In The Blink of an Eye
This month, we celebrated our 47th anniversary (March 10th, to be precise). Tim decided that we needed to do something special since too many of our anniversaries over the years were spent physically apart (due to work locations, work schedules, or work meeting mandates). So, *something special* was, in fact, a cruise - a Disney cruise aboard The Wish, from Port Canaveral, Florida to The Bahamas, sailing first to Castaway Cay, then Lookout Cay, and a day at sea, and back to Port Canaveral. Anyone who knows us well, knows that we have always been quite vocal about our never wanting to take a cruise. Well, never say never! That said, Disney cruises are a cut above any other cruise line - and I'm not saying that because I'm biased! We've heard that from numerous people, and they are absolutely spot on. Our daily ship's log follows:
March 2, 2026
We set sail aboard The Disney Wish for our very first cruise. Already we have been thoroughly impressed. Stateroom 8664, which is an oceanview cabin with a veranda. Spectacular! The food......oh my goodness, THE FOOD! So much food..........and it is so very good.
After attending the mandatory muster drill for what to do when we hear Maureen McGovern start singing "There's Got to Be a Morning After," (just kidding! Or not?😆), we went back to our room to chill for a while. Our assigned dinner seating was 8:15, so we kind of wandered around the ship for a bit and stopped by a lounge that was playing a 70's music trivia game. I would have done well if it weren't for the stupid disco questions! 19 out of 40 points, so 50% of the questions were disco related. BOO!!! It was fun, though.
Our first night's dinner was in the restaurant, 1923, on the Roy Disney side. They rotate the restaurant dining assignments each night, so different restaurants, but the servers rotate with their assigned passengers. Howard (South Africa) was the head server for our area, and Ephrain (Peru) was the assistant server, and they were phenomenal. They know who their guests are, names, and after the first night, they remember any special requests and make sure they repeat those requests without even asking us! The food was incredible, and so much to eat! We usually just had 3 courses, but that was by choice. We could have had a 4th course, but chose not to most nights.
Back to the room after waddling away from the table, and we discovered that there is a turndown visit from our Room Host, Wilven. Not only was the comforter turned down and little chocolates left on the bed, but the blanket runner at the end of the bed was folded into a Disney character - tonight's was Wall-E!
Adult libation Smokestack on the Wish Wall-E Our stateroom door
Tile mural in the main lobby Chandelier in the main lobby
March 3, 2026
Alas, sweet dreams were not to be for me. I have an issue with restless leg syndrome, and my go-to remedies were either illegal in The Bahamas (Delta 8 - THC) or absolutely not permitted on board due to safety factors (heating pad, and my stand-by rechargeable hand warmers that I made little leg garters for to hold in place on my thighs). It was pretty brutal, and I finally resorted to taking a Rx I have for anxiety that helped me fall asleep around 4 am.
We docked in Castaway Cay sometime before daybreak. Tim ordered room service for our early morning coffee, along with a couple muffins, which we enjoyed on the veranda. Needless to say, I needed that coffee! Later on, we ventured out to Marcelline's Market, which is basically like a ginormous cafeteria, for some real breakfast. We made our way to the top deck, heading to the Quiet Cove. It's an area with a hot tub, several small pools, a bar, and lots of lounge chairs, solely for adults (18 years+) guests. We stayed there for a bit, enjoying the view overlooking the beach and gorgeous water. We splurged on some cappucinos, and then retreated to the cabin to change for the beach. We only managed to enjoy the beach time for about 30-45 minutes before the heavens opened up. Ah well, it was nice to feel the warm sand between my toes for a little while.
After going through the on-board customs search (cursory, nothing like flying into an airport from an overseas trip), we went back up to the Quiet Cove and enjoyed the infinity pool for a bit. After that, back to the stateroom, changed, and went out in search of lunch. Back to Marceline's again, and then, feeling totally stuffed and sleepy, back to the stateroom for an hour-long nap while Tim explored the ship. When he returned, he proceeded to take a nap!
