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WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

KeithS
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:42 pm

Okay - my last journal was for the 1st April, so here are a few more from the 2nd onwards.

2 April 2013 – Port Orleans Riverside – Flight - Anaheim
We woke up early today to ensure plenty of time and no stress for the final pack. We breakfasted first then headed back to the room to squeeze all our stuff into suitcases. We are fine with weight, but volume is an issue with fluffies filling our suitcases (but that’s not unusual and at least they are very squishy so I can force them in – just don’t tell Della!)

Pretty soon, everything was packed and in order, so I rang the bell services for a luggage pick up and they took us down to the airline check in. They looked after us really well and soon enough we had our boarding passes and said goodbye to our bags (hopefully we’ll see them again in LAX!)

With a couple of hours to kill but still with our carry-on bags, we found a spot in the lounge within Riverside while we waited for our Magical Express bus. We grabbed a quick lunch in the food court as well and then jumped on the bus to the airport at the exact time that it was scheduled. The ride to the airport is never fun, but soon enough we were there and we headed upstairs to the departure level. Before heading through security, we went to the Disney Store, followed by the Build-a-Bear shop where Della bought a couple of Florida shirts for Duffy and Shellie May.

We got through screening quickly and went straight to the gate. My boarding pass had priority boarding stamped on it, so we were able to board first, which meant that we got to put all our carry-on luggage in the overhead bins above us, instead of other people who had theirs scattered all around the plane. The flight was pretty uneventful and passed quickly for a five and a half hour journey. We got off the plane and headed to the baggage carousel and waited for our bags. We assumed they’d be last off given we sent them to Orlando airport hours ago, but they were almost first off (a first for me and Della!) I grabbed them and a trolley and we headed out to the curb side to await the Disneyland Express bus.

About half an hour passed before it arrived and we flagged it down and the drive was a Mexican guy we had twice before encountered! We hit the road and traffic was light as it was about 8:30pm in LA. After getting dropped off on Harbor Blvd, I grabbed a luggage trolley from the Carousel and took all our bags to the hotel – dodging the thousands of people coming out of the parks after the fireworks!

We checked into room 243 and went to bed after sorting out our bags. Tomorrow, we intend to do Disney California Adventure.
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:47 pm

3 April 2013 – Disney California Adventure/Disneyland
Our intention today was to spend the entire time in DCA. We got up early and had breakfast and headed straight to the parks. Our first indication that something was different about this week was when we got to security and all three screening areas were working and there was a massive queue for each of them – it was definitely going to be a busy day. We eventually got through okay and then headed to Guest Relations to make sure our annual passes were okay after they were reissued in WDW. We were assured they were working okay so we then headed to our brick for our traditional photo.

Next, we got in line at DCA to enter the park and then found that both our passes failed to work! We had a separate person come over from Guest Relations and they gave us a one day park hopper while they tried to fix things with our passes – they thought it should be working fine tomorrow.

We got into DCA and strolled down Buena Vista Street to the Carthay Circle and watched the Newsboys show. We then wandered down to the Radiator Springs Racers fastpass distribution and found they were already gone – and it was just 10am. We headed into the Hollywood backlot and listened to a school orchestra playing Disney music (they were great!), and then went to Tower of Terror to get a fast pass for 4:15pm. The Tower currently had a 70 minute wait!

We went into Cars Land via Bugs Land and saw Red at his meet and greet. We noted that Radiator Springs Racers had a 170 minute queue, Luigi’s Flying Tyres 60 minutes, and Mater 50 minutes, so we went to the Cozy Cone Hotel, we bought some churro dips with the chocolate sauce before exploring all the shops. We were impressed with the range of unique merchandise in each shop – Radiator Springs is really setting the standard for merchandise at the US parks.

As it was now nearly 12, we went into Pacific Wharf for a Ghirardelli Nob Hill Chill which has become our junk food of choice on this trip. We then continued our long walk around the park, visiting the Paradise Pier boardwalk games to see what prizes were being offered now, as well as checking out the long queues for Screamin’ and Toy Story Midway Mania. Even the Little Mermaid had a long wait. We went up to Condor Flats and watched the Minnie’s Fly Girls show which was a lot of fun (Soarin’ fast passes were gone) and then we sat in the Animation hall to watch the full cycle of movies there. Next, we went into Off the Page to take a look at the art merchandise before doing all the shops in Buena Vista Street. We also took a look into the Carthay Circle Theatre.

