Say it, Dorothy! 

Well, folks, I am home.

The transfer from the ship to the airport was flawless.  However, the wait at the airport was interminable.  (I arrived at the airport around 9:30 a.m. and we did not take off until 4:00 p.m.)

After being on the ship for three weeks, all that time waiting and not a buffet to attend!  

The flight left a little early from Orlando and we arrived a half hour early at O’Hare.  As a matter of fact, we were so early that there was no gate for us.  Our assigned gate still had an out-going plane at it.  So we waited at a tarmac at the end of the airport for another twenty minutes or so before we could get to our gate.

Once there, my luggage was some of the first off the plane — YEAH! — and as soon as I got outside, I called my parishioners (Dan and Mary Lou) who were waiting for me in the cell phone parking area.

They picked me up, took me to dinner, and now I am waiting to jump into the shower and then my own bed.  It is calling me and singing to me, even as I speak.  My own pillows.  Oh, the bliss!  

So, I just wanted you to know that the vacation is now officially over.  During the next week, I will go through this blog and make necessary corrections now that I have a fast Internet connection again.

As I have said before, thank you for taking this trip with me vicariously!  I had the Time Of My Life!!!

Friday, September 5, 2008
Day at Sea

Well, we have definitely run into a “bit of weather.” It is 7:15 a.m. right now and we were tentatively supposed to get to Castaway Cay by 7:00 a.m. As we are travelling 11.5 knots and Castaway Cay is still 57 nautical miles away, I would venture to say we are not going to make it at 7:00 a.m.!

The “Report from the Bridge” that continuously displays on our stateroom television sets also is informing us that the Wind Speed is “Force II – Violent Storm” and that the seas are “High” (20-30 feet).

I can tell you something else as well. If people try to get up and move around right now, there is going to be a lot of Dramamine consumed.

Here is a look from my veranda (and, by the way, these pictures are NOT in any way doctored, filtered, et cetera.  This is what I saw):

At 9:00 a.m., the captain got onto the p.a. system and made it official: Castaway Cay is scrubbed and, because there is no other port nearby that can accommodate us in this weather, we will be spending the day at sea as we begin to make our way back to Port Canaveral, estimated time of arrival 5:00 a.m. tomorrow morning.

When he spoke to the island manager at Castaway Cay, the manager reported that they were still experienced sustained winds of 50 mph and the seas were very rough. So, let’s keep the people who live on Castaway Cay in our prayers.

Brent, our cruise director, stated that they were busy making up a new Navigator to include the things that they have added for this day at sea. We should have those in our staterooms in 45 minutes or so.

We are still travelling around 12 knots in rough seas and severe winds. The captain also assured the passengers not to worry about the rough seas or the tipping and turning that the ship is doing. He said that the ship is quite capable of navigating in these kinds of seas. He is either trying to keep people assured or is responding to some people who have already panicked. I do not know for sure.

Well, I guess that is all for now. Disney Dreams is tonight’s show. They will also have a matinee of it. I will be at both.

I have also received my departure information. I have luggage tags for the airline and my luggage needs to be outside my stateroom between 9:00 and 11:00 p.m. tonight. I have also received my boarding pass for my flight as well. This airport check-in perk is really nice. Once I put my luggage outside my room tonight, I do not have to worry about it as I will not see it until I am back at Chicago O’Hare tomorrow evening! That makes things really convenient!

It has been a wonderful three weeks on the cruise and I am ready to go home and get back into my work again.

Thanks, Disney!

By this afternoon around 4:00 p.m., the day had taken on a really sunny perspective. The seas and winds, however, were still the same.

After the show, there was a bird hanging in front of my veranda curtains:

Presently (9:50 p.m.), the following statistics apply:
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 79 degrees
Humidity: 69%
Wind: Force 5 (Fresh Breeze)
Seas: Rough (8-13 feet)
Distance sailed from Port Canaveral: 630 nautical miles
Distance to Port Canaveral: 55 nautical miles
Speed: 9.0 knots
Arrival to Port Canaveral: 4:30 a.m.

