We
could see some way off in the distance, but it seemed strange the ship was
moving so slowly when we had so much ground to cover by all ashore time. Our
arrival time is 10 am, but there are people on excursions getting off starting
at 9:40 - not sure how they'll do that (hold your nose and
jump from deck 4??). We returned to the stateroom to drop off the orange juice
we'd taken from Topsiders - to be used for mimosas later in the cruise when we
open the bottle of champagne.
I changed into shore clothes, packed up the bag I planned to bring with me
(mostly to tote back whatever I buy), then headed up to deck 4. Docking was
amazingly smooth - even when the ship hits the bumpers you cannot feel it. We're
next to Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas, the NCL ship is in the 3rd
spot, and Celebrity Century is anchored out in the water and will have to tender
their passengers in. There are also 5 more ships down at the other dock, 3
miles outside of town. Those passengers will have to take a cab to get down here
to the shopping. No HAL ships are in port today - but I think 3 from Carnival.
We walked across the street and began the trek up the street past all of the
shops. We only went into the big ones, and skipped the small ones. Neither of us
like having shopkeepers standing in the doorway trying to lure you inside. One
man in a busy marketplace actually came over and touched me, which surprised me.
He jumped right back where he came from, almost as soon as he did it.
We mostly browsed our way up the street, going as far as Cinco del Sol, the
started the real shopping. My arms hurt from carrying my bag! I got a big bottle
of kahlua for Tim, Christmas ornaments for people at work, coffee for someone at
work, some peanut & almond candy for people, a pretty fish for my desk, and
a shirt for Chris.
We decided to skip the mini-golf thing. Partly we thought it would be too
hot, and partly we thought we were running out of time and we had no idea where
it was, anyway! No way was a lugging my heavy bag of stuff while golfing, so we
agreed to miss it. We were going to go to Carlos & Charlie's, since it's an
institution here in Cozumel. The guy tried to seat us - at a table already
occupied with a smoker and her husband. It's so popular they seat every seat,
and it doesn't matter if it's 2 unrelated parties or not. That wouldn't have
been a problem, but no way in hell are we sitting indoors with a smoking smoker.
Plus, the music was blaring - it's a real party place, but a bit more than we
had in mind. We ended up leaving, figuring the idea of drinking there is
definitely more fun than the reality!
We found a nice new shopping area right by the ship and wandered through
there before returning to board the Magic. After dropping our stuff in the cabin
we decided to get coffee drinks up at Cove Café. We climbed the 7 flights of
stairs, and found it's not open! Ugh - we later checked the Navigator and
evidently because we're in port it's not open until this evening. Oh well, we
had to make do with the champagne and orange juice. Of course, neither of us
knows how to make a mimosa, so we ended up with 2 very different drinks. I took the one that was more champagne, and Sheila took the one that was
more orange juice. Neither are very good, lol! We'll have to get a shot of
raspberry liqueur later. We used a knife to cut the cork down some in order to
recork the bottle and put it back in the fridge.
We took our mimosas up on deck 4 and did some reading. It's so fabulous
lounging around on a beautiful cruise ship, surrounded by other cruise ships -
this is the life! When my mimosa was gone I got up and walked a mile, then
returned the glasses to the stateroom. I went up to the spa to use the free
weights, then put a load of laundry in to wash and did a short workout during
that time. The machines here are small, but they tell you exactly how many
minutes are left until your load is done, which is a nice feature. The
laundromat is so busy, I didn't want to be rude by having my clothes finished
but still occupying a washer or dryer. Speaking of rude - what is up with people
taking pool towels back to their staterooms and then tossing them out into the
hall when finished??? I swear, we're floating with a ship full of pigs or
something sometimes - either leave the damn towel with the others in your cabin
for the steward to take care of, or haul your lazy butt back up to deck 9 and
return it yourself! Sheesh!
