A Hop, NO Skip, and Many Mishaps to a Disney Dream

[jenseib]

Before Claire and Mom had left, I realized that the “gift” and “note” of the day had not been left out that morning. So I quickly just flopped it on the bed and told Claire I saw something. She was surprised to see it in the afternoon, but happy. Here’s the note.

 

 

I can’t remember for sure what the gift was, but I think it was a package of Disney Princess underwear. She’s very picky about her underwear. You have to have a Princess on your butt at all times! I think she even wore a pair after her bath that day.

 

While Mom and Claire were off solving mysteries, I decided to turn my laptop on and try to upload some photos. While the laptop was starting up I went out on the verandah and took some pictures of Atlantis. This was another one of the “shots” I wanted to get. I played with some settings and then some editing too.

 

 

 

 

And this one is probably my favorite, though not perfect.

 

 

So I cropped it. And this is what I wanted to get!

 

 

And then I took a picture of these guys doing some work.

 

 

And remember that light house…you didn’t think I was going to give up getting a shot I liked, did you?

 

 

 

 

And then I turned back to Atlantis again.

 

 

 

And these guys again!

 

 

After taking several shots of the same things over and over, I hooked the camera up to my laptop. I waited for the little light to turn blue on the camera, meaning I could do the simple upload. It never happened. My camera just kept saying it was busy. I don’t use the laptop much for photos, but I have given it a try at home to be sure it could do it. It wasn’t happening this time around. So I went to my computer and found the pictures on the camera. I tried to get them copied that way and again, I couldn’t get it figured out. The laptop is Vista, and it’s so much different than XP. I think since I have come home now, that I got the settings turned to the right thing to copy the pictures, but I will have to check it out again to be sure they stuck! LOL!

Anyways, I messed with this stupid laptop for WAY TOO LONG. I just couldn’t get it to work. I was supposed to be showering and getting ready this whole time, but NO, I was frustrated and trying to conquer the “Vista”.

Before I knew it, Mom and Claire were hopping back into the room. Wow, where did the time go…Oh yeah,…. it went with a lot of cussing at the laptop.

 

They said they had a ball doing the mission and I think they even started the 2nd one. Mom said she was very tired. There was a lot of walking to the front and back of the ship and up and down as well. She said she was very sore….but Claire was still hopping all around with excitement. The plan was to finish it up later on.

 

I jumped in the shower finally and got ready. All nice and pretty. We got Claire cleaned up as well.

This was pirate night, so Claire and I were going to join in the fun with all the other Buccaneers. So we had our pirate geer on. Mom declined the use of my extra pirate hat, but she did wear the bandana left in the room. I think she tied it around her neck.

 

 

 

It was time to head out to the show again.

 

 

 

We walked THROUGH pink this time, kind of by accident. I had wanted to come here one night and try out the special champagne, but I just never had the time. I also wanted to take more pictures of it, but again, I never did. I think this is the only one I took inside the whole time.

 

 

And I guess I took a quick shot inside of D Lounge too.

 

 

Claire wanted to sit in the balcony again, so we headed that way. We found a perfect spot, dead center in the balcony, but as we were going to sit, two young teens, quickly let us know they were saving 20 plus seats for their family. This irked me. There is no seat saving allowed at the shows, but rather than cause a scene, I just glared at them and turned around and told my Mom, “They are saving the seats…even though Disney doesn’t allow it”. So I’m sure they heard it, and hopefully thought better next time. We find a spot very close to where we had sat the night before and waited. That family, by the way, came in at the VERY last minute.

 

The show for the night was Villains Tonight. This was my least favorite show. It was OK, but in the future, I would personally skip it. This was Claire’s FAVORITE show however. …..Which is funny, because I debated going to it since she has such a fear of villains lately. The guy who played Hades was funny and good and I know he was ad libbing at times. I didn’t care for a lot of the music, nor did I really think the story line was very good. Great costumes again though!

 

 

I believe this is Pain and Panic, and I believe they are from Hercules….which we have never seen. Ok, I think years ago I might’ve watched part of it, and I think we have it on VHS somewhere, but I don’t know much about the story all.

Claire thought they were funny…I thought they were kind of dumb.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Claire does NOT like Ursala at all, so she was a little scared when she came out, but she did fine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And then my card ran out of memory, so I fumbled in the dark to change it…but while doing that, the lights went on and an announcement came on. There was a technical error and the show would resume shortly. Hades then adlibbed a bit and he was so funny. He then went off the stage and Pain and Panic came back out and interacted with the audience for a few minutes till the show restarted.

