Sandy and Darlene spent four days with us in the condo. The heat and humidity stayed pretty constant the week we were in Orlando. While I've been to Orlando many many times in August, this trip the heat was a deciding factor on how we toured the parks.
We visited Animal Kingdom Park and took advantage of the fastpass kiosk located near the Tree of Life. We got to the kiosk and stopped with a few other guests while the masses dashed off to one of the big attractions: Everest, Safari or Kali River Rapids.
We each obtained fastpasses for the major attractions within five minutes. This fastpass kiosk is in the experimental phase. I can't imagine how well it would have worked if people realized what those kiosks were there for. It appeared to be a kiosk for Bug's Life. We went to Kali River Rapids first and rode on it a few times. Fastpasses are typically not necessary for this attraction if you ride it first thing in the morning. Thoroughly soaked, we headed over to Dinosaur.
This was a pretty smart move because Dinosaur is mostly an inside experience. I got pretty cold in my wet clothes during the Dinosaur Experience. By the time we left the ride, I was able to enjoy the walk while thawing out. We went over to the Nemo experience. This show replaced one our favorite shows: Tarzan Rocks. The show was entertaining but I did not love it the way I loved Tarzan. Once is enough for me, I don't think I'd have to see the show again.
After Nemo, Darlene and I waited while the girls went on Mount Everest twice. They loved it! We wandered around, grabbed a snack and went on the Safari ride. Afer the Safari, we were pretty hot and tired and made the decision not to eat inside of the park. We walked the long, hot walk back to the car and used the GPS to find somewhere to eat. We chose Cracker Barrel and spent the rest of the afternoon there, playing checkers and having lunch.
Each evening contained some swim time for the girls. Typically on our trips, we would head out to a different park to enjoy the evening festivities but the heat really did a number on our energy levels. I'd chalk it up to old age, but the kids seemed affected as well.
We had not visited the Magic Kingdom before the cruise, and we were all excited to hit Main Street. I listened for the familiar music at the entrance to Main Street and hummed along. We caught the trolley musical morning show and watched it for awhile. I love that show, all of the cast members are dressed up in period garb complete with parasols and ride the trolley down Main Street, stopping in the middle for a song and dance.
We headed over to the Mountains and did both rides twice before heading out to the rest of the park. Space Mountain was closed for refurbishment. The girls were disappointed but we knew it would be closed ahead of time.
We went over to the rose garden and tried to find the spot where the ashes of a dear friend were lovingly spread. We spent a few minutes in the rose garden, talking about and remembering Amanda.
We spent quite a while waiting for the Monsters Laugh Floor and it sort of zapped us of our energy. We called it a day, after going to infinity and beyond. Of course, for us, calling it a day means spending an hour or so shopping on the way out of the park. The clouds were black, and a storm was heading in. We made it back to the condo in time to see a tremendous lightening storm.
Our MGM day was another hot day. We arrived at opening and we funneled up the street, waiting for the rope drop. We followed the crowds over to Toy Story Mania. In this park, unless you split up, you pretty much have to choose between Toy Story Mania, or Rock n Rollercoaster to ride without fastpasses.
We watched families split up and send some into the standby line and others get a fastpass. The fastpass line for Toy Story Mania seemed longer than the standby line, from the outside. We enjoyed walking through the attraction, checking out Mr. Potato Head and such. Darlene said they don't often go to the park, so most of it was a new experience for her. I tried to be nonchalant, but I think I kept saying, "You are DVC owners and you don't come to this park?" Yeah, I was real subtle.
I discovered on my last work trip that MGM is a great park to get done in one day. The attractions are close together, there is a lot of shade, and lots of opportunities for resting and rejuvenating. While other parks have long waits for short attractions, MGM can be the opposite. We went to get fastpasses for the girls at Rock n Rollercoaster, and they rode it a total of 3 times. They got to experience it from the front, back and middle and liked the front best.
While the girls were on the ride, Darlene and me went over to Star Tours. She said she had never been on it before. NEVER? I couldn't believe it! We went on Star Tours and enjoyed it. This attraction makes me motion sick at the same spot each time. There must be something off with the timing of the film and soundtrack. I feel the same way at Muppets 3D.
The girls called us and we met up with them and did the Great Movie Ride. I do love this attraction. We had lunch at the Backlot and people watched. We caught a pretty good street show by the Sanitation Department. Our timing was perfect.
