Deb's Digest

May 16, 2008
Port of Call: Sailing through the Panama Canal
Weather: Hot and Humid

12:37 PM CST
The ship came alive very early this morning. I hear that a number of folks slept out on Deck 10 to get primo viewing spots for going thru the canal.

Here are some early morning photos...... as we are just outside the Panama Canal getting refueled:

Our entry into the canal was delayed when a US Submarine surfaced and requested passage through the canal. They got priority over us.

UPDATE: 1:30pm CST

As I mentioned above, our schedule was thrown off by the sub. We were originally scheduled to have the Panama Pilot onboard at 5am, it was announced he was onboard at 6:50am.

We were scheduled to approach the Gatun Lock at 8am, instead we approached at 10am.

See the 3 steps of the lock? There is a ship on the left side in the 2nd lock.

Tons of folks were packed in the front of the ship. Lots.

Special Panama Canal TShirts were being sold today only, so of course Linda and I got one.

Even Minnie wanted to see the locks.

The Gatun Locks begin to accept the Disney Magic and the Gates Open...

We have been inside the 26 mile Gatun Lake since about 10am this morning (after passing through the Gatun Locks). We will soon be approaching the Pedro Miguel Lock.

3:00pm CST

Before arriving at the Pedro Miguel Lock we passed under the Centenial Bridge. WOW. the expansion of that bridge!!!!

Once again, the US Submarine slowed us down. However, we got some amazing views of it.

We are now coming out of the Pedro Miguel Lock. Only one more lock to go. I put in my 4G card and realized just now, my card reader only goes to 2G. I'll try to find someone with a new reader.

5:00pm CST
We have completed our transition of the Panama Canal and are now in the Pacific Ocean! What an amazing day!

8:00pm CST
More Gatun Lock Photos

May 15, 2008
Port of Call: SEA

I'll file this report at a later date.

Tomorrow we go through the Panama Canal. The whole ship is buzzing with excitment.

Here is the Panama Canal Port Authority WebCams.
Follow our journey through the Canal.

May 14, 2008
Port of Call: Aruba
Weather: High 80s, Low Humidity, Sunny morning, cloudy afternoon

Approaching Aruba

Linda enjoys the view from our balcony.

About Aruba:
According to the Aruba Tourism Authority website, "the first people to inhabit the island were a nation of Arawak Indians called the Caiquetios who migrated north from the Orinoco Basin in South America and settled here approximately 2,000 years ago.

The native language is a creole dialect called Papiamento which is made up of elements of Dutch, Spanish, English, French, Portuguese, a number of different African languages, and Arawak Indian. Nearly everyone on the island is able to speak English and Spanish, in addition to Dutch, which is the official language of Aruba."

The Aruba local pilot boards the Disney Magic.

When Linda and I spoke to folks who had visited Aruba before just about every person commented on the beaches and snorkling.

We decided on a snorkling excursion. We bring our own snorkle and mask and use the fins and lifejacket from the tour company. You certainly don't have to bring your own as everything you need is supplied on the boat.

Turns out Ann and George were on our Sail and Snorkle excursion! It's really funny because without talking about what we plan to do, we tend to end up sharing excursions together. We gather in Rockin Bar D to leave the boat and head to the catamaran!

Sailing and Snorkling Excursion:
Escape to an underwater world of colorful fish, unique coral formations and the Antilla shipwreck during a sailing and snorkeling adventure off the coast of Aruba.

Our sister boat, duplicate of what we are on, sailing to the snorkle stop.

We sail about 40 minutes to Boca Cathalina. Located on the west coast of the island, Boca Cathalina is a picturesque beach hideaway brimming with white sands and swaying palm trees, and is considered to be one of the best snorkeling spots in all of Aruba for its vast array of fish.

Deb dons her snorkle gear.

The water level at this first stop was about 15 feet and seas were calm. The water was warm and felt great to be swimming around. After 40 minutes, we were back onboard the catamaran for a short sail to our 2nd stop, the world-famous Antilla shipwreck.