I finished up my laundry, after a short wait for a dryer. I passed the time
talking to a guy about what we each did in Cozumel, so it wasn't too bad. Sheila
& I started our showers and got dressed for the evening. Tonight is
MEXICALifragilisticexpialidocious night, with the same menu in every dining room
and a deck party later on. The show tonight is the movie Brother
Bear - neither of us are interested in sitting through a
cartoon with a theater full of kids. We need more entertainment like the Darren
Romeo, or anything not geared towards a 5-year old. We didn't bring any Mexican
clothing to wear, but will probably see quite a bit tonight. We passed a little
girl earlier who had a beautiful dress she must have gotten on Cozumel today -
very pretty.
We headed upstairs to Sessions (same location as Cadillac Lounge on the
Wonder) since it's adult-only all of the time. We figured if any
bar had chambourd, this would be it since they specialize in cognac and
champagne drinks. The bartender was very nice, and explained how to make a kir
royale. We bought 2 shots of chambourd, which should last for the bottle of
champagne. We mixed up a couple in the cabin, and they turned out excellent! We
brought them back up to Sessions and sat at a table by the window. They've got
these cool headphone things like in Virgin Megastore, where you can listen to
any cd you want. They've got 76 cd's loaded in there, representing all types of
music. I saw the same thing in Cove Café - pretty nice. One of the piano
players started work, and he was pretty good - definitely not a Carol Stein, but
ok as background music.
When we finished our drinks I swapped the dirty champagne glasses for clean
ones and ran them down to the stateroom. We still had about 20 minutes to kill
before dinner, so Sheila stayed & waited for me up in Sessions until I
returned. When it was time we headed up a deck to Animator's Plate for our 8:30 dinner.
Tonight we were joined by 2 people who missed their dinner. Kim & Millie
were a mother/daughter (adults) who were on the ruins tour with our tablemates
Dennis & Janet. Our other couple wasn't feeling well and left before dinner
was brought out, but the 6 of us remaining had a really
nice time. They had sangria on the menu tonight, so of course I ordered a glass
- it was delicious! I had the cheese arepas appetizer, and really liked them.
It's cornmeal and cheese, with just a tiny bit of spiciness. Sheila got the crab
& lobster fritters, followed by the taco salad. She said the fritters didn't
have enough crab & lobster in them, and the taco salad was spicy but good.
For an entrée she got the grilled sirloin steak, which was kind of tough and
nothing special. I couldn't handle an entrée again tonight, so I had the
appetizer caesar salad with chicken on top - pretty boring choice on my part!
For dessert we both got the white chocolate cheesecake on hazelnut crust. It was
a little round thing - not as heavy as regular cheesecake, but still plenty
filling! It was very good.
After dinner it was 10:15 so we went out on deck 4 and watched the last
stragglers board the ship, then watched us cast off from Cozumel at 11. It was a
gorgeous night out there - nice breeze, pretty lights, etc. We were the only
ship that stayed into the evening, which I thought was strange.
We headed back to the stateroom to turn the clock forward an hour, reversing
what we did last night (what was the point in that for 1 day??). I finished up
the report and then did a little reading while Sheila watched the news on tv.
Today was another terrific day. Skipping mini-golf was the right decision for
us - if it had been scheduled for first thing when we arrived we would have been
more likely to do it. Hopefully the people who showed up had a great time! I
always enjoy shopping in Cozumel for some reason, even though I hate people
accosting me on the street like they do here. Having 9 cruise ships in port on
the same day is WAY too much - that's just plain ridiculous! We're lucky we had
one of the 3 good spots, otherwise we'd have been tendering in or taking a cab
to get to the shops. We also improved our minds today with the lesson on how to
make kir royales <g> - a skill that will certainly come in handy!
DAY 6 THURSDAY NOVEMBER 13, 2003:
Plan: At Sea
Actual: Today is our final sea day, and we had lots of relaxing to fit in
(tough life, huh). I was up around 7 and got dressed to do some walking. Sheila
was awake when I left, so I let her know where I was going and she met me later. Since I'm planning to walk the Disney half marathon in
2005 and you need to average 15 minute-miles in order to
finish in time to get a medal, I wanted to see what my normal time was. I
brought a clock and timed the first mile - between 16
& 16.5 minutes. That was disappointing, but the wind is very strong today
and on one side of the ship I'm walking straight into it. Hopefully I'll get a
better time tomorrow when the ship is standing still.
