Day 2 (Embarkation Day!)
So you would think that after a night like I had at the airport, I would be able to sleep in a little. Our PAT was 11:00 and we had plans to arrive around 10:30. (We like to get there early, but then, we like to get
everywhere early...) That means we really didn't have to get an early start. We were both still packed and the hotel had free breakfast so we could sleep pretty late. But this is the day we got to get on a
Disney Cruise so
of course we wake up before they even start serving breakfast... We wasted some time rearranging things in the suitcases and getting ready and then basically sat around and took selfies to send to our friends to make them jealous.
FINALLY breakfast opened and we tried to waste yet MORE time eating breakfast. Needless to say, the morning DRAGGED. But we were also keeping an eye on traffic, so we decided to leave a little earlier than we had planned.
Plans for Saturday
Sleep in
Eat breakfast at hotel
10am Lyft to Port
11am PAT
Board!!
Kids Club Open House?
Spa Raffle @3
Mandatory Assembly Drill
Sail Away Deck Party
See the Statue of Liberty!
Change for dinner?
Show
DVC Event @7:30
Dinner
Clubs: Adults Only Entertainment
We ended up getting a Lyft sometime between 9:30 and 9:45. Honestly, it was probably just as much to do with crushing boredom and anticipation as it was the traffic that made us leave early. LOL For those wondering, it was SUPER easy to get the Lyft right to the front door of the hotel. In fact, there were several people doing it. We had originally considered riding the free airport shuttle back to the airport because taxis have had a hard time finding the hotel in the past (it's got a
really weird entry) but we didn't have a problem. I think the Lyft ride took about 40 minutes? And most of that time was spent in traffic after the tunnel. Our Lyft driver dropped us off curbside. Literally right next to the luggage drop off.
This picture was literally taken immediately after he dropped us off. (also, take note of the wind... the day was
crazy windy so this was the best our hair looked all day. Also, it meant that I ended up carrying my super cute hat all day instead of wearing it.)
We dropped off our luggage with the porters and took the elevator up to the security screening. (honestly, we had so many security screenings this trip, I forgot we had one at the port.) That was an absolute breeze and then the LONG walk thru the terminal to check in. For those who haven't been, Manhattan Cruise Terminals are literally on the docks, so they are long and skinny.
This picture is from their website. They usually have check ins for two ships in the same terminal. The Norwegian Gem was also in port the same time as us, so their check in was at the front of the terminal and Disney's was at the back. So we had to walk thru all of the Norwegian check in processes before we got to ours.
YAY! Finally found Mickey! (also note the hat... the only time I wore it all day)
We checked in and got the Silver lanyards for the last time! Cruise number 5 for the both of us means GOLD next time! Yay! After that we sat down and planned the rest of our day and checked out our dining rotation. We were ARL_ARL. (Disney day was open dining since most of us didn't return to ship until well after 10PM) I would say that we arrived somewhere in the middle of everyone else arriving. It really didn't feel like there were a whole lot of people there even though there were. I think I was feeling the difference between the Dream class ships. The last 3 cruises we had been on were on the bigger ships. We were in boarding group 4, so we knew we would be called pretty quickly, so even though neither one of us particularly like the crowds, we hung out in the waiting area near the line for boarding. We also got to watch the character meet and greet which was rather entertaining.
The great part about where we were sitting was that we could see which characters were coming next. So when Goofy walked by the window, everyone headed over the the character meet and greet to line up for his arrival. Well, probably one of the best parts of the day happened next.
We were watching him walk by (and trying to catch a picture) when a woman yells "Excuse me! I need to see my husband!" I turn around and there is a woman trying desperately to get thru the crowd to the meet and greet. Everyone hears her and lets her pass, and then you hear her squeal with joy when she saw Goofy walk in.
The best part was her son (maybe around 9 years old?) walking slowly behind her just shaking his head and apologizing to everyone. He kept saying "Sorry, she
really loves Goofy" hahahahaha So Mrs. Goofy, if you are reading this, just know that you made our day!
While all that was going on, they called our boarding number and we got to leave the masses to get on the ship! Just to give everyone an idea for timing, our number was called at 11:55 and we walked onto the ship at 12:01. (It's a LONG walk to get out of the terminal and onto the ship)
Normally the minute we get on the boat, we head up to the buffet and claim a table outside with a view, but it was cold and as I mentioned before, WINDY. So we decided to eat at Lumiere's.
I'm going to warn y'all now, anyone who wanted to see the food, this is NOT the report for you. I'm a fat kid at heart and only remember to take pictures when I'm done eating...
But, I did manage to snag a few!
This was the Sliced Roast Beef Sirloin and it was the PERFECT start to the cruise! And judging by the tables around us... everyone else thought so too! LOL We both got this dish and everyone at all three tables around us got it too.
After lunch we did some general exploring to orient ourselves to the ship. This was Jenn's first time on the Magic and I hadn't been on her in 5 years. Pretty sure that we got some coffee from Cove at this time too.
And then the rooms opened! YAY! Time to check out our first ever Oceanview room! We walked in to find gifts galore!
Some we had ordered for ourselves (Jenn
really wanted that Holiday Blanket) but most were sent by our friend who was supposed to join us, but ended up not being able to come. She sent a cheese plate (which we literally ate for 3 days and I basically NEED every time I sail now) Sparkling Cider, and onboard credit! Talk about being spoiled! Our room was a fantastic location. We were in 2092 and it was an easy walk to just about everywhere that we wanted to be. It also had the split bathroom, which we have decided that we can't live without any longer on cruises. (You'll notice that we say that a lot on this cruise... we tried new things and it
really changed how we think on cruising. So the tally right now is: 1. Fly in earlier on the day before 2. Oceanview room 3. Cheese platter for sail away 4. Split Bathroom (which comes with the Oceanview, but still notable enough to mention))
So after a quick snack and dropping off things we didn't want to carry (i.e. my hat) we headed to the Spa for the tour and raffle. We didn't win.
But it's
got to happen eventually, right? After the raffle, we headed back to the room to unpack and wait for the Muster Drill.
By far the COLDEST Muster Drill I've ever been to, but happily, I somehow ended up in the back of a row. Those of you who have done a muster drill on deck in the summer know that it is
torture and standing in the back is the worst because it's such tight quarters that it gets hot really quick. This time it worked in my favor to have all those people smashed up against me. (also, I think this is probably the
most excited I've ever been to have Muster Drill... at least judging by my face...)
After drill we headed up to watch the sail away party, but decided to stop at the front of the boat to take some pictures first... annnnd ended up never leaving.
The pictures were too good and we got a great spot. This is also a great spot to mention that Jenn had never seen the Statue of Liberty, so seeing it from the front of the Disney Magic as your first time is an opportunity too good to pass up.
Andddddd we waited a while... and the sun started setting, and the temperatures started dropping, and
still we hadn't left. (It probably wasn't as long as I make it sound, but I HATE the cold so it felt really long to me.) Funny story, while waiting, we decided to call our parents to say goodbye, and NO ONE was answering. Wow... we felt so loved. LOL But it did make for some interesting voice mails.
(Continued in next post)