Australian Karen's Trip report: be gentle with me

[australiankaren]

Hi Karen, Welcome home! Boy you don't muck about getting your TR done! I am loving it so far, looks like you had a fab time! The clown car rocked, in a laugh everytime I see it kinda way!

I am loving the Suite on the Wonder. I will reading this part with interest as we are thinking of doing MR as our next cruise.

yes, I dont muck around..it also helps when I have a few quiet moments at work.....

MR is a good choice, but stay tuned for more info.....

Glad you are all enjoying the ride

 

[australiankaren]

Cruise- 25 September 2011
part 2...

Ok, where was I up too....oh thats right.
We had swum, had our coffee and moved suites.....I didnt mention that earlier did I.

The noise was so bad, the DH was threatening to jump ship, so Alice our fantastic concierge moved us to a spare 1 bed suite fwd on deck 8......so much quieter, and she saved me from tossing him a life ring.....

Oh, quick mention...shout out to a certain disser & crew who were standing next to us at cattle...I mean life boat drill.....so great to meet you & yours...now I can put face to "name".....

DH went off for a pedi, while I check out the gym....very nice, awesome equipment and great weight selection.

So, after finally tracking down our poor luggage...remember this is the 3rd room we have been allocated.....its 6.30pm and we need to frock up for 8.15 pm dinner....

Dinner tonight is at Titans




so sorry but that's it folks for the meal photos...I think we were too busy chatting to take happy snaps.......

But we did have a sneaky look in oceaneers club...for the youngens, so have a sticky at these...








so a great day was had...and gifts were always left on our table for when we came back


And finally, the most important piece of reading you will do on any cruise......

the cocktail list

 

[australiankaren]

Day at sea- 26 September 2011



Now as the title suggests, we are at sea. For those of you who haven't cruised, it goes something like this......

*The young kids + parental units are up and fed and at the kids clubs/hogging deck chairs by 9am
*the old are up, fed and hogging the deck chairs by 9am
*the hungover are in bed, dont bother looking for movement til 2pm
*the rest of us order room service breakfast around 10.30....then meander to the pool around 12, only to moan about the old sunburnt people asleep & hogging the deck chairs

You see what i mean about sea days.....the gym is full, the pool is full,the buffet is full, the tiny kiddy pool has been emptied twice before 10am due to "incidents of a hazardous nature".....note: its fun to watch the cleaning and re-filling...

I digress......anyway, sea day is all about getting your sea legs, trying out the spa treatments, enjoying the company of strangers in the tiny tiny pool and buying stuff.

Ok, we had booked a Palo Brunch for 11.30am......I wake sleeping beauty who was dreaming of his beloved clown car

I couldn't help myself......

So we get up, get dressed and get to Palo at 11.27am.......only to be TURNED AWAY.....OMG!!!!
the humiliation, the angst, the what the hell....
OK, so I was wearing a cookie monster T-shirt and denim shorts, but DH was wearing shoes , so what more do you want from us.
Dress regs.....hey mate , were Australian, and I left my dress thongs at home.
So after DH stops the eye bulgy thingy that only men can do when fighting for something he really didn't want to do in the first place.....he mentions we are in suite #####...and wow..shock horror ..there is an opening for whatever morning and time I desire....this is the same thing that was TOTALLY BOOKED UP on line a few days before.

So after booking for " when hell freezes over"...naaa.....the last morning....we tuck our docked Australian kelpie tails between our denim shorted thighs and make our way back to our suite to re think, re group and re gress to *****y year nine girls and the bugger grrrrr of dress codes.

Here's a photo of what we were wearing.......you be the judge


So we are now hungry, slightly embarrassed and did I mention hungry..so off to Parrot cay for lunch..






So then the afternoon was spent in the pool, working on those tans to torment others when we got home....ok, the DH goes red, he peals then goes white...but really, its the thought that counts.


Tequila tasting at 5pm.....nothing else needs to be said..

move along..nothing to see here.......

Tonight is the Golden Mickeys and Formal Night...we had done golden mickeys last cruise, so just opted to do formal dinner..any excuse to frock up.

Formal night Animators palate..

Ok, once again forgot to take pics of the food, and the colour show wasn't tonight, its tomorrow, so the dining room stayed black and white.....

Finished the evening with a stroll on deck under the Mexican moon....

