Hi Everyone,
After 10 long days it's back in the office and back to the daily routine. Here are some thoughts on the trip and some of the things we experienced along the way.
PC 2.0 -
Who could really complain about a
Disney Cruise Line vacation. Having the opportunity to cruise with the Mouse is fascinating. I try to never take anything for granted and having the ability to cruise and get away from my daily routine is something special. For everybody who cruised make sure to reflect on how fortunate you are to be able to do so.
This year's Podcast Cruise theme was "Simply Chilly". So much so that it was difficult to catch other cruisers on deck 9. It seemed like many of the tables and chairs were empty. A stark contrast to PC 1.0 which took place in May of 2009. I saw quite a few cruisers, but mostly in the stateroom hallways, theaters, and dining rooms.
I found the food on the cruise ship to be excellent. The service at our dining room table on the other hand was not so good. Pretty bad to be blunt. It seemed like our server and assistant server were new to waiting on cruise ship dining tables. My hunch was that these servers were brought on board the Wonder to backfill experienced servers who were promoted to the new Disney Dream. Again, a pure hunch on my part.
Probably the best part of the cruise (besides meeting and seeing so many DISers) was the entertainment. Wow! Great shows produced by Disney. The 'Disney Dream' show was excellent. All of them were top notch. The entertainment as part of PC 2.0 was also terrific. The Jodi Benson concert was very well done. Having the opportunity to hear her sing some of the same tunes sung in the Little Mermaid was memorable. Really terrific and something I don't think I'll ever forget. For those who didn't attend PC 2.0 Jodi Benson is a very genuine person.
I wish I could have met other DISers who I know on a first name basis. As you'd expect I missed some of you. But I'm sure there will be a next time and hopefully our paths will cross.
Our Castaway Cay day was very nice. Thank goodness our captain switched our sea day and Castaway Cay day. It was a great decision. It made our Castaway Cay day much more enjoyable even though it still was a bit chilly, but not very bad at all.
The Disney World Segment -
I was able to spend some time at Disney World around PC 2.0. I visited all 4 parks, some of the resorts, and attended a few other activities during the trip. As Kathy Werling mentioned on the podcast Christmas decorations are slowly disappearing. Some are getting replaced, but it's apparent (especially to those who visit year after year) that some decorations are not getting replace, but simply getting removed. Over the past 25 years Disney has become a classic business case of expansion and contraction. They added 2 new theme parks, several new resorts, and created several over the top attractions and experiences. But now it seems like things are being refined Not to the level of removing a resort or theme park, but on a smaller scale. It all seems like part of a grand plan to reduce operational expenses across property. It's a small reminder that Disney is a business, and like any business is trying to balance operations and customer satisfaction. There always looking for that sweetspot.
Other than Test Track breaking down a few times the parks seemed to be in good shape. I still find Disney food prices to be a bit offensive. Paying $36 for an adult character dinner buffet seems over the top. There are still some good food values on property, but they are slowly disappearing. The food quality isn't too bad, but the choices also seem to be disappearing at the buffets, quick service locations, and even at the TS restaurants where you order from a menu.
I was able to attend the annual DVC meeting which didn't reveal much for 2011. Probably the most exciting future tidbits of information was the new online booking engine for DVC members should go live sometime in 2011. Also, DVC is working on a rewards program for members based on the number of points you own. It should be interesting to see how all that works.
Overall the trip was fantastic. I was really glad Kim and Anna were able to come. It really made the trip much more enjoyable for me. Thank goodness Anna has an understanding teacher and her grades could sustain a 4 day absence from school.
Our DATW event on 12/17 was a lot of fun as they usually are. a large group attended. We made our way around World Showcase and somehow I ended my evening at Kimonos over at the Swan resort singing Karaoke...
DATW was a nice opporunity to see other DISers who you missed on the cruise ship. It gave us the opporunity to speak with others for a while instead of rushing through a conversation. I think we accomplished cleaning out the slushie kiosk over in the France pavillion. For many a single Grey Goose or Grand slushie was not enough....They now sell doubles.
This trip was filled with many memories. Mostly great memories.
AFter 10 days of Disney dining it's back to real life and back to the gym. It's easy to eat a lot when you are not the one doing the cooking....Just sayin'.
To all of you who I got to see on this trip thanks for making it memorable. I'm sure our paths will cross again in the future.
Until next time (April 2nd - April 8th 2011) See you real soon.