Beyond the Sea: Travel Day/Day 1 - travel and DLP

[Gill H]

<<< Pre-trippie


To my mind, a travel day is when you travel to your destination but don’t do much else. We did a lot – so it’s Day 1 as well!)

Drink up me hearties, and buckle yourselves in for a good old yarn. There’ll be adventures on land and sea, encounters with old and new friends, and the odd surprise thrown in for good measure.

As this trip involves both DLP and a cruise, I’m putting it in the Cruise section with a link to it in the DLP section. Hope that satisfies everyone! And since it’s my first ever trippie in the Cruise section, you might want to remind yourselves of who we are and how we got here. In which case, check out the pre-trippie here.

Beyond the Sea: Pre-Trippie

OK, are we all shipshape and Bristol fashion? (Peter says I can drop the nautical references now…) Off we go then.

The day before our departure had been a whirlwind of cleaning, packing, sorting out unexpected problems in the flat, and mostly trying to organise our fish extender gifts.

If you don’t know what fish extenders are, basically, think of it as Secret Santa at Sea. I’ll go into more detail when we get to the cruise part, but for now, it’s enough to say that one of our cases was half-full of carrier bags with labels on them, full of various nick-nacks and home-made bits and bobs. We’d only got round to the actual packing side of things well after 10pm, and it was pretty much midnight by the time we got to bed.

Nevertheless, at 4am we are awakened by our two alarms. One is the alarm on my phone, and the other is our little grey furry alarm clock, otherwise known as our lovely cat Spikey! For an old lady, she can be pretty lively, particularly in the wee small hours, and today was no exception.

By 4.45 we’re washed and dressed, we’ve fed Spikey and got everything ready for the arrival of our friend Jo, who is going to look after both the flat and Spikey while we’re away. We go downstairs with our cases to wait for our taxi. And then I take a look at my phone, to see an email from BA about this morning’s flight. It says they are expecting the plane to be very full, and so are asking passengers to consider checking in their cabin luggage, which they won’t be charged for.

This completely throws off our plans, but we figure we can shuffle things around so that all the stuff we really don’t want to put in the hold (medicines etc) is in one cabin case, and we’ll check the other one in. Peter then remembers that we don’t have a lock on either of the cabin cases, so has to race upstairs and open up again, and rummage around in the bedroom drawer for a spare one (much to Spikey’s surprise!) Meanwhile I’m moving things around between the cases, and we just about manage to get it sorted by the time the taxi arrives.

Soon we’re speeding off to Heathrow – a journey of barely 20 minutes at that time of the morning. We’ve done OLCI the previous day, so we just have to deal with bag drop – which will now be three cases rather than two! There’s no queue so it’s soon dealt with, and we’re quickly heading through security. As I walk through the arch, I notice our cabin case going off the track into the side aisle. Oh dear, what now? We wait what seems like an eternity for it to be checked, and then discover that the problem is our toiletries bag, and specifically the toothpaste, which is deemed too big to take through. Ah well, we can buy some airside, no problem

[Gill H]

Then it’s off to breakfast, and after a good experience on a previous trip we decide to go to Huxley’s. I order some eggs Florentine (which the menu incorrectly calls eggs benedict – these are with spinach, rather than ham), and Peter goes for a breakfast butty with sausage, egg and hash browns. Service is disappointingly slow, and while the food is OK, we feel rather rushed by the time it arrives. Still, not a bad way to start the day.

Once we’ve paid we head straight down the escalators and I nip into to Boots to buy some replacement toothpaste! There’s barely time to look in the shops, as our gate is already showing, so we go straight over and wait to be called, and it’s not long before we’re in our seats and waiting for take-off.

We’re pleased to see that BA have finally changed the old safety video – that little kid is no longer parted from their toy rabbit. Instead we have a celebrity-packed video which has been made for Comic Relief, and is very funny. Nice job, BA.