Built by the Germans in 1939, the 397-foot, World War II freight ship was sunk in 1940 by the very country that created it in direct response to the inescapable threat of being commandeered by the Dutch. Today, as the second largest wreck in the Caribbean, it is home to a kaleidoscope of tropical fish and is considered to be one of the world's top 10 snorkeling sites.

At this location the water was about the same temperature, but the seas were 60 feet deep and very rough with strong currents. Little ones, well, even some adults, had a difficult time navigating the waters. Our boat docked right on top of the ship wreck, so we didn't have to go far to get an incredible view of the ship and the tropical fish. I probably saw 4-5 different types of fish. Next time I'll have to study my fish guide before I go snorkling!

It was fascinating to explore the ship and see all the fish. There was a group of scuba divers at the ship as well. They were quite interesting to watch.

Linda and I got back on the boat after about 30 minutes, most folks were already on board.

We had a wonderful 45 minute sail back to the Disney Magic. The crew served all types of beverages and that's where I found Linda, George and Ann.

Back onboard the Disney Magic we showered and yes, took a nap LOL. I don't know what it is but we are so relaxed we just seem to want to nap.... hehe

We depart Aruba about 6pm. Would you love to stay at this resort we passed on the way out of port!!!

One of the channels on the ship TV is the Report from the Bridge. You can get weather conditions, location of the ship, sea conditions and all kinds of neat information. So far we have traveled......

The ship had changed to a more southwestern course so the sunset is no longer off our balcony. We went up to Deck 10 and enjoyed this evenings sunset out of Aruba....

We relaxed for a while in Cove Cafe with George and then began to slowly wander to our dining destination for the evening, Animator's Palate.

Along the way, we encountered this crazy man!

Characters really seem to be out all over the ship and it's great fun to just run into them as you walk the decks.

Tropical Fiesta Night on the Disney Magic. Here is Orland, our server explainig tonights menu. The next photo is Deb and Orland dancing around the restaurant.

There was a deck party complete with buffet, but Linda and I passed and returned to our cabin. A great day in Aruba. Another day at sea and then we sail through the Panama Canal!

Are you on the cruise with us? Are you blogging? Send me your link!

Thanks for the email about this blog, keep it coming!

Follow my Panama Canal Cruise Blogs. Beginning entries at the top, for most recent entries scroll down.

Follow our journey on the DIsney Magic. The call sign is C6PT7

This link will show you in red dots where the Magic is. You can use the ZOOM in and out feature to get a better idea of where the ship is.

To see all cruise ships sailing click here. Then you can click on any area of the map to get a closer view.

Deb and Linda

On Friday, May 16th, we journey through the Panama Canal.

Follow our journey...... CENTRAL TIME USA

Here is the Panama Canal Port Authority WebCams.
Follow our journey through the Canal.

Approximate Times for May 16th....

Pilot Arrival 5am (6am East Coast US Time)

Approaching Gatun Lock 6am
Departing Gatun Lock 8am

Approaching Pedro Miguel Lock 1pm
Departing Pedro Miguel Lock 2pm

Approaching Miraflores Lock 2:30pm
Departng Miraflores Lock 4pm

Passing under the Bridge of the Americas 4:30pm

Depart for Acapulco 5pm

Weather prediction: HOT and HUMID.

May 13, 2008
Port of Call: SEA
Weather: Hot, Low Humidity, Sunny

Ah....we awoke to get a glimpse of the sunrise about 6:30am. The humidity is gone and so the cabin doors are wide open. We enjoyed coffee, listened to the Panama Canal History Lecture on the TV and I caught up on email.

While Linda continued to enjoy the cabin, I decided to do a power walk. I started on Deck 10 and after a mile realized it was WAY too windy. I refilled my water and went to Deck 4. Ah, much better. I walked about 3+ miles. It felt great to be walking again after a week off.

Soon it was time for Palo Brunch with Ann and George.

While at the brunch we saw our neighbors Gary and Janice - HELLO FOLKS!

Our server was Fernando from Chile. We met Fernando 5 years ago on the 7 Night Disney Eastern Caribbean cruise. At the time, he was an assistant server. He has now worked his way to Palo Server!!!! Yea Fernando!