Darlene and Sandy had a flight home on Wednesday early afternoon. I had planned on going to a park after dropping them off at the airport. I thought this might mean we'd make some evening shows at one of the parks. We slept in a bit, maybe by an hour, and had a leisurely breakfast. We fed the ducks outside and had a last swim.
It was a quiet ride to the airport. The girls had mixed emotions, having hit their saturation point of togetherness mixed with the sorrows of goodbyes. After dropping them off at the airport, we headed to the Magic Kingdom. We caught a bit of the afternoon parade, split a Dole Whip, and rode Splash Mountain a few more times. We had dinner at Sweet Tomatoes down the road from the condo. The food isn't fabulous, but it's a nice change from burger counter service. I wished we had thought to go there with Darlene and Sandy, they probably would have liked it.
Victoria's choice, we went to Animal Kingdom again on Thursday. We spent the morning riding Kali River Rapids, remembering this trip and many others where we got to know people while riding the rapids. We did the Safari and walked along the Jungle Trek. Because we did not see the Lion King on our last visit, we made a point to see is on this visit. It is still as fabulous as ever.
We agreed to leave the park at around 2pm and take a nap. I planned on doing some packing to make it easier in the evening. We headed out to Downtown Disney in the evening and did some shopping. We were surprised we didn't really find anything we 'must' have. We split a sandwich from Earl of Sandwich, watched a show on stage, and headed back to the condo at 8pm.
Friday was our last day in Orlando. Our flight was at 5pm, allowing some time to tour a park in the morning. We arrived at Epcot at 8:30am. We followed some folks through a gate and got hunted down by a security guard stating we had to walk around the fence to get our bags checked. I'm not sure how my parking pass, diamond parking, was any advantage over other parking if I had to walk all the way around. We stood in line, everyone sweating profusely before 9am. At 8:50am, we entered the gates and the entire mob headed over to the LAND to Soarin' Over California. There was a rope there and we waited again until 9am, where several cast members walked us to the Land.
We road Soarin' in row 1! YAY for us, row 1! Our last experience was row 3, where you can see feet above you during the attraction. Victoria wanted to do Test Track and we rode the single riders line three times. We got in line to do Spaceship Earth because Victoria had not been on it since it was refurbished. As we walked into line, a boy about Victoria's age dashed in front of us. Pretty rude. I thought it was strange he would ride this by himself.
In a minute, a woman with a baby joined him. Victoria gave me a look and I told her to let it go since the mother might have been tending to the baby. Then a grandmother and a child joined them. Then a father and another child joined them, all within a 5 minute time span. I said, "you've got to be kidding me." They all knew what I was talking about and said they are a family and wanted to ride together. I told them it was rude to cut in front of people and not enter the ride as a family, because they were being rude to all of the families behind us. The rotten little boy made comments the entire time we were in line. What a rude little shit that boy was. I let him go on and on, and did take some comfort knowing the family was humiliated by his behavior. The mother's neck and cheeks were red and she tried to get her son to be quiet. Had I continued to engage, all I would have accomplished was that I'd be in argument with a child. The parents tried to get the son to stop and eventually yelled at him, making a scene to get him to stop. What did they expect, sending him to stand in line, knowing people would be upset? I kept thinking, karma.
We left Epcot at noon and tried to motivate each other about not being sad our vacation was coming to an end. We were sad. We had no immediate plans to return to Disney World but we knew we were lucky to have been often this year. We got back to the condo, took showers and finished packing. Victoria took a nap and I read my book, soaking in every last minute of vacation. I was glad we decided to finish the vacation this way, rather than going to the airport from the park.
We dropped the car off and grabbed a luggage cart. We found our way to the Southwest luggage counter and checked our bags. We got through the security and to the gate when we learned our flight was delayed by an hour. We decided to eat dinner at the airport to kill some time. I texted Darlene to let her know we had not been able to find Sandy's DVD or locket. We had checked and checked and checked. I do not think it was in either condo. Before checking out, we checked the lost and found and the housekeeping service at the building where we initially checked in.
Our flight was an easy one and we spent longer than usual waiting for our luggage. We got back to Park Ride and Fly and got home at 10:30pm. We dragged in the luggage and hit the hay.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Movin' on Up .. or over
After doing a full grocery shop, we hurried back to the condo, aware anything which could melt, would melt, in the trunk of the car. We grabbed a luggage cart and hauled the bags up to the condo. I put all of the food away.
Let me repeat: I put all of the food away. I made a pot of coffee and was ready to chill and read my book.
The phone rang.
It was the front office. The woman was talking and talking and talking. All I heard was, "You'll have to move to another unit."
