Return to Disney World-- June 22 to 29

Early morning pool side at Animal Kingdom Lodge's Jambo House. On the first night of the recent vacation we had a studio room which we switched out to a one-bedroom with a kitchen at Kidani Village for the rest of the trip. 

The lobby at Jambo House.

A beautiful and massive headdress made by the Igbo people of Nigeria.

Morning view on the balcony of the one-bedroom at Animal Kingdom Lodge's Kidani Village. The building catering more to the Disney Vacation Club members.

Me with Pixar characters Sadness and Joy at EPCOT

Oceanic Close Encounters

For most Americans, things don't get more patrician than standing on the lido deck of the Disney Magic cruise ship as it sails through Caribbean waters. There are far more elite cruise lines, some so expensive that the brochures do not list the prices for their little fifteen to twenty day jaunts around the south Pacific or leisurely Mediterranean voyages. The idea being that if you have to know the prices of such trips before hand, you certainly can't afford them.

Don't get me wrong, while my family and I have been on three Disney cruises, the price for those vacations were nearly beyond our means. Fully knowing my following statement will sound like a blatant advertisement for what largely amounts to a soulless corporation, but Disney cruises are worth every penny.

On each of our three trips, when my family and I finally retired to our cabin for the night it was because of exhaustion from the activities. Yes, there were days devoted to relaxing, and if that is your main purpose, a person can easily find secluded and quiet places on the ship to read a book or listen to music for the entire trip. When my wife and I finally do another Disney cruise, that is exactly my plan. By that time the kids will be mostly on their own, and we have no intention of bringing the crumb snatchers.

Back when the kids were younger they were the main reason for the trips to begin with. But each morning I made a point of getting up before my wife and them and grabbing a cup of coffee to enjoy some alone time. Strolling the decks right before sunrise you almost have the ship to yourself. Sure, there are others up and about like the fitness types and the odd late night strangler but you mostly see folks like myself just wanting a bit of solitude before the energetic hordes emerge.

It was on our last Disney cruise in January of 2011 that I had one of those special moments that I hope never to forget. It was the second or third day of the cruise, and as usual I sneaked out of the cabin leaving my wife and daughter still fast asleep. The sun had just begun to break the horizon as I walked on the lido deck heading towards the gigantic coffee pots situated close to the restaurant where the buffet breakfast would be served a couple of hours later.

After getting my cup of coffee, I found a nearby seat looking out over the ocean to enjoy the beginning of a new day. As the minutes ticked by the rising sun created an orange hue across the water. While the overall weather was calm and clear, the ocean seemed a bit choppy with countless small waves colliding together sending up small splashes of water that twinkled as they caught the sunlight going down. The scene by itself was one of those picturesque moments true photographers would have twisted themselves and their cameras into pretzels to catch ever visible nuance.

I did attempt to reach for my camera, which should have been in the right side cargo pocket of my shorts, only to realize that in my haste to leave the cabin as quickly and quietly as possible, I had left it behind. Going back for it would have been futile, by the time I returned to my spot the conditions would have changed so I just sat back and enjoyed the subtle play of light across the water. Hindsight always being more perceptive than the present, it wasn't ten minutes later that another circumstance appeared that caused me to wish I had gone after my camera.

The buffet-style restaurant and the adjoining beverage station were at the ship's stern. And the spot I was sitting allowed me a decent view of the latter half of the port side of the ship. Right before I was about to get my second cup of coffee, I noticed a section of the ocean that was far more choppy than the rest. It didn't take long for me to realize that it was a pod of dolphins on what amounted to an intercept course for the cruise ship.

Of course, I was enthralled watching the pod catch up with the ship and then swim alongside. That wasn't all, as the dolphin leaped through the air, I saw them tilting the side of their bodies facing the ship upward. Anthropomorphizing the behavior of animals is bad practice, but it appeared as if the pod as a whole was inspecting the ship.

No big deal, it's well recorded that cetaceans are curious animals who interact with humans on occasion while in the wild. So it was no stretch to think that this pod, being open ocean swimmers in well trafficked waters, had encountered human ships in the past. What I still wonder about though is were there any inter-dolphin communications going on between the members of that pod as they swam alongside the Disney Magic? Were there any dolphin discussions on what they thought the purpose of the Disney Magic, since I imagine people riding around on a big ship for pleasure is a completely alien concept to them.