The plane leaves a little late at 7.41 rather than the promised 7.15, but soon we’re in the air. We only just have time for a cold drink during our flight, as it’s so short! BA now don’t include food and drink on their short haul flights and you need to pay for anything you want. Not a problem for us as we’re still pretty full from breakfast and just have a can of Coke each.

We doze a little while, more because of our early start than because of the travel tablet I’ve taken. I’m trying Stugeron this time as I’m not a great traveller, and have had them recommended to me for the cruise. I usually have Boots’ own brand but they always knock me out, and I don’t want to spend half the cruise asleep! Fortunately Stugeron don’t seem to have the same effect on me.

In no time at all we’re landing at Charles de Gaulle airport, terminal 2. It’s been quite a few years since we were here, as we usually go by Eurostar. We’re pleased to see there’s a rather nice looking Disney store now with some good theming, not to mention an M&M World, but we have no time to check them out as we need to go upstairs to get our luggage. Or rather, to wait for our luggage, and in the process discover that CDG is perhaps the only airport which doesn’t have toilets in the baggage reclaim area. Why on earth not? So we take it in turns to nip back downstairs to the loos while the other person looks out for our luggage. While I’m waiting in the ladies I hear a blast of ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’ and assume it’s someone’s ringtone. But when I go back upstairs I discover that Peter is laughing about it too – it seems it is the official warning tone for announcements over the PA system. I’ve no idea why, and it’s not quite as alluring as that sexy little ‘Dah da-da DA-da’ that they play in French railway stations. But hey, it breaks up the monotony a bit I guess.

Eventually all our luggage is recaptured and we head for the arrivals hall. We’ve booked a transfer with RS Transports, and are slightly worried not to see anyone holding a board with our name on it – or even an approximation of our name, as we’re quite used to it being mis-spelled and mispronounced. But no, we both go up and down the rows of people waiting to meet passengers, and our guy is nowhere to be seen.

After a few frustrating moments, and just as we’re wondering whether to phone them, our driver appears, just a few minutes late. He leads us outside to the taxi and soon we are saying goodbye to the concrete brutality of CDG and heading off on our way to DLP.

[Gill H]

There’s not a lot to see along the way, apart from those pylons which I always think look like cats with their ears stuck up. But 40 minutes later we are finally pulling up in front of the Newport Bay Hotel at DLP. Wow, this place is huge. We’ve been in the hotel once before, to eat in the restaurant, but we approached it from the lake side. This is the first time we’ve actually seen the front of the hotel, and it’s pretty impressive. This hotel is usually out of our budget, and we’re only here because we got an exceptionally good deal, but it does seem the perfect choice for a pre-cruise stay.

We put our luggage through the security scanner and then step inside the hotel, where we’re scanned as we go in. The extra security does perhaps take the shine off entering such a luxurious place, but we’re glad they take their responsibilities seriously.

And so we reach the reception area. A beautifully themed place full of little touches such as the nautical patterns on the carpets. None of which we can see right now, because every inch is crammed with people! Evidently a shuttle bus from CDG has just arrived, bringing half of Europe to check in to our hotel. It’s not exactly the calm and elegant welcome we’d been hoping for, but there’s not much we can do about it. So Peter stands to one side with the luggage while I join the long queue to check in. As usual at DLP, this is much more complicated than it needs to be, with various bits of paper to sign and collect. First I am handed a form by a CM, Margot, which I need to fill in as I wait, and then give to another CM, Nicolas, at the desk. As we have full dining, we have an envelope full of meal vouchers which are just the wrong size to fit in a wallet. Plus, our room keys (which are swipe cards), our park tickets, our hotel easy pass (again, too big to go in a wallet) and something new – some RFID cards which we can use to charge purchases to our hotel. I ask whether these can be used for anything else, and the CM says ‘In November, we hope’ – so perhaps they are on their way to replacing some of the frustrating plethora of paper with something electronic. It’s unlikely that they will go for magic bands as WDW has done – it’s notable that no other Disney park worldwide has chosen to go down that route. But oh, how much easier it would be to have at the very least your room key, park tickets, early entry pass and meal credits all in one card! Bring it on DLP, please?

