So much going on, let me fill you in on the latest........(trip). On October 20th I flew down to Orlando Florida, to join the TCM Classic Movie Cruise! This was my second one, and it was a great one. We were to sail on the Disney Magic which was fine by me as I was not a big fan of the Celebrity Cruise Line. I arrived one day early as I was scheduled to be on a shuttle at 12:30 p.m. to take us down to the ship. I reserved a room at the Orlando Hyatt which was conveniently near the airport. I packed light, (for me), no need for formal clothes or jacket and tie, this is normally Queen Mary 2 attire. I awoke on the 21st, eager to sail....and to see some of the guest stars. At breakfast, I was seated with Nick from the Hot Sardines, (they were featured band players for the TCM Cruise in 2013 as well as this one coming up.) He is 27 and has been with the HS for five years.......we talked about this and the fun he has had with working with this band. When we finished, Nick said good-bye as he was to leave for the ship now because they needed to set up for the Sail-Away Party. As for me, I checked my room to make sure I had everything, and than off to the shuttle to await departure. Though I was early, I was assigned a seat on an earlier shuttle and took my seat for the hour long ride to the dock. The other passengers were all movie-mad so the talk was about our favorite films, genre, actors, and past experiences on TCM Cruises. The hour literally flew by. Once at the Cruise Terminal, I went on to check in and to arrange for on ship credit and than await for my Boarding Number to be called, I was in Group 17. Again, I talked to all who were waiting and as the Group Numbers were called, we would say See you on board!, and wait for our number to be called. When 17 was called, I followed the others to board ship. I skipped the photo-op of arriving passengers and walked up the gang-plank and inside the ship. I can see why Disney Cruise Ships are expensive, the Grand Lobby was tastefully decorated, (true, not like a Cunard ship which is truly grand), but reminiscent of the Golden Age of Ocean Travel. I was pleased, this is as big a part of an ocean cruise as is the passengers with you......luxury everywhere, just waiting to be experienced! My Stateroom, 1048, was on Deck 1 and it looked like we were but ten feet above the waterline! For me I had a queen bed, large closets, several chest of drawers, plus a sitting area with a sofa, (which could convert to a bed), a chest of drawers an upholstered chair and blue and white striped curtains which, on arrival were drawn back and festooned but could be closed off to separate the two areas. On a nearby table was your TCM Welcome Package which had your Dining Room table assignment, (Table 20), as well as what Dining Room you were in on each night. (There were three Main Dining Rooms.......Lumieres featuring French Cuisine, Animators Palate featuring Pacific Rim Cuisine, and Cariocas featuring South American Cuisine). This was a great feature because the DCL would rotate you on assigned nights to each of these restaurants and you always sat with the same passengers and you always had the same wait-staff. By rotating you, you experienced the food from the three restaurants and to me, experiencing new dishes to eat is just as much of the cruise as are the stops at various ports. Our wait-staff was Luis, Avatar and Alba and they were exceptional in the service they provided and would go out of their way to make sure that your dining experience was the best they could provide. (When I returned home, when I filled out my TCM Survey on dining on the Disney Magic, I put down everything about these three who attended us as to how well they did their job.) Too, I tipped each of them extra than their usual tip which is added into your fare. (As did the others at my table). The Sail-Away Party was on the Pool Deck and here we saw are first glimpse of the attending stars.......Ann Blythe, Diane Baker, Shirley Jones, Tab Hunter, James Karen, Richard Dreyfuss, Alex Trebek, Rory Flynn, (Errol Flynns daughter), as well as other guest speakers, and of course Robert Osborne and Ben Mankiewicz. All aboard and ready to go!
Posted on: Wed, 19 Nov 2014 21:23:23 +0000
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