[jenseib]

The show restarted and I was back to taking pictures again.

 

 

 

 

 

Again, the Cruella part was great. I would say one of the best of the whole show.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The show ended and we made our way out. Claire and I were on our way to the pirate party next. Mom decided to skip out on it. I can’t remember why or what she did. I think she just went back to the room, but she could’ve gone shopping.

 

As we approached the area, we saw lots of servers with drinks. I decided to ask what it was. It was a Yellow Bird. They were in cute lighted glasses and I decided to go for it and get one. It was very good too. I think it was kind of an orange/pineapple tasting.

 

 

 

They also had some non alcoholic drinks on there as well. That was called a Parrot Song, and I didn’t ask what was in that, so I don’t know what they were.

 

We decided to head up to deck 12 so we could watch the party from above against the railing.

 

While we waited for the show to start I took pictures.

 

 

 

 

We had just started to sail out of Nassau. And of course I got one last shot of this! LOL

 

 

I can honestly say that was the worst shot of the lighthouse!!

 

Hey! There’s that Aqua Duck sign again.

 

 

And someone going for a ride!

 

 

The crossbones guy would give us a countdown to when the show was going to start.

 

 

And one last shot of Nassau as we pulled out of port!

 

 

On to the show!!! The Buccaneer Blast!

Claire and I enjoyed the show a lot. I kind of hand to prop her on my hip bone so she could see better over the railing, and keep my hands free for pictures.

I really think Claire thought that Captain Hook was trying to take over the ship. She talked about it for days…and how we knew how to do all the pirate “stuff”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Captain Hook was trying to steal the ship away from us! And I think Claire really believed that was true! But Mickey and Gang had taught us the ways and Lingo of Pirates, so we were able to keep the ship! YAY!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jenseib]

I totally forgot to add this, but after the Villains show, As I was walking out .Mom said someone must’ve lost a game and held up a card. I looked and OMG!!! It was my CF card from my camera. I had dropped it out of my bag. I almost lost all the pictures I had taken on my SLR for the first few days. Thank goodness she found it!

[jenseib]

I have started my Day TR of Cedar Point, if anyone is interested.

 

http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=59314&p=1043168#p1043168

[jenseib]

After the party we met back up with Mom. I think we went back to the room and got her. We then headed over towards Royal Palace area, as that is where dinner was to be that evening. We still had some time and there was a huge line waiting to get in.

Claire and I went over to the photographers and had some pictures taken. I didn’t like this guy as well. The girl was much more creative the night before and took her time. This guy seemed more puzzled about it, but that was OK. It was fun to do.

 

 

 

This one is Skips ultimate Favorite. He wants me to use it on our Christmas Card this year.

 

 

Then the guy had Claire jump. It took a couple of tries to get it right.

 

 

 

And he got 1 with me in it too. He really didn’t take too many pictures at all.

 

 

By the time we were done, Royal Palace had opened and there was basically no line left.

 

 

 

 

 

We were seated promptly and again our booth was very near the door. Not as close as the night before, but still right up front.

 

 

The light fixtures were gorgeous!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Look at the cute bread basket.

 

 

 

 

A photographer came over and shot some pictures of us.

 

 

 

 

 

Claire ordered a special drink tonight. It came in a collector’s cup with a light up Tink on it. Tink was a big hit and we played around with it a bit.

 

 

 

I had brought the Navigator with us to look over. I noticed it said the Dooney and Bourkes were 10% off that day. I had looked at them the night before, but I really wasn’t in love with them. Mostly because of the texture. A lot didn’t feel like leather, but more of a shiny vinyl. Mom said she wanted to go look at them and perhaps buy one for a friend, so we decided to go shopping after dinner. Claire also declared she was NOT going to the club after dinner that night. She didn’t really say why, but we were sure she thought we would actually do something without her and she would miss out. The nerve of us!

 

Claire’s food arrived at the same time our appetizers did.

 

 

 

 

 

Soon it was time for our main meals. Claire’s dessert came out then too.

 

 

 

 

After we finished up our main course (mom and I got the same thing) the dessert menu came out. Isn’t it so cute? It was an Invitation.

 

 

 

We ordered and waited for that. Claire got a little antsy that we were taking too long, but we reminded her that she didn’t want to go to the club, so she would have to wait patiently and she seemed fine after that.

 

A quick shot of Brent, our server.

 

 

And dessert!

 

 

 

Mom and I shared the soufflé as well. But I think I ate most of it.

