Trip log, day two. At Sea between Vancouver and Ketchikan.
9-Night Alaskan Cruise from Vancouver
July 24, 2017
Personal Navigator – Day 2
BREAKING NEWS – I woke up early and joined Emily in the gym. Seriously, I am ok, but it was a first for me.
We met up with Isabelle afterwards for breakfast. Emily was happy to see expanded offerings at Daisy’s D-Lites that included protein! She made a bowl – scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese. Isabelle and I waited for Cabanas to open at 7:30, while Emily went back to the room to shower. As soon as we sat down at the table, we saw a whale!!! Here is a picture that does not show said whale, but does have the area where it is highlighted.
Today was lining up to be a busy day at sea with a plethora of activities we wanted to attend. First up, was Disney trivia which was a humbling experience. The winners had a perfect score – 25/25. We had 13.5/25. Ouch.
Being that this sailing is longer than 8-nights, we were treated with the Gold & Platinum Castaway Club reception.
We were wondering how this would go since DCL decided to only offer the reception on longer voyages. The officers did hold a meet and greet outside the Walt Disney Theatre near Preludes with complimentary drinks as usual, but no fruit trays or finger foods.
The main event was a preview of The Golden Mickeys where we were shown a scene then they pulled back the curtains and replayed the same scene showing us the set changes that happen behind the curtain and had a live feed on the team in the control booth allowing us to see what they were doing and hear the behind the scenes show direction. Captain Zvonimir addressed the audience and thanked everyone for being loyal to DCL and made mention of the fleet expansion of 4 more ships before dialing it back to 3. Was it a slip or is there a 4th new ship announcement on the horizon? On the way out, we were treated with Mickey rice crispy treats.
It was time to split up, but first we stopped for the Chris Hemsworth meet and greet.
Then, Isabelle had a a class, Super Hero 101 with Captain America in the Oceaneer Club. Steve Rogers is on hand to teach the kids the basics of what it takes to not only be a hero, but a Super Hero.
We stayed in the Walt Disney Theatre for ‘Into Alaska’s Wilderness,’ the first in a series of Alaskan nature talks with Alaska native and naturalist Doug Jones. Doug shared his passion for his home as discussed glaciers, icefields, wildlife, the history and culture of the area that we will be visiting during this cruise. Doug’s presentation was packed with his stunning photos and some really amazing video.
The presentation was over and we made use of the DCL Navigator app to check in with Isabelle using the chat feature which so far has been working well. Captain America was still finishing up with the kids so we waited outside the club.
We headed up to Cabanas for lunch. While we were washing our hands, we were told today’s buffet included a selection of Mexican food!!!
The black bean burritos & chicken fajitas hit the spot! We found a table under cover where we could still see Funnel Vision (wrapped up in fleece blankets) to eat and I couldn’t help from passing up a piece of the Mexican pizza offering from Pinocchio’s.
Isabelle even found mini churros in Cabanas for dessert.
After lunch, we participated in ‘TV tune trivia’ in Crown & Fin. We would have tied with a few other teams if I would have been more confident in my answer for a bonus question. This was a fun trivia experience even though it made us feel old based on some of the shows that were featured. During the trivia, Emily tried the Gin Tea Tonic cocktail made with Hendrick’s Gin, Cherry Marzipan Tea and King’s Ginger. The presentation was just a hint at how good it was.
Following trivia, it was time for another nature talk with Doug Jones. This one was all about the Icefields and Glaciers and how they are essentially nature’s time machine.
Doug described the formation and power of ice such as the Sawyer Glacier which is in Tracy Arm Fjord. The talk dug into to science of examining ice cores and how they can teach us about what happened in the past – like a time machine. I am so glad we took the time to attend Doug’s presentations today. They were both very informative and enjoyable.
Back to Crown & Fin for another round of trivia, but this time it was a little different. It was Brainteasers Trivia and let me tell you we quickly lost interest which was fine as it gave me time to finish up the day 1 trip log and exhausted my embarkation day free 50mb. There were 15 brainteasers and most of them required additional hints. At the end, she did promise the next brainteaser trivia would be easier.