I kept saying, "but I did my grocery shopping."
There was no hot water. There would be no hot water until Tuesday. I kept the phone to my ear and I was thinking, 'who needs hot water, it's hot as hell outside.'
It's like she heard my thoughts. "Ma'am you can't live there without hot water until Tuesday."
Why not? I did grocery shopping. I put all of the clothes away.
I asked if the unit was better than I had now and she said she had two available. I left Victoria napping, and went over to the office and they showed me the two units. I took the unit with the better balcony and view. I went back to the condo and packed up.
Packed up the groceries too. Packed up the clothes. I knew it was too good to be true, to have our unit ready in the morning. I just knew it. I spent the next few days running back and forth to buildings, looking for items we had left behind. What a complete nightmare that was, unpacking twice. I don't recommend it.
Let me repeat: I put all of the food away. I made a pot of coffee and was ready to chill and read my book.
The phone rang.
It was the front office. The woman was talking and talking and talking. All I heard was, "You'll have to move to another unit."
I kept saying, "but I did my grocery shopping."
There was no hot water. There would be no hot water until Tuesday. I kept the phone to my ear and I was thinking, 'who needs hot water, it's hot as hell outside.'
It's like she heard my thoughts. "Ma'am you can't live there without hot water until Tuesday."
Why not? I did grocery shopping. I put all of the clothes away.
I asked if the unit was better than I had now and she said she had two available. I left Victoria napping, and went over to the office and they showed me the two units. I took the unit with the better balcony and view. I went back to the condo and packed up.
Packed up the groceries too. Packed up the clothes. I knew it was too good to be true, to have our unit ready in the morning. I just knew it. I spent the next few days running back and forth to buildings, looking for items we had left behind. What a complete nightmare that was, unpacking twice. I don't recommend it.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Review of Grand Beach I
I traded one of my timeshare weeks for the Grand Beach I in Lake Buena Vista near Disney. I reserved it a year ahead of time to spend the week after our cruise there. It was a great option for space and location.
Setting
The buildings are white with red roofs. It's not very visible from the road but most of the property has some view of a large lake called Lake Bryan. The landscaping is typical Florida landscaping, and the there is a gazebo/dock to fish or just hang around.
There are two pools, though it appears the oasis pool is rarely used. The pool situation outside of the lobby area is the one open morning through evening. There are activities scheduled throughout the day though I don't know why. Most people seemed to use the units as a launching spot to the Orlando attractions.
There is a small store off of the registration desk which can offer you milk/bread/eggs but not anywhere you'd want to do a full shop.
Parking looks difficult but it was nice to have parking under the building because it meant your car did not sit outside in the sun all day. There were never many spots open.
There are elevators on the outside of the building to get up to the floors. I think there are 6 units on each floor. You needed your key to access the door to get into the floor of your building. Your key would not work to get into your building on another floor.
Location
The location is excellent, it's between the Crossroads and the Lake Buena Vista outlet on 535. To get to Disney or anywhere, you can completely avoid 192. Going to the parks only requires a turn down World Drive and follow the signs. The entrance to I4 is just down the street, should you desire to visit any of the other Orlando parks.
Units
Most of the units are three bedrooms. I did read they have one bedroom units but I'm not sure where those are located. Each three bedroom unit has two identical master bedrooms with shower stall, whirlpool tub and sink within the bedroom. There is also a bedroom with two twin beds with a bathroom across the hall from it. The kitchen/dining/living room is very large and has seating for five people in the living area, and six people at the large dining table. There is also a screen porch off the living room with french doors, giving the space lots of light. It was really too hot to enjoy the porch much but it was pretty. There were five ceiling fans in the units, one in each bedroom, one in the living area and one on the porch.
Setting
The buildings are white with red roofs. It's not very visible from the road but most of the property has some view of a large lake called Lake Bryan. The landscaping is typical Florida landscaping, and the there is a gazebo/dock to fish or just hang around.
There are two pools, though it appears the oasis pool is rarely used. The pool situation outside of the lobby area is the one open morning through evening. There are activities scheduled throughout the day though I don't know why. Most people seemed to use the units as a launching spot to the Orlando attractions.
There is a small store off of the registration desk which can offer you milk/bread/eggs but not anywhere you'd want to do a full shop.
Parking looks difficult but it was nice to have parking under the building because it meant your car did not sit outside in the sun all day. There were never many spots open.
There are elevators on the outside of the building to get up to the floors. I think there are 6 units on each floor. You needed your key to access the door to get into the floor of your building. Your key would not work to get into your building on another floor.