 

 

 

Srdjan came over and entertained Claire while we finished up. She was all googly eyed!

 

 

 

 

 

And here is a copy of the kids menu

 

 

We finished up then and headed off to the shops.

[jenseib]

During dinner, I had secured the Light up Tink onto my camera bag so we wouldn’t lose her. I leave you with that to ponder on….. LOL!

 

When we left Royal Palace, Claire and I jumped in another line for more Pirate pictures. This time the girl we liked was taking them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I asked if she could do the Captain Hook one that I had seen on the boards, but she gave her Tink instead.

 

 

And then I got in for a few

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After we were done we noticed Pirate Minnie was still out for Pictures, so we jumped in a short line. It was cut off shortly after that, so we had just made it!

 

 

 

 

Minnie seemed a little puzzled

 

 

She called the CM over. The CM said that our last signature was from Minnie. I said, Yes we saw her earlier that day in her Princess outfit. So the CM wanted to know if we still wanted her signature. Now I thought this was a dumb question. Why would we have brought our book up there if we didn’t? I told her yes, so they flipped the book back a few pages so the signatures wouldn’t be back to back.

 

 

 

We met back up with Mom, actually I think she came back out to check on us, and we headed over to the shops. Claire went off with Mom. I think she thought she had a better chance of mom buying her something than me! LOL! I looked around and picked several things up, but in the end put it all back. I was debating on another sweatshirt, but none of them just appealed to me the same way. I needed it to say Dream, or DCL cruise line and they were too generic.

Mom picked out a Dooney wristlet for her friend and then she said I could pick one too. YIPPEE! My FIRST Disney Dooney and Bourke!

 

 

 

Mom ended up getting Claire a hat. It was cute, basic white. What was weird was the logo said WDW. You would think it would’ve said DCL.

 

 

After our purchase we headed up for the Buccaneer Blast, which is the fireworks show. I mistakenly kept calling the earlier show that when in REALITY that was the “Pirates IN the Caribbean” party.

 

We went up to deck 12 on the starboard side. We went up in FRONT of the funnel that has the big screen on it. I don’t recommend doing this. They had the deck blocked off at one part, so we couldn’t work our way over to see the screen or stage. We knew we could see the fireworks there though, and many other were also standing in that area. BUT we could not see the little show that went with the fireworks, nor could hear it very well. I have heard Captain Jack Sparrow ziplines down, but I never saw it….and at that point I had yet to find the dear Captain. I had even asked earlier in the day where he would be…after all it was pirate night, but we found he wasn’t listed for an appearance that night for pictures, but he would be at Castaway Cay the next day.

Anyways…. We stood and waited for the fireworks. We could hear the show going on, but again, hard to make heads or tales of it really without watching it.

 

Then the fireworks started. I had mixed feelings. They were wonderful and very exciting. Who would think you would see fireworks while on a cruise ship in the ocean…but they were smaller than I thought they would be. As they went on, they did get bigger and better. It kind of started small and slow. By the end I was loving it.

 

I have not mastered the fireworks shots yet…basically haven’t even tried to…..plus I don’t bring along my tripod on trips, so that makes it next to impossible to get a good shot. I should practice this summer with 4th of July shots and see if I can get it down.

 

 

 

 

 

After the fireworks ended, we exited the area with about 5 million others. There was a dance party going on after, but I don’t think many people stayed. We took the stairs down because it was next to impossible to even get close to the elevators.

 

We headed back to the room. I had asked earlier that evening what time the Aqua Duck was closing and they told me 11:45.

We got back to the room about 10:45ish. We found this guy on our bed.

 

 

 

 

We made a stop at Shutters and checked out all the new pictures taken that evening.

 

When we got back to the room I realized that glowing Tink was no longer on my bag! UGH! Claire wasn’t too happy with me, but I told her that I would ask about it tomorrow and see if we could get another one. I was hoping they would give us one, but even if I had to pay I would.

 

I’m not sure exactly what else we did, but I know we (Claire and I) changed into our suits and headed to the Aqua Duck, but it was 11:30 by the time we got there. So we must’ve just done it slowly. We went to get in line and the CM informed us that it was no longer open! WHAT?????? I had asked earlier and they said 11:45! I guess they close the line off early though so they can get the riders through by closing time….Would’ve been nice to know that ahead of time. We walked away with my little girl in tears. I told her that when we got back to the room we would see what time it opened tomorrow and we would go on it as soon as it did.