The ship departed at 5 pm, bound for Lookout Cay at the southern end of The Bahamas. We went off in search of a snack to tide us over until 8:15. We explored a bit more, and I did a little snooping in one of the gift shops - they honor the Cast Member discount! YAY! We found another quiz game being offered - a brain teaser game. I came in 3rd. Rats!
Dinner was in the Worlds of Marvel restaurant. Food and service were great. The video entertainment, featuring all of the Avengers characters, was totally lost on us. LOL! Oh well. After dinner, we returned to the stateroom, and discovered blanket creature #2 - a crab (we think! It was weird!) and more chocolates!
Castaway Cay, as viewed from our veranda
March 4, 2026
After taking my Rx again, and trying alternative methods for warming my legs, I managed a very good night's sleep. We docked at Lookout Cay around 7 am. We were on the opposite side of the ship, so no view of the beach, only the vast expanse of ocean, but the indescribable colors of the water definitely made up for it. Breakfast at Marcelline's, which had way too many choices! Weather-wise, we were in for a spectacular day. We left for the beach around 11 am - it's a bit of a trek to get there, so we were at least able to walk off breakfast!
We spent a lot of time people watching, which is something we've been doing since our early days at Avis at PHL. All kinds of folks, from veteran cruisers who go about their trip knowing exactly what to do and when, people like us who just wing it, families who look frazzled and kids who are tired of it all, families who ignore their kids' entitled, rude behavior, and families who are just lovely, polite, and very enjoyable. It's a strange mix of humanity, and it's all orchestrated by the amazing crew members who seem to anticipate your every need.
We had a wonderful beach visit. Lookout Cay has something for everyone - including a secluded, adults-only section. Lovely and quiet, for the most part (except for the music, but that was just fine). And, the water.................have I mentioned how gorgeous the variegated colors are? And the pure, white sugar sand.......Wow! It was all so breath-takingly beautiful. The amenities were awesome - more food and beverages, all included in the cruise package.
We retreated back to the ship well before the onslaught of cruisers trying to board before the ship set sail at 5 pm, showered (because a half dozen applications of sunscreen needed to be washed off), and then sat on the veranda, taking in the sights (gentle white caps flowing by), sounds (of the wind and waves - and occasional noisy neighbors rearranging their deck chairs!), and smells (salt air, which has cleared out my sinuses). What a way to spend a few hours!
It was Pirate Night, and I was prepared! I was able to sew a pirate wench costume to wear out of materials I have stashed away, and I bought some pieces of eight at the gift shop at Pirates of the Caribbean in Magic Kingdom. There was a family-friendly show that we went to, and enjoyed a Dark and Stormy while watching. Off to dinner afterward, back at Worlds of Marvel (different video entertainment, which we still didn't understand!) for dinner, and then up to the top deck for Pirate Night party. Not gonna lie, it was loud, the pirate cover band was meh, and the fireworks after were just ho-hum. (Seriously, when you see the fireworks at Magic Kingdom all the time, everything else is a let down.) We left before the fireworks were done to avoid the crush of humanity all waiting for the elevators.
Turndown creature #3 was Captain Barbosa from Pirates of the Caribbean, and the chocolates were gold coins with "Dead Men Tell No Tales" on them! Too cute!
Enjoying the view and fresh air on our veranda On Lookout Cay
Adults-only beach scenes on Lookout Cay
Adults-only beach scenes on Lookout Cay
Adults-only beach scenes on Lookout Cay
Arrrrgh! Pirate-ready for Pirate Night
Family-Friendly Pirate Night Pirate Night Capt. Jack Sparrow, rappelling in from above
March 5, 2026
Quiet start to the day at sea. We decided to have our breakfast at 1923 rather than Marcelline's. It was perfect and no chaos. We ventured up to the Quiet Cove after, and sat in shaded rockers, just overlooking the ocean. A great way to digest a meal.
Today is our last full day, and we're entirely at sea for the duration of the cruise.. No stress, no rushing around. Just relaxing.
