Let The Memories Continue! – Day 17

Seems like the third time isn’t always the charm. We awoke at 5 A.M. today and headed to the meeting spot for the hot-air balloon, and the weather seemed totally clear. We were very enthusiastic and happy that we would finally get a chance to ride on the hot-air balloon. We set off to the resort where the meeting point was to be held, and were shuffled into a room where we were instructed to watch a prepared video regarding Thomspon Aire’s acheivements and other information regarding our safety and our participation in the ride itself.  However, things started to go downhill from here on out. We headed into the car park, where it started to drizzle with rain. Hoping that it would pass over, we launched a balloon into the air to choose a launching site and headed off.

Dark clouds seemed to stalk our every movement as we traveled to the arranged site in their vans. Happily, we discovered that the couple that we were going to take the ride with were Singaporeans, and they were just starting their holiday. However, the clouds loomed over our site, and after a grudging wait of 30 minutes, the pilots announced that there would be no flight. (Basically, hot-air balloons are very much visual-only aircraft, and operate on VFR (Visual Flight Rules)). If we couldn’t see, we couldn’t fly, unlike commerical jets. Disappointed, we climbed back into the van and travelled back to the hotel where our car was parked.

This left us with some time before we needed to take the long drive to Port Canaveral, where the Disney Dream cruise ship awaits our arrival. We headed to iHOP Restaraunt, where we wanted to try their famous breakfasts. We were seated and ordered a breakfast sampler, buttermilk pancakes, and a kids waffle with banana slices for Ashley. The table also comes with various toppings on the side, which were complimentary. Our favourite would be the Old Fashioned, which was pure maple syrup, but others included Blueberry and Strawberry toppings, which Ashley also enjoyed. The pancakes and waffles were done well and were very good in their taste. Ashley and I also ordered some hot chocolate to help us start the day right. All of us thoroughly enjoyed this breakfast detour, especially my mom who was eyeing going for a trip to iHop since our trip to Orlando last year.

Soon, it was time to go off for the one hour drive towards Port Canaveral, where the Disney Dream cruise ship was docked. The Disney Cruise Line is a subsidiary of Disney itself, operating cruises all over the world, with locations spanning Europe and the Bahamas. The Disney Dream is a massive 122,000 tonne ship, with 1250 staterooms and 5 restaurants.  We were awe-struck the moment our eyes caught sight of the magnificent Dream cruise liner. It is simply unlike any other ship we had seen prior to the trip. It was massive, and beyond that, majestic. It seemed to even exert off its own aura of magnificence. Deciding on parking our car overnight at the car park at Port Canaveral, we packed up our luggage and waited in line for boarding. Luckily, the boarding time was swift and unlike what we had expected. As we boarded the dream, we arrived the lobby, where there was an announcer calling our family name, and the entire crew cheering for us. It was a very special moment for all of us. Unfortunately, we were worn out from the early morning, and our staterooms were not to be ready until 1.30 in the afternoon, so we had a few hours to kill.

We headed to Cabanas aboard the ship. Cabanas is a buffet-style restaurant, and it was very vast. The buffet spread was huge, and the selection diverse. We fawned over the selection, and some of our favourites would have to be the salmon and the lobster Mac’N Cheese. However, as everyone just boarded the ship, Cabanas was especially crowded, and this diluted our experience a little as we had to wait in queue for a long time before getting our food. This might just be the timing, as we had boarded a weekend cruise, which would be more favorable to the locals, who might just want a quick getaway to the Bahamas.  The ship, on the other hand, was simply amazing. The lobby was grander than any other hotel we had visited, and it looks like it came out of a Disney movie. What made me love Disney as a company would be their amazing attention to detail. Small items like the Mickey heads on the glass cups to the pure quality of the service that we receive, is simply astounding.

After lunch, at precisely 1.30 in the afternoon, the barricades to the rooms were lifted, and we checked into our rooms. Happily, our luggage have already arrived at the room, ahead of schedule, and we were able to unpack our clothes and other items. (ZA : We also hang our gift exchange fish extender outside our stateroom)

My parents and Ashley decided to check out the Oceanner’s lab and club, where children of 3-12 could relax or join in fun activities conducted by the kid’s counselors on site.