The Pirate dance Party was wrapping up too. I’m sure we walked through Cabanas, but I don’t remember seeing the buffet, so it must’ve closed up too. I have read that it is NOT open very long on pirate night. I think a lot of people are not even aware it is, and are to full to even go anyways. If it was right on deck there I think some people would make an effort to get a bit of this or that, but when you have to walk a little ways they just forget about it.

We headed back to the room and changed in to our PJ’s. Claire did some more crying and I found out the Aqua Duck was to open at 11 AM the next day. We told her we would probably go on the island for a bit and then come back for the opening of it. But NOT to worry, we would ride it!

 

I did make one last walk down to the Atrium and prepurchased the CD of pictures. I went and put some more money on my ship account at Guest services. I also asked about getting a replacement Tink and they said they would leave a note for the Royal Palace and they would get back to me in the morning after it opened.

 

I think Claire fell asleep with in 2 seconds of lying down. It had been a VERY busy and long day. We still had one more to go! I started to write down some of the days activities, but I think I gave it up after 2 minutes myself. The lack of sleep was catching up to me….It was after midnight and I was beat and my body was sore. The stairs and the all day walking were starting to take a toll on my out of shape body!

[jenseib]

Day 4 ~ April 2nd, Saturday

 

I slept GREAT that night again. The bed was so Comfy!!!

 

I awoke on Sat. around 5:30 AM…yes…I said it…5:30! But I did lay in bed till 6..trying to force myself back to sleep. It didn’t work.

I got dressed and decided to make the morning rounds. Let’s see what my buddies up on deck were cleaning this morning!

 

Before I go on, I’ll post the Navigators of the day so I don’t forget to later.

 

 

 

 

 

I started my morning journey by looking for the laundry room. Mom and I had talked of doing a load at some point, so I went to check it out.

 

 

 

 

 

I wandered a little bit indoors then.

 

This is one of the pictures that would just randomly start doing something. I think Alice falls down a rabbit hole in this one.

 

 

 

 

Cabanas is very empty this early in the morning.

 

 

 

It was still pretty dark, but very peaceful. And busy. It’s amazing how many guys are out cleaning.

 

Nemo’s Reef.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The CM’s were all so nice and friendly and would say hi as I passed by.

 

 

 

 

 

[Drachen77]

Seriously, Ma'am, you make the absolute best trip reports! I'm glad you all had a great time. Looks like a blast!

[jenseib]

Seriously, Ma'am, you make the absolute best trip reports! I'm glad you all had a great time. Looks like a blast!

 

 

thanks..but don't call me Ma'am. LOL That makes me feel so old. I am really a big kid at heart! After all I am only 21...never mind that my oldest is 22!

[Drachen77]

Seriously, Ma'am, you make the absolute best trip reports! I'm glad you all had a great time. Looks like a blast!

 

 

thanks..but don't call me Ma'am. LOL That makes me feel so old. I am really a big kid at heart! After all I am only 21...never mind that my oldest is 22!

 

HaHa! Sorry, it's my military coming out. I am defintely not saying you're old. It's just my way of trying to show you respect.

[jenseib]

Seriously, Ma'am, you make the absolute best trip reports! I'm glad you all had a great time. Looks like a blast!

 

 

thanks..but don't call me Ma'am. LOL That makes me feel so old. I am really a big kid at heart! After all I am only 21...never mind that my oldest is 22!

 

HaHa! Sorry, it's my military coming out. I am defintely not saying you're old. It's just my way of trying to show you respect.

 

No problem!!

[jenseib]

I continued my walk around the ship, snapping pictures along the way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jenseib]

I continued taking pictures and just touring the ship.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A peek through a window into Royal Palace.

 

 

 

 

A sneak peak into Animators Palete.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I then hopped in an elevator and went up to Deck 11 to see the daylight and also to see if I could see land yet.

 

 

 

A walk through Cabanas

 

 

 

Drink station near the pools.

 

 

 

And what is that in the distance…Could it be?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I decided to make my way towards the front of the ship to see us approach Castaway Cay.

I took a few shots of the adult area on the way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And then I tried to shoot the sunrise.

 

 

While shooting, I started to talk to other guests in the area. Lots of us were excited to see Castaway Cay. I was also amazed at how much nicer it was at the front of the ship today. The day before I was practically blown away, but today you could actually stand there comfortably.

 

[The SETGO Guys]

 

I like the Mural, but the character selection is very random. Probably just the left brain thinking and my personal preferences, but I would prefer to see them in some sort of Organization.

