Making History! A 2017 Westbound Panama Canal Trip Report **Complete**

[arielmomma]

We had lunch in Triton's. Jimmy and I were twins today.



The lunch menus began to repeat today, which wasn't a problem for us. It was simply an opportunity to sample the items we didn't get to try earlier in the week and double up on some of our favorites. Speaking of which, James and the kids started with double chocolate - chocolate milk and hot cocoa. I stuck with my usual - water.



The kids ordered their favorite - double calamari.



I had the marinated artichokes. As usual, these were delectable!



James had the serrano ham.



For my main course, I had the meatloaf. It was good. Not as good as mine, but definitely worth ordering.



James had the halibut. He really enjoyed it.



For dessert, James had his usual - ice cream. Emily had a Mickey Bar.



Jimmy and I doubled up on my favorite - the hazelnut chocolate molten cake. I can't even describe to you how good this was. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

 

[Goldys4]

Enjoying your report! I would love to do this trip someday. As it is, I'm looking forward to our very first cruise in September. Can't wait for your next installment! And I know to eat before I read it- it makes me hungry seeing all the great looking food pictures!

 

[arielmomma]

Enjoying your report! I would love to do this trip someday. As it is, I'm looking forward to our very first cruise in September. Can't wait for your next installment! And I know to eat before I read it- it makes me hungry seeing all the great looking food pictures!

Thank you! Have a wonderful time on the Dream. I've never sailed on it, but I have sailed on her sister ship, The Fantasy. Its truly Fantastic. You'll have a blast! As for the food pics, my mouth begins to water every time I post them. 9 more months until I get to taste these scrumptious dishes again...

 

[arielmomma]

After lunch, Emily left us for the Oceaneer Lab. Jimmy, however, opted to stick with the adults. He needed a reprieve from the Edge and tween/teen drama. Apparently, even Disney magic can't cure that.



We peaked in the Crown & Fin Pub to see if we could join in trivia, but it was entirely packed, so we stopped by our cabin instead. Nan was there, cleaning.



We visited with Nan for a bit then headed up to Deck 4 where I finished my first novel of this vacation. Jimmy simply enjoyed the view.



Jimmy finally left us when James and I headed off to dance class. Today, we learned the foxtrot. Another day with no bruises. We were making progress.

When dance ended, James returned to our cabin to get cleaned up for the day, while I returned to deck 4 to begin another novel. Before long, though, it was time to get Emily and I ready for Frozen formal night. Emily wanted to be ultra sparkly.

 

[arielmomma]

At 5pm, James and I sent Emily off to play while we headed to Azure for our second ballroom dance session of the day. Everyone in class looked so elegant in their formal wear.

We arrived to dinner in Animator's Palate late, as usual. The children were there waiting for us.





I forgot to take a picture of the Frozen menu, but you can find it here: http://disneycruiselineblog.com/men...-away-with-anna-elsa-and-friends-frozen-menu/

James started with the Duke of Weselton's Favorites.



The kids and I all had Elsa's Coronation Scallops. This was soooo good! I can't recommend it enough. It's basically a scallop pot pie with a flaky, crescent-type crust. Mmmm.




The restaurant was themed for the occasion.



Once again, Levy had a special surprise for me. At lunch today, Levy was one of the servers donned in a red vest whose duty was to ask passengers if there was any way that their dining experience could be improved upon. I'd mentioned that I missed the cold fruit soups that used to me offered daily on the lunch menus. So, at dinner, he brought me two bowls of cold, creamy watermelon soup. What a sweetheart! I was nice and shared with the kids. It was delicious!



For our main course, James and I both had the wild boar. It was lovely. The kids filled up on scallops and soup.



For dessert, Jimmy and I ordered the Norwegian pancakes.



I also ordered the chocolate-raspberry tart.

 

[arielmomma]

James had his usual bowl of ice cream, while Jimmy and I ordered a second round of pancakes.





Knowing how much our table loved dessert, Levy brought us an apple pudding cake to sample as well.



Emily had a sundae.



We went straight from dinner to get in line for Frozen Musical Spectacular in the Walt Disney Theater. The area outside the theater was PACKED! Before long, we were herded like cattle inside. We were fortunate to get good seats.





The show was fantastic! If you get a chance to sail on The Wonder, do not pass up this performance. It was definitely worth seeing.