After our wonderful meal, Linda went sunbathing. I waited for the gift team to arrive so we could make our bags for Day 5. There are items called Fish Extenders, which you hang outside your cabin. They have pockets and allow for small gifts to be left for you. I joined the DIS boards Fish Extender swap and our day for delivery is Aruba. So far we have gotten really neat items like neck coolies, themed buttons, magnets for the door, candy, dry erase board and much more.

Our team is delivering Pirate Tatoos, kid's bracelet, AllEars Pens, Chapstick and a Castaway Cay postcard,

Imagineer Jeff Kurti was giving a lecture at 3pm. I really wanted to attend, but also wanted to nap. I have decided on this cruise, I would give in to my desire to nap. LOL

This evening's show is When Mickey Dreams. It was introduced last year on the Meditterrean Cruise (for those cruises only). I was very excited to read it was back for the Mexican cruises. It's a combination of Tapestry of Dreams and Cirque de Soliel! The acrobats and gymnists are breathtaking....incredible. I just love it!!! Here are some pics:

Linda, Beci and I decided to skip dinner at Lumiere's and watch Dancing with the Stars. We ordered dinner in the room and enjoyed the show.

Soon it was time to say goodnight and get ready for our day in Aruba!!!!!

Are you on the cruise with us? Are you blogging? Send me your link!

Thanks for the email about this blog, keep it coming!

Follow my Panama Canal Cruise Blogs. Beginning entries at the top, for most recent entries scroll down.

Follow our journey on the DIsney Magic. The call sign is C6PT7

This link will show you in red dots where the Magic is. You can use the ZOOM in and out feature to get a better idea of where the ship is.

To see all cruise ships sailing click here. Then you can click on any area of the map to get a closer view.

Deb and Linda

Monday May 12, 2008
Port of Call: SEA
Weather: Hot and Humid

Ah...... Sea Days! One of the best parts of cruising and we have 2 in a row. We were up around 6 and had just missed the sunrise. Room service coffee came quickly and I logged in and Linda is on the couch reading.

Before I tell you about today, I must tell you about the surprise I had on Embarkation Day. During the sail away party, someone tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around to find my dear friend Deb Grandon who I had not seen or talked to in, well, way too long! Her daughter Kelly is all grown up now. They all looked WONDERFUL...oops, I guess I should MAGICal.

Also, another update! Apparently Donnie Osmond was the originally scheduled special entertainer, but he has canceled and we will see Joey Fatone instead. No offense Joey, but I would have LOVED to see Donnie! Oh Well!

The Concierge held a reception at 10:30 in Sessions. Our wonderful concierge team invited me to bring along some of my traveling party, so Ann, George, Beci and Chris accompanied me.

Here's Ann and George waiting for us in the lobby.

WOW! I guess because I had no expectations...but there was quite a nice continentel breakfast spread, including some awesome berries!!!!!

Shortly after arriving, our special guest arrived. Everyone was surprised and we had great fun watching her with the kids.

Linda spent the morning at the Rainforest in the Spa.

We regrouped in the cabin and Beci, Chris, Linda and I went to the 12:30 showing of National Treasure 2! It was great!!!!!

The afternoon flew by and soon I was back in the cabin for a late afternoon nap :)

Tonight is formal night and not only did the passengers dress up,

but so did the characters.

The evening show, Golden Mickeys, was as great as always.

Tomorrow....a SEA DAY!!

Are you on the cruise with us? Are you blogging? Send me your link!

Thanks for the email about this blog, keep it coming!

Follow my Panama Canal Cruise Blogs. Beginning entries at the top, for most recent entries scroll down.

Follow our journey on the DIsney Magic. The call sign is C6PT7

This link will show you in red dots where the Magic is. You can use the ZOOM in and out feature to get a better idea of where the ship is.

To see all cruise ships sailing click here. Then you can click on any area of the map to get a closer view.

Deb and Linda

Sunday, May 11, 2008
Castaway Cay

Our day at Castaway Cay was beautiful. It's like coming "home" again when we pull into port and see all the pastel colored umbrellas and the waving DCL and Castaway Cay flags from the post office. The starboard side of the ship has a great view of the island and the pirate ship.

