EBPC Cruise has arrived!

OK I know this is late but I've started just didn't have time to post so here it is - bam! All at once.

Enjoy and let me know if you like!

Sunday, August 17th, 2008

OK so today started with a horrifying bang. It was actually 2:15 am when I realized that I could not find our tickets. So to make a very long and horrifying story shorter since some of you do really read my blog, here I am for the next 2 ½ hours trying to locate out tickets. I finally tell Steve and we methodically go searching – turning out house completely upside down – at least the bottom half even worse that it already is. So finally at 4 am – Steve finds it. Ok, I can rest easy now so I attempt a couple of hours sleep. I last look at the clock at 4:15 am.

Fast forward to 9:30, however, God or some mischievous being decides to wake me up at 9 am. So I shower, decide to check to see if my ipod speakers works with my ipod. Guess what? Not for my generation – it doesn’t sit on the dock well, so Steve volunteers to take me to Besy Buy to exchange. Long story short? We run, we return and I buy. While at the check out – I’m getting ready to whip out my credit card holder and VOILA! No CC holder. That’s right – I paid for April’s books and then attempted to call the credit card companies to notify them of our itinerary. Their systems were down and I was asked to call back after 5:30 am. OK – say I – no problem.

Now, here we fly home as we managed to get our shuttle pick up time from 12:30 to 11:30. We get home its 11:10. So here we go zipping and tearing the bedroom up as that’s the last place I thought I had it. Go figure – Murphy’s law – I’m having trouble and who shows up early? The shuttle service. Steve runs out to tell the we have a problem. He waits 15 minutes. Rings the doorbell and tells us he can wait another 15 minutes and then has to leave – cannot return. I’m nearly in tears by this time and seriously upset. Got our tickets, passports but no drivers license and I’m seriously not wanting to carry my passport every time we get off – not to mention our credit card was in the bundle. At my wits end, I beg, plead and promise my last born – OK – so I didn’t do that last one but only because I hadn’t thought of it yet. I did however, get this idea to pray to St. Anthony. What do I have to lose. I practically beg for his help promising to drop a donation into a cathedral in Mexico – home of the churches on this side of the world – totally forgetting that Father Mike will be saying mass on the ship. So – no sooner did I pray and beg and promise but I look at the bed – which by this time has been searched by all of us – Megan, April, Steve and myself. I look at the footrail and the mattress – jam my hand down between the mattress – on top of the bedspread and voila! I feel the tip of my drivers license. Folks, I have a hot pink picture holder which I keep the cards in as well as the drivers license. In case you haven’t figured it out – I tend to lose things. LOL

So I pull it out – about 2 minutes before I sent the driver away. I shout for joy realizing what I have just promised and fully intending to complete it – when I realize – the bedspread was never on the bed at the time I tried to call. In fact, it wasn’t even on the bed – it was at the bench at the foot of the bed. If I had had it on the bed, it should have fallen UNDERNEATH the bedspread when it was put on the bed. Nope folks, it was the mattress, the bedspread, the wallet and then the footrail. So make what you want out of it – but St. Anthony really works. Cheryl – my tablemate told me later that I should have called up St. Jude as he’s the patron saint of lost causes. ROTFL

So, we get to the Long Beach terminal, check in, get boarding group 25 – they are on 17. Then right at group 24, along comes 5-8 busses of people from Disneyland. They have already checked in at the hotel so they got in before us.

Note – small disaster with dinner when someone else took our table and messed everything up. Cheryl and Arlene managed to nab one person who takes them onboard before anyone else and they get the mess straightened up within 20 minutes.

So we drop our bag off as we finally get through the line at about 2 pm. We hightail it to Parrot Cay where Arlene and Cheryl have saved a table for us. We eat – run to the room for our boat drill then return to unpack as our bags had arrived – you know – last one on – first to arrive. LOL
Then, about 4 pm – we head up to Sailaway party. Managed to run into several DIS people, Cheryl, John, M and family, 4Boons, to many to remember. We stay until about 4:45 and just past the breakwater. We head to the room, unpack and then catch the 6:15 showing of the Welcome Aboard Variety Show. Regular show – Jeremy, family board, then the entertainment – John Charles entertains. More Jeremy show then the other entertainment , the Physical Comedy of Ron Pearson. At one point he asks for volunteers and guess who is picked but our own Julie. And the first and last time I will be left without a camera. Didn’t think I would need it - she got a DVD out of it – he’s funny but with a bit of a small edge. But this was the family who – and I am sure his adult show will be even better.

So we return to the room after hitting the gift shops after realizing I forgot a brush and toothbrush in my haste to locate my credit cards. We go back to the room, unpack and then head out to dinner. Were last ones in the dinner room – we start at Lumiere’s got our table 6 back and meet our tablemates. Cheryl and John (micsmouse2003), Arelene and Richard (Arlenesp) and Terry and Brett (Nutty4Disney). Everyone was soon talking and laughing. Service was a bit slow and it was 9:30 and we still had only our appetizers. I hope service improves as I think it was because of it being first night. We get out about 10:30 from 8 pm seating and head over to Rocking Bar D just in time to hit the Ice Breakers show. Not going into details but Laura, Steve and others were involved in adult activites. ROTFL. You’ll just have to sail with us in the future if you want to know what we did – for as David – the entertainment group said – what happens in Rocking Bar D – stays in Rocking Bar D – unless of course you have a camera with a big old honking flasth like someone has. WHO ME? Never!

They have a new band – The Leonard Brothers who just ended a contract at Pleasure Island in WDW. They snatched them up and they are really, really good. Much better at least for me than Soul Drive. They play a little – ok a lot harder and louder but they are good – not to mention blonde and better yet? I believe the front men are twins – DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE WITH DOUBLEMENT TWINS ……… um …. sorry – meant twins. And the keyboardist and other guitar are not ½ bad either. ROTFLMAO

So at midnight – which is really 1 am – as time went forward one hour, we head back to the room amid ringing ears. Notice the over 450 Pirates and their doors. Closer to 500 is what I am told. I am sitting in the middle of stateroom 2100 at 2 am tired but decidely typing up so I can remember this.

So with this – I will sign off – talk to you later (TTYL)

Laura