Location
The location is excellent, it's between the Crossroads and the Lake Buena Vista outlet on 535. To get to Disney or anywhere, you can completely avoid 192. Going to the parks only requires a turn down World Drive and follow the signs. The entrance to I4 is just down the street, should you desire to visit any of the other Orlando parks.
Units
Most of the units are three bedrooms. I did read they have one bedroom units but I'm not sure where those are located. Each three bedroom unit has two identical master bedrooms with shower stall, whirlpool tub and sink within the bedroom. There is also a bedroom with two twin beds with a bathroom across the hall from it. The kitchen/dining/living room is very large and has seating for five people in the living area, and six people at the large dining table. There is also a screen porch off the living room with french doors, giving the space lots of light. It was really too hot to enjoy the porch much but it was pretty. There were five ceiling fans in the units, one in each bedroom, one in the living area and one on the porch.
Debarkation
I was awake before the Mickey wake up call. This was a fast cruise, and a different one that I had imagined. Having four port days really accentuated the hot summer weather and we spent less time enjoying the sea breeze.
I finished getting everything together. Rather than drag our stuff up to the dining room, we opted to leave our room at 7:00am and went up to deck 9 for breakfast. There was a breakfast buffet and we sat on a very empty deck 9 eating breakfast. It was very leisurely and away from the hustle and bustle of the last minute activity on deck 3.
After breakfast, I sat a bit and read my book while Victoria watched cartoons on the Dumbotron. At 8am she was falling asleep so we headed down to deck 3 where we shuffled off the ship. We passed Lynn who yelled goodbye and we waved. I hate goodbyes. I really did enjoy the quiet of deck 9 for the last morning. As long as you don't have to rush off the ship, why not be leisurely.
We went down the ramp and grabbed a porter. He collected our luggage and we went outside to an area close to the exit, the same spot we dropped folks off in. This seemed a lot closer than previous times, where we walked into the parking lot to a covered tent area. We tipped our porter and a Budget Rental Shuttle arrived quickly. We tossed our luggage into the vehicle and were at the rental office by 8:30am. The driver of the shuttle seemed surprised to receive a tip. He handled all of our luggage and out of four families we were the only ones to tip. And we had the fewest amount of bags! C'mon people, whoever handles your luggage should be tipped!
Except in hotels where they pull a fast one on you now. Remember when you drove up to the hotel and someone took your luggage, waited while you checked in, and helped you upstairs? When did it turn into double tipping? Nowadays it seems there is one person to remove the luggage from your vehicle and another who brings it up to your room. Hmmmph!
Anyway, the rental office was pretty empty, which was exactly what we were hoping for by getting off the ship leisurely. We were on the road at 8:30am, relaxed and feeling good about having another week in Florida. The ride is pretty boring and pretty straight.
We discussed things we could do, and ended up in a shopping area at 9:30am. The stores were not open until 10am, so we drove down the street to check out our condo. Darlene, Stan and Sandy were dropping Lynn and Mary off at the airport and would meet us later. We pulled into the Grand Beach I timeshare on 535 and were impressed with the buildings and set up. We walked around the area, while we waited for the front desk to clear out. People were checking out at 10am.
Just for kicks, I checked if our unit might be ready, though I did not think it was likely. Low and behold it was ready! We were excited! We went up to our unit and called Darlene to tell her we could check in. We unpacked and waited for Darlene and family to arrive at around 11am. They had plans to meet Darlene's son and family at Downtown Disney. We compiled a grocery list and agreed to meet up later.
I finished getting everything together. Rather than drag our stuff up to the dining room, we opted to leave our room at 7:00am and went up to deck 9 for breakfast. There was a breakfast buffet and we sat on a very empty deck 9 eating breakfast. It was very leisurely and away from the hustle and bustle of the last minute activity on deck 3.
After breakfast, I sat a bit and read my book while Victoria watched cartoons on the Dumbotron. At 8am she was falling asleep so we headed down to deck 3 where we shuffled off the ship. We passed Lynn who yelled goodbye and we waved. I hate goodbyes. I really did enjoy the quiet of deck 9 for the last morning. As long as you don't have to rush off the ship, why not be leisurely.
We went down the ramp and grabbed a porter. He collected our luggage and we went outside to an area close to the exit, the same spot we dropped folks off in. This seemed a lot closer than previous times, where we walked into the parking lot to a covered tent area. We tipped our porter and a Budget Rental Shuttle arrived quickly. We tossed our luggage into the vehicle and were at the rental office by 8:30am. The driver of the shuttle seemed surprised to receive a tip. He handled all of our luggage and out of four families we were the only ones to tip. And we had the fewest amount of bags! C'mon people, whoever handles your luggage should be tipped!