Over on the port side we get to see all the crew members docking the ship. It is actually quite fascinating to watch the whole process.

After a very leisurely morning of breakfast in the cabin, I decided I was recovered enough from the 26 mile Avon walk of last weekend to begin walking again. Bandaids on the almost healed blisters and off I went. Because of my fair skin, I always have to stay protected. Good high spf sunscreen and my wonderful LL Bean ultra light sun protected clothing and hat. Of course, Beci and Linda had a good chuckle when they saw me.

Have I mentioned how HOT and HUMID it was???? I was glad for my training otherwise I don't think I could have done the walk. I headed off the ship. Ran into Sharon at Marges Barges, who was waiting for Sandy who went ParaSailing. Then off I went. I planned on an hour walk, 30 minutes out an then back.

It was here I realized how few children really are on the ship. The teen beach was empty, the family beach about half full. I heard that Serentiy Bay (adult beach) was absolutely packed well before 11am.

I walked out to Serenity Bay and back. Very grateful that Disney has ice cold water jugs along the way. I filled up 3 times! Saw Sharon again who looked at me and couldn't believe I was still out walking!

While I was on the island, Linda got a day pass for the Rainforest Spa. The one day (or length of cruise pass) allows you access to the Rainforest room, sauna, and 2 steam rooms, showers etc. The wonderful warmed stone beds really are soothing to the body.

Back on board for my first of several nap times. I'm also reading my first book in years, Barbara Walter's "Audition". It's quite good so far.

The day was a lazy one indeed...after all, that's why we chose this cruise! At lunch we met 2 ladies we sailed the Mediterrean with.

Late in the day our concierge team, Connie and Richard, came by. What a delightful pair of Crew Members. These folks are AWESOME!!!!! Already we feel as though we are old friends. (A much different and much more positive experience than we had on the Wonder last year)

A few minutes before 6, I ran downstairs to put my RSP in for the Panama Canal pins. If you are into pins you know what that is..basically a random drawing request list for limited edition pins. The whole process was rather confusing to me and I even had used an RSP before.

I then ran into Fish Extender Team Mate Suzy Snyder.... Then Sandy, Sharon, George and Ann in the shops. They were buyin merchandise, I was just window shopping.

As we headed out to dinner at Animators Palate, we walked along Deck 4, above the atrium. This was one of the beautiful images we saw. This is when I really wish I had a digital SLR camera so I could have really captured the moment. Not to bad tho with my Canon S5IS.

Ran into Terry (DrDolphin) and Leslie from the Passporter Boards...they had a great day parasailing.

Animators has changed their menu, but it still does nothing for me. Most of us at the table were also like, eh... Plus, now that we have seen the show so many times and the technology (which was a WOW in 98 when the ships came onboard) has grown old.

One cool surprise was that during the Crew parade through the dining room, Sorcerery Mickey led the way. None of us could think of when we have seen Sorcerery Mickey other than in the Hollywood Studios and Fantasmic. It was a WAY cool surprise for us all.

After dinner, the grown ups all went out to the club and the kids (like Linda and myself) went back to the cabin to call it a night.

Next 2 full sea days....yea!!!!!

Are you on the cruise with us? Are you blogging? Send me your link to include here!

Follow my Panama Canal Cruise Blogs. Beginning entries at the top, for most recent entries scroll down.

Follow our journey on the DIsney Magic. The call sign is C6PT7

This link will show you in red dots where the Magic is. You can use the ZOOM in and out feature to get a better idea of where the ship is.

To see all cruise ships sailing click here. Then you can click on any area of the map to get a closer view.

Deb and Linda

Today we got up early and met Sandy and Sharon, at the Dolphin's Fresh, for Breakfast.

At 9:30, Happy Limo picked us up for our journey to the port.

As you might imagine, Port Canaveral was just BUZZING with excitement. Over 2,000 passengers were about to board the ship for a 15 night cruise through the Panama Canal and to Los Angeles California.