From the theater, we returned to our cabin. The kids got ready for bed. James and I wanted to catch Chuck Wagner's adult show. So, we settled the kids in bed with a TV movie and went to Azure. Chuck's performance was as captivating as it had been the night before. What a voice!



After Chuck's performance, we returned to our cabin to make good on our promise of an early bedtime. We were all tucked into bed by 10:40p. Good thing because we'd need to stay up late tomorrow night. I heard we might be invaded by pirates. Aargh!



Up Next: A Pirate's Life For Me!

 

[arielmomma]

Tuesday, May 2, Sea Day





James, Jimmy, and I woke hungry. So, we left a note for a soundly sleeping Emily and headed for Cabanas. The sky was overcast, but not raining, creating a lovely view while we ate.



I opted to pass on the rich hollandaise sauce this morning and ate light.



I forgot to take a picture of James' breakfast, but he undoubtedly had his usual breakfast sandwich. While I avoided the rich and sweet, Jimmy embraced it whole-heartedly.



Before we left Cabanas, I gathered some goodies for Emily. She loved the asparagus and chocolate chip muffins.



We woke Emily when we returned to the cabin. She ate and expressed a desire to get her pirate on. The boys opted to wait until later. So, they left to play chess, while Em and I transformed ourselves. Aargh!

 

[Jodyfarmgirl]

Tuesday, May 2, Sea Day

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James, Jimmy, and I woke hungry. So, we left a note for a soundly sleeping Emily and headed for Cabanas. The sky was overcast, but not raining, creating a lovely view while we ate.

View attachment 255643

I opted to pass on the rich hollandaise sauce this morning and ate light.

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I forgot to take a picture of James' breakfast, but he undoubtedly had his usual breakfast sandwich. While I avoided the rich and sweet, Jimmy embraced it whole-heartedly.

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Love your pirate outfits. If I had something that super cool I would wear it as soon as I could.

Before we left Cabanas, I gathered some goodies for Emily. She loved the asparagus and chocolate chip muffins.

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We woke Emily when we returned to the cabin. She ate and expressed a desire to get her pirate on. The boys opted to wait until later. So, they left to play chess, while Em and I transformed ourselves. Aargh!

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View attachment 255645

 

[arielmomma]

"Love your pirate outfits. If I had something that super cool I would wear it as soon as I could."

Thank you! Getting dressed up is half the fun of pirate night.

 

[arielmomma]

Emily left me for the Oceaneer Lab, while I met James in D Lounge for Anyone Can Cook. Today, the chef made pork loin with onion jam. As usual, this was delicious.







From D Lounge we went up to deck 9 for snacks. James, of course, had pizza. I had a blueberry/banana ice cream cone.



Satisfied, we headed back down to deck 4 to read. While standing along the rail, James spotted a sea turtle.



A special friend came by while we out there.

 

[arielmomma]

Considering we wanted to catch Charles Peachock's family performance at 1p, we needed to have a quick lunch today. So, we switched up our routine and ate lunch at Cabana's buffet. We collected Emily to join us. Jimmy said he'd grab a bite on his own, but would meet us in Azure at 1p.

Can I just take a moment to say how proud I am of my son? Throughout this cruise, he demonstrated very mature behavior. Not only by always meeting us at specified times and collecting his sister every evening for dinner, but also by refraining from behaviors and activities with his peers when he felt they were inappropriate and by speaking up when he felt it was necessary. At thirteen, that can be an extremely difficult thing to do. Great job, Jimmy! You are growing into an impressive young man.

Now, back to lunch.

Emily started with broccoli, potatoes, parmesan cheese, a selection of deli meats, chicken nuggets, and banana bread. She enjoyed everything.



My plate: stir fried noodles, similar to those served at O'hana's at Disney's Polynesian Resort (glorious!), mushroom risotto (equally as heavenly), tortellini (very good), tomato salad (also very good), pasta with pesto (good), chunk parmesan cheese (yum) and veggies (broccoli, beets, and mushrooms - all good).



James' plate: pork loin with gravy, tortellini, and parmesan cheese. He claimed he was still full from the pizza he'd eaten earlier.



What a pretty pirate!



After his meager lunch, James left us to save us seats in Azure. I, on the other hand, stuck around. My first plate was so good, I had to go back for seconds. I added a bit of dessert this time - baklava (delicious with plenty of pistachios) and peach panna cotta (super yummy).