Finally, it was time for us to cross the esplanade and enter Disneyland for the afternoon, and the crowds were no different here! It was difficult to get down Main Street and through Tomorrowland because of the people and the extended queues. We took a walk over to the new Princess Fantasy Faire and was surprised with what a nice job they had done on the area – it really has improved what was once a bit of a dead area. Della was impressed by a cast member who gave her a Disneyland Honorary Citizen button as that made her day (I missed out as I was stalking a Princess - when I caught up with Della she was all nah nah na na nah!).

We had an early dinner in the Tomorrowland Terrace of burgers etc and watched the final Jedi Academy of the day. We also did a full run of both sides of Main Street shops. When the sun started to drop and the air cooled, we headed back to the hotel to change for the evening. Then we went back to DCA and the Mad T Party which was just as much fun as it was last year! After staying there an hour, we went to the Starbucks for hot chocolates and a big choc chip cookie, before lining up for the 10:15 showing of World of Color which never fails to impress me.

After WOC, the park closed for the night, so we headed back to the hotel. Tomorrow, we spend the entire day in Disneyland.
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:49 pm

4 April 2013 – Disneyland
We woke up early this morning as our neighbours were making a lot of noise as they prepared for their day in the park. We got up and had breakfast then headed across the road to Disneyland (once again, our passes weren't working so we got one day complimentary tickets again). We photopassed in front of the Mickey flowers before heading into Town Square and noticing that the Main Street vehicles were out. We took the horse drawn tram down to Sleeping Beauty Castle and entered Adventureland to get a Indy fast pass.

Next up, we headed to the new Princess Fantasy Faire to visit The Royal Theatre show featuring Tangled which was hilarious. It was done like the old Aladdin show they used to hold in the Oasis and it had everyone laughing – it is well worth seeing, even if you don’t like princesses.

After the show, we wandered up to Toon Town and did some shopping there. Wait times for attractions were huge again so it was good that we did so many rides in Orlando. We then headed into Tomorrowland and picked up an Autopia fastpass before getting lunch at the Jolly Holiday Bakery in the hub.

Immediately after lunch, we headed to Autopia for our ride, and then straight away we headed to Indy for our ride on that too. Indy had recently been refurbished and it looked great again. Even with the fast pass, the queue probably took 25-30 minutes. After Indy, we headed down Main Street to look for a spot for the parade and found a great place in Town Square, so we grabbed the gutter and waited an hour. We’ve seen Soundsational quite a few times now but it is pretty good and the viewing spot was great.

After the parade, we stayed in Town Square as they did the Flag Retreat Ceremony as we wanted to be first in line for when Mickey came out afterwards. As soon as the ceremony was over, Mickey did come out and we got a photo with him.

We then headed to the other end of Main Street to grab dinner at the Plaza Inn. It was then time to get changed into warmer clothes, so we headed back to the hotel for thicker pants and jackets. We then went back into Disneyland and grabbed a hot chocolate at the Jolly Holiday before finding a great spot in the hub for the fireworks – we even had a good crowd around us and everyone had a great time. After the fireworks, we watched the fairy garden show in the pond before finally making our way down Main Street and exiting the park. Tomorrow, we are going to Downtown Disney in the morning, followed by Disneyland and DCA!
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:54 pm

5 April 2013 – Downtown Disney, Disneyland and DCA
Got up early again this morning as we had a big day ahead. First up after breakfast, we headed across the esplanade to Downtown Disney. The World of Disney store was our first destination and we picked up a few small items. Then we walked down the shopping area, stopping at Vault 28, D-Street, Wonderland Art Gallery, Apricot Lane, and Build-a-Bear.

We took our purchases back to the hotel and then headed over to Disneyland where once again, our park tickets weren’t working properly, but now we have a three day park hopper to see us through our stay.

Once in the park, we walked down Main Street and stopped at the Fortuosity store so Della could look at a watch, before we headed on down to New Orleans Square to browse more shops and grab a bite to eat.