Now, you may remember that this whole trip is to celebrate our 50th birthdays - both of which have already come and gone in reality, but as we know, Disney likes to stretch out their celebrations, so why can't we? And way back when we made our DLP booking, we mentioned Peter would be celebrating his 50th birthday. (We didn't mention mine, as we were at DLP last November just before it, and I'd celebrated then.) Every time we phoned DLP to pay some money off the booking or make reservations, they would mention "Oh, I see you're celebrating a special birthday". So I'm rather surprised when no mention of this is made at check-in. Usually they have a card, or maybe a few chocolate coins. On our last two visits we've even been given vouchers to use on purchases in the shops. I quietly mention it to Nicolas, and he says it isn't on his booking, but he'll make a note of it for later.

Anyway, it’s too early to get into our room at present, so we take our luggage round to the luggage room and check it in. We’re given some raffle tickets with the numbers of our luggage on – yay, more paper! And finally with a lot of folding and rearranging, I manage to get all our paperwork into my handbag so we don’t have to carry a bulky envelope around the park. (OK, I will stop whingeing about the paper now, I promise.)

By now it’s almost 11am and time to head off to the park. We go back through the lobby, find our way down a flight of stairs to the lake side exit of the hotel, say hello to the ducks and set off round the lake. We soon find the little path off to the left which takes us to Newport Bay’s own security tent. Once everything is through the scanner, we follow the path, which brings us into the Village via the back of the Rainforest Café (who knew there was an elephant there?) Perhaps because it’s hot and this walk is unfamiliar, it feels like a longer walk than going from Sequoia Lodge round the lake, but in reality it’s probably about the same. We’re soon through the Village and walking through the newly refurbished Fantasia Gardens. This looks more beautiful than ever after its much needed freshen-up, but we don’t have time to linger as we are off to one of our favourite places – Salon Mickey!

For those who don’t know, Salon Mickey is a small lounge next to the luggage store on the right hand side of the entrance. Members of the Shareholders’ Club can get free snacks and hot and cold drinks there, and can enter the Disneyland Park through Salon Mickey instead of going through the turnstiles. It always gives me a frisson of excitement to see the intrigued expressions of guests waiting at the turnstiles as they watch us being welcomed into Salon Mickey – I wonder if they think we are celebs!

[Gill H]

Inside, Salon Mickey is the busiest I’ve ever seen it. It’s not a large room but usually we don’t have a problem getting seats. Today, however, it’s full! But fortunately it’s not long before someone leaves and we grab a table, and get a couple of coffees to go with the muffin and cookie we’ve chosen. We still mourn the loss of the delicious almond-studded pains au chocolat they used to give out there, but for now this will do.

Opposite us is a family with a girl in a Minnie dress, and a boy in a black t-shirt, red shorts and yellow shoes. We greet the children as Mickey and Minnie, and compliment the parents on the outfits!

As we sip our coffees I notice three guys at a nearby table, one of whom has a Disney Cruise Line backpack. Ooh, I wonder if they will be on our cruise? I know from our cruise Facebook group that some of our fellow passengers are going to DLP first, and indeed we have made plans to meet some of them later. So I go over and ask – but it turns out they have recently been on the Northern Europe cruise and are in fact seasoned DCL cruisers. I tell them we’re off for our first cruise in a couple of days and they are full of enthusiasm and helpful tips.

Once we’ve finished chatting we ask the CM for our park tickets, and we’re shown into the park. As always, I’ve only got to hear that Main Street music and I instantly feel I’ve come home. But we both note that we aren’t feeling the usual rush of excitement – just a contented feeling of being in our happy place.

We stop to admire the blue and silver decorations over the entrance, particularly the central one which switches between the number 25 and the castle, all in sparkly silver. The theme is carried on through the park, with decorations on all the lamp posts and statues of characters in the flower beds at the hub.