Sheila met me as I finished the 4th lap, and we decided to walk at her normal
pace and time her mile. It was 18 minutes with the wind. After we finished her
mile we went back to the stateroom and changed into our swimsuits, then went up
to deck 10 to set up our lounge chairs. Holy cow - it was so windy it was hard
to walk up here! We dragged a couple of chairs behind a wall, but that wasn't
enough to really provide shelter. We dropped our stuff on the chairs and went to
have breakfast, figuring we'd deal with it later.
Breakfast was at Topsider's - it's so nice eating outside on the deck, along
the railing. I can't imagine eating inside a restaurant when this is available.
They had french toast again today so I got some of that and my usual apple
sliced & spread with peanut butter. While we were eating I thought of the
hidden deck on deck 7 aft, and we decided to try that instead.
We went back to deck 10 to retrieve our stuff and return the lounge chairs to
their proper place, then went down to 7. It was windy here, but nowhere near as
bad as up on decks 9 or 10. We lounged on our chairs, dozed a little, did lots
of reading, and ended up spending 4 hours out there. I was shocked when a mother
and 2 young girls came out and each kid threw an empty gatorade bottle
overboard. I think they'd put a note in it or something - romantic thought, but
it's littering and shouldn't be done! Guess the "don't throw anything
overboard" rule doesn't apply to everyone, sadly. We had other people come
out to use the deck from time to time, but they were all really quiet and just
enjoyed the solitude out there.
Around 1:30 we went up to deck 9, where I got a slice of cheese pizza and
Sheila got a plate of french fries. I also got us a small german chocolate thing
that we shared. The lunch was a seafood buffet, with lots of big shrimp, crab
legs, and other stuff I know Sheila likes, but I don't think she wanted that
much to eat. When we finished we escaped the bedlam on deck 9 and headed down to
find chairs on deck 4. Once we had those, I ran back to the stateroom to update
the report, then returned to join Sheila. We sat there reading and watching the
people passing by.
We moved to the less windy side, but were continuously sprayed with salt
water from the waves. We lasted perhaps an hour, and went back to the stateroom around 3. Between the wind and the salt spray our hair was pretty
much standing on end, and feeling really gross! While Sheila showered I walked
up to deck 9 to replenish our little peanut m&m bowl. The line at scoops was
huge, and when I finally got up there I saw the m&m's were almost gone, so I
made the trip for about 10 pieces of candy, lol! Oh well - perhaps it's a sign I
don't need to be eating them! On the way up and back I noticed how busy the ship
was - lots of people were out & about (fully dressed -
not swimsuits), and the hordes of children were everywhere. They were sliding
down the railings on the staircases, climbing poles on deck 9, jumping down the
stairs, running wild darting between people. Sadly, while some of these children
were unsupervised, in several cases the idiot parents stood there watching their
behavior but not correcting them. I wonder if these same parents would be the
first to sue Disney when their little darling falls of the railing she's sliding
down.
I got back to the stateroom just as Sheila had put on some warm clothes. With
the wind it actually feels a little cool. She went up to deck 4 to browse
through the shops, while I went in and took my shower. We watched Legally Blonde
2 on the tv - cute movie. Around 5 I went upstairs to deck 9 and brought back
a cappuccino for me and hot chocolate for Sheila. We both needed something warm,
and I was surprised how cool it felt up there! With a little of the birthday
cake the warm drinks hit the spot.
Around 6:30 we started getting dressed for dinner - tonight is semi-formal,
which we're treating the same as formal night. It's the Captain's Gala Dinner,
served in all 3 restaurants. We'll be in Parrot Cay - our first time, since we
were in Palo last time we were scheduled here. Our tablemate Janet has been
asking about the warm chocolate lava cake since the first night, so she'll
finally get to experience it tonight. Dennis has been looking forward to lobster
(Sheila too), so he'll have that tonight.
