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A Review of the Magic - 9/28/14 - Enter at your own Risk!

cmcsharon

By cmcsharon,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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kezza

kezza

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Thanks for the fantastic review....we've been to all those islands and am impressed at how beautiful Cozumel is...we caught a taxi down to one of the beaches and it was pretty grotty with seaweed...would definitely go back now after reading your review....loved the Caymen Islands as well....beautiful photos. Thanks again for sharing.

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cmcsharon

cmcsharon

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Not quite an intermission…just a correction…

 

One of the minions has been following along and she doesn’t quite remember things the way I do…so…she’s correcting my story!

 

She didn’t remember it being as rocky that last day…so…I should probably clarify that the swaying wasn’t nearly as bad as some of those reviews recently where they’re saying they were tossed out of bed! And…it might not have been just my toes in the alcohol at the time…I may have stopped by the atrium bar on the way back to the cabin (it was on the way and was strategically located…with all the activity going on around it…no one would have heard the squish squish of my rum soaked sandals)…so I probably picked up another of my favorite cruise drink…a kiss on the lips…before slogging my way back to the cabin. (I was heading back to clean up and PACK…could you blame me?) So…I will begrudgingly admit…that may have added to the rockiness.

 

The minion also pointed out my incorrect detail that the lady at the gift shop wouldn’t have gathered up her change…it would’ve been her sail and sign card…so...she’s correct again.

 

Now can you guess which minion is not getting invited on the next cruise?!! (Just kidding Mom! :D )

 

Next time I’ll take notes…and…I’ll put the minions to work proofreading…since I’ve been doing a lousy job at that…my apologies for all the missed words, typos and grammatical errors.

 

I have to admit…I’ve been having so much fun writing this review. I’m still shocked and amazed that anyone is reading it! I really do appreciate all the kind comments. It makes me want to go back and write the review from our last cruise with the minions…there was some craziness on that one…(golf cart racing in Grand Turk)…shopping in St. Thomas (kill me now)…the disappearance of Half Moon Cay……or...…the cruise before that…Hurricane Hugo and the Mexican Cartel!

 

…..hmm…….maybe I’ll give this blogging thing some thought…..

 

 

Next up…Last Sea Day…part 2.

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pmp_cruise_junkie

pmp_cruise_junkie

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Not quite an intermission…just a correction…

 

One of the minions has been following along and she doesn’t quite remember things the way I do…so…she’s correcting my story!

 

She didn’t remember it being as rocky that last day…so…I should probably clarify that the swaying wasn’t nearly as bad as some of those reviews recently where they’re saying they were tossed out of bed! And…it might not have been just my toes in the alcohol at the time…I may have stopped by the atrium bar on the way back to the cabin (it was on the way and was strategically located…with all the activity going on around it…no one would have heard the squish squish of my rum soaked sandals)…so I probably picked up another of my favorite cruise drink…a kiss on the lips…before slogging my way back to the cabin. (I was heading back to clean up and PACK…could you blame me?) So…I will begrudgingly admit…that may have added to the rockiness.

 

The minion also pointed out my incorrect detail that the lady at the gift shop wouldn’t have gathered up her change…it would’ve been her sail and sign card…so...she’s correct again.

 

Now can you guess which minion is not getting invited on the next cruise?!! (Just kidding Mom! :D )

 

Next time I’ll take notes…and…I’ll put the minions to work proofreading…since I’ve been doing a lousy job at that…my apologies for all the missed words, typos and grammatical errors.

 

I have to admit…I’ve been having so much fun writing this review. I’m still shocked and amazed that anyone is reading it! I really do appreciate all the kind comments. It makes me want to go back and write the review from our last cruise with the minions…there was some craziness on that one…(golf cart racing in Grand Turk)…shopping in St. Thomas (kill me now)…the disappearance of Half Moon Cay……or...…the cruise before that…Hurricane Hugo and the Mexican Cartel!

 

…..hmm…….maybe I’ll give this blogging thing some thought…..

 

 

Next up…Last Sea Day…part 2.

 

Yes, more please. Review any all of your past and future cruises. I haven't laughed this hard in a long time. I am looking forward to hearing more of your adventures.

