Day 16 - At Last - Castaway Cay

After a stormy day at sea, we were excited to see the sunshine for our day at Castaway Cay.  The Disney Wonder had attempted to dock at Castaway Cay for the past two days, but the stormy weather had made it impossible.  The captain had warned us there was a chance the seas could still be too choppy,  but he would give it his best shot to get us into port.  And we got there three hours earlier than scheduled.  We would have a full day on the island.

Since Castaway Cay, Disney's private island, was our last stop, we wanted to enjoy it to its fullest.  After a quick breakfast at Topsiders, we headed out to the family beach to secure our spot for the day.  Ken had planned to treat the boys to a parasailing trip while I held our spot (and got a little more sun).  It was awesome seeing Ken and the boys high up above the island in the parachute.  We took lots of pictures both on the parasail and from the ground.  The menfolk returned to our base it was time for lunch.  Disney brings all the food to Cookie's BBQ and serves a huge buffet lunch.  They even had Mickey Ice Cream Bars; a real treat since they hadn't had them on board all summer in Europe).

After lunch, Ken took a nap while  Peter and I headed out to snorkel out in the lagoon.  Every trip to Castaway Cay, the snorkeling gets better.  This time there were lots of fish and many varieties.  Since it was later in the day, it took awhile to get out to the clear water (the murky water was due to all the sand kicked up through the day).  The beauty of seeing 30 feet below through blue emerald sea water never ceases to mystify me.   When we got back, Ken was off to ride bikes the boys were off to their club activities, and I just had to finish up working on my tan.

We were surprised when the lifeguards announced the beach would be closing in 15 minutes.  Kaleb and Peter came back and helped me pack up our gear, but Ken had just left for his bike trip.   We got everything together and decide to rinse off the sand before heading to the bike drop off to wait for Ken.  We waited and waited.  The beach was closed.  Families were coming in off the bike trail.  We only had about 30 minutes before the ship sailed and we were on the other side of the island waiting for Ken.  Finally, we asked one of the families and they said they hadn't seen anyone else on the trail.  So we let the bike tender know to tell Ken we were headed back to the ship.  Since I had his passport, I didn't think Ken could get back on without us.  Ken also had Peter's card to get back onto the ship!  We just couldn't wait any more.  We started the trek back to the ship.

We were amazed at the wildlife emerging as the crowds receded.  The cutest lizards were scurrying across our path with the curly q tails to follow.  You could smell the amazing fauna as we walked. How had I missed that lovely scent in the past?  We got to the end of the tram route and decided to wait there for Ken.  I sent Peter ahead to the ship just in case we had missed Ken.  At this point I was really concerned for his safety.  And there he was!  Ken was waiting at the ship for us wondering where WE were!  It was so good to find each other again (even though we were a bit grumbly)

Day 15 - Our Final At Sea Day

We were beginning to realize our trip was slowly coming to an end.  What our biggest concern was how to get everything BACK into the five bags we brought on the trip AND make sure we included everything we bought.  I do attempt to back lightly.  We wore pretty much all the close we brought plus I did laundry three times on the trip.

After being on board ship this long, you develop a routine.  It's funny how much we crave a routine, even on vacation.  I was still waking up early in the morning.  I decided to get up at 2:30 AM to do one last load of laundry so we'd have enough underwear until we got home.  As I was sitting in the hallway outside the laundry room (it was down the hallway from our room), one of the room hosts came out to check on me.  He wanted to make sure I was okay.  I told him I was doing laundry and there were no chairs in the laundry room.  He smiled and left me to my book and laundry.  A few minutes later, another room host came down the hall and asked if I was okay (maybe the other guy's boss??).  Again, I expressed I was just waiting for my laundry and their were no seats in the laundry room.  He nodded and continued on his way.  Then, a few minutes passed and an officer (they wear whites) came to check on me (the last guy's boss???).  She politely explained she had requested chairs for me so I could sit inside the laundry and wait.  She apologized for the missing bench as she didn't know it was missing!  After all this cruising time and many folks doing laundry (and missing the ole bench) we finally had something to sit on (besides the floor) while we waited for the laundry.  I got back to bed at 4 AM.  

The rest of the day was spent relaxing and reading.  The kids were enjoying the activities in the kids clubs.  It was another excellent day at sea on the Disney Magic