The final show, Disney Dreams was magnificent, as usual. It was very sad for me, though, because in many ways this said “The End” to me. The end of a three-week cruise on the Disney Magic, a cruise that I went on to celebrate my 25th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood, a cruise where I met many people that I have come to know online on DISboards.com, and a cruise where I met many people. Three weeks on a cruise is a l-o-n-g time by most standards. It is time that I believe was well spent. It really helped me to rest and relax and look forward to returning full force to my ministry.

So now, after I post this on line, I will go to bed. My suitcases are already in the hallway outside my door. They will be checked directly to American Airlines by the cruise line tomorrow morning. I do not have to worry about them until I get to Chicago. My boarding pass is in my possession and all I have to do tomorrow morning is show my passport and customs declaration to the authorities when I disembark.

And, YES, I did double-check to make sure that all my documents are really with me and not packed away in my luggage somewhere!

So, this is my last post on the blog while on board.

When I get home, I will post a final entry and also go through the blog correcting spelling and other errors as well as post a few more pictures. I will also post a link to where more full-sized copies of my pictures can be viewed. For the blog I greatly reduced the size of the picture because it takes so long to post on the ship’s internet. If I would recommend one thing to Disney it would be to put in a faster Internet connection. Their satellite Internet is one step above dial-up. Ugh!

So, g’night.

Thank you for reading my blog and for taking the time to leave comments and/or send me email! I hope you enjoyed the entries and, perhaps, had the opportunity to take a vicarious cruise by following along.

And, finally, to my parishioners at St. Thomas More Church in Munster, IN — look out. I will be home tomorrow night and will see you at the 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 Noon Masses on Sunday!

Thursday, September 4, 2008
Sunrise, 6:52 a.m. / Sunset, 7:27 p.m.
Evening Attire: Formal
Dinner at Palo Tonight

Well, it looks like we lost our last stop at Castaway Cay. The stateroom television channel that continuously shows weather, direction, course, et cetera, is listing our “Next Port of Call” as being Port Canaveral on Saturday, September 6. Castaway Cay should be listed for September 5, except that is, most likely, off the plate now with Hurricane Ike making such a racket out at sea. If they make any announcements as to our course/itinerary, I will keep you posted.

At this point in time we are chugging along at 6.2 knots in moderate seas. Blue skies with lots of clouds are all around us.

Tonight’s entertainment, which will also have a matinee performance, is Twice Charmed: An Original Twist On The Cinderella Story.

I just came back from the matinee performance of Twice Charmed. As usual, they did a great job. I am planning to watch it again tonight. Tomorrow’s performance is their award-winning Disney Dreams.

Before the performance, the cruise director, Brent, told us that the captain has been watching Hanna very closely. It is due to hit Castaway Cay beginning later this afternoon and into the night as it moves easterly. Because Hanna is tracking as it is right now, the captain has decided that this evening he will turn the ship and begin heading toward Castaway Cay in hopes of making port there tomorrow. The plan is to arrive at the island around 7:00 a.m. and determine how well the island went through the storm as well as whether or not the ship will be able to make it into their dock. If all goes well, we will be at Castaway Cay tomorrow. However, they are making it very clear that the decision to do so is something that will need to be made more at the last minute because of how this storm has been acting/moving. But the captain thinks it is safe enough at least to approach the island and make ready to port if possible.

We are presently proceeding in the same moderate seas at 5.9 knots.

A couple of pictures from my balcony at 3:00 p.m.

Will we? Won’t we? Stay tuned to the exciting last day of our cruise!

I will let you know tomorrow what ultimately happens.

However, if you can say a few prayers for us — or cross a few fingers if you are not really a pray-er — I kinow we would all appreciate it!

“To be decided” That is the caption on tomorrow’s Navigator for “Ashore” time. Brent told us before tonight’s show that this is the first time that he can ever remember an ashore time being listed as “To be decided.”

Of course, he explained, this is all because of the uncertainty of what Hanna might be doing. As I type this, Castaway Cay is being hit with the fringes of the winds and rain of the tropical storm, Hanna. We were told that the storm is increasing in size, but that the captain is still hoping to make port at Castaway Cay tomorrow. Right now, we are going as slow as we can go to remain on the very edge of the storm fringe yet still maintain a port time of 7:00 a.m. Presently (9:30 p.m.), our speed is 8.2 knots. We are in “very rough” seas (13-20 feet) and you can really tell that by walking outside on the promenade deck. A heavy mist is flying all over the place as the bow of the ship breaks the waves on the water.