While the scientific reports I have read strongly suggest dolphins are not sentient, they are still incredibly intelligent animals with sophisticated communications abilities among themselves. I'm the type of person who freaks out at the idea of understanding what other intelligent species, both terrestrial and the hypothetical extraterrestrial type, think of humans and their creations. Truthfully, I realize their opinions of us is probably quite low since humans tend to screw up things and destroy far more than we preserve and build.

For several minutes the dolphins kept pace with the ship, but just as suddenly as they appeared some group decision was made and they veered off almost perpendicular to the direction we were going. That's the thing that still causes me to wonder in amazement, did some pod leader suddenly announce to the group the side trip was over or was there the equivalent of a vote? Because while I have no evidence the pod had an ultimate destination they were trying to reach, the way the group just changed direction makes me think they had a particular place they wanted to be.

It wasn't long before the dolphin pod was gone from sight once again leaving me to my thoughts. While my encounter with them was tenuous at best, I count it as one of the best parts of that trip.

Declassified Disney Cruise Pictures

My return to normalcy after the cruise has been a rocky road, my head still exists in some different realm of tropical palm trees, lazy beach bars, blatant and unhealthy overeating, and attractive ladies cavorting around on sandy beaches  in tiny bikinis. Nightly, I find myself dreaming about the Caribbean and realizing, like Jimmy Buffett said, "my occupational hazard is my occupation is just not around." So as much as I might want to don my Captain Jack Sparrow hat, seize some harbor queen sailboat down in Charleston, and make like the mythical and fun loving pirates of old but I'm stuck with these sorry ass pictures from the January cruise.    

Last time I offered up a series of Key West pictures showing off my walkabout exploring a small section of the island while visiting a few of the bars and soaking up as much of the atmosphere as possible. As much as I have heard former residents and long-time visitors complain about the abuse of that paradise I would still jump at a chance to not only stay down there longer but live there if I could afford it. Now dreaming further into the improbable the picture above is of Wisteria Island located 645 yards off Key West and around it are scores of liveaboard sailboats. From what I have learned the island was created in the 1890's to the early 1900's as a result of repeated dredging operations. Despite its artificial origins I find it picturesque and if I owned a sailboat it looks like a small piece of heaven that I would anchor at over the winter months. I have read a few places that there have been several recent battles with the usual evil developer unable to leave any piece of land alone and wanting to build condominiums on it. From what I have read as of right now any plans for development have been shelved but those slimy bastards never give up.  

We arrived at Grand Cayman on Tuesday and had to take a tender from the ship to the island. The harbor had all sorts different ships anchored there from three Carnival ships, hundreds of large yachts and sailboats, and one pirate ship. From what I heard its a tourist attraction with daily trips around the island. The crew is, of course, dressed in pirate costumes and somehow makes one of the tourists walk the plank during the short voyage. Given my pirate tendencies I would love to sign on as a member but I would probably takes things too seriously like feeding irritating American tourists to the sharks.      

Why yes, yes I did. Given the priorities of Homeland Security I expect stormtroopers at my door any minute.

Seven Mile Beach, I am usually not big on crowded beaches but I met a lot of fantastic people from around the world. I did find one thing slightly bothersome, when I finally revealed I was from South Carolina to these people not only did a lot of them start to snicker but were surprised at how normal I behaved. Yes, South Carolina's reputation is world wide and not of the good sort. As for my friends thinking I behaved normally, I did nothing out of the ordinary to change their minds but I was only around them for a short time. 

Right off the beach was a great bar called Calico Jacks. This open air beach bar was a little slice of heaven. One of the bartenders was a twenty-something American girl who told me that she came down to Grand Cayman on spring break one year and decided to stay.  She told me her parents are rich New Englanders who had her life planned out after college going as far as setting up many attempts to get her interested in the son of another couple. In an open rebellion during that spring break she lucked out finding a job and just stayed when her friends went back home. Also had a great time at the bar talking with Japanese couple, a retired British gentleman, and a Russian dude who said little during the conversation but what he did say made me think he was former Spestnaz. 