 

Mini Rant-To be honest, I don't really like that Turtle talk with Crush is held in ANIMATORS Palet. Yes Crush is an Animated Character, but really, a Turtle in a restaurant doesn't to much fit the scene. To me it seems like a- "Hey people love this, where can we throw it in" attempt. Maybe it was more thought out, IDK. However I believe these thematic problems will be solved on the next ship.

 

Enjoying the PTR like always!

-Zach

[jenseib]

 

I like the Mural, but the character selection is very random. Probably just the left brain thinking and my personal preferences, but I would prefer to see them in some sort of Organization.

 

Mini Rant-To be honest, I don't really like that Turtle talk with Crush is held in ANIMATORS Palet. Yes Crush is an Animated Character, but really, a Turtle in a restaurant doesn't to much fit the scene. To me it seems like a- "Hey people love this, where can we throw it in" attempt. Maybe it was more thought out, IDK. However I believe these thematic problems will be solved on the next ship.

 

Enjoying the Photo TR like always!

-Zach

 

The characters are pretty random. I have to agree, I wasn't so impressed with Crush being in there either. My DD loved it though. But I wish they did it like the old ships...now I have never been on either of them, but from what I have read, I really liked the way AP was done on those ships.

[The SETGO Guys]

 

I like the Mural, but the character selection is very random. Probably just the left brain thinking and my personal preferences, but I would prefer to see them in some sort of Organization.

 

Mini Rant-To be honest, I don't really like that Turtle talk with Crush is held in ANIMATORS Palet. Yes Crush is an Animated Character, but really, a Turtle in a restaurant doesn't to much fit the scene. To me it seems like a- "Hey people love this, where can we throw it in" attempt. Maybe it was more thought out, IDK. However I believe these thematic problems will be solved on the next ship.

 

Enjoying the Photo TR like always!

-Zach

 

The characters are pretty random. I have to agree, I wasn't so impressed with Crush being in there either. My DD loved it though. But I wish they did it like the old ships...now I have never been on either of them, but from what I have read, I really liked the way AP was done on those ships.

 

I had been on an older ship. Granted I was a lot younger. From what I remember: (It was pretty boring, however I would love it now) We ordered, Sat there for what seemed to be FOREVER! Food came, a while later the walls (Which were black and white) Slowly came into color, a Video montage of Disney Animation was on a screen somewhere. The waiters changed outfits. A little later there was a parade with flags....again foggy memory, so I don't remember why that happened.

 

Great Concept, I hope the next one has more improvements!

[jenseib]

While several of us were up on the forward deck, chanting, one guy saw a bird on the other side of the clear divider.

 

 

 

We had no clue how he got there. Was he taking a break from flying and catching a free ride to his next destination? Or was he injured? After a little while a CM walked near him on the other side of the plexiglass and he took off flying, so I guess if he was injured, it didn’t affect his flying ability.

I chatted some more with the other guests and took more random pictures as we talked.

 

 

 

 

I got to talking to one gal particularly. After a few minutes of chatting she asked me if I am on Passporters…..I think I gave her the deer in the headlights look! LOL!!! It took a minute to click.. “Oh, yes, I do post there.” And she asked if I was from Ohio…again, I said yes…. And then she asked… Your husband couldn’t make it right? So your Mom came?....ah yes… And you are Jen, right?...yes.

She introduced herself as Wendy. She told me she had read my PTR and that we had a lot in common and posted back and forth…..OK, I must’ve not had my brain working very well at that time, because I only vaguely remembered her…… But after about 5 more minutes of talking,…it totally clicked. I guess when I wake up at 5:30 AM, my brain is still sleep for a few more hours. LOL! She has like 12 kids….LOL! Just kidding, she has 4, if I remember right. And her youngest is close to Claires age and we were on the same deck…not to far from each other.

I must say Wendy and her DH were VERY nice and friendly and we talked for a bit more. Another girl had joined in the conversation as well, but I never got her name, or saw her again the rest of the trip, but she too was very nice. I stupidly never thought about asking someone to get a picture of us together. I need to get that thought in my brain. I met a few people this trip and not a single picture with any of them!

 

I am still amazed that she figured out who I was in just the little bit of conversation we had had.

 

As Wendy and I talked, we both still would take pictures here and there.

 

 

 

See that very large Palm tree sticking out. I believe that is a cell phone tower.

 

 

How pretty it is to see the sun rise over Castaway Cay.

 

 

 

 

The ship started to turn around now, so it could back into Castaway Cay. Wendy and I said our goodbyes. I thought I would head down to see if the family was awake yet….Then I thought better of it. It was only around 7:15, so I’m sure they were still sleeping. I decided to head to the back of the boat and watch us back in.

