The cruise took place in 1994, making Mary-Kate and Ashley 8 years old when I met them, so they have probably changed since then! Nonetheless, here are some anecdotes about meeting the Olsen twins.

The first time I talked to the twins was at the hotel we stayed at in Miami before boarding the ship. I walked off the elevator with my aunt, and saw these two small girls with a woman. I just kept walking, then it hit me - that was Mary-Kate and Ashley! My aunt convinced me to go back and say hi, so we did. They were SO tiny! I was a little tongue-tied, so my aunt did most of the talking and she talked to mostly to Ashley. Ashley stood there quietly, with her hands clasped behind her back, answering the questions my aunt and I were asking. I asked if cruises were fun; she said yes. Then my aunt asked if they were going to have to work all the time or if they could have fun; Ashley told us they did both. It was a pretty quick conversation, as we didn't want to hold them up for too long. Mary-Kate didn't talk much, she was just jumping at a Christmas present that her nanny (who I now know was Jill Zimmerman) was holding over her head. They were both very sweet and seemed soft-spoken. I wish now that we had taken a picture with them at that point!

The next day, while I was walking onto the ship, I saw Jarnie, Lizzie, and Trent Olsen boarding, too. I smiled and waved at Trent, since he was the only one looking my way, and he waved back.

When I first got onto the ship, I went exploring. I was up on one of the top decks and I looked down. The twins were wearing Santa hats, sitting on the stairs, getting their picture taken. I was quite far away, but of course I snapped a couple of my own pictures. I made my way down to where they were, but by that time they were gone.

On the first night, they brought Mary-Kate and Ashley on stage where they and a few fans did the electric slide together. Then we had a "Photo & Autograph Session", which actually only invloved sitting between the girls, having your picture snapped, then getting a copy of a signed picture. But, they did give all the kids "Christmas gifts" which consisted of a ton of Mary-Kate and Ashley stuff like a t-shirt, a pin, a magnet, a detective kit (complete with magnifying glass and funny glasses) stickers, a poster, 2 of their videos (Thorn Mansion & Logical i Ranch), plus the Give Us A Mystery tape, and a certificate that says I am an official member of the Olsen & Olsen Mystery Agency. (I thought that was pretty cool!)

One day, after my friend Kristi and I had been extras in a scene in the girl's new video, which they were shooting on the cruise, we were standing over by Mary-Kate and Ashley's chairs (you know, the ones that have their names on the back), talking to the director. I asked if I could sit in Mary-Kate's chair, and he said as long as she wasn't using it, it would be fine. So I did. And it was cool. :oP

While I was filming one day, my aunt went on a tour of Mexico. Jarnie, Trent and Lizzie were on the tour and my aunt found out that Lizzie is a major ham. My aunt asked to take her picture and Lizzie readily agreed, unlike Mary-Kate and Ashley, who refused to have their picture taken (there's a little story about that below).

After dinner one night, my friend Kristi and I were leaving and went to get on the elevator. Guess who got on, too? Yep, Mary-Kate and Ashley, along with their nanny. We stood together in silence, until they got off on the Upper Deck. Since we didn't want to have been in an elevator with the Olsen twins without saying something, Kristi told Ashley she liked her outfit (they were dressed in the T-shirts and shorts they were wearing in part of Mystery On The High Seas). Ashley told her, "Thanks", and they walked off the elevator.

I was on Mary-Kate's team for the mummy wrap activity, which is where groups of kids wrap adults in toilet paper and decorate them, and whoever has the best mummy wins. Mary-Kate and I worked together to wrap our adult up (I'd bring the role of toilet paper around one side, then pass it to Mary-Kate, then she'd pass it to me, etc.) Then Mary-Kate, myself, and 2 other girls went to get some ketchup to drizzle on our mummy. We ended up winning, so we got our picture taken and I got to stand right by Mary-Kate.

Another game that was played on the ship was a scavenger hunt type thing. Mary-Kate and Ashley (and me) had been filming, so we got there too late to be on any teams, but Trent was on a team. One of the items on the list was something along the lines of "An article worn by a celebrity", so Trent went over to Mary-Kate and pulled a couple of hairs from his sister's head. He was met with a shriek of "OW!", then he walked up to the judge, saying, "Does this count?" (It didn't)

A word of warning to people who send the girls Christmas and birthday gifts: Don't bother. They aren't allowed to keep them because they get so much stuff. Most of it goes to charity.

Another thing I noticed on the cruise that was pretty sad is that Mary-Kate and Ashley treat their nannies like moms. Instead of asking their mother questions that a mom should be asked, they go to their nannies, even if their mom is right there. For example, on one night, I think it was Ashley, but she didn't feel too well and wanted to go back to the cabin. Her mom was sitting in the room, but whichever twin it was (it's been a few years - I can't remember) went straight to her nanny to ask if she could leave. Kinda sad, huh?

On the second last night, my aunt was sitting talking to William R. Moses, who plays the twin's dad in Mystery On The High Seas, so I went over to chat, too. Soon Mary-Kate came and joined in our conversation. My aunt asked if she could take a picture of me and Mary-Kate and MK told her "Not right now." I was kinda crushed. William came to Mary-Kate's defence, saying "They're shutterbugs as it is." Oh, well. I guess I can't blame her, and at least I have other pictures of us.