Emily went for ice cream. I have to say, I was very impressed with Cabana's buffet. The hot food was hot, the cold food cold. Everything was well-seasoned and high quality. I would definitely be having it again.



Emily and I joined James and Jimmy in Azure. Charles Peachock was fabulous, as expected. The kids got a real kick out of his show. I can't imagine how difficult it must be to juggle on a rocking ship. Yet, he made it look easy.






After the show, the kids and adults went our separate ways. James and I returned to deck 4 to read until dance class.

 

[Oregongram]

Enjoying your trip report. Your family looks healthy, happy and full of love. Pirate outfits were great! All of Emily's outfits are beautiful. Jimmy showed strength of character standing up to his peers. I'm waiting anxiously for more entries. Thanks for taking the time to create this fabulous report.

 

[arielmomma]

Enjoying your trip report. Your family looks healthy, happy and full of love. Pirate outfits were great! All of Emily's outfits are beautiful. Jimmy showed strength of character standing up to his peers. I'm waiting anxiously for more entries. Thanks for taking the time to create this fabulous report.

Thank you for all of your kind words.

 

[arielmomma]

When we arrived at dance class, we discovered that Azure had been taken over by dancing pirates! Here is Smee-red giving me his best sneer.



James and I with the sexy invaders.



The pirates were excellent instructors. James and I mastered the merengue without a single injury. Captain Willem kept up his gravelly pirate-voice for the whole class. His poor throat must have killed him by the end. I appreciated his effort, though. I love it when the cast members get into the spirit of things!

After class, I read while the boys transformed themselves.





Before we knew it, it was time to return to the dancing pirates. We took a break from dancing long enough to get a few group shots of us all in our pirate-wear. Now that's a group of fun-loving, good-looking pirates.

Smiling pirates



Showing off our hooks and sneers

 

[kkayluvsdis]

Loving your report! I can't believe how much you all fit into each day!! We would love to experience a Panama Canal cruise someday

 

[arielmomma]

Loving your report! I can't believe how much you all fit into each day!! We would love to experience a Panama Canal cruise someday

Thank you. Yeah, we love to take advantage of the onboard activities. There is so much to do on the PC cruises. I hope you get a chance to experience them someday.

 

[arielmomma]

This evening we had dinner in Tiana's.



Emily brought a friend to dinner.



I confess, my family was a tad apprehensive about the new pirate menu. While many reviewers indicated that they were not particularly fond of the old menu, my family loved it - especially the pot-stickers, ribs, and coconut treasure. We were sad to see them go.

I forgot to take a picture of the menu, but you can find it here: http://disneycruiselineblog.com/menus/pirates-caribbean-dinner-menu/

Jimmy and James started with the shrimp cocktail. They both wished that there was more shrimp, but they enjoyed it.



I had the crab cake. It was good. As far as I could tell, it was the same as it was on the old menu.



The kids and I had the chilled mango soup. This was delicious!



Finally, a photo of us all together.



Argh!



Emily had the jerk chicken. She seemed to really like it.



I had the marinated grouper filet. Oh my goodness! This was so good! I instantly forgave DCL for getting rid of the potstickers (Well, almost.)



James had the strip loin. He gave it a thumbs up.

 

[arielmomma]

Jimmy had the shrimp and scallops with pasta.



The kids behaving piratey - pretending to drink from their jug-shaped menus.





Dessert time!



I had the bananas in paradise and...



...the macadamia nut cheesecake tart. Both were very good.



James had his usual - ice cream. The kids opted to pass on dessert in anticipation of the pirate buffet later tonight.



Levy brought us a slice of rum-soaked chocolate cake to sample. It looked lovely, but we were all too full to even try it.

Okay, I admit it. The new pirate menu was pretty darn good. We all still missed our favorites, but we found a few new ones, too.



After dinner, we decided to get comfortable before our movie. We opted to skip the main theater show this evening - Liverpool Legends - to watch Kubo and the Two Strings in the Buena Vista Theater. The movie was pleasantly weird. I was glad we watched it.

 

[tinkerbellmagic]

Happily following along! Terrific pirate costumes! Love the food pics too. That macadamia nut cheesecake tart looks divine.

 

[arielmomma]

Happily following along! Terrific pirate costumes! Love the food pics too. That macadamia nut cheesecake tart looks divine.

Thank you! The macadamia nut cheesecake tart is definitely worth the calories! Yum!