Day
22 - Weds 10th Apr 2024
& Summary
Participants: Tam & Kev
We're awake at
7.30 am and we set to packing. At least our flight isn't until
this evening, so we have a few more hours of fun yet.
We leave the room and give our luggage to bell services before
heading out to DCA.
A little bit of Downtown Disney.
We have a little wander and see one of the Disney photographers. Suddenly I remember that we have Photopass free with our tickets. Doh! It's a bit late now!
We ride
Radiator Springs Racers using single rider and then go to Grizzly
River Rapids where we both get wet, but Tam comes off the worst.
At least it's sunny, so we dry off quite quickly. We head towards
Webslingers for a final ride and pass the little Spiderman show
on the way. It doesn't last long and ends with an animatronic
Spiderman flying far up into the sky before landing just out of
sight. If you haven't seen it I would suggest finding a video
online, it's the most amazing thing.
On Webslingers Tam wins again with 217,000, I must admit it's
getting a bit dispiriting now. I'm going to have to get into
training.
We have a 12.00 pm reservation for the Lamplight Lounge.This is a very sought after restaurant and you have to book bang on the 60 day mark to get in. We are sat outside looking over the lake and start with a cocktail each and share the lobster nachos. It's a huge plateful and very tasty. A glass of Chardonnay follows. It's a nice spot and I can see why it's so popular. Rather than eating anything else here we decide to move on. Tam pays and asks the server if we can have a few of the rather cool beer mats and he brings us a large handful.
I'd read a lot about the fried chicken in the Plaza Inn in Disneyland Park, so we wander over and share 3 pieces of chicken with green beans, mash and gravy. It's delicious and I understand why so many people talk about it. The chicken coating is crisp and the meat is tender.
Mmmmm ... chickeny goodness.
We stroll around in the sunshine and then do a lap of the river, sitting on the front of the Liberty Belle riverboat. We leave the park now and walk to Downtown Disney where we go to the rooftop bar at Ballast Point Brewery. There are many different beers available in 4 oz, 8 oz or 16 oz. I have a light beer and Tam tries a pineapple IPA, both 8 oz. The beers are nice and we also share a Mickey Rice Krispie concoction that we bought in the bakery just before entering.
Back at the hotel we relax for a short while until it's time to leave at 4.00 pm. Tam calls an Uber to the airport ($70.92) and a black Tesla turns up. The driver is very chatty and tells us that he works in computers and drives an Uber to supplement his income.It takes about an hour to the airport and he tells us that had we left it any later it would have taken a lot longer as the traffic builds up into rush hour. Tam can't see from where she's sitting, but he also has his hands off the steering wheel most of the time as the car drives itself. Amazing. Tam has also got an automated method of getting from A to B. It's called a Kevla. It's not bad, but does require fueling at least 3 times a day and won't work between the hours of 11.00 pm and 8.00 am when it's charging back up.
Into the airport where we drop the luggage and are through security and into departures swiftly. A last glass of wine is taken at a wine bar overlooking the gates before the long haul back to the UK begins. To be fair the flight isn't too bad for me as I manage to sleep for at least 4 hours.
Summary
Well, it was an amazing hoilday with lots of different elements. Highlights for me include:
1. The meal the night before the cruise in Fort Lauderdale.
2. Cartagena - the old city was much prettier and more interesting than I'd expected. Of course, this was helped by the nice food and a great tour guide.
3. Panama Canal transit - something I would advise everyone to do once in their lives if they get the chance. As well as the locks either end sailing across Gatun Lake is an experience in its own right as you cruise past the jungle and huge container ships moored up and waiting for their turn in the locks.
4. Huatulco and Purto Vallerta - both Mexican ports were excellent in very different ways. Hualtulco was all about the beaches whereas Puerto Vallarta is a much larger resort, but with a really nice feel.
5. Disneyland - I think it surprised Tam and I just how much of a good time we had here. We've been once before, but forgot how easy it is to get around as compared to WDW. Walking from the hotel through Downtown Disney and between the parks is so simple and enjoyable. The Food and Wine Festival certainly helped and all the new rides were fun. I think 4 full days is just about the right amount of time for a visit. Genie+ worked very well, although I still begrudge paying extra for something that was free a few years ago under the Fastpass system. Even so we waited very little time for any ride as we used the single rider line where we could.
6. The
Ruby Princess - It's an older ship, but wasn't really showing its
age except a little on our balcony. We really liked the number of
bars around the ship and prompt service in most of them. There
was always a quiet place to sit and have a drink if you wanted
that. The spa pool was lovely if you could get a seat, but there
was normally a quiet spot to sit somewhere on deck if that's what
you wanted. The Sanctuary is a lovely area if you're willing to
pay for it and you can get in - you have to be among the first to
board in order to have a chance.
The food was a little underwhelming overall. The speciality
restaurants disappointed generally with over seasoned food for
our taste. It wasn't awful, just not as good as I'd hoped, but it
wouldn't stop us cruising with Princess again.
The entertainment was hit and miss, some good, some not so. I
guess this is the same on all cruise lines and is really down to
personal taste. Overall the cruise was exactly what we wanted it
to be, a nice way of moving between destinations in comfort and
with some down time to relax. We have friends who say they would
never cruise as you don't get long enough in each place and only
see a tiny part of any country. This misses the point somewhat as
we would probably have visited only a fraction of the places we
have been to had we needed to stay for a number of days or weeks.
It might be only a glimpse of what a country or city has to
offer, but it's unlikely we would have seen it at all without
cruising.