Pre trip report for our Milestone MAGICal cruise About This Page:

[retiredkid]

DAY 2 OF CRUISE – KEY WEST

According to the shipboard channel, we are 100mi out from Key West, the outside temp is 66 degrees and it shows cloudy with a ‘fresh breeze’ Translation: Cool and Windy. Moderate Seas 4’-8’.
I used the Spa products for the first time, and fell in love with them. I left DH softly snoring and went exploring. Since it was a little after 6:00 a.m., eveything was empty, so I got a few nice shots. We were supposed to go to Daylight Savings Time, but we will have four time changes, so for today, we stayed on ship’s time.
When I got back, DH was stirring. I gave him his next card and gift. This time, it’s a long sleeved white shirt with a little embroidered Mickey on it.

It seemed appropriated to wear for our 10:30 Brunch at Palo. We had just time enough for a relaxing coffee on our balcony. We actually found it a little too cool and windy, so back inside we went. It wasn’t long before it was time to go. As soon as we checked in, we were offered a choice of Mimosas or Champagne. We each took a Mimosa. We were escorted (drinks in hand) to our table where our server Annie Marie from South Africa introduced herself. She was the sweetest, prettiest little thing and took very good care of us. I recommend her highly. I could kick myself for not getting a picture of her. There was a bread table, a cheese table with smoked meats, a seafood table, a sweet table. Then there was the made to order omelettes, flatbreads, as well as veal (I think) If you leave here hungry, there is something wrong.!! I was glad we changed the time, because now we have time to change, relax a short while, then walk off some of that meal in Key West. It was fun to watch the ship dock.



Our plan was to just walk around and see what we could see. One of the first things we encountered was a large piece of art called (I think) Nude Ladies.

We wanted to get a picture closer up, but the dorks that we are, we were waiting for the guy on the ground to get up. Well, HE was part of the sculpture. DUH!! I actually didn’t feel quite so stupid ‘cause when we did get up close to the guy, we was how realistic he was. He even had hair on his legs. Okay, go ahead. I can take the ribbing. LOSER!
We ended up at the Pirate’s Soul Museum, which was a lot of fun. There are a lot of genuine pirate artifacts, including 1 of only 2 remaining (original) jolly roger flags. We saw two people, (conchs I think they are called) obvious residents of Key West. I have never seen such tanned skin in all my life. With apologies, it really did look like leather. I expected to see some eclectic sights. I was not disappointed.
This gentleman had a boa constrictor? Python? A BIG FAT SNAKE!!! People stopped to get their picture taken. Not me!!


There was the smallest bar in the USA.

All kinds of funny rental vehicles

There are chickens and roosters everywhere.

I played hide and seek with this guy.

He absolutely knew I wanted a picture of him, and always presented his “better side” (end) to me. I got so caught up in it, that I actually followed him for several yards, until he hid behind a bush. I waited….and waited….until GOTCHA!!

I musta looked awfully stupid. AGAIN!!

And my favourite shot in Key West, this nice couple taking their dog out for a walk. (I couldn’t help myself)

Sorry this shot is so small.
We found the Blonde Giraffe and shared a piece of delicious Key Lime Pie. We were still too full from Palo to eat anything more.
We popped into CVS and picked up some bottled water, then headed back to the ship.
We decided to try out the Rainforest Room. We tried all three of the rooms. The aromatic was the hottest, and my favorite. The steam room was terrific. The sauna (dry) heat was almost cold. There was another couple in it, but she was pregnant, so I didn’t want to turn it up any. They were nice to chat with, though. We enjoyed it, but either we were really stupid or the showers weren’t working all that great. Whatever the cause, we had a very hard time regulating them. Also, my stone lounge chair wasn’t working. There are only 4 chairs and yet another couple were in the other two. They must have booked the couples choice because they were served fruit and tea. Even though I purchased the Romance at Sea package, which included unlimited use of the Rainforest Room, this would be the one and only time we used it.
Afterwards, we got ready for dinner in Lumiere’s. This was our favourite meal (other than Palo, of course) Lorne and I had identical meals. Shrimp cocktail salad, Coquille Saint Jacques, and Crème Caramel. A whole bunch of waiters sang Happy Birthday to Lorne and gave him a birthday button.


After dinner, we changed and then went to the show. Tonite the feature was Alfred and Seymour, who we saw a little of last night. Again, we thoroughly enjoyed their act. When we returned to the room, we asked our room Steward, Rodolfo for some ice. This was the only time we asked for ice. He made sure we had ice all cruise long. Refilling two, and sometimes three times a day. Gotta love Disney Service. Tonight’s towel animal was an elephant.

Tomorrow is a sea day and another date at Palo!!!

[Tink and co.]

Cathy, we weren't right next to you. There was a table of 10 or 12 between us. Our servers were Godwin and Elizibieta. I'm so happy to hear you thought that guy laying down in the sculpture was real too. I kept waiting for him to get up. And I was worried my Dh was going to crawl under there for the view too.
I missed Palo so badly today that I made a risotto from scratch! It turned out pretty good, but I did miss the good looking server and champagne. Here I had caffiene free diet coke and had to put it on the table myself. sigh. I'm so spoiled.
Keep it comin' Can't wait for the next update!

