Halloween Wonder 2002
 | | Overview of the Halloween Ball |
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Part two of the celebration of my nephew Michael's 35th birthday was his first (and my third this year) cruise on the Disney Wonder. I think we were the first to arrive at Port Canaveral. Not long after we checked in, after he took a look at the model of the ship, he headed to a corner table by the snack bar to plug in his laptop computer and work/play games. I wandered around the terminal a bit. I met the mother of the girl who stars in Disney Dreams. It was her first cruise and she seemed excited to be boarding the Wonder and be able to see her daughter perform.
I only met a couple of DISers in the terminal, and not many more at our 3 p.m. mini-DIS meet where we were to decide a time for our DIS group Halloween picture. With packed and conflicting schedules due to Halloween activities and different dinner seatings, we never managed to get together for the photo. Michael informed me that one DISer tried to talk to me in the crowded atrium while I was engrossed in a conversation with the keyboardist from the Free Reign group, but finally walked away. I am SO sorry. I did not know.
 | | Halloween SailAway Celebration |
On to the cruise: The SailAway deck party was great, as usual. Minnie was in 50's garb, Chip & Dale were Chinese, Goofy was a cowboy, etc. I just LOVE the characters, especially watching them dance. It must be hard enough walking around in those costumes, but their antics on stage are unbelievable. While aboard and on Castaway Cay, I come to believe the characters are real and not just human Cast Members playing their parts. If they were the only entertainment to be found, I would still cruise DCL for that experience. I wish they allowed gratuities for the characters!
 | | Nephew Michael |
Not having kids, I did not participate in the Trick-Or-Treat onboard activity. We attended the Halloween Ball in the atrium (see pic at top of page), which was a gathering of wall-to-wall guests in costume amid strange lighting and "fog." I had hoped my nephew would want to enter the costume contest, but he declined and chose to watch the proceedings quietly from the sidelines. I thought his outfit and demeanor were quite impressive. A humorous moment occurred when Michael, a devoted beer drinker, realized that the beer in his hand detracted from his character. He promptly headed for the bar and reappeared with a glass of wine.
 | | No Secrets |
The Tropical Deck Party on Nassau night was almost the same (and just as magical) as on previous Wonder cruises, so I won't go into detail on that.The only notable difference was that the hot teen girl group "No Secrets" (pictured at right) boarded in Nassau and gave an energetic performance. I have posted the one photo where it did not appear that their low-riding tight jeans were about to part from them. In my other pics, both front and rear views were very non-Disney! Recalling the slimmer days of my teens when I wore tight hip-huggers, I am now very glad that I always had a tucked-in top. No butt-crack views for me!
Castaway Cay day began with high winds and some rain. They were issuing Mickey ponchos at debarkation. Michael and I accepted the ponchos, walked off the ship, then turned right around and followed the guests in front of us back on to the ship until the weather improved, which it soon did. We chose not to spend much time on the island this time though.
Early evening was the Castaway Club returning cruisers reception, which was held at Wavebands and was extremely crowded. I think it had to do with the many "$99 special" returning guests. In addition to the usual "cruise casual" to "semi-formal" attire, there were an unusual number of guests showing up in shorts, un-fresh t-shirts, flip-flops and baseball caps. It seemed like a slap in the face to the crisply attired DCL crew and staff, but that's just my opinion. To each his own!
 | | Magnificent Marijo |
I must say a few words about dear, sweet Marijo (pronounced Mario), our server from Croatia. He was the most attentive, entertaining, incredible server one could imagine. He quickly learned our likes and dislikes, went out of his way to please us without being asked (like surprising us with our favorite chocolate mousse cake from Triton's when we were in Parrot Cay), and was prompt, efficient and totally accurate with orders. In a word: WOW! It was tough saying goodbye. He said I should request him for my cruise the following week. I did, but was unable to get him. Needless to say, he proved to be an impossible act to follow. More on that in the next "segment."
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