Day 13 - Molly's 21st!

Merry Christmas!!



A Flower for Molly!



Fireworks!


The Best Door Ever!




Happy Birthday!


Birthday at Palo!


Molly at the trough!


M & M & M!


Donald dances for Molly!

Since we returned to our room at almost 3 am, this is not being posted until later this morning!

Tonight we are writing at 11 pm, as we are waiting for POC3 to start. In an hour. Yes, we are in BARCELONA!!

Today started with Molly waking up to her 21st birthday!! We all got dressed, and were at Palo for our 11:00 reservation. On our way to our table, we stopped at the champagne station, where Miss 21 got her first LEGAL drink. We were seated in our very favorite place, at one of Sylvester’s tables. Upon our arrival, greeting Molly, was a very special plate wishing her a very personal Happy Birthday!! Sylvester greeted us warmly, wished Molly a happy birthday, and then escorted us around the tables filled with yummy-licious food!!. We ate, and ate, and ate. And ate. In between bites, Molly was wished greetings from Bob and Eileen, and many of the other diners. Of course, it helped that she had a happy birthday button on!! Molly opened special birthday cards signed by Mickey and The Disney Princesses (thanks to Kumi and Connie!). Sylvester made a special birthday card for Molly, out of a Palo dining receipt. Finally, when we could eat no more, we had to call it a morning. We took a final picture with Sylvester, wished him well, and left Palo for the last time. For this trip, anyway!

We went back to the room, and changed into sweat pants, except for Molly, who changed into birthday dress #2, thanks to Gibraltar shopping. MB and Molly went for a stroll while Ida cleaned, and while they were gone, Concierge brought by a special treat and card for Molly - you guessed it - A Dozen Chocolate Covered Strawberries!!
Our next event was Rum Tasting. Keep in mind that none of us drink alcohol on a regular basis. Namely, only at Palo brunch. So, we went with an open mind to Diversions, where we found seats and tables that had a paper with rum facts on it. We sat down, and the rum seminar started. Basically, we learned that we do not belong at rum seminars, and the lady behind us will drink anyone’s leftover drink. Nobody really liked any of the rum, except Lu, who drank the last one. Whatever it was.

After rum tasting, it was time for rest and concierge snacks, which today were little sandwiches which nobody really liked either. We took a nap, until our Connie/Kumi/Hilda visit. They came bearing Transatlantic certificates signed by Captain Tom, a group character photo birthday card for Molly signed by the characters, and a magical memories certificate for having the best door decorations!! We in turn, gave them each a scratch off ticket, which miraculously they all were winners!! Each one won a bag of Goo Goos. They were excited, but they get excited by the new pictures on our door!!

They left, and soon it was time for dinner, in Animator’s Palate. Tonight was the Captain’s Gala. In AP, the theme was something about being a family, and towards the end of dinner, Mickey, Minnie, and friends came in and danced around the room. Of course, the dinner ended with Molly’s birthday cake, and a rousing chorus of Happy Birthday from Octavian (who also made a superb paper origami flower), Ranzil, and their pals.

After dinner, we shopped in Mickey Mates. Lu had planned to see Disney Dreams, but instead wanted to watch our entry into Barcelona. So, we watched from our verandah until 10:15 pm, when it was time to go up to Deck 10 to watch the fireworks for our welcome to Barcelona. To put it mildly, it was the equivalent of the fireworks from Disneyworld. IT WAS FANTABULOUSTASTIC!! They were shot off the starboard side, and off the port side was a helicopter obviously watching. The fireworks were set off in the port, and you could see the flashes coming from the cameras from the other cruise ship in port.

Well, once the fireworks were over, we headed to the Walt Disney theater to wait for entry into the theater at 11:00, to wait for the start of POC3 at 12:01. The bad news is that it is 2 hours and 48 minutes long, and we have an excursion leaving at 9:15 in the morning. You do the math. But here we sit, ready to watch.

It’s been a great day - tomorrow we will see a bit of Barcelona, then it’s our last night. Depending on how many minutes we have left, we may not post until Saturday. But we will post, so keep checking in!!

Molly:
High: How awesome I looked all day
Low: Staying up for POC3
Maribeth:
High: Connie/Kumi/Hilda visit
Low: Being in front of the ship’s horn when it went off
Luanne:
High: Fireworks!
Low: Rum tasting