[DyanKJ130]

Just catching up!! It sounds like the two of you are having a magical time!! Lorne's face says it all at all of the surprises!! Can't wait to hear more

[Colexis Mom]

Great update! Glad you had a great time at Palo and Key West!! And dinner too!! More please

[SouthernBelle]

WOW Cathy, what a great couple of days on the ship, I can hardly wait for my cruise next Feb. to hear you got a lukewarm reception when boarded the ship, here I will add a few

Hurry back I am ready for the next chapter

[Kenny]

Enjoyed the Key West day! Palo Brunch sounds awesome (as we have all heard), as does Lumiere's. Dyan is right! "Lorne's face says it all". I'm thinking we will just get off the ship in Key West and walk around a bit, too.
Hurry back soon!

[Big Baloo]

I'm so glad you got some Key Lime pie--I love that stuff. Can't wait to hear what you did next!

[retiredkid]

[QUOTE]=Tink and co.;1997129]Cathy, we weren't right next to you. There was a table of 10 or 12 between us. Our servers were Godwin and Elizibieta. I'm so happy to hear you thought that guy laying down in the sculpture was real too. I kept waiting for him to get up. And I was worried my Dh was going to crawl under there for the view too.[QUOTE]
THAT'S QUITE THE VIEW!!

I missed Palo so badly today that I made a risotto from scratch! It turned out pretty good, but I did miss the good looking server and champagne. Here I had caffiene free diet coke and had to put it on the table myself. sigh. I'm so spoiled.
Keep it comin' Can't wait for the next update!

AND IT WAS STILL A GOOD LOOKING SERVER.....RIGHT??

Originally Posted by DyanKJ130

Just catching up!! It sounds like the two of you are having a magical time!! Lorne's face says it all at all of the surprises!! Can't wait to hear more

I was so glad he was enjoying it!

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Great update! Glad you had a great time at Palo and Key West!! And dinner too!! More please

Comin' up soon!

Originally Posted by SouthernBelle

WOW Cathy, what a great couple of days on the ship, I can hardly wait for my cruise next Feb. to hear you got a lukewarm reception when boarded the ship, here I will add a few
Hurry back I am ready for the next chapter

AWWWWWW THANKS!! THAT WELCOME WAS BETTER THAN THE SHIPBOARD ONE, MELISSA
Hopefully I can post tomorrow, I working on it now.

Originally Posted by Kenny

Enjoyed the Key West day! Palo Brunch sounds awesome (as we have all heard), as does Lumiere's. Dyan is right! "Lorne's face says it all". I'm thinking we will just get off the ship in Key West and walk around a bit, too.
Hurry back soon!

It was the best, I think. Just walking around and popping into someplace that interests you.

Originally Posted by Big Baloo

I'm so glad you got some Key Lime pie--I love that stuff. Can't wait to hear what you did next!

It was

[retiredkid]

I got up around 5:30. TV says 350 mi out from Grand Caymen, Temp is 68.2, seas moderate 4-8’.
I just sat in the room and read a book and checked out the Navigator for our first at-sea-day on the ship. DH got up around 7:30. We decided to try Topsiders for brekkie. I chose waffles and bacon, Lorne did the eggs, bacon, hash browns. It was just 'eh' for us. The food was cold, so we each left more than ½ on our plates. Actually, we were still full from that fantastic food at Palo’s and Lumiere’s, so it really didn’t matter all that much. We easily could have returned to the buffet for different food, because there was lots to choose from at Topsiders. As it turned out, this was the only time we ate there.
We decided to return to the room and plan out our day. We sat out on our balcony for the first time. And, for the first time, it was sunny and the winds were calm. After a little bit, I went to Studio Sea for The Art of Entertaining -- Dazzling Desserts demonstration. We were shown by the Chef , (sorry, I forget his name) how to make White Chocolate Domes. We were each given a little bit to taste and it was wonderful. We also got to taste a lovely little wine called Braquetto.. It was delicious. I then noticed that the label on the display bottle said
ROSA REGALE!!!! I found it!!!!
(As an aside—I have read on all the boards that Rosa Regale wine is to die for. I hunted high and low for it here in Toronto, and couldn’t find it. When I asked for it at the liquor store, they had never heard of it. When they looked it up on their computer, nothing.)
But now I found it!!!! I asked Victor, the sommelier about it. He explained to me that Rosa Regale was the winemaker, Braquetto is the wine, named after the grape. DOH!! No wonder I couldn’t find it.
Anyhoo, as I was doing this, Lorne was ‘buffing up his tan’ on the balcony. He thoroughly enjoyed it. I hightailed it out of Studio Sea and made my way to the Promenade Lounge for a digital camera seminar. The girl from shutters commented on what a nice camera I had. Made me feel good, ‘cause I just bought it.
We had decided to meet on deck 9 for a quick lunch, but I was a little bit late, so we had to settle for a quick kiss and a ‘catchya later’. So now, I’m off to the DVC presentation in Diversions. Comfy chairs in there. The presentation was very good. At the end, the had me draw two names out of a hat. First for $300 on-board credit. I drew the name, and yelled it’s me, it’s me!!!! But, he wouldn’t go for that. Second name drawn was for a cooler beach bag. I drew the name, and yelled it’s me, it’s me,…but he wouldn’t go for that, either. Oh well, I made somebody’s day. I did not join DVC.