Call me a heretic but after spending time on this vacation in Orlando, Key West, and Grand Cayman all which have Margaritaville restaurants which you might expect I would beat a path to each and everyone but I avoided them all like the plague. I really don't care for chain restaurants in any form, even those owned by Jimmy. While it has blown up in my face several times I like finding out of the way places that my wife sarcastically calls "greasy spoons." All I can say for anyone who visits Grand Cayman is that Paradise Restaurant is not a greasy spoon and I highly recommended you stop by and sample their food. It is not gourmet cuisine by any means but it is great simple food, in a great seaside location, with a exceptionally friendly staff. While there try a bottle of Caybrew beer, made right there on the island.   

On one of the days at sea Dragonwife and I signed up for a tequila tasting seminar. One of the bartenders lectured us on all the types of tequila and what they were used for but since that wonderful Mexican beverage flowed freely every time my shot glass was empty one of the attentive waiters filled it up again. Because of that things quickly started to fade in the background like the lecture. Dragonwife tells me it was very informative and I will have to take her word for it. Now how I ended up in at the Goofy pool wearing a hula skirt and coconut bra I'll never know and probably do not want to find out.    

Never one to learn from my mistakes Dragonwife and  I did a beer tasting a few days later with me doing my duty as a husband saving my lovely wife from having to suffer the effects of any possible hangover by drinking her samples as well. Yeah, there was a lecture for this one as well but I did not sign up for this thing to hear someone speak.  

Wednesday we docked at Cozumel, Mexico but some sort of storm beat us to port and  ruined most excursions including the jamming beach party that was suppose to have everything at it up to naked volleyball. (Just joking, remember this was Disney although I have heard of such things.)  

Castaway Cay, Disney's private island in the Bahamas. A glorified sandbar without any natural fresh water supply but for me yet another slice of heaven that I would have willingly stayed if asked. Disney has a permanent staff of about fifteen on the island who maintain the facilities with the cruise ship's crew augmenting activities and duties when its there. The entire fresh water supply used on the island is generated by the ship when it is docked at the island. Scuttlebutt has that Disney is trying to get a solar powered desalination plant going on the island with the possibility that when operational some sort of overnight facilities might be constructed. Disney has a timeshare-like business and when polled members always pick Castaway Cay as the place they would like to see a new resort built. That is all well and good and given the location I might make an exception to my usual distaste at rabid development but the possibility of numerous hurricanes striking the island will probably prevent any construction. 

     

Just a shot of the beach, the water was crystal clear but unusually cold, even for January but that did not stop me from going snorkeling in the lagoon. 

The cabin was comfortable and the guy who was our steward did a excellent job keeping thing clean and organized. I hate to sound ungrateful but after a couple of days I was getting uneasy with the degree of service the steward provided. This is hard to explain but I hate the idea of ever being described as the "Ugly American" and while the steward was just doing his job I am just a common dude who does not expect anyone to make a fuss over me. A rich man might like his every whim met like his bed turned down every evening, his clothes ironed and put away,  and new towels supplied to the room three times a day but that is just not me. The problem with my proletariat viewpoint though was our steward was a guy from India who depends on good reviews to keep his job along with most of his salary and tips being sent straight home. So Dragonwife made sure he got an excellent review and a tip far larger than that suggested.     

Miss Wiggles doing some minor snorkeling with me before running out of the water because she was freezing. It may have been the cooler water temperatures but I was disappointed with the lack of tropical fish in the area. I got a few shots but none were decent and the fish I caught on camera were almost invisible in the pictures.  

Disney has created an underwater trail for snorkelers made of fake artifacts, statues, and even a sunken submarine. I spent ten minutes trying to get a decent picture of this sunken statue of Minnie Mouse but a couple of middle-aged boneheads kept hovering around it and even standing on the thing. The last thing I wanted were pictures of some pale, fat dude with his feet on top of Minnie's private parts.

One of the sunken artifacts which in this case might have been a real observation sphere. I was told by a lifeguard that one of the submarines that was part of Disney World's "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" attraction was sunk on the far end of the lagoon but I never could make it that far out. Halfway out I started shivering and had to turn around and go back to the beach.