We have a little time before our lunch reservation at Captain Jack’s, so we decide to wander through Frontierland. We pop over to Phantom Manor in case there is time to ride, but there’s a large queue. And it goes without saying that the queue for BTMR is crazy as usual. This is as near as we get.

We decide to go over to Cottonwood Creek to check whether the Forest of Enchantment show really has closed, as we’ve been told it closed last Sunday. We’ve still never seen this show as we haven’t visited in the summer, but it does look amazing. Sadly the theatre is indeed closed until the Frozen show comes back for Christmas, which means the area is practically deserted. However, we notice Merida standing there with only a few people hovering around to meet her, so we decide to take the opportunity. As a few more families arrive, the CM herds us into a proper queue. I laugh and say “I’m a Brit, give me a queue and I’m happy!” and the CM – a friendly British guy called Matthew – laughs and has a little chat with us. Soon we’re meeting Merida, whose accent sounds pretty genuine, and who seems to enjoy having a chat with us before posing for a photo.

Then we’re off towards Captain Jack’s, bypassing several character meets including Chip and Dale and Peter Pan and Wendy. We arrive at the restaurant where the queue is out of the door. But not to worry, we have reservations! So we start to move towards the desk – only to find out that everyone else has reservations too. Oops.

When we reach the desk, the CM asks for our name, and then can’t find our reservation. Double oops. And after a few minutes of frustrated conversation, she finds it – but it was for 12 o’clock, not 12.30, and so they have given it away after waiting 15 minutes. Triple oops.

This is completely my fault. I don’t have my planning paperwork on me (all that stuff I had to fit into my handbag, remember?) and for some reason, I’d got it into my head that our reservation was 12.30 whereas in fact it was 12 o’clock. I’m kicking myself, we could easily have got here in plenty of time. But the kindly CM says if we wait she will fit us in, so we go and find a place to sit and enjoy the theming.

After what seems a long wait, but in reality was probably only 15 minutes or so, we are shown to a table. Sadly there are no waterside tables available, but we still have a decent view of the ride and the restaurant’s interior. Which is not really all that different from its days as the Blue Lagoon, but some fun Captain Jack-style details have been added – notably, there’s a place to leave your weapons as you come in!

[Gill H]

We’re given our menus and we know pretty much what we want to order. Our vouchers entitle us to the Pirates’ Treasure Menu, from which we both order the ‘Island style fish soup’ to start. Peter orders the ‘slow roast suckling pig with grilled aubergine and squash’ (presumably as in butternut squash rather than a glass of Robinsons!) I order the ‘oven baked mahi-mahi fish steak with coconut sauce and peppers’.

We’ve eaten at the Blue Lagoon a few times and I’ve often felt that the menu was a bit too fussy and frou-frou for its own good. Not that I am a stranger to fancy food – but the options at the Blue Lagoon sometimes seemed as though they were trying to be unusual for the sake of it. What we’ve seen of the menu for Captain Jack’s has given us the same concerns. These have got to be the fanciest pirates in town!

However, once the meal arrives, we realise that the food is actually a lot less fussy than it sounds. To start, we are given two different breads – one with coconut and one with sweetcorn - and some mango chutney. These are very good, not too strongly flavoured but just a nice hint of something a little different.

Then along comes the fish soup. I’d been expecting a hearty stew something like the French bouillabaisse, but instead it’s a light broth which tastes very fresh – similar to the kind of soup you find in Chinese restaurants.

Peter’s main course arrives, and the server announces it as ‘Pork! Pig? Pig!’ and Peter explains that although the menu says ‘suckling pig’, in English we would normally refer to the meat as pork.

Then my main course is served, and it’s a bit of a surprise. I’d been expecting a ‘coconut sauce’ to be white, but this is a tomato based sauce. When I taste it, there is a faint hint of coconut, but if I hadn’t seen the menu I don’t think I would have picked up on that.

The rice (for both of us) is studded with kidney beans which are a little overcooked and don’t really add to the taste – a version of the classic Caribbean ‘rice and peas’ dish, I guess.