 

 

 

 

I was standing by the miniature golf area, so I took a few shots of that too.

 

 

 

Back to pictures of CC!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The closer we got to the dock, the more birds we saw…mainly the “mine mines”…seagulls as the common folks call them.

I decided it was my mission to capture one in flight. Let me tell you that this was really hard. I had a hard time actually getting my camera to focus on one, and then to capture the shot without a blur…or even to get the bird in the picture. Most of my pictures turned out to be just blank…with water or island in the background! LOL!

They didn’t seem to understand that they were supposed to stop and pose for me.

 

Here is a shot I tried….but I kept at it.

 

 

 

And Skip would not feel homesick at all on CC. They have tractors and gators!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here she is in all her glory!

 

 

Such a beautiful island!

 

 

And another attempt at the Mine mine! This was an awful shot, but I thought it almost looked angelic.

 

 

And then I got it!!! The perfect shot…well as close to perfect as I was going to get!

 

 

I thought these rocks were so pretty.

 

 

 

At some point and time the ship sounded her horn too. I just LOVE hearing it. It makes me feel so special!

 

I was starting to get hungry, so I headed off to Cabanas to get something to eat.

 

I was going to take it to the room, but then after I got it, I decided just to stay there and eat. I asked where to sit, and told me to just get any empty table.

 

 

I then went back down to the room and Mom was up, looking at the beautiful view from our balcony. Our room was facing the island side.

We got Claire up and dressed and she and Mom went up for a quick breakfast, while I got freshened up and ready for the day.

 

The original plan was that I would go onshore for a bit and come back and get them after I took some pictures. But since Mom was up and Claire got right up, we decided to all go onshore together and then return around 11 so we could ride the Aquaduck.

I took my SLR for this part of the day, since it was going to be more of a picture taking trip for me. I also told Mom that I would be walking to the beach, rather than taking the tram, so I didn’t miss anything, but she decided to walk as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We stopped for a few in front of the ship too.

 

 

 

 

 

As we made our way to the Post office, we found our first character on the Island.

 

 

Daisy was standing by the Post Office.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And this is what the ships photographer took.

 

 

 

We then made our way towards the beach and I snapped pictures again along the way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We got to this guy and then had some taken by a ship photographer

 

 

 

 

 

[Lenaapple1974]

Whew! Finally caught up. Gorgeous, gorgeous sunrise! WOW. That sure makes up for the crappy weather leaving port!

 

On Facebook, I am always looking for people to post pictures. I am always posting myself. I usually get disappointed with the exception of the few people who don't use mainly cell phones, OH, and all of Robb's Iphone 4 pics... those are really good too - because they are all pixelated, ISO too high... I feel like a freak. lol. But I come to your pics here...and many others that post here - and am immediately satisfied! Not only are we all coaster lovers, but we all seemed to have taken on photography in one way or another too! My dream site!

 

I am sad this TR is almost at an end. Hopefully many more pictures to come! AND..I hope that you have found your missing card too...and can post those at the end!

[jenseib]

I'm only about half way through! LOL! The ship part is close to over, but we also went to Magic Kingdom, Sea World and Epcot.

I will be going to Disney in August for a Travel Agent education Program. This will be me alone. (no family at all) I can't wait. I try to post to facebook when I am down there, but my phone is a bit tricky at time...well for me it is! LOL

[jenseib]

I forgot to mention…while Mom and Claire were getting breakfast, they also stopped at Guest Services to find out if they could get another light up Tink. Mom said they went looking for one and basically found the last one on the ship. LOL! Claire got a new cup along with a replacement Tink. She was very happy!

 

Back to Castaway Cay!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Those girls were on a mission to get to the beach. But I strolled leisurely.

 

 

 

 

 

Then my memory card ran out and I had to change once again. This had me worried. At this point and time I have taken 6G’s of pictures. I only had 2G’s left and 3 ½ full days. I decided I was going have to either buy an new CF card somewhere, or get the pictures I had transferred to CDs.

 

I didn’t worry too much at that point and time though. I knew I could make it till we got off the ship.

 

I was going for artsy here…focusing on the weeds.

 

 

 

We spotted an Island Native.

 

 

We could already tell this was going to be a HOT day. The sun was really shining and we were working up a little sweat with our walk.

 

 

We came across Minnie and got in line.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the ships photographer.

 

 

 

Just down the way we spotted Goofy, so we got in line.

 

 

And I took a few pictures while waiting.

