Travel & Vacation: Riding Around Disney on Buses, Monorails, and Boats (Orlando, FL)
Relaxing on the monorail
While at Disney we spent time riding around on the various transportation systems. The girls had fun going on the boats, monorails, and buses throughout the week. At each location the girls had fun collecting the various transportation cards. All you have to do is ask the driver or one of the workers for them. Many times the driver would give them several trading cards at one time. The only place they didn’t always have the cards was on the buses. They did get some neat ones and have fun collecting them. I am not sure how many they collected throughout the week, however, they had quite a stack.
When we arrived at the hotel we parked the van in the parking lot and never went in it again until it was time to come home so we spent the entire week getting from place to place on the Disney transportation vehicles. It was a neat experience for the girls and we met a lot of great people throughout our trips to and fro. It was nice to not have to drive everywhere plus we saved on parking and gas.
Loved riding the monorail!
Relaxing and enjoying a quiet bus ride! Brina is awake now, but she figured out quickly that a power nap on the bus ride really helped re-energize her!
Having fun riding the boat over to Epcot
Sometimes there were lots of seats and other times you had to squeeze into a seat!
Brina found a seat on the life vests
Our last relaxing moment before hitting the park!
Waiting patiently for the monorail
Staying entertained while waiting for the monorail
Travel & Vacation: It’s a Small World, Pirates of the Caribbean, Jungle Cruise at Disney’s Magic Kingdom (Orlando, FL)
Brina and Jake riding on the boat through It’s a Small World
The lines weren’t too long so we were able to get onto several rides, however, we had a couple hiccups with some as well. The kids liked It’s a Small World so much that we did it 2 times. The Pirates of the Caribbean was a little bit of a disappointment because we stood in line for an hour and were 10 people from the front of the line when it broke down so we didn’t get to go on it. It took us another 30 minutes to get back out because we had to wait for all the people behind us leave. The girls did well and had a great attitude despite the long wait time. The Jungle Cruise was a fun boat ride with lots of neat sights along the way. The kids really enjoyed it.
Smiling and soaking in all the sights at It’s a Small World
It’s a Small World banner as you go in
Fascinating!
Always something to look at on the boat ride
Still smiling while waiting in the long line for the Pirates of the Caribbean
Catching up and chatting while in line
Yay, found a place to sit while waiting
Going on the Jungle Cruise
All smiles on the Jungle Cruise
Beautiful waterfall
They loved looking at all the animals and sights on the Jungle Cruise
So much fun!
Travel & Vacation: Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas
Our ship was the biggest one that stopped at Grand Cayman today
We have been on three Royal Caribbean ships in the past few years. The Independence of the Seas is the biggest one that we have been on. I didn’t realize how big it was until we stopped at Grand Cayman next to several other boats and ours was the biggest one. The girls enjoyed looking at the other boats too, they spotted a Disney one as well as one that had a face. Since we couldn’t dock directly at the Grand Cayman Island we took a ferry over which gave us a chance to look at all the other neat boats that day.
Look Mickey Mouse is in the Grand Cayman Islands! The Disney ship was right next to us when we stopped for the day. It was smaller than our boat, but they did have a pretty neat horn (instead of a horn it played Disney music).
That circular piece in the top left of the picture is actually a hot tub hanging out over the ocean. Yes, when we were in it I was thinking about how far it would be if we dropped!
We were in a water taxi looking up at the boat. You can see how little the people look on the balconies. The yellow items are the life boats. Thankfully we never had to use one!
Our big boat – Independence of the Seas
A view as we are leaving the boat and heading to Grand Cayman. The little ferry boat beside ours holds 200 people and it looks so tiny.
Passing in front of the boat, I wouldn’t want to get in its way if it was moving!
The girls thought this boat was pretty funny next to us at port because it has a face. The eyes and lips are awesome!
A view of our boat next to the Disney one from Grand Cayman’s shoreline.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: At Jamaica’s Doorsteps
The older four cousins hanging out together. Welcome to Jamaica!
