Our First Ever Real Vacation, Mexican Riviera Cruise June 1-8, 2008 About This Page:

[sueh818]

Who:
Me – Sue
DH – Theo
DD1 – Chloe (10)
DD2 – Lucy (8)
DD3 – Cecilia (8)
DD4 – Daphne (5)

What:
Our long anticipated June 1-8, 2008, Mexican Riviera Cruise on the Disney Magic, our first ever real vacation.

I thought I'd better start before I forget everthing!


Day 1, part 1 – Off to San Pedro

We woke up at 6:45 to an absolutely beautiful Southern California morning. A good omen?


I had my coffee and helped the kids dress and get breakfast. Theo and I got all the luggage and carry-ons in a pile (nine bags and 6 carry-ons). Not too bad for six people.




The Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro is about 50 miles from our house. In traffic that could take up to two hours, so I scheduled the limo to arrive at 9:00am. We were all ready and waiting by 8:15. I guess we were a little over eager. So we sat and watched Pirates of the Carri bean: At World's End while we waited.

At 8:45 there was a knock at the door and there was our limo 15 minutes early!

Theo and the driver began loading our luggage while the kids and I stood staring.


In between the time when I was standing and staring at the limo, and when I got in, I somehow managed to accidentally flip the night image switch, so all the pictures I have from inside are messed up, but here's one anyway of Theo helping the girls with their seat belts.



Within five minutes, we were off to San Pedro. This being a Sunday morning, there was very little traffic of course, and at 9:45 we caught our first view of the Magic!



I never expected to arrive before 10:00 am and was worried that we were way too early and would have to wait outside the terminal.

As the driver pulled up to the terminal building I saw that there were a lot of people there already. On closer inspection seeing sombreros and DCL shopping bags I realized that these were people who had just gotten off of the cruise. But when we got out there was a porter right there grabbing our luggage and I saw a few other people who seemed also to be arriving so I felt a little better.

We were promptly directed toward the proper entrance and walked right in. I think we then went up an escalator to the check in area. It turns out there were a lot of people there and DCL was already checking people in. There looked to be quite a wait in the Castaway Club line. We were directed over to the first time cruisers line which was very nearly empty. Ten minutes later we were all checked in with our key to the world cards and on our way to the waiting area.

At the entrance to the area they swiped our cards and gave us our boarding pass. We were in Group 3! There were only 20 or so other families waiting so there was plenty of seating to choose from. We got some nice padded seats next to a small stage and watched people file in. In this area was a line for checking kids into the club that was next to empty so I thought I might as well go over in register. However, when I got over I was told that the window wouldn't open for another half an hour. And there were already four or five people waiting in it! Fortunately from reading my Passporter (and a small sign at the entrance to the line) I knew that I could do this later on board. So I saved myself an uncomfortable wait in line and sat down.

The temperature outside was about 75 F with a slight breeze. They had two sets of doors open (one on either side of us) so the very pleasant breeze went right past our seats. There was an outdoor area where you could get a snack, or look at the ship getting ready. Altogether I must say that for having to sit around and wait, that it was quite a nice place to sit, relax and people-watch. I gave the kids a giant mad-libs book to play with, sat back and enjoyed myself.

At around 10 am a latin band started to play on the stage near us. They were pretty good and, I'm happy to say, not too loud. A little while later Sailor Minnie came skipping through the waiting area. Theo took Daphne and Cecilia to get a picture. They didn't turn out because the camera was still on the wrong setting. Fortunately after this Theo noticed that it was set wrong and fixed it.


Just before 11 am my heart skipped a beat as I thought I heard a loud speaker and wondered whether they were starting to allow us to board already. Unfortunately it was not a loud speaker, just a really loud lady about 15 feet away talking as loud as a loud speaker!

A little while later I wandered outside a took some pictures of the ship.



This one shows the gangway we would soon be using and some cast members painting.

At 11:45 the loud speaker came on for real this time and announced that Group members 1 – 3 could begin boarding. All around me people cheered (including myself). We walked over to the security area and were soon through.

Just before the gangway was the welcome aboard photography station and we stopped for some pictures.



Then we walked right onto the ship. The cast members at the entrance took our names and the kids were surprised and thrilled to hear them welcome us aboard over the loud speaker!


Coming up next: Our first afternoon on the Magic.