 

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Forums mobile app

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cmcsharon

cmcsharon

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Last Sea Day…part 2

 

As I was packing, my son came back to the cabin and needed to take some Bonine and lay down for a while if he was going to make it to dinner. He’s a little more susceptible to the motion than the rest of us. We got to learn about that on our very first cruise when he was about 12. In the middle of the night. From an upper. Fun times. But…the Bonine and a nap took care of it and he was ready to go to dinner.

 

Leaving the cabin for dinner became a bit of a game for us. We’d step in the hall…gather in a huddle…call the play…...and…...break….and then we’d scatter in opposite directions. It would completely fluster Dewa, our room steward, as he wouldn’t know which group of us to shout at first! The reality of it was that my daughter and I would head towards the back to get to the stairs to go up to the dining room while my son would go forward, and then up the stairs to the atrium bar, and grab a drink before meeting us at the table. And it would fluster Dewa even more when my son would pass him just a few minutes later heading to the back…since you can’t get across to the dining room on deck 3.

 

That whole…not being able to get across deck 3…confuses me on…every…single…cruise. Inevitably, at some point during the cruise, I’ll get off an elevator or come up from the stairs and I’ll find myself in that maddening Wonderland section of the ship…searching for a white rabbit…or a bottle of potion to get me through some mystery door. The most confused I’ve been with this barricaded deck issue was when we were on the Glory…and…there’s talk amongst the minions that we might be heading back to the Glory for our next adventure. Maybe they could add GPS to my sail and sign card….or something like those Disney MagicBands. Oh…I know! A Carnival shock collar...an electric jolt hits you if you try to get off the elevator in the dead zone.

 

Are you ready for some brutal honesty? Here goes…I don’t like going to dinner in the dining room on the last night. Whew. There…I said it. I’m glad we got that over with.

 

I still go. But…it’s depressing. It’s like sitting through one long commercial about how…your vacation is over. See ya. Get out! The speech from the Maitre D, the parade, the goodbye songs…I know they mean well. But…if you have to sing me a goodbye song could you make it a little more upbeat? Not make me feel like I’m stuck in an endless parade of the Von Trapp family children singing… So Long … Farewell … Aufwiedersehn … Goodbye. We’re glad…you’re going…we cannot tell a lie…

 

Cuckoo!

 

(Okay…those of you that told me to stop deleting the things I write…aren’t you sorry now!)

 

So…we survived the final dinner, said our goodbyes, got hugs, gave tips, etc. Now it’s crunch time. You know all those things that you said…”this is the cruise I’m going to do ____”…..fill in the blank. Reality hits hard. So you start mentally going through that list…I’ve got some hours left, what’s still possible to do…mini golf…not likely…tea time…that’s a no. Get up early, go to the gym every morning, and not eat too much…way too late for that one.

 

And…then it dawns on me what it is I want to do. By now it was getting kind of late so I stop by the cabin real quick…because the kids had split off from me a little earlier…supposedly to pack…and I wanted to be sure that it was getting done and that our bags made it out by the 11:00pm pickup. They had it under control and were hanging out on the balcony…so I headed back out.

 

I stopped by the atrium bar and ordered one last kiss on the lips drink and was waiting for my drink when a loud…Ohhhhhhh…uproar came from the other end of the bar. I made the mistake of looking in the direction they were looking…and…you guessed it…quickly rising to the top of the atrium in the glass elevator…there it was. The moon. A big moon. One of those…you can’t look away fast enough and it’s now burned in the scar tissue of my brain…kind of moon.

 

And, it was right after the moon…appropriately enough…that I saw the Men in Black. Not the movie…but the actual Men in Black. I don’t think I’ve seen them on a cruise before. All dressed in black with Security on the back of their shirts. They were heading for the moon.

 

Next up…the Last Chapter…Back in Galveston (Cracking customs, the wheels on the bus don’t go round and round, and…don’t get between Texans and their football)

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cmcsharon

cmcsharon

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The Last Chapter...

 

That dreaded day had finally arrived…the end of a great vacation. I woke early and got ready and went out on the cove balcony to watch our arrival into Galveston. There must’ve been 10 or more dolphins playing in the water around the ship so I hurried back into the cabin to grab my camera. And, of course, once I had it in my hands…they scattered! But, I did catch a bit of the sunrise.

 

sunrisegalveston.jpg

 

It was going to be a beautiful day in Galveston.