We mixed up a couple of kir royales and took them up to Promenade Lounge
since it's the only non-smoking lounge. The champagne is holding up very well
with our makeshift cork in the bottle, and we've got enough for tomorrow night
as well. As we were ready to go I noticed a run up the back of my pantyhose - yikes!! I think the rough tile floor in
the bathroom must have snagged it, and since I'm wearing all black tonight they
had to come off! Luckily I had another pair, so it worked out fine. I'm wearing
the same dress I wore to Palo, but with different jewelry.
It's simple, skintight, and probably not memorable as having been worn before
unless you're a lesbian from Ft Lauderdale <g>. Sheila wore a sparkly dark
blue dress - very pretty.
The Promenade Lounge was quite busy - it seems many guests prefer a
non-smoking venue to enjoy a drink before or after dinner. We chatted with one
of the servers (Petra) until it got too busy for her to hang out with us. The
entertainment started at 7:30 - a singing duo who were pretty awful the other
night but tonight they did a nice job. They even got a guy from the audience up
on stage to play the electric guitar with them, and he did really well. They
played a lot of songs from the 60's, and several people got up and danced.
Overall it was a nice way to spend an hour or so before dinner. We also had a
great view of the people passing by, and it was fun seeing that most people were
dressed nicely.
We headed to Parrot Cay at 8:30, and joined our table mates. There's not much
on this menu other than chocolate lava cake that appeals to me, but I ordered
the fruit cocktail appetizer and grain fed chicken breast entrée. The fruit was
weird stuff - pineapple, mango & something else I don't really eat. The
chicken breast was delicious, and appeared to be from the Dolly Parton Chicken
Farm - it was huge! Even though I ate more tonight than other nights, there was
a lot left and for the first time our server thought I didn't like it. He wanted
to bring me something else, but I was definitely not hungry! Sheila got the
shrimp appetizer, and lobster tail entrée. The lobster was great, especially
since they take it out of the shell for people. Dessert was warm chocolate lava
cake - what can I say, this thing is an orgasm on a plate! I think it's better
than the souffle at Palo, but unfortunately it's only available on the 7-night
cruises. Definitely don't miss it if you like chocolate at all.
After dinner our server Pirom talked to us for a while, giving us some behind
the scenes information about the ship and how thing are run in the kitchen. He
was very interesting - it's amazingly efficient on any cruise ship, and Disney
is no exception. We left eventually, and went back to the stateroom to find a
monkey wearing my sunglasses, hanging from the divider between the bed area and
sofa area - very cute!
The gala dessert buffet (chocolate) starts at 11:15 tonight, but neither of
us are interested in eating anything so soon after chocolate lava cake
<g>. I thought about going up myself just to take pictures of it, but the
thought of getting changed & crawling into bed sounded more appealing! Today
was another wonderful day - cruising is so terrific! Even with the high winds
and skipping most of the activities (or perhaps BECAUSE of skipping most of the activities) it was a really nice relaxing day - just what a
vacation should be.
Tomorrow is our last full day, and we'll be at Castaway Cay.
DAY 7 FRIDAY NOVEMBER 14, 2003:
Plan: Castaway Cay
Actual: I got up around 6:30 and headed out to get cappuccino and try to do
some walking while Sheila was getting ready. Up on deck 9 it was very windy - the awnings next to the Goofy pool were making a lot of noise
flapping in the wind. According to the tv, today's winds are higher than
yesterday's (gale force). I tried deck 4, but one entire side was getting wet
with a steady mist of sea water, so I didn't last very long there. Sheila was
almost finished getting ready when I returned to the
stateroom so we hung out watching the weather information on the tv until it was
time to head to the Vista Spa for the 7:45 Tone Zone
class.
The class was very good - then we stopped in the gym briefly so I could use
the free weights. The class did a lot of upper body stuff today, so I didn't do
much with the weights. We went down to the stateroom and changed into our
swimsuits, packed our beach bags, and headed up to deck 9 for breakfast at
Topsider's. We were docking at Castaway Cay, and from the stateroom watched us
pull into the dock.
