Saturday, May 31, 2014

Eighth Day - Castaway Cay! - September 27, 2013

Happy Birthday, Steve! You get to go to one gorgeous island today! We were up early again, excited about the day. We watched the ship pull into port.



Breakfast at Cabanas one last time (with one more Mickey waffle) and waiting for the ship to be cleared so we can go ashore. While we were watching the crew unload everything off the ship that was needed for a day on the Cay, we saw Jack Sparrow getting a lift!




See ya in a little while Jack!






That island was just sitting there waiting for people! So, we left Cabanas and went down my favorite hallway again :)


Again, we went down to deck 1 and went ashore. They were handing out a ton of towels, I think we grabbed 2 each and walked towards the Post Office. I already had some postcards filled out, we just needed Bahamian stamps. Mailed my cards and we were on our way.

I saw the first tram filling up with people, so I figured we would just walk to the next stop. It was a nice walk along the tram route. Saw the ship docked, several characters were out for photos. Found a restroom, but no tram stop. 'Well, it must be up this way more'. No signs? Weird... 'Let's just walk a bit more, they have to be up here somewhere'. We walked around a corner and saw that we were now walking on the old landing strip! No tram stop in sight!!! So, we trekked down the very loooooooong, hot, hard, concrete landing strip. We walked the entire way to the adult beach! I wanted to buy a 5K t-shirt after that. 

So, we found the adult beach (can't miss it now that you are on the adult side of the island). Walked down a good part of the beach and found an umbrella with 4 chairs. 2 loungers and 2 low, sand chairs. The water was very choppy. Friends of ours said in all of their trips there, this was the choppiest. So, we acted like 8 year olds and bobbed up and down in the waves every other 1/2 hour or so. It was fun! 


As we relaxed for a while, Steve noticed Captain Jack strolling the beach. Adults were approaching him for photos. We thought, why not! And those photos will not see the light of the internet :)

But there is Kirk and Kevin, friends that we met from Memphis! They look fantastic for the beach though ;)


Lunch was great on the island too. There was a lot to choose from, picnic style. They even had crew handing out ice water while people were in line for the buffet.

We enjoyed the day. Steve enjoyed a bucket of beer, I enjoyed a few cocktails. It was a very nice day! (Except the part about walking all the way to the beach...)



Then we had to say 'see ya next time' to the Cay. A rainbow farewell...


Our final dinner was at Animators Palate, one last time. Handed out our tip envelopes to our servers and said goodbye. We asked around the table and everyone said they would be there for breakfast the next morning. we agreed to exchange contact information. I think we all 'friended' each other at the airport, before we even made it home :)

And they sang Happy Birthday to Steve that night, along with a birthday button and dessert in addition to his Sweet Tempations. Nice birthday, huh?!



The staff farewell in the Tube was hilarious! It was a skit titled "If I Were Not Upon the Sea". It was fantastic!

Time to pack up our things and set them outside for pick up. Hey, table mates! Don't forget to leave your clothes and shoes out for traveling tomorrow! ;)


And one last Mickey bar from room service :) It sure was a very magical voyage! And may I say, NOT A SINGLE DROP of rain anywhere, anytime! Magical...


Seventh Day - At Sea - September 26, 2013

Ah, the last day at sea! Relaxation all around... We went for our second day pass at the Rainforest. Sure wish I would have had more :) More photos of the blue water below our stateroom :)



Did some souvenir shopping today too. On the way back to the room, we found Mickey soft pretzels at Flo's! Not a bad view to take in with a snack!


And more Mickey ice cream bars from room service in the afternoon :)


After that, I decided this was my last opportunity to get some photos of the ship. We walked around and I tried to capture the small details of this beautiful vessel.











Even some bathrooms! I loved the theming in the bathrooms!!! More photos next time :)


And the carpets were even interesting. This one reminded me of a bedspread Brooke used to have:


The carpets in the stateroom hallways served a purpose. Stars and the maps of the globe that were right-side up, pointed to the front of the ship.


And our stateroom carpet. I just wanted to remember them all :)

 

It was our last night to see a show in the theater, Believe. Another tear-jerker to make you feel that you don't spend enough time with your family. Why not take them on another cruise!?



Tonight was semi-formal night in the Royal Place. I thought it would be nice if we got a photo of our table mates and servers. Everyone was wonderful to meet!


Not even sure if we went to the Tube tonight. When we got back to the room, they had delivered the photo matte I requested to be signed. I was so happy with the way it turned out!



And good night! Long anticipated day tomorrow at Castaway Cay!!!