Disney Cruise on Disney Magic - Day 7 Double Dip at Castaway Cay

Day 7 - Double Dip back at Castaway Cay



We all woke up well rested after a smooth night sailing from Key West. We got up early as we wanted to make the most out of our last day due to the first day at Castaway Cay being cut short by the afternoon rains. We were up shortly before 0800 and had our breakfast out on the verandah. The weather outside looked overcast but we were hopeful it would clear up.

We were off the ship by 0915 and on our way to the beach I stopped to get my picture taken with Captain Jack. Captain Jack was quite a character - he looked and acted just like the character in the Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Next we headed for the beach and grabbed some chairs very close to the tram stop in case we needed to get back to the ship quickly, as we weren't real sure about which way the weather was going to turn. We hung out on the beach with our friends while the kids headed into the water. Every 20 minutes or so the sun would poke out for a minute or two and every once in a while there would be a patch of blue sky up wind but then a cloud would swing in and fill that spot.

My buddy Todd and I decided to head over for Serenity Bay and check out the adult-only section of the beach as I wanted to get some pictures. We walked up to the tram and had to wait about 5 minutes before it pulled up. It seemed like a long ride to the beach, probably 5-10 minutes down an old deserted runway. Once at the beach we got off and walked for a while. There were maybe about 5 families on the north side of the beach and about 3 couples hanging out on the south side. The bar and bathrooms are about 10 steps away from the south side of the beach and there are only a dozen or so chairs so that real estate usually goes quickly. As we were walking north we counted dozens of empty chairs, probably about 90% of the chairs were empty as shown below.



We walked back down the beach and noticed it was near lunch time so we decided to take a tour of the Serrenity Bay Buffet. We noticed right away that we could order blackened Grouper and had to give it a try. I figured I should also try the ribs, chicken and anything else I could get my hands on while I was here so that I could compare and contrast it to Cookies BBQ on the family side of the island. I'm happy to report that in my opinion the Serrenity blackened Grouper was awesome and the ribs and chicken definitely tasted better here then at Cookies BBQ on the family side of the island.

After we finished our sampling of the Serrenity Bay BBQ we headed back to the family side of the island to meet back up with our family to have lunch with them :-D Once we got back to the beach, I volunteered to watch the beach bags while everyone else went for lunch. While I was sitting there watching the stuff, Orasa, came by offering adult beverages. Orasa is a beautiful Disney Magic crew member from Thailand who works at Sessions and had been lucky enough to have beach duty that day. I asked her to take a couple of pictures with me which she gladly agreed to.



After getting my Khalua Colada I was good to go and by then the family had returned from lunch. After a few sips I noticed that the sun was now out and things were looking up. Next thing I new I was had gone form being chilly with the slight breeze and clouds to being hot because the sun was so intense. As I was sitting facing the sun I decided to put some sunscreen on at this point so I put it all over and especially on my nose, forehead and cheeks.
We sat there for another few hours enjoying the now, great weather.

Around 1430 our wives decided to head back for the ship so they could get the packing out of the way and not have to worry about it later that evening. Todd and I hung with the kids for another hour or so before heading back to the ship as our kids wanted to see an Ariel movie at the Goofy Pool on the jumbotron around 1530. I got sidelined taking pictures so my buddy Todd took care of getting the kids back on the ship and up to the movie. After walking around a little and taking some more pictures, I returned to the ship, took a shower and got ready for dinner.

We got the kids fed and off to the kids club before meeting for dinner at Animator's Palate with the "Until we Meet Again" menu. We really enjoyed there service from our waiter Rodel and Ivan. I was able to get a few pictures of them hamming it up as well as a group picture with the bunch of us.



After dinner I went down to deck 3 midship and watched the Until we Meet Again show. There wasn't a lot of room since I had gotten there late but I went up to deck 5 and taped it all from there. I'll be sure to upload the movie as soon as I can. The whole show lasted about 20 minutes and it consisted of all of the characters and performers from the entire cruise being highlighted. After that they all went to pre-designated areas on Decks 3 and 4 and people started lining up to have them sign autographs and get their pictures.

I headed back to the cabin to help my wife with the final pieces of luggage that had to be out very soon. We got those all out and she decided to do some final shopping. We browsed through the stores and then headed for Sessions to spend some time with Daryl, Yelena, Orasa and Avinash. We hung out there and had some pictures taken with the crew. We grabbed Daryl for a picture as he was passing by on one of his breaks between sets as well. Late in the evening Trevor Carlton wondered in and I was able to get some pictures with him as well before we said our last goodbyes as he had more people around the ship still to see. Next we headed over to Diversions to say goodbye to Mark and his wonderful crew.



After all of our goodbyes were done, we sadly headed back to our room knowing that in a few hours we would be leaving the wonderful ship. I can't say enough for how professional and competent most of the folks on the Disney Magic crew were that we met. I can't list them all here but let me just list a few along with a few kind words.

Daryl Lockhart - (Pictured above) - Daryl is an excellent performer and pianist who provides an extra dimension or two to lounge piano performances. Prior to just about every song Daryl will let you know something about the song and how it either transformed music, provided inspiration to him, or other historic tidbit. In addition for many of Daryl's songs, there is not only the version that most of us know but Daryl also has a "Disney" version of those songs which sometimes leaves you in tears because you laughing so hard - as long as you aren't the one named in the punch line. One night Daryl even made up a song to sing to my wife after we told him we were having our 20th Anniversary in a few months.

Mark - This was probably our 3rd cruise with Mark since we really got to know him. He used to be the bartender at Sessions but had recently moved over to Diversions and was loving his new assignment.

Yelena - A new acquaintance this cruise, I spent a lot of time getting to know her and noticed that she had an exceptional talent with not only bar tending but also interfacing with customers.

Orasa - I think I had met the beautiful Orasa on previous cruises but on this cruise I really got to know her and realize how special she is. She tells me she is getting married shortly and possibly moving to France. I will miss her very much, but wish her much happiness and success in her new life!

Agneszki - A very beautiful and wonderful host that we got to meet at the martini tasting. After the martini tasting her and my wife had a long conversation about life in Poland and Polish people in America.

Rodel and Ivan - We had some great meals and very much appreciate the wonderful work and dedication from our dining crew.

Al - We met Al briefly after boarding the ship and were immediately very impressed with his ability as a waiter as well as his wonderful personality.

Here is the link to pictures for Day 7 and here is the link to the entire collection of pictures for the whole....