Breakfast was busier and noiser than normal, which was expected. It's been
nice all week, but if it had been like today I think we would have done room
service instead! When we finished eating they announced the ship had been
cleared, so we went ashore. Unlike September, the weather was absolutely perfect
today - bright blue sky and no threatening clouds. A brisk breeze kept it from
getting too hot, also. We walked to the far end of the family beach and grabbed
a couple of chairs and an umbrella there. It was nice in the beginning, but
once more people came it wasn't very relaxing. We were amazed at the number of
nasty people in foul moods - bitching at their spouses, telling their children
"I'm sick of you", and even one lovely mother who pulled her sissy
crying son aside while telling him "remember, you can't trust your
father". Seems dad had splashed some water or sand near the boy and that
got him crying like a baby (he was around 8 - didn't appear disabled, but surely
will be beaten up by bullies on a regular basis if this keeps up). Serenity Bay
(adult beach) probably would have
been more peaceful, but we were already set up here and didn't want to move.
At the Head's Up Bar someone got married. It was so funny to be on the beach
and hear the bridal march being played, lol! We didn't go over to see the
wedding, since it's none of our business - but hopefully the couple had a nice
ceremony.
Around 12:30 we packed up our stuff and went to Cookie's BBQ for lunch. I got
a couple of ribs but one was too fatty to eat and the other only had a few bites
of meat - not good at all. I ate a little potato salad (I liked it better than
Sheila did), and one of their delicious and huge chocolate chunk cookies. Sheila
had a hotdog and cookie - neither of us wanted to eat too much, but at the same
time those cookies can't be passed up!
We stopped in the shop on the island and bought a couple of things, talked to
our tablemates Dennis & Janet, and then walked back to the ship. I went up
to deck 4 to see how long my mile walk takes without the wind, but it was still
16 minutes. Sheila came up to read on deck 4, so after my mile I sat with her
and finished my book. I don't have time to read at home, so I was glad to finish
all 3 books this trip. Shortly before 3 I went down to the stateroom and began
packing while watching General Hospital.
Mickey & Minnie and Chip & Dale were right outside our window, posing
for pictures with guests on the dock. Sheila came back around 3:30, saying it
had gotten chilly in the shade up on deck. After GH I took my shower before
continuing to pack stuff up. At 5:00 the ship was ready to sail away for the
last time, so we went up to deck 4 to watch us cast off and begin the sad
journey back to Florida.
It was really chilly up on deck - we were wishing we'd brought sweatshirts to
wear, and will remember them for December 2004! We watched the sunset from
inside where it was warmer, figuring if it got colorful I'd run outside to take
a photo. It ended up being a very bland sunset, though - not photo worthy. We
stopped by the Promenade Lounge and picked up a couple of empty champagne
glasses from Petra, and promised to come back a little later to visit with her.
We'll wait until after 6, when the first seating people will have cleared out to
go to dinner.
Back in the stateroom we finished getting ready for the evening, and made kir
royals with the last of the chambourd and champagne. There was barely enough for
a half-size glass for each of us, but I figured I could get something else
later. It's been great having the champagne and chambourd here in the stateroom.
We filled out the guest comment card, and then went upstairs to the Promenade
Lounge. We talked to Petra when she had time - she reminds me of my friend
Nancy, except with a British accent. The lounge was very busy again tonight, and
everyone was enjoying themselves. It was a nice evening.
At 8:30 we went into Lumiere's for our final dinner. Tonight was the
"Best of" menu, which is also served on the last night of the 4-night
cruises on the Wonder. I got the chicken tenderloin appetizer, which is
wonderful! I'd like this as my meal - maybe next time. Sheila got the crawfish
& lobster bisque, which she said was good. We all got the filet mignon and
lasagna roll entrée. The lasagna was very small, but plenty considering all the
rest of the food - and it tasted very good. The filet was
also good, but I'm not much of a beef eater. Kim & Willie from the other
night came and joined us for coffee, since we have 2 empty seats at our table -
it was nice seeing them again. For dessert Sheila got the deep dish
apple-cranberry pie, which she said was very good. I got the chocolate
decadence, which was just ok - not worth the calories. We said goodbye our
tablemates and after a quick browse through the shops we headed back to the
stateroom to get the luggage put out. We thought about one last walk around the
deck, but it was too windy and we didn't feel like getting sprayed with sea
water again.