Except in hotels where they pull a fast one on you now. Remember when you drove up to the hotel and someone took your luggage, waited while you checked in, and helped you upstairs? When did it turn into double tipping? Nowadays it seems there is one person to remove the luggage from your vehicle and another who brings it up to your room. Hmmmph!
Anyway, the rental office was pretty empty, which was exactly what we were hoping for by getting off the ship leisurely. We were on the road at 8:30am, relaxed and feeling good about having another week in Florida. The ride is pretty boring and pretty straight.
We discussed things we could do, and ended up in a shopping area at 9:30am. The stores were not open until 10am, so we drove down the street to check out our condo. Darlene, Stan and Sandy were dropping Lynn and Mary off at the airport and would meet us later. We pulled into the Grand Beach I timeshare on 535 and were impressed with the buildings and set up. We walked around the area, while we waited for the front desk to clear out. People were checking out at 10am.
Just for kicks, I checked if our unit might be ready, though I did not think it was likely. Low and behold it was ready! We were excited! We went up to our unit and called Darlene to tell her we could check in. We unpacked and waited for Darlene and family to arrive at around 11am. They had plans to meet Darlene's son and family at Downtown Disney. We compiled a grocery list and agreed to meet up later.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Castaway Cay (Again)
We slept in a bit after moving the clocks forward. We got up at 8am and had breakfast by 9am. We took the snorkel equipment with us and Victoria spent about a half an hour snorkeling around. She stayed very close to the edge and said she did not see any fish. I told her she had to go out a bit to see some. She went about 200 feet out and I spotted her splashing around and making a serious swim towards shore. She had insisted on keeping on jewelry and she said the school of fish was attacking her anklet. Satisfied she had seen fish, we walked over to the spot where we found Darlene and Sandy already there. Erica and Benita set up their chairs and headed over to the snorkel area to enjoy. Lynn and Sandy joined us later.
We had lunch at headed back to the ship pretty early, about 1pm. We took the tram back and we showered and began the task of packing. I wasn't feeling my usual blues about the ordeal, because we were not flying home. What a nice feeling!
The girls all ended up in our room doing each others hair and makeup while I continued to pack. Having six people in an inside room is quite a squeeze. I told the girls I was heading up to get an iced coffee and showed them how to be sure the flat iron sat on a flat surface, away from anything that could burn.
I went up to deck 9 and grabbed some lemonades for the kids, along with some goodies from Cove Cafe. Lynn found me and helped me carry the party items back to the cabin. Lynn was starving so she got some lunch and we chilled out, literally, in Cove Cafe and had a nice chat.
We tipped our servers and said goodbye to them on our last night at dinner. My room steward, an ok guy, was sort of absent this cruise. Typically these are my favorite people and those who always get above and beyond the suggested tip. This time, he got the expected tip.
I bought a few pictures in Shutters. I like the wait the full week or so before choosing which pictures to buy.
After dinner we all scattered and did our thing. The kids made a last dash to Ocean Quest, trying to finish everything they felt they needed more of before debarking. We went to bed at 11pm, with the alarm set for 6:30am.
We had lunch at headed back to the ship pretty early, about 1pm. We took the tram back and we showered and began the task of packing. I wasn't feeling my usual blues about the ordeal, because we were not flying home. What a nice feeling!
The girls all ended up in our room doing each others hair and makeup while I continued to pack. Having six people in an inside room is quite a squeeze. I told the girls I was heading up to get an iced coffee and showed them how to be sure the flat iron sat on a flat surface, away from anything that could burn.
I went up to deck 9 and grabbed some lemonades for the kids, along with some goodies from Cove Cafe. Lynn found me and helped me carry the party items back to the cabin. Lynn was starving so she got some lunch and we chilled out, literally, in Cove Cafe and had a nice chat.
We tipped our servers and said goodbye to them on our last night at dinner. My room steward, an ok guy, was sort of absent this cruise. Typically these are my favorite people and those who always get above and beyond the suggested tip. This time, he got the expected tip.
I bought a few pictures in Shutters. I like the wait the full week or so before choosing which pictures to buy.
