Carnival Magic 2011 – Installment #10 November 16th and 17th. Two days in Progreso Part 2

After we rested from our day and took in the sights from our balcony, we went up to the Lido deck to watch for pier runners. We were not disappointed. This is a favorite past time of ours. We have seen people running down the pier with their passed out friend sitting in a wheelchair but we have never seen anyone left at the pier. But, for the first time, we saw the doors on the other ship close then re-open just to let the stumbling down drunk person on the ship. This person and their spouse were very lucky!!!

On day two in Progreso, we went shopping at the pier in search of some clothes for Fernando and Mexican Vanilla. We were able to find what we liked and what we need!!!

We spent the rest of the day eating, relaxing and spending a lot of time at WaterWorks. This is something that Dawson really enjoyed!!! Jim seemed to like is as well!!!

It was finally time for us to leave Progreso. I have a feeling that I will be back to this port again sometime. But hopefully not too soon.

Not long after sail away was the Past Guest party!!! Being VIFP Gold has it’s advantages, at least for now!!! Then it was time for dinner. I enjoy the entertainment the staff provide. And the food is so good!!!

The next installment will be about our time in Cozumel!!!

Carnival Magic 2011 – Installment #9 11/16/2011 Two Days in Progreso Part 1.

We were up early for coffee on the balcony, but that is nothing different from any other morning on a cruise! We watched as we approached Progreso and made sure we took pictures of us arriving. We could see from the distance that there was another Carnival Cruise ship in port. I wonder if who it is. I wonder if they know we are coming.

We spent some time taking in the view we would have for 2 days. Definitely not an exciting view but it is still better than working!!!

We finally drug ourselves from our stateroom and made our way up to the Lido buffet for some food and, as is our normal thing, take more pictures from around the ship.

After we were sufficiently fed and caffeinated, we made our way off the ship. Of course, as we made our way to the buses that take you to town, we took a couple of pictures in front of the ship. We also stopped to look the shops at the pier.

Jim and I had been to Progreso when we were on the Ectasy is 2009 so we knew what to expect of this port. Nothing has changed in the two years since we were there. We were not sure what Dawson would think of it, but we were going to find out. We had decided we would do the Double decker bus tour of the city then walk to the beach to have some lunch and relax. It was a good and cheap way to see what there is in Progreso and it included a stop to get a beverage along the way. The beverage was not included in the price of the ticket, but that was ok!!!

After the tour, we started to walk to the beach and Dawson became rather uncomfortable with the store people trying to get you to come into their stores. We made it to the beach and immediate went back to the ship. When you son does not feel safe and is uncomfortable with his surroundings, you do what is best for him.

We spent the rest of the day on the ship relaxing, eating, and taking in the view.

In the next installment will be part 2 of our 2 days in Progreso and boy was it fun.

Family Life… Mom’s birthday

Today is my mothers 78th birthday, but she didn’t remember how old she was. Our weekly Sunday lunch with mom was at Kimmie’s house. She really enjoyed the lunch we had (roast with potatoes and carrots, salad, and dinner rolls) and she was excited about her birthday cake and ice cream. I just do not understand how she doesn’t like chocolate!!! Happy Birthday, Mom!!! I hope you have enjoyed your day. We cannot wait to go on our 4-generation family cruise. You are going to have a blast!!!! Things have really changed since the last time you cruised over 20 years ago!!!

Carnival Magic 2011 – Installment #8 It’s a Sea Day, Oh What Fun

Good morning from the Carnival Magic. I love having morning coffee on our balcony. Last night, we were informed that our itinerary has been changed due the mechanical problem the ship was experiencing. Our altered itinerary would now be:

Monday 11/14/2011 – Depart Galveston.

Tuesday 11/15/2011 – Fun Day at Sea

Wednesday 11/16/2011 – Arrive in Progreso for overnight stay.

Thursday 11/17/2011 – Progreso (departing in afternoon)

Friday 11/18/2011 – Cozumel

Saturday 11/19/2011 – Fun Day at Sea

Sunday 11/20/2011 – Return to Galveston

This change doesn’t bother me. Two days in Progreso are still better than being at work. But for now, it is time for breakfast. It is imperative that I cam well fed and caffeinated before we start our day of fun! But wait!!! What is this on our door??? Our friends that we have cruised with before made something for us. So very creative!!!!

After breakfast, we wandered around the ship taking more pictures. I am in love with the artwork in the stairwells. And I love how the lights by the glass elevators change colors. I am sure I will spend more time in the Atrium just looking up and watching them change. Yes. I am easily amused.