At the port, the line for check-in was quite long. I had a secret surprise for Linda that I have been keeping for quite sometime..... she didn't know but I had booked a 1 bedroom suite instead of our regular Navigators Verandah. As I led her to the concierge check-in, she was quite surprised!!!!! I'm not sure how I kept the secret since we booked in January 2007! Plus, as it got closer to the cruise, I started telling a lot of our friends.

When we arrived in the state room we had a beautiful floral bouquet, thanks to Cathy and Bryant! And Beci had left us a Spa basket. Two very nice treats! Soon, a small fruit platter was delivered for us. Then we met Nick our cabin guy, who seems VERY on the ball and a great personality. We are going to like him!!!!

Normally we wouldn't want all this space, but since we have a large number of sea days, I thought, what better way to splurge! And so we did! It's already been nice as we had our group of 10 in before the sail away yesterday. While a bit crowded...we all fit and it worked.

There are a lot of plusses to the suite and concierge service, I'll leave that to another blog entry.

So we board the ship and off we went to Parrot Cay, our favorite embarkation day lunch destination. We all had different boarding group numbers, so it took a while for all 10 of us to get on the ship.

Our next surprise of the day - Sandy had special T-Shirts made for each of us.

It's Mickey in the Sea No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil. "What happens at sea, stays at sea!" It was a grand surprise and perfect for the theme of the cruise.

Soon it was time for the Muster Drill and then the Sail Away Party!!!! As usually, the characters were all out and helped wish us all a great sailing.

Linda and I took a short nap before our 8:15 dinner seating. We have both been really tired, she's fighting a cold and I had the 26 miles walk just a few days ago.

We all gathered at dinner and most of us were pretty tired from traveling, work and everything else. We all agreed that had it not been the first night, most of us would have skipped dinner. As it was, I ate my chicken and then excused myself and headed right to the room to call it a night.

Concierge had left our trip itinerary and we were thrilled to see that Donnie Osmond would be doing a show later in the cruise.

Well, as I write this we are pulling into Castaway Cay. We are drinking coffee and watching the ship pull in (7:30am on Sunday, May 11). We have no plans for today and we will just see what the day brings.

I'll end now and write more later.......

Follow my Panama Canal Cruise Blogs. Beginning entries at the top, for most recent entries scroll down.

Follow our journey on the DIsney Magic. The call sign is C6PT7

This link will show you in red dots where the Magic is. You can use the ZOOM in and out feature to get a better idea of where the ship is.

To see all cruise ships sailing click here. Then you can click on any area of the map to get a closer view.

Deb

Linda and I flew into Orlando on Friday. I slept on the plane and awoke bright eyed and ready to go! Once the plane stopped rolling I got up and started moving around getting excited. Linda laughed with me. The trip of a lifetime had begun.

We had a quick reunion with Beci and Chris as they were staying at the airport Hyatt and met us in baggage claim for some quick hugs. They had taken the red eye flight in from Seattle Washington.

We had a smooth ride to WDW via Quicksilver and when we got into the Dolphin I saw a packed lobby, which probably meant rooms were not ready. Turns out there were over 1000 departures that morning.

A dear friend had emailed me a few days ago to let me know they had a surprise visit to WDW this weekend. We used our phones text messaging and set up a small surprise for Linda at lunch. Once we were eating at Picabu (Dolphin), someone came up behind Linda and surprised her. I HOPE it's ok now (since this will publish on Sunday) to say it was our dear friend Mike Scopa.

At 2:30 our room still wasn't ready and I had a 3pm massage at Mandara Spa. I didn't want to have to go from a massage to sitting in the lobby. So, I returned to the front desk and asked if any room was available. The Cast Member was most helpful and got us a great room with a balcony.

I got back to the room from the massage about 4ish and Linda was getting ready to head down for her massage. We both had the Sweedish Massage and both of us rated it average. Nothing special, but nice. The real plus was the heated massage bed to lay on....very relaxing.a

I was meeting John from OwnersLocker at 5:30 at the lobby bar, so no time to nap, LOL

Linda eventually joined John and I and then he departed. It's always good to catch up with John and talk "shop". While we sat finishing our beverages, we spotted 2 of our cruise mates entering the hotel, Sharon and Sandy. So, we had our second reunion of the day. We picked up right where we left off one year ago. We love to travel with these cousins...they are huge fun!