Tomorrow morning, if/when we make port, the captain will contact the island manager to access any damage from the storm as well as whether or not we will be able to dock. As I have said several times already, I will let you know whenever we hear anything. Realistically though, we will not hear anything until the very last minute.

The towel animal waiting for me this evening was a huge crocodile!

Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Sunrise, 6:52 a.m. / Sunset, 7:28 p.m.
Ashore – Approx. 8:30 a.m.
All Aboard – 4:00 p.m.
Evening Attire: Pirate or Cruise Casual
Dinner Menu: Animator’s Palate – Pirates IN the Caribbean Dinner

Well, we arrived in Nassau this morning with little problem.

At first, things were not looking very positive:

But, within an hour or so, and shortly before the ship cleared for all ashore, things cleared up spectacularly:

I was able to meet up with a friend — the mother on my music director back at the parish. She lives here in Nassau and gave me the grand tour. We were out for sightseeing, lunch, and then back to the ship. We were able to get together for four hours of driving and sightseeing. The weather was so nice with the wind that we even spent the majority of the time in the car with windows down instead of using the air conditioner. That is very unusual this time of year during the day!

Pictures from Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island:

Then it started clouding up again and got very windy:

But, thankfully, it didn’t last for long. I ended up eating lunch at Travellers Rest

And then it was back to port.

We will be at sea tomorrow and then at Castaway Cay on Friday. That is, if the weather holds.

Goodbye, Nassau!

It was strange thinking about the possibility of bad weather today since it was so beautiful out — 76 degrees, 65% humidity, windy. However, there were many private houses as well as businesses that were putting up their shutters over windows and doors this afternoon as we were making our way back to the port. They are not taking any chances this evening as they expect weather from Hanna.

Tonight’s entertainment features the comedy of Heath Hyche. He is scheduled to come on board today. I have never heard of him, so it will be interesting to see what his show will be like.

Right now we are sailing at 16.9 knots in “moderate” seas (waves only 4-8 feet in height). But, I think I hear her humming! Who, you might ask?

The “fat lady.”

You know what they say, “It’s not over ’til the fat lady sings.”

Well, she’s not singing yet, but I sure think she’s humming.

The reason I say that is because of the captain’s announcement through the entire ship right before leaving Nassau. He says that they, of course, are continuing to track Hanna as well as the storms that are behind it. He said that Hanna is “expected to affect Nassau and Castaway Cay Thursday and Friday before moving to the east coast of Georgia on Saturday.” He also promised that he would keep us informed as to the storm and our itinerary.

Well, if Castaway Cay is going to be affected Friday, we will be well out at sea to avoid the storm and effectively today might well have been our last port for this cruise.

So, we might have one sea day or we might have two. Who knows? Only Hanna, and she doesn’t appear to be talking!

I will keep you posted whenever we hear more news from the captain.

Well, I do not know who Heath Hyche is . . . we were told that he has been on several television shows including “Last Comic Standing.” Up until tonight I have never seen him. But, funny? Good Lord, this guy is FUNNY! I found myself laughing uncontrollably. You know, one of those times when you just cannot get yourself to stop? That was me! He had several paradies; but, the one that did me in was his Elvis impersonation and routine. Woo Hoo!!!

We are still chugging along at 7.2 knots and are three nautical miles away from Castaway Cay right now. We will be passing it up and heading into the waters south of Florida. The “forecast” for us looks good for relatively calm seas tonight and sun and good seas tomorrow on our sea day. Keep those fingers crossed for us, please.

