[Amelia's Man]

Okay! Here we go....................

We all woke up very early (4:00 A.M.) the morning of July 8th! The limo was to pick us up at 5 sharp! Our driver is a very close friend of the family so he arrives in the company's longest car! What a way to start! on the seats in the limoare two containers of orange "Tic-Tacs", a tradition that started for our two DSs a few years back!

We arrive at the airport in great time and say our "so-longs" to John (our driver!) While we're waiting to check in, about 15 minutes later, John comes back in and hands me my sunglasses! I'd left them in the limo, and he came all the way back to hand them to me! He had left the airport and was already on the highway when he noticed them! What a guy!

So we're checking in, and one of our pieces of luggage is ALREADY overweight!! And we hadn't even left yet!! (6:30 A.M., still to early for a Lapu-Lapu!)

We pay the excess, and head to our gate! After a bit, we get to board the plane! Now the excitement really builds! Nice easy take off and climb! After we level off, everyone gets comfortable! DC Bear even takes his own seat! I'll tell you, that little bear knows how to travel! The flight gets a little bumpy....................okay, it gets a LOT of bumpy! As a matter of fact it, it was probably the second most turbulant flight I've ever been on! (The first was a flight from England to Portugal...........the oxygen masks actually came down on that one!!) Anyway, we get through all that shaking and bouncing and land! Yay, Orlando!!

As we are walking through the terminal we spot some neat shops: Universal, Kennedy Space Center, and of course, Disney! No time to check them out, we'll hit them on the return flight! We process in at the DCL counter and wait for our bus!

We get on the special DCL bus and head out for a 45 minute ride to Port Canaveral! As we crest a small bridge, our driver tells everyone to look out for the ship, as we should see it as soon as we cross the small bridge! And.....then................there she is! The Disney Magic in all her stupendous glory! The goose bumps were had by all!

We get to the terminal and go through the "Castaway Club" members line (for returning cruisers!) We check in, and are all given Castaway Club lanyards and special Castaway Club pins! Alright!! Free stuff!!

By this time they aren't boarding the ship yet, because they are wrapping up the filming of either a commercial, or a segment for the new DCL DVD! So we all get a quick bite to eat and something to drink! Then Captain Mickey shows up and it's picture time! (see pics at the bottom!)

Now the boarding starts..........and the excitement really (REALLY!!) builds! We walk through the giant Mickey ears and stop for a nice family "Bon Voyage" photo! Then we cross the gangway, and onto the MAGIC! They announce the "Return of the Falcone family!", we all get serious goose bumps, and walk into the gorgeous deck 3 atrium! There's the Mickey statue!................ There's Lumiere's!.......................There's Minnie!!........................Anybody hungry?! We all are, so it's up to deck 9 and Topsiders buffet! As we enter Topsiders, we are given an antiseptic wipe by a cheerfull CM (we will get these wipes before entering any of the restaurants onboard, as well as before we enter the ship at each port of call!) Talk about keeping a germ free environment! Way to go Disney! Top marks!

The buffet was absolutely delicious, as was the scrumptious cheesecake I had for dessert! Hey, I'm on vacation!! This is the first of many......MANY wonderfull meals on this ship!

My family heads straught for the pools, while it's time for me to explore and get my bearings! We all agree to meet up in our stateroom (#7032) at 3:15, so we can get ready for the mandatory boat drill!

I won't bore you with the details of the drill, as it's pretty much routine and not exciting! After the drill, my DW heads back to the pool, my DSs go exploring, and I..........well, I head down to the Promenade lounge for my traditional vodka martini (shaken......NOT stirred, of course!)

Okay, I'm gonna' relax now with my martini! Enjoy the pictures at the bottom of this report, and I'll check back in tonight with another installment!

Hope you are all enjoying this so far, as I'm having a blast writing it!

Here's a breakdown of the pictures that are with this chapter:
1.) My Disney Family (and guest!) in the limo!
2.) DC Bear in his seat!
3.) Captain Mickey and our twin DSs!
4.) Sailor Mickey statue!

[Amelia's Man]

Here's a photo of Minnie and my family taken on deck 3, atrium just after we entered the ship!

[dac921]

great report... keep going.. feeling the magic

[Cosmicwaves]

I'm loving it so far...can't wait to hear the rest!