(Sorry for photo quality, it's so dark in here!)

Both main courses are really tasty, and I guess fussy eaters could pick out the kidney beans if they wanted. Don’t let menu descriptions put you off, these are both good dishes.

While we are eating, Captain Jack pops in and chats with the guests on a nearby table. Unfortunately he doesn’t come to our table, just poses for a few photos in a spot near the stairs. If you happen to be sat near the stairs, it’s worth having your camera out in case he turns up. It’s not advertised as a character meal, but the added interaction is a nice touch.

The people at the table in front of ours are evidently celebrating, as a cake is brought to them by CMs singing happy birthday. Instead of the usual enormous and impractical ice cream cake, this is smaller (though still plenty for the four adults at the table) and looks as if it is made of chocolate mousse and sponge. It’s in a dome shape with bright red icing (for Mickey’s trousers) and two yellow buttons, plus Mickey ears on top.

Our desserts arrive, and yet again I’m a little surprised by mine. The description was ‘tropical fruit soup with muscovado sugar and coconut foam’ which would lead me to expect something like a fruit smoothie perhaps? Instead it’s a glass full of what we would call fruit salad, topped off with the ‘foam’ which is a marshmallowy topping. It’s light and fresh, and absolutely delicious.

Peter’s ‘island style rice pudding with mango puree’ is pretty much how it sounds, though it is worth noting that this is a cold dish. Later we point out to the manager that it would be worth adding the word ‘cold’ to the menu description, as most Brits would expect rice pudding to be a hot dish. Nevertheless, it’s a nice enough dessert, though I think I’ve got the better one.

You may have spotted that certain ingredients dominate this menu, notably coconut, mango and rice – oh, and fish. This was always a gripe of ours with Blue Lagoon too. Not that we dislike any of those things, but I do think they could use a little more imagination and variety in their menu. Oh, and maybe employ an actual Caribbean chef to do the ‘rice and peas’ properly!

While in the restaurant we notice a woman who is clearly a member of staff, but isn’t in costume. She’s walking around the tables asking questions, and we discover later that she was doing some kind of survey, but by the time we finish she’s left.

[Gill H]

By now we’ve missed the start of the next show on the castle stage, which we had been planning to see this afternoon. So instead we head to my favourite ride – It’s a Small World.

We’re just in time to catch the clock chiming 2 o’clock and the little display of characters. The colours on this frontage really pop since its refurb, and the interior of the ride is looking spruced-up too, with the addition of ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye’ signs in various languages replacing the previous pictures on the walls.

Then we browse a few shops checking out the 25th anniversary merchandise, on our way out of the park. We head back to Newport Bay for 3pm to pick up our luggage and take it to our room, which is now ready. We’re really pleased with our room, which has plenty of space, comfy beds, a little balcony and plenty of fun nautical theming.

There’s just time to unpack and relax for a little while, before we need to be back in the park for the parade. Originally we had planned to see the parade tomorrow, but having read that there is now a short pre-parade on Tuesdays featuring rare characters, we decide that today is the day to see it. We’ve posted on the cruise Facebook group to say that we’ll be outside City Hall from 5pm to see the parade, if anyone wants to meet up.

So we trudge back downstairs, say hello to the ducks on the lake again and walk back to the park. It’s a very warm afternoon, we’re tired after our early start and my shoes are hurting my feet, so frankly it’s tempting not to bother, but having told people we will be there, we figure we’d better go! We’re just glad we specified City Hall as at least we don’t have far to walk.

On the way in we stop for another look at the blue and silver display in Fantasia Gardens, and I notice something. This morning someone had thrown a piece of rubbish into the middle of the display, but now it’s gone. Not too many years ago, it would probably have been there for the rest of the day. And come to think of it, there seem to be a lot more CMs with dustpans and brushes around than normal. This is a Very Good Thing. Another good addition is the ‘rate the facilities’ buttons in many of the toilets. You press a button – smiley face, neutral face or frowny face – to indicate how you found things. I’m not sure how much effect these will have, as I suspect toddlers will just want to press buttons because they are there! But it’s good to see them taking this issue seriously. And (spoiler alert!) I rarely have to press ‘frowny face’ during the whole trip. Looks like DLP are making a real effort to keep all areas of the parks sparkling.