 

I woke the kids and they got ready and around 8:00am we headed out of the room for the last time. The hallway was busy with stewards getting cabins ready for new guests…and, I looked around to see if we’d get shouted at one last time from Dewa…but…he was already gone…headed out on his own adventure, a well-deserved trip home to see his family. We grabbed our carry-on bags…and the final bill from the cabin mailbox…and went up to the Lido buffet for some breakfast.

 

Because we had FTTF we had zone 1 tags, so we could’ve left the ship at any time…but…we had a late afternoon flight so we weren’t in any hurry. It’s a good thing we weren’t in a hurry…because the kids were too busy texting…to eat. To be stuck for SEVEN DAYS with no social networking…no texting…no twitter…no instagram…it’s amazing my teenager survived! They were both making up for lost time now.

 

And, I was texting the minions to find out where everyone was. We all had Carnival transfers back to the airport…and, we were all flying back to the same airport in Sacramento…but, we were on 3 different flights with 3 different connections. One set of minions would have to change planes in Los Angeles, the other set of minions would change planes in Las Vegas…and then the kids and I would have to change planes in San Diego. It was going to be interesting to see if we all make our connections and arrive back on time.

 

Around 9:30am I decided it was time to leave the Magic…so we headed down to put our FTTF status to work. We got in the line to leave and had a momentary delay because the woman in front of us could not get off the ship…and, she was not happy about it. Her family was waiting for her on the gangway but her card would not let her leave. She was clearly irritated…I had to keep taking steps back to give her more room because she was flailing her arms wildly while she talked…and, I was increasingly becoming concerned that I was going to lose an eye…which was not how I wanted to end my vacation.

 

The staff were trying to explain that she needed to go to guest services to take care of things before she could leave. I glanced over to guest services and the staff, standing behind the counter, all had deer in the headlights looks on their faces…you could just tell they were thinking…don’t send that windmill over here. It’d be like sending over the Tasmanian devil…a tornado of Fun Times would soon be swirling around. For a minute there, it looked like the guest was going to make a run for it. But, I think she realized she was outnumbered and gruffly headed over to guest services. The kids and I quickly made our escape…not wanting to be maimed by the soon to be flying Fun Times debris.

 

We made our way down the gangway and exited out into a cavernous warehouse. Now I had done my research…so, I knew the secret for getting out of here quickly. You try and find a porter, and then drag him with you to get your bags, and he’ll take you right past the lines and right up to the customs agent. So I was expecting to have to hunt for a porter...instead…the only line I could see was one very long line of porters with nothing to do…all bantering to get you to pick them. It was like we were back in port in the Caribbean where there’s a line of taxis and tours all trying to get your business and the price gets lower and lower with each one you pass…to the point where you think they’re going to start offering to pay you to take their tour. I decide to risk it and not get a porter…and we kept going to zone 1 and quickly found out bags.

 

We then went to get in the long line for customs…and again, there was no line. This had to be a mistake. There are reports on Cruise Critic about this Galveston port that made me think I’d need to bring rations just to survive the wait…and possibly a flare gun to signal for help for when we can’t go on any longer.

 

We walked right up to an agent, handed over our passports and customs form and waited. The agent looked at my passport first. She then looked at my son’s. And then, she looked at my daughter’s passport…and then at my daughter…and then at the passport again…and then at my daughter again…and then she started to giggle…and said, that’s quite a transformation. My first thought was…that’s kind of rude. But then it dawned on me…my daughter’s passport is expiring in a few months which means she got it when she was 13. That was when she had bright pink braces…which matched perfectly with her bright pink hair! The agent was correct…it’s quite a transformation.

 

I hope I’m not arrested for admitting this…but…I think I forgot to put on my customs form the $15 bottle of vanilla I bought in Cozumel. My apologies. (Please don’t come and confiscate it…it’s almost time to make Christmas cookies.)

 

The customs agent welcomed us back home and we headed out. As we approached the exit a worker stopped us to give us a piece of paper. On the paper was a photocopied newspaper article about expected traffic problems because of the NFL football game…between Houston and Dallas. I wasn’t familiar with the freeways listed in the article…but, I did know we needed to get to Houston…so, I wasn’t sure if this was going to cause problems for us.

 

Once outside, we were directed to the Carnival transfers and climbed on the bus heading for Hobby. It wasn’t very full so we got some seats near the front…but…that meant a longer wait for the bus to fill. The bus driver told us we’d have a 10 minute wait…but, as that got closer he came back in and said we’ve been delayed another 15 minutes. It didn’t matter to us…we’ve got hours of waiting ahead of us at the airport.

