Disney: The Cruise Part 5

Friday was a day at sea. We woke up and had breakfast at Tritons then went swimming! 

Addy made a little friend on the cruise ship. Sadly, we can't remember her name but they were best little buddies.

After we were done swimming, we grabbed lunch and then headed to kids club to see what exciting things they had going on there. The kids club was open from 7am to midnight and you could leave your kids there ALL day if you wanted. But, since this was a FAMILY vacation, we chose to let them play there sparingly and keep them with us most of the time. They didn't mind that because there was SO much to do as a family.  However, this time that they went, they got to participate in learning a dance with Mickey and Minnie. Nate and I went to the gym and we received a text on our phone which told us to meet our children in the Walt Disney Theater. We did, and to our surprise, the girls got to go on stage and sing and dance with Mickey and Minnie. They even got t-shirts as well.

After their dance, we went to our final dinner on board the Disney Wonder.

While we were at dinner, the captain came over the intercom informing us that there would be a slight delay in our trip that evening. The US coastguard received information that there was a Cuban refugee raft in mid-sea. They asked our ship to pick them up and hold them till the coastguard could meet us in the ocean. So, our ship slowed to a stop and we went to the window to see what was up. This is what we saw...

It's hard to see because it was so small. This raft was tiny. It was in the middle of the ocean, it had been there for two weeks and there were 8 men huddled on it. It was very surreal, very humbling and very sad to see. Here is a closer picture I found on a news article regarding the issue.

This is a picture of the US Coastguard after they had boarded our ship and taken the Cubans in custody. It was a very exciting night. I remember hearing a conversation between a crew member and a very worried vacationer where the crew member said they had the Cubans in a holding cell in the bottom of the boat with security all over the place. Crazy! Then I asked another crew member if she knew anything about what was going on and she said she is from Jamaica and she knew of this happening now and then but what was sad was that she said "you would do ANYTHING.. even give your life trying to escape a place like Cuba". 

We don't know what happened to those men and i'm not so sure I want to. From what I understand, we have a law that makes us send them back to their country. And I also understand that Cuba doesn't look lightly on their people trying to escape. So sad.

These were our waiters. They were the best. Their names were Gigi and Sergio. We asked them about their job and they said they have contracts that are anywhere from 3-8 months depending. Then they have a month or two break, then back on the ship they go. Pretty crazy.

That night, we went to the final show of our cruise which was Disney Dreams. Probably the most amazing show I have ever been to. At one point, they were telling the story of The Little Mermaid and suddenly, the entire Theater filled with bubbles in the air. Next, the story of Belle and the Beast playing in the snow... when you feel snow falling on you and you look up to see snow filling the theater. It was unbelievable. The quality of the shows was inexplainable. You just have to see it to believe it. 

We were sad to retire to our beds that night knowing that when we woke the next morning, we would be docking in Miami. This cruise was a very special vacation and one that I will never forget. It is dear to my heart and I will forever be grateful to my grandpa for allowing my family to do this.

This is what we woke up to the morning we had to disembark.

Hello Miami!

 

The bus ride to the car rental place.

The added picture of a picture that we took on the boat. This one of Addy and Belle was a very magical moment. One that I had to keep my composure on. Addy has been in love with Belle since she was tiny. When she had the opportunity to meet her, she was so excited that I can't even explain the feeling. When she walked up to her it really was a magical moment that I will never forget. 

So many magical moments happened on this trip and I am so grateful for this time I had with my family. We will definitely be planning a Disney Cruise in the future.