Disney Dream 2015 - Day 1;Embarkation

Embarkation went much smoother this time than with our last cruise because we are Castaway Club members now.  We went through security than was immediately directed to a line for checkin.  Our first day on ship was a whirlwind of excitement.  

Lunch was amazing assortment of seafood like crabs,shrimp & mussels and typical children's items like pizza,burgers & hotdogs.YUM.

Soon after lunch we were able to checkout our verandah suite with a huge balcony.  

Even Brooke was as excited as a 5 year old.  While exploring the ship the girls greeted familiar friends.  

Finally it was time for our SailAway Party.

  The girls worked their way to the stage.

we hung out on the front of ship.  

Port Canaveral during SailAway

Dinner was French food at the Royal Palace. 

Once our oldest wanted to sit at a bigger table and I was telling her it wouldn't be possible, our waiter overheard my comment & quickly asked what it was she wanted promising to do everything possible to get it.  I'm sure he meant it but we chose to stay put.  Our girls were certainly treated like royalty and they loved our waiter.

Their every wish was quickly met by the waitstaff.  They even made ketchup fun!   

While we had escargot, baked Brie &  Potato soup, the girls had salads.  We all chose the chateaubriand and it was delish!

After dinner, the girls met up with more old friends!

The nights finale was front row seats for the Golden Mickey's production.  It was a great show.

After the show Paige raced to the cabin to discover what her latest towel animal would be.  Racing to our cabin after dinner to see her towel animal turned out to be a nightly ritual for her.

Disney Dream 2015 - Our Deluxe Family Oceanview Stateroom with Verandah

Disney Dream 2015 - Getting There

We began our adventure at 4:30, we picked up the kids immediately after school.

The sunset over Mobile Bay was a beautiful beginning to our RoadTrip to Port Canaveral.  In Pensacola, we stopped for supper at a really cool diner with 50's deco I had found on Yelp.

 The food was good, a step up from the usual fast food places along the I-10.

We drove as far as Tallahassee before stopping at a Country Inn for the night.  It was a older hotel and crowded with FSU students heading to some unknown college function.

Disney Dream 2015 - Day 2; Nassau Bahamas and Pirates Arrrrg!

Today seemed to fly.  We had a delicious breakfast at the Royal Palace.  The servers went above and beyond to entertain the girls.  

We have been to Bahamas several times and decided to stay on and enjoy the ship while in port.  

The afternoon was spent on waterslides and lounging on the deck.  Brooke was treated to a sweet 16 piña colada.

The adult area pool⬇️

The rest of the morning was spent with all their favorite Princesses.  

Finally they met the two most popular characters on the ship, beautiful Elsa & Anna from frozen.  Both Brooke & Paige were in awe.

Supper was in the Animators Palate restaurant where we were entertained by inhabitants of the coral reef.  Dinner was followed by the Pirate Deck Party. 

The show tonight was The Villians.  Afterwards Paige met up with her friend Daisy.

Disney Dream 2015 - Day 3; Castaway Cay

Finally, it's THE day, the highlight of the entire cruise!  CASTAWAY CAY!

We awoke to watch a gorgeous sunrise 

When the sun came out, we saw the most beautiful shades of blue water right from our balcony.  Disney's Island, Castaway Cay, with its pristine beaches and crystal clear waters, is unlike any place on earth.

We found out later that we actually arrived soon after midnight because the Ship's Captain wanted to avoid an anticipated high wind situation that may have prevented to ship from getting to the Island.  We were very glad he did! We would have been devastated to miss this island paradise.

We found a spot among the complimentary beach loungers and umbrellas.  

Besides the beautifully maintained beaches, there is a play area with waterslides & water cannons to entertain the kiddies. 

 I rented a raft for the day which could be swapped for a tube anytime throughout the day.

In addition to the waiters offering delicious tropical drinks for purchase , complimentary soda, water, lemonade & ice cream was available throughout the day.

There is a separate adult only beach area offered a short distance away.  Hubby and I visited the area to take some photos but it was a bit boring for us.  

Lunch was lip-smacking,finger-licking good BBQ chicken,burgers,ribs & mahi mahi.  Sides included potato salad, corn on the cob, chips & more.  There was also a huge assortment of desserts & beautiful fresh tropical fruits.

We were so sad when it was to leave this island paradise.  We cruise Disney because of Castaway Cay, sailing a ship without this port is not an option for us.

Dinner tonight was at the Enchanted Garden restaurant.  

This restaurant gives the impression of a garden picnic.  

Our foods included asparagus & Crab soup, steak, pork tenderloin & delicious sea bass.

After dinner we attended the last theatre production of our cruise, it was titled "Believe".  Characters Peter Pan, TinkerBell were the stars.  Our girls loved all the production shows on this cruise.

All too soon it was time to pack our suitcases and place them in the hall signaling the end to our magical cruise.

Carnival Dream - Day 6; SEA DAY 2

Today was spent in the jacuzzi and lounging on the deck.  It was so very relaxing.

Dinner tonight was beef Wellington with baked Alaska for dessert.

The show in theatre was entertaining but I would say it was my least favorite of the three productions. 

After the show we visited the casino before going to sleep.  It was a very relaxed day.