Now it is time to meet our Facebook group in the Atrium for a Cabin Crawl. I feel so lucky to be able to see so many different types of staterooms. The crawl actually began on Deck 1 in an Oceanview Deluxe and ended on Deck 12 in a Spa Balcony. I have to admit, my favorite stateroom on the cabin crawl was the Aft Balcony Wrap. It has the views and the space. Maybe one day I will be staying in an Aft Balcony Wrap.

After all the walking and climbing stairs, Jim and I were ready for lunch. Nothing at the Lido buffet really appealed to us so we went upstairs to Cucina del Capitano. Our food was good and it is free during lunch hours.

The next thing on the agenda is a Meet & Greet at Red Frog Pub. John Heald and Calvyn made an appearance!!! This was a lot of fun!!!! This has really been a fun cruise!!!!

Since it is the first sea day of the cruise, that means it is also formal night, or cruise elegant night. But that also means Lobster and Prime Rib are served at dinner. And, of course, Warm Chocolate Melting Cake. It also means that we have the opportunity to have a picture made with us all dressed up. Something we rarely, if ever, do at home.

It was a long day and we were worn out. We need to figure out what we want to do in Progreso since we will be there tomorrow!!!

In the next installment… our first day in Progreso.

Carnival Magic 2011 – Installment #7 11/14/2011 Embarkation Day!!!

After a long countdown, the day has finally come for us to board the Carnival Magic. Jim and I must start with coffee. After appropriately caffeinated, we make sure everything is packed up and luggage tags are on everything. I double check to make sure I have our parking confirmation. I also make sure our passports and boarding passes are in the front of my cruise binder.

We arrive to the port and happily hand our luggage over to the porters and gave them their much deserved tip. We then drive across the street to Galveston Park N Cruise to leave our vehicle in their covered parking lot. This was our first time to use them, but it will not be the last.

It’s an easy walk across the street to the port. There were not many people in line at this time. We took this as a good sign! After a short wait for the doors to open, we were able to check in very quickly and were given Zone 1 to board. It wasn’t long before we were taking the obligatory Welcome Aboard photo then crossing the gangway to enter the ship. My first impression of her… WOW!!!

As is customary, the Lido deck was our first stop. Jim and Dawson were hungry and I was in search of our first drink of the day. After those needs were met, we decided to explore the ship and drop off our carry on stuff in our stateroom.

During our time exploring, we were able to watch dolphins playing in the harbor.

Then came the dreaded Muster Drill. This time, our muster station met inside for the safety briefing. It was so nice to be able to sit on a comfy chair inside than being on an open deck, squished together with fellow passengers!!!

Sail Away was delayed due to propulsion issues, but that did not stop the deck party!!!

I was ready for dinner… more specifically, I was craving a Warm Chocolate Melting Cake. So, we went to the my time dining location which was Northern Lights. Dinner was good and the wait staff was attentive, but the dessert was beyond delicious. Yes, I am an admitted WCMC lover.

With all of the fun and anticipation of actually boarding the ship, we found ourselves tired and decided to retire for the night. When we returned to our stateroom, we found our first towel animal of the cruise.

Please come back for Installment 8… Sea Day adventures!!!

Carnival Magic 2011 – Installment #6 11/13/2011 Hello Carnival Magic

We woke up very early and only had one cup of coffee before we left our condo long before the sun came up. We were on a mission to watch the Carnival Magic sail into Galveston. We drove from the condo to Port San Jacinto Historic Point in hopes of seeing her arrive there. But we were too late!!! We quickly turned around and made our way to Pier 21. What a majestic sight she is!!!

We went back to the condo to see if Dawson was awake and to have some breakfast. We also needed to make sure we had everything packed and ready to go for our move to Quality Inn. Since we had several hours between checking out of the condo and checking into our new hotel, we decided to first stop at the beach at the condo. We had some bread left so we decided we could use that to feed the birds!!! Once again, the beach was not crowded at all. The birds were very happy to see us. A sand crab even came out to say hello!

From there, we went back to the pier area so Dawson could get his first look at the ship!!! She is HUGE!!! And so very beautiful.

We spent the rest of the morning eating lunch and doing some laundry before we were able to check in to the Quality Inn. The hotel is clean and conveniently located.

I had won tickets to the Maroon 5 concert, then I won VIP tickets to see the concert from the balcony at Willie G’s. And what a view it was. So much fun. At one point during the concert, you could see dolphins playing in the harbor as Adam Levine was singing!

We didn’t say for the entire concert since Dawson was alone at the hotel. When we got back, we decided we would have dinner at Tortuga’s which is at the front of the hotel. This makes the third Mexican restaurant we tried since we arrived on the 10th!!! We all agreed that it would not hurt our feelings if we did not go back there.