After dinner we all scattered and did our thing. The kids made a last dash to Ocean Quest, trying to finish everything they felt they needed more of before debarking. We went to bed at 11pm, with the alarm set for 6:30am.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Day at Sea
Thursday, our second day at sea. I'm not used to more port days than sea days. I like the sea days.
We had brunch reservations for 10:30am in Palo. As Sasha had suggested, 'no breakfast, just coffee.' The girls all went to Ocean Quest for the morning.
We had another great table for brunch with beautiful views. Never again will I eat in the private dining room, it was so pleasant being out in the open area.
We ordered one of each type of pizza for the table. I think the Italian sausage one is still my favorite. They are very thin crusted and delicious. I ordered the chicken parm, which used to be done without a tomato sauce, but they've changed their presentation of the dish. It was served over risotto. Like most freshly prepared meals at Palo, this one was great. The stolen bread, fresh berries and whipped cream would have made a good dessert if I hadn't eaten the almond/chocolate and other sweet offerings as well.
We rolled out of Palo, saying goodbye to Sasha and PJ, and picked up the girls.
Dinner was semi formal and again everyone looked lovely. The girls wanted to take some photos together and spent quite a bit of time in line. A photographer, no lie, spent 25 minutes with one family.
We had brunch reservations for 10:30am in Palo. As Sasha had suggested, 'no breakfast, just coffee.' The girls all went to Ocean Quest for the morning.
We had another great table for brunch with beautiful views. Never again will I eat in the private dining room, it was so pleasant being out in the open area.
We ordered one of each type of pizza for the table. I think the Italian sausage one is still my favorite. They are very thin crusted and delicious. I ordered the chicken parm, which used to be done without a tomato sauce, but they've changed their presentation of the dish. It was served over risotto. Like most freshly prepared meals at Palo, this one was great. The stolen bread, fresh berries and whipped cream would have made a good dessert if I hadn't eaten the almond/chocolate and other sweet offerings as well.
We rolled out of Palo, saying goodbye to Sasha and PJ, and picked up the girls.
Dinner was semi formal and again everyone looked lovely. The girls wanted to take some photos together and spent quite a bit of time in line. A photographer, no lie, spent 25 minutes with one family.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Cozumel
Victoria and I agreed we'd get off the ship early in the morning and walk around the port. We did not get off the ship in 2006 while we were in the port. After breakfast at Topsiders, we wandered off the ship around 9am. It was already very hot.
Victoria decided she wanted to do some shopping in port. She haggles with a lot more ease than I do. We wandered around the port and down a few streets. I bought my nephew a shirt, parents some magnets, and vanilla for everyone at work. Victoria bought little trinkets, but she did not find the purse she was hoping for.
Diamonds International, the store which appears in most Carribean ports, gave Victoria a charm bracelet. "Hey Lady!" was the phrase of the day in this port. Nearly every shop featured rope bracelets with your name woven into them. After a few hours and a few pictures, we went back to the ship. We knocked on Darlene's door and interrupted her nap. Ooops!
Victoria and Sandy splashed around in the pool. It was so hot on deck. I got another iced coffee and some treats from the case and just hung around, watching Disney movies. One of the days featured an ice carver. It was mildly entertaining, watching a guy use a chain saw to carve a block of ice.
Victoria decided she wanted to do some shopping in port. She haggles with a lot more ease than I do. We wandered around the port and down a few streets. I bought my nephew a shirt, parents some magnets, and vanilla for everyone at work. Victoria bought little trinkets, but she did not find the purse she was hoping for.
Diamonds International, the store which appears in most Carribean ports, gave Victoria a charm bracelet. "Hey Lady!" was the phrase of the day in this port. Nearly every shop featured rope bracelets with your name woven into them. After a few hours and a few pictures, we went back to the ship. We knocked on Darlene's door and interrupted her nap. Ooops!
Victoria and Sandy splashed around in the pool. It was so hot on deck. I got another iced coffee and some treats from the case and just hung around, watching Disney movies. One of the days featured an ice carver. It was mildly entertaining, watching a guy use a chain saw to carve a block of ice.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Grand Cayman Port
Lynn was looking forward to this port. I wasn't thrilled to hear it was a tender port.
After much discussion, Victoria and I agreed we would not do any excursions or go to the beach. Two days at Castaway Cay and lots of time on deck 9 were enough sun for our fair skin. Victoria was looking forward to a day on the ship sans crowd.
We had breakfast on deck 9 and Victoria took a swim. We agreed we'd read for awhile then wander off the ship later to check out the port a bit. At around 11am, we went down to deck 1 and got on a tender. And waited. And waited for the tender to fill up with people. As we sat below, the only spot with seats, we rocked back n forth, forth n back. Blech. By the time we got to the port, I was thoroughly green at 11:45am.