[lauriep]

Great start, Sue! Looking forward to the rest. I was curious if DCL would handle the boarding procedures away from their own terminal, but (aside from the Port Canaveral Mickey-head embarkation doorway), it all sounds pretty much the same.

[oneladywith3boys]

Can't wait to hear more....... we leave for our first cruise at the end of July ! I hope to hear lots of great tips and fun things you did

[chezp]

What a great start! I can't wait to read more.

[Colexis Mom]

Great start Sue!! Glad you were able to get onboard so quickly!! More please

[sueh818]

Day 1, Part 2 – All Aboard!

Once on board we made our way down the staircase to Deck 3 and straight to Rockin' Bar D. Theo was really hoping to get a Palo Brunch reservation but they had been totally booked online. We went over to the Palo table and had no problem making a Brunch reservation for the next morning at 10:30 am. It turns out that we were the first ones there! We also checked on our dinner reservation and the lady taking reservations said that her computer showed that we had reservations for dinner on Friday night at 9:00pm. I said OK, but that's strange, since I the reservations I had made online were for Wednesday at 9:00pm. I don't know what the mix-up was there. She was able to change our dinner reservations back to Wednesday and we were off to lunch. It had been hours since breakfast and we were all HUNGRY!

I had initially planned to get lunch at Topsiders, but since it wasn't crowded yet we decided to go to Parrot Cay and were seated right away. Our server Toto brought us drinks while we went through the buffet. The buffet had salads, chicken, steak, fish, shrimp, and soup. The kids had mac & cheese, fries (this would become a theme), and blue jello. Lucy, who does not have the best sense of direction, got lost on the way back to the table from the buffet. (No, it was not far, and yes, you could see the table from the buffet line.) A nice server named Katerina helped her find her way back.

Here are our ratings, including what the kids thought of their Mac & Cheese. We aren't food critics or anything (certainly not the kids), but it gives a little information about he dining on the ship from the standpoint of a family dining experience.

I'll put them in order of Me, Theo, Chloe, Cecilia, Lucy, and Daphne.

Parrot Cay, Welcome Buffet -

Main Course 7, 8, 8, 8, 8, 8
Presentation: 6.5, 6.5
Service 8.5, 8.5
Atmosphere 8, 7

Average: 7.67


After lunch, we took a self tour around the ship. I don't know why, but I had imagined the ship to be wider and the Lobby Atrium to be longer. Nevertheless it was all very lovely. We stopped by the kids clubs to look around and meet some of the counselors. While we were there we registered the kids (with no wait) and got our pager. We had brought our swimsuits in our carry-ons but decided not to swim for several reasons: both pools looked full already, we were tired, and I really didn't feel like taking all the kids into a bathroom to change. For those who might want to swim before the rooms are open, I would definitely suggest wearing your suits when you board.

At 1:30 we made our way down to Deck 2 to drop off our carry-ons and get a look at our rooms. We were a little disappointed to see that the 1:30 on the sign had been covered up and replaced with a makeshift 2:00. So we went back up to Deck 9 and had fun playing foosball for 20 minutes or so.




At 2:00 we went down to the rooms and were surprised to see a few of our bags there already. We relaxed and unpacked until the Boat Drill at 3:30. The drill took about 20 minutes including travel time to and from Deck 4. Afterward we stowed the Life Vests and headed for the Adventures Away deck party. I had planned to watch from Deck 10, but Theo and the kids decided they wanted to be closer to the action.

I loved hearing the horn blast and watching the ship start moving. I could feel the motion of the boat right away and was glad I had applied a patch that morning and taken some ginger. The sea was fairly calm though. I gave a bonine to Cecilia and Lucy, who were feeling a little iffy.

The party was a lot of fun.




They handed out these streamer things to people.




I brought bubbles in my carry-on. The kids had fun with those.




Some kids around us asked where they were handing out bubbles. Fortunately I had brought plenty to share.

I felt a little sorry for the people on the ship next to us, the RC Vision of the Seas (which would be sailing and docking next to us all week).




But I'm sure they were having fun too and there were plenty of them that would much rather be on that ship. I'm just glad that I was on the Magic. Not only was it prettier in my estimation, but it was also better maintained. Since it was white, The Vision of the Seas looked dirty near the water and there was also paint peeling off.

Coming soon: Our first dinner

[sueh818]

Originally Posted by oneladywith3boys

Can't wait to hear more....... we leave for our first cruise at the end of July ! I hope to hear lots of great tips and fun things you did

Feel free to send me a PM if you have any specific questions.