There was also a club for my age, but I decided not to attend it as I was not ready for any culture changes, and was reluctant to meet anyone there. There was also a brief safety drill, to acquaint us to the evacuation points and our life vests in case of an emergency.

Soon after, it was time for the Sail away party. This was a gathering on Deck 11, where the pool was located, to celebrate the start of our cruise to the Bahamas. The entertainment crew were jumping on stage and were extremely excited. Soon after, the ship’s horn blared out the melody of classic Disney tunes, before setting off into the sunset (quite literally!), towards Nassau. Before long, it was time for the show.

(SF : The ship horns were amazing. Disney classics like ‘When You Wish Upon A Star’, ‘Be Our Guest’ and ‘It’s A Small World’ were played. We have watched Youtube videos prior but they did not do justice. You got to hear it yourself to believe it.)

Onboard this 3-day cruise, there were three shows, each shown on a different day. Today’s show was The Golden Mickeys, and we wanted to see how it fared compared to the show in Hong Kong’s offering. Also, during the Pre-Show “interviews”, we noticed that there was another Singaporean family onboard the cruise ship, and were surprised at that fact, because we thought not many tourists would be on board the ship, not even counting Singaporeans.

One special moment was when Ashley was specially selected to become one of the Seven Dwarfs during the show. She was approached by two cast members, and they invited her to go backstage to prepare her for the performance.

Soon after, the show started, and its all the blitz and glamour that you would expect from a Disney show. At this point, the ship was out of the port, and it had started listing from one side to another. This made my dad and I very nauseous, but besides the movement from the ship, you couldn’t tell that the theatre was on a ship, or you were on a ship at all! The decoration and ambiance was simply amazing. The show’s plot is simple but amazing. A cast member goes on an adventure, so that we can all believe, that when we try, anything is possible. The show had appearances from many Disney classics, like Cinderella and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. We couldn’t stop smiling when Ashley went on stage. She played the role of “Sneezy”, and she even faked a very believable sneeze, which threw my mom into worry. The show was amazing, and was far better than the one that we watched in Hong Kong Disneyland.

Afterwards, we headed back to our stateroom for a quick rest before our dinner reservation at Enchanted Garden. As we arrived at the door, we realised that the Fish Extender Gift exchange was already underway, with a gift at our door. This is an external event conducted by people on the cruise, so it goes to show the amount of dedication that the people on the cruise have, especially the organizers of the event. We decided to return the favour by going on our first stage of our gift exchange. We had prepared pens with customized name tags with the Disney font, and we dropped them off at the designated staterooms, before heading to dinner. At dinner, we realised that we had a shared table. At first, we lamented on the fact, as Ashley does not like dining with strangers, until we realised who they were. Coincidentally, we realised that they were the same Singaporeans from the “interviews” during The Golden Mickeys. The family had just started their vacation as well, and there were two girls, both around Ashley’s age, and she could not wait to socialize and make friends with them.

Here, we were introduced to our servers, Sinisha, and Shawn, who would be following us throughout the duration of the cruise itself. They were “attached” to our table, as such. Their service was remarkable, and Shawn even entertained the children, by giving us a box, with a fake 100 dollar note in it, telling us to try to open it without any tools.

Here, we ordered an assortment of main dishes. I went for the Prime Rib, my mom went for the Sea Scallops, and my dad ordered the Sea Bass. Although all of them were nicely done, we all agreed that my Medium-Rare prime rib was the best, with its succulent texture and flavorful taste.

We also went for the Dine and Play program for Ashley, which allowed the servers to expedite the food for the kids, so that they can get more time at the Kids areas, while the adults could sit back and eat at a more leisurely pace. We chatted with the mother of the other Singaporean family, and before long, we headed back to the Stateroom, where there were even more gifts awaiting us. At this point, we were exhausted, and tucked into bed. The room we were given also has a bunk bed, so that four people could sleep comfortably. Personally, it was my first time sleeping on the upper portion of the bunk bed.

Disney Cruise also provides free 50MB free Wi-Fi, provided free-of-charge. Although not a large amount, it was large enough to do any last-minute things on the agenda, and it was also used to order my Joystick, while we were out at sea.

Before long, we all went to sleep, and awaited the next day of activities.