Also, at this present point in time, it looks like our Pirate Night party up top is still on and the weather is holding for a fireworks show in 45 more minutes. As I say, keep those fingers crossed for us, please.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Sunrise, 6:52 a.m. / Sunset, 7:30 p.m.
Ashore – Approx. 8:30 a.m.
All Aboard – 5:00 p.m.
Evening Attire: Cruise Casual
Dinner Menu: Animator’s Palate – Show Dinner

Distance sailed from Port Canaveral: 226 nautical miles
Distance to Nassau: 61 nautical miles

Well, after a rough start last night, we arrived at Castaway Cay this morning right on schedule. When they cleared the ship and made the announcement that everyone could go ashore, they encouraged us to “enjoy the island today as early as possible” because there is a distinct possibility for “weather” to come in this afternoon. When we got off the ship, there was a sign that said that all the excursions with the exception of the stingray area were cancelled today. Apparently, the excursion contractors that have to come by boats from Great Abaco felt that the weather would not be good enough to travel to and, especially, from Castaway Cay today. Also, it is so windy that the parasailing would be cancelled anyway.

The temperature is supposed to get to the high 80’s today and the humidity is at 75%.

As I look at the stateroom television at our ship’s information channel, I see that they have returned the itinerary to its original schedule.

Yesterday we were told that we would have a sea day tomorrow, September 3rd, and go to Nassau on the 4th. Now the television is announcing arrival at Nassau tomorrow, September 3, at 7:00 a.m., departing at 5:00 p.m.

So that is what it is at this point in time. All things could change again in an hour, who knows?

Tonight’s show is the Golden Mickeys.

The day, by the way, was a nice one at Castaway Cay. At times, including right now as we are leaving, there were rain clouds in the distance, but it has been nice here. A lot nicer than we probably expected. I’ll take it!

Okay, it is now official . . . at least at this point in time.

The captain came on over the public address during dinner time and announced that, as they are tracking Hurricane Hanna, there has been a shift to the track and that we will now be going to Nassau, Bahamas tomorrow (Wednesday). He said that if we did not go tomorrow, we would not be able to go at all this week because they are expecting the bad weather to hit Nassau tomorrow evening/night.

What that means for us making Castaway Cay on Friday still remains a mystery.

But, at this point in time — and we all know that can change in a moment’s notice, we are back on for Nassau tomorrow.

The towel animal in my room tonight is an octopus.

Here is the letter from Captain Tom Forberg, captain of the Disney Magic, that was waiting in our staterooms after the evening show:

Dear Disney Magic Guests:

Sincerely,
/s/ Captain Tom Forberg
Disney Magic

Monday, September 1, 2008
Special 5 Day Bahamian Cruise
Sunrise, 7:01 a.m. / Sunset, 7:43 p.m.
All Aboard: Approx. 3:45 p.m.
Port Departure 5:00 p.m.
Evening Attire: Cruise Casual
Dinner Menu: Lumiere’s – French Dinner

Well, this morning was proof of why Disney recommends to passengers NOT to have flights earlier than 12:30 p.m.

The ship usually clears quite early in port. Today was one of those exceptions. Because of so much luggage to be moved from the ship into the customs area, the ship was late in being cleared.

They expected to get us off (those of us remaining from the Panama Canal Cruise) at 9:30 a.m. and back on at 10:00 a.m.

We did not leave the ship until around 10:30 a.m. and got back on a little after 11:00 a.m. and there were still people leaving the ship after our group got off.

They even powerwash the balconies between cruises. Here is one of the crew taking care of my balcony. Can you believe the “Mickey poncho”?!

By the way, there are far fewer of us doing the back-to-back cruise than I first heard. There are 29 passengers who are doing the back-to-back cruise.

And, as Hurricane Hanna begins staking its claim, we have had an itinerary change announcement made already.

As of this moment, we will still hold to our ports (until we hear otherwise). The itinerary now is:
09/01 – Port Canaveral
09/02 – Castaway Cay
09/03 – As Sea
09/04 – Nassau
09/05 – Castaway Cay
09/06 – Port Canaveral

If the weather necessitates a change to ports, we will be notified. Sounds like this week is going to be a moment-by-moment kind of week!

As I type this, I am also listening to the news on television about Hurricane Gustav and all the damage it is doing. A LOT of people to keep in our prayers!

The entertainment tonight is All Aboard: Let The Magic Begin with the Disney Magic Performers. We will also see the magic of Danny Buckler and the physical comedy of Jeff Civillico.

We are starting to get some darker clouds coming in. I think we’ll probably get some rain this afternoon, maybe even at sail-away time. We will have to wait and see…

Up . . . Down . . . Left . . . Right . . Up . . Down . . Left . . Right . UP . DOWN . LEFT . RIGHT UPDOWNLEFTRIGHT….

