Disney Cruise Line Caribbean Cruise - Part 1
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A view from Deck 5 of the Art Deco Atrium and the breath taking Festa Venezia I chandelier
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As we gaped at the ornate ness and splendour of the atrium with its full size Helmsman Mickey (ironically, first seen by us facing the Cape Cod section of American Waterfront at Tokyo Disney Seas) commanding over the area, with glass-encased elevators effortlessly descending and ascending through the mid-ship section and the friezes that decorated each balcony that overlooked the atrium. Walt Disney Imagineering designed the Helmsman as inspired by The Man at the Wheel, a statue created in 1923 by Leonard Craske, which is currently housed at Gloucester in Massachusetts. The original is inscribed with the words, "They that go down to the sea in ships", which has always served as a monument to the bravery and dedication of sailors everywhere, as well as a wish that all sailors return safely to their home ports.
Closer inspection of the Dale Chihuly chandelier reveals the multi-faceted trumpets and
flutes
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The stunning Helmsman Mickey keeps a watchful eye over the atrium
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However, the crowning achievement of this spectacular entrance is the stunning Dale Chihuly sculpture that is fixed into a mirrored ceiling. The complex series of glass trumpets and flutes in a myriad of colours was a total surprise for us as we are both fans of Chihuly and neither of us knew that he had received a commission from DCL. Chihuly Studios are so meticulous that they even constructed a full size replica of the three-storey atrium to discover how the sculpture would look in its new home. Later we discovered that the sculpture is actually a first for Chihuly, as for safety reasons it was not possible to display a glass chandelier (the preferred medium of Chihuly Studios) and therefore his artisans had to create a special blend of acrylic and glass to ensure that the sculpture has the look and refractive qualities of glass, but would also not smash should it become dislodged from its ceiling mounts. The chandelier is made up of more than 500 trumpets that weave throughout the giant sculpture.
We quickly found our bearings and moved on to our stateroom on Deck 5 Aft. Our travel agent had recommended this section of the ship as there are only a handful of the Disney Magic’s 850 cabins here and it is remarkably quiet, but only seconds from a staircase. As promised, our luggage was waiting our arrival and we began to check out our new home for the week ahead. The room was considerably more spacious than I had expected. DCL is exceptionally proud of the fact that their staterooms are around 25% larger than the industry average. This extra space allows for a small lounge, with desk, couch, coffee table and T.V. The cabin feels more than just a place to sleep. Many people had said that on their non-Disney cruises, they could not spend time in their staterooms due to the feeling of claustrophobia and the lack of space. Our cabin was roomy and had some deft Disney touches, like a framed portrait of Walt & Lillian Disney on the Rex, (an Italian vessel that took them across the Atlantic in 1934) a concept image by the late Marc Davis from Pirates of the Caribbean (courtesy of the WDI Library) and a huge reproduction of one line of music, complete with notes and lyrics from A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes above the bed. The chest of drawers is an upturned chest complete with leather handle! The room had considerable closet space and amply absorbed all of our belongings in minutes (a highly unusual feat for any hotel room)! The bathroom is split into two, with a basin, bath and shower in one section and toilet and another washbasin in a second room.
A $35 all-you-can-drink (soft drinks that is!) mug and the inaugural fans!
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