After taking in some sights around the hotel, we decided to call it a night.

In tomorrow’s installment, we finally board the Carnival Magic!!!!

Carnival Magic 2011 – Installment #5 11/12/2011 A fun and busy day!

Another beautiful morning to have coffee on the balcony and enjoy the view. This is definitely the best part of my morning.

After breakfast and more coffee, we decide to go across the street to the resort’s beach area before heading to town. It is such a beautiful day outside and there is absolutely no one at the beach. Peace and quiet except for the waves!!!

But now we are on a mission. We are going in search of a whale tail. And we should have no trouble finding one since there will definitely be a Carnival ship in port today.

After walking around and taking more pictures, we head to The Original Mexican Cafe for the morning/breakfast/brunch meet and greet. This is the first time we have been here and I must say, we will definitely make this a regular stop on all future trips to the island. We had a lot of fun meeting everyone. Even Fernando deFrog Cruz made a new friend, Spotty!!!

Now it is time for us to watch the Carnival Conquest leave Galveston for the last time. She will be headed to her new home port of New Orleans. There were a lot of people at Pier 21 watching her leave. We sailed on her in August 2010 and had a wonderful cruise on her. I’m glad we had the opportunity to sail on her before her relocation.

The evening meet and greet was held at The Spot. There was a large turn out for this gathering of our Facebook group. It was fun to actually meet the people we have been chatting with for months!!!

We made a rather early night of things and returned to the condo. We have a very early wake-up call for the next morning. Something we do not want to miss!!! Find out what that is in the next installment!!!!!

Carnival Magic 2011 – Installment #4 – 11/11/2011, what will we see and do today?

Mornings in Galveston ALWAYS begin with a cup of coffee on the balcony with my hubby. It is the absolute best way for us to start our morning!!!

Today we are going to drive to the pier to see what, if anything, is going on. The drive is relaxing and usually takes about a half hour or so to get there. There is a house that we pass by that is for sale. It is a beautiful on the outside… so grand and majestic. And it is water front. The pictures do not do it justice.

When we finally arrived at Pier 21, there were workers setting up the stage for the Maroon 5 concert. We walked around the pier for a while then left to drive around the island just taking it all in. We went back to the condo to rest and relax with plans to go back to town later.

We decided we wanted to watch the Mariner of the Seas leave this evening. Instead of watching from Pier 21, went to Port San Jacinto Historic Point. It is at the end of Seawall Boulevard on the east side of the island. Very is easy to get to and it was not crowded at all. Mostly people fishing. Watching the ship traffic as the sun set was while listening to the waves crashing was truly amazing. This is now our favorite place to watch the ships.

Afterwards we were hungry and decided we would go to Salsa’s for dinner. Salsa’s is located on Seawall Boulevard and is very easy to get in and out of. We enjoys trying new (to us) Mexican restaurants and this one did not disappoint. The dinner and cocktails were very good.

On our way back to the condo, we stopped at a RedBox to get a couple of movies. Once we were back to the condo, Jim and Dawson watched the movies while I worked on our door decorations for our stateroom on the ship.

Our day was over and we were tired. We are looking forward to the adventures the next day would bring.

Coming up in installment #5… morning coffee with a view, searching for a whale tail, 2 meet and greets in one day and saying good bye to the Carnival Conquest.

Carnival Magic 2011 Installment #3 We’re going to Galveston!!!

In anticipation of the pre-cruise festivities happening in Galveston, we decided to start our vacation a few days early. We made reservations at Silverleaf Seaside Resort for November 10 – 13 and would move to Quality Inn on Seawall Boulevard on the 13th for one night. This meant instead of packing for 7 days/nights, I would need to plan for 10 days/nights!!! Time to start my packing lists.

I have a packing list method that has worked for me for our last cruises and vacations to Cozumel so this method would also be used for this cruise. On a piece of paper, I write the day and date for each day we will be gone including travel days. Next to the date, I make a note of any planned activities for that day. This gives me an idea of what I might want to wear and what I will need to pack. My list for this cruise looked like this:

Thursday 11/10 – Travel day. Comfy clothes.

Friday 11/11 – Being a tourist in Galveston. Jeans/shorts and shirt

Saturday 11/12 – Lots going on today. Morning meet and greet at The Original Mexican Cafe. Conquest leaves Galveston for her new home port of NOLA. Evening meet and greet at The Spot. Jeans/shirt for am. Jeans/nicer shirt for pm.