 

As we were watching others climb on board the bus we were happily surprised to see some of the minions joining us. The 3 of us were waving as Grandma minion walked right past us…not even noticing us sitting there. We teased her about that at the airport later. They found seats nearer to the back of the bus and then it was time to go.

 

Those minions on the bus with us didn’t have FTTF and yet they were off the ship in a very timely manner. So…even though I probably didn’t need FTTF for the Galveston port on this cruise…I still like the concept. And, I’ve purchased it again for our next cruise which is out of Miami. If it turns out I don’t need it there (which would shock and amaze me…because I’ve only cruised out of Miami once and I still remember the crazy long line we waited in…outside in the beating sun…only to find out that inside was where the long line really started!)…maybe I’ll stop purchasing it.

 

About 15 minutes into our traffic free ride to the airport we heard a loud noise and the bus driver immediately pulled over to the side of the freeway. The driver got up to go outside to look…but…he couldn’t get the door open. The noise was the sound that’s made when a bus door is blown off its hinges. The door was slightly open, but cockeyed, so it was jammed in that position. Surprisingly, I was okay being trapped in this bus. Apparently, I don’t sink into Lord of the Flies mentality unless the center aisle is cut off…and, I’m in a foreign country. (Which Texas is not…even though they use that foreign y’all speak.)

 

It took the driver and two passengers to force the door open…and then we waited as they tried to wedge it back on the tracks. After several tries…they got the door to close enough that we could get back on the freeway and keep going. But…I could see that poor bus driver tense up at the slightest bump (good thing these were not California freeways…our potholes can cross multiple zip codes). I’m sure he was relieved when we finally made it to the airport and he could put that bus down…meaning...put it ‘out of service’…he didn’t shoot it…that’s just another stereotype about Texas. (Except…that y’all thing came true. Maybe he did shoot it…we’d just gone in the airport by then.)

 

Next up…The Last Chapter…Part 2 (it finally ends!)

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cmcsharon

cmcsharon

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The Last Chapter…Part 2 (it finally ends!)

 

Sorry for the delay in finishing this thing. I’ve been busy trying to figure out this blogging thing…I’ll share my progress on that at the end of this.

 

We left off at us just getting to the Houston Hobby airport. I don’t know if you’re like me…but…when I’m arriving on vacation at an airport, you can’t get me out of it and on to my vacation quick enough…so, I’m practically skipping through it to get to my bags and get on my way. Now that the vacation is ending…I’m schlepping through the airport…and noticing all the things I didn’t notice when we first arrived. What I notice most is that Hobby airport is small. And…we have HOURS to spend here. It’s like being stuck in the Ft. Lauderdale airport for hours (done that too). I’m sure this airport will have more available once the construction is finished…but…for us…it’s pretty bleak.

 

Some of the minions were hungry…it had been more than 20 minutes since we’d eaten last…so they decided to walk around the airport to see what their lunch options were. I think that took them a minute and a half. There’s one restaurant. And…it was packed. So they decided to go ahead and get checked in, in the hopes that there were more options on the other side of Security.

 

What this means is…the minions ditched us! We couldn’t check in yet…it was too early to be able to check in our bags. So…we found some seats and waited for the other minions arrive. Which they did about 15 minutes later…they looked around…saw the one restaurant…and…quickly ditched us as well.

 

So…we waited.

 

It wasn’t too much longer before we could get in the check in line. One of the minions said it took them 20 minutes to get through the check in so I was banking on wasting some time in the line…since we were still a little bit early. And…just when you need people to be slow and difficult…they suddenly become fast and efficient. Now…I needed to stall a little bit. I get up to the counter and explain that we’re on a later flight but I was wondering whether we could get on one of the earlier flights that the other minions were on (preferably the one with the connection in Vegas…maybe this vacation isn’t over quite yet!). The agent taps some information in and does some checking…and…yes…that flight is still available. We’d just have to pay the difference between the two flights…which would be…$400. Which I responded with FOUR HUNDRED DOLLARS?! And…he says…yes…but that’s per person…for a total of $1200.

 

Uh…I think we’ll just enjoy Houston a little bit longer.