Well we made it to Falmouth, Jamaica! I guess that should count for something, right!? There are not as many pictures of Jamaica because our plans….well…just didn’t go as planned. Despite some of the hiccups and our change in plans we still managed to have fun that day.
Once on the island of Jamaica this was the first sight that greeted us!
Where should we go first?
It was a beautiful day in Jamaica
The kids sitting while we wait for our tour to start….little did we know….
Buses and taxi’s were coming and going….but “Where, Oh Where” is our bus? Hmmm….
Our Karlie Kool Kat
Our little Brina Bee
What should we do while we wait? Looks like Josh is still smiling, Brina is entertaining herself by cleaning her shoes or checking on her toenail polish…is Grandpa napping? The after waiting for over an hour we were informed that our tour was canceled. The bus that was suppose to take us on the tour broke down and there were no replacements. Guess we were not meant to see Jamaica’s pineapple fields, papaya orchards, historic Jamaica, or a visit with local kids in a rural school. We didn’t have enough time to do another tour because the ship was leaving in a couple of hours so some people decided to walk around the market area for awhile then we headed back to the ship to take the kids swimming. The kids still had a blast and loved the extra time to play.
Karlie and Brina were amazed by these guys…so tall…and thrilled to get a puppy balloon from them
View of Jamaica from our boat.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Vacation: “Cruise Adventure” on Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas (Part 2, Pictures)
We talked a little earlier this week about our cruise vacation on Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas!
Now we would like to share a few pictures of our adventures on board the ship that week!
Our Stateroom on the cruise! Our stateroom was great! They had plenty of shelves and spots to put items away. It had the most comfortable bed I have slept on in long time. Jake and I are still trying to figure out how we can get that bed with the rocking motion of the ship so we can sleep soundly again!
Sitting on the window sill in our stateroom! This picture was requested by our girls. I did one last time and they wanted another window seat picture. The beautiful scenery behind me is Puerto Rico.
Playing Put-Put in the dark on the top of the ship. Go Amber! We played Put-Put or Miniature Golf in the dark and wind. They had plenty of lights and music going. Thankfully no one lost their ball but we had a few close calls!
Glass Coffee Table looking down the centrium of the ship (13 floors) It was pretty amazing looking down through the coffee table to the centrium. A couple brave people laid across the table but their pictures were too dark with all the lighting beneath them. It wasn’t an ideal place to linger if you don’t like heights.
Race cars on the wall by the "Pit Stop"! Karlie loves Matchbox cars so she liked this picture! Karlie LOVES Match box cars so we took this picture for her!
Jake checking out the night sights with the binoculars! Jake checking out the sights with his binoculars. It came in handy several times during the trip. The walkie talkies were another great investment especially since we were traveling with a group.
Formal Night with my "sparkly" dress B & K helped me pick out! Our first formal night on the cruise. It was fun to dress up, go to dinner and a show with my man!
Every night after dinner our room would be cleaned, bed turned down, and we had a towel friend to welcome us back (tonight was a Swan) The towel animals were a special treat in our room every night. Sometimes they were on the bed and other times they were hanging up in the room. Little gifts from our stateroom attendant!
Indoor Pool in the Solarium with Jake on the bridge over it. The indoor pool and Solarium was really neat. Full of plants, a pool, cafe and more. The pool was really neat especially at night when the ship was moving because you could see the waves rolling back and forth in the pool as the ship rocked.
Outdoor Pool deck at night! The outdoor pool was always surrounded by numerous people laying out to work on their tans.
Dad, Josh, and Jeremy playing pool on the Self Leveling Pool Tables in the Safari Club, pretty neat! The self leveling pool tables were pretty cool. It was a hit with our group after dinner. I even played a couple rounds!
Amazing food - Ice Sculpture & Fruit. Love the fruit monkey climbing the palm tree. The food was simply delicious! The best part is I didn’t have to cook or clean all week. Love the fruit monkey in the tree.