We find a nice little spot in front of City Hall, and almost immediately a smiling couple come over to us, and introduce themselves as Jerri and Andy. They are members of the FB cruise group and are celebrating their 30th anniversary with this trip. It’s their first visit to DLP and we chat excitedly, swapping tips and experiences. We’re soon joined by another group member, Josee, with her husband and their young daughter. Then along come Doug and his travelling companion (whose name escapes me I’m afraid – sorry if you’re reading this!) who stop for a brief chat but can’t stay for the parade.

While we’re chatting, some jaunty music strikes up and the pre-parade begins. The song says “Today is Tuesday, you know what that means? We’re gonna have a special guest!” We don’t realise it at the time, but this is apparently a song used on the original Mickey Mouse Club for ‘guest star Tuesdays’ so they are tapping into a Disney tradition here. Some dancers appear dressed in red, white and black costumes with a vaguely 50s feel, escorting today’s special guests, who turn out to be Pinocchio and Jiminy Cricket. This feels a bit of a cheat, as Pinocchio is always in the parade, but Jiminy Cricket isn’t, and I suppose Pinocchio is the logical character to put him with. Anyway, the pair dance around Town Square with the dancers and head off up Main Street.

(I didn't get a chance to take pics of this, but it's all in Peter's video - check the link at the end!)

Then there’s a few minutes’ lull before the music strikes up and the parade itself begins.

This is the first time we’ve seen the new 25th anniversary parade. The floats are really impressive, starting with a huge magical book on top of the first one, and encompassing some inventive structures such as the spinner containing two acrobats, on the Toy Story float.

By contrast there are a few misfires – the young Simba on the front of the Lion King float looks very tatty, and why do we have a grown-up Mowgli dressed like Fred Flintstone?

It’s also a shame that the princess float hasn’t yet been added, and those who aren’t in the carriages have to walk. You would think that as Aurora has her own castle here, they wouldn’t make her walk down the street! Still, overall the floats are great. I particularly love the Crush one, and of course there's a proper fire-breathing Maleficent dragon!

For years, people seem to have been criticising the DLP parades for only using one song on a loop, rather than having an overarching theme interspersed with versions of music from the relevant films for each individual float (as tends to happen in the US parks). So it’s ironic that for the first time, we have a main theme with changing music for the floats – and people complain about it! True, the ‘Lost in the Magic’ song isn’t as instantly memorable as classics like ‘Magic Everywhere’ or ‘Dancin’ A Catchy Rhythm’. But it gives a jazzy, upbeat feel to the parade, and the arrangements frame the floats well. Definitely a grower.

[Gill H]

Once the parade is over, we say goodbye to our fellow cruisers and head over to Phantom Manor. There’s still a sizeable queue – we’re definitely not used to the park being this busy! The queueing area to the left of the house is completely full, whereas we often walk straight through it. However, the good thing about Phantom Manor is that each time the doors open, a large proportion of the queue disappears, and soon we are waiting outside the doors for our turn to go in.

The ride itself is fun as ever, despite being interrupted by ‘playful spooks’ a couple of times; we do admit, though, that its long refurb next year will be welcome. Hopefully the imagineers can find a way to explain the overarching story which ties together the whole Frontierland area, in particular Big Thunder Mountain and the Lucky Nugget Saloon’s links to Phantom Manor. If you haven’t read the back story, check out ravenswood-manor for details.

After this we call it a day and head back to Newport Bay, as we want a little time to relax before we get ready for our dinner reservation. I am a little surprised that there is still nothing in the room regarding Peter's birthday - I had expected a card or some chocolate coins, since Nicolas had made a point of writing it down earlier. Ah well, maybe tomorrow.