THAT, my friends, is precisely what the ship is doing. I am hearing “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” playing in the back of my mind!!!

Seeing people walking down the halls (myself included) is like watching human pinballs bouncing in a pinball machine.

It is almost 10:00 p.m., 75 degrees, 72% humidity and we are travelling at 17.4 knots in “rough” seas (7.5-12 foot waves). We are bouncing all over the place.

And you want to know the amazing thing about it? Not a single missed step during the show tonight by our dancers and performers. It was simply amazing. Watching them gave us the illusion that everything was normal. And as soon as everyone in the theatre stood up at the end of the show, half of us fell back in our seats because of the motion of the ship. This group of performers is absolutely amazing. Did I use amazing enough?

When I arrived back to my room, there was a cute little towel animal bird perched on my pillow!

We are still watching the weather and being informed by the captain. He has let us know that we will be informed should any further changes to our itinerary become necessary. We are just hoping that we can get in to Castaway Cay tomorrow. If the seas are too rough, the ship cannot make berth there and we would end up with a sea day.

Watch tomorrow for updates!

Monday, September 1, 2008
Sunrise, 7:02 a.m. / Sunset, 7:42 p.m.
THE END OF THE 15 DAY PANAMA CANAL CRUISE
We have travelled 4841 nautical miles from Los Angeles to Port Canaveral
which is equivalent to 5,567 land miles.
Disembark – After breakfast

Whatever dining room we had dinner in on Sunday evening is the dining room that we were to report to for breakfast for the ending of the 15 Day Panama Canal Repositioning Cruise. For me, this means that I need to be at breakfast at Animator’s Palate at 7:00 a.m. I want to do this so that I can say goodbye to Amanda & Joe and their son, Jake.

This has been a wonderful time for me and I am looking forward to the next days on the special 5 Day Bahamian Cruise.

The people who are leaving the ship for the end of their cruise are to do so immediately after their breakfast.

For the several of us who are remaining for the 5 Day cruise, we have a different set of instructions.

For those leaving, their luggage had to be left outside their room last night (Sunday evening). For those of us remaining, our luggage needed to be packed and remain in our rooms so that the room stewards could move the luggage to the new rooms.

For the very few lucky (myself included) who have the same room assignment, I do not have to do anything with my “stuff” and/or my luggage. I am staying in this room, so there is no worry.

Those of us remaining have to meet the Clearance Officer at the Shore Excursion Desk this morning at 9:30 a.m. We will be escorted off the ship and through a special line to clear customs. We will then be escorted to the check-in desks in the port terminal at 10:00 a.m. As soon after 10:00 a.m. as they can, they will check us in for our 5 Day cruise and then escort us back on board the ship. General check-in and boarding does not happen until much later (boarding usually begins around 12:00 Noon). So, for us, we will have the run of the ship for a couple of hours!

I will post more this evening about the first day of our “new” cruise. I am posting this now as the “official closing” of my 15 Day Panama Canal Repositioning Cruise. It was GREAT and I thank all of you who left comments and/or sent me email. I will be home this coming Saturday evening (September 6th) and, for those of you who are my parishioners who have been watching this blog, I will see you at the 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 Noon Masses Sunday, September 7th. But until then, I am still on vacation!!!

And, since I have been praying for you so hard during the repositioning cruise, I ask you to return the favor. We are watching the weather forecast very carefully as we learned that Hanna has just “earned” hurricane status. It is supposed to hang out in the Bahamas for a few days this week and hit the east coast of Florida Friday night/Saturday morning. Those just happen to be the times that we could be at Castaway Cay and Nassau during the week and attempting to return to Port Canaveral this coming weekend. It could make for a very messy 5 Day cruise. So, please keep us in your prayers as we all pray for those who will be victims of Hurricane Gustav today.

Sunday, August 31, 2008
Sunrise, 7:02 a.m. / Sunset, 7:42 p.m.
Ashore – Approx. 8:15 a.m.
All Aboard – 5:00 p.m.
Evening Attire: Cruise Casual
Dinner Menu: Animator’s Palate – ‘Till We Meet Again Menu

Today started very nice. Mass was at 8:00 a.m. and was not as well attended as last Sunday since the passengers were already being allowed to go ashore half way through Mass time. Oh well.