Sunday 11/13 – Watch Carnival Magic arrive. Move to Quality Inn. Laundry if needed. Maroon 5 concert. Dinner??? Jeans/shirt

Monday 11/14 – Embarkation!!! group t-shirt and jeans

Tuesday 11/15 – Sea Day. Cabin crawl. Meet and greet at Red Frog Pub. Elegant night. Swimsuit, shorts, shirt for daytime. Elegant long dress for dinner. Capri’s or shorts/ shirt after dinner and pictures are taken.

Wednesday 11/16 – Sea Day. Swimsuit, shorts shirt for daytime. Sundress or capris and nice shirt for evening.

Thursday 11/17 – Costa Maya. Swimsuit, shorts, shirt for daytime. Sundress or capris and nice shirt for evening.

Friday 11/18 – Cozumel. Second elegant night. Swimsuit, shorts, and shirt for daytime. Cocktail dress for dinner and pictures. Capris or shorts and shirt for after dinner.

Saturday 11/19 – Sea Day. Swimsuit, shorts, shirt for daytime. Sundress or capris and nice shirt for evening.

Sunday 11/20 – Debarkation. Comfy travel clothes a.k.a. jeans, shirt.

Once my list is compiled, I can easily decide on what I want to wear and start packing. In no time at all, I have my clothes packed and also pack some extra clothes and possibly every pair of dress shoes I own!!! A girl has to have options!!!!

From the day I finish packing until the day we leave, I will constantly check my lists to make sure I have everything we need. Do I have our passports? Do I have reservation confirmations? Since this cruise was booked as an early saver rate, have there been any more price reductions? And even with all this checking and double checking, we usually still have to go to Walmart for something we forgot!!! Do I have the confirmations for our in-room cocktails??? And don’t forget the mani/pedi appointment!!!

November 10, 2011… I must say, I love travel days! But I’m not a fan of traffic… especially Houston traffic. I have fear and anxiety during this part of the trip. But that’s ok. I will get through this with the help of my husband and son and possibly pharmaceuticals.

We arrive at Silverleaf Seaside Resort, get checked in, and haul all of our luggage to our condo. We are staying in a basic 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo. Time to relax and have a quick dinner and do absolutely nothing but enjoy our view. Since we are Silverleaf timeshare owners, we have stayed here before on prior trips and know this place will do nicely for 3 nights.

Sometime prior to leaving for Galveston, there were reports on Facebook and Cruise Critic about there being a problem on the Carnival Magic. I believe it was a propulsion issue and the ship would be making an unscheduled stop in Freeport, Bahamas. There was a possibility that our itinerary could be altered. But we would not know anything for certain until after we board the ship. Doesn’t bother me any. I’m still going to be on a ship and on vacation!

This concludes installment #3. Coming up in installment #4: being a tourist in Galveston.

Carnival Magic November 14-20, 2011 Pre-Cruise Fun at home

Besides meeting people, part of the fun of being in a Facebook cruise group is buying the T-shirt!!! I ordered our on May 24, 2011 and there were received and ready for pictures on May 31, 2011. It feels like things are starting to fall into place!

As time started to fly by, different people were having meet & greets in their area. I thought it would be a good idea to organize something in our area. The date was set for October 15, 2011 and would be at J. Gilligan’s in Arlington. We had a blast. It was great to meet new cruise buddies and catch up with ones we met on the Carnival Conquest. The Irish Nachos were so delicious (as always) and the staff was very attentive to our needs. I definitely took a lot of pictures and it was difficult to select a few for my scrapbook. So, I did what anyone would do and picked my favorites! I will only be sharing a couple of the pages on here as I have not asked for permission to show friend’s and their kids/grandkids on here. FYI… I have no idea who the fairy is, but since we cannot see her face, we can only assume she dressed up to watch the Ranger’s play-off game.

Now the time has come… I must find my perfect travel mascot. I searched on-line specifically for a red frog and I did not find anything I couldn’t live without. I had no choice but to go to Toys R Us and search there. I just knew that they would have the perfect from for me!!! After some searching, I finally found my frog I named Fernando deFrog Cruz! Her is perfect. (So perfect that after the cruise, I went and bought 2 more!) Once I had him at home, he immediately had to start training and earning his keep! I hope I don’t start having second thoughts about him!!!

As our travel dates get closer, it is time for me to put together our travel binder. Our travel binder holds everything we will need for our trip. All pre-cruise confirmations and cruise documents are in sheet protectors and are placed in the binder in the order they will be needed. Passports are in the zippered old school pencil/pen holder. I also include extra sheet protectors to use for the Fun Times and other information we receive along with the dreaded Sail & Sign statement… or as Jim calls it, The Sign & Sink statement!!!

In the next installment, travel dates are planned and confirmed, I double check everything, how I plan our packing lists and packing, driving to Galveston, and a condo tour. At least that is my plan 🙂