Carnival Dream 2015 - Day 5;ROATAN HONDURAS

We arrived in Honduras at 7:00am to overcast skies.  After a leisurely breakfast we headed out for a relaxing day on the beach.  This is our second time here and we love that you can simply walk to the beach.

 There are tons of lounge chairs available at no charge.  They were covered by tropical palm trees blowing with gentle breezes from the water.

 We chose chairs that had the perfect amount of sun/shade for us and settled in.  The skies cleared and soon we were relaxing under blue skies with a cold drink.

The water was on the cool side which felt really good under the hot sun.  There is also a long pier which ladders that lead into the water for complimentary snorkeling for those who brought their own equipment.  

It was a very relaxing, no muss no fuss day 👣

We strolled back to the ship for a late lunch and spent the rest of the day lounging and using the jacuzzi.  We settled in at the front  of the ship to watch our SailAway from our last port of call.

Supper tonight was potato soup, lamb and coconut cake for dessert.  The entertainment didn't interest us tonight so we headed for the casino to play a bit then headed to bed after a very long tiring day.

Carnival Dream 2015- Day 4; COSTA MAYA

Our arrival in Costa Maya was 8:00am.  We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast while we waited for the crowds heading ashore to thin.  

This is one port that does not offer much variety.  There is a large pool with a swim-up bar that looked inviting.

 there are the usual jewelry shops, liquor stores and small vendors.  I only saw one pharmacy.  There is also another pool where they offer dolphin encounters where passengers can swim with them or have their photos taken with them.

We found a table one the second floor of Carlos & Charlie's where we drank a couple beers while admiring the great view of the Carribean.  

Our table also gave us a great spot to watch the Dolphins perform and interact with visitors.

Next we walked out of the gates a couple blocks to a Mayan ruin for photos.  

We were back on the ship eating lunch by noon.  After lunch we changed into our suits and relaxed in the hot tubs.

Supper choices tonight include, wild mushroom soup, braised Ox tongue, red snapper, filet Mignon,with Apple or pumpkin pie for dessert.  

Tonight's entertainment is called Dancin' In the Streets,the costumes were pretty lavish.

Carnival Dream 2015 -Day 3; COZUMEL

Cozumel is my absolute favorite port when cruising from New Orleans.  We've been here so many times, it feels like home.  

Usually we head to one of their many gorgeous beaches but today we decided to spend the day downtown with friends.  The short cab ride cost us $8 and they dropped us off on the Main Street.  

We browsed through the tiny family owned shops, did some friendly bartering for a few items.

We found a small cantina with a few sidewalk tables and drank some delicious margaritas while we people watched.

 With temperatures in the high 70's with a gentle breeze it was cool by Cozumel standards.  

Finally we headed back to the ship port for another round of margaritas at Fat Tuesday before boarding our ship for a late lunch.  Perfect end to a perfect day.

Supper tonight was quesadilla, black bean soup, jerk pork loin & spare ribs. Dessert was lemon cake.

After supper we listened to some fiddle band playing some familiar cajun music with a mix of blue grass country. They were pretty good and quickly drew a crowd.  Native Louisianans smiled at the mispronunciation of some of the words but they were still fun.  

Next, we headed to the piano bar for a round of adult pub quiz.  We won a free round of drinks and it was great fun!  Finally it was time for the Adult comedy show.  The entertainer kept everyone laughing for 40 minutes.  

Carnival Dream 2015 - Day 2; SEADAY 1

Our morning coffee was delivered by room service, afterwards we headed to brunch.  It was drizzling rain today, most of our day was spent playing various trivia games & some hot tubbing.  There were far too many little ones in the hob tubs due to the nasty weather.

Lunch was at a new made to order pasta bar.  I had delicious lasagna, Hubby had garlic shrimp linguini with huge shrimp, he said it was tasty.

Tonight was the first of two formal nights.  We don't participate in the photos and such anymore.  Hubby had two lobster while I settled for ribs.  They were very tender.

The theatre show was a very good country themed performance.  A gifted fiddler players performance of The Devil Went Down to Georgia stole the show.

Carnival Dream 2014 - Day 1;Embarkation

Getting to the drop off area to the ship took longer than any previous cruise we have taken from the Port of New Orleans.  It was unclear if it was because there was a Norwegian ship loading at the same time or maybe just disorganization by the port.   Once we handed over our luggage to a porter and entered the embarkation area for Carnival, everything was well organized and quick.

Because we are Platinum with Carnival, our cabin is always immediately available.

 We dropped off our carry-on bags and met our friends for lunch at the buffet.  I had a cheeseburger from the grill and Hubby got something from the Mongolian Wok then we spent the afternoon chatting with friends.

We discovered a great spot in front of the ship on deck 5 for sailaway.  No matter how many times we have watched cruise ships navigate the Mississippi River,we never get bored.  

We were assigned a table for for on the upper level of the Main Dining Room.

It was nice not to be assigned to the usual  table for 10 :)  Hubby and I both chose Beef Brisket and it was delicious.  Dessert was our usual pecan ice cream.

After dinner we played a little in the casino and watched the Super Bowl followed by a game of Adult Pub Quiz with our friends.  We won free drinks.  Next we watched the beginning of SailAway show in the Encore theatre.  The dancers were good but we quickly got bored with all the speeches and announcements by the cruise director.  We had a busy first day after being awake since 5;00am so we returned to the cabin around 11:30 and crashed for the night.