It's hard to believe the cruise is just about over. Today was a great day -
everyone we talked to loved the day at Castaway Cay, which is pretty typical.
It's a shame Patty wasn't here this cruise, as the weather was absolutely
perfect this time. Tomorrow we'll get off the ship, and after a stop at the Food
& Wine Festival in Epcot I'll be driving home. The final installment and
link to photos will be published in a day or 2.
DAY 8 SATURDAY NOVEMBER 15, 2003:
Plan: Leave Magic, Food & Wine Festival, Drive home
Actual: As is typical on the final morning of the cruise, I woke up early. It
was actually 5:15 and we were already docked at Port Canaveral. There's not much
to do at that hour, so I slept off and on until getting up around 6:30 or so. I
went up to make my cappuccino and agreed to meet Sheila on deck 4. The Zaandam
was just getting back into port, so I watched her back into her slip. A dolphin
was leading the way, popping out of the water repeatedly.
We'd decided to skip breakfast in the Lumiere's in favor of grabbing a little
something at Topsider. The restaurants are just too crowded on the last morning,
especially since people have some of their luggage with them. It's not worth
the hassle to end the cruise with such an unpleasant experience! We headed up to
Topsider about 7:30 and I got a ½ bagel for breakfast. Sheila had a few of the
banana mini-loaf things from Cookies BBQ yesterday, so she was all set. We sat
out on deck and had a quiet breakfast, then about 8am we strolled off the ship
with no wait, saw our luggage sitting there and rolled it out to the car. It
couldn't have taken more than 5 minutes to exit, retrieve the luggage, and exit
the building. Quite a change from my earlier Disney cruises where I was stuck in
a mob of people inching my way to the terminal, searching through hundreds of
bags for my luggage, and then standing in line to get through customs again!
We were on the road by 8:15, and arrived at WDW by 9:15. We laughed when we
saw my mylar birthday baloon was still inflated and still floating in Sheila's
car! It's 11 days old now! Sheila decided to make a stop at Downtown Disney and
head home, while I decided I might as well stick around for 1 last opportunity
at Food & Wine. I walked from the Swan to Epcot, and since World Showcase
wasn't open yet I went to Future World. I walked right onto the Living with
the Land ride, then did Spaceship Earth and Test Track. It seems ironic that I
did more in the parks this morning than I did the 4 days preceding the cruise,
lol!
After Test Track it was just past 11, so I headed towards France for one of
those great goat cheese & tomato tarts. It was delicious, but I think a week
of cruise-ship eating left me filled up, as it was a challenge to finish the
darn thing. I also tried the Sparr Alsace One wine, which was very good. I don't
normally like French wine, but this was sweet enough that I'd actually order it
again next year. I sat on a quiet shady bench to enjoy the food & wine, and
when finished headed back towards Canada and the Spain booth. There I bought a
couple of bottles of the sangria, since I never did find it locally last year.
At the cognac stand I got one last piece of the flourless chocolate lava cake -
yummy! That concluded Food & Wine for me for 2003, but I'm looking forward
to 2004 already! I walked back to the Swan and made the 3-hour drive home with
no problems.
SUMMARY:
It was a wonderful trip, and a great cruise! Except for some hot/humid/cloudy
weather in Key West early in the week, the other days were pretty close to
perfect! We really enjoyed relaxing and not running to see the shows or take
part in other scheduled events, and didn't feel like we were missing a thing. We
got lucky this time with our dinner companions - they made the evening meal
something to look forward to, which is how it's supposed to be on a cruise. You
just never know until you get there, though <g>. I think we did a pretty
good job avoiding kids where possible. We did run across a few who were in
monster-mode, and not surprisingly we ran across several parents who made us
realize why the monster kids were out of control <g>. For the most part
though, the majority of the kids and other adults on board
were very nice - having fun, but not behaving badly or out of line. We enjoyed
watching the boys in their tuxedos and suits on formal nights, and the little
girls with their hair braided and pretty dresses. Some of them were just
adorable! I still wouldn't cruise with one, though - not unless they were at
least 10-12 years old, but that's my choice. Although I don't consider Disney
the top cruise line in the industry, it's clearly the best choice for people who
DO cruise with their young kids. Thank goodness they also do a good job
providing a nice vacation for those of us who choose to cruise without kids.