Dolphin carved on a Watermelon Talented watermelon carvers on board. These looked awesome and they were the displays!
Swan carved into a watermelon The swan was beautiful. The detailed carving on these and other watermelons was really neat!
A rooster made out of veggies! The rooster made me laugh. I have never seen someone turn vegetables into a rooster before, very creative!
Our awesome waiter Noel balancing a glass of water on his head while dancing. Noel was an awesome waiter. He was positive, pleasant and entertaining. Also, he offered a lot of great recommendations on what to do during our days on the islands, several times that proved very valuable!
Elephant towel by our pillow that night. The elephant was so cute standing next to Jake’s pillows. Our stateroom attendant did a great job keeping the room clean and was always helpful with any questions we had. We only watched the ship and activity information channel on TV but since ours wasn’t working we ended up getting a Flat Panel TV in our room by the second day. The maintenance guy said you would be amazed how many people actually spend the entire cruise in their rooms watching TV. So thankful Jake isn’t that way because we had a blast exploring islands, learning, on adventures and meeting new people.
Plant full of lobster tails for our table! Delicious! Noel brought our table plates of lobster tails since everyone ordered lobster one night. It was wonderful. The girls were ready to go with us just for the lobster and seafood we ate during our cruise!
Jake and I after dinner and the show! Our second “formal” dinner night. Jake and I had wonderful time having fun and relaxing together. It was great traveling with family yet having some time alone as well. Lots of fun memories!
Beautiful fresh flowers!Two things I love about this picture - their window sill seats all over the boat and Amber's pirate shirt! Fresh flowers were distributed throughout the ship. The islands had the most beautiful plants. Loved it!
Pool Volleyball - Crew versus Guests Outdoor pool in the daytime. They are having a Pool Volleyball competition between the Crew and Guests. Not sure who won the competition but we watched a couple rounds.
Going down the ship's water slide! They had a water slide on the ship. Yes, I had to go down it! Actually I think we went down it 3 or 4 times. If you look behind the people standing at the railing you will see the ocean in the background.
Jake and I with our server for the week, Noel! Awesome! Noel was an excellent waiter. He even came by our breakfast table the morning we were leaving to say goodbye to our group. If you go on Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas request Noel as your waiter, you won’t be disappointed!
Long hallway of staterooms! This picture makes me laugh because it really is a long hallway with rooms on both sides. With that being said we never seen or heard anyone in the rooms next to us (well except for Jeremy and Amber, but that was because they were part of our party).
"3526" our Stateroom! It was a wonderful week packed full of fun activities and great memories. Jake and I had a blast and look forward to our next vacation traveling. Next week I will share with you a little about our adventures in Puerto Rico!
A Vacation To Remember series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Vacation: “Cruise Adventure” on Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas
Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas Cruise Ship (the back of the boat) As I reflect back over the cruise vacation we took on Royal Caribbean, Serenade of the Seas, I am thankful for the opportunity to experience a fun and relaxing trip full of new memories. Over the last several weeks I have been sharing tidbits about our time exploring the various Caribbean Islands, however, today I want to focus a little more about the actual ship we spent our evenings on together. We gave some facts regarding the ship in an earlier post but I want to share a little more about what we did on the cruise in this post.
The seventh day of our cruise was the only full day we were at sea. Every other day of the trip we were visiting an island in the Caribbean. Ever day was packed full of a variety of activities. There were a lot of fun things to do on the ship, here are just a few:
- Breakfast – you could chose to have it delivered to your room, eat at the Windjammer (buffet) or eat a sit down meal at Reflections. We did a mix of the Windjammer and Reflections throughout the week depending on the activities for the day.
- Every day evening after dinner we would have a new schedule of the next day’s events, information and activities so we could plan out our day on the boat or if we were going onto an island.