[sueh818]

Day 1, Part 3 - Dinner at Animator's Palate

After the party we went back to the room and got ready for dinner. We had the Main Seating for dinner with the APPLAPL rotation. Definitely not the one I was hoping for, but it didn't really matter. So dinner that night was the Show Dinner in Animators Palate beginning at 5:45. The kids enjoyed the show and were always looking around to see what would change next. I prefer more peaceful settings so it was kind of overstimulating for my taste. But I always love to watch the kids having fun. I forgot to bring my camera (I forget my camera a lot) so I don't have any pictures of it.


We met our Server Brendan, from South Africa, our Assistant Server Marina, from Italy, and our Head Server Caio Romano from the Philippines (I think). The servers were very nice and attentive to our food needs. They did not entertain the kids or the table the way that I've read some of the servers do.


The kids dived right into the rolls. Theo really liked the anchovy spread served with the bread.


For Appetizers I had the Butternut Squash Soup which was very good and the Confetti Tomato Salad which was not that great. Theo had the Tomato Salad and the Avocado wrapper which was alright, but we couldn't find any avocado in it. Chloe had the Tomato and Pasta Soup. Cecilia had the Fruit Plate which looked good and fresh. The other two only wanted bread.


For the Main Course Theo and I both had the Filet and Scallops over Cream of Spinach on Mashed Potatoes. The Scallops were good but we both thought the filet was rather tasteless. The potatoes were gluey but had a decent flavor. Lucy had the Cheese Pizza which she did not like. Chloe had the Spaghetti and Meatballs which she did not like either. Cecilia and Daphne had the Mac & Cheese with Fries and Mixed Veggies. They both liked that.


For Dessert I had the Strawberry Shortcake which I enjoyed. Theo tried the Sugar Free Pound Cake which he said was OK. Chloe liked her chocolate cake. Lucy and Cecilia both liked their chocolate pudding (they ate every bite). Daphne liked her Micky Bar, but never ended up ordering one again because she thought it was too messy.


Animators Palate Show Dinner

Appetizers 7, 6.5, 8, 8.5
Main Course 6.5, 6.5, 4, 4, 9, 9
Dessert 8.5, 6.5, 8, 8, 7
Presentation: 9, 9,
Service 8, 8
Atmosphere 7, 8.5


Average: 7.45


After dinner the kids played in the clubs while Theo and I finished unpacking. At around 8:20 we picked the kids up to see the show All Aboard: Let the Magic Begin!. We arrived only a few minutes early and there weren't very many blocks of 6 available seats left. On subsequent nights we arrived about 20 minutes early for each show and got much better seats. I think if there were only one or two of you, that five to ten minutes early would be OK. But to get decent seats for a group of four or more, I suggest arriving at least 15 minutes early. Although, really, the theatre is so small that there really isn't any bad seat.


We all enjoyed the show. In addition to the Disney parts, it included two variety performers. The first was a comedian named Steve Moris. It wasn't really my kind of humor, but the majority of the audience seemed to enjoy it, especially the man behind me.


The next performer was a comedian and ventriliquist named Kevin Johnson whom I recognized from the show America's Got Talent. He could do some pretty incredible things with his voice and ventriliquism! I was amazed!


After the show we put the kids to bed and watched Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on TV while we drifted off.


Coming Soon: Day Two, Island Jam Character Breakfast.

[sueh818]

I forgot to mention that if you look really close near the head of the gangway, you'll see Captain Mickey on his way into the terminal to greet passengers.

[Grammy Grumpy]

Great start! Sounds like you are having a great time, more please!

[chezp]

Great updates! I'm glad you were able to get in for the Palo brunch - that was a real highlight of our Med cruise.

[DyanKJ130]

Just catching up!! What a great start you've had! It seems like just yesterday that you posting your 'cruise reveal' to the girls! Everyone looks like they are having fun! I kind of like the effect that the night vision has in the photo with Minnie & the girls - if you hadn't said anything I just would have thought you were getting artsy with the photos!! Can't wait to hear what happens next

[mcc0313]

Wonderful start...I am really enjoying reading others cruise TR's as a cruise is definitely in the works...

Can't wait to hear more and how the kids enjoyed the kids clubs...

[Kenny]

Just catching up! Great start! Can't wait for more!

[Colexis Mom]

What a great first day Sue More please