After lunch, we walked out into New Orleans Square and a kid ran into Della with an ice cream but we managed to clean it off. Seeing how busy it was we headed through Frontierland and watched the baby ducks in the pond before walking down Main Street to the railway station. We took the train for a full circle route which was fun as we got to wave to the parade floats up near Small World. When we got off the train in Main Street, the parade had just reached there, so we watched the whole thing again from the railway station.

Immediately after the parade, we headed across the esplanade to DCA and went and got a fast pass for tonight’s World of Color. We then went into Cars Land for more merchandise buying and then to Off the Page for a few more items. After that, it was back to the hotel to get changed into warmer clothes for World of Color at 10:15pm. Before heading back to the park, we downloaded our photos onto the netbook as a safety backup.

Back at DCA, we headed straight to Starbucks and grabbed some hot chocolates and a choc-chip cookie which we ate in the store. Then we headed to the World of Color queuing area for the late show. We have found the late show is much better than the first showing as there is less people and less wait time. We were in line just 10 minutes or so before we were moved into the viewing area and then only 15 minutes for the show start. We had a great spot this time, having learnt a bit more about the blue area after the show two nights ago. We could see the whole display and we also had a good crowd around us, it was great (Della cried).

Tomorrow, we are park hopping.
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Thu Apr 11, 2013 1:59 pm

6 April 2013 – DCA and Disneyland
Today was going to be all about DCA with dinner in the evening in Disneyland. We started a little slowly as immediately after breakfast, we had to prepare to pack – making sure we can get everything into the suitcases to come home tomorrow. I think we are okay, but will only know when everything is finally put in its place.

We headed to DCA around 10:30am and saw Mickey in the Red Car Trolley heading down Buena Vista Street. A quick check of the time board showed that the Radiator Springs Racers fast passes had already ended, so we headed to Soarin’ and picked up one from there.

We then headed down to Paradise Pier and Screamin’ was pretty much a walk on so we did that right away. It was much quieter in the parks today as Spring Break is finally over this weekend, so people were heading home. After Screamin’ we walked past Toy Story Midway Mania but it had a long queue but Silly Symphony Swings was quiet and we walked straight on.

Next, we headed on over to the Tower of Terror and picked up a fast pass for that before returning to Soarin’ for our ride. We then headed to Cars Land and went for a ride on Mater’s Jamboree before grabbing a snack at the Cozy Cone Hotel before heading over to Pacific Wharf again for a Ghirardelli Nob Hill Chill. We took these to Paradise Bay and watched Goofy’s Instant Concert which was a lot of fun.

Next up, we headed back to the Tower of Terror and had a fun ride on that with a whole bunch of first timers – it was really funny. Next up was The Little Mermaid attraction which was a walk on today. We then headed on down to Mickey’s Fun Wheel for a ride around that (it is amazing how much more you can do with a smaller crowd!)

As we were down in that part of the park, we hopped on King Triton’s Carousel before watching another Goofy Concert on Paradise Bay. We then ventured back into Cars Land for another trip on Mater. Radiator Springs Racers was down to 90 minutes which is the shortest we had seen this trip but still too long for us.

We walked up to Monsters Inc ride next and had a fun trip around that. We wanted to ride the Red Car Trolley back to the front of the park, but when we got down there, there was only one more seat in the trolley, so we missed out. We headed over to Grizzly River Run as Della was willing to do it as the last ride of the day, but the queue was long so we called it a day and left the park to get changed for a cooler night and dinner in Disneyland.

After changing, we headed back over to Disneyland for dinner. As we entered the park however, we got caught up in the parade and had difficulty making our way down Main Street. Eventually, after crossing the parade route twice, we got deeper into the park. The crowds were already building for Fantasmic, so after eating, we pushed our way back to the hub to watch the fireworks. We had a good crowd with us and a great view, so it was a wonderful way to finish our last night here.

Tomorrow, we head back into Disneyland after completing our packing. We’ll stay until 3pm, then come back to the hotel to change and catch the bus to the airport.
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

Mel
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby Mel » Thu Apr 11, 2013 2:49 pm

Hope you're feeling better soon Keith. It's awful to come back from holidays sick :(

Those crowds at DL sound crazy!
The Big Trip: DL, WDW and Disney cruise 2016

churros
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby churros » Thu Apr 11, 2013 7:22 pm

You didn't seem to go on many attractions until the last report

KeithS
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Thu Apr 11, 2013 8:55 pm

You didn't seem to go on many attractions until the last report
True - it was California Spring Break, which is one of the busiest weeks of the year at Disneyland. On top of that, we had been on heaps of attractions over in WDW - so the urgency wasn't really there. Once the crowds died down on Saturday, we were back in action :)
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Joined: Sun May 29, 2005 10:28 am
Location: Peakhurst Heights, NSW

Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Thu Apr 11, 2013 8:57 pm

Here are some photos - I thought I'd better start putting some together!