 

[australiankaren]

Day at Sea- 27 September 2011
or :The day I was seasick

Yep, happens to us all when your tiny weeny clown ship is tossed around on huge billion million mile high waves.....so not my fault.

So after spending the morning hating my life, your life , the sea, the things that live in, under and on the sea...can you get the idea...I raise my fevered brow and stagger up on deck....ginger ale in hand. Thank you Alice, our trusty concierge....after a call from DH, 4 cans were in my fridge in 7 mins flat....WE LOVE YOU ALICE!!!!


We got to the pool just in time for the adult games...oh goody.....


But we were visited by chip and dale, or is it dale and chip????

So after watching grown adults embarrass themselves in the water for a $4 drink coupon [wardrobe malfunctions included....oh the humanity]...sorry no photos..and you know the saying, what is seen cannot be unseen, no matter how much you drink...

We now head to the part of the ship you never want to venture to without a damn good reason & an escape route already mapped out,and an understanding between yourselves..if separated, dont come back, just save yourself...

THE KIDDY POOL....

Mexican fiesta is on........






And here's the Piddly toddler pool being cleaned..again.... for those who are interested



top deck when everyone has gone down to get changed for 6pm seating

So since I was feeling a tad better, I thought I might try a light snack with ginger ale


then when we got back to the suite ..this was waiting


Dh chuffed off for a massage, so feeling a bit better I decided to order room service..please dont judge me..it was the sea air that made me do it


Yes,you saw it correctly, steak sandwich, tortillas..but i did order the DH a chicken salad with dressing on the side

So dinner tonight is again at animators..but the show is on so have to get there....

the meal was as follows






with a special guest appearance


Now shock horror, I wasn't feeling too great so toddled back to room & DH went and took some night shots.....a relaxing way to end his day.

 

[australiankaren]

Puerto Vallarta- 28 September 2011

Today is sea lion encounter day. I'm excited.
We are even up early..ok around 9 ish, but early for us.

Going ashore makes you realise how big this "little boat" really is.....






the trip to the encounter took about 30 minutes, so relaxed as we boated....


finally get there and this monster awaits us.......


but luckily we have a littler girl..only around 150 kg not 300.....isnt she cute







She kissed and cuddled us, and jumped over us and we enjoyed every second of it....then the second best part of the excursion......
the food!!!






oh, and rampaging iguana's..ugly little blighters..


well I'll finish this here as my computer is slow, my fingers are sore and my brain hurts..hope to finish it in the morning...till then

 

[WAMUMOF4]

reading this and the little pictures just crack me up

 

[Caroline NZ]

Loving your trip report - the cruise part is hillarious

 

[shushh]

Just caught up and loving your reporting style..hehe. I can't believe you got so much candy! We were really struggling...

And I'm really loving the bits about the cruise. That was my one regret for this current trip, that I didn't finish it off with a cruise. Sorry to hear that you felt so ill though!

LOoking forward to more!

 

[Jade+3]

I have had a busy evening catching up on all the trip reports, and feeling guilty for not having started mine.

I love the photo's. A friend of mine was on the same cruise.

 

[areweindisneyyet]

Loving the report Karen.

Love the bit about the kiddy pool, .

Between you,and batty mum a cruise is really starting to sound good until you got to the seasick part.

I hate that feeling.

 

[australiankaren]

Puerto Vallarta- 28 September 2011
Part 2

Ok, so back to the boat after the excursion where we receive a lovely invitation to the Concierge cocktail party.....4pm Aft deck.
I do enjoy the extra's we are receiving.
And they promise that maybe a "special guest" will be there...so I'm in!

So we rock up, and guess who's there......


the food and cocktails were plentiful...just the way I like it




And, the carnival boat thhat was parked next door seemed to notice our "guest" so we had a large audience....dont they wish they chose Disney...
I wonder what character carnival has????..maybe it is a clown and he turned up in this...


So after enjoying one..or 4 cocktails...


We toddled off to get ready for dinner & Toy Story the musical....no photos as they don't allow photography in the theatre
[not that it stopped others from doing it...what part of NO PHOTOS do these people not understand....]

The musical was really well done, I quite enjoyed it, I think there was too much singing for DH's liking, but Musical in the title should have given that away ..
So I enjoyed it with my glow buzz light year drink..why should the kids get all the fun.