 

I glance at my watch and…dang it…we’re still about 5 minutes too early to check in. The agent tries to print our luggage tags…but, the system won’t let him. He explains that we’re too early and I point out it’s only by a few minutes…so he starts calculating the time and sees we’re down to 3 minutes now…and…he suddenly starts doing a little jig. I must’ve had a bewildered look on my face because he temporarily stops his jig and says…it won’t let me override it…so…I’m just going to do this for a few minutes rather than make you get back in line. (Kudos to the jigging man!)

 

When our 3 minutes are up…he takes our bags…which weigh surprisingly less than what I remembered getting here…making me wonder what was left in the cabin…or, was jettisoned by the kids over the balcony…and away we go in search of the larger portion of the airport where we’ll be spending many more hours.

 

Disappointment quickly set in. There were a couple of fast food places and the one restaurant…Pappas, which is a sports bar…and that’s where we find the minions finishing up their lunch. They get up to leave so we walk with them to the gate area and wait with the minions. Except, not the kids…they’ve gone to a completely empty gate area where they each take up an entire row of seats…and have all their electronics splayed out over the area and are charging every battery for the long wait and the plane rides ahead of us.

 

It was after the minions planes left that I gathered the kids and we went over to Pappas for a late lunch. It was still very busy and it was very loud in there. Every seat was taken around the bar and we were led to the only open table, right in the center of the restaurant. Everyone had their eyes glued to the 20 different TV screens that were all playing the NFL football game…between the Houston Texans and the Dallas Cowboys.

 

We placed our order and waited for our food and it wasn’t long before the hoots and hollers were deafening. There was no doubt that we were in Houston and we were surrounded by loyal Houston fans.

 

Our food arrived and we started eating and that’s when things got a little uncomfortable. A ref had made a questionable call that was being challenged…Houston badly needed the call to go their way…as Dallas was taking a big lead. A hush fell over the restaurant as all these fans collectively held their breath.

 

And then…the call went to Dallas.

 

One lone person in the entire place…let out a loud…WhooHoo! And…as luck would have it…he was seated directly behind me. Every head in the place turned in my direction and glared angrily…right at me! I was mid bite into my chicken quesadilla and almost choked. You’d have thought I pillaged a village or something! I could imagine them coming at me, in one hand holding their forks and the other hand holding the candle from the tables…with me trying to choke out in their language…Y’all don’t want to do that!

 

The interloper behind me must’ve gotten a few dirty looks from the other side of the restaurant because he didn’t utter a single peep the rest of the time we were there. Which was good for him…but…not for me…because, it still looked like I was the hooligan that dared to smite the Houston Texans. We finished our meal, paid our check, and then waited for a key play so that all eyes were glued to the TV’s and we sprinted out of the restaurant.

 

We made it back to our gate, and a very short time later, it was time to board the plane and bid Texas and this incredible vacation goodbye.

 

And…with that…I guess it’s time I officially end this review and say…Bye Y’all!

 

 

Thank you for coming on this journey with me! I’ve appreciated all the kind comments and words of encouragement. I’ve had so much fun writing this that I’ve decided that I want to continue writing about some of our antics on our other cruises with the minions (we've had some crazy times). But…I’m not sure if Cruise Critic will want me posting those older reviews here…so…I’ve decided to take your very kind advice and have been setting up a blog. I’ll be adding this review to the blog, and then writing up the others. Take a look at it if you want, but please remember, I’m just getting started so it’s going to take me a little while to get the hang of it and figure it all out. You’ll find my blog at: www (dot) cruisewhimsy (dot) com. It’s going to be…a lighthearted look at vacationing at sea!

 

And now, as I finally end this review…I wanted to leave you with my favorite quote....

 

May the light always find you on a dreary day…

When you need to be home, may you find a way…

May you always have courage to take a chance…

…and never…

…never…

…never find frogs in your underpants.

 

It’s been a pleasure!

 

Sharon

(and here's me with a stingray)

Me-w-Stingray.jpg

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1959kar

1959kar

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:( I'm sorry to see this review end, did I ever tell you how much, I love love love your sense of humor? :)

Its been so much fun, thanks! I'll be moseying over to your blog

 

because of your review, my son and I are going to swim with the manatees, we were going to swim with the dolphins in Grand Cayman, you can always swim with dolphins at many different places but you don't always have an opportunity to swim with Manatees.....thanks

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