Heading to those white cliffs of Dover

We woke early on Sunday morning, partly excitement and partly not wanting to miss the Disney bus. We spoke to the Disney representative in the lobby and she confirmed that our luggage would be picked up from our room and brought down to the bus.

Mike and I headed to breakfast in the Gatwick airport terminal and checked out the shops - we were looking for Worcestershire flavored chips for a friend of ours. Alas, no chips. This became a recurring theme across our trip.

We returned to the lobby and saw our luggage sitting with the rest of the group's luggage waiting to be taken to the bus. It was a short wait until we were told we could head to the bus. Waiting for us was our little reserved sign.

A short time later, we were off heading to the port of Dover. Other than a brief stop on the side of the road to double check that the baggage doors beneath the bus were properly locked, the trip was uneventful.

The highway into Dover

Dover harbor and Dover Castle in the distance

We disembarked the bus and left the cruise line staff to handle our baggage, much like at Port Canaveral. Check-in was uneventful, they gave us our boarding number and released us into the terminal. At this time, the building was packed and was standing room only.

Finally boarding began by number, ie 1... 2... etc. There was a few rowdy people attempting to jump the line by pretending to pass off a card with #10 as #1, but the people in charge were not having it. Must be a British thing... mind the queue and wait your turn.

After several groups had been called, Mike and I were allowed to jump the line. How? We made our way into the loading room and waited in the corner. There was a lull in the passengers and the person in charge of the queue called us over and allowed us to board. Your mileage may vary, but it helps if you don't act line a moron, calmly wait your turn, and don't feel entitled to anything extra... you know, act like a decent human being.

We headed to Cariocas for our buffet lunch. I had only eaten in Parrot Cay, (the restaurant that was in place before the change over to Cariocas), a few times before, but I quite liked the new decor. It had been reimagined in a Rio/Brazilian theme. Alas, I didn't take any pictures of it on this trip, but you can see some of the pictures from other travelers here: Cariocas on the Disney Magic/Wonder.

After lunch, we explored the ship and took some of these pictures:

Not long after these pictures were taken, the Disney Magic left port and headed north to Newcastle.