Lunch at Marcelline's, and I ate too much. Again. They had the most amazing crab rangoons, and yes, I had to go back and get more! At least I ate some healthy stuff, too. Salmon, a chef's salad, some chicken.........and the crab rangoons. And, oh bread pudding for dessert. With vanilla sauce. YUM! And then back to the room to digest.
Today was Lucy's 11th birthday, so we were able to have a Google Meet video chat with the birthday girl. She's getting so big, and it's hard being away from the kiddos and not seeing them as they grow up. But, technology is a wonderful thing - being able to video chat is such a blessing.
We went back up to the Quiet Cove, which, unfortunately, was less than quiet since all the unaccompanied-by-children adults were there, too. We did get to sit in the small pool, and then in the hot tub. After that, we (ha! me, and I conned Tim!) went on the Aqua Mouse water coaster. It's an enclosed (most of the way) tube that you ride through on a stream of water while in a raft. Oh, and it juts out over the ocean! It wasn't bad, but getting out of it after was a challege!
Dinner was in Arendelle tonight. Floor show with Elsa, Anna, and the Frozen gang. And, once again, we were pretty much clueless. I have watched Frozen with the grandkids, but only the first one. Tim is totally ignorant about it, which is pretty funny if you think about the fact that he works for Disney! As I mentioned before, we rotate through the restaurants with the same servers, but also the same passengers from the first night. They were a multi-generational family, with two little girls (maybe 6 and 3 years old). They were positively adorable, well-behaved, and an absolute joy to watch, especially when Anna, Elsa, and the other characters visited their table.
Quick departure from Arendelle to get back to our stateroom in order to set our luggage outside in the hallway for pickup by 10 pm. It's a very organized process. They have assigned character bag tags - we had Tinkerbell! - the bags are screened by Customs, and then set aside by character tag and numerical room order for retrieval when disembarking.
Oh, and turndown creature #4 was a stingray! With chocolates.
Freeport, Bahamas in the distance
Tim, enjoying his very Entertainment at our Arendelle dinner
first Mead
Entertainment at our Arendelle dinner Character Meet and Greet
Character Meet and Greet with the two precious little girls dining next to us.
March 6, 2026
Early rising to disembark. We had breakfast scheduled at Arendelle again, and had the chance to chat with the family next to us. I said that the girls were such a delight to watch their reactions with the characters, and that we thought they were the sweetest, best behaved kids on board. They were shocked but very appreciative hearing that, because as any parent will tell you, they think their kids are misbehaving when they're just being kids. Also we had a chance to thank our servers before we left for the gangway. All good things must come to an end, and we definitely enjoyed our anniversary getaway. But, it was also very good to get home again, even if it meant a week's worth of laundry to deal with!
Epilogue - March 10, 2026
Our actual anniversary. Quiet morning and early afternoon, and then we left for our dinner date. First stop was Trader Sam's at the Polynesian for drinks and an appetizer to tide us over until dinner. It was nice, until a stupid yellow fly decided it wanted to fly under my shirt and down my pants - damn thing bit me on my butt! Tim checked for a stinger, since initially Ithought it was a bee sting (it was on the gluteus minimus, so I didn't have to drop my drawers!) and I scooped a handful of ice out of my drink to put on it. After that, it was a bit calmer, and we hopped the monorail for the Grand Floridian for dinner at the Grand Floridian Cafe. An excellent meal, with the service a nice, relaxed pace. I asked our server to take our picture, explaining it was our 47th anniversary, and when he came back with our desserts, he also had two little cupcakes, all decorated, and a little chocolate sign that said Happy Anniversary. Gotta love getting pixie dusted!
All things considered, this has been a very enjoyable and memorable anniversary celebration. We're still trying to figure out how the 47 years have flown by so quickly. We spent a lot of time throughout the day reminiscing about everything that had happened through the years. We've certainly accumulated a whole lot of memories. May we be blessed with many more in the years ahead.
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