It was hot as hell. The port looked like all the other ports to me. People approached us offering tours and such but we just wandered around, checking out the shops. There was a Margaritaville, Senor Frogs and a Hard Rock Cafe I think. When did all of the ports become identical? Victoria bought a pair of flip flops and something else, and we decided to go back to the ship. It was raining a bit and there were dark clouds in the sky, threatening an interesting tender boat trip back.
We sat on top of the tender boat back and it was a much more pleasant experience. We went to Lumiere's for lunch at 1pm and spotted Marcelito. He's a pip and a half of a server and we seemed to bump into him everywhere on the ship at breakfast and lunch. He'd be a good person to request as a server.
Victoria changed for the pool and we headed up to deck 9. There was a lot of black clouds and lightening in the distance which made for some good lazy-viewing. We didn't spot any of our crew the rest of the day until dinner.
After much discussion, Victoria and I agreed we would not do any excursions or go to the beach. Two days at Castaway Cay and lots of time on deck 9 were enough sun for our fair skin. Victoria was looking forward to a day on the ship sans crowd.
We had breakfast on deck 9 and Victoria took a swim. We agreed we'd read for awhile then wander off the ship later to check out the port a bit. At around 11am, we went down to deck 1 and got on a tender. And waited. And waited for the tender to fill up with people. As we sat below, the only spot with seats, we rocked back n forth, forth n back. Blech. By the time we got to the port, I was thoroughly green at 11:45am.
It was hot as hell. The port looked like all the other ports to me. People approached us offering tours and such but we just wandered around, checking out the shops. There was a Margaritaville, Senor Frogs and a Hard Rock Cafe I think. When did all of the ports become identical? Victoria bought a pair of flip flops and something else, and we decided to go back to the ship. It was raining a bit and there were dark clouds in the sky, threatening an interesting tender boat trip back.
We sat on top of the tender boat back and it was a much more pleasant experience. We went to Lumiere's for lunch at 1pm and spotted Marcelito. He's a pip and a half of a server and we seemed to bump into him everywhere on the ship at breakfast and lunch. He'd be a good person to request as a server.
Victoria changed for the pool and we headed up to deck 9. There was a lot of black clouds and lightening in the distance which made for some good lazy-viewing. We didn't spot any of our crew the rest of the day until dinner.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Cruise cont.
After getting back to the ship, we showered and changed. The girls hung around on deck 9 playing ping pong and such, and I enjoyed another iced coffee from Cove Cafe. Though I didn't spend much time in Cove Cafe, I did spend more time there than any other cruise. Did I mention it was hot? Inside Cove Cafe are comfy chairs and it's air conditioned.
Dinner was in Parrot Cay. They changed the dining rotations for some reason so we did not follow a 3 restaurant schedule. They kept saying not everyone was getting the right rotation and it didn't make sense to me. I don't remember the exact rotation but we ended up eating at Lumiere's the most I think. Our location and the crowded tables made Animator's too stuffy for me. The lack of windows in the place doesn't help either.
We enjoyed a day at sea on Monday, which I was looking forward to because it meant no schedule, nowhere to be and just relaxing! We spent some time on deck 9 and the girls always seemed to be making plans. This may have been the day the girls went to the theater to enjoy the Hannah Montana movie. The other adults watched the Proposal in the theater and I finally got to see Star Trek. I had missed it in theaters but really enjoyed the movie.
Palo
Victoria and I took a picture together, an event which only seems to happen when we cruise, then wandered around before dinner. Having dinner at 5:45 seems to shorten the day and the character-photo opportunity a bit. We brought the girls to dinner on Monday night in Lumiere's where they had a table for four. Another family wanted main dining but had late, so they gave them our table since the adults were dining in Palo. It was formal night and everyone looked lovely. We were told the girls were excellent during dinner. We would not have allowed them to dine alone, unsupervised by parents if they had not demonstrated an ability to be aware of surroundings, knowledge of the ship, and to stick together all the time.
We had Palo reservations for 6pm and we arrived on time. We spotted Sasha, who had served us three times our last cruise, and PJ quickly re-arranged the tables so we could have him again. Sasha is a great server. The view was incredible and we enjoyed the sunset during dinner. We had some antipasto for the table and breads for dipping. I had tuna (again) and it was the best prepared tuna of the cruise. The table had some risotto and we shared other foods I can't remember. Most folks had the chocolate souffle for dessert, while I had the panna cote served with berries. I really enjoyed dining in the main dining area. The last couple of cruises, we've dined with a larger group and had the private room reserved. I prefer the dining room.