- Morning Activities where available throughout the morning and at various locations on the ship (here is a sample of some activities)
- Brain Teasers & Trivia
- Sabbath Service
- Early Morning Stretch
- Abdominal Conditioning
- Indoor Cycling
- Adult Mini Golf Tournament
- Yoga
- Walk for Wishes
- Napkin Folding
- Movie in the Cinema
- Acupuncture Seminar
- View from the Top
- Royal Bingo
- 3 Minute Makeup Seminar
- Secrets to a Flatter Stomach Seminar
- Cake Decorating
- Interview with Olympic Gymnast Lance Ringland
- Swimming
- Rock Climbing Wall
- Shopping
- And More….
- Afternoon Activities (here is a sampling)
- Music (Hot Spice – Calypso Sounds)
- Backstage Tour of the Theater
- Towel Folding Demonstration
- Ice Carving
- Movie in the Cinema
- Slot Tournament
- Men’s Belly Flop Contest
- Informal Bridge
- Learn to Swing
- 3-on-3 Basketball
- Name that Movie Tune
- Blackjack Tournament
- Scrapbooking Workshop
- Detox for Health & Weight Loss Seminar
- Pool Volleyball Crew vs Guests
- Belly Dance Class
- Gotta Dance Class
- Royal Poker Tournament
- Wine Tasting
- Adult Volleyball Tournament
- Core Conditioning Pilates
- Learn to Salsa
- Royal Bingo
- Adult Speed Climbing Competition
- And More…
- They had a variety of Evening Activities to keep everyone entertained as well
- Farewell Movie Night
- Showtime
- Star Bridge Dance
- Mambo Caliente
- Royal Poker Tournament
- Jazz Cabaret
- Paradise Lotto Draw
- Adult Karaoke
- On Board Shopping Deals
- And Much MORE
Our days were busy both on and off the ship. There was always something to do. We had fun, met a lot of wonderful people and created new memories. We look forward to having the opportunity to cruise again in the future. It was great not having to cook or clean the whole week! On a side note, they had food available when you wanted it pretty much 24 hours a day! It was nice because you could eat when it fit into your schedule!
Here is a quick introduction of a few key crew members aboard the ship. The Captain of our cruise ship was Captain Michel Claveau who started his career as a diver. Marc Walker was our Cruise Director from Weymouth, England started out in the entertainment industry as a DJ (22 years ago) then went on to juggle, unicyclist, then onto TV and Radio. Marc has been with the Royal Caribbean family since the late 1990’s and has served on 20 of Royal Caribbean’s 22 ships. Sanjay Dumar was our Hotel Director from Mumbai, India. Marco Marzocchi was our Chief Engineer from Genova, Italy. Cristiana Maruntelu was our Loyalty & Cruise Sales Manager from Romania. Alistair Burnett was our Food & Beverage Manager from the United Kingdom. Noel was our waiter and Janet our head waitress. They did a fabulous job serving, singing, and creating a pleasant atmosphere during dinner every night we were on the ship. I will add that the meals were amazing! We met a lot of other wonderful people aboard the ship. The staff was from all over the world and we enjoyed getting to know several of them during our stay on the ship.
We spent some time in the late afternoon on the last day packing. We were sad to pack but excited to continue our trip home and see the girls. Jake and I walked around the ship on the last night snapping a few more pictures and video clips to show the girls. They always have a lot of questions about the BIG boat! If we could Jake and I would have just keep on cruising! It was a wonderful experience again traveling with Royal Caribbean. We will be sharing a few pictures on board the ship in a post later this week!
A Vacation To Remember series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Vacation: “Catamaran Adventure” on Philipsburg, St. Maarten (Part 2 – Pictures)
We enjoyed visiting the beautiful island of St. Maarten!
Here are some pictures we took during our excursions that day!
A map of St Maarten in the port! When we got out at each port there were maps of the location and usually a lot of people offering to “help” us see the island. We had our excursions planned the day before so it allowed us the freedom to say “No Thank You” to all the offers. Plus one of the many benefits to going on an excursion that was through the cruise line was that they guaranteed that you would arrive back on the ship in time or they would hold the boat for you. When you go on an independent excursion if you don’t make it back to the port on time they just leave you!