Miss Wiggles getting her hair braided.  Needless to say we had a great time but given the global situation with gas prices going into orbit and the economy that refuses to recover I doubt we will be doing another cruise anytime soon.

Nomad Feet Around Key West

When you last saw pictures from your intrepid Parrothead he had just returned to the Disney Magic from his walkabout/barcrawl in Key West. Because the Mouse charged an arm, leg, along with a very important part of his male anatomy for wifi access on the ship he was forced to limit the pictures from his adventures that day.  Never fear! I have long since returned to the confines of evil suburbia and will now share a few of the images I took.  The above picture, which for unstated reasons I liked a lot, was taken outside the Key West Museum of Art and History at the old Customs House. There were several other pieces of art outside the old Customs house with this one the most provocative. In fact it was so provocative it was a test of "moral" standards as the throngs of passengers from the ship passed by and fanned out across the island. As I hung around I saw actual families guide their kids away from the statues and restrict their children's  wandering eyes. I guess this is one of those situations where personal judgment comes into play but folks, this was Key West after all.  

There is much that draws me to Key West beside the obvious, and frankly overdone, Jimmy Buffett connection. Another draw for me to this nearly spoiled paradise is the history of artists and writers that have come to the quirky island seeking sanctuary from the stifling normality that pervades most of the United States. I have heard many say that spirit of unbridled creativity and original thought in Key West has suffered as the greedy developers and uber-rich have moved in forcing many locals and other more subversive elements out. Yeah, I can see it because much of the same thing is happening on the coast of South Carolina as the building of outlet malls, golf courses, and seaside suburban developments destroy centuries-old fishing villages and wetlands while running running poorer working folks inland. Still though holdouts remain, as I was walking down Whitehead Street I noticed this serious cool cottage and thought to myself the small house something akin to heaven. For those who do not know my usual addle brain dropping I regularly offer up I don't need any damn McMansion wedged between anal retentive A-holes who hold up inside their homes not too unlike the insane and late Unibomber. I'd rather live in a small home like that in a warm place with the ocean nearby.

But anyway, if you look at the left-side of the picture you will notice the beginnings of a large hedge that almost obscured from view of the next small cottage. As I moved on down the street my super-duper army training (yeah, I'm serious) allowed me to see some small movement behind it. Standing very still on the sidewalk I saw an old man sitting at a patio table painting a picture. My position had me directly behind his canvas so I have no idea what his painting looked like although to my dying day I will wonder. The artist's palate, placed beside his canvas on the table, was full of colors and while to me the artist looked beyond ancient for about a minute I watched his steady hand apply color to his work. I almost took a picture of him then I realized, thankfully, it would have been a huge and unforgivable invasion of his privacy. This might seem silly but as I moved on I realized this would be one of the highlights of my entire trip.           

Key West has been the center of several controversies as forces of freedom and liberty battle the prudes, greedy developers, and the perpetually uptight fearful that something will come and threaten their special position in the status quo. One of those battles was over the continued existence of the Key West "Gypsy" chickens. If I have the story right by 1890 over half of the population of Key West was Cubans seeking refuge from strife in their home country. The Cubans brought their love of "cockfighting" and I guess a few of the birds escaped. The escaped birds linked up with freed domestic chickens and after Mother Nature took her DNA encoded course created the birds that still strut around the island today.

The controversy developed as fears of bird-flu increased these last few years (mid-2000's) with the always proper and stiff normals scared the birds might be feathered Grim Reapers putting an end to their social affairs and golf excursions. I read about several round-ups and outright calls for extinction of the free feathered fellows. Thankfully I ran into many of these Key West residents and all I can say is FIGHT THE MAN, dudes.         

My original intention once Dragonwife and Miss Wiggles had left the ship for their visit to the butterfly garden was to make my way down to the Southern most point marked by the red and black buoy. When I got down there the line to pose for a picture in front of the icon was about as long as something you would see in Disney World, if not longer.  It was damn near chaos as well with people doing their best to pose next and in front of each other. The crowd seemed good natured enough and friendly but it was more of a hassle that I wanted so I walked further down to the nearby beach. 

As I drifted around I found this sign saying Tennessee Williams hung out here back in the day. Truthfully, there are many great things about this era we find ourselves living in like the internet and other really cool things. But our numbers and inventions have overwhelmed the planet and created a pace of life, here in America, that I believe is literally driving people crazy. While I completely and totally realize there is not a damn thing I can do about the situation other than soldier on and try and do things to make the world a better place I often find myself wondering about those times when things were simpler and in many ways better. It would have been totally cool to be on Key West back when Williams, Hemingway, and President Harry Truman were part of the local scene.

 

I have promised many times to post a few pictures of various ladies sunning themselves on the beach. This was taken on a cement pier jutting out into the water. South Beach is freaking small and far too packed for my liking, While I was sitting out on that pier I noticed this man at the end talking with a young couple who were fishing. What got my attention was that the young couple were sharing a two-part fishing pole. The young lady was using the lower half of the pole with the reel still attached and the guy was using the upper half with the fishing line tied to the bottom guide and strung through the others. It was a strange sight but believe it or not they were catching fish just minutes after throwing out their baited hooks. The kicker in all this was the old gentlemen standing next them singing 1940's love ballads. After each song he would say something about his lost love then move on to another tune. Since this was a public place I began recording the singing fella with the video function of my camera but I had a group of people start to walk in front of me and it destroyed both the view and sound.

On my way down to the ocean I passed Ernest Hemingway's home, I had every intention of going inside on my way back up but by that time the line to get inside was longer than at the Southern most point marker. Just something I have to look forward to on my next trip. Its something I need to address but I have yet to fall in love with Hemingway's writing, I enjoy it now but I have yet to have that religious experience several of my friends get when they read his works. When I returned to work I told my buddy "Tina" about skipping his house and the woman actually threw her french fries at me. Yeah, she is one of the Hemingway worshiping religious types.

After leaving Hemingway's house behind it was then I actively went on my bar crawl that I mention in the last picture post.

Saw this sign and just thought it was really cool to think the late Pan American airlines started in Key West on such a "simple" flight. Despite what others may think I am not anti-capitalist, I find nothing wrong with people taking their ideas, talents, or inventions and making money off it. Yes, I do believe capitalism does unlock the creative potential of the human spirit but I trouble with the concept is how people sell their souls to the god Profit. As much as it will piss off one of my brothers and many other people I know the United States is not, and has never been, a Christian nation. The teachings of Jesus have long since been superseded by the zealots for whom squeezing the last possible cent of Profit out of everything is the sum total and only meaning of their existence. I personally live by my easy going, beach bum, Bob Marley-influenced  attitude but I figure the Jesus dude would burn down Wall Street if he was around today.

Whoa! Talking about digressing in the extreme but moving back on point. Hooking up with Pan American back in the beginning of the golden age of aviation would have been a totally seat-of-the-pants adventure not too far off from some Indiana Jones movie. There was some smart and brave men in women back then. I hope we still have people like that, although from watching the news and seeing the strange lifeforms that parade around on reality shows I have serious doubts.

Okay, calling it quits on this pictorial adventure segment, I can tell must of you have already drifted away and while I have close to 400 more pictures I promise that I will not only keep most of them to myself, I will wait until I get the underwater camera developed before I show anymore.     

Key West Walkabout

Got to be quick because while the resort in Orlando charged out the butt for wifi the Disney ship has truly taken it to another level of piracy. Pulled into Key West today with Dragonwife and Wiggles going off to see a butterfly garden. That left me free to do a walkabout/ bar crawl.

Made it all the way down to the most southern point on the continental United States but the line at the red and black buoy was far too long to even consider waiting for a picture. Instead did a picture at the southernmost house then walked on the nearby beach. Nothing much to talk about except I was the oldest dude there which was uncomfortable and depressing in a way.I remember a time when hot young babes asked how's it going. Now all they ask is how things were.  Middle age is starting to be a bummer.

After that I made my way to the Green Parrot, Blue Heaven, and several other places but it all rather fuzzy now. Internet provider is freaking out and will have to sign off. I apologize for not dropping by the usual places but will get back to everyone as soon as possible