After a brief doze on the lovely comfy beds, we get changed and make the short walk over to Sequoia Lodge for our 8pm dinner at Hunter’s Grill. Walking into Sequoia Lodge is like meeting an old friend. We love its cosy interior and instantly feel at home. Hunter’s Grill is quite busy but doesn’t feel crowded. We’re shown to a table and soon we’re let loose on the excellent buffet.

Despite staying at Sequoia Lodge several times, this is the first time we’ve actually eaten here. There’s a great variety of food on offer, and we start with some salads, cold meats, shell-on prawns and even a slice of pork pie! There’s also soup, but we give that a miss, though we do grab some of the rather nice bread rolls.

Main dishes include ribs, chicken in a creamy sauce with beans, and also salmon and turkey dishes.

This being France, there is of course a cheese selection, though it’s rather surprising that they are all soft cheeses. Still, a definite step up from the cubes of Edam and Gouda you get in the value restaurants.

Desserts include fluffy ‘iles flottantes’ – delicious meringue perched on a cold vanilla custard with caramel sauce – and various mousses and gateaux. There are also stations for making fresh waffles and pancakes, and ice cream, sauces and various accompaniments. We pass on these, but manage to find room for the 25th anniversary dessert, an elegant slice of chocolate praline cake.

This is probably the best buffet I’ve had in DLP apart from the Inventions brunch. The selection of food is superb, with something for everyone, the atmosphere is relaxed and welcoming, and the service is friendly. We’ll definitely eat here again.

After a relaxing dinner we stroll back to our hotel and pop into the large and well stocked hotel shop. This is by far the best hotel shop I’ve seen on property, even beating the one in the DLH. We buy a booklet of 10 postcards featuring DLP attractions with characters in their 25th anniversary ‘steampunk’ outfits. We will be sending postcards to family members, a couple of ‘pixie dust postcards’ and also one for Dibber GopherLass’s son (known on the Dibb as Poot). GopherLass and Poot will be boarding the Magic the day we leave, and I’ve promised to get a couple of postcards to them for Poot’s collection. We also buy the CD of the parade music. DLP doesn’t release much music, so when there is some, we grab it straight away!

We head back up to our room and realise that we need to sort out a kettle for tomorrow morning. We can’t be bothered to go down and ask for one, so we phone reception and they say they will bring one up straight away. However, ‘straight away’ translates as 30 minutes! Meanwhile we try to plug in our camera and phone chargers and discover that most of the sockets don’t fit our chargers. Not because they are the wrong kind (there are some UK sockets in the room, and we have some adapters anyway), but because of the awkward places they have been put! Eventually we manage to find one socket by the bed and one by the television, which will take our plug. We don’t find any USB sockets though, and I’m sure we were told there were some. Oh well, we will manage.

Eventually someone comes up with the kettle and we make ourselves a cuppa using our Kenco ‘2 in 1’ sachets, but we discover that our thermal mugs are much too big for the sachets, and the drinks are too watery to enjoy. So instead we do a little channel hopping and discover a cookery show called ‘Who will be the next grand patissier?’ As Peter is a qualified pastry chef this is definitely one for him! We don’t follow all of what is being said, but the delicious creations on the screen speak for themselves including some elaborate ‘fruit sushi’ (frushi?) creations. And after that we drift into a happy sleep after a long, tiring, occasionally frustrating but ultimately magical day.

>>>Day 2

Videos are here!

INDEX
 

[Bats]

Yay for your trippie!

Joa

[clochette]

Great day Gill, if a long one. I have to confess I wasn't over impressed with the parade when we saw it in August but maybe it will grow on me.

[sallybunny]

Hurray! New trippie! And on a cruise too. I keep looking at DLP and trying to work out if we can fit a trip in next year but it's just not going to happen with everything else going on. I'm hoping to get over for my 40th in 2019 and maybe have a night in the pink one

Hope you had an amazing time and looking forward to the rest!

Sally x