Mom and Dad in St Maarten! Mom, Dad, Jake, and I walked through the town. It was neat seeing all the different shops and talking with the people that lived on the islands.
Spending time together in St. Maarten! (Jake & Bridgette) It was difficult getting a picture near signs without having other tourists in the middle of the shot. This sign was further on away from the port so we were able to get pictures without a group of random people being in it. This picture was taken on the edge of a little park in Philipsburg.
Huge private boat docked at the same port! We were told that it was Steven Spielberg's boat! This boat was huge and docked near our ship, it was Steven Spielberg’s boat (or so we were told)! You know a private boat is big when they have garages on their boat for smaller boats!
Snorkeling near St Maarten, somehow I was one of the first people in the beautiful water! Snorkeling was a fun adventure! It always takes some time getting use to the gear but everyone had fun swimming around!
We saw some schools of Black & Yellow striped fish and pieces of metal during our snorkeling adventure! Our camera is waterproof so Jake was able to bring it into the water and take some pictures of the fish. They were a little harder to see with all the sand in the water but we still found a few.
We saw several beautiful and huge boats on our excursion! We saw some amazing ships while on the catamaran. I had no idea that there were so many private boats. It was a beautiful place to visit.
The airport was so close to the beach it literally looked like the airplanes were landing on the beach with all the people! It was really neat watching an airplane land in St Maarten. The plane really looked like it was going to land on the beach with all the people.
Helicopter that had crashed on the port....now retired! We saw this helicopter on the port on our way back on the catamaran. It had a rough life that ended in a crash and was being stored on the pier. We knew our little one who enjoys cars, trucks and planes would get a kick out of seeing this one.
One of the Beach Taxi Boats going back and forth all day! If you are planning on going to the beach these Beach Taxi Boats were a great choice. You could ride them as much as you like all day for $6. They went back and forth every few minutes. You could spend the morning at the beach go to the boat for lunch then come back to the beach and hang out for the rest of the afternoon.
A Vacation To Remember series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Cruising on “Serenade of the Seas”
We had the privilege of cruising on Royal Caribbean’s “Serenade of the Seas” ship on our last vacation. The first evening we were aboard the boat was full of exploring the ship, our cabin, the schedules, activities and the amazing services they had to offer. It was our second cruise and the “Serenade of the Seas” was a bigger ship as well as a longer trip. We were excited to have the opportunity to explore more islands during our trip. Both of us slept very well aboard our time on the ship as they cruised from island to island during the night. We met a lot of really neat people and was able to spend some quality time with our family. “Serenade of the Seas” is one of Royal Caribbean’s newer ships. Here is some information about “Serenade of the Seas”:Ship Facts
* Maiden Voyage: August 1, 2003
* Passenger Capacity: 2,114 double occupancy; 2,502 maximum
* Godmother: Whoopi Goldberg
* Gross Tonnage: 90,090
* Length: 962′
* Beam: 105.6′
* Draft: 27.9′
* Cruising Speed: 22 knotsShip Highlights
* Rock-climbing wall
* Portofino Italian Restaurant
* Chops Grille
* Latté-tudes,SM a specialty coffee house featuring Seattle’s Best Coffee®
* Seaview Café
* Themed bars and lounges
* Casino RoyaleSM
* The Colony Club, a unique British colonial-style lounge with self-leveling pool tables;
* Beautiful indoor Solarium
* Indoor/outdoor country club with golf simulator
* Adventure Ocean® youth facilities
* Day Spa and Fitness Center
* Sports court with basketball/volleyball courtThese were just a few of the details of “Serenade of the Seas”. We enjoyed amazing food, great entertainment and a fun times. We would go again if we had the opportunity. If you have never cruised before it is an experience worth trying at least once. None of our party got sea sick. The trip was pretty smooth and the service wonderful. Check it out if you are thinking about taking a cruise. Who knows who you’ll meet along the way!
A Vacation To Remember series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