Epcot Flower and Garden Festival

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Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Joined: Sun May 29, 2005 10:28 am
Location: Peakhurst Heights, NSW

Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Thu Apr 11, 2013 9:00 pm

Disney's Art of Animation Resort

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Entry marquee.

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Entry artwork

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The resort shop - love the ink pot design!

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Lobby artwork

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Mr Ray in the Finding Nemo section

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Elephant graveyard in the Lion King area

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Hyena

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Radiator Springs themed area

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The Little Mermaid area

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Our shower curtain in the Little Mermaid room
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Joined: Sun May 29, 2005 10:28 am
Location: Peakhurst Heights, NSW

Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Sun Apr 14, 2013 9:17 am

Disney Fantasy (Part 1)

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Cruise terminal - about to board!

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Just arrived in our stateroom

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Another stateroom view

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Mosaic in Cabanas - we were getting lunch prior to the Sailing Away Party

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The Sailing Away Party!

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Exploring the ship - this is the hallway outside of the D-Lounge

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View of the peacock-inspired Lobby Atrium

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Another Atrium shot

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The famous Aquaduck - great fun!

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Looking inside Palo's Restaurant while exploring the ship

More to come
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Location: Peakhurst Heights, NSW

Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Sun Apr 14, 2013 9:23 am

Disney Fantasy Part 2

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Formal Night with Captain Mickey!

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And of course Minnie!

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And this is Clayton our Cruise Director who was terrific - he knew how to get everyone to enjoy themselves and forget the real world!

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Formal night entertainment - there were so many great acts on this ship.

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Ariel - she was our favourite character on the ship - she was always saying Hi and waving to us when we ran into her.

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Our friends Brian and Patti who we met on board - they were just terrific. They live in Orlando and took us out the day after the cruise!
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

mushu mama
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby mushu mama » Sun Apr 14, 2013 9:26 am

Loved the updates and photos Keith -/ was great to follow along on your trip. :D
1999- Tokyo DL, 2008- DLR/Cal Adventure, 2012-DLR/Cal Adventure, 2013-Tokyo DLand/Sea, 2014-DLR/Cal Adventure, 2015- Paris DL, 2016 - WDW/Disneycruise , upcoming - May 2018 - HongKong DL

KeithS
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Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Sun Apr 14, 2013 9:27 am

Disney Fantasy Part 3
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Dawn in St Thomas and it is breakfast on the balcony for me and Della

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Alleyway in St Thomas - we found a nice cafe in this alley - the food was beautiful

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Disney Fantasy docked in St Thomas

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The view from our balcony in St Thomas

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St Thomas as the sun goes down

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The Carnival Dream pulling out of St Thomas just before we depart
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015

KeithS
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Posts: 6082
Joined: Sun May 29, 2005 10:28 am
Location: Peakhurst Heights, NSW

Re: WDW, Disney Cruise, Disneyland Trip 2013

Postby KeithS » Sun Apr 14, 2013 9:32 am

Disney Fantasy Part 4
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Dawn in San Juan, Puerto Rico

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Another dawn photo from our balcony as we sail into port

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Old San Juan is really beautiful - this is the view from the Spanish fort

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A view of our ship in the harbour from the fort

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I love the buildings in San Juan - I took plenty of photos, so here are a couple!

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San Juan

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San Juan

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San Juan

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Returning to our ship in the afternoon (we went for a swim when we got onboard)

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Departing San Juan for a day at sea, then Castaway Cay!
Keith

Trip history:
DLR: 2005, 06, 09, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18
DLRP: 2006
HKDL: 2006 (Mar & Sept), 11 (Apr & Dec), 14, 19
SDR: 2017
TDR: 2008, 10, 17
WDW: 2006, 13 (Mar & Sept), 16, 19
DCL: 2013, 15 (Alaska & Hawaii), 18
Aulani: 2015


kuchnie Czeladź

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