Now back to the room and quickly off to dinner.

We enjoyed a great dinner at the Yachtsman Steakhouse with our dear friends Steve and Vickie Barrett and surprise guest Mike Scopa. Our server YUN, was great, friendly and knowledgeable. She made it a fun evening. Near the end of dinner I remembed I had met the manager of the Steakhouse in the fall, so I asked for him to come by the table. It was good to see Mark again and we told him we had a great dinner and super server. During dinner, my phone rang and it was our friend Masayo from Japan. She wanted to say hello and wish us a bon voyage!!!!! It doesn't get much better than having friends from all around the world!!!!

(By the way, the Deb and Steve cruise this September has a few cabins remaining - well, as of this blog).

On April 22, 2008 Animal Kingdom theme park proudly turned 10 years young!

In conjuction with Walt Disney World and Animal Kingdom, the WDWCelebrations.com team hosted their 2nd anniversary event, A Wild Decade. You may recall these were the same folks that brought you Celebration 25 -honoring Epcot's 25 years in 2007.

Registration for the Wild Decade closed a few weeks prior at 400. Not too shabby considering the event was on a Tuesday!

Check-in began bright and early near the Animal Kingdom ticket booths. Then the lines to get into the park quickly developed.

Animal Kingdom offered just a few events to commemorate the birthday.
First, a Re-Dedication Ceremony at park opening, hosted by Erin Wallace, Joe Rohde and Jane Goodall.

After the ceremony, Animal Kingdom Vice President Val Bunting greeted guests at the Attraction Times board. The first photo is Adam Roth and Val. The next one is me with Val.

Then there was a very special opportunity to hear Joe Rohde speak in the Theatre in the Wild. He is quite the storyteller and it's easy to see why he is such a successful imagineer! His facial expressions really added to the talk.

Special thanks to Patty Cook, who I met at the talk, for the cool photographs of Joe.

We have the audio for listening.

Lastly, Joe was available for autographs and photographs from 1-2pm in the afternoon. Here is AllEars Team Member Linda Mac with Joe!

Soon it was time for the WDWCelebrations.com Wild Decade events to begin!

The Wild Decade had their first attraction meet of the day enjoying Finding Nemo the Musical. From there, it was on to Expedition Everest!

At 2pm, the now traditional History Walk took place. Prior to the walks beginning, there was a very special visit by Animal Kingdom Vice President Val Bunting. Not only did she speak with the Wild Decade group, she entertained a few questions from the crowd and then stayed on for photo ops and even some pin trading. I asked Val about future attractions and new animal species that may be coming to the park. She replied with the standard Disney answer... we're always looking at new opportunities.....etc etc! In otherwords, no special announcements on April 22nd!

Attendees were split into 2 groups for the History Walk, one led by John C and one by Tom Corless. I attended Tom's walk and really enjoyed it. I even learned a few new things that I can share with friends on our next adventure to the park!! To the WDWCelebrations Team - kudos on the history talk!!!

Next, the folks at Animal Kingdom reserved 2 of the areas at the Flame Tree BBQ for Wild Decade Attendees to use for dinner. That really worked well. People were able to mingle and have some down time together. It was VERY nice.

At about 6:15pm, most of us having now been in the park almost 12 hours, I was starting to get tired. There were 2 events I still wanted to get to....but made the decision to forgo the last meet on Dinosaur!

We gathered outside DinoLand USA for a presentation. The Wild Decade organizers, led by 17-year-old Adam Roth, presented a $500 check to author Lou Mongello (The Walt Disney World Trivia Book) to go to the Dream Team charity he has established, which benefits terminally ill children through the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Afterwards we posed for a group photo that was a lot of fun to organize.

Larger Wild Decade Group Photo Image

Soon it wsa time to say goodbyes. The day went WAY too fast but the memories will last a long time.

Thanks to Val Bunting, Joe Rohde, the Cast Members who helped create Animal Kingdom and those that have worked there over the years, the WDWCelebrations team and all the attendees who made this a wonderful day.

Their next event, a World Wide Weekend will be held in late September. Registration is already open. I'll be there, will you?