I'll be headed back to WDW in just 9 days - spending 3 nights at All Star
Movies over Thanksgiving since I have a long weekend from work. I don't have any
more Disney cruises booked at this point, but expect to remedy that situation
fairly soon, once I nail down some plans I'm thinking of for 2004.
CRUISE HIGHLIGHTS:
· Tablemates - we've had some clunkers in the past, but this cruise we got
lucky, with friendly talkative normal people! Dinner was a pleasure each
night.
· Dining Room team - our servers were terrific, taking care of our needs
without being intrusive. They appear to enjoy their jobs, which makes a big
difference!
· Skipping shows in favor of relaxing was a great decision. We only saw the
new show, since we've seen the others before. It was so nice having that time to
just sit back with a glass of wine and champagne and do some
people-watching.
· Cabin 2098 worked really well for us. We were closer to the aft staircase
than midship, so we usually headed in that direction. The guest laundry was
directly across from the cabin next door, so it was very convenient. We had no
ship noise in the cabin, and other than some bubbles in the porthole glass,
everything was perfect.
· Deck 7 Aft is a hidden treasure. We'll be sure to spend time here on any
future windy sea days.
· DIS wine tasting was such fun! David did an excellent job sharing his
knowledge about wine, so we learned in addition to sampling a variety of wines.
· Fitness classes were great - well worth getting up early for. With all the
food on a cruise, you've gotta do something, lol!
· Darren Romeo show was also great. It's the first time a non-Disney show
has been brought on the ship, and I hope they do a lot more of this. The kids
enjoyed it as well, but it wasn't put together as a kiddie show, like the usual
Disney shows. I'd go see this one again next year if it's still around.
· Promenade Lounge turned out to be a favorite spot for us (and the many
others who don't want to be choking on cigarette smoke) this cruise. In the past
the entertainers here have ranged from bad to awful, but the duo here this time
were actually pretty good. The servers are friendly, the location is great for people watching & convenient to all the restaurants, and
it was just a very pleasant way to spend a couple of hours before dinner.
· Cove Café - what a great addition this is! Unfortunately
we never spent as much time there as we would have liked. Hopefully next cruise
<g>.
CRUISE LOWLIGHTS:
· Promenade deck (4) is too narrow - it's a constant challenge when walking
to get out of the way of joggers, since it's not as wide as it should be (like
on HAL).
· Fitness Center/gym is way too small for the number of passengers on board,
and the air temperature at time was much too warm for working out.
· Crowds/kids - for the most part we were able to avoid both, having learned
from previous cruises. We were especially appalled at the hellions using the
dance floor in the Promenade Lounge as a playground even when the entertainers
were performing, and an idiot parent sat there applauding the kids' antics. The
guests who might have been on the dance floor dancing instead sat at their
tables glaring. Disney could have (should have) feigned concern for the kids'
safety and asked their parents to get them off the dance floor.
· Guest laundry facilities were running almost 24 hours a day, usually with
people waiting in line. They really need more of these to make it more
convenient for people. · Beat Street - the clubs are basically off limits to
anyone who doesn't enjoy the stench of cigarette smoke. We (& others we met)
skipped all of the cabaret shows solely because smoking is allowed and you could
smell it out in the hallway. It's a shame, as those shows are generally very
good. I'd like to see smoking banned in Rockin' Bar D until after the cabaret
show each evening. Smoking could still be permitted in Sessions &
Diversions, since it's banned in Promenade Lounge.
Until next time - thanks for reading.
Sue
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