After dinner we met the girls in Studio Sea where they were for family kareoke..karoke... singing! We all went to the Golden Mickeys show. I had skipped this show the last couple of cruises so it was good to see it. Sometimes the rocking of the boat while looking at the stage bothers me a bit but I was ok that evening.
The girls did not want the night to end so they all went to Ocean Quest. The adults dispersed and did their own thing. Sandy brought Victoria back to the room at around 10pm and we called it an evening.
Dinner was in Parrot Cay. They changed the dining rotations for some reason so we did not follow a 3 restaurant schedule. They kept saying not everyone was getting the right rotation and it didn't make sense to me. I don't remember the exact rotation but we ended up eating at Lumiere's the most I think. Our location and the crowded tables made Animator's too stuffy for me. The lack of windows in the place doesn't help either.
We enjoyed a day at sea on Monday, which I was looking forward to because it meant no schedule, nowhere to be and just relaxing! We spent some time on deck 9 and the girls always seemed to be making plans. This may have been the day the girls went to the theater to enjoy the Hannah Montana movie. The other adults watched the Proposal in the theater and I finally got to see Star Trek. I had missed it in theaters but really enjoyed the movie.
Palo
Victoria and I took a picture together, an event which only seems to happen when we cruise, then wandered around before dinner. Having dinner at 5:45 seems to shorten the day and the character-photo opportunity a bit. We brought the girls to dinner on Monday night in Lumiere's where they had a table for four. Another family wanted main dining but had late, so they gave them our table since the adults were dining in Palo. It was formal night and everyone looked lovely. We were told the girls were excellent during dinner. We would not have allowed them to dine alone, unsupervised by parents if they had not demonstrated an ability to be aware of surroundings, knowledge of the ship, and to stick together all the time.
We had Palo reservations for 6pm and we arrived on time. We spotted Sasha, who had served us three times our last cruise, and PJ quickly re-arranged the tables so we could have him again. Sasha is a great server. The view was incredible and we enjoyed the sunset during dinner. We had some antipasto for the table and breads for dipping. I had tuna (again) and it was the best prepared tuna of the cruise. The table had some risotto and we shared other foods I can't remember. Most folks had the chocolate souffle for dessert, while I had the panna cote served with berries. I really enjoyed dining in the main dining area. The last couple of cruises, we've dined with a larger group and had the private room reserved. I prefer the dining room.
After dinner we met the girls in Studio Sea where they were for family kareoke..karoke... singing! We all went to the Golden Mickeys show. I had skipped this show the last couple of cruises so it was good to see it. Sometimes the rocking of the boat while looking at the stage bothers me a bit but I was ok that evening.
The girls did not want the night to end so they all went to Ocean Quest. The adults dispersed and did their own thing. Sandy brought Victoria back to the room at around 10pm and we called it an evening.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Castaway Cay
I slept until 8:30am and read my book for about a half an hour. I woke up Victoria and we had breakfast at Topsiders, on deck 9. We were dressed and ready for Castaway Cay. It was hard to believe it's been an entire year since I'd been to this island.
We were able to go on the island at 9am, and we strolled off leisurely at 9:30am. We stopped and took some pictures. Typically, we race along to get a 'spot.' Victoria announced she wanted a Castaway Cay t-shirt and she bought one. Disney is pretty clever about selling CC exclusive merchandise on the island only.
Met up with Darlene, Erica and Benita at our spot. It was high tide, and very hot so you only had to take a few steps into the water to be cool. It felt very refreshing, not too salty like in other years. Lynn and Mary joined us, and Stan met up with us for lunch.
Darlene stayed at beach and we returned to the ship at 2pm.
Ship pulled out at 5pm.
We were able to go on the island at 9am, and we strolled off leisurely at 9:30am. We stopped and took some pictures. Typically, we race along to get a 'spot.' Victoria announced she wanted a Castaway Cay t-shirt and she bought one. Disney is pretty clever about selling CC exclusive merchandise on the island only.
Met up with Darlene, Erica and Benita at our spot. It was high tide, and very hot so you only had to take a few steps into the water to be cool. It felt very refreshing, not too salty like in other years. Lynn and Mary joined us, and Stan met up with us for lunch.
Darlene stayed at beach and we returned to the ship at 2pm.
Ship pulled out at 5pm.
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