 

 

 

After a few minutes of waiting, Mickey strolled by.

 

 

Goofy and Mickey were swapping out. We decided to just wait for Mickey then. Mickey and Goofy hugged and played a bit before Mickey got to signing.

 

 

The line moved fast and soon it was our turn to meet Beach Mickey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ships photographers.

 

 

 

My camera started going a little crazy at this point and time….well not the camera, but the lens. I only brought one lens on the island with me, and it’s one I had had trouble with in the past, but so far the whole cruise it had been working fine. It will do this thing where it can’t find a focus and just goes in and out and makes noises. I took it off and cleaned the contact points, which helps sometimes, but the other cure is rest for it. It would work on and off for me, but it became frustrating. I also had my point and shoot. I can’t remember how many pictures I took with that, as those are on the lost card…but I still got a fair amount with the Big camera, I just had to fight it at times.

 

We then came upon the gift Shop, She Sells Sea Shells. Mom wanted to get a hat because it was so sunny, so we looked around.

 

 

 

Mom got a big white sunhat. It was really cute and she got so many comments and compliments on it throughout the rest of the trip.

I browsed as well. I debated on a blue Castaway Cay tank top. I really liked it, but in tank top terms it was expensive. I buy mine at Old Navy for not more than $8. But usually look for the $5 sales. I finally just got it. I really liked it and I knew that I couldn’t buy it on the ship. This was exclusive to the island. If I waited, I might forget to come back or they could be sold out of my size and then I might regret it.

With our purchases in hand, (And I think we actually escaped without buying Claire something?.....but maybe Mom bought her something small, but I don’t remember what it was if she did) we headed off to the beach.

 

 

I wanted a picture of Claire in the Hammock. All the hammocks had things on them, but no one around. So I just took some things off for a few minutes, had her hop in, which was funny as she really had a heck of a time, and instead of helping, we laughed, LOL, and she finally got situated as best she could.

 

 

 

I tried to get her to pose, but I think she was just to worried she was gonna fall off, so these were the best I could get.

After that, I quickly put the other peoples stuff back on and we headed off to find ourselves some chairs.

Claire spotted the tubes right away. I told her not right now, but if she still wanted one when we came back after the Aqua Duck she could get one.

Claire and I headed off to the water, while Mom sat with our stuff. I also made the switch to waterproof camera.

 

 

 

 

 

We got in the water and it was cold! I wasn’t going much further than my ankles!

 

 

 

 

It appears I have some sort of water blur on the lens of this camera as most are fuzzy on the one side……oh well, at least it was waterproof!

 

 

 

 

 

After a bit of playing, Claire and I went back to take some of her new found shells to our chair. Mom went back to the water with Claire for a few more minutes. We had planned to leave soon to get back to the Aqua Duck.

 

 

The back of my chair.

 

 

They weren’t in the water long and were back. I took a picture of my sandy feet.

 

 

Claire was intrigued by this and of course wanted one of hers too.

 

 

The decision was made to head back to the ship. I got out a paint brush I had brought and we all started brushing the sand off our feet to get clean and comfy for our shoes. Claire loved this. She then proceeded to get sandy again so she could brush off again, and then one more time…but this time she did her whole body. I wasn’t too happy with that, and I think we actually ran back to the water to get most of the sand off and then rebrushed her again.

 

We made our way off the beach. I took a quick shot of this flower.

 

 

We spotted Goofy, so since it was still just after 11, we decided to get in line for him. He was having a lot of fun.

 

 

While in line, I took a few random shots.

 

 

I was playing with different focus points here.

 

 

 

We were getting pretty close now. Goofy was playing with this boy’s towel and it was funny. But I only got 1 picture of it. My camera lens started going berserk again.

 

 

 

We were next. And my camera was still not cooperating. The only way I got it to work was with the flash…..which made for AWFUL pictures! Claire’s body practically disappeared from most of the pictures.

 

 

 

 

And the ships photographers pictures.

 

 

[jenseib]

After our Goofy meet, we headed to the tram. We ran into the couple with the little baby we had met prior to our cruise at the Residence Inn and chatted a bit.

 

 

As we board the tram, we saw Minnie walk by and get on a golf cart. They just sat there for awhile and we gave her a wave.

 

 

And off we go, on a nice relaxing ride.

 

 

On our way we passed Captain Jack Sparrow! He had no one in line and kind of gave us a “where are you going” look. I yelled back…”wait for me, I’ll be right there!”