The day was looking very pretty when going out, although there were dark clouds in the distance.

By the time I arrived at the adult-only beach, I was only able to sit for about 10 minutes before the skies broke loose. (We had heard that there was a possibility for thunderstorms but we did not think that it would happen until it began pouring and getting darker.

We did not end up with thunderstorms, but many of the morning excursions (snorkle, speed boats, para-sailing, et cetera) were cancelled because of the winds and the threat of more bad weather.

Ultimately it got very nice again.

However, for me, I think I am done for the afternoon. I do not know if I am picking up a summer cold or if it just a bad sinus day, but I think I’m going to rest the afternoon. I still have two times to be at Castaway Cay this week. Why rush it and get sick?

The show this evening is Remember the Magic! A Final Farewell along with the Comedy and Magic of Danny Buckler and the Physical Comedy of Jeff Civillico. Should be a great show . . . they have been all cruise.

Yeah, okay, you know me better than I do.

You KNOW that I was not going to stay in, didn’t you?

The weather cleared up significantly, although it is still so windy that many of the excursions have remain cancelled. The sun is high and HOT and I thought I would go out for more pictures. The main reason for that was because I was not sure what the weather this week will be like. If there is a tropical storm brewing, we may not even make port, so I thought I would go onshore again. Hopefully that means that it will be clear now, because I do not need to go ashsore for more pictures!

So, what IS Castaway Cay, you may ask?

Castaway Cay was one of the islands of the Abaco chain of islands. It went up for sale several years ago and Disney purchased it to make into their own private cruising destination. We arrive around 8:00 a.m. on island day and we leave at 5:00 p.m.

There is a group of about 20 people who remain on the island full time to clean it after ships leave (both the Magic and the Wonder use the island, a total of three days a week) as well as to prepare it for ship arrivals. They do have an evacuation plan for the islanders in case of hurricane because the island is so flat and, therefore, very dangerous to remain on during a hurricane.

We leave at 5:00 p.m. because after sun down, they say that the bugs on the island make living here pretty wretched.

When Disney purchased the island, they created their beaches (teen beach, family beach, adult beach) and also dredged the water and put in a dock so that the ship could some right in to dock. Depending upon weather, the captain usually backs the ship in to port so that he may easily sail out at the end of the day.

The island is pristine and beautiful. It is a wonderful place to visit. I would highly recommend a cruise on Disney Cruise Line just to have the opportunity to visit this wonderful island.

Here are some “goodbye” photos that I took as we pulled away from Castaway Cay.

And, finally, a simple “fish” was waiting for me after our last show this evening:

Saturday, August 30, 2008
Sunrise, 6:51 a.m. / Sunset, 6:29 p.m.
Evening Attire: Formal
Dinner Menu: Dining in Palo

As of 12:30 p.m. (Eastern Time)
Distance sailed from Port of Los Angeles: 4437 nautical miles
Distance sailed from Oranjestad (Aruba): 746 nautical miles
Distance remaining to Castaway Cay, Bahamas: 350 nautical miles
Speed: 20.3 knots

Today (as well as through the night), the ship has been doing a little “dancing” on the waters. The waters are officially labelled as “rough”, which means 8 to 13 foot waves. Realistically, that means that when you look out at the water, you can see a lot more whitecaps on the waves than usual. It also means that you have to watch how you walk. You can go sideways real easy if the ship moves on you. It is not bad though. I have been in a lot worse waters before.

The captain told us at our noon report that Hurricane Gustav is well to the west of us and Hanna is well to the east. Depending upon it trajectory, it could hit the Bahamas, Florida, or the East Coast the middle of next week. That may mean port changes or missed ports during the 5 day cruise next week, but that is a different story for another time. Stay tuned!

Beautiful day today. 80.4 degrees and 60% humidity. But the breezes on deck are very, very nice.

In another hour I will be watching the matinee of tonight’s entertainment: Disney Dreams: An Enchanted Classic. According to the Navigator, “In this spectacular fantasy, a little girl discovers the power of her dreams. Fly through the air with Peter Pan and your imagination as many Classic Disney Charcters spring to life. With a little Faith, Trust and Pixie Dust you’ll see that your dreams can come true!”