During this time, Lorne was at the Rockin’ Bar D, watching the Making of the Disney Magic. He enjoyed it very much.

We met outside the Walt Disney Theatre for the matinee of the Golden Mickeys. We ordered a couple of cokes here, and we were pleased that we got two cans of coke, which we much prefer over the fountain mix. This was a really cool show.
This shot was taken about 3 minutes before it started.





That last shot is one of my favorites. We decided on the matinee ‘cause poor ol’ Lorne was nodding off last night, remember? Well…….guess what?? Yup.. here again, same thing. At one point, he was so relaxed that he leaned really far forward, and almost fell out of his chair. Being the good wife that I am, I almost joined him on the floor, ‘cause I laughed so hard. I have to apologize to those around us. As soon as the show ended, we took two breaths, then booted it up to Palo for the Art of the Theme Show Ship Tour.
Natalie from England was our guide and she was A1, very informative and very funny. Here she is, hamming it up.


She showed us the secret passage that the kids use. Out of all the forums and all the books I have read, I did notice anything about this.


She also told us that Disney is one of the strictest Cruise Lines to work for. They have Zero tolerance for liquor with the on duty staff. They have a self-imposed 98% passing grade. If the ship gets 97.9% or less, they will not sail. She has worked on Carnival, and they sailed with 71%. At the end of the tour, she opened herself up to any and all questions. It was very interesting, learning about her life on the ship. She has worked 7 days a week for 4 ½ months, without a clear day off. It was a fun tour.

This has been a very busy day, hasn’t it?? And the best is yet to come….

After all of this, we decided to enjoy our balcony a bit more. After a nice little rest, we had to get ready for dinner AT PALO!!!

This time, dinner was part of the romance package and included a bottle of wine, so I was sooooooo looking forward to introducing Lorne to ‘Rosa’, whom I’d just met earlier at the wine tasting. At our request, we again had the nice window seat with Annie Marie as our server. She really is excellent. After greeting us, she went to get the wine list and when she returned with it, she also gave me a beautiful, very long stemmed rose. After discussing the various wines, and our preferences, she recommended Rosa Regale!!!! YAY!!!
(Another aside) -- Sad to say, Mr. did not enjoy it like I did. He thought it was too sweet, and did not particularly like the ‘sparkling’ property. Happy to say, that they re-corked the bottle so that I could take it back to the cabin. For Me!!
TOO BAD, SO SAD, SUCKS TO BE HIM!!!!!
Anyways, back at Palo, after discussing the menu at length with her, Annie Marie mixed things up a bit. She would bring a ½ order of something just to try, or a full order for us to split. Great job! I had the grilled Portobello mushroom on risotto, and Lorne had spaghetti with prime rib strips ( ½ order). We also split a ½ order of lobster ravioli. Yummy. We each had the beef tenderloin, and for dessert, the much-touted chocolate soufflé.
It was to die for. Actually, it was all to die for. We relaxed at our table for a while over coffee. Annie Marie brought a plate with Happy 21st Birthday on it, I told her it should say, "Happy 44th Anniversary of your 21st Birthday" She took a couple of photos.




We then waddled our way back to the cabin. Although I knew about it, I had forgotten about it, so the romantic turndown was a nice surprise for both of us.


We made ourselves all nice and comfy on the couch and settled in to watch television amongst the rose petals. This has been an exhausting day-at-sea, so we turn in early.
Nitey nite

[Colexis Mom]

My goodness, you got so much done today Sounds like great fun!! And what a great way to end the evening with Palo

[shydonna1]

I just tuned in today and cannot wait for the next installment. I live vicariously through you. What a wonderful and memorable birthday vacation!

[Mulan2]

What a wonderful TR so far and you take such great photos! How do you manage to take such clear photos during the shows? I must have a terrible camera. What do you have?
Can't wait to hear more. BTW, we loved the Western cruise over the Eastern.

[SouthernBelle]

Cathy,

Sounds like another great day on the cruise, I will have to wait until I get home to see the pics (can't view them at work). Palo's sounds devine and I can't wait to dine there next February Hurry back, I am ready for the next chapter in this wonderful Birthday trip

[retiredkid]

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

My goodness, you got so much done today Sounds like great fun!! And what a great way to end the evening with Palo

A very busy, very fun day!! And you're right. Palo was the perfect ending.

[retiredkid]

Originally Posted by shydonna1

I just tuned in today and cannot wait for the next installment. I live vicariously through you. What a wonderful and memorable birthday vacation!

WELCOME DONNA!! Thanks for the encouragement.

Look at all the tickers you have going!! Lucky Girl...I'm jealous...