 

We made it to the tram station and Claire kept talking about Captain Jack. We weren’t sure if we wanted to walk back or not. My feet were killing me. I was wearing my water shoes and though they are comfy, they do not have cushion, so I could feel every step I took. On top of that, my feet were just hurting from several days of doing a lot of walking.

We decided just to head back to the ship. Mom saw the Excursion desk on the island and stopped. She wanted to do the Glass bottom boat tour. She said she would pay for us to go with her. I didn’t care one way or the other, but Claire was giving us a no. Mom tried to talk her into going with just her, but Claire just didn’t seem excited. I finally just told Mom to go for it. She could do it herself and we wouldn’t mind. She scheduled it for later that afternoon at 2:15.

Mom had to fill out some forms, so Claire and I decided to just head back to the boat. As we started walking, Claire kept talking about Captain Jack again. I asked her, do you want to go back and see him…and she knew he was one of my favorites and she said she wanted me to see him, so we turned around and made the walk back. We walked very fast, and my body screamed, but kept going with the thought of “my” pirate waiting…or so I hoped. I was afraid we would walk back there and find him gone.

He was there, but his session was wrapping up. We were one of the last people to see him. Claire refused to get a picture alone with him, so of course, I sacrificed and joined in.

 

 

 

He was a fabulous Captain Jack too. He talked just like him and he had the mannerism down to a Tee!

 

We then made our way back to the ship again, slowly this time.

 

 

 

 

Back on the ship we headed to our room. I guess I took this picture then…why I have no clue.

 

 

Mom was in the room waiting and we all headed off to the Aqua Duck.

 

Claire and I got in line, while Mom found a lounge chair poolside.

The CM running the line told me I could not use my camera on the ride…ok, no problem…and then she told us we couldn’t wear our water shoes. I thought that was strange. I had heard of others doing it in other TR’s, but maybe it’s a new rule, so we headed back down and took them off and left them with Mom. I also left the camera with her to.

The line was longer than I thought. I didn’t realize that once you go inside the funnel, you still had a bit of a ways to go. I think we waited about 20 minutes or so.

Then it was our turn. And it was fun. Claire squealed with delight, I squealed too, but that was because I was the person in back. The person in back gets squirted with COLD water. There are a few dips on the ride and the water pushes you through. Each of those dips means the water goes up your back! WOWSA!!! We saw Mom in her chair while riding and she was waving, so we waved back. It was really a fun ride and if the line was shorter we would’ve most likely went back on. I think Claire kind of wanted to, but she didn’t want to wait again.

 

Instead she headed over to the Mickey slide after a very quick dip in the Mickey pool. I walked with her…barefoot…not a good idea. It was hot on that deck. I had to run back and get my shoes on or burn to death. LOL!

Claire loved this slide a LOT and there was no wait. She went up and down over and over.

 

 

 

 

After a few times we told her it was time to head back to the island. We wanted to get some lunch and Cabanas was not open. I didn’t check the other fast food areas, but I wanted to try the island food anyways.

 

 

We headed back to the room to get our bag and headed off again. A picture in one of the hallways.

 

 

I forgot to mention as well, that some time in the morning I had left another gift out for Claire. I can’t remember what it was….perhaps a night gown? I should’ve wrote it down. Anyways, here is the note that accompanied the gift.

 

 

From here on out, the pictures will be scattered. I left the SLR in the room and only took the P&S and the waterproof camera. All the pictures I took on the P&S are on the lost card. This is probably the time it bothers me the most. I know at certain times I only used that camera and took a LOT of pictures of the island. But nothing I can do about it now.

 

We left the ship and headed for the tram. We were NOT walking this time, and we also planned to go to the 2nd beach stop this time around.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We arrived at our destination and pulled out the map to see how to get to Cookies Too.

[BeemerBoy]

DH....DD

Designated Hitter - Designated Driver?

 

 

Nice pics of the ship.

[jenseib]

DH....DD

Designated Hitter - Designated Driver?

 

 

Nice pics of the ship.

 

Dear Husban and Dear Daughter.....Or Disney Husband and Disney Daughter!

[coasterking13]

I was just at Epcot on tuesday, always love having drinks from around the world haha. Also the test track is pretty sweet as well

[Swiminn6]

Wow! Outstanding so far! It took me at least 2 hours to look through this thread from the first page to this page!

 

I can't wait for the next post! It's so weird, we probably crossed each other at sea! I left Port Canaveral on the Carnival Dream on April 2! It funny because I was hoping that the Disney Dream would be docked and leaving the same day we were because I wanted to see it really bad!

 

Looks like you had a great time so far!