Trivia and learning takes a toll when you wake up in the 5 o’clock hour and with still number of things on our agenda we spent the rest of the time before dinner to chill, nap, write these last few paragraphs, and watch Age of Ultron on the Marvel channel on our stateroom TV.
This evening is formal night with a captain’s reception in the atrium with the second opportunity today for complimentary adult beverages.
Hey, when DCL offers free drinks you know where we’ll be. This evenings offerings were a white wine, Two Seasons (a drink of the day), Mudslide, and Michelob Ultra.
Our dinner rotation had us in Triton’s with the standard rotational menu with regional inspirations. We all started with the pierogis.
Em thought the Ahi Tuna Niçoise from the lighter note offerings was was fine. The tuna was bland and the quality was far from that offered at Palo Brunch.
Isabelle and I enjoyed the Salmon. Yes, if you are keeping track this is night two and my second time ordering a salmon entree.
For dessert, Em & I opted for Disney Cruise Line’s best soufflé, the Grand Marnier Soufflé. No need to argue with me on this — food is subjective and this is my preference.
The original after dinner plan for the last few months (not a typo, we made these plans in February) was to see The Golden Mickeys since we have not taken in the performance on the Disney Wonder since it was re-imagined/refreshed or whatever synonym Disney wants to use to say ‘updated.’
However, after listing to Doug earlier in the day and seeing the beauty through the portholes during dinner, we wanted to go out on deck 4 to enjoy the scenery as we sailed through a narrow passage.
The time flew by faster than we were sailing and we made the unanimous decision to skip the show. Can you really blame us? We are on an Alaskan cruise with amazing scenery and even though The Golden Mickeys are tonight, The Golden Mickeys were alright.
Emily and Isabelle headed back up to the stateroom, but quickly rejoined me on deck 4 as our stateroom host was just finishing up the evening turn down service. We took a little walk around the ship to go see what kind of trouble we could get ourselves into. We were able to get a quick tour of the concierge lounge which was added during the Disney Wonder’s re-imagination last fall.
The lounge even includes nook just for kids with a television and a couple tables and chairs.
The main area features a coffee machine which will make you a double espresso with a push of a button!
Now although we have never sailed as concierge guests, we have been fortunate enough to have friends that have and were willing to give us a tour. Based on this, I can tell you, the Wonder’s concierge lounge and sun deck is the best in the fleet. The extra outdoor seating area on deck 11 not only offers comfortable seating, but provides outstanding views. I could see myself sitting up there for a good chunk of the day just taking in the sights while enjoying the live music from the Quiet Cove.
It was getting late and time for bed. We returned to the room for the night and enjoyed a replay of The Golden Mickeys on our stateroom television, where we got to see the added scenes.
All-in-all, today was busy, but really enjoyable.
We are gaining another hour tonight and tomorrow we arrive to our first port of call, Ketchikan with a 7AM ashore time.
Awesome, thanks for sharing…. absolutely love Alaska, we were stationed there for 3 years, both kiddos were born there, enjoy your time in Alaska….
Yes, thanks for sharing! Love the daily report and have fun! great pictures.
No argument here…Grand Marnier Souffle is the only dessert I refuse to miss.
Doug Jones’ presentations are the best – do not miss any of them!!!!!!!!!!
No argument here… the Grand Marnier scuffle is the best! Thanks for sharing your trip.
Funny, I just read the other comments and saw Hannah wrote the same thing! Lol
Thank you! We are headed to Alaska on the Wonder of 8/28! Living vicariously through you!
Thank you so much for these posts. You have answered so many of my questions just because you and your family have many of the same interests as me. We’ll be sailing on the Wonder in the SOuthern Carribbean in January, so this is really informative. I’d heard about the Gin and Tea and now I have to have one. I have twins that are Isabelle’s age that are huge comic book fans too, so it’s great to note some of the kids club events she is enjoying. Please keep posting on her favorite avengers activities on the Wonder. Thanks again for all the information.