We decided to stay in our casual gear & eat at the buffet...beach blanket and just bum around taking photos and going for a swim....


The "sad" carnival boat leaving port before us


Photos taken on deck




Beach blanket offerings....


A well fed DH is a happy DH....

Good day had by both..

 

[australiankaren]

Cabo San Lucas- 29 September 2011

Our suite as the days go on...looking like a Chinese laundry..for those who are curious


As always , we start the day with in room dining....




Pulling into Cabo was interesting because we didn't realise how dry the landscape was..we were expecting green....









and the water was an amazing colour......

Snorkelling @ Chileno Bay.....

So today was snorkelling, and having bought our own snorkel gear [great idea by the way and not too much hassle packing in bags]..

Disney also have a great system of port excursion prep....they get you into holding areas, sign you off, give you a sticker & character to follow and away you go...two by two across the gang plank.


















These photos were taken with a tiny Sony digital underwater camera...awesome little thing

So after a great excursion, it was back to the boat in preparation for Pirates in the Caribbean night.....and we chose to eat in suite again, just enjoying the room service option to concierge...Parrot cay...

 

[australiankaren]

Cabo San Lucas..29 September..Part 2

So after sampling most of the menu....we go up on deck for the party and fireworks.....










Another awesome day spent in the Mexican sun with Mickey
.

 

[australiankaren]

Cabo San Lucas - 30 September 2011

So today, the DH tried out scuba for the first time...so off he meandered at 6.30 am, while I slept on....

He is a dive convert, and loved the whole experience.
He said the instructor was awesome, gentle, informative and a great teacher...so well worth the $$$$...once again Disney Excursions hit the 5* mark....one thing they know how to do, and thats excursions.

A Holland America boat was also parked next door...


So, back to the dive experience.....here's some photos he took before hand..

sun rise




sea lions near his dive spot







As you can tell by the photo's , its a lovely area, the water is warm and the people are friendly.......would love to go back.
Only thing humidity is in high 90's and temps over 40c...so really uncomfortable if not in the water.

After a lovely afternoon bumming around the boat/ gym....tonight is captain's gala dinner...








followed by connect four with nachos and cocktails in the lounge...




and isn't funny who you bump into when just minding your own business....

 

[australiankaren]

Day at Sea- 1 October 2011

Our Palo Brunch......wasnt too impressed about having to get up and get frocked up.....but hey , its the last day so make an effort....and try not to get kicked out this time















And while there, a huge pod of dolphins passed by, first sightings all trip The food was great, service overly attentive and worth the wait.

 

[admel00]

Am sooooooooo enjoying this Karen!!! Totally want to do a cruise now too!!!!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Our Palo Brunch......wasnt too impressed about having to get up and get frocked up.....but hey , its the last day so make an effort....and try not to get kicked out this time







And while there, a huge pod of dolphins passed by, first sightings all trip The food was great, service overly attentive and worth the wait.[/FONT][/SIZE]

Nice to know.....but was it worth getting frocked up for?

 

[australiankaren]

Nice to know.....but was it worth getting frocked up for?

Looking back on it..yes...but i think i was in a tad of a bad mood as I saw plenty of people in shorts and t shirts that were allowed in.....oh well.

The DH thought it was great, and there were heaps of dishes they cooked to order.......he really enjoyed the eggs.I did like the cinibuns...warm, gooey and just the right size.

Oh, to add to my Joy the waiter snapped at me because I only ate one of the 3 pancakes I ordered, he wanted to know what was wrong etc, and didn't understand I only wanted a little bit....so if you don't want to be scalded like a tiny tween, order smaller portions if not too hungry.

Note to self, dont order room service breakfast BEFORE Palo

 

[Mum from oz]

The cruise looks great. I am definitely going to do any excursion with Disney on the next cruise. I am also going to make a Palo reservation!!

 

[AussieFan]

[QUOTE


Karen
Nice picture of David and I enjoying Palo brunch. David was sure enjoying his wine!
Funny about the dress code at Palo.
When we first arrived to check in David was wearing shorts and was politely told that shorts or jeans were not allowed. We slunk quickly and quietly back to the cabin where he changed into his one and only pair of good trousers and headed back to try again. Luckily we were approved for entry second time around. We had a really good laugh about it.
The food was great and it was good to catch up with you again. The dolphins we saw that day were amazing.
Cathy