Update 11/1 Dreaming of Magic 10/18/08
I got up today about 6am. The alarm on my phone was for 5:30, but it shut itself off! I don't know what's up with that! Anyway, Brenda was up about 7:15am. There was a note on our door last night that said Bell Services would pick up our luggage a little before 8. They didn't, but they got it while we were at breakfast. We went to find some breakfast and to check-in for the cruise at about 8:30. I thought we should check at the cruise desk first to make sure everything was OK. Once there we found out we could not check-in because we booked the room and cruise separate... I guess that only works with a land/sea vacation. I thought, since French Quarter was a DCL resort, we could check-in and our room key would be the same on the ship. I guess that's what I get for thinking. I wonder if a travel agent would have been able to tie the rooms and cruise in together? Oh well, a minor thing (but it raises it's ugly head again when we get back!) We went to the food court for breakfast and it was soooo crowded, I said that maybe we should try Boatwright's at Riverside. Brenda said that by the time we got to another resort, we would already be eating here, so I gritted my teeth and we mingled into the crowd. I don’t like crowds! Brenda told me to get the drinks and she would wait in line to get breakfast. So that's what we did. I got 2 coffees and an OJ ($6.58) and started looking for a table. Now, I don't want you to get the wrong idea. When I say crowded, I mean summer at WDW crowded! I looked for a table for almost 10 minutes! I know this because there is 10 minutes between my receipt and Brenda's receipt! I saw her almost to the register when I finally spotted a table. By the time she found me, the food was cold. But, at least, we had something to tide us over till lunch on the ship. After breakfast we went back to the room. The bags had been picked up and we waited till 11:00 and went down and checked out. We still had an hour before DCL picked us up and we just hung out near the DCL desk till then. Brenda read her book and I made a general pest of myself. I did try to help a family from England. They wanted to find a cap with "Old Navy" on it, so I told them an outlet mall would have an Old Navy store in it and I was sure they would have a cap with the logo on it. It was a souvenir for the lady's husband who had been in the Royal Navy and hadn't come with them. Not much help, but we kept running into each other and smiling and exchanging pleasantries. It was kinda cool. We took a few pictures of POFQ:
Brenda and the Jester...............The Jester and I (can you see a resemblance?)
Soon we were given our boarding passes.
The bus arrived to take us to the Magic!
The excitement was really kicking in now. The driver said it would be an hour and a half drive. I didn't think it was that far, but I guess it must have been for the bus. I don't wear a watch, so I don't know for sure. I kept waiting and waiting till finally we went over a small elevated bridge.
I thought I would get tears in my eyes at this moment. I must have seen it in my mind too many times... or maybe I was too overwhelmed, I don't know.
I think I was the first on the bus to see it, I was the first to say anything, anyway. I could see the red stacks of the Magic towering over the trees and buildings on the horizon. We had not gotten a good enough seat to get a good picture until we got closer.
The Carnival Glory was docked next to the Magic, and it was huge. It looked to be twice as big as the Magic! The Disney Magic is twice as beautiful, though, in our opinion. We had to wait on the bus a few minutes. We watched the security dogs sniffing through some of the bags. Then they finally let us off the bus. A metal detector and bag scanner and you were let upstairs to check-in. The line was pretty fast and soon we had our birthday and anniversary badges and were told our stateroom was ready and we could board right away. I asked Brenda to wait until I took a couple of pictures of the terminal and the ship model.
I'm a pretty emotional guy. Again, I thought I would be tearing up as we approached the Mickey Mouse head to the gangway. All I can say is, from the time I saw the stacks in the distance, till we got home... I was in sort of a "dreamlike state". I know it was real, because we have pictures, but ... well, I just can't adequately describe it! I was in a magical, dreamlike fog... It was like... dreaming and magic, but it was real! I remember (barely) looking for turtles as we crossed the gangway (didn't see them), and I remember the CM asking our names and if we had ever cruised Disney before. Then she said in the microphone: "The Disney Magic welcomes first time cruisers Kenny and Brenda Jenkins!". We looked around us with starry eyes and tried to take it all in.