I went to Palo tonight along with Amanda and Joe, my tablemates. Their son, Jake, ate at the restaurant tonight because Palo is for guests 18 years of age and older. The dinner was magnificent as always — mushroom pizza, portabella mushroom on polenta for an appetizer, seafood soup, and lobster tail on risotto with a lobster bisque gravy. Sinful! And I loved every bite! (Even had dessert and an ice wine with the dessert. Dr. Walsh, please do not read that last sentence. I don’t think I’m going to check my blood sugar tomorrow!)

I love Disney Dreams. It is my favorite show. My second favorite is The Golden Mickeys which opened this cruise up. The cast is so talented and the energy that they exude throughout their performances just amazes me. I saw the matinee and then I saw the 8:30 p.m. showing, which is their third show of the day. The energy level was maintained from 2:00 p.m. through 9:30 p.m. Wowzers!

When I came back to the room, I could practically hear the theme from Jaws as I looked on my bed and saw a dreaded shark!

Tomorrow morning’s Mass has been moved up to 8:00 a.m. since the ship will probably be cleared for passengers to begin going onto Castaway Cay around 8:30 a.m.

Well, that is about it for now. I’m going to head for bed and hope for Disney Dreams! And, may all of your dreams come true as well!

Friday, August 29, 2008
Sunrise, 6:47 a.m. / Sunset, 7:26 p.m.
Evening Attire: Pirate or Cruise Casual
Dinner Menu: Parrot Cay – Pirates IN the Caribbean

Today dawned absolutely gloriously! Enjoy a few sunrise shots, please:

There were about 17 people at Mass this morning. Better than most.

The captain just finished giving us his noon report. One of the major items to note is that we have changed course. Initially, we were schedule to sail more to the north, pretty much placing us in Hurricane Gustav’s path. Our altered course takes us northeast. We should be to the right of Gustav and end up to the left of Hanna, thus giving us clear sailing.

The sea is very calm today and the weather is hot/humid — 86 degrees right now (12:15 a.m. Eastern Time) and 67% humidity. Going almost 21 knots, there is a really nice breeze on deck and, if you remain in the shade, is really very comfortable out there.

Tonight is a special celebration: Pirates IN the Caribbean. Disney pulls out all the stops for the celebration. Everyone is encouraged to dress in pirate costumes of one sort or another. The dinner is a special “Pirate” dinner with a souvenir Pirate menu. After the evening show — Crew Talent Show and Dancing with the Officers — there will be a Pirates IN the Caribbean Deck Party up top. As a special part of the celebration, there will be fireworks shot off. Disney is the only cruise line that has special maritime permission to shoot off fireworks. They are always so exciting!

We are starting to get reminders that the first leg of the cruise is coming to an end. In the stateroom today I found the “tip sheet” that suggests tip amounts for our stateroom hosts, our dining room servers, assistant servers, and head servers.

Until they throw us off of the ship, however, we are all making every moment count.

Well, I am going to sit out on my veranda now and read a book and enjoy the day at sea. I will post more later.

I did not get much of my book read because I was fascinated by both the cloud formations as well as by the birds!

Tonight’s Crew Talent Show was fantastic. I tell you, the members of this cast that are not directly involved in entertainment on the ship have incredible talent as well and tonight’s talent show showcased their talent quite well. One of the crew, Ponz, sang a love song that really moved the audience. Ponz has also been the member of the crew that has been responsible for our daily Masses. He was telling me that he was going to be in the show, but he never told me just how much talent he had. WOW!

After the show was the deck party and the fireworks show. I did not get pictures of the fireworks because I, apparently, have not figured out quite how to work that function on my new camera yet.

The fireworks, though, were really great.

Well, I’m going to get to bed. Tomorrow will be here early since I am getting such a late start to bedtime.

By the way, tomorrow evening’s show is Disney Dreams: An Enchanted Classic. That is my favorite show on Disney Cruise Lines! I am planning to see the matinee as well as the evening show. Will tell you more about that tomorrow.

Tonight’s towel animal waiting for me: