Vacation Thoughts/Plans/Dreams

In August 2003, Rich and I embarked on what was my first and, I quickly concluded, last cruise.  One of my favorite bands (Tonic) had joined the Rock Boat that year and I can't remember the specifics but the cost was fairly inexpensive, so off we went.  The ship was the Carnival Sensation and while I'd lived most of my life in an non-fancy world and was perfectly fine with vacationing in simple hotels, our cabin was not what I expected.



Behind that curtain was a wall.  Why bother? I say.

Other reasons why I wasn't wowed by the cruise:

1. There was a constant odor in our cabin's bathroom.
2. The food was unlimited but if you wanted a soda, you paid extra for it or purchased a soda card.  I hate being nickel and dimed, especially over something as inexpensive as soda.
3. Our excursion in Cozumel was to a beach club that was a bit sketchy.  

When all was said and done, I vowed to never partake in another cruise.

Over the past few years, I've been told that we should go on a Disney cruise.  It's really, really awesome!  You'd have SO much fun!  You have to try it!  Meh, is always my response.  Cruises aren't for me.  But for some reason whilst buried under five feet of snow last month, I found myself looking at Disney cruises.  One weekend, the girls and I read through a trip report on the disboards and now they want to go on a Disney cruise.  I have to say that the staterooms/cabins/whatever you want to call them look soooo nice.  I would need a verandah though.

Reasons why I would pick Disney over the other cruise lines:

1. Unlimited free soda!  (For me, not the children.  They do not drink soda.)
2. Disney is the only cruise line to employ all methods available to indicate man overboard.
3. Illness outbreaks on cruises are tracked by the Center for Disease Control.  I searched through their website and Disney has only had two incidents in over ten years.  
4. Entertainment that would appeal to the kids.
5. Think of the customs!

Unfortunately, it will be awhile before I find myself basking in the sun on Castaway Cay.  Disney is expensive and finding available time between the girls' school, Rich's work and my work for a vacation isn't easy.  We had tentatively planned to return to Disney World sometime in 2016, perhaps the summer.  Now, I'm not so sure.

So what about this summer?  Well, I really want to make a trip out to Michigan to visit with my grandparents and family there.  We would drive (as always) and stop at Niagara Falls, which would be a new experience for the girls.  We were hoping to leave right after the school year ended as that would fit in well with my work schedule but then, of course, we were hit with snow day after snow day and now school is ending too late for us to squeeze this in.  So for now, that's a later in the summer trip.  We do have definite plans to return to New Hampshire.  It will be a slightly different trip as we will be renting a house with family and plan to check out nature.  There's so much to see up there that we haven't.

I'm still obsessed with returning to Hawaii, perhaps because I'm perpetually cold.  Still trying to figure out how to fly our family there for under $6,000.  It's a frequent google search.