[BaaBeE9]

Originally Posted by Amelia's Man

We get on the special DCL bus and head out for a 45 minute ride to Port Canaveral! As we crest a small bridge, our driver tells everyone to look out for the ship, as we should see it as soon as we cross the small bridge! And.....then................there she is! The Disney Magic in all her stupendous glory! The goose bumps were had by all!

I got goose bumps just reading it! Great start. I can't wait for more!

BTW...61 more days!

[Peppertink]

eek! I bumpy flight huh? Good thing you didn't have a chance to have that Lapu Lapu first thing in the morning Enjoying your TR...keep it coming!

[DisneyFreak78]

Thanks for the report. Awesome start. I can't wait to read more, as I'm getting way excited for my cruise now.

[twist1980]

Your kids are just adorable! And they look so excited! I am so excited to read the rest!

[WishUponAStar]

OOooooOOo, how exciting! I can't wait to read more! Your kids look SOOO estatic!

[woohoo]

Im in tears with heart beating excitement!!! The boat is my absolute favorite! I am loving the pics of the magic since we have only been on the Wonder. DH thinks a week is too long for the little kids. I am so excited to hear the rest!!

[llama]

Oh! Oh!!! There is NOTHING like that first glimpse of the ship - all shiny and navy blue!! Last time - I cried.

Keep it goin'!

[pumouse]

Awe, sounds like a great start to your trip! Your kids look so happy, and your wife is just lovely.

[Experiment6-2-6]

Sounds like you had a great start!

(except for the turbulence)

[Amelia's Man]

Okay, now where was I? Oh yeah, trip report! Right! Sorry for the delay, but it was a rather large martini! (Actually the delay is all my fault, you see, I'm still on leave from the Air Force and we've been doing day trips around the state this week!)

I forgot to mention, we did manage to make our reservation for Palo! We did that just before we headed back to the cabin to meet the kids for the mandatory boat drill! So, anyone wondering if we did Palo, YES!! We went on the Thursday, so I'll get to that particular report in due time!

I'll finish up the first day of our trip now!

The sail away party was in full swing by the time we all made it to deck 9! I don't have pictures of the party because I left my camera bag in the room! Anyway, after we caroused at the party it was time for some more exploring before our first dinner seating at Lumiere's! (we had the 6:00 dinner time for the cruise!)

At Lumiere's we were introduced to our wonderful wait staff who would follow us between all the restaurants onboard! Felipe was our main server, and Walter took care of our drinks! They were both amazing! For dinner I had a filet-mignon with some garlic mashed potatoes! For starters I had a fantastic bowl of tomato basil soup! Mmmmmm! The drink of the day was a Cool Breeze!
I'm not sure what was in it, as we didn't order them! We had some wine with dinner!

After dinner, the boys wanted to go to the Oceaneer's Lab for some fun and to check things out! So my DW and I took a nice stroll on deck 10! By now the sun had set on our first day and the sea air was absolutely exhilarating! We decided to skip the show at the Walt Disney Theater, much to our mutual regret we found out later, as it was a great new show called "All Aboard, Let The Magic Begin"! Oh well, we were a bit tired from being up so early in the morning! We decided to head to deck 3 and "Beat Street"!

We ended up in "Sessions" the piano bar, where we met Clara, who was to become a very good friend by the time we left the ship on Saturday1 Clara made us the BEST chocolatini we had ever had! .....EVER!!.....

After a couple of chocolatinis each, we said goodnight to Clara, and told her to expect us roughly the same time every night! (Yes.....they were THAT good!!)

I looked at my watch and it was 12:30 in the morning! Time to go fetch the boys at Oceaneer's Lab and head back to the cabin to see what towel animal was left by our housekeeper, Samual! This guy is the best of the best, and a complete joy! We had a real cute elephant towel animal waiting for us! Sorry though, he was moved before I could take his picture! As a matter of fact, I think I only got one towel animal picture this whole trip!

Oh, well! That's it for our hectic and long first day! My next report will cover Sunday,our first full day at sea!! Till then, enjoy some more photos!

They are:
1.) the chandelier above the deck 3 atrium
2.) the left staircase going up to deck 4
3.) the wonderful carpet design in front of the Mickey statue
4.) decks 3, 4, & 5
5.) a look down at the twin staircases

[alicefan]

I am loving your TR!! I really want to go on a Disney cruise!!!! Your family is beautiful - I didn't know you had twin boys! They are so handsome!